Washington, DC–Late last week, the federal Election Assistance Commission (EAC) published its biennial report (PDF) to Congress on the impact of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA). This report includes data on various aspects of voter registration in the past two years. These most recent numbers strongly indicate that many states continue to ignore the requirement (Section 7 of the NVRA) that public assistance agencies offer voter registration to clients, while enforcement of the law by the Department of Justice has been virtually non-existent. In response, the following statement was released by Demos, Project Vote, and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, national voting rights groups that have been working to improve NVRA compliance:
“The registration data published by the EAC are disturbing. Between initial implementation of the law in 1995-1996 and 2005-2006, the EAC’s numbers indicate an 80 percent nationwide decrease in voter registrations from public assistance agencies. Nine states reported decreases of 90 percent or more. States only registered half as many voters in public assistance agencies in 2005-2006 as they did as recently as 2003-2004. With only 59 percent of citizens in households making less than $15,000 registered to vote–compared to 85 percent in households making $75,000 or more–voter registration in public assistance agencies is an increasingly important tool to ensure all eligible citizens are able to participate in the democratic process.”
“It also appears that states are making little effort to train public assistance caseworkers in conducting voter registration. The EAC report indicates that only six states provide training at least every two years to all voter registration agencies.
“The continuing decline in public assistance registrations suggests that not only are states continuing to disregard their duty to offer voter registration at public assistance agencies, but also that the federal agency responsible for enforcement–the highly politicized Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice–is ignoring its responsibility to do so.”
“Our organizations have repeatedly provided the Department of Justice with evidence of noncompliance with the law, including several memos and a lengthy report containing statistical evidence supplemented by field observations, and an in-person meeting with several high-ranking DOJ staffers. In the last few years, DOJ has pursued only one lawsuit–in Tennessee–to bring a state into compliance with Section 7. As a testament to what DOJ oversight can accomplish, Tennessee accounted for almost a quarter of the nation’s public assistance voter registrations in 2005-2006. Unfortunately, DOJ has continued to ignore the evidence of Section 7 violations in almost all other states, and instead has pursued policies to remove voters from the voter rolls. The EAC’s new report provides DOJ with information it should use to assess Section 7 compliance in states throughout the country.”
“Efforts by our organizations also indicate that when states adequately implement the law, voter registrations in public assistance agencies increase significantly. Recently, after working with us, North Carolina’s public assistance agencies registered 11 percent more clients in the single month of February 2007 than in the entire year of 2005. And in Iowa, where the project has been active, the EAC report indicates a sizeable increase in public assistance voter registrations. Tennessee’s success, as well as the increases in Iowa and North Carolina, indicates the potential for registering low-income Americans when the law is properly implemented and enforced.”
“Demos, Project Vote, and the Lawyers’ Committee commend states like North Carolina who have voluntarily worked to improve compliance with the law. The EAC should make NVRA compliance a priority and actively promote its implementation in the states. We also strongly support the EAC’s recommendation that states provide training to all agencies involved in voter registration. We continue to urge Congress to investigate DOJ’s refusal to take action, especially in light of recent reports of internal politicization undermining the enforcement of voting rights at the department, and to further press for implementation of this national law.”
Visit www.projectvote.org or www.demos.org for more information on the NVRA or to download related resources including: “Ten Years Later, A Promise Unfulfilled,” a new report on NVRA improvement in North Carolina, a recent letter notifying New Mexico’s Secretary of State of their failure to comply with Section 7, and recent letters submitted to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees urging investigation of DOJ’s lack of voting rights enforcement.