Permits county board of elections to open certain ballot drop boxes for fire district elections.

A1129

ASSEMBLY, No. 1129

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman JOE DANIELSEN

District 17 (Middlesex and Somerset)

SYNOPSIS

���� Permits county board of elections to open certain
ballot drop boxes for fire district elections.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning ballot drop boxes and amending P.L.2020,
c.72.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.� Section 1 of P.L.2020,
c.72 (C.19:63-16.1) is amended to read as follows:

���� 1.� a. �In addition to
delivering a voted mail-in ballot by mail or in person as provided under
"The Vote By Mail Law," P.L.2009, c.79 (C.19:63-1 et seq.), a mail-in
voter shall be entitled to deposit the voter's completed mail-in ballot in a
ballot drop box established by the county board of elections as provided under
this section.� Each mail-in ballot deposited in a ballot drop box by the time
designated under current law for the closing of the polls for that election
shall be considered valid and shall be canvassed.� If, at the closing of the
polls, a voter deposits a mail-in ballot at a ballot drop box in a county in
which the voter does not reside, the county board of elections, upon
discovering that fact, shall notify and timely deliver the ballot to the county
board of elections of the county in which the voter resides, who shall accept
the ballot for processing.� The limitations and prohibitions applicable to
mail-in ballot bearers under "The Vote By Mail Law," P.L.2009, c.79
(C.19:63-1 et seq.) shall apply under this section.

���� b. �(1) �For any election, the
county board of elections in each county shall establish ballot drop boxes
where voters may deposit their voted mail-in ballots at least 45 days before
the election.� The ballot drop boxes shall be located throughout the county in
a manner specified under paragraph (2) of this subsection.

���� (2) �(a) �A ballot drop box
shall mean a secured drop box that is not required to be within view of a live
person for monitoring.� All ballot drop boxes shall be available for use by a
voter 24 hours a day and shall be placed at locations equipped with security cameras
that allow for surveillance of the ballot drop box.

���� (b)�� Beginning with the 2021
general election, at least one ballot drop box shall be located: at any county
government building in which the main office of the county clerk is located; in
each municipality with a population larger than 5,000 residents; at the main
campus of each State college or university; and the main campus of each
independent four-year college or university with enrollments larger than 5,000
students.� Notwithstanding the locational criteria established by this
subparagraph, whenever two or more ballot drop box locations are separated by a
distance of less than 2,000 feet, the board of elections in each county shall
determine secondary locations for those ballot drop boxes in compliance with
the requirements of this section.� The secondary ballot drop box locations
shall be located within the municipality where those ballot drop boxes were
originally located and shall be approved by a majority vote of the members of
the board of elections.� However, in the event of a tie in the votes cast by the
members of the board of elections, the county clerk shall cast the deciding
vote.� Whenever possible, at least one ballot drop box shall be located in a
municipality with an average per capita income or a median family income at or
below 250% of the federal poverty guideline according to the most recent
federal American Community Survey.

���� (c)�� The board of elections
in each county shall establish no fewer than 10 ballot drop boxes.� To the best
of their ability, the board of elections of every county shall place secure
ballot drop boxes based on geographic location and population density to best
serve the voters of each county in compliance with the guidelines adopted
pursuant to subsection c. of this section.� The Secretary of State shall
establish guidelines for the placement of the ballot drop boxes, the security
of the ballot drop boxes, and the schedule for ballot pickup from the ballot
boxes.�
Whenever a fire district election is held, the board of elections
shall retrieve the mail-in ballots deposited in the ballot drop boxes, at a
minimum, once per week.

���� (d)�� All ballot drop box
locations shall be on sites that meet the accessibility requirements applicable
to polling places under R.S.19:8-2 and shall be subject to the same compliance
oversight applicable to polling places under section 3 of P.L.1991, c.429 (C.19:8-3.3).�
A ballot drop box site shall be considered accessible if it is in compliance
with the federal "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990" (42 U.S.C.
s.12101 et seq.).

���� (e)�� Except as otherwise
provided herein, no ballot drop box shall be located inside, or within 100 feet
of an entrance or exit, of a State, county, or municipal police station.

���� Notwithstanding the provisions
of this subparagraph, a ballot drop box that has already been installed and
permanently affixed prior to the effective date of this act, P.L.2021, c.459,
at any of the following locations may remain at that location notwithstanding
that the ballot drop box is within 100 feet of an entrance or exit of a State,
county, or municipal police station if the county commissioners approve the
continued presence at that location by a majority vote of the commissioners and
with the reasons therefor subject to public disclosure:

���� any county government building
in which the main office of the county clerk is located; any municipal
government building in which the main office of the municipal clerk is located
in municipalities with populations larger than 5,000 residents; the main campus
of a county community college; the main campus of a State college or
university; and the main campus of an independent four-year college or
university with enrollments larger than 5,000 students.

���� (f)�� Except as otherwise
permitted herein, no State, county, or municipal police officer shall remain or
stand within 100 feet of a ballot drop box in use during the conduct of an
election.� Nothing herein shall be interpreted to prohibit the police officer from:

���� voting at that ballot drop box
in a personal capacity;

���� traveling to and from, or
remaining within, their personal residence if that residence is within 100 feet
of a ballot drop box;

���� investigating, addressing, or
removing any cause for a disturbance, or otherwise responding to a request for
assistance, on or around the premises of the location of that ballot drop box;
or

���� escorting to or from, or both,
a ballot drop box or the premise on which it is located any person who may
require the assistance of the officer.

���� (g)�� No person shall wear,
display, sell, give, or provide any political or campaign slogan, badge,
button, or other insignia associated with any political party or candidate
within 100 feet of a ballot drop box in use during the conduct of an election,
except with respect to the badge furnished by the county board as provided by
law.� A person violating the provisions of this subparagraph shall be guilty of
a disorderly persons offense.

���� c.���� The Secretary of State,
in consultation with county boards of elections, shall establish the guidelines
necessary to ensure the secure and successful implementation of the mail-in
ballot drop boxes required by this section to ensure adequate access in various
geographic areas of the county.� In determining the ballot drop box locations,
the secretary and county boards of elections shall consider, at a minimum,
concentrations of population, geographic areas, voter convenience, proximity to
public transportation, community-based locations, travel time to the location,
proximity to other voting locations and ballot drop boxes, commuter traffic
patterns, and security.� The guidelines shall include, but may not be limited
to, criteria for each county board of elections to:

���� (1)�� determine the number of
ballot drop boxes required per voter population, considering both the number of
registered voters and the number of registered mail-in voters in each county
before each election;

���� (2)�� select the geographic
location of each ballot drop box, ensuring an equitable distribution of ballot
drop boxes across the county to maximize convenience to voters;

���� (3)�� ensure the accessibility
of ballot drop boxes and drop box locations to persons with disabilities; and

���� (4)�� maintain the security of
ballot drop boxes and of the ballots deposited therein, including standards and
procedures for ballot retrieval by authorized persons only, and for ensuring
the proper chain of custody and safe storage of voted mail-in ballots before
each election.

���� d.��� Each county clerk shall
include the locations of the ballot drop boxes established in the county along
with the instructions furnished with the mail-in ballot package sent to each
mail-in voter pursuant to section 7 of P.L.2009, c.79 (C.19:63-7).� At least 45
days before each election, each county board of elections shall cause to be
published on their respective websites the location of the ballot drop boxes in
each county, and shall provide this information to the Secretary of State for
publishing the same on the Division of Elections website.

���� e.���� Whenever a municipal,
school,
fire district,
or special election is held, the board may open
only the ballot drop box located geographically closest to the municipal
government building in which the main office of the municipal clerk is located
and the ballot drop box located at the board of elections or county office, if
one is placed at that location.� When a school election encompasses more than
one municipality, the board shall be responsible for the selection of the
ballot drop box location with respect to each municipality.

(cf: P.L.2021, c.459, s.4)

���� 2.� This act shall take effect
immediately.

STATEMENT

���� Under current law, whenever a
municipal, school, or special election is held, a board of elections may open
the following ballot drop boxes:

���� (1) the ballot drop box
located geographically closest to the municipal government building in which
the main office of the municipal clerk is located; and

���� (2) the ballot drop box
located at the board of elections or county office, if one is placed at that
location.

���� Under current law, fire
district elections are not included.� This bill would expand current law and
include fire district elections.

���� Under the bill, a board of
elections would be permitted to open the following ballot drop boxes during the
conduct of a fire district election:

���� (1)�� the ballot drop box
located geographically closest to the municipal government building in which
the main office of the municipal clerk is located; and

���� (2)�� the ballot drop box
located at the board of elections or county office, if one is placed at that
location.

���� The bill also provides that whenever
a fire district election is held, the board of elections would retrieve the
mail-in ballots deposited in the ballot drop boxes, at a minimum, once per
week.