BILL SUMMARY DETAILS

Florida League of Cities

Elections (Watch)

CS/HB 7041 (Public Integrity & Ethics Committee) and CS/CS/SB 90 (Baxley) revise provisions of the Florida Elections Code relating to voter registration, county commission terms, ballots, voting systems, vote-by-mail ballots, canvassing boards, voter signatures and secure drop boxes. The bills pertain primarily to the actions and duties of individual voters and supervisors of elections. Portions of HB 7041 potentially relevant to municipal elections include the following: prohibits voter solicitation within 150 feet of polling places; prohibits a municipality, county or other agency from sending a vote-by-mail ballot to a voter unless requested by the voter (with an exception for local referenda elections); requires monitoring of vote-by-mail drop boxes; requires election records be retained for 22 months; requires publication of canvassing board members on an official website; and prohibits private funding of official election activities. (O’Hara)