text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
  
      This Act may be cited as the ``Vote By Mail Act of 2016''.
  
  SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
  
      Congress finds the following:
              (1) An inequity of voting rights exists in the United 
          States because voters in some States have the universal right 
          to vote by mail while voters in other States do not.
              (2) Many voters often have work, family, or other 
          commitments that make getting to polls and waiting in line on 
          the date of an election difficult or impossible. Many citizens 
          with disabilities are physically unable to vote due to long 
          lines, inadequate parking, no curb cuts, steep ramps, and large 
          crowds. In 2012, 30 percent of voters with disabilities had 
          difficulty voting, and more than 5,000,000 voters waited more 
          than an hour to vote. Under current State laws, many of these 
          voters are not permitted to vote by mail.
              (3) Twenty-eight States currently allow universal absentee 
          voting (also known as ``no-excuse'' absentee voting), which 
          permits any voter to request a mail-in ballot without providing 
          a reason for the request. No State which has implemented no-
          excuse absentee voting has repealed it.
              (4) Three States currently hold elections entirely by mail. 
          Twenty-two States currently allow some elections to be 
          conducted by mail, especially in large and rural jurisdictions 
          where voting by mail is especially convenient. Polling stations 
          in rural jurisdictions tend to have higher costs per voter, 
          smaller staffs, and limited resources. Transportation is often 
          a crucial barrier for rural voters.
              (5) Voting by mail gives voters more time to consider their 
          choices, which is especially important as many ballots contain 
          greater numbers of questions about complex issues than in the 
          past due to the expanded use of the initiative and referendum 
          process in many States.
              (6) Voting by mail is cost effective. After the State of 
          Oregon adopted vote by mail for all voters in 1996, the cost to 
          administer an election in the State dropped by nearly 30 
          percent over the next few elections, from $3.07 per voter to 
          $2.21 per voter. After Colorado implemented all-mail balloting 
          in 2013, voting administration costs decreased by an average of 
          40 percent. The cost of conducting vote-by-mail elections is 
          generally one-third to one-half less than conducting polling 
          place elections. Voting by mail also saves a substantial amount 
          by getting rid of the temporary labor costs of hiring poll 
          workers. In addition to that cost, many jurisdictions have been 
          facing difficulty in obtaining sufficient numbers of poll 
          workers.
              (7) Allowing all voters the option to vote by mail can 
          reduce waiting times for those voters who choose to vote at the 
          polls. In 2016, voters in Arizona reported waiting in line from 
          1 to 5 hours to vote; in New York, voters reported that 
          stations ran out of ballots and did not have staff during all 
          of the hours scheduled for voting.
              (8) Voting by mail is preferable to many voters as an 
          alternative to going to the polls. In 2012, 19 percent of 
          ballots in the United States were cast by mail, up from 10 
          percent in 2000. Voting by mail has become increasingly popular 
          with voters who want to be certain that they are able to vote 
          no matter what comes up on election day, as it reduces the 
          physical obstacles and eases the time constraints connected 
          with the act of voting.
              (9) The signature verification process, the tracking system 
          for each ballot, and postal service cooperation in preventing 
          ballots from being delivered to names not recognized as 
          receiving mail at an address nearly eliminate the potential for 
          fraud in vote-by-mail elections. Evidence of undue influence or 
          voter coercion after vote-by-mail implementation in Oregon has 
          been nonexistent to minimal.
              (10) Many of the reasons which voters in many States are 
          required to provide in order to vote by mail require the 
          revelation of personal information about health, travel plans, 
          or religious activities, which violate voters' privacy while 
          doing nothing to prevent voter fraud.
              (11) State laws which require voters to obtain a notary 
          signature to vote by mail only add cost and inconvenience to 
          voters without increasing security.
              (12) Many voters choose to cast ballots early when they 
          have the option (over 40 percent in Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, 
          and Tennessee). Nearly one-third of voters in the 2012 election 
          cast their ballot before election day, which is about double 
          the rate of voters in 2000. In Oregon, 7 years after vote-by-
          mail election implementation, over 80 percent of voters favored 
          the vote-by-mail system.
              (13) Voting by mail typically increases turnout in all 
          elections, but can be particularly effective in increasing 
          voter participation in special elections and primary elections. 
          Oregon and Washington, the 2 States with the longest standing 
          vote-by-mail systems, continue to have consistently high voter 
          turnout rates. In the 2012 primary elections, while the 
          national average turnout was 18 percent, Oregon's was 45 
          percent and Washington's was 38 percent.
              (14) A crucial component of a modern voting system is 
          making it easy, affordable, and accessible to register to vote. 
          Eighteen States and the District of Columbia introduced 
          automatic voter registration legislation in 2015, and Oregon 
          and California now automatically register their citizens to 
          vote when they apply for a driver's license. Automatic, 
          permanent voter registration has the potential to increase 
          participation, protect election integrity, and reduce 
          registration costs.
  
  SEC. 3. PROMOTING ABILITY OF VOTERS TO VOTE BY MAIL IN FEDERAL 
                ELECTIONS.
  
      (a) Voting by Mail in Federal Elections.--
              (1) In general.--Subtitle A of title III of the Help 
          America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended 
          by inserting after section 303 the following new section:
  
  ``SEC. 303A. PROMOTING ABILITY OF VOTERS TO VOTE BY MAIL.
  
      ``(a) In General.--If an individual in a State is eligible to cast 
  a vote in an election for Federal office, the State may not impose any 
  additional conditions or requirements on the eligibility of the 
  individual to cast the vote in such election by mail, except to the 
  extent that the State imposes a deadline for returning the ballot to 
  the appropriate State or local election official.
      ``(b) Provision of Ballot Materials.--Not later than 2 weeks before 
  the date of any election for Federal office, each State shall mail 
  ballots to individuals who are registered to vote in such election.
      ``(c) Accessibility for Individuals With Disabilities.--All ballots 
  provided under this section shall be accessible to individuals with 
  disabilities in a manner that provides the same opportunity for access 
  and participation (including for privacy and independence) as for other 
  voters.
      ``(d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
  construed to affect the authority of States to conduct elections for 
  Federal office through the use of polling places at which individuals 
  cast ballots.
      ``(e) Effective Date.--A State shall be required to comply with the 
  requirements of subsection (a) with respect to elections for Federal 
  office held in years beginning with 2018.''.
              (2) Conforming amendment relating to enforcement.--Section 
          401 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking ``and 
          303'' and inserting ``303, and 303A''.
              (3) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents for such Act 
          is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 303 
          the following new item:
  
  ``Sec. 303A. Promoting ability of voters to vote by mail.''.
      (b) Free Postage for Voting by Mail.--
              (1) In general.--Chapter 34 of title 39, United States 
          Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
  ``Sec. 3407. Ballots provided for voting in Federal elections
      ``Ballots mailed pursuant to section 303A(b) of the Help America 
  Vote Act of 2002 (individually or in bulk) shall be carried 
  expeditiously and free of postage.''.
              (2) Technical and conforming amendments.--
                      (A) Table of sections.--The table of sections for 
                  chapter 34 of title 39, United States Code, is amended 
                  by adding at the end the following:
  
  ``3407. Ballots provided for voting in Federal elections.''.
                      (B) Authorization of appropriations.--Section 
                  2401(c) of title 39, United States Code, is amended by 
                  striking ``3403 through 3406'' and inserting ``3403 
                  through 3407''.
  
  SEC. 4. AUTOMATIC VOTER REGISTRATION THROUGH STATE MOTOR VEHICLE 
                AUTHORITIES.
  
      (a) Automatic Voter Registration.--Section 5 of the National Voter 
  Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20504) is amended to read as 
  follows:
  
  ``SEC. 5. VOTER REGISTRATION THROUGH MOTOR VEHICLE AUTHORITY.
  
      ``(a) Simultaneous Application for Voter Registration and 
  Application for Motor Vehicle Driver's License.--
              ``(1) Transmission of information to election officials.--
          Each State's motor vehicle authority, upon receiving any of the 
          identifying information described in paragraph (2) with respect 
          to any applicable individual, shall securely transmit the 
          identifying information to the appropriate State election 
          official.
              ``(2) Identifying information described.--The identifying 
          information described in this paragraph with respect to any 
          individual is as follows:
                      ``(A) The individual's legal name.
                      ``(B) The individual's age.
                      ``(C) The individual's residence.
                      ``(D) The individual's citizenship status.
                      ``(E) The individual's electronic signature.
      ``(b) Duties of Officials Receiving Information.--
              ``(1) In general.--Upon receiving the identifying 
          information with respect to an applicable individual under 
          subsection (a), the appropriate State election official shall 
          determine--
                      ``(A) whether such individual is eligible to vote 
                  in an election for Federal office; and
                      ``(B) whether such individual is currently 
                  registered to vote in elections for Federal office at 
                  the address provided in such identifying information.
              ``(2) Notification to individuals.--
                      ``(A) Eligible unregistered individuals.--In the 
                  case of an applicable individual who is eligible to 
                  vote in an election for Federal office and who is not 
                  currently registered to vote, the appropriate State 
                  election official shall issue a notification to the 
                  individual containing--
                              ``(i) a statement that, unless the 
                          individual notifies the election official prior 
                          to the expiration of the 21-calendar-day period 
                          which begins on the date the official issued 
                          the notification that the individual declines 
                          to be registered to vote in elections for 
                          Federal office held in the State, the 
                          individual's records and signature will 
                          constitute a completed registration for the 
                          individual; and
                              ``(ii) a description of the process by 
                          which the individual may decline to be 
                          registered to vote in elections for Federal 
                          office in the State.
                      ``(B) Eligible individuals registered at a 
                  different address.--In the case of an applicable 
                  individual who is eligible to vote in an election for 
                  Federal office and who is registered to vote in such 
                  election at a different address than the address 
                  provided in the identifying information, the 
                  appropriate State election official shall issue a 
                  notification to the individual containing--
                              ``(i) a statement that, unless the 
                          individual notifies the election official prior 
                          to the expiration of the 21-calendar-day period 
                          which begins on the date the official issued 
                          the notification that the address provided in 
                          the identifying information should not be used 
                          for voter registration purposes, the address 
                          provided in the identifying information shall 
                          be used as the individual's address for voter 
                          registration purposes; and
                              ``(ii) a description of the process by 
                          which the individual may decline a change of 
                          address for voter registration purposes.
      ``(c) Automatic Registration of Eligible Individuals; Automatic 
  Change of Address.--
              ``(1) Registration.--Upon the expiration of the 21-
          calendar-day period which begins on the date the appropriate 
          State election official issues a notification to an individual 
          under subsection (b)(2)(A), the official shall ensure that the 
          individual is registered to vote in elections for Federal 
          office held in the State unless--
                      ``(A) the official later determines that the 
                  individual does not meet the eligibility requirements 
                  for registering to vote in such elections; or
                      ``(B) prior to the expiration of such 21-calendar-
                  day period, the individual notifies the official that 
                  the individual declines to be registered to vote in 
                  such elections.
              ``(2) Change of address.--Upon the expiration of the 21-
          calendar-day period which begins on the date the appropriate 
          State election official issues a notification to an individual 
          under subsection (b)(2)(B), the official shall ensure that the 
          individual is registered to vote in elections for Federal 
          office at the address provided in the identifying information 
          unless--
                      ``(A) the official later determines that the 
                  individual does not meet the eligibility requirements 
                  for registering to vote in such elections; or
                      ``(B) prior to the expiration of such 21-calendar-
                  day period, the individual notifies the official that 
                  the individual declines a change of address for voter 
                  registration purposes.
      ``(d) Applicable Individual.--For purposes of this section, the 
  term `applicable individual' means any individual who seeks assistance 
  from, receives benefits from, or receives service or assistance from a 
  State motor vehicle authority that issues motor vehicle driver's 
  licenses.''.
      (b) Conforming Amendment Relating to Timing of Registration Prior 
  to Elections.--Section 8(a)(1)(A) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 
  20507(a)(1)(A)) is amended to read as follows:
                      ``(A) in the case of registration through a motor 
                  vehicle authority under section 5, if the identifying 
                  information with respect to the individual is 
                  transmitted by the authority to the appropriate State 
                  election official under section 5(a)(1) not later than 
                  the lesser of 30 days, or the period provided by State 
                  law, before the date of the election;''.
      (c) Other Conforming Amendment.--Section 4(a)(1) of such Act (52 
  U.S.C. 20503(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows:
              ``(1) through the State motor vehicle authority pursuant to 
          section 5;''.
      (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
  effect upon the expiration of the 180-day period which begins on the 
  date of the enactment of this Act.
target: Vote by Mail Act of 2017 This bill amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require states to allow voting in federal elections to be by mail without additional conditions or requirements, except a deadline for returning the ballot. States must mail ballots to individuals registered to vote in a federal election not later than two weeks before the election. The U.S. Postal Service must carry ballots mailed by a state expeditiously and free of postage. The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 is amended to authorize automatic voter registration of individuals through state motor vehicle authorities.
feat_title: Vote By Mail Act of 2016