[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3073 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3073

  To amend the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act to 
improve procedures for the collection and delivery of absentee ballots 
 of absent overseas uniformed services voters, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 22, 2008

Mr. Cornyn (for himself, Mr. Vitter, Mr. Allard, Mr. Craig, Mrs. Dole, 
 Mr. Roberts, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Ensign, Mr. Martinez, Mr. Grassley, Mr. 
Stevens, Mr. Chambliss, Mr. Bunning, Mr. Kyl, Mrs. Hutchison, Mr. Enzi, 
Mr. Wicker, Mr. Coburn, Mr. Coleman, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Bond, Mr. Lugar, 
and Mr. Thune) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
         referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act to 
improve procedures for the collection and delivery of absentee ballots 
 of absent overseas uniformed services voters, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Military Voting Protection Act of 
2008''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) In the defense of freedom, members of the United States 
        Armed Forces are routinely deployed to overseas theaters of 
        combat, assigned to overseas locations, and assigned to ocean-
        going vessels far from home.
            (2) As the United States continues to fight the Global War 
        on Terror, the substantial need for overseas service by members 
        of the Armed Forces will continue, as we live in what senior 
        Army leaders have referred to as an ``era of persistent 
        conflict''.
            (3) The right to vote is one of the most basic and 
        fundamental rights enjoyed by Americans, and one which the 
        members of the Armed Forces bravely defend both at home in the 
        United States and overseas.
            (4) The decisions of elected officials of the United States 
        Government directly impact the members of the Armed Forces who 
        are often called to deploy or otherwise serve overseas as a 
        result of decisions made by such elected officials.
            (5) The ability of the members of the Armed Forces to vote 
        while serving overseas has been hampered by numerous factors, 
        including inadequate processes for ensuring their timely 
        receipt of absentee ballots, delivery methods that are 
        typically slow and antiquated, and a myriad of absentee voting 
        procedures that are often confusing and vary among the several 
        States.
            (6) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting 
        Act, which requires the States to allow absentee voting for 
        members of the Armed Forces and other specified groups of 
        United States citizens, was intended to protect the voting 
        rights of members of the Armed Forces.
            (7) According to a survey conducted by the United States 
        Election Assistance Commission in September 2007, at least 
        992,034 absentee ballots were requested in the 2006 general 
        election under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee 
        Voting Act. However, less than one-third of such ballots, or 
        approximately 330,000 out of 992,034, were ultimately received 
        by local election officials, evidencing an unacceptable failure 
        of the current absentee ballot system in ensuring that those 
        who defend our freedom and the American way of life have a 
        voice in choosing their elected officials.
            (8) The United States Election Assistance Commission 
        specifically found that, of the overseas members of the Armed 
        Forces who requested ballots for the 2006 election, only 47.6 
        percent actually cast a ballot or had their cast ballot 
        counted.
            (9) According to the survey, of all the absentee ballots 
        under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act 
        not counted in the 2006 general election, more than 70 percent 
        were not counted because they were either sent back to local 
        election officials as undeliverable (likely due to a bad 
        address), or were sent in by the voter but received by local 
        election officials after the deadline for receipt.
            (10) The current system of absentee voting for overseas 
        members of the Armed Forces could be greatly improved by 
        decreasing delays in the process, and certain steps by the 
        Department of Defense, including utilization of express mail 
        services for the delivery of completed absentee ballots, would 
        address the major sources of delay.
            (11) Modern technology continues to rapidly advance, 
        greatly expanding the range of potential solutions to these 
        problems and increasing the ability to remove obstacles 
        encountered by overseas members of the Armed Forces in the past 
        in trying to cast their votes.

SEC. 3. PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION AND DELIVERY OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS OF 
              ABSENT OVERSEAS UNIFORMED SERVICES VOTERS.

    (a) In General.--The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee 
Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff et seq.) is amended by inserting after 
section 103 the following new section:

``SEC. 103A. PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION AND DELIVERY OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS 
              OF ABSENT OVERSEAS UNIFORMED SERVICES VOTERS.

    ``(a) Collection.--The Presidential designee shall establish 
procedures for collecting absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed 
services voters in regularly scheduled general elections for Federal 
office, including absentee ballots prepared by States and the Federal 
write-in absentee ballot prescribed under section 103, and for 
delivering the ballots to the appropriate election officials.
    ``(b) Ensuring Delivery Prior to Closing of Polls.--
            ``(1) In general.--Under the procedures established under 
        this section, the Presidential designee shall ensure (either 
        directly or by contract) that any absentee ballot for a 
        regularly scheduled general election for Federal office which 
        is collected prior to the applicable deadline described in 
        paragraph (2) is delivered to the appropriate election official 
        in a State prior to the time established by the State for the 
        closing of the polls on the date of the election.
            ``(2) Contract with express mail providers.--
                    ``(A) In general.--To the greatest extent 
                practicable, the Presidential designee shall carry out 
                this section by contract with a provider of express 
                mail services.
                    ``(B) Special rule for voters in jurisdictions 
                using post office boxes for collection of absentee 
                ballots.--In the case of an absent uniformed services 
                voter who wishes to use the procedures established 
                under this section and whose absentee ballot is 
                required by the appropriate election official to be 
                delivered to a post office box, the Presidential 
                designee shall enter into an agreement with the United 
                States Postal Service for the delivery of the ballot to 
                the election official under the procedures established 
                under this section.
            ``(3) Applicable deadline.--The applicable deadline 
        described in this paragraph is--
                    ``(A) noon (in the location in which the ballot is 
                collected) on the last Friday that precedes the date of 
                the election; or
                    ``(B) in the case of a location for which the 
                Presidential designee determines that the applicable 
                deadline under subparagraph (A) is not sufficient to 
                ensure timely delivery of the ballot under paragraph 
                (1) because of remoteness or other factors, noon (in 
                the location in which the ballot is collected) on such 
                date prior to the last Friday that precedes the date of 
                the election as the Presidential designee establishes.
            ``(4) Prohibiting refusal by state to accept ballots not 
        delivered by postal service or in person.--A State may not 
        refuse to accept or process any absentee ballot delivered under 
        the procedures established under this section on the grounds 
        that the ballot is received by the State other than through 
        delivery by the United States Postal Service or delivery in 
        person.
    ``(c) Tracking Mechanism.--Under the procedures established under 
this section, the entity responsible for delivering absentee ballots to 
the appropriate election officials shall implement procedures to enable 
any individual whose absentee ballot for a regularly scheduled general 
election for Federal office is collected by the Presidential designee 
to determine whether the ballot has been delivered to the appropriate 
election official, using the Internet, an automated telephone system, 
or such other methods as the entity may provide.
    ``(d) Absent Overseas Uniformed Services Voter Defined.--In this 
section, the term `absent overseas uniformed services voter' means an 
overseas voter described in section 107(5)(A).
    ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Presidential designee such sums as may be necessary 
to carry out this section. Any amounts appropriated pursuant to the 
authorization under this subsection shall remain available until 
expended without fiscal year limitation.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Federal responsibilities.--Section 101(b) of such Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(b)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
                (6);
                    (B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph 
                (7) and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(8) carry out section 103A with respect to the collection 
        and delivery of absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed 
        services voters in elections for Federal office.''.
            (2) State responsibilities.--Section 102(a) of such Act (42 
        U.S.C. 1973ff-1(a)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
                (4);
                    (B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph 
                (5) and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(6) carry out section 103A(b)(2) with respect to the 
        processing and acceptance of absentee ballots of absent 
        overseas uniformed services voters.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 
Federal office held in November 2008 and each succeeding election for 
Federal office.

SEC. 4. PROTECTING VOTER PRIVACY AND SECRECY OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS.

    Section 101(b) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee 
Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(b)), as amended by section 3(b), is 
amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (7);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (8) and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(9) to the greatest extent practicable, take such actions 
        as may be required to ensure that absent uniformed services 
        voters who cast absentee ballots at locations or facilities 
        under the Presidential designee's jurisdiction are able to do 
        so in a private and independent manner, and take such actions 
        as may be required to protect the privacy of the contents of 
        absentee ballots cast by absent uniformed services voters and 
        overseas voters while such ballots are in the Presidential 
        designee's possession or control.''.

SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO IMPROVE ABSENTEE 
              BALLOTING BY MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The majority of the overseas members of the Armed 
        Forces, whether deployed or regularly stationed overseas, have 
        regular access to computers and the Internet.
            (2) The majority of the members of the Armed Forces have 
        already proven themselves able to routinely conduct electronic 
        transactions involving sensitive personal information, 
        including transactions relating to pay and allowances, 
        allotments, performance reviews, and payment of income taxes.
            (3) Strong evidence exists that the implementation of 
        secure electronic voting for deployed members of the Armed 
        Forces is an achievable goal. Australia, an important ally of 
        the United States, has successfully utilized electronic voting 
        for its deployed military members through a trial program run 
        by the Department of Defence of Australia and the Australian 
        Electoral Commission. In November, 2007, military members of 
        Australia deployed to Iraq, Timor-Leste, and the Solomon 
        Islands voted in the federal election in Australia through a 
        secure encrypted electronic voting system that makes use of the 
        secure communications infrastructure of the Department of 
        Defence of Australia.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--In light of the findings in subsection (a), 
it is the sense of Congress that the Department of Defense--
            (1) should work to utilize existing and emerging 
        technologies and procedures that have the potential to enhance 
        the ability of the members of the Armed Forces (whether 
        overseas or in the United States but not located in reasonable 
        proximity to their registered voting locations) to meaningfully 
        participate in elections and have their votes counted; and
            (2) should continue to closely examine the option of 
        electronic voting for overseas members of the Armed Forces, 
        focusing on systems and procedures that are efficient, cost-
        effective, secure, and well-suited to achieve the important 
        objectives of protecting voter privacy and guarding against 
        voter fraud.
                                 <all>