House File 844 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE
BY COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT
(SUCCESSOR TO HF 544)
Passed House, Date Passed Senate, Date
Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays
Approved
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to inspection of absentee ballot affidavit
2 envelopes by the county commissioner of elections.
3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
4 TLSB 1851HV 82
5 sc/cf/24
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. Section 53.10, unnumbered paragraph 2, Code
1 2 2007, is amended to read as follows:
1 3 Each person who wishes to vote by absentee ballot at the
1 4 commissioner's office shall first sign an application for a
1 5 ballot including the following information: name, current
1 6 address, and the election for which the ballot is requested.
1 7 The person may report a change of address or other information
1 8 on the person's voter registration record at that time. The
1 9 registered voter shall immediately mark the ballot; enclose
1 10 the ballot in a secrecy envelope, if necessary, and seal it in
1 11 a ballot an affidavit envelope; subscribe to the affidavit on
1 12 the reverse side of the envelope; and return the absentee
1 13 ballot to the commissioner. The commissioner shall record the
1 14 numbers appearing on the application and ballot affidavit
1 15 envelope along with the name of the registered voter.
1 16 Sec. 2. Section 53.18, Code 2007, is amended to read as
1 17 follows:
1 18 53.18 MANNER OF PRESERVING BALLOT AND APPLICATION ==
1 19 REVIEW OF AFFIDAVIT == REPLACEMENT BALLOTS.
1 20 1. Upon receipt of When the return carrier envelope
1 21 containing the completed absentee ballot is received by the
1 22 commissioner, the commissioner shall at once record the number
1 23 appearing on the application and return carrier envelope and
1 24 time of receipt of such ballot and attach the elector's
1 25 application to the unopened envelope. Absentee ballots shall
1 26 be stored in a secure place until they are delivered to the
1 27 absentee and special voters precinct board.
1 28 2. If the commissioner receives the return carrier
1 29 envelope containing the completed absentee ballot by five p.m.
1 30 on the Saturday before the election for general and primary
1 31 elections and by five p.m. on the Friday before the election
1 32 for all other elections, the commissioner shall open the
1 33 envelope to review the affidavit for any deficiencies. If the
1 34 affidavit contains a deficiency that would cause the ballot to
1 35 be rejected, the commissioner shall, within twenty=four hours
2 1 of the time the envelope was received, notify the voter of
2 2 that fact and that the voter may correct the deficiency by
2 3 five p.m. on the day before the election.
2 4 3. If the affidavit envelope is open when received by the
2 5 commissioner, or has been opened and resealed, or if the
2 6 ballot is not enclosed in the affidavit envelope, the
2 7 commissioner shall immediately notify the voter of that fact
2 8 and that the voter's absentee ballot shall not be counted
2 9 unless the voter applies for a replacement ballot and returns
2 10 the replacement ballot in the time permitted under section
2 11 53.17, subsection 2. The replacement ballot application shall
2 12 be the same as is required for an application under section
2 13 53.2. If the information on the replacement ballot
2 14 application matches the information on the original
2 15 application, the voter shall be allowed to complete a
2 16 replacement absentee ballot. The same serial number that was
2 17 assigned to the records of the original absentee ballot
2 18 application shall be used on the envelope and records of the
2 19 replacement ballot. The affidavit envelope containing the
2 20 completed replacement ballot shall be marked "Replacement
2 21 ballot". The affidavit envelope containing the original
2 22 ballot shall be marked "Defective ballot" and the replacement
2 23 ballot and replacement ballot application shall be attached to
2 24 the original application and affidavit envelope containing the
2 25 original ballot and shall be stored in a secure place until
2 26 they are delivered to the absentee and special voters precinct
2 27 board, notwithstanding sections 53.26 and 53.27.
2 28 4. The state commissioner of elections shall adopt rules
2 29 for implementation of this section.
2 30 Sec. 3. Section 53.19, unnumbered paragraph 3, Code 2007,
2 31 is amended to read as follows:
2 32 However, any registered voter who has received an absentee
2 33 ballot and not returned it may surrender the absentee ballot
2 34 to the precinct officials and vote in person at the polls.
2 35 The precinct officials shall mark the uncast absentee ballot
3 1 "void" and return it to the commissioner. Any registered
3 2 voter who has been sent an absentee ballot by mail but for any
3 3 reason has not received it or who has not brought the ballot
3 4 to the polls may appear at the voter's precinct polling place
3 5 on election day and shall cast a ballot in accordance with
3 6 section 49.81. Any registered voter who has been notified by
3 7 the commissioner pursuant to section 53.18 of the need to
3 8 correct a deficiency on the affidavit or to apply for and vote
3 9 a replacement absentee ballot and who has not corrected the
3 10 deficiency or voted a replacement absentee ballot may appear
3 11 at the voter's precinct polling place on election day and
3 12 shall cast a ballot in accordance with section 49.81.
3 13 Sec. 4. Section 53.21, unnumbered paragraph 4, Code 2007,
3 14 is amended to read as follows:
3 15 The voter shall enclose one copy of the above statement in
3 16 the return carrier envelope with the ballot affidavit envelope
3 17 and retain a copy for the voter's records.
3 18 Sec. 5. Section 53.23, subsection 3, Code 2007, is amended
3 19 to read as follows:
3 20 3. a. The commissioner shall set the convening time for
3 21 the board, allowing a reasonable amount of time to complete
3 22 counting all absentee ballots by ten p.m. on election day.
3 23 The commissioner may direct the board to meet on the day
3 24 before the election solely for the purpose of reviewing the
3 25 absentee voters' affidavits appearing on the sealed ballot
3 26 affidavit envelopes. If in the commissioner's judgment this
3 27 procedure is necessary due to the number of absentee ballots
3 28 received, the members of the board may open the sealed ballot
3 29 affidavit envelopes and remove the secrecy envelope containing
3 30 the ballot, but under no circumstances shall a secrecy
3 31 envelope be opened before the board convenes on election day.
3 32 If the ballot affidavit envelopes are opened before election
3 33 day, two observers, one appointed by each of the two political
3 34 parties referred to in section 49.13, subsection 2, shall
3 35 witness the proceedings.
4 1 b. If the board finds any ballot not enclosed in a secrecy
4 2 envelope and the ballot is folded in such a way that any of
4 3 the votes cast on the ballot are visible, the two special
4 4 precinct election officials, one from each of the two
4 5 political parties referred to in section 49.13, subsection 2,
4 6 shall place the ballot in a secrecy envelope. No one shall
4 7 examine the ballot. Each of the special precinct election
4 8 officials shall sign the secrecy envelope.
4 9 Sec. 6. Section 53.24, Code 2007, is amended to read as
4 10 follows:
4 11 53.24 COUNTIES USING VOTING MACHINES.
4 12 In counties which provide the special precinct election
4 13 board with voting machines, the absentee ballot affidavit
4 14 envelopes shall be opened by the board and the ballots shall,
4 15 without being unfolded, be thoroughly intermingled, after
4 16 which they shall be unfolded and, under the personal
4 17 supervision of precinct election officials of each of the
4 18 political parties, be registered on voting machines the same
4 19 as if the absent voter had been present and voted in person,
4 20 except that a tally of the write=in votes may be kept in the
4 21 tally list rather than on the machine. When two or more
4 22 political subdivisions in the county are holding separate
4 23 elections simultaneously, the commissioner may arrange the
4 24 machine so that the absentee and provisional ballots for more
4 25 than one election may be recorded on the same machine.
4 26 Sec. 7. Section 53.25, Code 2007, is amended to read as
4 27 follows:
4 28 53.25 REJECTING BALLOT.
4 29 In case If the absentee voter's affidavit is found to be
4 30 insufficient, or that if the applicant is not a duly
4 31 registered voter in such precinct, or that the ballot envelope
4 32 is open, or has been opened and resealed, or that if the
4 33 ballot affidavit envelope contains more than one ballot of any
4 34 one kind, or that said if the voter has voted in person, such
4 35 vote shall not be accepted or counted. If the affidavit
5 1 envelope is open, or has been opened and resealed, or if the
5 2 ballot is not enclosed in the affidavit envelope, and an
5 3 affidavit envelope with the same serial number and marked
5 4 "Replacement ballot" is not attached as provided in section
5 5 53.18, the vote shall not be accepted or counted.
5 6 If the absentee ballot is rejected prior to the opening of
5 7 the ballot affidavit envelope, the voter casting the ballot
5 8 shall be notified by a precinct election official by the time
5 9 the canvass is completed of the reason for the rejection on a
5 10 form prescribed by the state commissioner of elections.
5 11 Sec. 8. Section 53.27, Code 2007, is amended to read as
5 12 follows:
5 13 53.27 REJECTION OF BALLOT == RETURN OF ENVELOPE.
5 14 If the ballot is rejected, said ballot the affidavit
5 15 envelope, with the affidavit of the voter endorsed thereon,
5 16 shall be returned with said the rejected ballot in the
5 17 envelope endorsed "Defective ballots".
5 18 Sec. 9. Section 53.32, Code 2007, is amended to read as
5 19 follows:
5 20 53.32 BALLOT OF DECEASED VOTER.
5 21 When it shall be made to appear by due proof to the
5 22 precinct election officials that any elector, who has so
5 23 marked and forwarded a ballot, has died before the ballot
5 24 affidavit envelope is opened, then the ballot of such deceased
5 25 voter shall be endorsed, "Rejected because voter is dead", and
5 26 be returned to the commissioner; but the casting of the ballot
5 27 of a deceased voter shall not invalidate the election.
5 28 Sec. 10. Section 53.38, Code 2007, is amended to read as
5 29 follows:
5 30 53.38 WHAT CONSTITUTES REGISTRATION.
5 31 Whenever a ballot is requested pursuant to section 53.39 or
5 32 53.45 on behalf of a voter in the armed forces of the United
5 33 States, the affidavit upon the ballot affidavit envelope of
5 34 such voter, if the voter is found to be an eligible elector of
5 35 the county to which the ballot is submitted, shall constitute
6 1 a sufficient registration under chapter 48A. A completed
6 2 federal postcard registration and federal absentee ballot
6 3 request form submitted by such eligible elector shall also
6 4 constitute a sufficient registration under chapter 48A. The
6 5 commissioner shall place the voter's name on the registration
6 6 record as a registered voter if it does not already appear
6 7 there.
6 8 Sec. 11. Section 53.40, unnumbered paragraph 5, Code 2007,
6 9 is amended to read as follows:
6 10 If the affidavit on the ballot affidavit envelope shows
6 11 that the affiant is not a qualified voter on the day of the
6 12 election at which the ballot is offered for voting, the
6 13 envelope shall not be opened, but the envelope and ballot
6 14 contained in the envelope shall be preserved and returned by
6 15 the precinct election officials to the commissioner, who shall
6 16 preserve them for the period of time and under the conditions
6 17 provided for in sections 50.12 through 50.15 and section
6 18 50.19.
6 19 Sec. 12. Section 53.44, unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2007,
6 20 is amended to read as follows:
6 21 The affidavit on the affidavit envelope used in connection
6 22 with voting by absentee ballot under this division by members
6 23 of the armed forces of the United States need not be notarized
6 24 or witnessed, but the affidavit on the ballot such envelope
6 25 shall be completed and signed by the voter.
6 26 EXPLANATION
6 27 This bill requires the county commissioner of elections to
6 28 open the absentee ballot return carrier envelope in order to
6 29 inspect the affidavit on the affidavit envelope containing the
6 30 ballot. If there is a deficiency in the affidavit that would
6 31 cause the ballot to be rejected, the commissioner is to
6 32 contact the voter and inform the voter of the deficiency and
6 33 that the deficiency may be corrected by the voter by 5 p.m. on
6 34 the day before the election.
6 35 The bill also requires the county commissioner of elections
7 1 to notify an absentee voter if the voter's completed absentee
7 2 ballot is returned in an affidavit envelope that is unsealed
7 3 or that has been opened and resealed or if the ballot is not
7 4 enclosed in the affidavit envelope. The commissioner shall
7 5 allow the voter to complete another absentee ballot
7 6 application and a replacement ballot by 5 p.m. on the day
7 7 before the election.
7 8 The bill provides that if the voter does not correct the
7 9 affidavit deficiency or vote a replacement ballot, as the case
7 10 may be, the voter shall be allowed to vote a provisional
7 11 ballot at the polls.
7 12 Finally, the bill changes the term "ballot envelope" to
7 13 "affidavit envelope" to conform to the use of the term
7 14 "affidavit envelope" throughout the Code.
7 15 LSB 1851HV 82
7 16 sc:nh/cf/24