January 24, 2006, Introduced by Senators CROPSEY, HAMMERSTROM, BISHOP, BROWN, KUIPERS, JELINEK, McMANUS, BIRKHOLZ, PATTERSON, SANBORN, GILBERT, TOY, CASSIS, GARCIA, STAMAS, GEORGE, GOSCHKA, JOHNSON and ALLEN and referred to the Committee on Government Operations.
A bill to amend 1954 PA 116, entitled
"Michigan election law,"
by amending section 476 (MCL 168.476), as amended by 2005 PA 71.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec.
476. (1) Upon receiving notification of the filing of
the
petitions, the board of state canvassers The state director of
elections shall canvass the petitions to ascertain if the petitions
have been signed by the requisite number of qualified and
registered electors. The qualified voter file shall be used to
determine the validity of petition signatures by verifying the
registration of signers and the genuineness of signatures on
petitions when the qualified voter file contains digitized
signatures. If the qualified voter file indicates that, on the date
the elector signed the petition, the elector was not registered to
vote, there is a rebuttable presumption that the signature is
invalid. If the qualified voter file indicates that, on the date
the elector signed the petition, the elector was not registered to
vote in the city or township designated on the petition, there is a
rebuttable
presumption that the signature is invalid. If the board
state director of elections is unable to verify the genuineness of
a signature on a petition using the digitized signature contained
in
the qualified voter file, the board state
director of
elections may cause any doubtful signatures to be checked against
the registration records by the clerk of any political subdivision
in which the petitions were circulated, to determine the
authenticity of the signatures or to verify the registrations. Upon
request, the clerk of any political subdivision shall cooperate
fully
with the board state
director of elections in determining
the validity of doubtful signatures by rechecking the signature
against registration records in an expeditious and proper manner.
(2)
The board of state canvassers state director of
elections may hold hearings upon any complaints filed or for any
purpose
considered necessary by the board state
director of
elections to conduct investigations of the petitions. To conduct a
hearing,
the board state
director of elections, with the approval
of the state board of canvassers, may issue subpoenas and
administer
oaths. The board state
director of elections may also
adjourn from time to time awaiting receipt of returns from
investigations that are being made or for other necessary purposes,
but shall complete the canvass at least 2 months before the
election at which the proposal is to be submitted.
(3)
At least 2 business days before the
board of state
canvassers
meets to make state director
of elections makes a final
determination on challenges to and sufficiency of a petition, the
bureau of elections shall make public its staff report concerning
disposition of challenges filed against the petition. Beginning
with the receipt of any document from local election officials
pursuant
to subsection (1), the board of state canvassers state
director of elections shall make that document available to
petitioners and challengers on a daily basis.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect
unless all of the following bills of the 93rd Legislature are
enacted into law:
(a) Senate Bill No. 973.
(b) Senate Bill No. 974.
(c) Senate Bill No. 975.
(d) Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No.____ (request no.
05713'06).
(e) Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No.____ (request no.
05714'06).
(f) Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No.____ (request no.
05715'06).