Vote By Mail Stamp Act

Vote By Mail Stamp Act

This bill directs the U.S. Postal Service to issue a Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp and transfer the proceeds from the sale of the stamp to the Election Assistance Commission for providing grants to states to support voting by mail in federal elections.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8104 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8104

To provide for the issuance of the Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            August 25, 2020

  Ms. Haaland (for herself, Ms. Norton, Mrs. Hayes, and Mr. Carson of 
   Indiana) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committee on 
Oversight and Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for the issuance of the Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Vote By Mail Stamp Act''.

SEC. 2. VOTING BY MAIL SEMIPOSTAL STAMP.

    (a) In General.--In order to afford a convenient way for members of 
the public to contribute to funding voting accessibility, the United 
States Postal Service shall issue a semipostal (in this Act referred to 
as the ``Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp'') in accordance with this 
section.
    (b) Terms and Conditions.--
            (1) In general.--The issuance and sale of the Voting By 
        Mail Semipostal Stamp shall be governed by the provisions of 
        section 416 of title 39, United States Code, and regulations 
        issued under such section, subject to the requirements of this 
        subsection.
            (2) Duration.--The Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp shall be 
        made available to the public for a period of 10 years, 
        beginning no later than 3 months after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act.
            (3) Cost.--The Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp shall be 
        offered at a cost equal to the cost of mailing a letter 
        weighing 1 ounce or less at the nonautomation single-piece 
        first-ounce letter rate, in effect at the time of purchase, 
        plus a differential of not less than 25 percent.
            (4) Disposition of proceeds.--All amounts becoming 
        available from the sale of the Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp 
        (as determined under section 416(d) of such title) shall be 
        transferred to the Election Assistance Commission for the 
        purpose of grants under subsection (c).
            (5) Proceeds not to be offset.--In accordance with section 
        416(d)(4) of such title, amounts becoming available from the 
        sale of the Voting By Mail Semipostal Stamp shall not be taken 
        into account in any decision relating to the level of 
        appropriations or other Federal funding to be furnished in any 
        year to the Election Assistance Commission or any State.
    (c) Grants to States To Support Voting by Mail.--
            (1) Grants.--The Election Assistance Commission shall carry 
        out a program to make grants to eligible States for supporting 
        voting by mail, including voting by absentee ballot, in 
        elections for Federal office.
            (2) Eligibility.--A State is eligible to receive a grant 
        under the program under this subsection if the State submits to 
        the Commission, at such time and in such form as the Commission 
        may require, an application containing--
                    (A) a description of how the State will use the 
                grant to support voting by mail in the State; and
                    (B) such other information and assurances as the 
                Commission may require.
            (3) Amount.--The Commission shall determine the amount of a 
        grant made to an eligible State under the program under this 
        subsection, taking into account the information provided by the 
        State in its application for the grant and the amount of funds 
        available for grants under the program.
            (4) Report.--Not later than 6 months after the end of each 
        fiscal year during which an eligible State received a grant 
        under the program under this subsection, the State shall submit 
        a report to the Commission describing the activities the State 
        carried out with the grant.
            (5) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
        to be appropriated for each of the fiscal years 2021 through 
        2030 such sums as may be necessary to carry out this 
        subsection, to be derived from amounts transferred to the 
        Commission under subsection (b)(4).
    (d) Definitions.--In this Act--
            (1) the term ``semipostal'' refers to a postage stamp 
        described in section 416(a)(1) of title 39, United States Code; 
        and
            (2) the term ``State'' means the 50 States, the District of 
        Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the 
        Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin 
        Islands.
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