Early Voting Act

Subjects: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:  <p><b>Early Voting Act</b></p> <p>This bill expands early in-person voting.</p> <p>The bill generally requires each state to allow individuals to vote in federal elections during an early voting period of at least 15 days. This requirement does not apply to jurisdictions that send a mail-in ballot to every registered voter.</p> <p>Further, states and jurisdictions must ensure that polling places are accessible by public transportation, located in rural areas, and located on each branch campus of an institution of higher education.</p> <p>The Election Assistance Commission must issue certain voluntary standards for early voting, including the nondiscriminatory geographic placement of polling places.</p> <p>Finally, states and jurisdictions must begin processing and scanning ballots cast during the early voting period at least 14 days prior to election day. However, states and jurisdictions cannot tabulate ballots before the polls close on election day unless the tabulation is necessary and performed in accordance with existing state law.</p>

<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1295 Introduced in House (IH)]

&lt;DOC&gt;






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1295

To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to allow individuals to vote 
 in an election for Federal office during an early voting period which 
   occurs prior to the date of the election, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 1, 2023

   Mr. Goldman of New York introduced the following bill; which was 
           referred to the Committee on House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to allow individuals to vote 
 in an election for Federal office during an early voting period which 
   occurs prior to the date of the election, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Early Voting Act''.

SEC. 2. EARLY VOTING.

    (a) Requirements.--Subtitle A of title III of the Help America Vote 
Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating sections 304 and 305 as sections 305 
        and 306; and
            (2) by inserting after section 303 the following new 
        section:

``SEC. 304. EARLY VOTING.

    ``(a) Requiring Voting Prior to Date of Election.--Each State shall 
allow individuals to vote in an election for Federal office during an 
early voting period which occurs prior to the date of the election, in 
a manner that allows the individual to receive, complete, and cast 
their ballot in-person.
    ``(b) Minimum Early Voting Requirements.--
            ``(1) In general.--
                    ``(A) Length of period.--The early voting period 
                required under this subsection with respect to an 
                election shall consist of a period of consecutive days 
                (including weekends) which begins on the 15th day 
                before the date of the election (or, at the option of 
                the State, on a day prior to the 15th day before the 
                date of the election) and ends no earlier than the 
                second day before the date of the election.
                    ``(B) Hours for early voting.--Each polling place 
                which allows voting during an early voting period under 
                subparagraph (A) shall--
                            ``(i) allow such voting for no less than 10 
                        hours on each day during the period;
                            ``(ii) have uniform hours each day for 
                        which such voting occurs; and
                            ``(iii) allow such voting to be held for 
                        some period of time prior to 9:00 a.m (local 
                        time) and some period of time after 5:00 p.m. 
                        (local time).
            ``(2) Requirements for vote-by-mail jurisdictions.--In the 
        case of a jurisdiction that sends every registered voter a 
        ballot by mail--
                    ``(A) paragraph (1) shall not apply;
                    ``(B) such jurisdiction shall allow eligible 
                individuals to vote during an early voting period that 
                ensures voters are provided the greatest opportunity to 
                cast ballots ahead of election day and which includes 
                at least one consecutive Saturday and Sunday; and
                    ``(C) each polling place which allows voting during 
                an early voting period under subparagraph (B) shall 
                allow such voting--
                            ``(i) during the election office's regular 
                        business hours; and
                            ``(ii) for a period of not less than 8 
                        hours on Saturdays and Sundays included in the 
                        early voting period.
            ``(3) Requirements for small jurisdictions.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In the case of a jurisdiction 
                described in subparagraph (B), paragraph (1)(B) shall 
                not apply so long as all eligible individuals in the 
                jurisdiction have the opportunity to vote--
                            ``(i) at each polling place which allows 
                        voting during the early voting period described 
                        in paragraph (1)(A)--
                                    ``(I) during the election office's 
                                regular business hours; and
                                    ``(II) for a period of not less 
                                than 8 hours on at least one Saturday 
                                and at least one Sunday included in the 
                                early voting period; or
                            ``(ii) at one or more polling places in the 
                        county in which such jurisdiction is located 
                        that allows voting during the early voting 
                        period described in paragraph (1)(A) in 
                        accordance with the requirements under 
                        paragraph (1)(B).
                    ``(B) Jurisdiction described.--A jurisdiction is 
                described in this subparagraph if such jurisdiction--
                            ``(i) had less than 3,000 registered voters 
                        at the time of the most recent prior election 
                        for Federal office; and
                            ``(ii) consists of a geographic area that 
                        is smaller than the jurisdiction of the county 
                        in which such jurisdiction is located.
            ``(4) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection 
        shall be construed--
                    ``(A) to limit the availability of additional 
                temporary voting sites which provide voters more 
                opportunities to cast their ballots but which do not 
                meet the requirements of this subsection;
                    ``(B) to limit a polling place from being open for 
                additional hours outside of the uniform hours set for 
                the polling location on any day of the early voting 
                period; or
                    ``(C) to limit a State or jurisdiction from 
                offering early voting on the Monday before election 
                day.
    ``(c) Location of Polling Places.--
            ``(1) Proximity to public transportation.--To the greatest 
        extent practicable, each State and jurisdiction shall ensure 
        that each polling place which allows voting during an early 
        voting period under subsection (b) is located within walking 
        distance of a stop on a public transportation route.
            ``(2) Availability in rural areas.--In the case of a 
        jurisdiction that includes a rural area, the State or 
        jurisdiction shall--
                    ``(A) ensure that polling places which allow voting 
                during an early voting period under subsection (b) will 
                be located in such rural areas; and
                    ``(B) ensure that such polling places are located 
                in communities which will provide the greatest 
                opportunity for residents of rural areas to vote during 
                the early voting period.
            ``(3) College campuses.--In the case of a jurisdiction that 
        includes an institution of higher education, the State or 
        jurisdiction shall--
                    ``(A) ensure that an appropriate number (not less 
                than one) of polling places which allow voting during 
                the early voting period under subsection (b) will be 
                located on each branch campus of the institution of 
                higher education; and
                    ``(B) ensure that such polling places provide the 
                greatest opportunity for residents of the jurisdiction 
                to vote.
    ``(d) Standards.--Not later than June 30, 2024, the Commission 
shall issue voluntary standards for the administration of voting during 
voting periods which occur prior to the date of a Federal election. 
Subject to subsection (c), such voluntary standards shall include the 
nondiscriminatory geographic placement of polling places at which such 
voting occurs.
    ``(e) Ballot Processing and Scanning Requirements.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each State or jurisdiction shall begin 
        processing and scanning ballots cast during in-person early 
        voting for tabulation not later than the date that is 14 days 
        prior to the date of the election involved, except that a State 
        or jurisdiction may begin processing and scanning ballots cast 
        during in-person early voting for tabulation after such date if 
        the date on which the State or jurisdiction begins such 
        processing and scanning ensures, to the greatest extent 
        practical, that ballots cast before the date of the election 
        are processed and scanned before the date of the election.
            ``(2) Limitation.--Nothing in this subsection shall be 
        construed--
                    ``(A) to permit a State or jurisdiction to tabulate 
                ballots in an election before the closing of the polls 
                on the date of the election unless such tabulation is a 
                necessary component of preprocessing in the State or 
                jurisdiction and is performed in accordance with 
                existing State law; or
                    ``(B) to permit an official to make public any 
                results of tabulation and processing before the closing 
                of the polls on the date of the election.
    ``(f) Effective Date.--This section shall apply with respect to the 
regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held in 
November 2024 and each succeeding election for Federal office.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment Relating to Issuance of Voluntary Guidance 
by Election Assistance Commission.--Section 311(b) of such Act (52 
U.S.C. 21101(b)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (2);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (3) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) in the case of the recommendations with respect to 
        section 304, June 30, 2024.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment Relating to Enforcement.--Section 401 of 
such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking ``and 303'' and 
inserting ``303, and 304''.
    (d) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of such Act is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating the items relating to sections 304 and 
        305 as relating to sections 305 and 306; and
            (2) by inserting after the item relating to section 303 the 
        following new item:

``Sec. 304. Early voting.''.
                                 &lt;all&gt;
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