HOUSE BILL No. 5604


     February 7, 2002, Introduced by Reps. Lemmons, DeWeese, Minore, Clarke, Clark, Dennis, Kolb, Kooiman, Reeves, Gieleghem,
Garza, Stallworth, Anderson and McConico and referred to the Committee on Redistricting and Elections.


        A bill to amend 1954 PA 116, entitled

   "Michigan election law,"

   by amending section 764b (MCL 168.764b), as amended by 1996

   PA 207.

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

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             Sec. 764b.  (1) An absent voter ballot shall be delivered to

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        the clerk only as authorized in the instructions for an absent

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        voter provided in section 764a.

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             (2) The clerk of a city, township, or village  may  SHALL

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        accept delivery of absent voter ballots at any location in the

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        city, township, or village.  IF AN ABSENT VOTER BALLOT IS DELIV-

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        ERED BY UNITED STATES MAIL, PUBLIC POSTAL SERVICE, EXPRESS MAIL

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        SERVICE, PARCEL POST SERVICE, OR COMMON CARRIER, THE CLERK OF THE

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        CITY, TOWNSHIP, OR VILLAGE SHALL ACCEPT DELIVERY OF THE ABSENT




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        VOTER BALLOT EVEN IF THE VOTER HAS NOT PLACED SUFFICIENT POSTAGE

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        ON THE RETURN ENVELOPE.

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             (3) The clerk of a city, township, or village  may  SHALL

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        appoint the number of assistants necessary to accept delivery of

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        absent voter ballots at any location in the city, township, or

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        village.  An appointment as assistant to accept delivery of

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        absent voter ballots shall be for 1 election only.  An assistant

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        appointed to receive ballots at a location other than the office

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        of the clerk shall be furnished credentials of authority by the

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        clerk.  If an absent voter's ballot is received by an assistant

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        at any location other than the clerk's office the assistant, upon

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        request, shall exhibit the credentials to the absent voter before

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        the assistant accepts an absent voter ballot.  An assistant,

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        before entering upon the discharge of duties, shall take and sub-

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        scribe to the oath of office as provided in section 1 of article

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        XI of the state constitution of 1963.  An assistant shall perform

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        only the duties assigned by the clerk.  A person shall not be

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        appointed as an assistant to accept delivery of absent voter bal-

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        lots who is a candidate or a member of the immediate family of a

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        candidate whose name appears on the ballot at that election.

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             (4) A clerk who receives a request from an absent voter

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        under section 764a for assistance in returning his or her absent

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        voter ballot shall make arrangements to collect the ballot from

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        the voter either personally or by sending an authorized assist-

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        ant, if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

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             (a) The clerk's office issued the absent voter ballot to

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        that absent voter.



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             (b) Upon the clerk's request, the absent voter states that

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        he or she is unable to return the absent voter ballot by the

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        other means specified in instructions (a), (b), or (c) of Step 5

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        under section 764a.

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             (c) The absent voter telephones the appropriate clerk for

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        assistance on or before 5 p.m. on the Friday immediately preced-

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        ing the election.

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             (d) The absent voter is requesting the clerk to pick up the

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        absent voter ballot within the jurisdictional limits of the city,

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        township, or village in which the absent voter is registered.

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             (5) Notwithstanding subsection (4), a clerk who receives a

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        request from an absent voter under section 764a for assistance in

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        returning his or her absent voter ballot may make arrangements to

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        collect the ballot from the voter either personally or by sending

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        an authorized assistant, if all of the following conditions are

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        satisfied:

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             (a) The clerk's office issued the absent voter ballot to

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        that absent voter.

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             (b) Upon the clerk's request, the absent voter states that

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        he or she is unable to return the absent voter ballot by the

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        other means specified in instructions (a), (b), or (c) of Step 5

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        under section 764a.

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             (6) The clerk shall maintain a list open to the public that

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        contains the names and addresses of all authorized assistants

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        appointed under this section who are available to collect absent

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        voter ballots on or before election day in that city or

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        township.



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             (7) An absent voter ballot received by the clerk before the

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        close of the polls on election day shall not be invalidated

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        solely because the delivery to the clerk was not in compliance

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        with section 764a or this section, however the ballot shall be

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        considered challenged and shall be marked and processed as pro-

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        vided in section 745.












































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