Verifiable, Orderly, and Timely Election Results Act

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 301 To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to provide Federal standards for mail-in ballots and reporting of election results with respect to elec- tions for Federal office. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES FEBRUARY 8, 2021 Mr. SCOTT of Florida introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration A BILL To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to provide Federal standards for mail-in ballots and reporting of election results with respect to elections for Federal of- fice. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Verifiable, Orderly, 4 and Timely Election Results Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR MAIL-IN BALLOTS. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 7 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.) is amended— 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 2 •S 301 IS (1) by redesignating sections 304 and 305 as 1 sections 305 and 306, respectively; and 2 (2) by inserting after section 303 the following 3 new section: 4 ‘‘SEC. 304. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR MAIL-IN BALLOTS. 5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—When otherwise permitted by 6 State law, any vote-by-mail system used in an election for 7 Federal office must be designed and implemented to en- 8 sure a secure, uniform, and timely system to cast a mail- 9 in ballot in accordance with this section. 10 ‘‘(b) REQUESTS.— 11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Mail-in ballots may only be 12 provided upon request submitted by the voter in ac- 13 cordance with this subsection. Requests for a mail- 14 in ballot under a vote-by-mail system described in 15 subsection (a) may be submitted electronically or by 16 postal mail using a standardized form approved for 17 such requests by the chief State election official. 18 ‘‘(2) REQUEST.—The form for such requests 19 must enable an election official who receives the re- 20 quest to confirm— 21 ‘‘(A) the identity of the individual submit- 22 ting the request; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 3 •S 301 IS ‘‘(B) that the individual is validly reg- 1 istered and eligible to vote in the jurisdiction 2 where the request is submitted; and 3 ‘‘(C) that the individual continues to reside 4 at the physical address where the individual is 5 registered to vote (if different than the mailing 6 address where the ballot is requested to be 7 sent). 8 ‘‘(3) DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION.—Such re- 9 quest must be submitted by an individual and re- 10 ceived by the office of the State or local election su- 11 pervisor not later than 21 days before the date of 12 the election for Federal office. 13 ‘‘(4) METHODS TO CONFIRM IDENTITY, REG- 14 ISTRATION, AND ELIGIBILITY OF REQUESTER.— 15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon receipt of a re- 16 quest for a mail-in ballot, an election official 17 shall confirm the identity, voter registration, 18 and eligibility to vote of an individual request- 19 ing a mail-in ballot, by comparing the identi- 20 fying information of the individual requester 21 with, at a minimum, the following records and 22 databases: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 4 •S 301 IS ‘‘(i) The voter registration record 1 maintained by the jurisdiction where the 2 request is submitted. 3 ‘‘(ii) The Death Master File (as such 4 term is defined in section 203(d) of the Bi- 5 partisan Budget Act of 2013 (42 U.S.C. 6 1306c(d))). 7 ‘‘(iii) The E-Verify Program described 8 in section 403(a) of the Illegal Immigra- 9 tion Reform and Immigrant Responsibility 10 Act of 1996. 11 ‘‘(B) PROMPT RESPONSE TO REQUEST.— 12 Within 3 days of receiving a request for a mail- 13 in ballot from an individual, an election official 14 shall take one of the following actions with re- 15 spect to such request: 16 ‘‘(i) If the election official is unable to 17 confirm the identity, voter registration, or 18 eligibility to vote of the individual, the elec- 19 tion official shall deny the request for a 20 mail-in ballot and notify the individual in 21 writing of the reason for such denial. 22 ‘‘(ii) If the election official is able to 23 confirm the identity, voter registration, or 24 eligibility to vote of the individual, the elec- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 5 •S 301 IS tion official shall fulfill the request by 1 mailing a mail-in ballot to the individual. 2 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE OR LOCAL ELEC- 3 TION OFFICIALS.—The office of the State or local election 4 supervisor shall— 5 ‘‘(1) record the total number of mail-in ballots 6 sent to voters pursuant to this section; and 7 ‘‘(2) include a notation on the voter rolls main- 8 tained by the office and provided to the individual 9 polling locations, which identifies that a voter has 10 received a mail-in ballot and the date that mail-in 11 ballot was sent to the voter. 12 ‘‘(d) BALLOT REQUIREMENTS.— 13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be considered validly 14 cast and eligible to be counted in an election for 15 Federal office, a mail-in ballot must— 16 ‘‘(A) be marked using blue or black ink, 17 and properly designate the individual’s vote for 18 each candidate; 19 ‘‘(B) be signed by the individual using the 20 same signature the individual used to register 21 to vote; 22 ‘‘(C) be dated; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 6 •S 301 IS ‘‘(D) be received by the appropriate elec- 1 tion official no later than the time polls close on 2 the date of the election; and 3 ‘‘(E) include an attestation, signed by the 4 individual, that the individual submitting the 5 mail-in ballot is— 6 ‘‘(i) the individual to whom the ballot 7 was mailed; 8 ‘‘(ii) registered to vote in the jurisdic- 9 tion where the ballot is being submitted; 10 and 11 ‘‘(iii) submitting the mail-in ballot in 12 lieu of casting a ballot in-person, and will 13 not attempt to cast a ballot in-person after 14 submitting the mail-in ballot. 15 ‘‘(2) RETURN OF BALLOTS IN-PERSON.— An 16 individual may choose to return a mail-in ballot in- 17 person to the polling place where the individual is 18 registered to vote in lieu of returning the ballot by 19 mail. 20 ‘‘(e) OPTION TO VOTE IN-PERSON.— 21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An individual who receives 22 a mail-in ballot with respect to an election for Fed- 23 eral office may instead vote in-person in such elec- 24 tion if the individual turns in the blank or incom- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 7 •S 301 IS plete mail-in ballot received by the individual to the 1 polling location where the individual plans to vote in- 2 person. 3 ‘‘(2) PROVISIONAL BALLOT.—If the individual 4 attempts to vote in-person but does not bring their 5 blank or incomplete mail-in ballot to the polling loca- 6 tion, the individual shall be directed to complete a 7 provisional ballot. 8 ‘‘(f) PERSONS PERMITTED TO POSSESS MAIL-IN 9 BALLOTS.— 10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any 11 person to possess or return a mail-in ballot com- 12 pleted by another person, except as provided in this 13 subsection. 14 ‘‘(2) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.— 15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A person may possess 16 or return a mail-in ballot completed by an im- 17 mediate family member, provided that the per- 18 son does not possess more than 2 such com- 19 pleted mail-in ballots other than his or her own. 20 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF IMMEDIATE FAMILY 21 MEMBER.—In this paragraph, the term ‘imme- 22 diate family member’ means the spouse, child, 23 parent, grandparent, or sibling of the person. 24 ‘‘(3) CAREGIVER.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 8 •S 301 IS ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A caregiver may pos- 1 sess or return a mail-in ballot completed by a 2 person under the supervision or care of the 3 caregiver, provided that the caregiver does not 4 possess more than 2 such completed mail-in 5 ballots other than his or her own. 6 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF CAREGIVER.—In this 7 paragraph, the term ‘caregiver’ means an indi- 8 vidual who has the responsibility for the care of 9 an older individual, either voluntarily, by con- 10 tract, by receipt of payment for care, or as a re- 11 sult of the operation of law and means an indi- 12 vidual who provides (on behalf of such indi- 13 vidual or of a public or private agency, organi- 14 zation, or institution) compensated or uncom- 15 pensated care to an older individual. 16 ‘‘(4) INCIDENTAL POSSESSION EXCEPTED.— 17 The prohibition under paragraph (1) shall not apply 18 to the incidental possession of mail-in ballots by a 19 postal worker or election official acting within the 20 scope of his or her official capacity. 21 ‘‘(5) PENALTY.—Any person who violates this 22 subsection shall be fined under title 18, United 23 States Code, or imprisoned not more than 1 year, or 24 both. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 9 •S 301 IS ‘‘(g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 1 with respect to elections for Federal office held after the 2 date of the enactment of this section.’’. 3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 4 (1) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act 5 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking ‘‘and 6 303’’ and inserting ‘‘303, and 304’’. 7 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con- 8 tents of such Act is amended— 9 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 10 sections 304 and 305 as relating to sections 11 305 and 306, respectively; and 12 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 13 section 303 the following: 14 ‘‘Sec. 304. Federal standards for mail-in ballots.’’. SEC. 3. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR REPORTING ELECTION 15 RESULTS. 16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 17 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.), as amended 18 by section 2(a), is amended— 19 (1) by redesignating sections 305 and 306 as 20 sections 306 and 307, respectively; and 21 (2) by inserting after section 304 the following 22 new section: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 10 •S 301 IS ‘‘SEC. 305. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR REPORTING ELEC- 1 TION RESULTS. 2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The chief State election official 3 shall ensure that ballots validly cast in an election for Fed- 4 eral office are able to be counted and reported in a timely 5 manner as follows: 6 ‘‘(1) Mail-in ballots received prior to the date of 7 the election shall be counted upon receipt (except in 8 the case of a mail-in ballot received prior to the date 9 that is 22 days before the date of the election, no 10 earlier than the date that is 22 days before the date 11 of the election), provided that the results of such 12 votes counted and recorded must be kept confiden- 13 tial and may not be disclosed until the time polls 14 close on the date of the election. 15 ‘‘(2) One hour after polls close on the date of 16 the election, each voting precinct shall report to the 17 chief State election official the following: 18 ‘‘(A) The total number of mail-in ballots 19 received by the voting precinct. 20 ‘‘(B) The total number of ballots cast in- 21 person in the voting precinct. 22 ‘‘(C) Of the ballots reported under sub- 23 paragraphs (A) and (B), the number of such 24 ballots that have been counted and the number 25 of such ballots that remain to be counted. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 11 •S 301 IS ‘‘(3)(A) All ballots validly cast in an election for 1 Federal office shall be counted and reported within 2 24 hours after the polls close on the date of the elec- 3 tion. 4 ‘‘(B) If the chief State election official is unable 5 to complete the count of votes cast within 24 hours 6 after the polls close on the date of the election, the 7 official must identify with particularity and publicly 8 report— 9 ‘‘(i) the reason why the vote count has not 10 been completed; 11 ‘‘(ii) the steps the official is taking to en- 12 sure the vote count is completed as expedi- 13 tiously as possible; and 14 ‘‘(iii) the anticipated time when the vote 15 count will be completed. 16 ‘‘(4) If more than 24 hours have passed after 17 the conclusion of voting without a final vote count, 18 the chief State election official must report the unof- 19 ficial vote count on an hourly basis until the vote 20 count is completed. 21 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 22 with respect to elections for Federal office held after the 23 date of the enactment of this section.’’. 24 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 12 •S 301 IS (1) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act 1 (52 U.S.C. 21111), as amended by section 2(b), is 2 amended by striking ‘‘and 304’’ and inserting ‘‘304, 3 and 305’’. 4 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con- 5 tents of such Act, as amended by section 2(b), is 6 amended— 7 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 8 sections 305 and 306 as relating to sections 9 306 and 307, respectively; and 10 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 11 section 304 the following: 12 ‘‘Sec. 305. Federal standards for reporting election results.’’. SEC. 4. PROMOTING VOTER ROLL INTEGRITY. 13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle D of Title II of the Help 14 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.) is 15 amended by adding at the end the following new part: 16 ‘‘PART 7—PROMOTING VOTER ROLL INTEGRITY 17 ‘‘SEC. 297. PAYMENT INELIGIBILITY FOR STATES WITHOUT 18 ADEQUATE VOTER ROLL INTEGRITY MEAS- 19 URES. 20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State shall be ineligible to re- 21 ceive funds under this Act unless the State meets the fol- 22 lowing requirements with respect to each election for Fed- 23 eral office held on or after January 1, 2021: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S3 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]