HR1200: HR1200 Secretary of State; continue to protect private and protected information contained in Georgia's voter registration list; urge

26 LC 47 3921 House Resolution 1200 By: Representatives Gisler of the 121st, Draper of the 90th, Roberts of the 52nd, Tran of the 80th, Olaleye of the 59th, and others A RESOLUTION Urging the Georgia Secretary of State to continue to protect pr ivate and protected1 information contained in Georgia's voter registration list from an unwarranted request from2 the United States Department of Justice to produce unredacted c opies of such voter3 registration list; and for other purposes.4 WHEREAS, Congress enacted the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and the Help5 America Vote Act (HAVA) in an effort to ensure that all 50 stat es and other jurisdictions6 have effective and secure voter registration programs, both of which are critical to ensuring7 free and fair elections for local, state, and federal offices; and8 WHEREAS, NVRA requires states, including Georgia, to collect and retain certain records9 of personally identifying information, including dates of birth, drivers' license numbers, and10 the last four digits of the social security numbers of persons registering to vote; and11 WHEREAS, Georgia law, in Code Section 21-2-225, provides that s uch personally12 identifying information in the voter registration list shall be kept in a confidential manner by13 the Secretary of State and may only be disclosed to certain state and federal officials under14 specific defined circumstances related to voter roll maintenanc e and the registration of15 voters; and16 H. R. 1200 - 1 - 26 LC 47 3921 WHEREAS, this past summer, the Civil Rights Division of the Dep artment of Justice17 requested that numerous states, including Georgia, provide the Department with a full voter18 registration list, included unredacted confidential personally identifying information; and19 WHEREAS, Georgia's Secretary of State has complied with the requirements of Georgia law20 to ensure that such confidential personally identifying information is protected and provided21 the Department of Justice with a redacted version of Georgia's voter registration list that22 maintained the confidentiality of personally identifying information of millions of Georgians;23 and24 WHEREAS, the Department of Justice has persisted with its demand that the Secretary of25 State provide an unredacted copy of Georgia's voter registration list; and26 WHEREAS, the Department of Justice has indicated that it will s hare any information it27 receives related to its request, including confidential personally identifying information, with28 officials of the federal government not tasked with enforcing f ederal election and voting29 rights law, and potentially even with private third parties; and30 WHEREAS, the Georgia Secretary of State has joined chief elections officers in jurisdictions31 such as Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Rhode32 Island, Washington, and the District of Columbia in refusing to disclose the confidential33 personally identifying information of voters to the Department of Justice; and34 WHEREAS, if the confidential personally identifying information in Georgia's voter35 registration list is provided to the Department of Justice, inc alculable harm could result to36 millions of Georgia voters.37 H. R. 1200 - 2 - 26 LC 47 3921 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that38 the members of this body believe it would be a violation of Code Section 21-2-225 for the39 Secretary of State to provide the requested unredacted voter re gistration list to the40 Department of Justice.41 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body urge the Secretary of State to42 continue to protect confidential voter registration information as he is obligated and required43 to by Code Section 21-2-225, and to maintain his legal actions seeking to prevent the44 disclosure of the unredacted voter registration list to the Department of Justice.45 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized46 and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution avai lable for distribution to the47 Secretary of State, the members of the State Election Board, th e President of the United48 States, the Attorney General of the United States, and the Assi stant Attorney General for49 Civil Rights.50 H. R. 1200 - 3 -