Committee deadlocks on bill to standardize college voting resources after implementation concerns

Representative Altendorf moved H.F. 37 21 to require postsecondary institutions to provide consistent voting information, and to make voter registration and absentee ballot forms or links available to students upon request. The measure aimed to standardize what colleges put on their websites and to make it easier for students who are residents of other states to access absentee‑ballot resources.

Jeff Sigurdsson of the Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board testified the board requested a fiscal note and expects the initial cost for a feasibility study could be absorbed internally; any additional cost would likely be limited to standing up an application server. "By giving us enough time to do this with internal staff, I think the only other cost that we've identified... is that we would probably stand this up, the application on its own server," Sigurdsson said.

Nicole Freeman of the Office of the Secretary of State supported the change in subdivision 1 but warned the language on page 3 would require postsecondary institutions to provide forms for other states and could be impractical: "We don't believe that the change on page 3 would be necessary or at least this language would be needed... It's asking them to provide 49 states applications on hand, and that's impractical," Freeman said, urging reliance on links to state election administrators.

Members questioned whether the bill required colleges to print and maintain out‑of‑state forms and whether the secretary of state's office or higher‑education systems had been consulted. Representative Lee, Representative Coulter and others urged clarifying the language or laying the bill over for technical fixes. The committee took a roll call and recorded a 6–6 tie; the bill was laid over.

Next steps: The bill is laid over pending technical fixes and/or a fiscal note or consultation with higher education administrators.