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A bill to be entitled

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An act relating to elections; amending s. 101.6102, F.S.;

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revising limitations on, and requirements for, mail ballot

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elections; authorizing certain candidate elections to be

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conducted by mail ballot; amending s. 101.6103, F.S.;

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requiring the supervisor of elections to keep a record of

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all mail ballots; clarifying that electors mailing ballots

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must pay postage; requiring all supervisors of elections

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offices to remain open extra hours on the day of a mail

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ballot election; amending s. 101.62, F.S.; providing for

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permanent absentee voter status; revising circumstances

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under which an absentee ballot request is deemed

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cancelled; providing an effective date.

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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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     Section 1.  Section 101.6102, Florida Statutes, is amended

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to read:

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     101.6102  Mail ballot elections; limitations.--

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     (1)(a)  An election may be conducted by mail ballot if:

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     1. It is an The election is a referendum election at which

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all or a portion of the qualified electors of one of the

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following subdivisions of government are the only electors

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eligible to vote:

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     a.  Counties;

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     b. Municipalities Cities;

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     c.  School districts covering no more than one county; or

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     d. Special districts; however, for candidate elections, the

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district must cover no more than one county;

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     2.  The governing body responsible for calling the election

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and the supervisor of elections responsible for the conduct of

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the election authorize the use of mail ballots for the election;

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and

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     3.  The Secretary of State approves a written plan for the

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conduct of the election, which shall include a written timetable

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for the conduct of the election, submitted by the supervisor of

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elections.

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     (b) In addition, An annexation referendum which includes

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only qualified electors of one county may also be voted on by

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mail ballot election.

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     (2) The following elections may not be conducted by mail

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ballot:

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     (a) An election at which any candidate is nominated,

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elected, retained, or recalled; or

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     (b) An election held on the same date as another non-mail-

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ballot election, other than a mail ballot election, in which the

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qualified electors of that political subdivision are eligible to

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cast ballots may not be conducted by mail ballot.

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     (3)  The supervisor of elections shall be responsible for

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the conduct of any election held under ss. 101.6101-101.6107.

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     (4)  The costs of a mail ballot election shall be borne by

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the jurisdiction initiating the calling of the election, unless

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otherwise provided by law.

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     (5)  Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit

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the use of a mail ballot election in a municipal annexation

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referendum requiring separate vote of the registered electors of

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the annexing municipality and of the area proposed to be annexed.

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If a mail ballot election is authorized for a municipal

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annexation referendum, the provisions of ss. 101.6101-101.6107

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shall control over any conflicting provisions of s. 171.0413.

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     Section 2.  Subsections (1) and (2) of section 101.6103,

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Florida Statutes, are amended to read:

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     101.6103  Mail ballot election procedure.--

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     (1)  Except as otherwise provided in subsection (7), the

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supervisor of elections shall mail all official ballots with a

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secrecy envelope, a return mailing envelope, and instructions

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sufficient to describe the voting process to each elector

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entitled to vote in the election not sooner than the 20th day

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before the election and not later than the 10th day before the

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date of the election. All such ballots shall be mailed by first-

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class mail. Ballots shall be addressed to each elector at the

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address appearing in the registration records and placed in an

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envelope which is prominently marked "Do Not Forward." The

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supervisor of elections shall keep a record of all ballots mailed

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and all ballots returned.

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     (2)  Upon receipt of the ballot the elector shall mark the

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ballot, place it in the secrecy envelope, sign the return mailing

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envelope supplied with the ballot, and comply with the

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instructions provided with the ballot. The elector shall mail,

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deliver, or have delivered the marked ballot so that it reaches

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the supervisor of elections no later than 7 p.m. on the day of

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the election. The ballot must be returned in the return mailing

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envelope. The elector shall pay postage if he or she chooses to

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return the ballot by mail. If the elector chooses to return the

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ballot in person, the main and branch offices of the supervisor

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of elections shall remain open on the day of the election until 7

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p.m.

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     Section 3.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section

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101.62, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

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     101.62  Request for absentee ballots.--

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     (1)(a)  The supervisor may accept a request for an absentee

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ballot from an elector in person or in writing. Except as

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provided in s. 101.694, one request shall be deemed sufficient to

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receive an absentee ballot for all elections through the next two

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regularly scheduled general elections, unless the elector or the

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elector's designee indicates at the time the request is made the

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elections for which the elector desires to receive an absentee

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ballot. Such request may be considered canceled when any first-

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class mail sent by the supervisor to the elector is returned as

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undeliverable or when the elector notifies the supervisor in

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person or in writing that he or she no longer wishes to receive

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an absentee ballot.

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     Section 4.  This act shall take effect January 1, 2009.