Secretary Scott Schwab Testifies Before Congress Regarding Voter Roll Maintenance

Thursday, April 16, 2026

TOPEKA – Today, Secretary of State Scott Schwab testified before the U.S. House Committee on House Administration on Kansas’ voter roll maintenance practices and the use of new data tools available.

Schwab highlighted the state’s comprehensive approach to maintaining accurate voter registration lists, emphasizing that list maintenance occurs daily. He also highlighted new state laws and enhanced federal resources to help county election officials maintain the voter rolls.

New State Laws:

The 2026 Kansas SAVE Act, takes effect July 1. The law provides the Secretary of State’s office with additional data and tools to identify voters who may have moved, died out of state, or are ineligible.

“I am proud my office proposed this bill and that the legislature successfully overrode Governor Kelly’s veto,” said Schwab. “Important data from Kansas agencies, including DMV, KDHE, KDADS, and DCF, will now be shared to help improve the accuracy of our voter rolls.”

Enhanced Federal Resources:

A key focus was the use of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system. Beginning in October 2025, the office launched a statewide voter roll review using SAVE and began processing the results, including checks related to citizenship status and Social Security data to identify deceased voters.

“Thanks to the Trump administration, SAVE is one of the most important tools states now have to maintain accurate voter rolls,” said Schwab.

Schwab also urged Congress to revisit the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), which was last updated more than 30 years ago, noting that current provisions can limit states’ ability to efficiently maintain voter rolls.

Kansas ensures any voter is removed only after ineligibility is verified, with multiple layers of review by state and county election officials to prevent errors and protect voter rights.

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