Connecticut 2025 Regular Session

Connecticut Senate Bill SB01407 Latest Draft

Bill / Comm Sub Version Filed 04/03/2025

                             
 
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General Assembly  Substitute Bill No. 1407  
January Session, 2025 
 
 
 
AN ACT CONCERNING AUDITS CONDUCTED BY THE STATE 
ELECTIONS ENFORCEMENT COMMISSION.  
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General 
Assembly convened: 
 
Section 1. Subdivision (5) of subsection (a) of section 9-7b of the 1 
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 2 
thereof (Effective July 1, 2025): 3 
(5) (A) To inspect or audit at any reasonable time and upon 4 
reasonable notice the accounts or records of any treasurer or principal 5 
treasurer, except as provided for in subparagraph (B) of this 6 
subdivision, as required by chapter 155 or 157 and to audit any such 7 
election, primary or referendum held within the state; provided, (i) (I) 8 
not later than two months preceding the day of an election at which a 9 
candidate is seeking election, the commission shall complete any audit 10 
it has initiated in the absence of a complaint that involves a committee 11 
of the same candidate from a previous election, and (II) during the two-12 
month period preceding the day of an election at which a candidate is 13 
seeking election, the commission shall not initiate an audit in the 14 
absence of a complaint that involves a committee of the same candidate 15 
from a previous election, and (ii) the commission shall not audit any 16 
caucus, as defined in subdivision (1) of section 9-372. 17 
(B) When conducting an audit after an election or primary, the 18 
commission shall randomly audit not more than fifty per cent of 19  Substitute Bill No. 1407 
 
 
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candidate committees, which shall be selected through the process of a 20 
weighted lottery conducted by the commission that takes into account 21 
the selection frequency of a district served by the office of state senator 22 
or state representative, as applicable, for the immediately preceding 23 
three regular elections for such office and increases or decreases the 24 
likelihood that such district will be selected for audit based on such 25 
selection frequency, except that the commissioner shall audit all 26 
candidate committees for candidates for a state-wide office. Any such 27 
lottery shall be duly noticed and open to the public.  28 
(C) The commission shall notify, in writing, any committee of a 29 
candidate for an office in the general election, or of any candidate who 30 
had a primary for nomination to any such office, of its selection for an 31 
audit not later than May thirty-first of the year immediately following 32 
such election. In no case shall the commission audit any such candidate 33 
committee that the commission fails to provide notice to in accordance 34 
with this subparagraph. 35 
(D) Not later than twelve months after the commission receives all 36 
necessary information to conduct an audit described in subparagraph 37 
(B) of this subdivision, the commission shall complete such audit and 38 
issue its findings. Not later than January 1, 2026, and annually 39 
thereafter, the commission shall submit a report to the joint standing 40 
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 41 
relating to government oversight, in accordance with the provisions of 42 
section 11-4a, concerning whether there were any audits during the 43 
preceding calendar year that the commission was unable to complete 44 
during such twelve-month period and, if so, the reasons for such 45 
inability to complete such audits; 46 
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following 
sections: 
 
Section 1 July 1, 2025 9-7b(a)(5) 
 
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:   
In Subsec. (a)(5)(C), the first sentence was rewritten for clarity.  Substitute Bill No. 1407 
 
 
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GOS Joint Favorable Subst. -LCO