If there is a bill of interest going through the legislature that you think we should know about, please tell us about it. Contact us at info@dlcv.org or by calling 1-800-552-3962 or 804-225-2042.
We are tracking dozens of bills that if passed, will impact voting rights in general and will necessarily increase the access for people with disabilities to the electoral process. Multiple bills cover the same issue as other bills, so we anticipate that bills will be “rolled together”. That action will occur in the House and Senate Committees on Privileges and Elections. (The action may happen in subcommittee.)
Some examples of the voting rights bills we are tracking are:
HB 1 (Herring), HB 25 (Lindsay), HB 207 (Van Valkenberg), SB 45 (Spruill), SB 111 (Howell) and other bills would allow someone to vote absentee without stating the reason. Currently, people with disabilities may vote absentee but have to identify that they have a disability.
HB 19 (Lindsay), HB 190 (Levine), HB 213 (Sullivan), SB 113 (Deeds), SB 123 (Barker) and others remove or change identification requirements. Virginia’s ID requirements have had a disproportionate impact on people with disabilities who do not drive.
HB 872 (Bourne) would expand the ability of certain first-time voters to vote by absentee ballot, while SB 219 (Marsden) and SB 278 (Barker) would make it easier for anyone obtaining ID or making an address change through the Dept. of Motor Vehicles to automatically register to vote. The registration process can sometimes be onerous for people with disabilities.
SJ 8 (Locke) offers a Constitutional amendment to remove the prohibition on voting for convicted felons. Virginia’s current ban disproportionately impacts re-entering Virginians who have mental illness and who may have originally been convicted for behaviors related to their disabilities.
We are available to educate policymakers about the impact of their decisions on the lives of people with disabilities. The mission of the disAbility Law Center of Virginia (dLCV) is to advance independence, choice and self-determination; protect legal, human and civil rights; and eliminate abuse, neglect and discrimination of people with disabilities through zealous and uncompromising legal advocacy and representation.