HB 285 - AS INTRODUCED
2021 SESSION
21-0529
11/08
HOUSE BILL 285
AN ACT relative to verification of voter checklists.
SPONSORS: Rep. Layon, Rock. 6; Rep. Prudhomme-O'Brien, Rock. 6; Rep. Thomas, Rock. 5;
Rep. Love, Rock. 6; Rep. Potucek, Rock. 6; Sen. Birdsell, Dist 19
COMMITTEE: Election Law
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ANALYSIS
This bill modifies the procedures for ongoing verification of the information contained in voter
checklists.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
HB 285 - AS INTRODUCED
21-0529
11/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty One
AN ACT relative to verification of voter checklists.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 1 Vital Records Administration; Secretary of State; Duties. Amend RSA 5-C:4, IV to read as
2 follows:
3 IV. The secretary of state shall compare information contained on each death record
4 received by the division of vital records with information contained in the statewide centralized voter
5 registration database and submit to the state registrar a list of every city or town that has a
6 registered voter matching the decedent's information. Where there is not a full match of name,
7 date of birth, and residence, the secretary of state shall provide information of partial
8 matches for further investigation by the town or city pursuant to paragraph V.
9 2 Division of Motor Vehicles; Change of Address; Notification. Amend RSA 261:55, I to read as
10 follows:
11 I. Whenever any person after making application for or obtaining the registration of a
12 vehicle shall move from the address or change the postal address named in the application or shown
13 on a registration certificate or certificate of title, such person shall within 30 days thereafter notify
14 the division in writing of his or her old and new address. The division shall then inform both the
15 clerk in the town or city in which the new address is located and the clerk in the town or
16 city in which the previous address was located of the change to facilitate periodic
17 maintenance and verification of checklists pursuant to RSA 654:36-b.
18 3 Periodic Maintenance and Verification of Checklists; Reports of Death. Amend RSA 654:37 to
19 read as follows:
20 654:37 Reports of Death. Whenever there is filed in the office of the clerk an official notice of
21 the death of any person or persons of the age of 18 years or over or the clerk receives notice of a
22 death record of such person or persons under RSA 5-C:4, V with a full match, the town or city clerk
23 shall notify the supervisors of the checklist of said deaths by submitting a notice of same to the
24 supervisors at their next regular meeting. For reports under RSA 5-C:4, V with a possible
25 match, the city or town clerk shall look for an official notice of death and if available shall
26 proceed as described in this section. If there is no official verification, the city or town
27 clerk shall follow the procedures in RSA 654:37-a. Upon receipt of such notice, the supervisors
28 shall examine the checklist; and, if the name of said deceased person appears thereon, it shall be
29 removed. The notice shall be retained in accordance with RSA 33-A:3-a. Any supervisor who shall
30 neglect or refuse to erase the name of such deceased voter from the checklist after receiving such
31 notice from the town or city clerk shall be guilty of a violation.
HB 285 - AS INTRODUCED
- Page 2 -
1 4 Centralized Voter Registration Database; Address Maintenance. Amend RSA 654:45, I to read
2 as follows:
3 I.(a) The secretary of state is authorized to plan, develop, equip, establish, site, and
4 maintain a statewide centralized voter registration database and communications system,
5 hereinafter referred to as the voter database, connecting users throughout the state. The voter
6 database shall include the current information on the voter registration forms, the accepted absentee
7 ballot applications, the voter checklists, and voter actions as recorded on the marked checklist
8 maintained by each city, ward, and town in the state. The database shall maintain addresses in
9 accordance with United States Postal Service standardized addresses as described in the
10 current USPS Publication 28.
11 (b) The secretary of state shall provide for verification that voters sharing a
12 place and date of birth, along with a substantially similar name to include nicknames or
13 likely maiden/married name changes, are unique voters. Should any voter appear to be a
14 duplicate registration, information shall be forwarded to the clerk of the city or town
15 where registered for investigation. Such clerks shall notify the secretary of state of the
16 result of such investigation, and should the investigation show that a single individual
17 voted more than once in any election such information shall be forwarded to the attorney
18 general for further investigation or prosecution.
19 5 New Subparagraph; Centralized Voter Registration Database; Address Verification. Amend
20 RSA 654:45, IV by inserting after subparagraph (c) the following new subparagraph:
21 (d) Beginning July 1, 2022, the secretary of state shall annually cause voter records to
22 be checked with the United States Postal Service for changes of address. All records identified as
23 moving shall be provided to the city or town clerk for verification pursuant to RSA 654:39, III.
24 6 New Paragraph; Inventory of Property Transfers. Amend RSA 74:18 by inserting after
25 paragraph V the following new paragraph:
26 VI. Municipalities receiving inventories pursuant to this section shall forward the buyer's
27 and seller's names and post transaction addresses to the supervisor of the checklist in such
28 municipalities to facilitate periodic maintenance of the voter checklist.
29 7 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Statutes affected: Introduced: 5-C:4, 261:55, 654:37, 654:45, 74:18
Ought to Pass: 5-C:4, 261:55, 654:37, 654:45, 74:18
latest version: 5-C:4, 261:55, 654:37, 654:45, 74:18