BILL REQ. #:  S-0304.2 

Read first time 01/13/11.   Referred to Committee on Government Operations, Tribal Relations & Elections.

     AN ACT Relating to making the office of the county auditor a nonpartisan office; and amending RCW 29A.04.110 and 29A.36.121.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 29A.04.110 and 2005 c 2 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
     "Partisan office" means a public office for which a candidate may indicate a political party preference on his or her declaration of candidacy and have that preference appear on the primary and general election ballot in conjunction with his or her name. The following are partisan offices:
     (1) United States senator and United States representative;
     (2) All state offices, including legislative, except (a) judicial offices and (b) the office of superintendent of public instruction;
     (3) All county offices except (a) judicial offices ((and)); (b) the office of the county auditor; and (c) those offices for which a county home rule charter provides otherwise.

Sec. 2   RCW 29A.36.121 and 2004 c 271 s 129 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) The positions or offices on a primary consolidated ballot shall be arranged in substantially the following order: United States senator; United States representative; governor; lieutenant governor; secretary of state; state treasurer; state auditor; attorney general; commissioner of public lands; superintendent of public instruction; insurance commissioner; state senator; state representative; county officers; justices of the supreme court; judges of the court of appeals; judges of the superior court; ((and)) judges of the district court; and the office of the county auditor. For all other jurisdictions on the primary consolidated ballot, the offices in each jurisdiction shall be grouped together and be in the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
     (b)(i) The positions or offices on a primary party ballot must be arranged in substantially the following order: United States senator; United States representative; governor; lieutenant governor; secretary of state; state treasurer; state auditor; attorney general; commissioner of public lands; insurance commissioner; state senator; state representative; and partisan county officers. For all other jurisdictions on the primary party ballot, the offices in each jurisdiction must be grouped together and be in the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
     (ii) The positions or offices on a primary nonpartisan ballot must be arranged in substantially the following order: Superintendent of public instruction; justices of the supreme court; judges of the court of appeals; judges of the superior court; ((and)) judges of the district court; and the office of the county auditor. For all other jurisdictions on the primary nonpartisan ballot, the offices in each jurisdiction must be grouped together and be in the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
     (2) The order of the positions or offices on an election ballot shall be substantially the same as on a primary consolidated ballot except that state ballot issues must be placed before all offices. The offices of president and vice president of the United States shall precede all other offices on a presidential election ballot. The positions on a ballot to be assigned to ballot measures regarding local units of government shall be established by the secretary of state by rule.
     (3) The political party or independent candidacy of each candidate for partisan office shall be indicated next to the name of the candidate on the primary and election ballot. A candidate shall file a written notice with the filing officer within three business days after the close of the filing period designating the political party to be indicated next to the candidate's name on the ballot if either: (a) The candidate has been nominated by two or more minor political parties or independent conventions; or (b) the candidate has both filed a declaration of candidacy declaring an affiliation with a major political party and been nominated by a minor political party or independent convention. If no written notice is filed the filing officer shall give effect to the party designation shown upon the first document filed. A candidate may be deemed nominated by a minor party or independent convention only if all documentation required by chapter 29A.20 RCW has been timely filed.