Current through Register Vol. 43, No. 12, March 20, 2024
(a) For purposes of this regulation, each of
the following terms shall have the meaning specified in this subsection:
(1) "Election day" means the day for casting
ballots for any national, state, county, township, city, and school primary and
general election, question-submitted election, or other election authorized by
law and conducted by the county election officer.
(2) "Electronic poll book" means the
electronic version of the poll book, as described in
K.S.A.
25-2507 and amendments thereto, used at a
vote center or voting place.
(3)
"Vote center" means a voting place where any registered voter in a county with
a vote center plan implemented may cast a ballot on election day.
(4) "Voting place" has the meaning specified
in
K.S.A.
25-2506, and amendments thereto.
(b) Pursuant to
K.S.A.
25-2701 and amendments thereto, any county
election officer may authorize the use of vote centers allowing all voters
within the county to vote at any polling location on election day following
submittal of a plan and receipt of approval by the Kansas secretary of state.
Once a vote center plan is in effect, each polling location under the
jurisdiction of the county election officer shall be a vote center.
(c) The plan specified in subsection (b),
which shall be signed by the chairman of the county commission and the county
election officer and received by the Kansas secretary of state at least six
months before implementation, shall provide the following:
(1) The implementation date of the first
election in which vote centers are to be used. A county election official shall
not utilize vote centers for the first time in a general or primary election in
an even-numbered year;
(2) the
number of vote centers that will be established and the number of polling
places that will be reduced;
(3)
the location of each vote center. For each location identified, the plan shall
provide the following:
(A) Certification that
each location complies with the Americans with disabilities act (ADA)
accessibility requirements;
(B) a
description of each vote center. The description of each vote center shall
include at least the number of voting machines, tables, chairs, and board
workers for that vote center location and the number of parking spaces and
designated handicap parking spaces available for that vote center
location;
(C) a detailed
description of all hardware, firmware, and software for all voting equipment
and electronic poll books that will be used in the vote center;
(D) a statement that each piece of voting
equipment has been certified by the United States election assistance
commission and the Kansas secretary of state's office;
(E) a statement acknowledging that each
electronic poll book to be used has been successfully used in at least one
jurisdiction in the United States before using the poll book at a vote center
location;
(F) a detailed testing
plan that provides an estimate of the highest volume of voters at each vote
center and certifies that testing has been done to ensure that the vote center
can accommodate at least that volume; and
(G) a contingency plan designed to both
prevent a disruption of the vote center process and ensure that the election is
properly conducted if a disruption occurs. At a minimum, the contingency plan
shall address likely impediments that could cause issues at vote centers,
including the following:
(i) Inclement
weather;
(ii) complete loss of
connectivity for any length of time to electronic poll books or voting machines
that includes a plan of preventing voters from voting at multiple
locations;
(iii) higher than
anticipated volumes of voters; and
(iv) unavailability of a vote
center;
(4) a
description of the methods and standards that the county election official will
use to ensure the security of voting conducted at vote centers. As part of
these security methods, an electronic poll book shall not be connected in any
way to a voting system. The county election official shall also certify that
each vote center will have a secure connection that has real-time access to an
electronic poll book and prevents any voter from voting more than once at that
vote center or at any other vote center during the same election; and
(5) a public outreach plan that involves a
local working group designed to inform county citizens of the change to vote
centers. This public outreach plan shall include the names of local officials,
county residents, and any other individuals that are part of the local working
group developing and implementing the plan. The public outreach plan shall also
describe the activities that the local working group will utilize to educate
the public on vote centers.
(d)
(1) If a
county election officer intends to implement a change to the vote center plan
involving the requirements in paragraph (c)(3)(C), the county election officer
shall notify the secretary of state no later than 90 days before implementing
the change. The notice shall be accompanied by the statements required by
paragraphs (c) (3) (D) and (E) and the testing plan and the contingency plan
required by paragraphs (c)(3)(F) and (G).
(2) If a county election officer intends to
change or close a vote center location, the county election officer shall
notify the secretary of state upon the determination being made and any new
vote center location being selected. This notice shall be submitted no later
than 90 days before the first election in which the vote center location
closing or change is to occur. If the 90-day advance notice is impracticable,
the county election officer may seek approval from the secretary of state to
waive the 90-day requirement, but notice shall still be provided before
implementing the changes identified in this paragraph.
(3) If a county election officer intends to
change the vote center plan involving the security methods and standards
required in paragraph (c)(4), the county election officer shall notify the
secretary of state no later than 90 days before implementation of the change.
If the 90-day advance notice is impracticable, the county election officer may
seek approval from the secretary of state to waive the 90-day
requirement.
(e)
Following the first year that a vote center plan is implemented, the county
election officer shall submit the county's vote center plan, which shall
include any updates or changes since last submission to the secretary of state,
six months before the next August primary election occurring in the year
identified in
K.S.A.
25-101(a)(1), and amendments
thereto. The county election officer shall then resubmit the plan at the same
time every four years.
(f) The
process for casting a ballot at each vote center shall comply with all
statutory requirements in Kansas, including the provisions in
K.S.A.
25-2901 et seq., and amendments
thereto.
(g)
Following the first election in which a county utilizes vote centers, the
county election officer shall submit to the secretary of state a report that
includes the following:
(1) The number of
voters and provisional voters who utilized each vote center;
(2) the estimated time that a voter waited
during peak voting hours at each vote center; and
(3) any logistical, voting machine, or
network problems encountered at any vote center.
(h) If a county election officer in
consultation with the county commissioners wants to return to a precinct model
of voting rather than the vote center model, the county election officer and
the county commissioners shall submit a plan to the Kansas secretary of state.
The plan, which shall be signed by the chairman of the county commission and
the county election officer and received by the Kansas secretary of state at
least six months before implementation, shall provide the following:
(1) The implementation date of the first
election in which precinct model voting will be used;
(2) the number of polling places that will be
used;
(3) the location of each
polling place. For each location identified, the plan shall be accompanied by
the following:
(A) Statement of compliance
with ADA accessibility requirements;
(B) a description of each polling place. The
description of each polling place shall include at least the number of voting
machines, tables, chairs, and board workers expected to be used at that polling
place and the number of parking spaces and designated handicap parking spaces
available for that polling place;
(C) a detailed description of all hardware,
firmware, and software for all voting equipment and electronic poll books that
will be used in the polling places;
(D) a statement that each piece of voting
equipment has been certified by the United States election assistance
commission and the Kansas secretary of state's office; and
(E) a statement acknowledging that each
electronic poll book to be used has been successfully used in at least one
jurisdiction in the United States before being used in a polling place;
and
(4) a public
outreach plan that involves a local working group designed to inform county
citizens of the change back to precinct voting. This public outreach plan shall
include the names of local officials, county residents, and any other
individuals that are part of the local working group developing and
implementing the plan. The public outreach plan shall also describe the
activities that the local working group will utilize to educate the public on
the change back to precinct voting.