HBA-CMT H.B. 2691 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2691
By: Madden
Elections
7/10/2001
Enrolled



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The Department of Public Safety (DPS) collects voter registration
application information at the time a person applies for a driver's license
or ID card.  Prior to the 77th Legislature this information was collected
electronically and was then printed on a paper card for the applicant's
signature.  The card was then mailed to the appropriate county voter
registrar and processed into an electronic file by the county registrar.
The file was used to produce the voter rolls and a voter certificate is
mailed to the voter.  Maintaining this information electronically may
succeed in speeding up the process, minimizing data entry errors, and
reducing the possibility of lost applications.  House Bill 2691 requires
DPS to have voter registration information and signatures for residents of
certain counties digitally captured and then transferred in electronic form
to the county registrar.   

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 2691 amends the Election Code to provide that if a person who
resides in a county of 2.1 million or more completes a voter registration
application provided by the Department of Public Safety (DPS) with an
application for a drivers license or ID card, DPS is required to input the
information provided on the application into DPS's electronic database
system and inform the applicant that the electronic signature provided to
DPS will be used for submitting the applicant's voter registration
application.  The bill requires DPS to electronically transfer the
applicant's registration data including the applicant's signature to the
voter registrar of the county in which the applicant resides no later than
the fifth day after the date the person completes a voter registration
application and provides an electronic signature.  The voter registrar is
required to maintain a database approved by the secretary of state for
receiving electronically transmitted registration applications.  The
secretary of state is required to prescribe additional procedures to
implement the provisions of the bill.  The bill authorizes the office
responsible for voter registration in a county with a population greater
than 400,000 but less than 2.1 million to request identical treatment of
its citizens applying to register to vote if written request is made to DPS
by the commissioners court of that county.    
The bill requires the secretary of state to monitor the implementation of
the bill and report the secretary's findings and any recommendations to the
legislature no later than December 1, 2002.  

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.