7 Big Changes To Voting In PA Just Signed Into Law

HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf on Thursday signed an election reform bill that will implement several "voter-friendly" election reforms — including no-excuse mail-in voting — by the April 2020 primary election.

The governor called Act 77 "the most significant improvement to Pennsylvania’s elections in more than 80 years."

The law allows Pennsylvania residents to vote by mail up to 50 days before an election, without an excuse. Voters can elect to be placed on a list to permanently receive a ballot application by mail. It also extends voter registration times, and authorizes a $90 million bond to help counties fund the purchase of new voting systems with a paper trail.

The state House of Representatives on Tuesday advanced the bill in a 138-61 vote. Later that day, the state Senate approved it in a 35-14 vote.

“This bill makes voting more convenient and more secure for millions of Pennsylvanians and continues my commitment to modernizing our elections,” said Governor Wolf. “This is the biggest change to our elections in generations and will strengthen our democracy by removing barriers to the voting booth and encouraging more people to vote. I applaud all of the legislators and stakeholders for their work with my administration and their spirit of compromise.”

Numerous lawmakers on both sides of the aisle joined the governor in applauding the new law.

“This bill was not written to benefit one party or the other, or any one candidate or single election,” said House Majority Leader Bryan Cutler, a Republican who represents the 100th District. “It was developed over a multi-year period with input of people from different backgrounds and regions of Pennsylvania."

"The bill modernizes our antiquated voting laws," said Sen. Lisa Boscola, a Democrat and the bill's prime sponsor. "This law will bring polling to the people, and that is closer to a modern democracy: no excuses and no exclusions.”

Here are seven things the new voting law does:

(Note: this new law does not impact the upcoming Election Day on Nov. 5.)

1. Allows no-excuse mail-in voting: The law creates a new option to vote by mail without needing an excuse, which is currently required for voters using absentee ballots. Pennsylvania joins 31 other states and Washington, D.C. with mail-in voting that removes barriers to elections.

2. Sets a 50-day mail-in voting period: Voters can request and submit their mail-in or absentee ballot up to 50 days before the election. That's the longest vote-by-mail period in the country, according to information from the governor's office.

3. Establishes a permanent mail-in and absentee ballot list: Voters can request to receive applications for mail-in or absentee ballots for all primary, general and special elections held in a given year. Counties will mail applications to voters on the list by the first Monday of each February. Voters who return an application will receive ballots for each election scheduled through the next February.

4. Extends voter registration time: The deadline to register to vote is extended to 15 days from 30 days before an election.

5. Extends mail-in and absentee submission deadlines: Voters can submit mail-in and absentee ballots until 8 p.m. on election day. The current deadline is 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before an election.

6. Eliminates straight-party ticket voting: The elimination of straight-party ticket voting was a concern for some lawmakers. “While I understand the concerns about eliminating the straight party ticket option, this bipartisan bill creates the most significant improvements to our elections in more than 80 years," Wolf said in response.

7. Authorizes a $90 million bond for voting systems: The law will allow for the bond to reimburse counties for 60 percent of their actual costs to replace voting systems. The new systems will have enhanced security to prevent hacking and produce an anonymous paper record.

In April 2018, the Department of State informed Pennsylvania counties they must select the new voting systems by the end of 2019 and the new system must be used by voters no later than the April 2020 primary election.

At least 52 counties have taken official action toward selecting a new voting system, with 46 counties planning to use those new voting systems in the November 2019 election, according to information from the governor's office.