HB140 Alabama 2017 Session

Updated Feb 24, 2026

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Mike Ball
Republican
Session: Regular Session 2017
Title: Elections, notification of absentee voter of defective and uncounted ballot, Sec. 17-11-10 am'd.
Summary: HB140 requires absentee election managers to mail voters a notice explaining why their absentee ballot was not counted.
What This Bill Does
The bill amends the absentee ballot law to require notification by mail after every election if an absentee ballot is not counted. If a ballot is rejected because the voter's affidavit signature or mark wasn’t properly witnessed or for any other legal reason, election officials must send a written notice of the cause to the voter within 10 days, and keep a copy of that notice in the local probate office for at least one year.

Who It Affects
Absentee voters who have ballots that are not counted, who will receive a mailed explanation of the reason for the rejection.
Absentee election managers and local probate offices, who must send the notices by mail, record the rejection reasons, and retain copies for at least one year.

Key Provisions
Requires the absentee election manager to notify voters by mail after each election of the reason why their absentee ballot was not counted.
If an affidavit signature/mark is not properly witnessed or the ballot is rejected for any legal reason, requires sending the unopened affidavit envelope and a written notice stating the rejection cause to the voter by first-class mail within 10 days after the election; requires a copy of the notice to be kept by the local judge of probate for at least one year.
Allows the Secretary of State to issue rules necessary to implement the new subsection.
Effective date: the first day of the third month after the bill becomes law.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
Subjects: Absentee Ballots