Substitute Bill No. 1226 Summary

• Establishes comprehensive voting rights protections prohibiting municipalities from imposing qualifications or standards that impair voting rights for protected class members (race, color, or language minority groups)

• Creates a state-wide database managed by the Secretary of the State containing election results, voter registration data, polling place locations, and demographic information to support voting rights enforcement and analysis

• Requires municipalities meeting certain criteria to be "covered jurisdictions" subject to preclearance by the Secretary of the State or Hartford Superior Court before implementing changes to election methods, districts, polling places, or voter eligibility standards

• Mandates language assistance in voting and elections for municipalities with significant limited English proficient populations (more than 2% or 4,000+ voters, based on Census data)

• Establishes private right of action allowing individuals and organizations to sue in Superior Court for Hartford district for voting rights violations, with court authority to order remedies including district-based elections, alternative voting methods, or additional voting opportunities; prevailing non-governmental plaintiffs entitled to attorneys' fees