AB261 - Revises provisions relating to voter registration. (BDR 24-360)

A.B. 261 - *AB261* ASSEMBLY BILL NO. 261–COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE OPERATIONS AND ELECTIONS (ON BEHALF OF THE JOINT INTERIM STANDING COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE OPERATIONS AND ELECTIONS FEBRUARY 19, 2025 ____________ Referred to Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections SUMMARY—Revises provisions relating to voter registration. (BDR 24-360) FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: May have Fiscal Impact. Effect on the State: Yes. CONTAINS UNFUNDED MANDATE (§§ 1, 5) (NOT REQUESTED BY AFFECTED LOCAL GOVERNMENT) ~ EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted. AN ACT relating to elections; requiring, under certain circumstances, that a county or city clerk affirmatively ask whether a registered voter would like to update his or her signature in the voter registration records of the clerk; providing, under certain circumstances, that any signature provided by a voter to cure a mail ballot becomes the voter’s signature for purposes of his or her voter registration; requiring the Secretary of State, rather than the county clerk, to send certain notices to persons who register to vote or update their voter registration using the automatic voter registration system; and providing other matters properly relating thereto. Legislative Counsel’s Digest: Existing law requires, with certain exceptions, that in order to vote a mail 1 ballot, a voter must affix his or her signature on the return envelope in the space 2 provided for the signature. (NRS 293.269917, 293C.26316) Existing law further 3 requires each county or city clerk, as applicable, to check the signature used for the 4 mail ballot. If there is a reasonable question of fact as to whether the signature used 5 for the mail ballot matches the signature of the voter in the records of the clerk, the 6 clerk is required to contact the voter. (NRS 293.269927, 293C.26327) Sections 1 7 and 5 of this bill provide that if the clerk contacts the voter, the clerk must, in 8 – 2 – - *AB261* addition to other requirements, affirmatively ask whether the voter would like to 9 update his or her signature in the records of the clerk. Unless the voter affirmatively 10 declines to update his or her signature: (1) it shall be deemed that the voter 11 consented to update his or her signature; and (2) any signature provided by the 12 registered voter to the clerk becomes the voter’s signature for purposes of his or her 13 voter registration. 14 Existing law requires certain governmental agencies to provide services for 15 automatic voter registration. (NRS 293.5768, 293.57682, 293.57684) The Secretary 16 of State and each automatic voter registration agency are required to cooperatively 17 establish a system by which voter registration information that is collected by the 18 automatic voter registration agency is transmitted electronically to the centralized 19 database of voter registration information for purposes of registering a person to 20 vote or updating the voter registration information of a person. (NRS 293.57686, 21 293.57688) Upon transmission of the information to the database by an automatic 22 voter registration agency, existing law requires the county clerk to determine 23 whether a person is eligible to register to vote in this State. If the person is eligible 24 to vote, the county clerk must immediately mail a notice to the current residence 25 that includes certain information, including: (1) a space for the person to indicate a 26 political party affiliation; (2) a space for the person to affirmatively decline to apply 27 to register to vote or have his or her voter registration updated, as applicable; (3) a 28 statement setting forth the qualifications to vote in this State and that if the person 29 does not meet the qualifications to vote in this State, the person should return the 30 notice and affirmatively decline in writing to register to vote; (4) a statement 31 explaining that the person may affirmatively decline to register to vote or update his 32 or her voter registration information, as applicable; and (5) a statement setting forth 33 the penalties for submitting a false application to register to vote. (NRS 293.57693) 34 Section 4 of this bill instead requires the Secretary of State to send this notice. 35 Section 3 of this bill makes a conforming change to account for the requirement in 36 section 4 that the Secretary of State, rather than the county clerk, send this notice. 37 Section 2 of this bill makes a conforming change to eliminate the requirement that 38 the county clerk provide written notice of the addition or change to the voter 39 registration information of a voter on the statewide voter registration list as a result 40 of the process for automatic voter registration. 41 THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Chapter 293 of NRS is hereby amended by adding 1 thereto a new section to read as follows: 2 1. If a registered voter is contacted by a county clerk pursuant 3 to NRS 293.269927 because there is a reasonable question of fact 4 as to whether the signature used for the mail ballot matches the 5 signature of the registered voter that is available in the records of 6 the county clerk, the county clerk shall, in addition to the 7 requirements set forth in NRS 293.269927, affirmatively ask 8 whether the registered voter would like to update his or her 9 signature in the records of the county clerk. Unless the voter 10 affirmatively declines to update his or her signature in the records 11 of the county clerk: 12 – 3 – - *AB261* (a) It shall be deemed that the voter consented to update his or 1 her signature; and 2 (b) Any signature provided pursuant to NRS 293.269927 by the 3 registered voter to the county clerk becomes the voter’s signature 4 for purposes of his or her voter registration. 5 2. The Secretary of State may adopt any regulations 6 necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. 7 Sec. 2. NRS 293.530 is hereby amended to read as follows: 8 293.530 1. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 293.541: 9 (a) County clerks may use any reliable and reasonable means 10 available to correct the portions of the statewide voter registration 11 list which are relevant to the county clerks and to determine whether 12 a registered voter’s current residence is other than that indicated on 13 the voter’s application to register to vote. 14 (b) A county clerk may, with the consent of the board of county 15 commissioners, make investigations of registration in the county by 16 census, by house-to-house canvass or by any other method. 17 (c) A county clerk shall cancel the registration of a voter 18 pursuant to this subsection if: 19 (1) The county clerk mails a written notice to the voter which 20 the United States Postal Service is required to forward; 21 (2) The county clerk mails a return postcard with the notice 22 which has a place for the voter to write his or her new address, is 23 addressed to the county clerk and has postage guaranteed; 24 (3) The voter does not respond; 25 (4) The voter’s registration information has not been updated 26 by an automatic voter registration agency pursuant to NRS 293.5768 27 to 293.57699, inclusive; and 28 (5) The voter does not appear to vote in an election before 29 the polls have closed in the second general election following the 30 date of the notice. 31 (d) For the purposes of this subsection, the date of the notice is 32 deemed to be 3 days after it is mailed. 33 (e) The county clerk shall maintain records of: 34 (1) Any notice mailed pursuant to paragraph (c); 35 (2) Any response to such notice; and 36 (3) Whether a person to whom a notice is mailed appears to 37 vote in an election, 38  for not less than 2 years after creation. 39 (f) The county clerk shall use any postcards which are returned 40 to correct the portions of the statewide voter registration list which 41 are relevant to the county clerk. 42 (g) If a voter fails to return the postcard mailed pursuant to 43 paragraph (c) within 30 days, the county clerk shall designate the 44 voter as inactive on the voter’s application to register to vote. 45 – 4 – - *AB261* (h) The Secretary of State shall adopt regulations to prescribe 1 the method for maintaining a list of voters who have been 2 designated as inactive pursuant to paragraph (g). 3 [(i) If: 4 (1) The name of a voter is added to the statewide voter 5 registration list pursuant to NRS 293.57693; or 6 (2) The voter registration information of a voter whose name 7 is on the statewide voter registration list is updated pursuant to 8 NRS 293.5752, 9  the county clerk shall provide written notice of the addition or 10 change to the voter not later than 5 working days after the addition 11 or change is made. Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, 12 the notice must be mailed to the current residence of the voter. The 13 county clerk may send the notice by electronic mail if the voter 14 confirms the validity of the electronic mail address to which the 15 notice will be sent by responding to a confirmation inquiry sent to 16 that electronic mail address. Such a confirmation inquiry must be 17 sent for each notice sent pursuant to this paragraph. The notice 18 required pursuant to this paragraph may be provided as part of the 19 notice mailed pursuant to NRS 293.57693.] 20 2. A county clerk is not required to take any action pursuant to 21 this section in relation to a person who preregisters to vote until the 22 person is deemed to be registered to vote pursuant to subsection 2 of 23 NRS 293.4855. 24 Sec. 3. NRS 293.57691 is hereby amended to read as follows: 25 293.57691 1. A county clerk shall not reject as an application 26 to register to vote the information received from an automatic voter 27 registration agency solely on the basis that the information does not 28 contain an electronic facsimile of the signature of the person who is 29 applying to vote or update his or her voter registration information 30 on the statewide voter registration list. 31 2. If the county clerk does not receive an electronic facsimile 32 of the signature of the person from the automatic voter registration 33 agency, the county clerk must obtain the person’s signature or an 34 electronic facsimile of the person’s signature through one of the 35 following methods: 36 (a) Through the notice provided by the [county clerk] Secretary 37 of State to the person pursuant to NRS 293.57693, if the notice is 38 returned to the county clerk by the person and the returned notice 39 includes the person’s signature; 40 (b) Requesting an electronic facsimile of the person’s signature 41 from the Department of Motor Vehicles or another state agency; 42 (c) Requesting the person to submit an electronic facsimile of 43 the person’s signature through a method approved by the Secretary 44 of State; or 45 – 5 – - *AB261* (d) Requesting the person to sign a paper or electronic form the 1 first time the person applies to vote in person at a polling place, 2 including, without limitation, a polling place for early voting by 3 personal appearance. A signature provided by a person pursuant to 4 this paragraph must be compared to one of the forms of 5 identification which may be used individually to identify a voter at 6 the polling place set forth in NRS 293.277 before the person is 7 allowed to vote in person. 8 3. In addition to the requirements of this section and NRS 9 293.2725, a person who is registered to vote pursuant to NRS 10 293.5768 to 293.57699, inclusive, must provide an affirmation 11 signed under penalty of perjury that the person is eligible to vote the 12 first time a person votes in person or by mail ballot if the person has 13 not already provided such an affirmation to the county clerk. 14 Sec. 4. NRS 293.57693 is hereby amended to read as follows: 15 293.57693 1. Upon transmission of the information to the 16 database created by the Secretary of State pursuant to NRS 293.675 17 by an automatic voter registration agency, the county clerk shall 18 collate the information into an individual electronic document, 19 which shall be deemed an application to register to vote. The county 20 clerk shall review the voter registration information transmitted by 21 the automatic voter registration agency to determine whether the 22 person is eligible to register to vote in this State. 23 2. If the county clerk determines that a person is eligible to 24 vote [, the] : 25 (a) The person shall be deemed a registered voter [.] ; 26 (b) The county clerk shall immediately notify the Secretary of 27 State that the person is eligible to vote; 28 (c) The person’s name must appear on the statewide voter 29 registration list and the appropriate roster ; and [the] 30 (d) The person must be provided all sample ballots and other 31 voter information provided to registered voters. 32 3. [In addition to the requirements of subsection 2,] Upon 33 notification by the county clerk that a person is eligible to vote, the 34 Secretary of State shall immediately mail a notice to the current 35 residence of the person. The notice must be in the form prescribed 36 by the Secretary of State and include, without limitation: 37 (a) A space for the person to indicate a political party affiliation; 38 (b) A space for the person to affirmatively decline to apply to 39 register to vote or have his or her voter registration updated, as 40 applicable; 41 (c) A preaddressed return envelope with the address of the 42 appropriate county clerk and postage prepaid; 43 (d) A statement setting forth the qualifications to vote in this 44 State as provided by NRS 293.485 and that if the person does not 45 – 6 – - *AB261* meet the qualifications to vote in this State, the person should return 1 the notice and affirmatively decline in writing to register to vote; 2 (e) A statement explaining that unless the person affirmatively 3 declines in writing to apply to register to vote or have his or her 4 voter registration information updated, as applicable, the person is 5 deemed to have consented to the transmission of information to the 6 database created by the Secretary of State pursuant to NRS 293.675 7 by the automatic voter registration agency for the purpose of [Text truncated for display. 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