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Senate advances substitute to make DMV voter registration opt‑out and add affiliation option
Summary
Senate substitute to SB 112 would change voter registration at the DMV from opt‑in to opt‑out, add an option to record party affiliation at the point of registration and provide privacy protections for registrants who request non‑disclosure. County clerks supported the change as a streamlining measure.
Senators on the floor adopted a first substitute to SB 112 that changes the DMV voter‑registration process from an opt‑in model to an opt‑out model and permits registrants to select party affiliation when they register at the DMV.
Senator Henderson, who moved the substitute, said the change "will streamline the process between the DMV and the voter registration rules" and argued it would keep voter rolls cleaner and save county clerks administrative time and taxpayer money spent chasing address updates. "County clerks are in favor of this," Henderson said, noting the substitute also includes protections to make a registrant's information private if public disclosure could endanger that individual.
The substitute bill also mirrors existing county clerk procedures, adding a place to affiliate and clarifying how individuals can request to keep their registration information private. Senator Van Tassel praised the bill as a continuation of prior record‑cleaning efforts tied to Real ID. Senator Justice said he would vote no, arguing the act of obtaining a driver's license should not automatically register someone to vote and expressing concern that being able to drive does not equate to being informed about voting.
The substitute passed the floor sequence and was placed on the third‑reading calendar; floor debate was robust with multiple senators speaking both for and against the opt‑out approach.
