NHLA Bill Review: HB622 (2017) Compare Changes

HB622 (2017) Compare Changes

Unchanged Version

Text to be removed highlighted in red.

1 Absentee Registration. Amend RSA 654:16 to read as follows:

654:16 Applicability. Any person who has his or her domicile in any town or city in this state and is qualified to vote therein at the next subsequent election to be held in said town or city except for the fact that his or her name does not appear on the checklist to be used at the election, and who is temporarily absent therefrom or who by reason of physical disability is unable to attend a meeting of the supervisors of the checklist, may cause his or her name to be added to such checklist by applying to the city or town clerk or the secretary of state for a voter registration form provided for in RSA 654:7 and an appropriate absentee registration affidavit provided for in RSA 654:17.

2 Absentee Registration Affidavit. Amend RSA 654:17, I to read as follows:

I. The absentee registration affidavit shall be prepared by the secretary of state and shall be in substantially the following form:

Affidavit (Absence from town)

I, ______ do hereby swear or affirm, under the penalties for voting fraud set forth below, the following:

1) That my legal domicile is in the town of __, New Hampshire, I will be of the age of 18 years or over on election day and am entitled to vote in the election to be held in said town on __, ___ (date), except for the fact that my name does not appear on the checklist to be used in said town at such election;

2) *That I do not intend to be present within said town at such time prior to said election as shall enable me personally to appear before the supervisors of the checklist of said town in their regular sessions for the correction of the checklist for said election;

3) That I am temporarily residing in ____ (city and state or city, province, and country);

4)* That I hereby enclose one of the following as proof of identity and domicile:

(a) A copy of a current and valid New Hampshire driver's license or an armed services identification or other photo identification issued by the United States government that shows my name and address; or

(b) A copy of a current and valid photo identification and a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, other government document that shows my name and address, or a letter from the administrator of a nursing home or similar facility affirming that I am a resident of that facility that was provided to me at my request pursuant to the administrator's duty to provide such a letter upon my request;

5) 3) That I acknowledge that if I do not provide a copy of proof of identity and domicile as required by section 4) above 2), this application may not be approved; and

6) 4) That I hereby make application for the addition of my name to the checklist of said town to be used at said election.

Signature of Applicant

Date

In accordance with RSA 659:34, the penalty for knowingly or purposefully providing false information when registering to vote or voting is a class A misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of imprisonment not to exceed one year and a fine not to exceed $2,000. Fraudulently registering to vote or voting is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000.

*Affidavit (Physical Disability)

I, ___ do hereby swear or affirm, under the penalties for voting fraud set forth below, the following:

1) That my legal domicile is in the town of __, New Hampshire, I will be of the age of 18 years or over on election day, and am entitled to vote in the election to be held in said town on __, ___ (date), except for the fact that my name does not appear on the checklist to be used in said town at such election;

2) That I am unable by reason of physical disability personally to appear before the supervisors of the checklist of said town in their regular sessions for the correction of the checklist for said election;

3) That I hereby enclose one of the following as proof of identity and domicile:

4) That I acknowledge that if I do not provide a copy of proof of identity and domicile as required by section 3) above, this application may not be approved; and

5) That I hereby make application for the addition of my name to the checklist of said town to be used at said election.

Signature of Applicant

Date

3 Absentee Ballots. Amend RSA 656:33 to read as follows:

656:33 Official Absence, Religious Observance, and Disability Absentee Ballots. Prior to any state election, the secretary of state shall prepare, in such quantity as the secretary of state may deem necessary, absence, religious observance, and disability absentee ballots in the same form as nearly as practicable as the official ballot to be used at said election. Said absentee ballots shall have the words "absentee ballot'' printed on them and shall be similarly endorsed and printed on paper of the same color as that used for official ballots.

4 Absentee Voting. Amend RSA 657:1 to read as follows:

657:1 Absence, Religious Observance, and Disability Absentee Voting. Any person who is absent on the day of any state election from the city, town, or unincorporated place in which he or she is registered to vote or who cannot appear in public on any election day because of his or her observance of a religious commitment or who is unable to vote there in person by reason of physical disability qualified to vote at any state election may vote at such elections as provided in this chapter. A person who is unable to appear at any time during polling hours at his or her polling place because of an employment obligation shall be considered absent for purposes of this chapter. For the purposes of this section, the term "employment'' shall include the care of children and infirm adults, with or without compensation.

5 Forms. Amend RSA 657:4, I to read as follows:

I. Prior to any state election, the secretary of state shall prepare the appropriate application forms for absentee ballots worded in substantially the following form. The secretary of state shall insert the names of all parties qualified as set forth in RSA 652:11 in the list of parties on the application form. The secretary of state shall prepare the application forms in such quantity as he or she deems necessary:

Absence (Excluding Absence Due to Residence Outside the United States), Religious Observance, and Disability Absentee Ballot Application:

I hereby declare that (check one):

___ I am a duly qualified voter who is currently registered to vote in this town/ward.

___ I am absent from the town/city where I am domiciled and will be until after the next election, or I am unable to register in person due to a disability, and request that the forms necessary for absentee voter registration be sent to me with the absentee ballot.

*I will be entitled to vote by absentee ballot because (check one):

___ I plan to be absent on the day of the election from the city, town, or unincorporated place where I am domiciled.

___ I am requesting a ballot for the presidential primary election and I may be absent on the day of the election from the city, town, or unincorporated place where I am domiciled, but the date of the election has not been announced. I understand that I may only make such a request 14 days after the filing period for candidates has closed, and that if I will not be absent on the date of the election I am not eligible to vote by absentee ballot.

___ I cannot appear in public on election day because of observance of a religious commitment.

___ I am unable to vote in person due to a disability.

___ I cannot appear at any time during polling hours at my polling place because of an employment obligation. For the purposes of this application, the term "employment'' shall include the care of children and infirm adults, with or without compensation.*

Any person who votes or attempts to vote using an absentee ballot who is not entitled to vote by absentee ballot shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. RSA 657:24.

I am requesting an official absentee ballot for the following election (check one):

___ Presidential Primary to be held on ____

(MM/DD/YYYY)

(The date may appear as blank when the date is not known.)

___ State Primary to be held on ____

(MM/DD/YYYY)

___ General Election

For primary elections, I am a member of or I am now declaring my affiliation with the (check one):

___ Republican Party

___ Democratic Party

and am requesting a ballot for that party's primary.

Please print:

Applicant's Name:

(Last) (First) (Middle) (Sr., Jr., II., III)

Applicant's Voting Domicile (home address):

(Street Number) (Street Name) (Apt/Unit) (City/Town) (Ward) (Zip Code)

Mail the ballot to me at this address (if different than the home address):

(Street Number) (Street Name) (Apt/Unit) (City/Town) (Ward) (Zip Code)

Applicant's Signature: ____

The applicant must sign this form to receive an absentee ballot.

Date Signed: ____

(MM/DD/YYYY)

6 Absentee Voting Materials. Amend the section heading of RSA 657:7 and RSA 657:7, I-II to read as follows:

657:7 [Absence, Religious Observance, and Disability] Absentee Voting. Prior to any state election, the secretary of state shall prepare the following forms in such quantity as he or she deems necessary:

I. [Absence, religious observance, and disability] Absentee ballots as provided in RSA 656:33.

II. Affidavit envelopes of sufficient size to contain the ballots on which shall be printed the following:

[(a) Absence from City or Town.] A person voting by absentee ballot [because of absence from the city or town in which he or she is entitled to vote] shall fill out and sign the following certificate:

I do hereby certify under the penalties for voting fraud set forth below that I am a voter in the city or town of ___, New Hampshire, in ward ____; [that I will be unable to appear at any time during polling hours at my polling place because I will be working on election day or will be otherwise absent on election day from said city or town and will be unable to vote in person;] that I have carefully read (or had read to me because I am blind) the instructions forwarded to me with the ballot herein enclosed, and that I personally marked the ballot within and sealed it in this envelope (or had assistance in marking the ballot and sealing it in this envelope because I am blind). [For the purposes of this certification, the term "working'' shall include the care of children and infirm adults, with or without compensation.]

(Signature) ________

[(b) Absence Because of Religious Observance or Physical Disability. A person voting by absentee ballot because of religious observance or physical disability shall fill out and sign the following certificate:

I do hereby certify under the penalties for voting fraud set forth below that I am a voter in the city or town of __, New Hampshire, in ward ____; that I will be observing a religious commitment which prevents me from voting in person or that on account of physical disability I am unable to vote in person; that I have carefully read (or had read to me because I am blind) the instructions forwarded to me with the ballot herein enclosed, and that I personally marked the ballot within and sealed it in this envelope (or had assistance in marking the ballot and sealing it in this envelope because I am blind).

(Signature) ________

7 Absentee Voting. Amend the subdivision heading preceding RSA 657:12 to read as follows:

Procedure for [Absence, Religious Observance, and Disability and Overseas] Absentee Voting

8 Absentee Voting in Town Elections. Amend RSA 669:26 to read as follows:

669:26 Absentee Voting. Every town which has adopted an official ballot system for town elections as provided in RSA 669:12 or 669:13 shall provide for absentee voting. [Any eligible voter who is absent from such a town on the day of a town election, or who cannot appear in public on election day because of his or her observance of a religious commitment, or who, by reason of physical disability, is unable to vote in person may vote at a town election in accordance with the provisions of this section and RSA 669:27-669:29. A person who is unable to appear at any time during polling hours at his or her polling place because of an employment obligation shall be considered absent for purposes of this section and RSA 669:27-669:29. For the purposes of this section, the term "employment'' shall include the care of children and infirm adults, with or without compensation.]

9 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.

Changed Version

Text to be added highlighted in green.

1 Absentee Registration. Amend RSA 654:16 to read as follows:

654:16 Applicability. Any person who has his or her domicile in any town or city in this state and is qualified to vote therein at the next subsequent election to be held in said town or city except for the fact that his or her name does not appear on the checklist to be used at the election, may cause his or her name to be added to such checklist by applying to the city or town clerk or the secretary of state for a voter registration form provided for in RSA 654:7 and an appropriate absentee registration affidavit provided for in RSA 654:17.

2 Absentee Registration Affidavit. Amend RSA 654:17, I to read as follows:

I. The absentee registration affidavit shall be prepared by the secretary of state and shall be in substantially the following form:

Affidavit

I, ______ do hereby swear or affirm, under the penalties for voting fraud set forth below, the following:

2) That I hereby enclose one of the following as proof of identity and domicile:

3) That I acknowledge that if I do not provide a copy of proof of identity and domicile as required by section 2), this application may not be approved; and

4) That I hereby make application for the addition of my name to the checklist of said town to be used at said election.

Signature of Applicant

Date

3 Absentee Ballots. Amend RSA 656:33 to read as follows:

656:33 Official Absentee Ballots. Prior to any state election, the secretary of state shall prepare, in such quantity as the secretary of state may deem necessary, absentee ballots in the same form as nearly as practicable as the official ballot to be used at said election. Said absentee ballots shall have the words "absentee ballot'' printed on them and shall be similarly endorsed and printed on paper of the same color as that used for official ballots.

4 Absentee Voting. Amend RSA 657:1 to read as follows:

657:1 Absentee Voting. Any person who is qualified to vote at any state election may vote at such elections as provided in this chapter.

5 Forms. Amend RSA 657:4, I to read as follows:

Absentee Ballot Application:

I hereby declare that (check one):

___ I am a duly qualified voter who is currently registered to vote in this town/ward.

___ I request that the forms necessary for absentee voter registration be sent to me with the absentee ballot.

Any person who votes or attempts to vote using an absentee ballot who is not entitled to vote by absentee ballot shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. RSA 657:24.

I am requesting an official absentee ballot for the following election (check one):

___ Presidential Primary to be held on ____

(MM/DD/YYYY)

(The date may appear as blank when the date is not known.)

___ State Primary to be held on ____

(MM/DD/YYYY)

___ General Election

For primary elections, I am a member of or I am now declaring my affiliation with the (check one):

___ Republican Party

___ Democratic Party

and am requesting a ballot for that party's primary.

Please print:

Applicant's Name:

(Last) (First) (Middle) (Sr., Jr., II., III)

Applicant's Voting Domicile (home address):

(Street Number) (Street Name) (Apt/Unit) (City/Town) (Ward) (Zip Code)

Mail the ballot to me at this address (if different than the home address):

(Street Number) (Street Name) (Apt/Unit) (City/Town) (Ward) (Zip Code)

Applicant's Signature: ____

The applicant must sign this form to receive an absentee ballot.

Date Signed: ____

(MM/DD/YYYY)

6 Absentee Voting Materials. Amend the section heading of RSA 657:7 and RSA 657:7, I-II to read as follows:

I. [Absence, religious observance, and disability] Absentee ballots as provided in RSA 656:33.

II. Affidavit envelopes of sufficient size to contain the ballots on which shall be printed the following:

(Signature) ________

7 Absentee Voting. Amend the subdivision heading preceding RSA 657:12 to read as follows:

Procedure for [Absence, Religious Observance, and Disability and Overseas] Absentee Voting

8 Absentee Voting in Town Elections. Amend RSA 669:26 to read as follows:

9 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.