II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 301 

To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to provide Federal standards 

for mail-in ballots and reporting of election results with respect to elections for Federal office. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 8, 2021 

Mr. SCOTT of Florida introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration 

A BILL 

To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to provide 

Federal standards for mail-in ballots and reporting of 

election results with respect to elections for Federal office. 

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 ‘‘Verifiable, Orderly, 

5 and Timely Election Results Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR MAIL-IN BALLOTS. 

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

8 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.) is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating sections 304 and 305 as 

2 sections 305 and 306, respectively; and 

3 (2) by inserting after section 303 the following 

4 new section: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 304. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR MAIL-IN BALLOTS. 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—When otherwise permitted by 

7 State law, any vote-by-mail system used in an election for 

8 Federal office must be designed and implemented to en9 sure a secure, uniform, and timely system to cast a mail10 in ballot in accordance with this section. 

11 ‘‘(b) REQUESTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Mail-in ballots may only be 

13 provided upon request submitted by the voter in ac14 cordance with this subsection. Requests for a mail15 in ballot under a vote-by-mail system described in 

16 subsection (a) may be submitted electronically or by 

17 postal mail using a standardized form approved for 

18 such requests by the chief State election official. 

19 ‘‘(2) REQUEST.—The form for such requests 

20 must enable an election official who receives the re21 quest to confirm— 

22 ‘‘(A) the identity of the individual submit23 ting the request; 


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1 ‘‘(B) that the individual is validly reg2 istered and eligible to vote in the jurisdiction 

3 where the request is submitted; and 

4 ‘‘(C) that the individual continues to reside 

5 at the physical address where the individual is 

6 registered to vote (if different than the mailing 

7 address where the ballot is requested to be 

8 sent). 

9 ‘‘(3) DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION.—Such re10 quest must be submitted by an individual and re11 ceived by the office of the State or local election su12 pervisor not later than 21 days before the date of 

13 the election for Federal office. 

14 ‘‘(4) METHODS TO CONFIRM IDENTITY, REG15 ISTRATION, AND ELIGIBILITY OF REQUESTER.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon receipt of a re17 quest for a mail-in ballot, an election official 

18 shall confirm the identity, voter registration, 

19 and eligibility to vote of an individual request20 ing a mail-in ballot, by comparing the identi21 fying information of the individual requester 

22 with, at a minimum, the following records and 

23 databases: 


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1 ‘‘(i) The voter registration record 

2 maintained by the jurisdiction where the 

3 request is submitted. 

4 ‘‘(ii) The Death Master File (as such 

5 term is defined in section 203(d) of the Bi6 partisan Budget Act of 2013 (42 U.S.C. 

7 1306c(d))). 

8 ‘‘(iii) The E-Verify Program described 

9 in section 403(a) of the Illegal Immigra10 tion Reform and Immigrant Responsibility 

11 Act of 1996. 

12 ‘‘(B) PROMPT RESPONSE TO REQUEST.— 

13 Within 3 days of receiving a request for a mail14 in ballot from an individual, an election official 

15 shall take one of the following actions with re16 spect to such request: 

17 ‘‘(i) If the election official is unable to 

18 confirm the identity, voter registration, or 

19 eligibility to vote of the individual, the elec20 tion official shall deny the request for a 

21 mail-in ballot and notify the individual in 

22 writing of the reason for such denial. 

23 ‘‘(ii) If the election official is able to 

24 confirm the identity, voter registration, or 

25 eligibility to vote of the individual, the elecVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301

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1 tion official shall fulfill the request by 

2 mailing a mail-in ballot to the individual. 

3 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE OR LOCAL ELEC4 TION OFFICIALS.—The office of the State or local election 

5 supervisor shall— 

6 ‘‘(1) record the total number of mail-in ballots 

7 sent to voters pursuant to this section; and 

8 ‘‘(2) include a notation on the voter rolls main9 tained by the office and provided to the individual 

10 polling locations, which identifies that a voter has 

11 received a mail-in ballot and the date that mail-in 

12 ballot was sent to the voter. 

13 ‘‘(d) BALLOT REQUIREMENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be considered validly 

15 cast and eligible to be counted in an election for 

16 Federal office, a mail-in ballot must— 

17 ‘‘(A) be marked using blue or black ink, 

18 and properly designate the individual’s vote for 

19 each candidate; 

20 ‘‘(B) be signed by the individual using the 

21 same signature the individual used to register 

22 to vote; 

23 ‘‘(C) be dated; 


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1 ‘‘(D) be received by the appropriate elec2 tion official no later than the time polls close on 

3 the date of the election; and 

4 ‘‘(E) include an attestation, signed by the 

5 individual, that the individual submitting the 

6 mail-in ballot is— 

7 ‘‘(i) the individual to whom the ballot 

8 was mailed; 

9 ‘‘(ii) registered to vote in the jurisdic10 tion where the ballot is being submitted; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(iii) submitting the mail-in ballot in 

13 lieu of casting a ballot in-person, and will 

14 not attempt to cast a ballot in-person after 

15 submitting the mail-in ballot. 

16 ‘‘(2) RETURN OF BALLOTS IN-PERSON.— An 

17 individual may choose to return a mail-in ballot in18 person to the polling place where the individual is 

19 registered to vote in lieu of returning the ballot by 

20 mail. 

21 ‘‘(e) OPTION TO VOTE IN-PERSON.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An individual who receives 

23 a mail-in ballot with respect to an election for Fed24 eral office may instead vote in-person in such elec25 tion if the individual turns in the blank or incomVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:13 Mar 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S301.IS S301

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1 plete mail-in ballot received by the individual to the 

2 polling location where the individual plans to vote in3 person. 

4 ‘‘(2) PROVISIONAL BALLOT.—If the individual 

5 attempts to vote in-person but does not bring their 

6 blank or incomplete mail-in ballot to the polling loca7 tion, the individual shall be directed to complete a 

8 provisional ballot. 

9 ‘‘(f) PERSONS PERMITTED TO POSSESS MAIL-IN

10 BALLOTS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any 

12 person to possess or return a mail-in ballot com13 pleted by another person, except as provided in this 

14 subsection. 

15 ‘‘(2) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A person may possess 

17 or return a mail-in ballot completed by an im18 mediate family member, provided that the per19 son does not possess more than 2 such com20 pleted mail-in ballots other than his or her own. 

21 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF IMMEDIATE FAMILY

22 MEMBER.—In this paragraph, the term ‘imme23 diate family member’ means the spouse, child, 

24 parent, grandparent, or sibling of the person. 

25 ‘‘(3) CAREGIVER.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A caregiver may pos2 sess or return a mail-in ballot completed by a 

3 person under the supervision or care of the 

4 caregiver, provided that the caregiver does not 

5 possess more than 2 such completed mail-in 

6 ballots other than his or her own. 

7 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF CAREGIVER.—In this 

8 paragraph, the term ‘caregiver’ means an indi9 vidual who has the responsibility for the care of 

10 an older individual, either voluntarily, by con11 tract, by receipt of payment for care, or as a re12 sult of the operation of law and means an indi13 vidual who provides (on behalf of such indi14 vidual or of a public or private agency, organi15 zation, or institution) compensated or uncom16 pensated care to an older individual. 

17 ‘‘(4) INCIDENTAL POSSESSION EXCEPTED.— 

18 The prohibition under paragraph (1) shall not apply 

19 to the incidental possession of mail-in ballots by a 

20 postal worker or election official acting within the 

21 scope of his or her official capacity. 

22 ‘‘(5) PENALTY.—Any person who violates this 

23 subsection shall be fined under title 18, United 

24 States Code, or imprisoned not more than 1 year, or 

25 both. 


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1 ‘‘(g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

2 with respect to elections for Federal office held after the 

3 date of the enactment of this section.’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

5 (1) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act 

6 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking ‘‘and 

7 303’’ and inserting ‘‘303, and 304’’. 

8 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con9 tents of such Act is amended— 

10 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 

11 sections 304 and 305 as relating to sections 

12 305 and 306, respectively; and 

13 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

14 section 303 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 304. Federal standards for mail-in ballots.’’. 

15 SEC. 3. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR REPORTING ELECTION 

16 RESULTS. 

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

18 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.), as amended 

19 by section 2(a), is amended— 

20 (1) by redesignating sections 305 and 306 as 

21 sections 306 and 307, respectively; and 

22 (2) by inserting after section 304 the following 

23 new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 305. FEDERAL STANDARDS FOR REPORTING ELEC2 TION RESULTS. 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The chief State election official 

4 shall ensure that ballots validly cast in an election for Fed5 eral office are able to be counted and reported in a timely 

6 manner as follows: 

7 ‘‘(1) Mail-in ballots received prior to the date of 

8 the election shall be counted upon receipt (except in 

9 the case of a mail-in ballot received prior to the date 

10 that is 22 days before the date of the election, no 

11 earlier than the date that is 22 days before the date 

12 of the election), provided that the results of such 

13 votes counted and recorded must be kept confiden14 tial and may not be disclosed until the time polls 

15 close on the date of the election. 

16 ‘‘(2) One hour after polls close on the date of 

17 the election, each voting precinct shall report to the 

18 chief State election official the following: 

19 ‘‘(A) The total number of mail-in ballots 

20 received by the voting precinct. 

21 ‘‘(B) The total number of ballots cast in22 person in the voting precinct. 

23 ‘‘(C) Of the ballots reported under sub24 paragraphs (A) and (B), the number of such 

25 ballots that have been counted and the number 

26 of such ballots that remain to be counted. 


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1 ‘‘(3)(A) All ballots validly cast in an election for 

2 Federal office shall be counted and reported within 

3 24 hours after the polls close on the date of the elec4 tion. 

5 ‘‘(B) If the chief State election official is unable 

6 to complete the count of votes cast within 24 hours 

7 after the polls close on the date of the election, the 

8 official must identify with particularity and publicly 

9 report— 

10 ‘‘(i) the reason why the vote count has not 

11 been completed; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the steps the official is taking to en13 sure the vote count is completed as expedi14 tiously as possible; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) the anticipated time when the vote 

16 count will be completed. 

17 ‘‘(4) If more than 24 hours have passed after 

18 the conclusion of voting without a final vote count, 

19 the chief State election official must report the unof20 ficial vote count on an hourly basis until the vote 

21 count is completed. 

22 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

23 with respect to elections for Federal office held after the 

24 date of the enactment of this section.’’. 

25 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 (1) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act 

2 (52 U.S.C. 21111), as amended by section 2(b), is 

3 amended by striking ‘‘and 304’’ and inserting ‘‘304, 

4 and 305’’. 

5 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con6 tents of such Act, as amended by section 2(b), is 

7 amended— 

8 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 

9 sections 305 and 306 as relating to sections 

10 306 and 307, respectively; and 

11 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

12 section 304 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 305. Federal standards for reporting election results.’’. 

13 SEC. 4. PROMOTING VOTER ROLL INTEGRITY. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle D of Title II of the Help 

15 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.) is 

16 amended by adding at the end the following new part: 

17 ‘‘PART 7—PROMOTING VOTER ROLL INTEGRITY 

18 ‘‘SEC. 297. PAYMENT INELIGIBILITY FOR STATES WITHOUT 

19 ADEQUATE VOTER ROLL INTEGRITY MEAS20 URES. 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State shall be ineligible to re22 ceive funds under this Act unless the State meets the fol23 lowing requirements with respect to each election for Fed24 eral office held on or after January 1, 2021: 


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1 ‘‘(1) IDENTIFICATION REQUIRED TO CAST BAL2 LOT.—The State has in effect a law that— 

3 ‘‘(A) requires an individual to present a 

4 current and valid form of photographic identi5 fication at a polling location prior to being able 

6 to cast a ballot in an election for Federal office; 

7 ‘‘(B) specifies approved forms of identifica8 tion for meeting such requirement; 

9 ‘‘(C) requires a supervisor of elections or 

10 other authorized elections official to confirm the 

11 individual is validly registered and eligible to 

12 vote at that polling location; and 

13 ‘‘(D) requires the individual be provided a 

14 provisional ballot if— 

15 ‘‘(i) the individual is unable to present 

16 a current and valid approved form of iden17 tification; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) the supervisor of elections or 

19 other authorized elections official is unable 

20 to confirm that the individual is validly 

21 registered and eligible to vote at the poll22 ing location. 

23 ‘‘(2) VOTER SIGNATURE VERIFICATION.—The 

24 State has in effect a law that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) requires the supervisor of elections or 

2 other authorized election official to compare 

3 and confirm that an individual’s signature on a 

4 mail-in ballot matches the authorized signature 

5 appearing in the individual’s voter registration 

6 file; and 

7 ‘‘(B) specifies procedures for a supervisor 

8 of elections or other authorized elections offi9 cial— 

10 ‘‘(i) to notify the individual if the sig11 nature on the individual’s mail-in ballot is 

12 determined not to match the authorized 

13 signature appearing in the individual’s 

14 voter registration file; 

15 ‘‘(ii) to permit the individual to pro16 vide a copy of an approved form of photo17 graphic identification and a sworn state18 ment attesting that— 

19 ‘‘(I) the individual is validly reg20 istered and eligible to vote in the ju21 risdiction; 

22 ‘‘(II) the signature on the mail-in 

23 ballot belongs to that individual; and 


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1 ‘‘(III) the individual has not cast 

2 another ballot in the election for Fed3 eral office; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) to mark the mail-in ballot as il5 legal and ineligible to be counted if the in6 dividual fails to respond within the des7 ignated period of time to cure the reported 

8 defect in the individual’s authorized signa9 ture. 

10 ‘‘(3) SAME-DAY REGISTRATION PROHIBITED

11 FOR FIRST-TIME VOTERS.—The State has in effect 

12 a law that prohibits an individual from registering to 

13 vote for the first time and casting a ballot on the 

14 same day at a polling location. 

15 ‘‘(4) AUDIT OF VOTER ROLLS.—The State has 

16 in effect a law that requires the chief election official 

17 of each jurisdiction or precinct to— 

18 ‘‘(A) complete an audit of the voter roll of 

19 the registered voters within that jurisdiction or 

20 precinct in each year in which an election for 

21 Federal office is held; 

22 ‘‘(B) compare the names of the registered 

23 voters within the jurisdiction or precinct with— 

24 ‘‘(i) the Death Master File (as such 

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1 partisan Budget Act of 2013 (42 U.S.C. 

2 1306c(d))); and 

3 ‘‘(ii) the E-Verify Program described 

4 in section 403(a) of the Illegal Immigra5 tion Reform and Immigrant Responsibility 

6 Act of 1996; 

7 ‘‘(C) promptly notify an individual identi8 fied as ineligible pursuant to subparagraph (B) 

9 to provide an opportunity to prove their eligi10 bility to be registered to vote according to pro11 cedures defined in State law for that purpose; 

12 ‘‘(D) remove from the voter roll an indi13 vidual who fails to prove their eligibility to vote 

14 in an election for Federal office pursuant to 

15 subparagraph (C); and 

16 ‘‘(E) file a written certification with the 

17 chief State election official certifying the com18 pletion of the audit and the accuracy of the 

19 voter roll of registered voters within the rel20 evant jurisdiction or precinct, which is required 

21 under such law to be submitted not later than 

22 6 months prior to the date of an election for 

23 Federal office.’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

2 such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 

3 to section 296 the following: 

‘‘PART 7—PROMOTING VOTER ROLL INTEGRITY

‘‘Sec. 297. Payment ineligibility for States without adequate voter roll integrity 

measures.’’. 

Æ 


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