Florida Senate - 2025 SB 1486
By Senator Polsky
30-01455-25 20251486__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to elections affected by disasters;
3 amending s. 101.733, F.S.; requiring that a certain
4 notice be posted on affected municipalities’ websites;
5 requiring supervisors of elections to also notify
6 voters using specified means; requiring the Division
7 of Elections to provide and present a certain
8 contingency plan to the Legislature; providing that
9 such presentation is a public record; requiring the
10 Secretary of State to consider certain sectors when
11 assessing the impact on their jurisdiction and the
12 ability of voters to participate in elections;
13 requiring that voters be able to perform specified
14 actions under certain conditions; requiring the
15 division to perform specified actions under certain
16 conditions; requiring that certain information be
17 provided in a specified manner and updated in real
18 time as changes are made; requiring the division to
19 maintain a specified number of strategic elections
20 equipment reserves in specified locations; requiring
21 that such reserves be deployed for certain purposes;
22 requiring that the reserves include certain equipment;
23 authorizing the division to contract with a state
24 approved vendor for such equipment; requiring that,
25 under specified conditions, election officials be able
26 to perform specified actions; requiring certain
27 counties and municipalities to update their websites
28 to include specified information; providing that
29 specified criminal penalties do not apply under
30 specified conditions; amending s. 101.62, F.S.;
31 providing that the use of the uniform statewide ballot
32 application may not be required for requests for vote
33 by-mail ballots from certain voters; conforming
34 provisions to changes made by the act; amending s.
35 101.657, F.S.; authorizing that certain locations be
36 designated as early voting locations; conforming
37 provisions to changes made by the act; amending s.
38 102.141, F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made
39 by the act; amending s. 104.0616, F.S.; providing an
40 exemption from criminal penalties to conform to
41 changes made by the act; providing an effective date.
42
43 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
44
45 Section 1. Section 101.733, Florida Statutes, is amended to
46 read:
47 101.733 Election emergency; purpose; elections emergency
48 contingency plan; voter protections.—Because of the existing and
49 continuing possibility of an emergency or common disaster
50 occurring before or during a regularly scheduled or special
51 election, and in order to ensure maximum citizen participation
52 in the electoral process and provide a safe and orderly
53 procedure for persons seeking to exercise their right to vote,
54 generally to minimize to whatever degree possible a person’s
55 exposure to danger during declared states of emergency, and to
56 protect the integrity of the electoral process, it is hereby
57 found and declared to be necessary to designate a procedure for
58 the emergency suspension or delay and rescheduling of elections.
59 (1) The Governor may, upon issuance of an executive order
60 declaring a state of emergency or impending emergency, suspend
61 or delay any election. The Governor may take such action
62 independently or at the request of the Secretary of State, a
63 supervisor of elections from a county affected by the emergency
64 circumstances, or a municipal clerk from a municipality affected
65 by the emergency circumstances.
66 (2) The Governor, upon consultation with the Secretary of
67 State, shall reschedule any election suspended or delayed due to
68 an emergency. The election shall be held within 10 days after
69 the date of the suspended or delayed election or as soon
70 thereafter as is practicable. Notice of the election must be
71 published on the affected county’s website and on the affected
72 municipality’s website as provided in s. 50.0311, on the
73 affected supervisor’s website;, or at least once in a newspaper
74 of general circulation in the affected area; and, if where
75 practicable, broadcast as a public service announcement on radio
76 and television stations at least 1 week before the date the
77 election is to be held. Supervisors of elections shall also
78 notify voters in their respective county through other available
79 and regularly used means of communication, including, but not
80 limited to, the use of social media, e-mails, telephone calls,
81 and text message.
82 (3) The Division of Elections of the Department of State
83 shall adopt, by rule, an elections emergency contingency plan,
84 which shall contain goals and policies that give specific
85 direction to state and local elections officials when an
86 election has been suspended or delayed due to an emergency. The
87 division must provide and prepare this contingency plan to the
88 Legislature each year that an election is conducted. The
89 presentation is a public record. The contingency plan must shall
90 be statewide in scope and must shall address, but not be limited
91 to, the following concerns:
92 (a) Providing a procedure for state and local elections
93 officials to follow when an election has been suspended or
94 delayed to ensure notice of the suspension or delay to the
95 proper authorities, the electorate, the communications media,
96 poll workers, and the custodians of polling places.
97 (b) Providing a procedure for the orderly conduct of a
98 rescheduled election, whether municipal, county, district, or
99 statewide in scope; coordinating those efforts with the
100 appropriate elections official, and the members of the governing
101 body holding such election, if appropriate; and working with the
102 appropriate emergency management officials in determining the
103 safety of existing polling places or designating additional
104 polling places.
105 (c) Providing a procedure for the release and certification
106 of election returns to the department for elections suspended or
107 delayed and subsequently rescheduled under the provisions of ss.
108 101.731-101.74.
109 (4) When assessing impacts on jurisdictions and the ability
110 of all voters to participate in elections, the secretary shall
111 consider impacts on housing, transportation, utilities, Internet
112 access, the United States Postal Service, and accessibility
113 needs and shall proactively consult with supervisors and county
114 emergency management agencies, county public services and
115 utilities, social services, and community-based nongovernmental
116 organizations in the affected jurisdictions. At a minimum, in
117 any county designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency
118 as eligible for individual assistance or designated as being in
119 a state of emergency by the Governor in an executive order, a
120 voter must be able to do all of the following:
121 (a) Request a vote-by-mail ballot by telephone, in writing,
122 or by e-mail to be mailed to an address other than the voter’s
123 address on file, without requiring the voter to complete the
124 statewide vote-by-mail request form.
125 (b) Have the vote-by-mail ballot sent via forwardable mail,
126 such that displaced voters who have provided a forwarding
127 address to the United States Postal Service do not need to
128 request a new ballot.
129 (c) Return the completed vote-by-mail ballot to any county
130 and have the supervisor of that county forward that ballot to
131 the supervisor of the appropriate county.
132 (d) Drop the vote-by-mail ballot off at any polling place
133 or the supervisor of elections office on election day.
134 (e) Request that a vote-by-mail ballot be mailed to the
135 voter 10 days before election day, and request a vote-by-mail
136 ballot for pickup during early voting without an emergency
137 excuse.
138 (f) Have the vote-by-mail ballot counted, as long as it is
139 postmarked by or on election day and received within 2 days
140 after election day.
141 (g) Receive additional time, up to 5 p.m. on the fourth day
142 after the election, to cure any issues with the signature on the
143 vote-by-mail ballot.
144 (h) Obtain accurate and timely information about disaster
145 related changes to the voter’s voting options on a clearly and
146 prominently designated page on their supervisor’s website and,
147 for municipal and county elections on the respective website.
148 (5) At a minimum, if a county in this state is designated
149 by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as eligible for
150 public or individual assistance or is designated as being in a
151 state of emergency by the Governor in an executive order, and
152 there is a regularly scheduled or special election in that
153 county within 90 days after the designation, the division must:
154 (a) Create a page on the division’s website where voters
155 registered in any affected county can submit a vote-by-mail
156 request using a statewide phone number and online request form.
157 (b) Provide an emergency allocation to ensure that all
158 affected counties can pay for return paid postage for vote-by
159 mail ballots, additional staffing needs and other costs for
160 extended early voting hours, and additional early voting sites,
161 additional secure ballot intake stations and staffing to monitor
162 them, and voter education about changes to voting processes and
163 locations.
164 (c) Extend mandatory early voting hours in affected
165 counties from 8 to 12 hours per day throughout the early voting
166 period, and provide financial support, if necessary.
167 (d) Extend relevant election deadlines to accommodate
168 extended ballot return and ballot cure timeframes.
169 (e) Update the website and require that the Division of
170 Emergency Management and all other emergency pages include
171 information regarding changes to voting procedures or locations
172 in affected counties through election day. The following
173 information must be presented in a user-friendly format, written
174 in plain language, publicly promoted, and updated in real-time
175 as changes are made:
176 1. How to vote by mail for voters in affected counties,
177 including, but not limited to:
178 a. How voters can obtain and cast a vote-by-mail ballot if
179 unable to access their mailing address.
180 b. How voters can obtain and cast a vote-by-mail ballot if
181 they have recently requested one, but cannot locate it.
182 c. How voters can verify whether a vote-by-mail ballot that
183 was mailed back to the supervisor was received or if it was lost
184 or destroyed.
185 2. The dates, hours, and locations for vote-by-mail drop
186 off at secure ballot intake stations in affected counties.
187 3. The days and hours during which affected supervisor of
188 elections offices will be open and fully functional, including
189 locations and contact information for the supervisor
190 highlighting any changes.
191 4. The dates, hours, and locations for early voting in
192 affected counties and highlighting any changes.
193 5. The list of acceptable forms of voter identification
194 with instruction on how to obtain a new driver license or
195 Florida identification card for those who lost documentation as
196 a result of the emergency.
197 6. How to vote in person at early voting sites during the
198 early voting period or, if relevant, on election day, including
199 whether displaced voters can vote at these locations if outside
200 the precinct.
201 (f) Instruct supervisors in affected counties to update
202 their websites and social media through election day to
203 prominently display information about all the changes to
204 election procedures.
205 (g) Provide prominent links on the division’s website
206 containing voting and election information related to the
207 emergency and require the Division of Emergency Management and
208 any affected county or municipality include such links on their
209 websites.
210 (6) The division shall maintain at least three strategic
211 elections equipment reserves of voting systems: at least one in
212 the northern part of the state, at least one in the central part
213 of the state, and at least one in the southern part of the
214 state. Such reserves must be deployed to provide affected
215 counties with additional or replacement equipment necessary to
216 ensure adequate execution of elections in the aftermath of a
217 disaster. Such reserves must include tabulation equipment and
218 other necessary equipment, including, but not limited to,
219 ballot-on-demand printers and other printers that are in use by
220 each supervisor, accessible voting equipment, electronic poll
221 books, uninterrupted power supplies, generators, cabling, and
222 power cords. In lieu of maintaining a physical reserve of such
223 equipment, the division may contract with a state-approved
224 vendor of voting equipment to provide such equipment on an
225 emergency as-needed basis.
226 (7) At a minimum, in a county that is designated by the
227 Federal Emergency Management Agency as eligible for individual
228 or public assistance or designated by the Governor as being in a
229 state of emergency in an executive order, election officials
230 must be able to:
231 (a) Conduct early voting beginning 15 days before the
232 election through election day.
233 (b) Designate up to three early voting sites that are not
234 otherwise eligible early voting sites, as long as they are
235 geographically located so as to provide all voters in that area
236 with an equal opportunity to cast a ballot, insofar as is
237 practicable, and provide sufficient nonpermitted parking to
238 accommodate the anticipated number of voters.
239 (c) Use mobile polling locations.
240 (d) Expand the use of secure ballot intake stations by
241 allowing voters to drop their ballots off at all polling places
242 and supervisor of elections offices on election day and by
243 allowing counties to offer secure ballot intake stations beyond
244 the hours that sites are open during early voting.
245 (e) Forward any paper vote-by-mail requests submitted to
246 them from a voter registered in another county to the supervisor
247 of elections office in the appropriate county.
248 (f) Extend the deadline to cure vote-by-mail ballots by 2
249 days to 5 p.m. on the fourth day after the election.
250 (g) Offer early voting through election day so that all
251 voters registered in a county may vote countywide on election
252 day.
253 (h) If post offices are impacted, hold local ballots at the
254 supervisor’s office, so long as the supervisor notifies voters
255 by all available means that this service is being offered.
256 (i) Receive supplies and equipment shared by other counties
257 and access supplies and equipment from the state’s emergency
258 equipment warehouses.
259 (8) Affected counties and municipalities shall update their
260 websites to prominently display information regarding changes to
261 voting dates, procedures, or locations and include links to the
262 county’s supervisor of elections website containing election
263 information related to the emergency.
264 (9) In order to facilitate voters who require assistance in
265 casting their vote-by-mail ballot in the aftermath of a
266 disaster, in a county that is designated by the Federal
267 Emergency Management Agency as eligible for individual or public
268 assistance or designated by the Governor as being in a state of
269 emergency in an executive order, criminal penalties pursuant to
270 s. 104.0616(2) do not apply, provided that secure ballot intake
271 stations are monitored in person by an employee of the
272 supervisor’s office in accordance with s. 101.69(2)(a).
273 Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 101.62, Florida
274 Statutes, is amended to read:
275 101.62 Request for vote-by-mail ballots.—
276 (1) REQUEST.—
277 (a) The supervisor shall accept a request for a vote-by
278 mail ballot only from a voter or, if directly instructed by the
279 voter, a member of the voter’s immediate family or the voter’s
280 legal guardian. A request may be made in person, in writing, by
281 telephone, or through the supervisor’s website. The department
282 shall prescribe by rule by October 1, 2023, a uniform statewide
283 application to make a written request for a vote-by-mail ballot
284 which includes fields for all information required in this
285 subsection. The use of the uniform statewide ballot application
286 may not be required for vote-by-mail ballot requests from a
287 county that is affected by an emergency defined in ss. 101.732
288 and 101.733. One request is deemed sufficient to receive a vote
289 by-mail ballot for all elections through the end of the calendar
290 year of the next regularly scheduled general election, unless
291 the voter or the voter’s designee indicates at the time the
292 request is made the elections within such period for which the
293 voter desires to receive a vote-by-mail ballot. The supervisor
294 must cancel a request for a vote-by-mail ballot when any first
295 class mail or nonforwardable mail sent by the supervisor to the
296 voter is returned as undeliverable. If the voter requests a
297 vote-by-mail ballot thereafter, the voter must provide or
298 confirm his or her current residential address.
299 (b) The supervisor may accept a request for a vote-by-mail
300 ballot to be mailed to a voter’s address on file in the Florida
301 Voter Registration System from the voter, or, if directly
302 instructed by the voter, a member of the voter’s immediate
303 family or the voter’s legal guardian. If an in-person or a
304 telephonic request is made, the voter must provide the voter’s
305 Florida driver license number, the voter’s Florida
306 identification card number, or the last four digits of the
307 voter’s social security number, whichever may be verified in the
308 supervisor’s records. Except as provided in s. 101.733, if the
309 ballot is requested to be mailed to an address other than the
310 voter’s address on file in the Florida Voter Registration
311 System, the request must be made in writing. A written request
312 must be signed by the voter and include the voter’s Florida
313 driver license number, the voter’s Florida identification card
314 number, or the last four digits of the voter’s social security
315 number. However, an absent uniformed services voter or an
316 overseas voter seeking a vote-by-mail ballot is not required to
317 submit a signed, written request for a vote-by-mail ballot that
318 is being mailed to an address other than the voter’s address on
319 file in the Florida Voter Registration System. The person making
320 the request must disclose:
321 1. The name of the voter for whom the ballot is requested.
322 2. The voter’s address.
323 3. The voter’s date of birth.
324 4. The voter’s Florida driver license number, the voter’s
325 Florida identification card number, or the last four digits of
326 the voter’s social security number, whichever may be verified in
327 the supervisor’s records. If the voter’s registration record
328 does not already include the voter’s Florida driver license
329 number or Florida identification card number or the last four
330 digits of the voter’s social security number, the number
331 provided must be recorded in the voter’s registration record.
332 5. The requester’s name.
333 6. The requester’s address.
334 7. The requester’s driver license number, the requester’s
335 identification card number, or the last four digits of the
336 requester’s social security number, if available.
337 8. The requester’s relationship to the voter.
338 9. The requester’s signature (written requests only).
339 (c) Upon receiving a request for a vote-by-mail ballot from
340 an absent voter, the supervisor of elections shall notify the
341 voter of the free access system that has been designated by the
342 department for determining the status of his or her vote-by-mail
343 ballot.
344 (d) For purposes of this section, the term “immediate
345 family” refers to the following, as applicable:
346 1. The voter’s spouse, parent, child, grandparent,
347 grandchild, or sibling, or the parent, child, grandparent,
348 grandchild, or sibling of the voter’s spouse.
349 2. The designee’s spouse, parent, child, grandparent,
350 grandchild, or sibling, or the parent, child, grandparent,
351 grandchild, or sibling of the designee’s spouse.
352 Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 101.657, Florida
353 Statutes, is amended to read:
354 101.657 Early voting.—
355 (1)(a) As a convenience to the voter, the supervisor of
356 elections shall allow an elector to vote early in the main or
357 branch office of the supervisor. The supervisor shall mark,
358 code, indicate on, or otherwise track the voter’s precinct for
359 each early voted ballot. In order for a branch office to be used
360 for early voting, it shall be a permanent facility of the
361 supervisor and shall have been designated and used as such for
362 at least 1 year prior to the election. The supervisor may also
363 designate any city hall, permanent public library facility,
364 fairground, civic center, courthouse, county commission
365 building, stadium, convention center, government-owned senior
366 center, or government-owned community center as an early voting
367 site; however, if so designated, the sites must be
368 geographically located so as to provide all voters in the county
369 an equal opportunity to cast a ballot, insofar as is
370 practicable, and must provide sufficient nonpermitted parking to
371 accommodate the anticipated amount of voters. In addition, a
372 supervisor may designate one early voting site per election in
373 an area of the county that does not have any of the eligible
374 early voting locations. Locations that are not otherwise
375 eligible early voting locations may also be designated as early
376 voting locations as provided in s. 101.733. Such additional
377 early voting site must be geographically located so as to
378 provide all voters in that area with an equal opportunity to
379 cast a ballot, insofar as is practicable, and must provide
380 sufficient nonpermitted parking to accommodate the anticipated
381 amount of voters. Each county shall, at a minimum, operate the
382 same total number of early voting sites for a general election
383 which the county operated for the 2012 general election. The
384 results or tabulation of votes cast during early voting may not
385 be made before the close of the polls on election day. Results
386 shall be reported by precinct.
387 (b) Except as provided in s. 101.733, the supervisor shall
388 designate each early voting site by no later than the 30th day
389 prior to an election and shall designate an early voting area,
390 as defined in s. 97.021, at each early voting site. Except as
391 provided in s. 101.733, the supervisor shall provide to the
392 division no later than the 30th day before an election the
393 address of each early voting site and the hours that early
394 voting will occur at each site.
395 (c) All early voting sites in a county shall allow any
396 person in line at the closing of an early voting site to vote.
397 (d) Except as provided in s. 101.733, early voting shall
398 begin on the 10th day before an election that contains state or
399 federal races and end on the 3rd day before the election, and
400 shall be provided for no less than 8 hours and no more than 12
401 hours per day at each site during the applicable period. In
402 addition, early voting may be offered at the discretion of the
403 supervisor of elections on the 15th, 14th, 13th, 12th, 11th, or
404 2nd day before an election that contains state or federal races
405 for at least 8 hours per day, but not more than 12 hours per
406 day. The supervisor of elections may provide early voting for
407 elections that are not held in conjunction with a state or
408 federal election. However, the supervisor has the discretion to
409 determine the hours of operation of early voting sites in those
410 elections.
411 (e) Notwithstanding the requirements of s. 100.3605,
412 municipalities may provide early voting in municipal elections
413 that are not held in conjunction with county or state elections.
414 If a municipality provides early voting, it may designate as
415 many sites as necessary and shall conduct its activities in
416 accordance with the provisions of paragraphs (a)-(c). The
417 supervisor is not required to conduct early voting if it is
418 provided pursuant to this subsection.
419 (f) Notwithstanding the requirements of s. 189.04, special
420 districts may provide early voting in any district election not
421 held in conjunction with county or state elections. If a special
422 district provides early voting, it may designate as many sites
423 as necessary and shall conduct its activities in accordance with
424 the provisions of paragraphs (a)-(c). The supervisor is not
425 required to conduct early voting if it is provided pursuant to
426 this subsection.
427 Section 4. Subsection (5) of section 102.141, Florida
428 Statutes, is amended to read:
429 102.141 County canvassing board; duties.—
430 (5) Except as provided in s. 101.733, the canvassing board
431 shall submit on forms or in formats provided by the division
432 unofficial returns to the Department of State for each federal,
433 statewide, state, or multicounty office or ballot measure no
434 later than noon on the third day after any primary election and
435 no later than noon on the fourth day after any general or other
436 election. Such returns shall include the canvass of all ballots
437 as required by subsection (2).
438 Section 5. Subsection (2) of section 104.0616, Florida
439 Statutes, is amended to read:
440 104.0616 Vote-by-mail ballots and voting; violations.—
441 (2) Any person who distributes, orders, requests, collects,
442 delivers, or otherwise physically possesses more than two vote
443 by-mail ballots per election in addition to his or her own
444 ballot or a ballot belonging to an immediate family member,
445 except as provided in ss. 101.6105-101.694 and 101.733,
446 including supervised voting at assisted living facilities and
447 nursing home facilities as authorized under s. 101.655, commits
448 a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s.
449 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.
450 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.