PRINTER'S NO. 1246
No. 1098 Session of 1999
INTRODUCED BY ROBERTS, HORSEY, PESCI, STEELMAN AND CIVERA,
MARCH 25, 1999
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, MARCH 25, 1999
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," providing for the mailing and handling of
12 absentee ballot applications and absentee ballots; imposing a
13 penalty for solicitation of registrations; further providing
14 for violations of provisions relating to absentee electors
15 ballots; and providing for mandatory minimum fines.
16 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
17 hereby enacts as follows:
18 Section 1. The act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), known
19 as the Pennsylvania Election Code, is amended by adding sections
20 to read:
21 Section 1305.2. Mailing and Handling of Absentee Ballot
22 Applications and Absentee Ballots.--Absentee ballot applications
23 shall be mailed or delivered to the county board of elections by
24 the qualified elector. The absentee ballot shall be mailed or
1 delivered to the qualified elector by an employe of the county
2 board of elections. An absentee ballot application or an
3 absentee ballot shall not be handled in any manner by an
4 official, employe or volunteer of a political party or of a
5 candidate for office.
6 Section 1802.2. Solicitation of Registrations.--Any person
7 who gives, solicits or accepts any payment or financial
8 incentive to obtain a voter registration shall be guilty of a
9 misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be sentenced to pay a
10 mandatory minimum fine of five hundred dollars ($500), or to
11 undergo an imprisonment of not less than one month nor more than
12 one year, or both, in the discretion of the court.
13 Section 2. Section 1853 of the act, amended February 13,
14 1998 (P.L.72, No.18), is amended to read:
15 Section 1853. Violations of Provisions Relating to Absentee
16 Electors Ballots.--(a) If any person shall sign an application
17 for absentee ballot or declaration of elector on the forms
18 prescribed knowing any matter declared therein to be false, or
19 shall vote any ballot other than one properly issued to him, or
20 vote or attempt to vote more than once in any election for which
21 an absentee ballot shall have been issued to him, or shall
22 violate any other provisions of Article XIII of this act, he
23 shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree, and, upon
24 conviction, shall be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding ten
25 thousand dollars ($10,000), or be imprisoned for a term not
26 exceeding five (5) years, or both, at the discretion of the
27 court.
28 (b) If any chief clerk or member of a board of elections,
29 member of a return board or member of a board of registration
30 commissioners, shall neglect or refuse to perform any of the
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1 duties prescribed by Article XIII of this act, or shall reveal
2 or divulge any of the details of any ballot cast in accordance
3 with the provisions of Article XIII of this act, or shall count
4 an absentee ballot knowing the same to be contrary to Article
5 XIII, or shall reject an absentee ballot without reason to
6 believe that the same is contrary to Article XIII, or shall
7 permit an elector to cast his ballot at a polling place knowing
8 that there has been issued to the elector an absentee ballot, he
9 shall be guilty of a felony of the third degree, and, upon
10 conviction, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding fifteen
11 thousand dollars ($15,000), or be imprisoned for a term not
12 exceeding seven (7) years, or both, at the discretion of the
13 court.
14 (c) If any person shall intentionally give false or
15 misleading information to an elector regarding the provisions of
16 Article XIII of this act or shall provide assistance in the
17 completion of an absentee ballot for a person known to be
18 unqualified under section 1301 of this act, the person shall be
19 guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be punished
20 by a mandatory minimum fine of five hundred dollars ($500) for
21 each infraction, or to be imprisoned for a term not exceeding
22 one year, or both, in the discretion of the court.
23 (d) If any person intentionally gives, solicits or accepts
24 any payment or other financial incentive in exchange for the
25 delivery, procurement or acceptance of absentee ballot
26 applications, the person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and,
27 upon conviction, shall be punished by a mandatory minimum fine
28 of five hundred dollars ($500) for each infraction, or to be
29 imprisoned for a term of not less than one month nor more than
30 one year, or both, in the discretion of the court.
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1 (e) If any person improperly obtains, solicits or delivers
2 an absentee ballot to another in violation of Article XIII of
3 this act, the person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the
4 first degree, and, upon conviction, shall be sentenced to pay a
5 mandatory minimum fine of one thousand dollars ($1000) for each
6 infraction.
7 (f) If any person shall encourage, direct or assist another
8 person to file an application for an absentee ballot or to vote
9 by absentee ballot knowing that the person does not qualify for
10 an absentee ballot under the provisions of Article XIII of this
11 act, or if any person shall violate section 1305.2 of this act,
12 the person shall be guilty of a felony of the third degree.
13 Section 3. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
14 Section 1854. Mandatory Minimum Fines.--There shall be no
15 authority in any court to impose on an offender being sentenced
16 under this article a lesser fine than the fine provided in this
17 article as a mandatory minimum fine. Nothing in this article
18 shall prevent the sentencing court from imposing a sentence
19 greater than the sentence provided in this article.
20 Section 4. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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