[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 388 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. CON. RES. 388
Expressing the sense of Congress that the Department of Defense and the
Federal Voting Assistance Program should take certain additional and
timely measures to ensure that members of the Armed Forces and their
dependents are provided with reasonable information on how to register
to vote and vote in the 2008 general elections.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 8, 2008
Mr. Blunt (for himself, Mr. Ehlers, Mr. Hunter, Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr.
Cole of Oklahoma, Mr. Hayes, Mrs. Miller of Michigan, Mr. McCarthy of
California, and Mr. Heller of Nevada) submitted the following
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on House
Administration, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of Congress that the Department of Defense and the
Federal Voting Assistance Program should take certain additional and
timely measures to ensure that members of the Armed Forces and their
dependents are provided with reasonable information on how to register
to vote and vote in the 2008 general elections.
Whereas members of the Armed Forces and their dependents deserve every
reasonable opportunity to participate in the electoral process given
their daily sacrifices to protect our liberty and freedom;
Whereas Congress enacted the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act
in part to ensure that members of the Armed Forces and their dependents
are provided with sufficient information, opportunities, and balloting
materials to foster their participation in Federal elections;
Whereas the Election Assistance Commission found that less than 17 percent of
the 6 million citizens eligible under the Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voting Act chose to participate in the 2006 general
election;
Whereas the Election Assistance Commission further found that of the 48,600
Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act ballots that were
not counted by States and local jurisdictions in the November 2006
elections, 70 percent were not counted due to incorrect or undeliverable
addresses;
Whereas the Election Assistance Commission further found that more than 10
percent of all uncounted military and overseas absentee ballots were
rejected because they were received past the required deadline;
Whereas the Election Assistance Commission further found that more effort needs
to be made by the States and the Department of Defense to ensure that
members of the Armed Forces and their dependents and citizens living
overseas are made fully aware of their voting rights;
Whereas the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness and the
Federal Voting Assistance Program are required to create and utilize a
Federal Post Card Application that allows members of the Armed Forces
and their dependents to use a single application to register to vote and
request an absentee ballot;
Whereas a survey conducted recently by the Inspector General for the Department
of Defense analyzed the effectiveness of the Federal Voting Assistance
Program during the 2006 general election, and found that only 40 percent
of members of the Armed Forces received voting information from the
military and only 33 percent were aware of the Federal Post Card
Application;
Whereas in April 2008 the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and
Readiness testified before the Committee on House Administration that
the Department of Defense had not provided all members of the Armed
Forces and their dependents with post card applications by the January
15, 2008, deadline, as required by Department policy, and that the
Department has yet to comply with this requirement; and
Whereas many of Department of Defense's outreach efforts, including its Armed
Forces Voter Week, are scheduled to occur 60 days before the November
2008 election, which may not provide members of the Armed Forces and
their dependents with sufficient time to complete and return the Federal
Post Card Applications: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That it is the sense of Congress that--
(1) it is in the interests of the United States to ensure
that the Secretary of Defense and the Federal Voting Assistance
Program provide members of the Armed Forces and their
dependents who are eligible under the Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voting Act with sufficient information
regarding opportunities to register to vote and to request an
absentee ballot for elections occurring in 2008, including the
November 2008 general election;
(2) the Secretary of Defense and the Federal Voting
Assistance Program must, on a monthly basis starting July 15,
2008, through the November 2008 general election, provide all
eligible members of the Armed Forces and their dependents with
an electronic reminder of the voter registration and absentee
ballot process available under the Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and, as required by Department
policy, provide all members of the Armed Forces and their
dependents with an electronic or paper copy of the Federal Post
Card Application, along with sufficient instruction on
completing and returning the application to the appropriate
election official;
(3) State and local election officials should work with the
Federal Voting Assistance Program to develop methods,
consistent with privacy and security, for obtaining updated
addresses and contact information, if possible, for any member
of the Armed Forces or dependent who has been identified by the
State or local election official as having an undeliverable
ballot address;
(4) the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and
Readiness should report to the Committee on House
Administration of the House of Representatives, the Committee
on Rules and Administration of the Senate, and the Committees
on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and Senate
not later than September 15, 2008, on the efforts made by the
Department of Defense to--
(A) educate members of the Armed Forces on the
process of voter registration and absentee voting in
the 2008 general election,
(B) provide all eligible members of the Armed
Forces and their dependents with the Federal Post Card
Application to register to vote and cast absentee
ballots in such election, and
(C) cooperate effectively with State and local
election officials in their efforts to register these
individuals and distribute and collect their absentee
ballots;
(5) States must redouble their efforts to make sure that
local jurisdictions collect the mandated information for
individuals who are eligible under the Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and should work in partnership
with the Federal Government to develop best practices
(including the use of electronic means) for encouraging voting
participation among members of the Armed Forces and their
dependents and citizens living overseas; and
(6) the Department of Defense, the Federal Voting
Assistance Program, the Election Assistance Commission, and
State governments should examine recommendations made by the
Election Assistance Commission in its September 2007 survey
findings regarding the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee
Voting Act.
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