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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2nd Session of the 58th Legislature (2022)
SENATE BILL 1570 By: Hamilton
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to absentee voting; stating preferred
method of voting; providing ce rtain exceptions;
providing procedures for request ing absentee ballots;
authorizing issuance of absentee ballot under certain
circumstances; requiring election officials to
maintain certain list; specifying method o f real time
transmission and collection o f certain ballot
information; providing procedures for absentee ballot
return information; prohibiting certain election
official conduct regarding absentee ballot
procedures; providing deadli ne of receipt of certain
ballots; specifying method of counting, storing, and
examination of ballots; allowing cert ification of
ballots under certain circumstances; requiring
absentee ballots and envelopes to be equipped with
watermarks and barcode or micr ochip; repealing 26
O.S. 2021, Sections 14-101, 14-102, 14-103, 14-104,
14-105, 14-106, 14-107, 14-108, 14-108.1, 14-110.1,
14-111.1, 14-112.1, 14-113.2, 14-115.4, 14-115.5, 14-
115.7, 14-122, 14-123, 14-124, and 14-125; providing
for codification; providing an effective date; and
declaring an emergency .
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 14-161 of Title 26, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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A. In-person voting is the preferred method of vot ing within
this state and shall be utilized ex cept as outlined in paragraph 2
of subsection B of this section.
B. Any qualified elector of this state may apply for and vote
an absentee ballot if he or she makes application in writing not
less than ten (10) days before Election Day , or in accordance with
the U.S. Postal Service delivery standards for the state , and meets
one or more of the following requirements:
1. The voter expects to be out of th e jurisdiction on Election
Day and on all early voting days; or
2. The voter has a disabili ty preventing his or her attendance
at the polls.
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Se ction 14-162 of Title 26, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. 1. A blank application to request an absentee ballot shall
be sent to any qualified elector upon request and made available
online, but no government official or ent ity shall send absentee
ballot applications directly to any elector except upon the direct
request of such elector, and no such application shall be pref illed
with the elector’s required information.
2. No person or entity other than the elector, a p erson
assisting a physically disabled elector with his or her application,
a common carrier charged with returning the ballot application, an
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election official, or a law enforcement official in the course of an
investigation shall handle or return an elect or’s completed absentee
ballot application.
3. The absentee ballot request form shall contain sufficient
information to identify the applicant and shall include the
applicant’s name, residence address, and such other information as
is necessary to verify that the applicant is a registered voter.
4. Each application shall be manually signed by the applicant
and, if he or she signs by mark, shall include the signature of a
witness as well as the name, address, and telephone number of such
witness.
5. No electronic signatures will be permitted for the purpose
of requesting an absentee ballot.
6. Witnesses may not sign more than one abse ntee ballot request
form per election unless doing so for an immediate family member.
Immediate family members include:
a. mother or father; stepmother or stepfather ,
b. spouse, child, stepchild, sibling, or stepsibling , or
c. grandparent.
Violation of this provision will subject the witness to a civil
penalty of Five Hundred Dollars ($ 500.00) per offense.
7. The application may be handed by the applicant to an
election official or forwarded by United States mail or by
commercial carrier.
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8. Voters requesting an absentee ballot shall submit with the
application a copy of one of the forms of identification listed in
subparagraphs a through g of this paragraph. An absentee ballot
shall not be issued unless the required identification is s ubmitted
with the signed absentee ballot application.
All acceptable forms of photo identification should clearly note
whether the voter is a citizen if the ID is issued to both citizens
and noncitizens. Any alternative or exception to the following
forms of identification including affidavits submitted as
identification, are prohibited :
a. driver license,
b. state non-driver ID card,
c. current (non-expired) U.S. passport,
d. United States military ID,
e. tribal government ID ,
f. ID issued by a state government , or
g. college or university ID.
If an eligible voter has a s tate driver license or state non -
driver ID card, in lieu of providing a photocopy of an ID, the
applicant may provide the serial nu mber of the driver license or
non-driver ID card.
9. For those voters who cannot afford a government -issued ID,
one shall be offered free of charge through a motor license agent
upon proper application . For individuals with physical or other
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disabilities that prevent them from acquiring a government -issued
ID, the state shall provide appropriate transportation from the
individual’s place of residence to the office or motor license agent
and back or shall provide such other assistance as is necessary to
ensure that such individual receives a government -issued ID.
B. 1. Upon receipt of an application for an absentee ballot,
if the applicant’s name and identifying information appear on the
list of qualified voters, the signature has been successfully
compared to the signature on file, and the applicant has met the ID
requirement, election officials shall furnish an abs entee ballot to
the applicant.
2. Election officials shall maintain a list of a bsentee ballots
provided to registered voters for each electio n and shall include
the date the application for the absentee ballot was received. This
list shall be provided to the appropriate tabulator for absentee
ballots within each precinct.
3. County election offices should scan and provide absentee
mail ballots or early ballot information to state election
authorities within twenty-four (24) hours of request, trans mission,
and return of all absentee or mail ballots.
4. The request for absente e mail ballot, transmission, or
return receipt of absentee mail or ea rly ballot information from
locality or county election offices should be uploaded or
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transmitted to state election databases electronically and made
available to political campaigns or t he public for review.
5. The voter registration systems at the local and state level
shall allow for real-time reporting of absentee mail ballot
requests, transmittal and receipt of ballots, or the check -in of
early voters.
SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statu tes as Section 14-163 of Title 26, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as foll ows:
A. 1. Absentee ballot return envelopes must attach an
affidavit signed by the voter. The affidavit shall contain the
signature of a witness or a not ary public or other official
authorized to acknowledge oaths and meet the following as
applicable:
a. if a voter chooses to submit a witness signature, the
printed name, address, and telephone number of the
witness shall be included,
b. witnesses shall not sign more than one absentee ballot
per election, except as provided in subparagraph c of
this paragraph, or
c. a witness may sign the absentee ballots of multiple
immediate family members as provided in paragraph 6 of
subsection A of Section 2 of this act.
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2. Together with the absentee ballot and affidavit, absentee
voters shall submit a copy of one valid form of identification or
the serial number of a state driver ’s license or non-driver’s ID.
Absentee ballot return envelopes not complying with this ID
requirement shall not be counted.
3. Affidavit envelopes not signed by the voter and properly
witnessed or notarized shall not be opened or counted.
4. Each precinct shall provide a bipartisan team of el ection
officials to assist individuals who are see king to cast an absentee
ballot from a hospital, nursing home, or other such facil ity or who,
due to physical limitation or handicap, require assistance in
returning an absentee ballot in the appropriate fo rmat.
B. If an absentee ballot request form or an absentee ballot
sent to a registered elector is returned by the United States Po stal
Service as undeliverable, election officials shall investigate the
voter’s registration to determine the eligibility, qu alifications,
and validity of the voter ’s registration and registration address.
SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 14-164 of Title 26, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. Under no circumstances shall election officials:
1. Maintain a permanent absentee ballot list for the purpose of
automatically sending either ballot request forms or absentee
ballots; and
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2. Automatically mail either bal lot request forms or absentee
ballots to all regis tered voters.
B. Each individual who plans to vote absentee shall submit an
absentee ballot request form for each election in which he or she
wishes to vote.
SECTION 5. NEW LAW A ne w section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 14-165 of Title 26, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. Absentee ballots must be received by the time the polls
close on Election Day.
B. Upon receipt of the absentee ballot by any means permitted
herein, the election authority shall record its receipt and sh all
store the ballot safely and securely without breaking the seal of
the affidavit envelope. The absentee ballot containers in the
possession of the appropriate election authority shall remain s ealed
until such time as counting begins.
C. The counting of absentee ballots shall begin on the day of
the election for which the absentee ballots have been submitted and
only after the closing of the pol ls. Such counting shall continue
uninterrupted until all ballots appropriately submitted have been
tabulated. Should extreme or unforeseen circumstances require
suspension of the vote count, the appropriate election officials
shall notify the public and the state’s chief election official of
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the suspension, the reason for the suspension, and the exact time
the vote count will resume as soon as possible.
D. Election officials shall examine each affidavit envelope to
determine:
1. Whether the signature of the voter has been appropriately
notarized or witnessed and any witness has provided a signature,
printed name, address, and phone number;
2. Whether the identification requirement has been met; and
3. Whether the voter’s signature on the absentee ballo t matches
the signature in the registration files. If signature comparison
software is used, it must be set to an accuracy rate of at least
ninety-five percent (95%).
No poll worker or other election official shall open an
affidavit envelope if the voter ’s affidavit signature or mark is not
properly notarized or witnessed as set forth in t his act, and no
ballot envelope or ballot therein may be removed or counted.
No poll worker or other election official shall open an
affidavit envelope if the envel ope indicates that the ballot is
unverified or the affid avit printed thereon is unsigne d by the voter
or unmarked, and no ballot envelope or ballot therein may be removed
or counted.
E. If all of these requirements have been complied with and the
information in the affidavit establishes that the voter is entit led
to vote by absentee ba llot, the election officials shall then
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certify the findings, open each affidavit envelope, and deposit the
plain envelope containing the absentee ballot into a sealed b allot
box.
SECTION 6. NEW LAW A new s ection of law to be codif ied
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 14-166 of Title 26, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. Absentee ballots shall have a water mark on the ballot as
well as a unique barcode or microchip wi thin each absentee ballot to
trigger an electronic or software notification that a ballot is
being counted by a computer scanner and cannot be counted again.
Such barcode or microchip shall not identify the voter who has used
that absentee ballot.
B. All envelopes used to send voters blank absentee ballots as
well as the envelopes provided to v oters to mail back their
completed absentee ballots shall also contain a unique barcode or
microchip that can be used to track the progress of such ballot
envelopes through the United States Postal Service.
SECTION 7. REPEALER 26 O.S. 2021, Sections 14 -101, 14-
102, 14-103, 14-104, 14-105, 14-106, 14-107, 14-108, 14-108.1, 14-
110.1, 14-111.1, 14-112.1, 14-113.2, 14-115.4, 14-115.5, 14-115.7,
14-122, 14-123, 14-124, and 14-125, are hereby repealed.
SECTION 8. This act shall become effective July 1, 2022.
SECTION 9. It being immediately necessary for the preservatio n
of the public peace, health or safety, an emerge ncy is hereby
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declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
58-2-2805 TEK 1/20/2022 11:32:25 AM