HF1351 Summary

• Amends Minnesota election law to modify absentee ballot application requirements, including requiring applicant's Minnesota driver's license or state identification number and last four digits of Social Security number on applications.

• Establishes "ongoing absentee voter" status allowing eligible voters to automatically receive absentee ballots for multiple elections; status ends by voter request, death, eligibility change, or registration inactivation.

• Creates mandatory ballot boards consisting of election judges or trained staff to examine and accept or reject absentee ballot return envelopes; ballots can only be rejected for specific documented reasons and rejected ballots must receive replacement ballots if rejected five days before election.

• Requires county auditors and municipal clerks to have technical capacity to access statewide voter registration system's absentee ballot module and receive secretary of state-approved training before administering absentee voting.

• Most provisions are conditional effective dates pending secretary of state certification that the statewide voter registration system has been tested and properly configured for absentee voting record updates and expected volume.