HF 2165 (LSB 5300YH (2) 91)

HOUSE FILE 2165

BY  GOLDING, LARSON, HAYES, THOMSON, DIEKEN, FETT, GERHOLD, WILLIAMS, GEARHART, THOMPSON, BRADLEY, and ANDREWS

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to the casting of ballots by absent voters.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 9E.6, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   b.  The program participant shall complete the ballot and return it to the state commissioner of elections, who shall review the ballot in the manner provided by sections 53.18 and 53.19 if the return envelope is received in the state commissioner’s office before the polls close by 5:00 p.m. on the day before election day or is clearly postmarked by an officially authorized postal service or bears a postal service barcode traceable to a date of entry into the federal mail system not later than the day before the election, as provided in section 53.17A. If the materials comply with the requirements of section 53.18, the materials shall be certified by the state commissioner of elections as the ballot of a program participant, and shall be forwarded to the appropriate county commissioner of elections for tabulation by the special voters precinct election board appointed pursuant to section 53.23.
    Sec. 2.  NEW SECTION.  53.1B  Definitions.
   For purposes of this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires:
   1.  “Affidavit envelope” means an envelope that includes a serial number and bears on the back an affidavit for a registered voter to mark the registered voter’s signature and voter verification number in a form prescribed by the state commissioner.
   2.  “Delivery envelope” means an envelope that bears on its face the name and address of the registered voter requesting an absentee ballot, the words “county commissioner of elections”, and the same serial number that appears on the affidavit envelope and return envelope, but does not bear on its face the address of the commissioner’s office.
   3.  “Return envelope” means an envelope that is addressed to the commissioner’s office and includes the address of the commissioner’s office in the space for a return address, bears appropriate return postage or a postal permit guaranteeing that the commissioner will pay the return postage, and includes the same serial number as the affidavit envelope and delivery envelope.
   4.  “Secrecy envelope” means an envelope, folder, or sleeve that hides all votes on a ballot when folded.
    Sec. 3.  Section 53.8, subsection 1, paragraphs a and b, Code 2026, are amended to read as follows:
   a.  Upon receipt of an application for an absentee ballot and immediately after the absentee ballots are printed, but not more than twenty days before the election, the commissioner shall mail an absentee ballot to the applicant within twenty-four hours, except as otherwise provided in subsection 3. The absentee ballot shall be sent to the registered voter by one of the following methods: enclosed in an unsealed affidavit envelope. The absentee ballot and affidavit envelope shall be enclosed in or with an unsealed return envelope. The absentee ballot, affidavit envelope, and return envelope shall be enclosed in the delivery envelope. If the ballot cannot be folded so that all the votes on the ballot will be hidden, the commissioner shall also enclose a secrecy envelope with the absentee ballot.
   (1)  The absentee ballot shall be enclosed in an unsealed envelope marked with a serial number and affidavit. The absentee ballot and affidavit envelope shall be enclosed in or with an unsealed return envelope marked postage paid which bears the same serial number as the affidavit envelope. The absentee ballot, affidavit envelope, and return envelope shall be enclosed in a third envelope to be sent to the registered voter. If the ballot cannot be folded so that all of the votes cast on the ballot will be hidden, the commissioner shall also enclose a secrecy envelope with the absentee ballot.
   (2)  The absentee ballot shall be enclosed in an unsealed return envelope marked with a serial number and affidavit and marked postage paid. The absentee ballot and return envelope shall be enclosed in a second envelope to be sent to the registered voter. If the ballot cannot be folded so that all of the votes cast on the ballot will be hidden, the commissioner shall also enclose a secrecy envelope with the absentee ballot.
   b.  The affidavit shall be marked on the appropriate envelope in a form prescribed by the state commissioner of elections registered voter requesting and receiving an absentee ballot shall subscribe to the affidavit by signing and marking the registered voter’s voter verification number on the affidavit envelope.
    Sec. 4.  Section 53.10, subsection 2, paragraph a, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   a.  Each person who wishes to vote by absentee ballot at the commissioner’s office shall first sign an application for a ballot including the following information: name, current address, voter verification number, and the election for which the ballot is requested. The person may report a change of address or other information on the person’s voter registration record at that time. Prior to furnishing a ballot, the commissioner shall verify the person’s identity as provided in section 49.78. The registered voter shall immediately mark the ballot; enclose the ballot in a secrecy envelope, if necessary, and seal it the ballot in the envelope marked with the affidavit envelope; subscribe to the affidavit on the reverse side of the envelope by signing and marking the registered voter’s voter verification number; and return the sealed affidavit envelope containing the absentee ballot to the commissioner. The commissioner shall record the numbers appearing on the application and affidavit envelope along with the name of the registered voter.
    Sec. 5.  Section 53.12, Code 2026, is amended by striking the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
   53.12  Duty of commissioner.
   The commissioner shall affix to the application the same serial number that appears on the affidavit envelope, return envelope, and delivery envelope.
    Sec. 6.  Section 53.16, Code 2026, is amended by striking the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
   53.16  Subscribing to affidavit.
   After marking the ballot, the voter shall enclose the ballot in a secrecy envelope, if necessary, and seal the ballot in the affidavit envelope; subscribe to the affidavit by signing and marking the registered voter’s voter verification number; place the sealed affidavit envelope in the return envelope; and securely seal the return envelope.
    Sec. 7.  Section 53.17, subsection 1, unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   If the commissioner mailed the ballot pursuant to section 53.8, subsection 1, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (1), the sealed envelope bearing the voter’s affidavit and containing the absentee ballot shall be enclosed in a return envelope which shall be securely sealed. If the commissioner mailed the ballot pursuant to section 53.8, subsection 1, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (2), the absentee ballot shall be enclosed in the return envelope which shall be securely sealed. The sealed return envelope shall be returned to the commissioner by one of the following methods:
    Sec. 8.  Section 53.17, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   a.  The sealed return envelope may be delivered by the registered voter, by the voter’s designee, or by the special precinct election officials designated pursuant to section 53.22, subsection 2, to the commissioner’s office no later than the time the polls are closed 5:00 p.m. on the day before election day. However, if delivered by the voter’s designee, the envelope shall be delivered within seventy-two hours of retrieving it from the voter or by 5:00 p.m. on the day before the closing of the polls on election day, whichever is earlier.
    Sec. 9.  Section 53.17, subsection 1, paragraph c, unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   The sealed return envelope may be delivered by a person not prohibited to collect and deliver a completed ballot pursuant to section 53.33 to a ballot drop box established by the commissioner no later than the time the polls are closed 5:00 p.m. on the day before election day. However, if delivered by the voter’s designee, the envelope shall be delivered within seventy-two hours of retrieving it from the voter or before the closing of the polls on election day, whichever is earlier. A commissioner is not required to establish a ballot drop box. A ballot drop box must meet all of the following requirements:
    Sec. 10.  Section 53.17, subsection 2, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  In order for the ballot to be counted, the return envelope must be received in the commissioner’s office by 5:00 p.m. on the day before the polls close on election day.
    Sec. 11.  Section 53.17, subsection 4, paragraph e, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   e.  A statement that the completed absentee ballot will be delivered to the commissioner’s office within seventy-two hours of retrieving it from the voter or before the closing of by 5:00 p.m. on the polls on day before election day, whichever is earlier.
    Sec. 12.  Section 53.17A, subsection 3, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  a.  An absentee ballot received after the polls close on election day but prior to the official canvass shall be counted if the commissioner determines that the ballot entered the federal mail system by the deadline specified in section 53.17 or 53.22. The date of entry of such an absentee ballot into the federal mail system shall only be verified as provided in paragraph “b” 5:00 p.m. on the day before election day shall not be counted.
   b.  (1)  If the postmark indicates that the absentee ballot entered the federal mail system by the deadline specified in section 53.17 or 53.22, the ballot shall be included for canvass by the absentee and special voters precinct board.
   (2)  If the postmark is illegible, missing, or dated on or after election day, the commissioner shall attempt to verify the ballot’s date of entry into the federal mail system by querying the postal service barcode in the tracking information database. If the tracking information database indicates that the absentee ballot entered the federal mail system by the deadline specified in section 53.17 or 53.22, the ballot shall be included for canvass by the absentee and special voters precinct board. The commissioner shall provide a report to the absentee and special voters precinct board regarding the information available in the tracking information database.
   (3)  If there is a discrepancy between the date indicated by the postmark and the postal service barcode, the earlier of the two shall determine the date of entry of the absentee ballot into the federal mail system.
   (4)  (a)  If neither the postmark nor the postal service barcode indicates that the absentee ballot entered the federal mail system by the deadline specified in section 53.17 or 53.22, the absentee ballot shall be sent to the absentee and special voters precinct board pursuant to subparagraph division (b) with the numeric value assigned to the postal service barcode and a full report from the tracking information database.
   (b)  Up to five absentee and special voters precinct board members from each political party for partisan elections, or any two members of the board for nonpartisan elections, shall review the postal service barcode and tracking database information report of each absentee ballot submitted pursuant to subparagraph division (a) and certify that the tracking information database report corresponds to the absentee ballot by initialing the report and the absentee ballot envelope. If the board concludes that the postal service barcode and tracking information database report verify that the absentee ballot entered the federal mail system by the deadline specified in section 53.17 or 53.22, the ballot shall be counted. Otherwise, the ballot shall not be counted.
    Sec. 13.  Section 53.18, subsections 2 and 3, Code 2026, are amended to read as follows:
   2.  If the commissioner receives the return envelope containing the completed absentee ballot by 5:00 p.m. on the Saturday before the election for general elections and by 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before the election for all other elections, the commissioner shall review the affidavit marked on the return envelope, if applicable, for completeness or shall open the return envelope to review the affidavit for completeness open the return envelope, if applicable, and review the affidavit marked on the affidavit envelope for completeness. If the affidavit lacks the signature or voter verification number of the registered voter, the commissioner shall, within twenty-four hours of the receipt of the envelope, notify the voter of the deficiency and inform the voter that the voter may vote a replacement ballot as provided in subsection 3, cast a ballot as provided in section 53.19, subsection 3, or complete the affidavit in person at the office of the commissioner not later than the time polls close on election day.
   3.  If the affidavit envelope or the return envelope marked with the affidavit contains a defect that would cause the absentee ballot to be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board, the commissioner shall immediately notify the voter of that fact and that the voter’s absentee ballot shall not be counted unless the voter requests and returns a replacement ballot in the time permitted under section 53.17, subsection 2. For the purposes of this section, a return an affidavit envelope marked with the affidavit shall be considered to contain a defect if it appears to the commissioner that the signature on the envelope has been signed by someone other than the registered voter, in comparing the signature on the envelope to the signature on record of the registered voter named on the envelope, or if the voter verification number provided does not match the voter verification number associated with the voter’s voter registration. A signature or marking made in accordance with section 39.3, subsection 17, shall not be considered a defect for purposes of this section. The voter may request a replacement ballot in person, in writing, or over the telephone. The same serial number that was assigned to the records of the original absentee ballot application shall be used on the envelope envelopes and records of the replacement ballot. The affidavit envelope marked with the affidavit and containing the completed replacement ballot shall be marked “Replacement ballot”. The affidavit envelope marked with the affidavit and containing the original ballot shall be marked “Defective” and the “Defective”. The replacement ballot shall be attached to such the affidavit envelope containing the original ballot and shall be stored in a secure place until they are delivered to the absentee and special voters precinct board, notwithstanding sections 53.26 and 53.27.
    Sec. 14.  Section 53.21, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   b.  The voter shall enclose one copy of the above statement in the return envelope along with the affidavit envelope, if the voter was mailed a separate affidavit envelope, and shall retain a copy for the voter’s records.
    Sec. 15.  Section 53.22, subsection 6, paragraph b, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   b.  Absentee ballots voted under this subsection shall be delivered to the commissioner no later than the time the polls are closed on election day. If the ballot is returned by mail, the return envelope must be received by the time the polls close, or be clearly postmarked by an officially authorized postal service or bear a postal service barcode traceable to a date of entry into the federal mail system not later than the day before the election, as provided in section 53.17A, and received by the commissioner no later than the time established for the canvass by the board of supervisors for that election 5:00 p.m. on the day before election day.
    Sec. 16.  Section 53.23, subsection 3, paragraph b, subparagraph (1), Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   (1)  The commissioner may direct the board to meet on the day before the election for the purpose of reviewing the absentee voters’ affidavits appearing on the sealed envelopes. If in the commissioner’s judgment this procedure is necessary due to the number of absentee ballots received, the members of the board may open the sealed affidavit envelopes and remove the secrecy envelope containing the ballot, but under no circumstances shall a secrecy envelope or a return an affidavit envelope marked with an affidavit be opened before the board convenes on election day, except as provided in paragraph “c”. If the affidavit envelopes are opened before election day pursuant to this paragraph “b”, the observers appointed by each political party, as defined in section 43.2, shall witness the proceedings. Each political party may appoint up to five observers under this paragraph “b”. The observers shall be appointed by the county chairperson or, if the county chairperson fails to make an appointment, by the state chairperson. However, if either or both political parties fail to appoint an observer, the commissioner may continue with the proceedings.
    Sec. 17.  Section 53.23, subsection 5, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   5.  The special precinct election board shall preserve the secrecy of all absentee and provisional ballots. After the affidavits on the affidavit envelopes have been reviewed and the qualifications of the persons casting the ballots have been determined, those that have been accepted for counting shall be opened. The ballots shall be removed from the affidavit envelopes or return envelopes marked with the affidavit, as applicable, without being unfolded or examined, and then shall be thoroughly intermingled, after which they shall be unfolded and tabulated. If secrecy folders or envelopes are used with provisional paper ballots, the ballots shall be removed from the secrecy folders envelopes after the ballots have been intermingled.
    Sec. 18.  Section 53.25, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   a.  If the absentee voter’s affidavit lacks the voter’s signature or voter verification number, if the applicant is not a duly registered voter on election day in the precinct where the absentee ballot was cast, if the affidavit envelope marked with the affidavit contains more than one ballot of any one kind, or if the voter has voted in person, such vote shall be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board. If the affidavit envelope or return envelope marked with the affidavit is open, or has been opened and resealed, or if the ballot is not enclosed in such the affidavit envelope, and an affidavit envelope or return envelope marked with the affidavit with the same serial number and marked “Replacement ballot” is not attached as provided in section 53.18, the ballot shall be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board.
    Sec. 19.  Section 53.25, subsection 2, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  If the absentee or provisional ballot is rejected prior to the opening of the affidavit envelope or return envelope marked with the affidavit, the voter casting the ballot shall be notified by a precinct election official by the time the canvass is completed of the reason for the rejection on a form prescribed by the state commissioner of elections.
    Sec. 20.  Section 53.30, subsection 2, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  At the conclusion of each meeting of the absentee and special voters precinct board, the board shall securely seal all ballots counted by them in the manner prescribed in section 50.12. The ballot envelopes, including the affidavit envelope if an affidavit envelope was provided, the return envelope, and secrecy envelope bearing the signatures of precinct election officials, as required by section 53.23, shall be preserved. All applications for absentee ballots, ballots rejected without being opened, absentee ballot logs, and any other documents pertaining to the absentee ballot process shall be preserved until such time as the documents may be destroyed pursuant to section 50.19.
    Sec. 21.  Section 53.32, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   53.32  Ballot of deceased voter.
   When it shall be made to appear by due proof to the precinct election officials that any elector, who has so marked and forwarded a ballot, has died before the envelope marked with the affidavit affidavit envelope is opened, then the ballot of such deceased voter shall be endorsed, “Rejected because voter is dead”, and be returned to the commissioner. The casting of the ballot of a deceased voter shall not invalidate the election.
    Sec. 22.  Section 53.44, subsection 2, Code 2026, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  In order for the ballot to be counted, the return envelope must be received in the commissioner’s office before the polls close on election day or be clearly postmarked by an officially authorized postal service or bear a postal service barcode traceable to a date of entry into the federal mail system not later than the day before the election, as provided in section 53.17A, and received by the commissioner not later than noon on the Monday following the election.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to the casting of ballots by absent voters.
   The bill requires an absentee ballot that is mailed to a voter to be enclosed in an unsealed affidavit envelope and with or in an unsealed return envelope, which shall then be enclosed in the delivery envelope, which shall not include a return address. If the ballot cannot be folded so that all the votes on the ballot will be hidden, the bill requires the commissioner to also send a secrecy envelope. The bill requires a registered voter to subscribe to an affidavit on an affidavit envelope by signing the envelope and writing the voter’s voter verification number.
   The bill adds a requirement that an affidavit envelope be considered to contain a defect if the voter verification number on the envelope does not match the voter verification number on file for the voter.
   The bill strikes certain requirements regarding what materials a commissioner shall include with an absentee ballot and instead requires a commissioner to put the same serial number on the affidavit, return, and delivery envelopes. The bill requires all mailed absentee ballots to include an affidavit envelope. The bill also requires the absentee and special voters precinct board to reject an absentee ballot if the affidavit envelope does not include the voter’s voter verification number.
   The bill changes the timeline for the return of absentee ballots. The bill requires absentee ballots to be delivered to the office of the county commissioner of elections by 5:00 p.m. on the day before election day. Under current law, absentee ballots must be delivered to the office of the county commissioner of elections not later than the time polls close on election day. This change does not apply to absentee ballots of confined persons delivered other than by mail or to absentee ballots of members of the U.S. armed forces.