HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3253        FILED ON: 2/18/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 836

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Chynah Tyler and Liz Miranda

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act to protect the voting rights of eligible incarcerated people.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3253        FILED ON: 2/18/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 836

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Second General Court
(2021-2022)

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An Act to protect the voting rights of eligible incarcerated people.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Chapter 127 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 150 the following section:–

Section 150A.  Each superintendent of a state or county correctional facility and each administrator of a county correctional facility shall, on or before the fifteenth day of each month, transmit to the secretary of the commonwealth the following:-

A list containing  information about persons convicted of a felony who, during the preceding period, have become ineligible to vote because of their incarceration

A list containing information about persons convicted of a felony who, during the preceding period, have become eligible to vote because of their discharge from incarceration

A list containing information about persons detained pre-trial or convicted of a misdemeanor and eligible to vote

Each list shall include the following information on each person listed:

(i) Name;

(ii) Date of birth;

(iii) Incarcerated for a felony conviction, incarcerated but not disqualified, or recently released;

(iv) Last 4 digits of social security number, or driver's license number, if available;

(v) Address on-file;

(vi) If held pretrial or serving a misdemeanor and eligible to vote, the name and address of the jail, prison, or other facility where they are detained; and

(vii) Race/ethnicity for reporting purposes.

SECTION 2. Section 18 ¾ of Chapter 6A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting at the end of subparagraph (i) of clause (12), the following:-

(I) and voter eligibility status and changes.

SECTION 3. Chapter 54 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after Section 89 the following new sections:-

Section 89A. The officer in charge of a correctional facility, house of correction, or jail, in this section called a facility,  shall:

(a) publish policies and procedures, developed in consultation with local and state elections officials, community groups, and other stakeholders, that govern the facilitation of voting and voter registration for eligible voters in their facilities. These policies and procedures shall account for the following:

Distribution of voter education and election information, including but not limited to through hanging posters and disseminating individualized written notices about voting rights and procedures from the Secretary of the Commonwealth;

Providing assistance to eligible incarcerated persons to register as voters and apply for mail ballots in all primaries and elections as specially qualified voters. This shall include distributing forms prepared by the state secretary including, but not limited to:

Ballot request forms;

Voter registration forms;

Records that may serve as proof of residence for the purpose of voter registration and/or provide voters with their last known address, such as intake forms, arrest records, or other forms in the possession of the correctional facility; and

Voter information packets generated by the Secretary of the Commonwealth, community groups, or other stakeholders.

Providing for the expeditious and timely receipt and return of mail ballots by eligible incarcerated persons; the officer in charge may facilitate timely return of completed ballots by providing a secured municipal drop box, by mailing the ballots to the appropriate city or town clerk, or through any other secured means of delivery.

Establishing locations where persons may complete ballots and other paperwork in private.

Providing  means of tracking the incarcerated people’s complaints related to voting or registration issues, numbers of voters who sought to vote, and the outcome of their requests.

Setting policies for collaborating with local elections officials, civic engagement community groups, and other stakeholders.

(b) any informational posters or packets provided by the Secretary of the Commonwealth shall be hung or distributed not later than July 15 of an even-numbered year, or, if received after that date, immediately upon receipt; distribution and announcements shall be continued through the conclusion of any primary and general election.

(c) appoint a subordinate officer at the facility to supervise the actions required by this section;

(d) not later than 14 days before every presidential and regular state primary and biennial state election, file a written report with the state secretary, detailing the actions taken under this section, in a form prescribed by the state secretary. The report shall be a public record.

(e) The requirements detailed in sections a,b, and d shall apply to superintendents or the officer in charge of a “facility” as described in Chapter 123, Section 35.

Section 89B. The State Secretary shall create and distribute voter information signs and information to sheriffs and superintendents for their distribution not less than 90 days prior to all state or presidential primary elections or general elections. The State Secretary shall create and distribute to elections officers information on the qualifications and rights of eligible incarcerated voters, regulations detailing the application process and how to process them in the Voter Registration Information System (VRIS), and current law pertaining to those rights and processes. By 90 days prior to any state or presidential primary or general election, the state secretary shall promulgate those regulations to elections officers.

The state secretary shall issue a report not less than 6 months following each state or presidential primary election and general election. Said report shall include information on:

the number of eligible incarcerated voters at the time of an election in each municipality;

the number of incarcerated voters who requested an absentee ballot and the outcome of that request in each municipality, including the reasons for rejection if applicable;

the number of incarcerated voters who requested to register to vote and the outcome of those requests in each municipality, including the reason for rejection if applicable; and

each municipality’s policies and practices regarding outreach and enfranchisement of eligible incarcerated voters if applicable.

SECTION 4. Section 91B of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word ”prepaid”, the following words:- and with return postage guaranteed.

SECTION 5. Chapter 51 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding after section 4A the following section:–

Section 4B. As part of the release process leading to the discharge of a person who has been disenfranchised because of a felony conviction, the correctional facility shall provide that person with a voter registration form and a declination form, and offer that person assistance in filling out the appropriate form. Unless the registrant refuses to permit it to do so, the correctional facility shall provide the registrant with a postage guaranteed  envelope, or otherwise the correctional facility shall transmit the completed voter registration form to the city or town in the county where the registrant claims residence.

SECTION 6. Chapter 127 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 150 the following section:–

Section 150A. (a) Prior to the expiration of a prisoner’s term, the superintendent or administrator of the state or county correctional facility shall, in writing, notify the prisoner whose term is to expire that their voting rights shall be restored upon discharge; provided, that such person’s right to vote was suspended while incarcerated pursuant to Article III of the Articles of Amendment of the Constitution. If the person’s right to vote was not suspended while incarcerated pursuant to Article III of the Articles of Amendment of the Constitution, the superintendent or administrator of the state or county’s correctional facility shall, in writing, notify the prisoner whose term expires that his or her voting rights shall be maintained upon discharge, and that, if the incarcerated person requested or submitted a mail ballot application or ballot, they maintain the right to vote in-person so long as their mail ballot has not been processed.

SECTION 7. Section 1 of chapter 50 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the definition of “Municipal party” the following definition: -

“Offices of correction”, offices of the department of correction and offices of the houses of correction.

SECTION 8. Section 1 of said chapter 50, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “vehicles”, in line 124, the following words: -, offices of correction. 

SECTION 9. Chapter 54 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 91C the following section:-

Section 91D: (a) Applications arriving from a specially qualified voter as defined in section one of chapter fifty, who is confined in a correctional facility or jail, except if by reason of a felony conviction, who cite their return address as a correctional facility or jail may be presumed to maintain residence in that address for voting purposes should the applicant so choose.

(b)Elections officers shall, prior to declining to execute the certificate of absentee ballot applications submitted by a specially qualified voter  who is confined in a correctional facility or jail, except if by reason of a felony conviction for reasons concerning residency for voting purposes or eligibility, verify the applicant’s eligibility status and residence for voting purposes with the jail or house of correction from where the applicant has applied.

(c) Elections officers shall, 30 days before any municipal, state, or presidential election, post on their website and report to the state secretary any measures to facilitate voting for incarcerated eligible voters.

(d) Elections officers shall make available by request as public record: the numbers of ballot applications received from eligible incarcerated voters, the numbers of rejected ballot applications sent by incarcerated and make note of reason for rejection, and the number of ballots received from eligible incarcerated voters.

SECTION 10. Chapter 54 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 25C the following:--

(R) the Secretary shall direct that one or more early voting sites be available on at least the last day of the early voting period to serve voters incarcerated in the county jails in counties where the population numbers above 800,000. In order to ensure the greatest number of voters possible will be served, the Secretary must consult with the relevant county sheriffs to ascertain which towns and cities are most represented among the jail population. Once that determination is made, the Secretary shall notify the cities or towns of their obligation to provide an early voting site for voters in the relevant facility. The Secretary shall affect the mandates of this subsection beginning in 2022 and shall review early voting plans for correctional facilities every 5 years thereafter to ensure they are up to date. The Secretary shall promulgate rules and regulations to affect the purposes of this subsection.