Provides for election offenses

House Bill 547 amends Louisiana Revised Statutes 18:1461.2(A) by adding a new subsection 11 that creates a specific criminal prohibition against photographing, recording, or otherwise reproducing voter registration information contained in precinct registers. The bill does not alter the existing penalty structure for election offenses but applies the current penalties already established in the statute to this newly prohibited conduct. Persons who violate this provision face criminal penalties of up to two thousand dollars or imprisonment for not more than two years, or both, for a first offense, and up to five thousand dollars or imprisonment at hard labor for not more than five years, or both, for subsequent offenses.

The practical effect of this legislation is to restrict access to and dissemination of voter registration data held in precinct registers. Anyone who knowingly, willfully, or intentionally takes photographs, makes recordings, or otherwise reproduces the voter registration information maintained in these registers commits a criminal offense. This restriction applies to all persons regardless of their official position or purpose, though the requirement of knowledge and intentional action means accidental or authorized reproduction undertaken in the course of lawful duties would not necessarily constitute a violation. Election officials, poll workers, observers, members of the public, and others who might otherwise have physical or visual access to precinct registers are now subject to criminal liability for capturing, documenting, or duplicating the voter registration information therein.

This amendment fits within the broader statutory framework of Louisiana election law found in R.S. 18:1461.2, which has long criminalized various forms of election fraud and registration offenses. The statute already prohibited the copying or reproduction of voter registration applications except for purposes of fulfilling official registration duties, and it prohibited possession or misuse of voter registration information in other contexts. This new provision extends that protective regime specifically to precinct registers, which are the official records maintained at voting locations containing voter registration information accessible during elections. The amendment represents an additional safeguard within Louisiana's existing election offense structure without modifying the underlying legal framework or the established penalty provisions.