Minnesota Administrative Rules

8200.9310 TREATMENT OF VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS.

Subpart 1.

Transmission of voter registration applications.

A completed voter registration application may be submitted to any state agency or county auditor. The secretary of state shall provide training to state agencies on the proper forwarding of voter registration applications. Voter registration applications submitted to the secretary of state must be forwarded to the appropriate county auditor for entry into the statewide registration system. With the approval of the appropriate county auditor, the secretary of state shall enter the registration applications into the statewide registration system for that county.

The secretary of state may electronically transmit the information on the voter registration applications to the appropriate county auditor. The county auditor shall promptly enter the information into the statewide registration system. The original applications submitted to the secretary of state must be maintained either by the secretary of state or by the appropriate county auditor. Voter registration applications must be stored in either paper, microfilm, or electronic format.

The secretary of state shall have full access to all functions of the statewide registration system.

Subp. 2.

Verification; defined; notification.

A.

Verification means:

(1)

that the information provided by the applicant on the voter registration application for all of the following categories matches the information in the same categories of the database maintained by the Department of Public Safety or in the database of the Social Security Administration if the applicant has no driver's license or identification card:

(a)

name;

(b)

date of birth;

(c)

Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota state identification card number; or

(d)

last four digits of Social Security number, if the applicant has not been issued a Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota state identification card.

If a voter has not been issued a Minnesota driver's license, a Minnesota state identification card, or a Social Security number, and the voter has so indicated on the voter's voter registration application, units (c) and (d) are inapplicable and the registration is verified; or

(2)

that if after matching the information listed in subitem (1), even though the information may not be an exact match, the county auditor can still reasonably conclude that the information in the database of the Department of Public Safety, or in the database of the Social Security Administration if the applicant has no driver's license or identification card, and the information provided by the applicant on the voter registration application, relate to the same person, in which case the county auditor shall note in the statewide registration system the basis for the conclusion.

B.

The secretary of state must attempt to verify information entered into the voter registration system as a result of new voter registration applications by comparing the information stored by the voter registration system with information contained in the database maintained by the Department of Public Safety. The secretary of state must provide reports on attempted verifications that show the information of record in each database and that list:

(1)

voter registration applications that match the information in the Department of Public Safety database or, in the case of an applicant who does not have a Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota identification card in the database of the Social Security Administration, and that are therefore verified;

(2)

voter registration applications that cannot be verified with certainty against the information in the Department of Public Safety database or, in the case of an applicant who does not have a Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota identification card, in the database of the Social Security Administration. The report must match and contrast the information contained in the several databases; and

(3)

voter registration applications with Minnesota drivers' license numbers, Minnesota identification card numbers, or if the applicant has no driver's license or identification card, the last four digits of the applicant's Social Security number that do not match the numbers of record in the Department of Public Safety database or, in the case of an applicant who does not have a Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota identification card, in the database of the Social Security Administration.

The reports prepared by the secretary of state must include a separate list of potential matches for incomplete mail-in registrations described in Minnesota Statutes, section 201.061, subdivision 1a.

C.

The county auditor must review the reports provided by the secretary of state of records that have not been verified with certainty within ten days after the reports become available in the statewide voter registration system. The auditor must attempt to match the information on the voter registration application with the information in the database maintained by the Department of Public Safety or, in the case of an applicant who does not have a Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota identification card, in the database of the Social Security Administration, to permit the auditor to verify the information supplied on the voter registration application. The auditor shall attempt to obtain from the applicant any needed information by mail or, if a telephone number or an email address was provided by the applicant, by telephone or email. The auditor must record on the voter record in the statewide voter registration system each registration verified in this manner.

If the auditor cannot verify information for a registration, the auditor must record that the information supplied on the voter registration application could not be verified and is incomplete pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 201.121, subdivision 1.

Subp. 3.

Correction.

If a Minnesota driver's license number or Minnesota state identification card number supplied by the applicant cannot be verified because it does not exist in the Department of Public Safety database, the secretary of state or the county auditor shall correct the voter record to indicate that the number must not be used as the verification number on the voter record. In the case of an applicant who does not have a Minnesota driver's license number, Minnesota identification card number, or Social Security number that can be verified by comparison with the Department of Public Safety database, or in the database of the Social Security Administration, if the applicant has no Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota identification card, the unique voter record number generated by the statewide voter registration system must be used as the verification number for the record.

Subp. 4.

[Repealed, 31 SR 350]

Subp. 5.

Updates.

A.

A voter with an active voter registration may change the information on record by submitting a voter registration application meeting all the requirements for a new voter registration application.

B.

If, after matching the updated information with the information contained in the Department of Public Safety database or, in the case of an applicant who does not have a Minnesota driver's license or Minnesota identification card, in the database of the Social Security Administration, the accuracy of the updated information cannot be verified, the county auditor must send a notice to the voter whose information cannot be verified and request that the voter provide the information or contact the registration office.

If the discrepancy cannot be resolved, the county auditor must challenge the voter in the statewide voter registration system and may refer the matter to the county attorney. If during the verification process the Department of Public Safety provides information that indicates that the voter is ineligible to vote, the county auditor must challenge the voter in the statewide voter registration system and refer the matter to the county attorney.

Statutory Authority:

MS s 14.388; 201.022; 201.221

History:

19 SR 593; 29 SR 155; 31 SR 350

Published Electronically:

January 30, 2024