AB 596

This bill changes the circumstances under which a person may be barred from

voting as the result of a disqualifying offense and requires the Department of

Corrections, the Elections Commission, and the Director of State Courts to include

in their ongoing training programs a discussion of the changes in law made by this

bill and to offer the training to judges, attorneys, election officials, employees of DOC,

and the public.

Under current law, a person convicted of treason, bribery, or a felony may not

vote unless the person's right to vote is restored through a pardon or until the person

completes his or her sentence, including extended supervision or parole, or any term

of probation imposed. Under this bill, a person loses his or her right to vote based

on a disqualifying offense only while he or she is incarcerated for that offense. A

person released to extended supervision or parole may resume voting. In addition,

a person convicted of a disqualifying offense and on probation retains the right to

vote while on probation unless he or she is confined as a condition of probation. But

if a person who committed a disqualifying offense is incarcerated after the revocation

of extended supervision, parole, or probation, the person loses the right to vote until

he or she is released.

Currently, an applicant for voter registration must affirm 1) whether he or she

has been convicted of a felony for which he or she has not been pardoned and, if so,

whether the applicant is incarcerated or on parole, probation, or extended

supervision; and 2) whether the applicant is disqualified on any other ground from

voting. This bill deletes the requirement that an applicant provide any information

relating to a felony conviction but retains the requirement that an applicant affirm

that he or she is not disqualified on any ground from voting.

Currently, election officials must verify the eligibility of electors who vote at an

election or who register to vote at an election after the close of voter registration for

that election by checking each elector's name against a list provided by DOC that

contains the names of convicted felons who have not completed their sentences and

have not been pardoned. If a person's name appears on the list, the election officials

are directed to allow the person to vote if he or she is otherwise eligible, but to mark

and challenge the elector's ballot for possible later review. This bill deletes the

requirements for DOC to provide the list of convicted felons and for election officials

to review the names on the list.