H-0150.1
HOUSE BILL 2077
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State of Washington | 65th Legislature | 2017 Regular Session |
By Representative Hudgins
Read first time 02/13/17. Referred to Committee on State Govt, Elections & IT.
AN ACT Relating to certification requirements for elections administrators; and amending RCW
29A.04.530.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. RCW 29A.04.530 and 2009 c 415 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The secretary of state shall:
(((1))) (a) Establish and operate, or provide by contract, training and certification programs for state and county elections administration officials and personnel, including training on election laws, the various types of election law violations, and discrimination;
(((2))) (b) Administer tests for state and county officials and personnel who have received such training and issue certificates to those who have successfully completed the training and passed such tests;
(((3))) (c) Maintain a record of those individuals who have received such training and certificates; and
(((4))) (d) Provide the staffing and support services required by the board created under RCW
29A.04.510.
(2) Elections professionals meeting the qualifications in subsection (3) of this section may participate in training and certificate programs and testing administered by the secretary of state. The secretary may not require additional qualifications for participation.
(3) For the purposes of this section, "elections professional" means a person:
(a) Having two or more years of experience in:
(i) Election law;
(ii) Election administration;
(iii) Election campaigning or consulting;
(iv) Membership on an elections canvassing board;
(v) Service as an elected precinct committee officer or elections observer for a major political party as defined in RCW 29A.04.086; (vi) Service as a local, state, or federal elected official; or
(vii) Employment as full-time professional staff to a local, state, or federal elected official; or
(b) Who has successfully completed college coursework in elections administration or a closely related subject at an accredited institution of higher education; or
(c) Who is a Washington state resident and has proof of certification from another state; or
(d) Who is a Washington state resident and presents a compelling petition to the secretary for inclusion in the training and certificate programs administered by the secretary.
(4) The secretary of state must keep the costs of training and certificate programs and testing competitive and comparable to other states and accredited programs.
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