UNOFFICIAL COPY AS OF 10/04/20181998 REG. SESS.98 RS HB 594/GA

AN ACT relating to voter registration.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:

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HB059410.100-2109GA

UNOFFICIAL COPY AS OF 10/04/20181998 REG. SESS.98 RS HB 594/GA

Section 1. KRS 116.155 is amended to read as follows:

All forms pertaining to registration shall be prescribed and furnished by the State Board of Elections. The registration form shall include the voter's name; date of birth; gender; race or ethnic group; choice of political party affiliation; Social Security number, if any; residence address, with mailing address[mailing and residence addresses,] if different; and such other information as the State Board of Elections may deem necessary. No person shall be denied the right to register because of the failure to include his Social Security number. All forms which require a voter's signature shall provide for verification by the signer thereof.

Section 2. KRS 117.025 is amended to read as follows:

(1)The State Board of Elections shall appoint an executive director, who shall be the chief administrative officer for the board. The board shall also appoint an assistant to the director, who shall be of a different political party than the director. The salaries of the director and his assistant shall be set by the board.

(2)The State Board of Elections shall employ, on a bipartisan basis, a staff sufficient to carry out the duties assigned to the board, including legal counsel and a training officer to provide assistance to the county clerks and the county boards of elections in their training of precinct election officers.

(3)The board shall:

(a)Maintain a complete roster of all qualified registered voters within the state by county and precinct;

(b)For each primary election, furnish each county clerk with a master list of all registered voters in the county, together with three (3) signature rosters of all registered voters in each precinct of the county according to party affiliation, and two (2) lists of all registered voters in each precinct of the county at least five (5) days prior to each primary election;

(c)For each regular election, furnish each county clerk with a master list of all registered voters in the county, together with one (1) signature roster of all registered voters in each precinct of the county on which each voter's party affiliation is identified, and two (2) lists of all registered voters in each precinct of the county at least five (5) days prior to each regular election;

(d)Maintain all information furnished to the board relating to the inclusion or deletion of names from the rosters for four (4) years;

(e)Furnish, at a reasonable price, the state central executive committee of each political party qualifying under KRS 118.015 monthly data of all additions, deletions and changes of registration in each precinct of each county and the state central executive committee shall furnish a county listing to each of the county executive committees of each political party;

(f)Purchase, lease or contract for the use of equipment necessary to properly carry out its duties under the provisions of this chapter and KRS Chapters 116 and 118;

(g)Secure information from any source which may assist the board in carrying out the purposes of this section;

(h)Furnish at a reasonable price any and all precinct lists to duly qualified candidates, political party committees or officials thereof, or any committee that advocates or opposes an amendment or public question. The State Board of Elections may also furnish the precinct lists to other persons at the board's discretion, at a reasonable price. The board shall not furnish precinct lists to persons who intend to use the lists for commercial use;

(i)Include the following information on the precinct lists: each voter's name; age group; gender; race or ethnic group; residence address, with mailing address if different; and choice of political party affiliation.

Section 3. KRS 116.048 is amended to read as follows:

(1)The following agencies are designated as voter registration agencies in accordance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993:

(a)Agencies that provide benefits under the Aid to Families with Dependent Children, Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children, Medicaid, or Food Stamps Programs;

(b)Armed Forces recruitment offices;

(c)Other agencies as the Secretary of State shall determine to be providing public assistance; and

(d)Other agencies as the Secretary of State shall determine to be state-funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities.

(2)A voter registration agency that provides service or assistance in conducting voter registration shall:

(a)Distribute with each application for its service or assistance, and with each recertification, renewal, or change of address form, the office's own voter registration application form that complies with the requirements of Section 7 of Public Law 103-31, the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, and of Section 1 of this Act;

(b)Provide a form that includes:

1.The question, "If you are not registered to vote where you live now, would you like to apply to register to vote here today?";
2.If the agency provides public assistance, the statement, "Applying to register or declining to register to vote will not affect the amount of assistance that you will be provided by this agency.";
3.Boxes for the applicant to check to indicate whether the applicant would like to register or declines to register to vote (failure to check either box being deemed to constitute a declination to register for purposes of paragraph (c) of this subsection), together with the statement in close proximity to the boxes and in prominent type, "IF YOU DO NOT CHECK EITHER BOX, YOU WILL BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE DECIDED NOT TO REGISTER TO VOTE AT THIS TIME.";
4.The statement, "If you would like help in filling out the voter registration application form, we will help you. The decision whether to seek or accept help is yours. You may fill out the application form in private."; and
5.The statement, "If you believe that someone has interfered with your right to register or to decline to register to vote, your right to privacy in deciding whether to register or in applying to register to vote, or your right to choose your own political party or other political preference, you may file a complaint with ______.", the blank being filled by the name, address, and telephone number of the appropriate official to whom a complaint should be addressed; and

(c)Provide to each applicant who does not decline to register to vote the same degree of assistance with regard to the completion of the registration application form as is provided by the office with regard to the completion of its own forms, unless the applicant refuses assistance.

(3)(a)At each voter registration agency, the following services shall be made available:

1.Distribution of mail voter registration forms;
2.Assistance to applicants in completing voter registration application forms, unless the applicant refuses assistance; and
3.Acceptance of completed voter registration application forms for transmittal to the county clerk of the county of the applicant's voting residence.

(b)If a voter registration agency designated under subsection (1)(d) of this section provides services to a person with a disability at the person's home, the agency shall provide the services described in paragraph (a) of this subsection at the person's home.

(4)A person who provides services described in subsection (3) of this section shall not:

(a)Seek to influence an applicant's political preference or party registration;

(b)Display any material indicating the person's political preference or party allegiance;

(c)Make any statement to an applicant or take any action the purpose or effect of which is to discourage the applicant from registering to vote; or

(d)Make any statement to an applicant or take any action the purpose or effect of which is to lead the applicant to believe that a decision to register or not to register to vote has any bearing on the availability of services or benefits.

(5)The State Board of Elections may designate requirements for record keeping and document retention it deems necessary to comply with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and the provisions of this chapter.

(6)(a)A completed registration application accepted at a voter registration agency shall be transmitted to the county clerk of the county of the applicant's voting residence or the State Board of Elections not later than ten (10) days after the date of acceptance.

(b)If a registration application is accepted within five (5) days before the last day for registration to vote in an election, the application shall be transmitted to the county clerk of the county of the applicant's voting residence or the State Board of Elections not later than five (5) days after the date of acceptance.

Section 4. KRS 186.412 is amended to read as follows:

(1)A person may apply for an operator's license to operate a motor vehicle, motorcycle, or moped if the person has possessed a valid instruction permit for at least one hundred eighty (180) days. The person shall apply for an operator's license in the office of the circuit clerk of the county where he lives. The application form shall require the applicant's full legal name and signature, date of birth, Social Security number, sex, present resident address, race or ethnic group, other information necessary to permit the application to also serve as an application for voter registration, and brief physical description of the applicant. The application shall state:

(a)If the applicant has previously been licensed as an operator and by what state;

(b)If a license is canceled, suspended, revoked, or refused; and

(c)Other information the cabinet may require by administrative regulation promulgated pursuant to KRS Chapter 13A.

(2)The Transportation Cabinet shall issue a plastic laminated operator's license bearing a color photograph of the applicant. The photograph shall be taken by the circuit clerk so that one (1) exposure will photograph the applicant and the application simultaneously, using the process determined under provisions of KRS 186.413. When taking the photograph, the applicant shall be prohibited from wearing sunglasses or any other attire that obscures any features of the applicant's face as determined by the clerk. The clerk shall require an applicant to remove sunglasses or other obscuring attire before taking the photograph required by this subsection. Any person who refuses to remove sunglasses or other attire prohibited by this section as directed by the clerk shall be prohibited from receiving an operator's license. The plastic laminated operator's license issued by the cabinet shall not contain the applicant's Social Security number. The cabinet shall promulgate administrative regulations pursuant to KRS Chapter 13A that develop a numbering system that uses an identification system other than Social Security numbers. The license shall also designate by color coding and use the phrase "under (21)" if the licensee is under the age of twenty-one (21); "CDL" if the license is issued pursuant to KRS Chapter 281A; or "under 21 CDL" if the licensee holds a commercial driver's license issued pursuant to KRS Chapter 281A and is under the age of twenty-one (21).

(3)After January 1, 1996, a person may, before the renewal date for his operator's license, request a circuit clerk to issue a new plastic laminated operator's license that does not contain the person's Social Security number. The person shall be charged the fee established by KRS 186.531 for renewing an operator's license if the person requests a license pursuant to this subsection.

(4)Every applicant shall make oath to the circuit clerk as to the truthfulness of the statements contained in the form.

(5)The clerk may, after determining that the applicant has fully complied with the law governing applications, issue a temporary operator's license to be valid for not more than ninety (90) days. The temporary license shall be valid in lieu of the permanent license during the certification period and shall be destroyed upon receipt of the permanent operator's license.

(6)The circuit clerk shall issue a color photo nondriver's identification card to any person who resides in the county who applies in person in the office of the circuit clerk. A nondriver's identification card shall be subject to the provisions of subsection (2) of this section. An application for a nondriver's identification card shall be accompanied by a signed Social Security card and a birth certificate, or other proof of the applicant's date of birth that is satisfactory to the clerk. The application shall require the applicant to provide his most current resident address that may include, but is not limited to, a mailing address, post office box, or an address provided on a voter registration card. If an applicant for a nondriver's identification card is under the age of twenty-one (21), the applicant's most current resident address shall be required unless a current resident address is not available, in which case a mailing address, post office box, or an address provided on a voter registration card may be used. Every applicant for a nondriver's identification card shall make an oath to the circuit clerk as to the truthfulness of the statements contained on the application form. If the applicant is not the legal possessor of the address provided on the application form, the applicant shall swear that he has permission from the legal possessor to use the address for purposes of obtaining the nondriver's identification card. The nondriver's identification card shall designate by color coding and by use of the phrase "under 21" if the applicant is under the age of twenty-one (21).

(7)Military personnel and other licensed drivers temporarily out-of-county may be issued a license without a photograph. The license shall show in the space provided for the photograph the legend "valid without photo and signature." If a citizen of the Commonwealth has been serving in the United States military and has allowed his operator's license to expire, he shall, within ninety (90) days of returning to the Commonwealth, be permitted to renew his license without having to take a written test or road test. A citizen who does not renew his license within ninety (90) days of returning to the Commonwealth shall be required to comply with the provisions of this chapter governing renewal of a license that has expired.

(8)The cabinet shall provide on each license to operate motor vehicles, motorcycles, and mopeds a space for the licensed driver's:

(a)Blood type;

(b)Medical insignia if the person provides evidence that a medical identification bracelet noting specific physical ailments or a drug allergy is being worn or other proof as may be required by the cabinet; and

(c)A statement whereby the owner of the license may certify in the presence of two (2) witnesses his willingness to make an anatomical gift under KRS 311.195.

(9)If the motor vehicle operator denotes a physical ailment or drug allergy on the operator's license, he may apply for and shall receive, for a fee of one dollar ($1) paid to the circuit clerk, a medical insignia decal that may be affixed to the lower left side of the front windshield of a motor vehicle.

(10)An operator's license pursuant to this section shall be designated a Class D license.

(11)A person shall not have more than one (1) license.

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HB059410.100-2109GA