HOUSE BILL No. 5079


     September 20, 2001, Introduced by Rep. Bovin and referred to the Committee on Redistricting and Elections.


        A bill to amend 1954 PA 116, entitled

   "Michigan election law,"

   by amending section 759a (MCL 168.759a), as amended by 1999

   PA 216.

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

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           Sec. 759a.  (1) Except as provided in subsection  (5)  (4),

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      each of the following persons who is a qualified elector of a

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      city, VILLAGE, or township in this state and who is not a regis-

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      tered voter may apply for an absent voter ballot  pursuant to  IN

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      THE MANNER DESCRIBED IN section 504:

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           (a) A civilian employee of the armed services outside of the

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      United States.

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           (b) A member of the armed services outside of the United

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      States.




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           (c) A citizen of the United States temporarily residing

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      outside the territorial limits of the United States.

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           (d) A citizen of the United States residing in the District

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      of Columbia.

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           (e) A spouse or dependent of a person described in

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      subdivisions (a) through (d) who is a citizen of the United

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      States and who is accompanying that person,  notwithstanding

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      that  EVEN THOUGH the spouse or dependent is not a qualified

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      elector of a city, VILLAGE, or township of this state,  as long

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      as  IF that spouse or dependent is not a qualified and registered

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      elector anywhere else in the United States.

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            (2) A citizen described in subsection (1) other than a

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      person described in subsection (1)(b) or a spouse or dependent of

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      such a person described in subsection (1)(b) shall include, with

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      an application for an absent voter ballot or registration, an

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      affidavit in a form and manner approved by the state director of

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      elections stating either of the following:

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           (a) His or her qualifications as an elector at the time he

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      or she departed from the United States or began residing in the

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      District of Columbia and affirming that he or she has not relin-

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      quished his or her citizenship or established residence for

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      voting in any other place.

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           (b) That he or she is a spouse or dependent of a person

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      described in subsection (1)(a), (c), or (d), that he or she meets

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      the qualifications as an elector other than residency in this

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      state, and that he or she has not established a residence for

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      voting in any other place.



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           (2)  (3)  Upon receipt of an application under this section

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      that complies with this act, a city, VILLAGE, or township clerk

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      shall forward to the applicant the absent voter ballots

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      requested, the forms necessary for registration, and instructions

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      for completing the forms.  If the ballots are not yet available

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      at the time of receipt of the application, the clerk shall imme-

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      diately forward to the applicant the registration forms and

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      instructions, and forward the ballots as soon as they are

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      available.  If the ballots and registration forms are received

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      before the close of the polls on election day and if the regis-

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      tration complies with the requirements of this act, the absent

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      voter ballots shall be delivered to the proper election board to

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      be voted.  If the registration does not comply with the require-

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      ments of this act, the clerk shall retain the absent voter bal-

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      lots until the expiration of the time that the voted ballots must

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      be kept and shall then destroy the ballots without opening the

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      envelope.  The clerk may retain registration forms completed

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      under this section in a separate file.  The address in this state

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      shown on a registration form is the residence of the registrant.

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           (3)  (4)  The size of a precinct shall not be determined by

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      registration forms completed under this section.

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           (4)  (5)  A person described in subsection (1)(a) and (b)

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      and a spouse or dependent of that person who is accompanying that

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      person is registered to vote in a special primary or special gen-

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      eral election if he or she was registered to vote under this sec-

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      tion in the primary or general election immediately  preceding

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      BEFORE the special primary or special general election.  The



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      city, VILLAGE, or township clerk who received that person's

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      completed registration forms in the primary or general election

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      shall forward to that person at his or her last known address an

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      absent voter ballot for the special primary or special general

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      election immediately upon the clerk's receipt of the absent voter

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      ballots for the special primary or special general election.

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           (5)  (6) Pursuant to  UNDER the uniformed and overseas citi-

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      zens absentee voting act, Public Law 99-410, 100 Stat. 924, the

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      state director of elections shall approve a ballot form and reg-

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      istration procedures for electors in the armed services and elec-

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      tors outside the United States, including the spouses and depen-

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      dents accompanying those electors.

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           (6)  (7)  As used in this section, "armed services" means

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      any of the following:

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           (a) The United States army, navy, air force, marine corps,

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      or coast guard.

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           (b) The United States merchant  marines  MARINE.

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           (c) A reserve component of an armed service listed in

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      subdivision (a) or (b).

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           (d) The Michigan national guard as defined in section 105 of

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      the Michigan military act, 1967 PA 150, MCL 32.505.















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