Text: S03161                            Text: S03163
Text: S03100 - S03199                   Text: S Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index



Senate Amendment 3162

Amendment Text

PAG LIN
  1  1    Amend House File 593, as amended, passed, and
  1  2 reprinted by the House, as follows:
  1  3    #1.  Page 6, by inserting after line 27 the
  1  4 following:
  1  5    "Sec.    .  Section 53.2, unnumbered paragraph 4,
  1  6 Code 2003, is amended to read as follows:
  1  7    Each application shall contain the name and
  1  8 signature of the registered voter, the address at
  1  9 which the voter is registered to vote, and the name or
  1 10 date of the election for which the absentee ballot is
  1 11 requested, and such other information as may be
  1 12 necessary to determine the correct absentee ballot for
  1 13 the registered voter.  If insufficient information has
  1 14 been provided, the commissioner shall, by the best
  1 15 means available, obtain the additional necessary
  1 16 information.  The form prescribed by the state
  1 17 commissioner shall include a space for the applicant
  1 18 to indicate that the applicant is elderly and
  1 19 homebound or disabled and homebound.  If the applicant
  1 20 makes such indication on an application, the applicant
  1 21 shall be treated as if the applicant were a patient of
  1 22 a hospital or resident or tenant of a facility under
  1 23 section 53.22.
  1 24    Sec.    .  Section 53.8, subsection 2, Code 2003,
  1 25 is amended to read as follows:
  1 26    2.  If an application is received so late that it
  1 27 is unlikely that the absentee ballot can be returned
  1 28 in time to be counted on election day, the
  1 29 commissioner shall enclose with the absentee ballot a
  1 30 statement to that effect.  The statement shall also
  1 31 point out that it is possible for the applicant or the
  1 32 applicant's designee, if the absentee ballot is voted
  1 33 by a voter described in section 53.22, subsection 5,
  1 34 to personally deliver the completed absentee ballot to
  1 35 the office of the commissioner at any time before the
  1 36 closing of the polls on election day.
  1 37    Sec.    .  Section 53.8, subsection 3, Code 2003,
  1 38 is amended to read as follows:
  1 39    3.  When an application for an absentee ballot is
  1 40 received by the commissioner of any county from a
  1 41 registered voter who is a patient in a hospital in
  1 42 that county or a resident or tenant of any facility in
  1 43 that county shown to be a health care facility by the
  1 44 list of licenses provided the commissioner under
  1 45 section sections 135C.29 and 231.25, the absentee
  1 46 ballot shall be delivered to the voter and returned to
  1 47 the commissioner in the manner prescribed by section
  1 48 53.22.  However, if the application is received more
  1 49 than ten calendar days before the election and the
  1 50 commissioner has not elected to mail absentee ballots
  2  1 to the applicant as provided under section 53.22,
  2  2 subsection 3, the commissioner shall mail to the
  2  3 applicant within twenty-four hours a letter in
  2  4 substantially the following form:
  2  5    Your application for an absentee ballot for the
  2  6 election to be held on ...... has been received. This
  2  7 ballot will be personally delivered to you by a
  2  8 bipartisan team sometime during the ten days preceding
  2  9 the election.  If you will not be at the address from
  2 10 which your application was sent during any or all of
  2 11 the ten-day period immediately preceding the election,
  2 12 contact this office and arrangements will be made to
  2 13 have your absentee ballot delivered at a time when you
  2 14 will be present at that address.
  2 15    Nothing in this subsection nor in section 53.22
  2 16 shall be construed to prohibit a registered voter who
  2 17 is a hospital patient or a resident or tenant of a
  2 18 health care facility, or who anticipates entering a
  2 19 hospital or health care facility before the date of a
  2 20 forthcoming election, from casting an absentee ballot
  2 21 in the manner prescribed by section 53.11.
  2 22    Sec.    .  Section 53.17, subsection 1, Code 2003,
  2 23 is amended to read as follows:
  2 24    1.  The sealed carrier envelope may be delivered by
  2 25 the registered voter, or the voter's designee if the
  2 26 absentee ballot is voted by a voter described in
  2 27 section 53.22, subsection 5, to the commissioner's
  2 28 office no later than the time the polls are closed on
  2 29 election day.
  2 30    Sec.    .  Section 53.22, Code 2003, is amended to
  2 31 read as follows:
  2 32    53.22  BALLOTING BY CONFINED PERSONS.
  2 33    1.  a.  A registered voter who has applied for an
  2 34 absentee ballot, in a manner other than that
  2 35 prescribed by section 53.11, and who is a resident,
  2 36 tenant, or patient in a health care facility or
  2 37 hospital located in the county to which the
  2 38 application has been submitted shall be delivered the
  2 39 appropriate absentee ballot by two special precinct
  2 40 election officers, one of whom shall be a member of
  2 41 each of the political parties referred to in section
  2 42 49.13, who shall be appointed by the commissioner from
  2 43 the election board panel for the special precinct
  2 44 established by section 53.20.  The special precinct
  2 45 election officers shall be sworn in the manner
  2 46 provided by section 49.75 for election board members,
  2 47 shall receive compensation as provided in section
  2 48 49.20 and shall perform their duties during the ten
  2 49 calendar days preceding the election and on election
  2 50 day if all ballots requested under section 53.8,
  3  1 subsection 3 have not previously been delivered and
  3  2 returned.
  3  3    If materials are prepared for the two special
  3  4 precinct election officials, a list shall be made of
  3  5 all voters to whom ballots are to be delivered.  The
  3  6 list shall be sent with the officials who deliver the
  3  7 ballots and shall include spaces to indicate whether
  3  8 the person was present at the hospital or health care
  3  9 facility when the officials arrived, whether the
  3 10 person requested assistance from the officials,
  3 11 whether the person was assisted by another person of
  3 12 the voter's choice, the time that the ballot was
  3 13 returned to the officials, and any other notes the
  3 14 officials deem necessary.
  3 15    The officials shall also be issued a supply of
  3 16 extra ballots to replace spoiled ballots.  Receipts
  3 17 shall be issued in substantially the same form as
  3 18 receipts issued to precinct election officials
  3 19 pursuant to section 49.65.  All ballots shall be
  3 20 accounted for and shall be returned to the
  3 21 commissioner.  Separate envelopes shall be provided
  3 22 for the return of spoiled ballots and unused ballots.
  3 23    b.  If an applicant under this subsection notifies
  3 24 the commissioner that the applicant will not be
  3 25 available at the health care facility or hospital
  3 26 address at any time during the ten-day period
  3 27 immediately prior to the election, but will be
  3 28 available there at some earlier time, the commissioner
  3 29 shall direct the two special precinct election
  3 30 officers to deliver the applicant's ballot at an
  3 31 appropriate time prior to the ten-day period
  3 32 immediately preceding the election.  If a person who
  3 33 so requested an absentee ballot has been dismissed
  3 34 from the health care facility or hospital, the special
  3 35 precinct election officers may take the ballot to the
  3 36 voter if the voter is currently residing in the
  3 37 county.
  3 38    c.  The special precinct election officers shall
  3 39 travel together in the same vehicle and both shall be
  3 40 present when an applicant casts an absentee ballot.
  3 41 If either or both of the special precinct election
  3 42 officers fail to appear at the time the duties set
  3 43 forth in this section are to be performed, the
  3 44 commissioner shall at once appoint some other person,
  3 45 giving preference to persons designated by the
  3 46 respective county chairpersons of the political
  3 47 parties described in section 49.13, to carry out the
  3 48 requirements of this section.  The persons authorized
  3 49 by this subsection to deliver an absentee ballot to an
  3 50 applicant, if requested, may assist the applicant in
  4  1 filling out the ballot as permitted by section 49.90.
  4  2 After the voter has securely sealed the marked ballot
  4  3 in the envelope provided and has subscribed to the
  4  4 oath, the voted absentee ballots shall be deposited in
  4  5 a sealed container which shall be returned to the
  4  6 commissioner on the same day the ballots are voted.
  4  7 On election day the officers shall return the sealed
  4  8 container by the time the polls are closed.
  4  9    2.  Any registered voter who becomes a patient or
  4 10 resident or tenant of a hospital or health care
  4 11 facility in the county where the voter is registered
  4 12 to vote within three days prior to the date of any
  4 13 election or on election day may request an absentee
  4 14 ballot during that period or on election day.  As an
  4 15 alternative to the application procedure prescribed by
  4 16 section 53.2, the registered voter may make the
  4 17 request directly to the officers who are delivering
  4 18 and returning absentee ballots under this section.
  4 19 Alternatively, the request may be made by telephone to
  4 20 the office of the commissioner not later than four
  4 21 hours before the close of the polls.  If the requester
  4 22 is found to be a registered voter of that county,
  4 23 these officers shall deliver the appropriate absentee
  4 24 ballot to the registered voter in the manner
  4 25 prescribed by this section.
  4 26    3.  For any election except a primary or general
  4 27 election or a special election to fill a vacancy under
  4 28 section 69.14, the commissioner may, as an alternative
  4 29 to subsection 1, mail an absentee ballot to an
  4 30 applicant under this section to be voted and returned
  4 31 to the commissioner in accordance with this chapter.
  4 32 This subsection only applies to applications for
  4 33 absentee ballots from a single health care facility or
  4 34 hospital if there are no more than two applications
  4 35 from that facility or hospital.
  4 36    4.  The commissioner shall mail an absentee ballot
  4 37 to a registered voter who has applied for an absentee
  4 38 ballot and who is a patient or resident or tenant of a
  4 39 hospital or health care facility outside the county in
  4 40 which the voter is registered to vote.
  4 41    5.  If the registered voter becomes a patient or
  4 42 resident or tenant of a hospital or health care
  4 43 facility outside the county where the voter is
  4 44 registered to vote within three days before the date
  4 45 of any election or on election day, the voter may
  4 46 designate a person to deliver and return the absentee
  4 47 ballot.  The designee may be any person the voter
  4 48 chooses except that no candidate for any office to be
  4 49 voted upon for the election for which the ballot is
  4 50 requested may deliver a ballot under this subsection.
  5  1 The request for an absentee ballot may be made by
  5  2 telephone to the office of the commissioner not later
  5  3 than four hours before the close of the polls.  If the
  5  4 requester is found to be a registered voter of that
  5  5 county, the ballot shall be delivered by mail or by
  5  6 the person designated by the voter.  An application
  5  7 form shall be included with the absentee ballot and
  5  8 shall be signed by the voter and returned with the
  5  9 ballot.
  5 10    Absentee ballots voted under this subsection shall
  5 11 be delivered to the commissioner no later than the
  5 12 time the polls are closed on election day.  If the
  5 13 ballot is returned by mail the carrier envelope must
  5 14 be received by the time the polls close, or clearly
  5 15 postmarked by an officially authorized postal service
  5 16 not later than the day before the election and
  5 17 received by the commissioner no later than the time
  5 18 established for the canvass by the board of
  5 19 supervisors for that election.
  5 20    6.  For purposes of this section, "facility" means
  5 21 a health care facility as defined in section 135C.1,
  5 22 subsection 6, and an assisted living program certified
  5 23 pursuant to chapter 231C.
  5 24    Sec.    .  Section 53.23, subsection 3, unnumbered
  5 25 paragraph 1, Code 2003, is amended to read as follows:
  5 26    The commissioner shall set the convening time for
  5 27 the board, allowing a reasonable amount of time to
  5 28 complete counting all absentee ballots by ten p.m. on
  5 29 election day.  The commissioner may direct the board
  5 30 to meet on the day Wednesday before the election
  5 31 solely for the purpose of reviewing the absentee
  5 32 voters' affidavits appearing on the sealed ballot
  5 33 envelopes.  If in the commissioner's judgment this
  5 34 procedure is necessary due to the number of absentee
  5 35 ballots received, the members of the board may open
  5 36 the sealed ballot envelopes and remove the secrecy
  5 37 envelope containing the ballot, but under no
  5 38 circumstances shall a secrecy envelope be opened
  5 39 before the board convenes on election day.  If the
  5 40 ballot envelopes are opened before election day, two
  5 41 observers, one appointed by each of the two political
  5 42 parties referred to in section 49.13, subsection 2,
  5 43 shall witness the proceedings.
  5 44    Sec.    .  NEW SECTION.  231.25  LICENSE LIST TO
  5 45 COUNTY COMMISSIONER OF ELECTIONS.
  5 46    To facilitate the implementation of section 53.8,
  5 47 subsection 3, and section 53.22, the director shall
  5 48 provide to each county commissioner of elections at
  5 49 least annually a list of each licensed assisted living
  5 50 program in that county.  The list shall include the
  6  1 street address or location, and the mailing address if
  6  2 it is other than the street address or location, of
  6  3 each program."
  6  4    #2.  Title page, line 13, by inserting after the
  6  5 word "elections," the following:  "relating to
  6  6 absentee voting by certain confined persons, relating
  6  7 to delivery of certain completed absentee ballots to
  6  8 the county commissioner of elections,".
  6  9    #3.  By renumbering, relettering, or redesignating
  6 10 and correcting internal references as necessary.  
  6 11 
  6 12 
  6 13                               
  6 14 COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT
  6 15 MARK ZIEMAN, CHAIRPERSON
  6 16 HF 593.302 80
  6 17 sc/cf
     

Text: S03161                            Text: S03163
Text: S03100 - S03199                   Text: S Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

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