Florida Senate - 2022                                    SB 1722
       
       
        
       By Senator Jones
       
       
       
       
       
       35-01167A-22                                          20221722__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to elections; repealing s. 97.029,
    3         F.S., relating to civil actions challenging the
    4         validity of election laws; repealing s. 97.0291, F.S.,
    5         relating to a prohibition on the use of private funds
    6         for election-related expenses; amending s. 97.0575,
    7         F.S.; revising the time period within which a third
    8         party voter registration organization must deliver
    9         voter registration applications to the Division of
   10         Elections of the Department of State or to a
   11         supervisor of elections; deleting provisions relating
   12         to certain notification requirements; amending s.
   13         97.1031, F.S.; revising information that an elector
   14         must provide to a supervisor of elections when the
   15         elector changes his or her residence address; amending
   16         s. 101.051, F.S.; deleting a prohibition on the
   17         solicitation of voters at drop box locations;
   18         conforming a provision to changes made by the act;
   19         amending s. 101.62, F.S.; revising requirements for
   20         vote-by-mail ballot requests; revising information
   21         that a supervisor is required to record for each vote
   22         by-mail ballot request the supervisor receives;
   23         deleting a prohibition against mailing vote-by-mail
   24         ballots to certain voters; amending s. 101.64, F.S.;
   25         deleting provisions relating to information included
   26         on vote-by-mail ballot mailing envelopes and secrecy
   27         envelopes; amending s. 101.69, F.S.; deleting
   28         provisions authorizing the use of certain secure drop
   29         boxes during certain hours; deleting provisions
   30         requiring the monitoring of secure drop boxes;
   31         deleting provisions relating to the designation of
   32         drop box sites; deleting provisions relating to the
   33         retrieval of ballots from secure drop boxes; deleting
   34         provisions subjecting a supervisor to certain civil
   35         penalties in certain circumstances; amending s.
   36         102.031, F.S.; deleting provisions prohibiting certain
   37         solicitation activities within a specified area
   38         surrounding a drop box; revising a definition;
   39         deleting a provision restricting certain persons from
   40         prohibiting the solicitation of voters by a candidate
   41         or a candidate’s designee outside of the no
   42         solicitation zone; repealing s. 104.0616, F.S.,
   43         relating to vote-by-mail ballots and voting; providing
   44         an effective date.
   45          
   46  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   47  
   48         Section 1. Section 97.029, Florida Statutes, is repealed.
   49         Section 2. Section 97.0291, Florida Statutes, is repealed.
   50         Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section
   51  97.0575, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   52         97.0575 Third-party voter registrations.—
   53         (3)(a) A third-party voter registration organization that
   54  collects voter registration applications serves as a fiduciary
   55  to the applicant, ensuring that any voter registration
   56  application entrusted to the organization, irrespective of party
   57  affiliation, race, ethnicity, or gender, must be promptly
   58  delivered to the division or the supervisor of elections in the
   59  county in which the applicant resides within 14 days after the
   60  application was completed by the applicant, but not after
   61  registration closes for the next ensuing election. A third-party
   62  voter registration organization must notify the applicant at the
   63  time the application is collected that the organization might
   64  not deliver the application to the division or the supervisor of
   65  elections in the county in which the applicant resides in less
   66  than 14 days or before registration closes for the next ensuing
   67  election and must advise the applicant that he or she may
   68  deliver the application in person or by mail. The third-party
   69  voter registration organization must also inform the applicant
   70  how to register online with the division and how to determine
   71  whether the application has been delivered. If a voter
   72  registration application collected by any third-party voter
   73  registration organization is not promptly delivered to the
   74  division or supervisor of elections in the county in which the
   75  applicant resides, the third-party voter registration
   76  organization is liable for the following fines:
   77         1. A fine in the amount of $50 for each application
   78  received by the division or the supervisor of elections in the
   79  county in which the applicant resides more than 14 days after
   80  the applicant delivered the completed voter registration
   81  application to the third-party voter registration organization
   82  or any person, entity, or agent acting on its behalf. A fine in
   83  the amount of $250 for each application received if the third
   84  party voter registration organization or person, entity, or
   85  agency acting on its behalf acted willfully.
   86         2. A fine in the amount of $100 for each application
   87  collected by a third-party voter registration organization or
   88  any person, entity, or agent acting on its behalf, before book
   89  closing for any given election for federal or state office and
   90  received by the division or the supervisor of elections in the
   91  county in which the applicant resides after the book-closing
   92  deadline for such election. A fine in the amount of $500 for
   93  each application received if the third-party registration
   94  organization or person, entity, or agency acting on its behalf
   95  acted willfully.
   96         3. A fine in the amount of $500 for each application
   97  collected by a third-party voter registration organization or
   98  any person, entity, or agent acting on its behalf, which is not
   99  submitted to the division or supervisor of elections in the
  100  county in which the applicant resides. A fine in the amount of
  101  $1,000 for any application not submitted if the third-party
  102  voter registration organization or person, entity, or agency
  103  acting on its behalf acted willfully.
  104  
  105  The aggregate fine pursuant to this paragraph which may be
  106  assessed against a third-party voter registration organization,
  107  including affiliate organizations, for violations committed in a
  108  calendar year is $1,000.
  109         Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 97.1031, Florida
  110  Statutes, is amended to read:
  111         97.1031 Notice of change of residence, change of name, or
  112  change of party affiliation.—
  113         (1)(a) When an elector changes his or her residence
  114  address, the elector must notify the supervisor of elections.
  115  Except as provided in paragraph (b), an address change must be
  116  submitted using a voter registration application.
  117         (b) If the address change is within the state and notice is
  118  provided to the supervisor of elections of the county where the
  119  elector has moved, the elector may do so by:
  120         1. Contacting the supervisor of elections via telephone or
  121  electronic means, in which case the elector must provide his or
  122  her date of birth and the last four digits of his or her social
  123  security number, his or her Florida driver license number, or
  124  his or her Florida identification card number, whichever may be
  125  verified in the supervisor’s records; or
  126         2. Submitting the change on a voter registration
  127  application or other signed written notice.
  128         Section 5. Subsections (2) and (5) of section 101.051,
  129  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  130         101.051 Electors seeking assistance in casting ballots;
  131  oath to be executed; forms to be furnished.—
  132         (2) It is unlawful for any person to be in the voting booth
  133  with any elector except as provided in subsection (1). A person
  134  at a polling place, a drop box location, or an early voting
  135  site, or within 150 feet of a drop box location or the entrance
  136  of a polling place or an early voting site, may not solicit any
  137  elector in an effort to provide assistance to vote pursuant to
  138  subsection (1). Any person who violates this subsection commits
  139  a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s.
  140  775.082 or s. 775.083.
  141         (5) If an elector needing assistance requests that a person
  142  other than an election official provide him or her with
  143  assistance in voting, the clerk or one of the inspectors shall
  144  require the person providing assistance to take the following
  145  oath:
  146  
  147                  DECLARATION TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE                
  148  
  149  State of Florida
  150  County of ....
  151  Date ....
  152  Precinct ....
  153  
  154         I, ...(Print name)..., have been requested by ...(print
  155  name of elector needing assistance)... to provide him or her
  156  with assistance to vote. I swear or affirm that I am not the
  157  employer, an agent of the employer, or an officer or agent of
  158  the union of the voter and that I have not solicited this voter
  159  at the polling place, drop box location, or early voting site or
  160  within 150 feet of such locations in an effort to provide
  161  assistance.
  162  
  163  ...(Signature of assistor)...
  164  
  165  Sworn and subscribed to before me this .... day of ....,
  166  ...(year)....
  167  
  168  ...(Signature of Official Administering Oath)...
  169         Section 6. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1), subsection (3),
  170  and subsection (7) of section 101.62, Florida Statutes, are
  171  amended to read:
  172         101.62 Request for vote-by-mail ballots.—
  173         (1)(b) The supervisor may accept a written, an in-person,
  174  or a telephonic request for a vote-by-mail ballot to be mailed
  175  to an elector’s address on file in the Florida Voter
  176  Registration System from the elector, or, if directly instructed
  177  by the elector, a member of the elector’s immediate family, or
  178  the elector’s legal guardian. If an in-person or a telephonic
  179  request is made, the elector must provide the elector’s Florida
  180  driver license number, the elector’s Florida identification card
  181  number, or the last four digits of the elector’s social security
  182  number, whichever may be verified in the supervisor’s records.
  183  If the ballot is requested to be mailed to an address other than
  184  the elector’s address on file in the Florida Voter Registration
  185  System, the request must be made in writing. A written request
  186  must be signed by the elector and include the elector’s Florida
  187  driver license number, the elector’s Florida identification card
  188  number, or the last four digits of the elector’s social security
  189  number. However, an absent uniformed service voter or an
  190  overseas voter seeking a vote-by-mail ballot is not required to
  191  submit a signed, written request for a vote-by-mail ballot that
  192  is being mailed to an address other than the elector’s address
  193  on file in the Florida Voter Registration System. For purposes
  194  of this section, the term “immediate family” has the same
  195  meaning as specified in paragraph (4)(c). The person making the
  196  request must disclose:
  197         1. The name of the elector for whom the ballot is
  198  requested.
  199         2. The elector’s address.
  200         3. The elector’s date of birth.
  201         4. The elector’s Florida driver license number, the
  202  elector’s Florida identification card number, or the last four
  203  digits of the elector’s social security number, whichever may be
  204  verified in the supervisor’s records.
  205         5. The requester’s name.
  206         5.6. The requester’s address.
  207         6.7. The requester’s driver license number, the requester’s
  208  identification card number, or the last four digits of the
  209  requester’s social security number, if available.
  210         7.8. The requester’s relationship to the elector.
  211         8.9. The requester’s signature (written requests only).
  212         (3) For each request for a vote-by-mail ballot received,
  213  the supervisor shall record: the date the request was made; the
  214  identity of the voter’s designee making the request, if any; the
  215  Florida driver license number, Florida identification card
  216  number, or last four digits of the social security number of the
  217  elector provided with a written request; the date the vote-by
  218  mail ballot was delivered to the voter or the voter’s designee
  219  or the date the vote-by-mail ballot was delivered to the post
  220  office or other carrier; the address to which the ballot was
  221  mailed or the identity of the voter’s designee to whom the
  222  ballot was delivered; the date the ballot was received by the
  223  supervisor; the absence of the voter’s signature on the voter’s
  224  certificate, if applicable; whether the voter’s certificate
  225  contains a signature that does not match the elector’s signature
  226  in the registration books or precinct register; and such other
  227  information he or she may deem necessary. This information shall
  228  be provided in electronic format as provided by division rule.
  229  The information shall be updated and made available no later
  230  than 8 a.m. of each day, including weekends, beginning 60 days
  231  before the primary until 15 days after the general election and
  232  shall be contemporaneously provided to the division. This
  233  information shall be confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1)
  234  and shall be made available to or reproduced only for the voter
  235  requesting the ballot, a canvassing board, an election official,
  236  a political party or official thereof, a candidate who has filed
  237  qualification papers and is opposed in an upcoming election, and
  238  registered political committees for political purposes only.
  239         (7)Except as expressly authorized for voters having a
  240  disability under s. 101.662, for overseas voters under s.
  241  101.697, or for local referenda under ss. 101.6102 and 101.6103,
  242  a county, municipality, or state agency may not send a vote-by
  243  mail ballot to a voter unless the voter has requested a vote-by
  244  mail ballot in the manner authorized under this section.
  245         Section 7. Subsection (1) of section 101.64, Florida
  246  Statutes, is amended to read:
  247         101.64 Delivery of vote-by-mail ballots; envelopes; form.—
  248         (1)(a) The supervisor shall enclose with each vote-by-mail
  249  ballot two envelopes: a secrecy envelope, into which the absent
  250  elector shall enclose his or her marked ballot; and a mailing
  251  envelope, into which the absent elector shall then place the
  252  secrecy envelope, which shall be addressed to the supervisor and
  253  also bear on the back side a certificate in substantially the
  254  following form:
  255  
  256           Note: Please Read Instructions Carefully Before         
  257         Marking Ballot and Completing Voter’s Certificate.        
  258  
  259                         VOTER’S CERTIFICATE                       
  260         I, ...., do solemnly swear or affirm that I am a qualified
  261  and registered voter of .... County, Florida, and that I have
  262  not and will not vote more than one ballot in this election. I
  263  understand that if I commit or attempt to commit any fraud in
  264  connection with voting, vote a fraudulent ballot, or vote more
  265  than once in an election, I can be convicted of a felony of the
  266  third degree and fined up to $5,000 and/or imprisoned for up to
  267  5 years. I also understand that failure to sign this certificate
  268  will invalidate my ballot.
  269  ...(Date)...	...(Voter’s Signature)...
  270  ...(E-Mail Address)...	...(Home Telephone Number)...
  271  ...(Mobile Telephone Number)...
  272  
  273         (b)Each return mailing envelope must bear the absent
  274  elector’s name and any encoded mark used by the supervisor’s
  275  office.
  276         (c)A mailing envelope or secrecy envelope may not bear any
  277  indication of the political affiliation of an absent elector.
  278         Section 8. Subsections (2) and (3) of section 101.69,
  279  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  280         101.69 Voting in person; return of vote-by-mail ballot.—
  281         (2)(a) The supervisor shall allow an elector who has
  282  received a vote-by-mail ballot to physically return a voted
  283  vote-by-mail ballot to the supervisor by placing the return mail
  284  envelope containing his or her marked ballot in a secure drop
  285  box. Secure drop boxes shall be placed at the main office of the
  286  supervisor, at each permanent branch office of the supervisor,
  287  and at each early voting site. Secure drop boxes may also be
  288  placed at any other site that would otherwise qualify as an
  289  early voting site under s. 101.657(1). Drop boxes must be
  290  geographically located so as to provide all voters in the county
  291  with an equal opportunity to cast a ballot, insofar as is
  292  practicable. Except for secure drop boxes at an office of the
  293  supervisor, a secure drop box may only be used during the
  294  county’s early voting hours of operation and must be monitored
  295  in person by an employee of the supervisor’s office. A secure
  296  drop box at an office of the supervisor must be continuously
  297  monitored in person by an employee of the supervisor’s office
  298  when the drop box is accessible for deposit of ballots.
  299         (b)A supervisor shall designate each drop box site at
  300  least 30 days before an election. The supervisor shall provide
  301  the address of each drop box location to the division at least
  302  30 days before an election. After a drop box location has been
  303  designated, it may not be moved or changed except as approved by
  304  the division to correct a violation of this subsection.
  305         (c)1.On each day of early voting, all drop boxes must be
  306  emptied at the end of early voting hours and all ballots
  307  retrieved from the drop boxes must be returned to the
  308  supervisor’s office.
  309         2.For drop boxes located at an office of the supervisor,
  310  all ballots must be retrieved before the drop box is no longer
  311  monitored by an employee of the supervisor.
  312         3.Employees of the supervisor must comply with procedures
  313  for the chain of custody of ballots as required by s.
  314  101.015(4).
  315         (3)If any drop box is left accessible for ballot receipt
  316  other than as authorized by this section, the supervisor is
  317  subject to a civil penalty of $25,000. The division is
  318  authorized to enforce this provision.
  319         Section 9. Paragraphs (a), (b), and (e) of subsection (4)
  320  of section 102.031, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  321         102.031 Maintenance of good order at polls; authorities;
  322  persons allowed in polling rooms and early voting areas;
  323  unlawful solicitation of voters.—
  324         (4)(a) No person, political committee, or other group or
  325  organization may solicit voters inside the polling place or
  326  within 150 feet of a drop box or the entrance to any polling
  327  place, a polling room where the polling place is also a polling
  328  room, an early voting site, or an office of the supervisor where
  329  vote-by-mail ballots are requested and printed on demand for the
  330  convenience of electors who appear in person to request them.
  331  Before the opening of a drop box location, a polling place, or
  332  an early voting site, the clerk or supervisor shall designate
  333  the no-solicitation zone and mark the boundaries.
  334         (b) For the purpose of this subsection, the terms “solicit”
  335  or “solicitation” shall include, but not be limited to, seeking
  336  or attempting to seek any vote, fact, opinion, or contribution;
  337  distributing or attempting to distribute any political or
  338  campaign material, leaflet, or handout; conducting a poll except
  339  as specified in this paragraph; seeking or attempting to seek a
  340  signature on any petition; and selling or attempting to sell any
  341  item; and engaging in any activity with the intent to influence
  342  or effect of influencing a voter. The terms “solicit” or
  343  “solicitation” may not be construed to prohibit an employee of,
  344  or a volunteer with, the supervisor from providing nonpartisan
  345  assistance to voters within the no-solicitation zone such as,
  346  but not limited to, giving items to voters, or to prohibit exit
  347  polling.
  348         (e) The owner, operator, or lessee of the property on which
  349  a polling place or an early voting site is located, or an agent
  350  or employee thereof, may not prohibit the solicitation of voters
  351  by a candidate or a candidate’s designee outside of the no
  352  solicitation zone during polling hours.
  353         Section 10. Section 104.0616, Florida Statutes, is
  354  repealed.
  355         Section 11. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.