CHARLESTON – If the resolution regarding non-citizen voting restrictions is added the agenda for a planned special session, a legislative expert says lawmakers could suspend rules and quickly pass it.
House Joint Resolution 21 passed the House of Delegates by a 96-0 vote February 6. It then passed the state Senate on a 32-0 vote March 9, the final day of the regular session, with a minor change that had to be approved by the House.
But a technical glitch in the Legislature’s bill tracking system temporarily showed the measure as being completed. By the time the problem was realized, it was too late for it and a host of other measures to be taken across the finish line because of a Democratic filibuster.
Bastress
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Gov. Jim Justice has said he plans to call the Legislature back in for a special session in April or May to deal with several budget issues. During his weekly press briefing March 26, the governor said he’d make sure the resolution is part of the special session call if lawmakers want it.
“I don’t know why we just we just jammed everything in the last second (of the session) … but I’m a real believer and it’s the law,” Justice, a Republican, said when answering a question from The West Virginia Record. “I mean, for crying out loud, you know, you don’t have any right to vote whatsoever if you’re here illegally or whatever.
“If the Legislature wants this on the call, it’ll be on the call. You know, if all we’re going to do is just kick the can down the road and waste time … you don’t need that. All they have to tell me is they want it on the call, and it’ll be on the call. And I’ll very proudly sign it if they can pass it and get it to me.”
State Senate President Craig Blair (R-Berkeley) sponsored similar legislation in the Senate.
“The state Senate would very much like to see the non-citizen voting amendment on the special session call for May,” Blair told The Record shortly after Justice’s briefing. “We passed it overwhelmingly and were disappointed that it ran out of time at midnight in the House.”
With the overwhelming support in both houses as well as West Virginia’s deep-red conservative slant (as well as Justice’s run for U.S. Senate), the issue seems like a slam dunk. Supporters say the amendment would secure the electoral process and uphold the principle of voting rights. Critics claim it is unnecessary, saying it already is part of the state Constitution.
Under normal legislative rules, passing such legislation could take six days or more because it would be required to be read on three different days in both the House and Senate.
But both houses also could suspend the rules regarding multiple readings of the resolution to ensure its quick passage. It’s something lawmakers have done numerous time during recent regular sessions.
“The rules for a special session are the same as during the regular session,” said Robert Bastress, a West Virginia University College of Law professor and expert on the West Virginia Legislature. “So, yes, the Houses could suspend the rules to the extent and in the manner they are allowed during the regular session. …
“I don’t see any reasons why special sessions or joint resolutions would provide any cause to apply different rules. So, to the extent of my knowledge, the regular rules apply.”
If passed and signed by the governor, HJR21 would put the questions before West Virginia voters on this fall’s general election ballot.
“Most people assume that in order to vote in the United States, a person must be a citizen of the United States,” Blair previously told The Record. “However, that isn’t always the case. Liberal cities like San Francisco and New York are allowing non-citizens to vote. …
“Unless our West Virginia constitution specifically states that only citizens can vote, the possibility of non-citizens legally voting exists,” he told The Record. “So, we have proposed a Constitutional Amendment that will ensure that only citizens can vote in elections in West Virginia. Only citizens of the United States and West Virginia should be voting in West Virginia elections.”
The Kentucky General Assembly passed similar legislation earlier this month. The issue will go before voters in the commonwealth in this fall’s general election.
On March 25, the Idaho Senate passed a citizen-only voting amendment resolution (HJR5) on a 28-6-1 vote. It previously passed the House on March 11 by a 63-6-1 vote. That means Idaho voters will decide whether to add the amendment to the state constitution in this falls’ general election.
Americans for Citizen Voting President Avi McCullah says similar measures are moving through the legislative process in about 10 other states as well. In addition to West Virginia, those states are Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Oklahoma and Texas.
“State legislators have noticed the success of the non-citizen voting movement and are taking action to stop it,” McCullah said. “We are three months into the year and two states have passed citizen-only voting amendments. There will be more.
“Most state constitutions do not specifically prohibit foreign citizen voting. Many people, even legislators, are unaware of this fact.”
Currently, 11 state constitutions reserve the right to vote to only American citizens.
“Idahoans want safe and reliable elections,” Rep. Kevin Andrus, who sponsored the bill, said in a press release. “With the approval of House Joint Resolution 5, we are giving Idahoans a chance to vote for a constitutional amendment that ensures only U.S. citizens can vote in Idaho’s elections.
“I’m confident in November Idahoans will overwhelmingly vote in favor of citizen-only voting”
In recent years, the following states have passed such amendments: Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Ohio and North Dakota.
Citizen-only voting amendments have passed the Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky and Wisconsin legislatures and will be voted on by the people this November.
And a delegate in the Virginia General Assembly introduced legislation earlier this year that would require Virginia residents to prove U.S. citizenship when registering to vote by providing a birth certificate, passport or naturalization documents.