SF 474 (LSB 1365SV (3) 87)

SENATE FILE 474

BY  COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT

(SUCCESSOR TO SSB 1163)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to the conduct and administration of elections, including voter registration, absentee voting, voter identity verification, signature verification, polling place prohibitions, commissioner certifications, and post-election audits, creating an electronic poll book and polling place technology revolving loan fund, providing penalties, and including effective date and applicability provisions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

DIVISION I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

    Section 1.  Section 22.7, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  70.  The voter verification number, as defined in section 53.2, subsection 4, paragraph “c”, that is assigned to a voter and maintained and updated in the statewide voter registration system.
    Sec. 2.  Section 39A.5, subsection 1, paragraph b, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subparagraph:
   NEW SUBPARAGRAPH.  (3)  Violating any provision of chapter 48A for which another penalty is not provided.
    Sec. 3.  NEW SECTION.  48A.24  Deadline for submitting voter registration forms.
   1.  A person who accepts a completed voter registration form from an applicant shall submit the form to the appropriate commissioner within seven days of receiving the form if the person accepting the form is doing so on behalf of any of the following:
   a.  A political party, as defined in section 43.2.
   b.  A nonparty political organization required to nominate candidates under chapter 44. 
   c.  A candidate or committee, as defined in section 68A.102.
   2.  Notwithstanding the deadline in subsection 1, a person described in subsection 1 who accepts a completed voter registration form from an applicant within three days of the voter registration deadline prescribed in section 48A.9 for the next election shall submit the form to the appropriate commissioner within twenty-four hours of accepting the form, and not later than the registration deadline.
    Sec. 4.  Section 48A.30, subsection 1, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new paragraph:
   NEW PARAGRAPH.  0f.  The registered voter is not a resident of Iowa, or the registered voter submits documentation under section 607A.4, subsection 3, that indicates that the voter is not a citizen of the United States.
    Sec. 5.  Section 48A.31, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   48A.31  Deceased persons record.
   The state registrar of vital statistics shall transmit or cause to be transmitted to the state registrar of voters, once each calendar quarter, a certified list of all persons seventeen and one-half years of age and older in the state whose deaths have been reported to the bureau of vital records of the Iowa department of public health since the previous list of decedents was certified to the state registrar of voters. The list shall be submitted according to the specifications of the state registrar of voters and shall be transmitted to the state registrar of voters without charge for production or transmission. The commissioner shall, in the month following the end of a calendar quarter, run the statewide voter registration system’s matching program to determine whether a listed decedent was registered to vote in the county and shall immediately cancel the registration of any person named on the list of decedents.
    Sec. 6.  Section 53.2, subsections 1, 4, and 8, Code 2017, are amended to read as follows:
   1.  a.  Any registered voter, under the circumstances specified in section 53.1, may on any day, except election day, and not more than seventy one hundred twenty days prior to the date of the election, apply in person for an absentee ballot at the commissioner’s office or at any location designated by the commissioner. However, for those elections in which the commissioner directs the polls be opened at noon pursuant to section 49.73, a voter may apply in person for an absentee ballot at the commissioner’s office from 8:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. on election day.
   b.  A registered voter may make written application to the commissioner for an absentee ballot. A written application for an absentee ballot must be received by the commissioner no later than 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before the election on the same day as the voter registration deadline provided in section 48A.9 for the election for which the ballot is requested, except when the absentee ballot is requested and voted at the commissioner’s office pursuant to section 53.10. A written application for an absentee ballot delivered to the commissioner and received by the commissioner more than seventy one hundred twenty days prior to the date of the election shall be retained by the commissioner and processed in the same manner as a written application received not more than seventy days before the date of the election returned to the voter with a notification of the date when the applications will be accepted.
   4.  a.  Each application shall contain the following information:
   (1)  The name and signature of the registered voter, the.
   (2)  The registered voter’s date of birth, the.
   (3)  The address at which the voter is registered to vote, and the.
   (4)  The registered voter’s voter verification number.
   (5)  The name or date of the election for which the absentee ballot is requested, and such.
   (6)  Such other information as may be necessary to determine the correct absentee ballot for the registered voter.
   b.  If insufficient information has been provided, including the absence of a voter verification number, either on the prescribed form or on an application created by the applicant, the commissioner shall, by the best means available, obtain the additional necessary information. A voter requesting or casting a ballot pursuant to section 53.22 shall not be required to provide a voter verification number.
   c.  For purposes of this subsection, “voter verification number” means the registered voter’s driver’s license number or nonoperator’s identification card number assigned to the voter by the department of transportation or the registered voter’s identification number assigned to the voter by the state commissioner pursuant to section 47.7, subsection 2.
   8.  An application for an absentee ballot that is returned to the commissioner by a person acting as an actual or implied agent for a political party, as defined in section 43.2, or by a candidate, or committee, all both as defined by chapter 68A, shall be returned to the commissioner within seventy-two hours of the time the completed application was received from the applicant or no later than 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before same day as the election deadline under subsection 1, paragraph “b”, whichever is earlier.  An application received by a person acting as an actual or implied agent of a political party after the deadline but before the date of the election shall be returned to the commissioner within twenty-four hours.
    Sec. 7.  Section 53.10, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  2A.  A voter shall not vote or offer to vote any ballot except such as the voter has received from the commissioner. A voter voting an absentee ballot at the commissioner’s office shall not take or remove any ballot from the commissioner’s office.
DIVISION II
VOTER IDENTITY AND SIGNATURE VERIFICATION

    Sec. 8.  Section 48A.7A, subsection 1, paragraph b, subparagraph (1), subparagraph division (c), Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   (c)  A United States military or veterans identification card.
    Sec. 9.  NEW SECTION.  48A.10A  Voter verification cards —— verification of voter registration information.
   1.  The state registrar shall, each week, compare lists of persons who registered to vote during the preceding week with the department of transportation’s driver’s license and nonoperator’s identification card files and shall issue a voter verification card to each active, registered voter whose name does not appear in the department of transportation’s files. 
   2.  A voter verification card issued under this section shall be used only for voting and voter registration purposes. 
   3.  A person issued a voter verification card under this section shall not be charged any fee for the issuance or delivery of the voter verification card.
   4.  Implementation of this section shall be contingent upon appropriations by the general assembly in sufficient amounts to meet the requirements of this section.
   5.  The state registrar shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A to implement this section.
    Sec. 10.  Section 48A.38, subsection 1, paragraph f, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   f.  The county commissioner of registration and the state registrar of voters shall remove a voter’s whole or partial social security number, as applicable, voter identification number assigned by the state commissioner, Iowa driver’s license number, or Iowa nonoperator’s identification card number from a voter registration list prepared pursuant to this section.
    Sec. 11.  Section 49.53, subsection 1, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  The commissioner shall not less than four nor more than twenty days before the day of each election, except those for which different publication requirements are prescribed by law, publish notice of the election. The notice shall contain a facsimile of the portion of the ballot containing the first rotation as prescribed by section 49.31, subsection 2, and shall show the names of all candidates or nominees and the office each seeks, and all public questions, to be voted upon at the election. The sample ballot published as a part of the notice may at the discretion of the commissioner be reduced in size relative to the actual ballot but such reduction shall not cause upper case letters appearing in candidates’ names or in summaries of public measures on the published sample ballot to be less than nine point type. The notice shall also state the date of the election, the hours the polls will be open, that each voter is required to provide identification at the polling place before the voter can receive and cast a ballot, the location of each polling place at which voting is to occur in the election, and the names of the precincts voting at each polling place, but the statement need not set forth any fact which is apparent from the portion of the ballot appearing as a part of the same notice. The notice shall include the full text of all public measures to be voted upon at the election.
    Sec. 12.  Section 49.77, subsection 1, unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   The board members of their respective precincts shall have charge of the ballots and shall furnish them to the voters after verifying each voter’s identity pursuant to section 49.78.
    Sec. 13.  Section 49.77, subsection 3, Code 2017, is amended by striking the subsection.
    Sec. 14.  NEW SECTION.  49.78  Voter identity and signature verification.
   1.  To ensure the integrity of, and to instill public confidence in, all elections in this state the general assembly finds that the verification of a voter’s identity is necessary before a voter is permitted to receive and cast a ballot. 
   2.  a.  Before a precinct election official furnishes a ballot to a voter under section 49.77, the voter shall establish the voter’s identity by presenting the official with one of the following forms of identification for verification: 
   (1)  A voter verification card issued pursuant to section 48A.10A.
   (2)  An Iowa driver’s license issued pursuant to section 321.189.
   (3)  An Iowa nonoperator’s identification card issued pursuant to section 321.190.
   (4)  A United States passport.
   (5)  A United States military or veterans identification card.
   (6)  A voter acknowledgment card issued by the commissioner pursuant to sections 48A.26 through 48A.29 if the voter acknowledgment card is signed before the voter presents the card to the official.
   b.  Upon being presented with a form of identification under this section, the precinct election official shall examine the identification. The precinct election official shall use the information on the identification card, including the signature, to determine whether the person offering to vote appears to be the person depicted on the identification card. The voter’s signature shall generally be presumed to be valid. If the identification provided does not appear to be the person offering to vote under section 49.77, the precinct election official shall challenge the person offering to vote in the same manner provided for other challenges by sections 49.79 and 49.80. A person offering to vote who establishes identity by presenting a veteran’s identification card that does not contain a signature, is not subject to challenge under this paragraph “b”.
   3.  A person who is registered to vote but is unable to present a form of identification listed under subsection 2 may present other forms of identification listed in section 48A.7A, subsection 1, paragraph “b”, to establish the voter’s identity under this section.
   4.  A person who is registered to vote but is unable to present a form of identification under subsection 2 or 3 may establish identity and residency in the precinct by written oath of a person who is also registered to vote in the precinct. The attesting registered voter’s oath shall attest to the stated identity of the person wishing to vote and that the person is a current resident of the precinct. The oath must be signed by the attesting registered voter in the presence of the appropriate precinct election official. A registered voter who has signed two oaths on election day attesting to a person’s identity and residency as provided in this subsection is prohibited from signing any further oaths as provided in this subsection on that day. 
   5.  The form of the written oath required of a registered voter attesting to the identity and residency of the voter unable to present a form of identification shall read as follows:
I, ..... (name of attesting registered voter), do solemnly swear or affirm all of the following:
I am a preregistered voter in this precinct or I registered to vote in this precinct today, and a registered voter did not sign an oath on my behalf. I have not signed more than one oath attesting to the identity and residence of any other person in this election.
I am a resident of the ... precinct, ... ward or township, city of ....., county of ....., Iowa.
I reside at ....... (street address) in ..... (city or township).
I personally know ..... (name of voter), and I personally know that ..... (name of voter) is a resident of the ... precinct, ..... ward or township, city of ....., county of ....., Iowa.
I understand that any false statement in this oath is a class “D” felony punishable by no more than five years in confinement and a fine of at least seven hundred fifty dollars but not more than seven thousand five hundred dollars.
.............
Signature of Attesting Registered Voter
Subscribed and sworn before me on .. (date).
.............
Signature of Precinct Election Official
   6.  A voter who is not otherwise disqualified from voting and who has established identity under subsection 2, 3, or 4 shall be furnished a ballot and be allowed to vote under section 49.77.
   7.  A registered voter who fails to establish the voter’s identity under this section shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot under section 49.81.
   8.  a.  Notwithstanding subsection 7, for any election conducted prior to January 1, 2019, a registered voter who fails to establish the voter’s identity under this section shall be permitted to vote upon signing an oath attesting to the voter’s identity. The form of the written oath required of the person voting under this subsection shall read as follows:
My name is ............., and I am a United States citizen,
at least eighteen years of age. I am the person named above, I
am a registered voter of this county, and I am eligible to vote
in this election.
.............
(signature of voter) (date)
   b.  This subsection is repealed July 1, 2019.
    Sec. 15.  Section 49.81, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  1A.  A prospective voter who is unable to establish identity under section 49.78, subsection 2, paragraph “a”, or section 49.78, subsection 3 or 4, shall be notified by the appropriate precinct election official that the voter may cast a provisional ballot. The voter shall mark the ballot and immediately seal it in an envelope of the type prescribed by subsection 4. The voter shall deliver the sealed envelope to a precinct election official who shall deposit it in an envelope marked “provisional ballots”. The ballot shall be considered as having been cast in the special precinct established by section 53.20 for purposes of the postelection canvass.
    Sec. 16.  Section 53.2, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  4A.  The commissioner may dispute an application if it appears to the commissioner that the signature on the application has been signed by someone other than the registered voter, in comparing the signature on the application to the signature on record of the registered voter named on the application. If the commissioner disputes a registered voter’s application under this subsection, the commissioner shall notify the registered voter and the registered voter may submit a new application and signature or update the registered voter’s signature on record, as provided by rule adopted by the state commissioner.
    Sec. 17.  Section 53.18, subsection 3, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  If the affidavit envelope or the return envelope marked with the affidavit contains a defect that would cause the absentee ballot to be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board, the commissioner shall immediately notify the voter of that fact and that the voter’s absentee ballot shall not be counted unless the voter requests and returns a replacement ballot in the time permitted under section 53.17, subsection 2.  For the purposes of this section, a return envelope marked with the affidavit shall be considered to contain a defect if it appears to the commissioner that the signature on the envelope has been signed by someone other than the registered voter, in comparing the signature on the envelope to the signature on record of the registered voter named on the envelope. A signature or marking made in accordance with section 39.3, subsection 17, shall not be considered a defect for purposes of this section. The voter may request a replacement ballot in person, in writing, or over the telephone. The same serial number that was assigned to the records of the original absentee ballot application shall be used on the envelope and records of the replacement ballot. The envelope marked with the affidavit and containing the completed replacement ballot shall be marked “Replacement ballot”. The envelope marked with the affidavit and containing the original ballot shall be marked “Defective” and the replacement ballot shall be attached to such envelope containing the original ballot and shall be stored in a secure place until they are delivered to the absentee and special voters precinct board, notwithstanding sections 53.26 and 53.27.
    Sec. 18.  Section 53.22, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  7.  The proof of identity requirements under section 49.78 shall not apply to a voter casting a ballot pursuant to this section.
    Sec. 19.  Section 53.25, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   53.25  Rejecting ballot.
   1.  a.  If the absentee voter’s affidavit lacks the voter’s signature, if the applicant is not a duly registered voter on election day in the precinct where the absentee ballot was cast, if the envelope marked with the affidavit contains more than one ballot of any one kind, or if the voter has voted in person, such vote shall be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board. If the affidavit envelope or return envelope marked with the affidavit is open, or has been opened and resealed, or if the ballot is not enclosed in such envelope, and an affidavit envelope or return envelope marked with the affidavit with the same serial number and marked “Replacement ballot” is not attached as provided in section 53.18, the vote ballot shall be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board.
   b.  If a voter casts a provisional ballot pursuant to section 49.78, subsection 7, and the voter has failed to establish the voter’s identity at the commissioner’s office, the provisional ballot shall be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board.
   2.  If the absentee or provisional ballot is rejected prior to the opening of the affidavit envelope or return envelope marked with the affidavit, the voter casting the ballot shall be notified by a precinct election official by the time the canvass is completed of the reason for the rejection on a form prescribed by the state commissioner of elections.
    Sec. 20.  SEVERABILITY.  If any provision of this division of this Act or the application of any provision of this division of this Act to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions of the division which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or application of the invalid provisions, and to this end, the provisions of the division are severable.
    Sec. 21.  EFFECTIVE DATE.  This division of this Act takes effect upon the appropriation of moneys by the general assembly to the state commissioner of elections in an amount sufficient for implementation of section 48A.10A as declared by the general assembly.
    Sec. 22.  APPLICABILITY.  This division of this Act applies to elections held on or after the effective date of this division of this Act.
DIVISION III
POLLING PLACES

    Sec. 23.  NEW SECTION.  47.11  Electronic poll book and polling place technology program —— revolving loan fund.
   1.  An electronic poll book and polling place technology program is created and an electronic poll book and polling place technology revolving loan fund is created in the state treasury under the control of the state commissioner. The program and revolving loan fund shall be administered by the state commissioner and the revolving loan fund shall include moneys allocated from the state commissioner’s budget and any other moneys obtained or accepted by the state commissioner for deposit in the revolving loan fund.
   2.  a.  The state commissioner may loan moneys in the revolving loan fund to county commissioners for the purchase or update of electronic poll book and polling place technology. 
   b.  Moneys loaned under this subsection shall be used, in accordance with section 49.28, to furnish electronic poll books to election precincts for the purpose of modernizing polling places throughout the state. 
   c.  The state commissioner may spend an amount not to exceed thirty percent of the moneys in the revolving loan fund at the beginning of a fiscal year to administer polling place technology to ensure compliance with state standards of technological security and the protection of personally identifiable information.
   3.  A loan made under this section shall bear no interest.
   4.  Notwithstanding section 12C.7, subsection 2, interest or earnings on moneys in the revolving loan fund shall be credited to the revolving loan fund. Notwithstanding section 8.33, moneys in the revolving loan fund that remain unencumbered or unobligated at the close of a fiscal year shall not revert to any other fund but shall remain available in the revolving loan fund for the purposes designated. 
   5.  The state commissioner shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A to administer this section.
    Sec. 24.  Section 49.88, subsection 1, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  No more than one person shall be allowed to occupy any voting booth at any time. The use of cameras, cellular telephones, pagers, or other electronic communications devices in the voting booth photographic devices and the display of voted ballots is prohibited if such use or display is for purposes prohibited under chapter 39A, interferes with other voters, or interferes with the orderly operation of the polling place.
DIVISION IV
ELECTION CERTIFICATION AND AUDITS

    Sec. 25.  NEW SECTION.  49.128  Commissioner filings and notifications.
   1.  No later than twenty days following a general election, the commissioner shall place on file in the commissioner’s office a certification that the county met the following requirements at the general election:
   a.  The testing of voting equipment was performed, as required under section 52.35. 
   b.  The election personnel training course was conducted, as required under section 49.124. 
   c.  Polling places met accessibility standards, as required under section 49.21.
   d.  The schedule of required publications was adhered to, as required under section 49.53.
   e.  The commissioner has complied with administrative rules adopted by the state commissioner under chapter 52, including having a written voting system security plan.
   2.  a.  If the county is required to conduct an audit under section 50.51, the commissioner shall include a copy of the results with the certification required under this section.
   b.  If a county is not required to conduct an audit under section 50.51, the commissioner shall include a copy of the certification required under this section along with the election canvass summary report required under section 50.30A.
   3.  The commissioner shall file a copy of the certification under this section with the state commissioner.
   4.  The commissioner shall promptly notify the state commissioner of each suspected incidence of election misconduct that the commissioner has referred to other agencies or law enforcement for investigation.
   5.  The state commissioner shall prescribe a form for use by the county commissioners. 
    Sec. 26.  Section 50.12, Code 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   50.12  Return and preservation of ballots.
   Immediately after making the proclamation, and before separating, the board members of each precinct in which votes have been received by paper ballot shall enclose in an envelope or other container all ballots which have been counted by them, except those endorsed “Rejected as double”, “Defective”, or “Objected to”, and securely seal the envelope. The signatures of all board members of the precinct shall be placed across the seal or the opening of the container so that it cannot be opened without breaking the seal. The precinct election officials shall return all the ballots to the commissioner, who shall carefully preserve them for six months. Ballots from elections for federal offices shall be preserved for twenty-two months. The sealed packages containing voted ballots shall be opened only for an official recount authorized by section 50.48, 50.49, or 50.50, for an election contest held pursuant to chapters 57 through 62, to conduct an audit pursuant to section 50.51, or to destroy the ballots pursuant to section 50.19.
    Sec. 27.  NEW SECTION.  50.51  Election audits.
   1.  After each general election, the state commissioner shall, with the cooperation of the county commissioners, conduct an audit of the official canvass of votes from the preceding general election.
   2.  The state commissioner shall determine the number of counties and precincts to be audited and shall select the precincts to be audited by lot. The absentee ballot and special voters precinct for each county, established pursuant to section 53.20, shall be included with all other precincts of the county for selection by lot. In every precinct selected, the commissioner shall conduct a hand count of all ballots cast in the preceding general election for president of the United States or governor, as the case may be. The hand count shall be observed by a representative selected by each of the two political parties whose candidates received the highest number of votes statewide in the preceding general election.
   3.  a.  The commissioner may order an administrative recount pursuant to section 50.50 if the commissioner determines the results of an audit require an administrative recount.
   b.  If selected to conduct an audit, the commissioner shall provide an audit report to the county board of supervisors and shall transmit the audit report to the state commissioner no later than twenty days following the election.
   4.  The results of an audit conducted pursuant to this section shall not change the results, or invalidate the certification, of an election. 
   5.  In advance of any other election, the state commissioner may order an audit of the election in the manner provided in this section. 
   6.  The state commissioner shall adopt rules, pursuant to chapter 17A, to implement this section.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to the conduct and administration of elections, including voter registration, absentee voting, voter identity and signature verification, polling place prohibitions, county commissioner of elections certifications, post-election audits, and creation of an electronic poll book program and revolving loan fund.
   Division I of the bill relates to the conduct and administration of elections generally. The bill requires a person, while acting on behalf of a political party, a nonparty political organization, or a candidate or committee subject to Iowa’s campaign finance laws, who accepts a completed voter registration form from an applicant to submit the form to the appropriate county commissioner of elections (county auditor) within seven days of receiving the form. The bill also provides that if the person accepts a completed voter registration form within three days of a voter registration deadline, the person must submit the form to the appropriate commissioner within 24 hours of accepting the form, and not later than the registration deadline for the next election. By operation of current law, failure to timely submit such a form would constitute a simple misdemeanor. The bill also makes it a simple misdemeanor to violate any provision of Code chapter 48A, related to voter registration, for which another penalty is not provided. A simple misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than 30 days or a fine of at least $65 but not more than $625 or by both.
   Division I requires county commissioners to cancel the voter registration of a registered voter if the registered voter is not a resident of Iowa or submits jury service-related documentation that indicates that the voter is not a citizen of the United States. 
   Division I of the bill also requires the state registrar of vital statistics to produce and transmit certain lists to the state registrar of voters (secretary of state) without charge.
   Division I changes the time period to apply for an absentee ballot from not more than 70 days before the election to not more than 120 days before the election. The bill further provides that an application received more than 120 days before the election shall be returned to the applicant along with notification of when the applications will be accepted. Current law requires the commissioner to retain the application and process it with other applications received within the appropriate time period.
   Division I requires that an application for an absentee ballot by any applicant other than a person requesting an absentee ballot pursuant to Code section 53.22 contain the applicant’s voter verification number, defined in the bill as the voter’s identification number assigned by the state commissioner, driver’s license number, or nonoperator’s identification card number. Under the bill, a person’s voter identification number, driver’s license number, or nonoperator’s identification number is considered to be a voter verification number, which is required to be kept confidential. The bill also changes the absentee ballot application deadline from the Friday before the election to the same deadline as voter registration for a given election under Code section 48A.9, which is either 11 or 10 days before the election. The bill establishes additional duties for actual or implied agents of political parties for applications received after the deadline.
   Division I prohibits a voter from voting or offering to vote a ballot in the commissioner’s office that was not furnished to the voter by the commissioner. The bill also prohibits a voter from taking or removing any ballot from the commissioner’s office. Current law expressly prohibits these actions at precinct polling places.
   Division II of the bill relates to identity and signature verification for certain voter registrants and voters. The bill changes the requirements for establishing identity and residence for persons registering to vote in-person absentee or on election day by adding veterans identification cards issued by the United States to the list of acceptable photographic identification for establishing identity.
   Division II of the bill requires the state registrar of voters to compare lists of voters who registered to vote during the preceding week with the department of transportation’s driver’s license and nonoperator’s identification card files. Under the bill, the state registrar is required to issue a free voter verification card, including a voter identification number, to be used only for voting and voter registration purposes, to registrants whose names do not appear in the department’s files. Under the bill, providing voter verification cards is contingent upon adequate appropriations. 
   Division II of the bill also requires election officials to verify a voter’s identity before furnishing a ballot to the voter. A voter at the polling place is required to present the official with a voter verification card, an Iowa driver’s license, an Iowa nonoperator’s identification card, a United States passport, a United States military or veterans identification card, or a voter acknowledgment card issued by the county commissioner in order to verify the voter’s identity before the voter can receive a ballot. Under the bill, a voter may also present the forms of identification required for election day and in-person absentee voter registration or have their identity and residency attested to by another registered voter in order to verify the voter’s identity. Under the bill, a registered voter is allowed to attest to the identity and residency of not more than two other voters on election day. If the voter fails to establish the voter’s identity by the methods provided in the bill, the voter may vote a provisional ballot. A voter may also vote a ballot as otherwise provided for under current law by signing an oath attesting to the voter’s identity at any election conducted prior to January 1, 2019. 
   The bill also requires that county commissioners include information on the verification of voter identities in the notice of each election published under Code section 49.53.
   Division II requires precinct election officials to examine a voter’s identification to determine whether the person offering to vote matches the identification card, including the voter’s signature. The bill requires an election official to challenge a person offering to vote if the person’s identification does not appear to be the person offering to vote. If the challenge is not withdrawn, the voter may vote a provisional ballot. The proof of identity requirements under the bill shall not apply to persons voting absentee ballots pursuant to Code section 53.22.
   Related to absentee voting, division II of the bill provides that a county commissioner may dispute certain applications for an absentee ballot if it appears to the commissioner that the signature on the application has been signed by someone other than the registered voter, in comparing the signature on the application to the signature on record of the registered voter named on the application. If the commissioner disputes a registered voter’s application under this subsection, the commissioner is required to notify the registered voter and the registered voter is permitted to submit a new application and signature or update the registered voter’s signature on record. The bill also requires county commissioners to consider absentee ballots to be defective if it appears to the commissioner that the signature on the envelope marked with the affidavit has been signed by someone other than the registered voter, in comparing the signature on the envelope to the signature on record of the registered voter named on the envelope.
   Under the bill, the provisions of division II and their application are severable.
   Division II of the bill takes effect contingent on an appropriation and applies to elections held on or after the effective date of division II.
   Division III of the bill relates to polling places by creating an electronic poll book and polling place technology program and revolving loan fund and by regulating the use of photographic devices and the display of voted ballots.
   Division III creates an electronic poll book and polling place technology program and revolving loan fund in the state treasury. Under the bill, the state commissioner of elections (secretary of state) is required to administer the fund. Moneys in the fund may include moneys allocated from the state commissioner’s budget and any other moneys obtained or accepted by the state commissioner for deposit in the revolving loan fund. The state commissioner is allowed to loan moneys in the revolving loan fund to county commissioners to purchase or update electronic poll book and polling place technology. Under the bill, the state commissioner is allowed to spend 30 percent of the moneys in the revolving loan fund to administer polling place technology.
   Division III also provides that interest or earnings on moneys in the revolving loan fund are credited to the fund and moneys in the revolving loan fund that remain unencumbered or unobligated at the close of a fiscal year remain available in the revolving loan fund.
   Division III strikes a provision of current law that prohibits the use of all cameras, cellular telephones, pagers, or other electronic communications devices in a voting booth and provides that the use of photographic devices and the display of voted ballots is prohibited if that use or display is for purposes of election misconduct, interferes with other voters, or interferes with the orderly operation of the polling place.
   Division IV of the bill requires each county commissioner to place on file in the commissioner’s office a certification that the county met voting equipment testing, election personnel training, polling place accessibility, publications, and certain administrative rule requirements at each general election. The certification is also required to include a copy of the results of election audits if the commissioner is required to conduct an audit, described in division IV of the bill. If the commissioner is not required to conduct an audit, the commissioner is required to include the certification with the election canvass summary report. The county commissioner is also required to file a copy of the certification with the state commissioner. The bill further requires the commissioner to promptly notify the state commissioner of each suspected incidence of election misconduct that the commissioner has referred to other agencies or law enforcement for investigation. 
   Division IV of the bill also requires the state commissioner to complete a post-election audit of each general election. The bill requires the state commissioner to determine the number of counties and precincts to be audited and to select precincts to be audited in a county, by lot. The audit is required to be a hand count of ballots for the office of president of the United States or governor, as the case may be. Under the bill, a county commissioner is allowed to order an administrative recount under certain conditions. A county commissioner selected to conduct an audit is required to provide an audit report to the board of supervisors and the state commissioner, as provided for under the bill. The results of an audit shall not change the results, or invalidate the certification, of an election.