00 SENATE BILL NO. 289 01 "An Act relating to elections; relating to voters; relating to voting; relating to voter 02 registration; relating to election administration; relating to campaign contributions; 03 relating to write-in candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States; 04 relating to the crimes of unlawful interference with voting in the first degree, unlawful 05 interference with an election, and election official misconduct; relating to voter 06 registration on permanent fund dividend applications; relating to the duties of the 07 commissioner of revenue; and providing for an effective date." 08 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 09  * Section 1. AS 15.07.060(c) is amended to read: 10 (c) Each applicant who requests registration in person before a registration 11 official shall exhibit one form of identification to the official, including a driver's 12 license, state identification card, current and valid photo identification, birth 13 certificate, passport, or identification card issued by a federally recognized tribe 01 [HUNTING OR FISHING LICENSE]. A registration official who knows the identity 02 of the applicant may waive the identification requirement. 03  * Sec. 2. AS 15.07.060(e) is amended to read: 04 (e) For an applicant requesting initial registration by mail, by facsimile or 05 other electronic transmission approved by the director under AS 15.07.050, or by 06 completing a permanent fund dividend application, the director shall verify the 07 information provided in compliance with (a)(2) and (3) of this section through state 08 agency records described in AS 15.07.055(e). If the applicant cannot comply with the 09 requirement of (a)(2) of this section because the applicant has not been issued any of 10 the listed numbers, the applicant may instead submit a copy of one of the following 11 forms of identification: a driver's license, state identification card, current and valid 12 photo identification, birth certificate, passport, or identification card issued by a  13 federally recognized tribe [HUNTING OR FISHING LICENSE]. 14  * Sec. 3. AS 15.07.070 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 15 (n) The division may use information provided by the Department of Revenue 16 under AS 43.23.015 and 43.23.101 only to register a voter and conduct voter roll 17 maintenance. Except as provided in AS 15.07.195(c), the division may not disclose 18 confidential information obtained from the Department of Revenue. 19 (o) The division, in cooperation with the Department of Revenue, shall submit 20 an annual report to the governor and to the senate secretary and the chief clerk of the 21 house of representatives on or before the first day of each regular session of the 22 legislature and notify the legislature that the report is available. The report shall detail 23 (1) the number of permanent fund dividend applicant records shared 24 with the division during the previous year; 25 (2) the effect that shared permanent fund dividend applications had on 26 voter roll maintenance under (n) of this section and on election integrity; and 27 (3) security measures taken to protect voter information. 28 (p) In this section, "voter roll maintenance" includes confirming the residency 29 of a registered voter, identifying duplicate registrations, detecting voters who have 30 moved, and detecting voters who are ineligible to vote under AS 15.05. 31  * Sec. 4. AS 15.07.130(a) is amended to read: 01 (a) Periodically, at times of the director's choosing, but not [NO] less 02 frequently than in January of each calendar year, the director shall examine the master 03 register maintained under AS 15.07.120 and shall send, by forwardable 04 [NONFORWARDABLE] mail to the voter's registration mailing address, and to the  05 voter's electronic mail address, if available, a notice requesting address 06 confirmation or correction. The notice must explain that the voter's registration  07 will be inactivated unless the voter responds to the notice within 45 days after the  08 date the notice is sent. The director shall send the notice to each voter 09 (1) whose mail from the division has been returned to the division in 10 the two years immediately preceding the examination of the register; 11 (2) who has not contacted the division in the two years immediately 12 preceding the examination of the register and [; OR (3)] who has not voted or 13 appeared to vote in the 28 months [TWO GENERAL ELECTIONS] immediately 14 preceding the examination of the register; or  15 (3) who the division has learned has, after registering to vote in  16 this state and during the 28 months immediately preceding the examination of  17 the register,  18 (A) registered to vote in another state;  19 (B) received a driver's license from another state;  20 (C) registered a vehicle in another state;  21 (D) received public assistance from another state;  22 (E) served on a jury in another state;  23 (F) received a homestead or residential property tax  24 exemption in another state; or  25 (G) received a benefit available only to residents of another  26 state. 27  * Sec. 5. AS 15.07.130(b) is amended to read: 28 (b) If a registered voter does [HAS] not respond to a notice sent under (a) of  29 this section within 45 days after the date the notice is sent, the director shall  30 inactivate the voter's registration [, WITHIN THE PRECEDING FOUR 31 CALENDAR YEARS, CONTACTED THE DIVISION AND HAS NEITHER 01 VOTED NOR APPEARED TO VOTE IN A LOCAL, REGIONAL SCHOOL 02 BOARD, PRIMARY, SPECIAL, OR GENERAL ELECTION DURING THE LAST 03 FOUR CALENDAR YEARS AND A NOTICE SENT TO THE VOTER UNDER (a) 04 OF THIS SECTION WAS RETURNED AS UNDELIVERABLE, THE VOTER 05 SHALL BE ADVISED BY A NOTICE SENT BY FORWARDABLE MAIL TO THE 06 VOTER'S LAST KNOWN ADDRESS THAT REGISTRATION WILL BE 07 INACTIVATED UNLESS THE VOTER RESPONDS TO THE NOTICE NO 08 LATER THAN 45 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF THE NOTICE SENT UNDER 09 THIS SECTION]. The director shall maintain on the master register the name of a 10 voter whose registration is inactivated. The director shall cancel a voter's inactive 11 registration in accordance with the procedures set out in 52 U.S.C. 20507 [42 U.S.C. 12 1973gg-6 (SEC. 8, NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION ACT OF 1993)] after the 13 second general election that occurs after the registration becomes inactive if the voter 14 does not contact the division or vote or appear to vote.  15  * Sec. 6. AS 15.07.130(d) is amended to read: 16 (d) The notice sent under (a) [(b)] of this section must include a postage 17 prepaid and pre-addressed return card on which the voter may state the voter's current 18 address. The notice must indicate 19 (1) that the voter should return the card not later than 45 days after the 20 date of the notice if the voter did not change residence; 21 (2) that failure to return the card by the 45-day deadline could result in 22 removal of the voter's name from the official registration list for a subsequent election; 23 (3) that the voter's registration will be cancelled if the voter does not 24 contact the division during, or vote or appear to vote in an election held during, the 25 period beginning on the date of the notice and ending on the day after the last day of 26 the 34th month [FOURTH CALENDAR YEAR] that occurs after the date of notice; 27 and 28 (4) how the voter can continue to be eligible to vote if the voter has 29 changed residence. 30  * Sec. 7. AS 15.07.130(f) is amended to read: 31 (f) For the purpose of this section, a voter "contacts" the division if the voter 01 notifies the division of a change of address, responds to a notice sent under this 02 section, signs a petition for a ballot measure, requests a new voter registration card, or 03 otherwise communicates with the division other than to vote or register to vote. An  04 individual does not "contact" the division by applying for a permanent fund  05 dividend, unless the application for a permanent fund dividend is the voter's  06 initial registration.  07  * Sec. 8. AS 15.07.130 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 08 (g) The division shall adopt regulations to review voter registration records 09 and update the master register. The regulations must include reviews for deceased 10 voters, persons convicted of a felony involving moral turpitude, persons not qualified 11 to vote under AS 15.05, persons registered to vote in another state, whether the 12 number of registered voters on the master register exceeds the number of eligible 13 voters in the state, and voter registration information data breaches. In conducting 14 these reviews, the division shall, to the extent possible, gather and examine available 15 data from other states and information from the United States Postal Service 16 forwarding databases, one or more systems for verifying citizenship, motor vehicle 17 records, Department of Corrections records, property and sales tax records, United 18 States Social Security Administration databases, jury duty records, National Change of 19 Address records, and similar records. The division shall also review evidence that a 20 person has undertaken the following activities in another state: 21 (1) registered to vote; 22 (2) obtained a driver's license; 23 (3) registered a vehicle; 24 (4) received public assistance; 25 (5) served on a jury; or 26 (6) received a benefit available only to residents of another state. 27 (h) In performing its review under (g) of this section, the division may not 28 transmit information made confidential under AS 15.07.195 to a person, 29 nongovernmental organization, or government agency outside the division unless 30 (1) the information is encrypted; and 31 (2) the person, nongovernmental organization, or government agency 01 receiving the information 02 (A) uses the information only to assist the division in carrying 03 out (g) of this section; 04 (B) agrees that the person, nongovernmental organization, or 05 government agency will not retain the information after assisting the division; 06 and 07 (C) agrees that the person, nongovernmental organization, or 08 government agency will not transmit the information to another person, 09 nongovernmental organization, government agency, or other entity. 10 (i) The division shall, in consultation with an external, nationally recognized 11 subject-matter expert selected by the division, annually audit the master register. The 12 division shall consider the subject-matter expert's recommendations. By April 1 of 13 each year, the division shall publish a report describing the most recent audit and 14 accounting for the criteria reviewed under (g) of this section. The report must include 15 the expert's recommendations, identify protocols used under (g) of this section, 16 provide election information, including the number of voters on the master register 17 and the total population eligible to vote, and highlight voting data problems, 18 irregularities, errors, and vulnerabilities identified in the audit. The division shall 19 submit the report to the senate secretary and the chief clerk of the house of 20 representatives and notify the legislature that the report is available on or before the 21 date the report is published. 22 (j) If the division reasonably determines that a voter is away from the state for 23 a reason permissible under AS 15.05.011 or another state or federal law related to 24 voting in elections, the division is not required to send a notice to the voter under 25 (a)(3) of this section. 26 (k) In addition to a notice or response required under this section, at any time 27 the division may contact a voter to obtain or a voter may contact the division to 28 provide information to determine the voter's residence. 29  * Sec. 9. AS 15.07.195 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 30 (e) The director shall publish on the division's Internet website notice of the 31 nature and severity of a data breach of information made confidential by this section 01 and report the details of the breach to the president of the senate and the speaker of the 02 house of representatives 03 (1) before the day of an election, if the data breach happens or is 04 discovered within 14 days before an election; 05 (2) before certifying the results of an election, if the data breach 06 happens or is discovered on or after the day of the election but before certification of 07 the election results; or 08 (3) within 30 days after the data breach, if the data breach happens or 09 is discovered 14 or more days before an election or after the certification of the 10 election results. 11 (f) Notwithstanding (e) of this section, the director may delay publishing 12 notice of a data breach if a law enforcement agency investigating the data breach 13 informs the director that disclosure of the data breach would compromise an ongoing 14 investigation into the data breach. 15  * Sec. 10. AS 15.10.105 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 16 (c) The director shall employ a rural community liaison. The rural community 17 liaison shall collaborate with tribes and municipalities to facilitate access in rural areas 18 of the state to absentee voting and, where it is available, early voting and ensure that 19 precincts in rural areas of the state are adequately staffed. 20  * Sec. 11. AS 15.13.400(19) is amended to read: 21 (19) "true source" means, 22 (A) for a contribution made for the purpose of influencing a  23 ballot proposition or question, the person or legal entity that makes the  24 contribution or independent expenditure to support or oppose the  25 proposition or question; or  26 (B) for a contribution made for the purpose of influencing  27 the nomination or election of a candidate,  28 (i) the person or legal entity whose contribution is 29 funded from wages, investment income, inheritance, or revenue 30 generated from selling goods or services; 31 (ii) a person or legal entity who derives [DERIVED] 01 funds via contributions, donations, dues, or gifts is not the true source 02 [,] but is [RATHER] an intermediary for the true source except that,  03 for a contribution from [; NOTWITHSTANDING THE 04 FOREGOING, TO THE EXTENT] a membership organization that 05 receives dues or contributions of less than $2,000 per person per year, 06 the organization itself is [SHALL BE CONSIDERED] the true source. 07  * Sec. 12. AS 15.15.030 is amended to read: 08 Sec. 15.15.030. Preparation of official ballot. The director shall prepare all 09 official ballots to facilitate fairness, simplicity, and clarity in the voting procedure, to 10 reflect most accurately the intent of the voter, and to expedite the administration of 11 elections. The following directives shall be followed when applicable: 12 (1) The director shall determine the size of the ballot, the type of print, 13 necessary additional instruction notes to voters, and other similar matters of form not 14 provided by law. 15 (2) The director shall number ballots in series to ensure simplicity and 16 secrecy and to prevent fraud. 17 (3) The director shall contract for the preparation of ballots under 18 AS 36.30 (State Procurement Code). 19 (4) The director may not include on the ballot, as a part of a candidate's 20 name, any honorary or assumed title or prefix but may include in the candidate's name 21 any nickname or familiar form of a proper name of the candidate. 22 (5) The names of the candidates shall be placed in separate sections on 23 the state general election ballot under the office designation to which they were 24 nominated. If a candidate is registered as affiliated with a political party or political 25 group, the party affiliation, if any, may be designated after the name of the candidate, 26 upon request of the candidate. If a candidate has requested designation as nonpartisan 27 or undeclared, that designation shall be placed after the name of the candidate. If a 28 candidate is not registered as affiliated with a political party or political group and has 29 not requested to be designated as nonpartisan or undeclared, the candidate shall be 30 designated as undeclared. The lieutenant governor and the governor shall be included 31 under the same section. Provision shall be made for voting for write-in candidates 01 within each section. Paper ballots for the state general election shall be printed on 02 white paper. 03 (6) The names of the candidates for each office shall be set out in the 04 same order on ballots printed for use in each house district. The director shall 05 randomly determine the order of the names of the candidates for state representative 06 for each house district. The director shall rotate the order of placement of the names of 07 candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, United States senator, United States 08 representative, and state senator on the ballot for each house district. 09 (7) The general election ballot shall be designed with the names of 10 candidates of each political party, and of any independent candidates qualified under 11 AS 15.30.026, for the office of President and Vice-President of the United States 12 placed in the same section on the ballot rather than the names of electors of President 13 and Vice-President. Provision shall be made for voting for write-in candidates for  14 President and Vice-President. 15 (8) The general or special election ballot shall be designed with the 16 title and proposition for any initiative, referendum, or constitutional amendment 17 formulated as prescribed by law and placed on the ballot in the manner prescribed by 18 the director. When placed on the ballot, a state ballot proposition or ballot question 19 shall carry the number that was assigned to the petition for the proposition or question. 20 Provision shall be made for marking the proposition "Yes" or "No." 21 (9) The general or special election ballot shall be designed with the 22 question of whether a constitutional convention shall be called placed on the ballot in 23 the following manner: "Shall there be a constitutional convention?" Provision shall be 24 made for marking the question "Yes" or "No." 25 (10) A nonpartisan ballot shall be designed for each judicial district in 26 which a justice or judge is seeking retention in office. The ballot shall be divided into 27 four parts. Each part must bear a heading indicating the court to which the candidate is 28 seeking approval, and provision shall be made for marking each question "Yes" or 29 "No." Within each part, the question of whether the justice or judge shall be approved 30 or rejected shall be set out in substantially the following manner: 31 (A) "Shall ....... be retained as justice of the supreme court for 01 10 years?"; 02 (B) "Shall ....... be retained as judge of the court of appeals for 03 eight years?"; 04 (C) "Shall ....... be retained as judge of the superior court for six 05 years?"; or 06 (D) "Shall ....... be retained as judge of the district court for four 07 years?" 08 (11) When the legislature by law authorizes a state debt for capital 09 improvements, the director shall place the question of whether the specific 10 authorization shall be ratified by placing the ballot title and question on the next 11 general election ballot, or on the special election ballot if a special election is held for 12 the purpose of ratifying the state debt for capital improvements before the time of the 13 next general election. Unless specifically provided otherwise in the Act authorizing 14 the debt, the ballot title shall, by the use of a few words in a succinct manner, indicate 15 the general subject of the Act. The question shall, by the use of a few sentences in a 16 succinct manner, give a true and impartial summary of the Act authorizing the state 17 debt. The question of whether state debt shall be contracted shall be assigned a letter 18 of the alphabet on the ballot. Provision shall be made for marking the question 19 substantially as follows: 20 "Bonds....... Yes" or "Bonds....... No," 21 followed by an appropriate oval. 22 (12) The director may provide for the optical scanning of ballots where 23 the requisite equipment is available. 24 (13) The director may provide for voting by use of electronically 25 generated ballots by a voter who requests to use a machine that produces electronically 26 generated ballots. 27 (14) The director shall include the following statement on the ballot: 28 A candidate's designated affiliation does not imply that 29 the candidate is nominated or endorsed by the political 30 party or group or that the party or group approves of or 31 associates with that candidate, but only that the 01 candidate is registered as affiliated with the political 02 party or political group. 03 (15) Instead of the statement provided by (14) of this section, when 04 candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States appear on a general 05 election ballot, the director shall include the following statement on the ballot: 06 A candidate's designated affiliation does not imply that 07 the candidate is nominated or endorsed by the political 08 party or political group or that the political party or 09 political group approves of or associates with that 10 candidate, but only that the candidate is registered as 11 affiliated with the party or group. The election for 12 President and Vice-President of the United States is 13 different. Some candidates for President and Vice- 14 President are the official nominees of their political 15 party. 16 (16) The director shall design the general election ballots so that the 17 candidates are selected by ranked-choice voting. 18 (17) The director shall design the general election ballot to direct the 19 voter to mark candidates in order of preference and to mark as many choices as the 20 voter wishes, but not to assign the same ranking to more than one candidate for the 21 same office. 22  * Sec. 13. AS 15.15.060(a) is amended to read: 23 (a) Immediately following the appointment of the election board, the election 24 supervisor in conjunction with the election board chair shall secure polling places for 25 holding the election, suitable ballot boxes that will ensure [ASSURE] security, and an 26 adequate number of voting booths or screens, national flags, pens, and pencils. At 27 every polling place, at least one voting booth shall be furnished and not less than one 28 voting booth or screen shall be furnished for each 100 votes or fractional part of 100 29 votes cast in the previous election. [AT EVERY POLLING PLACE, AT LEAST 30 ONE-HALF OF THE VOTING BOOTHS USED SHALL BE NOT LESS THAN SIX 31 FEET IN HEIGHT, ENCLOSED ON THREE SIDES, AND PROVIDED WITH A 01 CURTAIN EXTENDING FROM THE TOP OF THE VOTING BOOTH TO 02 WITHIN APPROXIMATELY 30 INCHES OF THE FLOOR. THE CURTAIN OF 03 THE VOTING BOOTH MUST CONCEAL THE VOTER WHILE VOTING.] The 04 election supervisor and the election board chair may, in an emergency, secure an 05 alternate location for a polling place. 06  * Sec. 14. AS 15.15.060(b) is amended to read: 07 (b) To ensure [ASSURE] administrative economy and to protect the secrecy 08 of the ballot, the director may adopt regulations prescribing 09 (1) the type of polling place for holding the election; 10 (2) the requirements regarding ballot boxes, voting screens, national 11 flags, and other supplies; and 12 (3) [SUBJECT TO THE SPECIFICATIONS OF (a) OF THIS 13 SECTION,] the requirements regarding voting booths. 14  * Sec. 15. AS 15.15.225(a) is amended to read: 15 (a) Before being allowed to vote, each voter shall exhibit to an election official 16 one form of identification, including 17 [(1)] an official voter registration card, driver's license, state 18 identification card, current and valid photo identification, birth certificate, passport, or 19 identification card issued by a federally recognized tribe [HUNTING OR 20 FISHING LICENSE; OR 21 (2) AN ORIGINAL OR A COPY OF A CURRENT UTILITY BILL, 22 BANK STATEMENT, PAYCHECK, GOVERNMENT CHECK, OR OTHER 23 GOVERNMENT DOCUMENT; AN ITEM EXHIBITED UNDER THIS 24 PARAGRAPH MUST SHOW THE NAME AND CURRENT ADDRESS OF THE 25 VOTER].  26  * Sec. 16. AS 15.15.360(d) is amended to read: 27 (d) Write-in votes shall be counted according to the following rules: 28 (1) writing in the name of a candidate whose name is printed on the 29 ballot does not invalidate a write-in vote unless the director determines, on the basis of 30 other evidence, that the ballot was so marked for the purpose of identifying the ballot; 31 (2) in order to vote for a write-in candidate, the voter must write in the 01 candidate's name in the space provided and fill in the oval opposite the candidate's 02 name in accordance with (a)(1) of this section; 03 (3) a vote for a write-in candidate, other than a write-in vote for 04 governor and lieutenant governor or for President and Vice-President of the United  05 States, shall be counted if the oval is filled in for that candidate and if the name of the 06 candidate, as it appears on the write-in declaration of candidacy, or the last name of 07 the candidate is written in the space provided; 08 (4) if the write-in vote is for governor and lieutenant governor, the vote 09 shall be counted if the oval is filled in and the names of the candidates for governor 10 and lieutenant governor, as they appear on the write-in declaration of candidacy, or the 11 last names of the candidates for governor and lieutenant governor, or the name of the 12 candidate for governor, as it appears on the write-in declaration of candidacy, or the 13 last name of the candidate for governor is written in the space provided; 14 (5) if the write-in vote is for President and Vice-President of the  15 United States, the vote shall be counted if the oval is filled in and the names of the  16 candidates for President and Vice-President, as they appear on the write-in  17 declaration of candidacy, or the last names of the candidates for President and  18 Vice-President, or the name of the candidate for President, as it appears on the  19 write-in declaration of candidacy, or the last name of the candidate for President,  20 is written in the space provided;  21 (6) in counting votes for a write-in candidate, the director shall 22 disregard any abbreviation, misspelling, or other minor variation in the form of the 23 name of a candidate if the intention of the voter can be ascertained. 24  * Sec. 17. AS 15.15.370 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 25 (b) Each day that the director releases unofficial totals of election results for a 26 general election, the director shall also 27 (1) release an updated tabulation; 28 (2) identify the precincts that have been counted; 29 (3) identify the days on which absentee ballots have been logged and 30 counted, including a summary of the count codes used on ballots in each district each 31 day; 01 (4) identify the districts in which early votes were cast and the days on 02 which votes were cast in each district; and 03 (5) identify the precincts and count codes of questioned ballots that 04 have been counted. 05 (c) Each day that an absentee ballot is reviewed under AS 15.20.201 or a 06 questioned ballot is reviewed under AS 15.20.207, the director shall display on the 07 division's Internet website an updated unofficial total detailing the number of absentee 08 ballots and questioned ballots counted for each count code. 09 (d) In this section, "count code" means a code assigned to a ballot by the 10 division that designates the races in which the ballot is to be counted during a district 11 absentee ballot counting review conducted under AS 15.20.203 or a district questioned 12 ballot review conducted under AS 15.20.207. 13  * Sec. 18. AS 15.15.380 is amended to read: 14 Sec. 15.15.380. Payment of election board members. The director shall pay 15 each election board member for time spent at election duties, including the receiving 16 of instructions. Election board chairpersons and the chairperson and members of the 17 absentee ballot, questioned ballot, and state ballot counting review boards shall be 18 paid for time spent at their election duties. The director shall set the compensation to 19 be paid under this section [BY REGULATION]. 20  * Sec. 19. AS 15.20.030 is amended to read: 21 Sec. 15.20.030. Preparation of ballots, envelopes, and other material. The 22 director shall provide ballots for use as absentee ballots in all districts. The director 23 shall provide a secrecy sleeve in which the voter shall initially place the marked ballot 24 [,] and shall provide a postage-paid return [AN] envelope with the prescribed voter's 25 certificate on it, in which the secrecy sleeve with ballot enclosed shall be placed. The 26 director shall prescribe the form of and prepare the voter's certificate, envelopes, and 27 other material used in absentee voting. The voter's certificate shall include a 28 declaration, for use when required, that the voter is a qualified voter in all respects, a 29 blank for the voter's signature, a certification that the affiant properly executed the 30 marking of the ballot and gave the voter's identity, blanks for the attesting official or 31 witness, and a place for recording the date the envelope was sealed and witnessed. The 01 envelope with the voter's certificate may not identify a voter's party affiliation but 02 must include a notice that false statements made by the voter or by the attesting 03 official or witness on the certificate are punishable by law. 04  * Sec. 20. AS 15.20.081(f) is amended to read: 05 (f) The director shall require a voter casting an absentee ballot by mail to 06 provide proof of identification or other information to aid in the establishment of the 07 voter's identity as prescribed by regulations adopted under AS 44.62 (Administrative 08 Procedure Act). If the voter is a first-time voter who initially registered by mail or by 09 facsimile or other electronic transmission approved by the director under 10 AS 15.07.050 and has not met the identification requirements set out in AS 15.07.060, 11 the voter must provide one of the following forms of proof of identification: 12 [(1)] a copy of a driver's license, state identification card, current and 13 valid photo identification, birth certificate, passport, or identification card issued by  14 a federally recognized tribe [HUNTING OR FISHING LICENSE; OR 15 (2) A COPY OF A CURRENT UTILITY BILL, BANK 16 STATEMENT, PAYCHECK, GOVERNMENT CHECK, OR OTHER 17 GOVERNMENT DOCUMENT; AN ITEM PROVIDED UNDER THIS 18 PARAGRAPH MUST SHOW THE NAME AND CURRENT ADDRESS OF THE 19 VOTER]. 20  * Sec. 21. AS 15.20.081(h) is amended to read: 21 (h) Except as provided in AS 15.20.480, an absentee ballot returned by mail 22 from outside the United States or from an overseas voter qualifying under 23 AS 15.05.011 that has been marked and mailed not later than election day may not be 24 counted unless the ballot is received by the election supervisor not later than the close 25 of business on the 26 [(1)] 10th day following the [A PRIMARY] election [OR SPECIAL 27 PRIMARY ELECTION UNDER AS 15.40.140; OR 28 (2) 15TH DAY FOLLOWING A GENERAL ELECTION OR 29 SPECIAL ELECTION, OTHER THAN A SPECIAL PRIMARY ELECTION 30 DESCRIBED IN (1) OF THIS SUBSECTION]. 31  * Sec. 22. AS 15.20.170 is amended to read: 01 Sec. 15.20.170. Disposition of ballots. Each absentee voting official shall 02 transmit the dated envelopes containing the marked ballots by the most expeditious 03 mail service to the election supervisor for the district. Upon receipt of the absentee 04 ballots, the election supervisor shall stamp on the envelope the date on which the 05 ballot is received. In this section, "mail service" includes delivery by optical  06 scanning and electronic transmission.  07  * Sec. 23. AS 15.20.201(a) is amended to read: 08 (a) Not [NO] less than 12 [SEVEN] days preceding the day of election, the 09 election supervisor, in the presence and with the assistance of the district absentee 10 ballot counting board, shall review all voter certificates of absentee ballots received by 11 that date. The review of absentee ballots shall continue at times designated by the 12 election supervisor until completed. 13  * Sec. 24. AS 15.20.203(a) is amended to read: 14 (a) The district absentee ballot counting board shall examine each absentee 15 ballot envelope and shall determine whether the absentee voter is qualified to vote at 16 the election, whether the signature on the certificate is consistent with the voter's  17 signature in voter registration records, and whether the absentee ballot has been 18 properly cast. 19  * Sec. 25. AS 15.20.203(b) is amended to read: 20 (b) An absentee ballot may not be counted if 21 (1) the voter has failed to properly execute the certificate; 22 (2) an official or the witnesses authorized by law to attest the voter's 23 certificate fail to execute the certificate, except that an absentee ballot cast in person 24 and accepted by an absentee voting official or election supervisor may be counted 25 despite failure of the absentee voting official or election supervisor to properly sign 26 and date the voter's certificate as attesting official as required under AS 15.20.061(c); 27 (3) the ballot is not attested on or before the date of the election; 28 (4) the ballot, if postmarked, is not postmarked on or before the date of 29 the election; 30 (5) after the day of election, the ballot was delivered by a means other 31 than mail; or 01 (6) the voter voted 02 (A) in person and is a 03 (i) first-time voter who initially registered by mail or by 04 facsimile or other electronic transmission approved by the director 05 under AS 15.07.050, has not provided the identification required by 06 AS 15.15.225(a), was not eligible for waiver of the identification 07 requirement under AS 15.15.225(b), and has not provided the 08 identifiers required in AS 15.07.060(a)(2) and (3) that can be verified 09 through state agency records described in AS 15.07.055(e); or 10 (ii) voter other than one described in (i) of this 11 subparagraph, did not provide identification described in 12 AS 15.15.225(a), was not personally known by the election official, 13 and has not provided the identifiers required in AS 15.07.060(a)(2) and 14 (3); or 15 (B) by mail or electronic transmission, is a first-time voter who 16 initially registered by mail or by facsimile or other electronic transmission 17 approved by the director under AS 15.07.050 to vote, has not met the 18 identification requirements set out in AS 15.07.060, and does not submit with 19 the ballot a copy of a 20 [(i)] driver's license, state identification card, current 21 and valid photo identification, birth certificate, passport, or 22 identification card issued by a federally recognized tribe 23 [HUNTING OR FISHING LICENSE; OR 24 (ii) CURRENT UTILITY BILL, BANK 25 STATEMENT, PAYCHECK, GOVERNMENT CHECK, OR OTHER 26 GOVERNMENT DOCUMENT; AN ITEM DESCRIBED IN THIS 27 SUB-SUBPARAGRAPH MUST SHOW THE NAME AND 28 CURRENT ADDRESS OF THE VOTER]. 29  * Sec. 26. AS 15.20.203(b), as amended by sec. 25 of this Act, is amended to read: 30 (b) An absentee ballot may not be counted if 31 (1) the voter has failed to properly execute the certificate; 01 (2) an official or the witnesses authorized by law to attest the voter's 02 certificate fail to execute the certificate, except that an absentee ballot cast in person 03 and accepted by an absentee voting official or election supervisor may be counted 04 despite failure of the absentee voting official or election supervisor to properly sign 05 and date the voter's certificate as attesting official as required under AS 15.20.061(c); 06 (3) the ballot is not attested on or before the date of the election; 07 (4) the ballot, if postmarked, is not postmarked on or before the date of 08 the election; 09 (5) after the day of election, the ballot was delivered by a means other 10 than mail; [OR] 11 (6) the voter voted 12 (A) in person and is a 13 (i) first-time voter who initially registered by mail or by 14 facsimile or other electronic transmission approved by the director 15 under AS 15.07.050, has not provided the identification required by 16 AS 15.15.225(a), was not eligible for waiver of the identification 17 requirement under AS 15.15.225(b), and has not provided the 18 identifiers required in AS 15.07.060(a)(2) and (3) that can be verified 19 through state agency records described in AS 15.07.055(e); or 20 (ii) voter other than one described in (i) of this 21 subparagraph, did not provide identification described in 22 AS 15.15.225(a), was not personally known by the election official, 23 and has not provided the identifiers required in AS 15.07.060(a)(2) and 24 (3); or 25 (B) by mail or electronic transmission, is a first-time voter who 26 initially registered by mail or by facsimile or other electronic transmission 27 approved by the director under AS 15.07.050 to vote, has not met the 28 identification requirements set out in AS 15.07.060, and does not submit with 29 the ballot a copy of a driver's license, state identification card, current and 30 valid photo identification, birth certificate, passport, or identification card 31 issued by a federally recognized tribe; or  01 (7) the signature on the certificate is inconsistent with the voter's  02 signature in voter registration records. 03  * Sec. 27. AS 15.20.203 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 04 (k) The district absentee counting board shall determine whether a voter's 05 signature on the certificate is consistent with the voter's signature in voter registration 06 records under (a) of this section using a signature verification process that includes 07 signature comparison software, according to a procedure provided in regulations 08 adopted by the director. 09  * Sec. 28. AS 15.20.207(b) is amended to read: 10 (b) A questioned ballot may not be counted if the voter 11 (1) has failed to properly execute the certificate; 12 (2) is a first-time voter who initially registered by mail or by facsimile 13 or other electronic transmission approved by the director under AS 15.07.050, has not 14 provided the identification required by AS 15.15.225(a) or 52 U.S.C. 21083(b)(2)(A), 15 was not eligible for waiver of the identification requirement under AS 15.15.225(b), 16 and has not provided the identifiers required in AS 15.07.060(a)(2) and (3) that can be 17 verified through state agency records described in AS 15.07.055(e); or 18 (3) is a voter other than one described in (2) of this subsection, did not 19 provide identification described in AS 15.15.225(a), was not personally known by the 20 election official, and has not provided the identifiers required in AS 15.07.060(a)(2) 21 and (3). 22  * Sec. 29. AS 15.20.220(b) is amended to read: 23 (b) The state review board shall review and count absentee ballots under 24 AS 15.20.081(e) and (h), absentee ballots properly cured under AS 15.20.222(c), 25 and questioned ballots that have been forwarded to the director and that have not been 26 reviewed or counted by a district counting board. 27  * Sec. 30. AS 15.20 is amended by adding a new section to read: 28 Sec. 15.20.221. Ballot-tracking system. (a) The director shall establish an 29 online ballot-tracking system. If the director procures the system from a third party, 30 the third party must be a corporation that is incorporated in the United States. The 31 system must be designed to allow a voter to easily use the system through a mobile 01 electronic device. The system must allow a voter to 02 (1) confirm that the voter's ballot has been sent by the division; 03 (2) track the date of the ballot's delivery to the voter; 04 (3) confirm the division's receipt of the voter's ballot; 05 (4) determine whether the voter's ballot has been counted; and 06 (5) provide the information necessary to cure a rejected ballot. 07 (b) The online ballot-tracking system must 08 (1) use multi-factor authentication to verify a voter's identity; and 09 (2) indicate to a voter 10 (A) the process by which the voter may cure the lack of 11 signature or verify the voter's identity, if the signature on the voter's ballot was 12 missing; and 13 (B) the reason the voter's ballot was not counted, if the ballot 14 was not counted. 15 (c) The division may not charge a voter a fee to use the online ballot-tracking 16 system. 17  * Sec. 31. AS 15.20 is amended by adding a new section to read: 18 Sec. 15.20.222. Procedure for curing uncounted ballot. (a) If a voter returns 19 a ballot and the voter does not have a signature stored in voter registration records, the 20 certificate is missing the voter's signature, or the voter's signature on the certificate is 21 determined under AS 15.20.203 to not match the signature in voter registration 22 records, the director shall, within 48 hours, but in no event later than two days after 23 election day, send a notification by first class, non-forwardable mail to the address 24 indicated in the voter's registration record and, if provided, by electronic mail to the 25 voter's electronic mail address or by telephone call or text message to the voter's 26 telephone number. 27 (b) The notification provided to the voter under (a) of this section must 28 include an explanation of the need for a signature for verification purposes and 29 provide the voter a form and instructions for the voter to, within the period specified in 30 (c)(1) of this section, 31 (1) confirm that the voter returned a ballot to the division; 01 (2) provide a copy of a form of identification accepted by the division 02 under AS 15.07.060(e); and 03 (3) provide a signature for verification. 04 (c) A voter's ballot that is not counted for a reason set out in (a) of this section 05 may be counted only if 06 (1) the division receives the form sent to the voter under (b) of this 07 section from the voter within 14 days after election day and the form confirms that the 08 voter returned a ballot to the division; 09 (2) the voter provides a signature for verification and includes a copy 10 of a form of identification accepted by the division under AS 15.07.060(e); and 11 (3) the ballot is otherwise valid. 12 (d) A voter's ballot may not be counted and the director shall, if applicable, 13 send copies of the signature on the voter's return envelope and the signature stored in 14 voter registration records to the attorney general for investigation if 15 (1) the voter returns the form received under (b) of this section and the 16 form indicates that the voter did not return a ballot to the division; or 17 (2) the voter does not return the form received under (b) of this section 18 within 14 days after election day. 19 (e) An election official may not determine that the signature on a voter's return 20 envelope does not match the signature stored in the voter's registration record solely 21 based on substitution of initials or use of a common nickname. 22 (f) The director shall provide training in signature comparison and the use of 23 signature comparison software to election officials who compare signatures under this 24 section. 25 (g) The division shall update the signature stored in voter registration records 26 if the voter, after providing a copy of a form of identification accepted by the division 27 under AS 15.07.060(e), either provides a signature for the voter's missing signature or 28 cures a nonmatching signature under this section. 29  * Sec. 32. AS 15.25.105 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 30 (d) A write-in candidate running for the office of President of the United 31 States must file a letter with the director certifying the information required under 01 AS 15.30.026(b). 02  * Sec. 33. AS 15.56.030(d) is amended to read: 03 (d) For purposes of (a)(2) and (3) of this section, "other valuable thing" 04 (1) includes 05 (A) an entry in a game of chance in which a prize of money or 06 other present or future pecuniary gain or advantage may be awarded to a 07 participant wherein the total of the prizes offered is greater than $2 per 08 participant with a maximum of $100; and 09 (B) government employment or benefits; 10 (2) does not include 11 (A) materials having a nominal value bearing the name, 12 likeness, or other identification of a candidate, political party, political group, 13 party district committee, or organization, or stating a position on a ballot 14 proposition or question; 15 (B) food and refreshments provided incidental to an activity 16 that is nonpartisan in nature and directed at encouraging persons to vote, or 17 incidental to a gathering in support of or in opposition to a candidate, political 18 party, political group, party district committee, organization, or ballot question 19 or proposition; 20 (C) care of the voter's dependents provided in connection with 21 the absence of a voter from home for the purpose of voting; 22 (D) services provided by a person acting as a representative 23 under AS 15.20.072; 24 (E) services provided by an election official as defined in 25 AS 15.80.010; [AND] 26 (F) transportation of a voter to or from the polls without 27 charge; and  28 (G) postage-paid return envelopes required in  29 AS 15.20.030. 30  * Sec. 34. AS 15.56.060(a) is amended to read: 31 (a) A person commits the crime of unlawful interference with an election if 01 the person 02 (1) induces or attempts to induce an election official to fail in the 03 official's duty by force, threat, intimidation, or offers of reward; 04 (2) intentionally changes, attempts to change, or causes to be changed 05 an official election document including ballots, tallies, and returns; 06 (3) intentionally delays, attempts to delay, or causes to be delayed the 07 sending of the certificate, register, ballots, or other materials whether original or 08 duplicate, required to be sent by AS 15.15.370; [OR] 09 (4) is contracted or employed by the state to print or reproduce in any 10 manner an official ballot, and the person knowingly 11 (A) personally appropriates, or gives or delivers to, or permits 12 to be taken by anyone other than a person authorized by the director, official 13 ballots; or 14 (B) prints or reproduces or has printed or reproduced official 15 ballots in a form or with a content other than that prescribed by law or as 16 directed by the director; 17 (5) intentionally opens or tampers with a signed absentee ballot  18 certificate, sealed absentee ballot envelope, or package of ballots without express  19 authorization from the director; or 20 (6) intentionally breaches, hacks, alters, or tampers with election  21 machinery, including a tabulator, a program, a system, a server, or software used  22 to verify identity, count or tabulate, or manage or control an election function. 23  * Sec. 35. AS 15.56.070(a) is amended to read: 24 (a) A person commits the crime of election official misconduct in the first 25 degree if, while an election official, the person 26 (1) intentionally fails to perform an election duty or knowingly does an 27 unauthorized act with the intent to affect an election or its results; 28 (2) knowingly permits or makes or attempts to make a false count of 29 election returns; [OR] 30 (3) intentionally conceals, withholds, destroys, or attempts to conceal, 31 withhold, or destroy election returns; or 01 (4) knowingly discloses, shares, or reports to a person who is not  02 an election official election results, returns, or any confidential election data  03 before the polls close on election day. 04  * Sec. 36. AS 43.23.101 is amended to read: 05 Sec. 43.23.101. Voter registration. Each month, the [THE] commissioner 06 shall [ESTABLISH BY RULE A SCHEDULE BY WHICH THE COMMISSIONER 07 WILL PROVIDE, AND SHALL] provide [AS SOON AS IS PRACTICABLE] the 08 director of elections with the following information for each permanent fund  09 dividend applicant:  10 (1) the electronic record [RECORDS FROM THE PERMANENT 11 FUND DIVIDEND APPLICATIONS] of the information required by 12 AS 15.07.060(a)(1) - (4) and (7) - (9) [,] and the attestation that the [SUCH] 13 information is true [,] for each permanent fund dividend applicant who 14 (A) is a citizen of the United States; and 15 (B) is at least 18 years of age or will be within 90 days of the 16 date of the application; [AND] 17 (2) the applicant's mailing address; and  18 (3) whether the applicant has claimed residency in another state 19 [ADDRESSES FOR ALL PERMANENT FUND DIVIDEND APPLICANTS]. 20  * Sec. 37. AS 43.23.101 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 21 (b) The commissioner shall develop security protocols that ensure data 22 required to be stored or transferred under this section is securely stored or transferred. 23 (c) In cooperation with the division of elections under AS 15.07.070(o), the 24 commissioner shall submit an annual report to the governor and to the senate secretary 25 and the chief clerk of the house of representatives on or before the first day of each 26 regular session of the legislature and notify the legislature that the report is available. 27  * Sec. 38. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 28 read: 29 REPORT TO THE LEGISLATURE. The division of elections shall provide a report 30 to the legislature by the first day of the First Regular Session of the Thirty-Fifth Alaska State 31 Legislature recommending options for expanding early voting in rural communities and low- 01 income neighborhoods. The division shall deliver the report to the senate secretary and the 02 chief clerk of the house of representatives and notify the legislature that the report is 03 available. In this section, 04 (1) "low-income neighborhood" means a neighborhood where the median 05 family income is below 80 percent of the statewide median family income; 06 (2) "rural community" means a community with a population of 7,500 or less 07 that is not connected by road or rail to Anchorage or Fairbanks or a community with a 08 population of 3,500 or less that is connected by road or rail to Anchorage or Fairbanks. 09  * Sec. 39. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 10 read: 11 APPLICABILITY. AS 15.56.030(d), as amended by sec. 33 of this Act, 12 AS 15.56.060(a), as amended by sec. 34 of this Act, and AS 15.56.070(a), as amended by sec. 13 35 of this Act, apply to offenses committed on or after the effective date of secs. 33 - 35 of 14 this Act. 15  * Sec. 40. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 16 read: 17 TRANSITION: REGULATIONS. The division of elections may adopt regulations 18 necessary to implement the changes made by this Act. The regulations take effect under 19 AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act), but not before the effective date of the law 20 implemented by the regulation. 21  * Sec. 41. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 22 read: 23 TRANSITION: PROCUREMENT. The division of elections may, under AS 36.30 24 (State Procurement Code), procure equipment, supplies, services, and professional services 25 necessary to implement the changes made by this Act. 26  * Sec. 42. Section 11 of this Act takes effect January 1, 2027. 27  * Sec. 43. Sections 24, 26, 27, and 29 - 31 of this Act take effect June 1, 2027. 28  * Sec. 44. Except as provided in secs. 42 and 43 of this Act, this Act takes effect 29 immediately under AS 01.10.070(c).