Mississippi Advisory Opinions December 23, 1992: 19921223 (December 23, 1992)

Advisory Opinion Text

Honorable Estelle Pryor

Circuit Clerk

Post Office Box 1276

Greenville, Mississippi 38702–1276

Re: Election Commission Working out of the RegistrarsS Office

Dear Mrs. Pryor:

Attorney General Mike Moore has received your letter of request and has assigned it to me for research and reply. Your letter states:

“Pursuant to Statute numbers 23–15–161, 23–15–159, 23–15–135, 23–15–211 and 23–15–153(1)(a, b, c, d) the County Election Commissioners are to work out of the Circuit Clerk/Registrar's Office. What jurisdiction does the Registrar have to move computers, voter's registration and poll books to another location in the Courthouse?

These Election Commissioners are giving me a fit about moving out to another location, one where they would have complete control over all registration and poll books and computer printouts. Even though I would have a key to the door, I would have no control of that department.

They are adding new voters on the computer from registration applications and pulling the poll book list off the computer when they please, which this is my duty, to put voter applications on and or pull off poll lists for primary and general elections and hand them to the Election Commissioners. Is this not the intent of these laws.

We need technical assistance here in Washington County. There have been a lot of untrue stories told on this office, the Registrar and other parties, but the real story lies with the Election Commissioner's chair, et al.

Question? Does the authority state that the Election Commissioners have a separate budget and equipment outside of the Department? The Circuit Clerk's office? These have. They have set it up with the county without my knowledge and plan to order more equipment. The telephones at the polling places are in their names, not the county's. Please help.”

Mississippi Code Annotated § 23–15–135 (Revised 1990) provides:

“The registration books of the several voting precincts of each county and the pollbooks heretofore in use shall be delivered to the registrar of the county, and they, together with the registration books and pollbooks hereafter made, shall be records of his office, and he shall carefully preserve the same as such; and after each election the pollbooks shall be speedily returned to the office of the registrar.” (emphasis ours)

Section 23–15–153(1) provides in part:

“At the following times the commissioners of election shall meet at the office of the registrar and carefully revise the registration books and the pollbooks of the several voting precincts, ....” (emphasis ours)

We preface our response to your request by stating that this opinion is prospective in nature only and does not, in any manner, constitute a determination of the legality of any action that has already been taken by any county official(s) in this matter. Any such opinion could neither validate nor invalidate any past action. With that in mind we express the following opinion on the questions presented in your letter.

The above quoted statutes clearly provide that the registration books and pollbooks are to be records of the county registrar and that they are to be kept in the registrar's office. Therefore, we know of no authority that would allow the registration books and pollbooks to be kept and maintained in a place that has not been lawfully designated as a part of the office of the circuit clerk/registrar. Therefore, it is the opinion of this office that the registration books and pollbooks are to remain in the office of the circuit clerk/registrar except when the pollbooks are being used in the conduct of an election.

As to the legal responsibilities relating to the use of computers in maintaining the voter registration list and pollbooks, please see the enclosed copy of an opinion addressed to Honorable Henry Dean Horton, dated March 21, 1990.

Whether there is provision made in the county budget for the purchase of equipment to be utilized by the election commission is a matter to be determined by the board of supervisors.

Sincerely,

Mike Moore Attorney General

Phil Carter Assistant Attorney General.

May 19, 1989

Hon. Giles Bryant

Assistant Attorney General

P.O. Box 220

Jackson, Mississippi 39205

Re: Compensation—Election Commissioners—Registrar

Dear Mr. Bryant:

As attorney for the Grenada County Board of Supervisors, I request that you confirm the verbal opinion that you reached concerning the interpretation of § s 23–15–33, 23–15–153, 23–15–161, 23–15–219 and 23–15–225(3).

The request is precipitated by the question of whether the board has the authority to pay a deputy circuit clerk to perform the function of removing ineligible voters from the computer list of qualified voters, at the request of the election commissioners, or whether that fell under the duty of the registrar (Circuit Clerk).

§ 23–15–153(5)(1) clearly places the duty of purging the rolls exclusively with the commissioners. § 2–15–219 provides that, with the board's approval, the commissioners have the authority to employ others to assist in their duties.

§ 23–15–161 requires the registrar to assist the commissioners and § 23–15–225(3) provides for the compensation to the registrar in his/her assistance to the commissioners.

It would seem unclear whether any compensation to the computer operator should be paid from the compensation provided for in 225(3), or whether it could be provided for under 219.

It would seem clear that in the event that if the deputy clerk could be legally paid, his/her assistance to the commissiorner would of necessity have to be done “before or after hours”, rather than during the normal Circuit Clerk hours.

Because of a special election that is forthcoming in June, your early reply would be greatly appreciated.

Very truly yours,

Jay Gore, Jr., Attorney for Grenada County Board of Supervisors.