Public Act 101-0641
 
HB2238 EnrolledLRB101 08064 RJF 53126 b

    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. If and only if Senate Bill 1863 of the 101st
General Assembly becomes law in the form in which it passed the
House of Representatives on May 21, 2020, then the Election
Code is amended by changing Section 2B-20 as follows:
 
    (10 ILCS 5/2B-20)
    Sec. 2B-20. Changes for vote by mail official ballot
mailing and processing.
    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
contrary, an election authority shall mail official ballots to
any elector requesting an official ballot no earlier than
September 24, 2020. Except for electors applying under Article
20, any elector submitting an application for a vote by mail
ballot on or before October 1, 2020 shall receive a ballot no
later than October 6, 2020. An election authority shall mail
official ballots to any elector requesting an official ballot
after October 1, 2020 no later than 2 business days after
receipt of the application.
    (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
contrary, any vote by mail ballot received by an election
authority shall be presumed to meet the requirements of
Articles 17, 18, and 19 and the voter shall be deemed otherwise
qualified to cast a vote by mail ballot unless deemed invalid
as provided in this Section.
    (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
contrary, within 2 days after a vote by mail ballot is
received, but in all cases before the close of the period for
counting provisional ballots, the election authority shall
appoint a panel or panels as needed of 3 election judges, of
which no more than 2 shall be from the same political party,
from the list of election judges submitted by the county
parties for this specific purpose to compare the voter's
signature on the certification envelope of the vote by mail
ballot with the signature of the voter on file in the office of
the election authority. The signature shall be presumed to
match unless 3 out of 3 election judges determine that the 2
signatures do not match. By a vote of 3 of 3 election judges, a
vote by mail ballot may only be rejected because the signature
on the certification envelope and the signature used by the
election authority for verification purposes do not match or
the certification envelope contains a signature but not in the
proper location. A vote by mail ballot may only be rejected by
a majority vote of the 3 of 3 election judges and only for the
following reasons: (1) the signature on the certification
envelope and the signature used by the election authority for
verification purposes do not match or the certification
envelope contains no signature; (2) the ballot envelope was
delivered opened; (3) the voter has already cast a ballot; (4)
if the voter voted in person on election day; or (5) the voter
is not a duly registered voter in the precinct. If 3 of 3
election judges determine the ballot should be rejected for any
reasons stated in this subsection (c), the judges shall mark
across the face of the certification envelope the word
"rejected" and the date and names of the judges voting to
reject the ballot.
    (d) If a vote by mail ballot is rejected, the election
authority shall notify the voter within 2 days after the
rejection or within one day if the rejection occurs after
election day and in all cases before the close of the period
for counting provisional ballots. The voter shall be notified
through mail or email, or both, and the notice shall inform the
voter of the reason or reasons the ballot was rejected. If the
ballot was rejected based on the signature or lack of a
signature, the voter shall be permitted to submit a statement
the voter cast the ballot, and upon receipt the ballot shall be
determined valid and counted before the close of the period for
counting provisional ballots. If the ballot was rejected
because the envelope was delivered opened, the voter shall be
permitted to vote in person or request to receive another vote
by mail ballot, provided the voter submits an application and
casts a new ballot prior to the close of polls on election day.
    (e) Election authorities shall accept any vote by mail
ballot returned, including ballots returned with insufficient
or no postage, and may establish secure collection sites for
the postage-free return of vote by mail ballots. Any election
authority establishing such a collection site pursuant to this
subsection (c) shall collect all ballots submitted each day at
close of business and process them as required by this Code,
including noting the day on which the ballot was submitted.
Ballots submitted to such collection sites after close of
business shall be dated as delivered the next day, with the
exception of ballots delivered on election day, which shall be
dated as received on election day. Election authorities shall
permit electors to return vote by mail ballots on election day
up until the close of the polls. All collection sites shall be
secured by locks that may be opened only by election authority
personnel. The State Board of Elections shall establish
additional guidelines for the security of collection sites.
    (f) In accordance with Section 19-7, within one day after
receipt of a vote by mail ballot, the election authority shall
transmit notification of receipt to the State Board of
Elections. If a vote by mail ballot is rejected, the election
authority must notify the State Board of Elections within one
day. Upon request by a state or local political committee,
within 2 days an election authority must electronically provide
the names and addresses of any vote by mail ballots received
and any vote by mail ballots marked rejected.
(Source: 10100SB1863ham005; 10100SB1863ham006.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law or on the date Senate Bill 1863 of the 101st
General Assembly takes effect, whichever is later.