TEMPLATE

Letter from State Legislator to Dept of Motor Vehicles and Chief Election Official

Letter from State Legislator to Dept of Motor Vehicles and chief election official – NOTE:  this could be separated into two letters, directed to the separate agency heads.

[ DATE ]

[ Name ]

[exact title, top DMV Official

[name of state Dept of Motor Vehicles]

[address]

[City, State ZIP ]

[ NAME]

[exact title, chief elections official of the state]

[name of election office]

[Address]

[City, state, zip]

Dear [ Mr./ Ms. Name of DMV Official] and [ Chief Elections Official]:

As you may know, the Constitution of the State of [ name ] provides that in order to vote in this state, a person must be a citizen of the United States. [ Confirm the language of the state constitution]. It is further a criminal offense under the federal criminal code for a noncitizen to vote in a Federal election. 

Additionally, because of federal law requiring states to comply with the provisions of REAL ID, the [ name of agency that issues drivers licenses] requires persons seeking a REAL ID to provide proof of US citizenship (or permanent resident status). 

With the [ DMV agency] receiving and retaining data regarding the citizenship status of a significant number of residents of our state by virtue of REAL ID, and in order to ensure compliance with our state’s requirement that persons registering to vote are both residents of the state and are US Citizens, it is important that the citizenship data maintained by the [ DMV ] be made available to the [name of state’s chief election office] for purposes of verifying citizenship status of voter registration applicants prior to adding applicants to the voter rolls of our state. Additionally, the citizenship data maintained by the DMV should be provided to and relied upon by election officials for purposes of confirming citizenship status of those already on [State’s] voter registration list. 

To ensure that there is an ongoing sharing of data regarding the citizenship status of all persons registered or seeking to register to vote in [ state], I will appreciate your prompt responses to the following questions regarding the collection and retention of data by the [DMV] regarding citizenship status of persons in our state and sharing of that data with the [ election office ] for purposes of confirming citizenship status of voters.

To the [ DMV  official]

(1) What citizenship data does the agency request of persons seeking a driver’s license, state ID, or other type of document from the DMV? Please describe.

(2) What citizenship data does the agency retain, and what is the format in which such data is maintained?

(3) When registering persons to vote at the [DMV], what process and/or procedure at the (agency title here) is used to ensure that anyone who checks/responds “No” to the question “are you a US citizen?” is not allowed to register to vote? Please describe the training and quality control to prevent registration of self-declared noncitizens.

(4) Does the [DMV] regularly share citizenship data with election officials to ensure that applicants for voter registration are confirmed as citizens? Please provide copies of any Memoranda of Understanding, written procedures, or other interagency agreements that describe the processes whereby citizenship data is shared between the [ DMV ] and the [ election office ].

To the [chief elections official]:

(5) What database(s) does the [election office] access to confirm status as a US citizen prior to adding an applicant to the [state’s] voter rolls? 

(6) Does the [ election office] engage in a regular process of verifying US citizenship status for all persons before they are added to the [ state’s ] voter rolls? If yes, please describe that process.

(7) Does the [election office ] regularly receive and utilize citizenship data from the         [ DMV ] for purposes of verifying US citizenship?

(8) Does the [ election office ] regularly receive and utilize citizenship data from the clerk of state and federal courts in [ state ] regarding prospective jurors excused from jury duty due to noncitizen status? If yes, please describe the process.

Your cooperation and assistance with these matters is of great importance and it is truly appreciated. I/we request answers to these questions be provided within seven (7) days of receiving this lettered request. Thank you.

Sincerely,

(Name of person(s) sending request)

Title

Address

City, State, Zip