USPS proposal could halt ballot deliveries to states that don't share voter lists
Source: KGW-TV Portland, OR
Published: 7:01 PM PDT June 10, 2026
Updated: 7:02 PM PDT June 10, 2026
PORTLAND, Ore. — Oregon leaders are pushing back against a proposed U.S. Postal Service rule that would require states to share voter registration lists and ballot-tracking barcode information with the agency in order to ensure mail ballot delivery. The Postal Service says the proposal is intended to comply with an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in March, ostensibly aimed at strengthening election integrity and oversight of mail voting.
But Oregon officials argue election administration should remain under state control. "It's incredibly bizarre to take a postal service — that their job is to deliver mail — and then tell them, 'You can't deliver mail to certain people,'" Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said. Rayfield was responding to a proposal that would allow the U.S. Postal Service to consider withholding ballot delivery in states that refuse to provide voter registration information to the agency.
The proposal has raised concerns among some Oregon voters. "They want more excuses to be able to silence the concerns voters have," one man in downtown Portland said."My concern is what they do with it," a woman added. Another said, "The strategy of the Trump government is to get it to the Supreme Court, which they have stacked.". Gov. Tina Kotek also criticized the proposal, saying voting rights must be protected.
"Every voter in Oregon and across the country has the right to a free, fair and equal say in our democracy, and we must stand together to keep that promise," Kotek said in a statement provided to KGW on Wednesday. The Postal Service maintains it is following the president's executive order. Trump has said the effort is intended to protect "voter integrity.". Rayfield and attorneys general from 22 other states have filed a lawsuit seeking to block the order.
Read more: https://www.kgw.com/article/news/politics/elections/usps-proposal-could-block-ballots/283-2c3dd2fd-ef29-4873-9642-8fcaea1dd022
Link to proposed RULE (Federal Register) (PDF) - https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2026-10968.pdf
NOTABLE ILLEGAL SECTION
Pre-Election Notification of Intent to Use Postal System for Ballot Delivery
• DMM 705.24.2 would provide for an optional pre-mailing notice that states
may provide to the Postal Service, and facilitate the process for states to
enroll individuals with the Postal Service for inclusion on state-specific lists
for mail-in and absentee ballot participation.
This provision would allow states to notify the Postal Service of their intent to use
the mail to facilitate their election processes. By disclosing relevant points of
contact, it will allow the Postal Service to more expeditiously provide technical
and other assistance in advance of the election. It will also facilitate the adoption
of the new elements of ballot mailing that are proposed in this regulation.
Mail-In and Absentee Participation List
• DMM 705.24.4 would establish a process by which (1) states (including
authorized election officials and their mail service providers) will notify the
Postal Service of the individuals to whom they are mailing a mail-in or
absentee ballot, along with the unique barcode applied to the outbound
and return ballot mail envelope for such individuals such that the name
and barcode of the voter will be included on a Mail-In and Absentee
Participation List; (2) states (including authorized election officials and
their mail service providers) may thereafter add to or modify the list of
enrollees until the last day that ballots may be mailed out to individuals
under state law; and (3) the Postal Service will provide to each state’s
chief election official a final State-Specific Mail-In and Absentee
Participation List for each state compiling the names of all enrolled
individuals in such state, along with the barcodes associated with such
individuals’ mail-in or absentee ballots.
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