Reference is to the bill as introduced.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking all after the enacting words and inserting:
/ SECTION 1. Section 7-15-385 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 416 of 1996, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-15-385.
Upon receipt of the ballot or ballots, the absentee ballot
applicant must shall mark each ballot on
which he wishes to vote and place each ballot in the single
envelope marked 'Ballot Herein', which in turn must be
placed in the return-addressed envelope. The applicant
must shall then return the
return-addressed envelope to the board of voter registration and
elections by mail, by personal delivery, or by authorizing
another person to return the envelope for him. The
authorization must be given in writing on a form prescribed by
the State Election Commission and must be turned in to the board
of voter registration and elections at the time the envelope is
returned. The voter must shall sign the
form, or in the event the voter cannot write because of a
physical handicap or illiteracy, the voter must
shall make his mark and have the mark witnessed by
someone designated by the voter. The authorization must be
preserved as part of the record of the election, and the board
of voter registration and elections must note the authorization
and the name of the authorized returnee in the record book
required by Section 7-15-330. A candidate or a member of a
candidate's paid campaign staff, including volunteers
reimbursed for time expended on campaign activity, is not
permitted to serve as an authorized returnee for
any a person unless the person is a
member of the voter's immediate family as defined in Section
7-15-310. The oath set forth in Section 7-15-380 must be signed
and witnessed on each returned envelope. The
board of voter registration and elections must
shall record in the record book required
by pursuant to Section 7-15-330 the date the
return-addressed envelope with witnessed oath
and enclosed ballot or ballots is received by the board. The
board must shall securely store the
envelopes in a locked box within the office of the board of
voter registration and elections."
SECTION 2. Section 7-15-220 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 43 of 2011, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-15-220.
(A) The oath, a copy
of which is required by Section 7-15-200(2) to be sent each
absentee ballot applicant and which is required by Section
7-15-230 to be returned with the absentee ballot applicant's
ballot, shall must be signed by the
absentee ballot applicant and witnessed. The
oath shall must be in the following
form:
'I hereby swear (or affirm) that I am duly
qualified to vote at this election according to the Constitution
of the State of South Carolina, that I have not voted during
this election, that the ballot or ballots with which this oath
is enclosed is my ballot and that I have received no assistance
in voting my ballot that I would not have been entitled to
receive had I voted in person at my voting precinct.'
____________________________________
Signature of Voter
Dated on this ______ day of ____________ 20 ___
____________________
Signature of Witness
____________________
Address of Witness
(B)
Qualified voters under the Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voters Act are exempt from witness
requirements in subsection (A)."
SECTION 3. Section 7-15-380 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 43 of 2011, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-15-380.
(A) The oath,
which that is required by Section 7-15-370 to be
imprinted on the return-addressed envelope,
furnished each absentee ballot applicant, must
be signed by the absentee ballot applicant and
witnessed. The address of the witness shall appear on the
oath. In the event the voter cannot write because of a
physical handicap or illiteracy, the voter must
shall make his mark and have the mark witnessed by
someone designated by the voter. The oath must be in the
following form:
'I hereby swear (or affirm) that I am duly
qualified to vote at this election according to the Constitution
of the State of South Carolina, that I have not voted during
this election, that the ballot or ballots contained in this
envelope is my ballot and that I have received no assistance in
voting my ballot that I would not have been entitled to receive
had I voted in person at my voting precinct.'
____________________________________
Signature of Voter
Dated on this ______ day of ____________, 20 ___
____________________
Signature of Witness
____________________
(B)
Qualified voters under the Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voters Act are exempt from witness
requirements in subsection (A)."
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.