Sponsored by:
Senator JOSEPH P. CRYAN
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes Office of Voting Rights to provide legal services to voters.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing the Office of Voting Rights and supplementing P.L.1967, c.43 (C.2A:158A-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. There is established, in the Office of the Public Defender in the Department of the Treasury, the Office of Voting Rights. The Office of Voting Rights shall operate under the supervision and direction of the Public Defender. The Office of Voting Rights shall offer free legal services to protect the rights of voters who encounter legal issues while voting or attempting to vote on an election day, including, but not limited to:
(1) administrative issues, such as difficulty determining a voters registration status;
(2) challenges brought against a voter by challengers permitted pursuant to R.S.19:15-18; and
(3) attempts to harass, intimidate, or otherwise interfere with a voter in violation of the provisions of Title 19 of the Revised Statutes.
Any resident of this State shall be eligible, at no expense to that person, for representation by the Office of Voting Rights.
b. The Public Defender shall direct and supervise the work of the Office of Voting Rights and shall have the following duties:
(1) to appoint such directors, assistants, and other officers and employees as may be necessary for the Office of Voting Rights to meet its responsibilities, to prescribe their duties, and to fix their compensation;
(2) to assign to each voter deemed to be in need of representation pursuant to subsection a. of this section a staff attorney or attorney hired on a case, on a basis calculated to provide the respective voters with competent counsel in the light of the nature, complexity, and other characteristics of the cases, the services to be performed, the status of the matters, and other relevant factors;
(3) to call upon any department, office, division, or agency of State government to provide such information, resources, or other assistance as the Public Defender deems necessary to discharge the duties and functions and to fulfill the responsibilities of the Office of Voting Rights established in this section. Each department, office, division, and agency of this State shall cooperate with the Public Defender and furnish the Office of Voting Rights with the assistance necessary to accomplish the purposes established in this section; and
(4) to perform any other
functions that are necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the mission of
the Office of Voting Rights.
2. This act shall take effect on the 180th day after the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes the Office of Voting Rights, which will operate under the Office of the Public Defender, in the Department of the Treasury. Under the bill, the Office of Voting Rights will offer free legal services to protect the rights of voters who have legal issues while voting or attempting to vote on an election day. Any resident of NJ will be eligible for representation at no cost. Some of these legal issues could include, but need not be limited to, administrative issues, such as difficulty determining a voters registration status; challenges brought against a voter by appointed challengers; and attempts to harass, intimidate, or otherwise interfere with a voter.
The Public Defender will direct and supervise the work of the Office of Voting Rights and will have the duty to appoint employees as may be needed for the Office of Voting Rights to meet its responsibilities, to prescribe their duties, and to fix their compensation.
The Public Defender may also call upon any department, office, division, or agency of State government to provide information, resources, or other assistance as the Public Defender deems necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of the Office of Voting Rights.