Postal Service Proposes Rule Requiring States to Submit Mail-In Ballot Voter Data

U.S. Postal Service proposed new rules Friday that would require states to submit the names and addresses of voters receiving mail-in or absentee ballots, along with unique barcodes tied to each voter's outbound and return ballot envelopes. USPS said the rule would help determine how many ballots were mailed and allow officials to compare that figure with the number of ballots returned to detect potential issues for further investigation.

The rule would apply to general, special and runoff federal elections, but not primaries or ballots sent to military and overseas voters.

The proposal would require official logos, tracking barcodes, and a reporting system linking voters to specific envelopes. USPS would use the data to create state-specific "Mail-In and Absentee Participation Lists" through a new Federal Ballot Mail Portal.

The proposal would also let the USPS return outbound federal ballot mailings that do not meet the new standards or are not tied to state-submitted voter lists. States would still control who is eligible to vote by mail.

The rule follows President Donald Trump's March 31 executive order on elections that directed USPS to begin a rulemaking on mail-in and absentee ballot services. A federal judge on Thursday declined to immediately block the mail-voting provisions of the order, finding the challenge premature because agencies had not yet carried it out.

The proposed rule is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on June 2. Public comments are due 30 days after publication.