"SUPPORT - Please approve this policy Jury Duty surveys provide useful self-reported information related to the status of individuals living in Virginia who may be disqualified to vote in the Commonwealth. Virginia Law mandates that the Department of Elections is responsible for the central record keeping of all registered voters in the Commonwealth. Virginia Code §24.2-404 (A) requires this list to be accurate. To assist in this effort, Virginia law §24.2 – 404(B)(9) directs that ELECT shall “Use any source of information that may assist in carrying out the purpose of this section (list maintenance). All agencies of the Commonwealth shall cooperate with the Department in procuring and exchanging identification information for the purpose of maintaining the voter registration system.” In 2012, the Supreme Court decision in Arizona v. Inter Tribal supports this policy by its finding that nothing precludes States from conducting list maintenance based on information in their possession establishing ineligibility. A 2019 report by the General Accounting Office report found that undeliverable notices from jury duty surveys can help election officials to identify registrants who have potentially moved or are noncitizens. In March of 2020, the United States Election Assistance Commission (EAC) recommended using reports of returned jury notices as a best practice for list maintenance. Due to Federal and State restrictions on requiring documentary proof of U.S. citizenship, Virginia currently has few effective routine list maintenance procedures to address the identification of non-citizens and other registered voters who have had a change in status between routine list maintenance tasks. Virginia should join the other five states including DC who routinely utilize this resource for list maintenance purposes. I urge the State Board of Elections to approve this list maintenance policy." The petition says: To establish a process that allows jury commissioners to relay, from lists of registered voters obtained from the Department of Elections under § 24.2-405, the information obtained from those persons not qualified to serve as jurors as a result of (i) not being a citizen of the United States, (ii) no longer being a resident of the Commonwealth, (iii) being a resident of another county or city in the Commonwealth, (iv) having been convicted of a felony and not having had voting rights restored, or (v) having been adjudicated incapacitated and disqualified to vote and not having had voting rights restored. The rule provides a process whereby the sheriff, clerk of court, or other official responsible for maintaining such information provided by the commissioners may enter into an agreement with the general registrar for the locality to make that information available to that general registrar. The general registrar shall utilize the information received pursuant to this policy to identify registered voters who are no longer qualified to vote and to initiate list maintenance procedures pursuant to current law.
