EARLY VOTING PROCEDURES H.B. 4696:
SUMMARY OF DISCHARGED BILL
House Bill 4696 (as discharged)
Sponsor: Representative Penelope Tsernoglou
Senate Committee: Elections and Ethics (discharged)
CONTENT (COMPANION BILL LINK: S.B. 368)
The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to make disclosing an election result from an early voting site before election day a Class E felony against Public Trust with a statutory maximum of five years' imprisonment.
The bill is tie-barred to House Bill 4695, which generally would govern early voting as constitutionally enshrined by Proposal 2 of 2022.
MCL 777.11d Legislative Analyst: Abby Schneider
FISCAL IMPACT
The bill would have no fiscal impact on local government and an indeterminate fiscal impact on the State, considering the Michigan Supreme Court's July 2015 opinion in People v. Lockridge, in which the Court ruled that the sentencing guidelines are advisory for all cases. This means that the addition to the guidelines under the bill would not be compulsory for the sentencing judge. As penalties for felony convictions vary, the fiscal impact of any given felony conviction depends on judicial decisions.
Date Completed: 6-27-23 Fiscal Analyst: Joe Carrasco, Jr.
This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.