Congress weaponizes highway funds to force strict voter ID rules nationwide.
H.R. 9897 — Trump-Reagan Election Enforcement Act · Filed by Lauren Boebert (R-CO) · Introduced Jul 23, 2026 · Referred to committee
Your members of Congress
Enter a ZIP to see where your representative and both senators stood on this bill.
Looked up on this device — your ZIP is never stored on our servers.
What it does
This bill withholds 10% of federal highway funding from any state that does not enact strict voter registration laws requiring documentary proof of U.S. citizenship (such as a passport, birth certificate, or military ID) before registering to vote in federal elections. The withholding increases by 5% each year a state remains non-compliant. The bill also requires states to establish alternative verification processes, conduct ongoing citizenship checks, remove noncitizens from voter rolls, and create private rights of action and criminal penalties for election officials who register non-citizens.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is not a direct election regulation but rather a financial penalty—withholding transportation funding—to coerce state compliance with federal voter registration mandates. This is a funding-as-leverage tool, not a straightforward election law.
What the text implies
- The bill creates a federal mandate on voter registration standards while nominally preserving state authority—states can 'choose' to comply or lose highway funding, effectively removing the choice for states dependent on federal transportation dollars.
- Private right of action against election officials may expose them to personal liability and lawsuits, potentially deterring voter registration activities and creating a chilling effect on election administration.
The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.
Who it affects
The bill uses federal highway funding—a resource ordinary citizens depend on for road maintenance and infrastructure—as leverage to force states to adopt voter registration rules that may reduce voter registration access and create barriers for eligible citizens (particularly those without readily available citizenship documents, elderly voters, and naturalized citizens). The private right of action and criminal penalties also expose election officials to personal liability, potentially chilling