BILL REQ. #:  H-3621.1 

Read first time 01/10/2006.   Referred to Committee on State Government Operations & Accountability.

     AN ACT Relating to use of nontraditional addresses for voter registration purposes; amending RCW 29A.08.112 and 29A.08.107; and adding a new section to chapter 29A.04 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 29A.04 RCW to read as follows:
     "Residential address" or "traditional address" means the place where the voter resides.

Sec. 2   RCW 29A.08.112 and 2005 c 246 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
     No person registering to vote, who meets all the qualifications of a registered voter in the state of Washington, shall be disqualified because of a nontraditional address being used as a residence address. Voters who have a traditional address must provide their traditional address for voter registration purposes, and they may not choose to use a nontraditional address as an alternate address. Voters using such an address will be registered and assigned to a precinct based on the location provided. Voters without a traditional address will be registered at the county courthouse, city hall, or other public building near the area that the voter considers his or her residence. Registering at a nontraditional address will not disqualify a voter from requesting ongoing absentee voter status if the voter designates a valid mailing address.
     For the purposes of this section, "nontraditional address" includes shelters, parks, or other identifiable locations that the voter deems to be his or her residence.

Sec. 3   RCW 29A.08.107 and 2005 c 246 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The secretary of state must review the information provided by each voter registration applicant to ensure that the provided driver's license number, state identification card number, or last four digits of the Social Security number match the information maintained by the Washington department of licensing or the Social Security administration. If a match cannot be made, the secretary of state or county auditor must correspond with the applicant to resolve the discrepancy.
     (2) If the applicant fails to respond to any correspondence required in this section to confirm information provided on a voter registration application within forty-five days, the applicant will not be registered to vote. The secretary of state shall forward the application to the appropriate county auditor for document storage.
     (3) Only after the secretary of state has confirmed that the provided driver's license number, state identification card number, or last four digits of the applicant's Social Security number match existing records with the Washington department of licensing or the Social Security administration, or determined that the applicant does not have a driver's license number, state identification card number, or Social Security number may the applicant be placed on the official list of registered voters.
     (4) In order to prevent duplicate registration records, all complete voter registration applications must be screened against existing voter registration records in the official statewide voter registration list. If a match of an existing record is found in the official list, the record must be updated with the new information provided on the application. If the new information indicates that the voter has changed his or her county of residence, the application must be forwarded to the voter's new county of residence for processing.
     (5) At least annually, the secretary of state shall search the residential addresses of all voter registration records in the voter registration data base for major public building addresses throughout the state. For purposes of this subsection, "major public buildings" includes city, county, state, and federal administrative buildings, courthouses, and police stations.
     (a) For each search result, the secretary of state shall determine whether the voter is properly registered at the major public building under a lawful program that permits the voter to use a nontraditional address as his or her residential address, such as the address confidentiality program as defined in chapter 40.24 RCW.
     (b) If it appears that the voter has improperly listed a public building as a residence for purposes of voter registration, the secretary of state shall send notice by certified mail to the voter of the apparent improper residential address. The notice shall provide that the voter must respond within thirty days of the date of the notice by providing the secretary of state with: (i) The voter's actual residential address, or (ii) evidence that he or she is properly registered at the major public building. The notice shall also advise the voter of the penalties for providing false information on an application for voter registration.
     (c) If the voter fails to respond within thirty days to the secretary of state's satisfaction, the secretary of state shall forward a copy of all relevant information to the prosecuting authorities.