DMV rejects Secretary of State questions about its voter registration system

The Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles on Saturday issued a statement rejecting the Secretary of State’s letter raising “concerns” about its system for handling voter registrations.

“Your letter comes as a complete surprise as you and your office have reviewed, contributed to and approved the processes you are expressing concerns about,” said the response by DMV Director Terri Albertson.

DMV officials said they accept voter registration applications “in accordance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.” That act requires all state motor vehicle licensing offices to serve as voter registration sites.

“Although the DMV has always served as a pass through for applications, prior to September 2016, citizens interested in registering to vote were required to complete a separate voter registration application even though much of the requested information was the same,” the letter to the secretary states.

Now, the Motor Voter process has changed to what DMV officials say is full compliance with federal law, eliminating the need for customers to fill out duplicate information. That process was vetted with the ACLU and League of Women Voters along with other groups.

“Our attorney general’s office has been alongside us during this process, providing their advice and counsel to ensure we are following all federal and state laws,” said Albertson.

She said just in March, DMV signed a memorandum of understanding with the ACLU as well as the secretary of state’s office, detailing those practices. That MOU states that: “The DMV shall provide the appropriate clerk/registrar all voter registration applications returned by customers without regard to their completeness.” It says under federal law, the only reason DMV can reject an application is the lack of a signature.