Why It Matters
The U.S. Postal Service issued a final rule on August 26 requiring states to submit voter participation lists to a USPS-managed portal, giving the federal government new visibility over mail-in ballot distribution for federal elections.
The rule stems from Executive Order 14399, issued by President Trump on March 31, which converted previously voluntary election mail guidelines into mandatory requirements. A new Congressional Research Service (CRS) report titled "USPS Ballot Mail Rule: Overview and Potential Impact" takes a closer look at the rule's requirements and legal challenges.
The Big Picture
Under the new rule, states must submit voter participation lists to a USPS-managed portal at least 30 days before Election Day, including names, mailing addresses, and unique Intelligent Mail barcodes for each ballot. Before the United States Postal Service (USPS) accepts an outbound ballot mailing, it will verify design compliance and whether recipients are on the state's participation list. Ballots addressed to individuals not on the participation list will not be accepted for delivery.
The rule establishes a new Federal Ballot Mail Portal through which state election officials and their authorized agents submit voter data and certify ballot design compliance. To access the ballot portal, each user must have a registered account completed no later than two business days prior to an outbound federal ballot mailing. According to USPS, mailpiece design analyst review typically takes about two business days. USPS acknowledges in the rule that all states retain full control over who within their jurisdictions is eligible to vote by mail in federal elections.
Two federal injunctions initially blocked implementation of the rule. The Supreme Court stayed one injunction on August 24, and the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts vacated the second on August 26. USPS has stated it will not implement the rule for the November 3 federal election unless and until it obtains relief from any remaining legal challenges. The optional 90-day notification window for the November 3 federal election has already passed, limiting states' ability to request early technical assistance from USPS.
The Bottom Line
Individual voters have no mechanism to appeal their exclusion from a state's participation list or to contest the return of their ballot for design noncompliance. Only authorized ballot mailers, typically election officials, can request USPS review of a refused mailing. The rule does not apply to primary elections, purely state and local elections, or military and overseas ballots covered by the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, although indirect resource impacts on those categories are possible.
Compliance is expected to raise operational costs for both USPS and state and local election officials, yet the agency has not specified the cost for developing new Service Type IDs either internally or for ballot mailers.
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