HB 292 - AS INTRODUCED
2021 SESSION
21-0402
08/10
HOUSE BILL 292
AN ACT relative to the absentee ballot application process.
SPONSORS: Rep. Hill, Merr. 3; Rep. Silber, Belk. 2; Rep. Rice, Hills. 37; Rep. Rouillard, Hills.
6; Rep. Pearl, Merr. 26; Rep. Gunski, Hills. 6
COMMITTEE: Election Law
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ANALYSIS
This bill establishes procedures for the verification of certain mail-in absentee voter applications.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
HB 292 - AS INTRODUCED
21-0402
08/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty One
AN ACT relative to the absentee ballot application process.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 1 New Section; Pre-Election Procedure; Verification of Mail-In Absentee Voter. Amend RSA 657
2 by inserting after section 17-a the following new section:
3 657:17-b Verification of Mail-In Absentee Voter.
4 I. If an absentee voter indicates in the mailed-in absentee ballot application form that such
5 voter wishes the absentee ballot to be mailed to an address other than that shown in the official
6 checklist, and such voter returns the absentee ballot by mail, such voter shall be treated as a verified
7 voter provided:
8 (a) The voter voluntarily shows the clerk a photo identification that meets the
9 requirements of RSA 659:13, II a prior to election day; or
10 (b) The voter voluntarily includes a notarized signature on his or her completed absentee
11 ballot application form.
12 II. The clerk shall mark the absentee ballot affidavit envelope "voter verified" and note on
13 the clerk's list of absentee voters that the voter has been verified. The verified voter's signatures on
14 the application for an absentee ballot shall not be compared to the voter's signature on the absentee
15 ballot affidavit on election day.
16 III. A voter who does not provide verification pursuant to subparagraphs I(a)-(b) shall not be
17 treated as a verified voter, and his or her signature on the application for an absentee ballot shall be
18 compared to his or her signature on the absentee ballot affidavit on election day in the same manner
19 as other voters.
20 2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Statutes affected: latest version: 657:7