2023 - Ballot Envelope Requirements.pdf

FRANCISCO V. AGUILAR

Secretary of State

MAGGIE SALAS CRESPO

Deputy Secretary for Southern Nevada

SHAUNA BAKKEDAHL

Deputy Secretary for Commercial Recordings

DEBBIE I. BOWMAN

Deputy Secretary for Operations

STATE OF NEVADA

OFFICE OF THE

SECRETARY OF STATE

GABRIEL DI CHIARA

Chief Deputy Secretary of State

ERIN HOUSTON

Deputy Secretary for Securities

MARK A. WLASCHIN

Deputy Secretary for Elections

NEVADA STATE CAPITOL PAUL LAXALT BUILDING LAS VEGAS OFFICE

101 N. Carson Street, Suite 3 COMMERCIAL RECORDINGS 2250 Las Vegas Blvd North, Suite 400

Carson City, Nevada 89701-3714 401 N. Carson Street North Las Vegas, Nevada 89030-5873 Carson City, Nevada 89701 nvsos.gov

MEMORANDUM

To: Nevada County Clerks & Registrars From: Mark Wlaschin Date: August 24, 2023 Subject: Memo 2023-003 Mail Ballot Envelope Requirements

The following guidance is provided regarding the standardized mail ballot envelope requirements identified in Sections 1.5 and 4 in Assembly Bill 192 (AB192) from the 2023 legislative session.

The bill requires NRS 293.269913 to be amended to include the following language:

5. The Secretary of State shall prescribe:

(a) The form of all envelopes in which mail ballots are sent to voters and return envelopes, which must, except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b), be uniform throughout the State;

and

(b) A method for distinguishing the return envelopes of each county which must be prominently displayed on the outside of the return envelope.

The following are the requirements for the 2024 election cycle and any special elections that occur in 2025.

Each ballot envelope must include space for the Barcode (IMB). The IMB is required on mail ballots starting in 2024.

o The IMB on each mail ballot envelope must:

have a minimum barcode height of 0.75 inches;

be placed on the bottom right corner of the envelope ;

be placed at least 0.33 inches away from the envelope edge

Each county must have a unique and colored bar on their ballot envelope. The color for each county must be different from the colors used in adjacent counties and will be provided via separate correspondence.

prominently displayed on one side of the mail ballot envelope.

be included on the secrecy sleeve provided inside the envelope.

The secrecy sleeve must also act as the instruction sheet.

The county name must be displayed in the top left corner of the front (address) side of the

Business Reply Mail envelope in at least a 12-point font.

Text on the envelope should not be all CAPS, in italics, or bold as those may be challenging to read and are not as accessible.

The font on the mail ballot envelope must be Times New Roman or Verdana only to ensure accessibility and must not be smaller than an 8-point font.

County contact information must be placed upon the mail ballot envelope and on the instruction sheet.

statutes (such as NRS 293.353 and NRS 293.3165) are removed from mail ballot envelopes or instruction sheets.

The requirements listed below may be formatted to fit the mail ballot envelope, but the specific text must not be altered, with the exception of COUNTY NAME which should be replaced with the applicable county name.

There must be information relating to the provisions of NRS 293.269919 that states and includes the following:

At the direction of a voter who has a physical disability, is at least 65 years of age or is unable to read or write, a person may mark and sign a mail ballot on behalf of the voter or assist the voter to mark and sign a mail ballot pursuant to this section. If a person marks and signs a mail ballot on behalf of a voter pursuant to this section, the person must indicate next to his or her signature that the mail ballot has been marked and signed on behalf of the voter. If a person assists a voter to mark and sign a mail ballot pursuant to this section, the person or the voter must include on the return envelope his or her name, address and signature. (NRS 293.269919)

I declare under the penalty of perjury that: I am a resident of COUNTY NAME; I am the person whose name appears on this envelope; I have not voted another ballot from any other jurisdiction for this election.

Voter, sign here in ink. Power of attorney is not acceptable.

This ballot has been marked and signed on behalf of the voter.

Signature & Printed Name of Person Providing Assistance Marking or Signing Ballot

Address of Person Providing Assistance Marking or Signing Ballot

The following statement must be provided to direct Spanish speaking voters to the SOS website:

Para obtener información en español, visite NVSOS.gov

A statement must be included that notifies the voter what will happen if they do not sign the mail ballot envelope. It must not state their vote will not be counted, as there is a process defined in the provisions of NRS 293.269927 that would allow a voter to cure their signature. Therefore, the following statement must be used:

Failure to sign this envelope will result in your county election official contacting you for additional information.

The following statement regarding the timeliness of the mail ballot must be included as well:

To be accepted, this mail ballot must be postmarked on or before the day of the election and received by the clerk not later than 5 p.m. on the fourth day following the election or delivered by hand to the county clerk or any ballot drop box established in the county before the time set for closing of the polls.

If you have any questions regarding this guidance, please contact the Office of the Secretary of State at NVElect@sos.nv.gov.

Respectfully, Francisco V. Aguilar Secretary of State

By: ______________________________ Mark Wlaschin, Deputy Secretary for Elections