SB179, s. 2 8Section 2. 5.06 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB179,4,59 5.06 (2) No Except as authorized in ss. 5.07 (2) and 12.17 (3), no person who
10is authorized to file a complaint under sub. (1), other than the attorney general or
11a district attorney, may commence an action or proceeding to test the validity of any
12decision, action or failure to act on the part of any election official with respect to any

1matter specified in sub. (1) without first filing a complaint under sub. (1), nor prior
2to disposition of the complaint by the board. A complaint is deemed disposed of if the
3board fails to transmit an acknowledgment of receipt of the complaint within 5
4business days from the date of its receipt or if the board concludes its investigation
5without a formal decision.
SB179, s. 3 6Section 3. 5.07 of the statutes is renumbered 5.07 (1).
SB179, s. 4 7Section 4. 5.07 (2) of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,4,148 5.07 (2) Whenever a violation of s. 5.25 (4) (b), 5.34, 5.35 (6) (a) 4c., 7.08 (3),
912.09, or 12.19 occurs or is proposed to occur, any elector of this state may sue for
10injunctive relief, a writ of mandamus or prohibition, or such other legal or equitable
11relief as may be appropriate to compel compliance with the law. The action shall be
12filed in circuit court for the county where the violation occurs or is proposed to occur.
13In such actions, the court shall award costs and reasonable actual attorney fees to
14the plaintiff if the plaintiff prevails in the action.
SB179, s. 5 15Section 5. 5.25 (4) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB179,4,2116 5.25 (4) (b) In any jurisdiction that is subject to the requirement under 42 USC
171973aa-1a
to provide voting materials in any language other than English, the board
18shall ensure that at least one of the election officials who serves at each polling place
19in that jurisdiction speaks that language, the materials specified in s. 5.35 (6) are
20posted in that language, and
the voting system used at each polling place in that
21jurisdiction is in compliance with 42 USC 1973aa-1a.
SB179, s. 6 22Section 6. 5.34 of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,4,23 235.34 Voter's bill of rights. Every qualified elector has the right to:
SB179,4,24 24(1) Inspect a sample ballot before voting.
SB179,4,25 25(2) Cast a ballot if he or she is in line when his or her polling place closes.
SB179,5,3
1(3) Ask for and receive assistance in voting, including assistance in a language
2other than English if the elector resides in a jurisdiction where voting materials must
3be provided in that language under 42 USC 1073aa-1a.
SB179,5,5 4(4) Receive a replacement ballot, up to 3 ballots in all, if he or she spoils a ballot
5before casting that ballot.
SB179,5,6 6(5) Cast a provisional ballot whenever permitted under s. 6.96 or 6.97.
SB179,5,8 7(6) Vote free from coercion or intimidation by any election official or other
8person.
SB179,5,10 9(7) Cast a ballot using voting materials or equipment that enables the elector's
10ballot to be counted accurately.
SB179, s. 7 11Section 7. 5.35 (6) (a) 4c. of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,5,1212 5.35 (6) (a) 4c. A copy of the voter's bill of rights under s. 5.34.
SB179, s. 8 13Section 8. 7.08 (3) (d) to (g) of the statutes are created to read:
SB179,5,1414 7.08 (3) (d) Be written in clear, unambiguous language.
SB179,5,1515 (e) Be indexed by subject.
SB179,5,1716 (f) Contain specific examples of common problems encountered at polling
17places on election day and detailed, specific procedures for resolving those problems.
SB179,5,1818 (g) Include an explanation of all of the following:
SB179,5,2019 1. Laws and rules governing solicitation by individuals and groups at a polling
20place.
SB179,5,2221 2. Procedures to be followed with respect to electors whose names do not appear
22on the registration list.
SB179,5,2323 3. Proper operation of any electronic voting system used at a polling place.
SB179,5,2424 4. Procedures for handling of ballots.
SB179,5,2525 5. Procedures governing spoiled ballots.
SB179,6,1
16. Procedures to be followed after a polling place closes.
SB179,6,22 7. Rights of electors at the polls.
SB179,6,33 8. Procedures for handling of emergency situations.
SB179,6,44 9. Procedures for handling and processing of provisional ballots.
SB179,6,55 10. Security procedures.
SB179, s. 9 6Section 9. 7.08 (11) of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,6,107 7.08 (11) Remedies for deceptive election practices. Disseminate through
8the Internet and radio, television, and newspaper advertisements information
9concerning complaint procedures and remedies for deceptive election practices
10under s. 12.17.
SB179, s. 10 11Section 10. 12.09 (1) and (3) of the statutes are amended to read:
SB179,6,1512 12.09 (1) No person may personally or through an agent make use of or
13threaten to make use of force, violence, or restraint , or any tactic of coercion or
14intimidation
in order to induce or compel any person to vote or refrain from voting
15or to refrain from registering to vote at an election.
SB179,6,19 16(3) No person may personally or through an agent, by any use or threaten to
17use force or violence or by use or threat of any
act of coercion or intimidation compel,
18induce, or prevail upon an elector either to vote or refrain from voting at any election
19for or against a particular candidate or question at a referendum.
SB179, s. 11 20Section 11. 12.17 of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,6,22 2112.17 Deceptive election practices. (1) In this section, "election-related
22information" means information concerning any of the following:
SB179,6,2323 (a) The date, time, place, or manner of conducting an election.
SB179,7,3
1(b) The qualifications for or restrictions on the eligibility of electors voting at
2an election, including any criminal penalties associated with voting in an election or
3a voter's registration status or eligibility.
SB179,7,44 (c) The explicit endorsement by any person of a candidate at an election.
SB179,7,7 5(2) No person, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, may
6intentionally induce another person to refrain from registering or voting at an
7election by knowingly providing that person with false election-related information.
SB179,7,10 8(3) Any person who is aggrieved by an alleged violation of sub. (2) may bring
9an action for injunctive relief in circuit court for the county where the violation is
10alleged to occur.
SB179,7,13 11(4) Any person may file a verified complaint with the board alleging facts that
12the person believes to constitute a violation of sub. (2). The complaint shall be filed
13under s. 5.05 (2m) (c).
SB179,7,22 14(5) Notwithstanding s. 5.05 (2m) (c), the board shall review each complaint
15received under sub. (4) within 24 hours of receipt, and if the board finds that the facts
16alleged in the complaint, if true, would constitute a violation of sub. (2), the board
17shall investigate the complaint within 48 hours of receipt. Notwithstanding s. 5.05
18(2m) (c) 11., if the board finds that a violation of sub. (2) has occurred or is occurring,
19the board shall take all measures necessary to provide correct information to electors
20who may have been deceived by the actions of the alleged violator, and shall refer the
21matter to the appropriate authority for prosecution in accordance with ss. 5.05 (2m)
22(i) and 12.60 (4).
SB179,8,2 23(6) Notwithstanding s. 5.05 (2m) (c), if the board receives a complaint under
24sub. (4) within 72 hours before an election, and the board finds that the facts alleged
25in the complaint, if true, would constitute a violation of sub. (2), the board shall

1investigate the complaint and take the measures required under sub. (5)
2immediately.
SB179,8,16 3(7) (a) No later than 90 days after each each general election, the board shall
4report to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature for referral to the appropriate
5standing committees under s. 13.172 (2) concerning any complaints under sub. (4)
6that were acted upon or referred by the board under sub. (5) during the period
7beginning with the date of the 2nd preceding general election and ending with the
8preceding general election. Except as provided in par. (b), the report shall include
9a description of the alleged deceptive election practices that were the subject of each
10complaint, any corrective measures taken by the board with regard to the subject
11matter of the complaint, the board's evaluation of the effectiveness of those corrective
12measures, the status of any prosecution relating to the subject matter of the
13complaint, a compilation of the number and types of allegations made that were
14acted upon or referred by the board under sub. (5), the locations and segments of the
15population that were affected by the alleged deceptive election practices, and the
16status of any investigations conducted by the board under sub. (5).
SB179,8,1817 (b) The board may exclude from the report under par. (a) any information that,
18if disclosed, would interfere with a pending investigation of a violation of the law.
SB179,8,2019 (c) The board shall post a copy of each report submitted under this subsection
20on the Internet.
SB179, s. 12 21Section 12. 12.19 of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,8,24 2212.19 Voter suppression. No person may knowingly attempt to prevent or
23deter another person from voting or registering to vote based upon fraudulent,
24deceptive, or spurious grounds or information. A violation of this section includes:
SB179,9,2
1(1) Challenging another person's right to register or vote at an election based
2upon information the person knows is false.
SB179,9,4 3(2) Attempting to induce another person to refrain from registering or voting
4by providing that person with information the person knows is false.
SB179, s. 13 5Section 13. 12.60 (1) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB179,9,76 12.60 (1) (a) Whoever violates s. 12.09, 12.11 or 12.13 (1), (2) (b) 1. to 7. or (3)
7(a), (e), (f), (j), (k), (L), (m), (y) or (z) is guilty of a Class I felony.
SB179, s. 14 8Section 14. 12.60 (1) (am) of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,9,109 12.60 (1) (am) Whoever violates s. 12.17 (2) with the intent to prevent any
10person from exercising the right to vote in an election is guilty of a Class D felony.
SB179, s. 15 11Section 15. 12.60 (1) (an) of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,9,1212 12.60 (1) (an) Whoever violates s. 12.09 is guilty of a Class D felony.
SB179, s. 16 13Section 16. 12.60 (1) (ap) of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,9,1414 12.60 (1) (ap) Whoever violates s. 12.19 is guilty of a Class E felony.
SB179, s. 17 15Section 17. 12.60 (1) (bn) of the statutes is created to read:
SB179,9,2216 12.60 (1) (bn) If a municipal clerk or executive director of a board of election
17commissioners fails to ensure compliance with s. 5.25 (4) (b) or to post the materials
18specified in s. 5.35 (6) (a) at each polling place located in the municipality served by
19the clerk or executive director at any election, or the executive director of the
20government accountability board fails to include any of the materials specified in s.
217.08 (3) in the election manual, the violator may be fined not more than $10,000 or
22imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.
SB179, s. 18 23Section 18. 939.50 (3) (d) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB179,9,2524 939.50 (3) (d) For a Class D felony, a fine not to exceed $100,000 or
25imprisonment not to exceed 25 years, or both, except that for a violation of s. 12.09,

1the term of imprisonment may not exceed 3 years and for a violation of s. 12.17, the
2term of imprisonment may not exceed 5 years
.
SB179, s. 19 3Section 19. 939.50 (3) (e) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB179,10,64 939.50 (3) (e) For a Class E felony, a fine not to exceed $50,000 or imprisonment
5not to exceed 15 years, or both, except that for a violation of s. 12.19, the term of
6imprisonment may not exceed 2 years
.
SB179, s. 20 7Section 20 . Nonstatutory provisions.
SB179,10,178 (1) Study of options for corrective action. The government accountability
9board, in consultation with the department of justice and the federal election
10assistance commission, shall study the feasibility of providing corrective information
11that may be required under section 12.17 (5) of the statutes, as created by this act,
12through public service announcements, other uses of broadcast media, or an
13emergency alert system. No later than the first day of the 7th month beginning after
14the effective date of this subsection, the board shall report its findings and
15recommendations to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, in the manner
16provided under section 13.172 (2) of the statutes, for referral to the appropriate
17standing committees of each house.
SB179, s. 21 18Section 21. Effective dates. This act takes effect on the day after publication,
19except as follows:
SB179,10,2120 (1) The treatment of section 7.08 (3) (d) to (g) of the statutes takes effect on
21January 1, 2011.
SB179,10,2222 (End)
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