Current Status Bill Number:1101 Ratification Number:530 Act Number:465 Type of Legislation:General Bill GB Introducing Body:Senate Introduced Date:19960206 Primary Sponsor:Holland All Sponsors:Holland Drafted Document Number:jud6063.dhh Date Bill Passed both Bodies:19960613 Date of Last Amendment:19960613 Governor's Action:S Date of Governor's Action:19960821 Subject:Election officers, training and certification program
Body Date Action Description Com Leg Involved
______ ________ _______________________________________ _______ ____________
------ 19960830 Act No. A465
------ 19960821 Signed by Governor
------ 19960626 Ratified R530
House 19960613 Ordered enrolled for ratification
Senate 19960613 Conference Committee Report adopted 88 SCC
House 19960612 Conference Committee Report adopted 98 HCC
House 19960425 Conference powers granted, 98 HCC Cromer
appointed Reps. to Committee of Hutson
Conference Fleming
Senate 19960424 Conference powers granted, 88 SCC Holland
appointed Senators to Committee McConnell
of Conference Matthews
Senate 19960424 Insists upon amendment
House 19960417 Non-concurrence in Senate amendment
Senate 19960410 House amendments amended,
returned to House with amendment
House 19960404 Read third time, returned to Senate
with amendment
House 19960403 Unanimous consent for third
reading on the next Legislative day
House 19960403 Amended, read second time
House 19960402 Debate adjourned until
Wednesday, 19960403
House 19960328 Debate adjourned until
Tuesday, 19960402
House 19960327 Debate adjourned until
Thursday, 19960328
House 19960320 Committee report: Favorable with 25 HJ
amendment
House 19960228 Introduced, read first time, 25 HJ
referred to Committee
Senate 19960227 Read third time, sent to House
Senate 19960222 Read second time, notice of
general amendments
Senate 19960221 Committee report: Favorable 11 SJ
Senate 19960206 Introduced, read first time, 11 SJ
referred to Committee
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.
(A465, R530, S1101)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 7-5-10, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO APPOINTMENT AND REMOVAL OF MEMBERS OF BOARDS OF VOTER REGISTRATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT MEMBERS MUST COMPLETE A TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION PROGRAM CONDUCTED BY THE STATE ELECTION COMMISSION; TO AMEND SECTION 7-5-35, RELATING TO ELECTION AND REGISTRATION COMMISSIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT MEMBERS MUST COMPLETE A TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION PROGRAM CONDUCTED BY THE STATE ELECTION COMMISSION; TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-70, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE APPOINTMENT OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF ELECTION AND MANAGERS OF ELECTION, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT COMMISSIONERS MUST COMPLETE A TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION PROGRAM CONDUCTED BY THE STATE ELECTION COMMISSION, TO FURTHER DELETE PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE APPOINTMENT OF MANAGERS; AND BY ADDING SECTION 7-13-72 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF MANAGERS AND CLERKS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Appointment of boards of registration, training
SECTION 1. Section 7-5-10 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 422 of 1988, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-5-10. Between the first day of January and the fifteenth day of March in every even-numbered year the Governor shall appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, not less than three nor more than five competent and discreet persons in each county, who are qualified electors of that county and who must be known as the board of registration of __________ County. 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.
Members must complete, within eighteen months after their appointment or reappointment, a training and certification program conducted by the State Election Commission."
Combined election and registration commission, training
SECTION 2. Section 7-5-35 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 253 of 1992, is amended to read:
"Section 7-5-35. If a county operates its elections through a combined election and registration commission, the structure and composition are not affected or changed by the provisions of this act. However, the provisions for inclusion of majority and minority party representatives upon the combined commission and upon the expanded commission as constituted for primary elections and protests must be applied to the combined commission, mutatis mutandis.
Commissioners must complete, within eighteen months after their appointment or reappointment, a training and certification program conducted by the State Election Commission."
Commissioners of election, training
SECTION 3. Section 7-13-70 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 253 of 1992, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-13-70. For the purpose of carrying on general or special elections provided for in Section 7-13-10, the Governor, at least ninety days before the election, must appoint for each county not less than three nor more than five commissioners of election upon the recommendation of the senatorial delegation and at least half of the members of the House of Representatives from the respective counties. The Governor must notify the State Election Commission in writing of the appointments. The State Election Commission must verify that at least one of the appointees represents the largest political party and one represents the second largest political party as determined by the composition of that county's delegation in the General Assembly or the makeup of the General Assembly as a whole if the county's delegation is composed of only one party's members. The commissioners shall continue in office until their successors are appointed and qualified. After their appointment the commissioners must take and subscribe, before any officer authorized to administer oaths, the following oath of office prescribed by Section 26 of Article III of the Constitution: `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'.
The oath must be immediately filed 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.
Commissioners must complete, within eighteen months after their appointment or reappointment, a training and certification program conducted by the State Election Commission."
Managers of election
SECTION 4. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 7-13-72. For the general election held on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November in each even-numbered year, the commissioners of election must appoint three managers of election for each polling place in the county for which they must respectively be appointed for each five hundred electors, or portion of each five hundred electors, registered to vote at the polling place.
For primary elections held on the second Tuesday in June of each general election year, the commissioners of election must appoint three managers of election for each polling place in the county for which they must respectively be appointed for the first five hundred electors registered to vote in each precinct in the county, and may appoint three additional managers for each five hundred electors registered to vote in the precinct above the first five hundred electors, or portion thereof. The commissioners must also appoint from among the managers a clerk for each polling place in the county, and none of the officers may be removed from office except for incompetence or misconduct.
For all other primary, special, or municipal elections, the authority charged by law with conducting the primary, special, or municipal elections must appoint three managers of election for the first five hundred electors registered to vote in each precinct in the county, municipality, or other election district and one additional manager for each five hundred electors registered to vote in the precinct above the first five hundred electors. The authority responsible by law for conducting the election must also appoint from among the managers a clerk for each polling place in a primary, special, or municipal election.
Forty-five days prior to any primary, except municipal primaries, each political party holding a primary may submit to the county election commission a list of prospective managers for each precinct. The county election commission must appoint at least one manager for each precinct from the list of names submitted by each political party holding a primary. However, the county election commission may refuse to appoint any prospective manager for good cause.
No person may be appointed as a manager in a primary, general, or special election who has not completed a training program approved by the State Election Commission concerning his duties and responsibilities as a poll manager and who has not received certification of having completed the training program. The training program and the issuance of certification must be carried out by the county election commission. After their appointment, the managers and clerks must take and subscribe, before any officer authorized to administer oaths, the following oath of office prescribed by Section 26 of Article III of the Constitution: `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'.
The oath must be immediately filed in the office of the clerk of court of common pleas of the county in which the managers and clerks are appointed, or if there is no clerk of court, in the office of the Secretary of State. Before opening the polls, the managers of election must take and subscribe the oath provided for in Section 7-13-100. Upon the completion of the canvassing of votes, this oath must be filed with the commissioners of election along with the ballots from that election precinct."
Time effective
SECTION 5. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
Approved the 21st day of August, 1996.