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Minutes for SB365 - Committee on Federal and State Affairs
Short Title
Requiring all advance voting ballots be returned by 7:00 p.m. on election day.
Minutes Content for Tue, Feb 6, 2024
Jason Long, Office of Revisor of Statutes, gave an overview of the bill. He stated SB365 amends a statute to require all advance voting ballots be received by the close of election day, rather than the three day extension under current law. He noted a bill was passed last session to eliminate the three day extension, but was vetoed by the Governor. (Attachment 1)
After a period of questions and answers, the Chairman called for proponent testimony.
Proponent Oral Testimony
Senator Ty Masterson, Senate President, spoke as a proponent of the bill. The Senator stated the key is, we need a quicker, trusted result in elections. He stated he does not receive a three day grace period when mailing in his electricity payment, and would be penalized if late. He said we need to have trusted election results, and that we now have election "seasons", whereas we used to have election "day". He stated there's no excuse not to have your ballot in on time, and we need to eliminate the perception that there can even be a stolen election. (Attachment 2)
Senator Mark Steffen, M.D., spoke as a proponent of a bill. He stated anytime from the closing of the polls to when the results come out, is when doubt about the validity of elections occurs. He stated he spoke to Kansas citizens in every portion of the state during a recent election, and the overwhelming issue of concern is election security. He said we live in an advanced society, and to say people aren't capable of getting something in when they have had weeks to do so, is an affront to the individual. He stated if Mary and Joseph could travel 94 miles between Nazareth and Bethlehem on foot and the back of a donkey to be counted, then we can get our ballots in by the deadline. (Attachment 3)
Missy Leavitt, private citizen, spoke as a proponent of the bill. She stated she resonated the sentiment of the previous two conferees. She said eliminating the three day grace period would save money for the election office, and "election day should be election day". She said the days before the election give people plenty of time to be accountable for their ballot. (Attachment 4)
Written Only Proponent Testimony
Keith Esau, private citizen (Attachment 5)
Brett Anderson, private citizen (Attachment 6)
Kari Sue Vosburgh, We the People Kansas (Attachment 7)
Lynn Fairbanks, private citizen (Attachment 8)
Robin Jackson, private citizen (Attachment 9)
Jaime Kissinger, private citizen (Attachment 10)
Melissa Campbell, private citizen (Attachment 11)
Thad Snider, private citizen (Attachment 12)
Rich Lorenzo, private citizen (Attachment 13)
Seeing no questions for the conferees, the Chairman called for neutral testimony.
Neutral Oral Testimony
Clay Barker, Deputy Secretary of State, spoke as neutral on the bill. He stated the three day grace period was added in 2017 and only applied to the standard elections. The three day grace period is not applicable to military, who have federal laws governing their ballots, and are even allowed to vote by email. He said there are reasons to get rid of the three day period: there is a perception by voters that all ballots should be in hand by the end of election day, there would be fewer administrative tasks without the extra three days, sometimes ballots are not postmarked, and outcomes change days after the election. He stated the reasons to keep it are that the United States Postal Service (USPS) is slow, many elderly people vote by mail, and it ensures voters have an option to get their ballots in. (Attachment 14)
Following questions of the conferee, the Chairman called for opponent testimony.
Opponent Oral Testimony
Davis Hammet, Loud Light Civic Action, spoke as an opponent of the bill. He said the bill throws out legitimate ballots if they are received late. He said the advance ballots are sent out 21 days in advance of the election, and that doesn't give enough time, since the mail service can be slow. He said there are lots of reasons people use mail-in ballots and this is a bad voter suppression bill. (Attachment 15)
Randall Hardy, Silver Haired Legislature, spoke as an opponent of the bill. He said 15 percent of the senior population uses mail-in voting, and rely solely on it. He said ability to postmark their ballots on election day is fair, and suggested the USPS contract with the United Parcel Service to deliver the ballots overnight. (Attachment 16)
Mike Burgess, Disability Rights Center of Kansas, spoke as an opponent of the bill. He stated the USPS has closed a number of sorting facilities in recent years, which means mail has farther to travel to reach its destination, and the grace period is necessary to account for that. He said for Kansans with disabilities, it's not just a matter of running out to the mailbox or hopping in their car to return their ballot to the election office. The grace period affords them that extra time. (Attachment 17)
Ann Mah, private citizen, spoke as an opponent of the bill. She said the bill is pure partisan politics, contains no provision for any voter education, and using the mail system is like playing "post office lotto". She said passing the bill would be blatant voter suppression. (Attachment 18)
Opponent Written Only Testimony
Erin Woods, private citizen (Attachment 19)
Cille King, League of Women Voters (Attachment 20)
Iredescent Rifel, private citizen (Attachment 21)
Paris Raite, private citizen (Attachment 22)
Mary Sloan, private citizen (Attachment 23)
Helen Hands, private citizen (Attachment 24)
Kevin Nelson, private citizen (Attachment 25)
Lois Harder, private citizen (Attachment 26)
Marcel Harmon, private citizen (Attachment 27)
Donald Hatcher, private citizen (Attachment 28)
Amy Waldron, private citizen (Attachment 29)
Jessica Porter, private citizen (Attachment 30)
Amanda Lillig, private citizen (Attachment 31)
Kaitlyn Nickel, private citizen (Attachment 32)
Lynne Bodle, private citizen (Attachment 33)
Anna Graether, private citizen (Attachment 34)
Mandy Charles, private citizen (Attachment 35)
Emily Rude, private citizen (Attachment 36)
D. Kay Johnson, private citizen (Attachment 37)
Gerald Briscoe, private citizen (Attachment 38)
Hayley Spellman, private citizen (Attachment 39)
Marc Galbraith, private citizen (Attachment 40)
Charley Crabtree, private citizen (Attachment 41)
Cat Butler, private citizen (Attachment 42)
Glenda Overstreet Vaughn, NAACP (Attachment 43)
Ellen Merrill, private citizen (Attachment 44)
Sara Lancaster, private citizen (Attachment 45)
Connie Brown Collins, private citizen (Attachment 46)
Rick Piepho, Kansas County Clerks & Election Officials (Attachment 47)
Kelly Brubeck, private citizen (Attachment 48)
Lauren Tice Miller, KNEA (Attachment 49)
Michael Poppa, Mainstream Coalition (Attachment 50)
Leslie Mark, private citizen (Attachment 51)
Dorothy Barnett, Climate + Energy Project (Attachment 52)
Claire Reagan, private citizen (Attachment 53)
Ashlee O'Connor, private citizen (Attachment 54)
Rabbi Moti Reiber, KS Interfaith Action (Attachment 55)
Stacy Knoell, Kansas African American Affairs Commission (Attachment 56)
Chloe Chaffin, private citizen (Attachment 57)
Nate Madden, Health Forward Foundation (Attachment 58)
Sara Askew, private citizen (Attachment 59)
Amy Hill, private citizen (Attachment 60)
Jean Mullin, private citizen (Attachment 61)
Kristina Bridges, private citizen (Attachment 62)
Ty Gorman, private citizen (Attachment 63)
Nick Levendofsky, private citizen (Attachment 64)
Havilah Moss, private citizen (Attachment 65)
Leigh Wagner, private citizen (Attachment 66)
Alice Capson, private citizen (Attachment 67)
Amy Hinrichs, private citizen (Attachment 68)
Deborah Kitchin, private citizen (Attachment 69)
Following a period of questions and answers, the Chairman closed the hearing on SB365.
