{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-sponsored-legislation-would-help-states-improve-access-to-voting", "Blumenthal-Sponsored Legislation Would Help States Improve Access to Voting", "2016-12-08", "2016", "2016-12", "Democrat", "House", "CT", "Richard Blumenthal", "B001277", "www.blumenthal.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Blumenthal-Sponsored Legislation Would Help States Improve Access to Voting\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t Tweet\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tThe Fair, Accurate, Secure and Timely Voting Act would create a competitive grant program to encourage states to implement election reforms\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, December 8, 2016\n\t\t\t[WASHINGTON, DC] \u2013 U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), \u00a0Chris Coons (D-Del.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Richard Durbin (D-IL), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) today reintroduced legislation to help states make substantial improvements in administration of their elections to make voting faster and more accessible to all voters.\u00a0 The\u00a0Louis L. Redding Fair, Accurate, Secure and Timely (FAST) Voting Act of 2016\u00a0would create a competitive grant program in the model of\u00a0Race to the Top, encouraging states to aggressively pursue election reforms.\u00a0 The states that demonstrate the most comprehensive and promising reform plans will earn a greater portion of the grant funding.\r\nIn the 2016 election, long lines and voting-machine problems were reported in well over a dozen states, including Pennsylvania, Utah, Colorado, Ohio, New York, Massachusetts, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Montana, Tennessee, Hawaii, Arizona, Rhode Island, and more.\u00a0 There were also reports of confusion over new voter ID laws in Texas and Wisconsin, improper refusals of voter registrations in West Virginia, delayed absentee ballots in Pennsylvania and Alabama, and an absence of required bilingual support in Arizona and Florida.\r\n\u201cLong lines, confusion, and mishaps at the polls aren\u2019t simply an inconvenience \u2013 impediments to voting are a violation of Americans\u2019 most basic civil right,\u201d said Senator Blumenthal. \u201cInstead of making it harder to vote, we should be making it easier. This bill gives states the resources and opportunity to implement more innovative ways to ensure that all Americans \u2013 no matter who they are or where they live \u2013 have access to a smooth, fair, and speedy voting process next election day.\u201d\r\n\u201cToo many voters waited far too long to cast their ballots in this last election,\u201d said\u00a0Senator Coons.\u00a0 \u201cLong lines are a form of voter disenfranchisement, a polling place running out of ballots is a form of voter suppression, and making it harder for citizens to vote is a violation of voters\u2019 civil rights.\u00a0 This is the United States of America and the right to vote is in our DNA: we have to do better.\u00a0 The\u00a0FAST Voting Act\u00a0is a creative way to jumpstart states\u2019 election reform efforts and ensure that every American can exercise their right to vote in the next election.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\u201cThe right to vote is the cornerstone of our democracy. But during this last election, reports indicated that computer problems, long lines, poorly trained poll workers, and outdated equipment all made it harder for voters in some places to cast their ballots,\u201d said Senator Warner. \u201cThe FAST Voting Act addresses these challenges by encouraging and helping states to make voting faster and more accessible through commonsense reforms like reducing long waiting times, expanding early voting opportunities, and eliminating other obstacles that prevent people from exercising their franchise.\u201d\r\n\u201cIt is disheartening that in recent years, many Republican state legislatures around the country have been focused on passing discriminatory laws that make it more difficult to cast a ballot,\u201d said Senator Durbin. \u201cI\u2019m proud to take a stand against this injustice and introduce legislation that would encourage states to make it easier for all Americans to exercise their fundamental right to vote.\u201d\r\n\u201cOur right to vote and have our voices heard on Election Day is sacred, yet because of institutional barriers to the ballot, from outdated voting machines to confusing voter ID and registration laws, many Americans still had severe difficulty casting their ballots in the last election,\u201d said Senator Gillibrand. \u201cThe FAST Voting Act would give Americans easier access to the polls and a more efficient registration process, and would go a long way toward eliminating voter suppression. Every American should have their voices heard on Election Day, and I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill.\u201d\r\nThe program tasks applicant states with creating a comprehensive and coherent plan to improve their election processes by:\r\n \r\nProviding flexible registration opportunities, including same-day registration;\r\nProviding early voting, at a minimum of 9 of the 10 calendar days preceding an election;\r\nProviding absentee voting, including no-excuse absentee voting;\r\nProviding assistance to voters who do not speak English as a primary language;\r\nProviding assistance to voters with disabilities, including visual impairment;\r\nProviding effective access to voting for members of the armed services;\r\nProviding formal training of election officials, including state and county administrators and volunteers;\r\nAuditing and reducing waiting times at polling stations; and,\r\nCreating contingency plans for voting in the event of a natural or other disaster.\r\n \r\nThe program also requires an assessment of steps the state has taken to eliminate statutory, regulatory, procedural, and other barriers to expedited voting and accessible voter registration.\u00a0\r\nThe bill is named for Louis L. Redding, a prominent civil rights advocate who became the first African American to be admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1929.\u00a0 He challenged school segregation in court and was part of the legal team that challenged Brown v. Board of Education before the U.S. Supreme Court.\r\n\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-sponsored-legislation-would-help-states-improve-access-to-voting"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8232060354202986, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}