§ 163-230.1. Simultaneous issuance of absentee ballots with application.
§ 163‑230.1. Simultaneous issuance of absentee ballots with application.
(a) A qualified voterwho is eligible to vote by absentee ballot under G.S. 163‑226(a) or thatvoter's near relative or verifiable legal guardian, shall request in writing anapplication for absentee ballots, so that the county board of electionsreceives the request not later than 5:00 P.M. on the Tuesday before theelection. That written request shall be signed by the voter, the voter's nearrelative, or the voter's verifiable legal guardian. The county board ofelections shall enter in the register of absentee requests, applications, andballots issued the information required in G.S. 163‑228 as soon as eachitem of that information becomes available. Upon receiving the application, thecounty board of elections shall cause to be mailed to that voter in a singlepackage:
(1) The official ballotsthe voter is entitled to vote;
(2) A container‑returnenvelope for the ballots, printed in accordance with G.S. 163‑229; and
(a2) Delivery of AbsenteeBallots and Container‑Return Envelope to Applicant. When the countyboard of elections receives a request for applications and absentee ballots,the board shall promptly issue and transmit them to the voter in accordancewith the following instructions:
(1) On the top margin ofeach ballot the applicant is entitled to vote, the chair, a member, officer, oremployee of the board of elections shall write or type the words "AbsenteeBallot No. __ " or an abbreviation approved by the State Board ofElections and insert in the blank space the number assigned the applicant'sapplication in the register of absentee requests, applications, and ballotsissued. That person shall not write, type, or print any other matter upon theballots transmitted to the absentee voter. Alternatively, the board ofelections may cause to be barcoded on the ballot the voter's applicationnumber, if that barcoding system is approved by the State Board of Elections.
(2) The chair, member,officer, or employee of the board of elections shall fold and place the ballots(identified in accordance with the preceding instruction) in a container‑returnenvelope and write or type in the appropriate blanks thereon, in accordancewith the terms of G.S. 163‑229(b), the absentee voter's name, theabsentee voter's application number, and the designation of the precinct inwhich the voter is registered. If the ballot is barcoded under this section,the envelope may be barcoded rather than having the actual number appear. Theperson placing the ballots in the envelopes shall leave the container‑returnenvelope holding the ballots unsealed.
(3) The chair, member,officer, or employee of the board of elections shall then place the unsealedcontainer‑return envelope holding the ballots together with printedinstructions for voting and returning the ballots, in an envelope addressed tothe voter at the post office address stated in the request, seal the envelope,and mail it at the expense of the county board of elections: Provided, that incase of a request received after 5:00 p.m. on the Tuesday before the electionunder the provisions of subsection (a1) of this section, in lieu oftransmitting the ballots to the voter in person or by mail, the chair, member,officer, or employee of the board of elections may deliver the sealed envelopecontaining the instruction sheet and the container‑return envelopeholding the ballots to a near relative or verifiable legal guardian of thevoter.
The county board of electionsmay receive written requests for applications at any time prior to the electionbut shall not mail applications and ballots to the voter or issue applicationsand ballots in person earlier than 60 days prior to the statewide generalelection in an even‑numbered year, or earlier than 50 days prior to anyother election, except as provided in G.S. 163‑227.2. No electionofficial shall issue applications for absentee ballots except in compliancewith this Article.
(3) Repealed by SessionLaws 1999‑455, s. 10.
(4) An instructionsheet.
The ballots, envelope, andinstructions shall be mailed to the voter by the county board's chairman,member, officer, or employee as determined by the board and entered in theregister as provided by this Article.
(a1) Absence for Sicknessor Physical Disability. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) ofthis section, if a voter expects to be unable to go to the voting place to votein person on election day because of that voter's sickness or other physicaldisability, that voter or that voter's near relative or verifiable legalguardian may make written request in person for absentee ballots to the boardof elections of the county in which the voter is registered after 5:00 p.m. onthe Tuesday before the election but not later than 5:00 p.m. on the day beforethe election. The county board of elections shall enter in the register ofabsentee requests, applications, and ballots issued the information required inG.S. 163‑228 as soon as each item of that information becomes available.The county board of elections shall personally deliver to the requester in asingle package:
(1) The official ballotsthe voter is entitled to vote;
(2) A container‑returnenvelope for the ballots, printed in accordance with G.S. 163‑229; and
(3) An instructionsheet.
(a2) Delivery of AbsenteeBallots and Container‑Return Envelope to Applicant. When the countyboard of elections receives a request for applications and absentee ballots,the board shall promptly issue and transmit them to the voter in accordancewith the following instructions:
(1) On the top margin ofeach ballot the applicant is entitled to vote, the chair, a member, officer, oremployee of the board of elections shall write or type the words "AbsenteeBallot No. ____" or an abbreviation approved by the State Board ofElections and insert in the blank space the number assigned the applicant'sapplication in the register of absentee requests, applications, and ballotsissued. That person shall not write, type, or print any other matter upon theballots transmitted to the absentee voter. Alternatively, the board ofelections may cause to be barcoded on the ballot the voter's applicationnumber, if that barcoding system is approved by the State Board of Elections.
(2) The chair, member,officer, or employee of the board of elections shall fold and place the ballots(identified in accordance with the preceding instruction) in a container‑returnenvelope and write or type in the appropriate blanks thereon, in accordancewith the terms of G.S. 163‑229(b), the absentee voter's name, theabsentee voter's application number, and the designation of the precinct inwhich the voter is registered. If the ballot is barcoded under this section,the envelope may be barcoded rather than having the actual number appear. Theperson placing the ballots in the envelopes shall leave the container‑returnenvelope holding the ballots unsealed.
(3) The chair, member,officer, or employee of the board of elections shall then place the unsealedcontainer‑return envelope holding the ballots together with printedinstructions for voting and returning the ballots, in an envelope addressed tothe voter at the post office address stated in the request, seal the envelope,and mail it at the expense of the county board of elections: Provided, that incase of a request received after 5:00 p.m. on the Tuesday before the electionunder the provisions of subsection (a1) of this section, in lieu oftransmitting the ballots to the voter in person or by mail, the chair, member,officer, or employee of the board of elections may deliver the sealed envelopecontaining the instruction sheet and the container‑return envelopeholding the ballots to a near relative or verifiable legal guardian of thevoter.
The county board of electionsmay receive written requests for applications earlier than 50 days prior to theelection but shall not mail applications and ballots to the voter or issueapplications and ballots in person earlier than 50 days prior to the election,except as provided in G.S. 163‑227.2. No election official shall issueapplications for absentee ballots except in compliance with this Article.
(b) The applicationshall be completed and signed by the voter personally, the ballots marked, theballots sealed in the container‑return envelope, and the certificatecompleted as provided in G.S. 163‑231.
(c) At its nextofficial meeting after return of the completed container‑return envelopewith the voter's ballots, the county board of elections shall determine whetherthe container‑return envelope has been properly executed. If the boarddetermines that the container‑return envelope has been properly executed,it shall approve the application and deposit the container‑returnenvelope with other container‑return envelopes for the envelope to beopened and the ballots counted at the same time as all other container‑returnenvelopes and absentee ballots.
(c1) Required Meeting ofCounty Board of Elections. During the period commencing on the third Tuesdaybefore an election, in which absentee ballots are authorized, the county boardof elections shall hold one or more public meetings each Tuesday at 5:00 p.m.for the purpose of action on applications for absentee ballots. At thesemeetings, the county board of elections shall pass upon applications forabsentee ballots.
If the county board ofelections changes the time of holding its meetings or provides for additionalmeetings in accordance with the terms of this subsection, notice of the changein hour and notice of the schedule of additional meetings, if any, shall bepublished in a newspaper circulated in the county at least 30 days prior to theelection.
At the time the county boardof elections makes its decision on an application for absentee ballots, theboard shall enter in the appropriate column in the register of absenteerequests, applications, and ballots issued opposite the name of the applicant anotation of whether the applicant's application was "Approved" or"Disapproved".
The decision of the board onthe validity of an application for absentee ballots shall be final subject onlyto such review as may be necessary in the event of an election contest. Thecounty board of elections shall constitute the proper official body to passupon the validity of all applications for absentee ballots received in thecounty; this function shall not be performed by the chairman or any othermember of the board individually.
(d) Repealed by SessionLaws 1999‑455, s. 10.
(e) The State Board ofElections, by rule or by instruction to the county board of elections, shallestablish procedures to provide appropriate safeguards in the implementation ofthis section.
(f) For the purpose ofthis Article, "near relative" means spouse, brother, sister, parent,grandparent, child, grandchild, mother‑in‑law, father‑in‑law,daughter‑in‑law, son‑in‑law, stepparent, or stepchild. (1983, c. 304, s. 1; 1985,c. 759, ss. 5.1‑5.5; 1991, c. 727, s. 6.3; 1993, c. 553, s. 67; 1995, c.243, s. 1; 1999‑455, s. 10; 2001‑337, s. 3; 2002‑159, s.55(m); 2009‑537, s. 5.)