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Missouri Senate Bill SB730

Missouri 2022 Regular Session

Missouri Senate Bill SB730 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
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22 EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
33 and is intended to be omitted in the law.
44 SECOND REGULAR SESSION
55 SENATE BILL NO. 730
66 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
77 INTRODUCED BY SENATOR SCHUPP.
88 4193S.01I ADRIANE D. CROUSE, Secretary
99 AN ACT
1010 To repeal sections 115.277, 115.279, 115.283, and 115.291, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof
1111 four new sections relating to absentee voting, with existing penalty provisions.
1212
1313 Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
1414 Section A. Sections 115.277, 115.279, 115.283, and 1
1515 115.291, RSMo, are repealed and four new sections enacted in 2
1616 lieu thereof, to be known as sections 115.277, 115.279, 115.283, 3
1717 and 115.291, to read as follows:4
1818 115.277. 1. Except as provided in subsections 2, 3, 1
1919 4, and 5 of this section, any registered voter of this state 2
2020 may vote by absentee ballot for all can didates and issues 3
2121 for which such voter [would be] is eligible to vote at the 4
2222 polling place [if such voter expects to be prevented from 5
2323 going to the polls to vote on election day due to: 6
2424 (1) Absence on election day from the jurisdiction of 7
2525 the election authority in which such voter is registered to 8
2626 vote; 9
2727 (2) Incapacity or confinement due to illness or 10
2828 physical disability, including a person who is primarily 11
2929 responsible for the physical care of a person who is 12
3030 incapacitated or confined du e to illness or disability; 13
3131 (3) Religious belief or practice; 14
3232 (4) Employment as an election authority, as a member 15
3333 of an election authority, or by an election authority at a 16
3434 location other than such voter's polling place; 17 SB 730 2
3535 (5) Incarceration, provided all qualifications for 18
3636 voting are retained; 19
3737 (6) Certified participation in the address 20
3838 confidentiality program established under sections 589.660 21
3939 to 589.681 because of safety concerns; or 22
4040 (7) For an election that occurs during the year 2020, 23
4141 the voter has contracted or is in an at -risk category for 24
4242 contracting or transmitting severe acute respiratory 25
4343 syndrome coronavirus 2. This subdivision shall expire on 26
4444 December 31, 2020]. 27
4545 2. Any covered voter who is eligible to re gister and 28
4646 vote in this state may vote in any election for federal 29
4747 office, statewide office, state legislative office, or 30
4848 statewide ballot initiatives by submitting a federal 31
4949 postcard application to apply to vote by absentee ballot or 32
5050 by submitting a federal postcard application at the polling 33
5151 place even though the person is not registered. A federal 34
5252 postcard application submitted by a covered voter pursuant 35
5353 to this subsection shall also serve as a voter registration 36
5454 application under section 115. 908 and the election authority 37
5555 shall, if satisfied that the applicant is entitled to 38
5656 register, place the voter's name on the voter registration 39
5757 file. Each covered voter may vote by absentee ballot or, 40
5858 upon submitting an affidavit that the person is qu alified to 41
5959 vote in the election, may vote at the person's polling place. 42
6060 3. Any interstate former resident may vote by absentee 43
6161 ballot for presidential and vice presidential electors. 44
6262 4. Any intrastate new resident may vote by absentee 45
6363 ballot at the election for presidential and vice 46
6464 presidential electors, United States senator, representative 47
6565 in Congress, statewide elected officials and statewide 48
6666 questions, propositions and amendments from such resident's 49 SB 730 3
6767 new jurisdiction of residence af ter registering to vote in 50
6868 such resident's new jurisdiction of residence. 51
6969 5. Any new resident may vote by absentee ballot for 52
7070 presidential and vice presidential electors after 53
7171 registering to vote in such resident's new jurisdiction of 54
7272 residence. 55
7373 [6. For purposes of this section, the voters who are 56
7474 in an at-risk category for contracting or transmitting 57
7575 severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 are voters 58
7676 who: 59
7777 (1) Are sixty-five years of age or older; 60
7878 (2) Live in a long-term care facility licensed under 61
7979 chapter 198; 62
8080 (3) Have chronic lung disease or moderate to severe 63
8181 asthma; 64
8282 (4) Have serious heart conditions; 65
8383 (5) Are immunocompromised; 66
8484 (6) Have diabetes; 67
8585 (7) Have chronic kidney disease and ar e undergoing 68
8686 dialysis; or 69
8787 (8) Have liver disease.] 70
8888 115.279. 1. Application for an absentee ballot may be 1
8989 made by the applicant in person, or by mail, or for the 2
9090 applicant, in person, by his or her guardian or a relative 3
9191 within the second degree by consanguinity or affinity. The 4
9292 election authority shall accept applications by facsimile 5
9393 transmission and by electronic mail within the limits of its 6
9494 telecommunications capacity. 7
9595 2. Each application shall be made to the ele ction 8
9696 authority of the jurisdiction in which the person is or 9
9797 would be registered. Each application shall be in writing 10
9898 and shall state the applicant's name, address at which he or 11 SB 730 4
9999 she is or would be registered, [his or her reason for voting 12
100100 an absentee ballot] whether the applicant is incapacitated 13
101101 or confined due to illness or physical disability or is a 14
102102 person who is primarily responsible for the physical care of 15
103103 a person who is incapacitated or confined due to illness or 16
104104 physical disability, the address to which the ballot is to 17
105105 be mailed, if mailing is requested, and for absent uniformed 18
106106 services and overseas applicants, the applicant's email 19
107107 address if electronic transmission is requested. If the 20
108108 [reason for the applicant voting absentee is due to the 21
109109 reasons established under subdivision (6) of subsection 1 of 22
110110 section 115.277] applicant is a certified participant in the 23
111111 address confidentiality program established under sections 24
112112 589.660 to 589.681, the applicant shall state the voter' s 25
113113 identification information provided by the address 26
114114 confidentiality program in lieu of the applicant's name, 27
115115 address at which he or she is or would be registered, and 28
116116 address to which the ballot is to be mailed, if mailing is 29
117117 requested. Each application to vote in a primary election 30
118118 shall also state which ballot the applicant wishes to 31
119119 receive. If any application fails to designate a ballot, 32
120120 the election authority shall, within three working days 33
121121 after receiving the application, notify the appli cant by 34
122122 mail that it will be unable to deliver an absentee ballot 35
123123 until the applicant designates which political party ballot 36
124124 he or she wishes to receive. If the applicant does not 37
125125 respond to the request for political party designation, the 38
126126 election authority is authorized to provide the voter with 39
127127 that part of the ballot for which no political party 40
128128 designation is required. 41
129129 3. [Except as provided in subsection 3 of section 42
130130 115.281,] All applications for absentee ballots received 43 SB 730 5
131131 prior to the sixth Tuesday before an election shall be 44
132132 stored at the office of the election authority until such 45
133133 time as the applications are processed in accordance with 46
134134 section 115.281. No application for an absentee ballot 47
135135 received in the office of the electi on authority by mail, by 48
136136 facsimile transmission, by electronic mail, or by a guardian 49
137137 or relative after 5:00 p.m. on the second Wednesday 50
138138 immediately prior to the election shall be accepted by any 51
139139 election authority. No application for an absentee bal lot 52
140140 submitted by the applicant in person after 5:00 p.m. on the 53
141141 day before the election shall be accepted by any election 54
142142 authority, except as provided in subsections 6, 8 and 9 of 55
143143 this section. 56
144144 4. Each application for an absentee ballot shall be 57
145145 signed by the applicant or, if the application is made by a 58
146146 guardian or relative pursuant to this section, the 59
147147 application shall be signed by the guardian or relative, who 60
148148 shall note on the application his or her relationship to the 61
149149 applicant. If an applicant, guardian or relative is blind, 62
150150 unable to read or write the English language or physically 63
151151 incapable of signing the application, he or she shall sign 64
152152 by mark, witnessed by the signature of an election official 65
153153 or person of his or her own cho osing. Any person who 66
154154 knowingly makes, delivers or mails a fraudulent absentee 67
155155 ballot application shall be guilty of a class one election 68
156156 offense. 69
157157 5. (1) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, any 70
158158 resident of the state of Missouri who resides outside the 71
159159 boundaries of the United States or who is on active duty 72
160160 with the Armed Forces of the United States or members of 73
161161 their immediate family living with them may request an 74 SB 730 6
162162 absentee ballot for both the primary and subsequent general 75
163163 election with one application. 76
164164 (2) The election authority shall provide each absent 77
165165 uniformed services voter and each overseas voter who submits 78
166166 a voter registration application or an absentee ballot 79
167167 request, if the election authority rejects the applicati on 80
168168 or request, with the reasons for the rejection. 81
169169 (3) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, if 82
170170 a standard oath regarding material misstatements of fact is 83
171171 adopted for uniformed and overseas voters pursuant to the 84
172172 Help America Vote Act o f 2002, the election authority shall 85
173173 accept such oath for voter registration, absentee ballot, or 86
174174 other election-related materials. 87
175175 (4) Not later than sixty days after the date of each 88
176176 regularly scheduled general election for federal office, 89
177177 each election authority which administered the election 90
178178 shall submit to the secretary of state in a format 91
179179 prescribed by the secretary a report on the combined number 92
180180 of absentee ballots transmitted to, and returned by, absent 93
181181 uniformed services voters and overseas voters for the 94
182182 election. The secretary shall submit to the Election 95
183183 Assistance Commission a combined report of such information 96
184184 not later than ninety days after the date of each regularly 97
185185 scheduled general election for federal office and in a 98
186186 standardized format developed by the commission pursuant to 99
187187 the Help America Vote Act of 2002. The secretary shall make 100
188188 the report available to the general public. 101
189189 (5) As used in this section, the terms "absent 102
190190 uniformed services voter" and "o verseas voter" shall have 103
191191 the meaning prescribed in 52 U.S.C. Section 20310. 104
192192 6. An application for an absentee ballot by a new 105
193193 resident shall be submitted in person by the applicant in 106 SB 730 7
194194 the office of the election authority in the election 107
195195 jurisdiction in which such applicant resides. The 108
196196 application shall be received by the election authority no 109
197197 later than 7:00 p.m. on the day of the election. Such 110
198198 application shall be in the form of an affidavit, executed 111
199199 in duplicate in the presence of the election authority or 112
200200 any authorized officer of the election authority, and in 113
201201 substantially the following form: 114
202202 115 "STATE OF _________ 
203203 116 COUNTY OF _________ , ss.
204204 117 I, ______, do solemnly swear that:
205205 118
206206 119
207207 120
208208 121
209209 (1) Before becoming a resident of this state, I
210210 resided at ______ (residence address) in ______
211211 (town, township, village or city) of ______
212212 County in the state of ______;
213213
214214 122
215215 123
216216 124
217217 125
218218 (2) I moved to this state after the last day to
219219 register to vote in such general presidential
220220 election and I am now residing in the county of
221221 ______, state of Missouri;
222222
223223 126
224224 127
225225 128
226226 (3) I believe I am entitled pursuant to the laws of
227227 this state to vote in the presidential election
228228 to be held November ______, ______ (year);
229229
230230 129
231231 130
232232 131
233233 132
234234 (4) I hereby make application for a presidential
235235 and vice presidential ballot. I have not voted
236236 and shall not vote other than by this ballot at
237237 such election.
238238
239239 133 Signed __________________  
240240 134 (Applicant)
241241 135 __________________ 
242242 136 (Residence Address)
243243 137
244244 138
245245 Subscribed and sworn to before me this ______ day
246246 of ______, ______
247247
248248 139 Signed __________________ SB 730 8
249249 7. The election authority in whose office an 142
250250 application is filed pursuant to subsection 6 of this 143
251251 section shall immediately send a duplicate of such 144
252252 application to the appropriate official of the state in 145
253253 which the new resident applicant last resided and shall f ile 146
254254 the original of such application in its office. 147
255255 8. An application for an absentee ballot by an 148
256256 intrastate new resident shall be made in person by the 149
257257 applicant in the office of the election authority in the 150
258258 election jurisdiction in which such applicant resides. The 151
259259 application shall be received by the election authority no 152
260260 later than 7:00 p.m. on the day of the election. Such 153
261261 application shall be in the form of an affidavit, executed 154
262262 in duplicate in the presence of the election authorit y or an 155
263263 authorized officer of the election authority, and in 156
264264 substantially the following form: 157
265265 140
266266 141
267267 (Title and name of officer authorized to
268268 administer oaths)"
269269
270270 158 "STATE OF ______
271271 159 COUNTY OF ______, ss.
272272 160 I, ______, do solemnly swear that:
273273 161
274274 162
275275 163
276276 164
277277 (1) Before becoming a resident of this election
278278 jurisdiction, I resided at ______ (residence
279279 address) in ______ (town, township, village or
280280 city) of ______ county in the state of ______;
281281
282282 165
283283 166
284284 (2) I moved to this election jurisdiction after the
285285 last day to register to vote in such election;
286286
287287 167
288288 168
289289 169
290290 (3) I believe I am entitled pursuant to the laws of
291291 this state to vote in the election to be held
292292 ______ (date);
293293
294294 170
295295 171
296296 (4) I hereby make application for an absentee
297297 ballot for candidates and issues on which I am
298298 SB 730 9
299299 9. An application for an absentee ballot by an 184
300300 interstate former resident shall be received in the office 185
301301 of the election authority where the applicant was formerly 186
302302 registered by 5:00 p.m. on the second Wednesday immediately 187
303303 prior to the election, unless the application is made in 188
304304 person by the applicant in the office of the election 189
305305 authority, in which case such application shall be made no 190
306306 later than 7:00 p.m. on the day of the election. 191
307307 115.283. 1. Each ballot envelope shall bear a 1
308308 statement on which the voter shall state the voter's name, 2
309309 the voter's voting address, and the voter's mailing address 3
310310 [and the voter's reason for voting an ab sentee ballot]. If 4
311311 the [reason for the voter voting absentee is due to the 5
312312 reasons established under subdivision (6) of subsection 1 of 6
313313 section 115.277] applicant is a certified participant in the 7
314314 address confidentiality program established under sect ions 8
315315 589.660 to 589.681, the voter shall state the voter's 9
316316 identification information provided by the address 10
317317 confidentiality program in lieu of the applicant's name, 11
318318 172
319319 173
320320 174
321321 entitled to vote pursuant to the laws of this
322322 state. I have not voted and shall not vote
323323 other than by this ballot at such election.
324324 175 Signed __________________
325325 176 (Applicant)
326326 177 __________________
327327 178 (Residence Address)
328328 179
329329 180
330330 Subscribed and sworn to before me this ______ day
331331 of ______, ______
332332
333333 181 Signed __________________
334334 182
335335 183
336336 (Title and name of officer authorized to
337337 administer oaths)"
338338 SB 730 10
339339 voting address, and mailing address. On the form, the voter 12
340340 shall also state under penalties of perjury that the voter 13
341341 is qualified to vote in the election, that the voter has not 14
342342 previously voted and will not vote again in the election, 15
343343 that the voter has personally marked the voter's ballot in 16
344344 secret or supervised the marking of th e voter's ballot if 17
345345 the voter is unable to mark it, that the ballot has been 18
346346 placed in the ballot envelope and sealed by the voter or 19
347347 under the voter's supervision if the voter is unable to seal 20
348348 it, and that all information contained in the statement i s 21
349349 true. In addition, any person providing assistance to the 22
350350 absentee voter shall include a statement on the envelope 23
351351 identifying the person providing assistance under penalties 24
352352 of perjury. Persons authorized to vote only for federal and 25
353353 statewide officers shall also state their former Missouri 26
354354 residence. 27
355355 2. The statement for persons voting absentee ballots 28
356356 who are registered voters shall be in substantially the 29
357357 following form: 30
358358 31 State of Missouri
359359 32 County (City) of _______________
360360 33
361361 34
362362 35
363363 36
364364 37
365365 I, ______ (print name), a registered voter of ______
366366 County (City of St. Louis, Kansas City), declare
367367 under the penalties of perjury [that I expect to be
368368 prevented from going to the polls on election d ay
369369 due to (check one):
370370
371371 38
372372 39
373373 40
374374 ______ absence on election day from the
375375 jurisdiction of the election authority in
376376 which I am registered;
377377
378378 41
379379 42
380380 43
381381 44
382382 ______ incapacity or confinement due to illness
383383 or physical disability, including caring
384384 for a person who is incapacitated or
385385 confined due to illness or disability;
386386 SB 730 11
387387 45 ______ religious belief or practice;
388388 46
389389 47
390390 48
391391 ______ employment as an election authority or by
392392 an election authority at a location other
393393 than my polling place;
394394
395395 49
396396 50
397397 51
398398 ______ incarceration, although I have retained
399399 all the necessary qualifications for
400400 voting;
401401
402402 52
403403 53
404404 54
405405 55
406406 ______ certified participation in the address
407407 confidentiality program established under
408408 sections 589.660 to 589.681 because of
409409 safety concerns.
410410
411411 56
412412 57
413413 58
414414 59
415415 60
416416 61
417417 62
418418 63
419419 64
420420 65
421421 I hereby state under penalties of perjury ] that I am
422422 qualified to vote at this election; I have not voted
423423 and will not vote other than by this ballot at this
424424 election. I further state that I marked the enclosed
425425 ballot in secret or that I am blind, unable to read
426426 or write English, or physically inc apable of marking
427427 the ballot, and the person of my choosing indicated
428428 below marked the ballot at my direction; all of the
429429 information on this statement is, to the best of my
430430 knowledge and belief, true.
431431
432432 66 __________________ __________________
433433 67 Signature of Voter Signature of Person
434434 68 Assisting Voter
435435 69 (if applicable)
436436 70 Signed ______ Subscribed and sworn
437437 71 Signed ______ to before me this
438438 72
439439 73
440440 Address of Voter ______day of ______,
441441 ______
442442
443443 74 __________________ __________________
444444 75 __________________ __________________
445445 76
446446 77
447447 Mailing addresses Signature of notary
448448 or
449449
450450 78 (if different) other officer SB 730 12
451451 3. The statement for persons voting absentee ballots 81
452452 pursuant to the provisions of subsection 2, 3, 4, or 5 of 82
453453 section 115.277 without being registered shall be in 83
454454 substantially the following form: 84
455455 79 authorized to
456456 80 administer oaths
457457 85 State of Missouri
458458 86 County (City) of ______
459459 87
460460 88
461461 89
462462 90
463463 91
464464 92
465465 93
466466 94
467467 95
468468 96
469469 I, ______ (print name), declare under the penalties
470470 of perjury that I am a citizen of the United States
471471 and eighteen years of age or older. I am not
472472 adjudged incapacitated by any court of law, and if
473473 I have been convicted of a felony or of a
474474 misdemeanor connected with the right of suffrage, I
475475 have had the voting disabilities resulting from
476476 such conviction removed pursuant to law. I hereby
477477 state under penalties of perjury that I am
478478 qualified to vote at this election.
479479
480480 97 I am (check one):
481481 98
482482 99
483483 100
484484 101
485485 102
486486 ______ a resident of the state of Missouri and a
487487 registered voter in ______ County and
488488 moved from that county to ______ County,
489489 Missouri, after the last day to register
490490 to vote in this election.
491491
492492 103
493493 104
494494 105
495495 106
496496 ______ an interstate former resident of Missouri
497497 and authorized to vote for presidential
498498 and vice presidential electors.
499499
500500 107
501501 108
502502 109
503503 110
504504 111
505505 112
506506 113
507507 I further state under penalties of perjury that I
508508 have not voted and will not vote other than by this
509509 ballot at this election; I marked the enclosed
510510 ballot in secret or am blind, unable to read or
511511 write English, or physically incapable of marking
512512 the ballot, and the person of my choosing indicated
513513 below marked the ballot at my direction; all of the
514514 SB 730 13
515515 4. The statement for persons voting absentee ballots 134
516516 who are entitled to vote at the election pursuant to the 135
517517 provisions of subsection 2 of section 115.137 shall be in 136
518518 substantially the following form: 137
519519 114
520520 115
521521 information on this statement is, to the best of my
522522 knowledge and belief, true.
523523 116 __________________ Subscribed to and
524524 117
525525 118
526526 Signature of Voter sworn before me
527527 this
528528
529529 119 ______ day of
530530 120 ______, ______
531531 121 __________________
532532 122 __________________ __________________
533533 123 Address of Voter Signature of notary
534534 124 or other officer
535535 125 authorized to
536536 126 administer oaths
537537 127 __________________ __________________
538538 128 Mailing Address (if different) __________________
539539 129 __________________
540540 130 __________________ __________________
541541 131 Signature of Person Address of Last
542542 132 Assisting Voter Missouri Residence
543543 133 (if applicable)
544544 138 State of Missouri
545545 139 County (City) of ______
546546 140
547547 141
548548 I, ______ (print name), declare under the penalties
549549 of perjury [that I expect to be prevented from
550550 SB 730 14
551551 142
552552 143
553553 going to the polls on election day due to (check
554554 one):
555555 144
556556 145
557557 146
558558 ______ absence on election day from the
559559 jurisdiction of the election authority in
560560 which I am directed to vote;
561561
562562 147
563563 148
564564 149
565565 150
566566 ______ incapacity or confinement due to illness
567567 or physical disability, including caring
568568 for a person who is incapacitated or
569569 confined due to illness or disability;
570570
571571 151 ______ religious belief or practice;
572572 152
573573 153
574574 154
575575 ______ employment as an election authority or by
576576 an election authority at a location other
577577 than my polling place;
578578
579579 155
580580 156
581581 157
582582 ______ incarceration, although I have retained
583583 all the necessary qualifications of
584584 voting;
585585
586586 158
587587 159
588588 160
589589 161
590590 ______ certified participation in the address
591591 confidentiality program established under
592592 sections 589.660 to 589.681 because of
593593 safety concerns.
594594
595595 162
596596 163
597597 164
598598 165
599599 166
600600 167
601601 168
602602 169
603603 170
604604 171
605605 172
606606 173
607607 I hereby state under penalties of perjury ] that I
608608 own property in the ______ district and am
609609 qualified to vote at this election; I have not
610610 voted and will not vote other than by this ballot
611611 at this election. I further state that I marked the
612612 enclosed ballot in secret or that I am blind,
613613 unable to read and write English, or physically
614614 incapable of marking the ballot, and the person of
615615 my choosing indicated below marked the ballot at my
616616 direction; all of the information on this statement
617617 is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, true.
618618
619619 174
620620 175
621621 __________________ Subscribed and sworn
622622 176 Signature of Voter to before me this
623623 177 ______ day of
624624 178 ______, ______
625625 179 __________________ SB 730 15
626626 5. The statement for persons providing assistance to 189
627627 absentee voters shall be in substantially the following form: 190
628628 6. [The election authority shall, for an election held 208
629629 during 2020, adjust the forms described in this section to 209
630630 account for voters voting absentee due to the reason 210
631631 180 __________________ __________________
632632 181 Address Signature of notary
633633 182 or other officer
634634 183 authorized to
635635 184 administer oaths
636636 185 __________________
637637 186 Signature of Person
638638 187 Assisting Voter
639639 188 (if applicable)
640640 191
641641 192
642642 193
643643 194
644644 195
645645 196
646646 197
647647 198
648648 199
649649 200
650650 201
651651 The voter needed assistance in marking the ballot
652652 and signing above, because of blindness, other
653653 physical disability, or inability to read or to
654654 read English. I marked the ballot enclosed in this
655655 envelope at the voter's direction, when I was
656656 alone with the voter, and I had no other
657657 communication with the voter as to how he or she
658658 was to vote. The voter swore or affirmed the voter
659659 affidavit above and I then signed the voter's name
660660 and completed the other voter information above.
661661 Signed under the penalties of perjury.
662662
663663 202 Reason why voter needed assistance: ______
664664 203 ASSISTING PERSON SIGN HERE
665665 204 1. ______ (signature of assisting person)
666666 205 2. ______ (assisting person's name printed)
667667 206 3. ______ (assisting person's residence)
668668 207 4. ______ (assisting person's home city or town). SB 730 16
669669 established pursuant to subdivision (7) of subsection 1 of 211
670670 section 115.277. 212
671671 7.] Notwithstanding any other provision of this 213
672672 section, any covered voter as defined in section 115.902 or 214
673673 persons who have declared themselves to be permanently 215
674674 disabled pursuant to section 115.284, otherwise entitled to 216
675675 vote, shall not be required to obtain a notary seal or 217
676676 signature on his or her absentee ballot. 218
677677 [8.] 7. Notwithstanding any other provision of this 219
678678 section or section 115.291 to the contrary, the 220
679679 subscription, signature and seal of a notary or other 221
680680 officer authorized to administer oaths shall not be required 222
681681 on any ballot, ballot envelope, or statement required by 223
682682 this section if the [reason for the] voter voting absentee 224
683683 is [due to the reasons established pursuant to subdivision 225
684684 (2) or (7) of subsection 1 of section 115.277 ] incapacitated 226
685685 or confined due to illness or physical disability, including 227
686686 a person who is primarily responsible for the physical care 228
687687 of a person who is incapacitated or confined due to illness 229
688688 or physical disability . 230
689689 [9.] 8. No notary shall charge or collect a fee for 231
690690 notarizing the signature on any absentee ballot or absentee 232
691691 voter registration. 233
692692 [10.] 9. A notary public who charges more than the 234
693693 maximum fee specified or who charges or collects a fee for 235
694694 notarizing the signature on any absentee ballot or absentee 236
695695 voter registration is guilty of official misconduct. 237
696696 115.291. 1. Upon receiving an absentee ballot by 1
697697 mail, the voter shall mark the ballot in secret, place the 2
698698 ballot in the ballot envelope, seal the envelope and fill 3
699699 out the statement on the ballot envelope. The affidavit of 4
700700 each person voting an absentee ballot shall be subscribed 5 SB 730 17
701701 and sworn to before the election official receiving the 6
702702 ballot, a notary public or other officer authorized by law 7
703703 to administer oaths, unless the voter is voting absentee due 8
704704 to incapacity or confinement due to the provisions of 9
705705 section 115.284, illness or physical disability, [for an 10
706706 election that occurs during the year 2020, the voter has 11
707707 contracted or is in an at -risk category for contracting or 12
708708 transmitting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 13
709709 2, as defined in section 1 15.277,] or the voter is a covered 14
710710 voter as defined in section 115.902. If the voter is blind, 15
711711 unable to read or write the English language, or physically 16
712712 incapable of voting the ballot, the voter may be assisted by 17
713713 a person of the voter's own choosin g. Any person assisting 18
714714 a voter who is not entitled to such assistance, and any 19
715715 person who assists a voter and in any manner coerces or 20
716716 initiates a request or a suggestion that the voter vote for 21
717717 or against or refrain from voting on any question, tick et or 22
718718 candidate, shall be guilty of a class one election offense. 23
719719 If, upon counting, challenge or election contest, it is 24
720720 ascertained that any absentee ballot was voted with unlawful 25
721721 assistance, the ballot shall be rejected. [For purposes of 26
722722 this subsection, the voters who are in an at -risk category 27
723723 for contracting or transmitting severe acute respiratory 28
724724 syndrome coronavirus 2 are voters who: 29
725725 (1) Sixty-five years of age or older; 30
726726 (2) Live in a long-term care facility licensed under 31
727727 chapter 198; 32
728728 (3) Have chronic lung disease or moderate to severe 33
729729 asthma; 34
730730 (4) Have serious heart conditions; 35
731731 (5) Are immunocompromised; 36
732732 (6) Have diabetes; 37 SB 730 18
733733 (7) Have chronic kidney disease and are undergoing 38
734734 dialysis; or 39
735735 (8) Have liver disease.] 40
736736 2. Except as provided in subsection 4 of this section, 41
737737 each absentee ballot that is not cast by the voter in person 42
738738 in the office of the election authority shall be returned to 43
739739 the election authority in the ballot envelope a nd shall only 44
740740 be returned by the voter in person, or in person by a 45
741741 relative of the voter who is within the second degree of 46
742742 consanguinity or affinity, by mail or registered carrier or 47
743743 by a team of deputy election authorities; except that 48
744744 covered voters, when sent from a location determined by the 49
745745 secretary of state to be inaccessible on election day, shall 50
746746 be allowed to return their absentee ballots cast by use of 51
747747 facsimile transmission or under a program approved by the 52
748748 Department of Defense for electronic transmission of 53
749749 election materials. 54
750750 3. In cases of an emergency declared by the President 55
751751 of the United States or the governor of this state where the 56
752752 conduct of an election may be affected, the secretary of 57
753753 state may provide for the d elivery and return of absentee 58
754754 ballots by use of a facsimile transmission device or 59
755755 system. Any rule promulgated pursuant to this subsection 60
756756 shall apply to a class or classes of voters as provided for 61
757757 by the secretary of state. 62
758758 4. No election authority shall refuse to accept and 63
759759 process any otherwise valid marked absentee ballot submitted 64
760760 in any manner by a covered voter solely on the basis of 65
761761 restrictions on envelope type. 66
762762