Utah Code 20A-3a-202. Conducting election by mail

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Terms Used In Utah Code 20A-3a-202

Active voter: means a registered voter who has not been classified as an inactive voter by the county clerk. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
Ballot: means the storage medium, including a paper, mechanical, or electronic storage medium, that records an individual voter's vote. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Election: means a regular general election, a municipal general election, a statewide special election, a local special election, a regular primary election, a municipal primary election, and a special district election. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Election officer: means :
     (23)(a) the lieutenant governor, for all statewide ballots and elections;
     (23)(b) the county clerk for:
          (23)(b)(i) a county ballot and election; and
          (23)(b)(ii) a ballot and election as a provider election officer as provided in Section Utah Code 20A-1-102
Inactive voter: means a registered voter who is listed as inactive by a county clerk under Subsection 20A-2-505(4)(c)(i) or (ii). See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Manual ballot: means a paper document produced by an election officer on which an individual records an individual's vote by directly placing a mark on the paper document using a pen or other marking instrument. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Polling place: means a building where voting is conducted. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
qualified: means to take the oath of office and begin performing the duties of the position for which the individual was elected. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Resident: means a person who resides within a specific voting precinct in Utah. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Return envelope: means the envelope, described in Subsection 20A-3a-202(4), provided to a voter with a manual ballot:
(65)(a) into which the voter places the manual ballot after the voter has voted the manual ballot in order to preserve the secrecy of the voter's vote; and
(65)(b) that includes the voter affidavit and a place for the voter's signature. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Signature: includes a name, mark, or sign written with the intent to authenticate an instrument or writing. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
Swear: includes "affirm. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
Valid voter identification: means :
     (76)(a) a form of identification that bears the name and photograph of the voter which may include:
          (76)(a)(i) a currently valid Utah driver license;
          (76)(a)(ii) a currently valid identification card that is issued by:
               (76)(a)(ii)(A) the state; or
               (76)(a)(ii)(B) a branch, department, or agency of the United States;
          (76)(a)(iii) a currently valid Utah permit to carry a concealed weapon;
          (76)(a)(iv) a currently valid United States passport; or
          (76)(a)(v) a currently valid United States military identification card;
     (76)(b) one of the following identification cards, whether or not the card includes a photograph of the voter:
          (76)(b)(i) a valid tribal identification card;
          (76)(b)(ii) a Bureau of Indian Affairs card; or
          (76)(b)(iii) a tribal treaty card; or
     (76)(c) two forms of identification not listed under Subsection (76)(a) or (b) but that bear the name of the voter and provide evidence that the voter resides in the voting precinct, which may include:
          (76)(c)(i) a current utility bill or a legible copy thereof, dated within the 90 days before the election;
          (76)(c)(ii) a bank or other financial account statement, or a legible copy thereof;
          (76)(c)(iii) a certified birth certificate;
          (76)(c)(iv) a valid social security card;
          (76)(c)(v) a check issued by the state or the federal government or a legible copy thereof;
          (76)(c)(vi) a paycheck from the voter's employer, or a legible copy thereof;
          (76)(c)(vii) a currently valid Utah hunting or fishing license;
          (76)(c)(viii) certified naturalization documentation;
          (76)(c)(ix) a currently valid license issued by an authorized agency of the United States;
          (76)(c)(x) a certified copy of court records showing the voter's adoption or name change;
          (76)(c)(xi) a valid Medicaid card, Medicare card, or Electronic Benefits Transfer Card;
          (76)(c)(xii) a currently valid identification card issued by:
               (76)(c)(xii)(A) a local government within the state;
               (76)(c)(xii)(B) an employer for an employee; or
               (76)(c)(xii)(C) a college, university, technical school, or professional school located within the state; or
          (76)(c)(xiii) a current Utah vehicle registration. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Vote by mail: means to vote, using a manual ballot that is mailed to the voter, by:
(78)(a) mailing the ballot to the location designated in the mailing; or
(78)(b) depositing the ballot in a ballot drop box designated by the election officer. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Voter: means an individual who:
     (79)(a) meets the requirements for voting in an election;
     (79)(b) meets the requirements of election registration;
     (79)(c) is registered to vote; and
     (79)(d) is listed in the official register book. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Voting device: means any device provided by an election officer for a voter to vote a mechanical ballot. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Voting precinct: means the smallest geographical voting unit, established under Chapter 5, Part 3, Duties of the County and Municipal Legislative Bodies. See Utah Code 20A-1-102

(1)(a) Except as otherwise provided for an election conducted entirely by mail under Section 20A-7-609.5, an election officer shall administer an election primarily by mail, in accordance with this section.

(1)(b) An individual who did not provide valid voter identification at the time the voter registered to vote shall provide valid voter identification before voting.

(2) An election officer who administers an election:

(2)(a) shall in accordance with Subsection (3), no sooner than 21 days before election day and no later than seven days before election day, mail to each active voter within a voting precinct:

(2)(a)(i) a manual ballot;

(2)(a)(ii) a return envelope;

(2)(a)(iii) instructions for returning the ballot that include an express notice about any relevant deadlines that the voter must meet in order for the voter’s vote to be counted;

(2)(a)(iv) for an election administered by a county clerk, information regarding the location and hours of operation of any election day voting center at which the voter may vote or a website address where the voter may view this information;

(2)(a)(v) for an election administered by an election officer other than a county clerk, if the election officer does not operate a polling place or an election day voting center, a warning, on a separate page of colored paper in bold face print, indicating that if the voter fails to follow the instructions included with the ballot, the voter will be unable to vote in that election because there will be no polling place for the voting precinct on the day of the election; and

(2)(a)(vi) instructions on how a voter may sign up to receive electronic ballot status notifications via the ballot tracking system described in Section 20A-3a-401.5;

(2)(b) may not mail a ballot under this section to:

(2)(b)(i) an inactive voter, unless the inactive voter requests a manual ballot; or

(2)(b)(ii) a voter whom the election officer is prohibited from sending a ballot under Subsection (9)(c)(ii);

(2)(c) shall, on the outside of the envelope in which the election officer mails the ballot, include instructions for returning the ballot if the individual to whom the election officer mails the ballot does not live at the address to which the ballot is sent;

(2)(d) shall provide a method of accessible voting to a voter with a disability who is not able to vote by mail; and

(2)(e) shall include, on the election officer’s website and with each ballot mailed, instructions regarding how a voter described in Subsection (2)(d) may vote.

(3)

(3)(a) An election officer who mails a manual ballot under Subsection (2) shall mail the manual ballot to the address:

(3)(a)(i) provided at the time of registration; or

(3)(a)(ii) if, at or after the time of registration, the voter files an alternate address request form described in Subsection (3)(b), the alternate address indicated on the form.

(3)(b) The lieutenant governor shall make available to voters an alternate address request form that permits a voter to request that the election officer mail the voter’s ballot to a location other than the voter’s residence.

(3)(c) A voter shall provide the completed alternate address request form to the election officer no later than 11 days before the day of the election.

(4) The return envelope shall include:

(4)(a) the name, official title, and post office address of the election officer on the front of the envelope;

(4)(b) a space where a voter may write an email address and phone number by which the election officer may contact the voter if the voter’s ballot is rejected;

(4)(c) a printed affidavit in substantially the following form:

“County of ____State of ____

I, ____, solemnly swear that: I am a qualified resident voter of the ____ voting precinct in ____ County, Utah and that I am entitled to vote in this election. I am not a convicted felon currently incarcerated for commission of a felony.

______________________________

Signature of Voter”; and

(4)(d) a warning that the affidavit must be signed by the individual to whom the ballot was sent and that the ballot will not be counted if the signature on the affidavit does not match the signature on file with the election officer of the individual to whom the ballot was sent.

(5) If the election officer determines that the voter is required to show valid voter identification, the election officer may:

(5)(a) mail a ballot to the voter;

(5)(b) instruct the voter to include a copy of the voter’s valid voter identification with the return ballot; and

(5)(c) provide instructions to the voter on how the voter may sign up to receive electronic ballot status notifications via the ballot tracking system described in Section 20A-3a-401.5.

(6) An election officer who administers an election shall:

(6)(a)

(6)(a)(i) before the election, obtain the signatures of each voter qualified to vote in the election; or

(6)(a)(ii) obtain the signature of each voter within the voting precinct from the county clerk; and

(6)(b) maintain the signatures on file in the election officer’s office.

(7) Upon receipt of a returned ballot, the election officer shall review and process the ballot under Section 20A-3a-401.

(8) A county that administers an election:

(8)(a) shall provide at least one election day voting center in accordance with Part 7, Election Day Voting Center, and at least one additional election day voting center for every 5,000 active voters in the county who have requested to not receive a ballot by mail;

(8)(b) shall ensure that each election day voting center operated by the county has at least one voting device that is accessible, in accordance with the Help America Vote Act of 2002, Pub. L. No. 107-252, for individuals with disabilities;

(8)(c) may reduce the early voting period described in Section 20A-3a-601, if:

(8)(c)(i) the county clerk conducts early voting on at least four days;

(8)(c)(ii) the early voting days are within the period beginning on the date that is 14 days before the date of the election and ending on the day before the election; and

(8)(c)(iii) the county clerk provides notice of the reduced early voting period in accordance with Section 20A-3a-604; and

(8)(d) is not required to pay return postage for a ballot.

(9)

(9)(a) An individual may request that the election officer not send the individual a ballot by mail in the next and subsequent elections by submitting a written request to the election officer.

(9)(b) An individual shall submit the request described in Subsection (9)(a) to the election officer before 5 p.m. no later than 60 days before an election if the individual does not wish to receive a ballot by mail in that election.

(9)(c) An election officer who receives a request from an individual under Subsection (9)(a):

(9)(c)(i) shall remove the individual’s name from the list of voters who will receive a ballot by mail; and

(9)(c)(ii) may not send the individual a ballot by mail for:

(9)(c)(ii)(A) the next election, if the individual submits the request described in Subsection (9)(a) before the deadline described in Subsection (9)(b); or

(9)(c)(ii)(B) an election after the election described in Subsection (9)(c)(ii)(A).

(9)(d) An individual who submits a request under Subsection (9)(a) may resume the individual’s receipt of a ballot by mail by submitting a written request to the election officer.

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