GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2017
S 1
SENATE BILL 228*
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Short Title: Voter Freedom Act. |
(Public) |
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Sponsors: |
Senators Clark, Van Duyn, Woodard (Primary Sponsors); Chaudhuri, Ford, Foushee, Robinson, Smith-Ingram, and Waddell. |
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Referred to: |
Rules and Operations of the Senate |
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March 14, 2017
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT regarding the required proof sufficient to challenge a person's eligibility to vote.
Whereas, registered voters in the State of North Carolina should be able to vote free of intimidation; and
Whereas, registered voters in the State of North Carolina should be able to vote free of specious challenges to their right to vote; and
Whereas, during the 2016 general election, numerous registered voters were subjected to specious claims made by challengers whose claims were then accepted by county boards of elections challenging the registered voters' right to vote; and
Whereas, there are two ways voters may be removed from the voter rolls (i) through a voter challenge or (ii) by a county board of election's list maintenance efforts; and
Whereas, the predominant burden of proof in challenging a voter's right to vote should be placed upon the challenger regarding whether the State Board of Elections accepts a claim and ultimately then sustains that claim; and
Whereas, a voter cannot be removed from a voter registration roll by list maintenance efforts, except through a notification process compliant with the National Voter Registration Act; Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1. G.S. 163‑85 reads as rewritten:
"§ 163‑85. Challenge procedure other than on day of primary or election.
(a) Right to Challenge; When
Challenge May Be Made. – Any registered voter of the county precinct may
challenge the right of any person to register, remain registered or vote in
such county.precinct. No such challenge may be made after the
twenty‑fifth day before each primary, general, or special election.
...
(e) Prima Facie Evidence
That Voter No Longer Resides in Precinct. – The presentation of a letter mailed
by returnable first‑class mail to the voter at the address listed on the
voter registration card and returned because the person does not live at the
address shall constitute prima facie evidence that the person no longer
resides in the precinct. However, in the absence of affirmative proof, evidence
of a returned mailing, on its own, shall not be sufficient to sustain the
burden of proof required by G.S. 163‑90.1 in either a preliminary
hearing under subsection (d) of this section or a challenge hearing under G.S. 163‑86.
(f) No challenge shall be sustained on the basis of a change of residency, except by (i) written confirmation of the registrant of a change that renders the registrant ineligible to vote in the county, (ii) notification from another county or state that the registrant has registered to vote in that county or state, or (iii) exhaustion of the notice provisions required by the National Voter Registration Act."
SECTION 2. G.S. 163‑86(c) reads as rewritten:
"(c) At the time and place set for the hearing on a challenge entered prior to the date of a primary or election, the county board of elections shall explain to the challenged registrant the qualifications for registration and voting in this State. The board chairman, or in his absence the board secretary, shall then administer the following oath to the challenged registrant:
"You swear (or affirm) that the statements and information you shall give in this hearing with respect to your identity and qualifications to be registered and to vote shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you, God."
After swearing the challenged registrant, the board shall examine him as to his qualifications to be registered and to vote. If the challenged registrant insists that he is qualified, the board shall tender to him the following oath or affirmation:
"You do solemnly swear (or affirm) that you are a citizen of the United States; that you are at least 18 years of age or will become 18 by the date of the next general election; that you have or will have resided in this State and in the precinct for which registered for 30 days by the date of the next primary or election; that you are not disqualified from voting by the Constitution or the laws of this State; that your name is ____, and that in such name you were duly registered as a voter of ____ precinct; and that you are the person you represent yourself to be, so help you, God."
If the challenged registrant refuses
to take the tendered oath, or submit to the board the affidavit required by subsection
(d), below, the challenge shall be sustained.sustained only if the
board determines from evidence at the hearing that the challenged registrant
received actual notice of the challenge and the hearing. In the absence of such
a determination, the board shall review the registration of the voter for
inclusion in the list maintenance processes under G.S. 163‑82.14.
If the challenged registrant takes the tendered oath, the board may,
nevertheless, sustain the challenge if it finds the challenged registrant is
not a legal voter.
The board, in conducting hearings on challenges, shall have authority to subpoena any witnesses it may deem appropriate, and administer the necessary oaths or affirmations to all witnesses brought before it to testify to the qualifications of the persons challenged."
SECTION 3. G.S. 163‑90.1 reads as rewritten:
(a) Challenges shall not be
made indiscriminately and may only be made if the challenger knows, suspectsknows
or reasonably believes such a person not to be qualified and entitled to vote.
The challenger shall demonstrate to the board of elections the basis upon which
the challenger knows or reasonably believes the person is not qualified and not
entitled to vote. The evidence allowed under G.S. 163‑85(e), on its
own, shall not be sufficient to constitute the demonstrated knowledge and
belief of a person's qualifications to vote as required by this subsection.
(b) No challenge shall be sustained unless the challenge is substantiated by affirmative proof. In the absence of such proof, the presumption shall be that the voter is properly registered or affiliated. The evidence allowed under G.S. 163‑85(e), on its own, shall not be sufficient to constitute the affirmative proof required by this subsection.
(c) The name of an individual whose right to vote is being challenged shall not be released and is not a public record as defined in G.S. 132‑1 until the challenger demonstrates to the board of elections the burden of proof required under this section to establish the likelihood the challenge will be substantiated."
SECTION 4. This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to elections held on or after that date.