Election overhaul bill clears first committee

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FLV) – A recently filed elections bill cleared its first committee Tuesday after being released halfway through the Legislative Session.

The bill deals with areas including third-party voter registration organizations, election worker protections, voter guides and candidate oaths.

The legislation passed 6-3 out of the Ethics and Elections Senate committee Tuesday.

Bill sponsor Sen. Danny Burgess, R-Zephyrhills, said the bill will provide “safeguards” for voters through the additional rules for third-party voter registration organizations.

Third-party voter registration organizations help gather voter registration applications. The bill would require these organizations register for certain election cycles.

The groups would need to provide a receipt to the voter, so the voter can have “evidence” that they submitted the voter applications.

The fines also increase for third-party voter registration organizations that do not submit voter registration cards timely.

The legislation shortens the time frame to return voter registration applications to the state from 14 to 10 days. Burgess called the change “reasonable” and a “critically important” way to make sure the applications get into the right hands.

Those collecting voter registration on behalf of the would not be allowed to keep information or make copies in an effort to protect “identity theft.” Information includes driver license number, social security number, or signature.

Someone who violates this commits a third degree felony.

“I think these are measured changes. They make sense,” Burgess said. “The supervisors of elections in the past have recommended additional measures related to enhancing protections around third party voter registration organizations.”

The bill makes it unlawful for anyone to or attempt to intimidate, threaten, coerce, or harass election workers including election officials, poll workers or election volunteers.

Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, suggested poll watchers be included, in which Burgess said he would look into it.

Under the bill, if two more more vote-by-mail ballots for the same election are returned in one mailing envelope, the ballots may not be counted.

Burgess said if the ballots were in the same mailing envelope, because there are secrecy ballots in the sleeves, there would not be a way to determine which ballot goes towards the individual who signed the envelope.

“There’s really to true cure to this situation because you just don’t know whose ballot it was. So the policy call was that in a situation like that, you’d have, per se, signature matching issues and that neither ballot would be able to count,” Burgess said.

Regarding candidate oaths, a candidate would be required to write whether they owe any outstanding fines more than $250 for any ethics violations.

The bill provides mandatory formal signature matching training to supervisors of elections and county canvassing board members.

The current bill said every year the supervisor of elections would conduct an annual review of voter registration records. If the supervisor has “reasonable belief” that registration records are not legal residential addresses, the supervisor can initiate list maintenance. Burgess said lawmakers are still working through this section of the bill and making changes.

The bill also changes reports regarding election results to be provided to the Department of State within 20 days after the election results are certified.

The bill said it would be a third degree felony for someone who willfully cast more than one ballot in an election.

It also addresses a “voter guide,” which tends to include information on who to vote for. It clarifies that a person needs written permission in order to represent that a voter guide is an official publication of a political party.