SAMPLE Testimony IN SUPPORT of House Bill No. 5872 – AN ACT EXPANDING AUTOMATIC APPLICATION FOR VOTER REGISTRATION TO CERTAIN STATE AGENCIES
March 19th, 2021
Dear Senator Mae Flexer (Co-Chair), Representative Dan Fox (Co-Chair), Senator Rob Sampson (Ranking Member), Representative Gale Mastrofrancesco (Ranking Member) and esteemed members of the Government Administration and Elections (GAE) Committee:
My name is [YOUR NAME], I am a voter from [YOUR TOWN NAME]. Passing HB 5872 is extremely important to me because expanding Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) beyond the Dept. of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to other state agencies is a common-sense reform that saves taxpayer money and helps increase democratic participation.
I applaud AVR as it is happening now at the Dept. of Motor Vehicles, but codifying that process into state law is only the first step. We must also expand AVR to the Department of Social Services, the Labor Department, the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, the Connecticut Health Insurance Exchange, and such other appropriate offices or agencies as the Secretary of the State shall designate in accordance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) will enhance the security and integrity of our elections by eliminating outdated addresses and duplicative registrations through an automatic process—which will deliver the most accurate voter rolls to cities and towns. Eliminating duplicate registrations significantly reduces the workload for localities that could be susceptible to confusion on election day.
77% of Connecticut voters support Automatic Voter Registration in a recent Secure Democracy public opinion poll. Across the country, localities have saved an average of about $3.54 in labor costs per registration by moving from a paper to an electronic method. Nineteen states have versions of AVR.
I urge you to pass HB 5872 to expand Automatic Voter Registration beyond the Dept. of Motor Vehicles to other state agencies.
Thank you,
[YOUR NAME], [YOUR TOWN]