Bill Text: DE SB111 | 2015-2016 | 148th General Assembly | Draft
Bill Title: An Act To Amend Title 15 Of The Delaware Code Relating To Elections
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 11-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-06-11 - Reported Out of Committee (ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES/ELECTIONS) in Senate with 4 On Its Merits [SB111 Detail]
Download: Delaware-2015-SB111-Draft.html
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SPONSOR: |
Sen. Henry & Rep. Viola |
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Sens. McBride, McDowell, Townsend; Reps. Baumbach, Bennett, Kowalko, Lynn, Paradee, B. Short |
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DELAWARE STATE SENATE 148th GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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SENATE BILL NO. 111 |
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AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 15 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ELECTIONS |
Section 1.Amend Subchapter V of Chapter 20, Title 15 of the Delaware Code by making insertions as shown byunderlining and deletions as shown by strike through as follows:
§2036. Deadline to register to vote: primary and general elections.
The last date to register to vote for any
presidential primary, primary, special and
general election shall be thefourth Saturday prior
to the date of the electionday of that election.A person may register to vote at his or her
pollingplace from
7 am to 8 pm by submitting with that person's application a copy of a current
and valid government issued photo identification, or an original or legible
copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or
other governmentdocumentdisplaying thenameandaddressofthepersonregisteringtovote.Theterm"current"whenused in this section as to
forms of identification other than those that are government issued shall mean
the documents must bedated within 60 days prior to the registration date.
(1) Mail
applications postmarked received on
or before the deadline shall be considered to be on-time and shall be immediately
processed as soon as is practicable by the county office of the
Department; and
(2) Applications taken by agencies in accordance
with subchapter VII of this chapter and
received by the county offices of the Department on or before the deadline
shall be considered on-time and shall be processed by thecounty offices of the Department immediatelyas soon as is practicable upon receipt.
§2037. Deadline to register to vote: special
elections.
The last day to register to vote for any special
election shall be 10 days prior to the date of the special election.
§20387.
Registration applications received after a the deadline.
Registration applications received after a
the deadline and on or before the date
of a primary or general election shall be held and processed following that
election.
§20398. Registration applications that update a registrant's record.
Notwithstanding any other provision in this
title, the county offices of the Department may process registrationapplications that change a registrant's address or name
until the day prior to a primary or general of any presidential primary, primary, special, or general election.
Section 2.Amend Chapter 61, Title 15 of the Delaware Code by making insertions as shown byunderlining and deletions as shown by strike through as follows:
§ 6102 Definitions.
(a) The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings ascribed to them except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
(1) "State Election Commissioner" shall mean the State Election Commissioner or the Commissioner's designee.
(2) "Disqualifying felony" shall mean that type of felony set forth in §2, article V of the Constitution of this State which permanently disqualifies any person convicted of such felony from voting.
(3) "Financial
obligations" includes such fees, fines, costs and restitution which a
felony offender may be required to pay as part of the criminal sanctions
imposed upon such offender.
(43) "Full
discharge" or "fully discharged" shall mean that a person
convicted of a criminal offense has served the required sentence of
imprisonment, parole, work release, early release, supervised custody,
probation and community supervision, and has also paid all financial
obligations required by the sentence.
(b) For the purposes of §2 of
article V of the Constitution of this State and for the purposes of this
chapter, no sentence shall be deemed to be expired until a person convicted of
a criminal offense has served the required sentence of imprisonment, parole,
work release, early release, or supervised custody and community supervision and
has also paid all financial obligations and restitution required by the
sentence.
§ 6103 Application for registration: felony conviction reviews.
(a) The county offices of the Ddepartment
of Eelections Department of Elections shall not register any
applicant as a qualified voter until it has been determined that such applicant
is lawfully eligible to vote.The county
offices of the Ddepartment shall, for each registration
application, perform an electronic inquiry against the Criminal Justice
Information System (CJIS) and other data to determine if the applicant has been
convicted of a felony.If the applicant
has not been convicted of a felony and is otherwise eligible to register to
vote pursuant to the Delaware Constitution and this title, the applicant shall be
registered.
(b) If a review by the county offices
of the Ddepartment of Eelections Department of
Elections shows that the applicant has been convicted of a disqualifying
felony, the registration application shall be denied and the applicant shall
not be permitted to register.
(c) If the applicant has been
convicted of a felony which is not disqualifying and the applicant has been
fully discharged, the applicant shall be registered. but the felony
conviction occurred within 5 years preceding the date of the application, then
the registration application shall be denied.
(d) If the results of the (CJIS)
CJIS inquiry cannot determine the eligibility of the applicant, the
respective county offices of the Ddepartment of Eelections
shall forward the application to the State Election Commissioner.
(e) This section shall not apply to registration applications submitted on the day of any presidential primary, primary, special or general election pursuant to §2036 of this Title.For such applications, upon submission of an affidavit signed by the applicant for registration that he or she is not prohibited from voting pursuant to §2, Article V of the Constitution of this State and if the applicant is otherwise eligible to register to vote pursuant to the Delaware Constitution and this title, the respective county office of the Department of Elections shall permit such applicant to vote.As soon as is practicable after Election Day, the county office of the Department of Elections and the Election Commissioner shall submit the application to the felony conviction review required under this Chapter.If the county office of the Department of Elections or the State Election Commissioner determines that the applicant was not a qualified voter because of a felony conviction, it shall refer the applicant to the Department of Justice for prosecution.
§ 6104 Commissioner's review of application.
(a) If the applicant has not
been convicted of a felony within the 5 years preceding the date of the
application, The State Election Commissioner shall request that both
the Office of State Court Collections Enforcement (OSCCE) and the
Department of Correction separately conduct a review and data search of all
records relating to the applicant.
(b) Upon request by the State
Election Commissioner, the OSCCE shall review its records to determine if the
applicant has paid all financial obligations assessed against such applicant.Upon request by the State Election
Commissioner, the Department of Correction shall review its records to determine
if all sentences of imprisonment and community supervision imposed upon the
applicant have been fully discharged.
(c) Where it has been determined that the applicant was convicted of a felony which is not disqualifying, has fully discharged all imposed sentences, and otherwise meets all constitutional and statutory requirements, the applicant shall be permitted to register as a qualified voter.Each stage of the review process shall be completed within a reasonable time.
(d) Where the State Election
Commissioner determines from information received from OSCCE or from the
Department of Correction that there are financial obligations which have not
been paid; or that not all sentences have been fully discharged; or that
other questions or issues relating to the applicant's eligibility are still
unresolved, the Commissioner shall deny the application for registration.Upon denial of an application under this
section, the applicant shall be notified by mail.
Section 2. This act shall become effective October 31, 2018.
SYNOPSIS
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This bill provides for Election Day registration for presidential primary, primary, special, and general elections whereas currently the deadline is the fourth Saturday prior to the date of the election.Moreover, same day registration at polling places will be permitted with submission of valid government issued identification or other generally accepted proof of identification.This bill removes the requirement that a felon has paid all financial obligations, including fines and restitution, before his or her right to vote is restored.Finally, this bill provides that for same day registrations, an affidavit that a registrant is not a prohibited felon replaces an inquiry under CJIS to determine of an applicant has been convicted of a felony. |
Author:Senator Henry
