Issue 74 | December 2016

can•vass (n.)

Compilation of election

returns and validation of

the outcome that forms

the basis of the official

results by a political

subdivision.

—U.S. Election Assistance Commission: Glossary of Key Election Terminology

TO SUBSCRIBE to The Canvass, please

email a request to TheCanvass@ncsl.org

Inside this Issue

1

Worth Noting 4

From NCSL’s Elections Team

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That’s a Wrap on 2016-But What Happened in Legislatures? Well, fellow election nerds, 2016 is nearing its

end. While you’re busy putting together your

“me at the beginning of 2016 and me at the end

of 2016” meme, it’s a good time to remember

that state legislatures didn’t take the year off

when it comes to election administration policy

changes. If you were too busy to follow legisla-

tion in all 50 states, this handy guide will help

you figure out what state election policies will be

implemented in 2017 and beyond. Don’t forget

to check out NCSL’s elections legislation data-

base for more information.

In 2016, 44 states enacted 205 bills related to various aspects of elections. That’s down from 2015 when

240 bills were enacted and slightly off the average pace of about 1-in-10 election bills being enacted every

year.

Notable enactments this year

Maine (S 685) and Minnesota (S 2985) enacted legislation to switch from presidential caucuses to

statewide presidential primaries in 2020.

Idaho (S 1297), Ohio (S 63), Rhode Island (S 2513), Tennessee (S 1626) and Wisconsin (S 295)

authorized online voter registration.

Vermont (H 458) and West Virginia (H 4013) authorized automatic voter registration.

California (S 450) will move to a system of vote-by-mail and vote centers beginning in 2018.

Arizona (H 2023) banned the practice of ballot bundling, in which absentee ballots can be gathered

and returned by persons other than family or caregivers.

California (A 1494) authorized ballot selfies, as did Hawaii (H 27).

Michigan repealed straight-ticket voting (S 13) but a court injunction restored it for the 2016 elections.

Missouri (H 1631) and West Virginia (H 4013) enacted voter ID requirements. In Missouri’s case, it was

a package deal: one bill to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot—it passed—and a second to

implement the change.

(cont. on page 2)

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NCSL: The Canvass December 2016

(2016 Election Legislation, cont. from page 1)

Accessibility: Delaware will now allow individuals assisting voters to enter the

voting booth (S 255).

New Hampshire authorized disabled voters who cannot enter a

polling place to receive an absentee ballot with which to vote

outside the polling place (H 1378).

Crimes and Elections: Mississippi revised the penalties for certain election crimes and

added the crime of voting in the primary of one party then voting

in the runoff of another party (H 866).

New Hampshire changed the procedures for investigating new

voters who do not confirm their residency and will send a list of

those voters to the Attorney General for verification (S 509).

West Virginia clarified the penalties for disclosing how an ab-

sentee voter voted (H 4587).

Electronic Ballot Transmission: Hawaii approved electronic ballot transmission and return for

permanent absentee voters (H 1654). Louisiana (H 614) and

Virginia (S 137) approved electronic transmission for certain

voters.

Felon Voting Rights: Alabama set timelines for determining if a convicted felon is

eligible to register to vote and timelines for receiving a certificate

Compared to previous years Enactments on the following topics increased: accessibility for

voters, automatic voter registration, election official duties and

training, election technology, voter list maintenance, poll work-

ers, voter identification, voter information and vote-by-mail.

Enactments on the following topics remained popular: absentee

and Uniformed and Overseas Citizens voters, online voter regis-

tration, election-related crimes, and pre-registration and youth

voters.

Enactments on the follow topics decreased: early voting, felon

voting rights, same-day registration.

Absentee, Early Voting and Vote-by-Mail: California passed a series of bills relating to signature verifica-

tion (A 477), ballot return (A 1921 and A 2071), provisional bal-

lots (A 1970) and accessibility (A 2252). Colorado authorized

signature verification for municipal mail ballot elections (H 1070).

Florida replaced the term “absentee ballot” with “vote-by-mail

ballot” in statute (S 112) and created a Military and Overseas

Voting Assistance Task Force (S 184).

Idaho shortened the deadline for receiving applications for mail-

in absentee ballots from the sixth day before an election to the

11th day before an election, except in emergency situations (S

1274), and expanded the sites available for early voting (S

1275).

Illinois authorized the use of an intelligent mail barcode tracking

system for tracking mail-in ballots (S 1529). Iowa extended the

date for filing special absentee ballot requests from 90 days be-

fore an election to 120 days and provided for the receipt of an

official federal write-in ballot (H 2147).

Louisiana clarified when early voting starts in the case of a Sun-

day or holiday (H 230). Maine will now allow absentee ballots to

be processed prior to Election Day (H 1050).

Maryland authorized the canvass of vote-by-mail ballots for spe-

cial elections to begin early on Election Day (S 169); now re-

quires county councils to set special election dates with enough

time to send out overseas and military ballots (H 873); and clari-

fied early voting requirements and procedures (H 1008).

Minnesota clarified methods for in-person absentee voting (S

2381). New Hampshire added National Guard members to the

definition of uniformed services voters (S 418), added the care

of children and infirm adults as an acceptable excuse for absen-

tee voting (H 659), and set 5 p.m. on Election Day as the dead-

line for receiving absentee ballots (H 1377).

Tennessee eliminated the early voting period for special elec-

tions with only one candidate (H 1475). Utah provided for the

daily disclosure of the results of absentee and provisional ballots

counted between Election Day and the date of the canvass (H

21). Utah also extended the time period for mailing absentee

ballots from 28 days before an election to 21 days (S 27).

Wisconsin clarified the procedures for responding to absentee

ballot requests (S 47).

Vetoed Legislation Eleven bills in five states were vetoed by

governors this year and not overridden:

In California, S 49 to cancel special

elections with only one candidate,

S 1288 authorizing ranked-choice voting in municipal elec-

tions and A 2089 requiring notification of a voter whose

vote-by-mail ballot was not counted.

In Illinois, S 250 authorizing automatic voter registration.

In New Jersey, A 1944 authorizing automatic voter regis-

tration and A 3591 allowing 17-year-olds who will be 18 by

the general election to vote in primaries.

In Ohio, S 296 requiring those requesting extended polling

hours in the courts to post a bond for the estimated cost of

keeping the polling place open.

In Virginia, H 9 requiring minimum information for voter

registration and S 767 which would have required candi-

dates to have a partisan affiliation in all races except as

determined by local charters.

(cont. on page 3)

NCSL: The Canvass December 2016

of eligibility to register (S 186). California specified that felons

not eligible to vote were only those currently serving in a federal

or state prison (A 2466). Delaware eliminated the payment of all

financial obligations as a requirement to register to vote for ex-

felons (S 242).

Primaries: Utah will allow political parties to choose whether unaffiliated

voters can participate in party primaries (H 48).

Technology: Alabama authorized a pilot program for the use of electronic

pollbooks (S 200). Connecticut decreased the amount of voting

districts required for post-election audits (S 252).

Delaware created a voting equipment selection task force (H

342). Louisiana authorized the Secretary of State to develop

and implement a pilot program for new

voting equipment (H 890).

Missouri clarified security procedures

for processing absentee ballots (H

1480).

Voter ID: Florida added veteran health ID cards,

concealed carry licenses and federal

government employee ID cards to the

list of acceptable documents for voter

ID (S 666).

Kentucky added state ID cards, county ID cards and federal ID

cards to the list of acceptable documents at the polls (S 169).

Louisiana added student ID cards to the list of acceptable docu-

ments (H 940).

Voter List Maintenance: Alaska authorized the sharing of voter registration data with

other states for the purposes of list maintenance (S 9), which

allowed the state to join the Electronic Registration Information

Center (ERIC). Arizona will now compare voter registration rec-

ords and death records (H 2084).

Colorado made miscellaneous updates to improve list mainte-

nance procedures (H 1093). Illinois created an Operations Trust

Fund for the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC)

(S 1529).

New Hampshire authorized participation in the Interstate Cross-

check Program (H 1482). New York specified that the postal

service should return mail to the board of elections if it cannot

be delivered rather than forwarding it (A 7817).

Virginia authorized the electronic sharing of registration infor-

mation with other states (S 460).

Voter Registration: Delaware clarified that a municipality cannot impose a residen-

cy requirement for voter registration of more than 30 days (H

395).

California will now require state universities and colleges to

allow students who enroll online to submit voter registration

electronically to the Secretary of State (A 2455). Maryland re-

quired designated voter registration agencies to have electronic

voter registration systems (H 1007).

Florida clarified that voters must provide an address of legal

residence for voter registration including distinguishing apart-

ment numbers, suites, rooms and other identifiers (H 541).

Hawaii requires that applicants for voter registration provide a

Hawaii driver’s license number or state ID number and if these

aren’t available, they can provide the last four digits of a social

security number, and if that is not possible, the election official

can assign a unique identifying number

for registration purposes (H 1055).

Louisiana will now close registration on

the 20th day before a presidential elec-

tion instead of 30 days (H 951).

Maryland added clarifying language

about the ability of unaffiliated voters to

participate in partisan primaries on its

voter registration forms (S 170).

Mississippi authorized the creation of a

secure online portal for voters to re-

view and update their registration rec-

ords (H 809).

Oregon directed public universities and community colleges to

provide increased access to voter registration (S 1586).

Youth: Illinois will now allow 17-year-olds who will be 18 by the general

election to register to vote and vote in primaries (H 6167). New

Hampshire clarified the right of 17-year-olds to register to vote

provided they will be 18 by Election Day (S 423).

New Mexico authorized 17-year-olds who will be 18 by the gen-

eral election to vote in the primary (H 138). Virginia clarified

what youth election pages can do on Election Day (H 205).

One-of-a-Kind Enactments: California authorized international election observers (A 2021).

Colorado will require those working on voter registration drives

to fulfill certain mandatory training requirements (S 107).

New York made its participation in the National Popular Vote

compact permanent (S 5478). Washington authorized the Sec-

retary of State to standardize the reporting of election data (H

2852).

Page 3

(2016 Election Legislation, cont. from page 2)

Page 4

The Canvass, an Elections Newsletter for Legislatures © 2016

Published by the National Conference of State Legislatures

William T. Pound, Executive Director

In conjunction with NCSL, funding support for The Canvass is provided

by The Pew Charitable Trusts’ Election Initiatives project.

Any opinions, findings or conclusions in this publication are those of

NCSL and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Pew Charitable

Trusts. Links provided do not indicate NCSL or The Pew Charitable

Trusts endorsement of these sites.

TO SUBSCRIBE, contact TheCanvass@ncsl.org

NCSL: The Canvass December 2016

Worth Noting Work continues on getting Florida’s online voter registration

system up and running by next October.

Election officials in Detroit, Mich. reported that approxi-

mately 80 voting machines malfunctioned on Election Day.

Another reason to check out NCSL’s resources on funding

new election technology.

Speaking of Michigan—a late-year effort to pass a strict

voter ID requirement in the state has stalled in the Senate.

More voter ID news—Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton

has officially asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the

case of the state’s voter ID which had been ruled unconsti-

tutional, and a federal appeals courts has upheld Virginia’s

voter ID law.

Oklahoma is one of the 10 remaining states that offers

straight-ticket voting, but the Sooner State could soon elimi-

nate the practice.

A staggering statistic here—according to the Washington

Post in 33 states, one out of every 50 people did not vote in

the presidential race this year.

That pesky Electoral College has been dominating the

news in recent weeks. Here’s some commentary on why it

was created and why it endures.

There’s disagreement between Georgia and the Depart-

ment of Homeland Security as to whether or not the state’s

voter registration database was hacked.

Florida election supervisors will renew their attempts to

make voter registration information private in the 2017 leg-

islative session.

This sentence is strange but true: It looks like vote-by-mail

may have caused some long lines at polling places in Utah.

Conventional wisdom states that you have to actually be

present at a party caucus to cast your vote, but Iowa Dem-

ocrats may look to have absentee voting for the presidential

caucuses in 2020.

The Democracy Fund has released a new survey indicating

that, for all of the turbulence of this election cycle, 85 per-

cent of people had a pleasant experience at the polls on

Election Day. Great news for election officials who put in

months and sometimes years of hard work!

It’s the most wonderful time of the year—check out 30 fun

facts about your favorite Christmas movies.

It’s been a wacky and wild election year, but NCSL’s elections team is showing no signs of slowing

down. Here are a few things we have on tap for the New Year:

Should states consider different ways of casting votes? Issues such as ranked-choice voting, open

primaries and redistricting commission are grabbing the attention of lawmakers across the country. If

you are a legislator or legislative staff, join NCSL’s Mechanics of Democracy email list where you can

converse with your peers in different states and share information about alternative voting systems.

Email Dan Diorio to be added to the list.

Save the date for NCSL’s Future of Elections: Technology, Policy and Funding Conference June 14-16, 2017 in Williamsburg, Va.

In the historic setting of Williamsburg, join legislators, legislative staff, and election administration experts for a three-day confer-

ence where we will discuss the future of elections technology and how to pay for it.

That’s a wrap on 2016—see you in 2017!

Browse the most recent entries from the election team on the NCSL Blog.

Look for #NCSLelections on Twitter for all NCSL election resources and news.

Thanks for reading, let us know your news and please stay in touch.

—Wendy Underhill, Dan Diorio and Amanda Buchanan