NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Date: July 30, 2015
CONTACT: State Election Board PIO Bryan Dean, (405) 522-6624 bdean@elections.ok.gov
State signs NVRA agreement
(Oklahoma City) – An agreement announced Thursday by state officials and voter advocacy groups re-affirms Oklahoma’s commitment to complying with the federal National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), state officials said.
The agreement covers state agencies which offer public assistance programs, specifically the Department of Human Services, Oklahoma State Department of Health and the Oklahoma Health Care Authority. The NVRA requires those agencies also offer their clients voter registration services.
“This settlement strengthens our democracy and our state by helping Oklahomans register to vote,” said Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin. “State agencies will now be doing more to give Oklahomans the chance to exercise their voting rights and get involved with their communities.”
“The State of Oklahoma takes compliance with the National Voter Registration Act very seriously,” said Oklahoma State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax. “The steps we’ve taken in implementing this agreement ensure state agencies are following the law and that compliance will be properly monitored.”
The NVRA, passed in 1993, requires state agencies that take requests for government benefits like food stamps and Medicaid to offer voter registration services to their clients.
Voter advocacy groups first brought concerns about NVRA compliance to the state’s attention last year. Officials with each of the state’s public assistance agencies worked with the state election board and attorneys for the voter advocacy groups to develop a comprehensive plan addressing staffing, training, statistical reporting and other issues related to voter registration services at Oklahoma’s public assistance agencies.
The Oklahoma State Election Board is launching a website which will offer information about the NVRA, post monthly statistics on NVRA compliance and give people a place to ask questions or submit complaints related to the NVRA. The website can be found at www.elections.ok.gov.
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