OPINION:
If the U.S. Postal Service gets its way, some major changes are coming for mail-in ballots. It is a welcome prospect at a time when USPS budgets are shrinking and delivery times are getting longer.
On June 2, USPS began a 30-day public comment period on its proposed rule to add security and transparency requirements for mail-in ballots. The proposed rule stressed the importance of additional security measures “to facilitate the enforcement of federal law, reduce the risk of fraud and help protect the integrity of federal elections.”
This flows from President Trump’s Executive Order 14399, Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity of Federal Elections. The executive order directed USPS to initiate rulemaking to require that all mail and absentee ballots be placed in secure ballot envelopes marked with the official Election Mail logo. It also requires Intelligent Mail Barcodes to track ballots throughout the entire mailing process.
All ballot envelopes would need to interact with automated systems so USPS can scan them to monitor whether they are moving expeditiously through the processing facility, thereby increasing the chance that ballots are returned in time to be counted.
One of the unique features of the proposed rule is a “Mail-In and Absentee Participation List” for each state. It suggests a pre-mailing notice to USPS from each state’s chief election official, listing the voters to be included on the official mailing list and the unique barcode associated with each voter.
The underlying goal: to strengthen the integrity of the process by showing the number of ballots sent and returned by Election Day. This allows a preliminary reconciliation of ballots to identify whether more ballots are returned to election officials than were sent to voters.
It strengthens the chain of custody for ballots when they are out of election officials’ hands.
Voters continue to experience significant problems with delays and extended transit times of seven to 10 days for mail-in ballots, and they are more skeptical of mail-in ballot security than other forms of voting.
One reason they give: Ballots are outside the possession of election officials.
Hence, the need for these types of transparency measures: to “improve the visibility of ballots in the mailstream” and help increase the confidence of voters.
By improving USPS and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s ability to monitor and investigate irregularities involving mail ballots, the proposed rule would deter voter fraud and assist in the prosecution of federal election crimes.
As a former election official, I can attest that these minimum standards are not particularly onerous. They would certainly raise the level of efficiency and integrity of mail voting. States and counties already use many of these tools, but significant gaps remain nationwide, particularly in small counties.
Yet no shortcuts should be made at the expense of the voter.
Many are concerned about more federal government involvement in ballot mail. However, under this proposal, the states will retain full control over the list of mail voters and may modify it until the last day of mailing under state law.
Despite its shortcomings, USPS is already significantly involved in elections because of its handling of millions of ballots. As a result, the federal government now has a significant national interest in uniform standards that promote accurate, efficient and timely delivery of mail-in ballots in federal elections.
Mail-in ballots do not always stay inside a state or locality for processing. Ballots are often sent across state lines to regional USPS processing centers, a practice that has increased with downsizing.
States should provide all citizens who wish to vote by mail the same security protections and transparency tools, whether they live in rural America or downtown Los Angeles. These requirements are often based on the individual budget or staffing at the local election office, and they should cover every mail ballot sent to every voter.
Critics will predictably argue that the proposed language is too much, too soon, or too difficult to implement before Election Day.
Nonsense.
Elections are not perfect, and this is one area that desperately needs improvement before November. It is not hard for states to coordinate with USPS to develop uniformity standards for their counties, reducing errors and mitigating risk to voters. Uniform standards will protect voters from becoming victims of more nefarious actors who occasionally take advantage of Americans through mail fraud.
The new recommendations from USPS will be the first spoonful of medicine to increase the likelihood that all Americans will have their mail-in ballots arrive on time, be securely processed and be counted by Election Day.
• Donald Palmer is a senior legal fellow for election integrity with The Heritage Foundation.
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