A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to provide for in‑person registration and voting at one‑stop early voting sites; and to appropriate funds to the state board of elections to implement and study the change.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Article 7A of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 163‑82.6A. In‑person registration and voting at one‑stop sites.
(a)	Who May Register in Person. – An individual who is qualified to register to vote may register in person and then vote at a one‑stop voting site in the individual's county of residence during the period for one‑stop voting provided under G.S. 163‑227.2.
(b)	Readiness of One‑Stop Sites. – The State Board of Elections and the county boards of elections shall provide to the maximum extent practical electronic access to an updated statewide voter registration database and the North Carolina drivers license database at each site where in‑person registration and voting take place. The county board shall staff those sites with personnel capable of using the equipment to conduct in‑person registration and voting with competence and integrity.
(c)	Identification Requirement. – To register under this subsection, the person shall provide proof of identity and residence and shall complete a registration form which includes signing a statement, under penalty of perjury, that the person is a citizen of the United States and resides at the address given. The presentation of any of the following valid documents that show the name and address of the person shall suffice as proof of identity and residence: A North Carolina drivers license, photo identification from a government agency, or a copy of a utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, government check, or other government document. The State Board of Elections may designate additional documents or methods that suffice and shall prescribe procedures for establishing proof of identity and residence.
(d)	How the In‑Person Registrant Shall Vote. – An individual who registers under this subsection shall vote a retrievable absentee ballot as provided in G.S. 163‑227.2 if all of the following conditions are met:
(1)	The individual presents as identification a currently valid North Carolina drivers license.
(2)	The address on the drivers license is the same address the individual declares as residence address on the voter registration application.
(3)	The one‑stop site has accessible an online database of both drivers license records for the county and voter registration records for the county so that election officials can verify the voter registration application immediately.
If the conditions in subdivisions (1), (2), and (3) in this subsection are not all met, the voter shall vote by provisional ballot as provided in Article 14A of this Chapter.
(e)	Requirement for Immediate Voting. – An individual who registers in person under this subsection must vote immediately after registering. The county board of elections shall ensure that the individual is informed of this requirement before registering. If an individual who has registered under this subsection declines to vote immediately, the registration shall be cancelled, but that individual may later register and vote under this subsection in the same election.
(f)	Verification of Registration; Counting of Ballot. – The county board of elections shall proceed under G.S. 163‑82.7 to verify the qualifications and address of every individual who registers under this subsection. The individual's vote shall be counted, unless the county board determines under G.S. 163‑82.7(b) that the applicant is not qualified to vote at the address given."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 163‑82.6 reads as rewritten:
"§ 163‑82.6.  Acceptance of voter registration application forms.
(a)	How the Form May Be Submitted. – The county board of elections shall accept any form described in G.S. 163‑82.3 if the applicant submits the form by mail, facsimile transmission, transmission of a scanned document, or in person. The applicant may delegate the submission of the form to another person. Any person who communicates to an applicant acceptance of that delegation shall deliver that form so that it is received by the appropriate county board of elections in time to satisfy the registration deadline in subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (c) of this section for the next election. It shall be a Class 2 misdemeanor for any person to communicate to the applicant acceptance of that delegation and then fail to make a good faith effort to deliver the form so that it is received by the county board of elections in time to satisfy the registration deadline in subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (c) of this section for the next election. It shall be an affirmative defense to a charge of failing to make a good faith effort to deliver a delegated form by the registration deadline that the delegatee informed the applicant that the form would not likely be delivered in time for the applicant to vote in the next election. It shall be a Class 2 misdemeanor for any person to sell or attempt to sell a completed voter registration form or to condition its delivery upon payment.
(b)	Signature. – The form shall be valid only if signed by the applicant. An electronically captured image of the signature of a voter on an electronic voter registration form offered by a State agency shall be considered a valid signature for all purposes for which a signature on a paper voter registration form is used.
(c)	Registration Deadlines for an Election. – In order to be valid for an election, except as provided in G.S. 163‑82.6A, the form:
(1)	If submitted by mail, must be postmarked at least 25 days before the election, except that any mailed application on which the postmark is missing or unclear is validly submitted if received in the mail not later than 20 days before the election,
(2)	If submitted in person, by facsimile transmission, or by transmission of a scanned document, must be received by the county board of elections by a time established by that board, but no earlier than 5:00 P.M., on the twenty‑fifth day before the election,
(3)	If submitted through a delegatee who violates the duty set forth in subsection (a) of this section, must be signed by the applicant and given to the delegatee not later than 25 days before the election, except as provided in subsection (d) of this section.
(c1)	If the application is submitted by facsimile transmission or transmission of a scanned document, a permanent copy of the completed, signed form shall be delivered to the county board no later than 20 days before the election.
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SECTION 3.  G.S. 163‑227.2(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Any voter eligible to vote by absentee ballot under G.S. 163‑226 may request an application for absentee ballots, complete the application, and vote under the provisions of this section and of G.S. 163‑82.6A, as applicable."
SECTION 4.  The State Board of Elections shall provide counties with the access to the databases described in G.S. 163‑82.6A(b), monitor the implementation of this act, analyze its use in the counties during 2006, and determine the feasibility and timetable for expanding same‑day registration and voting to all voting places on election day. The State Board shall report its findings no later than March 1, 2007, to the Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations of the General Assembly. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the State Board of Elections for the 2005‑2006 fiscal year the sum of seventy‑five thousand dollars ($75,000) for this purpose.
SECTION 5.  Sections 1, 2, and 3 of this act become effective January 1, 2006, and shall apply to all primaries and elections held on or after that date. The remainder of this act becomes effective July 1, 2005.