Louisiana Regulations § 31-I-1103 Preparation and Supplies for Implementation of Emergency Election Day Paper Ballot Voting Procedures

Regulation Text

A. Emergency Declaration - Preparation Prior To Election Day

1. The secretary of state or his designee shall review all voting machine allocation reports and provide supplies for implementation of the emergency election day paper ballot voting procedures for any precinct which has only one voting machine allocated for the election and is not located in a consolidated polling place which has the ballot for which the voters are eligible to vote on a voting machine. Supplies shall be provided in the back of the voting machine for immediate implementation upon a written declared emergency.

2. The clerk of court shall provide training to the commissioners for each one voting machine precinct on the implementation of the emergency election day paper ballot voting procedures as provided for herein.

3. The clerk of court shall inform the parish board of election supervisors or the absentee commissioners appointed to count the mail and early voting ballots of the possibility of having to implement the emergency election day paper ballot voting procedures due to the one machine precinct(s) in the parish.

B. Emergency Declaration - Supplies and Implementation Procedures

1. The commissioner-in-charge shall follow the directions in his parish for notifying the clerk of court and the Department of State when a precinct does not have a voting machine that is operable. The clerk of court, registrar of voters, and the secretary of state, or his designee, shall consult on the matter before an emergency is declared.

2. If the secretary of state, or his designee, declares an emergency, the secretary, or his designee, shall notify the clerk of court in writing, who shall notify the commissioners to implement the emergency election day paper ballot voting procedures provided for herein. The clerk of court shall also notify either the parish board of election supervisors or the appointed absentee commissioners of the declared emergency, so that they will be available to count the paper ballots on election night.

3. The secretary of state will provide all ballots and supplies to be used for the emergency election day paper ballot voting procedures. Supplies shall include: paper ballots identified by the corresponding button number of the machine lockout for the precinct and secrecy envelopes; a notice to the voters to be posted; instructions for the commissioners; a paper ballot audit form (in duplicate) to be used by the commissioners; a large return envelope labeled election day voted paper ballots; and any other supplies as determined necessary by the secretary or his designee.

4. The commissioner-in-charge shall post a notice at the entrance to the polling place notifying the voters that they will be allowed to vote on paper ballots. The commissioner-in-charge shall remove the notice when the precinct has a voting machine that is operable and voting resumes on the voting machine.

5. The commissioners shall use the instructions provided to follow the proper procedures in implementing the emergency election day paper ballot voting procedures.

6. The commissioner-in-charge shall complete the relevant parts of the paper ballot audit form prior to distribution of any paper ballot, such as the parish/ward/precinct information, time of implementation of procedures, lockout button number on ballot envelope, and total number of ballots per lockout button received in the lead machine. The commissioner-in-charge shall use this form to account for the number of voted paper ballots sealed in secrecy envelopes per button number, the number of spoiled ballots sealed in secrecy envelopes per button number, and the number of unused ballots per button number. This information will provide an accurate accounting of the paper ballots supplied to the precinct per button number. At the end of the election day, the original paper ballot audit form shall be placed in the large return envelope labeled election day voted paper ballots for delivery to the clerk of court and a duplicate copy shall be posted at the precinct.

7. Paper ballots shall only be used during the time when the precinct does not have a voting machine that is operable and the secretary of state or his designee has declared an emergency in writing for implementation of the emergency election day paper ballot voting procedures.

History

Promulgated by the Department of State, Elections Division, LR 39:1056 (April 2013).

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