Text: H01252 Text: H01254 Text: H01200 - H01299 Text: H Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN 1 1 Amend House File 304 as follows: 1 2 #1. Page 35, by inserting before line 6 the 1 3 following: 1 4 "DIVISION VI 1 5 MAIL BALLOT ELECTIONS 1 6 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.1 MAIL BALLOT 1 7 ELECTIONS. 1 8 A mail ballot election may be conducted in cities 1 9 with a population of two hundred or less as provided 1 10 in this chapter. 1 11 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.2 DEFINITIONS. 1 12 As used in this chapter, unless the context 1 13 otherwise requires: 1 14 1. "Election day" is the date established by law 1 15 on which a particular election would be held if that 1 16 election were being conducted by means other than a 1 17 mail ballot election. 1 18 2. "Return verification envelope" means an 1 19 envelope that contains a secrecy envelope and which is 1 20 designed to allow election officials, upon examination 1 21 of the outside of the envelope, to determine that the 1 22 ballot is being submitted by someone who is in fact a 1 23 registered voter and who has not already voted. 1 24 3. "Secrecy envelope" means an envelope used to 1 25 contain the elector's ballot and that is designed to 1 26 conceal the voter's vote and to prevent the voter's 1 27 ballot from being distinguished from the ballots of 1 28 other voters. 1 29 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.3 MAIL BALLOT 1 30 ELECTION PROCEDURE. 1 31 The state commissioner of elections shall prescribe 1 32 uniform procedures and forms to be used in the conduct 1 33 of mail ballot elections. 1 34 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.4 INITIATION BY 1 35 GOVERNING BODY. 1 36 1. The city council of a city may, by resolution, 1 37 request that the county commissioner of elections 1 38 conduct the regular city election or a special city 1 39 election under this chapter. Only a city with two 1 40 hundred or fewer registered voters at the time the 1 41 resolution is adopted may make such a request. The 1 42 council must file the resolution with the county 1 43 commissioner not later than ninety days before the 1 44 date of the election. The commissioner shall approve 1 45 the request if the commissioner determines that it is 1 46 economically and administratively feasible to conduct 1 47 the regular city election or a special city election 1 48 by mail. 1 49 2. After the resolution is approved, the county 1 50 commissioner shall prepare a written plan for conduct 2 1 of the election as provided in section 49B.5. At 2 2 least seventy-one days before the date set for the 2 3 election, the county commissioner shall forward a copy 2 4 of the written plan to the city council concerned. 2 5 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.5 WRITTEN PLAN FOR 2 6 CONDUCT OF ELECTION AMENDMENTS APPROVAL 2 7 PROCEDURE. 2 8 1. The county commissioner shall prepare a written 2 9 plan, including a timetable, for the conduct of a mail 2 10 ballot election and shall submit it to the state 2 11 commissioner of elections at least seventy-one days 2 12 before the date of the election. 2 13 2. The plan may be amended by the county 2 14 commissioner any time before the sixty-fourth day 2 15 before the date of the election by notifying the state 2 16 commissioner of elections in writing of any changes. 2 17 3. Within five days after receiving the plan, and 2 18 as soon as possible after receiving any amendments, 2 19 the state commissioner of elections shall approve, 2 20 disapprove, or recommend changes to the plan or 2 21 amendments. The final plan shall be approved and 2 22 available to the public at least two days before the 2 23 deadline for candidates to file nomination papers in 2 24 the office of the city clerk. 2 25 4. When the written plan has been approved, the 2 26 county commissioner shall proceed to conduct the 2 27 election according to the approved plan. 2 28 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.6 PUBLICATION OF 2 29 NOTICE. 2 30 The county commissioner shall, not more than ten 2 31 days and not less than four days before the date that 2 32 ballots are to be mailed, publish notice that a mail 2 33 ballot election will be conducted. The notice shall 2 34 be published in a newspaper of general circulation in 2 35 each city for which the mail ballot election will be 2 36 conducted. The notice shall include all of the 2 37 following information: 2 38 1. The date ballots will be mailed. 2 39 2. The last day that a voter can request an 2 40 absentee ballot. 2 41 3. Voter registration deadlines. 2 42 4. Location or locations where mail ballots can be 2 43 deposited pursuant to section 49B.13. 2 44 5. Instructions for obtaining a replacement ballot 2 45 if a voter's ballot is destroyed, spoiled, lost, or 2 46 not received pursuant to section 49B.9. 2 47 The county commissioner is not required to publish 2 48 a sample ballot. 2 49 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.7 MAILING BALLOTS. 2 50 1. Official ballots for a mail ballot election 3 1 shall be prepared and all other initial procedures for 3 2 elections shall be followed as otherwise provided by 3 3 law. 3 4 2. The county commissioner of elections shall mail 3 5 an official ballot to every registered voter of the 3 6 city conducting the election on a date not sooner than 3 7 the twentieth day before the date of the election and 3 8 not later than the tenth day before the date of the 3 9 election. An exception shall be made for those 3 10 ballots delivered as prescribed in section 49B.12. 3 11 3. All ballots shall be mailed by first class 3 12 mail. 3 13 4. Ballots mailed by the county commissioner shall 3 14 be addressed to the address of each voter appearing in 3 15 the registration records of the city, and placed in an 3 16 envelope which is prominently marked "Do Not Forward". 3 17 5. The ballot shall contain the following warning: 3 18 "Any person who, by use of violence, threats of 3 19 violence, or any means of duress, procures the vote of 3 20 a voter for or against any measure or candidate is 3 21 subject, upon conviction, to imprisonment or to a 3 22 fine, or both." 3 23 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.8 REGISTRATION. 3 24 The county commissioner shall not mail a ballot 3 25 under this chapter to any voter not registered thirty 3 26 days before the date of the election. Voters 3 27 registered less than thirty days before the date of 3 28 the election, but before the close of registration, 3 29 may apply for a ballot under section 49B.9. 3 30 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.9 REPLACEMENT 3 31 BALLOTS. 3 32 If the mail ballot is destroyed, spoiled, lost, or 3 33 not received by the voter, the voter may obtain a 3 34 replacement ballot from the county commissioner as 3 35 provided in this section. A voter seeking a 3 36 replacement ballot shall sign a statement, on a form 3 37 prescribed by the state commissioner, that the ballot 3 38 was destroyed, spoiled, lost, or not received. The 3 39 voter or the voter's designee shall deliver the 3 40 statement to the county commissioner before noon on 3 41 the date of the election. The voter may mail the 3 42 statement to the county commissioner. However, a 3 43 county commissioner shall not transmit a ballot by 3 44 mail under this section unless the statement is 3 45 received before five p.m. on the fourth day before the 3 46 date of the election. When a statement is timely 3 47 received under this section, the county commissioner 3 48 shall give the ballot to the voter if the voter is 3 49 present in the office of the county commissioner, or 3 50 promptly mail the ballot to the voter at the address 4 1 contained in the statement, except when prohibited by 4 2 this section. If the voter is present in the county 4 3 commissioner's office, the ballot shall be voted at 4 4 that time. The county commissioner shall keep a 4 5 record of each replacement ballot provided under this 4 6 section. If a voter, having received and voted a 4 7 replacement ballot as provided under this section, 4 8 later finds the lost ballot, the voter shall return 4 9 the lost ballot to the county commissioner. 4 10 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.10 VOTING AND RETURN 4 11 OF BALLOT. 4 12 1. A registered voter, upon receipt of a mail 4 13 ballot, shall mark the ballot in such a manner that no 4 14 other person will know how the ballot is marked and 4 15 shall place it in the secrecy envelope provided with 4 16 the ballot. 4 17 A voter who is blind, cannot read, or because of a 4 18 physical disability is unable to mark the ballot, may 4 19 be assisted by any person selected by the voter. 4 20 2. The voter shall place the secrecy envelope 4 21 containing the ballot in the return verification 4 22 envelope and sign and securely seal the return 4 23 verification envelope. The sealed return verification 4 24 envelope shall be returned to the county commissioner 4 25 by one of the following methods: 4 26 a. The sealed return verification envelope may be 4 27 delivered by the registered voter or the voter's 4 28 designee to the county commissioner's office or a 4 29 place designated by the commissioner no later than the 4 30 time the polls close on election day. 4 31 b. The sealed return verification envelope may be 4 32 mailed, postage paid, to the county commissioner. In 4 33 order for the ballot to be counted, the return 4 34 verification envelope must be clearly postmarked by an 4 35 officially authorized postal service not later than 4 36 the day before the election and received by the county 4 37 commissioner not later than the time established for 4 38 the canvass by the board of supervisors for that 4 39 election. The county commissioner shall contact the 4 40 post office serving the county commissioner's office 4 41 at the latest practical hour before the canvass by the 4 42 board of supervisors for that election, and shall 4 43 arrange for return verification envelopes received in 4 44 that post office but not yet delivered to the 4 45 commissioner's office to be brought to the 4 46 commissioner's office before the canvass for that 4 47 election by the board of supervisors. 4 48 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.11 ABSENTEE BALLOTS. 4 49 1. A registered voter who will be absent from the 4 50 city during the time when the ballots are mailed may 5 1 do either of the following: 5 2 a. Vote in person in the county commissioner's 5 3 office as soon as ballots are available and until noon 5 4 the day before the ballots are scheduled to be mailed. 5 5 b. Make a written request, signed by the voter and 5 6 addressed to the county commissioner, that the ballot 5 7 be mailed to an address other than that which appears 5 8 on the voter's registration record. Written requests 5 9 shall be accepted until noon the day before the 5 10 ballots are scheduled to be mailed. 5 11 2. Ballots mailed to voters pursuant to this 5 12 section shall be mailed the same day that all other 5 13 ballots are mailed. 5 14 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.12 BALLOTING BY 5 15 CONFINED PERSONS. 5 16 A person who is a resident or patient in a health 5 17 care facility or hospital located in the county in 5 18 which the election is to be held shall not be mailed a 5 19 ballot but shall have a ballot delivered in the manner 5 20 prescribed by section 53.22, subsection 1. 5 21 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.13 PERSONAL DELIVERY 5 22 OF MAIL BALLOT BALLOT DROPOFF STATIONS. 5 23 A ballot dropoff station for the deposit of mail 5 24 ballots may be established in the city conducting the 5 25 mail ballot election at the direction of the county 5 26 commissioner. A ballot dropoff station established at 5 27 the direction of the commissioner shall be open from 5 28 eight a.m. until five p.m. on the day of the election. 5 29 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.14 RECEIPT OF BALLOT 5 30 SIGNATURE VERIFICATION. 5 31 When a mail ballot is returned, the county 5 32 commissioner, or the county commissioner's designees, 5 33 shall first examine the return verification envelope 5 34 to determine whether it was submitted by a registered 5 35 voter who has not previously voted. A ballot shall be 5 36 counted only if it is returned in the return 5 37 verification envelope, the envelope is signed by the 5 38 voter to whom the ballot is issued, and the signature 5 39 has been verified as provided in this section. 5 40 The county commissioner or the county 5 41 commissioner's designees shall verify the signature of 5 42 each voter on the return verification envelope with 5 43 the signature in the voter's registration records and 5 44 may commence verification at any time before election 5 45 day. If a voter to whom a replacement ballot has been 5 46 issued under section 49B.9 returns more than one 5 47 ballot, only the replacement ballot shall be counted. 5 48 If the voter's signature is verified and the ballot 5 49 is otherwise valid, the county commissioner or the 5 50 county commissioner's designees shall deposit the 6 1 ballot unopened in an official ballot box. 6 2 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.15 PROCEDURE FOR 6 3 INVALID BALLOTS. 6 4 If the county commissioner is not convinced that 6 5 the individual who signed the return verification 6 6 envelope is the voter whose name appears on the 6 7 registration card, the county commissioner shall not 6 8 deposit the ballot in a ballot box but shall do all of 6 9 the following: 6 10 1. Give notice to the voter as follows: 6 11 a. As soon as possible after receipt of a voter's 6 12 ballot, give notice to the voter, either by telephone 6 13 or by first class mail, if the county commissioner is 6 14 unable to verify the voter's signature. 6 15 b. Inform the voter that the voter may appear in 6 16 person at the county commissioner's office before the 6 17 close of the polls on election day and verify the 6 18 signature. 6 19 2. Permit any voter appearing pursuant to 6 20 subsection 1, paragraph "b", to: 6 21 a. Verify the voter's signature, after proof of 6 22 identification, by affirming that the signature is in 6 23 fact the voter's or by completing a new registration 6 24 card containing the voter's current signature. 6 25 b. If necessary, request and receive a replacement 6 26 ballot and vote at that time. 6 27 3. If the discrepancy is not rectified to the 6 28 county commissioner's satisfaction, present the 6 29 unopened envelope and the registration card to the 6 30 special precinct election board for a determination. 6 31 If the election board is unable to resolve the issue 6 32 to its satisfaction, the ballot shall not be counted. 6 33 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.16 COUNTING BALLOTS. 6 34 Mail ballots shall be counted in the manner 6 35 prescribed by section 53.23 for absentee ballots. The 6 36 county commissioner shall supervise the procedures for 6 37 the handling, counting, and canvassing of ballots to 6 38 ensure the safety and confidentiality of all ballots. 6 39 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.17 CHALLENGES. 6 40 Votes cast pursuant to this chapter may be 6 41 challenged in the manner prescribed by section 53.31 6 42 for absentee ballots. 6 43 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.18 CANVASS OF VOTES. 6 44 The provisions of chapter 50 relating to canvass of 6 45 votes apply to this chapter only to the extent they do 6 46 not conflict with this chapter. 6 47 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.19 OTHER LAWS. 6 48 All laws which apply to elections apply to mail 6 49 ballot elections held under this chapter to the extent 6 50 applicable. 7 1 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.20 RULES. 7 2 The state commissioner of elections shall adopt 7 3 rules pursuant to chapter 17A to govern the procedures 7 4 and forms necessary to implement this chapter. The 7 5 authority of the state commissioner to adopt rules 7 6 under this chapter shall be liberally construed. 7 7 Sec. . NEW SECTION. 49B.21 MISCONDUCT 7 8 VIOLATIONS PENALTIES. 7 9 1. A person who, by use of violence, threats of 7 10 violence, or any means of duress, procures or 7 11 endeavors to procure the vote of a voter for or 7 12 against any measure or candidate commits an aggravated 7 13 misdemeanor. 7 14 2. A person who violates or attempts to violate 7 15 any provision or requirement of this chapter for which 7 16 a penalty is not otherwise provided commits a simple 7 17 misdemeanor. 7 18 Sec. . Section 39.3, Code 2001, is amended by 7 19 adding the following new subsection: 7 20 NEW SUBSECTION. 8A. "Mail ballot election" means 7 21 an election conducted pursuant to chapter 49B." 7 22 #2. Title page, line 8, by inserting after the 7 23 word "areas," the following: "allowing elections in 7 24 certain cities to be conducted by mail ballots and 7 25 providing penalties,". 7 26 #3. By renumbering as necessary. 7 27 7 28 7 29 7 30 WARNSTADT of Woodbury 7 31 HF 304.705 79 7 32 sc/cls
Text: H01252 Text: H01254 Text: H01200 - H01299 Text: H Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
© 2001 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa
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