The substitute amendment also repeals the current law provision regarding the
treatment of absentee ballots cast by a person who dies before election day.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
AB637-ASA3,1 1Section 1 . 5.84 (1) of the statutes is renumbered 5.84 (1) (a) and amended to
2read:
AB637-ASA3,3,103 5.84 (1) (a) Where Except as provided in par. (b), where any municipality
4employs an electronic voting system which utilizes automatic tabulating equipment,
5either at the polling place or at a central counting location, the municipal clerk shall,
6on any day not more than 10 days prior to the election day on which the equipment
7is to be utilized, have the equipment tested to ascertain that it will correctly count
8the votes cast for all offices and on all measures. Public notice of the time and place
9of the test shall be given by the clerk at least 48 hours prior to the test by publication
10of a class 1 notice under ch. 985 in one or more newspapers published within the
11municipality if a newspaper is published therein, otherwise in a newspaper of

1general circulation therein. The test shall be open to the public. The test shall be
2conducted by processing a preaudited group of ballots so marked as to record a
3predetermined number of valid votes for each candidate and on each referendum.
4The test shall include for each office one or more ballots which have votes in excess
5of the number allowed by law and, for a partisan primary election, one or more ballots
6which have votes cast for candidates of more than one recognized political party, in
7order to test the ability of the automatic tabulating equipment to reject such votes.
8If any error is detected, the municipal clerk shall ascertain the cause and correct the
9error. The clerk shall make an errorless count before the automatic tabulating
10equipment is approved by the clerk for use in the election.
AB637-ASA3,2 11Section 2 . 5.84 (1) (b) of the statutes is created to read:
AB637-ASA3,3,1612 5.84 (1) (b) For a municipality that authorizes the absentee voting efficiency
13option under subch. VI of ch. 6, the municipal clerk shall have the automatic
14tabulating equipment tested, as provided under par. (a), on any day not more than
1510 days prior to the first day on which such voting is available in the municipality
16pursuant to s. 6.981.
AB637-ASA3,3 17Section 3. 5.85 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB637-ASA3,4,418 5.85 (2) (a) The Except when using a report function capable of reporting
19write-in votes by scanning the ballots and electronically capturing the write-in
20votes, the
election officials shall examine the ballots or record of votes cast for
21write-in votes and shall count and tabulate the write-in votes. The election officials
22shall count write-in votes as provided in s. 7.50 (2) (d). When an electronic voting
23system is used in which ballots are distributed to electors, before separating the
24remaining ballots from their respective covering envelopes, the election officials
25shall examine the ballots for write-in votes. When an elector has cast a write-in

1vote, the election officials shall compare the write-in vote with the votes on the ballot
2to determine whether the write-in vote results in an overvote for any office. In case
3of an overvote for any office, the election officials shall follow the procedure in par.
4(b).
AB637-ASA3,4 5Section 4 . 6.21 of the statutes is repealed.
AB637-ASA3,5 6Section 5 . 6.91 of the statutes is created to read:
AB637-ASA3,4,12 76.91 Place for challenging an elector. The vote of any voter, including an
8absent voter, may be challenged as provided under this subchapter at the polling
9place, at the municipal clerk's office during the period for making an in-person
10application for an absentee ballot under s. 6.86 (1) (b), at the municipal clerk's office
11during the period for using the voting procedure under s. 6.981, or at a central count
12location.
AB637-ASA3,6 13Section 6. 6.92 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB637-ASA3,4,2314 6.92 (1) Except as provided in sub. (2), each the clerk or deputy clerk or an
15inspector shall challenge for cause any person offering to vote whom the clerk, deputy
16clerk, or
inspector knows or suspects is not a qualified elector or who does not adhere
17to any voting requirement under this chapter. If a person is challenged as
18unqualified by the clerk or deputy clerk or an inspector, one of the inspectors the clerk
19or deputy clerk or an inspector
shall administer the following oath or affirmation to
20the person: “You do solemnly swear (or affirm) that you will fully and truly answer
21all questions put to you regarding your place of residence and qualifications as an
22elector of this election"; and shall then ask questions which are appropriate as
23determined by the commission, by rule, to test the person's qualifications.
AB637-ASA3,7 24Section 7. 6.925 of the statutes is amended to read:
AB637-ASA3,5,13
16.925 Elector making challenge in person. Any elector may challenge for
2cause any person offering to vote whom the elector knows or suspects is not a
3qualified elector. If a person is challenged as unqualified by an elector, one of the
4inspectors
the clerk or deputy clerk or an inspector may administer the oath or
5affirmation to the challenged elector under s. 6.92 and ask the challenged elector the
6questions under that section which are appropriate to test the elector's
7qualifications. In addition, one of the inspectors the clerk or deputy clerk or an
8inspector
shall administer the following oath or affirmation to the challenging
9elector: “You do solemnly swear (or affirm) that you will fully and truly answer all
10questions put to you regarding the challenged person's place of residence and
11qualifications as an elector of this election"; and shall then ask questions which are
12appropriate as determined by the commission, by rule, to test the qualifications of
13the challenged elector.
AB637-ASA3,8 14Section 8. 6.94 of the statutes is amended to read:
AB637-ASA3,6,6 156.94 Challenged elector oath. If the person challenged refuses to answer
16fully any relevant questions put to him or her by the clerk, deputy clerk, or inspector
17under s. 6.92, the clerk, deputy clerk, or inspectors shall reject the elector's vote. If
18the challenge is not withdrawn after the person offering to vote has answered the
19questions, one of the inspectors the clerk or deputy clerk or an inspector shall
20administer to the person the following oath or affirmation: “You do solemnly swear
21(or affirm) that: you are 18 years of age; you are a citizen of the United States; you
22are now and for 28 consecutive days have been a resident of this ward except under
23s. 6.02 (2); you have not voted at this election; you have not made any bet or wager
24or become directly or indirectly interested in any bet or wager depending upon the
25result of this election; you are not on any other ground disqualified to vote at this

1election". If the person challenged refuses to take the oath or affirmation, the
2person's vote shall be rejected. If the person challenged answers fully all relevant
3questions put to the elector by the clerk, deputy clerk, or inspector under s. 6.92,
4takes the oath or affirmation, and fulfills the applicable registration requirements,
5and if the answers to the questions given by the person indicate that the person meets
6the voting qualification requirements, the person's vote shall be received.
AB637-ASA3,9 7Section 9. 6.95 of the statutes is amended to read:
AB637-ASA3,7,3 86.95 Voting procedure for challenged electors. Whenever the clerk,
9deputy clerk, or
inspectors under ss. 6.92 to 6.94 receive the vote of a person offering
10to vote who has been challenged, the clerk, deputy clerk, or inspectors shall, before
11giving the elector a ballot, write on the back of the ballot the serial number of the
12challenged person corresponding to the number kept at the election on the poll list,
13or other list maintained under s. 6.79, and the notation “s. 6.95". If voting machines
14are used in the municipality where the person is voting, the person's vote may be
15received only upon an absentee ballot furnished by the municipal clerk which shall
16have the corresponding serial number from the poll list or other list maintained
17under s. 6.79 and the notation “s. 6.95" written on the back of the ballot by the
18inspectors before the ballot is given to the elector. The clerk, deputy clerk, or
19inspectors shall indicate on the list the reason for the challenge. The clerk, deputy
20clerk, or
inspectors shall then deposit the ballot. The challenged ballots shall be
21counted under s. 5.85 or 7.51. The municipal board of canvassers may decide any
22challenge when making its canvass under s. 7.53. If the returns are reported under
23s. 7.60, a challenge may be reviewed by the county board of canvassers. If the returns
24are reported under s. 7.70, a challenge may be reviewed by the chairperson of the
25commission or the chairperson's designee. The decision of any board of canvassers

1or of the chairperson or chairperson's designee may be appealed under s. 9.01. The
2standard for disqualification specified in s. 6.325 shall be used to determine the
3validity of challenged ballots.
AB637-ASA3,10 4Section 10 . Subchapter VI of chapter 6 [precedes 6.981] of the statutes is
5created to read:
AB637-ASA3,7,66 chapter 6
AB637-ASA3,7,77 subchapter VI
AB637-ASA3,7,98 absentee voting
9 efficiency option
AB637-ASA3,7,25 106.981 Efficiency option. (1) (a) The municipal clerk shall complete the
11application as provided under s. 6.87 (1) and allow an elector to cast a ballot prior to
12election day by casting a ballot into an electronic voting system as provided under
13s. 6.80 at the municipal clerk's office, if the governing body of the municipality has
14enacted an ordinance or adopted a resolution to allow such voting and the
15commission has certified the municipality under s. 6.982 (8) (a) to conduct such
16voting. An elector may vote under this subchapter during the time prescribed for an
17application made in person pursuant to s. 6.86 (1) (b), but only after the municipality
18has completed a successful public test of the programmed media necessary to vote
19under this subchapter and the test occurs no more than 10 days prior to the use of
20the media for voting under this subchapter. A municipality shall specify the
21locations, dates, and hours for voting and the location where results will be tallied
22on election night in the notice under s. 10.01 (2) (e). The municipal clerk, or his or
23her designee, shall send the notice to the 2 major political parties, as defined in s.
2413.46 (5), at the state level and, if applicable, at the county and local levels, on the
25same date as the notice is posted for the general public.
AB637-ASA3,8,6
1(b) After the governing body of the municipality has enacted an ordinance or
2adopted a resolution to allow the voting procedure under par. (a), the municipality
3shall use that procedure for all subsequent elections until such time that the
4governing body enacts an ordinance or adopts a resolution repealing the use of the
5procedure. The municipal clerk or deputy municipal clerk shall supervise the voting
6procedure under par. (a).
AB637-ASA3,8,127 (c) This subchapter does not preclude the clerk from using absentee envelopes
8when the clerk or the elector determines that such use is necessary. Voting as
9provided under this subchapter may occur simultaneously or in conjunction with
10making an application in person using absentee envelopes, but the periods for voting
11as provided under this subchapter and for making an application in person using
12absentee envelopes need not be the same.
AB637-ASA3,8,16 136.982 Administration. (1) (a) Votes cast under s. 6.981 may not be tabulated
14until the closing of the polls on election day, but the municipal clerk shall publish on
15the municipality's Internet site a daily tally of the total number of ballots cast under
16s. 6.981 in the municipality.
AB637-ASA3,8,2017 (b) No person may act in any manner that would give him or her the ability to
18know or to provide information on the accumulating or final results from the ballots
19cast under s. 6.981 before the close of the polls on election day. A person who violates
20this paragraph is guilty of a Class I felony.
AB637-ASA3,8,2321 (c) An elector who casts a ballot under s. 6.981 that is accepted by automatic
22tabulating equipment may not request that the ballot be returned to him or her as
23defective in order to cast a new ballot, as provided under s. 6.80 (2) (c).
AB637-ASA3,9,1124 (d) The clerk or deputy clerk shall reconcile the ballots cast each day to ensure
25that the number of ballots cast equals the number issued. The reconciliation may

1include performing checks that do not involve examining the ballots cast, including
2checking data entry and verifying mathematical computations. If the clerk or deputy
3clerk is unable to reconcile the ballots, the incident log shall include the date and any
4other information necessary to clearly identify the reconciliation issue. The
5municipality shall post the daily reconciliation incident report on the municipality's
6Internet site at the close of each day during the period for voting under this
7subchapter. If the clerk or deputy clerk is unable to reconcile the ballots, the clerk
8or deputy clerk shall deliver all ballot bags of unreconciled ballots, along with the
9daily reconciliation incident reports, to the appropriate board of canvassers as
10provided under s. 7.53 and the board of canvassers shall complete the reconciliation
11using the methods provided under s. 7.51.
AB637-ASA3,9,25 12(2) At all times when the process for voting under this subchapter is in use the
13municipality shall have at least 2 individuals present, not including an elector. The
14tabulation equipment shall be in a location that is visible to the clerk or the clerk's
15designee and to at least one other person. Automatic tabulating equipment used for
16purposes of this subchapter shall be secured with a tamper-evident security seal and
17the clerk or the clerk's designee, in the presence of at least one witness, shall check
18the seals for tampering at the beginning and ending of each day designated for voting
19under s. 6.981. The areas where the programmed media and the ballots cast are
20housed shall be secured with tamper-evident security seals. At least 2 persons shall
21be present for any administrative process that requires access to a sealed area and
22the breaking of a tamper-evident security seal, including clearing a jammed ballot
23or emptying a full ballot bin. The clerk or clerk's designee shall daily document all
24checks and record any such activity and reason in which a seal is broken and replaced
25under this subsection. The clerk or clerk's designee shall obtain the signature of any

1witness who was present when any such activity is performed. When not in use the
2tabulation equipment and the cast ballots sealed inside tamper-evident security
3seal ballot bags shall be secured in a double-lock location such as a locked cabinet
4inside a locked office.
AB637-ASA3,10,15 5(3) For purposes of s. 6.981, the municipal clerk shall issue ballots using the
6voter registration and voter information systems established and maintained by the
7elections commission in the same manner that the systems are used to issue and
8track absentee ballots. The commission shall program the system so that ballots
9issued for purposes of this subchapter are tracked by creating a separate
10classification type in the statewide voter registration system to identify electors
11casting a ballot using the process under this subchapter. The commission shall work
12to upgrade the system to allow for the system to sequentially number absentee
13ballots, but municipalities may use the system to identify electors casting a ballot
14using the process under this subchapter regardless of whether such upgrade has
15been completed.
AB637-ASA3,10,22 16(4) (a) An elector requesting to cast a ballot under s. 6.981 shall state aloud his
17or her name and address. Except as provided in par. (b), the elector shall sign an
18absentee ballot certification request log for purposes of this subchapter. The
19municipal clerk shall have the elector provide an electronic or a handwritten
20signature, but if the clerk allows the use of electronic signatures, the clerk shall not
21generate a final absentee ballot log until after the last day designated for voting
22under s. 6.981.
AB637-ASA3,10,2523 (b) The municipal clerk may have an elector sign an electronic poll book using
24an electronic signature as an alternative to signing an absentee ballot certification
25request log under par. (a).
AB637-ASA3,11,6
1(5) (a) Except as provided in par. (b), the municipal clerk shall seal together all
2ballots cast in the municipality under s. 6.981 each day in a numbered and
3tamper-evident security seal ballot bag and document all such action and numbers.
4All such ballot bags shall remain in the clerk's possession, sealed and secured by the
5municipal clerk, until such time that they are needed at a central count location or
6for audit, review at the polling place, recount, or storage.
AB637-ASA3,11,107 (b) If the municipal clerk is required to report vote totals by ward, but the votes
8in multiple wards are processed through a single memory device and tabulator, the
9clerk shall not sort the ballots into wards before placing them into the bag described
10under par. (a).
AB637-ASA3,11,17 11(6) Section 7.41, regarding the public's right to access the polling place; s. 6.82,
12regarding assisting electors; s. 5.25 (4) (a), regarding the availability of accessible
13systems; and s. 6.84 (1), regarding the privilege of absentee voting, apply to voting
14conducted under s. 6.981. The municipal clerk shall post at a conspicuous space near
15the tabulation equipment a notice, in 18 point type, warning the elector voting as
16provided under this subchapter that a ballot cast and accepted by the tabulation
17equipment may not be retrieved in order to spoil the ballot under s. 6.86 (5).
AB637-ASA3,12,2 18(8) (a) The commission shall establish procedures for certifying municipalities
19to conduct voting under s. 6.981. The governing body of a municipality wishing to
20obtain certification under this paragraph shall send a plan for administering the
21process under this subchapter to the commission for review no later than 30 days
22prior to the first day on which the municipality would conduct voting under s. 6.981.
23The commission shall review the plan and give notice of approval or of changes
24needed to receive approval no later than 10 days after receiving the plan. The
25commission may send notice to the municipality by electronic mail. The commission

1shall certify a municipality to conduct voting under s. 6.981 if it determines that the
2municipality satisfies all of the following:
AB637-ASA3,12,43 1. Its governing body has approved the use of voting under this subchapter, as
4provided under s. 6.981 (1) (a).
AB637-ASA3,12,65 2. It is using equipment capable of capturing a digital image of both the front
6and back of the ballot.
AB637-ASA3,12,97 3. It is using an electronic voting system that includes a report function capable
8of reporting write-in votes by scanning the ballots and electronically capturing the
9write-in votes.
AB637-ASA3,12,1410 4. It has Internet access at each location where voting will be conducted under
11this subchapter so that an absentee ballot may be issued to an elector using the
12statewide voter registration system immediately prior to the elector casting his or
13her ballot and so that the clerk or clerk's designee may add new or changed
14registration information prior to issuing an absentee ballot.
AB637-ASA3,12,1515 5. It is able to update its Internet site at the end of each day.
AB637-ASA3,12,1716 6. It is capable of adequately securing all equipment and ballots in a
17double-lock location.
AB637-ASA3,12,1918 7. Its plan for administering the process under this subchapter satisfies all
19other requirements set forth in this subchapter.
AB637-ASA3,12,2320 (b) The commission shall establish procedures for the administration of this
21subchapter, including procedures to facilitate the secure transfer of memory devices
22from their use for voting under s. 6.981 to their use in tabulating the votes on election
23day.
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