Section 23-15-152 - Confirmation notice to be sent to certain registered voters; placement of recipients of confirmation notice on inactive status; failure to respond by voter; purged status for failure to respond(1) For the purposes of this section, "confirmation notice" means a notice sent by the election commissioners, by forwardable mail, with return postage prepaid, on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State, to a registered voter to confirm the registered voter's current address. The notice shall comply with all applicable requirements of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.(2) The election commissioners shall send a confirmation notice to the following:(a) A registered voter if it appears from the United States Postal Service change-of-address information that the registered voter has moved to a different residence;(b) A registered voter if a county election commissioner or county registrar has received notice from another state, or political subdivision of another state, that the registered voter has registered to vote in another state;(c) A registered voter who has failed to vote at least once in any election or update his or her registration during a period that begins in the year of a presidential preference primary and extends until the next general election for President of the United States that does not occur in the same year as the beginning of the period; or(d) A registered voter if the registrar or election commissioners have received reliable information that he or she has moved within or outside of the state. Reliable information includes, but is not limited to: official mail returned as undeliverable by the county election commission, registrar or other county or municipal office, Secretary of State; application for homestead exemption filed by the voter at an address other than the address of current registration; or any information from another state or county entity indicating the voter no longer resides at the address of voter registration. No registered voter shall be sent a confirmation notice under paragraph (c) of this subsection if he or she has been sent a confirmation notice for those same reasons within the last six (6) years.
(3) The county election commissioners shall place any registered voter who has been sent a confirmation notice on inactive status in the Statewide Elections Management System. Any registered voter who is placed on inactive status shall be unable to cast a regular ballot on election day but shall be able to cast an affidavit ballot as provided in Section 23-15-573.(4) A registered voter "fails to respond to the confirmation notice" if the voter, during a period beginning on the date the confirmation notice was sent and ending on the day after the date of the second general election for federal office that occurs after the date of the notice, fails to:(a) Respond to the confirmation notice; or(b) Update the elector's registration information. A registered voter who votes at least once in any election in the registered voter's county or municipality of registration during the period beginning from the date of the delivery of the confirmation notice provided in this subsection (4) or who is active or reserve military or who serves on jury duty or responds to a summons for jury duty shall not be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System.
(5) The county registrar or county election commission shall move those registered voters who fail to respond to the confirmation notice as provided in subsection (4) of this section and who fail to vote as provided in subsection (4) of this section to purged status in the Statewide Elections Management System.(6) No systematic list maintenance shall occur during the ninety (90) days immediately preceding a federal primary or general election which is limited to moving a voter to inactive status in subsection (2) of this section or purged status in subsection (5) of this section.(7) The county registrar shall retain purged voter registration records after they are purged for a period that includes at least two (2) federal general elections and shall record the reason for the removal.Added by Laws, 2023, ch. 534, HB 1310,§ 5, eff. 1/1/2024.