Matt Arco | January 14, 2020 | NJ Advance Media |
New Jersey lawmakers approved a fix to a controversial bill Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law two years ago meant to encourage people to vote by mail. The bill was later thrown out by a little-known but powerful state board.
The measure automatically sent certain voters mail-in ballots. However, the New Jersey Council on Local Mandates invalidated the law last year after it ruled it amounted to an unfunded mandate on the state’s 21 counties.
The state Senate and Assembly approved a measure (A6063) Monday that reimbursed local election officials for costs incurred during the last election and requires an annual appropriation for the proposal in the future.
“This session we passed meaningful reforms to enhance our state’s vote-by-mail program, including continuing to send mail-in ballots to those who had requested them in the past,” state Sen. Jim Beach, D-Camden, said in a statement.
Read the full article here