About Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act
Making Section 5 Submissions
A proper submission under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act may be done in writing or
electronically. The proper format for submissions as well as all other correspondence
concerning the Attorney General's review of changes affecting voting is set forth at 28 C.F.R.
Part 51.
An electronic submission under Section 5 can be made via the internet from 8:00am
Monday to 10:00pm Friday (Eastern Standard Time) excluding federal holidays.
To file a submission electronically,
click here.
SENDING MAIL TO THE VOTING SECTION
Please note, the Voting Section's postal address
(P.O. Box 66128, Washington DC 20035) is no longer in effect.
The Department has established a single address for the receipt
of all United States Postal Service mail including certified mail and express mail.
All mail to the Voting Section must have the full address listed below:
Chief, Voting Section
Civil Rights Division
Room 7254 - NWB
Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20530
Deliveries by overnight express services such as Airborne, DHL, Federal Express, or UPS
should be addressed to:
Chief, Voting Section
Civil Rights Division
Room 7254 - NWB
Department of Justice
1800 G St., N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
If you are sending a Section 5 submission, please make sure that
the front of the envelope identifies it as a submission under
Section 5 and that your return address is clearly indicated.
How the Attorney General Reviews Section 5 Submissions
The Attorney General's authority under Section 5 has been delegated to the Assistant
Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. All decisions to interpose an objection or to
withdraw an objection previously interposed, and all substantive decisions on state wide legislative
redistricting plans are made by the Assistant Attorney General. For
other types of submissions the Assistant Attorney General's authority has been delegated to the
Chief of the Voting Section. Approximately half of the Voting Section's resources are devoted
to the analysis of Section 5 submissions. Each submission is analyzed by a civil rights
analyst or attorney, and that work is reviewed by at least one supervisory attorney.
Upon receipt of a submission, one or more staff members in the Voting Section are assigned to
analyze the proposed change. The nature and extent of that analysis will vary, depending upon
the change itself and the surrounding circumstances. It often involves telephone interviews
with persons representing or associated with the submitting authority, and with private citizens,
particularly members of racial or language minority groups. Communications from the public
regarding pending submissions are encouraged, and all information or comments received are
considered. As part of that analysis, submissions in our files may also be examined, as well
as information available from the United States Census Bureau, the Internet, or other sources.
While every effort is made to complete the analysis so that a determination is made before
the end of the 60-day review period, the factual and legal issues presented by a particular
submission may be such that the information intially provided by the submitting authority
considered together with the information obtained during our investigation is still insufficient
to enable the Attorney General to make a determination that the proposed change does not have the
purpose and will not have the effect of discriminating on account of race, color, or membership
in a language minority group. While Section 5 authorizes the Attorney General to object to the
submitted change on that basis, it is the Voting Section's general practice
in such circumstances to request additional information, in writing, from the jurisdiction.
Upon receipt of a complete response to the request for additional information,
a new 60-day period begins for the Attorney General to make the requisite determination.
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The Attorney General's Administrative Guidelines Explain the Process of Making Section 5
Submissions
The Section 5 administrative review process is designed to be an expeditious, cost-effective
alternative to the Section 5 declaratory judgment process. Its success on this point is
incontrovertible.
Central to the effective functioning of the administrative review option are the
"Section 5 Guidelines" originally adopted by the Department of Justice in 1971 and
modified in light of experience and legal developments on several occasions since then. Known
formally as "Procedures for the Administration of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965,
as Amended," they are codified as Part 51 of Title 28 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
The Supreme Court has noted on several occasions that the Guidelines are entitled to considerable
deference by the courts because the Department of Justice played a central role in the drafting of
the Voting Rights Act and is primarily responsible for its enforcement.
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Particular Issues About Making Section 5 Submissions
The Section 5 Guidelines are written in easy to understand language and generally avoid
"legalese." It is, therefore, unnecessary to include here a complete discussion of
their contents. However, some specific issues discussed in the Guidelines should also be
mentioned here.
First, a voting change must be submitted in written form to begin the review process.
While no specific format is required, the submission ordinarily should
include the required contents set forth in 28 C.F.R. 51.27 and the supplemental contents, as appropriate.
Providing such information in the original submission usually will reduce significantly the need
for Voting Section staff to contact the submitting official by telephone, and thus increase the
likelihood of an early determination on the submission.
Second, a voting change must be procedurally appropriate for review on the merits. The Section
5 Guidelines discuss the types of circumstances that prevent the Attorney General from reviewing
a submitted change on the merits.
- The Attorney General will respond in writing rejecting a submission that fails to provide
documents or a narrative "adequate to disclose to the Attorney General the difference between
the prior and proposed situation with respect to voting." 28 C.F.R. 51.26(d), 51.27(a)-(c) and 51.35.
- The Attorney General will make no determination regarding a voting change which has not been
finally adopted. The Attorney General may nevertheless make a substantive determination with
regard to a change for which approval by referendum or by a state or federal court or a federal
agency is required if the change is not subject to alteration in the final approving action and
all other action necessary for approval has been taken. 28 C.F.R. 51.22.
- The Attorney General will make no determination regarding a voting change that is directly
related to another known covered voting change which has neither been precleared nor submitted
for preclearance. For example, the Attorney General will not review a districting plan if it is
prompted by an unsubmitted change in the method of electing the jurisdiction's governing body,
change in the number of elected officials, or annexations. Similarly, no determination will be
made regarding an annexation if other unprecleared boundary changes in that jurisdiction have
occurred.
In addition, new redistricting plans themselves often require that other voting changes
be made, such as changes affecting voting precincts, polling places, and absentee voting locations.
If these changes have been finalized, the jurisdiction should submit them for Section 5 review
with its redistricting submission. The related voting change need not have been adopted by the
jurisdiction making the original submission. For example, state legislation authorizing political
subdivisions to adopt voting changes ("enabling legislation") requires review under
Section 5. A political subdivision's implementation of the enabled change will not be reviewed
under Section 5 if the enabling legislation has not been submitted for review or already reviewed.
Clearly, it is in the covered jurisdiction's interest to submit a voting change as soon as
possible after it has been finally adopted, even if its implementation
may be many months away (for example, in the next general election). To the extent procedural
or substantive issues prevent a determination on the merits occurring within the initial 60-day
review period, a prompt submission may allow a sufficient opportunity to resolve such issues in
time for the practice (or a revised one) to be implemented as originally anticipated.
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