HB-6030, As Passed House, May 27, 2010

SUBSTITUTE FOR

HOUSE BILL NO. 6030

A bill to amend 1954 PA 116, entitled

"Michigan election law,"

by amending sections 569a, 671, and 792a (MCL 168.569a, 168.671,

and 168.792a), section 569a as added by 1985 PA 24, section 671 as

amended by 1995 PA 261, and section 792a as amended by 2005 PA 71.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

Sec. 569a. (1) In all primary elections, if there are more

names under the heading of an office than there are candidates to

be nominated and the same office appears in more than 1 precinct,

the names shall be rotated in the following manner: In printing

each set of ballots for the several election precincts, the

relative positions of the different names printed in each division

shall be changed as many times as there are candidates in that

division and as reasonably as possible a candidate's name shall not

appear at the top of the ballot more times than any other

candidate's name in that division. The names shall first be

arranged alphabetically according to surnames on each ballot used

in the precinct. In the next precinct the names shall appear in the

same order on each ballot, except that the name appearing first

under each office in the preceding precinct shall be last. The

names shall be changed in that manner in every precinct of the

city, village, township, or county.

(2) ~~Where~~ Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, an

absent voter counting ~~boards are used, each ballot form which~~

~~contains identical offices and names shall be considered~~ board is

not a separate precinct for the purposes of this ~~section~~ act. If a

municipality has 250 or more precincts and absent voter counting

boards are used, each ballot form which contains identical offices

and names may be considered a separate precinct for the purposes of

this section.

(3) Notwithstanding provisions of law or charter to the

contrary, this section ~~shall apply~~ applies to nonpartisan general

elections and to municipal elections.

Sec. 671. At the time of delivering the official ballots and

other election supplies to the township and city clerks or, for

city, village, or township elections, to the wards or precincts, a

sufficient number of blank forms for use by the election inspectors

in making the statement of returns of the election as required by

law shall be delivered. At the same time, a sufficient number of

seals for the use of the election inspectors in sealing the ballot

boxes after the close of the election shall be delivered. A record

of the number of seals delivered to each voting precinct, ~~and~~

absent voter counting board, and absent voter counting board

precinct shall be recorded and preserved.

Sec. 792a. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this

subsection, the absent voter ballots in a city, township, or

village that uses voting machines shall be counted by absent voter

counting boards. The board of election commissioners of a city,

township, or village that has 2 precincts or less or of a city that

has 500,000 or more in population may decide that the absent voter

ballots shall be counted in the manner provided in section 791. In

a city, township, or village that does not use voting machines, the

absent voter ballots may be counted by absent voter counting boards

or in the same manner as is otherwise provided for precincts in

which voting is not done on voting machines. Except as otherwise

provided in this subsection, an absent voter counting board is not

a separate precinct, and the results of ballots tabulated in an

absent voter counting board shall be combined with the results from

the appropriate precinct. If a municipality has 250 or more

precincts and absent voter counting boards are used, an absent

voter counting board may be considered a separate precinct for

purposes of this act.

(2) The board of election commissioners shall establish the

absent voter counting boards. The board of election commissioners

shall determine the number of absent voter counting boards to be

established and shall appoint the election inspectors to those

absent voter counting boards 10 days or more before the election at

which they are to be used. Sections 673a and 674 apply to the

appointment of election inspectors to absent voter counting boards

under this section. The board of election commissioners shall

determine the number of ballots that may be expeditiously counted

by an absent voter counting board in a reasonable period of time,

taking into consideration the size and complexity of the ballot to

be counted pursuant to the guidelines of the secretary of state.

Combined ballots shall be regarded as the number of ballots as

there are sections to the ballot.

(3) If more than 1 absent voter counting board is to be used,

the city, township, or village clerk shall determine the number of

voting machines or the number of ballot boxes and the number of

election inspectors to be used in each of the absent voter counting

boards and to which absent voter counting board the absent voter

ballots for each precinct shall be assigned for counting. The clerk

shall make the determination under this subsection 2 days or more

before the election and shall not assign an absent voter counting

board more ballots than the maximum number authorized by the board

of election commissioners under subsection (2). The clerk is not

required to use all of the absent voter counting boards authorized

by the board of election commissioners under subsection (2).

(4) In a city, township, or village that uses absent voter

counting boards under this section, absent voter ballots shall be

counted in the manner provided in this section and absent voter

ballots shall not be delivered to the polling places. The board of

election commissioners shall provide a place for each absent voter

counting board to count the absent voter ballots. Section 662

applies to the designation and prescribing of the absent voter

counting place or places in which the absent voter counting board

performs its duties under this section. The places shall be

designated as absent voter counting places. Except as otherwise

provided in this section, laws relating to paper ballot precincts,

including laws relating to the appointment of election inspectors,

apply to absent voter counting places. If a counting place uses

voting machines, the provisions of this section relating to placing

of absent voter ballots on voting machines apply. More than 1

absent voter counting board may be located in 1 building.

(5) The clerk of a city, township, or village that uses absent

voter counting boards shall supply each absent voter counting board

with supplies necessary to carry out their duties under this act.

The supplies shall be furnished to the city, township, or village

clerk in the same manner and by the same persons or agencies as for

other precincts.

(6) Absent voter ballots received by the clerk before election

day shall be delivered to the absent voter counting board by the

clerk at the time the election inspectors of the absent voter

counting boards report for duty, which time shall be established by

the board of election commissioners. Absent voter ballots received

by the clerk on election day shall be delivered to the absent voter

counting boards before the time set for the closing of the polls.

Absent voter ballots shall be delivered to the absent voter

counting boards in the sealed absent voter ballot return envelopes

in which they were returned to the clerk. Written or stamped on

each of the return envelopes shall be the time and the date that

the envelope was received by the clerk and a statement by the clerk

that the signatures of the absent voters on the envelopes have been

checked and found to agree with the signatures of the voters on the

registration cards or the digitized signatures of voters contained

in the qualified voter file as provided under section 766. If a

signature on the registration card or a digitized signature

contained in the qualified voter file and on the absent voter

ballot return envelope does not agree as provided under section

766, if the absent voter failed to sign the envelope, or if the

statement of the absent voter is not properly executed, the clerk

shall mark the envelope "rejected" and the reason for the rejection

and shall place his or her name under the notation. An envelope

marked "rejected" shall not be delivered to the absent voter

counting board but shall be preserved by the clerk until other

ballots are destroyed in the manner provided in this act. The clerk

shall also comply with section 765(5).

(7) At the time of issuing or mailing absent voter ballots to

qualified applicants, the clerk of a city, township, or village

that uses absent voter counting boards shall mark the letters

"A.V." and the date of election on the registration card of the

applicant in the precinct registration file.

(8) This chapter does not prohibit an absent voter from voting

in person within the voter's precinct at an election,

notwithstanding that the voter may have applied for an absent voter

ballot and the ballot may have been mailed or otherwise delivered

to the voter. The voter, the election inspectors, and other

election officials shall proceed in the manner prescribed in

section 769. The clerk shall preserve the canceled ballots for 2

years.

(9) The absent voter counting boards shall process the ballots

and returns in as nearly as possible the same manner as ballots are

processed in paper ballot precincts. The poll book may be combined

with the absent voter list or record required by section 760, and

the applications for absent voter ballots may be used as the poll

list. The processing and tallying of absent voter ballots may

commence at 7 a.m. on the day of the election.

(10) An election inspector, challenger, or any other person in

attendance at an absent voter counting place at any time after the

processing of ballots has begun shall take and sign the following

oath that may be administered by the chairperson or a member of the

absent voter counting board:

"I (name of person taking oath) do solemnly swear (or affirm)

that I shall not communicate in any way any information relative to

the processing or tallying of votes that may come to me while in

this counting place until after the polls are closed.".

(11) The oaths administered under subsection (10) shall be

placed in an envelope provided for the purpose and sealed with the

red state seal. Following the election the oaths shall be delivered

to the city, township, or village clerk. Except as otherwise

provided in subsection (16), a person in attendance at the absent

voter counting place shall not leave the counting place after the

tallying has begun until the polls close. A person who causes the

polls to be closed or who discloses an election result or in any

manner characterizes how any ballot being counted has been voted in

a voting precinct before the time the polls can be legally closed

on election day is guilty of a felony.

(12) At the time the board of election commissioners provide

for the use of absent voter counting boards, the board of election

commissioners may provide that the absent voter counting boards

shall record the votes contained on absent voter ballots on voting

machines. In that case, the recording of ballots shall be done by

the chairperson of the absent voter counting board or another

member designated by the chairperson. The act of casting the votes

shall be performed in the presence of and under the careful

observation and full view of all members of the absent voter

counting board, party challengers, and any other persons lawfully

present at the absent voter counting place. The vote as indicated

by the voting pointers shall not be recorded until each member of

the absent voter counting board is satisfied that the arrangement

of the voting pointers fully carries out the intent of the absent

voter as shown by the cross marks or check marks on the absent

voter ballot. A certificate that the requirements of this

subsection were met shall be made on the election inspectors'

statement of returns.

(13) As soon as absent voter ballots have been cast on a

voting machine pursuant to subsection (12), but not before 8 p.m.,

the election inspectors shall seal the operating lever of the

machine against voting and shall then proceed to determine and

record the votes cast in the manner provided in this act.

(14) Voted absent voter ballots shall be placed in a ballot

box and the ballot bag and ballot box shall be sealed in the manner

provided by this act for paper ballot precincts. The seal numbers

shall be recorded on the statement sheet and in the poll book.

(15) In a city, township, or village where challenged voters

are required to vote on absent voter ballots, each challenged voter

ballot and application for ballot, after having been voted and

properly identified, shall be placed by the voter in an absent

voter ballot return envelope. The applicable information required

on the back of the envelope shall be completed by the board of

election inspectors. The envelope shall be signed by the challenged

voter and by the chairperson of the precinct board of election

inspectors. The word "challenged" shall be written across the front

of the envelope. The envelope and application for ballot shall be

sealed and delivered to the absent voter counting place by the

clerk of the city, township, or village. Immediately after the

closing of the polls, the chairperson of the precinct board of

election inspectors shall notify the clerk of the city, township,

or village of remaining challenged voter ballots to be delivered to

the absent voter counting place. In a city, township, or village

that uses voting machines where absent voter counting boards are

not used, challenged ballots shall be counted and tallied in the

precincts, in the same manner that absent voter ballots are tallied

and counted as provided in section 791.

(16) Subject to this subsection, a local election official who

has established an absent voter counting board, the deputy or

employee of that local election official, or an employee of the

state bureau of elections may enter and leave an absent voter

counting board after the tally has begun but before the polls

close. A person described in this subsection may enter an absent

voter counting board only for the purpose of responding to an

inquiry from an election inspector or a challenger or to provide

instructions on the operation of the counting board. Before

entering an absent voter counting board, a person described in this

subsection shall take and sign the oath prescribed in subsection

(10). The chairperson of the absent voter counting board shall

record in the poll book the name of a person described in this

subsection who enters the absent voter counting board. A person

described in this subsection who enters an absent voter counting

board and who discloses an election result or in any manner

characterizes how any ballot being counted has been voted in a

precinct before the time the polls can be legally closed on

election day is guilty of a felony. As used in this subsection,

"local election official" means a county, city, township, or

village clerk. ~~, the secretary of a school board, or an employee of~~

~~a school district designated to conduct a school election.~~

(17) The secretary of state shall develop instructions

consistent with this act for the conduct of absent voter counting

boards. The secretary of state shall distribute the instructions

developed under this subsection to city and township clerks 40 days

or more before a general election in which absent voter counting

boards will be used. A city or township clerk shall make the

instructions developed under this subsection available to the

public and shall distribute the instructions to each challenger in

attendance at an absent voter counting board. The instructions

developed under this subsection are binding upon the operation of

an absent voter counting board used in an election conducted by a