Relating to prohibiting an officer or employee of this state or of a political subdivision of this state from distributing certain voter registration application forms and to the notice of availability of such forms; creating criminal offenses.
SB 511 prohibits state and local government employees from distributing voter registration forms to people who did not request them. It also bans using public funds to help others distribute such forms. Political parties and candidates may still distribute these forms unsolicited, but government employees violating these rules face a Class A misdemeanor charge. The law takes effect September 1, 2025.
Bill status
passed
3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Nov 2024
Committee Review
May 2025
Senate Passage
May 2025
House Passage
Governor
Introduced Nov 25, 2024
Last action May 23, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
Introduced
→
Engrossed
·
5 edits
·
May 20, 2025
MODERATE
The bill was reformatted from an introduced version to an engrossed version with significant substantive changes. The original text prohibited state officers from distributing voter registration forms to people who did not request them, while the new version adds specific language about contracts with third-party vendors, expands exemptions to include elected officials, and adds new requirements for displaying multilingual notices about form availability.
Scope change
The bill's scope expanded to include restrictions on contracts with third-party vendors and added elected officials to the list of entities that may distribute forms without request.
REQUIREMENT
New requirement that offices must display multilingual notices indicating voter registration forms are available on request.
New prohibition on state officers entering contracts with third-party vendors that would allow distribution of forms to people who did not request them.
ENFORCEMENT
Added criminal offense provisions making violations of the distribution restrictions a Class C misdemeanor, or Class A misdemeanor if involving third-party vendor contracts.
ELIGIBILITY
Expanded exemption from distribution restrictions to include elected officials in addition to political parties and candidates.
TECHNICAL
Added accessibility statement about digital content alignment with WCAG 2.1 standards.
Floor votes · Senate May 20, 2025
How they voted
20–10
Passed
Total votes 30
May 20, 2025
D
Democratic10
100% Nay
R
Republican20
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
36
Key actions
10
Committee
7
Amendments
6
May 23, 2025
Committee
Referred to Elections
lower
May 23, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
lower
May 21, 2025
Introduced
Received from the Senate
lower
May 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Passed as amended
upper
May 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Amended
upper
May 20, 2025
Introduced
Amendment(s) offered
upper
May 20, 2025
Senate · Passed
Senate Vote: pass (20-10)
senate
May 19, 2025
Upper · Passed
Passed to engrossment as amended
upper
May 19, 2025
Upper · Passed
Amended
upper
May 19, 2025
Introduced
Amendment(s) offered
upper
Apr 7, 2025
Upper · Passed
Committee report printed and distributed
upper
Apr 7, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
upper
Apr 3, 2025
Upper · Passed
Vote taken in committee
upper
Mar 13, 2025
Upper · Passed
Left pending in committee
upper
Mar 13, 2025
Upper · Passed
Testimony taken in committee
upper
Feb 3, 2025
Committee
Referred to State Affairs
upper
Feb 3, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
upper
4 primary · 2 co-sponsors
Sponsors
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