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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Fifth Legislature, Second Regular Session
AMENDED
registrations; early voting; move notice
Purpose
Classifies, as a class 5 felony, knowingly providing a mechanism for another person who is registered in another state to vote. Requires a person who receives an early ballot of a former resident of the address to write "not at this address" on the envelope and place the envelope into a mail receptacle. Requires a county recorder, to cancel a person's registration and remove the person's name from the county's Active Early Voting List (AEVL) upon confirmation that a person has registered to vote in another county or upon receipt of a ballot envelope indicating the person has moved.
Background
Statute
outlines circumstances in which a county recorder must cancel a person's voter
registration, including: 1) when the county recorder knows of the death of a
registered person;
2) if a person has been adjudicated an incapacitated person; 3) when a person
is convicted of a felony and the judgement has not been reversed or set aside;
and 4) when the county recorder receives written information from the
registered person that the person has a change of address outside of the
county. After cancellation, a county recorder must send the person a notice
that the registration has been cancelled, along with a new voter registration
form (A.R.S.
§ 16-165).
Any voter may request to be included on the AEVL and receive an early ballot by mail for which the county voter registration roll is used to prepare the election register. At least 90 days before any polling place election held in March or August, a county recorder must mail an election notice to all eligible voters included on the AEVL, which must include certain information relating to the election and early ballot. If the notice is returned undeliverable, a county recorder must send a follow-up notice to the address on the general county register or to the forwarding address provided by the U.S. Postal Service that includes the appropriate internet address or registration form for revising voter registration. If the voter's registration information is not revised or an updated form is not returned within 35 days, the voter's registration status is changed to inactive and the voter must be removed from the AEVL (A.R.S. §§ 16-166 and 16-544).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Classifies, as a class 5 felony, knowingly providing a mechanism for voting to another person who is registered in another state, including by forwarding an early ballot addressed to the other person.
2. Requires a person who receives an early ballot of a former resident of the address to write "not at this address" on the envelope and place the envelope in a U.S. Postal Service box or other mail receptacle.
3. Requires a county recorder, upon receipt of credible information that a person has registered to vote in another county and confirmation with the other county, to cancel the person's registration and remove the person's name from the county's AEVL.
4. Requires a county recorder, upon receipt of a ballot indicating that a person has moved away from the address the ballot was mailed to, to take necessary steps to contact the voter at the voter's new residence address to update the voter's address or to move the voter to inactive status according to the statutorily-outlined process.
5. Makes technical and conforming changes.
6. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Amendments Adopted by Committee of the Whole
· Requires a person who receives an early ballot of a former resident of that address to write "not at this address" on the envelope and place the mail piece in a U.S. Postal Service box or other mail receptacle, rather than allowing the person to indicate on the outside of the envelope that the former resident has moved and mail the ballot back.
Senate Action
GOV 1/31/22 DP 4-3-0
Prepared by Senate Research
March 3, 2022
MH/slp