Committee advances bills changing early-ballot rules and verification; counties and voting-rights groups urge fixes

The committee considered two related measures that would change how Arizona handles early ballots and verification for active early-voting lists: HB 2673 (a statute) and its mirror HCR 2013 (a constitutional resolution-style approach with an early-voter ID provision). Committee members moved and adopted extensive amendments after several hours of technical testimony and stakeholder comment, then voted both measures out of committee.

Key provisions explained by staff and sponsors include: (1) deadlines for returning early ballots beginning in 2027 — requiring most early ballots to be returned by 7 p.m. on the Friday before the election if delivered to drop-off locations, or by 7 p.m. on election day if hand-delivered to the county recorder; (2) new address-confirmation requirements for voters on the active early voting list (ABLE), with county and voter options for confirmation; and (3) restrictions on use of foreign-sourced money or in-kind goods for election administration. The HCR version differs from the HB primarily by retaining a new early-voter ID number as a verification method; the HB version removed the ID-number requirement and relies on signature verification and existing procedures. Committee amendments clarified ballot-printing deadlines, removed some emergency early voting options, and allowed county on-site tabulation during the weekend before election day in some circumstances.

County recorders and the Arizona Association of Counties (represented by Jen Morrison) said they were neutral on HB 2673 after the amendment but remained opposed to HCR 2013 because of the early-voter ID provisions. Their concerns focused on implementation timing, personnel and system costs, potential conflicts with ABLE purge procedures coming online in 2027, and ambiguous language about when address confirmation is required ("each election cycle" versus "prior to each ballot printing deadline"). The Secretary of State’s representative emphasized the lack of system funding in the proposals and warned of operational hardship for rural counties if weekend office access is required for ballot drop-off.

Voting-rights and voter-access groups (testimony from All Voting Is Local, Policy First/Bridal Arizona Action, Arizona Students Association and other organizations) opposed the measures in whole or in part. They said mandatory address confirmation each election cycle and the requirement that early ballots be dropped off by the Friday before the election at a recorder office would disproportionately burden rural voters, Native communities with nonstandard addresses, students and working voters; they also warned the bills would increase processing delays and risk removing voters from the active early voting list. Witnesses from rural and tribal areas described long travel distances to recorder offices and slow postal processes that already make timely ballot return difficult.

Sponsors and some county recorders said the bills try to shorten count timelines, reduce ballot errors and address instances of ballots arriving at incorrect addresses. The sponsor emphasized extensive ad hoc committee work, stakeholder hearings and edits intended to resolve many county concerns; county representatives said remaining issues could be solved with additional drafting and coordination.

Committee action: The committee adopted the sponsor’s amendment to HB 2673 and then voted to return HB 2673 as amended with a due-pass recommendation. The announced roll-call tally for HB 2673 as amended was 4 ayes, 3 nays. After separate amendment and debate, members also returned HCR 2013 as amended with a due-pass recommendation; committee- announced result for the HCR was 4 ayes, 3 nays.

Ending: Sponsors said they will continue to work with county elections officials and voting-rights groups ahead of floor consideration to clarify timing, funding and address-verification mechanics; county officials urged more time to finish implementation planning before changes take effect in 2027.