Amendment AA2-AB700

LRBa1349/1

RJM:wlj:jf

1999 - 2000 LEGISLATURE

ASSEMBLY AMENDMENT 2, TO 1999 ASSEMBLY BILL 700

February 9, 2000 - Offered by Representative Grothman.

AB700-AA2,1,1 At the locations indicated, amend the bill as follows:

AB700-AA2,1,2 1. Page 34, line 14: delete "certification" and substitute "affidavit".

AB700-AA2,1,6 2. Page 34, line 14: delete the material beginning with "a witness" and ending with "citizen" on line 15 and substitute: "any person authorized to administer oaths or shall make and subscribe to the certification under s. 6.87 (2) before 2 witnesses who are adult U.S. citizens".

AB700-AA2,1,8 3. Page 35, line 11: delete "affidavit certification" and substitute "certification or affidavit".

AB700-AA2,1,9 4. Page 37, line 6: delete " affidavit" and substitute "-affidavit".

AB700-AA2,1,13 5. Page 37, line 8: delete lines 8 to 12 and substitute "Whenever an application, affidavit or other act is required in ss. 6.86 to 6.89 an overseas elector may fulfill the requirements by subscribing or swearing before any person authorized to administer oaths or 2 adult U.S. citizens.".

AB700-AA2,2,1 6. Page 38, line 4: delete lines 4 to 10.

AB700-AA2,2,3 7. Page 43, line 17: delete the material beginning with that line and ending with page 44, line 4.

AB700-AA2,2,5 8. Page 44, line 17: delete "notarize the affidavit witness the voting procedure" and substitute "notarize the affidavit".

AB700-AA2,2,7 9. Page 45, line 16: delete the material beginning with that line and ending with page 47, line 12, and substitute:

AB700-AA2,2,8 " Section 95m. 6.87 (2) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB700-AA2,2,13 6.87 (2) (intro.) The Except as authorized under sub. (3) (d), the municipal clerk shall place the ballot in an unsealed envelope furnished by the clerk. The envelope shall have the name, official title and post-office address of the clerk upon its face. The other side of the envelope shall have a printed certificate-affidavit in substantially the following form:".

AB700-AA2,2,14 10. Page 48, line 5: after "certificate" insert "-affidavit".

AB700-AA2,2,16 11. Page 48, line 6: delete "that shall" and substitute ". The instructions shall".

AB700-AA2,2,18 12. Page 48, line 7: delete "sign the certificate and" and substitute "make and subscribe to the affidavit or the certification as required under sub. (4) and to".

AB700-AA2,2,19 13. Page 48, line 9: after "certificate" insert "-affidavit".

AB700-AA2,2,21 14. Page 48, line 13: delete the material beginning with that line and ending with page 50, line 2 and substitute:

AB700-AA2,2,22 " Section 98m. 6.87 (4) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB700-AA2,3,20 6.87 (4) Except as otherwise provided in s. 6.875, the elector voting absentee shall either make and subscribe to the affidavit before a person authorized to administer oaths or make and subscribe to the certification before 2 witnesses. The absent elector, in the presence of the administrator of the oath or witnesses, shall mark or punch the ballot in a manner that will not disclose how the elector's vote is cast. The elector shall then, still in the presence of the administrator of the oath or the 2 witnesses, fold the ballots if they are paper ballots so each is separate and conceals the markings or punches thereon and deposit them in the proper envelope, but. If a consolidated paper ballot under s. 5.655 or a ballot prepared for use with an electronic voting system is used, the elector shall fold the ballot so that the elector conceals the markings thereon and deposit the ballot in the proper envelope. The elector may receive assistance under sub. (5). The return envelope shall then be sealed. The witnesses or the official oath administrator may not be a candidate. The envelope shall be mailed by the elector, postage prepaid, or delivered in person, to the municipal clerk issuing the ballot. Failure to return an unused ballot in a primary does not invalidate the ballot on which the elector's votes are cast. Return of more than one marked or punched ballot in a primary or return of a ballot prepared under s. 5.655 or a ballot used with an electronic voting system in a primary which is marked or punched for candidates of more than one party invalidates all votes cast by the elector for candidates in the primary.".

AB700-AA2,3,22 15. Page 53, line 13: delete "certificate-affidavit certificate" and substitute "certificate-affidavit".

AB700-AA2,3,24 16. Page 53, line 23: delete the material beginning with that line and ending with page 54, line 8 and substitute:

AB700-AA2,4,1 " Section 106m. 6.88 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB700-AA2,4,12 6.88 (1) When an absentee ballot arrives at the office of the municipal clerk, the clerk shall enclose it, unopened, in a carrier envelope which shall be securely sealed and endorsed with the name and official title of the clerk, and the words "This envelope contains the ballot of an absent, aged, sick, handicapped or disabled elector or the ballot of an election official and must be opened at the polls during polling hours on election day". If the ballot was received by facsimile transmission or electronic mail and is accompanied by a separate certificate or affidavit, the clerk shall enclose the ballot in a certificate-affidavit envelope and securely append the completed certificate or affidavit to the outside of the envelope before enclosing the ballot in the carrier envelope. The clerk shall keep the ballot in the clerk's office until delivered, as required in sub. (2).".

AB700-AA2,4,14 17. Page 54, line 20: delete the material beginning with that line and ending with page 55, line 9.

AB700-AA2,4,16 18. Page 55, line 10: delete the material beginning with that line and ending with page 56, line 2 and substitute:

AB700-AA2,4,17 " Section 109m. 6.88 (3) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB700-AA2,5,9 6.88 (3) (b) When the inspectors find that an affidavit or certification is insufficient, that the applicant is not a qualified elector in the ward or election district, that the ballot envelope is open or has been opened and resealed, or that the ballot envelope contains more than one ballot of any one kind, or if proof is submitted to the inspectors that an elector voting an absentee ballot has since died, or, if the ballot was voted by facsimile transmission or electronic mail, that the certificate or affidavit required to accompany the ballot is missing, the inspectors shall not count the ballot. The inspectors shall endorse every ballot not counted on the back, "rejected (giving the reason)". The inspectors shall reinsert each rejected ballot into the affidavit envelope in which it was delivered and enclose the affidavit envelopes and ballots, and securely seal the ballots and envelopes in an envelope marked for rejected absentee ballots. The inspectors shall endorse the envelope, "rejected ballots" with a statement of the ward or election district and date of the election, signed by the chief inspector and one of the inspectors representing each of the 2 major political parties and returned to the municipal clerk in the same manner as official ballots voted at the election.".

AB700-AA2,5,10 19. Page 64, line 16: delete lines 16 to 23.

AB700-AA2,5,11 20. Page 84, line 3: delete lines 3 to 12 and substitute:

AB700-AA2,5,12 " Section 166m. 9.01 (1) (b) 2. of the statutes is amended to read:

AB700-AA2,5,21 9.01 (1) (b) 2. The board of canvassers shall then examine the absentee ballot envelopes. Any defective absentee ballot envelopes shall be laid aside, properly marked and carefully preserved. The number of voters shall be reduced by the number of ballot envelopes set aside under this subdivision. An absentee ballot envelope is defective only if it is neither sworn nor witnessed, if it is not signed by the voter or, if the affidavit supporting the absentee ballot envelope has such a number of technical errors that the board of canvassers is doubtful of the legal effect of the affidavit or, if the ballot was voted by facsimile transmission or electronic mail, if the certificate or affidavit required to accompany the ballot is missing.".

AB700-AA2,5,22 (End)