WEST virginia Legislature
2016 regular session
Introduced
House Bill 4687
By Delegates Sobonya, Miller, Rohrbach, Morgan, Hornbuckle, Espinosa, Hill, Waxman, Rowan, Hicks and Perdue
[ Introduced February 23, 2016; referred to the committee on Education then the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §3-2-8 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to registration programs by the clerk of the county commission; revising the requirements for voter registration programs in local high schools; specifying that eligible students shall be permitted to register at their school; requiring the Secretary of State to propose rules for legislative approval; clarifying how school records may be used to provide verification of registration information; and requiring the Secretary of State to publish related information in a dedicated area of the official website.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §3-2-8 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. REGISTRATION OF VOTERS.
§3-2-8. Registration outreach services by the clerk of the county commission; in-school registration of eligible high school students; canvass following change of boundaries and challenge of voter's registration.
(a) Registration outreach services, including application for registration, change of address, name or party affiliation and correction or cancellation of registration, may be provided at locations outside the office of said clerk of the county commission by the clerk, one or more of his or her deputy clerks, or by temporary registrars or volunteer registrars appointed in accordance with the provisions of section nine of this article.
(b) (1) The clerk of
the county commission may establish temporary registration offices to provide
voter registration services to residents of the county. The clerk shall file a
list of the scheduled times and locations of any temporary registration offices
with the county commission at least fourteen days prior to opening the
temporary office and shall solicit public service advertising of the location
and times for any temporary registration office on radio, television and
newspapers serving that county.
(2) (c) (1) The clerk of the county commission, in
cooperation with the county board of education, shall establish an
approved a program of voter registration services for eligible high
school students at each high school within the county and shall conduct that
program of voter registration at an appropriate time during each school year,
but no later than forty-five days before a statewide primary election held
during a school year. Each program shall provide an assembly with the
opportunity for students of eligible age to register, at the high school where
the student is enrolled, before a person authorized to receive applications for
registration and enter the registration of student. The principal or chief
administrator of each high school shall ensure that the clerk of the county
commission is provided a sufficient and timely opportunity to conduct the
program and that students eligible for registration as specified in section two
of this article are permitted time to complete the registration process. The
Secretary of State shall issue guidelines for approval of voter registration
for eligible students, and all such programs shall include opportunities for
students to register in person and present identification at the high school
where the student is enrolled propose rules for legislative approval,
pursuant to the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code, specifying the minimum requirements for voter registration programs in
schools including, but not limited to, appropriate scheduling to facilitate
access for students, availability of registration staff, equal participation of
local representatives of major political parties, information to be provided
about registration and elections, and alternate ways to register. Official
school records shall be accepted as identification, residence and proof
of age for eligible students for the purposes of this article.
(2) To assist clerks of the county commission in fulfilling this duty and to promote the registration of young voters as they come of voting age, the Secretary of State shall publish information to the registration of young voters in a dedicated area, accessible from the main page, of the official website of the Secretary of State.
(c) (d) When the boundaries of precincts are
altered requiring the transfer of a portion of the voters of one precinct to
another precinct, the clerk of the county commission or temporary registrars
appointed for the purpose may conduct door-to-door registration services in the
areas affected by the boundary changes and may register, alter or transfer the
registration of voters found to reside in those areas. Upon a determination
that a voter who previously registered in the area canvassed no longer resides
at that address, except for those persons who are qualified to maintain a legal
residence at the address, the clerk of the county commission shall challenge
the registration of the voter in accordance with the provisions of section
twenty-eight of this article.
(d) (e) The procedures required upon receipt of an
application for registration as prescribed in subsection (b), section seven of
this article shall also be performed by the authorized persons conducting the
registration outreach services.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to further define the requirements for annual voter registration programs in local high schools.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.