KRS § 117.085 — KY Code / Title X / Chapter 117 / Section 117.085
117.085 Mail-in absentee ballots -- Application through online portal and other means -- Procedures -- Cancellation -- Administrative regulations
Status: in_force

117.085 Mail-in absentee ballots -- Application through online portal and other

means -- Procedures -- Cancellation -- Administrative regulations.

(1) (a) All requests for a mail-in absentee ballot shall be requested through a secure

online portal established by the State Board of Elections, except for:

1. Voters identified in KRS 117.077;

2. Disabled voters; and

3. Covered voters in paragraph (i) of this subsection;

who have the additional option of requesting a mail-in absentee ballot

application through the county clerk.

(b) Acquiring a mail-in absentee ballot by means of the online portal shall require

the voter to input personally identifiable information for verification.

(c) 1. For those voters who do not have the means of accessing the online

portal, the county clerk shall fulfill a request for a mail-in absentee

ballot by taking the voter's information over the telephone or in person

and directly inputting that information into the secure online portal.

2. If a voter under paragraph (h)3. of this subsection expresses the desire to

request a mail-in absentee ballot, the jail staff shall ensure that the voter

is allowed, during normal business hours, to use a telephone to receive

assistance by the county clerk, as described in subparagraph 1. of this

paragraph.

(d) The online portal shall have the capacity to ensure the identity of the voter

through proof of identification as required under KRS 117.227 or by means of

KRS 117.228.

(e) If a voter qualifies to receive a mail-in absentee ballot, the online portal shall

transmit the mail-in absentee ballot request to the county clerk of the county

in which the voter is registered to vote.

(f) The online portal shall not be open or permit any mail-in ballot requests to

occur more than forty-five (45) days immediately preceding the day of a

primary or an election. The online portal shall close at 11:59 p.m. local time,

fourteen (14) days immediately preceding the day of a primary or an election.

(g) Except as otherwise provided in KRS 117.077, the mail-in absentee ballot

may be requested by the voter or the spouse, parents, or children of the voter,

but shall be restricted to the use of the voter.

(h) Except as otherwise provided in KRS 117.077 and covered voters in

paragraph (i) of this subsection, a qualified voter may apply to cast his or her

vote by mail-in absentee ballot if the completed application is received

fourteen (14) days before the election, and if the voter is:

1. A resident of Kentucky who is a covered voter as defined in KRS

117A.010;

2. A student who temporarily resides outside the county of his or her

residence;

3. Incarcerated in jail and charged with a crime, but has not been convicted

of the crime;

4. Changing or has changed his or her place of residence to a different state

while the registration books are closed in the new state of residence

before an election of electors for President and Vice President of the

United States, in which case the voter shall be permitted to cast a mail-in

absentee ballot for electors for President and Vice President of the

United States only;

5. Temporarily residing outside the state but still eligible to vote in this

state;

6. Prevented from voting in person at the polls on election day and from

casting an excused or no-excuse in-person absentee ballot on all days in-

person absentee voting is conducted because he or she will be absent

from the county of his or her residence all hours and all days excused or

no-excuse in-person absentee voting is conducted;

7. A participant in the Secretary of State's crime victim address

confidentiality protection program as authorized by KRS 14.312; or

8. Not able to appear at the polls on election day or the days excused or no-

excuse in-person absentee voting is conducted on the account of age,

disability, or illness, and who has not been declared mentally disabled

by a court of competent jurisdiction.

(i) Residents of Kentucky who are covered voters as defined in KRS 117A.010

may apply for a mail-in absentee ballot by means of the federal post-card

application, which may be transmitted to the county clerk's office by mail, by

facsimile machine, or by means of the electronic transmission system

established under KRS 117A.030(4). The federal post-card application may

be used to register, reregister, and to apply for a mail-in absentee ballot. If the

federal post-card application is received at any time not less than seven (7)

days before the election, the county clerk shall affix his or her seal to the

application form upon receipt.

(j) Any qualified voter who is disabled may use an accessible mail-in absentee

ballot portal to request and receive a mail-in absentee ballot by means of an

electronic transmission system as established under KRS 117A.030(4). The

standards necessary to implement this paragraph shall be set by the State

Board of Elections pursuant to administrative regulations promulgated under

KRS Chapter 13A.

(2) For those voters who are eligible to receive a mail-in absentee ballot by means other

than the secure online portal pursuant to subsection (1) of this section, the county

clerk shall type the name of the voter permitted to vote by mail-in absentee ballot

on the mail-in absentee ballot application for that person's use and no other. The

mail-in absentee ballot application shall be in the form prescribed by the State

Board of Elections, which shall include the voter affirmation form as prescribed in

KRS 117.228(1)(c) and shall contain the following information: name, residential

address, precinct, party affiliation, statement of the reason the person cannot vote in

person on the day of an election or during the dates and time no-excuse in-person

absentee voting is being conducted, statement of where the voter shall be on

election day or during the dates and times no-excuse in-person absentee voting is

being conducted, statement of compliance with residency requirements for voting in

the precinct, an instructional statement prescribing the requirements for providing a

copy of the voter's proof of identification or voter affirmation when applicable, and

the voter's mailing address for a mail-in absentee ballot. The mail-in absentee ballot

application form shall be verified and signed by the voter, and the voter shall

provide a copy of his or her proof of identification, as defined in KRS 117.001, or

the executed voter affirmation as described in KRS 117.228(1)(c). A notice of the

actual penalty provisions in KRS 117.995(2) and (5) shall be printed on the mail-in

absentee ballot application form.

(3) For those voters eligible to receive a mail-in absentee ballot, if the county clerk

finds that the voter has completed and submitted an application for a mail-in

absentee ballot as provided in this section, is properly registered as stated in his or

her mail-in absentee ballot application, and qualifies to receive a mail-in absentee

ballot by mail, the county clerk shall issue only to the voter a mail-in absentee

ballot, two (2) official envelopes for returning the mail-in absentee ballot, and

instructions for voting.

(4) Mail-in absentee ballots shall be mailed to a voter's residential address located in

the county in which the voter is registered, except for:

(a) A qualified voter who applies pursuant to the requirements of subsection

(1)(h)1., 4., and 5. of this section;

(b) A qualified voter covered under KRS 117.077;

(c) A qualified voter who applies pursuant to the requirements of subsection

(1)(h)2. of this section, whose mail-in absentee ballot shall be mailed to the

voter's residential address located in the county in which the voter is

registered, or the voter's current residential address at the time the application

for the absentee ballot is submitted, if different, due to the voter's attendance

at an educational institution;

(d) A qualified voter who applies pursuant to the requirements of subsection

(1)(h)3. of this section, whose mail-in absentee ballot shall be mailed to the

jail where he or she is in custody at the time the application for the absentee

ballot is submitted;

(e) A qualified voter who applies pursuant to the requirements of subsection

(1)(h)8. of this section, whose mail-in absentee ballot may be mailed to the

address of a facility where he or she is receiving inpatient or residential

medical treatment; or

(f) A qualified voter who has been issued a mail-in absentee ballot in person by

the county clerk.

If a qualified voter who applies pursuant to paragraph (c), (d), or (e) of this

subsection leaves the address where he or she requested an absentee ballot be

mailed, the voter may contact the county clerk who shall issue a second ballot

pursuant to subsection (9) of this section after canceling the first absentee ballot

mailed to the voter.

(5) The county clerk shall:

(a) Transmit a mail-in absentee ballot to the voter who is eligible to receive a

mail-in absentee ballot within four (4) days of receipt or within four (4) days

of the ballots being available;

(b) Cause mail-in absentee ballots to be printed fifty (50) days prior to each

primary or regular election, and forty-five (45) days prior to a special election;

and

(c) Complete a postal form for a certificate of mailing for mail-in absentee ballots

mailed within the fifty (50) states, and it shall be stamped by the postal

service when the mail-in absentee ballots are mailed. Unless a postal form for

a certificate of mailing is required, the county clerk may use methods of

tracking the mail-in absentee ballots by means of a printed barcode or other

label that is unique to the individual voter issued by the State Board of

Elections pursuant to administrative regulations promulgated under KRS

Chapter 13A.

(6) A mail-in absentee ballot may be transmitted by facsimile machine or by the

electronic transmission system established under KRS 117A.030(4) to a covered

voter as defined in KRS 117A.010. The covered voter shall be notified of the

options for transmittal of the mail-in absentee ballot, and the mail-in absentee ballot

shall be transmitted by the method chosen for receipt by the resident of Kentucky

who is a covered voter.

(7) The outer envelope of the mail-in absentee ballot shall bear the words "Absentee

Ballot", the address and official title of the county clerk, a printed barcode or other

label that is unique to the individual voter issued by the State Board of Elections,

and adequate space for the voter's signature, voting address, precinct number, and

signatures of two (2) witnesses if the voter signs the form with the use of a mark

instead of the voter's signature. A detachable flap on the secrecy envelope shall

provide space for the voter's signature, voting address, precinct number, signatures

of two (2) witnesses if the voter signs the form with the use of a mark instead of the

voter's signature and notice of penalty provided in KRS 117.995(5). The county

clerk shall type the voter's address and precinct number in the upper left hand

corner of the outer envelope and of the detachable flap on the secrecy envelope

immediately below the blank space for the voter's signature. The secrecy envelope

shall be blank. If applicable, the county clerk shall retain the voter's mail-in ballot

application, which shall include the photographed copy of the voter's proof of

identification or the voter affirmation as prescribed by KRS 117.228(1)(c), and the

postal form required by subsection (5) of this section for twenty-two (22) months

after the primary or election.

(8) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (10) of this section, any person who has

received a mail-in absentee ballot but who knows at least seven (7) days before the

date of the election that he or she will be in his or her county of residence on

election day or during the days of no-excuse in-person absentee voting and who has

not voted by means of his or her mail-in absentee ballot shall cancel his or her mail-

in absentee ballot and vote in person. The voter shall return the mail-in absentee

ballot to the county clerk's office by mail or hand delivery no later than seven (7)

days prior to the date of the election. Upon the return of the mail-in absentee ballot,

the county clerk shall mark on the outer envelope of the sealed ballot or the

unmarked ballot the words "Canceled because voter appeared to vote in person."

Sealed envelopes so marked shall not be opened. The county clerk shall remove the

voter's name from the list of persons who were sent mail-in absentee ballots, and

the voter may vote in the precinct in which he or she is properly registered.

(9) Any voter qualified for a mail-in absentee ballot who does not receive a requested

mail-in absentee ballot within a reasonable amount of time shall contact the county

clerk, who shall issue another mail-in absentee ballot. The county clerk shall keep a

record of the mail-in absentee ballots issued and returned by mail, hand-delivered,

or placed in a secure drop-box or receptacle, and the in-person absentee voting and

federal in-person provisional absentee voting that is conducted, to verify that only

the first voted ballot is counted. Upon the return of any mail-in absentee ballot after

the first mail-in absentee ballot is returned, the county clerk shall mark on the outer

envelope of the sealed ballot the words "Canceled because ballot reissued."

(10) Any covered voter as defined in KRS 117A.010 who has received a mail-in

absentee ballot but who knows that he or she will be in the county on election day

or during the days of no-excuse in-person absentee voting shall cancel his or her

mail-in absentee ballot and vote in person during the days of no-excuse in-person

absentee voting or on the day of the election. The voter shall return the mail-in

absentee ballot to the county clerk's office on or before election day. Upon the

return of the mail-in absentee ballot, the county clerk shall mark on the outer

envelope of the sealed mail-in absentee ballot or the unmarked mail-in absentee

ballot the words "Canceled because voter appeared to vote in person." Sealed

envelopes so marked shall not be opened. The county clerk shall remove the voter's

name from the list of persons who were sent mail-in absentee ballots, allow the

voter to vote by means of no-excuse in-person absentee ballot, or provide the voter

with written authorization to vote at the precinct on election day. If the voter is

unable to return the mail-in absentee ballot to the county clerk's office on or before

election day, at the time he or she votes in person, he or she shall sign a written oath

as to his or her qualifications on a form prescribed by the State Board of Elections

pursuant to KRS 117.245.

(11) The State Board of Elections shall promulgate administrative regulations to:

(a) Ensure election officials have real-time knowledge of which voters have

requested mail-in absentee ballots; and

(b) Provide procedures to be followed if a voter attempts to vote more than once

at a primary or an election.