Rules & Regulations of the State of Tennessee
Title 1360 - Department of State
Subtitle 1360-02 - Elections
Chapter 1360-02-18 - Downloading Early Voting Results
Section 1360-02-18-.10 - REMOVING RESULTS FROM SHOUPTRONIC MACHINES

(1) After the machine has been examined according to the manner described in 1360-2-18-.08, a technician shall cut the necessary seals and open the back of the machine. The CLOSE POLLS button shall NOT be pressed.

(2) The technician shall enter the necessary instructions to cause the machine to print a numerically coded report that indicates election results according to ballot position. Once the machine has stopped printing the results, a technician shall cut the necessary seals and open the printer compartment. The printer tape shall be removed without examination. This tape shall be immediately placed in an envelope. The envelope shall be marked with the machine number and any other necessary information for matching the results to the appropriate elections. The envelope shall be sealed and the representative of each political party and the registrar shall sign across the flap of the envelope. The envelope shall then be placed in a ballot box.

(3) Next, a technician shall remove the memory cartridge from the machine. The cartridge shall be placed in a separate envelope from the printed tape. The envelope shall be marked with the machine number and any other necessary information for matching the results to the appropriate elections. The envelope shall be sealed and the representative of each political party and the registrar shall sign across the flap of the envelope. The envelope shall then be placed in a ballot box.

(4) In order to remove the resident memory of results in the voting machine, a new cartridge programmed for use on election day shall be placed in the machine and the machine shall immediately be programmed for re-use. Even if the county election commission is uncertain about whether it will need a machine or does not intend to use an early voting machine on election day, the machine must be reprogrammed using either a demonstration cartridge or any other available cartridge which will reset the machine's internal memory.