Bill > S847

Introduced Session

This bill clarifies that an official mail-in ballot envelope is for the intended recipient only. When an official mail-in ballot is mailed to an address at which the listed voter no longer resides, the person residing at that address may return the ballot to the county clerk of the county in which the ballot was issued. The person residing at that address may return the unopened official mail-in ballot envelope in person to the county clerk or deposit the envelope in a ballot drop box or any outgoing United States Postal Service mailbox or letter collection box with a return to sender notation on the front of the envelope. Under the bill, the person residing at that address may write one of the following notations on the front of the unopened official mail-in ballot envelope: (1) Return to Sender - No Longer at this Address; (2) Return to Sender - Moved out of State or County; (3) Return to Sender - Deceased; or (4) any other notations deemed appropriate by the Secretary of State. Under the bill, the Secretary of State is required to prepare and transmit, within 60 days of the bill's effective date, instructions on how to return an unopened official mail-in ballot envelope to sender. The instructions prepared by the Secretary of State are required to be contained in any printed or electronic voter information notices or educational materials provided or disseminated by the Department of State. The New Jersey Division of Elections and each county clerk and board of elections in this State must make available on their websites, if one exists, the instructions prepared by the Secretary of State. This bill also requires the words "Do Not Forward. Return to Sender. Return Postage Guaranteed." to be printed or stamped on the official mail-in ballot envelope sent by the county clerks. Under the bill, any mail-in ballot that is sent to a qualified voter and that is returned to the county clerk for any reason is required to be forwarded by the county clerk to the commissioner of registration within 30 days from the date the mail-in ballot is returned to the county clerk. If the reason the mail-in ballot is returned is due to the death of the qualified voter, the commissioner of registration is required to determine if the death was filed by the officer in charge of records of death in the municipality in which the decedent resided as prescribed in current law and must undertake the procedures provided in current law. The bill requires that any deceased registrant on the monthly or yearly list of deceased persons 18 years of age or older to be transferred to the death file within 30 days after the investigation provided in current law is completed. Under the bill, a mail-in voter is permitted to cure their mail-in ballot due to a missing or detached mail-in voter certificate. Under current law, each mail-in voter is required to complete the Certificate of Mail-in Voter that is attached to the flap of the mail-in ballot inner envelope. By completing the certificate, the mail-in voter certifies, subject to the penalties for fraudulent voting: the voter's address, that the voter is the person who applied for the enclosed ballot, that the voter marked the ballot in secret, and that a family member may provide assistance to the voter. The mail-in voter and any person who provided assistance to the voter are required to sign the certificate. Under this bill, when the voter failed to include the Certificate of Mail-in Voter or includes a detached Certificate of Mail-in Voter, the county board of elections would be required to provide the voter, along with the Cure Letter and Cure Form, with a substantially similar certificate for the voter to complete in order to cure the voter's mail-in ballot in accordance with the same requirements, procedures, and timeframes specified for ballot curing due to a missing or discrepant signature.

Committee Categories

Tony Bucco (R)*,  Mike Testa (R)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism & Historic Preservation Committee (on 01/09/2024)

Official Document