I I-iuimu .l b?ill (itiai?Jl (Kim 21mm QMTEQS TATES - 7 7 77 p05 TAL 5m VICE July 30. 2020 Honorable Steve Sandvoss ExeCutive Director State Board of Elections 2329 MacArthur Boulevard Spring?eld. IL 62704-4503 Dear Mr. Sandvoss: Re; Deadlines for Mailing Ballots With the 2020 General Election rapidly approaching. this letter follows up on my letter dated May 29. 2020. which I sent to election officials throughout the country. That letter highlighted some key aspects of the Postal Service's delivery processes. The purpose of this letter is to focus speCI?callY on the deadlines for requesting and casting ballots by mail. In particular. we wanted to note that. under our reading of Illinois' election laws. certain deadlines for requesting and casting mail-In ballots are incongruous with the Postal Service's delivery standards. This mismatch creates a risk that ballots requested near the deadline under state law will not be returned by mail in time to be counted under your laws as we understand them. As I stated in my May 29 letter. the two main classes of mail that are used for ballots are First-Class Mail and USPS Marketing Mail. the latter of which includes the Nonpro?t postage rate. Voters must use First-Class Mail (or an expedited level of service) to mail their ballots and ballot requests. while state or local election of?cials may generally use either First-Class Mail or Marketing Mail to mail blank ballots to voters. While the specific transit times for either class of mail cannot be guaranteed. and depend on factors such as a given mailpiece's place of origin and destination. most domestic First-Class Mail is delivered 2-5 days after it is received by the Postal Service. and most domestic Marketing Mail is delivered 3-10 days after it is received. To account for these delivery standards and to allow for contingencies weather issues or unforeseen events). the Postal Service strongly recommends adhering to the following timeframe when using the mail to transmit ballots to domestic voters: Ballot requests: Where voters will both receive and send a ballot by mail, voters should submit their ballot request early enough so that it is received by their election of?cials at least 15 days before Election Day at a minimum. and preferably long before that time. Mailing blank ballots to voters: In responding to a ballot request. election of?cials should consider that the ballot needs to be in the hands of the voter so that he or she has adequate time to complete it and put it back in the mail stream so that it can be processed and delivered by the applicable deadline. Accordingly. the Postal Service recommends that election of?cials use First-Class Mail to transmit blank ballots and allow 1 week for delivery to voters. Using Marketing Mail will result in slower delivery times and will increase the risk that voters will not receive their ballots in time to return them by mail. 475 SW \N'Am'tslo.? DC. 20200 1100 202 you {Robb hut. 2022(18 0951 amaze; man's: on (some cow usps con: -2- . Mailing completed ballots to election of?cials: To allow enough ?me for bands 53:35 at returned to election officials. domestic voters should generally mail their completfdbe both least one Week before the state's due date In states that reqUire ballots {?at is one postmarked by Electron Day and received by election of?cials by a Spec'f'c d?lilovember 3 week or more after Election Day, voters may generally mail their ballot up osted However. voters who mail in their ballots on Election Day must be aware? .0 If collection times on collection boxes and at the Postal Service's feta" fac'l't'es' and a a entered after the last posted collection time on a given day Will not be postmarked untrl the following business day Under our reading of your state's election laws, as in effect on July 27. 2020. certain state-law requirements and deadlines appear to be incompatible with the Postal Servrce's delivery standards and the recommended timeframe noted above As a result. to the extent that the marl rs used to transmit ballots to and from voters. there is a risk that. at least in certain circumstances. ballots may be requested in a manner that is consistent with your electron rules and returned and yet not be returned in time to be counted Speci?cally. it appears that a completed ballot must be postmarked before Election Day and received by election officials within 14 days after the election, which we understand to be the end of the period for counting provrsronal ballots. If that understanding rs correct. voters who choose to mail their ballots may do so on or before Tuesday. November 3. However. it further appears that state law generally permits voters to apply for a ballot as late as 5 days before the November general election. If a voter submits a request at or near the ballot-request deadline. and if the ballot is transmitted to the voter by mail. there is a risk that the ballot will not reach the voter before Electron Day. and accordingly that the voter will not be able to use the ballot to cast his or her vote That risk rs exacerbated by the fact that the law does not appear to require election of?cials to transmit a ballot until 2 busrness days after receiving a ballot application, To be clear. the Postal Service is not purporting to definitively interpret the requirements of your state?s electron laws. and also is not recommending that such laws be changed to accommodate the Postal Servrce's delivery standards, By the same token, however. the Postal Service cannot adjust Its delivery standards to accommodate the requirements of state electron law For this reason. the Postal Service asks that electron of?cials keep the Postal Service's delivery standards and recommendations in mind when making decrsions as to the appropriate means used to send a piece of Electron Mail to voters. and when informing voters how to successfully participate in an election where they choose to use the mail It is particularly important that voters be made aware of the transrt times for marl (including mail-in ballots) so that they can make Informed decisions about whether and when to (1) request a marl-in ballot. and (2) mail a completed ballot back to election of?cials. We remain committed to sustaining the mail as a secure, ef?cient. and effective means to allow citizens to in the electoral process when election officials determine to utilize the mail as a part of their election system. Ensuring that you have an understanding of our operational capabilities and recommended trmelines. and can educate voters accordingly. is important to achieving a successful election season. Please reach out to your assigned election mait coordinator to discuss the logistics of your mailings and the services that are available as well as any questions you may have. A list of election mail coordinators may be found on our website at: We hope the information contained in this letter is helpful. and please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.