Confidentiality Frequently Asked Questions

Confidentiality Frequently Asked Questions
4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division
4/5/2019 QUESTION: I received a Judicial Suppression Notification from the Office of Court Administration (OCA), do I need additional paperwork? ANSWER: No. You should simply suppress the voter’s information. We recommend (although not required by law) creating a memo to file indicating that the suppression notification was sent by OCA for [name of voters] voters and that the suppression was completed on XXX date. This memo would be retained with each applicable voter’s Active Application File. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: A judge notified me that he qualifies under S.B. 42 for confidentiality, what is the process for designating him/her confidential? ANSWER: If you have not received notification from the Office of Court Administration for this person, then we recommend having the individual complete the appropriate paperwork with your office. You can then send notice to the Office of Court Administration, so that they can follow-up to obtain additional information they may need. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Department of Public Safety (DPS) Alternate Address Program Questions
4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State

4/5/2019 QUESTION: What is an “Alternate Address”? ANSWER: Alternate Address refers to an address that may be used on a person’s Driver License or ID card in lieu of their actual residential address. Certain qualifying individuals may use an alternate address when obtaining documents with DPS. If the person indicates at the time they are applying under the alternate address program with DPS that they would like to register to vote, then the alternate address is provided as the individual’s residential address on the voter registration application that the registrar receives from DPS. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Is an Alternate Address considered confidential? ANSWER: At this time, there are no provisions in law making confidentiality upon receipt of a voter registration application an automatic process. If the registrar receives a voter registration application in which a person has used an Alternate Address as their residential address, the person does not automatically qualify for confidentiality unless: The voter registrar is notified by OCA that the person is eligible for confidentiality, or The person submits the appropriate paperwork to be designated “confidential” by the voter registrar. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Is there a predetermined list of addresses that may be used as an “Alternate Address”? ANSWER: No. There is no predetermined list of addresses classified as “alternate” for use by DPS under this program. At the very least, the courthouse address previously used for Peace Officers is still in use, but additional addresses may also be used. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: What other types of addresses may be used under the DPS “Alternate Address” program? ANSWER: Under Section , Texas Transportation Code, DPS is required to establish a procedure, on a license holder's qualification for office as a federal or state judge as defined by Section , Government Code, to omit the residence address of the judge and the spouse of the judge on the license holder's license and to include, in lieu of that address, the street address of the courthouse in which the license holder or license holder's spouse serves as a federal judge or state judge. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 According to Texas Government Code Section (11-a) implemented under S.B. 42 "State judge" means: (A) a judge, former judge, or retired judge of an appellate court, a district court, a constitutional county court, a county court at law, or a statutory probate court of this state; (B) an associate judge appointed under Chapter 201, Family Code, or a retired associate judge or former associate judge appointed under that chapter; (C) a magistrate or associate judge appointed under Chapter 54 or 54A; (D) a justice of the peace; or (E) a municipal court judge. This list is identical to Texas Election Code Section (a)(2). Texas Government Code Section does not define “federal” judge. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: What other types of addresses may be used under the DPS “Alternate Address” program? ANSWER: Section of the Texas Transportation Code allows Peace Officers (including Special Investigators as defined by Article 2.122, Code of Criminal Procedure) to use an alternate address in the: (1) municipality or county of the peace officer's residence; or (2) county of the peace officer's place of employment. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: How does the “Alternate Address” program impact voter registration? ANSWER: The DPS system currently requires the Customer Service Representative to enter the courthouse address as the person’s residential address and the person’s actual residential address as their mailing address. If these individuals indicate they would like to register to vote at the time of obtaining their driver license, then the voter registrar receives the application with the alternate address listed as the person’s residential address. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: How does the “Alternate Address” program impact voter registration? ANSWER: It is important to note that the Application is sent to the County to which the residential address is reported by the voter to belong. As with all voter registration applications, if you receive an application for a residential address that belongs to a different county, you should forward the application to the correct county no later than the second day after the application is received. (Section (d), Texas Election Code). 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: If I am getting both addresses, can I switch the residential and mailing address on the voter application? ANSWER: No. Under current election law, a voter registrar has no authority to determine whether an address supplied by the voter is truly a residential address. Therefore, when a person registers to vote through DPS using an alternate address, the voter registrar should accept the address provided on the application as the residential address. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Since I know the address provided is not the voter’s residential address, what should I do? ANSWER: You should process these applications in the same manner as any application received using a business address: Register the voter (mail the VR Certificate) Issue the Voter a Notice of Address Confirmation This notice should be mailed with a response device (a voter application/confirmation response form – Section (b), Election Code) Recommendation: If you are able to identify the voter is using an alternate address, send the voter the Confidentiality Request for Voter Registration Purposes with the Notice of Address Confirmation and/or a letter detailing how a person may request confidentiality. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Can I send the Voter Registration Certificate and Notice of Address Confirmation and other documents together? ANSWER: No. The Voter Registration Certificate and the Notice of Address Confirmation (et al) can be mailed out at the same time, but not in the same envelope. The Voter Registration Certificate is not forwardable, but the Notice of Address Confirmation (with response device) is. As such, they need to be mailed independently in such a way that they comply with the mailing restrictions set out in Election Code. Thus, they can be sent at the same time, but not as a single mail piece. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Why do you recommend including the Confidentiality Request for Voter Registration Purposes form? ANSWER: Most individuals currently eligible to participate in the alternate address program through DPS for driver license purposes are also eligible to request or be granted address suppression and confidentiality status for voter registration purposes either upon notification from the Office of Court Administration or by completing the appropriate confidentiality request form 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: What are the differences between individuals authorized for the “Alternate Address” with DPS and , Government Code? ANSWER: There are two main differences: Federal Judges under are identified as the Federal Judges listed in Election Code (a)(1); whereas, the Alternate Address program does not have a predefined list. Special Investigators using to request confidentiality status with your office does not include the full list of Special Investigators eligible to use an Alternate Address with DPS. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Why do you recommend including the Confidentiality Request for Voter Registration Purposes form? ANSWER: We recommend including this form (or a letter detailing how a person may request confidentiality) with the Notice of Address Confirmation and Response Device, so that the person can get their voter registration correctly updated to reflect the correct residential address and obtain the confidentiality they may be eligible for under state law at the same time. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Can I include a letter explaining how the alternate address impacts their voter registration with the Notice of Address Confirmation and Confidentiality Request form? ANSWER: We recommend you send a letter to the voter (not legally required) along with the form. Keep in mind that whatever process you implement (form, letter or both) in your county, you need to make sure you are using it consistently and for all voters you are able to identify as using an Alternate Address through DPS. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

4/5/2019 QUESTION: Does the Secretary of State have a sample letter I may use/review? ANSWER: Yes. We recommend all counties use the sample letter created by the Secretary of State as a basis for communicating with individuals involved in the various confidentiality programs. 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Texas Secretary of State Elections Division

Confidentiality Forms Reminder
SOS created a Confidentiality Request subheading under Voter Registration Forms on the website with three different Confidentiality Request forms available: New Request for Voter Address Confidentiality Updated Confidentiality Request for Voter Registration Purposes Updated Affidavit for Voter Registration Residential Address Confidentiality (Judicial) Mass Advisory August, 22, 2017 4/5/2019 Texas Secretary of State

Texas Secretary of State
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Confidentiality Frequently Asked Questions

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