PRINTER'S NO. 1350
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1270
Session of
2021
INTRODUCED BY WEBSTER, SANCHEZ, BROOKS, N. NELSON, BURNS,
KINSEY, HILL-EVANS, ISAACSON, WARREN AND NEILSON,
APRIL 23, 2021
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, APRIL 23, 2021
AN ACT
Amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), entitled
"An act concerning elections, including general, municipal,
special and primary elections, the nomination of candidates,
primary and election expenses and election contests; creating
and defining membership of county boards of elections;
imposing duties upon the Secretary of the Commonwealth,
courts, county boards of elections, county commissioners;
imposing penalties for violation of the act, and codifying,
revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto; and
repealing certain acts and parts of acts relating to
elections," in voting by qualified absentee electors, further
providing for applications for official absentee ballots;
and, in voting by qualified mail-in electors, further
providing for applications for official mail-in ballots.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Section 1302(i) of the act of June 3, 1937
(P.L.1333, No.320), known as the Pennsylvania Election Code, is
amended by adding a paragraph to read:
Section 1302. Applications for Official Absentee Ballots.--*
* *
(i) * * *
(1.1) No private organization or individual, other than the
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Secretary of the Commonwealth, may send an application for an
absentee ballot to a qualified registered elector by mail or
electronic means.
* * *
Section 2. Section 1302-D(f) and (g) of the act, amended
March 27, 2020 (P.L.41, No.12), are amended to read:
Section 1302-D. Applications for official mail-in ballots.
* * * *
(f) Form.--
(1) Application for an official mail-in ballot shall be
on physical and electronic forms prescribed by the Secretary
of the Commonwealth. The application shall state that a voter
who applies for a mail-in ballot under section 1301-D shall
not be eligible to vote at a polling place on election day
unless the elector brings the elector's mail-in ballot to the
elector's polling place, remits the ballot and the envelope
containing the declaration of the elector to the judge of
elections to be spoiled and signs a statement subject to the
penalties under 18 Pa.C.S. ยง 4904 (relating to unsworn
falsification to authorities) to the same effect.
(2) The physical application forms shall be made freely
available to the public at county board of elections,
municipal buildings and at other locations designated by the
Secretary of the Commonwealth. The electronic application
forms shall be made freely available to the public through
publicly accessible means. No written application or personal
request shall be necessary to receive or access the
application forms.
(3) No private organization or individual, other than
the Secretary of the Commonwealth, may send an application
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for an official mail-in ballot to an elector by mail or
electronic means.
(4) Copies and records of all completed physical and
electronic applications for official mail-in ballots shall be
retained by the county board of elections.
(g) Permanent mail-in voting list.--
(1) [Any] All qualified registered [elector may request
to] electors shall be placed on a permanent mail-in ballot
list file at any time during the calendar year. A mail-in
ballot application shall be mailed by the Secretary of the
Commonwealth to every person otherwise eligible to receive a
mail-in ballot application by the first Monday in February
each year or within 48 hours of receipt [of the request] and
approval of an application for voter registration, whichever
is later, so long as the person does not lose the person's
voting rights by failure to vote as otherwise required by
this act. A mail-in ballot application mailed to an elector
under this section, which is completed and timely returned by
the elector, shall serve as an application for any and all
primary, general or special elections to be held in the
remainder of that calendar year and for all special elections
to be held before the third Monday in February of the
succeeding year.
(1.1) A qualified registered elector shall be removed
from the permanent mail-in voter list file upon the request
of the qualified registered elector.
(2) The Secretary of the Commonwealth may develop an
electronic system through which all qualified electors may
apply for a mail-in ballot and request permanent mail-in
voter status under this section, provided the system is able
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to capture a digitized or electronic signature of the
applicant.
(2.1) A county board of elections shall treat an
application or request received through the electronic system
as if the application or request had been submitted on a
paper form or any other format used by the county.
[(3) The transfer of a qualified registered elector on a
permanent mail-in voting list from one county to another
county shall only be permitted upon the request of the
qualified registered elector.]
Section 3. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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