HOUSE BILL REPORT

                      HB 1571

                     As Reported By House Committee on:

                              State Government

Title:  An act relating to recounting votes.

Brief Description:  Requiring a recount by hand of election returns that have a difference of less than one‑fourth of one percent.

Sponsor(s):  Representatives Jones, McLean, Anderson, Hargrove, Ferguson, Phillips and Jacobsen.

Brief History:

   Reported by House Committee on:

State Government, February 20, 1991, DPS.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON

STATE GOVERNMENT

Majority Report: That Substitute House Bill No. 1571 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass.  Signed by 6 members:  Representatives Anderson, Chair; Pruitt, Vice Chair; R. Fisher; Grant; O'Brien; and Sheldon.

Minority Report: Do not pass.  Signed by 4 members:  Representatives McLean, Ranking Minority Member; Bowman, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Chandler; and Moyer.

Staff:  Kenneth Hirst (786-7105).

Background:  The Election Code permits a candidate for an office who failed to be nominated or elected at a primary or election to request that the votes for the office be recounted.  An officer of a political party may also request that the votes for an office be recounted.  Any group of five or more registered voters may request that the votes for a ballot measure be recounted.  The application must be filed within three days (excluding weekends and holidays) of the date that the county canvassing board or the Secretary of State has declared the results of the primary or election to be official. 

The application must state whether the recount is to be conducted manually or by a vote tallying device.  The recount must be conducted within five days of the date the application is filed with the county or (for a multi-county office or issue) within five days of the date the county receives the request from the Secretary of State.  Such a recount is provided on a fee-for-service basis, unless the recount results in a change in the outcome of the primary or election.

State law mandates that a recount be conducted, without charge to the parties involved, if the difference in the votes cast for the top two vote getters for an office is not more than 0.5 percent of the total number of votes cast for both candidates.

Summary of Substitute Bill:  If the difference in the votes cast for the top two vote getters for an office in not more than 0.25 percent, the recount mandated by state law must be conducted manually.

A deadline is established by which the Secretary of State must direct the county canvassing boards to conduct a recount of the returns for a multi-county office if the recount is mandated by state law.  The secretary must issue the directive within three business days of the date the returns for the office have first been certified by the canvassing boards.

After the results of a primary or election for an office or measure have been certified by the county canvassing board or by the Secretary of State for a state-wide or multi-county office or ballot measure, votes cast for the office or on the measure in any single precinct may not be recounted more than once.

A provision of law is repealed which applies to requests for recounts filed after a recount has reversed the outcome of a primary or election.  The repealed provision permits a person or ballot measure's group whose fortunes were reversed by the recount to apply for a recount of only those ballots which have not been recounted.

Substitute Bill Compared to Original Bill:  The original bill allows votes cast in a precinct to be recounted twice after they are first counted; the substitute bill permits votes cast in a precinct to be recounted only once after the results of the election have been certified.

Fiscal Note:  Not requested.

Effective Date of Substitute Bill:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  (1) Voters get weary of repeated recounts of elections.  The mandatory manual recount will catch tallying errors right away, rather than after several recounts. (2) The deadline established for the Secretary of State to order a recount will expedite the process.

Testimony Against:  None.

Witnesses:  Representative Evan Jones (in favor); and Vern Spatz.