Alabama 2022 Regular Session

Alabama House Bill HB448 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 HB448
2	2	2 218308-1
3	3	3 By Representative Blackshear
4	4	4 RFD: Constitution, Campaigns and Elections
5	5	5 First Read: 03-MAR-22
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7	7	Page 0 1 218308-1:n:03/03/2022:ANS/cr LSA2022-848
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13	13	7
14	14	8 SYNOPSIS: Under existing law, a precinct election
15	15	9 official, other than an inspector, may work on a
16	16	10 split shift schedule of not less than six hours if
17	17	11 determined necessary by the judge of probate in
18	18	12 nonmunicipal elections.
19	19	13 This bill would permit an election official,
20	20	14 other than an inspector, to work on a split shift
21	21	15 schedule if determined necessary by the judge of
22	22	16 probate in municipal elections.
23	23	17
24	24	18 A BILL
25	25	19 TO BE ENTITLED
26	26	20 AN ACT
27	27	21
28	28	22 Relating to elections; to amend Section 11-46-27,
29	29	23 Code of Alabama 1975, and Section 17-8-1, Code of Alabama
30	30	24 1975, as last amended by Act 2021-377 of the 2021 Regular
31	31	25 Session; to permit an election official, other than an
32	32	26 inspector, to work on a split shift schedule if determined
33	33	27 necessary by the judge of probate in municipal elections.
34	34	Page 1 1 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
35	35	2 Section 1. Section 11-46-27, Code of Alabama 1975,
36	36	3 and Section 17-8-1, Code of Alabama 1975, as last amended by
37	37	4 Act 2021-377 of the 2021 Regular Session, are amended to read
38	38	5 as follows:
39	39	6 "§11-46-27.
40	40	7 "(a) The municipal governing body or a majority of
41	41	8 them must, not less than 15 days before the holding of any
42	42	9 municipal election, appoint from the qualified electors of the
43	43	10 respective wards or voting districts officers to hold the
44	44	11 election as follows: Where paper ballots are used, one
45	45	12 returning officer for each ward and three inspectors and two
46	46	13 clerks for each box at each voting place and, where voting
47	47	14 machines are used, an inspector, a chief clerk, and a first
48	48	15 and second assistant clerk for each voting machine; except
49	49	16 that in the event voting centers or voting places are
50	50	17 established, then the requirements of Section 11-46-24 shall
51	51	18 control the number of election officials. In any Class 6,
52	52	19 Class 7, or Class 8 municipality, election officials must
53	53	20 reside within the municipality and may serve at any polling
54	54	21 place within the municipality. An election official appointed
55	55	22 to serve in a polling place other than where he or she would
56	56	23 be required to vote based on residency, may vote by absentee
57	57	24 ballot.
58	58	25 "(b)(1) No officer or employee of the municipality
59	59	26 shall be eligible to serve as an election official.
60	60	Page 2 1 "(2) No kindred of any candidate or his or her
61	61	2 spouse to the second degree, according to the civil law, shall
62	62	3 be eligible to serve as an election official.
63	63	4 "(c) In every city having, according to the last or
64	64	5 any subsequent federal decennial census, 10,000 or more
65	65	6 inhabitants, the municipal governing body shall also appoint
66	66	7 from the qualified electors of the city one inspector and at
67	67	8 least three clerks, who shall meet on the day of the election
68	68	9 at such place and hour as the municipal governing body may
69	69	10 designate for the purpose of receiving, counting, and
70	70	11 returning the absentee ballots cast at such the election, and
71	71	12 four days before the election the municipal governing body
72	72	13 shall ascertain the number of absentee ballots which have been
73	73	14 cast at the election and, if more than 600 absentee ballots
74	74	15 have been cast, then such the governing body shall appoint
75	75	16 three more inspectors and two more clerks for each 600
76	76	17 absentee ballots or fraction thereof cast at such the
77	77	18 election.
78	78	19 "(d) In every city or town having less than 10,000
79	79	20 inhabitants, according to the most recent federal decennial
80	80	21 census, the municipal governing body may adopt an ordinance at
81	81	22 least six months prior to the date of the election to provide
82	82	23 that at the time other election officials are appointed, the
83	83	24 governing body shall appoint additional election officials who
84	84	25 shall meet on the day of the election at the place and hour as
85	85	26 the municipal governing body may designate for the purpose of
86	86	27 receiving, counting, and returning the absentee ballots cast
87	87	Page 3 1 at the election. The ordinance shall enumerate the election
88	88	2 officials the governing body will appoint for this purpose,
89	89	3 but the number shall not be less than three. This ordinance
90	90	4 shall remain in effect until repealed by a subsequent
91	91	5 ordinance adopted at least six months prior to an election.
92	92	6 These absentee election officials shall be in addition to
93	93	7 other election officials required by law and shall be
94	94	8 appointed at the same time and in the same manner as are other
95	95	9 election officials. When the election officials are appointed,
96	96	10 one of them shall be designated by the municipal governing
97	97	11 body as the inspector.
98	98	12 "(e) In the event a person an individual appointed
99	99	13 as an election official is excused from serving or otherwise
100	100	14 disqualifies himself or herself prior to election day, the
101	101	15 vacancy created thereby shall be filled by the municipal
102	102	16 governing body or a majority of them in the same manner that
103	103	17 original appointments are made; provided, however, that if the
104	104	18 vacancy is among the officers appointed to serve at a polling
105	105	19 place where voting machines will be used, after the school of
106	106	20 instruction for election officials has been held as prescribed
107	107	21 in subsection (a) of Section 11-46-30, a person an individual
108	108	22 who has received a certificate from a previous school of
109	109	23 instruction shall, if possible, be appointed to fill the
110	110	24 vacancy.
111	111	25 "(f) The mayor or other chief executive officer of
112	112	26 the municipality shall publish a list of the election officers
113	113	27 so appointed, either by posting a list thereof showing the
114	114	Page 4 1 voting places and the election officers appointed for each
115	115	2 voting place at three public places in the city or town or by
116	116	3 publishing a list in a newspaper published in the city or town
117	117	4 at least 10 days prior to the election.
118	118	5 "(g) The mayor or other chief executive officer of
119	119	6 the municipality shall notify the inspectors, clerks, and
120	120	7 returning officers of their appointment.
121	121	8 "(h) The returning officers, the inspectors, and the
122	122	9 clerks at polling places where voting is solely by paper
123	123	10 ballots shall be entitled to such compensation as the
124	124	11 municipal governing body establishes but which in no event
125	125	12 shall be less than eight dollars ($8) per day, and each
126	126	13 election officer at a polling place where elections are
127	127	14 conducted in whole or in part by voting machines shall be
128	128	15 entitled to such compensation as the municipal governing body
129	129	16 establishes but which in no event shall be less than eight
130	130	17 dollars ($8) per day. The compensation of the election
131	131	18 officials shall be paid as preferred claims out of the general
132	132	19 fund of the municipality holding the election on proper proof
133	133	20 of service rendered.
134	134	21 "(i) Any individual who is compensated for working
135	135	22 as an election official on election day, other than an
136	136	23 inspector appointed under subsection (a), may work on a split
137	137	24 shift schedule if determined necessary by the judge of
138	138	25 probate. Each portion of a split shift shall consist of not
139	139	26 less than six consecutive hours of work and the worker shall
140	140	Page 5 1 be paid one-half of the per day compensation provided for by
141	141	2 general or local law in the county.
142	142	3 "§17-8-1.
143	143	4 "(a) The appointing board, or a majority of them
144	144	5 acting as an appointing board, not more than 20 nor less than
145	145	6 15 days before the holding of any election in their county,
146	146	7 shall appoint from the qualified electors of the respective
147	147	8 county, necessary precinct election officials, which shall
148	148	9 include at least one inspector, to act at each voting place in
149	149	10 each precinct. Precinct election officials shall be registered
150	150	11 voters in the county in which they serve, but are not required
151	151	12 to be registered at the precinct in which they serve.
152	152	13 Provided, first priority may be given to the appointment of
153	153	14 precinct election officials and alternate precinct election
154	154	15 officials who are registered voters at their respective
155	155	16 precincts, so long as the board determines that the precinct
156	156	17 election official is qualified for appointment as a precinct
157	157	18 election official. The appointing board may appoint the number
158	158	19 of precinct election officials necessary for each precinct,
159	159	20 provided that, absent consent of the county commission, the
160	160	21 total number of precinct election officials appointed in a
161	161	22 county shall not exceed the total number of precinct election
162	162	23 officials who were paid by the county for the general election
163	163	24 held November 2004. In the event that the number of precincts
164	164	25 or voting places utilized in an election within a county is
165	165	26 increased or decreased, the total number of officials who may
166	166	27 be appointed without consent of the county commission shall be
167	167	Page 6 1 increased or decreased proportionately based upon the average
168	168	2 number of workers utilized in each precinct or polling place
169	169	3 within the county. In the event that the county changes voting
170	170	4 equipment from that used in the November 2004 election, the
171	171	5 total number of precinct election officials the appointing
172	172	6 board may appoint shall be the average number of precinct
173	173	7 election officials per precinct or polling place utilized
174	174	8 statewide for the general election held in November 2004,
175	175	9 multiplied by the number of precincts or polling places in the
176	176	10 county changing voting equipment; provided, however, that the
177	177	11 number of precinct election officials appointed for any
178	178	12 precinct in the county may be increased with the consent of
179	179	13 the county commission. Members of a candidate's immediate
180	180	14 family to the second degree of kinship by affinity or
181	181	15 consanguinity and any member of a candidate's principal
182	182	16 campaign committee are not eligible for appointment.
183	183	17 "(b) The precinct election officials shall have the
184	184	18 following duties:
185	185	19 "(1) The inspector shall be in charge of the voting
186	186	20 place and shall serve as returning officer for the voting
187	187	21 place.
188	188	22 "(2) The registration list clerk shall check the
189	189	23 name of voters against the list of registered voters and mark
190	190	24 off the names of those who vote in order to prevent double
191	191	25 voting. If any individual whose name does not appear on the
192	192	26 list of registered voters is permitted to vote by means of a
193	193	27 certificate as provided in Section 17-10-3, or by means of a
194	194	Page 7 1 provisional ballot as provided in Sections 17-10-1 and
195	195	2 17-10-2, the registration list clerk shall legibly print the
196	196	3 name and address on the list of registered voters, mark
197	197	4 through the name to indicate that the individual has voted,
198	198	5 and record by the name whether the individual voted by
199	199	6 certificate, with source and date, or by provisional ballot.
200	200	7 "(3) The poll list clerk shall ensure that each
201	201	8 voter signs the poll list as provided in Sections 17-9-15 and
202	202	9 17-13-7. A clerk shall print the voter's name on the poll list
203	203	10 or a duplicate list so that the signature can be identified.
204	204	11 The poll list clerk shall give a ballot to the voter with the
205	205	12 stub attached to the ballot pad. Ballots shall be given out in
206	206	13 sequence beginning with the lowest numbered ballot.
207	207	14 "(4) The ballot clerk, upon the request of a voter,
208	208	15 shall assist the voter as necessary to deposit the ballot in
209	209	16 the precinct ballot counter.
210	210	17 "(c) Any individual who is compensated for working
211	211	18 at the polls during any returning as a precinct election
212	212	19 official on election day, other than an inspector appointed
213	213	20 under subsection (a), may work on a split shift schedule if
214	214	21 determined necessary by the judge of probate. Each portion of
215	215	22 a split shift shall consist of not less than six consecutive
216	216	23 hours of work and the worker shall be paid one-half of the per
217	217	24 day compensation provided for by general or local law in the
218	218	25 county.
219	219	26 "(d)(1) Notwithstanding subsection (a), the judge of
220	220	27 probate or other appropriate election officials in a county
221	221	Page 8 1 may provide for the appointment of additional inspectors and
222	222	2 clerks from within the county to serve as alternates in the
223	223	3 event an appointed inspector or clerk is unable to perform his
224	224	4 or her duties. The number of alternates shall be limited as
225	225	5 provided in the following manner and no payment shall be
226	226	6 provided for alternates in excess of the number authorized in
227	227	7 this subsection:
228	228	8 "a. In a county with a population of less than
229	229	9 100,000 inhabitants, the judge of probate or other appropriate
230	230	10 election officials in the county may provide for the
231	231	11 appointment and payment of up to four alternate inspectors,
232	232	12 clerks, or returning officers.
233	233	13 "b. In a county with a population of 100,000 to
234	234	14 250,000 inhabitants, the judge of probate or other appropriate
235	235	15 election officials in the county may provide for the
236	236	16 appointment and payment of up to 12 alternate inspectors,
237	237	17 clerks, or returning officers.
238	238	18 "c. In a county with a population of more than
239	239	19 250,000 inhabitants, the judge of probate or other appropriate
240	240	20 election officials in the county may provide for the
241	241	21 appointment and payment of up to 24 alternate inspectors,
242	242	22 clerks, or returning officers.
243	243	23 "(2) The appointment and payment of alternates shall
244	244	24 be election expenses eligible for reimbursement by the state
245	245	25 Comptroller pursuant to general law."
246	246	Page 9 1 Section 2. This act shall become effective on the
247	247	2 first day of the third month following its passage and
248	248	3 approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.
249	249	Page 10