Bill Text: TX SB67 | 2021 | 87th Legislature 2nd Special Session | Introduced


Bill Title: Relating to requiring a voter to present proof of identification.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 13-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-08-10 - Filed [SB67 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-SB67-Introduced.html
  87S20190 BRG-D
 
  By: Menéndez, et al. S.B. No. 67
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to requiring a voter to present proof of identification.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 13.002(i), Election Code, as effective
  September 1, 2021, is amended to read as follows:
         (i)  An applicant who wishes to receive an exemption from the
  requirements of Section 63.001(b) on the basis of disability must
  submit:
               (1)  written documentation:
                     (A)  from the United States Social Security
  Administration evidencing the applicant has been determined to have
  a disability; or
                     (B)  from the United States Department of Veterans
  Affairs evidencing the applicant has a disability rating of at
  least 50 percent; and
               (2)  a statement in a form prescribed by the secretary
  of state that the applicant does not have [a form of] identification
  required by Section 63.001(b) in a form described by [acceptable
  under] Section 63.0101.
         SECTION 2.  Sections 63.001(b) and (i), Election Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (h), on offering to
  vote, a voter must present to an election officer at the polling
  place:
               (1)  one form of photo identification listed in Section
  63.0101(a); [or]
               (2)  one form of identification listed in Section
  63.0101(b)(1), (2), or (3) accompanied by the declaration described
  by Subsection (i);
               (3)  two forms of identification listed under Section
  63.0101(b), including one form that contains the voter's current
  address; or
               (4)  two forms of identification listed under Section
  63.0101(b)(4) accompanied by the declaration described by
  Subsection (i).
         (i)  If the requirement for identification prescribed by
  Subsection (b)(1) or (3) is not met, an election officer shall
  notify the voter that the voter may be accepted for voting if the
  voter meets the requirement for identification prescribed by
  Subsection (b)(2) or (4) and executes a declaration declaring the
  voter has a reasonable impediment to meeting the requirement for
  identification prescribed by Subsection (b)(1) or (3). A person is
  subject to prosecution for perjury under Chapter 37, Penal Code, or
  Section 63.0013 for a false statement or false information on the
  declaration. The secretary of state shall prescribe the form of the
  declaration. The form shall include:
               (1)  a notice that a person is subject to prosecution
  for perjury under Chapter 37, Penal Code, or Section 63.0013 for a
  false statement or false information on the declaration;
               (2)  a statement that the voter swears or affirms that
  the information contained in the declaration is true, that the
  person described in the declaration is the same person appearing at
  the polling place to sign the declaration, and that the voter faces
  a reasonable impediment to procuring the identification prescribed
  by Subsection (b)(1) or (3);
               (3)  a place for the voter to indicate one of the
  following impediments:
                     (A)  lack of transportation;
                     (B)  lack of birth certificate or other documents
  needed to obtain the identification prescribed by Subsection
  (b)(1);
                     (C)  work schedule;
                     (D)  lost or stolen identification;
                     (E)  disability or illness;
                     (F)  family responsibilities; and
                     (G)  the identification prescribed by Subsection
  (b)(1) or (3) has been applied for but not received;
               (4)  a place for the voter to sign and date the
  declaration;
               (5)  a place for the election judge to sign and date the
  declaration;
               (6)  a place to note the polling place at which the
  declaration is signed; and
               (7)  a place for the election judge to note which form
  of identification prescribed by Subsection (b)(2) or (4) the voter
  presented.
         SECTION 3.  Sections 63.0101(a) and (b), Election Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The following documentation is an acceptable form of
  photo identification under this chapter:
               (1)  a driver's license, election identification
  certificate, or personal identification card issued to the voter 
  [person] by the Department of Public Safety that has not expired or
  that expired no earlier than four years before the date of
  presentation;
               (2)  a United States military identification card that
  contains the voter's [person's] photograph that has not expired or
  that expired no earlier than four years before the date of
  presentation;
               (3)  a United States citizenship certificate issued to
  the voter [person] that contains the voter's [person's] photograph;
               (4)  a United States passport book or card issued to the
  voter [person] that has not expired or that expired no earlier than
  four years before the date of presentation; [or]
               (5)  a license to carry a handgun issued to the voter 
  [person] by the Department of Public Safety that has not expired or
  that expired no earlier than four years before the date of
  presentation;
               (6)  an official Native American tribal document that:
                     (A)  contains the voter's photograph and address;
  and
                     (B)  is issued by a tribe that is federally
  recognized and located in this state; or
               (7)  any other official government document issued to
  the voter and containing the voter's name, address, and photograph.
         (b)  The following documentation is acceptable as proof of
  identification under this chapter:
               (1)  a government document that shows the name and
  address of the voter, including the voter's voter registration
  certificate;
               (2)  one of the following documents that shows the name
  and address of the voter:
                     (A)  a copy of a current utility bill;
                     (B)  a bank or credit union statement;
                     (C)  a government check; or
                     (D)  a paycheck or pension plan statement; [or]
               (3)  a certified copy of a domestic birth certificate
  or other document confirming birth that is admissible in a court of
  law and establishes the voter's [person's] identity; or
               (4)  two of the following documents issued or delivered
  to the voter, one of which must contain the name and address of the
  voter:
                     (A)  a Medicare, Medicaid, or Department of
  Veterans Affairs identification card or other health insurance
  identification card;
                     (B)  a Department of Defense identification card;
                     (C)  a social security identification card;
                     (D)  a label on a prescription drug container;
                     (E)  an identity bracelet issued by a hospital or
  long-term care facility;
                     (F)  a credit or debit card;
                     (G)  an identification card issued by an employer;
                     (H)  a student identification card issued by a
  public or private high school or institution of higher education;
                     (I)  a library card;
                     (J)  a Texas Department of Criminal Justice
  document indicating release or parole;
                     (K)  a fishing or hunting license;
                     (L)  a lease or mortgage for real property;
                     (M)  a motor vehicle title; 
                     (N)  an insurance certificate, policy
  declaration, or other document demonstrating proof of insurance;
                     (O)  a letter from a public or private school or
  institution of higher education;
                     (P)  a personal check;
                     (Q)  an official Native American tribal document
  that is issued by a tribe that is federally recognized and located
  in this state;
                     (R)  a blood donor card;
                     (S)  a public transportation card; 
                     (T)  a property tax assessment;
                     (U)  a form prescribed by the Internal Revenue
  Service;
                     (V)  a letter from a public conservator,
  court-appointed guardian, or trustee;
                     (W)  a letter of confirmation of residence, letter
  of stay, admission form, or statement of benefits from:
                           (i)  a student residence;
                           (ii)  a nursing home or other long-term care
  facility or a retirement center;
                           (iii)  a shelter; or 
                           (iv)  a soup kitchen;
                     (X)  a document listed in Subdivision (1), (2), or
  (3); or
                     (Y)  another government document containing the
  voter's name.
         SECTION 4.  Section 63.011(b), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (b)  A form for an affidavit required by this section must be
  printed on an envelope in which the provisional ballot voted by the
  person may be placed and must include:
               (1)  a space for entering the identification number of
  the provisional ballot voted by the person; and
               (2)  a space for an election officer to indicate
  whether the person presented [a form of] identification required by
  Section 63.001(b) in a form described by Section 63.0101.
         SECTION 5.  Section 65.0541(a), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  A voter who is accepted for provisional voting under
  Section 63.011 because the voter does not meet the identification
  requirements of Section 63.001(b) may, not later than the sixth day
  after the date of the election:
               (1)  present [a form of] identification required by
  Section 63.001(b) in a form described by Section 63.0101 to the
  voter registrar for examination; or
               (2)  execute an affidavit described by Section
  65.054(b)(2)(B) or (C) in the presence of the voter registrar.
         SECTION 6.  Section 86.006(a-1), Election Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (a-1)  The voter may deliver a marked ballot in person to the
  early voting clerk's office only while the polls are open on
  election day. A voter who delivers a marked ballot in person must
  present identification required by Section 63.001(b) in a [an
  acceptable] form [of identification] described by Section 63.0101.
         SECTION 7.  This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
  last day of the legislative session.
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