S 298

No. 126  Page 1 of 8
2026
No. 126. An act relating to voter protections.
                                       (S.298)
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
                        * * * Voter Protections Act * * *
Sec. 1. SHORT TITLE
   This act may be cited as the “Voter Protections Act of 2026.”
Sec. 2. 17 V.S.A. chapter 35 is amended to read:
   CHAPTER 35. OFFENSES AGAINST THE PURITY OF ELECTIONS
                                        ***
                      Subchapter 2. Penalties Upon Voters
                                        ***
§ 1972. SHOWING BALLOT; INTERFERENCE WITH VOTER
   (a) A voter who, except in cases of assistance as provided in this title,
allows his or her the voter’s ballot to be seen by another person with an
apparent intention of letting it be known how he or she the voter is about to
vote or makes a false statement to the presiding officer at an election as to his
or her the voter’s inability to mark his or her the voter’s ballot or places a
distinguishing mark on his or her the voter’s ballot or a person who interferes
with a voter when inside the guard rail or who, within the building in which the
voting is proceeding, endeavors to induce a voter to vote for a particular
candidate, shall be fined $1,000.00.
                                                                    VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126  Page 2 of 8
2026
   (b) It shall be the duty of the election officers to see that the offender is
duly prosecuted for a violation of this section.
                                       ***
§ 1975. INTERFERENCE WITH VOTERS AND ELECTION OFFICIALS
   (a) No person shall intentionally or recklessly intimidate, threaten, or
coerce, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, or coerce:
      (1) any other person for the purpose of:
          (A) obstructing the right of the other person to vote or to vote as the
other person may choose; or
          (B) causing the other person to vote for, or not to vote for, any
candidate for public office or public question at any election; or
      (2) a public servant, an election official, or a public employee for the
purpose of obstructing the administration of an election.
   (b) A person who violates subsection (a) of this section shall be imprisoned
not more than two years or fined not more than $2,000.00, or both.
§ 1976. IMPAIRMENT OF VOTING RIGHTS OF REGISTERED VOTERS
   Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to deny, impair, or otherwise
adversely affect the right to vote of any registered voter.
                                       ***
               Subchapter 4. Use of Synthetic Media in Elections
                                       ***
                  Subchapter 5. Enforcement and Investigation
                                                                     VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126  Page 3 of 8
2026
                                       ***
                          Subchapter 6. Voter Protections
§ 2045. VOTE DENIAL OR DILUTION
   (a) No voting qualification or prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or
procedure shall be imposed or applied by the State or any municipality in a
manner that results in a denial or abridgement of the right of any citizen of the
United States to vote based on race or color, membership in a language
minority group, or having a disability as defined in 9 V.S.A. § 4501.
   (b) A violation of subsection (a) of this section is established if, on the
basis of the totality of circumstances, it is shown that the political processes
leading to nomination or election in the State or a municipality are not equally
open to participation by members of a protected class in that its members have
less opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in the
political processes or to elect representatives of their choice. The extent to
which members of a protected class have been elected to office in the State or
municipality is one circumstance that may be considered.
   (c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to establish a right to have
members of a protected class elected in numbers equal to their proportion in
the population.
   (d) As used in this section:
      (1) “Municipality” means a town, city, village, school district, or other
political subdivision that holds public elections.
                                                                    VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126  Page 4 of 8
2026
      (2) “Protected class” means a group of citizens protected from
discrimination based on race or color, membership in a language minority
group, or having a disability as defined in 9 V.S.A. § 4501.
§ 2046. CIVIL ACTIONS BY ATTORNEY GENERAL
   (a) Whenever the Attorney General has reasonable cause to believe that a
violation of this subchapter has occurred and that the rights of any voter or
group of voters have been affected by such violation, the Attorney General
may initiate a civil action in the Civil Division of the Superior Court in the
county in which the alleged violation has occurred for appropriate relief.
   (b) In such civil action, the court may:
      (1) award such preventive relief, including a permanent or temporary
injunction, restraining order, or other order against the person responsible for a
violation of this title, as is necessary to ensure the full enjoyment of the rights
granted by this title;
      (2) assess a civil penalty against the respondent of not more than
$5,000.00 for a first violation and of not more than $25,000.00 for any
subsequent violation; and
      (3) issue an order requiring reimbursement to the State of Vermont for
the reasonable value of its services and its expenses in investigating and
prosecuting the action.
                                                                     VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126  Page 5 of 8
2026
                           * * * Voter Checklists * * *
Sec. 3. 17 V.S.A. § 2154 is amended to read:
§ 2154. STATEWIDE VOTER CHECKLIST
                                       ***
   (c)(1) Any person wishing to obtain a copy of all of the statewide voter
checklist must, a municipality’s portion of the statewide voter checklist, or any
other municipal voter checklist shall swear or affirm, under penalty of perjury
pursuant to 13 V.S.A. chapter 65, that the person will not:
          (A) use the checklist for commercial purposes; or
          (B) knowingly disclose the checklist to any foreign government or to
a federal agency or commission or to a person acting on behalf of a foreign
government or of such a federal entity in circumvention of the prohibited
purposes for using the checklist set forth in subdivision (b)(2) of this section.
      (2) The In the case of the statewide voter checklist, the affirmation shall
be filed with the Secretary of State. In the case of a municipality’s portion of
the statewide voter checklist or any other municipal voter checklist, the
affirmation shall be filed with the municipal clerk.
                                       ***
           * * * Disclosures for Candidates for State, Legislative, and
                               County Office * * *
Sec. 4. CANDIDATES FOR STATE, LEGISLATIVE, AND
          COUNTY OFFICE; DISCLOSURE FORM
                                                                    VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126  Page 6 of 8
2026
   Through May 30, 2027:
      (1) The State Ethics Commission shall provide informational resources
to candidates and answer candidates’ questions regarding the requirements of
17 V.S.A. § 2414, how to accurately complete and submit the candidate
disclosure form, and the penalties for failing to properly file the disclosure
form pursuant to 17 V.S.A. § 2415. The Commission shall make available on
its web page the disclosure form, preprepared responses to frequently asked
questions, and any informational resources and materials that it deems
necessary to adequately inform candidates of how to comply with the
provisions of 17 V.S.A. §§ 2414 and 2415.
      (2) The Office of the Secretary of State shall provide hyperlinks from its
web page connecting to the disclosure form and other materials and resources
required of the State Ethics Commission pursuant to subdivision (1) of this
section.
Sec. 4a. MANAGEMENT OF CANDIDATE DISCLOSURE FORMS;
           REPORT
      On or before January 30, 2027, the State Ethics Commission and the
Secretary of State’s Office shall report to the House Committee on
Government Operations and Military Affairs and the Senate Committee on
Government Operations their combined and shared recommendations on how
to best manage candidate disclosure forms required under 17 V.S.A. §§ 2414
and 2415.
                                                                    VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126  Page 7 of 8
2026
Sec. 4b. 17 V.S.A. § 2901 is amended to read:
§ 2901. DEFINITIONS
   As used in this chapter:
                                       ***
      (13) “Political committee” or “political action committee” means any
formal or informal committee of one or more individuals or a corporation,
labor organization, public interest group, or other entity, not including a
political party, that accepts contributions or and makes expenditures in any
amounts in any two-year general election cycle for the purpose of supporting
or opposing one or more candidates, influencing an election, or advocating a
position on a public question in any election, and includes a legislative
leadership political committee.
                                       ***
Sec. 5. SUSPENSION OF DISCLOSURE PENALTIES FOR
          CANDIDATES FOR STATE, LEGISLATIVE, AND COUNTY
          OFFICE
   Notwithstanding 17 V.S.A. § 2415, through May 30, 2027, the State Ethics
Commission shall not enforce against any delinquent filers, nor shall the Office
of the Secretary of State notify the State Ethics Commission of the names of
delinquent filers, nor shall the candidates for State office, county office, State
Senator, and State Representative be otherwise penalized for delinquently
filing a disclosure.
                                                                    VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126  Page 8 of 8
2026
                  * * * Safety Protections for Candidates * * *
Sec. 6. 17 V.S.A. § 2901 is amended to read:
§ 2901. DEFINITIONS
   As used in this chapter:
                                        ***
      (7) “Expenditure” means a payment, disbursement, distribution,
advance, deposit, loan, or gift of money or anything of value, paid or promised
to be paid, for the purpose of influencing an election, advocating a position on
a public question, or supporting or opposing one or more candidates.
          (A) Expenditures may include those expenses that are necessary to
allow a candidate to campaign, such as expenses for the care of a dependent
family member that are incurred as a direct result of campaign activity or for
the provision of monitoring systems, protective detail, and cybersecurity
related to a candidate’s security.
                                        ***
                              * * * Effective Date * * *
Sec. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE
   This act shall take effect on passage.
Date Governor signed bill: June 8, 2026
                                                                  VT LEG #390170 v.1