PRINTER'S NO. 2135
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1756
Session of
2023
INTRODUCED BY KRAJEWSKI, RABB, BULLOCK, DAWKINS, ABNEY, MADDEN,
HILL-EVANS, WAXMAN, KHAN, KINSEY, SANCHEZ, CEPEDA-FREYTIZ,
HOHENSTEIN, HOWARD AND GREEN, OCTOBER 16, 2023
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, OCTOBER 16, 2023
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 preliminary provisions, further providing for
definitions; in qualifications of electors, further providing
for rules for determining residence; in voting by qualified
absentee electors, further providing for qualified absentee
electors and providing for voting by absentee electors in
correctional institutions; and imposing duties on the
Department of State.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Section 102(w)(14) and the last paragraph of
subsection (w) of the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320),
known as the Pennsylvania Election Code, are amended, the
subsection is amended by adding a paragraph and the section is
amended by adding subsections to read:
Section 102. Definitions.--The following words, when used in
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this act, shall have the following meanings, unless otherwise
clearly apparent from the context:
* * *
(h.1) The word "homeless" shall have the same meaning as
under 42 U.S.C. ยง 11302 (relating to general definition of
homeless individual).
* * *
(w) The words "qualified absentee elector" shall mean:
* * *
(14) Any qualified elector who will not attend a polling
place because of the observance of a religious holiday[:]; or
(15) Any qualified elector who is confined in a correctional
institution for other than a felony conviction, including those
convicted of misdemeanors, those undergoing pretrial confinement
and those in a custodial nonconviction status:
Provided, however, That the words "qualified absentee
elector" shall in nowise be construed to include persons
confined in [a penal institution or] a mental institution nor
shall it in anywise be construed to include a person not
otherwise qualified as a qualified elector in accordance with
the definition set forth in section 102(t) of this act.
* * *
(z.7) The words "correctional institution" shall mean any
penal institution, penitentiary, State farm, reformatory,
prison, jail, house of correction, juvenile detention facility
or other institution for the incarceration or custody of persons
under sentence for offenses or awaiting trial or sentence for
offenses.
Section 2. Section 704 of the act is amended by adding a
subsection to read:
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Section 704. Rules for Determining Residence.--In
determining the residence of a person desiring to register or
vote, the following rules shall be followed so far as they may
be applicable:
* * *
(i) The following for persons lacking a specific physical
address:
(1) If a person resides in an area lacking a specific
physical address or is homeless, instead of an address, the
person may submit a description, such as a map or the latitude
and longitude, indicating where the person resides. The person
shall be assigned to a precinct based on the geographic
description of where the person resides.
(2) If a person confined in a correctional institution was
homeless prior to confinement, the person may, instead of an
address, submit a description, such as a map or the latitude and
longitude, indicating where the person resided prior to
confinement. The person shall be assigned to a precinct based on
the geographic description of where the person resided prior to
confinement.
(3) The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall issue rules
regarding acceptable forms of nonphysical addresses.
Section 3. Section 1301(n) and last paragraph of the act are
amended and the section is amended by adding a subsection to
read:
Section 1301. Qualified Absentee Electors.--The following
persons shall be entitled to vote by an official absentee ballot
in any primary or election held in this Commonwealth in the
manner hereinafter provided:
* * *
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(n) Any qualified elector who will not attend a polling
place because of the observance of a religious holiday[:]; or
(o) Any qualified elector who is confined in a correctional
institution for other than a felony conviction, including those
convicted of misdemeanors, those undergoing pretrial confinement
and those in a custodial nonconviction status :
Provided, however, That the words "qualified absentee
elector" shall in nowise be construed to include persons
confined in [a penal institution or] a mental institution nor
shall it in anywise be construed to include a person not
otherwise qualified as a qualified elector in accordance with
the definition set forth in section 102(t) of this act.
Section 4. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
Section 1306.2. Voting by Absentee Electors in Correctional
Institutions.--(a) The department, in consultation with the
Department of Corrections, shall establish a uniform policy for
civic education in State and county correctional institutions,
including, but not limited to, notifications of all Federal,
State, county, local and primary elections. The department shall
provide correctional institutions with:
(1) information pertaining to voter registration, absentee
ballots, mail-in ballots and eligibility requirements;
(2) the necessary forms and applications; and
(3) the necessary training for obtaining and casting a
ballot.
(b) (1) Each correctional institution shall designate at
least one individual to help inmates vote. Designated
individuals in each correctional institution shall provide the
information under subsection (a) to each inmate and oversee the
distribution, collection and submission of voter registration
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applications and absentee ballots. The designated individual
shall be a staff member of the correctional institution and may
not be an inmate.
(2) The secretary shall establish procedures to ensure each
correctional institution establishes a policy designating at
least one individual to help inmates vote. This shall include
ensuring that election resources and ballots are provided in
multiple languages, as required by the language access needs of
the correctional institution.
(c) The Department of Corrections shall promulgate
regulations necessary to establish procedures for a State or
county correctional institution to inspect incoming voter
registration applications and absentee ballots for contraband.
The procedures shall not involve opening or reading voter
registration applications or absentee ballots to preserve
secrecy in voting.
(d) The superintendent, warden or other authorized
individual in charge of a State or county correctional
institution shall collect data that includes, but is not limited
to, the following:
(1) demographic information of the correctional
institution's inmate population;
(2) the number of qualified absentee electors in the
correctional institution;
(3) the number of inmates registered to vote;
(4) the number of inmates that have applied for a ballot;
(5) the number of inmates that submitted a completed ballot;
and
(6) any other information requested by the department.
(e) The superintendent, warden or other authorized
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individual in charge of a State or county correctional
institution shall submit a report of the data collected under
subsection (d) to the department within thirty (30) days after
each general election. The department shall prescribe the form
of the report and shall issue guidance to implement the
provisions of this section.
(f) As used in this section:
"Department" shall mean the Department of State of the
Commonwealth.
"Inmate" shall mean an offender who is committed to, under
sentence to or confined in a correctional institution. The term
shall not include an offender committed under a violation of 25
Pa.C.S. ยง 1703 (relating to application) or of this act.
Section 5. This act shall take effect in one year.
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