MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2023 Regular Session
To: Elections
By: Senator(s) Hickman
AN ACT TO CREATE NEW SECTION 23-15-615, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE THE SECRETARY OF STATE TO AUDIT ELECTION PROCEDURES IN THE COUNTIES OF THE STATE; TO PROVIDE THE INFORMATION THAT EACH REGISTRAR SHALL BE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE; TO PROVIDE WHEN AN AUDIT SHALL BE COMPLETED; TO REPEAL SECTION 23-15-613, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES THAT ELECTION COMMISSIONS AND COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEES SHALL REPORT RESIDUAL VOTE INFORMATION TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE; TO CREATE NEW SECTIONS 23-15-617, 23-15-617.1, 23-15-617.2, 23-15-617.3, 23-15-617.4 AND 23-15-617.5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO ESTABLISH THE PROCEDURES FOR A RISK-LIMITING AUDIT; TO PROVIDE WHICH STATEWIDE ELECTIONS SHALL BE SUBJECT TO A RISK-LIMITING AUDIT; TO PROVIDE WHEN A MANUAL RECOUNT OF ELECTION RESULTS SHALL BE NECESSARY; TO PROVIDE WHEN AND WHERE THE RESULTS OF A RISK-LIMITING AUDIT SHALL BE AVAILABLE; TO CREATE A PILOT PROGRAM TO TEST THE PROCESS FOR CONDUCTING A RISK-LIMITING AUDIT BEFORE IT IS FULLY IMPLEMENTED; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-153, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE ELECTION COMMISSIONERS TO RECEIVE A PER DIEM OF $100.00 FOR CONDUCTING AN ELECTION RECOUNT; TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 23-15-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-603, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXTEND THE DEADLINE THAT ELECTION COMMISSIONERS HAVE FOR SUBMITTING INFORMATION RELATED TO THE ELECTION RESULTS WHEN A MANUAL ELECTION RECOUNT IS REQUIRED; TO CREATE NEW SECTION 23-15-823, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT WHEN A CANDIDATE OR ELECTED OFFICIAL HAS BEEN RESTRICTED BY A SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM, THE COMPANY THAT OPERATES THE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM SHALL BE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT A REPORT DISCLOSING THE ACTION TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE; TO CREATE NEW SECTION 23-15-395, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE THE SECRETARY OF STATE TO PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE REVIEW, CERTIFICATION AND DECERTIFICATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF ALL VOTING SYSTEMS; TO CREATE NEW SECTION 23-15-152, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT AN ELECTOR WHO FAILS TO RESPOND TO A CONFIRMATION NOTICE AND WHO FAILS TO VOTE DURING A CERTAIN PERIOD OF TIME SHALL BE PURGED FROM THE STATEWIDE ELECTIONS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM; TO PROVIDE DEFINITIONS FOR "CONFIRMATION NOTICE" AND "FAILS TO RESPOND TO THE CONFIRMATION NOTICE"; TO PROVIDE THOSE REGISTERED VOTERS WHO SHALL RECEIVE CONFIRMATION NOTICES; TO PROVIDE THAT A REGISTERED VOTER WHO IS MAILED A CONFIRMATION NOTICE SHALL BE PLACED ON INACTIVE STATUS IN THE STATEWIDE ELECTIONS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM BUT SHALL BE ABLE TO VOTE BY AFFIDAVIT BALLOT; TO PROVIDE THE TIME FOR REMOVAL OF VOTER REGISTRATION RECORDS; TO PROVIDE FOR THE RETENTION OF REMOVED VOTER REGISTRATION RECORDS; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-125, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING SECTION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-615, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-615. (1) Any post-election audit performed pursuant to this section shall be conducted by the election commissioners, in conjunction with the registrar, in accordance with the instructions and procedures prescribed by the Secretary of State, including:
(a) Process for randomly selecting elections and determining the risk limit, if applicable;
(b) Procedures for preparing for a post-election audit, including guidelines for organizing ballots, selecting venues, and securing appropriate materials;
(c) Procedures for ballot custody, accounting, security, and written record retention that ensure that the collection of cast ballots from which samples are drawn is complete and accurate throughout the audit;
(d) Procedures for hand counting of the audited ballots;
(e) Processes and methods for conducting a post-election audit; including the percentage of ballots required to be counted; and
(f) Procedures for ensuring transparency and understanding of the process by participants and the public, including guidelines for direct observation by members of the public, representatives of the candidates involved in the post-election audit, and representatives of the political parties.
(2) (a) The Secretary of State shall randomly select and oversee the audit of each county over a four-year period. The audit shall not begin more than thirty (30) days before and not later than ninety (90) days after the regularly scheduled general or special election. No county shall be selected for audit if that county has been audited in the last four (4) years unless a post-election audit is triggered pursuant to subsection (5) of this section. The Secretary of State shall select the precinct(s) to be audited in each county.
(b) In the event of a multijurisdictional election, the Secretary of State may audit all precincts participating in that election.
(3) (a) No later than one hundred twenty (120) days after the date of the election that the Secretary of State is auditing the Secretary of State shall post a report of any completed audit on the official website of the Secretary of State. The registrar of the affected county shall post the results of the completed audit on the official website of the county.
(b) Not later than one hundred fifty (150) days after the election, the Secretary of State shall submit a report to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the House of Representatives analyzing the reports required to be filed pursuant to subsection (5) of this section.
(c) If, while conducting an audit, the Secretary of State determines that more time is needed to complete the audit, he or she may certify that such need exists and post the certification to the website of the Secretary of State.
(4) The Secretary of State shall not conduct an audit under this section at any precinct where an election occurred and that election is being challenged as provided in Section 23-15-927, 23-15-951 or 23-15-955.
(5) No later than seven (7) days after all ballots have been tabulated for a primary or general election, the election commissioners, in conjunction with the registrar, shall manually tabulate a statistically significant percentage of ballots and compare the results with the results produced by the voting machine.
(a) In the event a discrepancy of more than one percent (1%) exists, the election commissioners, in conjunction with the registrar, shall commence a full manual hand count of ballots.
(b) The registrar shall promptly report results of the manual tabulation to the Secretary of State. The report shall include, but is not limited to:
(i) The total number of voters marked as VOTED in the pollbook of each precinct in the county;
(ii) The sum of the total number of voters who signed the receipt book at the polling place on election day and the total number of voters who cast an absentee ballot;
(iii) The total number of ballots received by the poll managers from local election officials;
(iv) The sum of the total number of paper ballots voted on election day, the number of unused ballots and the number of spoiled ballots;
(v) The total number of electronic ballots cast; and
(vi) The total number of ballots cast.
(c) Results of the audit shall be published on the Secretary of State website and the county’s website, if available.
SECTION 2. Section 23-15-613, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provides that election commissions and county and municipal executive committees shall report residual vote information to the Secretary of State, is repealed.
SECTION 3. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-617, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-617. The provisions of Sections 23-15-617 through 97 23-15-617.5 shall apply to an election that:
(a) Occurs from and after August 31, 2024, except as otherwise provided in Section 23-15-617.5;
(b) Contains an elective office or measure that is voted on statewide; and
(c) Uses an auditable voting system as described in Section 23-15-617.4.
SECTION 4. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-617.1, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-617.1. (1) Not later than twenty-four (24) hours after all of the ballots have been counted in an election, the election commissioners, in conjunction with the registrar, shall conduct a risk-limiting audit for a selected statewide elective office or measure.
(2) The Secretary of State shall select, in accordance with rules adopted by the secretary, the statewide elective office or measure to be audited.
(3) The election commissioners, in conjunction with the registrar, shall complete the audit before the certification of the election pursuant to Section 23-15-603.
(4) If the results of the audit determine that the ballots cast in the election do not meet the risk-limiting threshold established as provided in Section 23-15-617.2, the election commissioners shall conduct a manual recount of the election. In the event the tabulation from the manual recount differs from that of the tabulation reported from the auditable voting systems, the tabulation from the manual recount shall be the certified results. (5) The election commissioners, in conjunction with the registrar, shall publish notice of the date, time and location of the audit in the county courthouse and on the county's website, if the county maintains a website. If the county does not maintain a website, such information shall be posted on the Secretary of State's website.
(6) A credentialed poll watcher may be present for the audit if he or she is appointed by a candidate whose name appears on the ballot for the statewide elective office to be audited. A credentialed poll watcher shall present credentials to the election commissioners or registrar at the time he or she reports for service. The credentials must be in writing and must include any information also required by Section 23-15-577.
(7) The Secretary of State may appoint personnel to assist with the audit, including appropriate voting system technicians or representatives and persons who have assisted with the design and implementation of the audit.
SECTION 5. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-617.2, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-617.2. The Secretary of State shall adopt rules and regulations as necessary to effectuate the provisions of Sections 23-15-617 through 23-15-617.5. Such rules shall include a rule that requires the use of widely accepted statistical methods to calculate the number or percentage of paper records that must be counted in a risk-limiting audit as provided in Section 23-15-617.1.
SECTION 6. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-617.3, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-617.3. The results of a risk-limiting audit conducted under Section 23-15-617.1 shall be published on the Secretary of State's website not later than three (3) days after the audit is completed.
SECTION 7. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-617.4, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-617.4. (1) As used in Sections 23-15-617 through 23-15-617.5, "auditable voting system" means a voting system that:
(a) Uses, creates or displays a paper record that may be read by the voter; and
(b) Is not capable of being connected to the internet or any other computer network or electronic device.
(2) The electronic vote is the official record of the vote cast if a risk-limiting audit conducted under Section 23-15-617.1 produces strong evidence that the reported outcome of the election matches the results that a full counting of the paper records would reveal.
(3) The paper record is the official record of the vote cast if a risk-limiting audit conducted under Section 23-15-617.1 fails to produce strong evidence that the reported outcome of the election matches the results that a full counting of the paper records would reveal.
SECTION 8. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-617.5, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-617.5. (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 23-15-617(a), the Secretary of State shall conduct a pilot program, beginning with the election that occurs on November 5, 2024, of the risk-limiting audit program created under Sections 23-15-617 through 23-15-617.5.
(2) The Secretary of State shall select at least five (5) counties to participate in the pilot program.
(3) After each election conducted under the pilot program, the Secretary of State shall send a detailed report to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chair of the Senate Elections Committee and Chair of the House Committee on Apportionment and Elections. The report shall evaluate the success of the program and make a recommendation as to whether the Legislature should delay the statewide implementation of the program.
(4) The Secretary of State shall adopt rules and regulations as necessary to effectuate the provisions of this section.
(5) This section shall repeal on August 31, 2026.
SECTION 9. Section 23-15-153, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-153. (1) At least during the following times, the election commissioners shall meet at the office of the registrar or the office of the election commissioners to carefully revise the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System and remove from the roll the names of all voters who have requested to be purged from the voter roll, died, received an adjudication of non compos mentis, been convicted of a disenfranchising crime, failed to comply with the provisions of Section 23-15-152 or otherwise become disqualified as electors for any cause, and shall register the names of all persons who have duly applied to be registered but have been illegally denied registration:
(a) On the Tuesday after the second Monday in January 1987 and every following year;
(b) On the first Tuesday in the month immediately preceding the first primary election for members of Congress in the years when members of Congress are elected;
(c) On the first Monday
in the month immediately preceding the first primary election for state, state district
legislative, county and county district offices in the years in which those offices
are elected; * * *
(d) On the second Monday
of September preceding the general election or regular special election day in years
in which a general election is not conducted * * *; and
(e) As provided in Section 23-15-152.
Except for the names of those voters who are duly qualified to vote in the election, no name shall be permitted to remain in the Statewide Elections Management System; however, no name shall be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System based on a change in the residence of an elector except in accordance with procedures provided for by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. Except as otherwise provided by Section 23-15-573, no person shall vote at any election whose name is not in the county voter roll electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System.
(2) Except as provided in this section, and subject to the following annual limitations, the election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of their duties in the conduct of an election or actually employed in the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System as required in subsection (1) of this section:
(a) In counties having less than fifteen thousand (15,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than fifty (50) days per year, with no more than fifteen (15) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(b) In counties having fifteen thousand (15,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than thirty thousand (30,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than seventy-five (75) days per year, with no more than twenty-five (25) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(c) In counties having thirty thousand (30,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than seventy thousand (70,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred (100) days per year, with no more than thirty-five (35) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year;
(d) In counties having seventy thousand (70,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than ninety thousand (90,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred twenty-five (125) days per year, with no more than forty-five (45) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(e) In counties having ninety thousand (90,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than one hundred seventy thousand (170,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred fifty (150) days per year, with no more than fifty-five (55) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(f) In counties having one hundred seventy thousand (170,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred thousand (200,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred seventy-five (175) days per year, with no more than sixty-five (65) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(g) In counties having two hundred thousand (200,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred ninety (190) days per year, with no more than seventy-five (75) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year;
(h) In counties having two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than two hundred fifteen (215) days per year, with no more than eighty-five (85) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(i) In counties having two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than two hundred thirty (230) days per year, with no more than ninety-five (95) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(j) In counties having two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census or more, not more than two hundred forty (240) days per year, with no more than one hundred five (105) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year.
(3) In addition to the number of days authorized in subsection (2) of this section, the board of supervisors of a county may authorize, in its discretion, the election commissioners to receive a per diem in the amount provided for in subsection (2) of this section, to be paid from the county general fund, for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of their duties in the conduct of an election or actually employed in the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System as required in subsection (1) of this section, not to exceed five (5) days.
(4) (a) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed ten (10) days for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System before any special election. For purposes of this paragraph, the regular special election day shall not be considered a special election. The annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of this section shall not apply to this paragraph.
(b) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Sixty-five Dollars ($165.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for the performance of their duties on the day of any primary, runoff, general or special election. The annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of this section shall apply to this paragraph.
* * *
(5) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed fourteen (14) days for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System and in the conduct of a runoff election following either a general or special election.
(6) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive only one (1) per diem payment for those days when the election commissioners discharge more than one (1) duty or responsibility on the same day.
(7) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) to be paid from the county general fund, for those days when the election commissioners shall be required to conduct a recount of an election as provided in Section 23-15-617.1.
( * * *8) In preparation for a municipal primary,
runoff, general or special election, the county registrar shall generate and distribute
the master voter roll and pollbooks from the Statewide Elections Management System
for the municipality located within the county. The municipality shall pay the
county registrar for the actual cost of preparing and printing the municipal master
voter roll pollbooks. A municipality may secure "read only" access to
the Statewide Elections Management System and print its own pollbooks using this
information.
( * * *9) County election commissioners who perform
the duties of an executive committee with regard to the conduct of a primary election
under a written agreement authorized by law to be entered into with an executive
committee shall receive per diem as provided for in subsection (2) of this section.
The days that county election commissioners are employed in the conduct of a primary
election shall be treated the same as days county election commissioners are employed
in the conduct of other elections.
( * * *10) In addition to any per diem authorized
by this section, any election commissioner shall be entitled to the mileage reimbursement
rate allowable to federal employees for the use of a privately owned vehicle while
on official travel on election day.
( * * *11) Every election commissioner shall
sign personally a certification setting forth the number of hours actually worked
in the performance of the commissioner's official duties and for which the commissioner
seeks compensation. The certification must be on a form as prescribed in this subsection.
The commissioner's signature is, as a matter of law, made under the commissioner's
oath of office and under penalties of perjury.
The certification form shall be as follows:
COUNTY ELECTION COMMISSIONER
PER DIEM CLAIM FORM
NAME: ____________________________ COUNTY: _______________
ADDRESS: _________________________ DISTRICT: _____________
CITY: ______________ ZIP: ________
PURPOSE APPLICABLE ACTUAL PER DIEM
DATE BEGINNING ENDING OF MS CODE HOURS DAYS
WORKED TIME TIME WORK SECTION WORKED EARNED
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
TOTAL NUMBER OF PER DIEM DAYS EARNED
EXCLUDING ELECTION DAYS ________
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $110.00
TOTAL NUMBER PER DIEM DAYS EARNED
FOR ELECTION DAYS ________
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $165.00
TOTAL AMOUNT OF PER DIEM CLAIMED $_______
I understand that I am signing this document under my oath as an election commissioner and under penalties of perjury.
I understand that I am requesting payment from taxpayer funds and that I have an obligation to be specific and truthful as to the amount of hours worked and the compensation I am requesting.
Signed this the _____ day of ______________, ____.
________________________
Commissioner's Signature
When properly completed and signed, the certification must be filed with the clerk of the county board of supervisors before any payment may be made. The certification will be a public record available for inspection and reproduction immediately upon the oral or written request of any person.
Any person may contest the accuracy of the certification in any respect by notifying the chair of the commission, any member of the board of supervisors or the clerk of the board of supervisors of the contest at any time before or after payment is made. If the contest is made before payment is made, no payment shall be made as to the contested certificate until the contest is finally disposed of. The person filing the contest shall be entitled to a full hearing, and the clerk of the board of supervisors shall issue subpoenas upon request of the contestor compelling the attendance of witnesses and production of documents and things. The contestor shall have the right to appeal de novo to the circuit court of the involved county, which appeal must be perfected within thirty (30) days from a final decision of the commission, the clerk of the board of supervisors or the board of supervisors, as the case may be.
Any contestor who successfully contests any certification will be awarded all expenses incident to his or her contest, together with reasonable attorney's fees, which will be awarded upon petition to the chancery court of the involved county upon final disposition of the contest before the election commission, board of supervisors, clerk of the board of supervisors, or, in case of an appeal, final disposition by the court. The commissioner against whom the contest is decided shall be liable for the payment of the expenses and attorney's fees, and the county shall be jointly and severally liable for same.
( * * *12) Any election commissioner who has
not received a certificate issued by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section
23-15-211 indicating that the election commissioner has received the required elections
seminar instruction and that the election commissioner is fully qualified to conduct
an election, shall not receive any compensation authorized by this section or Section
23-15-239.
SECTION 10. Section 23-15-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
23-15-5. (1) There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be known as the Elections Support Fund. Monies derived from annual report fees imposed upon limited liability companies under Section 79-29-1203 shall be deposited into the Elections Support Fund. Unexpended amounts remaining in the fund at the end of the fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund, and any interest earned or investment earnings on amounts in the fund shall be disbursed as provided in subsection (2) of this section. The expenditure of monies in the fund shall be under the direction of the Secretary of State as provided by subsection (2) of this section, and such funds shall be paid by the State Treasurer upon warrants issued by the Department of Finance and Administration.
(2) (a) Monies in the fund shall be used as follows:
(i) Seventy percent (70%) of the monies in the special fund shall be distributed annually to the counties, upon appropriation of the Legislature, based on the proportion that the population of a county bears to the total population in all counties of the state population according to the most recent information from the United States Census Bureau, and held in a separate fund solely for the purpose of acquiring, upgrading, maintaining or repairing voting equipment, systems and supplies, hiring temporary technical support, conducting elections using such voting equipment or systems, employing such personnel to conduct an election, and training election officials; and
(ii) The remaining thirty percent (30%) of the monies in the special fund shall be deposited in the State General Fund.
(b) The Secretary of State shall create standard training guidelines to assist counties in training election officials with the funds authorized under subsection (2)(a)(ii) of this section. Any criteria established by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this section shall be used in addition to any other training or coursework prescribed by the Secretary of State to train circuit clerks, poll managers and any other election officials participating in county elections.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no monies from the Elections Support Fund shall be used by the Secretary of State or any person associated with the Office of the Secretary of State to provide or otherwise support expert testimony in any manner for any hearing, trial or election contest.
(3) From and after July 1, 2017, none of the monies deposited in the Elections Support Fund may be used to reimburse or otherwise defray any costs that the Office of the Secretary of State may incur in administering the fund.
(4) From and after July 1, 2016, no state agency shall charge another state agency a fee, assessment, rent or other charge for services or resources received by authority of this section.
SECTION 11. Section 23-15-603, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-603. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the election commissioners shall, within ten (10) days after the general election, transmit to the Secretary of State, to be filed in his or her office, a statement of the whole number of votes given in their county and the whole number of votes given in each precinct in their county, for each candidate for any office at the election; but the returns of every election for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Auditor of Public Accounts, State Treasurer, Commissioner of Insurance and other state officers, shall each be made out separately, sealed up together and transmitted to the seat of government, directed to the Secretary of State, and endorsed the "VOTE FOR STATE OFFICERS," to be delivered by the Secretary of State to the Speaker of the House of Representatives at the next ensuing session of the Legislature. In addition to the other information required pursuant to this subsection, the returns for state officers shall contain a statement of the whole number of votes given in each House of Representative district or portion thereof for each candidate for state office at the election.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in this section, constitutional amendments shall be voted for at the time fixed by the concurrent resolution. The election, whether held separately or with other elections, shall be conducted, in all respects, as required for elections generally. The election commissioners shall, within ten (10) days after the election, transmit to the Secretary of State a statement of the whole number of votes given in their county and the whole number of votes given in each precinct in their county for or against constitutional amendments.
(3) The statements certified by the election commissioners and transmitted to the Secretary of State, as required by this section, shall be tabulated by the Secretary of State and submitted to each branch of the Legislature, at the session next ensuing. Certified county vote totals shall represent the final results of the election.
(4) The statements required by this section shall contain a certification, signed and dated by a majority of the election commissioners, which shall read as follows:
"We, the undersigned election commissioners, do hereby certify that this statement of the whole number of votes contains the official vote for the election reflected therein."
(5) The statements required by this section shall be transmitted to the Secretary of State on such forms and by such methods as may be required by rules and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of State.
(6) If the results of a risk-limiting audit determine that the county election commissioners must manually recount an election, then the county election commissioners shall not be required to transmit the information required in subsections (1) and (2) of this section within ten (10) days of the election. When manual recount is required, the election commissioners shall transmit the results no later than five (5) business days after the results would have otherwise been required to be transmitted under subsections (1) and (2) of this section.
SECTION 12. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-823, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-823. (1) The following words and phrases shall have the meanings as defined in this subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(a) "Election" means a general, special, primary or runoff election.
(b) "Candidate" means an individual who seeks nomination for election, or election, to any elective office and has or intends to:
(i) Pay the assessment, file a written statement, and file a petition containing the signatures of the requisite number of voters, if applicable, pursuant to Sections 23-15-297 and 23-15-299; or
(ii) Designate a principal campaign committee pursuant to 52 USCS Section 30102(e) and 11 CFR Section 101.1.
(c) "Social media platform" means any website and/or application that has a primary purpose of communication, collaboration, social interaction and/or sharing user-generated content through personalized web profiles. This definition shall not be construed to mean electronic mail, short message service, or other similar means of communication.
(2) (a) When a candidate and/or elected official has been restricted from a social media platform, the company which operates and/or maintains the social media platform, or its successor entities, shall file a report with the Secretary of State disclosing this action, on a form as prescribed by the Secretary, within three (3) business days of the day the restriction occurred.
(b) The Secretary of State shall promulgate rules and regulations as necessary to effectuate the provisions of this section, including the public inspection, preservation of reports and a process by which candidates or elected officials may allege a violation of this section.
(3) When a social media platform indicates a good-faith effort has been made to submit the information required, any record or report shall be considered in compliance with this section.
SECTION 13. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-395, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-395. The Secretary of State shall promulgate rules and regulations for the review, certification and decertification, and implementation of all voting systems. Before promulgating any rules or regulations, the Secretary of State shall present the proposed rules and regulations to the State Board of Election Commissioners for comment and approval. Upon approval of the rules and regulations by the State Board of Election Commissioners, the Secretary of State shall promulgate the approved rules and regulations.
SECTION 14. The following shall be codified as Section 23-15-152, Mississippi Code of 1972:
23-15-152. (1) For the purposes of this section, "confirmation notice" means a notice sent by the election commissioners, by forwardable mail, with return postage prepaid, on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State, to a registered voter to confirm the registered voter's current address. The notice shall comply with all applicable requirements of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
(2) The election commissioners shall send a confirmation notice to the following:
(a) A registered voter if it appears from the United States Postal Service change-of-address information that the registered voter has moved to a different residence;
(b) A registered voter if a county election commissioner or county registrar has received notice from another state, or political subdivision of another state, that the registered voter has registered to vote in another state;
(c) A registered voter who has failed to vote at least once in one (1) of the following periods:
(i) A period of three (3) years, which shall include two (2) federal general elections; or
(ii) A period of two (2) years, which shall include an election for Governor and a federal general election; and
(d) A registered voter if the registrar or election commissioners have received reliable information that he or she has moved within or outside of the state.
No registered voter shall be sent a confirmation notice under paragraph (c) of this subsection if he or she has been sent a confirmation notice for those same reasons within the last six (6) years.
(3) The county election commissioners shall place any registered voter who has been sent a confirmation notice on inactive status in the Statewide Elections Management System. Any registered voter who is placed on inactive status shall be unable to cast a regular ballot on election day but shall be able to cast an affidavit ballot as provided in Section 23-15-573.
(4) A registered voter "fails to respond to the confirmation notice" if the voter, during a period of four (4) consecutive years beginning from the date of the delivery of the confirmation notice, fails to:
(a) Respond to the confirmation notice;
(b) Update the elector's registration information.
The period of four (4) consecutive years beginning from the date of the delivery of the confirmation notice required in this subsection (4) shall include two (2) general federal elections. A registered voter who votes at least once in any election in the registered voter's county of registration during the period of four (4) consecutive years beginning from the date of the delivery of the confirmation notice shall not be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System.
(5) The county registrar or county election commission shall move those registered voters who fail to respond to the confirmation notice as provided in subsection (4) of this section and who fail to vote as provided in subsection (4) of this section to purged status in the Statewide Elections Management System.
(6) No systematic list maintenance shall occur during the ninety (90) days immediately preceding a federal primary or general election.
(7) The county registrar shall retain removed voter registration records after they are removed for a period that includes at least two (2) federal general elections and shall record the reason for the removal.
SECTION 15. Section 23-15-165, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-165. (1) The Office of the Secretary of State, in cooperation with the county registrars and election commissioners, shall procure, implement and maintain an electronic information processing system and programs capable of maintaining a centralized database of all registered voters in the state. The system shall encompass software and hardware, at both the state and county level, software development training, conversion and support and maintenance for the system. This system shall be known as the "Statewide Elections Management System" and shall constitute the official record of registered voters in every county of the state.
(2) The Office of the Secretary of State shall develop and implement the Statewide Elections Management System so that the registrar and election commissioners of each county shall:
(a) Verify that an applicant that is registering to vote in that county is not registered to vote in another county;
(b) Be notified automatically that a registered voter in its county has registered to vote in another county;
(c) Receive regular reports of death, changes of address and convictions for disenfranchising crimes that apply to voters registered in the county; and
(d) Retain all present functionality related to, but not limited to, the use of voter roll data and to implement such other functionality as the law requires to enhance the maintenance of accurate county voter records and related jury selection and redistricting programs.
(3) As a part of the procurement and implementation of the system, the Office of the Secretary of State shall, with the assistance of the advisory committee, procure services necessary to convert current voter registration records in the counties into a standard, industry accepted file format that can be used on the Statewide Elections Management System. Thereafter, all official voter information shall be maintained on the Statewide Elections Management System. The standard industry accepted format of data was reviewed and approved by a majority of the advisory committee created in subsection (5) of this section after consultation with the Circuit Clerks Association and the format may not be changed without consulting the Circuit Clerks Association.
(4) The Secretary of State may, with the assistance of the advisory committee, adopt rules and regulations necessary to administer the Statewide Elections Management System. The rules and regulations shall at least:
(a) Provide for the establishment and maintenance of a centralized database for all voter registration information in the state;
(b) Provide procedures for integrating data into the centralized database;
(c) Provide security to ensure that only the registrar, or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law may require, can add information to, delete information from and modify information in the system;
(d) Provide the registrar or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law may require, access to the system at all times, including the ability to download copies of the industry standard file, for all purposes related to their official duties, including, but not limited to, exclusive access for the purpose of printing all local pollbooks;
(e) Provide security and protection of all information in the system and monitor the system to ensure that unauthorized access is not allowed;
(f) Provide a procedure that will allow the registrar, or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law may require, to identify the precinct to which a voter should be assigned; and
(g) Provide a procedure for phasing in or converting existing manual and computerized voter registration systems in counties to the Statewide Elections Management System.
(5) The Secretary of State established an advisory committee to assist in developing system specifications, procurement, implementation and maintenance of the Statewide Elections Management System. The committee included two (2) representatives from the Circuit Clerks Association, appointed by the association; two (2) representatives from the Election Commissioners Association of Mississippi, appointed by the association; one (1) member of the Mississippi Association of Supervisors, or its staff, appointed by the association; the Director of the Stennis Institute of Government at Mississippi State University, or his or her designee; the Executive Director of the Department of Information Technology Services, or his or her designee; two (2) persons knowledgeable about elections and information technology appointed by the Secretary of State; and the Secretary of State, who shall serve as the chair of the advisory committee.
(6) The Office of the Secretary of State shall report annually by February 1 for the preceding twelve (12) months ending January 31 to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Mississippi Legislature on each of the activities undertaken to maintain the Statewide Elections Management System and the results of those activities. The Secretary of State's report shall include all relevant information to the maintenance of voter rolls. This report shall contain the methodology used in gathering and analyzing the data. The Secretary of State shall certify that the data included in the report is accurate and reliable.
( * * *7) (a) Social security numbers,
telephone numbers and date of birth and age information in statewide, district,
county and municipal voter registration files shall be exempt from and shall
not be subject to inspection, examination, copying or reproduction under the
Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983.
(b) Copies of statewide, district, county or municipal voter registration files, excluding social security numbers, telephone numbers and date of birth and age information, shall be provided to any person in accordance with the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983 at a cost not to exceed the actual cost of production.
SECTION 16. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after January 1, 2024.