PREPROPOSAL STATEMENT OF INQUIRY
Subject of Possible Rule Making: Presidential primary procedures and general ballot format.
Statutes Authorizing the Agency to Adopt Rules on this Subject: RCW 29.19.070, 29.04.210.
Reasons Why Rules on this Subject may be Needed and What They Might Accomplish: The major political parties and the county auditors have requested that the absentee balloting process for the presidential primary be changed to allow voters to sign a declaration of party affiliation at the time the ballot is cast. Additionally, there are no rules pertaining to the approval of the form of the declarations of party affiliation by the political parties or the method in which party abbreviations are determined for placement on all primary and general election ballots. The proposed changes would decrease the number of mailings required to each absentee voter from two mailings to one, and provide a framework for approving declarations of party affiliation and abbreviations for political parties.
Other Federal and State Agencies that Regulate this Subject and the Process Coordinating the Rule with These Agencies: None.
Process for Developing New Rule: Negotiated rule making; and agency study.
Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule and formulation of the proposed rule before publication by writing to Tim Hill, Elections Division, Office of the Secretary of State, P.O. Box 40229, Olympia, WA 98504-0229, (360) 902-4169, fax (360) 586-5629, e-mail timh@secstate.wa.gov.
May 5, 1999
Donald F. Whiting
Assistant Secretary of State