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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, Second Regular Session
AMENDED
ballots; categories; count; identification number
Purpose
Requires ballots that are used for an election in Arizona to be numbered and prescribes requirements relating to the distribution of the numbered ballots. Requires the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections to maintain a count of the physical ballots and post the count on the county's website.
Background
The county board of supervisors, and in city and town elections, the city or town clerk, must prepare and provide ballots. Each time that an election is held in a precinct, there must be more early ballots and printed ballots than the number of registered voters whose name appears on the precinct register of the precinct, city, town or district. For any primary, special or general election in which votes are cast on an electronic voting machine or tabulator, the election judge must compare the number of votes cast indicated on the machine or tabulator with the number of votes cast indicated on the poll list and the number of provisional ballots cast (A.R.S §§ 16-503; 16-508; and 16-602).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires ballots, except for provisional ballots, that are used for an election in Arizona to be either:
a) individually numbered consecutively or numbered using an alphanumeric combination and used in a manner that allows ballots to be linked to a specific voting location; or
b) prenumbered and divided into batches of at least 200 ballots each for each election and be assigned to a voting location within the election.
2. Requires the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections to maintain a count of the number of physical ballots that are printed and the number of ballots that are generated, including the amount of any overlap, as:
a) early;
b) regular;
c) provisional;
d) federal-only; or
e) electronic.
3. Requires the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections to post on the county's website as soon as practicable and within two calendar days the number of early ballots:
a) ordered;
b) printed;
c) spoiled; or
d) cast.
4. Requires, for ballots that are individually numbered consecutively, the numbering to begin with the number one and be numbered and used in a manner that allows a specific numeric range of ballots to be linked to a specific voting location.
5. Requires numbered ballots to be distributed to voters nonsequentially.
6. Requires, for prenumbered batches of ballots, the range of ballots used for an election to be recorded on a publicly available master log.
7. Requires the jurisdiction to track which prenumbered batches of ballots are distributed to each voting location.
8. Requires that ballot printing equipment be configured to provide for tracking of ballots.
9. Requires the officer in charge of elections to choose which ballot designation method to use.
10. Requires the officer in charge of elections to use blank ballot stock with preprinted numbers or individually numbered consecutively ballots.
11. Specifies that the requirements relating to the method of maintaining a count of ballots do not authorize a method for printing or generating ballots that is not provided for by the law.
12. Transfers $6,000,000 in FY 25 from the appropriation made to the State Treasurer in FY 23 to the Secretary of State for distribution to the counties.
13. Makes technical and conforming changes.
14. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Amendments Adopted by Committee
1. Excludes provisional ballots from the requirement relating to ballot numbering and online posting.
2. Requires the posting of the number of ballots printed and generated to be on the county's website to be as soon as practicable and within two calendar days.
3. Allows ballots to be numbered using an alphanumeric combination.
4. Adds a requirement for ballot printing equipment.
5. Transfers an appropriation.
ELEC 2/15/24 DPA 4-3-1
Prepared by Senate Research
February 16, 2024
AN/HS/cs