At the Feb. 14 hearing, committee staff presented Substitute Senate Bill 5,017, which would adopt the Uniform Military and Overseas Voters Act (UMOVA) to incorporate federal protections for service and overseas voters into state law and expand some definitions and administrative processes.

Desiree Omley, Office of Program Research staff, summarized key changes: UMOVA adopts federal UOCAVA protections for service and overseas voters and extends them in limited ways for state and local elections; the bill expands the definition of overseas voters to include certain persons who would have been eligible to vote in Washington but for residency requirements, and it requires county auditors to collect email addresses from service and overseas registrants to transmit ballot and process information.

The bill also requires the Secretary of State to explore options for an electronic ballot-return portal for service and overseas voters; such a portal must be tested for security, ensure voter secrecy and privacy, prevent multiple votes by a single voter, keep records of return attempts and be authorized by statute before deployment. The secretary must file annual status reports on development, with the last report due Dec. 1, 2028.

The committee heard multiple public-testimony positions. Alyssa Barba, policy staff for the Secretary of State’s office, testified in strong support, noting the bill adopts national standards and would improve access for covered voters. Pierce County Auditor Linda Farmer (representing the Washington State Association of County Auditors) supported the bill, citing Pierce County’s roughly 18,000 military/overseas voters and noting UOCAVA turnout lagged statewide in 2024. Several security and voting-integrity organizations testified in opposition to the electronic-return portal provision: CJ Coles of Verified Voting said, "It is not safe. It is insecure," and urged removal of the portal language; Susan Greenhall of Free Speech for People warned that a centralized portal would be an attractive target for malicious actors. The Secretary of State’s Director of Elections, Stuart Holmes, told the committee that online voting return for ballots remains unsafe and that Washington’s paper-based system and post-election audits are critical to election security.

Other public testimony raised constitutional concerns about expanding the overseas-voter definition to include people who were never U.S. residents. Laura Lee Gates testified in opposition on that ground and noted that several states that adopted UMOVA carved that cohort out of the model act.

The committee received the testimony and indicated it would continue deliberations. Staff noted a fiscal note was pending for the substitute bill.