2. The voter’s printed last name.
3. The voter’s house or apartment number.
4. The voter’s street name.
5. The voter’s municipality.
6. The voter’s signature.
7. The witness’s printed first name.
8. The witness’s printed last name.
9. The witness’s house or apartment number.
10. The witness’s street name.
11. The witness’s municipality.
12. The witness’s signature.
Finally, the bill prohibits any person other than the voter, or the witness with respect to the witness certificate, from correcting a defect in the voter’s absentee ballot certificate. Whoever violates that prohibition is subject to a fine not to exceed $500 or imprisonment not to exceed 30 days, or both.
Appointment of poll workers
The bill prohibits the appointment of any poll worker who is an employee of any of the following:
1. A candidate committee, legislative campaign committee, political action committee, independent expenditure committee, political party, recall committee, or referendum committee, as those terms are defined by law.
2. A political organization required to register with the Federal Election Commission.
3. An issue advocacy group.
Municipal board of canvassers
Current law requires that the municipal board of canvassers of each municipality convene immediately following the close of the polls on election day to publicly canvass the ballots cast. The board may not adjourn until the canvass is completed, except that the board may adjourn and reconvene at a central count location to complete the canvass. Current law also requires the municipal clerk to appoint an individual to serve as a member of the board of canvassers if there are one or more temporary vacancies on the board and the number of available members to canvass the ballots is less than three.
The bill allows a municipal board of canvassers to recess as the result of a natural disaster, if a board member is ill or otherwise incapacitated, or if the physical condition of the canvass location is unsuitable for continuing the canvass. However, the bill requires that the board reconvene as soon as possible. In addition, if the board recesses because a member is ill or otherwise incapacitated, the bill requires the municipal clerk to immediately appoint an individual to fill the vacancy on the board to temporarily replace that member.
Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime, the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties may be requested to prepare a report.
For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.
AB570,,44The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
AB570,15Section 1. 6.87 (2) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB570,,666.87 (2) (intro.) Except as authorized under sub. (3) (d), the municipal clerk shall place the ballot in an unsealed envelope furnished by the clerk. The envelope shall have the name, official title and post-office address of the clerk upon its face. The other side of the envelope shall have a printed certificate which shall include a space for the municipal clerk or deputy clerk to enter his or her initials indicating that if the absentee elector voted in person under s. 6.86 (1) (ar), the elector presented proof of identification to the clerk and the clerk verified the proof presented. The certificate shall also include a space for the municipal clerk or deputy clerk to enter his or her initials indicating that the elector is exempt from providing proof of identification because the individual is a military elector or an overseas elector who does not qualify as a resident of this state under s. 6.10 or is exempted from providing proof of identification under sub. (4) (b) 2. or 3. The certificate shall include a distinct field for each item required to be entered under sub. (6d) and shall be in substantially the following form:
AB570,27Section 2. 6.87 (6d) of the statutes is renumbered 6.87 (6d) (intro.) and amended to read:
AB570,,886.87 (6d) (intro.) If a certificate is missing the address of a witness, the ballot An absentee ballot with no certificate or with a certificate that does not include all of the following may not be counted.: