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HB691 • 2026

VOTING/REGISTRATION: Provides for the verification of citizenship of registered voters (EN NO IMPACT See Note)

VOTING/REGISTRATION: Provides for the verification of citizenship of registered voters (EN NO IMPACT See Note)

Elections
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Beau Beaullieu
Last action
2026-05-15
Official status
Signed by the Governor - Act 6
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details about the consequences for voters identified as non-citizens.

Voter Citizenship Verification

This act requires the Secretary of State to use a federal program called SAVE to verify the citizenship status of registered voters and report findings.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires the Secretary of State to annually submit voter registration data to the SAVE program for verification of citizenship.
  • Directs the division of election integrity to investigate potential non-citizen registrants identified by SAVE.
  • Instructs the secretary to transmit verified non-citizens' information to parish registrars who can challenge their registrations.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Registered voters in Louisiana
  • The Secretary of State and their staff
  • Election integrity divisions and prosecutors

Terms To Know

SAVE
Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, a federal program that checks if people are U.S. citizens.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law only applies if the SAVE program is free or funded by the state legislature.
  • It does not specify what happens to voters who are found to be non-citizens after investigation.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

Filed

Plain English: HFAHB691 2549 2915 FOR OFFICE USE ONLY HOUSE FLOOR AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Representative Wilford Carter to Engrossed House Bill No.

  • HFAHB691 2549 2915 FOR OFFICE USE ONLY HOUSE FLOOR AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Representative Wilford Carter to Engrossed House Bill No.
  • 691 by Representative Beaullieu 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 1, line 3, after "submission of" and before "state" insert "certain" 3 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 4 On page 1, line 4, after "program;" and before "to provide" insert "to provide for notice and 5 an opportunity to correct a misidentification;" 6 AMENDMENT NO.
Adopted

Plain English: HCAHB691 3645 2429 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs to Original House Bill No.

  • HCAHB691 3645 2429 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs to Original House Bill No.
  • 691 by Representative Beaullieu 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 2, line 3, change "B." to "C." 3 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 4 On page 2, line 9, change "C." to "D." 5 AMENDMENT NO.
Draft

Plain English: HCAHB691 3645 2358 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs to Original House Bill No.

  • HCAHB691 3645 2358 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs to Original House Bill No.
  • 691 by Representative Beaullieu 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 2, line 3, change "B." to "C." 3 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 4 On page 2, line 9, change "C." to "D." 5 AMENDMENT NO.
Filed

Plain English: 2026 Regular Session Sequence: 235 HBS FINAL PASSAGE HB 691 BY BEAULLIEU AMENDMENT # 2915 BY CARTER, W.

  • 2026 Regular Session Sequence: 235 HBS FINAL PASSAGE HB 691 BY BEAULLIEU AMENDMENT # 2915 BY CARTER, W.
  • MOTION TO ADOPT Date: 3/31/2026 Time: 4:00:48 PM ROLL CALL The roll was called with the following result: YEAS Adams Bayham Brass Bryant Carpenter Carter, R.
  • Carter, W.
  • Fisher Fontenot Freeman Green Henry, D.
Draft

Plain English: SCAHB691 4869 2499 SENATE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs to Engrossed House Bill No.

  • SCAHB691 4869 2499 SENATE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs to Engrossed House Bill No.
  • 691 by Representative Beaullieu 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 1, line 2, change "49.2" to "49.1 and 49.2" 3 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 4 On page 1, line 11, change "49.2 is" to "49.1 and 49.2 are" 5 AMENDMENT NO.

Bill History

  1. 2026-05-15 H

    Effective date: 08/01/2026.

  2. 2026-05-15 H

    Signed by the Governor. Becomes Act No. 6.

  3. 2026-05-13 H

    Sent to the Governor for executive approval.

  4. 2026-05-13 S

    Signed by the President of the Senate.

  5. 2026-05-12 H

    Enrolled and signed by the Speaker of the House.

  6. 2026-05-11 H

    Received from the Senate without amendments.

  7. 2026-05-11 S

    Read by title, passed by a vote of 28 yeas and 8 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

  8. 2026-04-28 S

    Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments. Read by title and passed to third reading and final passage.

  9. 2026-04-27 S

    Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.

  10. 2026-04-22 S

    Reported favorably.

  11. 2026-04-01 S

    Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs.

  12. 2026-03-31 S

    Received in the Senate. Rules suspended. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.

  13. 2026-03-31 H

    Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 74, nays 29. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.

  14. 2026-03-30 H

    Scheduled for floor debate on 03/31/2026.

  15. 2026-03-26 H

    Read by title, amended, ordered engrossed, passed to 3rd reading.

  16. 2026-03-25 H

    Reported with amendments (9-7).

  17. 2026-03-09 H

    Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on House and Governmental Affairs.

  18. 2026-02-27 H

    First appeared in the Interim Calendar on 2/27/2026.

  19. 2026-02-27 H

    Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on House and Governmental Affairs.

  20. 2026-02-27 H

    Prefiled.

Official Summary Text

VOTING/REGISTRATION: Provides for the verification of citizenship of registered voters (EN NO IMPACT See Note)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
ENROLLED
ACT No. 62026 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 691
BY REPRESENTATIVE BEAULLIEU AND SENATORS CATHEY, HODGES,
KLEINPETER, MIGUEZ, MORRIS, TALBOT, AND WOMACK
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 18:49.2, relative to the verification of citizenship of registered voters; to
3 provide for submission of state voter information to the Systematic Alien
4 Verification for Entitlements program; to provide for investigation by the division
5 of election integrity into potential noncitizens who are registered to vote; to provide
6 for submitting investigatory findings to the appropriate prosecutorial agency; to
7 provide for the challenge to registration by the registrar of voters; to provide for the
8 duties of the secretary of state; to provide for reporting requirements; to provide
9 relative to appropriations; and to provide for related matters.
10 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
11 Section 1. R.S. 18:49.2 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
12 §49.2. Systematic alien verification for entitlements program review
13 A. For purposes of this Section, "SAVE" means the Systematic Alien
14 Verification for Entitlements program administered by the U.S. Department of
15 Homeland Security.
16 B.(1) The secretary shall annually submit to SAVE a check against every
17 registrant in the state voter registration computer system for which the requisite state
18 data exists. The data shall be submitted prior to one hundred eighty days before a
19 regularly scheduled federal general election.
20 (2) The secretary shall submit the name of every potential noncitizen
21 registrant to the division of election integrity for investigation.
22 C. Upon receipt of the name of a potential noncitizen registrant from the
23 secretary, the division of election integrity shall conduct an investigation. If the
Page 1 of 2
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.
HB NO. 691 ENROLLED
1 division determines that there may be a noncitizen registrant in the state voter
2 registration computer system, the division shall submit the findings of the
3 investigation to the appropriate prosecutorial agency for further investigation or
4 prosecution.
5 D. The secretary shall transmit any noncitizen matches verified by the
6 division of election integrity to the appropriate parish registrar of voters to challenge
7 the individual's registration in accordance with R.S. 18:193.
8 E. The secretary shall include the following information in the annual report
9 to the legislature provided for in R.S. 18:18(A)(4):
10 (1) The number of records checked against SAVE data during the prior year.
11 (2) The number of registrants challenged as potential noncitizens.
12 (3) The number of registrants whose voter registration was cancelled as a
13 noncitizen.
14 (4) Any recommendations for statutory or administrative improvements to
15 ensure voter registration list accuracy.
16 F. All SAVE data and related voter information shall be processed in a
17 secure environment consistent with state and federal data protection standards and
18 in accordance with R.S. 18:154 and the Public Records Law.
19 G. This Section shall apply only if SAVE remains available without cost to
20 the state or subject to appropriation of funds by the legislature for this purpose.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.