HB1085: Persons entitled to register and vote; person shall be deemed a resident of State.

HOUSE BILL NO. 1085
Offered January 11, 2012
Prefiled January 11, 2012
A BILL to amend and reenact § 24.2-418 of the Code of Virginia and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 24.2-400.1, relating to persons entitled to register and vote.
Patron-- Hugo

Committee Referral Pending

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1.  That § 24.2-418 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted and that the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered 24.2-400.1 as follows:

§ 24.2-400.1. Residence of registered voters; driver's license.

Any person who registers to vote as provided in this chapter shall, at the time of registration, be deemed to be a resident of the Commonwealth for the purposes of Chapter 3 (§ 46.2-300 et seq.) of Title 46.2.

§ 24.2-418. Application for registration.

A. Each applicant to register shall provide, subject to felony penalties for making false statements pursuant to § 24.2-1016, the information necessary to complete the application to register. Unless physically disabled, he shall sign the application. The application to register shall be only on a form or forms prescribed by the State Board.

The form of the application to register shall require the applicant to provide the following information: full name; gender; date of birth; social security number, if any; whether the applicant is presently a United States citizen; address of residence in the precinct; place of last previous registration to vote; whether the applicant is licensed to operate a motor vehicle in another state or country; and whether the applicant has ever been adjudicated incapacitated or convicted of a felony, and if so, under what circumstances the applicant's right to vote has been restored. The form shall contain a statement that whoever votes more than once in any election in the same or different jurisdictions shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony.

B. The form shall permit any individual, as follows, or member of his household, to furnish, in addition to his residence street address, a post office box address located within the Commonwealth to be included in lieu of his street address on the lists of registered voters and persons who voted, which are furnished pursuant to §§ 24.2-405 and 24.2-406, on voter registration records made available for public inspection pursuant to § 24.2-444, or on lists of absentee voter applicants furnished pursuant to § 24.2-706 or 24.2-710. The voter shall comply with the provisions of § 24.2-424 for any change in the post office box address provided under this subsection.

1. Any active or retired law-enforcement officer, as defined in § 9.1-101 and in 5 U.S.C. § 8331(20), but excluding officers whose duties relate to detention as defined in 5 U.S.C. § 8331(20);

2. Any party granted a protective order issued by or under the authority of any court of competent jurisdiction, including but not limited to courts of the Commonwealth of Virginia;

3. Any party who has furnished a signed written statement by the party that he is in fear for his personal safety from another person who has threatened or stalked him, accompanied by evidence that he has filed a complaint with a magistrate or law-enforcement official against such other person; and

4. Any party participating in the address confidentiality program pursuant to § 2.2-515.2.

C. If the applicant formerly resided in another state, the portion of the application to register listing an applicant's place of last previous registration to vote, or a copy thereof, shall be retained by the general registrar for the city or county where the applicant resides, and the general registrar shall send the original or a copy to the appropriate voter registration official or other authority of another state where the applicant formerly resided. The general registrar shall send to the Department of Motor Vehicles a list of all applicants whose applications state that they are licensed to operate a motor vehicle in another state or country.