1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to elections; setting standards for and 
  1.3             providing for the acquisition of voting systems; 
  1.4             appropriating money; amending Minnesota Statutes 2002, 
  1.5             sections 206.57, by adding subdivisions; 206.80; 
  1.6             proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.7             chapter 206. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 206.57, is 
  1.10  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.11     Subd. 5.  [VOTING SYSTEM FOR DISABLED VOTERS.] Effective 
  1.12  January 1, 2006, the voting method used in each polling place 
  1.13  must include a voting system that is accessible for individuals 
  1.14  with disabilities, including nonvisual accessibility for the 
  1.15  blind and visually impaired, in a manner that provides the same 
  1.16  opportunity for access and participation, including privacy and 
  1.17  independence, as for other voters. 
  1.18     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 206.57, is 
  1.19  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.20     Subd. 6.  [REQUIRED CERTIFICATION.] In addition to the 
  1.21  requirements in subdivision 1, a voting system must be certified 
  1.22  by an independent testing authority approved by the secretary of 
  1.23  state and conform to current standards for voting equipment 
  1.24  issued by the Federal Election Commission or its successor, the 
  1.25  Election Assistance Commission. 
  1.26     Sec. 3.  [206.585] [STATE VOTING SYSTEMS CONTRACT.] 
  2.1      The secretary of state, in cooperation with the 
  2.2   commissioner of administration, shall establish a state voting 
  2.3   systems contract.  Bids for voting systems and related election 
  2.4   services must be solicited from each vendor selling or leasing 
  2.5   voting systems that have been certified for use by the secretary 
  2.6   of state.  The contract must be renewed no later than July 1 of 
  2.7   each odd-numbered year.  Counties and municipalities may 
  2.8   purchase or lease voting systems and obtain related election 
  2.9   services from the state contract. 
  2.10     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 206.80, is 
  2.11  amended to read: 
  2.12     206.80 [ELECTRONIC VOTING SYSTEMS.] 
  2.13     (a) An electronic voting system may not be employed unless 
  2.14  it: 
  2.15     (1) permits every voter to vote in secret; 
  2.16     (2) permits every voter to vote for all candidates and 
  2.17  questions for whom or upon which the voter is legally entitled 
  2.18  to vote; 
  2.19     (3) provides for write-in voting when authorized; 
  2.20     (4) rejects by means of the automatic tabulating equipment, 
  2.21  except as provided in section 206.84 with respect to write-in 
  2.22  votes, all votes for an office or question when the number of 
  2.23  votes cast on it exceeds the number which the voter is entitled 
  2.24  to cast; 
  2.25     (5) permits a voter at a primary election to select 
  2.26  secretly the party for which the voter wishes to vote; and 
  2.27     (6) rejects, by means of the automatic tabulating 
  2.28  equipment, all votes cast in a primary election by a voter when 
  2.29  the voter votes for candidates of more than one party; and 
  2.30     (7) provides every voter an opportunity to verify their 
  2.31  votes and to change their votes or correct any error before 
  2.32  their ballot is cast and counted, produces a permanent paper 
  2.33  record of the ballot cast by the voter, and preserves the paper 
  2.34  record as an official record available for use in any recount. 
  2.35     (b) An electronic voting system purchased on or after the 
  2.36  effective date of this section may not be employed unless it: 
  3.1      (1) has a firmware option that supports cumulative voting 
  3.2   and ranked-order voting; and 
  3.3      (2) accepts and tabulates in the precinct or at a counting 
  3.4   center a marked optical scan ballot, or creates a marked optical 
  3.5   scan ballot that can be tabulated in the precinct or at a 
  3.6   counting center by an optical scan machine certified for use in 
  3.7   this state. 
  3.8      Sec. 5.  [APPROPRIATIONS.] 
  3.9      Subdivision 1.  [ASSISTED VOTING EQUIPMENT.] $26,400,000 is 
  3.10  appropriated from the Help America Vote Act account to the 
  3.11  secretary of state for grants to counties to purchase electronic 
  3.12  voting systems equipped for individuals with disabilities that 
  3.13  meet the requirements of Minnesota Statutes, section 206.80, and 
  3.14  have been certified by the secretary of state under Minnesota 
  3.15  Statutes, section 206.57.  The secretary of state shall make a 
  3.16  grant to each county in the amount of $6,500 times the number of 
  3.17  polling places in the county as certified by the county, which 
  3.18  must not be more than the number of polling places used by the 
  3.19  county in the state general election of 2004.  Each polling 
  3.20  place used after January 1, 2006, must be equipped with an 
  3.21  electronic voting system equipped for individuals with 
  3.22  disabilities. 
  3.23     Subd. 2.  [OPTICAL SCAN EQUIPMENT; OPERATING COSTS.] (a) 
  3.24  $11,600,000 is appropriated from the Help America Vote Act 
  3.25  account to the secretary of state for grants to counties to 
  3.26  purchase optical scan voting systems that meet the requirements 
  3.27  of Minnesota Statutes, section 206.80, and have been certified 
  3.28  by the secretary of state under Minnesota Statutes, section 
  3.29  206.57, and to pay for operating costs of the systems purchased 
  3.30  under this subdivision or subdivision 1.  The amount allocated 
  3.31  to each county must be in proportion to the number of polling 
  3.32  places used by the county in the state general election of 2004. 
  3.33     (b) "Operating costs" may include hardware maintenance, 
  3.34  election day technical support, software licensing, voting 
  3.35  system testing, training of county or municipal staff in the use 
  3.36  of the voting system, transportation of the voting systems to 
  4.1   and from the polling places, and storage of the voting systems 
  4.2   between elections.  Total annual operating costs of a county or 
  4.3   municipality may not exceed $450 per polling place. 
  4.4      (c) To receive a grant, a county must apply to the 
  4.5   secretary of state on forms prescribed by the secretary of state 
  4.6   that set forth how the grant money will be spent.  A county may 
  4.7   submit more than one grant application, so long as the 
  4.8   appropriation remains available and the total amount granted to 
  4.9   the county does not exceed the county's allocation. 
  4.10     Subd. 3.  [REPORT.] Each county receiving a grant under 
  4.11  subdivision 1 or 2 must report to the secretary of state by 
  4.12  January 15, 2006, the amount spent for purchase of each kind of 
  4.13  electronic voting system and for operating costs of the systems 
  4.14  purchased.  The secretary of state shall compile this 
  4.15  information and report it to the legislature by February 15, 
  4.16  2006.  
  4.17     Subd. 4.  [AVAILABILITY.] The appropriations in this 
  4.18  section are available until June 30, 2007. 
  4.19     Sec. 6.  [MAIL BALLOTING.] 
  4.20     Nothing in this act is intended to preclude the use of mail 
  4.21  balloting in those precincts where it is allowed under state law.
  4.22     Sec. 7.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  4.23     This act is effective the day following final enactment.