ICYMI (Like Almost Everyone Else): DC Moves Closer to OVR

[Image courtesy of NBCWashington]

My friend and colleague Mindy Moretti, a Washington, DC resident and fellow election geek, has been complaining for months (years?) that the District has yet to join the national trend toward online voter registration.

You can imagine, therefore, how excited she must have been to receive the following press release from City Councilmember Tommy Wells (which she forwarded to me):

Today [Monday July 14], Bill 20-0264, the “Voter Registration Access and Modernization Amendment Act of 2014,” passed its first Council vote with a second reading and vote to be held after Council reconvenes in September 2014. The Bill was introduced on April 30, 2013 by Councilmember Tommy Wells and co-sponsored by Councilmembers Grosso and Graham.

This bill would streamline the online voter registration process, and reduce barriers to ballot access for DC residents who may not have voted in the past due to the limitations created by virtue of bureaucratic requirements.

Currently, a voter enters data into a form on the DC Board of Elections (DCBOE) website and then prints, signs, and mails it to the DCBOE. The electronic version of the online form is held in “pending status” until the original hard copy with “wet” signature is received and processed by staff. Bill 20-0264 would eliminate the “wet” signature requirement and would expand the electronic voter registration system by authorizing the DCBOE to accept signatures by additional means outside of a mailed hard copy of the voter’s signed application.

The bill would require the DMV provide to BOE signatures from DMV’s database which would allow voters who already have a signature on file with the DMV to complete the entire voter registration process online by simply providing their DMV-issued identification number.

“This legislation represents an important step toward increasing access to the District’s election process for all DC residents,” said Wells. “The current voter registration process is onerous and confusing, serving as a barrier to citizen involvement in elections. This bill would streamline the online registration process making it simpler for residents to register online.”

“Furthermore,” Wells continued, “while the DCBOE currently has a smart phone application that allows voters to create a digital signature using one’s finger or a stylus, my bill extends a bit further to ensure the accommodation of voters who lack access to this technology. I want to thank my colleague, Councilmember McDuffie, for efficiently moving this important bill through Committee to ensure passage by the end of this year.”

Bill 20-0465 stipulates that within 180 days of the effective date of the “Voter Registration Access and Modernization Amendment Act of 2014,” the DCBOE will implement a digital voter service system that allows for registration to be certified by an electronic signature provided by the applicant directly to the DCBOE; or an electronic signature provided to the DCBOE by the DMV.

That’s big news – but here’s the amazing thing: despite the fact that DC is positively swimming with political journalists, Wells’ press release is the only report about OVR progress in DC. Whether or not you like OVR, it’s a big step – and in DC, where other high profile changes have posed implementation challenges for the Board of Elections you’d think it would generate a little more notice.

Granted, it’s summertime, with many of the city’s newsmakers back on home or on vacation – and apparently the same polar vortex that dumped snow on the area last winter is now wreaking havoc with strong, fast-moving thunderstorms that come daily – but a story this big shouldn’t have just slipped under the radar.

Of course, Wells’ bill will get more scrutiny when the Council returns this fall, but I would have expected that this first step would have gotten a little more attention.

Thanks to Mindy for sharing the release – and stay tuned for further developments in DC … you might want to check back here since there’s no guarantee it’ll make the papers!