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HOUSE AMENDMENTS AMENDED
June 2, 1999
S. 373
S. Printed 6/2/99--S.
Read the first time January 20, 1999.
TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 7-1-25, SO AS TO DEFINE THE WORD "RESIDENT" FOR VOTING PURPOSES; TO AMEND SECTION 7-5-230, RELATING TO BOARDS OF REGISTRATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE A PROCEDURE FOR THE CHALLENGING OF THE QUALIFICATIONS OF AN ELECTOR; AND TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING SECTION 7-5-325, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT WRITTEN NOTIFICATION OF A CHANGE OF ADDRESS IS DEEMED GIVEN UNDER OATH.
Amend Title To Conform
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 7-1-25. (A) A person's residence is his domicile. 'Domicile' means a person's fixed home where he has an intention of returning when he is absent. A person has only one domicile.
(B) For voting purposes, a person has changed his domicile if he (1) has abandoned his prior home and (2) has established a new home, has a present intention to make that place his home, and has no present intention to leave that place.
(C) For voting purposes, a spouse may establish a separate domicile."
SECTION 2. Section 7-5-230 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-5-230. The boards of registration to be appointed under Section 7-5-10 shall be the judges of the legal qualifications of all applicants for registration. The board is empowered to require proof of these qualifications as it considers necessary.
Once a person is registered, challenges of the qualifications of any elector, except for challenges issued at the polls pursuant to Sections 7-13-810, 7-13-820, and 7-15-420 must be made in writing to the board of registration in the county of registration. The board must, within ten days following the challenge and after first giving notice to the elector and the challenger, hold a hearing, accept evidence, and rule upon whether the elector meets or fails to meet the qualifications set forth in Section 7-5-120.
When a challenge is made regarding the residence of an elector, the board may consider the following proof to establish residence including, but not limited to, income tax returns; real estate interests; mailing address; address on driver's license; official papers and documents requiring the statement of residence address; automobile registration; checking and savings accounts; past voting record; membership in clubs and organizations; location of personal property; and the elector's statements as to his intent.
Any person denied registration or restoration of his name on the registration books shall have the right of appeal from the decision of the board of registration denying him registration or such restoration to the court of common pleas of the county or any judge thereof and thence subsequently to the Supreme Court."
SECTION 3. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 7-5-325. Any change of address submitted by an elector for registration or voting purposes as provided by Sections 7-5-320(D), 7-5-330(F)(2)(a), and 7-5-440, and any other written notification of change of address signed by an elector are considered to be given under oath. An elector convicted of fraudulently providing such change of address is guilty of violating Section 7-25-10 and, upon conviction, must be fined in the discretion of the court or imprisoned not more than three years, or both."
SECTION 4. Section 7-13-1330 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-13-1330. (a)(A) Before any kind of vote recorder system, including an optical scan voting system, is used at any election it shall be approved by the State Election Commission which shall examine such the vote recorder and shall make and file in its the commission's office a report, attested by the signature of its the executive director, stating whether, in its the opinion of the commission, the kind of vote recorder so examined can be safely accurately and efficiently used by electors at elections, as provided by law. No vote recorder or optical scan voting system may be approved for use in the State unless certified by an Independent Testing Authority (ITA) accredited by the National Association of State Election Directors and the State Election Commission as meeting or exceeding the minimum requirements of the Federal Election Commission's national voting system standards. If this report states that the vote recorder can be so used, the recorder shall be deemed considered approved and vote recorders of its kind may be adopted for use at elections, as herein provided.
(b)(B) No kind of vote recorder not so approved pursuant to this section shall be used at any election and if, upon the reexamination of any type vote recorder previously approved, it shall appear appears that the vote recorder so reexamined can no longer be safely accurately and efficiently used by electors at elections as provided by law, the approval of the same shall forthwith vote recorder must immediately be revoked by the State Election Commission, and no such type vote recorder shall thereafter be purchased for use or used in this State.
(c)(C) When If a vote recorder, including an optical scan voting system, which has been so was approved for use before July 1, 1999, is improved or otherwise changed in a way since its approval no improvement or change that does not impair its accuracy, efficiency, or capacity, shall render necessary a reexamination or reapproval of the vote recorder, or of its kind the vote recorder may be used in elections. However, if the software, hardware, or firmware of the system is improved or otherwise changed, the system must comply with the requirements of subsection (A).
(d)(D) Any person or company requesting who requests an examination of any type of vote recorder or optical scan voting system shall pay an a nonrefundable examination fee of twenty-five one thousand dollars for a new voting system and an non-refundable examination fee of five hundred dollars for an upgrade to any existing system to the State Election Commission. The State Election Commission may at any time, in its discretion, reexamine any vote recorder or optical scan voting system when evidence is presented to the commission that the accuracy or the ability of the system to be used satisfactorily in the conduct of elections is in question.
(e)(E) Any person or company who seeks approval for any vote recorder or optical scan voting system in this State must file with the State Election Commission a list of all states or jurisdictions in which the system has been approved for use. This list must state how long the system has been used in the state; contain the name, address and telephone number of that state or jurisdiction's chief election official; and must disclose any reports compiled by state or local government concerning the performance of the system. The vendor is responsible for filing this information on an ongoing basis.
(F) Any person or company who seeks approval for any vote recorder or optical scan voting system must file with the State Election Commission copies of all contracts and maintenance agreements used in connection with the sale of the voting system. All changes to standard contracts and maintenance agreements must be filed with the State Election Commission.
(G) Any person or company who seeks approval for any vote recorder or optical scan voting system must conduct, under the supervision of the State Election Commission and any county election commission, a field test for any new voting system, as part of the certification process. The field test shall involve South Carolina voters and election officials and must be conducted as part of a scheduled primary, general, or special election. This test must be held in two or more precincts, and all costs relating to the voting system must be borne by the vendor. The test must be designed to gauge voter reaction to the system, problems that voters have with the system, and the number of voting units required for the efficient operation of an election. The test must also demonstrate the accuracy of votes cast and reported on the system.
(H) Before any vote recorder or optical scan voting system approved after July 1, 1999, may be used in elections in the State, all source codes for the system must be placed in escrow by the manufacturer, at the manufacturer's expense, with the approved software ITA. These source codes must be available to the State Election Commission in the event that the company goes out of business, pursuant to court order, or in the event that the State Election Commission determines that an examination of these source codes is necessary. It is the responsibility of the manufacturer to place all updates of these source codes in escrow and to notify the State Election Commission that this requirement has been met.
(I) After a vote recorder or optical scan voting system is approved, an improvement or change in the system must be submitted to the State Election Commission for approval pursuant to this section; however, this requirement does not apply to the technical capability of a general purpose computer or reader to electronically count and record votes or to a printer to accurately reproduce vote totals.
(J) If the State Election Commission determines that a vote recorder or optical scan voting system that was approved no longer meets the requirements set forth in subsections (A) and (C) or Section 7-13-1340, the commission may decertify that system. A decertified system shall not be used in elections unless the system is reapproved by the commission under subsections (A) and (C).
(e)(K) Neither a member of the State Election Commission, any county election commission or custodian, nor a member of a county governing body shall have any pecuniary interest in any vote recorder, or in the manufacture or sale thereof of the vote recorder."
SECTION 5. Section 7-13-1340 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding an appropriately numbered subsection to read:
"( ) If approved after July 1, 1999, or if an upgrade in software, hardware, or firmware is submitted for approval as required by Section 7-13-1330(C), the voting system must be able to electronically transmit vote totals for all elections to the State Election Commission in a format and time frame specified by the commission."
SECTION 6. Section 7-13-1620 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-13-1620. Any person owning or being interested in any voting machine may request the State Board of Voting Machine Commissioners to examine such machine and determine the capacity of the machine accurately to register and count votes and in respect to mechanical perfections and imperfections and whether such machine meets the requirements prescribed in this article, and the Board shall thereupon comply with such request. The report of the Board shall be filed in its office and shall state whether in its opinion the kind of machine so examined can be safely and conveniently used at elections as herein provided. If the report states that the machine can be so used and meets the requirements herein prescribed, it shall be deemed approved by the Board, and machines of its kind may be adopted for use at elections as herein provided. No form of voting machine not so approved shall be used at any election. (A) Before any kind of voting machine, including an electronic voting machine, is used at any election, it must be approved by the State Election Commission which shall examine the voting machine and make and file in the commission's office a report, attested to by the signature of the commission's executive director, stating whether, in the commission's opinion, the kind of voting machine so examined can be accurately and efficiently used by electors at elections, as provided by law. No voting machine may be approved for use in the State unless certified by an Independent Testing Authority (ITA) accredited by the National Association of State Election Directors and the State Election Commission as meeting or exceeding the minimum requirements of the Federal Election Commission's national voting system standards.
(B) When a voting machine has been approved for use before July 1, 1999, it may be used in elections. However, if the system's software or firmware is improved or changed, the system must comply with the requirements of subsection (A).
(C) Any person or company who requests an examination of any type of voting machine must pay a nonrefundable examination fee of one thousand dollars for a new voting system. A non-refundable examination fee of five hundred dollars must be paid for an upgrade to any existing system. The State Election Commission may reexamine any voting machine when evidence is presented to the commission that the accuracy or the ability of the machine to be used satisfactorily in the conduct of elections is in question.
(D) Any person or company who seeks approval for any type of voting machine in this State must file with the State Election Commission a list of all states or jurisdictions in which that voting machine has been approved for use. This list must state how long the machine has been used in the state; contain the name, address and telephone number of that state or jurisdiction's chief election official; and disclose any reports compiled by state or local government concerning the performance of the machine. The vendor is responsible for filing this information on an ongoing basis.
(E) Any person or individual who seeks approval for any type of voting machine must file with the State Election Commission copies of all contracts and maintenance agreements used in connection with the sale of the voting machine. All changes to standard contracts and maintenance agreements must be filed with the State Election Commission.
(F) Any person or company who seeks approval for any voting machine must conduct, under the supervision of the State Election Commission and any county election commission, a field test for any new voting machine, as part of the certification process. The field test shall involve South Carolina voters and election officials and must be conducted as part of a scheduled primary, general, or special election. This test must be held in two or more precincts, and all costs relating to the use of the voting machine must be borne by the vendor. The test must be designed to gauge voter reaction to the machine, problems that voters have with the machine, and the number of units required for the efficient operation of an election. The test must also demonstrate the accuracy of votes reported on the machine.
(G) Before any voting machine, approved after July 1, 1999, may be used in elections in the State, all source codes for the system must be placed in escrow by the manufacturer at the manufacturer's expense with the approved software ITA. These source codes must be available to the State Election Commission in the event that the company goes out of business, pursuant to court order, or in the event that the State Election Commission determines that an examination of these source codes is necessary. It is the responsibility of the manufacturer to place all updates of these source codes in escrow and to notify the State Election Commission that this requirement had been met.
(H) After a voting machine is approved, an improvement or change in the machine must be submitted to the State Election Commission for approval pursuant to this section; however, this requirement does not apply to the technical capability of a general purpose computer, reader, or printer.
(I) If the State Election Commission determines that a voting machine that was approved no longer meets the requirements of subsections (A) and (B) or Section 7-13-1640, the commission may decertify that machine. A decertified machine shall not be used in an election unless it is reapproved by the commission under subsections (A) and (B).
(J) No member of the State Election Commission, county election commission, custodian, or member of a county governing body may have any pecuniary interest in any voting machine or in the manufacture or sale of any voting machine."
SECTION 7. Section 7-13-1640 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding an appropriately numbered item to read:
"( ) If approved after July 1, 1999, or if an upgrade in software, hardware, or firmware is submitted for approval as required by Section 7-13-1620(B), the voting system must be able to electronically transmit vote totals for all elections to the State Election Commission in a format and time frame specified by the commission."
SECTION 8. Section 7-13-1630 of the 1976 Code is repealed.
SECTION 9. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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