20250SB__040699INT INTRODUCED 2025-02-14 2025 SB INT Introduced by Senator Choi (Coauthors: Senators Alvarado-Gil, Grove, Jones, Niello, and Seyarto) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Castillo, DeMaio, and Essayli) LEAD_AUTHOR SENATE Choi COAUTHOR SENATE Alvarado-Gil COAUTHOR SENATE Grove COAUTHOR SENATE Jones COAUTHOR SENATE Niello COAUTHOR SENATE Seyarto COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Castillo COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY DeMaio COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Essayli

An act to amend Sections 3020, 3117, and of the Elections Code, relating to elections. elections Elections: ballot submission deadline. Under existing law, a vote-by-mail ballot is timely cast if it is postmarked or otherwise time-stamped on or before election day and received in the mail no later than days after election day.

This bill would instead require a vote-by-mail ballot to be returned to the applicable elections official no later than the close of the polls on election day, except that the bill would require a vote-by-mail ballot cast by a military or overseas voter to be counted if it is postmarked on or before election day and received no later than days after election day. MAJORITY NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section of the Elections Code is amended to read: 3020. "?>All vote by mail ballots cast under this

chapter shall be received by the elections official from whom they were obtained or by the precinct board no later than the close of the polls on election day. (b)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Notwithstanding subdivision (a), any vote by mail ballot cast under this division shall be timely cast if it is received by the voter’s elections official via the United States Postal Service or a bona fide private mail delivery company no later than seven days after election day and either of the following is satisfied:</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The ballot is postmarked on or before election day or is time stamped or date stamped by a bona fide private mail delivery company on or before election day, or it is otherwise indicated by the United States Postal Service or a bona fide private mail delivery company that the ballot was mailed on or before election day.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If the ballot has no postmark, a postmark with no date, or an illegible postmark, and no other information is available from the United States Postal Service or the bona fide private mail delivery company to indicate the date on which the ballot was mailed, the vote by mail ballot identification envelope is date stamped by the elections official upon receipt of the vote by mail ballot from the United States Postal Service or a bona fide private mail delivery company, and is signed and dated pursuant to

Section on or before election day.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(c)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>For purposes of this section, “bona fide private mail delivery company” means a courier service that is in the regular business of accepting a mail item, package, or parcel for the purpose of delivery to a person or entity whose address is specified on the item.</xhtml:p>"?> SEC. 2.

Section of the Elections Code is amended to read: 3117. A valid ballot cast pursuant to this

chapter shall be counted if it is postmarked on or before election day and received by the elections official no later than seven days after election day. SEC. 3.

Section of the Elections Code is amended to read: 4103. (

a) Ballots cast under this

chapter shall be returned to the elections official from whom they were obtained no later than the close of polls on election day. (b)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Notwithstanding subdivision (a), any vote by mail ballot cast under this

chapter shall be timely cast if it is received by the voter’s elections official via the United States Postal Service or a bona fide private mail delivery company no later than three days after election day and either of the following is satisfied:</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The ballot is postmarked on or before election day or is time stamped or date stamped by a bona fide private mail delivery company on or before election day.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If the ballot has no postmark, a postmark with no date, or an illegible postmark, the vote by mail ballot identification envelope is date stamped by the elections official upon receipt of the vote by mail ballot from the United States Postal Service or a bona fide private mail delivery company, and is signed and dated pursuant to

Section on or before election day.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(c)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>For purposes of this section, “bona fide private mail delivery company” means a courier service that is in the regular business of accepting a mail item, package, or parcel for the purpose of delivery to a person or entity whose address is specified on the item.</xhtml:p>"?> (

b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a ballot cast by a military or overseas voter shall be counted if it is postmarked on or before election day and received by the elections official no later than seven days after election day.