,i #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hbdi ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,september #ad1 #bjbj,ms4 ,velzquez 7for herself1 ,ms4 ,tlaib1 ,mrs4 ,napolitano1 ,mr4 ,deutch1 ,mr4 ,larson of ,connecticut1 ,mr4 ,lowenthal1 ,mr4 ,espaillat1 ,ms4 ,norton1 ,ms4 ,lee of ,california1 ,mr4 ,cooper1 ,ms4 ,pressley1 ,ms4 ,ocasio-,cortez1 ,mr4 ,kildee1 ,mr4 ,rush1 ,ms4 ,escobar1 ,mr4 ,evans1 and ,ms4 ,schakowsky7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to prohibit the denial of the right to vote in elections for public office on the grounds of owing fines1 fees1 or restitution relating to a conviction of a criminal offense4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,removing ,monetary ,barriers to ,voting ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,the #bdth amendment to the ,constitution of the ,united ,states prohibits ,congress and ,states conditioning the right to vote in ,federal elections on payment of any poll tax or any other tax1 and this prohibition was extended to ,states under the #adth amendment in #aifd in ,harper v4 ,virginia ,board of ,elections4 7#b7 ,the right to vote is the most basic constitutive act of citizenship4 ,regaining the right to vote reintegrates individuals with criminal convictions into free society1 helping to enhance public safety4 7#c7 ,an estimated #f1ajj1jjj citizens of the ,united ,states1 or about #a in #dj adults in the ,united ,states1 currently cannot vote as a result of a felony conviction4 ,as of #bjaf1 an estimated #f1ajj1jjj citizens1 or about #a in #dj adults in the ,united ,states1 could not vote as a result of a felony convictions4 7#d7 ,at least #h ,states explicitly prohibit individuals who owe money associated with their criminal convictions from voting4 ,at least #bb other ,states have laws that can implicitly prohibit individuals from voting because of unpaid legal debts1 either through requirements that individuals complete parole or probation1 which themselves hinge on payment of fines1 fees or restitution1 or clemency restrictions based on unpaid legal debts4 7#e7 ,across the ,nation1 approximately #aj million individuals owe a collective #ej billion in debt related to the criminal justice system1 and findings from #ad ,states show that families on average owe #ac1fjj in fees and fines4 7#f7 ,state disenfranchisement laws additionally disproportionately impact racial and ethnic minorities4 7#g7 ,the right to vote additionally may not be abridged or denied by the ,united ,states or by any ,state on account of race1 color1 gender1 or previous condition of servitude4 ,the #acth1 #adth1 #aeth1 #aith1 and #bfth ,amendments to the ,constitution of the ,united ,states empower ,congress to enact measures to protect the right to vote4 7#h7 ,continuing to disenfranchise individuals who have outstanding fees1 fines1 and restitution and who are living and working in the community serves no ,state interest and hinders their rehabilitation and reintegration into society4 #c4 ,prohibiting denial of right to vote on grounds of owing amounts relating to conviction of criminal offense 7a7 ,in general ,the right of an individual to vote in any election for public office shall not be denied or abridged because that individual owes an outstanding fine1 fee1 or restitution relating to conviction of a criminal offense4 7b7 ,applicability ,the right of an individual to vote in any election under subsection 7a7 shall apply notwithstanding if such individual is on parole1 probation1 or any other form of supervision solely related to an outstanding fine1 fee1 or restitution4 #d4 ,enforcement 7a7 ,attorney ,general ,the ,attorney ,general may1 in a civil action1 obtain such declaratory or injunctive relief as is necessary to remedy a violation of this ,act4 7b7 ,private right of action 7#a7 ,in general ,a person who is aggrieved by a violation of this ,act may provide written notice of the violation to the chief election official of the ,state involved4 7#b7 ,relief ,except as provided in paragraph 7#d71 if the violation is not corrected within #ij days after receipt of a notice under paragraph 7#a71 or within #bj days after receipt of the notice if the violation occurred within #abj days before the date of an election for public office1 the aggrieved person may1 in a civil action1 obtain declaratory or injunctive relief with respect to the violation4 7#c7 ,attorney's fees ,in any action or proceeding to enforce this ,act against any governmental body1 the court may allow a prevailing plaintiff1 other than the ,united ,states1 reasonable attorney's fees as part of the costs1 and may include expert fees as part of the attorney's fee4 7#d7 ,exception ,if the violation occurred within #fj days before the date of an election for public office1 the aggrieved person need not provide notice to the chief election official of the ,state under paragraph 7#a7 before bringing a civil action to obtain declaratory or injunctive relief with respect to the violation4 #e4 ,definitions ,for purposes of this ,act3 7#a7 ,chief election official ,the term chief election official means1 with respect to a ,state1 the individual designated by the ,state under section #aj of the ,national ,voter ,registration ,act of #aiic 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #bjeji7 to be responsible for coordination of the ,state's responsibilities under such ,act 7#b7 ,election ,the term election means-- 7,a7 a general1 special1 primary1 or runoff election for public office2 7,b7 a convention or caucus of a political party held to nominate a candidate for public office2 7,c7 a primary election held for the selection of delegates to a national nominating convention of a political party2 or 7,d7 a primary election held for the expression of a preference for the nomination of persons for election to the office of ,president4 7#c7 ,fee ,the term fee means any surcharge1 court cost1 administrative fee1 or any monetary amount imposed to cover the costs of the judicial system or to generate revenue4 7#d7 ,fine ,the term fine means any monetary penalty imposed by a court or other entity as punishment for conviction of a crime4 7#e7 ,restitution ,the term restitution means any monetary sanction imposed by a court to compensate for actual losses resulting from a crime4 7#f7 ,state ,the term ,state means each of the several ,states1 the ,district of ,columbia1 the ,commonwealth of ,puerto ,rico1 ,american ,samoa1 ,guam1 the ,united ,states ,virgin ,islands1 and the ,commonwealth of the ,northern ,mariana ,islands4 #f4 ,relation to other laws 7a7 ,state laws relating to voting rights ,nothing in this ,act may be construed to prohibit a ,states from enacting any ,state law which affords the right to vote in any election for public office on terms less restrictive than those established by this ,act4 7b7 ,certain ,federal ,acts ,the rights and remedies established by this ,act are in addition to all other rights and remedies provided by law1 and neither rights and remedies established by this ,act shall supersede1 restrict1 or limit the application of the ,voting ,rights ,act of #aife 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #ajcja et seq47 or the ,national ,voter ,registration ,act of #aiic 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #bjeja et seq474 #g4 ,effective date ,this ,act shall apply with respect to individuals voting in any election for public office held after the date of the enactment of this ,act4