By Nola Sizemore
Harlan Daily Enterprise
HARLAN, Ky. — Under debate, after passing in the Kentucky Senate with a vote of 34-4, is House Bill 70, an amendment to Section 145 of the Constitution of Kentucky, which asks that persons convicted of a felony, other than treason, intentional killing, a sex crime or bribery, the right to vote after expiration of probation, final discharge from parole, or maximum expiration of sentence.
The bill is also asking that this amendment be submitted to the voters for ratification or rejection.
The amendments to HB 70 impose a five-year waiting period after sentencing has been completed and disqualify anyone with more than one felony conviction from automatic restoration of voting rights.
According to a recent analysis, conducted by the League of Women Voters of Kentucky, of the 180,000 former felons who have completed their sentences and who would have voting rights restored under original provisions of HB70, 100,000 would be adversely affected by these amendments.
Currently in Kentucky, only the governor can reinstate Civil Rights. The ex-offender must complete an application for restoration of civil rights. Then, it is at the governor’s discretion to restore voting rights.
Section 145 of the Kentucky Constitution prevents convicted felons from voting. The section applies to those convicted by any court of competent jurisdiction, not only to those convicted in Kentucky courts. The governor may pardon any such felon and restore the felon’s voting rights.
“All offenders released from custody are eligible to have their civil rights restored,” said Kentucky Department of Corrections Public Information Officer Todd Henson. “Upon their release, they are provided information concerning the application process to have their civil rights restored. They submit their application to the Department of Corrections (DOC).
“The DOC then forwards this information to the commonwealth attorney of the county where the crime was committed and the commonwealth attorney of the county of residence of the offender. The commonwealth attorney has the option of objecting to the offender’s restoration of civil rights. If he chooses to object, he sends notification of his objection to the DOC. Any objections from a commonwealth attorney are attached to the offender’s application.
“The Restoration of Civil Rights application, along with any objections, is then sent to the Governor’s Office. The governor has final say in whether the application is approved or denied.”
Legislative co-chair for the League of Women Voters of Kentucky Terry Naydan said in a recent press release, “the league has a longstanding belief that every citizen of our Commonwealth should be protected in the right to vote. The league supports HB 70 without amendments as we seek to increase citizen participation in our state’s electoral process, as most other states have done.”
Naydan added, “We believe citizens who have made a mistake should have that right reinstated once they have completed their full sentence and/or parole.”
When asked for her comments in regard to the current debate on HB 70, Kentucky Department of Corrections Commissioner LaDonna Thompson said, “Whatever the legislators decide the law should be we’ll follow it.”
Neighboring states Illinois, Indiana and Ohio restore voting rights for felons immediately upon release from prison, while Missouri, Tennessee and West Virginia restore rights upon completion of probation and parole supervision.