Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2016

Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2016

This bill requires the chief state election official of each state to establish and operate a system of automatic registration for the registration of eligible individuals to vote for elections for federal office in the state.

The chief state election official shall ensure that all individuals who are eligible to be, but are not currently, registered to vote in federal elections in the state is promptly registered to vote, unless the individual declines registration by providing appropriate notice.

Each contributing agency in a state, including the state motor vehicle authority, shall assist the state's chief election official in registering to vote all eligible individuals the agency serves.

For each individual already listed in a contributing agency's records, and for whom the agency retains specified personal information, the agency shall promptly transmit that information to the appropriate state election official.

No individual shall be prosecuted under any federal law, or adversely affected in any civil adjudication concerning immigration status or naturalization, or by an allegation in any legal proceeding that an individual who is not a U.S. citizen is removable or inadmissible:

• for notifying an election official of the individual's automatic registration;
• on the grounds that the individual is not an eligible voter and has been automatically registered to vote under this bill; or
• because the individual has been automatically registered to vote at the incorrect address.

The bill allows correction of registration information at the polling place.

Each state shall ensure that application for or any update to voter registration can be done online.

The Election Assistance Commission shall make grants to each eligible state to assist it in implementing this bill.