To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to allow all eligible voters to vote by mail in Federal elections.

Summary: Universal Right to Vote by Mail Act of 2009 - Amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to prohibit a state from imposing additional conditions or requirements on the eligibility of an individual to cast a vote in federal elections by mail, except for purposes of obtaining signature verification for acceptance and processing of a submitted ballot, or to the extent that it imposes a deadline for requesting the ballot and returning it to the appropriate state or local election official.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Universal Right to Vote by Mail Act 
of 2009''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) An inequity of voting rights exists in the United 
        States because voters in some States have the universal right 
        to vote by mail while voters in other States do not.
            (2) Many voters often have work, family, or other 
        commitments that make getting to polls on the date of an 
        election difficult or impossible. Under current State laws, 
        many of these voters are not permitted to vote by mail.
            (3) 28 States currently allow universal absentee voting 
        (also known as ``no-excuse'' absentee voting), which permits 
        any voter to request a mail-in ballot without providing a 
        reason for the request, and no State which has implemented no-
        excuse absentee voting has switched back.
            (4) Voting by mail gives voters more time to consider their 
        choices, which is especially important as many ballots contain 
        greater numbers of questions about complex issues than in the 
        past due to the expanded use of the initiative and referendum 
        process in many States.
            (5) Allowing all voters the option to vote by mail can lead 
        to increased voter participation.
            (6) Allowing all voters the option to vote by mail can 
        reduce waiting times for those voters who choose to vote at the 
        polls.
            (7) Voting by mail is preferable to many voters as an 
        alternative to going to the polls. Voting by mail has become 
        increasingly popular with voters who want to be certain that 
        they are able to vote no matter what comes up on Election Day.
            (8) No evidence exists suggesting the potential for fraud 
        in absentee balloting is greater than the potential for fraud 
        by any other method of voting.
            (9) Many of the reasons which voters in many States are 
        required to provide in order to vote by mail require the 
        revelation of personal information about health, travel plans, 
        or religious activities, which violate voters' privacy while 
        doing nothing to prevent voter fraud.
            (10) State laws which require voters to obtain a notary 
        signature to vote by mail only add cost and inconvenience to 
        voters without increasing security.

SEC. 3. PROMOTING ABILITY OF VOTERS TO VOTE BY MAIL IN FEDERAL 
              ELECTIONS.

    (a) In General.--Subtitle A of title III of the Help America Vote 
Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481 et seq.) is amended by inserting after 
section 303 the following new section:

``SEC. 303A. PROMOTING ABILITY OF VOTERS TO VOTE BY MAIL.

    ``(a) In General.--If an individual in a State is eligible to cast 
a vote in an election for Federal office, the State may not impose any 
additional conditions or requirements on the eligibility of the 
individual to cast the vote in such election by mail, except as 
required under subsection (b) and except to the extent that the State 
imposes a deadline for requesting the ballot and related voting 
materials from the appropriate State or local election official and for 
returning the ballot to the appropriate State or local election 
official.
    ``(b) Requiring Signature Verification.--
            ``(1) Record of signature required for provision of 
        ballot.--A State may not provide an absentee ballot to an 
        individual for an election for Federal office unless the 
        individual's signature is included on the official list of 
        registered voters in the State or some other official record of 
        the State connected to such list.
            ``(2) Verification required for acceptance and processing 
        of submitted ballot.--A State may not accept and process an 
        absentee ballot submitted by any individual for an election for 
        Federal office unless the State verifies the identification of 
        the individual by comparing the individual's signature on the 
        absentee ballot with the individual's signature on the official 
        list or other official record referred to in paragraph (1), in 
        accordance with such procedures as the State may adopt.
    ``(c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to affect the authority of States to conduct elections for 
Federal office through the use of polling places at which individuals 
cast ballots on the date of the election.
    ``(d) Effective Date.--A State shall be required to comply with the 
requirements of this section with respect to elections for Federal 
office held in years beginning with 2012.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment Relating to Enforcement.--Section 401 of 
such Act (42 U.S.C. 15511) is amended by striking ``and 303'' and 
inserting ``303, and 303A''.
    (c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for such Act is 
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 303 the 
following new item:

``Sec. 303A. Promoting ability of voters to vote by mail.''.