H. B. No. 377 As Introduced

Representative Garrison

Cosponsors: Representatives Okey, Murray, Harris, Domenick, Williams, B., Phillips, Pryor, Goyal, Luckie, Newcomb, Pillich, Slesnick, Dyer, Book, Fende, Yuko, Brown, Chandler, Yates, Winburn, Bolon

325

Rural Route or

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other Post-

327

Signature

County

Township

office Address

Month

Day

Year

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329

334

City

Street

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and

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Signature

County

Village

Number

Ward

Precinct

Month

Day

Year"

337

338

(Signed)		359
(Address of circulator's permanent residence in this state)		360
	361

Section 1. That sections 2961.01, 3501.38, 3519.05, and	18
3519.21 be amended and sections 3519.011, 3519.012, and 3519.013	19
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:	20

Sec. 2961.01. (A)(1) A person who pleads guilty to a felony	21
under the laws of this or any other state or the United States	22
and whose plea is accepted by the court or a person against whom	23
a verdict or finding of guilt for committing a felony under any	24
law of that type is returned, unless the plea, verdict, or	25
finding is reversed or annulled, is incompetent to be an elector	26
or juror or to hold an office of honor, trust, or profit.	27

(2) When any person who under division (A)(1) of this	28
section is incompetent to be an elector or juror or to hold an	29
office of honor, trust, or profit is granted parole, judicial	30
release, or a conditional pardon or is released under a non-jail	31
community control sanction or a post-release control sanction,	32
the person is competent to be an elector during the period of	33
community control, parole, post-release control, or release or	34
until the conditions of the pardon have been performed or have	35
transpired and is competent to be an elector thereafter following	36
final discharge. The full pardon of a person who under division	37
(A)(1) of this section is incompetent to be an elector or juror	38
or to hold an office of honor, trust, or profit restores the	39
rights and privileges so forfeited under division (A)(1) of	40
this section, but a pardon shall not release the person from	41
the costs of a conviction in this state, unless so specified.	42

(B)(1) A person who pleads guilty to a felony under laws of	43
this state or any other state or the United States and whose	44
plea is accepted by the court or a person against whom a verdict	45
or finding of guilt for committing a felony under any law of	46
that type is returned is incompetent to circulate or serve as a	47
witness for the signing of any declaration of candidacy and	48
petition, voter registration application, or nominating,	49
initiative, referendum, or recall petition.	50

(2) A person who pleads guilty to an offense involving	51
identity theft, fraud, or forgery under the laws of this state or	52
any other state or the United States and whose plea is accepted	53
by the court, or a person against whom a verdict or finding of	54
guilt for committing an offense involving identity theft, fraud,	55
or forgery under any laws of this state or any other state or	56
the United States is returned, is incompetent to circulate or	57
serve as a witness for the signing of any declaration of	58
candidacy and petition or nominating, initiative, referendum, or	59
recall petition.	60

(1) "Community control sanction" has the same meaning as in	62
section 2929.01 of the Revised Code.	63

(2) "Non-jail community control sanction" means a community	64
control sanction that is neither a term in a community-based	65
correctional facility nor a term in a jail.	66

(3) "Post-release control" and "post-release control	67
sanction" have the same meanings as in section 2967.01 of the	68
Revised Code.	69

Sec. 3501.38. All declarations of candidacy, nominating	70
petitions, or other petitions presented to or filed with the	71
secretary of state or a board of elections or with any other	72
public office for the purpose of becoming a candidate for any	73
nomination or office or for the holding of an election on any	74
issue shall, in addition to meeting the other specific	75
requirements prescribed in the sections of the Revised Code	76
relating to them, be governed by the following rules:	77

(A) Only electors qualified to vote on the candidacy or issue	78
which is the subject of the petition shall sign a petition. Each	79
signer shall be a registered elector pursuant to section 3503.11	80
of the Revised Code. The facts of qualification shall be	81
determined as of the date when the petition is filed.	82

(B) Signatures shall be affixed in ink. Each signer may also	83
print the signer's name, so as to clearly identify the signer's	84
signature.	85

(C) Each signer shall place on the petition after the	86
signer's name the date of signing and the location of the signer's	87
voting residence, including the street and number if in a	88
municipal corporation or the rural route number, post office	89
address, or township if outside a municipal corporation. The	90
voting address given on the petition shall be the address	91
appearing in the registration records at the board of elections.	92

(D) Except as otherwise provided in section 3501.382 of the	93
Revised Code, no person shall write any name other than the	94
person's own on any petition. Except as otherwise provided in	95
section 3501.382 of the Revised Code, no person may authorize	96
another to sign for the person. If a petition contains the	97
signature of an elector two or more times, only the first	98
signature shall be counted.	99

(E)(1) On each petition paper, the circulator shall indicate	100
the number of signatures contained on it, and shall sign a	101
notarized statement made under penalty of election falsification	102
that the circulator witnessed the affixing of every signature,	103
that all signers were to the best of the circulator's knowledge	104
and belief qualified to sign, and that every signature is to the	105
best of the circulator's knowledge and belief the signature of the	106
person whose signature it purports to be or of an attorney in fact	107
acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code. On the	108
circulator's statement for a declaration of candidacy or	109
nominating petition for a person seeking to become a statewide	110
candidate or for a statewide initiative or a statewide referendum	111
petition, the circulator shall identify the circulator's name, the	112
address of the circulator's permanent residence, and the name and	113
address of the person employing the circulator to circulate the	114
petition, if any. On a petition for a statewide initiative, the	115
circulator also shall affirm that the circulator has read and	116
understands the laws pertaining to petition circulation.	117

(2) As used in division (E) of this section, "statewide	118
candidate" means the joint candidates for the offices of governor	119
and lieutenant governor or a candidate for the office of secretary	120
of state, auditor of state, treasurer of state, or attorney	121
general.	122

(G) The circulator of a petition may, before filing it in a	130
public office, strike from it any signature the circulator does	131
not wish to present as a part of the petition.	132

(F) Except as otherwise provided in section 3501.382 of the	123
Revised Code, if a circulator knowingly permits an unqualified	124
person to sign a petition paper or permits a person to write a	125
name other than the person's own on a petition paper, that	126
petition paper is invalid; otherwise, the signature of a person	127
not qualified to sign shall be rejected but shall not invalidate	128
the other valid signatures on the paper.	129

(H) Any signer of a petition or an attorney in fact acting	133
pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code on behalf of a	134
signer may remove the signer's signature from that petition at any	135
time before the petition is filed in a public office by striking	136
the signer's name from the petition; no signature may be removed	137
after the petition is filed in any public office.	138

(I)(1) No alterations, corrections, or additions may be made	139
to a petition after it is filed in a public office.	140

(2)(a) No declaration of candidacy, nominating petition, or	141
other petition for the purpose of becoming a candidate may be	142
withdrawn after it is filed in a public office. Nothing in this	143
division prohibits a person from withdrawing as a candidate as	144
otherwise provided by law.	145

(b) No petition presented to or filed with the secretary of	146
state, a board of elections, or any other public office for the	147
purpose of the holding of an election on any question or issue may	148
be resubmitted after it is withdrawn from a public office. Nothing	149
in this division prevents a question or issue petition from being	150
withdrawn by the filing of a written notice of the withdrawal by a	151
majority of the members of the petitioning committee with the same	152
public office with which the petition was filed prior to the	153
sixtieth day before the election at which the question or issue is	154
scheduled to appear on the ballot.	155

(J) All declarations of candidacy, nominating petitions, or	156
other petitions under this section shall be accompanied by the	157
following statement in boldface capital letters: WHOEVER COMMITS	158
ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY OF THE FIFTH DEGREE.	159

(K) All separate petition papers shall be filed at the same	160
time, as one instrument.	161

(L) If a board of elections distributes for use a petition	162
form for a declaration of candidacy, nominating petition, or any	163
type of question or issue petition that does not satisfy the	164
requirements of law as of the date of that distribution, the board	165
shall not invalidate the petition on the basis that the petition	166
form does not satisfy the requirements of law, if the petition	167
otherwise is valid. Division (L) of this section applies only if	168
the candidate received the petition from the board within ninety	169
days of when the petition is required to be filed.	170

Sec. 3519.011. The secretary of state shall develop training	171
programs for paid and volunteer circulators of initiative	172
petitions. The training programs shall be conducted in the	173
broadest, most cost-effective manner available to the secretary of	174
state, and by electronic and remote access. The petitioners or the	175
representatives of a petition entity, as defined in section	176
3519.012 of the Revised Code, shall inform paid and volunteer	177
circulators of the availability of these training programs. A	178
circulator who participates in a training program developed under	179
this section shall be deemed to have complied with the requirement	180
set forth in the circulator's statement that the circulator has	181
read and understands the laws pertaining to petition circulation.	182

Sec. 3519.012. (A) As used in this section, "petition	183
entity" means any person or committee that provides compensation	184
to a circulator to circulate an initiative petition.	185

(B)(1)(a) No petition entity shall provide compensation to a	186
circulator to circulate an initiative petition unless the petition	187
entity first obtains a license from the secretary of state. The	188
secretary of state, by rule, shall establish a process for a	189
petition entity to apply for a license under division (B) of this	190
section.	191

(b) The secretary of state may deny a petition entity a	192
license if the secretary of state finds that the petition entity	193
or any of the petition entity's principals have been found, in a	194
judicial or administrative proceeding, to have violated the	195
petition laws of this state or any other state and that the	196
violation involves authorizing or knowingly permitting any of the	197
acts set forth in division (B)(3) of this section.	198

The secretary of state shall deny a petition entity a license	199
if no current representative of the petition entity has completed	200
the training program established by the secretary of state under	201
section 3519.011 of the Revised Code.	202

(2) The secretary of state may at any time request a petition	203
entity to provide documentation that demonstrates that the	204
petition entity meets the requirements of section 3519.011 of the	205
Revised Code.	206

(3) The secretary of state shall revoke a petition entity's	207
license if, at any time after receiving a license, a petition	208
entity is determined to no longer be in compliance with the	209
requirements of division (B) of this section or if the petition	210
entity authorized or knowingly permitted any of the following	211
regarding a statewide initiative petition:	212

(b) Circulation of a petition or part petition by anyone	214
other than the circulator who signs the circulator's statement	215
attached to that petition or part petition;	216

(c) Use of a false circulator name or address in the	217
circulator's statement;	218

(d) Payment of money or any thing of value to a person for	219
the purpose of inducing the person to sign or withdraw the	220
person's name from a petition;	221

(e) Circulation of a petition or part petition by anyone who	222
is not registered as a petition circulator as required under	223
section 3519.013 of the Revised Code; or	224

(f) Notarization of a petition or part petition outside of	225
the presence of the circulator or without the production of the	226
required identification for notarization.	227