SB 861 - This act modifies certain provisions relating to elections. The act requires all electronic voting systems to produce election results from paper ballots that voters have marked by hand. Furthermore, the paper ballot is designated as the official ballot. The use of touchscreen, direct-recording, electronic vote-counting machines shall be phased out upon mechanical failure and, beginning January 1, 2023, such machines shall not be used except by voters who are disabled as long as the machines are functional. Replacement of equipment for use by voters who are disabled shall be with paper ballot marking devices designed to assist voters.
This provision is substantially similar to provisions in SB 378 (2021), HS/HCS/HB 738 (2021), SB 113 (2019), HB 543 (2019), SCS/HB 2208 (2018), SB 1067 (2018), SB 399 (2015), and SCS/SB 623 (2014) and similar to provisions in SB 633 (2022), SCS/SB 654 (2022), SB 670 (2022), SB 679 (2022), SB 695 (2022), SB 738 (2022), HCS/SS/SB 812 (2022), SB 1065 (2022), HB 1483 (2022), HB 1595 (2022), HB 1646 (2022), HB 1859 (2022), the truly agreed to and finally passed SS/SCS/HB 1878 (2022), HB 1911 (2022), HB 1976 (2022), HB 2113 (2022), the perfected HCS/HB 2140 (2022), HB 2531 (2022), HB 2577 (2022), HB 2630 (2022), SCS/SB 375 (2013), SB 542 (2012), SB 418 (2011), and HB 1490 (2010).
The act also modifies provisions relating to voter identification requirements. Under current law, any person seeking to vote in a public election must provide a certain form of identification, provided that any person lacking such identification can vote without such a form of identification through the execution of a statement under the penalty of perjury averring, among other things, that the person is who they say they are. This act repeals the provision allowing persons to vote through execution of the statement under penalty of perjury. The act additionally creates new provisions governing the use of provisional ballots in the case of persons who do not possess the proper form of identification in order to vote.
The act repeals a provision requiring the Secretary of State to provide advance notice of the identification requirements for voting in elections as well as a provision requiring all costs associated with the implementation of the voter identification law to be reimbursed from the general revenue by an appropriation for that purpose.
This provision is identical to SB 14 (2021) and substantially similar to provisions in SB 633 (2022), SCS/SB 654 (2022), SB 668 (2022), SB 670 (2022), SB 679 (2022), SB 695 (2022), SB 738 (2022), HCS/SS/SB 812 (2022), SB 1065 (2022), HB 1454 (2022), HB 1483 (2022), HB 1646 (2022), the truly agreed to and finally passed SS/SCS/HB 1878 (2022), HB 1911 (2022), HB 1976 (2022), HB 2113 (2022), the perfected HCS/HB 2140 (2022), HB 2531 (2022), HB 2577 (2022), HB 2630 (2022), HB 334 (2021), provisions in SCS/HS/HCS/HB 738 (2021), SB 14 (2021), provisions in SCS/SB 282 (2021), provisions in SB 818 (2020), and provisions in HCS/HB 1600 (2020).
SCOTT SVAGERA