Signed by Governor John Kasich

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to concur with House amendments and pass a bill that amends absentee ballot voting laws, effective June 1, 2014.

Highlights:

• Authorizes the Secretary of State to mail unsolicited applications absentee ballot applications to an individual only if they are for a general election and the General Assembly has made an appropriation for that particular mailing (Sec. 1).

• Prohibits a public office or official, other than the Secretary of State, from mailing an unsolicited absentee ballot application to an individual (Sec. 1). 

• Prohibits a board of elections that delivers an absentee ballot application to an individual from performing the following actions (Sec. 1):
• Providing prepaid return postage for the application; and
• Providing an application with pre-filled information other than the individual’s name and address.

• Requires a voter’s identification envelope that an absentee ballot must be returned in to be considered incomplete if it does not list certain information including, but not limited to, the voter’s name, address, signature, and approved form of identification (Sec. 1).

• Authorizes certain forms of identification for use in a voter’s identification envelope statement including, but not limited to, the following forms of identification (Sec. 1):
• The voter’s driver’s license number;
• The last four digits of the voter’s social security number;  
• A copy of a current and valid photo identification; or
• A current utility bill, bank statement, or government check.

• Specifies that if a voter’s identification envelope statement is found to be incomplete or contain incorrect information, the voter must provide the corrected information to the board of elections within a week after the election in order for the voter’s ballot to be counted (Sec. 1). 

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that amends absentee ballot voting laws, effective June 1, 2014.

Highlights:

• Authorizes the Secretary of State to mail unsolicited applications absentee ballot applications to an individual only if they are for a general election and the General Assembly has made an appropriation for that particular mailing (Sec. 1).

• Prohibits a public office or official, other than the Secretary of State, from mailing an unsolicited absentee ballot application to an individual (Sec. 1). 

• Prohibits a board of elections that delivers an absentee ballot application to an individual from performing the following actions (Sec. 1):
• Providing prepaid return postage for the application; and
• Providing an application with pre-filled information other than the individual’s name and address.

• Requires a voter’s identification envelope that an absentee ballot must be returned in to be considered incomplete if it does not list certain information including, but not limited to, the voter’s name, address, signature, and approved form of identification (Sec. 1).

• Authorizes certain forms of identification for use in a voter’s identification envelope statement including, but not limited to, the following forms of identification (Sec. 1):
• The voter’s driver’s license number;
• The last four digits of the voter’s social security number;  
• A copy of a current and valid photo identification; or
• A current utility bill, bank statement, or government check.

• Specifies that if a voter’s identification envelope statement is found to be incomplete or contain incorrect information, the voter must provide the corrected information to the board of elections within a week after the election in order for the voter’s ballot to be counted (Sec. 1). 

Full Bill Text