Title of Regulation: 1VAC20-70. Absentee Voting (amending 1VAC20-70-20).

Statutory Authority: § 24.2-103 of the Code of Virginia.

Effective Date: June 26, 2013.

Agency Contact: Martha Brissette, State Board of Elections, 1100 Bank Street, Richmond, VA 23219, telephone (804) 864-8925, FAX (804) 371-0194, TTY (800) 260-3466, or email martha.brissette@sbe.virginia.gov.

Summary:

The amendment provides that an absentee ballot imperfectly sealed in Envelope B should not be rendered invalid, provided that (i) the ballot is contained within Envelope B, (ii) evidence of a good faith effort to seal the envelope exists, (iii) the outer envelope and the ballot arrived sealed, and (iv) the circumstances create no reason to suspect fraud. These standards are a change from the proposed language, which used a substantial compliance standard for deficiencies related to assembling the voted ballot package.

1VAC20-70-20. Material omissions from absentee ballots.

A. Pursuant to the requirements of § 24.2-706 of the Code of Virginia, a timely received absentee ballot contained in an Envelope B shall not be rendered invalid if it contains an error or omission not material to its proper processing.

B. The following omissions are always material and any Envelope B containing such omissions shall be rendered invalid if any of the following exists:

1. Except as provided in subdivisions C 2 and 3 of this section, the voter did not include his full first name;

2. The voter did not provide his last name;

3. If the voter has a legal middle name, the voter did not provide at least a middle initial;

4. The voter did not provide his house number and street name or his rural route address;

5. The voter did not provide either his city or zip code;

6. The voter did not sign Envelope B;

7. The voter did not provide the date on which he signed Envelope B; or

8. The voter's witness did not sign Envelope B; or.

9. The ballot is not sealed in Envelope B.

C. The ballot shall not be rendered invalid if on the Envelope B:

1. The voter included his full name in an order other than "last, first, middle";

2. The voter used his first initial instead of his first full name, so long as the voter provided his full middle name;

3. The voter provided a derivative of his legal name as his first or middle name (e.g., "Bob" instead of "Robert");

4. The voter did not provide his generational suffix;

5. The voter did not provide his residential street identifier (Street, Drive, etc.);

6. The voter did not provide a zip code, so long as the voter provided his city;

7. The voter did not provide his city, so long as the voter provided his zip code;

8. The voter omitted the year in the date on which he signed Envelope B; or

9. The voter provided the incorrect date on which he signed Envelope B.; or

10. The [ voter did not seal the ] ballot [ is imperfectly sealed ] within Envelope B, provided [ there is substantial compliance with the requirement ] that the ballot [ be accompanied by the required Statement of Voter is contained within Envelope B, there is evidence that a good faith effort was made to seal the envelope, the outer envelope with Envelope B and the ballot arrived sealed, and the circumstances create no reason to suspect fraud ].

D. For the purposes of this regulation, "city" may include the voter's locality, town, or any acceptable mailing name for the five-digit zip code of the voter's residence.

E. The illegibility of a voter's or witness' signature on an Envelope B shall not be considered an omission or error.

F. Whether an error or omission on an Envelope B not specifically addressed by this regulation is material and shall render the absentee ballot invalid shall be determined by a majority of the officers of the election present.