OFFICE OF FISCAL ANALYSIS
Legislative Office Building, Room 5200
Hartford, CT 06106 (860) 240-0200
http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa
HB-6464
AN ACT EXTENDING TO MAY 31, 2021, SEVERAL CHANGES
IMPLEMENTED FOR THE 2020 STATE ELECTION AS A RESULT OF
COVID-19.
Primary Analyst: CP 3/11/21
Contributing Analyst(s): DC
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 21 FY 22
Secretary of the State GF - Cost Up to
$100,000
None
Resources of the General Fund GF - Potential
Revenue Gain
Less than
$5,000
None
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact:
Municipalities Effect FY 21 FY 22
Various Municipalities STATE
MANDATE
1
- Potential
Cost
Minimal None
Explanation
The bill extends certain changes affecting absentee voting,
implemented for the 2020 state election by PA 20-3 July 2020 Special
Session, to any election, primary, or referendum occurring before June
1, 2021. The bill is anticipated to result in costs to the state and
potential costs to municipalities.
Section 1 expands the reasons for which an elector may vote by
1
State mandate is defined in Sec. 2-32b(2) of the Connecticut General Statutes, "state
mandate" means any state initiated constitutional, statutory or executive action that
requires a local government to establish, expand or modify its activities in such a
way as to necessitate additional expenditures from local revenues. 2021HB-06464-R000046-FN.DOCX Page 2 of 3
absentee ballot for any election, primary, or referendum prior to June
1, 2021 to include the sickness of COVID-19. It is anticipated there will
be an increase in absentee ballot applications as a result of this
provision.
Sections 2 and 3 require the absentee ballot inner envelope
statement to be updated to include "the sickness of COVID-19" and
allow SOS to make changes to absentee voting forms and materials. No
fiscal impact is anticipated as a result of such modifications.
The bill also expands violations that constitute a false statement
which results in a potential minimal revenue gain of less than $5,000 in
FY 21. In FY 19 there was one violation of false statement by absentee
voting, which resulted in no fines collected.
Section 4 authorizes SOS to approve and select a third-party vendor
for town clerks' use in mailing absentee voting sets for elections prior
to June 1, 2021. It is anticipated that the use of such a vendor will cost
up to $100,000.
Section 5 permits absentee ballots to be deposited into a secure drop
box for elections prior to June 1, 2021. As drop boxes were ordered for
absentee ballots for the 2020 primary election, no additional costs are
anticipated as a result of this provision.
2
Additionally, this section requires municipal clerks to retrieve
absentee ballots deposited to such drop boxes beginning twenty-nine
days before the election and each weekday thereafter until the polls
close. If said drop box is located outside of a building other than where
the clerk's office is located, the clerk, or their designee, must be
escorted by a police officer. Minimal costs may be incurred if town
staff and local police departments cannot handle this provision with
current staffing levels.
Section 6 authorizes SOS to waive any requirements regarding
2
SOS ordered 200 drop boxes at a total cost of approximately $365,000, including
shipping. Costs were supported by federal CARES Act funding. 2021HB-06464-R000046-FN.DOCX Page 3 of 3
mandatory supervised absentee voting law at institutions for elections
prior to June 1, 2021. SOS must consult with the Department of Public
Health Commissioner, or their designee, provide written notice to
town clerks and registrars of voters in such municipalities, and submit
a report to the Government Administration and Elections Committee.
No fiscal impact is anticipated as a result of this provision.
The Out Years
The fiscal impacts identified above regarding absentee voting
changes only apply to elections and referenda prior to June 1, 2021,
thus impacts will only be incurred in FY 21.
The preceding Fiscal Impact statement is prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly,
solely for the purposes of information, summarization and explanation and does not represent the intent of the
General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety
of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is
consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any
specific department.