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Colorado > Colorado Electoral Code > Qualifications And Registration Of Electors

1-2-509. Reviewing Voter Registration Applications—Notification

Overview of Statute

County clerk and recorders must send all registration applications to the appropriate county clerk and recorder within five days or as quickly as possible if received within thirty days of an election. After verifying the completeness and accuracy of an application, the appropriate clerk and recorder must notify the applicant within ten days of either the successful registration or the outstanding information needed to complete the application. The notifications must be sent by nonforwardable mail, and any mail returned within twenty days as undeliverable will invalidate the applicant’s registration. Applicants notified of missing registration information may provide the outstanding information at any time prior to voting. Applicants who fail to provide the necessary information within twenty-four months will instead need to submit a new application.

Statute

(1) Upon receipt of an application, if the applicant resides in a county other than the county receiving the application, the county clerk and recorder shall within five days transmit the application to the clerk and recorder of the applicant’s county; except that, if the application is received thirty days or less before an election, the application shall be transmitted as expeditiously as possible.

(2) Upon receipt of an application, the county clerk and recorder shall verify that the application is complete and accurate. If the application is complete and accurate, the county clerk and recorder shall notify the applicant of the registration. If the application is not complete or is inaccurate, the county clerk and recorder shall notify the applicant, stating the additional information required.

(3) (a) Within ten business days after receipt of the application, the county clerk and recorder shall notify each applicant of the disposition of the application by nonforwardable mail and proceed in accordance with paragraph (b) of this subsection (3).

(b)

(I) If within twenty business days after receipt of the application the notification is returned to the county clerk and recorder as undeliverable, the applicant shall not be registered.

(II) If the notification is not returned within twenty business days as undeliverable, then the applicant shall be deemed registered as of the date of the application; except that, if the applicant was notified that the application was not complete, then the applicant is deemed registered as of the date of the application if the additional information is provided at any time prior to the actual voting. If such applicant does not provide the additional information necessary to make his or her application complete and accurate within twenty-four months after notification is sent pursuant to subsection (2) of this section, the applicant must reapply in order to be registered.

(III) If the notification is returned to the county clerk and recorder as undeliverable after twenty days after receipt of the application, the county clerk and recorder shall mark the applicant’s registration record “Inactive” and send a confirmation card.

(4) This section does not apply to voter registrations received pursuant to section 1-2-213, 1-2-213.3, or 1-2-502.5.

Source: L. 94: Entire part added, p. 1766, § 21, effective January 1, 1995. L. 95: (2) and (3) amended, p. 827, § 22, effective July 1. L. 2005: (3) amended, p. 1396, § 9, effective June 6; (3)amended, p. 1431, § 9, effective June 6. L. 2012: (3) amended, (HB 12-1292), ch. 181, p. 678,  § 6, effective May 17. L. 2016: (3) amended, (HB 16-1093), ch. 126, p. 360, § 4, effective April 21.L. 2019: (4) added, (SB 19-235), ch. 329, p. 3057, § 10, effective August 2.

 

Definition [Section]

A bound compilation of initiative forms approved by the secretary of state, which shall include pages that contain the warning required by section 1-40-110 (1), the ballot title, the abstract required by section 1-40-110 (3), and a copy of the proposed measure; succeeding pages that contain the warning, the ballot title, and ruled lines numbered consecutively for registered electors’ signatures; and a final page that contains the affidavit required by section 1-40-111 (2). Each section shall be consecutively prenumbered by the petitioner prior to circulation.

Definition [Election]

Any election under the “Uniform Election Code of 1992” or the “Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965”, article 10 of title 31, C.R.S. C.R.S. § 1-7.5-103.

Cases

Colorado Cases

Out-of-State Cases

Federal Cases

Case Name: Common Cause of Colorado v. Buescher

Citation: 750 F. Supp. 2d 1259

Federal District Court: District of Colorado

Year: 2010

Case URL: https://www.ravellaw.com/opinions/a06203c64472e313e4858d429ecd4989

Case Summary: Holding that state statute mandating cancellation of new voter registration if voter registration notice is returned as undeliverable within 20 days of having placed the notice in the mail did not violate National Voter Registration Act, because the statute provided a means of confirming initial residential eligibility of recent applicants.

Regulations & Guidance