SB 937

Current law allows a voter who is indefinitely confined because of age, physical

illness, infirmity, or disability to have, by signing a statement to that effect, an

absentee ballot sent to the voter automatically every election. The voter is not

required to submit a copy of his or her voter identification with the request to receive

absentee ballots automatically. Current law requires the voter to notify the

municipal clerk when the voter is no longer indefinitely confined. Also, under

current law, if a voter fails to vote an absentee ballot the voter receives as a result

of his or her indefinitely confined status, the voter must renew his or her application

for indefinitely confined status within 30 days or be removed from the indefinitely

confined status list. Finally, the municipal clerk must remove a voter from the

indefinitely confined status list upon the voter's request or upon receipt of reliable

information that the voter no longer qualifies as indefinitely confined.

This bill does all of the following:

1. Provides that indefinitely confined status may be claimed by a voter who is

indefinitely confined and cannot travel independently without significant burden

because of frailty, physical illness, or a disability that will last longer than one year.

2. Provides that a voter seeking indefinitely confined status must apply for that

status on an application prescribed by the Elections Commission. Under the bill, the

application form prescribed by the commission must be separate and distinct from

any other absentee ballot application prescribed by the commission.

3. Subject to certain exceptions provided in the bill, requires that an applicant

for indefinitely confined status submit proof of identification with his or her

application.

4. Specifies that the existence of an outbreak or epidemic of a communicable

disease in a voter's community does not qualify the voter as indefinitely confined.

5. Specifies that the penalty for making a false statement for the purpose of

qualifying as indefinitely confined is a fine of not more than $1,000 or imprisonment

of not more than six months, or both.

6. Provides that a voter who fails to vote a ballot the voter receives as a result

of his or her indefinitely confined status may be removed from the indefinitely

confined status list only if he or she fails to vote the ballot at the spring or general

election.

7. Requires that the municipal clerk remove a voter from the indefinitely

confined status list if the voter votes at the polls in any election.

8. Requires the Elections Commission to facilitate the removal of the

indefinitely confined status of each voter who received that status between March

12, 2020, and November 3, 2020. A voter whose indefinitely confined status is so

removed must submit a new application for indefinitely confined status in order to

continue receiving absentee ballots automatically.

Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime,