SB 418-FN - AS INTRODUCED

2022 SESSION

22-3015

11/04

SENATE BILL 418-FN

AN ACT relative to verification of voter affidavits.

SPONSORS: Sen. Giuda, Dist 2; Sen. Bradley, Dist 3; Sen. French, Dist 7; Sen. Gannon, Dist 23; Rep. Howard, Belk. 8

COMMITTEE: Election Law and Municipal Affairs

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ANALYSIS

This bill provides for verification of voter affidavits by establishing affidavit balloting.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

22-3015

11/04

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two

AN ACT relative to verification of voter affidavits.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1  Findings.  

I.  According to the secretary of state, over the past 45 years, New Hampshire has had 44 elections that ended in a tie or in a one-vote victory.  On average, that is almost once per year.  This clearly proves that just one improperly cast vote can adversely influence an election each year.  Every improperly cast vote also invalidates one legal vote.  In the 2016 general election, one woman was caught voting in both Massachusetts and in Plymouth, New Hampshire.  She only paid a $500 fine; hardly a deterrent.  In that same election, the attorney general's office, after extensive investigation, was unable to verify the identity of 66 domicile affidavit voters and 164 qualified affidavit voters.  To turn a blind eye to this level of uncertainty does a grave disservice to both the electoral process of the state of New Hampshire and its citizens.  Something must be done, immediately.

II.  Currently, New Hampshire law allows for votes to be cast and counted, even when the voter fails to produce documents to prove his or her identity, or that he or she is a New Hampshire citizen or inhabitant of that town, city, ward, or district.  Although current New Hampshire laws do allow for the post-election investigation of these voting attempts, all this does is identify when unqualified votes have been cast and allowed to nullify legitimate votes.  It does nothing to prevent the damage in the first place; that being the casting and counting of illegitimate votes.

2  New Section; Election Procedure; Affidavit Ballot.  Amend RSA 659 by inserting after section 23 the following new section:

659:23-a  Affidavit Ballots.  

I.  For all elections, if a voter seeks to cast a ballot and such voter's name is not on the voter registration checklist for that town, city, ward, or district, or if such voter does not have a valid photo identification establishing such voter's identity and domicile in that town, city, ward, or district, then such voter shall vote by affidavit ballot.

II.  The registering official at the polling place shall hand the affidavit ballot voter an affidavit voter package and explain its use.  The affidavit voter package shall be designed, produced, and distributed by the secretary of state, and shall contain the following:

(a)  A serialized affidavit voter ballot of a different color to distinguish it from regular ballots, with a serialized tear-off strip on the bottom.  The tear-off strip shall contain both the serial number and the name and address of the affidavit voter.  All such strips shall be mailed by the local election officials to the secretary of state the day after the election using registered mail, return receipt requested.

(b)  A prepaid Federal Express envelope addressed to the secretary of state for the affidavit voter to return the affidavit verification page described in subparagraph (c) and missing documentation to the secretary of state.  The return address on this envelope shall also be for the secretary of state.

(c)  An affidavit voter verification page which lists the specific documents required to qualify to vote in the state of New Hampshire.  The election official registering the affidavit voter shall mark on the verification page which identification requirements were fulfilled and which identification requirements were not fulfilled and thereby required affidavit voting.  The voter shall be required to return a copy of the affidavit verification page and any required documentation in the provided prepaid Federal Express envelope within 10 days of the date of the election in order for the ballot to be certified.

III.  Affidavit ballots shall be of a different color, distinguishing them from regular non-affidavit ballots, and shall have a unique serial number assigned to the ballot.  Each affidavit voter ballot shall have a tear-off strip containing the name and address of the affidavit voter and the serial number of the ballot which they cast.

IV.  All affidavit ballots shall be cast in person at the polling place.  After the close of polls on election day, all affidavit ballots shall be hand counted and included in the vote totals announced by the moderator.  The total number of affidavit ballots shall also be noted.

V.  If the affidavit voter fails to return a satisfactorily completed verification letter with the missing documentation within the allotted time frame, the secretary of state shall instruct the town, city, ward, or district in which the affidavit vote was cast to retrieve the serialized ballot and deduct from the election totals the votes contained on the serialized ballot.  The counting of votes on those serialized affidavit ballots identified by the secretary of state as invalid shall be conducted by the town, city, ward, or district using the same methods of counting and observation utilized on the day of the election for non-affidavit ballots.

VI.  No later than 14 days after the election, the town, city, ward, or district shall provide a summary report with its aggregated affidavit vote reductions to the secretary of state.  This total shall be the final official vote count to be certified by the appropriate certifying authority.  

VII.  The names of affidavit voters whose verification letters are either not returned to the secretary of state or which do not provide the required voter qualifying information shall be referred by the secretary of state to the New Hampshire attorney general’s office for investigation in accordance with RSA 7:6-c.

VIII.  Any written, electronic, or other information related to an affidavit voter who provides the required information verifying their right to vote shall not be subject to disclosure under RSA 91-A or any other law.

IX.  No affidavit ballots, regardless of whether qualified or unqualified, shall be subject to disclosure under RSA 91-A or any other law.

X.  All written documentation relating to affidavit ballots shall be delivered to the secretary of state by local election officials in sealed packages using a secure means of transportation, and stored pursuant to RSA 659:95-103.

3  New Section; General Provisions for Recounts; Affidavit Ballots.  Amend RSA 660 by inserting after section 17 the following new section:

660:17-a  Affidavit Ballots; Recounts.  In any election or referendum, if the total number of affidavit ballots submitted in any one town, city, ward, or district would, if counted in favor of either candidate or position, alter the outcome of the election, the deadlines for filing recount requests imposed by RSA 660:1, 660:7, 660:10, 660:12, and 660:13 shall be extended until after the deadline for submitting affidavit verification materials in RSA 659:23-a.  In such instance, the secretary of state shall publish new deadlines for filing recounts.

4  Election Procedure; Obtaining a Ballot.  Amend RSA 659:13, I(c) to read as follows:

(c)(1)  If the voter does not have a valid photo identification, the ballot clerk shall inform the voter that he or she may execute a challenged voter affidavit and cast an affidavit ballot in accordance with RSA 659:23-a.  The voter shall receive an explanatory document prepared by the secretary of state explaining the proof of identity requirements.  If the voter executes a challenged voter affidavit and casts an affidavit ballot, the ballot clerk shall mark the checklist in accordance with uniform procedures developed by the secretary of state.

(2)  If the voter executes a challenged voter affidavit and casts an affidavit ballot, the moderator or the moderator's designee shall take a photograph of the voter and immediately print and attach the photograph to, and thus make it a part of, the affidavit form.  However, if a photograph was taken under RSA 654:12, then a notation shall be made on the challenged voter affidavit stating that the photograph is attached to the qualified voter affidavit or sworn statement on the general election day registration form.  The photograph shall be 2 inches by 2 inches, or larger, and may be in color or in black and white.  The moderator or his or her designee who took the photograph and the voter shall then sign the challenged voter affidavit.  The moderator or designee shall delete the photograph from the camera in the presence of the voter.  If the moderator or his or her designee is unable to take the voter's photograph due to equipment failure or other cause beyond the moderator's or his or her designee's reasonable control, the voter may execute a challenged voter affidavit and cast an affidavit ballot without a photograph.

(3)  If the voter objects to the photograph requirement because of religious beliefs, he or she may execute an affidavit of religious exemption in accordance with RSA 659:13-b, which shall be attested to by an election officer and attached to the challenged voter affidavit.

(4)  The person entering voter information into the centralized voter registration database shall cause the records to indicate when a voter has not presented a valid photo identification and has executed a challenged voter affidavit and cast an affidavit ballot.

5  Election Procedure; Obtaining a Ballot.  Amend RSA 659:13, II(b) to read as follows:

(b)  In addition to the forms of photo identification authorized in subparagraph (a), the identification requirements of paragraph I may be satisfied by verification of the person's identity by a moderator or supervisor of the checklist or the clerk of a town, ward, or city, provided that if any person authorized to challenge a voter under RSA 659:27 objects to such verification, identifies the reason for the objection in writing, and states the specific source of the information or personal knowledge upon which the challenge of the photo identification is based, the voter shall be required to execute a challenged voter affidavit and cast an affidavit ballot as if no verification was made.

6  Effective Date.  This act shall take effect upon its passage.

LBA

22-3015

Redraft 12/23/21

SB 418-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AS INTRODUCED

AN ACT relative to verification of voter affidavits.

FISCAL IMPACT:      [ X ] State              [    ] County               [ X ] Local              [    ] None

METHODOLOGY:

This bill establishes affidavit balloting for voters who are not registered on the checklist or who do not have a valid photo identification.  The affidavit balloting would include a ballot in a different color than other ballots.  It would contain a serialized tear-off strip and would require local election officials to mail the strips to the Secretary of State using registered mail and return receipt requested.  

The Department of State indicates there would be an indeterminable increase in General Fund expenditures.  The increase would be due to printing costs, mailing costs and potential increased staffing costs.   The Secretary of State also notes they would be required to mail and process the new voter packet.  

The New Hampshire Municipal Association (NHMA) states there would be an indeterminable fiscal impact on local expenditure.  The NHMA states they are unsure if municipalities or Department of State would be responsible for the new ballots and the mailing paraphernalia. They explain there could also be an increase in staffing expenditures on election days due to the new requirements.

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

Department of State and New Hampshire Municipal Association