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A190
ASSEMBLY, No. 190
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman DAWN FANTASIA
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
SYNOPSIS
���� Requires voter who wishes to vote by mail to complete
application for mail-in ballot each calendar year; repeals automatic
vote-by-mail designation.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.
��
An Act
concerning applications to vote by mail and amending
P.L.1974, c.30 and P.L.2009, c.79 and repealing section 14 of P.L.2018, c.72.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� Section 16 of P.L.1974,
c.30 (C.19:31-6.4) is amended to read as follows:
���� 16.� a.� The Secretary of
State shall cause to be prepared and shall provide to each county commissioner
of registration forms of size and weight suitable for mailing, which shall
require the information required by R.S.19:31-3 in substantially the following form:
VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICATION
���� Print clearly in ink. Use
ballpoint pen or marker.
���� (1)�� This form is being used
as:
���� [ ]��� New registration
���� [ ]��� Address change
���� [ ]��� Name change
���� (2)�� Name:.....................................................
���� ������
...............Last������ First�������� Middle
���� (3)�� Are you a citizen of the
United States of America? []Yes []No
���� (4)�� Will you be 18 years of
age on or before election day? []Yes [] No
���� If you checked 'No' in
response to either of these questions, do not �� complete this form.
���� (5)�� Street Address where you
live:
.........................................................
���� Street Address��������� Apt.
No.
.........................................................
���� (6)�� City or Town County Zip
Code
���� (7)�� Address Where You
Receive Your Mail (if different from above):
���� ............................................................
���� (8)�� Date of Birth:
���� ......................................................
���� � Month���� Day����� Year
���� (9)� (a)� Telephone Number
(optional)......................
����������� (b)� E-Mail Address
(optional).....................
���� (10)� Name and address of Your
Last Voter Registration
���� ............................................................
���� ............................................................
���� ............................................................
���� (11)� If you are registering
by mail to vote and will be voting for the first time in your current county of
residence, please provide one of the following:
���� (a)�� your New Jersey driver's
license number:................................
���� (b)�� the last four digits of
your Social Security Number....................
���� OR submit with this form a
copy of any one of the following documents: a current and valid photo
identification card; a current utility bill, bank statement, government check,
pay check or any other government or other identifying document that shows your
name and current address. If you do not provide either your New Jersey driver's
license number or the last four digits of your Social Security Number, or
enclose a copy of one of the documents listed above, you will be asked for
identification when voting for the first time, unless you are exempt from doing
so under federal or State law.
���� (12)� Do you wish to declare a
political party affiliation? (Optional):
����������� [] YES. Name of Party:
����������� [] NO. I do not wish to
declare a political party affiliation at this time.
���� (13)� [] I wish to receive a
Mail-in Ballot for all
[
future
]
elections
[
, until
]
in which I
am eligible to vote this calendar year, unless
I request otherwise in
writing.
���� (14)� Declaration - I swear or
affirm that:
���� I am a U.S. citizen.
���� I live at the above address.
���� I will be at least 18 years
old on or before the day of the next election.
���� I am not serving a sentence of
incarceration due to a conviction for an indictable offense under any federal
or State laws.
���� I UNDERSTAND THAT ANY FALSE OR
FRAUDULENT REGISTRATION MAY SUBJECT ME TO A FINE OF UP TO $15,000, IMPRISONMENT
UP TO FIVE YEARS, OR BOTH PURSUANT TO R.S.19:34-1.
���� ...........................................................
���� Signature or mark of the
registrant����� Date
���� (15)� f applicant is unable to
complete this form, print the name and address of individual who completed this
form.
...................................................
����������� Name
...................................................
����������� Address
���� In addition, the form may
include notice to the applicant of information and options relating to the
registration and voting process, including but not limited to notice of
qualifications required of a registered voter; notice of the final day by which
a person must be registered to be eligible to vote in an election; notice of
the effect of a failure to provide required identification information; a place
at which the applicant may indicate availability for service as a member of the
district board of elections; a place at which the applicant may indicate
whether he or she requires a polling place which is accessible to individuals
with disabilities and the elderly or whether he or she is legally blind; a
place at which the applicant may indicate a desire to receive additional
information concerning voting by mail; and if the application indicates a
political party affiliation, the voter is permitted to vote in the primary
election of a political party other than the political party in which the voter
was affiliated previously only if the voter registration form with the change
of political party affiliation is filed prior to the 50th day next preceding
the primary election. The form may also include a space for the voter
registration agency to record whether the applicant registered in person, by
mail or by other means.
���� b.��� The reverse side of the
registration form shall bear the address of the Secretary of State or the
commissioner of registration to whom such form is supplied, and a United States
postal permit the charges upon which shall be paid by the State.
���� c.���� The Secretary of State
shall cause to be prepared registration forms of the size, weight and form
described in subsection a. of this section in both the English and Spanish
language and shall provide such forms to each commissioner of registration of
any county in which there is at least one election district in which bilingual
sample ballots must be provided pursuant to R.S.19:14-21, R.S.19:49-4 or
section 2 of P.L.1965, c.29 (C.19:23-22.4).
���� d.��� The commissioner of
registration shall furnish such registration forms upon request in person to
any person or organization in such reasonable quantities as such person or
organization shall request. The commissioner shall furnish no fewer than two
such forms to any person upon request by mail or by telephone.
���� e.���� Each such registration
form shall have annexed thereto instructions specifying the manner and method
of registration, and the vote by mail option specified on the form, and stating
the qualifications for an eligible voter.
���� f.���� The Secretary of State
shall also furnish such registration forms and such instructions to the
Director of the Division of Workers' Compensation, the Director of the Division
of Employment Services, and the Director of the Division of Unemployment and Temporary
Disability Insurance in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development; to
the Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury; to
the Executive Director of the New Jersey Transit Corporation; to the
appropriate administrative officer of any other public agency, as defined by
subsection a. of section 15 of P.L.1974, c.30 (C.19:31-6.3); to the Adjutant
General of the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs; and to the chief
administrative officer of any voter registration agency, as defined in
subsection a. of section 26 of P.L.1994, c.182 (C.19:31-6.11).
���� g.��� All registration forms
received by the Secretary of State in the mail or forwarded to the Secretary of
State shall be forwarded to the commissioner of registration in the county of
the registrant. Each such form, and any registration form received otherwise by
a commissioner of registration, shall be forwarded to the county clerk if the
vote by mail option is selected on a form.
���� h.��� An application to
register to vote received from the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission or a
voter registration agency, as defined in subsection a. of section 26 of
P.L.1994, c.182 (C.19:31-6.11), shall be deemed to have been timely made for
the purpose of qualifying an eligible applicant as registered to vote in an
election if the date on which the commission or agency shall have received that
document in completed form, as indicated in the lower right hand corner of the
form, was not later than the 21st day preceding that election.
���� i.���� Each commissioner of
registration shall make note in the permanent registration file of each voter
who is required to provide the personal identification information required
pursuant to this section, as amended, and R.S.19:15-17, R.S.19:31-5 and Pub.L.107-252
(42 U.S.C.s. 15301 et seq.), to indicate the type of identification provided by
the voter and the date on which it is provided. Prior to the June 2004 primary
election, when such a newly registered voter seeks to vote for the first time
following his or her registration, the voter will be required to provide such
personal identification information. Beginning with the June 2004 primary
election, when such a newly registered voter seeks to vote for the first time
following his or her registration, the voter will not be required to provide
such information if he or she had previously provided the personal
identification information required pursuant to this section. The required
information shall be collected and stored for the time and in the manner required
pursuant to regulations promulgated by the Secretary of State.
���� j.���� The Secretary of State
shall amend the voter registration application form if necessary to conform to
the requirements of applicable federal or State law.
���� k.��� In the event that the
name of any political party entered on the voter registration form by a voter
who wishes to declare a political party affiliation is not legible, the
commissioner of registration shall mail the voter a political party declaration
form and a letter explaining that the voter's choice was not understood and
that the voter should complete and return the declaration form in order to be
affiliated with a party.
(cf: P.L.2019, c.270, s.3)
���� 2.��� Section 3 of P.L.2009, c.79 (C.19:63-3) is
amended to read as follows:
���� 3.� a.� A qualified voter
shall be entitled to vote using a mail-in ballot
by completing a mail-in
ballot application each calendar year, indicating the voter�s desire to vote
:
���� (1)� in all
[
future
]
elections,
including general elections, held in this State
in the calendar year
, in
which the voter is eligible to vote; or
���� (2)� in any single election
held in this State
in the calendar year, in which the voter is eligible to
vote
.
���� The qualified voter who
chooses the option to vote using a mail-in ballot in all
[
future
]
elections
held
in this State in the calendar year
shall be furnished with such a ballot by
the county clerk without further request on the part of the voter
[
and until
]
for that
calendar year, unless
the voter requests in writing that the voter no
longer be sent a mail-in ballot
[
,
or beginning with the 2020 general election cycle, if the voter does not vote
by mail in four consecutive years, then the voter shall no longer be furnished
with a mail-in ballot for future elections and the voter shall be notified in
writing of the change
]
.
���� The mail-in ballot application
form prepared by the Secretary of State shall present the two options in the
order provided above.� The mail-in ballot application shall also provide spaces
for the voter's telephone number and email address, including language
informing the voter that this contact information will be used to contact the
voter concerning the acceptance or rejection of the ballot, and how the voter
may cure a defect.� A voter's telephone number and email address shall not be
subject to public disclosure and shall not be considered a government record.
���� The additional direct
expenditures required for the implementation of the provisions of this
subsection as amended by section 1 of P.L.2018, c.72 shall be offset pursuant
to section 1 of P.L.2019, c.459 (C.19:63-29).
���� b.� (1)� Not less than seven
days before an election in which a voter wants to vote by mail, the voter may
apply to the person designated in section 5 of P.L.2009, c.79 (C.19:63-5), for
a mail-in ballot.� The application shall be in writing, shall be signed by the
applicant and shall state the applicant's place of voting residence and the
address to which the ballot shall be sent.� In the case of a voter choosing to
have their mail-in ballot sent to a secondary address, if the ballot is
returned or marked undeliverable for two consecutive general elections, then
future mail-in ballots shall be mailed to the voter's address where they are
registered to vote and the voter shall be notified in writing of the change.�
The Secretary of State shall prepare a mail-in application form and shall have
the authority to promulgate any rules and regulations the secretary deems
necessary to effectuate the purposes of this subsection.
���� (2)� Beginning on January 1,
2026 and thereafter, not less than seven days before an election in which a
voter wants to vote by mail, instead of submitting an application under
paragraph (1) of this subsection, the voter may apply for a mail-in ballot electronically
through the voter registration website established by the Secretary of State
pursuant to section 1 of P.L.2019, c.382 (C.19:31-6.4c), which application
shall be electronically submitted to the person designated by the Secretary of
State.� The application shall be in electronic form, shall be signed by the
applicant using the applicant's electronic signature in the Statewide Voter
Registration System, and shall state the applicant's place of voting residence
and the address to which the ballot shall be sent.� The Secretary of State
shall prepare a mail-in ballot electronic application form and shall have the
authority to promulgate any guidance, guidelines, rules and regulations the
secretary deems necessary to effectuate the purposes of this subsection.� The
rules and regulations shall ensure the security of the online mail-in ballot
application form and the use of verifiable signatures, including a process for
the resolution of signature discrepancies and the validation of the information
provided by the applicant.
���� c.���� Any voter wanting to
vote by mail in any election may apply to the person designated in section 5 of
P.L.2009, c.79 (C.19:63-5) for a mail-in ballot to be sent to the voter.� A
voter who is a member of the armed forces of the United States may use a federal
postcard application form to apply for a mail-in ballot.
���� d.��� Any voter who fails to
apply for a mail-in ballot before the seven-day period prescribed in subsection
b. of this section may apply in person to the county clerk for a mail-in ballot
up to 3 p.m. of the day before the election.
���� e.���� A person voting by
mail-in ballot who registered by mail after January 1, 2003, who did not
provide personal identification information when registering pursuant to
section 16 of P.L.1974, c.30 (C.19:31-6.4) and is voting for the first time in
his or her current county of residence following registration shall include
copies of the required identification information with the mail-in ballot.�
Failure to include such information with the mail-in ballot shall result in its
rejection.
���� f.���� The county clerk shall
not transmit a mail-in ballot for any election to any person who: is deemed by
a county commissioner of registration to be an inactive voter; or notifies the
clerk in writing that the person no longer wishes to receive such a ballot for
any election; or is no longer eligible to vote and whose registration file has
been transferred to the deleted file pursuant to R.S.19:31-19.
���� g.��� Any mail-in ballot that
is sent to a qualified voter and that is returned to the county clerk for any
reason shall be forwarded to the commissioner of registration, who shall so
note the return in the voter record of that voter.
(cf: P.L.2022, c.68, s.1)
���� 3.��� Section 5 of P.L.2009,
c.79 (C.19:63-5) is amended to read as follows:
���� 5.��� In the case of any
election, the application for a mail-in ballot shall be made to the county
clerk.� The county clerk shall stamp thereon the date on which the application
was received in the clerk's office.
���� In the case of applications
for overseas federal election voter ballots, as provided for in P.L.1976, c.23
(C.19:59-1 et seq.), no application shall be refused on the grounds that it was
submitted too early.
���� In the case of voter
registration forms that include a selected vote by mail option, a copy of each
such form shall be transmitted to and received by the appropriate county clerk,
who shall be responsible for providing mail-in ballots to each qualified voter
requesting such ballots for
[
future
]
all
elections
[
,
until
]
held in that calendar year, unless
the voter requests otherwise in
writing
[
,
or beginning with the 2020 general election cycle, if the voter does not vote
by mail in four consecutive years, then the voter shall no longer be furnished
with a mail-in ballot for future all
elections and the voter shall be
notified in writing of the change
]
.
(cf: P.L.2022, c.68, s.3)
���� 4.��� Section 6 of P.L.2009,
c.79 (C.19:63-6) is amended to read as follows:
���� 6. a. The county clerk, in the
case of any Statewide election, countywide election, or school election in a
regional or other school district comprising more than one municipality; the
municipal clerk, in the case of any municipal election or school election in a
school district comprising a single municipality; and the commissioners or
other governing or administrative body of the district, in the case of any
election to be held in any fire district or other special district, other than
a municipality, created for specified public purposes within one or more
municipalities, shall publish the following notice in substantially the
following form:
���� NOTICE TO PERSONS WANTING
MAIL-IN BALLOTS
���� If you are a qualified and
registered voter of the State who wants to vote by mail in
the......................... (school, municipal, primary, general, or other)
election to be held on................. (date of election), the following
applies:
���� You must complete the
application form below and send it to the county clerk where you reside or
write or apply in person to the county clerk where you reside to request a
mail-in ballot.� Instead, you may complete the application form electronically
on the Secretary of State's website.
���� The name, address, and
signature of any person who has assisted you to complete the mail-in ballot
application must be provided on the application, and you must sign and date the
application.
���� No person may serve as an
authorized messenger or bearer for more than three qualified voters in an
election, but a person may serve as such for up to five qualified voters in an
election if those voters are immediate family members residing in the same household
as the messenger or bearer.
���� No person who is a candidate
in the election for which the voter requests a mail-in ballot may provide any
assistance in the completion of the ballot or serve as an authorized messenger
or bearer.
���� A person who applies for a
mail-in ballot must submit his or her application at least seven days before
the election, but such person may request an application in person from the
county clerk up to 3 p.m. of the day before the election.
���� Voters who want to vote by
mail in all
[
future
]
elections
held
in the same calendar year
will, after their initial request and without
further action on their part
in that calendar year
, be provided with a
mail-in ballot
[
until
]
unless
the voter requests otherwise in writing
[
,
or beginning with the 2020 general election cycle, if the voter does not vote
by mail in four consecutive years, then the voter shall no longer be furnished
with a mail-in ballot for future elections and the voter shall be notified in
writing of the change
]
.
���� Application forms may be
obtained by applying to the undersigned either in writing or by telephone, or
the application form provided below may be completed and forwarded to the
undersigned.
���� Dated.....................................................
���� ........................................................................
���� (signature and title of county
clerk)
���� ....................................
���� (address of county clerk)
���� ....................................
���� (telephone no. of county
clerk)
���� b.� (1)� The Secretary of
State shall be responsible for providing all information regarding overseas
ballots to each overseas voter eligible for such a ballot pursuant to P.L.1976,
c.23 (C.19:59-1 et seq.).� The secretary shall also make available valid
overseas voter registration and ballot applications to any voter who is a
member of the armed forces of the United States and who is a permanent resident
of this State, or who is an overseas voter who wishes to register to vote or to
vote in any jurisdiction in this State.� The secretary shall provide such
public notice as may be deemed necessary to inform members of the armed forces
of the United States and overseas voters how to obtain valid overseas voter
registration and ballot applications.
���� (2)�� The Secretary of State
shall undertake a program to inform voters in this State about their
eligibility to vote by mail pursuant to this act.� Dissemination of this
information shall be included in the standard notices required by this section
and other provisions of current law, including but not limited to the notice
requirements of R.S.19:12-7, and shall be effectuated by such means as the
secretary deems appropriate and to the extent that funds for such dissemination
are appropriated including, but not limited to, by means of Statewide or local
electronic media, public service announcements broadcast by such media, notices
on the Internet site of the Department of State or any other department or
agency of the Executive Branch of State government or its political
subdivisions deemed appropriate by the secretary, and special mailings or
notices in newspapers or other publications circulating in the counties or
municipalities of this State.
���� c.���� The mail-in ballot
materials shall contain a notice that any person voting by mail-in ballot who
has registered by mail after January 1, 2003, who did not provide personal
identification information when registering and is voting for the first time in
his or her current county of residence following registration shall include
copies of the required identification information with the mail-in ballot, and
that failure to include such information shall result in the rejection of the
ballot.
���� d.��� The notice provided for
in subsection a. of this section shall be published before the 55th day
immediately preceding the holding of any election.
���� Notices relating to any
Statewide or countywide election shall be published in at least two newspapers
published in each county.� All officials charged with the duty of publishing
such notices shall publish the same in at least one newspaper published in each
municipality or district in which the election is to be held, or if no
newspaper is published in the municipality or district, then in a newspaper
published in the county and circulating in the municipality or district.� All
such notices shall be display advertisements.
�(cf:� P.L.2022, c.68, s.4)
���� 5.��� Within 30 days of the
implementation date of this act, the county clerk in each county shall transmit
to each voter who is designated in the Statewide Voter Registration System as
receiving a mail-in ballot for all future elections, a notice informing the
voter that he or she is required to complete an application to vote by mail
each calendar year, pursuant to the provisions of this act, P.L.�� ,
c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
���� 6.��� Section 14 of P.L.2018,
c.72 (C.19:63-3.1) is repealed.
���� 7.��� This act shall take
effect immediately, and shall be implemented on the first day following the
November general election occurring after that effective date.
STATEMENT
���� This bill requires a voter who
wishes to vote by mail to complete an application for a mail-in ballot each
calendar year. The bill also repeals a provision of current law which required
each county clerk to designate each voter who voted by mail in 2016, 2017, and
2018 as automatic vote-by-mail voters in all future elections.
���� Under current law, a voter may
apply to vote by mail in all future elections or in any single election. A
voter who indicates a desire to vote by mail in all future elections is not
required to reapply for a mail-in ballot each year, but may notify the county
clerk that he or she no longer wishes to vote by mail. However, beginning with
the 2020 general election cycle, if the voter does not vote by mail in four
consecutive years, then the voter is no longer furnished with a mail-in ballot
for future elections and the voter is notified in writing of the change.
���� This bill would require voters
who want to vote by mail to complete a mail-in ballot application each calendar
year. The application would offer the voter the opportunity to either vote by
mail in all elections held in that calendar year, or in any single election
held in that calendar year. This bill also repeals a provision of law that made
voters who voted by mail in 2016, 2017, and 2018 be designated as automatic
vote-by-mail voters in all future elections, unless they opted out at the time
of the law�s implementation.�
���� The bill requires the county
clerk in each county, within 30 days of the implementation date, to transmit to
each voter who is designated in the Statewide Voter Registration System as
receiving a mail-in ballot for all future elections, a notice informing the
voter that he or she is required to complete an application to vote by mail
each calendar year. The bill would take effect immediately, but would be
implemented on the first day following the November general election occurring
after that effective date.