5511-S2

AN ACT Relating to voter registration by mail; amending RCW 29.10.180; adding a new chapter to Title 29 RCW; repealing RCW 29.07.040; prescribing penalties; and providing an effective date.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, "by mail" means delivery of a completed original voter registration form by mail, by personal delivery, or by courier to a county auditor.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The county auditor is responsible for the conduct of voter registration under this chapter within the county. Except where inconsistent with this chapter, the remaining provisions of Title 29 RCW apply to registration by mail.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. Any elector of this state may register to vote by mail under this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The county auditor shall distribute forms by which a person may register to vote by mail and cancel any previous registration in this state. The county auditor shall keep a supply of voter registration forms in his or her office at all times for political parties and others interested in assisting in voter registration, and shall make every effort to make these forms generally available to the public. The county auditor shall provide voter registration forms to city and town clerks, state offices, schools, fire stations, and any other locations considered appropriate by the auditor for extending registration opportunities to all areas of the county. After the initial distribution of voter registration forms to a given location, a representative designated by the official in charge of that location shall notify the county auditor of the need for additional voter registration supplies.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. In addition to the information required under RCW 29.07.070, when registering to vote by mail under this chapter, the applicant shall sign a portion of the form that can be used as an initiative signature card for the verification of petition signatures by the secretary of state and shall sign and attest to the following oath: "I declare that the facts relating to my qualifications as a voter recorded on this voter registration form are true. I am a citizen of the United States, I am not presently denied my civil rights as a result of being convicted of an infamous crime, I will have lived in this state, county, and precinct thirty days immediately preceding the next election at which I offer to vote, and I will be at least eighteen years of age at the time of voting."

The voter registration by mail form shall provide, in a conspicuous place, the following warning: "Knowingly providing false information on this voter registration form or knowingly making a false declaration about your qualifications for registration is a class C felony punishable by imprisonment for up to five years, or by a fine not to exceed ten thousand dollars, or by both such imprisonment and fine."

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. On receipt of an application for voter registration under this chapter, the county auditor shall review the application to determine whether the information supplied is complete. If it is not, the auditor shall promptly send notice of the deficiency to the applicant. If the information is complete, the applicant is registered as of the date of the application's postmark. If there is no postmark or if the postmark is illegible, the applicant is registered on the date the complete and correct application was received by the auditor. The auditor shall record the appropriate precinct identification, taxing district identification, and date of registration on the voter's record. Within forty-five days after the receipt of an application but no later than seven days before the next primary, special election, or general election, the auditor shall send to the applicant, by first class mail, a voter registration card identifying the registrant's precinct and containing such other information as may be required by the secretary of state. The postal service shall be instructed not to forward a voter registration card to any other address and to return to the auditor any card which is not deliverable.

If a voter registration card is properly mailed as required by this section to the address listed by the applicant as being the applicant's mailing address and the card is subsequently returned to the auditor by the postal service as being undeliverable to the applicant at that address, the auditor shall immediately cancel the voter registration of the applicant. The auditor shall promptly send the applicant a notice and explanation of the cancellation, and a registration application form. The postal service shall be requested to forward this notice as applicable.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. The secretary of state shall adopt an application form for registering by mail under RCW 29.07.140. An applicant registering to vote by mail shall be required to complete only one form and to provide the required information, other than his or her signature, no more than once. The form shall also contain instructions on its use, a notification of filing deadlines, a warning to the applicant of the penalty for knowingly supplying false information, and space for the county auditor to enter the voter's precinct identification, taxing district identification, and registration number. The secretary of state shall develop the form in consultation with the county auditors.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. The secretary of state shall furnish registration forms necessary to carry out the registration of voters as provided by this chapter without cost to the respective counties. Costs incurred by the secretary of state during 1994 and 1995 in the printing and distribution of voter registration cards shall be reimbursed by the counties. This cost shall be considered an election cost under RCW 29.13.045 and be prorated as part of the 1994 and 1995 general election costs.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Violations of this chapter shall be prosecuted under chapter 29.07 RCW or any other applicable provisions of law.

Sec. 10. RCW 29.10.180 and 1991 c 363 s 31 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The county auditor may enter one or more contracts with the United States postal service, or its licensee, which permit the auditor to use postal service change-of-address information. If the auditor finds that information received under such a contract gives the appearance that a voter has changed his or her residence address, the auditor shall notify the voter concerning the requirements of state and federal laws governing voter registration and residence.

(2) Whenever any vote-by-mail ballot, notification to voters following reprecincting of the county, notification to voters of selection to serve on jury duty, notification under subsection (1) of this section, or ((~~initial~~)) voter identification card other than a voter identification card issued under section 6 of this act is returned by the postal service as undeliverable, the county auditor shall, in every instance, inquire into the validity of the registration of that voter.

(3) The county auditor shall initiate his or her inquiry by sending, by first-class mail, a written notice to the challenged voter at the address indicated on the voter's permanent registration record and to any other address at which the county auditor could reasonably expect mail to be received by the voter. The county auditor shall not request any restriction on the forwarding of such notice by the postal service. The notice shall contain the nature of the inquiry and provide a suitable form for reply. The notice shall also contain a warning that the county auditor must receive a response within forty-five days from the date of mailing or the individual's voter registration will be canceled.

(4) The voter, in person or in writing, may state that the information on the permanent voter registration record is correct or may request a change in the address information on the permanent registration record no later than the forty-fifth day after the date of mailing the inquiry.

(5) Upon the timely receipt of a response signed by the voter, the county auditor shall consider the inquiry satisfied and will make any address corrections requested by the voter on the permanent registration record. The county auditor shall cancel the registration of a voter who fails to respond to the notice of inquiry within forty-five days after the date of mailing.

(6) The county auditor shall notify any voter whose registration has been canceled by sending, by first class mail, a written notice to the address indicated on the voter's permanent registration record and to any other address to which the original inquiry was sent. Upon receipt of a satisfactory voter response, the auditor shall reinstate the voter.

(7) A voter whose registration has been canceled under this section and who offers to vote at the next ensuing election shall be issued a questioned ballot. Upon receipt of such a questioned ballot the auditor shall investigate the circumstances surrounding the original cancellation. If he or she determines that the cancellation was in error, the voter's registration shall be immediately reinstated, and the voter's questioned ballot shall be counted. If the original cancellation was not in error, the voter shall be afforded the opportunity to reregister at his or her correct address, and the voter's questioned ballot shall not be counted.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. Sections 1 through 9 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 29 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. RCW 29.07.040 and 1971 ex.s. c 202 s 6 & 1965 c 9 s 29.07.040 are each repealed.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. Sections 1 through 9 and 12 of this act take effect on January 1, 1994.