U.S. House set to vote on the SAVE Act; Major impacts on county election administration

Key Takeaways

Next week, the U.S. House of Representatives is slated to vote on the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act (H.R. 22), making it the chamber’s second vote on a version of the legislation in less than a year. 

How we got here: 

The SAVE Act passed the U.S. House in the 118th Congress but ultimately was not considered in the U.S. Senate. The SAVE Act is priority legislation for Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) and the White House. On April 10, the U.S. House voted 220-208 with 4 Democratic lawmakers voting with all House Republicans to pass the bill and advance it to the U.S. Senate. 

The SAVE Act: An overview

The SAVE Act would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (P.L. 103-31) to require individuals to provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections. U.S. citizenship has always been a requirement to vote in federal elections, but the bill would require states to validate a voter’s citizenship status through specified documentation. Examples include a valid U.S. passport, certain military identification or other approved documents indicating U.S. citizenship or birthplace.

Under current voter registration processes, applicants generally do not have to provide documentary proof of citizenship. Instead, applicants attest to citizenship under penalty of perjury. The SAVE Act would establish new requirements for state and local election officials to verify voter registration records and would provide access to certain federal databases to support citizenship verification. The bill would also impose new criminal penalties related to registering individuals who cannot provide required proof of citizenship.

Breaking it down: How would the bill impact counties

If enacted, the legislation would introduce significant new administrative requirements for counties responsible for election administration. It would impose new, unfunded duties and increase legal exposure for election administrators, including many county officials, without authorizing resources necessary to implement these mandates. The SAVE Act does not authorize additional federal funding for states or local governments to carry out these requirements.

Specifically, the SAVE Act would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to require documentary proof of citizenship for federal voter registration requiring the following:

• Requiring counties to collect and verify documentary proof of citizenship for federal voter registration and to conduct ongoing voter list maintenance tied to citizenship status.
• Establishing a uniform federal framework that limits county authority over voter registration and list maintenance, regardless of existing state systems used to verify voter eligibility.
• Expanding verification, compliance and enforcement responsibilities for counties without specifying additional staffing, funding and administrative support.
• Introducing new enforcement provisions, including private rights of action and potential criminal penalties, which could increase legal exposure for election administrators related to compliance or data discrepancies.
• Implementing new requirements without defined timelines, guaranteed resources or flexibility for local implementation.

NACo will continue to monitor developments on the bill and highlight the county role in elections administration and potential impacts of the legislation. 

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