Florida Senate - 2024 SB 1256
By Senator Martin
33-01465-24 20241256__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to voter registration applications;
3 amending s. 97.052, F.S.; revising the information
4 that the uniform statewide voter registration
5 application must be designed to elicit; amending s.
6 97.053, F.S.; providing an exception to a requirement
7 that certain voter registration applicants must be
8 registered without party affiliation; amending s.
9 97.057, F.S.; requiring the Department of Highway
10 Safety and Motor Vehicles to notify certain
11 individuals of certain information; requiring a driver
12 license examiner to make specified inquiries;
13 prohibiting the department from changing the party
14 affiliation of an applicant except in certain
15 circumstances; requiring the department to provide an
16 applicant with a certain receipt; revising the methods
17 by which an applicant may decline to register to vote
18 or update certain voter registration information;
19 prohibiting a person providing voter registration
20 services for a driver license office from taking
21 certain actions; requiring the department to ensure
22 that information technology processes and updates do
23 not alter certain information without written consent;
24 requiring the department to be in full compliance with
25 the act within a certain period; providing an
26 effective date.
27
28 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
29
30 Section 1. Paragraph (j) of subsection (2) of section
31 97.052, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
32 97.052 Uniform statewide voter registration application.—
33 (2) The uniform statewide voter registration application
34 must be designed to elicit the following information from the
35 applicant:
36 (j) Party affiliation or, for an applicant who is
37 completing the application to update a voter registration record
38 without changing his or her party affiliation, an indication
39 that the applicant is choosing not to disclose his or her party
40 affiliation.
41 Section 2. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section
42 97.053, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
43 97.053 Acceptance of voter registration applications.—
44 (5)
45 (b) An applicant who fails to designate party affiliation
46 must be registered without party affiliation, except that the
47 party affiliation of an applicant who is updating a voter
48 registration record may not be changed unless the applicant
49 designates and consents in writing to a change in party
50 affiliation. The supervisor must notify the voter by mail that
51 the voter has been registered without party affiliation and that
52 the voter may change party affiliation as provided in s.
53 97.1031.
54 Section 3. Subsection (2) and subsection (6) of section
55 97.057, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (14) is
56 added to that section, to read:
57 97.057 Voter registration by the Department of Highway
58 Safety and Motor Vehicles.—
59 (2) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
60 shall:
61 (a) Notify each individual, orally or in writing, that:
62 1. Information gathered for the completion of a driver
63 license or identification card application, renewal, or change
64 of address can be automatically transferred to a voter
65 registration application;
66 2. If additional information and a signature are provided,
67 the voter registration application will be completed and sent to
68 the proper election authority;
69 3. Information provided can also be used to update a voter
70 registration record, except that party affiliation will not be
71 changed unless the individual designates a change in party
72 affiliation and separately consents to such change in writing;
73 4. All declinations will remain confidential and may be
74 used only for voter registration purposes; and
75 5. The particular driver license office in which the person
76 applies to register to vote or updates a voter registration
77 record will remain confidential and may be used only for voter
78 registration purposes.
79 (b) Require a driver license examiner to inquire orally or,
80 if the applicant is hearing impaired, inquire in writing whether
81 the applicant is registered to vote, is not registered to vote,
82 does not know if he or she is registered to vote, or does not
83 wish to disclose whether he or she is registered to vote. If the
84 applicant is not or does not know whether he or she is
85 registered to vote, the driver license examiner shall inquire
86 whether the applicant wishes to register to vote and, if the
87 applicant is registered to vote, the driver license examiner
88 shall inquire whether the applicant wishes to register to vote
89 or update a voter registration record during the completion of a
90 driver license or identification card application, renewal, or
91 change of address.
92 1. If the applicant chooses to register to vote or to
93 update a voter registration record:
94 a. All applicable information received by the Department of
95 Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles in the course of filling out
96 the forms necessary under subsection (1) must be transferred to
97 a voter registration application.
98 b. The additional necessary information must be obtained by
99 the driver license examiner and must not duplicate any
100 information already obtained while completing the forms required
101 under subsection (1).
102 c. A voter registration application with all of the
103 applicant’s voter registration information required to establish
104 the applicant’s eligibility pursuant to s. 97.041 must be
105 presented to the applicant to review and verify the voter
106 registration information received and provide an electronic
107 signature affirming the accuracy of the information provided.
108 d. The voter registration application may not be used to
109 change the party affiliation of the applicant unless the
110 applicant designates a change in party affiliation and provides
111 a separate original signature consenting to the party
112 affiliation change.
113 e. After verifying the voter registration information and
114 providing his or her electronic signature, the applicant must be
115 provided with a printed receipt that includes such information
116 and documents any change in party affiliation.
117 2. If the applicant declines to register to vote, update
118 the applicant’s voter registration record, or change the
119 applicant’s address by either orally declining or choosing not
120 to disclose the applicant’s voter registration status or by
121 failing to sign the voter registration application, the
122 Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles must note such
123 declination on its records and shall forward the declination to
124 the statewide voter registration system.
125 (6) A person providing voter registration services for a
126 driver license office may not:
127 (a) Make any change to an applicant’s party affiliation
128 unless the applicant provides a separate original signature
129 consenting to the party affiliation change or discuss or seek to
130 influence an applicant’s political preference or party
131 registration;
132 (b) Display any political preference or party allegiance;
133 (c) Make any statement to an applicant or take any action
134 the purpose or effect of which is to discourage the applicant
135 from registering to vote; or
136 (d) Disclose any applicant’s voter registration information
137 except as needed for the administration of voter registration.
138 (14) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
139 shall ensure that information technology processes and updates
140 do not alter an applicant’s party affiliation without the
141 written consent of the applicant.
142 Section 4. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
143 Vehicles must be in full compliance with this act within 3
144 months after this act becomes a law.
145 Section 5. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.