NO MACHINES !! SEE FRANKSPEECH.COM, HOME PAGE PAPER BALLOTS ONLY, SPEAK WITH AMANDA CHASE IN VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports HB 86. The Department of Elections’ current campaign finance database is inadequate for voters who want to know who is making contributions to a particular candidate, and how much has been contributed. We agree that the privately funded services currently available, including VPAP in particular, are helpful. However, because this is data required to be collected by the government for voters to use in assessing candidates, the government should take on the responsibility to make the data easily accessible to voters. Virginia voters should not have to rely on the largesse of private funders to obtain this access to the campaign finance data required by current law.

Jessica Mott, VA Chapter of American Promise: As a member of the Virginia Chapter of American Promise, I request that you please vote for HB86 and HB 492. Passage of this and other campaign finance reform legislation to improve disclosure and oversight is crucial to making legislators more accountable to voters, and restoring people’s trust in government. A recent poll by Christopher Newport University’s Wason Center found that 88% of Virginians support improved public disclosure of campaign contributions. The enactment of HB86 would strengthen disclosure by upgrading the campaign finance database so that it is publicly accessible, searchable and sortable. By making disaggregated data publicly available, it would complement the analysis and digested data provided by VPAP, and enable resolution of issues such as double-counting and consistency. The upgraded campaign finance reporting standards and software would make report compilation easier and increase completeness and accuracy. Its incremental cost would be relatively small. The enactment of H B492 would address a fundamental gap in oversight by providing the Department of Elections with the authority to review campaign finance reports and records. The use of a “review” rather than an audit, and the proposed sample sizes are cost effective and appropriate. The review system and associated campaign report requirements, together with the use of algorithms for campaigns and reviewers to identify and address shortcomings in reports, should make campaign finance information more complete and accurate, and help ensure compliance. The incremental budget requirement would also be relatively small. Thank you for this opportunity to testify.

Nancy Morgan Coordinator of the VA Chapter of American Promise.Thanks for Del Anderson for this bill which we support.. The Department of Election currently has no system for public access to campaign finance data yet it is the state’s role, as the only entity that has the ability to ensure the accuracy and completeness of this information, to ensure access to the general public. We think that VPAP provides useful analysis but it is not appropriate, nor the responsibility of a non-profit privately managed entity, funded by donors, to be the sole source of data on campaign finance records. One of the recommendations of the Campaign Legal Center to the Joint Sub-Committee of Campaign Finance Reform was to ensure access to this information on the Dept’s website through easy-to-use, online portal where voters can search and access public records related to campaign spending and the sources of contributions. We are one of the few states in the country in which there is no investment in publically managed disclosure of campaign finance records to the general public. This bill responds to that recommendation.

As a member of the Virginia Chapter of American Promise, I ask you to please vote for HB86 andHB 492. Passage of campaign finance reform legislation to improve disclosure and oversight is crucial to holding legislators accountable to voters, and restoring people’s trust in government. A recent poll by Christopher Newport University’s Wason Center found that 88% of Virginians support public disclosure of campaign contributions. HB86 would strengthen disclosure by upgrading the campaign finance database to make it publicly accessible, searchable and sortable. Upgraded campaign finance reporting standards and software would make reporting easier, more accurate and complete. H B492 would provide the Department of Elections with the authority to review campaign finance reports and records. This could make campaign finance information more complete and accurate, and help ensure compliance.

All bills that will reflect a stronger more secure election in the future. Considering both sides, Trump and Biden, have spoken in regards to those concerns, these should be reported on with bipartisan approval. Thank you.

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports HB 492. Ideally, the Department of Elections would have the resources to audit every campaign committee for each election. We recognize that Virginia currently does not have such resources, but the existing system, which provides no routine audits of campaign committees, gives voters no confidence that submitted reports are accurate. A review of a percentage of campaign committees, with the necessary report, will provide a strong incentive to each campaign committee to prepare accurate reports and give voters a greater assurance that their reports can be relied upon.

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports HB 86. The Department of Elections’ current campaign finance database is inadequate for voters who want to know who is making contributions to a particular candidate, and how much has been contributed. The private services currently available, including VPAP, which have been developed in lieu of an adequate public site, are not a good substitute for voters who want to access the information that candidates are required by Virginia law to provide.

Our team from Money Out Virginia, the VA affiliate of the nation-wide American Promise campaign finance reform advocacy organization, worked hard this past year with the "Joint Subcommittee to Study Comprehensive Campaign Finance Reform," and produced a "Citizens' Report" for the Subcommittee that articulated principles and priorities for improving transparency, preventing corrupt campaign finance practices and moving towards more equity in campaign financing in Virginia elections. The partnership between the Subcommittee and Money Out Virginia has resulted in a series of important bills that improve the requirements, process and electronic infrastructure for disclosure of campaign donations. We strongly support Delegate Bulova's HB 492, HB495, and HB500, Delegate Helmer's HB489, Delegate Anderson's HB86 and Delegate Davis' HB125, which provides for penalties for violations of disclosure laws. We also support Delegate Bulova's HJ53 to extend the mandate of the Joint Subcommittee so that we can continue our partnership in developing sensible campaign finance reforms for Virginia.

Jessica Mott, VA Chapter of American Promise: HB86 (publicly accessible database): We support this bill. A recent poll indicates that 88% of Virginians support public disclosure of all contributions. This enactment of this bill would strengthen disclosure by requiring that the database containing the information from campaign finance reports be publicly accessible, searchable, and sortable. It also requires that the Board of Elections set standards that should help ensure that the data is complete, accurate, and helps verify compliance with campaign finance legal requirements. Its adoption should help facilitate the efficient use of algorithms and electronic cross-checking to promote compliance by reporting entities and the reliability of the information in the database. It compliments the other proposed disclosure bills, HB495, HB500 and HB489, as well as the proposed oversight bill HB492. HB489 (electioneering): We support this bill, Its passage would help reduce one significant form of dark money support by making this support transparent. It adopts a definition of electioneering that is already utilized in other jurisdictions. It would help ensure that campaign finance disclosure includes not only ads that directly advocate support or opposition to candidates, but also ads close to election dates that imply support or opposition in ways that are likely intended to influence election outcomes. It also requires public disclosure within ads of top 3 donors. SB318, its counterpart, was approved by the Senate with bipartisan support on January 24th. HB 492 (record retention, guidance and review): We support this bill. It deals with a number of issues discussed by the Joint Subcommittee on Campaign Finance. It requires improved instructions for report forms, along with assistance to campaign offices, and clearly defines the campaign office responsibilities for record retention for expenditures above $500. It addresses a fundamental gap in oversight by providing the Department of Elections with the authority to review campaign finance reports and records. The proposed sample sizes are cost effective and appropriate (100% of state-wide candidates, 10% of state legislature candidates and 1% of other offices for campaigns costing more than $25,000). These and other provisions should help enable cross-checking of data, and the use of algorithms for campaigns and reviewers to identify and address report shortcomings related to completeness, accuracy and compliance. We note that it would help ensure meaningful implementation of proposed HB973, restricting personal use of campaign funds. HB495 (electronic filing): We support this bill. We commend the inclusion of electronic filing of independent expenditures, as well as by all candidates except for candidates running for local office who raise less than $25,000. It addresses measures that were discussed and agreed in principle by the Joint Subcommittee on Campaign Finance Reform. The parts of it pertaining to candidates are largely comparable to SB222 which has been approved by the Senate P&E Committee and was approved by unanimous vote by the Senate on January 24. HB500 (electioneering): We support this bill. We appreciate that it enhances disclosure by expanding advertisement provisions to include more forms of electioneering communications. Thank you for the opportunity to comment. Thank you for this opportunity to testify.

Nancy Morga,n Coordinator of the VA Chapter of American Promise. We support Delegate Anderson's bill. The Department of Election currently has no system for public access to campaign finance data; yet, it is the state’s role, as the only entity that has the ability to ensure the accuracy and completeness of this information, to ensure access to the general public. One of the recommendations of the Campaign Legal Center to the Joint Sub-Committee of Campaign Finance Reform was to ensure access to this information on the Dept’s website through easy-to-use, online portal where voters can search and access public records related to campaign spending and the sources of contributions. This bill responds to that recommendation.

Nancy Morga,n Coordinator of the VA Chapter of American Promise. We support Delegate Anderson's bill. The Department of Election currently has no system for public access to campaign finance data; yet, it is the state’s role, as the only entity that has the ability to ensure the accuracy and completeness of this information, to ensure access to the general public. One of the recommendations of the Campaign Legal Center to the Joint Sub-Committee of Campaign Finance Reform was to ensure access to this information on the Dept’s website through easy-to-use, online portal where voters can search and access public records related to campaign spending and the sources of contributions. This bill responds to that recommendation.

I strongly support HB86. It would greatly enhance full public disclosure of campaign contributions, something that is desired by the vast majority of citizens of the commonwealth. The bill specifically requires the State Board of Elections create a computerized campaign finance database, standards for electronic submission of campaign finance, and portal or interface that allows users to easily search for and sort campaign finance information. I strongly support HB495. A vast majority of Virginians want full disclosure, including of independent expenditures. This bill introduces reporting requirements on all independent expenditures as well as improving reporting by candidates and committees. all reports must be filed electronically. It also closes a loophole which forces out-of-state monies, such as through out-of-state PACs, to be reported to the Dept of Elections. Public access to reports, including independent expenditures is also ensured by a web based, user friendly portal. Thank you for the opportunity to provide comments, Bill MIllhouser

I am writing in support of Del. Tim Anderson HB86 Elections; campaign finance; disclosure reports; searchable electronic database. Requires the Department of Elections to provide an interface to the campaign finance database maintained by the Department that allows users to easily search for and sort information by individual candidates and types of elections, offices, committees, and donors; donations, expenditures, loans, and other categories of information included in campaign finance reports; and late filings, incomplete filings, and other violations. The interface shall also provide users tools for manipulating and exporting data. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2023. • Public access to campaign finance data by state agencies is a best practice implemented by most states • This type of access and public availability of campaign finance data is appreciated by 88 percent of Virginians who support full disclosure. • It was recommended by the Campaign Legal Center to the Joint Sub-committee on campaign finance reform which met last year over the Aug-Oct period. • Can only improve Virginia’s standing nationally on transparency. Right now we rank 46 out of 50 on the SWAMP Index, a national scorecard for state specific regulations which promote transparency and accountability. • This needs funding and staff allocated. Mindy Mitchell 3601 5th St S Arlington VA 22204

Voting is a constitutional right. Any law that restricts rather than expands our constitutional right & DUTY to vote is simply voter suppression. We must not repeal any expansions of absentee ballots. Do not decrease early voting. - extend the number of days allowed. Do not eliminate any ballot box locations- expand. We have no need to re-register absentee ballots every year. No excuse absentee voting is absolutely crucial. The state must provide easy and free access to voter ID if a photo is required. Since the USPS has slowed considerably, we must keep the 3 day rule for receiving ballots after election day. All local elections must be on Election Day (in Nov). Election Day should be a holiday. Until we do a complete overhaul of campaign finance & eliminate dark money/special interests there must be no restrictions on outreach, education & registration or from where a candidate may collect funds. Voter registration up to and including Election Day is absolutely crucial to ensure all citizens vote. I support all bills expanding our rights and abilities to make voting as easy as possible. I oppose all bills attempting to restrict any access to our ballot and our vote. The process is too important for the elected officials to be able to restrict us from our duty to be informed voters. Keep expanding our rights. Do not restrict, suppress or subvert them.

Comments Document

Dear Privileges and Elections Committee Members, I urge the committee to vote in favor of the Right to Vote Amendment and the associated referendum bills: HJ9 and HB130. Passing the amendment places the responsibility for this important decision where it should be – with Virginia's voters during the 2022 elections. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Beth Alley

All bills that will reflect a stronger more secure election in the future. Considering both sides, Trump and Biden, have spoken in regards to those concerns, these should be reported on with bipartisan approval. Thank you.

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports HB 125. Current campaign finance laws need to be clarified and strengthened with regard to political campaign advertisements that advocate against a candidate. Under current law, those sponsoring ads, which clearly should be reported even under the spirit of current law, are specifically using vague terms to escape being identified and reported. This bill will eliminate that ambiguity.

Our team from Money Out Virginia, the VA affiliate of the nation-wide American Promise campaign finance reform advocacy organization, worked hard this past year with the "Joint Subcommittee to Study Comprehensive Campaign Finance Reform," and produced a "Citizens' Report" for the Subcommittee that articulated principles and priorities for improving transparency, preventing corrupt campaign finance practices and moving towards more equity in campaign financing in Virginia elections. The partnership between the Subcommittee and Money Out Virginia has resulted in a series of important bills that improve the requirements, process and electronic infrastructure for disclosure of campaign donations. We strongly support Delegate Bulova's HB 492, HB495, and HB500, Delegate Helmer's HB489, Delegate Anderson's HB86 and Delegate Davis' HB125, which provides for penalties for violations of disclosure laws. We also support Delegate Bulova's HJ53 to extend the mandate of the Joint Subcommittee so that we can continue our partnership in developing sensible campaign finance reforms for Virginia.

Nancy Morgan, Coordinator of the VA Chapter of American Promise. We support this bill. It should be noted that the last election was the most expensive in Virginia’s history and a record $7 million in obscure ads were launched, attacking candidates of both parties. There needs to be financial disincentives to launching obscure attack ads against candidates. It should be noted that in order for this legislation to be enacted, HB 492 needs to be passed which is the first step to building an effective monitoring and oversight capacity within the Department of Elections. Right now, the Dept doesn’t have the capacity, either in staff or financing, to undertake effective oversight of any existing campaign finance laws, such as the "Stand-by-your ad" Act.

Voting is a constitutional right. Any law that restricts rather than expands our constitutional right & DUTY to vote is simply voter suppression. We must not repeal any expansions of absentee ballots. Do not decrease early voting. - extend the number of days allowed. Do not eliminate any ballot box locations- expand. We have no need to re-register absentee ballots every year. No excuse absentee voting is absolutely crucial. The state must provide easy and free access to voter ID if a photo is required. Since the USPS has slowed considerably, we must keep the 3 day rule for receiving ballots after election day. All local elections must be on Election Day (in Nov). Election Day should be a holiday. Until we do a complete overhaul of campaign finance & eliminate dark money/special interests there must be no restrictions on outreach, education & registration or from where a candidate may collect funds. Voter registration up to and including Election Day is absolutely crucial to ensure all citizens vote. I support all bills expanding our rights and abilities to make voting as easy as possible. I oppose all bills attempting to restrict any access to our ballot and our vote. The process is too important for the elected officials to be able to restrict us from our duty to be informed voters. Keep expanding our rights. Do not restrict, suppress or subvert them.

I strongly support the requirement for a photo ID for voter registration and voting (HB46) This is a common sense, no hassle safeguard to defeat fraud. Similarly, we should ELIMINATE same day registration (HB185). There is simply no way to instantaneously verify that a person is who they claim to be. Furthermore, this imposes a huge, unnecessary burden on election officials or those who may be tasked with a forensic audit, etc. I support the reduction of the early voting period (HB39). Two weeks is adequate for those who must be out of town on business, etc. I support limitations on large amounts of outside funding (HB 205). American elections SHOULD NOT be for sale. As a retired Marine officer and current elections official, I am astounded that sober politicians persist in trying to subvert the Constitution (to which they took an oath) and enable voter fraud through the practices as listed above, as well as ballot harvesting and use of unsecured drop boxes! Through its lack of good judgment and integrity, persons on the Loudoun County School Board have already made us a nationally known laughingstock. Let's pray that similarly minded people in the State Senate DON'T expand our shame by opening our election processes open to rampant fraud.

I'm a Virginian in favor of safeguarding the election process. Since I am an Arlington county election officer, I know that preventing election fraud requires voters to be citizens verifiable by free voter ID and a verifiable pre-election day registration process. 14 days is plenty of time to vote. Same day voter registration is wrong because there is no way to verify eligibility and identity. The 45 day election season is an expensive use of taxpayer dollars for election operations. The longer election period provides greater opportunity for fraud and abuse by felons, identity thieves, or illegal inhabitants. It also is burdensome to unpaid poll watchers and other election operations volunteers. Increased demands on the postal service to deliver absentee ballots is asking for chaos and mass disenfranchisement. Election results will take longer to tabulate if there is a massive amount of mail-in voting. Absentee ballots make it much easier to forge a signature, impersonate a voter, or buy a vote in the privacy of one’s home than it is in a voting booth at the polls where oversight occurs. These are common sense election procedures.

Same day voter registration is wrong because there is o way to verify eligibility and identity. Please oppose this bill.

The Virginia State Conference NAACP opposes this bill in its entirety. Same Day voter registration has been implemented in some fashion in nearly 20 states nationwide. Studies have shown that it helps in increase turnout between 3-7% and has no direct benefit to either party in prior studies. This bill seeks to roll back gains made by the legislature to make voting easier for Virginians and more accessible for all. The VSC NAACP calls on members of this committee to reject HB185 and keep Virginia as the beacon of democracy and voting rights in the South.

All bills that will reflect a stronger more secure election in the future. Considering both sides, Trump and Biden, have spoken in regards to those concerns, these should be reported on with bipartisan approval. Thank you.

The League of Women Voters of Virginia opposes the repeal of the same day voter registration law passed last year. Many of us League members serve as officers of election or election observers. In every election at least one voter and often several arrive at our polling places ready, eager, and proud to vote, only to be turned away because the voter had moved, even from just a few miles away. Also, 18 year-olds who did register have quite frequently not shown up in the system, meaning they could not vote even though they were registered. To register at the precinct, voters must show proof of identity, residency, and qualification to vote. If people are eligible to vote in the precinct, they should be allowed to cast their ballots. Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia have same day voter registration. Our research shows that they have implemented it successfully.

Election Integrity guarantees our voice is heard and the we can trust the system. It is foundational to the backbone of this country. It has been my astonishing revelation that this most SACRED of all abilities - believed to be held UP- in such esteem and REVERENCE yet in reality is trampled upon, disrespected and disgraced , given away with no value whatsoever in order to game the system. It is totally and completely unprotected. IT is UNTRUE. This reminds me of the snake oil salesmen who came into towns in the early days selling fakery and un-truths. As the American people come learn the truth - it IS happening now folks, make no mistake, they will ask the leadership to answer for this'd hold you accountable for this bait and switch. WE need real election integrity for LEGAL CITIZENS ONLY. WE NEED PRISTINELY CLEAN VOTER ROLLS. Here is the list of what we must do to repair and restore the trust of the American People. Establish laws enabling forensic audits and voter canvass Repeal same day voter registration Repeal no voter identification Repeal the permanent absentee ballot list Repeal no-excuse AB Repeal 3rd party mailing of AB Repeal ballot harvesting Eliminate AB drop boxes. We also want 1 day of voting, but anything less than 45 days would be better than nothing. Do not accept AB after Election DAY. Repeal pre-registration of 16 year olds Repeal automatic voter registration by DMV Please vote appropriately on ALL bills in support of these goals. Angela Boyer Great Falls Va 22066

Since there has never been any significant fraud in Virginia elections, we should keep and expand measures that make it easier for all of our citizens to participate the the most sacred of our democratic rights. There is no reason to make access to the ballot box tougher. We need to keep early voting, mail-in ballots, drop boxes, and enough polling places so there are not unreasonable wait times. The more citizens included in this process the stronger their involvement and commitment to their community, state, and nation.

I am in support of HB1855, only if it pertains to first time new voters only. There should be a cut off date prior to election day for new registration of voters. The day of election should not be when new voters are registered, as verification of ID and address becomes difficult at the polls. If a voter has moved but not updated their addresses, they should be required to either go back and vote at their original precinct (old address), or vote via provisional ballot based upon their new address. I am also in support of HB24, that would require a photo id, however, it should not be required that it be a state government or federally issued id.

Election Integrity depends on 3 primary things: REAL VOTER ID, the ELIMINATION OF VOTER DROP BOXES and NO ABSENTEE BALLOTS TO BE USED w/ THE exception for military assignments out of state or country.

SOLUTION IN SEARCH OF A PROBLEM - Please Reject Confidence that our elections are fair is important. This is the paradox, though: raising alarms about election security, EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF CHEATING, is what undermines that confidence. Until you've made the case that there are people voting who shouldn't, or that there is cheating or foul play going on, there is no reason to make it harder to vote, which is what this bill does. We ALL benefit from widespread participation in elections. Making it less convenient and more expensive for people to vote is wrong. Please reject this bill. Thank you.

The VA State Conference doesn't support any voter suppression bills that cause barriers to vote. HB 24 46 185 187 544 780 944 941 942 1090

I strongly oppose HB185's attempt to cancel the right of a voter to register to vote up to the day of an election. I have served as an election officer and seen Virginians who had recently moved discover after standing in line at their new polling place that they would not be allowed to vote because they had missed the deadline for changing their registration to their new address. I have seen them look at their watch to determine whether they could get to their former polling place in rush hour traffic before the polls closed. They had proper identification and proof of their new address, but the missed deadline kept them from voting. Their frustration was evident. At the same time, I knew that my nephew living in California and my friends in Maryland and Maine had the ability to register to vote on election day, so they could make their votes count. Numerous states allow same day registration to vote without any logistical or security problems. It is time for Virginia to do so, too.

As a Virginia resident, I am opposed to all of the proposed bills for this session. I am concerned that the restrictions may further challenge low-income Virginians’ ability to participate in elections. Thank you for your consideration.

Please oppose HB24, HB46, and HB185. We should be supporting legislation that expands access to voting and creates a stronger democracy. We all benefit when more people are able to vote and have a direct influence in our democratic process. Requiring photo IDs and limiting same-day voter registration limit participation in our democratic process and do not make our elections more secure.

Voting should be simple, quick, and accesible to everyone. We have a lot of elderly and/or disabled residents, people who don't have access to a car, or members of the military serving overseas. Our legislators in Richmond should be working to make every Virginia's voice is heard. In addition, returning citizens should be eligible to vote once their sentence is completed. If they've served their time in prison as determined by a judge and/or jury, no purpose is served by denying them the right to vote.

I oppose H.B. 185, H.B. 187, and H.B. 941, which would disallow same-day voter registration. The bills would strip away legitimate voters' rights on the false premise that there has been widespread voter fraud in Virginia. Many citizens who have been dropped from registration lists because they haven't voted in recent elections would be surprised on election day when they decide to have their voices heard but are unjustly turned away from their polling places.

I oppose H.B. 174 because it prevents grassroots contributions to campaigns while allowing unlimited self-funding so that wealthy candidates -- or corrupt candidates who accept gifts outside of campaign contributions -- will have an unfair financial advantage.

Virginia enacted several new voting laws in 2020 and 2021 to make voting more accessible during the pandemic. Early in-person voting hours were increased, mail-in absentee ballots no longer required a witness signature, more drop-box locations were available. These changes led to record voter turnout (with insignificant fraud) in both the 2020 presidential election and the 2021 gubernatorial election. Therefore I oppose any new bill that would restrict our rights to accessible voting.

Voting is a constitutional right. Any law that restricts rather than expands our constitutional right & DUTY to vote is simply voter suppression. We must not repeal any expansions of absentee ballots. Do not decrease early voting. - extend the number of days allowed. Do not eliminate any ballot box locations- expand. We have no need to re-register absentee ballots every year. No excuse absentee voting is absolutely crucial. The state must provide easy and free access to voter ID if a photo is required. Since the USPS has slowed considerably, we must keep the 3 day rule for receiving ballots after election day. All local elections must be on Election Day (in Nov). Election Day should be a holiday. Until we do a complete overhaul of campaign finance & eliminate dark money/special interests there must be no restrictions on outreach, education & registration or from where a candidate may collect funds. Voter registration up to and including Election Day is absolutely crucial to ensure all citizens vote. I support all bills expanding our rights and abilities to make voting as easy as possible. I oppose all bills attempting to restrict any access to our ballot and our vote. The process is too important for the elected officials to be able to restrict us from our duty to be informed voters. Keep expanding our rights. Do not restrict, suppress or subvert them.

I support HB 205 to prohibit private financing from influencing the General Registrar activities, including hiring staff or contractors, paying for or providing free training, and purchasing equipment. We need to keep elections and the staff that run them free from conflicts of interest. HB 205 will increase trust in elections by keeping the influence of private money out of election system operations. Billionaires should not be allowed to buy up and influence the nonpartisan election operations. Virginians deserve to know their votes will be counted by someone free from outside influence and partisan funding.

I strongly support the requirement for a photo ID for voter registration and voting (HB46) This is a common sense, no hassle safeguard to defeat fraud. Similarly, we should ELIMINATE same day registration (HB185). There is simply no way to instantaneously verify that a person is who they claim to be. Furthermore, this imposes a huge, unnecessary burden on election officials or those who may be tasked with a forensic audit, etc. I support the reduction of the early voting period (HB39). Two weeks is adequate for those who must be out of town on business, etc. I support limitations on large amounts of outside funding (HB 205). American elections SHOULD NOT be for sale. As a retired Marine officer and current elections official, I am astounded that sober politicians persist in trying to subvert the Constitution (to which they took an oath) and enable voter fraud through the practices as listed above, as well as ballot harvesting and use of unsecured drop boxes! Through its lack of good judgment and integrity, persons on the Loudoun County School Board have already made us a nationally known laughingstock. Let's pray that similarly minded people in the State Senate DON'T expand our shame by opening our election processes open to rampant fraud.

I'm a Virginian in favor of safeguarding the election process. Since I am an Arlington county election officer, I know that preventing election fraud requires voters to be citizens verifiable by free voter ID and a verifiable pre-election day registration process. 14 days is plenty of time to vote. Same day voter registration is wrong because there is no way to verify eligibility and identity. The 45 day election season is an expensive use of taxpayer dollars for election operations. The longer election period provides greater opportunity for fraud and abuse by felons, identity thieves, or illegal inhabitants. It also is burdensome to unpaid poll watchers and other election operations volunteers. Increased demands on the postal service to deliver absentee ballots is asking for chaos and mass disenfranchisement. Election results will take longer to tabulate if there is a massive amount of mail-in voting. Absentee ballots make it much easier to forge a signature, impersonate a voter, or buy a vote in the privacy of one’s home than it is in a voting booth at the polls where oversight occurs. These are common sense election procedures.

This bill prohibits private financing from influencing General Registrar activity . Please support this bill . Election officials are there to guarantee a fair election free from fraud and voter tampering. Absolutely no gifts of funding should be allowed in order to safeguard the election process.

HB205 would make it illegal for an election official to accept money from any individual or entity except the government to fund an election, protecting public elections from influence by private wealthy individuals and entities. HB305 would increase the number of members of the State Board of Elections from five to six, three members from each party. Currently, the Commissioner of Elections is appointed by the Governor, but if this bill is adopted the Commissioner would now be appointed by a supermajority of the State Board of Elections instead. The bill also includes provisions to improve accuracy of the voting roll, require voter ID, require election audits, better manage drop off locations, and more.

Comments Document

Dear Chairman Ransone, Representative Wachsmann, distinguished Members of the Committee: Thank you for allowing me to submit this testimony. I’m Scott Walter, a resident of Sterling, Virginia, and president of the Capital Research Center in Washington, D.C., a 37-year-old think tank that is a watchdog on nonprofits. I do not presume to tell you how to vote on H.B. 205 but only to tell you, as an expert on nonprofit funding, the question you face: Should the Commonwealth’s elections be governed by you, the people’s representatives, or by megadonors? Personally, as a Virginia citizen I do not want donors—from anywhere on the political spectrum—or the nonprofits they use, to manipulate elections through gifts to government offices. I want you, our democratically elected officials, to regulate Virginia’s elections, not megadonors from either party. Neither donors nor “nonpartisan” nonprofits can be trusted to keep their thumbs off the scale when they have millions in their hands. I was not surprised after testifying to your Senate counterparts to see that every single committee member from both parties recognized the dangers I am describing and voted to pass a similar bill. At Capital Research Center, we have studied exhaustively one megadonor’s use of two supposedly nonpartisan nonprofits to send funds to government election offices in nearly every state, to the documented benefit of his preferred political party. But because this is a bipartisan problem, I won’t name either party in my testimony. While one party benefitted dramatically in 2020, next time the other party’s donors may pull the same trick. All of us should want to avoid that. I’ll call the lucky folks last time, “Party 1,” and the main “nonpartisan” nonprofit that benefitted them “Group 1.” Group 1 received hundreds of millions of dollars in 2020 from one out-of-state billionaire. Nearly 4 million of those dollars came into government election offices in Virginia. The critical question is how much money went to which election offices. I am not claiming the money funded fraud, only that it funded turnout targeted to help one side. For the sake of argument, I am happy to assume that not one vote in Virginia was cast fraudulently, and not one vote was miscounted. Even if that were true, it is scandalous that this outside money boosted turnout for Party 1 in its most vote-rich jurisdictions. This is a new scheme in our politics, but we all know that when one party crafts a novel weapon and wins, the other party will add the weapon to its arsenal. Do you want to keep this legal loophole open and allow such an arms race? Our analysis found that a pattern repeats in every battleground state. First, Group 1 is far more likely to fund election jurisdictions that are rich with Party 1 votes. Second, it funds those jurisdictions much more heavily per capita. Election expert J. Christian Adams sums it up: Group 1’s cash “converted election offices in key jurisdictions with deep reservoirs of [Party 1] votes into Formula One turnout machines.” That’s what happened last time. Next time, the opposite could happen—if you allow it. Thank you. (Attached is a breakdown of the specifics in the Virginia 2020 election.)

HB71 - VEPCO's comments on 2/1/22 were that they had first amendment rights. They do, but NOT to run this state and its people into the ground in the name of profits. Virginia: owned and operated by VEPCO is a saying that should not occur but it is. HB85, HB174, 205, 524, 575, 973, 1296, 1302 - This helps the people. Please move to report.

HB205: This legislation would make it illegal for an election official to accept money from any individual or entity except the government to fund an election, protecting public elections from influence by private wealthy individuals and entities. HB71: If adopted, this bill would add protection from bias to elections. It would protect from corruption in the marketplace by prohibiting public utility entities from making financial contributions to candidates campaigning for political office.

All bills that will reflect a stronger more secure election in the future. Considering both sides, Trump and Biden, have spoken in regards to those concerns, these should be reported on with bipartisan approval. Thank you.

I support both these bills. Private money brings in and opens the door to corruption.

I support these bills. As demonstrated in similar instances, private money opens the door to signifant risk of corruption untelible for our great Commonwealth annd her constituents.

I support these bills. Private money brings in and opens the door to corruption.

I strongly support these bills.

I support these bills. Private money causes corruption.

I support these bills. Private money brings in and opens the door to corruption.

I am in favor of HB205 HB1101

HB205 and HB1101

I support these bills. Private money brings in and opens the door to corruption.

I support these bills to keep private money, gifts from buying off state and local elections and officials in Virginia. Even under the purest motives, private election funding given to government offices is inappropriate and creates distrust. I am a minority here in Virginia. We work hard to take good care of our family. I am not a millionaire or billionaire, and I have no issue with those who are, but they should NOT be allowed to buy off our election officials and their offices. It is wrong to allow private funding of our government offices by anyone. Thank you for appreciating my position. Please show your support for minorities and regular Virginians by supporting

If you care about Virginia and every person as a voter, I urge you to pass HB205 - Wachsmann and also HB1101 – LaRock to keep private money from influencing and buying off state and local elections and officials in Virginia. The companion bill to this was passed yesterday in the Senate P&E committee it is now up to you to pass this bill in the House P&E! Even under the purest motives, private election funding given to government offices is inappropriate and creates distrust. We work hard to take good care of our family. I am not a millionaire or billionaire, and I have no issue with those who are, but they should not be allowed to buy off our election officials and their offices. It is wrong to allow private funding of our government offices by anyone. Thank you for appreciating my position. Please show your support for minorities and regular Virginians by supporting HB205 - Wachsmann and also HB1101 – LaRock today in this committee. Do not pass it by or lay it on the table, but vote YES and pass it out of committee. Thank you

Voting is a constitutional right. Any law that restricts rather than expands our constitutional right & DUTY to vote is simply voter suppression. We must not repeal any expansions of absentee ballots. Do not decrease early voting. - extend the number of days allowed. Do not eliminate any ballot box locations- expand. We have no need to re-register absentee ballots every year. No excuse absentee voting is absolutely crucial. The state must provide easy and free access to voter ID if a photo is required. Since the USPS has slowed considerably, we must keep the 3 day rule for receiving ballots after election day. All local elections must be on Election Day (in Nov). Election Day should be a holiday. Until we do a complete overhaul of campaign finance & eliminate dark money/special interests there must be no restrictions on outreach, education & registration or from where a candidate may collect funds. Voter registration up to and including Election Day is absolutely crucial to ensure all citizens vote. I support all bills expanding our rights and abilities to make voting as easy as possible. I oppose all bills attempting to restrict any access to our ballot and our vote. The process is too important for the elected officials to be able to restrict us from our duty to be informed voters. Keep expanding our rights. Do not restrict, suppress or subvert them.

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports HB 492. Ideally, the Department of Elections would have the resources to audit every campaign committee for each election. We recognize that Virginia currently does not have such resources, but the existing system, which provides no routine audits of campaign committees, gives voters no confidence that submitted reports are accurate. A review of a percentage of campaign committees, with the necessary report, will provide a strong incentive to each campaign committee to prepare accurate reports and give voters a greater assurance that their reports can be relied upon.

Jessica Mott, VA Chapter of American Promise: As a member of the Virginia Chapter of American Promise, I request that you please vote for HB86 and HB 492. Passage of this and other campaign finance reform legislation to improve disclosure and oversight is crucial to making legislators more accountable to voters, and restoring people’s trust in government. A recent poll by Christopher Newport University’s Wason Center found that 88% of Virginians support improved public disclosure of campaign contributions. The enactment of HB86 would strengthen disclosure by upgrading the campaign finance database so that it is publicly accessible, searchable and sortable. By making disaggregated data publicly available, it would complement the analysis and digested data provided by VPAP, and enable resolution of issues such as double-counting and consistency. The upgraded campaign finance reporting standards and software would make report compilation easier and increase completeness and accuracy. Its incremental cost would be relatively small. The enactment of H B492 would address a fundamental gap in oversight by providing the Department of Elections with the authority to review campaign finance reports and records. The use of a “review” rather than an audit, and the proposed sample sizes are cost effective and appropriate. The review system and associated campaign report requirements, together with the use of algorithms for campaigns and reviewers to identify and address shortcomings in reports, should make campaign finance information more complete and accurate, and help ensure compliance. The incremental budget requirement would also be relatively small. Thank you for this opportunity to testify.

Nancy Morgan, Coordinator of the VA Chapter of American Promise. We support this bill because it contributes towards building a solid structure of campaign finance monitoring and enforcement. Virginia, as mentioned in last year's Joint Subcommittee on Campaign Finance which met last year over the August-October period, currently doesn’t have the ability to provide oversight of existing regulation, such as the “Stand-by-your ad” nor does it have the regulatory oversight capacity to undertake basic monitoring of campaign finance reports. Part of the reason, VA ranks 46 out 50 in the SWAMP index, a ranking of states based on criteria related to transparency and accountability is deficiencies in enforcing its own regulations. This bill moves to address key deficiencies within the Department of Elections, including lack of ability/authority to monitor and audit campaign finance reports, require retention of records and identify inconsistencies in filing. This is considered national best practice as testimony to the Joint Subcommittee by the Campaign Legal Center, a national institution with an expertise on campaign finance systems.

As a member of the Virginia Chapter of American Promise, I ask you to please vote for HB86 andHB 492. Passage of campaign finance reform legislation to improve disclosure and oversight is crucial to holding legislators accountable to voters, and restoring people’s trust in government. A recent poll by Christopher Newport University’s Wason Center found that 88% of Virginians support public disclosure of campaign contributions. HB86 would strengthen disclosure by upgrading the campaign finance database to make it publicly accessible, searchable and sortable. Upgraded campaign finance reporting standards and software would make reporting easier, more accurate and complete. H B492 would provide the Department of Elections with the authority to review campaign finance reports and records. This could make campaign finance information more complete and accurate, and help ensure compliance.

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports HB 492. Ideally, the Department of Elections would have the resources to audit every campaign committee for each election. We recognize that Virginia currently does not have such resources, but the existing system, which provides no routine audits of campaign committees, gives voters no confidence that submitted reports are accurate. A review of a percentage of campaign committees, with the necessary report, will provide a strong incentive to each campaign committee to prepare accurate reports and give voters a greater assurance that their reports can be relied upon.

Our team from Money Out Virginia, the VA affiliate of the nation-wide American Promise campaign finance reform advocacy organization, worked hard this past year with the "Joint Subcommittee to Study Comprehensive Campaign Finance Reform," and produced a "Citizens' Report" for the Subcommittee that articulated principles and priorities for improving transparency, preventing corrupt campaign finance practices and moving towards more equity in campaign financing in Virginia elections. The partnership between the Subcommittee and Money Out Virginia has resulted in a series of important bills that improve the requirements, process and electronic infrastructure for disclosure of campaign donations. We strongly support Delegate Bulova's HB 492, HB495, and HB500, Delegate Helmer's HB489, Delegate Anderson's HB86 and Delegate Davis' HB125, which provides for penalties for violations of disclosure laws. We also support Delegate Bulova's HJ53 to extend the mandate of the Joint Subcommittee so that we can continue our partnership in developing sensible campaign finance reforms for Virginia.

Jessica Mott, VA Chapter of American Promise: HB86 (publicly accessible database): We support this bill. A recent poll indicates that 88% of Virginians support public disclosure of all contributions. This enactment of this bill would strengthen disclosure by requiring that the database containing the information from campaign finance reports be publicly accessible, searchable, and sortable. It also requires that the Board of Elections set standards that should help ensure that the data is complete, accurate, and helps verify compliance with campaign finance legal requirements. Its adoption should help facilitate the efficient use of algorithms and electronic cross-checking to promote compliance by reporting entities and the reliability of the information in the database. It compliments the other proposed disclosure bills, HB495, HB500 and HB489, as well as the proposed oversight bill HB492. HB489 (electioneering): We support this bill, Its passage would help reduce one significant form of dark money support by making this support transparent. It adopts a definition of electioneering that is already utilized in other jurisdictions. It would help ensure that campaign finance disclosure includes not only ads that directly advocate support or opposition to candidates, but also ads close to election dates that imply support or opposition in ways that are likely intended to influence election outcomes. It also requires public disclosure within ads of top 3 donors. SB318, its counterpart, was approved by the Senate with bipartisan support on January 24th. HB 492 (record retention, guidance and review): We support this bill. It deals with a number of issues discussed by the Joint Subcommittee on Campaign Finance. It requires improved instructions for report forms, along with assistance to campaign offices, and clearly defines the campaign office responsibilities for record retention for expenditures above $500. It addresses a fundamental gap in oversight by providing the Department of Elections with the authority to review campaign finance reports and records. The proposed sample sizes are cost effective and appropriate (100% of state-wide candidates, 10% of state legislature candidates and 1% of other offices for campaigns costing more than $25,000). These and other provisions should help enable cross-checking of data, and the use of algorithms for campaigns and reviewers to identify and address report shortcomings related to completeness, accuracy and compliance. We note that it would help ensure meaningful implementation of proposed HB973, restricting personal use of campaign funds. HB495 (electronic filing): We support this bill. We commend the inclusion of electronic filing of independent expenditures, as well as by all candidates except for candidates running for local office who raise less than $25,000. It addresses measures that were discussed and agreed in principle by the Joint Subcommittee on Campaign Finance Reform. The parts of it pertaining to candidates are largely comparable to SB222 which has been approved by the Senate P&E Committee and was approved by unanimous vote by the Senate on January 24. HB500 (electioneering): We support this bill. We appreciate that it enhances disclosure by expanding advertisement provisions to include more forms of electioneering communications. Thank you for the opportunity to comment. Thank you for this opportunity to testify.

Nancy Morgan, Coordinator of the VA Chapter of American Promise. We support this bill because critical to the foundation of a campaign finance system is a solid structure of monitoring and enforcement. Virginia, as mentioned in the Joint Subcommittee, currently doesn’t have the ability to provide oversight of existing regulation, such as the “Stand-by-your ad” nor does it have the regulatory oversight capacity to undertake basic monitoring of campaign finance reports. Part of the reason, VA ranks 46 out 50 in the SWAMP index, a ranking of states based on criteria related to transparency and accountability is deficiencies in enforcing its own regulations. This bill moves to address key deficiencies within the Department of Elections, which include lack of ability/authority to monitor and audit campaign finance reports, require retention of records and identify inconsistencies in filing.

I am writing in support of Del David Bulova HB 492 Campaign finance; record retention requirements and reviews of campaign finance disclosure reports. Requires campaign committee treasurers to retain certain records that may be used in reviews of campaign committee accounts. The bill gives the Department of Elections the authority and duty to conduct reviews of a percentage of campaign committees and to report the results of such reviews annually to the State Board of Elections, the Governor, the and General Assembly and make such report available on the Department's website. • Currently the Department of Elections has very weak oversight (monitoring and enforcement) of campaign finance regulations. They can’t even monitor existing regulations like the “Stand-by-Your-Ad” act. • The provisions of this bill respond to recommendations in the draft report of the Sub-Committee on Campaign Finance Reform which met over the Aug-Oct period. • It improves disclosure of campaign finance information to the public. • Sets the stage for a robust system of monitoring and enforcing campaign finance reform which is very weak now, as revealed in our ranking in the 2020 SWAMP Index (46 out of 50 states) Mindy Mitchell 3601 5th St S Arlington, VA 22204

Voting is a constitutional right. Any law that restricts rather than expands our constitutional right & DUTY to vote is simply voter suppression. We must not repeal any expansions of absentee ballots. Do not decrease early voting. - extend the number of days allowed. Do not eliminate any ballot box locations- expand. We have no need to re-register absentee ballots every year. No excuse absentee voting is absolutely crucial. The state must provide easy and free access to voter ID if a photo is required. Since the USPS has slowed considerably, we must keep the 3 day rule for receiving ballots after election day. All local elections must be on Election Day (in Nov). Election Day should be a holiday. Until we do a complete overhaul of campaign finance & eliminate dark money/special interests there must be no restrictions on outreach, education & registration or from where a candidate may collect funds. Voter registration up to and including Election Day is absolutely crucial to ensure all citizens vote. I support all bills expanding our rights and abilities to make voting as easy as possible. I oppose all bills attempting to restrict any access to our ballot and our vote. The process is too important for the elected officials to be able to restrict us from our duty to be informed voters. Keep expanding our rights. Do not restrict, suppress or subvert them.

Dear Committee Members, The rights of average citizens to engage in free speech and to keep rights of privacy are a hallmark in American Democracy and have allowed Americans to feel confident in their thoughts for over 200 years. Any infringement on them has a chilling effect on Americans truly disclosing their thoughts. Where would our democracy be if average citizens withheld from sharing their thoughts from each other: especially when their thoughts were unpopular? We can't hope to cripple anonymous speech and expect Americans to stand for what they know is right in their heart when others behave like it is wrong. A laboratory of ideas is the best way for the best ideas to rise to the top. Please vote no on HB500 which would force non-profits to disclose their donors and would have a chilling effect on people donating to the cause they believe in for fear of reprisal by government and others in society.

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports HB 500. This bill addresses the need in Virginia to better define what is an “electioneering” expenditure. These changes would better ensure that Virginia law provides voters with more complete information on who is paying for these types of expenditures, in reflection of how campaigns are currently financed.

Our team from Money Out Virginia, the VA affiliate of the nation-wide American Promise campaign finance reform advocacy organization, worked hard this past year with the "Joint Subcommittee to Study Comprehensive Campaign Finance Reform," and produced a "Citizens' Report" for the Subcommittee that articulated principles and priorities for improving transparency, preventing corrupt campaign finance practices and moving towards more equity in campaign financing in Virginia elections. The partnership between the Subcommittee and Money Out Virginia has resulted in a series of important bills that improve the requirements, process and electronic infrastructure for disclosure of campaign donations. We strongly support Delegate Bulova's HB 492, HB495, and HB500, Delegate Helmer's HB489, Delegate Anderson's HB86 and Delegate Davis' HB125, which provides for penalties for violations of disclosure laws. We also support Delegate Bulova's HJ53 to extend the mandate of the Joint Subcommittee so that we can continue our partnership in developing sensible campaign finance reforms for Virginia.

Jessica Mott, VA Chapter of American Promise: HB86 (publicly accessible database): We support this bill. A recent poll indicates that 88% of Virginians support public disclosure of all contributions. This enactment of this bill would strengthen disclosure by requiring that the database containing the information from campaign finance reports be publicly accessible, searchable, and sortable. It also requires that the Board of Elections set standards that should help ensure that the data is complete, accurate, and helps verify compliance with campaign finance legal requirements. Its adoption should help facilitate the efficient use of algorithms and electronic cross-checking to promote compliance by reporting entities and the reliability of the information in the database. It compliments the other proposed disclosure bills, HB495, HB500 and HB489, as well as the proposed oversight bill HB492. HB489 (electioneering): We support this bill, Its passage would help reduce one significant form of dark money support by making this support transparent. It adopts a definition of electioneering that is already utilized in other jurisdictions. It would help ensure that campaign finance disclosure includes not only ads that directly advocate support or opposition to candidates, but also ads close to election dates that imply support or opposition in ways that are likely intended to influence election outcomes. It also requires public disclosure within ads of top 3 donors. SB318, its counterpart, was approved by the Senate with bipartisan support on January 24th. HB 492 (record retention, guidance and review): We support this bill. It deals with a number of issues discussed by the Joint Subcommittee on Campaign Finance. It requires improved instructions for report forms, along with assistance to campaign offices, and clearly defines the campaign office responsibilities for record retention for expenditures above $500. It addresses a fundamental gap in oversight by providing the Department of Elections with the authority to review campaign finance reports and records. The proposed sample sizes are cost effective and appropriate (100% of state-wide candidates, 10% of state legislature candidates and 1% of other offices for campaigns costing more than $25,000). These and other provisions should help enable cross-checking of data, and the use of algorithms for campaigns and reviewers to identify and address report shortcomings related to completeness, accuracy and compliance. We note that it would help ensure meaningful implementation of proposed HB973, restricting personal use of campaign funds. HB495 (electronic filing): We support this bill. We commend the inclusion of electronic filing of independent expenditures, as well as by all candidates except for candidates running for local office who raise less than $25,000. It addresses measures that were discussed and agreed in principle by the Joint Subcommittee on Campaign Finance Reform. The parts of it pertaining to candidates are largely comparable to SB222 which has been approved by the Senate P&E Committee and was approved by unanimous vote by the Senate on January 24. HB500 (electioneering): We support this bill. We appreciate that it enhances disclosure by expanding advertisement provisions to include more forms of electioneering communications. Thank you for the opportunity to comment. Thank you for this opportunity to testify.

Nancy Morgan, Coordinator of the VA Chapter of American Promise. Our group supports this bill which provides a valuable updating of definitions in the Virginia Code to allow all legislation to be more legally in tune to the challenges of money flowing into our elections from undisclosed sources. It was a recommendation of the CLC to the Joint Study committee to update many of these definitions in the code.

Voting is a constitutional right. Any law that restricts rather than expands our constitutional right & DUTY to vote is simply voter suppression. We must not repeal any expansions of absentee ballots. Do not decrease early voting. - extend the number of days allowed. Do not eliminate any ballot box locations- expand. We have no need to re-register absentee ballots every year. No excuse absentee voting is absolutely crucial. The state must provide easy and free access to voter ID if a photo is required. Since the USPS has slowed considerably, we must keep the 3 day rule for receiving ballots after election day. All local elections must be on Election Day (in Nov). Election Day should be a holiday. Until we do a complete overhaul of campaign finance & eliminate dark money/special interests there must be no restrictions on outreach, education & registration or from where a candidate may collect funds. Voter registration up to and including Election Day is absolutely crucial to ensure all citizens vote. I support all bills expanding our rights and abilities to make voting as easy as possible. I oppose all bills attempting to restrict any access to our ballot and our vote. The process is too important for the elected officials to be able to restrict us from our duty to be informed voters. Keep expanding our rights. Do not restrict, suppress or subvert them.

I fully support Delegate Batten’s bill. It should be required to show a photo ID to vote. This is just common sense, especially given what transpired during the 2020 presidential election scam.

The Virginia State Conference NAACP opposes HB544.

All bills that will reflect a stronger more secure election in the future. Considering both sides, Trump and Biden, have spoken in regards to those concerns, these should be reported on with bipartisan approval. Thank you.

Election Integrity guarantees our voice is heard and the we can trust the system. It is foundational to the backbone of this country. It has been my astonishing revelation that this most SACRED of all abilities - believed to be held UP- in such esteem and REVERENCE yet in reality is trampled upon, disrespected and disgraced , given away with no value whatsoever in order to game the system. It is totally and completely unprotected. IT is UNTRUE. This reminds me of the snake oil salesmen who came into towns in the early days selling fakery and un-truths. As the American people come learn the truth - it IS happening now folks, make no mistake, they will ask the leadership to answer for this'd hold you accountable for this bait and switch. WE need real election integrity for LEGAL CITIZENS ONLY. WE NEED PRISTINELY CLEAN VOTER ROLLS. Here is the list of what we must do to repair and restore the trust of the American People. Establish laws enabling forensic audits and voter canvass Repeal same day voter registration Repeal no voter identification Repeal the permanent absentee ballot list Repeal no-excuse AB Repeal 3rd party mailing of AB Repeal ballot harvesting Eliminate AB drop boxes. We also want 1 day of voting, but anything less than 45 days would be better than nothing. Do not accept AB after Election DAY. Repeal pre-registration of 16 year olds Repeal automatic voter registration by DMV Please vote appropriately on ALL bills in support of these goals. Angela Boyer Great Falls Va 22066

Since there has never been any significant fraud in Virginia elections, we should keep and expand measures that make it easier for all of our citizens to participate the the most sacred of our democratic rights. There is no reason to make access to the ballot box tougher. We need to keep early voting, mail-in ballots, drop boxes, and enough polling places so there are not unreasonable wait times. The more citizens included in this process the stronger their involvement and commitment to their community, state, and nation.

I am in support of HB1855, only if it pertains to first time new voters only. There should be a cut off date prior to election day for new registration of voters. The day of election should not be when new voters are registered, as verification of ID and address becomes difficult at the polls. If a voter has moved but not updated their addresses, they should be required to either go back and vote at their original precinct (old address), or vote via provisional ballot based upon their new address. I am also in support of HB24, that would require a photo id, however, it should not be required that it be a state government or federally issued id.

Election Integrity depends on 3 primary things: REAL VOTER ID, the ELIMINATION OF VOTER DROP BOXES and NO ABSENTEE BALLOTS TO BE USED w/ THE exception for military assignments out of state or country.

SOLUTION IN SEARCH OF A PROBLEM - Please Reject Confidence that our elections are fair is important. This is the paradox, though: raising alarms about election security, EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF CHEATING, is what undermines that confidence. Until you've made the case that there are people voting who shouldn't, or that there is cheating or foul play going on, there is no reason to make it harder to vote, which is what this bill does. We ALL benefit from widespread participation in elections. Making it less convenient and more expensive for people to vote is wrong. Please reject this bill. Thank you.

The VA State Conference doesn't support any voter suppression bills that cause barriers to vote. HB 24 46 185 187 544 780 944 941 942 1090

As a Virginia resident, I am opposed to all of the proposed bills for this session. I am concerned that the restrictions may further challenge low-income Virginians’ ability to participate in elections. Thank you for your consideration.

Voting is a right guaranteed to all citizens. Unless ID's to be used for voting are provided easily and free to all eligible voters, voter ID requirements amount to voter suppression. There is no discernible voter fraud in any Virginia elections that would be addressed by these voter ID laws.

Virginia enacted several new voting laws in 2020 and 2021 to make voting more accessible during the pandemic. Early in-person voting hours were increased, mail-in absentee ballots no longer required a witness signature, more drop-box locations were available. These changes led to record voter turnout (with insignificant fraud) in both the 2020 presidential election and the 2021 gubernatorial election. Therefore I oppose any new bill that would restrict our rights to accessible voting.

Regarding HB1090, HB942, HB544, HB46, HB24, and HB121 = these voter id bills are actually unnecessary. There is no evidence that people are committing voter fraud on any meaningful scale, even in local elections. Voter ID laws can potentially deprive potential voters of their right to vote and/or reduce participation in local elections. As a conservative, I believe these kinds of laws are actually antithetical to what our country needs to be doing to increase civic participation. People like me have been forced to fill out provisional ballots in prior elections because it takes a while to get a govt photo ID and I know the cost can be prohibitive to people who don't think it's important. We should be making voting as reasonably easy and as low-cost as possible, and we should stop changing laws relating to voter ID and such so much because it can be confusing if this happens every other year. Thank you.

Voting is a constitutional right. Any law that restricts rather than expands our constitutional right & DUTY to vote is simply voter suppression. We must not repeal any expansions of absentee ballots. Do not decrease early voting. - extend the number of days allowed. Do not eliminate any ballot box locations- expand. We have no need to re-register absentee ballots every year. No excuse absentee voting is absolutely crucial. The state must provide easy and free access to voter ID if a photo is required. Since the USPS has slowed considerably, we must keep the 3 day rule for receiving ballots after election day. All local elections must be on Election Day (in Nov). Election Day should be a holiday. Until we do a complete overhaul of campaign finance & eliminate dark money/special interests there must be no restrictions on outreach, education & registration or from where a candidate may collect funds. Voter registration up to and including Election Day is absolutely crucial to ensure all citizens vote. I support all bills expanding our rights and abilities to make voting as easy as possible. I oppose all bills attempting to restrict any access to our ballot and our vote. The process is too important for the elected officials to be able to restrict us from our duty to be informed voters. Keep expanding our rights. Do not restrict, suppress or subvert them.

We need voter identification requirements!!!

This bill must pass in order to ensure election integrity and if not passed would devalue the vote of the legitimate citizen.

Hoping this bill passes!

I am in full support of this bill to create fair and equal elections for all. It is an opportunity to work with the current voter legislation to address the concerns we share surrounding voter ID requirements.

HB544 Is a great step towards securing voter identification and potential misuse of our names for voting. We very much support this bill. Please give it serious consideration. Jim and Helen Janele

I would like to see photo ID for voter’s registration to protest my identification.

I support all bills that require voter ID. There is no reason for not being able to obtain a photo ID. I also agree voters should have the right to designate in the voter records that a photo ID is required to cast a vote under said name

Very concerned about Voter fraud and HB544 will at least allow me to protect MY vote. Please make every effort for a full audit of the 2020 election. Election Integrity and action by our representative supporting Election Integrity are critically important.

I strongly support this bill because I want stronger assurance that I am the only one that is allowed to vote in my place. This is my right and I do not want someone stealing my vote because of any lax rules or laws.

I have to show id to get a library card, to buy beer or get a passport.

I would like for photo Id to be taken and registered for protection of my voting rights in America as an American citizen. Thank you

HB544 | Batten | Voter identification; optional restrictive identification requirement. We must have voter integrity with photo ID required

To uphold voter integrity, in as much as it is possible for me to do so, I will require that any vote submitted in my name has had my identification checked prior to voting. For this reason I support Delegate Batten's proposed bill HB544.

I strongly support this bill and respectfully request that you support it and pass it through committee.

This is a good proposal that allows one the choice of protecting one's vote.

I support this bill.

Our vote is among our most precious rights. It should be protected at all cost against fraud. Self-codifying my registration record with the requirement that Photo ID be used to verify my identity is a common-sense solution to a problem created by loose ID requirements enacted in the past.

In other states my picture on my drivers license was proof of who I am. This should be identified on all voting requirements and all government bills.

I support this Bill. I believe Voting needs to be secured by Blockchain. There are projects/companies creating voting platforms for this. It will just be a matter of adoption. Thank you.

I support this bill.

I have in favor of this bill.

A pictured ID is required for almost everything we do in this day and age. Of all the rights we have, voting is a privilege and I feel it should be mandatory to show an ID for everyone. Even people on welfare have to show an ID, so there shouldn't be any excuse about financial status.

I am completely in favor of this bill. Voter integrity and in person voting are very important to me. This will add another layer of security to preserving my right to vote.

I am in support of HB 544, Voter identification; optional restrictive identification requirement. Voluntarily placing a photo ID restriction on my own vote will add an additional layer of security to my voting rights. It will provide a greater confidence that, whether I choose to vote early or on election day, my vote will be secure and my vote will count. This voluntary restriction does not affect my neighbor, my friends or the people down the street. It will not prevent or restrict any voter’s choice to utilize the full range of alternate voter ID options currently available under law. To the contrary, I believe it is an opportunity to work within the framework of current voter legislation to address the concerns many Virginians share surrounding voter ID requirements. I strongly believe it is a win/win solution that will benefit all of your constituents by expanding their choice of how, when and where they vote. Please vote yes on HB 544. Thank you all for your time and consideration of the people of Virginia.