AN ACT Relating to elections pertaining to poll-site voting and voting identification requirements; amending RCW 29A.32.241, 29A.40.010, and 29A.40.160; adding a new section to chapter 29A.40 RCW; and adding a new chapter to Title 29A RCW.

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

(2) Any registered voter of any county may submit an initiative to the people to the county auditor to establish poll-site voting in that county. Such initiatives may only be voted upon at a general election. For the initiative to be included on the ballot, signatures from registered voters in the county must be obtained in an amount equal to eight percent of the voters in the county who voted in the last gubernatorial election and must be submitted to the county auditor no later than four months before the general election. The ballot title of an initiative under this section must be "Shall the county authorize poll voting for elections?"

(3) Each county must establish procedures and timelines for processing initiatives under this section.

Sec. 3.  RCW 29A.32.241 and 2011 c 10 s 29 are each amended to read as follows:

The local voters' pamphlet shall include but not be limited to the following:

(1) Appearing on the cover, the words "official local voters' pamphlet," the name of the jurisdiction producing the pamphlet, and the date of the election or primary;

(2) A list of jurisdictions that have measures or candidates in the pamphlet;

(3) Information on how a person may register to vote and obtain a ballot or, if applicable, vote at the polls;

(4) The text of each measure accompanied by an explanatory statement prepared by the prosecuting attorney for any county measure or by the attorney for the jurisdiction submitting the measure if other than a county measure. All explanatory statements for city, town, or district measures not approved by the attorney for the jurisdiction submitting the measure shall be reviewed and approved by the county prosecuting attorney or city attorney, when applicable, before inclusion in the pamphlet;

(5) The arguments for and against each measure submitted by committees selected pursuant to RCW 29A.32.280; and

(6) For partisan primary elections, information on how to vote the applicable ballot format and an explanation that minor political party candidates and independent candidates will appear only on the general election ballot.

(2) At any special election or primary, the county auditor may combine, unite, or divide precincts for purpose of holding an election. At any general election, the county auditor must report all election returns by individual precinct.

(3) Polling sites for the various voting precincts may be located outside the boundaries of the respective precincts when the officers conducting the primary or election deem it feasible. However, such polling sites must be located within a reasonable distance of their respective precincts.

(4) At the request of the county auditor, the legislative authority of the county, a municipality, and a special district must make their facilities available for use as polling sites held within that county. Payment for polling sites and any other conditions or obligations regarding these polling sites shall be provided for by contract between the county auditor and the county, municipality, or district.

(2) At the counting center or the collection stations where the sealed ballot containers are delivered, the county auditor or a designated representative of the county auditor shall receive the sealed ballot containers, record the time, date precinct name or number, and seal number of each ballot container.

(2) All qualified electors who are at the polling site at eight o'clock p.m. shall be allowed to cast their votes.

(3) The precinct election officers, immediately before they start to issue ballots or permit a voter to vote, shall announce at the place of voting that the polls for that precinct are open. At eight o'clock p.m., or at the time when all qualified electors at the polling site pursuant to subsection (2) of this section have voted, the precinct election officers shall announce that the polls for that precinct are closed.

(1) Ballots;

(2) Precinct list of registered voters;

(3) Voting and registration instructions, printed in large type, to be conspicuously displayed at each polling site and permanent registration facility;

(4) Accessible voting equipment.

(2) Any ballot box must be carefully examined by election officers to determine that it is empty. The ballot box must then be sealed or locked. The ballot box must not be opened before the poll site is closed on the day of the primary or election.

(2) The identification required in this section can be satisfied by providing current and valid photo identification. The following forms of identification are acceptable if the identification includes a photo:

(a) A state-issued driver's license or photo identification card;

(b) A United States passport;

(c) A United States military photo identification card;

(d) A student identification card issued by an accredited institution of higher education; or

(e) A public assistance identification card issued by a municipal, county, state, or federal government office or agency.

(3) A voter who has a religious objection to being photographed may file with the county auditor an affidavit swearing to such religious beliefs and provide a nonpicture form of identification in lieu of providing photo identification.

(4) The election officer must verify the identification before the voter signs the poll book and is issued a ballot. If the right of this voter to participate in the primary or election is not challenged, the voter must be issued a ballot. Any individual who does not provide identification as required in this section must be issued a provisional ballot.

(5) Once a voter is issued a ballot, the voter shall proceed, without leaving the polling site, to one of the voting booths or voting devices to cast his or her vote.

(6) As each voter casts his or her vote, the precinct election officer must insert in the poll books or precinct list of registered voters opposite that voter's name, a notation to credit the voter with having participated in that primary or election. The precinct election officers must record the voter's name so that a separate record is kept.

(2) Any ballot cast under subsection (1) of this section must be separated and held apart from other provisional ballots cast by those not affected by the order.

(2) Immediately after the unused ballots are secure, the precinct election officers shall count the number of voted ballots and make a record, including any discrepancy, between this number and the number of voters who signed the poll book for that precinct or polling site, complete the certifications in the poll book, prepare the ballots for transfer to the counting center, if necessary, and seal the voting devices.

(1) They shall see that the device is placed where it can be conveniently attended by the election officers and operated by voters;

(2) They shall see whether the number or other designating mark on the device's seal agrees with the control number provided by the elections department. If they do not agree they shall at once notify the elections department and delay initializing the device. The polls may be opened pending reexamination of the device;

(3) If the numbers do agree, they shall proceed to initialize the device and see whether the public counter register "000." If the counter is found to register a number other than "000," one of the election officers must at once set the counter at "000" and confirm that the ballot box is empty;

(4) Before processing any ballots through a poll-site ballot counting device, a zero report must be produced. Election officials must verify that no ballots have been run through the counting device and that all vote totals for each office are zero. If the totals are not zero, election officials must either reset the device to zero or contact the elections department to reset the device and allow voting to continue using the auxiliary or emergency device.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 28.  A new section is added to chapter 29A.40 RCW to read as follows:

Valid and current photo identification must be provided to participate in any primary, special election, or general election as follows:

(1) Persons voting by mail ballot for the first time, as of the effective date of this section, must provide the required identification before ballots are mailed by the county auditor. The voter may provide the identification at the time of registering to vote or provide the identification to an election official within the county auditor's office at any time prior to the mailing of ballots. If the identification is not provided prior to the time ballots are mailed, the voter must vote in person at a voting center or, if applicable, the polls. A county elections official must make a notation in the voter's file indicating that the required identification was provided and ballots for future elections may be mailed.

(2) Persons wishing to vote in person at a voting center must provide current and valid photo identification to an election official before a ballot may be issued. The following forms of identification are acceptable if the identification includes a photo:

(a) A state-issued driver's license or photo identification card;

(b) A United States passport;

(c) A United States military photo identification card;

(d) A student identification card issued by an accredited institution of higher education;

(e) A public assistance identification card issued by a municipal, county, state, or federal government office or agency.

(3) The following are exempt from the requirements of this section:

(a) An overseas or service voter who registers to vote pursuant to RCW 29A.04.210; and

(b) A voter who has a religious objection to being photographed and has filed an affidavit affirming such religious beliefs with the county auditor and has provided a nonpicture form of identification.

Sec. 29.  RCW 29A.40.010 and 2013 c 11 s 47 are each amended to read as follows:

Each active registered voter of the state, overseas voter, and service voter ((shall))must automatically be issued a mail ballot for each general election, special election, or primary, unless the county in which the voter resides has implemented poll-site voting and the voter has indicated that he or she will vote at the polls. Overseas voters and service voters are authorized to cast the same ballots, including those for special elections, as a registered voter of the state would receive under this chapter. Each active registered voter shall continue to receive a ballot by mail until the death or disqualification of the voter, cancellation of the voter's registration, or placing the voter on inactive status.

Sec. 30.  RCW 29A.40.160 and 2011 c 10 s 43 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Each county auditor shall open a voting center each primary, special election, and general election. The voting center shall be open during business hours during the voting period, which begins eighteen days before, and ends at 8:00 p.m. on the day of, the primary, special election, or general election.

(2) The voting center must provide voter registration materials, ballots, provisional ballots, disability access voting units, sample ballots, instructions on how to properly vote the ballot, a ballot drop box, and voters' pamphlets, if a voters' pamphlet has been published.

(3) The voting center must be accessible to persons with disabilities. Each state agency and entity of local government shall permit the use of any of its accessible facilities as voting centers when requested by a county auditor.

(4) The voting center must provide at least one voting unit certified by the secretary of state that provides access to individuals who are blind or visually impaired, enabling them to vote with privacy and independence.

(5) No person may interfere with a voter attempting to vote in a voting center. Interfering with a voter attempting to vote is a violation of RCW 29A.84.510.

(6) Before opening the voting center, the voting equipment shall be inspected to determine if it has been properly prepared for voting. If the voting equipment is capable of direct tabulation of each voter's choices, the county auditor shall verify that no votes have been registered for any issue or office, and that the device has been sealed with a unique numbered seal at the time of final preparation and logic and accuracy testing. A log must be made of all device numbers and seal numbers.

(7) The county auditor shall require any person desiring to vote at a voting center to ((either)) sign a ballot declaration ((or)) and provide photo identification consistent with the provisions of section 28 of this act.

(a) The signature on the declaration must be compared to the signature on the voter registration record before the ballot may be counted. If the voter registered using a mark, or can no longer sign his or her name, the election officers shall require the voter to be identified by another registered voter.

(b) The identification must be valid photo identification, such as a driver's license, state identification card, student identification card, tribal identification card, or employer identification card. Any individual who desires to vote in person but cannot provide identification shall be issued a provisional ballot, which shall be accepted if the signature on the declaration matches the signature on the voter's registration record and the voter provides to the election official one of the accepted identifications within five days of the election.

(8) Provisional ballots must be accompanied by a declaration and security envelope, as required by RCW 29A.40.091, and space for the voter's name, date of birth, current and former registered address, reason for the provisional ballot, and disposition of the provisional ballot. The voter shall vote and return the provisional ballot at the voting center. The voter must be provided information on how to ascertain whether the provisional ballot was counted and, if applicable, the reason why the vote was not counted.

(9) Any voter may take printed or written material into the voting device to assist in casting his or her vote. The voter shall not use this material to electioneer and shall remove it when he or she leaves the voting center.

(10) If any voter states that he or she is unable to cast his or her votes due to a disability, the voter may designate a person of his or her choice, or two election officers, to enter the voting booth and record the votes as he or she directs.

(11) No voter is entitled to vote more than once at a primary, special election, or general election. If a voter incorrectly marks a ballot, he or she may be issued a replacement ballot.

(12) A voter who has already returned a ballot but requests to vote at a voting center shall be issued a provisional ballot. The canvassing board shall not count the provisional ballot if it finds that the voter has also voted a regular ballot in that primary, special election, or general election.

(13) The county auditor must prevent overflow of each ballot drop box to allow a voter to deposit his or her ballot securely. Ballots must be removed from a ballot drop box by at least two people, with a record kept of the date and time ballots were removed, and the names of people removing them. Ballots from drop boxes must be returned to the counting center in secured transport containers. A copy of the record must be placed in the container, and one copy must be transported with the ballots to the counting center, where the seal number must be verified by the county auditor or a designated representative. All ballot drop boxes must be secured at 8:00 p.m. on the day of the primary, special election, or general election.

(14) Any voter who is inside or in line at the voting center at 8:00 p.m. on the day of the primary, special election, or general election must be allowed to vote.

(15) For each primary, special election, and general election, the county auditor may provide election services at locations in addition to the voting center. The county auditor has discretion to establish which services will be provided at the additional locations, and which days and hours the locations will be open.

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