The online versions of legislation provided on this website are not official. Enrolled bills are the final version passed by the Ohio General Assembly and presented to the Governor for signature. The official version of acts signed by the Governor are available from the Secretary of State's Office in the Continental Plaza, 180 East Broad St., Columbus.
|
Am. S. B. No. 10 As Reported by the House Policy and Legislative Oversight CommitteeAs Reported by the House Policy and Legislative Oversight Committee
130th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2013-2014 |
| |
Cosponsors:
Senators Obhof, Faber, Widener, Patton, Hite, Lehner, Oelslager, Eklund, LaRose, Burke, Jones, Bacon, Beagle, Manning, Gardner, Brown, Cafaro, Hughes, Peterson, Sawyer, Schaffer, Schiavoni, Tavares, Turner, Uecker
Representatives Dovilla, Gerberry, Adams, J., Cera, Curtin, Fedor
A BILL
To amend sections 3501.29, 3501.35, 3505.181,
3505.23, 3505.24, and 3509.01 of the Revised Code
to revise the law regarding polling places and
voting machines.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 3501.29, 3501.35, 3505.181,
3505.23, 3505.24, and 3509.01 of the Revised Code be amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 3501.29. (A) The board of elections shall provide for
each precinct a polling place and provide adequate facilities at
each polling place for conducting the election. The board shall
provide a sufficient number of screened or curtained voting
compartments to which electors may retire and conveniently mark
their ballots, protected from the observation of others. Each
voting compartment shall be provided at all times with writing
implements, instructions how to vote, and other necessary
conveniences for marking the ballot. The presiding judge shall
ensure that the voting compartments at all times are adequately
lighted and contain the necessary supplies. The board shall
utilize, in so far as practicable, rooms in public schools and
other public buildings for polling places. Upon application of the
board of elections, the authority which has the control of any
building or grounds supported by taxation under the laws of this
state, shall make available the necessary space therein for the
purpose of holding elections and adequate space for the storage of
voting machines, without charge for the use thereof. A reasonable
sum may be paid for necessary janitorial service. When polling
places are established in private buildings, the board may pay a
reasonable rental therefor, and also the cost of liability
insurance covering the premises when used for election purposes,
or the board may purchase a single liability policy covering the
board and the owners of the premises when used for election
purposes. When removable buildings are supplied by the board, they
shall be constructed under the contract let to the lowest and best
bidder, and the board shall observe all ordinances and regulations
then in force as to safety. The board shall remove all such
buildings from streets and other public places within thirty days
after an election, unless another election is to be held within
ninety days.
(B)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the
board shall ensure all of the following:
(a) That polling places are free of barriers that would
impede ingress and egress of handicapped persons;
(b) That the minimum number of special parking locations,
also known as handicapped parking spaces or disability parking
spaces, for handicapped persons are designated at each polling
place in accordance with 28 C.F.R. Part 36, Appendix A, and in
compliance with division (E) of section 4511.69 of the Revised
Code.;
(c) That the entrances of polling places are level or are
provided with a nonskid ramp of not over eight per cent gradient
that meets the requirements of the "Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990," 104 Stat. 327, 42 U.S.C. 12101;
(d) That doors are a minimum of thirty-two inches wide.
(2) Notwithstanding division (B)(1)(a), (c), or (d) of this
section, certain polling places may be specifically exempted by
the secretary of state upon certification by a board of elections
that a good faith, but unsuccessful, effort has been made to
modify, or change the location of, such polling places.
(C) At any polling place that is exempted from compliance by
the secretary of state, the board of elections shall permit any
handicapped elector who travels to that elector's polling place,
but who is unable to enter the polling place, to vote, with the
assistance of two polling place officials of major political
parties, in the vehicle that conveyed that elector to the polling
place, or to receive and cast that elector's ballot at the door of
the polling place.
(D) The secretary of state shall:
(1) Work with other state agencies to facilitate the
distribution of information and technical assistance to boards of
elections to meet the requirements of division (B) of this
section;
(2) Work with organizations that represent or provide
services to handicapped, disabled, or elderly citizens to effect a
wide dissemination of information about the availability of
absentee voting, voting in the voter's vehicle or at the door of
the polling place, or other election services to handicapped,
disabled, or elderly citizens.
(E) Before the day of an election, the director of the board
of elections of each county shall sign a statement verifying that
each polling place that will be used in that county at that
election meets the requirements of division (B)(1)(b) of this
section. The signed statement shall be sent to the secretary of
state by certified mail.
(F) As used in this section, "handicapped" means having lost
the use of one or both legs, one or both arms, or any combination
thereof, or being blind or so severely disabled as to be unable to
move about without the aid of crutches or a wheelchair.
Sec. 3501.35. (A) During an election and the counting of the
ballots, no person shall do any of the following:
(1) Loiter, congregate, or engage in any kind of election
campaigning within the area between the polling place and the
small flags of the United States placed on the thoroughfares and
walkways leading to the polling place, and if the line of electors
waiting to vote extends beyond those small flags, within ten feet
of any elector in that line;
(2) In any manner hinder or delay an elector in reaching or
leaving the place fixed for casting the elector's ballot;
(3) Give, tender, or exhibit any ballot or ticket to any
person other than the elector's own ballot to the judge of
election within the area between the polling place and the small
flags of the United States placed on the thoroughfares and
walkways leading to the polling place, and if the line of electors
waiting to vote extends beyond those small flags, within ten feet
of any elector in that line;
(4) Exhibit any ticket or ballot which the elector intends to
cast;
(5) Solicit or in any manner attempt to influence any elector
in casting the elector's vote.
(B)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(2) of
this section and division (C) of section 3503.23 of the Revised
Code, no person who is not an election official, employee,
observer, or police officer shall be allowed to enter the polling
place during the election, except for the purpose of voting or
assisting another person to vote as provided in section 3505.24 of
the Revised Code.
(2) Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the
contrary, a journalist shall be allowed reasonable access to a
polling place during an election. As used in this division,
"journalist" has the same meaning as in division (B)(2) of section
2923.129 of the Revised Code.
(C) No more electors shall be allowed to approach the voting
shelves at any time than there are voting shelves provided.
(D) The judges of election and the police officer shall
strictly enforce the observance of this section.
Sec. 3505.181. (A) All of the following individuals shall be
permitted to cast a provisional ballot at an election:
(1) An individual who declares that the individual is a
registered voter in the jurisdiction in which the individual
desires to vote and that the individual is eligible to vote in an
election, but the name of the individual does not appear on the
official list of eligible voters for the polling place or an
election official asserts that the individual is not eligible to
vote;
(2) An individual who has a social security number and
provides to the election officials the last four digits of the
individual's social security number as permitted by division
(A)(2) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code;
(3) An individual who has but is unable to provide to the
election officials any of the forms of identification required
under division (A)(1) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code and
who has a social security number but is unable to provide the last
four digits of the individual's social security number as
permitted under division (A)(2) of that section;
(4) An individual who does not have any of the forms of
identification required under division (A)(1) of section 3505.18
of the Revised Code, who cannot provide the last four digits of
the individual's social security number under division (A)(2) of
that section because the individual does not have a social
security number, and who has executed an affirmation as permitted
under division (A)(4) of that section;
(5) An individual whose name in the poll list or signature
pollbook has been marked under section 3509.09 or 3511.13 of the
Revised Code as having requested an absent voter's ballot or an
armed service absent voter's ballot for that election and who
appears to vote at the polling place;
(6) An individual whose notification of registration has been
returned undelivered to the board of elections and whose name in
the official registration list and in the poll list or signature
pollbook has been marked under division (C)(2) of section 3503.19
of the Revised Code;
(7) An individual who is challenged under section 3505.20 of
the Revised Code and the election officials determine that the
person is ineligible to vote or are unable to determine the
person's eligibility to vote;
(8) An individual whose application or challenge hearing has
been postponed until after the day of the election under division
(D)(1) of section 3503.24 of the Revised Code;
(9) An individual who changes the individual's name and
remains within the precinct, moves from one precinct to another
within a county, moves from one precinct to another and changes
the individual's name, or moves from one county to another within
the state, and completes and signs the required forms and
statements under division (B) or (C) of section 3503.16 of the
Revised Code;
(10) An individual whose signature, in the opinion of the
precinct officers under section 3505.22 of the Revised Code, is
not that of the person who signed that name in the registration
forms;
(11) An individual who is challenged under section 3513.20 of
the Revised Code who refuses to make the statement required under
that section or who a majority of the precinct officials find
lacks any of the qualifications to make the individual a qualified
elector;
(12) An individual who does not have any of the forms of
identification required under division (A)(1) of section 3505.18
of the Revised Code, who cannot provide the last four digits of
the individual's social security number under division (A)(2) of
that section because the person does not have a social security
number, and who declines to execute an affirmation as permitted
under division (A)(4) of that section;
(13) An individual who has but declines to provide to the
precinct election officials any of the forms of identification
required under division (A)(1) of section 3501.18 of the Revised
Code or who has a social security number but declines to provide
to the precinct election officials the last four digits of the
individual's social security number.
(B) An individual who is eligible to cast a provisional
ballot under division (A) of this section shall be permitted to
cast a provisional ballot as follows:
(1) An election official at the polling place shall notify
the individual that the individual may cast a provisional ballot
in that election.
(2) The individual shall be permitted to cast a provisional
ballot at that polling place upon the execution of a written
affirmation by the individual before an election official at the
polling place stating that the individual is both of the
following:
(a) A registered voter in the jurisdiction in which the
individual desires to vote;
(b) Eligible to vote in that election.
(3) An election official at the polling place shall transmit
the ballot cast by the individual, the voter information contained
in the written affirmation executed by the individual under
division (B)(2) of this section, or the individual's name if the
individual declines to execute such an affirmation to an
appropriate local election official for verification under
division (B)(4) of this section.
(4) If the appropriate local election official to whom the
ballot or voter or address information is transmitted under
division (B)(3) of this section determines that the individual is
eligible to vote, the individual's provisional ballot shall be
counted as a vote in that election.
(5)(a) At the time that an individual casts a provisional
ballot, the appropriate local election official shall give the
individual written information that states that any individual who
casts a provisional ballot will be able to ascertain under the
system established under division (B)(5)(b) of this section
whether the vote was counted, and, if the vote was not counted,
the reason that the vote was not counted.
(b) The appropriate state or local election official shall
establish a free access system, in the form of a toll-free
telephone number, that any individual who casts a provisional
ballot may access to discover whether the vote of that individual
was counted, and, if the vote was not counted, the reason that the
vote was not counted. The free access system established under
this division also shall provide to an individual whose
provisional ballot was not counted information explaining how that
individual may contact the board of elections to register to vote
or to resolve problems with the individual's voter registration.
The appropriate state or local election official shall
establish and maintain reasonable procedures necessary to protect
the security, confidentiality, and integrity of personal
information collected, stored, or otherwise used by the free
access system established under this division. Access to
information about an individual ballot shall be restricted to the
individual who cast the ballot.
(6) If, at the time that an individual casts a provisional
ballot, the individual provides identification in the form of a
current and valid photo identification, a military identification,
or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government
check, paycheck, or other government document, other than a notice
of an election mailed by a board of elections under section
3501.19 of the Revised Code or a notice of voter registration
mailed by a board of elections under section 3503.19 of the
Revised Code, that shows the individual's name and current
address, or provides the last four digits of the individual's
social security number, or executes an affirmation that the
elector does not have any of those forms of identification or the
last four digits of the individual's social security number
because the individual does not have a social security number, or
declines to execute such an affirmation, the appropriate local
election official shall record the type of identification
provided, the social security number information, the fact that
the affirmation was executed, or the fact that the individual
declined to execute such an affirmation and include that
information with the transmission of the ballot or voter or
address information under division (B)(3) of this section. If the
individual declines to execute such an affirmation, the
appropriate local election official shall record the individual's
name and include that information with the transmission of the
ballot under division (B)(3) of this section.
(7) If an individual casts a provisional ballot pursuant to
division (A)(3), (7), (8), (12), or (13) of this section, the
election official shall indicate, on the provisional ballot
verification statement required under section 3505.182 of the
Revised Code, that the individual is required to provide
additional information to the board of elections or that an
application or challenge hearing has been postponed with respect
to the individual, such that additional information is required
for the board of elections to determine the eligibility of the
individual who cast the provisional ballot.
(8) During the ten days after the day of an election, an
individual who casts a provisional ballot pursuant to division
(A)(3), (7), (12), or (13) of this section shall appear at the
office of the board of elections and provide to the board any
additional information necessary to determine the eligibility of
the individual who cast the provisional ballot.
(a) For a provisional ballot cast pursuant to division
(A)(3), (12), or (13) of this section to be eligible to be
counted, the individual who cast that ballot, within ten days
after the day of the election, shall do any of the following:
(i) Provide to the board of elections proof of the
individual's identity in the form of a current and valid photo
identification, a military identification, or a copy of a current
utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other
government document, other than a notice of an election mailed by
a board of elections under section 3501.19 of the Revised Code or
a notice of voter registration mailed by a board of elections
under section 3503.19 of the Revised Code, that shows the
individual's name and current address;
(ii) Provide to the board of elections the last four digits
of the individual's social security number;
(iii) In the case of a provisional ballot executed pursuant
to division (A)(12) of this section, execute an affirmation as
permitted under division (A)(4) of section 3505.18 of the Revised
Code.
(b) For a provisional ballot cast pursuant to division (A)(7)
of this section to be eligible to be counted, the individual who
cast that ballot, within ten days after the day of that election,
shall provide to the board of elections any identification or
other documentation required to be provided by the applicable
challenge questions asked of that individual under section 3505.20
of the Revised Code.
(C)(1) If an individual declares that the individual is
eligible to vote in a jurisdiction other than the jurisdiction in
which the individual desires to vote, or if, upon review of the
precinct voting location guide using the residential street
address provided by the individual, an election official at the
polling place at which the individual desires to vote determines
that the individual is not eligible to vote in that jurisdiction,
the election official shall direct the individual to the polling
place for the jurisdiction in which the individual appears to be
eligible to vote, explain that the individual may cast a
provisional ballot at the current location but the ballot will not
be counted if it is cast in the wrong precinct, and provide the
telephone number of the board of elections in case the individual
has additional questions.
(2) If the individual refuses to travel to the polling place
for the correct jurisdiction or to the office of the board of
elections to cast a ballot, the individual shall be permitted to
vote a provisional ballot at that jurisdiction in accordance with
division (B) of this section. If any of the following apply, the
provisional ballot cast by that individual shall not be opened or
counted:
(a) The individual is not properly registered in that
jurisdiction.
(b) The individual is not eligible to vote in that election
in that jurisdiction.
(c) The individual's eligibility to vote in that jurisdiction
in that election cannot be established upon examination of the
records on file with the board of elections.
(D) The appropriate local election official shall cause
voting information to be publicly posted at each polling place on
the day of each election.
(E) As used in this section and sections 3505.182 and
3505.183 of the Revised Code:
(1) "Jurisdiction" means the precinct in which a person is a
legally qualified elector.
(2) "Precinct voting location guide" means either of the
following:
(a) An electronic or paper record that lists the correct
jurisdiction and polling place for either each specific
residential street address in the county or the range of
residential street addresses located in each neighborhood block in
the county;
(b) Any other method that a board of elections creates that
allows a precinct election official or any elector who is at a
polling place in that county to determine the correct jurisdiction
and polling place of any qualified elector who resides in the
county.
(3) "Voting information" means all of the following:
(a) A sample version of the ballot that will be used for that
election;
(b) Information regarding the date of the election and the
hours during which polling places will be open;
(c) Instructions on how to vote, including how to cast a vote
and how to cast a provisional ballot;
(d) Instructions for mail-in registrants and first-time
voters under applicable federal and state laws;
(e) General information on voting rights under applicable
federal and state laws, including information on the right of an
individual to cast a provisional ballot and instructions on how to
contact the appropriate officials if these rights are alleged to
have been violated;
(f) General information on federal and state laws regarding
prohibitions against acts of fraud and misrepresentation.
(F) Nothing in this section or section 3505.183 of the
Revised Code is in derogation of section 3505.24 of the Revised
Code, which permits a blind, disabled, or illiterate elector to
receive assistance in the marking of the elector's ballot by two
precinct election officials of different political parties. A
blind, disabled, or illiterate elector may receive assistance in
marking that elector's provisional ballot and in completing the
required affirmation in the same manner as an elector may receive
assistance on the day of an election under that section.
Sec. 3505.23. No Except as otherwise provided in this
section, no voter shall be allowed to occupy a voting compartment
or use a voting machine more than five ten minutes when all the
voting compartments or machines are in use and voters are waiting
to occupy them. Except The ten-minute time limit shall not apply
to any person who requires the use of a disabled-accessible voting
machine as required under the "Help America Vote Act of 2002," 116
Stat. 1704, 42 U.S.C. 15481.
Except as otherwise provided by section 3505.24 of the
Revised Code, no voter shall occupy a voting compartment or
machine with another person or speak to anyone, nor shall anyone
speak to the voter, while the voter is in a voting compartment or
machine.
In precincts that do not use voting machines the following
procedure shall be followed:
If a voter tears, soils, defaces, or erroneously marks a
ballot the voter may return it to the precinct election officials
and a second ballot shall be issued to the voter. Before returning
a torn, soiled, defaced, or erroneously marked ballot, the voter
shall fold it so as to conceal any marks the voter made upon it,
but the voter shall not remove Stub A therefrom. If the voter
tears, soils, defaces, or erroneously marks such second ballot,
the voter may return it to the precinct election officials, and a
third ballot shall be issued to the voter. In no case shall more
than three ballots be issued to a voter. Upon receiving a returned
torn, soiled, defaced, or erroneously marked ballot the precinct
election officials shall detach Stub A therefrom, write "Defaced"
on the back of such ballot, and place the stub and the ballot in
the separate containers provided therefor.
No elector shall leave the polling place until the elector
returns to the precinct election officials every ballot issued to
the elector with Stub A on each ballot attached thereto,
regardless of whether the elector has or has not placed any marks
upon the ballot.
Before leaving the voting compartment, the voter shall fold
each ballot marked by the voter so that no part of the face of the
ballot is visible, and so that the printing thereon indicating the
kind of ballot it is and the facsimile signatures of the members
of the board of elections are visible. The voter shall then leave
the voting compartment, deliver the voter's ballots, and state the
voter's name to the judge having charge of the ballot boxes, who
shall announce the name, detach Stub A from each ballot, and
announce the number on the stubs. The judges in charge of the poll
lists or poll books shall check to ascertain whether the number so
announced is the number on Stub B of the ballots issued to such
voter, and if no discrepancy appears to exist, the judge in charge
of the ballot boxes shall, in the presence of the voter, deposit
each such ballot in the proper ballot box and shall place Stub A
from each ballot in the container provided therefor. The voter
shall then immediately leave the polling place.
No ballot delivered by a voter to the judge in charge of the
ballot boxes with Stub A detached therefrom, and only ballots
provided in accordance with Title XXXV of the Revised Code, shall
be voted or deposited in the ballot boxes.
In marking a presidential ballot, the voter shall record the
vote in the manner provided on the ballot next to the names of the
candidates for the offices of president and vice-president. Such
ballot shall be considered and counted as a vote for each of the
candidates for election as presidential elector whose names were
certified to the secretary of state by the political party of such
nominees for president and vice-president.
In marking an office type ballot or nonpartisan ballot, the
voter shall record the vote in the manner provided on the ballot
next to the name of each candidate for whom the voter desires to
vote.
In marking a primary election ballot, the voter shall record
the vote in the manner provided on the ballot next to the name of
each candidate for whom the voter desires to vote. If the voter
desires to vote for the nomination of a person whose name is not
printed on the primary election ballot, the voter may do so by
writing such person's name on the ballot in the proper place
provided for such purpose.
In marking a questions and issues ballot, the voter shall
record the vote in the manner provided on the ballot at the left
or at the right of "YES" or "NO" or other words of similar import
which are printed on the ballot to enable the voter to indicate
how the voter votes in connection with each question or issue upon
which the voter desires to vote.
In marking any ballot on which a blank space has been
provided wherein an elector may write in the name of a person for
whom the elector desires to vote, the elector shall write such
person's name in such blank space and on no other place on the
ballot. Unless specific provision is made by statute, no blank
space shall be provided on a ballot for write-in votes, and any
names written on a ballot other than in a blank space provided
therefor shall not be counted or recorded.
Sec. 3505.24. Any Notwithstanding any provision of the
Revised Code to the contrary, any elector who declares to the
presiding judge of elections that the elector is unable to mark
the elector's ballot by reason of blindness, disability, or
illiteracy may be accompanied in the voting booth and aided by any
person of the elector's choice, other than the elector's employer,
an agent of the elector's employer, or an officer or agent of the
elector's union, if any. The elector also may request and receive
assistance in the marking of the elector's ballot from two
election officials of different political parties. Any person
providing assistance in the marking of an elector's ballot under
this section shall thereafter provide no information in regard to
the marking of that ballot.
Any judge may require a declaration of inability to be made
by the elector under oath before the judge. Assistance shall not
be rendered for causes other than those specified in this section,
and no candidate whose name appears on the ballot shall assist any
person in marking that person's ballot.
Sec. 3509.01. (A) The board of elections of each county shall
provide absent voter's ballots for use at every primary and
general election, or special election to be held on the day
specified by division (E) of section 3501.01 of the Revised Code
for the holding of a primary election, designated by the general
assembly for the purpose of submitting constitutional amendments
proposed by the general assembly to the voters of the state. Those
ballots shall be the same size, shall be printed on the same kind
of paper, and shall be in the same form as has been approved for
use at the election for which those ballots are to be voted;
except that, in counties using marking devices, ballot cards may
be used for absent voter's ballots, and those absent voters shall
be instructed to record the vote in the manner provided on the
ballot cards. In counties where punch card ballots are used, those
absent voters shall be instructed to examine their marked ballot
cards and to remove any chads that remain partially attached to
them before returning them to election officials.
(B) The rotation of names of candidates and questions and
issues shall be substantially complied with on absent voter's
ballots, within the limitation of time allotted. Those ballots
shall be designated as "Absent Voter's Ballots." Except as
otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, those ballots
shall be printed and ready for use as follows:
(1) For overseas voters and absent uniformed services voters
eligible to vote under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens
Absentee Voting Act, Pub. L. No. 99-410, 100 Stat. 924, 42 U.S.C.
1973ff, et seq., as amended, ballots shall be printed and ready
for use on the forty-fifth day before the day of the election.
(2) For all other voters who are applying to vote absent
voter's ballots, ballots shall be printed and ready for use on the
thirty-fifth day before the day of the election.
(3) If, at the time for the close of in-person absent voting
on a particular day, there are voters waiting in line to cast
their ballots, the in-person absent voting location shall be kept
open until such waiting voters have cast their absent voter's
ballots.
(C) Absent voter's ballots provided for use at a general or
primary election, or special election to be held on the day
specified by division (E) of section 3501.01 of the Revised Code
for the holding of a primary election, designated by the general
assembly for the purpose of submitting constitutional amendments
proposed by the general assembly to the voters of the state, shall
include only those questions, issues, and candidacies that have
been lawfully ordered submitted to the electors voting at that
election.
(D) If the laws governing the holding of a special election
on a day other than the day on which a primary or general election
is held make it impossible for absent voter's ballots to be
printed and ready for use by the deadlines established in division
(B) of this section, absent voter's ballots for those special
elections shall be ready for use as many days before the day of
the election as reasonably possible under the laws governing the
holding of that special election.
(E) A copy of the absent voter's ballots shall be forwarded
by the director of the board in each county to the secretary of
state at least twenty-five days before the election.
(F) As used in this section, "chad" and "punch card ballot"
have the same meanings as in section 3506.16 of the Revised Code.
Section 2. That existing sections 3501.29, 3501.35,
3505.181, 3505.23, 3505.24, and 3509.01 of the Revised Code are
hereby repealed.
|