Attorney General Bonta Leads Multistate Coalition in Opposing Citizenship Documentation Requirement for Federal Voter Registration Form

Group co-founded by Stephen Miller advancing previously rejected evidence and arguments

Citizenship documentation requirement would be unlawful, create substantial and costly burdens on state and local officials 

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today led a coalition of 19 attorneys general in opposing a petition that the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) — an independent, bipartisan, four-member body established by Congress — commence rulemaking to impose a documentary proof of citizenship (DPOC) requirement on the Federal Mail-In Voter Registration Form (Federal Form). On August 21, 2025, the EAC requested comments on the petition, which was filed by the America First Legal Foundation (AFL). AFL describes itself as a nonprofit law firm and was co-founded by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller in 2021. On March 25, 2025, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order No. 14248 (Executive Order), an unconstitutional, antidemocratic, and un-American attempt to impose sweeping voting restrictions, including imposing DPOC on the Federal Form. Attorney General Bonta is currently leading a multistate coalition in suing the Trump Administration over the Executive Order, and the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has blocked the Executive Order’s mandate for DPOC from taking effect. AFL’s petition represents another attempt to impose DPOC on the Federal Form. The deadline to provide public comment on AFL’s petition is this coming Monday, October 20, 2025 at 11:59 PM EDT.

“I’ve said repeatedly that voting is the fundamental right from which all other rights flow. I believe that at my core, and it’s why I’m proud to oppose yet another effort that would add — rather than remove — barriers to voter registration,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Despite claims to the contrary, our elections are secure: Voting by non-citizens is exceedingly rare, and the penalties for non-citizen registration remain serious under both federal and state law. My fellow attorneys general and I remain fully committed to protecting voters’ fundamental right to cast a ballot and defending against the relentless attacks on the right.” 

In the letter, the attorneys general underscore that:

• AFL’s petition raises evidence and arguments substantially similar to those previously considered and rejected by the EAC on multiple occasions. Reversal of those reasoned decisions by the EAC, based on the AFL’s petition for rulemaking, would therefore result in an unlawful and arbitrary agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).
• The DPOC requirement that AFL is seeking violates federal law. The specific contents of the Federal Form are governed by the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), a federal law that limits the content of the Federal Form to address only what is “necessary” for state election officials to determine the eligibility of prospective voters. Because the inclusion of DPOC is not “necessary” — attestation of citizenship, backed by criminal and immigration penalties, along with the various tools available to states to cross-check citizenship, adequately serves this purpose — it violates the NVRA.
• The adverse effects of requiring DPOC cut strongly against the petition for rulemaking. Imposition of a DPOC requirement on the Federal Form would create substantial and costly burdens on the state and local officials who administer federal elections. Moreover, a requirement for DPOC would inevitably disenfranchise large swaths of otherwise eligible voters who lack ready access to the type of documentation contemplated in the petition.

In submitting today’s comment letter, Attorney General Bonta is joined by the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. 

A copy of the comment letter can be found here.