Senate ethics committee backs changes to HB 397, delays ERIC removal until 2027

The Georgia Senate Ethics Committee on a late-night vote recommended passage of House Bill 397, a wide-ranging elections measure, after sponsors said they removed three previously contested sections, added new procedural limits for counties and set an implementation date of July 1, 2027, for changes tied to ERIC membership.

The bill sponsor said the committee was working from LC 473701S and that, after testimony and follow-up meetings with Chairman Anderson, the bill had been revised to remove three sections: a provision requiring Department of Motor Vehicles employees to ask about citizenship; an appellate authority for the State Election Board (SEB) regarding voter-roll challenges; and a precinct hand-count reconciliation rule that would have required counting ballots at precincts the night an election closes. "We removed section the old section number 4, which dealt with the DMV language, which required DMV employees to ask about citizenship. We removed section 6, which is the appellate authority for the SEB regarding the voter roll challenges. We also removed old, old section number 13, which is the hand count reconciliation rule," the bill sponsor said.

Nut graf: Committee members said the changes were an attempt to address concerns raised during a previous session and public testimony. Sponsors also inserted an implementation date of July 1, 2027, for provisions affecting ERIC (the Electronic Registration Information Center), a delay sponsors said gives the General Assembly and any incoming constitutional officers time to consider options before the…