BILL REQ. #:  S-0838.1 

Read first time 01/28/11.   Referred to Committee on Government Operations, Tribal Relations & Elections.

     AN ACT Relating to identifying marks on ballots; and amending RCW 29A.36.111.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 29A.36.111 and 2009 c 414 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Every ballot for a single combination of issues, offices, and candidates shall be uniform within a precinct and shall identify the type of primary or election, the county, and the date of the primary or election, and the ballot or voting device shall contain instructions on the proper method of recording a vote, including write-in votes. Each position, together with the names of the candidates for that office, shall be clearly separated from other offices or positions in the same jurisdiction. The offices in each jurisdiction shall be clearly separated from each other.
     (2) No paper ballot or ballot card may ((be marked by or at the direction of an election official in any way that would permit the identification of the person who voted that ballot)) contain any encrypted or unencrypted bar code or other unique identifying mark, except as specifically authorized by this subsection. A ballot may contain a randomly assigned unique identifying mark solely for auditing and vote reconciliation purposes, or to determine if a particular ballot has been previously counted. The unique identifying mark shall not be associated at any time with an individual voter, a voter's address, or a voter's registration number.
     (((2))) (3) An ((elections [election])) election official may not enter into or extend any contract with a vendor if such contract may allow the vendor to acquire an ownership interest in any data pertaining to any voter, any voter's address, registration number, or history, or any ballot.