S 1397
116th Congress
Senate
Government Operations and Politics
Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Atmospheric science and weather
Disaster relief and insurance
Election Assistance Commission
Elections, voting, political campaign regulation
Natural disasters
State and local government operations
A bill to amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to provide for a national Federal write-in absentee ballot for domestic use.
Everywhere this bill has been
2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 9, 2019
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
May 9, 2019
Introduced in Senate
Plain-English summary
This bill directs the Election Assistance Commission to create a national federal write-in absentee ballot that must be made available on the internet in a printable format.
States must permit certain individuals to use the ballot to cast a vote in any election for federal office. The individuals who qualify to use the ballot are those who
- reside in an area where a state of emergency has been declared by the state due to a natural disaster,
- expect to be absent from their jurisdiction on election day due to professional or volunteer service in response to a natural disaster or emergency,
- expect to be hospitalized on election day, or
- requested an absentee ballot but did not receive it in time for it to be counted in the election.
What's happening now
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
Committees of jurisdiction
1