House File 380 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 380 BY MASCHER A BILL FOR An Act relating to the scanning and usage of intelligent mail 1 barcodes on absentee ballots. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 2178YH (3) 88 ss/jh

H.F. 380 Section 1. Section 53.17, subsection 2, Code 2019, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 2. In order for the ballot to be counted, the return 3 envelope must be received in the commissioner’s office before 4 the polls close on election day or be clearly postmarked by an 5 officially authorized postal service or bear an intelligent 6 mail barcode traceable to a date of entry into the federal mail 7 system not later than the day before the election and received 8 by the commissioner not later than noon on the Monday following 9 the election. The commissioner shall cause to be placed on 10 every ballot an intelligent mail barcode. However, if the 11 ballot contains a postmark and an intelligent mail barcode, the 12 commissioner shall cause the intelligent mail barcode to be 13 scanned only if the postmark does not indicate that the ballot 14 was mailed by the deadline in this section. 15 Sec. 2. Section 53.22, subsection 6, paragraph b, Code 2019, 16 is amended to read as follows: 17 b. Absentee ballots voted under this subsection shall be 18 delivered to the commissioner no later than the time the polls 19 are closed on election day. If the ballot is returned by mail 20 the return envelope must be received by the time the polls 21 close, or be clearly postmarked by an officially authorized 22 postal service or bear an intelligent mail barcode traceable 23 to a date of entry into the federal mail system not later than 24 the day before the election and received by the commissioner no 25 later than the time established for the canvass by the board 26 of supervisors for that election. The commissioner shall 27 cause to be scanned the intelligent mail barcode on every 28 ballot, provided that if the ballot contains a postmark and 29 an intelligent mail barcode, the commissioner shall cause the 30 intelligent mail barcode to be scanned only if the postmark 31 does not indicate that the ballot was mailed by the deadline in 32 this section. 33 Sec. 3. IMPLEMENTATION OF ACT. Section 25B.2, subsection 34 3, shall not apply to this Act. 35 -1- LSB 2178YH (3) 88 ss/jh 1/ 2

H.F. 380 EXPLANATION 1 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 2 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 3 This bill requires the county commissioner of elections 4 to place an intelligent mail barcode on every ballot return 5 envelope and to scan the intelligent mail barcode on any 6 absentee ballot received by the commissioner that contains such 7 a barcode to determine when the ballot entered the federal 8 mail system. However, if the ballot contains a postmark and 9 an intelligent mail barcode, the commissioner shall cause the 10 intelligent mail barcode to be scanned only if the postmark 11 does not indicate that the ballot was mailed by the applicable 12 deadline. 13 The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code 14 section 25B.3. The bill makes inapplicable Code section 25B.2, 15 subsection 3, which would relieve a political subdivision from 16 complying with a state mandate if funding for the cost of 17 the state mandate is not provided or specified. Therefore, 18 political subdivisions are required to comply with any state 19 mandate included in the bill. 20 -2- LSB 2178YH (3) 88 ss/jh 2/ 2