About Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act
Section 5 Guidelines
The Section 5 Administrative Guidelines Provide Detailed Information About Preclearance
Procedures and Standards for Review
The Attorney General's Guidelines for the Administration of Section 5 are published
at 28 C.F.R. Part 51. These Administrative Guidelines identify those jurisdictions covered
under Section 4, provide examples of the types of voting-related practices and procedures
that require Section 5 review, describe the steps in making Section 5 administrative
submissions, and explain the process by which submissions are reviewed and the factors
considered in making Section 5 determinations. In addition, jurisdictions covered under
Section 5 because of the presence of language minority groups will find helpful the Voting
Section's minority language guidelines, known formally as "Implementation of the
Provisions of the Voting Rights Act Regarding Language Minority Groups," and codified
as Part 55 of Title 28 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The Voting Section reprints
copies of the Voting Rights Act, the Section 5 Guidelines, and the Minority Language
Guidelines in booklet form, and will mail copies upon request to covered jurisdictions
and interested persons.
New procedures for the delivery of mail and overnight express
parcels to the Civil Rights Division have been instituted. The
Voting Section's postal address (P.O. Box 66128, Washington DC
20035) is no longer in effect.
The Department has established a single address for the receipt
of all United States Postal Service mail including certified mail and express mail.
All mail to the Voting Section must have the full address listed below:
Chief, Voting Section
Civil Rights Division
Room 7254 - NWB
Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20530
Deliveries by overnight express services such as Airborne, DHL, Federal Express or UPS
should be addressed to:
Chief, Voting Section
Civil Rights Division
Room 7254 - NWB
Department of Justice
1800 G St., N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
If you are sending a Section 5 submission, please make sure that
the front of the envelope identifies it as a submission under
Section 5 and your return address is clearly indicated.
Section 5 Administrative Guidelines Online
The Section 5 Administrative Guidelines are organized into subparts as follows:
A Detailed Index to the Section 5 Administrative
Guidelines is also available.
Copies of the full set of Guidelines are posted, but please note the file sizes if you
have a slower Internet connection:
Go to the Civil Rights Division Home Page
Go to the Department of Justice Home Page
Last Revised - April 20, 2006
