Bill > A4475

Introduced Session

This bill requires county boards of election to establish mail-in ballot drop boxes in each county at least seven days before the election. Under current law, voters who vote using a mail-in ballot may deposit their ballot in the mail or may deliver it in person to the county board of elections or provide it to a mail-in ballot bearer to deliver their ballot. This bill would also entitle mail-in voters to deposit their ballot in a ballot drop box before the time designated for the closing of the polls on election day. Under the bill, the county board of elections in each county would establish ballot drop boxes throughout the county in a manner that provides the greatest convenience to voters. Ballot drop boxes would include both staffed and unstaffed locations. "Staffed" ballot drop boxes would be in the view of a live person who is employed at the drop box location, a municipal or county employee, or a temporary worker or volunteer retained to monitor the drop box. Staffed ballot drop box locations may include, but may not be limited to, municipal offices, county offices, public libraries, local businesses, and offices of community-based organizations. A staffed ballot drop box would not be required to be available for use by a voter 24 hours a day, but would be required to be available and staffed beginning at least seven days before the election and for the time designated for ballot drop boxes to be in effect before each election and until the time designated for the closing of the polls on election day. "Unstaffed" ballot drop boxes would be secure but not required to be within view of a live person for monitoring. Unstaffed ballot drop boxes would be available for use by a voter 24 hours a day, and may be located in each municipality or Census-Designated Place (CDP) with a post office, outside of every municipal clerk's office, board of elections office, town hall, police station, firehouse, United States Postal Service retail location, on each campus of a state institution of higher education located within the county that has two thousand or more enrolled students, or any other location equipped with security cameras that allow for the surveillance of the unstaffed ballot drop box. Both staffed and unstaffed drop box locations would be required to be accessible to voters with disabilities. The bill requires the Secretary of State, in consultation with county clerks and municipal clerks, to establish the rules and regulations necessary to ensure the secure and successful implementation of the mail-in ballot drop boxes. The rules and regulations would include, but may not be limited to, criteria for each county board of elections to: (1) determine the number of staffed and unstaffed ballot drop boxes required per voter population, considering both the number of registered voters and the number of registered mail-in voters in each county before each election; (2) select the geographic location of each ballot drop box, ensuring an equitable distribution of ballot drop boxes across the county to maximize convenience to voters; (3) ensure the accessibility of ballot drop boxes and drop box locations to persons with disabilities; and (4) maintain the security of ballot drop boxes and of the ballots deposited therein, including standards and procedures for ballot retrieval by authorized persons only, and for ensuring the proper chain of custody and safe storage of voted mail-in ballots before each election. The bill also provides for an appropriation from the State General Fund to the Department of State of the sums necessary to reimburse counties and municipalities for the costs of implementing its provisions.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Jim Beach (D)*,  Daniel Benson (D)*,  Ralph Caputo (D)*,  Verlina Reynolds-Jackson (D)*,  Paul Sarlo (D)*,  Troy Singleton (D)*,  Clinton Calabrese (D),  Annette Chaparro (D),  Nicholas Chiaravalloti (D),  Patrick Diegnan (D),  JoAnn Downey (D),  Roy Freiman (D),  Nia Gill (D),  Linda Greenstein (D),  Mila Jasey (D),  Gordon Johnson (D),  Nancy Pinkin (D),  Nellie Pou (D),  Lisa Swain (D),  Chris Tully (D),  Shirley Turner (D),  Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D),  Anthony Verrelli (D),  Andrew Zwicker (D), 

Approved P.L.2020, c.72. (on 08/28/2020)

Official Document