HB 1047
Department of Legislative Services
Maryland General Assembly
2021 Session
FISCAL AND POLICY NOTE
Third Reader - Revised
House Bill 1047 (Delegate Wilkins)
Ways and Means Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs
Mail–In Voting Enhancement Act
This bill establishes provisions governing (1) the availability, location, and other aspects
of ballot drop boxes; (2) absentee ballot instructions; (3) voter access to absentee ballot
application and absentee ballot status information; and (4) a voter’s ability to correct a
problem with the voter’s absentee ballot. The bill also requires the State Board of Elections
(SBE) to complete a specified report after each statewide election and requires a usability
review of mail-in voting materials and forms. The bill takes effect June 1, 2021.
Fiscal Summary
State Effect: General fund expenditures increase by $141,600 in FY 2022, with ongoing
costs in future years. Revenues are not affected.
(in dollars) FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 FY 2026
Revenues $0 $0 $0 $0 $0
GF Expenditure 141,600 97,000 99,800 103,100 106,600
Net Effect ($141,600) ($97,000) ($99,800) ($103,100) ($106,600)
Note:() = decrease; GF = general funds; FF = federal funds; SF = special funds; - = indeterminate increase; (-) = indeterminate decrease
Local Effect: Local government expenditures increase, as discussed below. This bill
imposes a mandate on a unit of local government.
Small Business Effect: None.
 Analysis
Bill Summary:
Ballot Drop Boxes
Number, Availability, and Allocation
The bill requires SBE to make at least 300 ballot drop boxes available for each statewide
primary and statewide general election and an appropriate number available for each
special primary and special general election. SBE must ensure that ballot drop boxes are
available during the period beginning at least 30 days before each election through
Election Day, and a local board of elections must remove the ballots from each ballot drop
box at least once each day that the ballot drop box is open. SBE must establish chain of
custody procedures governing removal of election-related materials from ballot drop boxes
and the return of the materials to the local board. The bill also requires that guidelines
established by SBE for the administration of absentee voting by the local boards of
elections provide for the return of absentee ballots using ballot drop boxes.
“Ballot drop box” means a secure, durable, weatherproof container that is officially
designated by a local board of elections for voters to deposit completed absentee ballots in
person. SBE must ensure that ballot drop boxes are compliant with the federal Americans
with Disabilities Act and generally consistent in design and security features.
SBE must establish an equitable formula based on the number of registered voters in each
county for the purpose of allocating ballot drop boxes among the counties. Each local board
must reimburse SBE for 50% of the cost of the ballot drop boxes located in the county.
Location and Security
Each local board of elections must determine the location of each ballot drop box. A local
board must take into account the following factors when determining the location of a
ballot drop box:
 ensuring accessibility of the ballot drop box to historically disenfranchised
communities, including voters with disabilities, cultural groups, ethnic groups, and
minority groups;
 proximity of the ballot drop box to dense concentrations of voters;
 accessibility of the ballot drop box by public transportation;
 ensuring equitable distribution of ballot drop boxes throughout the county; and
HB 1047/ Page 2
 maximizing voter participation, including through placement of ballot drop boxes
at community centers and public gathering places.
A local board must ensure the security of ballot drop boxes, including through
(1) monitoring by security cameras at all times and (2) periodic in-person visits by
appropriate personnel. A local board must have immediate access to a security camera used
for monitoring a ballot drop box.
Canvassing, Electioneering, and Campaign Material
The bill prohibits a person from (1) canvassing, electioneering, or posting any campaign
material in a manner that obstructs access to a ballot drop box or (2) placing any campaign
material or any other unauthorized material on a ballot drop box. A person who violates
these prohibitions is subject to a fine of up to $1,000 and/or imprisonment for up to
two years, under an existing penalty provision.
Other Prohibited Actions
The bill prohibits a person from (1) removing, defacing, damaging, destroying, or
preventing the correct operation of a ballot drop box, or (2) except for servicing by an
authorized person, unlocking any locked compartment of a ballot drop box unless
instructed to do so by the election director of the local board for the county in which the
ballot drop box is located. A person who violates these prohibitions is guilty of a felony
and subject to a fine of up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment for up to three years.
Absentee Ballot Instructions
The bill requires that the instructions that accompany an absentee ballot include a provision
informing the voter that an absentee ballot placed in a mailbox after the last pick up on
Election Day will not be postmarked on Election Day.
Voter Access to Absentee Ballot Application and Absentee Ballot Status Information
The bill requires that guidelines established by SBE for the administration of absentee
voting by the local boards of elections provide for voter access to information concerning
the status of the voter’s absentee ballot. SBE must allow a voter to access information
regarding (1) when the voter’s absentee ballot application is received by the local board;
(2) when the voter’s absentee ballot is sent to the voter; (3) when the voter’s completed
absentee ballot is received by the local board; and (4) when the voter’s absentee ballot is
counted.
HB 1047/ Page 3
A voter may access the information concerning the voter’s absentee ballot application and
absentee ballot (1) through SBE’s website; (2) by calling the toll-free telephone number of
SBE; or (3) if the voter provides the voter’s email address when applying for an absentee
ballot online, by receiving an email message from SBE. SBE must provide updated
information concerning a voter’s absentee ballot within 72 hours.
Correction of a Problem with an Absentee Ballot
The bill modifies a requirement that an absentee ballot be rejected if the voter failed to sign
the oath on the ballot envelope, so that it instead requires that the ballot be rejected if the
voter failed to sign the oath and failed to correct the omission before the conclusion of the
canvass.
The bill requires SBE to adopt regulations requiring a local board to (1) notify a voter of a
problem with the voter’s absentee ballot that would cause the ballot to be rejected but which
is capable of being corrected by the voter and (2) provide the voter an opportunity to correct
the problem and have the ballot counted.
The regulations must allow a voter to (1) supply a signature if the voter failed to sign the
oath on the ballot envelope and (2) choose among multiple methods of communicating
with the local board to correct a problem with the voter’s absentee ballot, including text
message, an accessible online portal, a mailed form, and an in-person visit to the local
board office.
Post-election Report
The bill requires SBE to complete a comprehensive report after each statewide election,
analyzing the election, including (1) voter turnout; (2) administrative policies and practices
that were different from the previous election; (3) administrative policies and practices that
were effective and those that were not effective; and (4) how SBE plans to improve the
election process for future elections. SBE must post the report on its website and submit it
to the General Assembly.
Usability Review of Mail-in Voting Materials and Forms
By August 1, 2021, SBE must contract with a usability consultant to review all the public
informational materials and forms related to mail-in voting produced by SBE. By
December 1, 2021, the consultant must make specified recommendations to SBE regarding
ways the materials and forms could be made more usable, especially by socioeconomically
diverse communities. By February 1, 2022, SBE must submit a report to the Senate
Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee and the House Committee on
HB 1047/ Page 4
Ways and Means that includes the recommendations submitted by the consultant and the
actions SBE has taken or plans to take to implement the recommendations.
Current Law:
Absentee (Mail-in) Voting
An individual may vote by absentee (mail-in) ballot except to the extent preempted by
federal law. An absentee ballot may be requested in writing (there are State and federal
forms that can be used) or online through the SBE website. The voter may choose to receive
the ballot by mail, by fax, through the Internet, or by hand at a local board of elections
office. The voter may return the ballot by (1) mailing it, postmarked on or before
Election Day or (2) delivering it in person to an early voting center or to the local board of
elections or an Election Day polling place by the close of polls on Election Day. An
absentee ballot must be accompanied by instructions, prescribed by SBE, for marking and
returning the ballot.
A local board of elections must reject an absentee ballot if the voter failed to sign the oath
on the ballot envelope.
Maintenance of Absentee Voting Records
Each local board of elections must maintain a full record of absentee voting in the county,
including, for each absentee voter, (1) the date and time of the board’s receipt of an
application for an absentee ballot; (2) the action taken with regard to the application; (3) the
appropriate ballot style; (4) the date of issuance of a ballot; (5) if mailed, the address to
which the ballot is sent; (6) the date and time of the receipt of the voted absentee ballot;
and (7) any other information specified by SBE.
Free Access System
SBE regulations require the board to establish a free access system that any voter who
submits an absentee ballot application may access to determine whether the local board of
elections received and accepted the voter’s absentee ballot application and received and
counted the voter’s absentee ballot. Each local election director must use the statewide
voter registration system to process all absentee ballot applications and returned ballots,
and SBE must use the absentee voting information in the statewide voter registration
system for the free access system. The free access system must be accessible online through
SBE’s website and by calling SBE’s toll-free telephone number. An absentee voter must
be required to provide the absentee voter’s name and date of birth to access the information
about the voter’s ballot.
HB 1047/ Page 5
Prohibited Actions – Elections Equipment and Ballots
Title 16 of the Election Law Article (to which the bill’s prohibitions regarding removing,
defacing, damaging, destroying, preventing the correct operation of, or unauthorized
unlocking of a ballot drop box are added) prohibits various actions relating to elections
equipment and ballots, including:
 except for servicing by an authorized person, unlocking any locked compartment of
a voting device unless instructed to do so by the election director;
 destroying or defacing a ballot, or delaying the delivery of a ballot;
 willfully concealing, damaging, or destroying voting equipment used or intended to
be used on the day of the election, or removing voting equipment from the custody
of the election judges or other election officials;
 willfully and knowingly tampering with, damaging, or attempting to damage any
voting equipment that is used or will be used in an election, or preventing or
attempting to prevent the correct operation of any voting equipment that is used or
will be used on the day of the election;
 unless authorized, making or having in one’s possession a key to any voting
equipment that is used or will be used on the day of the election; and
 removing, defacing, or destroying equipment or supplies placed in a polling place
by election officials during an election.
A person who violates the prohibitions relating to voting equipment or supplies is guilty of
a felony and subject to a fine of up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment for up to three years.
A person who violates the prohibitions relating to ballots or unlocking a compartment of a
voting device is guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a fine of at least $50 but not more
than $500 and/or imprisonment for up to 60 days.
State Fiscal Effect: General fund expenditures increase by $141,604 in fiscal 2022, which
accounts for a 30-day start-up delay. This estimate reflects the cost of (1) hiring an
information technology (IT) programmer within SBE to assist in the development and
maintenance of a system that will meet the bill’s requirements for a voter’s ability to correct
a problem with the voter’s mail-in ballot through text messaging and an accessible online
portal (while the system is used by the local boards of elections to communicate with
voters, this estimate assumes a centralized system is developed by SBE); (2) purchasing
additional ballot drop boxes and delivering them to, and picking them up from, their
locations during an election; and (3) the required usability review. The additional IT
development and maintenance work is not expected to be able to be absorbed by existing
SBE staff. The estimate includes a salary, fringe benefits, one-time start-up costs, an
estimated cost of the usability review (based on the cost of a past review) and ongoing
HB 1047/ Page 6
expenses. The estimate of the costs for additional ballot drop boxes is based on the
following assumptions:
 8 additional ballot drop boxes are purchased to meet the bill’s requirement that SBE
make at least 300 ballot drop boxes available for each statewide primary and
statewide general election (SBE currently has 292 ballot drop boxes);
 the cost per ballot drop box is $2,500 (SBE indicates that the cost can range from
approximately $1,500 to $2,500, depending on the number of ballot drop boxes
being ordered; a price closer to $1,500 was paid for the larger number of ballot drop
boxes purchased in 2020);
 the average total cost, per ballot drop box, for delivery and pick up of ballot drop
boxes, to and from their location, is approximately $1,500 (based on costs incurred
for the 2020 general election); and
 the cost of the ballot drop boxes is shared 50/50 by SBE and the local boards of
elections (required by the bill).
Position 1.0
Salaries and Fringe Benefits $94,989
Usability Review 25,000
Purchase of Ballot Drop Boxes 10,000
Ballot Drop Box Delivery and Pick Up 5,870
Other Operating Expenses 5,745
Total FY 2022 State Expenditures $141,604
Future year expenditures reflect a full salary with annual increases and employee turnover
and ongoing operating expenses, including delivery and pick up of ballot drop boxes.
Local Fiscal Effect:
Ballot Drop Boxes
Local government expenditures increase, collectively, by $15,870 in fiscal 2022 and
$5,870 annually thereafter. This estimate reflects the local boards of elections’ share of the
costs of purchasing additional ballot drop boxes ($10,000) and delivering and picking up
those additional ballot drop boxes, to and from their locations, for each statewide election
($5,870), as described above.
Ballot Drop Box Management
Local boards of elections’ costs also increase to manage the eight additional ballot drop
boxes purchased as a result of the bill (e.g., costs of emptying ballot drop boxes each day,
HB 1047/ Page 7
closing the ballot drop boxes on Election Day, and security). Carroll County, for example,
indicates that its costs increase by $1,000 each election if it would need to manage
three additional ballot drop boxes. Information provided by Baltimore City indicates that
its costs for ballot pick up from ballot drop boxes during the 2020 general election was
$347 per ballot drop box, and the city appears to have incurred significant costs for
monitoring of the ballot drop boxes by law enforcement. For other legislation, Montgomery
and Calvert counties provided estimated costs of $5,800 and $2,300, respectively, to
purchase and install a security camera to monitor a ballot drop box.
It is unclear to what extent the bill increases costs related to use of the current inventory of
292 ballot drop boxes. If the full current inventory of ballot drop boxes is not otherwise
used in future statewide elections, costs increase for local boards of elections to manage
the additional ballot drop boxes that are used as a result of the bill’s requirement that at
least 300 ballot drop boxes be made available. Based on information provided by SBE,
including information on policies that were in place for the management of ballot drop
boxes during the 2020 general