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Public Act 094-0492
Public Act 0492 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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Public Act 094-0492 |
HB0715 Enrolled |
LRB094 05479 JAM 35526 b |
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| AN ACT concerning elections.
| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| represented in the General Assembly:
| Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing Section | 1A-16 and by adding Section 1A-30 as follows:
| (10 ILCS 5/1A-16)
| Sec. 1A-16. Voter registration information; internet | posting; processing
of voter registration forms; content of | such forms. Notwithstanding any law to
the contrary, the | following provisions shall apply to voter registration under
| this Code.
| (a) Voter registration information; Internet posting of | voter registration
form. Within 90 days after the effective | date of this amendatory Act of the
93rd
General Assembly, the | State Board of Elections shall post on its World Wide Web
site | the following information:
| (1) A comprehensive list of the names, addresses, phone | numbers, and
websites, if applicable, of all county clerks | and boards
of election commissioners in Illinois.
| (2) A schedule of upcoming elections and the deadline | for voter
registration.
| (3) A downloadable, printable voter registration form, | in at least English
and in
Spanish versions, that a person | may complete and mail or submit to the
State Board of | Elections or the appropriate county clerk or
board of | election commissioners.
| Any forms described under paragraph (3) must state the | following:
| If you do not have a driver's license or social | security number, and this
form is submitted by mail, and | you have never registered to vote in the
jurisdiction you | are now registering in, then you must send, with this
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| application, either (i) a copy of a current and valid photo | identification, or
(ii) a copy of a current utility bill, | bank statement, government check,
paycheck, or other | government document that shows the name and address of the
| voter. If you do not provide the information required | above, then you will be
required to provide election | officials with either (i) or (ii) described above
the first | time you vote at a voting place or by absentee ballot.
| (b) Acceptance of registration forms by the State Board of | Elections and
county clerks and board of election | commissioners. The
State Board of Elections, county clerks, and | board of election commissioners
shall accept all completed | voter registration forms
described in subsection (a)(3) of this | Section and Section 1A-30 that are:
| (1) postmarked on or before the day that voter | registration is closed
under
the Election Code;
| (2) not postmarked, but arrives no later than 5 days | after the close
of registration;
| (3) submitted in person by a person using the form on | or before the
day that voter registration is closed under | the Election Code; or
| (4) submitted in person by a person who submits one or | more forms
on behalf of one or more persons who used the | form on or before
the day that voter registration is closed | under the Election Code.
| Upon the receipt of a registration form, the State Board of | Elections shall
mark
the date on which the form was received
| and send the form via first class mail to the appropriate | county clerk or board
of
election commissioners, as the case | may be, within 2 business days based upon
the home address of | the person submitting the registration form. The county
clerk | and board of election commissioners shall accept and process | any form
received from the State Board of Elections.
| (c) Processing of registration forms by county clerks and | boards of election
commissioners. The county clerk or board of | election commissioners shall
promulgate procedures for |
| processing the voter registration form.
| (d) Contents of the voter registration form. The State | Board shall create
a voter registration form, which must | contain the following content:
| (1) Instructions for completing the form.
| (2) A summary of the qualifications to register to vote | in Illinois.
| (3) Instructions for mailing in or submitting the form | in person.
| (4) The phone number for the State Board of Elections | should a person
submitting the form have questions.
| (5) A box for the person to check that explains one of | 3 reasons for
submitting the form:
| (a) new registration;
| (b) change of address; or
| (c) change of name.
| (6) a box for the person to check yes or no that asks, | "Are you a citizen
of the United States?", a box for the | person to check yes or no that asks,
"Will you be 18 years | of age on or before election day?", and a statement of
"If | you checked 'no' in response to either of these questions, | then do not
complete this form.".
| (7) A space for the person to fill in his or her home | telephone
number.
| (8) Spaces for the person to fill in his or her first, | middle, and last
names, street address (principal place of | residence), county, city, state, and
zip code.
| (9) Spaces for the person to fill in his or her mailing | address, city,
state, and zip code if different from his or | her principal place of residence.
| (10) A space for the person to fill in his or her | Illinois driver's
license number if the person has a | driver's license.
| (11) A space for a person without a driver's license to | fill in the last
four digits of his or her social security | number if the person has a social
security number.
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| (12) A space for a person without an Illinois driver's | license to fill in
his or her identification number from | his or her State Identification card
issued by the | Secretary of State.
| (13) A space for the person to fill the name appearing | on his or her last
voter registration, the street address | of his or her last registration,
including the city, | county, state, and zip code.
| (14) A space where the person swears or affirms the | following under
penalty of perjury with his or her | signature:
| (a) "I am a citizen of the United States.";
| (b) "I will be at least 18 years old on or before | the next election.";
| (c) "I will have lived in the State of Illinois and | in my election
precinct at least 30 days as of the date | of the next election."; and
| "The information I have provided is true to the | best of my knowledge
under penalty of perjury. If I | have provided false information, then
than I may be
| fined, imprisoned, or if I am not a U.S. citizen, | deported from or refused
entry into the United States."
| (d) Compliance with federal law; rulemaking authority. The | voter
registration
form described in this Section shall be | consistent with the form prescribed by
the
Federal
Election | Commission under the National Voter Registration Act of 1993,
| P.L. 103-31, as amended from time to time, and the Help America | Vote Act of
2002, P.L. 107-252, in all relevant respects. The | State Board of Elections
shall periodically update the form | based on changes to federal or State law.
The State Board of | Elections shall promulgate any rules necessary for the
| implementation of this Section; provided that the rules
comport | with the letter and spirit of the National Voter Registration | Act of
1993 and Help America Vote Act of 2002 and maximize the | opportunity for a
person to register to vote.
| (e) Forms available in paper form. The State Board of |
| Elections shall make
the voter registration form available in | regular paper stock and form in
sufficient quantities for the | general public. The State Board of Elections may
provide the | voter registration form to the Secretary of State, county
| clerks, boards of election commissioners, designated agencies | of the State of
Illinois, and any other person or entity | designated to have these forms by the
Election Code in regular | paper stock and form or some other format deemed
suitable by | the Board. Each county clerk or board of election commissioners | has
the authority to design and print its own voter | registration form so long as
the form complies with the | requirements of this Section. The State Board
of Elections, | county clerks, boards of election commissioners, or other
| designated agencies of the State of Illinois required to have | these forms under
the Election Code shall provide a member of | the public with any reasonable
number of forms
that he or she | may request. Nothing in this Section shall permit the State
| Board of
Elections, county clerk, board of election | commissioners, or other appropriate
election official who may | accept a voter registration form to refuse to accept
a voter | registration form because the form is printed on photocopier or | regular
paper
stock and form.
| (f) Internet voter registration study. The State Board of | Elections shall
investigate the feasibility of offering voter | registration on its website and
consider voter registration | methods of other states in an effort to maximize
the | opportunity for all Illinois citizens to register to vote. The | State Board
of Elections shall assemble its findings in a | report and submit it to the
General Assembly no later than | January 1, 2006. The report shall contain
legislative | recommendations to the General Assembly on improving voter
| registration in Illinois.
| (Source: P.A. 93-574, eff. 8-21-03.)
| (10 ILCS 5/1A-30 new) | Sec. 1A-30. College voter outreach. Each public |
| institution of higher learning in Illinois must make available | on its World Wide Web site a downloadable, printable voter | registration form that complies with the requirements in | subsection (d) of Section 1A-16 for the State Board of | Elections' voter registration form. | Each public institution of higher learning in Illinois must | include voter registration information and a voter | registration form supplied by the State Board of Elections | under subsection (e) of Section 1A-16 in any mailing of student | registration materials to an address located in Illinois. Each | public institution of higher learning must provide voter | registration information and a voter registration form | supplied by the State Board of Elections under subsection (e) | of Section 1A-16 to each person with whom the institution | conducts in-person student registration.
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Effective Date: 1/1/2006
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