TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Apr 3, 2025

A bill to reinstate voting rights for people convicted of certain felonies passed the Senate State and Local Government Committee on April 1, the Daily Memphian reports. SB336, sponsored by Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, would remove the requirements for persons convicted of certain felonies to have fully paid all court costs associated with their crime to be eligible to vote. It also would remove the requirement to be up to date on child support payments to be eligible to apply for a voter-registration card. Akbari said the bill would help alleviate concerns of financial hardship preventing voting-rights restoration for those who have completed all requirements of their sentence. The bill would not apply to “infamous” felony crimes, which are defined by the state. Individuals convicted of “infamous” crimes are forever ineligible for voting-rights reinstatement under current state law. The House version of the bill, sponsored by state Rep. Karen Camper, D-Memphis, was set for an April 1 vote but was postponed.