LRB-0971/1
JTK:kjf:jf
2007 - 2008 LEGISLATURE
March 12, 2007 - Introduced by Representatives Jeskewitz, Lothian, Townsend,
Vos, Stone, A. Ott, Albers, Owens, Nass, Strachota and Gundrum,
cosponsored by Senator Grothman. Referred to Committee on Elections and
Constitutional Law.
AB158,2,2
1An Act to repeal 6.26 (2) (d), 6.275 (1) (c), 6.29, 6.32 (3), 6.54, 6.55 (2) (a) 2., 6.55
2(2) (cm), 6.55 (3) (b), 6.55 (6) and 6.86 (3) (a) 2.;
to renumber 6.86 (3) (a) 1.;
to
3renumber and amend 6.55 (2) (a) 1., 6.55 (2) (d), 6.55 (3) (a) and 6.97 (3);
to
4amend 6.02 (1), 6.02 (2), 6.10 (3), 6.10 (4), 6.15 (1), 6.15 (2) (a), 6.15 (3), 6.18
5(form), 6.275 (1) (b), 6.275 (1) (d), 6.28 (1), 6.30 (1), 6.32 (4), 6.33 (1), 6.33 (2) (b),
66.34 (2), 6.36 (5), 6.40 (1) (a) 1., 6.40 (1) (c), 6.45 (1), 6.45 (1m), 6.50 (10), 6.55
7(title), 6.55 (2) (b), 6.55 (2) (c) 1., 6.55 (2) (cs), 6.56 (1), 6.56 (3), 6.56 (5), 6.79 (2)
8(b) and (c), 6.79 (4), 6.85, 6.86 (3) (b), 6.86 (3) (c), 6.87 (2) (form), 6.94, 6.97 (1),
96.97 (2), 7.03 (1) (d), 7.15 (1) (L), 7.30 (2) (a), 7.315 (1) (a) and (b) 1., 7.37 (13),
1012.13 (3) (v) and 17.29;
to repeal and recreate 6.15 (2) (title); and
to create
116.79 (2) (dn), 6.86 (1) (d) and 6.97 (3) (b) of the statutes;
relating to: the
1deadline and procedure for voter registration and the determination of
2residency for voting purposes.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Under current law, voter registration is required in all municipalities. With
certain exceptions, the deadline for voter registration at an election is 5 p.m. on the
third 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 no 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. If
an elector registers at the office of the municipal clerk or board of election
commissioners after the close of registration or at a polling place or other designated
location on election day, the elector must present acceptable proof of residence or
have another elector of the same ward or, if a municipality is not divided into wards,
of the same municipality, sign a statement corroborating the elector's registration.
The corroborating elector must then present acceptable proof of residence.
This bill provides that the deadline for registration is 5 p.m. on the 14th day
preceding the election. Under the bill, in-person registrations must be completed by
this deadline, and registrations made by mail must be delivered or postmarked no
later than this deadline. The bill discontinues the procedure for registration at
polling places and other designated locations on election day. However, the bill
permits an elector who changes his or her name or who moves to a new residence
within the same ward or, if a municipality is not divided into wards, of the same
municipality, 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 14 days.
The bill provides that if an elector claims to have registered to vote in an election
at the address where the elector seeks to vote no later than the 14th day before the
election but the elector's name does not appear on the registration list at that
address, the elector may cast a marked, provisional ballot. If by 4 p.m. on the day
after the election, the elector submits proof to the municipal clerk or executive
director of the municipal board of election commissioners that the elector was
properly registered and the clerk or executive director notifies the appropriate board
or boards of canvassers of that fact, the provisional ballot is counted.
If enacted, this bill will 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. In addition, the bill will activate
a requirement under the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002 that authorizes
voters whose ballots are not accepted at federal elections to cast provisional ballots
in those elections. This state is currently exempt from that requirement.
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:
AB158, s. 1
1Section
1. 6.02 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,3,42
6.02
(1) Every U.S. citizen age 18 or older who has resided in an election district
3or ward for
10 14 days before any election where the citizen offers to vote is an eligible
4elector.
AB158, s. 2
5Section
2. 6.02 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,3,106
6.02
(2) Any U.S. citizen age 18 or older who moves within this state later than
710 14 days before an election shall vote at his or her previous ward or election district
8if the person is otherwise qualified. If the elector can comply with the
10-day 14-day 9residence requirement at the new address and is otherwise qualified, he or she may
10vote in the new ward or election district.
AB158, s. 3
11Section
3. 6.10 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,4,212
6.10
(3) When an elector moves from one ward to another
within a municipality 13or from one municipality to another within the state
after the last registration day
14but at least 10 days before the election, the elector may vote in and be considered a
15resident of the new ward or municipality where residing upon transferring
16registration under s. 6.40 (1) or upon registering at the proper polling place or other
17registration location in the new ward or municipality under s. 6.55 (2) or 6.86 (3) (a)
12. If the elector moves within
10 14 days of an election, the elector shall vote in the
2elector's
old former ward or municipality if otherwise qualified to vote there.
AB158, s. 4
3Section
4. 6.10 (4) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,4,144
6.10
(4) The residence of an unmarried person sleeping in one ward and
5boarding in another is the place where the person sleeps. The residence of an
6unmarried person in a transient vocation, a teacher or a student who boards at
7different places for part of the week, month
, or year, if one of the places is the
8residence of the person's parents, is the place of the parents' residence unless through
9registration or similar act the person elects to establish a residence elsewhere. If the
10person has no parents and if the person has not registered elsewhere, the person's
11residence shall be at the place
which that the person considered his or her residence
12in preference to any other for at least
10 14 days before an election. If this place is
13within the municipality, the person is entitled to all the privileges and subject to all
14the duties of other citizens having their residence there, including voting.
AB158, s. 5
15Section
5. 6.15 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,4,2116
6.15
(1) Qualifications. Any person who was or who is a qualified elector under
17ss. 6.02 and 6.03, except that he or she has been a resident of this state for less than
1810 14 days prior to the date of the presidential election, is entitled to vote for the
19president and vice president but for no other offices. The fact that the person was
20not registered to vote in the state from which he or she moved does not prevent voting
21in this state if the elector is otherwise qualified.
AB158, s. 6
22Section
6. 6.15 (2) (title) of the statutes is repealed and recreated to read:
AB158,4,2323
6.15
(2) (title)
Application for ballot.
AB158, s. 7
24Section
7. 6.15 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,5,8
16.15
(2) (a) The elector's request for the application form may be made in person
2to the municipal clerk of the municipality where the person resides. Application may
3be made not sooner than
9 13 days nor later than 5 p.m. on the day before the election
,
4or may be made at the proper polling place in the ward or election district in which
5the elector resides. If an elector makes application before election day, the. The 6application form shall be returned to the municipal clerk after the affidavit has been
7signed in the presence of the clerk or any officer authorized by law to administer
8oaths. The affidavit shall be in substantially the following form:
AB158,5,99
STATE OF WISCONSIN
AB158,5,1010
County of ....
AB158,5,2111
I, ...., do solemnly swear that I am a citizen of the United States; that prior to
12establishing Wisconsin residence, my legal residence was in the .... (town) (village)
13(city) of ...., state of ...., residing at .... (street address); that on the day of the next
14presidential election, I shall be at least 18 years of age and that I have been a legal
15resident of the state of Wisconsin since ...., .... (year), residing at .... (street address),
16in the [.... ward of the .... aldermanic district of] the (town) (village) (city) of ...., county
17of ....; that I have resided in the state less than
10
14 days, that I am qualified to vote
18for president and vice president at the election to be held November ...., .... (year),
19that I am not voting at any other place in this election and that I hereby make
20application for an official presidential ballot, in accordance with section 6.15 of the
21Wisconsin statutes.
AB158,5,2323
P.O. Address ....
AB158,5,2424
Subscribed and sworn to before me this .... day of ...., .... (year)
AB158, s. 8
2Section
8. 6.15 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,6,193
6.15
(3) Procedure at polling place Use of electronic voting systems. An
4eligible elector may appear at the polling place for the ward or election district where
5he or she resides and make application for a ballot under sub. (2). Except as
6otherwise provided in this subsection, an elector who casts a ballot under this
7subsection shall follow the same procedure required for casting a ballot at the
8municipal clerk's office under sub. (2). The inspectors shall perform the duties of the
9municipal clerk, except that the inspectors shall return the cancellation card under
10sub. (2) (b) to the municipal clerk and the clerk shall forward the card as provided
11in sub. (2) (c) if required. Upon proper completion of the application and cancellation
12card and submittal of proof of residence under s. 6.34 or providing corroboration of
13residence, the inspectors shall permit the elector to cast his or her ballot for president
14and vice president. The elector shall mark the ballot and, unless the ballot is utilized
15with an electronic voting system, the elector shall fold the ballot, and deposit the
16ballot into the ballot box or give it to the inspector. The inspector shall deposit it
17directly into the ballot box. Voting machines or ballots utilized with electronic voting
18systems may only be used by electors voting under this section if they permit voting
19for president and vice president only.
AB158, s. 9
20Section
9. 6.18 (form) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,6,2522
This form shall be returned to the municipal clerk's office. Application must be
23received in sufficient time for ballots to be mailed and returned prior to any
24presidential election at which applicant wishes to vote. Complete all statements in
25full.
AB158,7,1
1APPLICATION FOR PRESIDENTIAL
AB158,7,22
ELECTOR'S ABSENTEE BALLOT.
AB158,7,33
(To be voted at the Presidential Election
AB158,7,44
on November ...., .... (year)
AB158,7,135
I, .... hereby swear or affirm that I am a citizen of the United States, formerly
6residing at .... in the .... ward .... aldermanic district (city, town, village) of ...., County
7of .... for
10 14 days prior to leaving the State of Wisconsin. I, .... do solemnly swear
8or affirm that I do not qualify to register or vote under the laws of the State of ....(State
9you now reside in) where I am presently residing. A citizen must be a resident of:
10State ....(Insert time) County ....(Insert time) City, Town or Village ....(Insert time),
11in order to be eligible to register or vote therein. I further swear or affirm that my
12legal residence was established in the State of ....(the State where you now reside)
13on .... Month .... Day .... Year.
AB158,7,1515
Address ....(Present address)
AB158,7,1616
....(City) ....(State)
AB158,7,1717
Subscribed and sworn to before me this .... day of .... .... (year)
AB158,7,1818
....(Notary Public, or other officer authorized to administer oaths.)
AB158,7,1919
....(County)
AB158,7,2020
My Commission expires
AB158,7,2121
MAIL BALLOT TO:
AB158,7,2323
ADDRESS ....
AB158,7,2424
CITY .... STATE .... ZIP CODE ....
AB158,8,5
1Penalties for Violations. Whoever swears falsely to any absent elector affidavit
2under this section may be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned for not more than
36 months or both. Whoever intentionally votes more than once in an election may
4be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than 3 years and 6 months
5or both.
AB158,8,66
....(Municipal Clerk)
AB158,8,77
....(Municipality)
AB158, s. 10
8Section
10. 6.26 (2) (d) of the statutes is repealed.
AB158, s. 11
9Section
11. 6.275 (1) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,8,1210
6.275
(1) (b) The total number of electors of the municipality residing in that
11county who were
preregistered registered on the deadline specified in s. 6.28 (1),
12including valid mail registrations which are postmarked by that day.
AB158, s. 12
13Section
12. 6.275 (1) (c) of the statutes is repealed.
AB158, s. 13
14Section
13. 6.275 (1) (d) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,8,1715
6.275
(1) (d) The total number of electors of the municipality residing in that
16county who
registered transferred registration on the day of the primary or election
17under
ss. s. 6.55
and 6.86 (3) (a) 2 (2).
AB158, s. 14
18Section
14. 6.28 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB158,9,1219
6.28
(1) Registration locations; deadline. Except as authorized in
ss. 6.29, s. 206.55 (2)
, and 6.86 (3) (a) 2., registration in person for any election shall close at 5 p.m.
21on the
3rd Wednesday 14th day preceding the election. Registrations made by mail
22under s. 6.30 (4) must be delivered to the office of the municipal clerk or postmarked
23no later than the
3rd Wednesday 14th day preceding the election. All applications
24for registration corrections and additions may be made throughout the year at the
25office of the city board of election commissioners, at the office of the municipal clerk,
1at the office of the county clerk, or at other locations provided by the board of election
2commissioners or the common council in cities over 500,000 population or by either
3or both the municipal clerk, or the common council, village or town board in all other
4municipalities and may also be made during the school year at any high school by
5qualified persons under sub. (2) (a). Other registration locations may include but are
6not limited to fire houses, police stations, public libraries, institutions of higher
7education, supermarkets, community centers, plants and factories, banks, savings
8and loan associations and savings banks. Special registration deputies shall be
9appointed for each location unless the location can be sufficiently staffed by the board
10of election commissioners or the municipal clerk or his or her deputies. An elector
11who wishes to obtain a confidential listing under s. 6.47 (2) shall register at the office
12of the municipal clerk of the municipality where the elector resides.
AB158, s. 15
13Section
15. 6.29 of the statutes is repealed.
AB158, s. 16
14Section
16. 6.30 (1) of the statutes is amended to read: