HB633: HB633 Elections; add caregivers to list of persons who may make absentee ballot applications for certain electors

Under current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 21-2-381), only certain relatives, such as a spouse, parent, sibling, or in-law, can submit an absentee ballot application on behalf of a voter who is physically disabled or temporarily living outside their county or municipality. This bill adds caregivers age 18 or older to that list of people who can make the application, as long as they can show proof of the relationship. The change is made through a single revision to subparagraph (a)(1)(B) of the absentee ballot application law. The bill does not otherwise change who is eligible to vote absentee or how ballots are counted; it only expands who may file the application paperwork for a qualifying elector.

• Adds caregivers age 18 or older to the list of people who may submit an absentee ballot application for a physically disabled voter or one temporarily living outside their county or municipality.
• Requires anyone applying on a voter's behalf, including a caregiver, to provide satisfactory proof of their relationship to the voter.
• Leaves the existing list of qualifying family members (parents, spouses, siblings, in-laws, and others) unchanged, adding caregiver as a new category alongside them.
• Repeals any existing state laws that conflict with this change.

Physically disabled voters and voters temporarily living away from their home county, along with the caregivers who assist them, would be directly affected. County election officials and ballot clerks who review absentee applications and proof-of-relationship documentation would also be affected.

Some disabled or temporarily absent voters rely on someone else to handle absentee ballot paperwork, but current law limits that help to specific relatives. Allowing caregivers to apply on a voter's behalf could make it easier for people without eligible family nearby to get an absentee ballot.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 21-2-381(a)(1)(B), which governs who may submit an absentee ballot application for a physically disabled or temporarily absent voter.
• The revised text adds caregiver of the age of 18 or over to the existing list of qualifying relatives who may make the application.
• Applicants, including caregivers, must still provide satisfactory proof of relationship to the elector before the application can be accepted.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting state laws, a standard closing provision with no substantive effect beyond the amendment itself.

1. 2025-02-28House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-02-27House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-02-26House Hopper (House)

• Debra Bazemore (D, HD-069)Primary sponsor
• Phil Olaleye (D, HD-059)
• Shea Roberts (D, HD-052)
• Mary Oliver (D, HD-084)

• absentee voting
• election rules
• disability rights
• caregivers