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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6464
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 3545
Referred to Committee on GOVERNMENT
ADMINISTRATION AND ELECTIONS
Introduced by:
(GAE)
AN ACT EXTENDING TO MAY 31, 2021, SEVERAL CHANGE S
IMPLEMENTED FOR THE 2020 STATE ELECTION AS A RESULT OF
COVID-19.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 9-135 of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 2
(a) Any elector eligible to vote at a primary or an election and any 3
person eligible to vote at a referendum may vote by absentee ballot if 4
such elector or person is unable to appear at such elector's or person's 5
polling place during the hours of voting for any of the following reasons: 6
(1) Such elector's or person's active service with the armed forces of the 7
United States; (2) such elector's or person's absence from the town of 8
such elector's or person's voting residence during all of the hours of 9
voting; (3) such elector's or person's illness; (4) such elector's or person's 10
physical disability; (5) the tenets of such elector's or person's religion 11
forbid secular activity on the day of the primary, election or referendum; 12
(6) the required performance of such elector's or person's duties as a 13 Raised Bill No. 6464
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primary, election or referendum official, including as a town clerk or 14
registrar of voters or as staff of the clerk or registrar, at a polling place 15
other than such elector's or person's own during all of the hours of 16
voting at such primary, election or referendum; or (7) for the state 17
election in 2020, and any election, primary or referendum held on or 18
after the effective date of this section but prior to June 1, 2021, the 19
sickness of COVID-19. As used in this section, "COVID-19" means the 20
respiratory disease designated by the World Health Organization on 21
February 11, 2020, as coronavirus 2019, and any related mutation thereof 22
recognized by said organization as a communicable respiratory disease. 23
(b) No person shall misrepresent the eligibility requirements for 24
voting by absentee ballot prescribed in subsection (a) of this section, to 25
any elector or prospective absentee ballot applicant. 26
Sec. 2. Section 9-137 of the general statutes is repealed and the 27
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 28
(a) Each absentee ballot shall be returned to the municipal clerk, 29
inserted in an inner envelope which shall be capable of being sealed and 30
which shall have printed on its face a form containing the following 31
statements: 32
"I hereby state under the penalties of false statement in absentee 33
balloting that I am eligible to vote at the primary, election or referendum 34
in the municipality in which this absentee ballot is to be cast and that I 35
expect to be unable to appear at my polling place during the hours of 36
voting at such primary, election or referendum for one or more of the 37
following reasons: (1) My active service in the armed forces; (2) my 38
absence from the town in which I am eligible to vote during all of the 39
hours of voting; (3) my illness or physical disability; (4) the tenets of my 40
religion which forbid secular activity on the day of the primary, election 41
or referendum; or (5) my duties as a primary, election or referendum 42
official. 43
Date .... 44 Raised Bill No. 6464
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.... (Signature)" 45
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, 46
for the state election in 2020, and any election, primary or referendum 47
held on or after the effective date of this section but prior to June 1, 2021, 48
each inner envelope in which an absentee ballot is returned to the 49
municipal clerk shall have printed on its face a form containing the 50
following statements: 51
"I hereby state under the penalties of false statement in absentee 52
balloting that I am eligible to vote at the primary, election or referendum 53
in the municipality in which this absentee ballot is to be cast and that I 54
expect to be unable to appear at my polling place during the hours of 55
voting at such primary, election or referendum for one or more of the 56
following reasons: (1) My active service in the armed forces; (2) my 57
absence from the town in which I am eligible to vote during all of the 58
hours of voting; (3) my illness or physical disability; (4) the tenets of my 59
religion which forbid secular activity on the day of the primary, election 60
or referendum; (5) my duties as a primary, election or referendum 61
official; or (6) the sickness of COVID-19. 62
Date .... 63
.... (Signature)" 64
Sec. 3. Section 9-139b of the general statutes is repealed and the 65
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 66
(a) The Secretary of the State may make any changes in any forms 67
prescribed by this chapter which, in the opinion of the Secretary, are 68
necessary to conform to the applicable provisions of federal law. 69
(b) For the state election in 2020, and any election, primary or 70
referendum held on or after the effective date of this section but prior to 71
June 1, 2021, the Secretary of the State may make any changes in any 72
forms prescribed by this chapter or in any printed, recorded or 73
electronic material issued pursuant to this chapter which, in the opinion 74 Raised Bill No. 6464
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of the Secretary, are necessary to conform to the applicable provisions 75
of law. 76
Sec. 4. Subsection (g) of section 9-140 of the general statutes is 77
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from 78
passage): 79
(g) (1) On the first day of issuance of absentee voting sets the 80
municipal clerk shall mail an absentee voting set to each applicant 81
whose application was received by the clerk prior to that day. When the 82
clerk receives an application during the time period in which absentee 83
voting sets are to be issued he shall mail an absentee voting set to the 84
applicant, within twenty-four hours, unless the applicant submits his 85
application in person at the office of the clerk and asks to be given his 86
absentee voting set immediately, in which case the clerk shall comply 87
with the request. Any absentee voting set to be mailed to an applicant 88
shall be mailed to the bona fide personal mailing address shown on the 89
application. Issuance of absentee voting sets shall also be subject to the 90
provisions of subsection (c) of this section, section 9-150c and section 9-91
159q concerning persons designated to deliver or return ballots in cases 92
involving unforeseen illness or disability and supervised voting at 93
certain health care institutions. 94
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (1) of this 95
subsection, for the state election in 2020, and any election, primary or 96
referendum held on or after the effective date of this section but prior to 97
June 1, 2021, each absentee voting set required to be mailed to an 98
applicant under said subdivision (A) shall be mailed by the municipal 99
clerk within forty-eight hours after the application for such absentee 100
voting set is received by the clerk, or (B) may be mailed by a third-party 101
mailing vendor approved and selected by the Secretary of the State for 102
use by the municipal clerk for such purpose, provided any contract 103
between the Secretary of the State and any such vendor shall require 104
that such vendor mail each absentee voting set within seventy-two 105
hours after the application for such absentee voting set is received by 106
such vendor from the clerk. 107 Raised Bill No. 6464
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Sec. 5. Subsection (c) of section 9-140b of the general statutes is 108
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from 109
passage): 110
(c) (1) For purposes of this section, "mailed" means (A) sent by the 111
United States Postal Service or any commercial carrier, courier or 112
messenger service recognized and approved by the Secretary of the 113
State, or (B) for the state election in 2020, and any election, primary or 114
referendum held on or after the effective date of this section but prior to 115
June 1, 2021, deposited in a secure drop box designated by the municipal 116
clerk for such purpose, in accordance with instructions prescribed by 117
the Secretary. 118
(2) (A) In the case of absentee ballots mailed under subparagraph (B) 119
of subdivision (1) of this subsection, beginning on the twenty-ninth day 120
before the state election in 2020 and on each weekday thereafter until 121
the close of the polls, the municipal clerk shall [(A)] (i) retrieve from the 122
secure drop box described in said subparagraph each such ballot 123
deposited in such drop box, and [(B)] (ii) if the drop box is located 124
outside a building other than the building where the clerk's office is 125
located, arrange for the clerk or the clerk's designee to be escorted by a 126
police officer during such retrieval. 127
(B) In the case of absentee ballots mailed under subparagraph (B) of 128
subdivision (1) of this subsection, beginning on the twenty-ninth day 129
before any election, primary or referendum held on or after the effective 130
date of this section but prior to June 1, 2021, and on each weekday 131
thereafter until the close of the polls at such election, primary or 132
referendum, the municipal clerk shall retrieve from the secure drop box 133
described in said subparagraph each such ballot deposited in such drop 134
box. 135
Sec. 6. Section 9-159r of the general statutes is repealed and the 136
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 137
(a) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes to the 138 Raised Bill No. 6464
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contrary, if twenty or more of the patients in any institution in the state 139
are electors, absentee ballots voted by such electors shall be voted under 140
the supervision of the registrars of voters or their designees of the town 141
in which the institution is located, in accordance with the provisions of 142
this section. As used in this section, "institution" has the same meaning 143
as provided in section 9-159q. 144
(b) Application for an absentee ballot for any such patient shall be 145
made to the clerk of the town in which such patient is eligible to vote. 146
The application procedure set forth in section 9-140, as amended by this 147
act, shall apply, except that the clerk shall deliver the absentee voting 148
set for any such application to the clerk of the town in which the 149
institution is located, who shall deliver all such voting sets he receives 150
to the registrars of such town, on the date when the supervision of 151
absentee balloting is to occur. The ballots and envelopes shall be 152
prepared for delivery to the applicant as provided in sections 9-137 to 9-153
140a, inclusive, as amended by this act. The registrars or their designees 154
shall furnish the town clerk a written receipt for such ballots. The 155
registrars of the town in which an institution is located and the 156
administrator of the institution shall mutually agree on a date and time 157
for such supervision of absentee balloting, which shall be not later than 158
the last business day before the election or primary. 159
(c) The supervision of absentee balloting under this section shall be 160
carried out in accordance with the provisions of subsections (g), (h), (i) 161
and (k) of section 9-159q. 162
(d) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) to (c), 163
inclusive, of this section, for the state election in 2020, the Secretary of 164
the State may waive any requirement under said subsections, provided 165
the Secretary [(1)] (A) waives such requirement in recognition of the 166
public health and civil preparedness emergency declared by the 167
Governor on March 10, 2020, and has consulted with the Commissioner 168
of Public Health or said commissioner's designee regarding such 169
waiver, [(2)] (B) has given written notice to the town clerk and registrars 170
of voters in each municipality, and [(3)] (C) has submitted a report, in 171 Raised Bill No. 6464
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accordance with section 11-4a, to the joint standing committee of the 172
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to elections 173
advising of such waiver and specifying alternative actions to be taken to 174
provide opportunities for absentee voting by electors described in this 175
section. 176
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) to (c), inclusive, 177
of this section, for any election or primary held on or after the effective 178
date of this section but prior to June 1, 2021, the Secretary of the State 179
may waive any requirement under said subsections, provided the 180
Secretary (A) waives such requirement in recognition of the public 181
health and civil preparedness emergency declared by the Governor on 182
March 10, 2020, and has consulted with the Commissioner of Public 183
Health or said commissioner's designee regarding such waiver, and (B) 184
has given written notice to the town clerk and registrars of voters in each 185
municipality. 186
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage 9-135
Sec. 2 from passage 9-137
Sec. 3 from passage 9-139b
Sec. 4 from passage 9-140(g)
Sec. 5 from passage 9-140b(c)
Sec. 6 from passage 9-159r
GAE Joint Favorable