SENATE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 3319 PRINTER'S NO. 4093
No. 2428 Session of 1990
INTRODUCED BY CHADWICK, RYBAK, NAILOR, FARGO, MRKONIC, BUNT,
CAWLEY, GODSHALL, ARGALL, J. L. WRIGHT, COHEN, NOYE, GEIST,
BARLEY, HESS, SAURMAN, ROBINSON, KONDRICH, LEVDANSKY, MELIO,
CARLSON, HERMAN, DEMPSEY, FARMER, ANGSTADT, NAHILL, LANGTRY,
B. SMITH, SERAFINI, PRESSMANN, DeLUCA, SEMMEL, VEON, ADOLPH,
LASHINGER, BELARDI, KASUNIC, GIGLIOTTI, PETRARCA, LEH, TELEK,
MAIALE, MERRY, J. H. CLARK, McHALE, MARSICO, RITTER, CESSAR
AND THOMAS, APRIL 3, 1990
SENATOR RHOADES, STATE GOVERNMENT, IN SENATE, AS AMENDED,
SEPTEMBER 25, 1990
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), entitled
2 "An act concerning elections, including general, municipal,
3 special and primary elections, the nomination of candidates,
4 primary and election expenses and election contests; creating
5 and defining membership of county boards of elections;
6 imposing duties upon the Secretary of the Commonwealth,
7 courts, county boards of elections, county commissioners;
8 imposing penalties for violation of the act, and codifying,
9 revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto; and
10 repealing certain acts and parts of acts relating to
11 elections," further providing for absentee ballots for
12 permanently disabled electors.
13 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
14 hereby enacts as follows:
15 Section 1. Section 1302(e.1) of the act of June 3, 1937
16 (P.L.1333, No.320), known as the Pennsylvania Election Code,
17 amended May 5, 1986 (P.L.150, No.47), is amended to read:
18 Section 1302. Applications for Official Absentee Ballots.--*
19 * *
1 (e.1) Any qualified registered elector, including any
2 qualified bedridden or hospitalized veteran, who is unable
3 because of illness or physical disability to attend his polling
4 place on the day of any primary or election or operate a voting
5 machine and state distinctly and audibly that he is unable to do
6 so as required by section 1218 of this act [may] shall, with the
7 certification by his attending physician that he is permanently
8 disabled, and physically unable to attend the polls or operate a
9 voting machine and make the distinct and audible statement
10 required by section 1218 appended to the application
11 hereinbefore required, be placed on a permanently disabled
12 absentee ballot list file. An absentee ballot [application] <--
13 shall be mailed to every such person for each primary or
14 election so long as he does not lose his voting rights by
15 failure to vote as otherwise required by this act. Such person
16 shall not be required to file a physician's certificate of
17 disability with each application as required in subsection (e)
18 of this section but such person must submit a written statement
19 asserting continuing disability every four years in order to
20 maintain his eligibility to vote under the provisions of this
21 subsection. Should any such person lose his disability he shall
22 inform the county board of elections of the county of his
23 residence. NO PERSON SHALL BE PLACED ON A PERMANENTLY DISABLED <--
24 ABSENTEE BALLOT LIST FILE WITHOUT EXPRESS VOLUNTARY
25 AUTHORIZATION BY THE PERSON PERMITTING THE COUNTY BOARD OF
26 ELECTIONS TO DO SO. FURTHER, PERSONS PLACED ON A PERMANENTLY
27 DISABLED ABSENTEE BALLOT LIST FILE MAY REQUIRE THE COUNTY BOARD
28 OF ELECTIONS TO REMOVE THEIR NAMES FROM SUCH LIST AT ANY TIME
29 WITHOUT CONDITION BY SUBMITTING A WRITTEN STATEMENT TO THE
30 COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS REQUESTING SUCH ACTION. NO PERSON
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1 SHALL BE URGED OR COERCED TO BEING PLACED ON A PERMANENTLY
2 DISABLED ABSENTEE BALLOT LIST FILE SOLELY BASED ON THE
3 ACCESSIBILITY, INACCESSIBILITY OR PHYSICAL CONDITION OF POLLING
4 PLACES IN THE COUNTY IN WHICH THE PERSON IS REGISTERED TO VOTE.
5 * * *
6 Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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