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  82R2858 JRJ-D
 
  By: Smith of Tarrant H.B. No. 401
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to requiring a voter to present proof of identification.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 12, Election Code, is
  amended by adding Section 12.007 to read as follows:
         Sec. 12.007.  TEXAS VOTER IDENTIFICATION CARD. (a) Each
  voter registrar shall issue Texas voter identification cards to
  registered voters to be used only for the purpose of meeting the
  identification requirements of Section 63.001(b). The voter
  registrar must provide at least one place in the county to accept
  applications for and issue Texas voter identification cards. The
  voter registrar may not charge an application fee or a fee for the
  issuance of a Texas voter identification card.
         (b)  A person who has a valid driver's license or personal
  identification card issued to the person by the Department of
  Public Safety is not eligible for a Texas voter identification
  card.
         (c)  The Texas voter identification card issued to a person
  must:
               (1)  be captioned "TEXAS VOTER IDENTIFICATION CARD";
               (2)  contain a prominent statement that under Texas law
  the card is valid only as identification for voting purposes;
               (3)  be laminated;
               (4)  contain a digital color photograph of the person;
  and
               (5)  include the following information relating to the
  person:
                     (A)  full legal name;
                     (B)  residence address;
                     (C)  birth date;
                     (D)  date the identification card was issued;
                     (E)  sex;
                     (F)  height;
                     (G)  weight;
                     (H)  eye color;
                     (I)  the county where the identification card was
  issued, including a county number to be assigned for each county by
  the secretary of state; and
                     (J)  any other information or identification as
  required by rule of the secretary of state.
         (d)  The application form for a Texas voter identification
  card must elicit the information required under Subsection (c) and
  any other information required by rule of the secretary of state.
  The application must be signed and sworn to by the applicant.
         (e)  The following information must be presented to and
  verified by the voter registrar before the voter registrar issues a
  Texas voter identification card to a person:
               (1)  a photo identification document, or an
  identification document that includes both the person's full legal
  name and date of birth;
               (2)  documentation showing the person's date of birth;
               (3)  evidence that the person is registered to vote in
  this state; and
               (4)  documentation showing the person's name and
  address of principal residence.
         (f)  A Texas voter identification card remains valid if the
  person to whom it was issued resides at the same address and remains
  qualified to vote. A person who changes residence within the state
  must surrender the card to the voter registrar of the new county of
  residence and may apply for and receive a Texas voter
  identification card issued by the new county of residence if the
  person is otherwise eligible under this section. A person who moves
  residence outside the state or who ceases to be qualified to vote
  must surrender the person's Texas voter identification card to the
  voter registrar who issued the card.
         (g)  The secretary of state shall provide each voter
  registrar with the necessary equipment, forms, supplies, and
  training for the production of the Texas voter identification cards
  and shall maintain the equipment.
         (h)  The secretary of state shall adopt rules for the
  administration of this section.
         SECTION 2.  Effective January 1, 2012, Section 63.001,
  Election Code, is amended by amending Subsections (b), (c), (d),
  and (f) and adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
         (b)  On offering to vote, a voter must present one form of
  identification listed in Section 63.0101 [the voter's voter
  registration certificate] to an election officer at the polling
  place.
         (c)  On presentation of the documentation required by
  Subsection (b) [a registration certificate], an election officer
  shall determine whether the voter's name on the documentation
  [registration certificate] is on the list of registered voters for
  the precinct.
         (d)  If the voter's name is on the precinct list of
  registered voters and the voter's identity can be verified from the
  documentation presented under Subsection (b), the voter shall be
  accepted for voting.
         (f)  After determining whether to accept a voter, an election
  officer shall return the voter's documentation [registration
  certificate] to the voter.
         (g)  A voter shall be accepted for provisional voting only
  under Section 63.011 if the requirement for identification
  prescribed by Subsection (b) is not met.
         SECTION 3.  Effective January 1, 2012, Section 63.007,
  Election Code, is amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 63.007.  VOTER WITH REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION [INCORRECT
  CERTIFICATE] WHO IS NOT ON LIST. (a) A voter who, when offering to
  vote, presents the documentation required under Section 63.001 [a
  voter registration certificate indicating that the voter is
  currently registered in a different precinct from the one in which
  the voter is offering to vote], and whose name is not on the
  precinct list of registered voters, shall be accepted for voting if
  the voter presents a voter registration certificate indicating that
  the voter is currently registered:
               (1)  in the precinct in which the voter is offering to
  vote; or
               (2)  in a different precinct from the one in which the
  voter is offering to vote and the voter executes an affidavit
  stating that the voter:
                     (A) [(1)]  is a resident of the precinct in which
  the voter is offering to vote or is otherwise entitled by law to
  vote in that precinct;
                     (B) [(2)]  was a resident of the precinct in which
  the voter is offering to vote at the time that information on the
  voter's residence address was last provided to the voter registrar;
                     (C) [(3)]  did not deliberately provide false
  information to secure registration in a precinct in which the voter
  does not reside; and
                     (D) [(4)]  is voting only once in the election.
         (b)  After the voter is accepted, an election officer shall:
               (1)  indicate beside the voter's name on the poll list
  that the voter was accepted under this section; and
               (2)  enter on the registration omissions list the
  precinct of the voter's registration as indicated by the voter's
  registration certificate.
         SECTION 4.  Section 63.009(a), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  A [Except as provided by Subsection (b), a] voter who
  does not present a voter registration certificate when offering to
  vote, and whose name is not on the list of registered voters for the
  precinct in which the voter is offering to vote, shall be accepted
  for provisional voting if the voter executes an affidavit in
  accordance with Section 63.011.
         SECTION 5.  Section 63.0101, Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 63.0101.  DOCUMENTATION OF PROOF OF IDENTIFICATION.
  The following documentation is an acceptable form [as proof] of
  photo identification under this chapter:
               (1)  a driver's license or personal identification card
  issued to the person by the Department of Public Safety that has not
  expired or that expired no earlier than one year before the date of
  presentation [or a similar document issued to the person by an
  agency of another state, regardless of whether the license or card
  has expired];
               (2)  a United States military identification card that
  contains the person's photograph [form of identification
  containing the person's photograph that establishes the person's
  identity];
               (3)  a [birth certificate or other document confirming
  birth that is admissible in a court of law and establishes the
  person's identity;
               [(4)]  United States citizenship certificate [papers]
  issued to the person that contains the person's photograph;
               (4) [(5)]  a United States passport issued to the
  person;
               (5)  a license to carry a concealed handgun issued to
  the person by the Department of Public Safety that contains the
  person's photograph;
               (6)  a student identification card issued by a public
  or private institution of higher education that contains the
  person's photograph [official mail addressed to the person by name
  from a governmental entity];
               (7)  a valid identification card that contains the
  person's photograph and is issued by:
                     (A)  an agency or institution of the federal
  government;
                     (B)  an agency, institution, or political
  subdivision of this state; or
                     (C)  a tribal organization; or
               (8)  a Texas voter identification card issued under
  Section 12.007 [copy of a current utility bill, bank statement,
  government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows
  the name and address of the voter; or
               [(8)  any other form of identification prescribed by
  the secretary of state].
         SECTION 6.  Effective January 1, 2012, Sections 63.011(a)
  and (b), Election Code, are amended to read as follows:
         (a)  A person to whom Section 63.001(g) [63.008(b)] or
  63.009(a) applies may cast a provisional ballot if the person
  executes an affidavit stating that the person:
               (1)  is a registered voter in the precinct in which the
  person seeks to vote; and
               (2)  is eligible to vote in the election.
         (b)  A form for an affidavit required by this section must
  [shall] be printed on an envelope in which the provisional ballot
  voted by the person may be placed and must include a space for
  entering the identification number of the provisional ballot voted
  by the person and a space for an election officer to indicate
  whether the person presented proof of identification as required by
  Section 63.001(b). The affidavit form may include space for
  disclosure of any necessary information to enable the person to
  register to vote under Chapter 13. The secretary of state shall
  prescribe the form of the affidavit under this section.
         SECTION 7.  Effective January 1, 2012, Section 65.054(b),
  Election Code, is amended to read as follows:
         (b)  A provisional ballot may be accepted only if:
               (1)  the board determines that, from the information in
  the affidavit or contained in public records, the person is
  eligible to vote in the election and has not previously voted in
  that election; and
               (2)  the voter presents proof of identification as
  required by Section 63.001(b):
                     (A)  at the time the ballot was cast; or
                     (B)  in the period prescribed under Section
  65.0541.
         SECTION 8.  Effective January 1, 2012, Subchapter B, Chapter
  65, Election Code, is amended by adding Section 65.0541 to read as
  follows:
         Sec. 65.0541.  PRESENTATION OF IDENTIFICATION FOR CERTAIN
  PROVISIONAL BALLOTS. (a) A voter who is accepted for provisional
  voting under Section 63.011 because the voter does not present
  proof of identification as required by Section 63.001(b) may, not
  later than the seventh business day after the date of the election,
  present proof of identification to the voter registrar for
  examination by the early voting ballot board.
         (b)  The secretary of state shall prescribe procedures as
  necessary to implement this section.
         SECTION 9.  Effective January 1, 2012, Section 521.422,
  Transportation Code, is amended by amending Subsection (a) and
  adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
         (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (d), the [The] fee for
  a personal identification certificate is:
               (1)  $15 for a person under 60 years of age;
               (2)  $5 for a person 60 years of age or older; and
               (3)  $20 for a person subject to the registration
  requirements under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure.
         (d)  The department may not collect a fee for a personal
  identification certificate issued to a person who:
               (1)  executes an affidavit stating that the person:
                     (A)  is obtaining the personal identification
  certificate for the purpose of satisfying Section 63.001(b),
  Election Code; and
                     (B)  does not have another form of identification
  acceptable under Section 63.0101, Election Code; and
               (2)  is:
                     (A)  a registered voter in this state and presents
  a valid voter registration certificate; or
                     (B)  eligible for registration under Section
  13.001, Election Code, and submits a registration application to
  the department.
         SECTION 10.  Effective January 1, 2012, Sections 63.006,
  63.008, and 63.009(b), Election Code, are repealed.
         SECTION 11.  As soon as practicable after September 1, 2011,
  the secretary of state shall adopt the rules and training standards
  and develop the training materials required to implement the change
  in law made by this Act in adding Section 12.007, Election Code.
         SECTION 12.  Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this
  Act takes effect September 1, 2011.