Federal Judge Orders Missouri to Register Low-Income Voters

A federal court Tuesday ordered the Missouri Department of Social Services immediately to comply with a federal law requiring the state's social welfare offices provide voter registration applications and assistance to their clients.

The ruling, by U.S. District Judge Nanette K. Laughrey, came in a lawsuit filed in April 2008 by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) and St. Louis resident Dionne O'Neal charging widespread violations of the federal National Voter Registration Act (NVRA). The NVRA, commonly called the motor voter bill, requires state agencies to ask the public if they want to register to vote and to help them do so. Since the law's passage in 1993, many states have only asked people applying for driver's licenses.

The Missouri litigation was part of a nationwide effort to push states to fully implement the NVRA's voter registration provisions.

The ruling yesterday followed written submissions and a one-day preliminary injunction hearing on July 9, 2008, at which lawyers from Demos: A Network for Ideas & Action, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP and Project Vote, presented evidence that, over the past several years, the Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS) violated the NVRA by failing to provide Ms. O'Neal and tens of thousands of other low-income Missourians with the opportunity to register to vote or change their voter registration address during visits to the offices of DSS agencies.

The "substantial evidence" of voting rights violations cited by the Court in its ruling included:

• State documents confirming that over 1 million Food Stamps applicants could not have been offered voter registration from 2003-2008 because DSS did not order enough of the forms it is required to give each client. The court also viewed field surveys by plaintiffs of agency offices as persuasive evidence of poor compliance.
• E-mails from a DSS employee acknowledging that half the counties in a 21-county survey were not routinely providing voter registration to DSS clients.
• E-mails from one county DSS office showing that voter registration applications completed by clients had been permitted to pile up for an entire year without being turned in to the local election authority for processing.

The Court's order directs DSS within five business days to send notice to all relevant employees that compliance with the NVRA is "mandatory" and states that "failure to comply with this order will subject the Department of Social Services to citation for contempt of court." It also requires DSS to establish monitoring and reporting procedures to ensure compliance, and to provide voter registration opportunities to anyone it finds has not been offered the required services.

"The Court's ruling today vindicates the rights of thousands of low-income Missourians to register and have their voices heard in this critical election year. We are gratified that the Court acted so quickly in response to our evidence," said Brenda Wright, legal director of the Democracy Program at Demos and one of the counsel representing plaintiffs at the hearing.

"The Court's ruling sends a powerful message to Missouri and other states across the country that they need to offer voter registration at public assistance agencies. With full national compliance, tens of millions of economically disadvantaged citizens will be able to register to vote or update their address information for voting when they apply for or renew their benefits," stated Jon Greenbaum, who led the Lawyers' Committee's effort as director of its Voting Rights Project.

The NVRA is commonly known as the "Motor Voter" law, due to its requirement that states provide voter registration opportunities at motor vehicle departments. The NVRA also requires that voter registration be offered at public assistance agencies when citizens apply for benefits, recertify their eligibility and change their address.