HB 1577-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2024 SESSION
24-2163
08/05
HOUSE BILL 1577-FN
AN ACT relative to digital images of ballots.
SPONSORS: Rep. See, Merr. 26; Rep. Wood, Merr. 13; Rep. Aures, Merr. 13; Rep. Moffett, Merr. 4; Rep. Cambrils, Merr. 4; Rep. Hoell, Merr. 27; Rep. Wherry, Hills. 13; Sen. Pearl, Dist 17
COMMITTEE: Election Law
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ANALYSIS
This bill enables the viewing of digital images of ballots under certain circumstances.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
24-2163
08/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Four
AN ACT relative to digital images of ballots.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Electronic Digital Images of Ballots. RSA 656:42, IX is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
IX. Any electronic digital image of a marked ballot made by a ballot counting device stored on a removable memory device shall be available for public inspection as provided in this section. This shall include the record of how the ballot counting device recorded the votes on each ballot.
(a) One or more voters, registered in New Hampshire, shall be permitted to examine the digital images of ballots created on an electronic ballot counting device that uses digital image technology. In this paragraph, the voter or group of voters are referred to as “observers".
(b) The purpose of examining such digital images is to allow for verifying the accuracy of the device and to check for evidence that the device may have programming errors, tampering or malicious programming installed and thus providing reassurance to all the voters of the integrity of the devices used to tabulate election votes.
(c) The examination of ballot images shall be under the supervision of the secretary of state and may use state provided computers and displays to provide access to the removable memory devices that contain the digital images.
(d) The secretary of state shall:
(1) Schedule access for the observers and for arranging for the removable memory devices to be acquired from a municipality.
(2) Provide the location of equipment and viewing area and limitations to the number of observers in the viewing area.
(3) Verify eligibility.
(4) Prevent any observers from making any connection to the computer.
(5) Be the only person to handle the original removable memory devices and or make copies thereof.
(e) The secretary of state may:
(1) Declare any observers who fail to comply with the provisions in this section to be ineligible to further participate in this process.
(2) Require non-disclosure agreements regarding personally identifying marks that may occur on a ballot image.
(3) Take any other measures to protect the integrity of the election data and the privacy of the voters.
(f) Access to ballot images shall not be available to observers until after all recounts and any subsequent appeals are completed. However, access to ballot images shall be available to those persons involved in election recounts, appeals or audits.
(g) Any observers that examine ballot images shall have standing to provide a report to the ballot law commission and request an investigation by the attorney general of discrepancies they find. Any request for an investigation and the results of any such investigation shall be made public.
(1) Such investigations shall not result in the overturning of an election unless directed by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) As a result of an investigation of the attorney general, the ballot law commission may disqualify that electronic ballot counting device for use in New Hampshire or may disqualify the entity that programmed the device as a vendor.
(h) The secretary of state may determine if copies of the removable memory devices or the digital data on the memory device may be provided to the observers that are examining the digital images. This includes electronic data as well as hard-copy printouts. Alternatively, the secretary of state may allow visual viewing access only on a state owned computer. Any information gathered from the visual examination of such ballot images shall be kept on the observer’s own paper, computer, etc. and not downloaded or electronically copied from the source computer.
2 Counting Write-In Votes. Amend RSA 659:64-a, V-VI to read as follows:
V. If the device report is used to tally write-in votes, a copy of the report shall be preserved with the ballots used at the election. The printed report showing the write-in votes in the voter's handwriting shall be a [non-public record, and shall be exempt from RSA 91-A] public record. The moderator shall also provide the clerk with a copy of the printed images of all write-in votes to be available as a non-public record to assist with post-election reporting.
VI. For all state elections, if used in the ballot counting process, the moderator and the clerk shall retain a copy of the printed images of all write-in votes to be available for reference if needed to resolve questions regarding the return of votes. [The copy shall be a non-public document and shall be stored and used in a manner that limits the risk of exposing, through recognition of handwriting, the candidate written in by any voter.]
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
24-2163
12/10/23
HB 1577-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT relative to digital images of ballots.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ X ] Local [ ] None
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Estimated State Impact - Increase / (Decrease) | ||||||
| FY 2024 | FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | ||
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Revenue Fund(s) | None | |||||
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase $100,000+ | Indeterminable Increase $100,000+ | Indeterminable Increase $100,000+ | ||
Funding Source(s) | General Fund | |||||
Appropriations | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | None | |||||
• Does this bill provide sufficient funding to cover estimated expenditures? [X] No • Does this bill authorize new positions to implement this bill? [X] N/A | ||||||
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Estimated Political Subdivision Impact - Increase / (Decrease) | ||||||
| FY 2024 | FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | ||
County Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
County Expenditures | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Local Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Local Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | ||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill enables registered voters to view electronic images of cast ballots and vote records. It applies solely to data from scanning ballot devices that store this information. The legislation allows public inspection of marked ballot images stored on removable memory devices, following specific conditions.
The Department of State indicates this bill allows registered voters to access electronic images of cast ballots and voting records from specific ballot counting devices. Although two devices meeting these criteria have conditional approval from the Ballot Law Commission, none have received final clearance yet.
The implementation of this bill will result in increased expenses:
- Memory Cards: The Secretary of State must acquire removable memory cards from each device used in local or state elections across towns and cities. Costs per card range from $10 to $50, excluding delivery expenses. The timing and vendor selection for device use remain uncertain. These cards will need replacement for presidential primaries, state primaries, state generals, special, and local elections equating to $40 to $200 per year per device. The Department is unable to determine how many municipalities would need memory cards to know the number of memory cards needed.
- Software: The State has the option to purchase memory card reading software from both vendors. One vendor sells it for an annual fee of $500, while the other estimates an initial cost of $20,000, plus an annual $5,000.
- Equipment and Staffing: To facilitate the viewing of digital images, the Secretary of State's office will require additional equipment valued at $2,500. Additionally, hiring an IT Support Position at $80,000 for FY 2025, $82,000 for FY 2026 and $84,000 for FY 2027 will be necessary to coordinate and manage the image viewing process.
Overall, this legislation will incur substantial costs related to procuring memory cards, acquiring software, purchasing equipment, and employing staff to facilitate digital image viewing with an indeterminable increase of $100,000+ starting in FY 2025.
The New Hampshire Municipal Association (NHMA) states this bill mandates municipalities to collaborate with the Secretary of State's office, arranging access for observers and acquiring removable memory devices. It also requires altering reports based on inputs from ballot counting devices and hand counts. Training election officials on new worksheets may incur added expenses like mileage, salaries, reimbursements, and other related costs. Requests to review digital records could lead to increased staff expenses, including overtime, as officials coordinate with the Secretary of State. The NHMA states they are unable to estimate the fiscal impact to expenditures.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of State and New Hampshire Municipal Association