1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to elections;
modifying voter registration provisions for individuals in jail;
1.3 requiring the secretary of
state to make grants to sheriffs; appropriating money;
1.4 amending Minnesota Statutes
2024, sections 201.061, subdivision 3; 203B.28;
1.5 387.11; proposing coding for
new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 5.
1.6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE
LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.7 Section 1. [5.306]
GRANTS TO COUNTY SHERIFFS.
1.8 The secretary of
state must make grants to sheriffs to implement the plan developed
1.9 under section 387.11.
Appropriations made for this purpose must be allocated to sheriffs in
1.10 direct proportion to the
number of jail beds under each sheriff's authority.
1.11 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes
2024, section 201.061, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
1.12 Subd. 3.Election
day registration. (a) An individual who is eligible to vote may register
1.13 on election day by appearing in
person at the polling place for the precinct in which the
1.14 individual maintains residence,
by completing a registration application, making an oath in
1.15 the form prescribed by the
secretary of state and providing proof of residence. An individual
1.16 may prove residence for
purposes of registering by:
1.17 (1) presenting a driver's
license or Minnesota identification card issued pursuant to
1.18 section 171.07;
1.19 (2) presenting any document
approved by the secretary of state as proper identification;
1.20 (3) presenting a current
student fee statement that contains the student's valid address
1.21 in the precinct together with a
picture identification card; or
2.1 (4) having a voter who is
registered to vote in the precinct, or an employee employed
2.2 by and working in a
residential facility in the precinct and vouching for a resident in the
2.3 facility, sign an oath in the
presence of the election judge vouching that the voter or employee
2.4 personally knows that the
individual is a resident of the precinct. A voter who has been
2.5 vouched for on election day
may not sign a proof of residence oath vouching for any other
2.6 individual on that election
day. A voter who is registered to vote in the precinct may sign
2.7 up to eight proof-of-residence
oaths on any election day. This limitation does not apply to
2.8 an employee of a residential
facility described in this clause. The secretary of state shall
2.9 provide a form for election
judges to use in recording the number of individuals for whom
2.10 a voter signs
proof-of-residence oaths on election day. The form must include space for the
2.11 maximum number of individuals
for whom a voter may sign proof-of-residence oaths. For
2.12 each proof-of-residence oath,
the form must include a statement that the individual: (i) is
2.13 registered to vote in the
precinct or is an employee of a residential facility in the precinct,
2.14 (ii) personally knows that the
voter is a resident of the precinct, and (iii) is making the
2.15 statement on oath. The form
must include a space for the voter's printed name, signature,
2.16 telephone number, and address.
2.17 The oath required by this
subdivision and Minnesota Rules, part 8200.9939, must be
2.18 attached to the voter registration
application.
2.19 (b) The operator of a
residential facility shall prepare a list of the names of its employees
2.20 currently working in the
residential facility and the address of the residential facility. The
2.21 operator shall certify the list
and provide it to the appropriate county auditor no less than
2.22 20 days before each election
for use in election day registration.
2.23 (c) "Residential
facility" means transitional housing as defined in section 256K.48,
2.24 subdivision 1; a supervised
living facility licensed by the commissioner of health under
2.25 section 144.50, subdivision 6;
a nursing home as defined in section 144A.01, subdivision
2.26 5; an assisted living facility
licensed by the commissioner of health under chapter 144G; a
2.27 veterans home operated by the
board of directors of the Minnesota Veterans Homes under
2.28 chapter 198; a residence
licensed by the commissioner of human services to provide a
2.29 residential program as defined
in section 245A.02, subdivision 14; a residential facility for
2.30 persons with a developmental
disability licensed by the commissioner of human services
2.31 under section 252.28; setting
authorized to provide housing support as defined in section
2.32 256I.03, subdivision 10a; a
shelter for battered women as defined in section 611A.37,
2.33 subdivision 4; a supervised
publicly or privately operated shelter or dwelling designed to
2.34 provide temporary living
accommodations for the homeless; a facility where a provider
2.35 operates a residential
treatment program as defined in section 245.462, subdivision 23; or
3.1 a facility where a provider
operates an adult foster care program as defined in section
3.2 245A.02, subdivision 6c;
or a county jail.
3.3 (d) For tribal band members,
an individual may prove residence for purposes of
3.4 registering by:
3.5 (1) presenting an
identification card issued by the tribal government of a tribe recognized
3.6 by the Bureau of Indian
Affairs, United States Department of the Interior, that contains the
3.7 name, address, signature, and
picture of the individual; or
3.8 (2) presenting an
identification card issued by the tribal government of a tribe recognized
3.9 by the Bureau of Indian
Affairs, United States Department of the Interior, that contains the
3.10 name, signature, and picture of
the individual and also presenting one of the documents
3.11 listed in Minnesota Rules, part
8200.5100, subpart 2, item B.
3.12 (e) For eligible voters in
jail on election day, the individual may prove residence for
3.13 purposes of registering
by using the address listed on the individual's intake form.
3.14 (f) A county, school
district, or municipality may require that an election judge
3.15 responsible for election day registration
initial each completed registration application.
3.16 Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes
2024, section 203B.28, is amended to read:
3.17 203B.28 POSTELECTION REPORT
TO LEGISLATURE.
3.18 By January 15 of every
odd-numbered year, the secretary of state shall must provide to
3.19 the chair and ranking minority
members of the legislative committees with jurisdiction over
3.20 elections a statistical report
related to absentee voting in the most recent general election
3.21 cycle. The statistics must be
organized by county, and include:
3.22 (1) the number of absentee
ballots transmitted to voters;
3.23 (2) the number of absentee
ballots returned by voters;
3.24 (3) the number of absentee
ballots that were rejected, categorized by the reason for
3.25 rejection;
3.26 (4) the number of absentee
ballots submitted pursuant to sections 203B.16 to 203B.27,
3.27 along with the number of
returned ballots that were accepted, rejected, and the reason for
3.28 any rejections; and
3.29 (5) the number of absentee
ballots that were not counted because the ballot return
3.30 envelope was received after the
deadlines provided in this chapter.; and
4.1 (6) information on the
efforts made by sheriffs to facilitate voting for those in jail on
4.2 the date of a primary
or general election, as reported to the secretary of state in accordance
4.3 with section 387.11.
4.4 Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes
2024, section 387.11, is amended to read:
4.5 387.11 COUNTY JAIL.
4.6 (a) The sheriff shall
must have the charge and custody of the county jail and receive and
4.7 safely keep therein all
persons lawfully committed thereto and not release any person
4.8 therefrom unless discharged
by due course of law.
4.9 (b) The sheriff must
develop a plan, in consultation with the county auditor, on how to
4.10 provide voter education
and assistance on registering to vote and voting by mail for eligible
4.11 voters in jail on the
day of a primary or general election. The sheriff must designate a staff
4.12 person as the jail
voting coordinator who is responsible for distributing and collecting voting
4.13 materials and
facilitating voting for those in jail on the date of a primary or general
election.
4.14 By November 30 of every
even-numbered year, each sheriff must report to the secretary of
4.15 state on the actions
taken and the resulting number of individuals who sought to vote and
4.16 the result of those
requests.
4.17 (c) If an eligible voter
in jail expresses the desire to vote by absentee ballot, the jail staff
4.18 must ensure that the
individual is allowed, during normal business hours, to use a telephone
4.19 to contact the county
auditor to request an absentee ballot application or request assistance
4.20 with absentee voting.
4.21 Sec. 5. APPROPRIATION.
4.22 $2,500,000 in fiscal year 2027 is appropriated from the
general fund to the secretary of
4.23 state to make grants to
county sheriffs under Minnesota Statutes, section 5.306. The base
4.24 for this appropriation
is $0 in fiscal year 2028 and each even-numbered fiscal year thereafter.
4.25 The base for this
appropriation is $2,500,000 in fiscal year 2029 and each odd-numbered
4.26 year thereafter.
