Florida Senate - 2026                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 1334
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì221160gÎ221160                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
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       The Committee on Ethics and Elections (Garcia) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment to Amendment (747052) (with title
    2  amendment)
    3  
    4         Between lines 226 and 227
    5  insert:
    6         Section 6. Subsection (4) of section 98.015, Florida
    7  Statutes, is amended to read:
    8         98.015 Supervisor of elections; election, tenure of office,
    9  compensation, custody of registration-related documents, office
   10  hours, successor, seal; appointment of deputy supervisors;
   11  duties.—
   12         (4)(a) At a minimum, the office of the supervisor must be
   13  open Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays, for a
   14  period of not less than 8 hours per day, beginning no later than
   15  9 a.m.
   16         (b)The office of the supervisor may close to observe legal
   17  holidays and other federal, state, or county-approved holidays,
   18  if the office is not otherwise required to be open to fulfill
   19  official duties under the Florida Election Code.
   20         Section 7. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
   21  made by this act to section 98.015, Florida Statutes, in a
   22  reference thereto, paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section
   23  101.69, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
   24         101.69 Voting in person; return of vote-by-mail ballot.—
   25         (2)(a) The supervisor shall allow an elector who has
   26  received a vote-by-mail ballot to physically return a voted
   27  vote-by-mail ballot to the supervisor by placing the return mail
   28  envelope containing his or her marked ballot in a secure ballot
   29  intake station. Secure ballot intake stations shall be placed at
   30  the main office of the supervisor, at each permanent branch
   31  office of the supervisor which meets the criteria set forth in
   32  s. 101.657(1)(a) for branch offices used for early voting and
   33  which is open for at least the minimum number of hours
   34  prescribed by s. 98.015(4), and at each early voting site.
   35  Secure ballot intake stations may also be placed at any other
   36  site that would otherwise qualify as an early voting site under
   37  s. 101.657(1). Secure ballot intake stations must be
   38  geographically located so as to provide all voters in the county
   39  with an equal opportunity to cast a ballot, insofar as is
   40  practicable. Except for secure ballot intake stations at an
   41  office of the supervisor, a secure ballot intake station may
   42  only be used during the county’s early voting hours of operation
   43  and must be monitored in person by an employee of the
   44  supervisor’s office. A secure ballot intake station at an office
   45  of the supervisor must be continuously monitored in person by an
   46  employee of the supervisor’s office when the secure ballot
   47  intake station is accessible for deposit of ballots.
   48  
   49  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   50  And the title is amended as follows:
   51         Between lines 969 and 970
   52  insert:
   53         98.015, F.S.; authorizing the office of the supervisor
   54         of elections to close to observe certain holidays
   55         under a specified condition; reenacting s.
   56         101.69(2)(a), F.S., relating to the offices of the
   57         supervisor of elections being open during elections to
   58         receive vote-by-mail ballots in secure ballot intake
   59         stations, to incorporate the amendment made to s.
   60         98.015, F.S., in a reference thereto; amending s.