HF 2096 (LSB 5200YH (5) 89)

HOUSE FILE 2096

BY  SALMON

A BILL FOR

An Act establishing a voting machine task force.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  VOTING MACHINE TASK FORCE AND REPORT.
   1.  The secretary of state shall establish a voting machine task force. The task force shall consist of the secretary of state and an expert in internet technology from the office of the secretary of state, as well as the following members appointed by the majority and minority leaders of each house of the general assembly:
   a.  An expert in internet technology from the office of the chief information officer.
   b.  A county auditor from an urban county.
   c.  A county auditor from a moderately sized county.
   d.  A county auditor from a rural county.
   e.  Three interested voters, one of whom shall be a registered republican, one of whom shall be a registered democrat, and one of whom shall not be a registered member of either party.
   2.  The secretary of state shall provide staffing services for the task force.
   3.  The task force shall do all of the following:
   a.  Determine what capabilities voting machines should have in order to produce an accurate, reliable, efficient, and accountable result, provided that such voting machines shall not be capable of connecting to the internet and shall use analog rather than digital processes.
   b.  Identify a manufacturer or vendor for voting machines meeting the requirements of paragraph “a”.
   c.  Estimate the costs of converting all voting systems in Iowa to use the voting machines identified in paragraph “a”.
   d.  Identify such steps as are necessary to convert all voting systems in Iowa to those identified in paragraph “a”.
   e.  Make other relevant recommendations to the general assembly.
   4.  The task force shall not recommend the usage of electronic voting systems.
   5.  The task force shall issue a report regarding its progress and findings to date to the governor and the general assembly no later than December 1, 2022, and as directed by the general assembly thereafter.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill requires the secretary of state to establish a task force to determine what capabilities voting machines should have in order to produce an accurate, reliable, efficient, and accountable result, provided that such voting machines shall not be capable of connecting to the internet and shall use analog rather than digital processes. The task force shall also identify a manufacturer for such machines, estimate the costs of converting to the use of such machines, identify such steps as are necessary to convert to the use of such machines, and make other relevant recommendations to the general assembly. The task force shall not recommend the use of electronic voting systems. The bill sets requirements for the membership of the task force. The task force shall issue a report regarding its progress and findings to date to the governor and the general assembly by December 1, 2022, and as directed by the general assembly thereafter.