<P> The Act also contains "special provisions" that apply to only certain jurisdictions . A core special provision is the Section 5 preclearance requirement, which prohibits certain jurisdictions from implementing any change affecting voting without receiving preapproval from the U.S. Attorney General or the U.S. District Court for D.C. that the change does not discriminate against protected minorities . Another special provision requires jurisdictions containing significant language minority populations to provide bilingual ballots and other election materials . </P> <P> Section 5 and most other special provisions apply to jurisdictions encompassed by the "coverage formula" prescribed in Section 4 (b). The coverage formula was originally designed to encompass jurisdictions that engaged in egregious voting discrimination in 1965, and Congress updated the formula in 1970 and 1975 . In Shelby County v. Holder (2013), the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the coverage formula as unconstitutional, reasoning that it was no longer responsive to current conditions . The Court did not strike down Section 5, but without a coverage formula, Section 5 is unenforceable . </P> <P> As initially ratified, the United States Constitution granted each state complete discretion to determine voter qualifications for its residents . After the Civil War, the three Reconstruction Amendments were ratified and limited this discretion . The Thirteenth Amendment (1865) prohibits slavery; the Fourteenth Amendment (1868) grants citizenship to anyone "born or naturalized in the United States" and guarantees every person due process and equal protection rights; and the Fifteenth Amendment (1870) provides that "(t) he right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude ." These Amendments also empower Congress to enforce their provisions through "appropriate legislation". </P> <P> To enforce the Reconstruction Amendments, Congress passed the Enforcement Acts in the 1870s . The Acts criminalized the obstruction of a citizen's voting rights and provided for federal supervision of the electoral process, including voter registration . However, in 1875 the Supreme Court struck down parts of the legislation as unconstitutional in United States v. Cruikshank and United States v. Reese . After the Reconstruction Era ended in 1877, enforcement of these laws became erratic, and in 1894, Congress repealed most of their provisions . </P>

Who has the authority to set voting requirements