THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

INTRODUCED BY BAKER, ALLOWAY, BREWSTER, COSTA, ERICKSON, FARNESE, FOLMER, FONTANA, ORIE, PILEGGI, RAFFERTY, WAUGH AND D. WHITE, FEBRUARY 23, 2011

REFERRED TO STATE GOVERNMENT, FEBRUARY 23, 2011  

AN ACT

Amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), entitled

"An act concerning elections, including general, municipal,

special and primary elections, the nomination of candidates,

primary and election expenses and election contests; creating

and defining membership of county boards of elections;

imposing duties upon the Secretary of the Commonwealth,

courts, county boards of elections, county commissioners;

imposing penalties for violation of the act, and codifying,

revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto; and

repealing certain acts and parts of acts relating to

elections," in voting by qualified absentee electors, further

providing for envelopes for official absentee ballots.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Section 1304 of the act of June 3, 1937

(P.L.1333, No.320), known as the Pennsylvania Election Code,

amended December 11, 1968 (P.L.1183, No.375), is amended to

read:

Section 1304.  Envelopes for Official Absentee Ballots.--

The county boards of election shall provide two additional

envelopes for each official absentee ballot of such size and

shape as shall be prescribed by the Secretary of the

Commonwealth, in order to permit the placing of one within the

other and both within the mailing envelope. On the smaller of

the two envelopes to be enclosed in the mailing envelope shall

be printed, stamped or endorsed the words "Official Absentee

Ballot," and nothing else. On the larger of the two envelopes,

to be enclosed within the mailing envelope, shall be printed the

form of the declaration of the elector, and the name and address

of the county board of election of the proper county. The larger

envelope shall also contain information indicating the local

election district of the absentee voter, but the larger envelope

shall not specify in any manner the political party affiliation

of the absentee voter. Said form of declaration and envelope

shall be as prescribed by the Secretary of the Commonwealth and

shall contain among other things a statement of the electors

qualifications, together with a statement that such elector has

not already voted in such primary or election. The mailing

envelope addressed to the elector shall contain the two

envelopes, the official absentee ballot, lists of candidates,

when authorized by section 1303 subsection (b) of this act, the

uniform instructions in form and substance as prescribed by the

Secretary of the Commonwealth and nothing else: Provided,

however, That envelopes for electors qualified under preceding

section 1301, subsections (a) to (h), inclusive, shall have

printed across the face of each transmittal or return envelope

two parallel horizontal red bars, each one-quarter inch wide,

extending from one side of the envelope to the other side, with

an intervening space of one-quarter inch, the top bar to be one

and one-quarter inches from the top of the envelope and with the

words "Official Election Balloting Material via Air Mail"

between the bars; that there be printed, in the upper right

corner of each such envelope in a box, the words "Free of U. S.

Postage, Including Air Mail;" that all printing on the face of

each such envelope be in red, and that there be printed in red,

in the upper left corner of each such envelope, the name and

address of the county board of elections of the proper county or

blank lines for return address of the sender:

Provided further, That the aforesaid envelope addressed to

the elector may contain absentee registration forms where

required, and shall contain detailed instructions on the

procedures to be observed in casting an absentee ballot as

prescribed by the Secretary of the Commonwealth, together with

return envelope upon which is printed the name and address of

the registration commission of the proper county, which envelope

shall have printed across the face two parallel horizontal red

bars, each one-quarter inch wide, extending from one side of the

envelope to the other side, with an intervening space of one-

quarter inch, the top bar to be one and one-quarter inches from

the top of the envelope and with the words "Official Election

Balloting Material via Air Mail" between the bars; that there be

printed in the upper right corner of each such envelope in a box

the words "Free of U. S. Postage, Including Air Mail," and, in

the upper left corner of each such envelope, blank lines for

return address of the sender; that all printing on the face of

each such envelope be in red.

Section 2.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.