Arkansas Administrative Code
Agency 116 - SECRETARY OF STATE
Rule 116.00.21-001 - Rules to Create the Process for Becoming a Secure Voter
Universal Citation: AR Admin Rules 116.00.21-001
Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 9, September, 2024
I. Authority and Purpose
a. These rules are promulgated pursuant to
Act 980 of 2021.
b. The purpose of
these rules is to create the process by which registered voters who are victims
of domestic violence may shield their address or addresses from public view by
becoming secure voters.
II. Definitions
a. A secure voter is a registered voter who
requests to have his or her address or addresses protected from public release
and is a victim of domestic violence according to the documentation required by
Rule III(d) below.
b. Poll watcher
means any:
i. Candidate in person, but only
during the counting and tabulation of ballots and the processing of absentee
ballots;
ii. Authorized
representative of a candidate;
iii.
Authorized representative of a group seeking the passage or defeat of a measure
on the ballot; and
iv. Authorized
representative of a political party with a candidate on the ballot.
III. Secure Voter Registration
a. Unless otherwise stated in
these rules, a registered voter designated as a secure voter is required to
comply with all voter identification requirements when casting a
ballot.
b. A registered voter may
apply to be a secure voter, no later than 30 days before Election Day, at the
office of the county clerk of the county in which they are registered to vote.
i. A registered voter may request to be a
secure voter after the 30-day cutoff but no later than 15 days before Election
Day only if an approved court order has been issued after the 30-day cutoff
period.
c. The county
clerk shall verify a voter's eligibility for secure voter status by comparing
the applicant's name and address as listed on the applicant's voter
registration to the applicant's name and address as listed on the applicant's
documentation required for approval for secure voter status, as listed in Rule
III(d) below.
d. The county clerk
shall not grant secure voter status to a registered voter unless the registered
voter has provided documentation proving one of the following:
i. He or she is the victim of any offense
under §
5-26-301
et seq. as adjudicated by a
court;
ii. He or she has been
granted an order of protection under the Domestic Abuse Act of 1991, §
9-15-101
et seq.; or
iii. He or she Is recognized as a victim of
domestic violence in any court order or ruling.
e. Any and all address information of the
secure voter shall not be included in the precinct voter registration
list.
f. The county clerk shall not
reproduce any address or addresses of a secure voter in any format unless
otherwise authorized by law.
g. Any
and all address information for a secure voter is confidential and is not a
public record under the Freedom of Information Act of 1967, §
25-19-101
et seq.
h. Any
documentation required by these rules provided to the county clerk shall be
scanned electronically and saved with the secure voter's
registration.
IV. Challenges
a. Upon a challenge from an
authorized poll watcher, the secure voter shall be permitted to present proof
to the poll worker and poll watcher in a separate room or, if a separate room
is not available, a private area located at the polling site or vote
center.
b. If a provisional ballot
is required, any and all address information of the secure voter shall be
redacted prior to any public release of the ballot
itself.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Arkansas may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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