An important victory that brings us a step closer to modernizing our voter registration system at public assistance agencies was reached in Georgia this month. A coalition of national voting rights groups–including Project Vote, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Dēmos, the ACLU, the NAACP, and Dechert LLP–have secured a landmark settlement with the State of Georgia to ensure that voter registration is available to all public assistance applicants.
The lawsuit was brought by the coalition on behalf of the Georgia State Conference of the NAACP and the Coalition for the People’s Agenda, alleging widespread violations of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA).
Georgia’s Secretary of State and its Department of Human Services (DHS) have agreed to comply with the Section 7 of the NVRA, which requires that public assistance agency clients be provided with the opportunity to register to vote every time they apply for or renew benefits, or when they submit a change of address. The settlement details procedures that Georgia must follow for distributing voter registration applications and a variety of other measures to promote and ensure NVRA compliance, including training for public assistance employees, data collection, and a requirement to report to the coalition to help the state monitor the implementation and impact of this settlement.
The settlement has been submitted to a federal judge for approval.
“This is an important victory for low-income citizens of Georgia,” said Sarah Brannon, director of the Public Agency Registration Program for Project Vote in a press release today. “Public assistance agencies are a vital component of the voter registration system, and reach citizens who are less likely to register through other means, including seniors and low-income residents. By committing to compliance with the law, Georgia is ensuring that its most vulnerable citizens have the opportunity to make their voices heard.”