Bill Text: CT SB00364 | 2010 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: An Act Concerning Post-election Audits.

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-03-08 - Public Hearing 03/12 [SB00364 Detail]

Download: Connecticut-2010-SB00364-Introduced.html

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General Assembly		Raised Bill No. 364
February Session, 2010		LCO No. 1704
		*01704_______GAE*
Referred to Committee on Government Administration and Elections
Introduced by:
(GAE)

AN ACT CONCERNING POST-ELECTION AUDITS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 9-320f of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2010):

(a) Not earlier than the fifteenth day after any election or primary and not later than two business days before the canvass of votes by the Secretary of the State, Treasurer and Comptroller, for any federal or state election or primary, or by the [town] municipal clerk for any municipal election or primary, the registrars of voters shall conduct [a manual] an audit of the votes recorded in not less than ten per cent of the voting districts in the state, district or municipality, whichever is applicable. Such [manual] audit shall be noticed in advance and be open to public observation. Any election official who participates in the administration and conduct of an audit pursuant to this section shall be compensated by the municipality at the standard rate of pay established by such municipality for elections or primaries, as the case may be.

(b) The voting districts subject to the audit described in subsection (a) of this section shall be selected in a random drawing by the Secretary of the State and such selection process shall be open to the public. [The offices subject to the audit pursuant to this section shall be, (1) in the case of an election where the office of presidential elector is on the ballot, all offices required to be audited by federal law, plus one additional office selected in a random drawing by the Secretary of the State, but in no case less than three offices, (2) in the case of an election where the office of Governor is on the ballot, all offices required to be audited by federal law, plus one additional office selected in a random drawing by the Secretary of the State, but in no case less than three offices, (3) in the case of a municipal election, three offices or twenty per cent of the number of offices on the ballot, whichever is greater, selected at random by the municipal clerk, and (4) in the case of a primary election, all offices required to be audited by federal law, plus one additional office, if any, but in no event less than twenty per cent of the offices on the ballot, selected in a random drawing by the municipal clerk.]

(c) If a selected voting district (1) has an office that is subject to recanvass or an election or primary contest pursuant to the general statutes, or (2) is in a municipality in which three districts have already been selected for audit under subsection (b) of this section for a single election or primary, the Secretary of the State shall select an alternative district, pursuant to the process described in subsection (b) of this section.

(d) The [manual] audit [described in subsection (a) of this section] shall consist of the [manual] tabulation of all of the paper ballots cast and counted by each voting [machine] tabulator subject to such audit. Such tabulation of such paper ballots shall be on a voting tabulator that is different from the voting tabulator used for the primary or election day tabulation of such ballots. The memory card in the voting tabulator used for the purpose of the audit shall be a different memory card than the memory card used for the primary or election day tabulation of such ballots. Once complete, the vote totals established pursuant to the [manual] tabulation conducted in accordance with this subsection shall be compared to the results reported by the voting [machine] tabulator on the day of the election or primary. The results of the [manual] tabulation conducted in accordance with this subsection shall be reported on a form prescribed by the Secretary of the State [which] that shall include the total number of ballots counted, the total votes received by each candidate in question, the total votes received by each candidate in question on ballots that were properly completed by each voter and the total votes received by each candidate in question on ballots that were not properly completed by each voter. Such report shall be filed with the Secretary of the State who shall immediately forward such report to The University of Connecticut for analysis. The University of Connecticut shall file a written report with the Secretary of the State regarding such analysis that describes any discrepancies identified. After receipt of such report, the Secretary of the State shall file such report with the State Elections Enforcement Commission.

(e) For the purposes of this section, a ballot that has not been properly completed will be deemed to be a ballot on which (1) votes have been marked by the voter outside the vote targets, (2) votes have been marked by the voter using a manual marking device that cannot be read by the voting [machine] tabulator, or (3) in the judgment of the registrars of voters, the voter marked the ballot in such a manner that the voting [machine] tabulator may not have read the marks as votes cast.

(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 9-311, the Secretary of the State shall order a discrepancy recanvass of the returns of an election or primary for any office if a discrepancy, as defined in subsection (o) of this section, exists where the margin of victory in the race for such office is less than the amount of the discrepancy multiplied by the total number of voting districts where such race appeared on the ballot, provided in a year in which the Secretary of the State is a candidate for an office on the ballot and that office is subject to an audit as provided by this section, the State Elections Enforcement Commission shall order a discrepancy recanvass if a discrepancy, as defined by subsection (o) of this section, has occurred that could affect the outcome of the election or primary for such office.

(g) If The University of Connecticut report described in subsection (d) of this section indicates that a voting [machine] tabulator failed to record votes accurately and in the manner provided by the general statutes, the Secretary of the State shall require that the voting [machine] tabulator be examined and recertified by the Secretary of the State, or the Secretary's designee. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the Secretary of the State from requiring that a voting [machine] tabulator be examined and recertified.

(h) The audit report filed pursuant to subsection (d) of this section shall be open to public inspection and may be used as prima facie evidence of a discrepancy in any contest arising pursuant to chapter 149 or for any other cause of action arising from such election or primary.

(i) If the audit officials are unable to reconcile the [manual] count conducted in accordance with subsection (d) of this section with the electronic vote tabulation of the primary or election day count and discrepancies, the Secretary of the State shall conduct such further investigation of the voting [machine or] tabulator malfunction as may be necessary for the purpose of reviewing whether or not to decertify the voting [machine or machines] tabulator in question or to order the voting [machine] tabulator to be examined and recertified pursuant to subsection (g) of this section. Any report produced by the Secretary of the State as a result of such investigation shall be filed with the State Elections Enforcement Commission and the commission may initiate such further investigation in accordance with subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 9-7b as may be required to determine if any violations of the general statutes concerning election law have been committed.

(j) The individual paper ballots used at an election or primary shall be carefully preserved and returned in their designated receptacle in accordance with the requirements of section 9-266, 9-302 or 9-310, whichever is applicable.

(k) Nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude any candidate or elector from seeking additional remedies pursuant to chapter 149.

(l) After an election or primary, any voting [machine] tabulator may be kept locked for a period longer than that prescribed by sections 9-266, 9-310 and 9-447, if such an extended period is ordered by either a court of competent jurisdiction, the Secretary of the State or the State Elections Enforcement Commission. Either the court or the Secretary of the State may order an audit of such voting [machine] tabulator to be conducted by such persons as the court or the Secretary of the State may designate, provided the State Elections Enforcement Commission may order such an audit under the circumstances prescribed in subsection (f) of this section. If the [machine] tabulator utilized in such election or primary is an optical scan voting system, such order to lock such [machine] tabulator shall include the [tabulator,] memory card and all other components and processes utilized in the programming of such [machine] tabulator.

(m) The Secretary of the State may adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, as may be necessary for the conduct of the [manual] tabulation of the paper ballots described in subsection [(a)] (d) of this section and to establish guidelines for expanded audits when there are differences between the [manual and machine counts] count conducted in accordance with subsection (d) of this section and the primary or election day count.

(n) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, the Secretary of the State shall have access to the code in any voting [machine] tabulator whenever any problem is discovered as a result of the audit. [described in subsection (a) of this section.]

(o) As used in this section, "discrepancy" means any difference in vote totals between [machine and manual counts] a primary or election day count and a count conducted in accordance with subsection (d) of this section in a voting district that exceeds one-half of one per cent of the lesser amount of the vote totals between [machine and manual counts] the primary or election day count and the count conducted in accordance with subsection (d) of this section where such differences cannot be resolved through an accounting of ballots that were not marked properly in accordance with subsection (e) of this section, "state election" means "state election", as defined in section 9-1, and "municipal election" means a municipal election held pursuant to section 9-164.

This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1	July 1, 2010	9-320f

Statement of Purpose:

To streamline the post-election audit process.

[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]