South Dakota 2025 Regular Session

South Dakota Senate Bill SB217 Compare Versions

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

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1	1	25.384.12 100th Legislative Session 217
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4	4	2025 South Dakota Legislature
5	5	Senate Bill 217
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12	12	Introduced by: Senator Carley
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14	14	Underscores indicate new language.
15	15	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
16	16	An Act to prohibit the use of automatic tabulating equipment. 1
17	17	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA: 2
18	18	Section 1. That a NEW SECTION be added to chapter 12-1: 3
19	19	The State Board of Elections may not authorize the use of any automatic tabulating 4
20	20	or electronic ballot marking system. 5
21	21	The governing body of a political subdivision having supervision of an election may 6
22	22	not adopt, implement, or use any automatic tabulating or electronic ballot marking system 7
23	23	in an election. 8
24	24	Section 2. That § 12-16-2 be AMENDED: 9
25	25	12-16-2. All official ballots shall must be printed on good quality bond paper, in 10
26	26	black ink, and in the English language. The names of candidates for each office shall must 11
27	27	be printed in large type under the designation of the party for which the nomination is 12
28	28	made, so that all the names of candidates for each party are in separate columns, the 13
29	29	names of candidates for each office are directly opposite each other, and the names of all 14
30	30	independent candidates occupy a separate column under the heading, independent 15
31	31	candidates. In precincts using automatic tabulating systems, the ballot information, 16
32	32	whether placed on the ballot or on the marking device, shall, as far as practicable, be in 17
33	33	the order or arrangement provided for paper ballots except that such information may be 18
34	34	in vertical or horizontal rows, or on a number of separate pages. No An individual race or 19
35	35	ballot question may not be divided between pages. One ballot card may be used for 20
36	36	recording a voter's vote on all races and measures. 21
37	37	Section 3. That § 12-18-1 be AMENDED: 22
38	38	12-18-1. The superintendent of the election precinct is responsible for having the 23
39	39	polling place ready to accommodate the voters in the precinct by the time the polls open. 24 25.384.12 2 217
40	40	Underscores indicate new language.
41	41	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
42	42	The booths, electronic ballot marking system, and supplies which that enable the voter to 1
43	43	complete the voter's ballot shall must be provided by the person in charge of the election. 2
44	44	If a voter chooses to use a sip and puff device or an A/B switch device with the electronic 3
45	45	ballot marking system, the voter shall provide such device. All voting at the polling place 4
46	46	shall must be in private voting booths or compartments and, except as provided in § 12-5
47	47	18-25, shall must be screened from observation. 6
48	48	Section 4. That § 12-19-43 be AMENDED: 7
49	49	12-19-43. The county auditor shall direct the board to meet on election day prior 8
50	50	to the closing of the polls for the sole purpose of reviewing the absentee voters' affidavits 9
51	51	appearing on the sealed ballot envelopes, if in the auditor's judgment this procedure shall 10
52	52	be is necessary due to the number of absentee ballots received. The absentee ballots shall 11
53	53	must be opened, stamped, and placed in the ballot box or processed by an automatic 12
54	54	tabulating machine, but under no circumstances shall the ballots but may not be manually 13
55	55	counted nor any vote totals printed or displayed by any tabulating machine prior to the 14
56	56	closing of the polls. If ballots are processed by an automatic tabulating machine prior to 15
57	57	the closing of the polls, the resolution board shall be present and notification of such 16
58	58	processing shall be provided to each county party chairperson at least ten days before the 17
59	59	election. 18
60	60	Section 5. That § 12-20-1 be AMENDED: 19
61	61	12-20-1. As soon as the polls are closed, the precinct superintendent and precinct 20
62	62	deputies shall must audit the ballot count, as prescribed in §§ 12-20-2 and 12-20-3. The 21
63	63	precinct superintendent and precinct deputies shall then immediately deliver the ballot 22
64	64	boxes, registration book, pollbook, and other election supplies, including voided and 23
65	65	unused ballots, to the counting board, if appointed, and sign a certificate of transmittal 24
66	66	and receipt, as prescribed by the State Board of Elections. 25
67	67	The Upon receipt of the ballot boxes, registration book, pollbook, and other election 26
68	68	supplies, the members of the precinct election board or the counting board, if appointed, 27
69	69	shall then must immediately proceed to count by hand, publicly, and in the presence of 28
70	70	all persons desiring to attend the count, the votes received at the polls, and continue 29
71	71	without leaving the site of the count until the count is completed. A person charged with 30
72	72	implementing this section may not delay the counting of ballots, other than to authorize 31
73	73	short recesses for the health and wellbeing of those employed to implement this section. 32 25.384.12 3 217
74	74	Underscores indicate new language.
75	75	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
76	76	In counting the votes, the members of the precinct election board or counting board shall 1
77	77	use the tally sheets provided. 2
78	78	Section 6. That § 12-20-13 be AMENDED: 3
79	79	12-20-13. Except as provided in § 12-20-17, the county auditor shall tabulate 4
80	80	count election returns as rapidly as received and make the result available for the 5
81	81	information of the public, but such returns are not. Any results made available pursuant 6
82	82	to this section may not be considered the official returns. 7
83	83	The county auditor shall enter the information into the central election reporting 8
84	84	system, by using any computer located in a county office which is properly configured and 9
85	85	linked to the central state computer, immediately following the tabulation counting of 10
86	86	election returns from each precinct. 11
87	87	Section 7. That § 12-20-13.1 be AMENDED: 12
88	88	12-20-13.1. The person in charge of the election shall decide if the count any 13
89	89	provisional ballots are to be counted by hand or by automated tabulating equipment. If a 14
90	90	decision is made to count the ballots by hand, a. A provisional ballot counting board shall 15
91	91	must be appointed as provided in § 12-15-1. If the provisional ballots are to be counted 16
92	92	by automated tabulating equipment, a resolution board and tabulation machine operators 17
93	93	shall be appointed as provided in chapter 12-17B. 18
94	94	Section 8. That § 12-20-13.2 be AMENDED: 19
95	95	12-20-13.2. The provisional ballot counting board or resolution board and 20
96	96	tabulation machine operators shall convene one hour prior to the convening of the 21
97	97	canvassing board. The provisional ballots, which Any provisional ballot that the person in 22
98	98	charge of the election has determined are not to be invalid according to § 12-20-5.1, shall 23
99	99	must be counted. 24
100	100	Upon completion of the count, the provisional ballot counting board or resolution 25
101	101	board shall must complete a certification of the provisional ballot count and give the 26
102	102	certification to the canvassing board. The certification form shall be prescribed by the 27
103	103	State Board of Elections shall prescribe the form of the certification. 28
104	104	Section 9. That § 12-21-24 be AMENDED: 29 25.384.12 4 217
105	105	Underscores indicate new language.
106	106	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
107	107	12-21-24. The county auditor shall provide the pollbooks, automatic tabulating 1
108	108	system election night print outs, sealed ballot boxes, any provisional ballots which that 2
109	109	were determined countable pursuant to § 12-20-13.2, any uncounted provisional ballots, 3
110	110	and any unopened absentee ballot envelopes to the recount board. The recount board is 4
111	111	authorized to make a determination whether any provisional ballots or absentee ballots 5
112	112	which that were determined not to be countable, shall be are counted, and those votes 6
113	113	shall must be added to the recount tally. 7
114	114	Section 10. That § 61-1-36 be AMENDED: 8
115	115	61-1-36. For the purposes of §§ 61-1-13 and 61-1-15 the term, employment, 9
116	116	does not apply to service performed: 10
117	117	(1) In the employ of: 11
118	118	(a) A church or convention or association of churches, or 12
119	119	(b) An organization which that is operated primarily for religious purposes and 13
120	120	which is operated, supervised, controlled, or principally supported by a 14
121	121	church or convention or association of churches; or 15
122	122	(2) By a duly ordained, commissioned, or licensed minister of a church in the exercise 16
123	123	of duties required by the church or by a member of a religious order in the exercise 17
124	124	of duties required by the order; or 18
125	125	(3) In the employ of a school which that is not an institution of higher education prior 19
126	126	to January 1, 1978; or in the employ of a governmental entity referred to in § 61-20
127	127	1-13 after December 31, 1977, if the service is performed by an individual in the 21
128	128	exercise of duties: 22
129	129	(a) As an elected official; 23
130	130	(b) As a member of a legislative body, or a member of the judiciary, of a state 24
131	131	or political subdivision; 25
132	132	(c) As a member of the state national guard or air national guard; 26
133	133	(d) As an employee serving on a temporary basis in case of fire, storm, snow, 27
134	134	earthquake, flood, or similar emergency; 28
135	135	(e) In a position which that, under or pursuant to the laws of this state, is 29
136	136	designated as a major nontenured policymaking or advisory position, or a 30
137	137	policymaking position the performance of the duties of which ordinarily does 31
138	138	not require more than eight hours per week; or 32
139	139	(f) As a precinct election official or automatic tabulating system worker, if the 33
140	140	amount of remuneration received by the individual during the calendar year 34 25.384.12 5 217
141	141	Underscores indicate new language.
142	142	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
143	143	for services as a precinct election official or automatic tabulating system 1
144	144	worker is less than one thousand dollars; or 2
145	145	(4) In a facility conducted for the purpose of carrying out a program of rehabilitation 3
146	146	for any individual whose earning capacity is impaired by age or physical or mental 4
147	147	deficiency or injury, or providing remunerative work for any individual who because 5
148	148	of impaired physical or mental capacity cannot be readily absorbed in the 6
149	149	competitive labor market, by an individual receiving such the rehabilitation or 7
150	150	remunerative work; or 8
151	151	(5) As part of an unemployment work -relief or work-training program assisted or 9
152	152	financed in whole or in part by any federal agency or an agency of a state or 10
153	153	political subdivision, by an individual receiving such the work relief or work 11
154	154	training; or 12
155	155	(6) By an inmate of a custodial or penal institution. 13
156	156	Section 11. That § 12-17B-1 be REPEALED. 14
157	157	Terms used in this chapter mean: 15
158	158	(1) "Automatic tabulating equipment," the apparatus necessary to automatically 16
159	159	examine and count votes as designated on ballots or entered directly into a 17
160	160	computer by means of a touch screen or other data entry device and data 18
161	161	processing machines which can be used for counting these votes and tabulating 19
162	162	results; 20
163	163	(2) "Ballot," paper ballots containing the names of candidates and statements of 21
164	164	measures to be voted on; 22
165	165	(3) "Counting location," any location selected by the person in charge of the election 23
166	166	for the counting of votes cast in an election. A counting location shall be within the 24
167	167	territorial jurisdiction of such person unless there is no suitable tabulating 25
168	168	equipment available within the jurisdiction. However, in any event, all counting 26
169	169	locations shall be within this state; 27
170	170	(4) "Electronic ballot marking system," any electronic device which marks votes on a 28
171	171	ballot; 29
172	172	(5) "Optical scan," a procedure in which votes are tabulated by means of examining 30
173	173	marks made in voting response locations on the ballots with an optical mark reader 31
174	174	(OMR); 32
175	175	(6) "Resolution board," a board at an automatic tabulating location comprised of a 33
176	176	representative from each political party having a candidate on the ballot and whose 34 25.384.12 6 217
177	177	Underscores indicate new language.
178	178	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
179	179	candidate on the county-wide ballot at the last general election received at least 1
180	180	fifteen percent of the votes. The county auditor may request additional board 2
181	181	members balanced evenly by party. If the resolution board consists of more than 3
182	182	one member from each party, the party shall designate which member of the party 4
183	183	shall serve as co-leader of the resolution board. The co-leaders shall ensure that 5
184	184	each board member is conducting resolution board duties uniformly and in 6
185	185	accordance with applicable statutes and administrative rules. The board shall 7
186	186	determine the disposition of those ballots which cannot be properly counted by the 8
187	187	tabulating equipment and observe the activities at the counting location on behalf 9
188	188	of the board member's respective party affiliation. In strictly nonpartisan elections, 10
189	189	the resolution board shall be comprised of two persons who are not employees of 11
190	190	the jurisdiction conducting the election and shall be appointed by the person in 12
191	191	charge of the election. 13
192	192	Section 12. That § 12-17B-2 be REPEALED. 14
193	193	Any automatic tabulating or electronic ballot marking system used in an election 15
194	194	shall enable the voter to cast a vote for all offices and on all measures on which the voter 16
195	195	is entitled to vote. No automatic tabulating, electronic ballot marking, or election voting 17
196	196	equipment system may be connected to the internet. No ballot marking device may save 18
197	197	or tabulate votes marked on any system. Each system shall fulfill the requirements for 19
198	198	election assistance commission standards certification and be approved by the State Board 20
199	199	of Elections prior to distribution and use in this state. No system may be approved unless 21
200	200	the system fulfills the requirements as established by the State Board of Elections. Any 22
201	201	changes or modifications to an approved system shall be approved by the State Board of 23
202	202	Elections prior to distribution and use. 24
203	203	Section 13. That § 12-17B-3 be REPEALED. 25
204	204	Any governing body having supervision of elections within any political subdivision 26
205	205	may adopt, experiment with, or abandon any automatic tabulating or electronic ballot 27
206	206	marking system approved for use by the State Board of Elections. Any governing body 28
207	207	may use the system in all or some of the precincts within its jurisdiction or in combination 29
208	208	with any other type of voting system approved for use by the State Board of Elections. 30
209	209	Section 14. That § 12-17B-4 be REPEALED. 31 25.384.12 7 217
210	210	Underscores indicate new language.
211	211	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
212	212	The governing body of a political subdivision may contract with any county for the 1
213	213	use of an automatic tabulating or electronic ballot marking system for elections within the 2
214	214	political subdivision. 3
215	215	Section 15. That § 12-17B-5 be REPEALED. 4
216	216	Not more than ten days prior to an election, the person in charge of the election 5
217	217	shall conduct a test of the automatic tabulating equipment to ascertain that the equipment 6
218	218	will correctly count the votes cast for all offices and on all measures. The test must be 7
219	219	open to the public. The person in charge of the election shall notify the county chair of 8
220	220	each political party with a candidate on the ballot, any independent candidate or candidate 9
221	221	without party affiliation on the ballot, and the ballot question committees for or against 10
222	222	an initiated or referred measure or initiated constitutional amendment of the testing of 11
223	223	the automatic tabulating equipment one week before the test is conducted. The person in 12
224	224	charge of the election shall post notice of the time and place of the test in the same 13
225	225	manner as a public meeting agenda, pursuant to § 1-25-1.1. 14
226	226	If an errorless count by an automatic tabulating machine is achieved by the test, 15
227	227	the person in charge of the election shall certify the machine. The State Board of Elections 16
228	228	shall promulgate rules, pursuant to chapter 1-26, prescribing the certification of properly 17
229	229	functioning automatic tabulating equipment under this section. 18
230	230	If an error is detected, the cause of the error shall be determined and corrected. 19
231	231	Once the error is corrected, the person in charge of the election shall conduct a new test 20
232	232	of the automatic tabulating equipment. The person in charge of the election may not 21
233	233	approve the automatic tabulating equipment until an errorless count is made. 22
234	234	Any additional testing required to achieve an errorless count must be open to the 23
235	235	public. The person in charge of the election shall post notice of the time and place of an 24
236	236	additional test in the same manner as a public meeting agenda, pursuant to § 1-25-1.1. 25
237	237	The person in charge of the election shall notify the county chair of each political party 26
238	238	with a candidate on the ballot, any independent candidate or candidate without party 27
239	239	affiliation on the ballot, and the ballot question committees for or against an initiated or 28
240	240	referred measure or initiated constitutional amendment of the testing of the automatic 29
241	241	tabulating equipment twenty-four hours prior to the test. 30
242	242	The secretary of state shall provide each county auditor with the contact 31
243	243	information for any independent candidate, candidate without party affiliation appearing 32
244	244	on the ballot, and the ballot question committees for or against an initiated or referred 33
245	245	measure or initiated constitutional amendment in the auditor's county. 34 25.384.12 8 217
246	246	Underscores indicate new language.
247	247	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
248	248	Section 16. That § 12-17B-5.1 be REPEALED. 1
249	249	The person in charge of the election shall test the automatic tabulating equipment 2
250	250	by processing a predetermined number of ballots on which are recorded a predetermined 3
251	251	number of valid votes for each candidate and measure. The test of the automatic 4
252	252	tabulating equipment must also include at least one ballot for each office that has votes 5
253	253	exceeding the number allowed by law in order to test the ability of the automatic tabulating 6
254	254	equipment to reject invalid votes. During the test, a different number of valid votes must 7
255	255	be assigned to each candidate for an office and for and against each measure. A ballot 8
256	256	used to test the automatic tabulating equipment must be clearly marked as a test ballot. 9
257	257	After each test, the testing materials and the predetermined number of ballots used during 10
258	258	the test must be sealed and retained in the same manner as election materials after an 11
259	259	election. 12
260	260	Section 17. That § 12-17B-5.2 be REPEALED. 13
261	261	After the conclusion of the testing of the automatic tabulating equipment, no 14
262	262	software or firmware updates may be made to the automatic tabulating equipment until 15
263	263	after the certification of the election results. Each automatic tabulating device must be 16
264	264	sealed with a unique numbered seal. The person in charge of the election shall verify 17
265	265	immediately prior to the official counting of the ballots that the seal has not been tampered 18
266	266	with since the testing period and certification process pursuant to § 12-17B-5. The State 19
267	267	Board of Elections shall promulgate rules, pursuant to chapter 1-26, prescribing the 20
268	268	method of sealing automatic tabulating equipment pursuant to this section. 21
269	269	Section 18. That § 12-17B-6 be REPEALED. 22
270	270	The person in charge of the election shall provide a sufficient number of voting 23
271	271	equipment and supplies to accommodate the voters and avoid unreasonable waiting times 24
272	272	for casting ballots. 25
273	273	26
274	274	Section 19. That § 12-17B-6.1 be REPEALED. 27
275	275	If a candidate for federal office appears on the ballot at a polling place, such polling 28
276	276	place is required to have an electronic ballot marking system present. 29
277	277	Section 20. That § 12-17B-7 be REPEALED. 30 25.384.12 9 217
278	278	Underscores indicate new language.
279	279	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
280	280	Before entering the voting booth, any voter may request instruction in the proper 1
281	281	procedure for marking the ballot to ensure that the tabulating equipment is able to read 2
282	282	the vote cast. No instructions may be given to the voter while in the voting booth. 3
283	283	However, any voter using an electronic ballot marking system may request instruction in 4
284	284	the proper operation of the system at any time. No precinct official or person assisting a 5
285	285	voter may in any manner request, suggest, or seek to persuade or induce any voter to 6
286	286	cast a vote for any particular ticket, candidate, or measure to be voted on. All instructions 7
287	287	shall be given in such a manner that it may be observed by other persons in the polling 8
288	288	place. 9
289	289	Section 21. That § 12-17B-9 be REPEALED. 10
290	290	Upon completion of the voting and after sealing the ballot box, two of the members 11
291	291	of the precinct election board, of different major political parties, shall, by the most direct 12
292	292	route, transport the box to the central counting location designated by the person in 13
293	293	charge of the election or the ballots may be transported to the counting location by a 14
294	294	sheriff's deputy and two deputy county auditors, one of each major political party, or by 15
295	295	two deputy county auditors, one of each major political party. 16
296	296	Section 22. That § 12-17B-10 be REPEALED. 17
297	297	All proceedings at the counting location shall be under the direction of the person 18
298	298	in charge of the election and shall conform to the requirements of the voting system. The 19
299	299	proceedings shall be open to the public. No person, who is not employed or authorized for 20
300	300	the purpose, may touch any ballot, ballot box, or equipment used in the return of the 21
301	301	ballots to the counting location or the tabulation process. 22
302	302	Section 23. That § 12-17B-11 be REPEALED. 23
303	303	Except for any specially trained technicians representing the equipment vendor and 24
304	304	required for the operation of the automatic tabulating equipment, there shall be equal 25
305	305	representation from each political party having a candidate on the ballot and whose 26
306	306	candidate on the county-wide ballot at the last general election received at least fifteen 27
307	307	percent of the votes amongst those employed or authorized to receive, process, or 28
308	308	tabulate the ballots. The proposed list of employees shall be submitted to each county 29
309	309	party chairperson at least thirty days prior to the election. Each person shall, prior to 30 25.384.12 10 217
310	310	Underscores indicate new language.
311	311	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
312	312	discharging any duties, take and subscribe to an oath as prescribed by the State Board of 1
313	313	Elections. 2
314	314	Section 24. That § 12-17B-12 be REPEALED. 3
315	315	The test required by § 12-17B-5 shall be repeated immediately before the start of 4
316	316	the official count of the ballots. 5
317	317	Section 25. That § 12-17B-13 be REPEALED. 6
318	318	The procedure for tabulating the votes by the automatic tabulating equipment shall 7
319	319	be under the direction of the person in charge of the election, and shall conform to the 8
320	320	specifications and requirements of the automatic tabulating equipment. The results 9
321	321	printed by the automatic tabulating equipment shall constitute the immediate unofficial 10
322	322	returns. These returns shall be open to the public. The final returns printed by the 11
323	323	automatic tabulating equipment shall be presented to the canvassing board for review and 12
324	324	certification as the official returns. 13
325	325	Section 26. That § 12-17B-13.1 be REPEALED. 14
326	326	If automatic tabulating equipment is located at a polling place for processing ballots 15
327	327	while the polls are open, the equipment may not be operated in a manner which returns 16
328	328	an over-voted or partially under-voted ballot to the voter. The equipment shall be operated 17
329	329	in a manner which returns any ballot that appears to the tabulating equipment to be blank 18
330	330	or has any possible mark which the tabulating equipment cannot determine. If the ballot 19
331	331	is returned to the voter, the voter may choose to remark the ballot, obtain a new ballot, 20
332	332	or resubmit the ballot. 21
333	333	Any central count automatic tabulating equipment shall contain the capability to 22
334	334	out-stack ballots and shall be operated in a manner to out-stack any ballot which appears 23
335	335	to the tabulating equipment to be blank or has any possible mark which the tabulating 24
336	336	equipment cannot determine. If the ballot contains any such mark, the resolution board 25
337	337	shall examine the mark and make a determination of any individual vote according to the 26
338	338	rules promulgated pursuant to chapter 1-26 by the state board of elections. The resolution 27
339	339	board shall make a duplicate ballot as prescribed in § 12-17B-14 which shall be counted 28
340	340	by the automatic tabulating equipment. 29
341	341	Section 27. That § 12-17B-14 be REPEALED. 30 25.384.12 11 217
342	342	Underscores indicate new language.
343	343	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
344	344	The resolution board shall determine the disposition of those ballots which cannot 1
345	345	be properly counted by the tabulating equipment. A true duplicate copy shall be made of 2
346	346	any ballot in question and substituted for the rejected ballot. All duplicate ballots shall be 3
347	347	clearly labeled "duplicate," shall bear a serial number which shall be registered on the 4
348	348	rejected ballot, and shall be counted in lieu of the rejected ballot. The resolution board 5
349	349	may observe the activities at the counting location on behalf of their respective political 6
350	350	party. 7
351	351	Section 28. That § 12-17B-15 be REPEALED. 8
352	352	After the tabulating procedure is completed, the ballots shall be placed in boxes 9
353	353	and resealed. Any program board which may be used in the automatic tabulating 10
354	354	equipment shall be removed and stored similarly to the ballots. 11
355	355	Section 29. That § 12-17B-16 be REPEALED. 12
356	356	Automatic tabulating equipment must be tested prior to a recount or election 13
357	357	contest as provided in §§ 12-17B-5 to 12-17B-5.2, inclusive, and then the official ballots 14
358	358	must be recounted. The recount board shall certify the new returns printed by the 15
359	359	automatic tabulating equipment as the official returns for the election. The person in 16
360	360	charge of the election shall sign and seal the new returns printed by the automatic 17
361	361	tabulating equipment and make the new returns public. 18
362	362	Section 30. That § 12-17B-17 be REPEALED. 19
363	363	The State Board of Elections may promulgate rules pursuant to chapter 1-26 20
364	364	concerning: 21
365	365	(1) The criteria and procedure for approving voting systems pursuant to this chapter; 22
366	366	(2) Notices and forms; 23
367	367	(3) Test procedures; and 24
368	368	(4) The arrangement and conduct of voting, absentee voting, tabulating, preparing 25
369	369	returns, and recounts. 26
370	370	Section 31. That § 12-17B-18 be REPEALED. 27
371	371	Within fifteen days following the completion of the state canvassing of a primary 28
372	372	or general election, the auditor of each county shall conduct a post-election audit of the 29
373	373	ballots cast in the election following the procedures listed in this section and §§ 12-17B-30 25.384.12 12 217
374	374	Underscores indicate new language.
375	375	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
376	376	19 to 12-17B-25, inclusive. The county auditor shall appoint a county auditing board of 1
377	377	sufficient size to promptly complete the audit. 2
378	378	The members of the county auditing board may not all be members of the same 3
379	379	political party. A member of the county auditing board must be a registered voter in the 4
380	380	county in which the audit takes place. An individual may not serve on the county auditing 5
381	381	board if the individual is a candidate for the office that is on the ballot being audited. 6
382	382	The State Board of Elections shall promulgate rules, pursuant to chapter 1-26, 7
383	383	prescribing the oath that each member of a county auditing board must take prior to 8
384	384	discharging any duties. 9
385	385	Section 32. That § 12-17B-19 be REPEALED. 10
386	386	The office of the secretary of state shall reimburse each county for the cost of any 11
387	387	post-election audit required by §§ 12-17B-18 to 12-17B-25, inclusive. The State Board of 12
388	388	Elections shall promulgate rules, pursuant to chapter 1-26, administering the 13
389	389	reimbursement process and defining reimbursable expenses and reimbursement rates for 14
390	390	post-election audits. 15
391	391	Section 33. That § 12-17B-20 be REPEALED. 16
392	392	The post-election audit must be conducted in five percent of the precincts in the 17
393	393	county by manually counting all votes cast in two contests and comparing the results of 18
394	394	the manual count to the results for those precincts at the county canvass. The county 19
395	395	auditor shall select the precincts for the audit at random without the use of a computer in 20
396	396	public during the meeting of the county canvassing board. If the combined total of all 21
397	397	ballots cast in the precincts selected does not exceed one hundred ballots, then additional 22
398	398	precincts must be randomly selected until the total of all ballots exceeds one hundred 23
399	399	ballots. For the purposes of this section, the term precinct includes vote centers, but does 24
400	400	not include any precinct designated as an absentee precinct. 25
401	401	The county auditor shall select the contests for the audit at random without the 26
402	402	use of a computer in public during the meeting of the county canvassing board. One 27
403	403	contest randomly selected for the audit must be a statewide contest. If there are no 28
404	404	statewide contests on the ballot, the auditor randomly shall select another contest on the 29
405	405	ballot. If there is only one contest on the ballot, that contest must be audited. 30
406	406	Section 34. That § 12-17B-21 be REPEALED. 31 25.384.12 13 217
407	407	Underscores indicate new language.
408	408	Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
409	409	A post-election audit conducted pursuant to §§ 12-17B-18 to 12-17B-25, inclusive, 1
410	410	must be open to the public. Members of the public shall keep a reasonable distance so as 2
411	411	to not interfere with the audit process. The county auditor shall post notice of the time 3
412	412	and place of the audit in the same manner as a public meeting agenda pursuant to § 1-4
413	413	25-1.1 and provide the notice to the county chair of each political party that has a 5
414	414	candidate on the ballot. 6
415	415	Section 35. That § 12-17B-22 be REPEALED. 7
416	416	The county auditor shall send the results of the post-election audit to the secretary 8
417	417	of state and present the results of the audit to the county commission at its next meeting. 9
418	418	The results of the audit shall be included in the minutes of the county commission meeting. 10
419	419	The secretary of state shall publish the results of the post-election audit on the 11
420	420	secretary of state's website. 12
421	421	Section 36. That § 12-17B-23 be REPEALED. 13
422	422	If the results of the post-election audit show a discrepancy in the results greater 14
423	423	than the margin by which any contest for elected office on the ballot in the county was 15
424	424	decided, the auditor shall notify the candidates for that office. Any candidate who receives 16
425	425	a notification from the county auditor shall have an additional seven days from the date 17
426	426	from when the auditor sends the notification to file a verified petition requesting a recount 18
427	427	of the official returns pursuant to §§ 12-21-10 or 12-21-11. The petition may be filed 19
428	428	regardless of the margin by which the contest was decided. 20
429	429	Section 37. That § 12-17B-24 be REPEALED. 21
430	430	If a recount of any contest is conducted in a county, the county auditor is not 22
431	431	required to conduct a post-election audit pursuant to § 12-17B-18. 23
432	432	Section 38. That § 12-17B-25 be REPEALED. 24
433	433	The county auditor shall reseal and retain the ballots upon the completion of a 25
434	434	post-election audit pursuant to § 12-20-31. 26