MMA continues advocacy for election reforms without unfunded mandates

Despite the disruption of the pandemic, municipal clerks and election officials in the Commonwealth’s 351 cities and towns administered federal, state, and local elections in a safe, accessible and efficient manner over the past two years. This was due to dedicated local officials and the pandemic-related flexibilities that the Legislature enacted during the public health crisis.

These authorizations — including no-excuse vote-by-mail and in-person early voting — were key tools for local officials and overwhelmingly popular, but these two provisions expired last Dec. 15.

Earlier in 2021, the Senate passed a comprehensive election reform bill (S. 2545), known as the VOTES Act, that would make many changes permanent, including vote-by-mail for all elections, longer periods for early voting, and same-day voter registration.

On Jan. 27, the House passed its own version of the VOTES Act (H. 4359). The House bill includes vote-by-mail and early voting for state and federal elections, as well as local options for both vote-by-mail and early voting for municipal elections. The House bill does not include direct authorization of same-day voter registration, but did add language to evaluate the potential costs involved.

A six-member House-Senate conference committee has been named to reconcile differences between the bills and propose a final bill for passage.

The MMA has previously supported many permanent election reforms, and sent a letter to the conference committee highlighting considerations for negotiators to support important provisions while avoiding unfunded mandates or requirements on municipalities across Massachusetts.

The following are key points made by the MMA:
• Make no-excuse, vote-by-mail a permanent change to encourage and allow all citizens to exercise their right to vote from home. Municipalities should have this option at the local level. Additionally, vote-by-mail ballots should be requested through an online portal or traditional written request, rather than creating any other administrative burden on local officials.
• Codify early voting while providing a local option for local elections.
• Guarantee full funding for all new election responsibilities and training requirements imposed by the legislation.

Once the conference committee agrees on compromise legislation, and both the House and Senate enact it, the governor would have 10 days to either sign the bill, veto it, or return it with proposed amendments.