Michigan rules panel hears Department of State propose 20‑year voter‑list cleanup and stricter 5‑12 challenge rules

The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules heard Department of State Bureau of Elections officials present a rule package that would clarify list‑maintenance procedures and registration challenges and add a 20‑year failure‑to‑vote trigger to start the federal two‑election‑cycle (four‑year) cancellation process.

Adam Fercasse, deputy director of elections for the Michigan Department of State Bureau of Elections, told the committee the rules are intended to harmonize Michigan election law with the National Voter Registration Act and codify the bureau’s existing practices. “We are using that 20 years failure to vote as reliable information that you no longer live at that address, and we’re going to put you on the cancellation countdown,” Fercasse said.

Why it matters: the rule package seeks to resolve longstanding confusion between Michigan’s section 5‑12 challenge process and other legal obligations—particularly the NVRA’s requirement that jurisdictions provide a two‑election‑cycle opportunity to confirm or otherwise preserve a registration before cancellation. Bureau staff said the 20‑year provision is meant as a backstop to capture legacy records carried into the state’s Qualified Voter File…