(A) Except as otherwise provided in division (C) of this section, on each of the following dates, the board of elections shall send a notice by nonforwardable mail to each elector who is registered to vote in a precinct in which an election will be conducted:
(1) The sixtieth day before the day of any special election that may be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in August, 2006;
(2) The sixtieth day before the day of the 2006 general election;
(3) The sixtieth day before the day of the 2008 primary election;
(4) The sixtieth day before the day of the 2008 general election.
(B) The notice required under division (A) of this section shall include each of the following:
(1) The day of the election;
(2) The location of the polling place for the precinct in which the elector is registered to vote;
(3) A reminder, which shall be indicated in bold type, stating as follows:
“Voters must bring identification to the polls in order to verify identity. Identification may include a current and valid photo identification, a military identification that shows the voter’s name and current address, or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document, other than this reminder or a voter registration notification, that shows the voter’s name and current address. Voters who do not provide one of these documents will still be able to vote by providing the last four digits of the voter’s social security number and by casting a provisional ballot. Voters who do not have any of the above forms of identification, including a social security number, will still be able to vote by signing an affirmation swearing to the voter’s identity under penalty of election falsification and by casting a provisional ballot.”
(C) If the notice sent under division (A) of this section is returned undelivered to the board, the board shall cause the elector’s name in the official registration list and in the poll list or signature pollbook for that elector’s precinct to be marked to indicate that the notice was returned to the board.
At the first election at which an elector whose name has been so marked appears to vote, the elector shall be required to provide identification to the election officials.
If the elector provides to the election officials a current and valid photo identification, a military identification that shows the voter’s name and current address, or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document, other than a notice of an election mailed by a board of elections under section 3501.19 of the Revised Code or a notice of an election mailed by a board of elections under division (A) of this section or a notice of voter registration notification mailed by a board of elections under section 3503.19 of the Revised Code, the voter shall be permitted to cast a ballot in accordance with division (B) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code. The board shall correct that elector’s registration, if needed, and shall remove the indication that the elector’s notice was returned from that elector’s name on the official registration list and on the poll list or signature pollbook.
If the elector provides to the election officials a photo identification that does not contain the elector’s current address, if the elector provides the last four digits of the elector’s social security number, if the elector is unable to provide any of the required forms of identification, if the elector refuses to provide any of the required forms of identification, or if the elector executes an affirmation under division (A)(4) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code, the elector shall be permitted to vote by provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. If the provisional ballot is counted pursuant to division (B)(3) of section 3505.183 of the Revised Code, the board shall correct that elector’s registration, if needed, and shall remove the indication that the elector’s notice was returned from that elector’s name on the official registration list and on the poll list or signature pollbook.
(D) No board of elections shall be required to mail a notice under division (A) of this section to any elector who registered to vote within thirty days prior to the date for mailing the notice under that division.
(E) A notice mailed to an elector under division (A) of this section shall not be considered a government document that contains the voter’s name and current address for the purpose of providing identification under sections 3503.14, 3503.16, 3503.19, 3503.28, 3505.18, 3505.181, 3505.182, 3505.183, 3509.03, 3509.031, 3509.04, 3509.05, 3511.02, and 3511.09 of the Revised Code.
Effective Date: 01-01-1954; 05-02-2006
Section 10 of HB 3 provides that this section is repealed effective January 1, 2009.