II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4487 

To amend title 39, United States Code, and the Help America Vote Act 

of 2002 to improve procedures and requirements related to election mail. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 23, 2022 

Ms. KLOBUCHAR introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration 

A BILL 

To amend title 39, United States Code, and the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to improve procedures and requirements related to election mail. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Election Mail Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. SAME-DAY PROCESSING OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 34 of title 39, United 

7 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘§ 3407. Same-day processing of ballots 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Postal Service shall ensure, 

3 to the maximum extent practicable, that any ballot carried 

4 by the Postal Service is processed by and cleared from 

5 any postal facility or post office on the same day that the 

6 ballot is received by that facility or post office. 

7 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 

8 ‘‘(1) the term ‘ballot’ means any ballot trans9 mitted by a voter by mail in an election for Federal 

10 office, but does not include any ballot covered by 

11 section 3406; and 

12 ‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 

13 a general, special, primary, or runoff election for the 

14 office of President or Vice President, or of Senator 

15 or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com16 missioner to, the Congress.’’. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (1) AMENDMENT TO CHAPTER HEADING.—The 

19 heading for chapter 34 of title 39, United States 

20 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘ARMED FORCES 

21 AND FREE POSTAGE’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘ARMED FORCES; FREE POSTAGE; 

23 ELECTION MAIL’’. 

24 (2) TABLE OF CHAPTERS.—The table of chap25 ters for part IV of title 39, United States Code, is 


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1 amended by striking the item relating to chapter 34 

2 and inserting the following: 

‘‘34. Armed Forces; Free Postage; Election Mail .................. 3401’’. 

3 (3) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND4 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 

5 39, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

6 the end the following: 

‘‘3407. Same-day processing of ballots.’’. 

7 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

8 this subsection shall apply to absentee ballots relating to 

9 an election for Federal office occurring on or after the 

10 date that is 60 days after the date of the enactment of 

11 this Act. 

12 SEC. 3. INTELLIGENT MAIL BARCODES FOR BALLOTS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 

14 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081) is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating section 311 and section 

16 312 as sections 321 and 322, respectively; 

17 (2) by redesignating subtitle B as subtitle C; 

18 and 

19 (3) by inserting after subtitle A the following 

20 new subtitle: 


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1 ‘‘Subtitle B—Requirements 

2 Relating to Mailed Ballots 

3 ‘‘SEC. 311. USE OF INTELLIGENT MAIL BARCODES. 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State and jurisdiction shall 

5 provide with each ballot for an election for Federal office 

6 that is sent by mail a return envelope that contains an 

7 intelligent mail barcode, as prescribed by the United 

8 States Postal Service. 

9 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to 

10 any ballot for which a State or jurisdiction uses an alter11 native system that enables voters to track the ballot 

12 through the mail. 

13 ‘‘(c) STATE.—For purposes of this section, the term 

14 ‘State’ includes the District of Columbia, the Common15 wealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the 

16 United States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of 

17 the Northern Mariana Islands. 

18 ‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The requirements of this 

19 section shall apply to elections for Federal office occurring 

20 on or after January 1, 2023.’’. 

21 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 401 of the Help Amer22 ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by 

23 inserting ‘‘or the requirements for mailed ballots under 

24 subtitle B of title III’’ before the period at the end. 


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1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 321(a) of 

2 such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101), as redesignated by sub3 section (a), is amended by striking ‘‘section 312’’ and in4 serting ‘‘section 322’’. 

5 (d) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

6 of such Act is amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘Subtitle B—Voluntary’’ and in8 serting ‘‘Subtitle C—Voluntary’’; 

9 (2) redesignating the items relating to sections 

10 311 and 312 as relating to sections 321 and 322, 

11 respectively; and 

12 (3) by inserting after the item relating to sec13 tion 305 the following: 

‘‘Subtitle B—Requirements Relating to Mailed Ballots 

‘‘Sec. 311. Use of intelligent mail barcodes.’’. 

14 SEC. 4. ELECTION MAIL AND DELIVERY IMPROVEMENTS. 

15 (a) POSTMARK REQUIRED FOR BALLOTS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 34 of title 39, 

17 United States Code, as amended by section 2, is 

18 amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘§ 3408. Postmark required for ballots 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any absentee bal21 lot carried by the Postal Service, the Postal Service shall 

22 indicate on the ballot envelope, using a postmark or other23 wise— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the fact that the ballot was carried by the 

2 Postal Service; and 

3 ‘‘(2) the date on which the ballot was mailed. 

4 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 

5 ‘‘(1) the term ‘absentee ballot’ means any ballot 

6 transmitted by a voter by mail in an election for 

7 Federal office, but does not include any ballot cov8 ered by section 3406; and 

9 ‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 

10 a general, special, primary, or runoff election for the 

11 office of President or Vice President, or of Senator 

12 or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com13 missioner to, the Congress.’’. 

14 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND15 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 

16 39, United States Code, as amended by section 2(a), 

17 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘3408. Postmark required for ballots.’’. 

18 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

19 by this subsection shall apply to absentee ballots re20 lating to an election for Federal office occurring on 

21 or after the date that is 60 days after the date of 

22 the enactment of this Act. 

23 (b) GREATER VISIBILITY FOR BALLOTS.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of the 

25 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 


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1 et seq.), as added by section 3, is amended by add2 ing at the end the following new section: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 312. BALLOT VISIBILITY. 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State or local election offi5 cial shall— 

6 ‘‘(1) affix Tag 191, Domestic and International 

7 Mail-In Ballots (or any successor tag designated by 

8 the United States Postal Service), to any tray or 

9 sack of official ballots relating to an election for 

10 Federal office that is destined for a domestic or 

11 international address; 

12 ‘‘(2) use the Official Election Mail logo to des13 ignate official ballots relating to an election for Fed14 eral office that is destined for a domestic or inter15 national address; and 

16 ‘‘(3) if an intelligent mail barcode (as described 

17 in section 311) is utilized for any official ballot re18 lating to an election for Federal office that is des19 tined for a domestic or international address, ensure 

20 the specific ballot service type identifier for such 

21 mail is visible. 

22 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The requirements of this 

23 section shall apply to elections for Federal office occurring 

24 on and after the date that is 60 days after the date of 

25 the enactment of this section.’’. 


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1 (2) ISSUANCE OF VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE BY

2 ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION.—Section 

3 321(b) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as redes4 ignated by section 3, is amended— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para6 graph (2); 

7 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

8 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

9 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

10 paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(4) in the case of the recommendations with 

12 respect to section 312, the date described in section 

13 312(b).’’. 

14 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con15 tents of such Act, as amended by section 3, is 

16 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec17 tion 311 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 312. Ballot visibility.’’. 

18 SEC. 5. CARRIAGE OF ELECTION MAIL. 

19 (a) TREATMENT OF ELECTION MAIL.— 

20 (1) TREATMENT AS FIRST-CLASS MAIL; FREE

21 POSTAGE.—Chapter 34 of title 39, United States 

22 Code, as amended by section 2 and section 3(a), is 

23 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 3409. Domestic election mail; restriction of oper2 ational changes prior to elections 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 ‘‘(1) ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE.—The 

5 term ‘election for Federal office’ means a general, 

6 special, primary, or runoff election for the office of 

7 President or Vice President, or of Senator or Rep8 resentative in, or Delegate or Resident Commis9 sioner to, the Congress. 

10 ‘‘(2) ELECTION MAIL.—The term ‘election mail’ 

11 means— 

12 ‘‘(A) a blank or completed voter registra13 tion application form, voter registration card, or 

14 similar materials, relating to an election for 

15 Federal office; 

16 ‘‘(B) a blank or completed absentee and 

17 other mail-in ballot application form, and a 

18 blank or completed absentee or other mail-in 

19 ballot, relating to an election for Federal office, 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(C) other materials relating to an election 

22 for Federal office that are mailed by a State or 

23 local election official to an individual who is 

24 registered to vote. 

25 ‘‘(b) CARRIAGE OF ELECTION MAIL.—Election mail 

26 (other than balloting materials covered under section 3406 


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1 (relating to the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting 

2 Act)), individually or in bulk, shall be carried in accord3 ance with the service standards established for first-class 

4 mail under section 3691. 

5 ‘‘(c) NO POSTAGE REQUIRED FOR COMPLETED BAL6 LOTS.—Completed absentee or other mail-in ballots (other 

7 than balloting materials covered under section 3406 (relat8 ing to the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting Act)) 

9 shall be carried free of postage. 

10 ‘‘(d) RESTRICTION OF OPERATIONAL CHANGES.— 

11 During the 120-day period which ends on the date of an 

12 election for Federal office, the Postal Service may not 

13 carry out any new operational change that would restrict 

14 the prompt and reliable delivery of election mail. This sub15 section applies to operational changes which include— 

16 ‘‘(1) removing or eliminating any mail collection 

17 box without immediately replacing it; and 

18 ‘‘(2) removing, decommissioning, or any other 

19 form of stopping the operation of mail sorting ma20 chines, other than for routine maintenance. 

21 ‘‘(e) ELECTION MAIL COORDINATOR.—The Postal 

22 Service shall appoint an Election Mail Coordinator at each 

23 area office and district office to facilitate relevant informa24 tion sharing with State, territorial, local, and Tribal elec25 tion officials in regards to the mailing of election mail.’’. 


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1 (2) REIMBURSEMENT OF POSTAL SERVICE FOR

2 REVENUE FORGONE.—Section 2401(c) of title 39, 

3 United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘sec4 tions 3217 and 3403 through 3406’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘sections 3217, 3403 through 3406, and 3409’’. 

6 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

7 The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 39, United 

8 States Code, as amended by section 2 and section 3(a), 

9 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘3409. Domestic election mail; restriction of operational changes prior to elections.’’. 

10 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

11 this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the 

12 180-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 

13 of this section. 

14 SEC. 6. UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE CONSULTATION. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Postmaster General shall 

16 consult with Indian Tribes, on an annual basis, regarding 

17 issues relating to the United States Postal Service that 

18 present barriers to voting for eligible voters living on In19 dian lands. 

20 (b) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section— 

21 (1) INDIAN LANDS.—The term ‘‘Indian lands’’ 

22 means— 


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1 (A) any Indian country, as such term is 

2 defined in section 1151 of title 18, United 

3 States Code, of an Indian Tribe; 

4 (B) any land in Alaska that is owned, pur5 suant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 

6 Act, by an Indian Tribe that is a Native village 

7 (as such term is defined in section 3 of such 

8 Act), or by a Village Corporation that is associ9 ated with the Indian Tribe (as such term is de10 fined in section 3 of such Act); 

11 (C) any land on which the seat of govern12 ment of the Indian Tribe is located; and 

13 (D) any land that is part or all of a tribal 

14 designated statistical area associated with the 

15 Indian Tribe, or is part or all of an Alaska Na16 tive village statistical area associated with the 

17 Tribe, as defined by the Bureau of the Census 

18 for the purposes of the most recent decennial 

19 census. 

20 (2) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

21 means the recognized governing body of any Indian 

22 or Alaska Native Tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, 

23 community, component band, or component reserva24 tion, individually identified (including parentheti25 cally) in the list published most recently pursuant to 


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1 section 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian 

2 Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131). 

3 SEC. 7. UNIFORM DEADLINE FOR ACCEPTANCE OF MAILED 

4 BALLOTS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of the Help 

6 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as 

7 added by section 3 and amended by section 4, is amended 

8 by adding at the end the following new section: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 313. UNIFORM DEADLINE FOR ACCEPTANCE OF 

10 MAILED BALLOTS. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State or local election official 

12 may not refuse to accept or process a ballot submitted by 

13 an individual by mail with respect to an election for Fed14 eral office in the State on the grounds that the individual 

15 did not meet a deadline for returning the ballot to the 

16 appropriate State or local election official if— 

17 ‘‘(1) the ballot is postmarked or otherwise indi18 cated by the United States Postal Service to have 

19 been mailed on or before the date of the election; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(2) the ballot is received by the appropriate 

22 election official prior to the expiration of the 7-day 

23 period which begins on the date of the election. 

24 ‘‘(b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec25 tion shall be construed to prohibit a State from having 


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1 a law that allows for counting of ballots in an election for 

2 Federal office that are received through the mail after the 

3 date that is 7 days after the date of the election. 

4 ‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

5 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

6 Federal office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

7 election for Federal office.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

9 of such Act, as amended by sections 3 and 4, is amended 

10 by inserting after the item relating to section 312 the fol11 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 313. Uniform deadline for acceptance of mailed ballots.’’. 

Æ 


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