House File 2328 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 2328 BY COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT (SUCCESSOR TO HF 2145) A BILL FOR An Act relating to voter registration and voting by lowering 1 the age at which a person may register to vote and the age 2 at which a registered voter is eligible to vote in a primary 3 election and including effective date provisions. 4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 5 TLSB 5091HV (2) 86 aw/sc

H.F. 2328 Section 1. Section 48A.5, subsection 2, paragraph c, Code 1 2016, is amended to read as follows: 2 c. (1) Be at least eighteen years of age. However, 3 for purposes of voting in the primary election, an eligible 4 elector shall be at least eighteen years of age on the date of 5 the respective general election or city election. Completed 6 registration forms shall be accepted from registrants who are 7 at least seventeen and one-half years of age ; however, . For 8 an election other than a primary election, the registration 9 shall not be effective until the registrant reaches the age 10 of eighteen. The commissioner of registration shall ensure 11 that the birth date shown on the registration form is at 12 least seventeen and one-half years earlier than the date the 13 registration is processed. 14 (2) A registrant who is at least seventeen and one-half 15 years of age and who will be eighteen by the date of a pending 16 election is a registered voter for the pending election for 17 purposes of chapter 53 . For purposes of voting in a primary 18 election under chapter 53, a registrant who will be at least 19 eighteen years of age by the date of the respective general 20 election or city election is a registered voter for the pending 21 primary election. 22 Sec. 2. Section 48A.14, subsection 1, paragraph b, Code 23 2016, is amended to read as follows: 24 b. The challenged registrant is less than seventeen and 25 one-half years of age. 26 Sec. 3. Section 48A.23, subsection 1, Code 2016, is amended 27 to read as follows: 28 1. At least twice during each school year, the board of 29 directors of each school district operating a high school and 30 the authorities in charge of each accredited nonpublic school 31 shall offer the opportunity to register to vote to each student 32 who is at least seventeen and one-half years of age. 33 Sec. 4. Section 48A.26, subsection 9, Code 2016, is amended 34 to read as follows: 35 -1- LSB 5091HV (2) 86 aw/sc 1/ 4

H.F. 2328 9. When a person who is at least seventeen and one-half 1 years of age but less than eighteen years of age registers 2 to vote, the commissioner shall maintain a record of the 3 registration so as to clearly indicate that it will not take 4 effect until the registrant’s eighteenth birthday and that the 5 person is registered and qualifies to vote at any election 6 held on or after that date. However, for purposes of voting 7 in a primary election, the registration shall take effect 8 immediately if the person will be at least eighteen years of 9 age on the date of the respective general election or city 10 election. 11 Sec. 5. Section 48A.31, Code 2016, is amended to read as 12 follows: 13 48A.31 Deceased persons record. 14 The state registrar of vital statistics shall transmit 15 or cause to be transmitted to the state registrar of voters, 16 once each calendar quarter, a certified list of all persons 17 seventeen and one-half years of age and older in the state 18 whose deaths have been reported to the bureau of vital records 19 of the Iowa department of public health since the previous list 20 of decedents was certified to the state registrar of voters. 21 The list shall be submitted according to the specifications 22 of the state registrar of voters. The commissioner shall, in 23 the month following the end of a calendar quarter, run the 24 statewide voter registration system’s matching program to 25 determine whether a listed decedent was registered to vote in 26 the county and shall immediately cancel the registration of any 27 person named on the list of decedents. 28 Sec. 6. Section 49.79, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code 2016, 29 is amended to read as follows: 30 b. The For an election other than a primary election, the 31 challenged person is less than eighteen years of age as of the 32 date of the election at which the person is offering to vote. 33 For a primary election, the challenged person will be less than 34 eighteen years of age on the date of the respective general 35 -2- LSB 5091HV (2) 86 aw/sc 2/ 4

H.F. 2328 election or city election. 1 Sec. 7. Section 49.81, subsection 4, paragraph a, Code 2016, 2 is amended to read as follows: 3 a. (1) The individual envelopes used for each provisional 4 ballot cast pursuant to subsection 1 shall have space for the 5 voter’s name, date of birth, and address and shall have printed 6 on them the following: 7 I am a United States citizen, at least eighteen years of age 8 or, for purposes of voting in a primary election, I will be 9 at least eighteen years of age on the date of the respective 10 general election or the city election . I believe I am a 11 registered voter of this county and I am eligible to vote in 12 this election. 13 ............. 14 (signature of voter) (date) 15 (2) The following information is to be provided by the 16 precinct election official: 17 Reason for casting provisional ballot: 18 ................ . 19 ................ . 20 .......... . 21 (signature of 22 precinct election 23 official) 24 Sec. 8. Section 280.9A, subsection 3, Code 2016, is amended 25 to read as follows: 26 3. At least twice during each school year, the board of 27 directors of each local public school district operating a 28 high school and the authorities in charge of each accredited 29 nonpublic school operating a high school shall offer the 30 opportunity to register to vote to each student who is at least 31 seventeen and one-half years of age, as required by section 32 48A.23 . 33 Sec. 9. Section 602.8102, subsection 15, Code 2016, is 34 amended to read as follows: 35 -3- LSB 5091HV (2) 86 aw/sc 3/ 4

H.F. 2328 15. Monthly, notify the county commissioner of registration 1 and the state registrar of voters of persons seventeen and 2 one-half years of age and older who have been convicted of a 3 felony during the preceding calendar month or persons who at 4 any time during the preceding calendar month have been legally 5 declared to be a person who is incompetent to vote as that term 6 is defined in section 48A.2 . 7 Sec. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act takes effect January 1, 8 2017. 9 EXPLANATION 10 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 11 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 12 This bill relates to voter registration and voting. 13 The bill allows a registered voter who is not 18 years of 14 age to vote in a primary election if the voter will be at least 15 18 years of age on the date of the general election. The bill 16 also allows an otherwise eligible elector to register to vote 17 at the age of 17. Current law allows an eligible elector who 18 is at least 17 and one-half years of age to register to vote, 19 but, except for purposes of requesting and voting an absentee 20 ballot, the registration does not become effective until the 21 registrant turns 18 years of age. The bill makes additional 22 conforming changes. 23 The bill takes effect January 1, 2017. 24 -4- LSB 5091HV (2) 86 aw/sc 4/ 4