WHEREAS, the State of Delaware maintains a list of all registered voters (a.k.a. – voter rolls); and
WHEREAS, the accuracy of the voter rolls is essential to ensuring voting rights can be properly exercised; and
WHEREAS, improving the accuracy of the voter rolls reduces state costs and improves the efficiency and efficacy of the Delaware Department of Elections; and
WHEREAS, the state list of registered voters is often used by state lawmakers, state agencies, and other parties for the purposes of conducting mailings and other public outreach; and
WHEREAS, the accuracy of the state’s voter rolls has often been found to be lacking, with many mass mailings suffering a high return rate; and
WHEREAS, the accuracy of the registered voter list was illustrated last year leading up to the vote-by-mail presidential primary held on July 7, 2020. State Election Commissioner Anthony J. Albence told the House of Representatives on June 18 that his agency had received the return of approximately 55,000 undeliverable ballots of the nearly 544,000 ballots distributed to Delaware voters; and
WHEREAS, it is unknown how many mailings using the flawed registered voter list are incorrectly delivered, but not returned; and
WHEREAS, the federal National Voter Registration Act (NRVA) contains basic rules and guidelines for maintaining state voter list rolls; and
WHEREAS, the NVRA allows states to institute other provisions for the maintenance of voter rolls exceeding the NVRA’s requirements, as long as they are uniform and non-discriminatory; and
WHEREAS, the State of Delaware has an obligation to maintain the most accurate list of registered voters possible; and
WHEREAS, it is prudent to reassess all ongoing state operations periodically to determine if current practices represent the best protocols and to consider any alternatives that may further enhance operational effectiveness.
NOW, THEREFORE:
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the 151
st
General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the House of Representatives concurring therein, that the Registered Voter List Improvement Task Force (task force) be formed.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall consist of the following members:
1.
The State Election Commissioner, or the designee of the person serving in this position.
2.
The director of each county Department of Elections, or the designee of the person serving in each of these positions.
3.
The Director of the General Assembly’s Division of Research, or the designee of the person serving in this position.
4.
One member from each caucus of the General Assembly as appointed by the leader of each caucus.
5.
An appointee made by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget familiar with both the state mail system and U.S. Postal Service operations.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Director of the General Assembly’s Division of Research, or the designee of the person serving in this position, will serve as the task force chairperson.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, by majority vote of the 10 members, as previously defined in this resolution, the task force may add ad hoc, non-voting members as needed to provide the expertise needed to complete its task.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that ad hoc task force members shall not exceed a total of 4 and that these members shall not be counted in the calculation of a quorum.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that 7 members of the task force’s 10 members, as previously defined in this resolution, shall constitute a quorum.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, by a simple majority vote of the task force’s 10 members, as previously defined in this resolution, the task force may adopt rules to govern its proceedings. If the task force members are unwilling or unable to adopt such rules, or if the rules adopted do not address a situation confronting the task force, Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure shall be followed.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force may meet in a virtual environment, but that all meetings, virtual or actual, be promoted to the public in accordance with the Delaware Freedom of Information Act (Title 29, Chapter 100, § 10004).
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that all task force meetings shall be open to members of the media and the public, in accordance with the Delaware Freedom of Information Act.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force should receive staff support from the Division of Research, and other such support as may be needed and requested from among the members of the working group.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that that the Division of Research shall guide the task force by doing, at a minimum, all of the following:
(1) Setting a date, time, and place for the initial meeting.
(2) Notifying the task force members.
(3) Supervising the preparation and distribution of task force meeting notices, agendas, minutes, correspondence, and reports. The Division of Research may share these tasks with other support as provided by members of the task force.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work of the task force should include, but not be limited to, the following:
1.
Review current practices for compiling the state’s registered voter list.
2.
Examine what information is collected and maintained by the Department of Elections when a citizen registers to vote.
3.
Review how new voter information, and changes to the information of existing voters, is transmitted from the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles to the Department of Elections.
4.
Review how updated information on newly incarcerated felons, and released prisoners, is transmitted from the Department of Correction to the Department of Elections.
5.
Review how information on deceased voters is transmitted from the Delaware Office of Vital Statistics to the Department of Elections.
6.
Review any other sources of information shared by state agencies with the Delaware Department of Elections for the maintenance of the state’s voter rolls.
7.
Review the measures the Department of Elections employs to audit its list of registered voters for accuracy, including what data is audited and how often audits are conducted.
8.
Review the current accuracy of the registered voter mailing list and what metrics are used to determine accuracy, including the percentage of mailings conducted by the Department of Elections that are returned as undeliverable.
9.
Review the restrictions imposed by state and federal laws regarding the removal of inactive or inaccurate names from the voting rolls.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall, as its main objective, seek ways to maximize the accuracy of Delaware’s register voter list, while observing all federal and state statutes and case law.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall compile a list of actionable steps that can be taken to maximize registered voter list accuracy.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in instances where the aforementioned actions require legislation to implement, the task force shall draft bills as part of its report that can be circulated for sponsorship and introduced in the Delaware General Assembly.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall hold its first meeting the month following the passage of this resolution and then meet on an as-needed basis, as determined by the Director of the Division of Research and a majority vote of the quorum of task force’s members.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that following the completion of the task force report, finalizing and releasing the report shall be contingent on a majority vote of the 10 task force members, as previously defined in this resolution.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall deliver its report to every member of the General Assembly no later than March 15, 2022.
