On the Home Rule Petition, referred on May 25, 2022, Docket #0682, regarding Electronic Application and Transmission of Absentee Ballots for Absent Uniformed Services Voters, the committee submitted a report recommending that the petition ought to pass in a new draft. The report was accepted; the petition was passed in a new draft; yeas 12 (Absent Mejia).
Lucky Number 068 to Council on Murphy and Flynn on for the following order for a home rule petition regarding electronic application and transmission of absentee ballots for absent uniform services voters. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. The Chair recognizes Councilor Murphy. Councilor Murphy has the floor. Thank you, Counsel. So I, along with President Flynn here with for your approval, a home rule petition to the General Court entitled A Petition for a Special Law regarding an Act relative to the authorization of an electronic absentee ballot application in electronic transmission of ballots for absent uniformed service voters. Massachusetts citizens have a right to vote in all elections, even if deployed or stationed overseas. The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act is a federal law that guarantees voting rights for the United States military, who are known as uniformed service voters. By the federal laws definition, eligible uniformed service voters strictly include those on active duty in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, including Reservists, Space Force, and the Merchant Marine members, as well as their spouses. Independents, more specifically, absent uniformed services voters are located outside of their voting districts. In Massachusetts, absent uniform service voters are exempt from voter registration requirements, but instead must mail an absentee ballot application to their local election office in order to obtain their ballot for municipal elections. In Massachusetts, a blank ballot will only be delivered through the mail and must also be returned through the mail. However, for federal elections, a ballot can be emailed, faxed or mailed based on preference, and the voted ballot may be mailed back or electronically returned through email or fax. This is a more modern approach for absent uniformed services voters to participate in elections. Mail in ballots have already caused problems in some elections nationwide. We know in Wisconsin, 9000 requested ballots were never sent and thousands were postmarked too late to count. In New Jersey, 9.6 of mail ballots cast in the state's local elections were rejected because signatures didn't match the ones on file or arrive too late. And in Pennsylvania, tens of thousands of votes were either not cast or not counted due to deadline. Confusion through this act's electronic application for an absentee ballot for municipal elections will streamlined the absentee ballot application process by eliminating the shipping time required to receive and deliver an application. Also through this Act, electronically delivering and returning the ballots itself through email or fax will help better guarantee voting rights for absent uniformed services voters by streamlining the voting process, ensuring each ballot is counted in reducing the number of rejected ballots. So in short, I urge my fellow colleagues in this body to support this special act so that we can better help guarantee voting rights for absent uniformed service voters in accordance with the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, as well as modernize the voting process in this bill, elections like they do in elections, federal elections. So thank you. Thank you. Councilor Murphy. The chair now recognizes Council President Flynn. Thank you, Councilor Arroyo. And I want to say thank you to Councilor Murphy for taking the lead on this important this important piece of policy change that we're going to make here. And I know I have talked with the mayor's team and with the election department, and they've always been strong supporters of voting for veterans and for military families and veterans overseas especially. So I'm looking forward to the next step and making sure that all active duty or reserves reservist serving overseas have the opportunity to vote in elections. It's a critical part of our democracy. Just as an example, I was I was in a small country in Bahrain, in the Persian Gulf, requested an absentee ballot. And the day my ballot was supposed to arrive to me, I was flown to another country. And what? That ballot never reached me. And it could reach me about several months later after the voting. But for military people, it's not as simple as just just getting a piece of mail delivered to you, to your home, or to to your office. It's very challenging when you're overseas. But again, I want to say thank you to Counsel Murphy and to all of my colleagues who have was advocated for veterans in military families, whether they were on the council or prior to their job on the council. But I know you've always been strong supporters of military families, so I just want to say thank you for all of the city workers that do tremendous work and helping helping our veterans. Thank you, counsel. Thank you. Council President Flynn, would anyone else like to speak on this matter? Seeing no further discussion with anyone else. Like to add their name. Mr. Clarke. Please add. Councilor Baker. Councilor Box. Councilor Cullen. Councilor. Clarity. Councilor Laura. Councilor. I'm here. Councilor Braiden and Councilor morale. And also please have my name. Docket number 682 will be assigned to the Committee on Government Operations. Thank you, Mr. Clarke. Miss Clark, please read Docket. 06830683 Council of the Marine and Louisiana offered the following order for a hearing to discuss solutions to historic and disproportionate state disinvestment in the city of Boston.