USPS Confirm One Interface to Voter Focus

The interface gives elections offices the ability to print an Intelligent Mail® bar code on envelopes, appropriately sized mailing labels, and other forms set up as documents in PRINTING > Document Maintenance. Mail pieces with this information can then be monitored as they move through the postal system by mail tracking vendors such as Pitney Bowes TrackMyMail™ or by USPS directly.

The Intelligent Mail barcode can be applied to any notice sent to voters, including address confirmation requests and voter information cards. It can also be applied to mail ballot envelopes, enabling elections staff to respond more knowledgeably to voter inquiries as to the whereabouts of their ballot.

Note: The USPS does not offer tracking of mail outside the United States, so mail sent to overseas voters, including military, cannot be tracked. Intelligent Mail bar codes are not printed for the Deliver Ballot runs to non-domestic voters.

Due to size restrictions, the Intelligent Mail bar code is not printed on mail ballot labels produced by the Deliver Ballot run. It is printed only on mail ballot envelopes.

If Voter Focus application is used to print directly to the mailing piece, the Intelligent Mail barcode can be printed along with the voter’s name and address. Should the county prefer to outsource printing of mail pieces to a commercial printer, the Intelligent Mail barcode can still be used:  the Voter Focus export file will include the Intelligent Mail barcode for each mail piece in the export.

Counties contemplating implementation of the USPS Confirm One Interface must work closely with the USPS to design each type of mail piece for proper scanning of the Intelligent Mail barcode. USPS review and approval of the mail-piece design should be obtained before initiating any print runs.

For each run where mail pieces or an export file is generated, Voter Focus outputs a tracking file (in text format) for delivery to a mail-tracking service. From the tracking file, the vendor can populate its database and thus provide tracking services to the elections office.

The tracking file is suitable for use by any mail tracking vendor, however we recommend that the county qualify their vendor’s ability to use the tracking file before generating a mailout where tracking is intended.

VR Systems reserves the right to make changes to the format of the tracking file. When changes are necessary, we will provide sufficient notice to counties to allow time for the vendor to adjust to the changes and the county to re-qualify its use.