Reference is to Printer's Date 2/26/14--H.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking all after the enacting words and inserting:
/ SECTION 1. Section 7-11-30 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-11-30.
(A) A party may choose to change
from nomination of candidates by primary to a method to
nominate candidates by convention for all offices
including, but not limited to, Governor, Lieutenant Governor,
United States Senator, United States House of Representatives,
Circuit Solicitor, State Senator, and members of the State House
of Representatives if:
(1)
there is a three-fourths vote of the total membership of
the convention to use the convention nomination process; and
(2)
a majority of voters in that party's next primary election
approve the use of the convention nomination process.
(B) A party may not
choose to nominate by party convention for an election cycle in
which the filing period for candidates has begun.
(C) A political party
nominating candidates by party convention shall nominate the
party candidates and make the nominations public not later than
the time for certifying candidates to the authority charged by
law with preparing ballots for the general or special
election."
SECTION 2. Section 7-3-20(C) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 265 of 2012, is further amended to read:
"(C) The executive
director shall:
(1)
supervise the conduct of county board of elections and
voter registration of whatever name or denomination, as
established pursuant to Article 1, Chapter 5, which administer
elections and voter registration in the State and ensure those
boards' compliance with the requirements of this article and any
applicable federal law by all persons involved in the elections
process;
(2)
conduct reviews, audits, or other postelection
analysis of county board of elections and voter registration of
whatever name or denomination, as established pursuant to
Article 1, Chapter 5, to ensure those boards' compliance with
the requirements of this article and any applicable federal law
by all persons involved in the elections process;
(3)
maintain a complete master file of all qualified
electors by county and by precincts;
(2)(4) delete
the name of any elector:
(a)
who is deceased;
(b)
who is no longer qualified to vote in the precinct where
currently registered;
(c)
who has been convicted of a disqualifying crime;
(d)
who is otherwise no longer qualified to vote as may be
provided by law; or
(e)
who requests in writing that his name be removed;
(3)(5) enter
names on the master file as they are reported by the county
registration boards;
(4)(6) furnish
each county registration board with a master list of all
registered voters in the county, together with a copy of all
registered voters in each precinct of the county, at least ten
days prior to each election. The precinct copies shall be used
as the official list of voters;
(5)(7)
maintain all information furnished his office relating to
the inclusion or deletion of names from the master file for four
years;
(6)(8)
purchase, lease, or contract for the use of such equipment
as may be necessary to properly execute the duties of his
office, subject to the approval of the State Election
Commission;
(7)(9) secure
from the United States courts and federal and state agencies
available information as to persons convicted of disqualifying
crimes;
(8)(10) obtain
information from any other source which may assist him in
carrying out the purposes of this section;
(9)(11)
perform such other duties relating to elections as may be
assigned him by the State Election Commission;
(10)(12)
furnish at reasonable price any precinct lists to a
qualified elector requesting them;
(11)(13) serve
as the chief state election official responsible for
implementing and coordinating the state's responsibilities under
the National Voter Registration Act of 1993;
(12)(14) serve
as the chief state election official responsible for
implementing and enforcing the state's responsibilities under
the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act
(UOCAVA), as set forth in the U.S.C., Title 42, Section 1973ff,
et seq; and
(13)(15)
establish and maintain a statewide voter registration
database that shall be administered by the commission and made
continuously available to each board of elections and to other
agencies as authorized by law."
SECTION 3. A. Section 7-5-10 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 100 of 2007, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-5-10.
(A)(1) A county government
by ordinance may elect to combine its board of registration and
election commission. those counties electing to so, between
the first day of January and the fifteenth day of March in each
even-numbered year the Governor shall appoint, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate upon the
recommendation of a majority of the weighted vote of the Senate
legislative delegation and a majority of the weighted vote of
the House of Representatives legislative delegation of the
counties, not less than three five
nor more than five nine competent and
discreet persons in each county, who are qualified electors of
that county and who must be known as the 'Board of Voter
Registration and Elections of ____________ County'.
At least one appointee on the board must be a member of the
majority political party represented in the General Assembly and
at least one appointee must be a member of the largest minority
political party represented in the General Assembly.
(2)
After their appointment, the board members shall
take and subscribe, before any officer authorized to administer
oaths, the following oath of office prescribed by Section 26,
Article III of the Constitution of this State: 'I do solemnly
swear (or affirm) that I am duly qualified, according to the
Constitution of this State, to exercise the duties of the office
to which I have been appointed, and that I will, to the best of
my ability, discharge the duties thereof, and preserve, protect,
and defend the Constitution of this State and of the United
States. So help me God.'
(3)
The oath must be filed immediately in the office
of the clerk of court of common pleas of the county in which the
commissioners are appointed, or if there is no clerk of court,
in the Office of the Secretary of State.
(4)
The Governor shall notify the State Election
Commission in writing of the appointments. The members
appointed are subject to removal by the Governor for incapacity,
misconduct, or neglect of duty.
(B)(1) The
Governor shall appoint the initial appointees within six months
of the effective date of this section. Four of the initial
appointees shall serve two-year terms, and the remaining initial
appointees shall serve four-year terms. Upon expiration of the
terms of those members initially appointed, the term of office
for the members of the board is four years, and until their
successors are appointed and qualify. Members may succeed
themselves.
(2)
A member must be present at a meeting in order
to vote.
(3)
If a member misses three consecutive meetings of
the board, the chairman or his designee immediately shall notify
the Governor who shall then remove the member from office.
(4)
In case of a vacancy on the board, the vacancy
must be filled in the same manner as an original appointment, as
provided in this section, for the unexpired term.
(5)
The board shall elect from among its members a
chairman and such other officers as it may consider desirable.
The board shall then notify the State Election Commission in
writing of the name of the persons elected as chairman and
officers of the board. Each officer shall be elected for a term
of two years.
(6)
The board may hire a director. The director is
responsible for hiring and managing the staff. Staff positions
are subject to the personnel system policies and procedures by
which all county employees are regulated, except that the
director serves at the pleasure of the board.
(7)
Members of the board and its staff shall receive
compensation as may be appropriated by the governing body of the
county.
(C) The
previous offices of county election commissions and voter
registration boards, or combined boards are abolished. The
powers and duties of the county commissions and boards of
election and voter registration are devolved upon the board of
voter registration and elections for each county created in
subsection (A). Those members currently serving on the county
boards of election, voter registration commissions, or combined
boards shall continue to serve in a combined governing capacity
until the successor board members established pursuant to this
section are appointed and qualify.
(B)(D)(1)
Each member, and each staff person
designated by the board, must complete, within eighteen months
after a member's initial appointment or his reappointment
following a break in service, or within eighteen months after a
staff person's initial employment or reemployment following a
break in service, a training and certification program conducted
by the State Election Commission. When a member or staff person
has successfully completed the training and certification
program, the State Election Commission must
shall issue the member or staff person a certification,
whether or not the member or staff person applies for the
certification.
(2)(a) The
provisions of this section do not exempt any member or staff
person from completing the training and certification program
required in item (1).
(b) Any
member appointed or reappointed after a break in service prior
to the effective date of this section or any staff person
employed or reemployed after a break in service prior to the
effective date of this section must successfully complete a
training and certification program by the latter of:
(i) eighteen
months after the member's appointment or reappointment after a
break in service or the staff person's employment or
reemployment after a break in service; or
(ii) ninety
days after the effective date of this section.
(c) On and
after the effective date of this section, any member appointed
or reappointed after a break in service or any staff person
employed or reemployed after a break in service must complete
the training and certification program required in item (1)
within eighteen months after the member's appointment or
reappointment after a break in service or staff person's
employment or reemployment after a break in service.
(3)(2) If a
member does not fulfill the training and certification program
as provided in this section, the Governor, upon notification,
must shall remove that member from the
board unless the Governor grants the member an extension to
complete the training and certification program based upon
exceptional circumstances.
(4)(3)
Following completion of the training and certification
program required in item (1), each board member, and each staff
person designated by the board or commission, must take at least
one training course each year."
B. Section 7-5-20 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-5-20. The board of voter registration and elections of each county may appoint deputy members of the board, in numbers as may be necessary, whose terms shall be for a period of time as determined by the boards. The deputy members shall have the same powers and duties as regular members of the board. The clerk to each board may be made a deputy member of the board for the purpose of taking applications."
C. Section 7-5-30 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-5-30.
Such boards shall register and conduct the registration of
the electors who shall apply for registration in their
respective counties as herein required. Their office shall be
at the county seat, and they shall keep a record of all their
official acts and proceedings. Provided, that nothing herein
shall be construed as prohibiting the boards of registration
from taking their registration books across adjoining county
lines to register qualified electors of their respective county
whose regular place of employment is in an adjoining county or
who are otherwise unable to get to the county seat during office
hours to register. One member of the board shall constitute a
quorum for the purpose of registering or refusing to register
applications for registration. Their term of office
shall be for two years from the date of their appointment, and
they shall continue in office until their successors shall have
been appointed and shall qualify. In case of a vacancy from any
cause in any board of registration the Governor shall fill such
vacancy in the same manner as provided in Section
7-5-10."
SECTION 4. Chapter 3, Title 7 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 7-3-25.
The administrative functions of any county board of
elections and voter registration of whatever name or
denomination, as established pursuant to Article 1, Chapter 5
may be devolved upon the State Election Commission for such time
as necessary to remedy any noncompliance with applicable state
or federal law or Election Commission policy with regard to the
conduct of elections or the voter registration process if:
(1) the results of a
postelection analysis conducted pursuant to Section 7-3-20(C)(2)
demonstrates that a county board of elections and voter
registration of whatever name or denomination, as established
pursuant to Article 1, Chapter 5, has failed to comply with
applicable state or federal law or Election Commission policy
with regard to the conduct of elections or the voter
registration process; or
(2) if a county board
of elections and voter registration of whatever name or
denomination, as established pursuant to Article 1, Chapter 5
does not or cannot determine and certify the results of an
election or referendum of which it is responsible for
determining and certifying the results within forty-eight hours
after the polls in that election or referendum have closed.
(3) Following the
completion of no less than one statewide general election and
subsequent audit by the State Election Commission, county board
of elections and voter registration of whatever name or
denomination, as established pursuant to Article 1, Chapter 5
may petition the State Election Commission to return
administrative function that were devolved to the State Election
Commission pursuant to this section. The State Election
Commission must return those functions to the county board
unless good cause is shown that the county board has failed to
remedy the violation or omission that caused the administrative
powers to be devolved to the State Election Commission. Any
decision of the State Election Commission pursuant to this
section may be appealed directly to the State Supreme
Court."
SECTION 5. Section 7-5-35, Section 7-13-70, and Chapter 27, Title 7 of the 1976 Code are repealed.
SECTION 6. The code commissioner is directed to change all references in Title 7 to county election commissions or commissioners or county boards of voter registration to the "Board of Voter Registration and Elections of County" and board members as appropriate.
SECTION 7. This act takes effect upon signature of the Governor. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.