Bill Text: IA HF2025 | 2017-2018 | 87th General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: A bill for an act defining infamous crime as election misconduct in the first degree that is vote fraud for the purposes of disqualifying a person from registering to vote and voting and from being a candidate for certain elective offices and limiting such disqualifications to the term of the sentence.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-16 - Subcommittee: Highfill, Koester and T. Taylor. H.J. 104. [HF2025 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2017-HF2025-Introduced.html

---

House File 2025 - Introduced




                                 HOUSE FILE       
                                 BY  HUNTER

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act defining infamous crime as election misconduct in
  2    the first degree that is vote fraud for the purposes of
  3    disqualifying a person from registering to vote and voting
  4    and from being a candidate for certain elective offices and
  5    limiting such disqualifications to the term of the sentence.
  6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
    TLSB 5539YH (5) 87
    ss/jh

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 39.3, subsection 8, Code 2018, is amended
  1  2 to read as follows:
  1  3    8.  "Infamous crime" means a felony election misconduct in
  1  4 the first degree that is vote fraud as defined described in
  1  5 section 701.7 39A.2, subsection 1, paragraph "b", or an offense
  1  6 classified as a felony under federal law and shall not include
  1  7 any misdemeanor or other felony. A person's disqualification
  1  8 on account of the person's conviction of an infamous crime
  1  9 pursuant to Article II, section 5 of the Constitution of the
  1 10 State of Iowa is limited in duration to the period of the
  1 11 person's sentence, and the person's right to vote is restored
  1 12 automatically upon the person's successful discharge of the
  1 13 criminal conviction, including any period of probation or
  1 14 parole, regardless of the person's payment of fines, fees, or
  1 15 restitution.
  1 16    Sec. 2.  Section 39A.1, subsection 2, Code 2018, is amended
  1 17 to read as follows:
  1 18    2.  The purpose of this chapter is to identify actions which
  1 19 threaten the integrity of the election process and to impose
  1 20 significant sanctions upon persons who intentionally commit
  1 21 those acts. It is the intent of the general assembly that
  1 22 offenses with the greatest potential to affect the election
  1 23 process be vigorously prosecuted and strong punishment meted
  1 24 out through the imposition of felony sanctions which, as
  1 25 a consequence, remove the voting rights of the offenders.
  1 26 Other offenses are still considered serious, but based on the
  1 27 factual context in which they arise, they may not rise to
  1 28 the level of offenses to which felony penalties attach. The
  1 29 general assembly also recognizes that instances may arise in
  1 30 which technical infractions of chapters 39 through 53 may
  1 31 occur which do not merit any level of criminal sanction.
  1 32 In such instances, administrative notice from the state or
  1 33 county commissioner of elections is sufficient. Mandates
  1 34 or proscriptions in chapters 39 through 53 which are not
  1 35 specifically included in this chapter shall be considered to be
  2  1 directive only, without criminal sanction.
  2  2    Sec. 3.  Section 43.18, subsection 9, Code 2018, is amended
  2  3 to read as follows:
  2  4    9.  A statement that the candidate is aware that the
  2  5 candidate is disqualified from holding office if the candidate
  2  6 has been convicted of a felony or other an infamous crime as
  2  7 defined in section 39.3 and the candidate's rights have not
  2  8 been restored by the governor, or by the president of the
  2  9 United States, or by operation of section 39.3.
  2 10    Sec. 4.  Section 43.67, subsection 2, paragraph i, Code 2018,
  2 11 is amended to read as follows:
  2 12    i.  A statement that the candidate is aware that the
  2 13 candidate is disqualified from holding office if the candidate
  2 14 has been convicted of a felony or other an infamous crime as
  2 15 defined in section 39.3 and the candidate's rights have not
  2 16 been restored by the governor, or by the president of the
  2 17 United States, or by operation of section 39.3.
  2 18    Sec. 5.  Section 44.3, subsection 2, paragraph i, Code 2018,
  2 19 is amended to read as follows:
  2 20    i.  A statement that the candidate is aware that the
  2 21 candidate is disqualified from holding office if the candidate
  2 22 has been convicted of a felony or other an infamous crime as
  2 23 defined in section 39.3 and the candidate's rights have not
  2 24 been restored by the governor, or by the president of the
  2 25 United States, or by operation of section 39.3.
  2 26    Sec. 6.  Section 45.3, subsection 9, Code 2018, is amended
  2 27 to read as follows:
  2 28    9.  A statement that the candidate is aware that the
  2 29 candidate is disqualified from holding office if the candidate
  2 30 has been convicted of a felony or other an infamous crime as
  2 31 defined in section 39.3 and the candidate's rights have not
  2 32 been restored by the governor, or by the president of the
  2 33 United States, or by operation of section 39.3.
  2 34    Sec. 7.  Section 47.7, subsection 2, paragraph a, Code 2018,
  2 35 is amended to read as follows:
  3  1    a.  On or before January 1, 2006, the state registrar of
  3  2 voters shall implement in a uniform and nondiscriminatory
  3  3 manner, a single, uniform, official, centralized, interactive
  3  4 computerized statewide voter registration file defined,
  3  5 maintained, and administered at the state level that contains
  3  6 the name and registration information of every legally
  3  7 registered voter in the state and assigns a unique identifier
  3  8 to each legally registered voter in the state. The state voter
  3  9 registration system shall be coordinated with other agency
  3 10 databases within the state, including, but not limited to,
  3 11  state department of transportation driver's license records,
  3 12 judicial records of convicted felons persons convicted of
  3 13 infamous crimes as defined in section 39.3 and persons declared
  3 14 incompetent to vote, and Iowa department of public health
  3 15 records of deceased persons.
  3 16    Sec. 8.  Section 48A.6, subsection 1, Code 2018, is amended
  3 17 to read as follows:
  3 18    1.  A person who has been convicted of a felony an infamous
  3 19 crime as defined in section 701.7, or convicted of an offense
  3 20 classified as a felony under federal law 39.3. If the person's
  3 21 rights are later restored by the governor, or by the president
  3 22 of the United States, or by operation of section 39.3, the
  3 23 person may register to vote.
  3 24    Sec. 9.  Section 48A.14, subsection 1, paragraph e, Code
  3 25 2018, is amended to read as follows:
  3 26    e.  The challenged registrant has been convicted of a
  3 27 felony an infamous crime as defined in section 39.3, and the
  3 28 registrant's voting rights have not been restored.
  3 29    Sec. 10.  Section 48A.30, subsection 1, paragraph d, Code
  3 30 2018, is amended to read as follows:
  3 31    d.  The clerk of the district court, or the United States
  3 32 attorney, or the state registrar sends notice of the registered
  3 33 voter's conviction of a felony an infamous crime as defined
  3 34 in section 701.7, or conviction of an offense classified as a
  3 35 felony under federal law 39.3. The clerk of the district court
  4  1 shall send notice of such a felony conviction to the state
  4  2 registrar of voters. The registrar shall determine in which
  4  3 county the felon convicted person is registered to vote, if
  4  4 any, and shall notify the county commissioner of registration
  4  5 for that county of the felony conviction.
  4  6    Sec. 11.  Section 49.79, subsection 2, paragraph f, Code
  4  7 2018, is amended to read as follows:
  4  8    f.  The challenged person has been convicted of a felony an
  4  9 infamous crime as defined in section 39.3, and the person's
  4 10 voting rights have not been restored.
  4 11    Sec. 12.  Section 57.1, subsection 2, paragraph c, Code 2018,
  4 12 is amended to read as follows:
  4 13    c.  That prior to the election the incumbent had been duly
  4 14 convicted of a felony an infamous crime, as defined in section
  4 15 701.7 39.3, and that the judgment had not been reversed,
  4 16 annulled, or set aside, nor the incumbent pardoned or restored
  4 17 to the rights of citizenship by the governor under chapter
  4 18 914, by the president of the United States, or by operation of
  4 19 section 39.3, at the time of the election.
  4 20    Sec. 13.  Section 161A.5, subsection 3, paragraph b, Code
  4 21 2018, is amended to read as follows:
  4 22    b.  Every candidate shall file with the nomination papers
  4 23 an affidavit stating the candidate's name, the candidate's
  4 24 residence, that the person is a candidate and is eligible for
  4 25 the office of commissioner, and that if elected the candidate
  4 26 will qualify for the office. The affidavit shall also state
  4 27 that the candidate is aware that the candidate is disqualified
  4 28 from holding office if the candidate has been convicted of
  4 29 a felony or other an infamous crime as defined in section
  4 30 39.3 and the candidate's rights have not been restored by the
  4 31 governor, or by the president of the United States, or by
  4 32 operation of section 39.3.
  4 33    Sec. 14.  Section 277.4, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code
  4 34 2018, is amended to read as follows:
  4 35    b.  Signers of nomination petitions shall include their
  5  1 addresses and the date of signing, and must reside in the same
  5  2 director district as the candidate if directors are elected
  5  3 by the voters of a director district, rather than at=large.
  5  4 A person may sign nomination petitions for more than one
  5  5 candidate for the same office, and the signature is not invalid
  5  6 solely because the person signed nomination petitions for
  5  7 one or more other candidates for the office. The petition
  5  8 shall be filed with the affidavit of the candidate being
  5  9 nominated, stating the candidate's name, place of residence,
  5 10 that such person is a candidate and is eligible for the office
  5 11 the candidate seeks, and that if elected the candidate will
  5 12 qualify for the office. The affidavit shall also state that
  5 13 the candidate is aware that the candidate is disqualified from
  5 14 holding office if the candidate has been convicted of a felony
  5 15 or other an infamous crime as defined in section 39.3 and the
  5 16 candidate's rights have not been restored by the governor,
  5 17  or by the president of the United States, or by operation of
  5 18 section 39.3.
  5 19    Sec. 15.  Section 376.4, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code
  5 20 2018, is amended to read as follows:
  5 21    b.  The petition must include the affidavit of the individual
  5 22 for whom it is filed, stating the individual's name, the
  5 23 individual's residence, that the individual is a candidate and
  5 24 eligible for the office, and that if elected the individual
  5 25 will qualify for the office. The affidavit shall also state
  5 26 that the candidate is aware that the candidate is disqualified
  5 27 from holding office if the candidate has been convicted of
  5 28 a felony or other an infamous crime as defined in section
  5 29 39.3 and the candidate's rights have not been restored by the
  5 30 governor, or by the president of the United States, or by
  5 31 operation of section 39.3.
  5 32    Sec. 16.  Section 602.8102, subsection 15, Code 2018, is
  5 33 amended to read as follows:
  5 34    15.  Monthly, notify the county commissioner of registration
  5 35 and the state registrar of voters of persons seventeen and
  6  1 one=half years of age and older who have been convicted of a
  6  2 felony an infamous crime, as defined in section 39.3, during
  6  3 the preceding calendar month or persons who at any time during
  6  4 the preceding calendar month have been legally declared to be
  6  5 a person who is incompetent to vote as that term is defined in
  6  6 section 48A.2.
  6  7                           EXPLANATION
  6  8 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  6  9 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  6 10    Article II, section 5, of the Constitution of the State of
  6 11 Iowa denies the privilege of an elector to any person convicted
  6 12 of an infamous crime.  State statute defines infamous crime as
  6 13 a felony conviction under state or federal law.  State law also
  6 14 allows a person who has been discharged from parole, probation,
  6 15 or work release, or who has been released from incarceration
  6 16 upon completion of sentence, to apply to the governor for
  6 17 restoration of the rights of citizenship, which include the
  6 18 rights to register to vote and to vote.  State statute also
  6 19 requires that a candidate for elective office under the laws of
  6 20 the state must be an eligible elector at the time of election.
  6 21 By operation of law, this excludes persons who have been
  6 22 convicted of a state or federal felony and not had their rights
  6 23 of citizenship restored by the governor or the president of the
  6 24 United States.
  6 25    This bill alters the definition of "infamous crime" to
  6 26 include only vote fraud that is election misconduct in the
  6 27 first degree under Code section 39A.2. The bill also limits
  6 28 the disqualification from holding the privilege of an elector
  6 29 due to conviction of an infamous crime to the period of the
  6 30 convicted person's sentence. A convicted person's right
  6 31 to vote and hold office is restored automatically upon the
  6 32 discharge of that person's sentence, including any period of
  6 33 probation or parole, but not including the payment of fines,
  6 34 fees, or restitution.
  6 35    The bill removes references to conviction of a felony under
  7  1 federal law.
       LSB 5539YH (5) 87
       ss/jh