(a) The county board of elections upon receipt and approval of an application filed by any elector qualified in accordance with the provisions of section 1301,¹ subsections (a) to (h), inclusive, shall not later than fifty days prior to the day of the primary or not later than seventy days prior to the day of the election commence to deliver or mail to such elector who has included with said application a statement that he or she is unable to vote during the regular absentee balloting period by reason of living or performing military service in an extremely remote or isolated area of the world, and not later than forty-five days prior to the day of the primary or election commence to deliver or mail to all other such electors as provided for in section 1301, subsections (a) to (h), inclusive, official absentee ballots or special write-in absentee ballots as prescribed by subsection (d) of section 1303² when official absentee ballots are not yet printed; as additional applications of such electors are received, the board shall deliver or mail official absentee ballots or special write-in absentee ballots when official absentee ballots are not yet printed to such additional electors within forty-eight hours after approval of their application. If the calling of a special election would make it impossible to comply with the forty-five day delivery or mailing requirement of this section, then the county board of elections shall mail absentee ballots or special write-in absentee ballots within five days of the county board's receipt of the information necessary to prepare said ballots.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a qualified absentee elector shall not be required to provide proof of identification if the elector is entitled to vote by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (Public Law 99-410, 100 Stat. 924)⁵ or by an alternative ballot under the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act (Public Law 98-435, 98 Stat. 1678).⁶