AB710: Bill Text

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2001 - 2002 LEGISLATURE

2001 Assembly BILL 710

January 9, 2002 - Introduced by Representatives Grothman, Jeskewitz, Krawczyk, Nass, Starzyk, Suder and Townsend, cosponsored by Senator Darling. Referred to Committee on Campaigns and Elections.

AB710,1,9 An Act to repeal 5.40 (6), 6.15 (3) (a) (title), 6.15 (3) (b), 6.26 (2) (d), 6.275 (1) (c), 6.29, 6.32 (3), 6.54, 6.55 (2) (a) 2., 6.55 (2) (cm) and 6.55 (6); to renumber and amend 6.15 (3) (a), 6.55 (2) (a) 1. and 6.55 (2) (d); and to amend 5.40 (1), 6.02 (1), 6.02 (2), 6.10 (3), 6.10 (4), 6.15 (1), 6.15 (2) (a), 6.18, 6.275 (1) (b), 6.275 (1) (d), 6.28 (1), 6.33 (1), 6.33 (2) (b), 6.40 (1) (a), 6.40 (1) (b), 6.40 (1) (c), 6.45 (1), 6.45 (1m), 6.55 (title), 6.55 (2) (c) 1., 6.55 (3), 6.56 (1), 6.56 (3), 6.79 (2), 6.79 (4), 6.85, 6.87 (2), 6.94, 7.03 (1) (d) and 7.30 (2) (a) of the statutes; relating to: the deadline for voter registration and the determination of residency for voting purposes.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, every municipality with a population of greater than 5,000 is required to maintain a voter registration list. With certain exceptions, the deadline for voter registration is 5 p.m. on the second Wednesday preceding the election. Registrations made by mail must be delivered to the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners or postmarked not later than this deadline. However, under current law, voters may also register in person at the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners until 5 p.m. on the day before the election or, in most cases, may register at the proper polling place or other designated location on election day. In addition, voters may register at any time after the deadline if the municipal clerk determines that the registration list can be revised to incorporate the registration in time for the election.

Under this bill, the deadline for registration is 5 p.m. on the 28th day preceding the election, with no exceptions. Under the bill, in-person registrations must be completed by this deadline, and registrations made by mail must be delivered or postmarked not later than this deadline. However, the bill permits an elector who changes his or her name or who moves to a new residence within the same ward or election district to update his or her registration at the proper polling place or other designated location on election day.

Under current law, with certain limited exceptions, an individual must be a resident of this state for ten days before an election to be eligible to vote in the election. This bill increases this durational residency requirement to 28 days.

If enacted, this bill would activate certain requirements under the National Voter Registration Act (commonly referred to as the motor voter law), from which this state is currently exempt. Primarily, these requirements include simultaneous voter registration with motor vehicle driver's license applications and renewals, voter registration at any office that provides public assistance, voter registration at any office that primarily provides state-funded services to persons with disabilities, and voter registration at armed forces recruiting offices.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB710, s. 1 Section 1. 5.40 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,2,8 5.40 (1) Except as permitted in sub. (3) or as required in subs. (4) to (6) (5m), the governing body or board of election commissioners of every municipality with a population of 10,000 or more before July 1, 1995, or of 7,500 or more thereafter shall require the use of voting machines or electronic voting systems in every ward in the municipality at every election. Any other governing body or board of election commissioners may adopt and purchase voting machines or electronic voting systems for use in any ward in the municipality at any election.

AB710, s. 2 Section 2. 5.40 (6) of the statutes is repealed.

AB710, s. 3 Section 3. 6.02 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,3,3 6.02 (1) Every U.S. citizen age 18 or older who has resided in an election district or ward for 10 28 days before any election where the citizen offers to vote is an eligible elector.

AB710, s. 4 Section 4. 6.02 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,3,9 6.02 (2) Any U.S. citizen age 18 or older who moves within this state later than 10 28 days before an election shall vote at his or her previous ward or election district if the person is otherwise qualified. If the elector can comply with the 10-day 28-day residence requirement at the new address and is otherwise qualified, he or she may vote in the new ward or election district.

AB710, s. 5 Section 5. 6.10 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,3,18 6.10 (3) When an elector moves from one ward to another within a municipality or from one municipality to another within the state after the last registration day but at least 10 days before the election, the elector may vote in and be considered a resident of the new ward or municipality where residing upon transferring registration under s. 6.40 (1) or upon registering at the proper polling place or other registration location in the new ward or municipality under s. 6.55 (2). If the elector moves within 10 28 days of an election, the elector shall vote in the elector's old ward or municipality if otherwise qualified to vote there.

AB710, s. 6 Section 6. 6.10 (4) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,4,5 6.10 (4) The residence of an unmarried person sleeping in one ward and boarding in another is the place where the person sleeps. The residence of an unmarried person in a transient vocation, a teacher or a student who boards at different places for part of the week, month, or year, if one of the places is the residence of the person's parents, is the place of the parents' residence unless through registration or similar act the person elects to establish a residence elsewhere. If the person has no parents and if the person has not registered elsewhere, the person's residence shall be at the place which that the person considered his or her residence in preference to any other for at least 10 28 days before an election. If this place is within the municipality, the person is entitled to all the privileges and subject to all the duties of other citizens having their residence there, including voting.

AB710, s. 7 Section 7. 6.15 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,4,12 6.15 (1) Qualifications. Any person who was or who is a qualified elector under ss. 6.02 and 6.03, except that he or she has been a resident of this state for less than 10 28 days prior to the date of the presidential election, is entitled to vote for the president and vice president but for no other offices. The fact that the person was not registered to vote in the state from which he or she moved does not prevent voting in this state if the elector is otherwise qualified.

AB710, s. 8 Section 8. 6.15 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,4,21 6.15 (2) (a) The elector's request for the application form may be made to the proper municipal clerk either in person or in writing any time during the 10-day 28-day period in which the elector's residence requirement is incomplete, but not later than the applicable deadline for making application for an absentee ballot, or may be made at the proper polling place in the ward or election district in which the elector resides. The application form shall be returned to the municipal clerk after the affidavit has been signed in the presence of the clerk or any officer authorized by law to administer oaths. The affidavit shall be in substantially the following form:

AB710,4,22 STATE OF WISCONSIN

AB710,4,23 County of ....

AB710,5,9 I, ...., do solemnly swear that I am a citizen of the United States; that prior to establishing Wisconsin residence, my legal residence was in the .... (town) (village) (city) of ...., state of ...., residing at .... (street address); that on the day of the next presidential election, I shall be at least 18 years of age and that I have been a legal resident of the state of Wisconsin since ...., .... (year), residing at .... (street address), in the [.... ward of the .... aldermanic district of] the (town) (village) (city) of ...., county of ....; that I have resided in the state less than 10 28 days, that I am qualified to vote for president and vice president at the election to be held November ...., .... (year), that I am not voting at any other place in this election and that I hereby make application for an official presidential ballot, in accordance with section 6.15 of the Wisconsin statutes.

AB710,5,10 Signed ....

AB710,5,11 P.O. Address ....

AB710,5,12 Subscribed and sworn to before me this .... day of ...., .... (year)

AB710,5,13 ....(Name)

AB710,5,14 ....(Title)

AB710, s. 9 Section 9. 6.15 (3) (a) (title) of the statutes is repealed.

AB710, s. 10 Section 10. 6.15 (3) (a) of the statutes is renumbered 6.15 (3) and 6.15 (3) (a), as renumbered, is amended to read:

AB710,6,2 6.15 (3) (a) Upon proper completion of the application and cancellation card, the municipal clerk shall inform the elector that he or she may vote for the presidential electors not sooner than 9 27 days nor later than 5 p.m. on the day before the election at the office of the municipal clerk, or at a specified polling place on election day. When voting at the municipal clerk's office, the applicant shall provide identification and shall mark or punch the ballot in the clerk's presence in a manner that will not disclose his or her vote. Unless the ballot is utilized with an electronic voting system, the applicant shall fold the ballot so as to conceal his or her vote. The applicant shall then deposit the ballot and seal it in an envelope furnished by the clerk.

AB710, s. 11 Section 11. 6.15 (3) (b) of the statutes is repealed.

AB710, s. 12 Section 12. 6.18 of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,6,13 6.18 Former residents. If ineligible to qualify as an elector in the state to which the elector has moved, any former qualified Wisconsin elector may vote an absentee ballot in the ward of the elector's prior residence in any presidential election occurring within 24 months after leaving Wisconsin by requesting an application form and returning it, properly executed, to the municipal clerk of the elector's prior Wisconsin residence. When requesting an application form for an absentee ballot, the applicant shall specify the applicant's eligibility for only the presidential ballot. The application form shall require the following information and be in substantially the following form:

AB710,6,17 This blank shall be returned to the municipal clerk's office. Application must be received in sufficient time for ballots to be mailed and returned prior to any presidential election at which applicant wishes to vote. Complete all statements in full.

AB710,6,18 APPLICATION FOR PRESIDENTIAL

AB710,6,19 ELECTOR'S ABSENT BALLOT.

AB710,6,20 (To be voted at the Presidential Election

AB710,6,21 on November ...., .... (year)

AB710,7,5 I, .... hereby swear or affirm that I am a citizen of the United States, formerly residing at .... in the .... ward .... aldermanic district (city, town, village) of ...., County of .... for 10 28 days prior to leaving the State of Wisconsin. I, .... do solemnly swear or affirm that I do not qualify to register or vote under the laws of the State of ....(State you now reside in) where I am presently residing. A citizen must be a resident of: State ....(Insert time) County ....(Insert time) City, Town or Village ....(Insert time), in order to be eligible to register or vote therein. I further swear or affirm that my legal residence was established in the State of ....(the State where you now reside) on .... Month .... Day .... Year.

AB710,7,6 Signed ....

AB710,7,7 Address ....(Present address)

AB710,7,8 ....(City) ....(State)

AB710,7,9 Subscribed and sworn to before me this .... day of .... .... (year)

AB710,7,10 ....(Notary Public, or other officer authorized to administer oaths.)

AB710,7,11 ....(County)

AB710,7,12 My Commission expires

AB710,7,13 MAIL BALLOT TO:

AB710,7,14 NAME ....

AB710,7,15 ADDRESS ....

AB710,7,16 CITY .... STATE .... ZIP CODE ....

AB710,7,20 Penalties for Violations. Whoever swears falsely to any absent elector affidavit under this section may be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both. Whoever intentionally votes more than once in an election may be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than 3 years, or both.

AB710,7,21 ....(Municipal Clerk)

AB710,7,22 ....(Municipality)

AB710, s. 13 Section 13. 6.26 (2) (d) of the statutes is repealed.

AB710, s. 14 Section 14. 6.275 (1) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,8,4 6.275 (1) (b) Where registration applies, the total number of electors of the municipality residing in that county who were preregistered registered on the deadline specified in s. 6.28 (1), including valid mail registrations which are postmarked by that day.

AB710, s. 15 Section 15. 6.275 (1) (c) of the statutes is repealed.

AB710, s. 16 Section 16. 6.275 (1) (d) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,8,9 6.275 (1) (d) Where registration applies, the total number of electors of the municipality residing in that county who registered transferred registration on the day of the primary or election under s. 6.55 (2).

AB710, s. 17 Section 17. 6.28 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,9,7 6.28 (1) Registration locations; deadline. Except as authorized in ss. 6.29 and s. 6.55 (2), registration in person for any election shall close at 5 p.m. on the 2nd Wednesday 28th day preceding the election. Registrations made by mail under s. 6.30 (4) must be delivered to the office of the municipal clerk or postmarked no later than the 2nd Wednesday 28th day preceding the election. An Except as authorized in s. 6.55 (2), no application for registration in person or by mail may be accepted for placement on the registration list after the specified deadline, if the municipal clerk determines that the registration list can be revised to incorporate the registration in time for the election. All applications for registration corrections and additions may be made throughout the year at the office of the city board of election commissioners, at the office of the municipal clerk, at the office of any register of deeds, or at other locations provided by the board of election commissioners or the common council in cities over 500,000 population or by either or both the municipal clerk, or the common council, village or town board in all other municipalities and may also be made during the school year at any high school by qualified persons under sub. (2) (a). Other registration locations may include but are not limited to fire houses, police stations, public libraries, institutions of higher education, supermarkets, community centers, plants and factories, banks, savings and loan associations, and savings banks. Special registration deputies shall be appointed for all locations. An elector who wishes to obtain a confidential listing under s. 6.47 (2) shall register at the office of the municipal clerk of the municipality where the elector resides.

AB710, s. 18 Section 18. 6.29 of the statutes is repealed.

AB710, s. 19 Section 19. 6.32 (3) of the statutes is repealed.

AB710, s. 20 Section 20. 6.33 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,9,21 6.33 (1) The municipal clerk shall supply sufficient registration forms as prescribed by the board printed on loose-leaf sheets or cards to obtain from each applicant information as to name, date, residence location, citizenship, age, whether the applicant has resided within the ward or election district for at least 10 28 days, whether the applicant has lost his or her right to vote, and whether the applicant is currently registered to vote at any other location, and shall provide a space for the applicant's signature. The forms shall also include a space for the identification serial number of any elector who is issued such a number under s. 6.47 (3). Each register of deeds shall obtain sufficient registration forms at the expense of the unit of government by which he or she is employed for completion by any elector who desires to register to vote.

AB710, s. 21 Section 21. 6.33 (2) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,9,24 6.33 (2) (b) The registration form shall be signed by the registering elector and any corroborating elector under s. 6.29 (2) (a) or 6.55 (2) before the clerk, issuing officer, or registration deputy. The form shall contain a certification by the registering elector that all statements are true and correct.

AB710, s. 22 Section 22. 6.40 (1) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,10,15 6.40 (1) (a) Within municipality Change of residence. Any registered elector shall transfer registration after a change of residence within the municipality in which he or she is registered by appearing in person or by mailing to the municipal clerk of the municipality where the elector currently resides a signed request stating his or her present address, affirming that this will be the elector's residence for 10 28 days prior to the election, and providing the address where he or she was last registered. Alternatively, the elector may transfer his or her registration at the proper polling place or other registration location under s. 6.02 (2) in accordance with s. 6.55 (2) (a). If an elector is voting at a former ward or election district changes his or her residence from one municipality to another or from one ward to another within the same municipality, within 28 days of an election, the change shall be effective for the next election.

AB710, s. 23 Section 23. 6.40 (1) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB710,10,24 6.40 (1) (b) Within state Cancellation of previous registration. Any elector who changes residence within this state from one municipality to another shall give his or her previous residence upon application for registration at the new residence and shall sign an authorization to cancel voting privileges at the former residence on a form prescribed by the board and furnished by each municipality. The cancellation authorization shall be forwarded to the proper election officials no later than 3 days after the close of registration. Such elector may also transfer his or her registration at the proper polling place or other registration location as provided in s. 6.55 (2) (a).

AB710, s. 24 Section 24. 6.40 (1) (c) of the statutes is amended to read: