Colorado § 1-8.3-115 - Use of covered voter's electronic-mail address.

§ 1-8.3-115. Use of covered voter's electronic-mail address.

(1) The local election official shall request an electronic-mail address from each covered voter who registers to vote after May 13, 2011. An electronic-mail address provided by a covered voter shall not be made available to the public or any individual or organization other than an authorized agent of the local election official and is exempt from disclosure under article 72 of title 24, C.R.S. The address may be used only for official communication with the voter about the voting process, including transmitting ballots and election materials if the voter has requested electronic transmission, and verifying the voter's mailing address and physical location. The request for an electronic-mail address shall describe the purposes for which the electronic-mail address may be used and include a statement that any other use or disclosure of the electronic-mail address is prohibited.

(2) Unless a covered voter applies to be a permanent mail voter pursuant to section 1-13.5-1003, the covered voter who provides an electronic-mail address may request that the voter's application for a military-overseas ballot be considered a standing request for electronic delivery of a ballot for all elections held through December 31 of the year following the calendar year of the date of the application or another shorter period the voter specifies. An election official shall provide a military-overseas ballot to a voter who makes a standing request for each election to which the request is applicable. A covered voter who is entitled to receive a ballot for a primary election under this subsection (2) is entitled to receive a ballot for the general election.

Source: L. 2011: Entire article added, (HB 11-1219), ch. 176, p. 670, § 1, effective May 13. L. 2014: (2) amended, (HB 14-1164), ch. 2, p. 73, § 41, effective February 18.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 14-1164, see section 1 of chapter 2, Session Laws of Colorado 2014.

OFFICIAL COMMENT

Subsection (1) facilitates the collection of voter e-mail addresses, but depends on assuring voters that their e-mail addresses will not become available for the use of political campaigns and marketers. The subsection allows those jurisdictions that use third-party vendors to print, mail, or otherwise distribute ballots to disclose the e-mail addresses to these vendors, acting as their agents, only for purposes of authorized communications about the voting process. Such jurisdictions should ensure that their vendor contracts properly preclude the vendors from using the addresses other than as authorized by this act. Subsection (2) then ties a voter's ability to make a standing request for a military-absentee ballot to the voter's provision of an e-mail address. This approach is intended to reduce the large quantity of election material that was returned as undeliverable when sent out in hardcopy to an outdated physical address under the now repealed UOCAVA provision that had permitted voters to make a standing request for absentee ballots for two federal election cycles.