Tell the Senate to pass our Voting Rights Amendment as-is

House Bill 70, the restoration of voting rights amendment, will be heard in the Senate this Wednesday for the first time since we introduced the bill in 2005. Despite having passed out of the House of Representatives eight times with wide bipartisan support, the Senate has blocked hearings on this bill during the session until now.

This is great news for the 181,000 former felons who have completed their sentence but who are barred from voting. But there is a catch. We have heard that some Senators wish to add a five to ten year waiting period on top of time served, probation, and parole before voting rights are automatically restored. Our amendment as-is already requires people fully serve their time and pay their fines before rights are restored. If we want to reintegrate former felons into our society we do not need to add years onto their sentences before we allow them to take part in our democracy.

Tacking on a waiting period to this bill will have real consequences for Kentuckians. Here is how this change would effect Central Kentucky KFTC member April Browning and her thirteen year old son:

"I believe in the power of voting. I also believe that it is my duty as a parent to show my son the importance of voting through the practice of it. If a waiting period were enacted I would never have that opportunity.

In five years my son will become a man, and he will go off to college. With a waiting period, he would never see me participate in our democracy. He would never see me fully reintegrated into our society after all the hard work I've done to get there."

Take Action

Call the toll-free legislative message line at 1-800-372-7181, and ask to leave a message for members of the Senate State and Local Government committee.

Message

Please pass House Bill 70 out of committee as-is, without a waiting period or other amendments.

Also, if you are able, please come to Frankfort this Wednesday, February 19, to show your support at the Senate State and Local Government Committee hearing. The hearing begins at noon in room 154 of the Capitol Annex. If you arrive early we will be meeting in the Annex cafeteria.

Thank you for taking action!