H.B. 378 Enrolled

1

ELECTION REVISIONS
2 2013 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Chief Sponsor: Craig Hall
5 Senate Sponsor: Wayne A. Harper
6
7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill modifies the Election Code by amending provisional ballot provisions.
10 Highlighted Provisions:
11 This bill:
12 . amends provisions for a poll worker to provide a provisional ballot to a voter who
13 may not live in the voting precinct but is a resident of the county;
14 . amends standards for counting votes on a ballot to provide for a voter using a ballot
15 that is prepared for a different voting precinct;
16 . amends provisions that determine when a provisional ballot cast outside of the
17 person's precinct of residence is counted by:
18 . removing the provision that the provisional ballot is counted only if the entire
19 ballot is identical to the person's precinct of residence; and
20 . providing that specific votes on a provisional ballot that are for candidate races
21 or ballot propositions for which the voter is entitled to vote are counted;
22 . amends provisions allowing a voter to have a provisional ballot used as a voter
23 registration form in the voter's county of residence; and
24 . makes technical changes.
25 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
26 None
27 Other Special Clauses:
28 None
29 Utah Code Sections Affected:

30 AMENDS:
31 20A-3-105.5, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2010, Chapter 83
32 20A-4-105, as last amended by Laws of Utah 1999, Chapter 56
33 20A-4-107, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2011, Chapters 291, 335 and last
34 amended by Coordination Clause, Laws of Utah 2011, Chapter 291
35
36 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
37 Section 1. Section 20A-3-105.5 is amended to read:
38 20A-3-105.5. Manner of voting -- Provisional ballot.
39 (1) The poll workers shall follow the procedures and requirements of this section
40 when:
41 (a) the person's right to vote is challenged as provided in Section 20A-3-202 or
42 20A-3-202.5 ;
43 (b) the person's name is not found on the official register; or
44 (c) the poll worker is not satisfied that the voter has provided valid voter identification.
45 (2) When faced with one of the circumstances outlined in Subsection (1)(a) or (b), the
46 poll worker shall:
47 (a) request that the person provide valid voter identification; and
48 (b) review the identification provided by the person.
49 (3) If the poll worker is satisfied that the person has provided valid voter identification
50 that establishes the person's identity and residence in the voting precinct or within the county:
51 (a) the poll worker in charge of the official register shall:
52 (i) record in the official register the type of identification that established the person's
53 identity and place of residence;
54 (ii) write the provisional ballot envelope number opposite the name of the voter in the
55 official register; and
56 (iii) direct the voter to sign his name in the election column in the official register;
57 (b) another poll worker shall list the ballot number and voter's name in the pollbook;

58 and
59 (c) the poll worker having charge of the ballots shall:
60 (i) endorse his initials on the stub;
61 (ii) check the name of the voter on the pollbook list with the number of the stub;
62 (iii) give the voter a ballot and a provisional ballot envelope; and
63 (iv) allow the voter to enter the voting booth.
64 (4) If the poll worker is not satisfied that the voter has provided valid voter
65 identification that establishes the person's identity and residence in the voting precinct or
66 within the county:
67 (a) the poll worker in charge of the official register shall:
68 (i) record in the official register that the voter did not provide valid voter identification;
69 (ii) record in the official register the type of identification that was provided by the
70 voter, if any;
71 (iii) write the provisional ballot envelope number opposite the name of the voter in the
72 official register; and
73 (iv) direct the voter to sign his name in the election column in the official register;
74 (b) another poll worker shall list the ballot number and voter's name in the pollbook;
75 and
76 (c) the poll worker having charge of the ballots shall:
77 (i) endorse his initials on the stub;
78 (ii) check the name of the voter on the pollbook list with the number of the stub;
79 (iii) give the voter a ballot and a provisional ballot envelope; and
80 (iv) allow the voter to enter the voting booth.
81 (5) Whenever the election officer is required to furnish more than one kind of official
82 ballot to a voting precinct, the poll workers of that voting precinct shall give the registered
83 voter the kind of ballot that the voter is qualified to vote.
84 Section 2. Section 20A-4-105 is amended to read:
85 20A-4-105. Standards and requirements for evaluating voter's ballot choices.

86 (1) Each person counting ballots shall apply the standards and requirements of this
87 section to resolve any questions that arise as ballots are counted.
88 (2) Except as provided in Subsection (11), if a voter marks more names than there are
89 persons to be elected to an office, or if for any reason it is impossible to determine the choice
90 of any voter for any office to be filled, the counter may not count that voter's ballot for that
91 office.
92 (3) The counter shall count a defective or incomplete mark on any paper ballot if:
93 (a) it is in the proper place; and
94 (b) there is no other mark or cross on the paper ballot indicating the voter's intent to
95 vote other than as indicated by the defective mark.
96 (4) (a) When the voter has marked the ballot so that it appears that the voter has voted
97 more than one straight ticket, the election judges may not count any votes for party candidates.
98 (b) The election judges shall count the remainder of the ballot if it is voted correctly.
99 (5) A counter may not reject a ballot marked by the voter because of marks on the
100 ballot other than those marks allowed by this section unless the extraneous marks on a ballot or
101 group of ballots show an intent by a person or group to mark their ballots so that their ballots
102 can be identified.
103 (6) (a) In counting the ballots, the counters shall give full consideration to the intent of
104 the voter.
105 (b) The counters may not invalidate a ballot because of mechanical and technical
106 defects in voting or failure on the part of the voter to follow strictly the rules for balloting
107 required by Chapter 3.
108 (7) The counters may not reject a ballot because of any error in:
109 (a) stamping or writing any official endorsement; or
110 (b) delivering the wrong ballots to any polling place.
111 (8) The counter may not count any paper ballot that does not have the official
112 endorsement by an election officer.
113 (9) The counter may not count any ballot proposition vote or candidate vote for which

114 the voter is not "legally entitled to vote" as used in Section 20A-4-107 .
115 [(9)] (10) If the counter discovers that the name of a candidate voted for is misspelled
116 or that the initial letters of a candidate's given name are transposed or omitted in part or
117 altogether, the counter shall count the voter's vote for that candidate if it is apparent that the
118 voter intended to vote for that candidate.
119 [(10)] (11) The counter shall count a vote for the president and the vice president of
120 any political party as a vote for the presidential electors selected by the political party.
121 [(11)] (12) In counting the valid write-in votes, if, by casting a valid write-in vote, a
122 voter has cast more votes for an office than that voter is entitled to vote for that office, the
123 judges shall count the valid write-in vote as being the obvious intent of the voter.
124 Section 3. Section 20A-4-107 is amended to read:
125 20A-4-107. Review and disposition of provisional ballot envelopes.
126 (1) As used in this section, a person is "legally entitled to vote" if:
127 (a) the person:
128 (i) is registered to vote in the state;
129 (ii) votes the ballot for the voting precinct in which the person resides; and
130 (iii) provided valid voter identification to the poll worker;
131 (b) the person:
132 (i) is registered to vote in the state;
133 (ii) (A) provided valid voter identification to the poll worker; or
134 (B) either failed to provide valid voter identification or the documents provided as
135 valid voter identification were inadequate and the poll worker recorded that fact in the official
136 register but the county clerk verifies the person's identity and residence through some other
137 means; and
138 (iii) did not vote in the person's precinct of residence, but the ballot that the person
139 voted [is identical to] was from the person's county of residence and includes one or more
140 candidates or ballot propositions on the ballot voted in the person's precinct of residence; or
141 (c) the person:

142 (i) is registered to vote in the state;
143 (ii) either failed to provide valid voter identification or the documents provided as
144 valid voter identification were inadequate and the poll worker recorded that fact in the official
145 register; and
146 (iii) (A) the county clerk verifies the person's identity and residence through some other
147 means as reliable as photo identification; or
148 (B) the person provides valid voter identification to the county clerk or an election
149 officer who is administering the election by the close of normal office hours on Monday after
150 the date of the election.
151 (2) (a) Upon receipt of provisional ballot envelopes, the election officer shall review
152 the affirmation on the face of each provisional ballot envelope and determine if the person
153 signing the affirmation is:
154 (i) registered to vote in this state; and
155 (ii) legally entitled to vote:
156 (A) the ballot that the person voted[.]; or
157 (B) if the ballot is from the person's county of residence, for at least one ballot
158 proposition or candidate on the ballot that the person voted.
159 (b) If the election officer determines that the person is not registered to vote in this
160 state or is not legally entitled to vote in the county or for any of the ballot propositions or
161 candidates on the ballot that the person voted, the election officer shall retain the ballot
162 envelope, unopened, for the period specified in Section 20A-4-202 unless ordered by a court to
163 produce or count it.
164 (c) If the election officer determines that the person is registered to vote in this state
165 and is legally entitled to vote in the county and for at least one of the ballot propositions or
166 candidates on the ballot that the person voted, the election officer shall remove the ballot from
167 the provisional ballot envelope and place the ballot with the absentee ballots to be counted with
168 those ballots at the canvass.
169 (d) The election officer may not count, or allow to be counted a provisional ballot

170 unless the person's identity and residence is established by a preponderance of the evidence.
171 (3) If the election officer determines that the person is registered to vote in this state,
172 the election officer shall ensure that the voter registration records are updated to reflect the
173 information provided on the provisional ballot envelope.
174 (4) If the election officer determines that the person is not registered to vote in this
175 state and the information on the provisional ballot envelope is complete, the election officer
176 shall:
177 (a) consider the provisional ballot envelope a voter registration form for the person's
178 county of residence; and
179 (b) (i) register the person[.] if the voter's county of residence is within the county; or
180 (ii) forward the voter registration form to the election officer of the person's county of
181 residence, which election officer shall register the person.

[Bill Documents]