Sec. 901 Voting by mail
“310. Promoting ability of voters to vote by mail
“(a) Uniform availability of absentee voting to all voters
“(1) In general—If an individual in a State is eligible to cast a vote in an election for Federal office, the State may not impose any additional conditions or requirements on the eligibility of the individual to cast the vote in such election by absentee ballot by mail.
“(2) Administration of voting by mail
“(A) Prohibiting identification requirement as condition of obtaining ballot—A State may not require an individual to provide any form of identification as a condition of obtaining an absentee ballot, except that nothing in this paragraph may be construed to prevent a State from requiring a signature of the individual or similar affirmation as a condition of obtaining an absentee ballot.
“(B) Prohibiting requirement to provide notarization or witness signature as condition of obtaining or casting ballot—A State may not require notarization or witness signature or other formal authentication (other than voter attestation) as a condition of obtaining or casting an absentee ballot.
“(C) Deadline for returning ballot—A State may impose a reasonable deadline for requesting the absentee ballot and related voting materials from the appropriate State or local election official and for returning the ballot to the appropriate State or local election official.
“(3) No effect on identification requirements for first-time voters registering by mail—Nothing in this subsection may be construed to exempt any individual described in paragraph (1) of section 303(b) from meeting the requirements of paragraph (2) of such section.
“(b) Due process requirements for States requiring signature verification
“(1) Requirement
“(A) In general—A State may not impose a signature verification requirement as a condition of accepting and counting an absentee ballot submitted by any individual with respect to an election for Federal office unless the State meets the due process requirements described in paragraph (2).
“(B) Signature verification requirement described—In this subsection, a “signature verification requirement” is a requirement that an election official verify the identification of an individual by comparing the individual’s signature on the absentee ballot with the individual’s signature on the official list of registered voters in the State or another official record or other document used by the State to verify the signatures of voters.
“(2) Due process requirements
“(A) Notice and opportunity to cure discrepancy in signatures—If an individual submits an absentee ballot and the appropriate State or local election official determines that a discrepancy exists between the signature on such ballot and the signature of such individual on the official list of registered voters in the State or other official record or document used by the State to verify the signatures of voters, such election official, prior to making a final determination as to the validity of such ballot, shall—
“(i) make a good faith effort to immediately notify the individual by mail, telephone, and (if available) text message and electronic mail that—
“(I) a discrepancy exists between the signature on such ballot and the signature of the individual on the official list of registered voters in the State or other official record or document used by the State to verify the signatures of voters; and
“(II) if such discrepancy is not cured prior to the expiration of the 10-day period which begins on the date the official notifies the individual of the discrepancy, such ballot will not be counted; and
“(ii) cure such discrepancy and count the ballot if, prior to the expiration of the 10-day period described in clause (i)(II), the individual provides the official with information to cure such discrepancy, either in person, by telephone, or by electronic methods.
“(B) Notice and opportunity to cure missing signature or other defect—If an individual submits an absentee ballot without a signature or submits an absentee ballot with another defect which, if left uncured, would cause the ballot to not be counted, the appropriate State or local election official, prior to making a final determination as to the validity of the ballot, shall—
“(i) make a good faith effort to immediately notify the individual by mail, telephone, and (if available) text message and electronic mail that—
“(I) the ballot did not include a signature or has some other defect; and
“(II) if the individual does not provide the missing signature or cure the other defect prior to the expiration of the 10-day period which begins on the date the official notifies the individual that the ballot did not include a signature or has some other defect, such ballot will not be counted; and
“(ii) count the ballot if, prior to the expiration of the 10-day period described in clause (i)(II), the individual provides the official with the missing signature on a form proscribed by the State or cures the other defect.
“(C) Other requirements—An election official may not make a determination that a discrepancy exists between the signature on an absentee ballot and the signature of the individual who submits the ballot on the official list of registered voters in the State or other official record or other document used by the State to verify the signatures of voters unless—
“(i) at least 2 election officials make the determination;
“(ii) each official who makes the determination has received training in procedures used to verify signatures; and
“(iii) of the officials who make the determination, at least one is affiliated with the political party whose candidate received the most votes in the most recent statewide election for Federal office held in the State and at least one is affiliated with the political party whose candidate received the second most votes in the most recent statewide election for Federal office held in the State.
“(3) Report
“(A) In general—Not later than 120 days after the end of a Federal election cycle, each chief State election official shall submit to the Commission a report containing the following information for the applicable Federal election cycle in the State:
“(i) The number of ballots invalidated due to a discrepancy under this subsection.
“(ii) Description of attempts to contact voters to provide notice as required by this subsection.
“(iii) Description of the cure process developed by such State pursuant to this subsection, including the number of ballots determined valid as a result of such process.
“(B) Submission to Congress—Not later than 10 days after receiving a report under subparagraph (A), the Commission shall transmit such report to Congress.
“(C) Federal election cycle defined—For purposes of this subsection, the term Federal election cycle means the period beginning on January 1 of any odd numbered year and ending on December 31 of the following year.
“(4) Rule of construction—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed—
“(A) to prohibit a State from rejecting a ballot attempted to be cast in an election for Federal office by an individual who is not eligible to vote in the election; or
“(B) to prohibit a State from providing an individual with more time and more methods for curing a discrepancy in the individual’s signature, providing a missing signature, or curing any other defect than the State is required to provide under this subsection.
“(c) Online applications for absentee ballots
“(1) In general—In addition to such other methods as the State may establish for an individual to apply for an absentee ballot, the State shall permit an individual to submit an application for an absentee ballot online.
“(2) Treatment of websites—The State shall be considered to meet the requirements of paragraph (1) if the website of the appropriate State or local election official allows an application for an absentee ballot to be completed and submitted online and if the website permits the individual—
“(A) to print the application so that the individual may complete the application and return it to the official; or
“(B) to request that a paper copy of the application be transmitted to the individual by mail or electronic mail so that the individual may complete the application and return it to the official.
“(3) Ensuring delivery prior to election—If an individual who is eligible to vote in an election for Federal office submits an application for an absentee ballot in the election, the appropriate State or local election official shall ensure that the ballot and relating voting materials are received by the individual prior to the date of the election so long as the individual's application is received by the official not later than 5 days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) before the date of the election, except that nothing in this paragraph shall preclude a State or local jurisdiction from allowing for the acceptance and processing of absentee ballot applications submitted or received after such required period.
“(4) Application for all future elections—At the option of an individual, a State shall treat the individual's application to vote by absentee ballot by mail in an election for Federal office as an application for an absentee ballot by mail in all subsequent Federal elections held in the State.
“(d) Accessibility for individuals with disabilities—The State shall ensure that all absentee ballot applications, absentee ballots, and related voting materials in elections for Federal office are accessible to individuals with disabilities in a manner that provides the same opportunity for access and participation (including with privacy and independence) as for other voters.
“(e) Uniform deadline for acceptance of mailed ballots
“(1) In General—A State may not refuse to accept or process a ballot submitted by an individual by mail with respect to an election for Federal office in the State on the grounds that the individual did not meet a deadline for returning the ballot to the appropriate State or local election official if—
“(A) the ballot is postmarked or otherwise indicated by the United States Postal Service to have been mailed on or before the date of the election, or has been signed by the voter on or before the date of the election; and
“(B) the ballot is received by the appropriate election official prior to the expiration of the 10-day period which begins on the date of the election.
“(2) Rule of construction—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit a State from having a law that allows for counting of ballots in an election for Federal office that are received through the mail after the date that is 10 days after the date of the election.
“(f) Alternative methods of returning ballots
“(1) In general—In addition to permitting an individual to whom a ballot in an election was provided under this section to return the ballot to an election official by mail, the State shall permit the individual to cast the ballot by delivering the ballot at such times and to such locations as the State may establish, including—
“(A) permitting the individual to deliver the ballot to a polling place on any date on which voting in the election is held at the polling place; and
“(B) permitting the individual to deliver the ballot to a designated ballot drop-off location, a tribally-designated building, or the office of a State or local election official.
“(2) Permitting voters to designate other person to return ballot—The State—
“(A) shall permit a voter to designate any person to return a voted and sealed absentee ballot to the post office, a ballot drop-off location, tribally designated building, or election office so long as the person designated to return the ballot does not receive any form of compensation based on the number of ballots that the person has returned and no individual, group, or organization provides compensation on this basis; and
“(B) may not put any limit on how many voted and sealed absentee ballots any designated person can return to the post office, a ballot drop off location, tribally designated building, or election office.
“(g) Ballot processing and scanning requirements
“(1) In general—The State shall begin processing and scanning ballots cast by mail for tabulation at least 14 days prior to the date of the election involved.
“(2) Limitation—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to permit a State to tabulate ballots in an election before the closing of the polls on the date of the election.
“(h) Rule of construction—Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the authority of States to conduct elections for Federal office through the use of polling places at which individuals cast ballots.
“(i) No effect on ballots submitted by absent military and overseas voters—Nothing in this section may be construed to affect the treatment of any ballot submitted by an individual who is entitled to vote by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.).
“(j) Effective date—This section shall apply with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held in November 2026 and each succeeding election for Federal office.”