2006 Minnesota Statutes

206.57 EXAMINATION OF NEW VOTING SYSTEMS.
    Subdivision 1. Examination and report by secretary of state; approval. A vendor of an
electronic voting system may apply to the secretary of state to examine the system and to report
as to its compliance with the requirements of law and as to its accuracy, durability, efficiency,
and capacity to register the will of voters. The secretary of state or a designee shall examine the
system submitted and file a report on it in the Office of the Secretary of State. Examination is not
required of every individual machine or counting device, but only of each type of electronic voting
system before its adoption, use, or purchase and before its continued use after significant changes
have been made in an approved system. The examination must include the ballot programming;
electronic ballot marking, including all assistive technologies intended to be used with the system;
vote counting; and vote accumulation functions of each voting system.
If the report of the secretary of state or the secretary's designee concludes that the kind of
system examined complies with the requirements of sections 206.55 to 206.90 and can be used
safely, the system shall be deemed approved by the secretary of state, and may be adopted and
purchased for use at elections in this state. A voting system not approved by the secretary of
state may not be used at an election in this state. The secretary of state may adopt permanent
rules consistent with sections 206.55 to 206.90 relating to the examination and use of electronic
voting systems.
    Subd. 2. Examination fee. The secretary of state may assess a fee to accompany the
application to cover the actual and necessary costs for the examinations and licenses provided for
in this section. The fee must be deposited in the state treasury. The expenses of administering this
section must be paid from appropriations to the secretary of state.
    Subd. 3.[Repealed, 1993 c 337 s 20]
    Subd. 4. Vendor bonds. Vendors of electronic voting systems shall certify to the secretary
of state that they will not offer for sale a system which is not certified for use in Minnesota
elections. The vendor shall furnish a bond in the amount of $5,000 along with the certification
to the secretary of state conditioned on offering the equipment for sale in accordance with
Minnesota election laws and any conditions of the approval of the equipment granted as provided
in this section.
    Subd. 5. Voting system for disabled voters. In federal and state elections held after
December 31, 2005, and in county, municipal, and school district elections held after December
31, 2007, the voting method used in each polling place must include a voting system that is
accessible for individuals with disabilities, including nonvisual accessibility for the blind and
visually impaired in a manner that provides the same opportunity for access and participation,
including privacy and independence, as for other voters.
    Subd. 6. Required certification. In addition to the requirements in subdivision 1, a voting
system must be certified by an independent testing authority approved by the secretary of state and
conform to current standards for voting equipment issued by the Federal Election Commission or
its successor, the Election Assistance Commission.
    Subd. 7. Election assistance commission standards. If the federal Election Assistance
Commission has not established by January 1, 2006, standards for an electronic ballot marker or
other voting system component that is required to enable a voting system to meet the requirements
of subdivision 5, the secretary of state may certify the voting system on an experimental basis
pending the completion of federal standards, notwithstanding subdivision 6. Within two years
after the Election Assistance Commission issues standards for a voting system component used in
a voting system authorized under this subdivision, the secretary of state must review or reexamine
the voting system to determine whether the system conforms to federal standards.
History: 1984 c 447 s 3; 1984 c 640 s 32; 1986 c 362 s 7; 1986 c 444; 1989 c 291 art 1
s 25; 1995 c 233 art 2 s 56; 1997 c 147 s 53; 2004 c 293 art 1 s 32,33; 2005 c 156 art 6 s 56;
2005 c 162 s 12-14