Legislature(2021 - 2022)BUTROVICH 205
01/27/2022 03:30 PM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB167 | |
| HJR16 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SB 167 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HJR 16 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
SB 167-ELECTIONS; FRAUD; BALLOTS
3:33:07 PM
CHAIR SHOWER announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 167
"An Act relating to elections, voter registration, ballots, and
a system of tracking and accounting for ballots; establishing an
election offense hotline; relating to election fraud, election
interference, and election official misconduct; requiring
signature verification, notice, and the opportunity to cure; and
providing for an effective date."
He listed the individuals who were available to answer
questions.
3:33:48 PM
JOSH APPLEBEE, Chief of Staff, Lieutenant Governor Kevin Meyer,
Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Juneau, Alaska, introduced SB
167 on behalf of the administration. He paraphrased the Sponsor
Statement that read as follows:
[Original punctuation provided.]
This bill will improve voter rolls, secure absentee
and in-person voting, and increase the identification
and investigation of election crimes. By ensuring
election integrity, this bill will give all Alaskans
confidence in the election process, including election
outcomes.
This bill will further improve voter rolls by
requiring that Permanent Fund Dividend applicants
request voter registration in order to be registered
and directing the Division of Elections to update its
voter list maintenance practices, audit the voter list
every other year, and issue reports to the
Legislature.
The bill will provide more secure absentee voting
practices by requiring signature matching, notice, and
cure for all absentee ballots, prohibiting the
division from sending unrequested absentee ballots,
outlawing ballot harvesting, allowing voters to
request absentee ballots in four-year increments, and
require the provision of prepaid envelopes for all
absentee ballots.
The bill will secure in-person voting by prohibiting
voters from providing alternate forms of
identification and preventing those providing
assistance at the polls from influencing voters.
The bill will further define unlawful interference
with elections, election fraud, and election official
misconduct, create a toll-free number to report these
and other election crimes, and require that police
officers receive training in detecting and
investigating election crimes. The bill will further
ensure election integrity by allowing additional hand
counts, prohibiting private funding for elections,
requiring the centralized destruction of election
materials, and instituting routine forensic
examinations and strict chain-of-custody protocols for
voting machines.
In order to establish a more trustworthy election
system, we urge your prompt and favorable action on
this measure.
3:37:53 PM
SENATOR COSTELLO expressed appreciation that the bill includes
provisions from many other bills from legislators from both
sides of the aisle. She said she is becoming convinced that
everybody is benefited by election integrity. She recalled that
in an earlier hearing Ms. Fenumiai said that a hand count is not
possible with ranked choice voting (RCV), although Mr. Applebee
said that is in SB 167.
3:39:29 PM
MR. APPLEBEE said the provision about additional hand counts
deals with a form of risk limiting audits. Currently the
division can recount by hand one random precinct per district.
SB 167 allows the division to expand that if something does not
appear right or they receive a significant number of complaints.
CHAIR SHOWER advised that he recently learned that the correct
terminology for an elections audit is "risk limiting audit," not
forensic audit. He asked Ms. Fenumiai if she had anything to
add.
3:40:54 PM
GAIL FENUMIAI, Director, Division of Elections, Office of the
Lieutenant Governor, Juneau, Alaska, stated that the hand count
verification process is required by statute.
CHAIR SHOWER asked Senator Costello if she was satisfied with
the response.
SENATOR COSTELLO said Ms. Fenumiai's earlier comment was that an
entire hand recount is not possible and now she heard Mr.
Applebee say a hand recount is already allowed for one precinct
in a district and SB 167 expands that if the division senses a
problem.
MR. APPLEBEE agreed.
CHAIR SHOWER asked Ms. Fenumiai to clarify whether or not it is
possible to conduct a hand count in a ranked choice voting
election.
3:42:39 PM
MS. FENUMIAI reiterated her statement during the previous
hearing that it is not possible to conduct a timely hand recount
of an election that uses ranked choice voting. Historically the
Division of Elections has followed the statute and done a hand
count of a randomly drawn precinct to ensure the precinct
scanners are accurately counting the ballots. That process will
continue in the general election; the State Review Board will do
the hand count verification on the 1st Choice on all ballots.
CHAIR SHOWER asked Mr. Applebee to walk through the sectional
analysis and discuss the fiscal note.
3:43:53 PM
MR. APPLEBEE presented the sectional analysis for SB 167. It
read as follows:
[Original punctuation provided.]
As described in the sectional analysis below, this
bill would eliminate automatic voter registration for
PFD applicants; require regulations for list
maintenance, the precinct ballot count, and precinct
tabulators; prohibit Division of Elections (DOE) from
accepting private funds; create an election offense
hotline; prohibit influence by those providing voter
assistance; allow DOE to initiate additional hand
counts; require the destruction of election
materials; implement signature matching, notice, and
cure for absentee ballots; provide postage-paid
return envelopes with absentee ballots; allow voters
to request absentee ballots for four years at a time;
prohibit voters from providing alternate forms of
identification; amend or create the crimes of
unlawful interference with voting, unlawful
interference with an election, election fraud, and
election official misconduct; and require that police
officers receive training related to election
offenses.
Section 1: This section, along with sections 2 - 5,
31, and 32 of the bill, address voter registration
for PFD applicants. PFD applicants will have to
request registration in order to be registered. This
section clarifies that the identification
requirements for voter registration apply only when
PFD applicants request registration.
Section 2: This section directs DOE to register those
who submit a PFD application and request
registration. It also clarifies that PFD applications
may create new voter registrations or update existing
voter registrations.
Section 3: This section requires that PFD
applications include a way for applicants to request
voter registration.
3:45:39 PM
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked for an explanation of the last sentence
in Section 3 on page 2, lines 16-18. It says the director may
require proof of identification from the applicant if the
Department of Revenue doesn't already have that information.
MR. APPLEBEE replied that is current statute and Ms. Fenumiai
could answer the question.
3:47:03 PM
MS. FENUMIAI explained that the division would not be able to
register a voter if they could not verify the voters identity.
She offered to follow up with a more complete response.
SENATOR KAWASAKI said he was interested in how the verification
is done now and if there is a process for obtaining the proof of
identification.
CHAIR SHOWER pointed out that it says the director "may" require
proof, not "shall" provide proof. He asked Mr. Applebee if he
wanted to highlight some of the reasons the bill switches from
automatic voter registration through the PFD application to
registration for those voters who request to be registered. He
noted the current automatic registration was causing
difficulties because people who should not have been registered
were in fact being registered.
MR. APPLEBEE said the administration believes that the changes
proposed in SB 167 to voter registration through the PFD
application is significantly better than just hoping that people
come to the division to register to vote. The option to register
is offered with each PFD application.
Section 4: This section requires DOE to send
notices to PFD applicants who request voter
registration. These notices provide applicants
opportunity to decline registration, maintain their
current address, and select a political affiliation.
They also inform applicants that their registration may
be cancelled in other jurisdictions.
Section 5: This section requires DOE to register
applicants that request registration if the applicants
do not thereafter decline registration in response to
the notice from DOE.
3:49:51 PM
MR. APPLEBEE continued to read the sectional analysis.
Section 6: This section adds two new subsections
relating to DOE's list of registered voters. The first
requires DOE to adopt list-maintenance regulations
requiring it to review certain records, including
records of deceased voters, those convicted of certain
felonies, those not qualified to vote, those registered
in other states, the number of registered voters
compared to the number of eligible voters, and voter
registration data breaches.
SENATOR KAWASAKI said the automatic voter registration on the
PFD application asks the applicant if they are a felon and
advises that Alaska law does not allow voter registration if the
answer is "yes." He asked if there is a current process to
filter out felons.
MR. APPLEBEE deferred to Ms. Fenumiai.
3:51:49 PM
MS. FENUMIAI said the Department of Revenue (DOR) currently
sends names to the division of individuals who applied for a PFD
and would also be eligible to register to vote. The names of
individuals who said they have been convicted of a felony
involving moral turpitude would not be sent to the Division of
Elections.
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked if the division has a verification
process for the list it receives from DOR to weed out anybody
who lied about their felony status.
MS. FENUMIAI replied the division takes the information the
voter provided at face value since they signed the application
as correct under penalty of perjury. The division also receives
regular updates from the Court System about individuals who have
been convicted of felonies involving moral turpitude so it is
able to identify people who are currently registered but should
not be, but there is not a reverse mechanism for that.
CHAIR SHOWER said the discussions last year highlighted that
there is no mechanism for cross checking and it causes problems
later on.
3:54:10 PM
MR. APPLEBEE continued to discuss Section 6.
The next subsection requires DOE to select and
consult a nationally recognized subject-matter expert,
to audit the list of registered voters, and to issue a
report every other year.
He said this should provide insight into the status of the voter
database and what will happen moving forward.
Section 7: This section prohibits DOE from
accepting or spending private funding for the
administration of elections.
Section 8: This section and the following section
concern poll watchers. These sections reorganize the
existing statute and provide that political parties,
candidates, and organizations may have poll watchers
during general, special, and special primary
elections, while only candidates and organizations may
have poll watchers during primary elections.
Section 9: This section includes the deleted
language from the prior section, with the addition that
written proof of a poll watcher's appointment must be
signed by the party, candidate, or organization.
3:55:57 PM
CHAIR SHOWER mentioned a letter from a constituent who asked
what prevents a situation like happened in Texas where a group
carrying AR-15 style rifles went to the poll to watch.
MR. APPLEBEE deferred to Ms. Fenumiai.
CHAIR SHOWER acknowledged that the bill does not specifically
address that type situation but asked Ms. Fenumiai to comment.
3:57:25 PM
MS. FENUMIAI answered that groups have typically been
understanding of size limitations and each group has been
allowed to have one watcher in a precinct.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if the division has any authority to prevent
somebody or a group of individuals from being poll watchers.
MR. APPLEBEE noted that Tom Flynn with the Department of Law was
available online.
MS. FENUMIAI relayed that the first outreach if there is a
problem would be to the police.
3:59:47 PM
THOMAS FLYNN, Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division, Labor
and State Affairs Section, Department of Law, Anchorage, Alaska,
advised that other laws in Title 15 and in federal law would
apply if there were a scene at a polling place. Sections 8 and 9
would not diminish those other laws.
CHAIR SHOWER restated his constituent's concern about whether a
biased poll worker could allow a group of poll watchers to
intimidate and prevent poll workers from doing their job. He
asked if the bill addresses that type of situation.
MR. FLYNN said he did not see that in the bill but he would take
another look.
SENATOR REINBOLD asked Mr. Applebee why the administration did
not support a forensic audit of the 2020 election; and if Judge
Crosby's decision to suspend the witness signature requirement
during the pandemic had an effect. She also asked if he had to
prepare the sectional analysis himself.
MR. APPLEBEE said the Department of Law is very helpful in
preparing sectional analyses. To the question about the effect
of the court ruling he suggested she be more specific but one
effect was that fewer ballots were rejected.
SENATOR REINBOLD asked if it potentially increased ballot
harvesting.
MR. APPLEBEE said he would follow up with a complete response as
to what they saw and whether or not it could be attributed to
the signature waiver. He said he would also follow up with the
lieutenant governor's response about the forensic audit.
CHAIR SHOWER stated that it is an official request.
SENATOR REINBOLD said that in the future she would also like to
look at the best parts of both Senator Shower's and the
administration's election bills.
4:06:15 PM
CHAIR SHOWER clarified that he had asked for data from the 2020
election and for a risk limiting audit but the request was
basically denied.
4:07:07 PM
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked if the language that is deleted in
Section 8 appears elsewhere in the bill. It talks about counting
in a place of voting in full view of poll watchers.
MR. APPLEBEE said he would find out whether or not it was
specifically removed.
CHAIR SHOWER said it's a good point and it goes to the question
of transparency and faith in the election process. He requested
a follow up response.
SENATOR KAWASAKI recalled a state that required poll watchers to
stand so far away they had difficulty tracking what occurred. He
relayed his experience watching votes being counted, which was
that watchers were just steps away from those counting and could
hear and see everything that was happening. He expressed hope
that the language was relocated, not removed entirely.
MR. APPLEBEE mentioned a recent Anchorage election where there
was an issue of poll watchers having to use binoculars.
CHAIR SHOWER commented on municipalities that are free to run
their elections as they see fit while using data from the state.
He also related that the state of Colorado has 24/7 lockdown
after an election until the vote is counted. He said he was
considering that for his bill.
4:10:35 PM
MR. APPLEBEE said he would follow up on Senator Kawasaki's
request but he did not believe that language was removed with
specific intent.
MR. APPLEBEE continued the sectional analysis for SB 167.
Section 10: This section requires DOE to create
and publicize a toll-free election offense hotline.
SENATOR COSTELLO said she likes the idea of a toll-free election
offense hotline but the provision says nothing about
accountability. She asked if the complaints will be publicized;
who will look into the complaints; and whether the hotline will
be monitored throughout the election process. She expressed
interest in working with the administration to close that
circle.
MR. APPLEBEE said it is a good point and he would be happy to
work on it with her.
CHAIR SHOWER noted that his bill last year had a similar section
that was much more robust. That section was slimmed down due to
push back but he was willing to amend the bill to make the
provision more robust if there was interest in doing so.
MR. APPLEBEE said that would be great.
Section 11: This section prohibits election
officials and others providing assistance at the polls
from influencing the voting decisions of those they are
assisting.
MR. APPLEBEE said this clarifies that poll workers are available
to help with the election process but they are not to influence
or vote for the voter.
CHAIR SHOWER raised a question about a potential conflict given
that the ranked choice voting system is new to Alaska voters. He
pointed out that some voters may need help in how to fill out
their ballot so it is not rejected and that may be interpreted
as showing voters which bubbles to fill on the ballot.
MR. APPLEBEE said the poll worker could assist a voter by
showing them a sample ballot. The poll worker would not touch a
voter's official ballot.
CHAIR SHOWER commented that a poll worker could be in trouble if
they help a voter too much. He asked if there is conflict
between the laws.
MR. FLYNN said the existing portion of the statute requires poll
workers to assist voters and that will continue. For example, a
voter may get an error message that their ballot had too many
non-sequential votes, and the poll worker could explain what
that means without influencing the voting choice. Additionally,
the provisions prohibiting electioneering at polling places
remain and those apply with even more force to poll workers.
CHAIR SHOWER stated that this is on the record and if a poll
worker gets in trouble the court can look at the intent.
4:17:05 PM
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked if Sec. 15.15 specifically addresses
activity at the poll, not absentee ballots sent to a home.
MR. APPLEBEE agreed.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if his question was in reference to his
previous comment.
SENATOR KAWASAKI answered no; he was thinking about helping his
mother fill out her ballot. He asked if he was supposed to
decline to answer if she asks who she should vote for.
MR. APPLEBEE pointed out that he would not be serving as an
election worker in that circumstance.
CHAIR SHOWER said it was a good clarifying question for the
record.
SENATOR COSTELLO asked if there is or will be a plan to educate
poll workers about education on ranked choice voting.
MR. APPLEBEE deferred to Ms. Fenumiai to talk about how the
division is using the money that has been appropriated and her
plans to educate poll workers. He added that the administration
had submitted a supplemental budget request to increase the
efforts to educate the public.
SENATOR COSTELLO said it is not addressed in the bill and she
would have that discussion with Ms. Fenumiai offline.
4:19:04 PM
MR. APPLEBEE continued the sectional analysis for SB 167.
Section 12: This section requires DOE to adopt
regulations for the precinct ballot count.
He noted that the chair and his staff identified the issue of
ballots being destroyed at the precinct level and this provision
makes the process more transparent and accountable.
CHAIR SHOWER said the idea is to move away from policy decisions
at the division level because policies change with different
administrations.
MR. APPLEBEE continued the sectional analysis for SB 167.
Section 13: This section allows DOE to conduct
hand counts for more than one randomly selected
precinct in house districts, except those house
districts that have only uncontested offices.
Section 14: This section shortens the retention
period for election materials from four years to 22
months. It also requires that used and unused ballots,
absentee certificates and envelopes, and other paper
records be destroyed at one of two locations in the
state, with the director witnessing and certifying to
the destruction.
Section 15: This section requires DOE to provide
absentee voters instructions on how to use the free
online system for tracking absentee ballots, created in
section 23.
Section 16: This section requires DOE to provide
postage-paid return envelopes with absentee ballots.
MR. APPLEBEE said this provision is not as refined as the
administration would like. The concern is that postage paid
envelopes do not receive a date stamp so there would be no way
to determine when a ballot was posted.
CHAIR SHOWER said this is a reason to have ballot chain of
custody.
MR. APPLEBEE noted that the City and Borough of Juneau had an
issue like this. He restated that the idea is in the bill and
the hope is to find some resolution.
CHAIR SHOWER noted that his staff member voted in that election
and his vote did not count because of the postmark date. He said
this is a real problem because it disenfranchises voters.
MR. APPLEBEE opined that finding an elegant solution will make
the bill stronger.
4:23:37 PM
SENATOR COSTELLO asked if there is any evidence that people are
not voting because they do not have a stamp for the return
envelope.
MR. APPLEBEE replied he did not have a specific example but
there is anecdotal evidence that voting should be as easy as
possible.
SENATOR COSTELLO mentioned the importance of weighing the cost
benefit and questioned whether it would be a worse scenario to
count ballots that were posted after Election Day. She said she
is curious to know what Juneau did about that problem.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if anybody had information about that.
MR. APPLEBEE said he didn't know about any resolution, but there
were several thousand ballots in the Juneau election that were
not counted. He acknowledged that Senator Costello's point that
the cost cannot outweigh the benefits was excellent.
SENATOR COSTELLO said she did not want her comment to be
misinterpreted to mean she did not support supplying a postage
paid return envelope if that makes it easier for people to vote.
However, it is a huge problem if thousands of ballots are not
counted because there is no date stamp on the return envelope.
She added that she appreciated the discussion.
SENATOR HOLLAND asked if anybody looked at how other states
handle the issue of postage paid ballots.
MR. APPLEBEE offered his belief that it is more common than not
to have postage paid return envelopes for by mail ballots. He
offered to follow up with specific information.
SENATOR KAWASAKI also expressed interest in looking at how other
states address postage paid return envelops for by mail ballots.
MR. APPLEBEE said the administration needs to do some research
to see whether other states have found a solution.
CHAIR SHOWER added that his office has asked the U.S. Postal
Service about available options to date stamp a prepaid return
envelope and how that might tie in to ballot tracking and chain
of custody. He acknowledged that there could already be an
elegant solution.
4:28:09 PM
MR. APPLEBEE agreed and continued the sectional analysis for SB
167.
Section 17: This section prohibits DOE from
sending absentee ballots to voters who do not request
them, except when DOE is conducting an election by
mail.
He said this provision is current statute and practice but the
amendment makes it abundantly clear that voters will only
receive a ballot on request.
Section 18: This section allows voters to request
absentee ballots for four years, after which DOE will
send notification and the voters can reapply. If
absentee ballots or other DOE mail is returned as
undeliverable, DOE will stop sending absentee ballots.
MR. APPLEBEE said voters must reapply because the
administration feels that a permanent application would keep
people on the voter rolls longer than needed.
Section 19: This section directs DOE to begin to
review absentee ballot certificates ten days before the
election. It also requires that DOE review these
certificates before it counts the accompanying
ballots.
MR. APPLEBEE said the intention is to get the applications
processed faster.
CHAIR SHOWER highlighted that this provision comes partially
from Colorado best practices.
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked if the ballots are separated from the
ballot envelope at the regional center.
4:30:37 PM
MR. APPLEBEE deferred to Ms. Fenumiai.
MS. FENUMIAI explained that staff logs by mail ballots when they
are received at one of the five regional offices and are
subsequently reviewed by the bipartisan Absentee Review Board.
The envelopes are not opened and ballots removed until the board
has certified that each voter is eligible to have cast that
ballot.
MR. APPLEBEE continued the sectional analysis for SB 167.
Section 20: This section requires DOE to match the
signatures on absentee ballot certificates with
signatures in voter registration records.
Section 21: This section adds inconsistent
signatures as a reason absentee ballots will not be
counted. It also eliminates the ability of voters to
provide utility bills, government documents, and other
alternate forms of identification.
Section 22: This section explains how signature
matching will occur. The signature verification process
will include the use of signature comparison software,
according to regulations adopted by DOE.
Section 23: This section adds two new sections of
law. The first creates a free, online absentee ballot
tracking system. This system will indicate whether DOE
has reviewed a certificate and how the voter can cure
the certificate, if necessary. It will also indicate
whether DOE has counted a ballot and, if applicable,
why it did not count.
The second allows voters to cure their
certificates when their signatures do not match. DOE
will provide notification within 48 hours of its
determination, and voters will then have to confirm
that they mailed a ballot and provide identification
and a signature. Voters have 14 days after election day
to cure. If a voter does not confirm that he or she
voted, or does not respond to DOE's notice, the matter
will be referred to the attorney general for
investigation.
MR. APPLEBEE acknowledged that Section 23 will require
additional discussion about the time and whether it is possible
to create a cure process that can apply equally to voters
statewide.
4:32:37 PM
CHAIR SHOWER asked if the direction to implement a forensic
signature check is in Section 20. He mentioned what is done in
Anchorage.
MR. APPLEBEE replied the sections combined give the division the
ability to do what Anchorage does and to use software.
CHAIR SHOWER asked for confirmation that this addresses machine
checking signatures against the database. The direction is that
they "shall" do this.
MR. APPLEBEE answered yes, and cited the language in Section 22
that talks about using signature comparison software. He added
that the division is given the authority to write the
regulations to implement the process.
CHAIR SHOWER acknowledged that there is an associated cost, but
it would allay concerns about by mail ballots.
SENATOR KAWASAKI described and expressed satisfaction with the
signature verification process that he witnessed. He added that
he did wonder what database the voter signatures come from.
CHAIR SHOWER offered his belief that the division uses multiple
databases. He asked Ms. Fenumiai to comment.
4:35:18 PM
MS. FENUMIAI asked if he was referring to the Municipality of
Anchorage process.
SENATOR KAWASAKI clarified that he was describing what he
witnessed in Fairbanks during absentee ballot certification for
the 2020 election.
MS. FENUMIAI advised that the ballots were verified against
signatures the voters submitted to the Division of Elections at
various times and on various documents. The signatures could
have come from paper copies of voter registration forms,
absentee by mail applications, or the signatures on file with
the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV).
CHAIR SHOWER added that using multiple databases addresses the
problem that a voter's signature may change somewhat over time.
He highlighted that voters whose signature is an "X" or "O" are
generally accepted prima facie.
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked if part of the ballot curing process does
or will accommodate voters whose name has changed due to a
change in marital status or somebody who is signing with an "X"
because they have a broken arm or are using their non-dominant
hand.
MR. APPLEBEE replied all those situations come to mind in a
discussion about how to define what is included in ballot
curing.
CHAIR SHOWER commented that using the signature verification
software highlights a problem. He noted that provisions in his
bill provide that a person would then look at the signature and
make a determination about whether to contact the voter.
4:39:14 PM
SENATOR COSTELLO directed attention to the language on page 9,
line 15 and asked: 1) whether the term "may" should be changed
to "shall" and 2) who makes the decision to count a ballot when
the voter has failed to properly execute the certificate.
MR. APPLEBEE deferred the question to Tom Flynn with the
Department of Law.
4:40:14 PM
MR. FLYNN explained that as a matter of statutory construct, the
term "may not" is obligatory, meaning that the ballot will not
be counted.
SENATOR COSTELLO asked Ms. Fenumiai to confirm that the division
interprets it that way because it does not seem very clear.
MS. FENUMIAI replied the division has been following the statute
as written, and ballots are not counted based on the
circumstances outlined in AS 15.20.203(b)(1)-(6).
CHAIR SHOWER said it is now on the record to show intent.
4:41:24 PM
MR. APPLEBEE continued the sectional analysis for SB 167.
Section 24: This section requires DOE to adopt
regulations for routine forensic examinations and strict
chain-of-custody protocols for precinct tabulators.
He acknowledged the need to clearly define "forensic
examination."
CHAIR SHOWER highlighted that the voting machines for the 2020
election were not forensically tested and that should change
going forward.
MR. APPLEBEE reviewed Sections 25-28 together.
Section 25: This section provides that unlawful
interference with voting includes a person knowingly
possessing another voter's ballot, unless the person is a
family member, caregiver, election official, or delivery
person.
Section 26: This section provides that unlawful
interference with an election includes tampering with
absentee ballot materials, ballots, and election machinery.
Section 27: This section creates the offense of
election fraud, which is committed when a person commits
unlawful interference with an election and causes the
outcome of the election to change.
Section 28: This section provides that election
official misconduct includes knowingly disclosing, before
the polls close on election day, election returns or
results to someone who is not an election official.
Section 29: This section requires that the official
election pamphlet include the election offense hotline.
Section 30: This section requires that police officers
receive more than four hours of training on detecting and
investigating election offenses.
CHAIR SHOWER highlighted that this provision came about because
he referred questions and concerns about the 2020 election to
law enforcement for investigation and was told that was not in
their purview.
SENATOR COSTELLO referenced the new language in Section 30 on
page 18, lines 6-7. She pointed out that the number of hours of
instruction is less important than the fact that the person is
able to "demonstrate an understanding of" detecting and
investigating election offenses. She offered to work with him on
the language.
MR. APPLEBEE said it is a good suggestion.
CHAIR SHOWER voiced support for law enforcement getting the
training that is needed.
4:46:15 PM
SENATOR KAWASAKI referenced the new language in Section 25 on
page 14 relating to who can possess a ballot. He asked if this
provision would prevent the League of Women Voters from
organizing to pick up ballots at Pioneer Homes, which they did
in the 2020 election and many elections prior to that.
MR. APPLEBEE offered his belief that this language would prevent
that activity.
CHAIR SHOWER said the intent in his bill last year was to
prevent professional ballot harvesters. He said he was willing
to work with Senator Kawasaki and the administration to find
language that would not prevent family members from helping one
another or people in good faith who wanted to help.
4:49:00 PM
MR. APPLEBEE said the administration would be willing to work
with him and Senator Kawasaki's office on acceptable language
that achieves the intent.
MR. APPLEBEE continued the sectional analysis for SB 167.
Section 31: This section relates to PFD voter
registration. It requires that the PFD application form
include a way for applicants to request voter registration.
Section 32: This section requires the Department of
Revenue to send DOE the records of those applicants
potentially eligible to register who requested voter
registration as described in section 31.
He noted that he addressed Sections 31 and 32 when he discussed
Section 5.
Section 33: This section repeals the statute that
allows voters to provide utility bills, government
documents, and other alternate forms of identification.
It also repeals the statutes that create the existing
free access system for absentee ballots, because this
system is replaced by the ballot tracking system added in
section 23.
4:50:33 PM
SENATOR HOLLAND recalled that he saw somewhere that hunting and
fishing licenses are accepted as valid forms of ID.
CHAIR SHOWER said it is in current statute and his bill last
year attempted to delete that because people are not always
required to show their identification when they apply for a
hunting and fishing license and there is no verification
process.
SENATOR HOLLAND said he did not recall where he saw it but it
was today.
MR. APPLEBEE said the provision was inserted to initiate the
conversation about what will work for voters in Alaska.
CHAIR SHOWER said the intention is to move Alaska into the 21st
Century.
SENATOR COSTELLO directed attention to page 19, line 12, and
asked Mr. Flynn if the term "may" should be replaced with
"shall" to ensure that the regulations have been promulgated by
the April effective date.
MR. FLYNN offered his understanding that the section about
transition regulations is standard language for bills. He also
confirmed that the term "may" is more appropriate because not
everything needs regulations. He added that he would give it
more thought.
SENATOR COSTELLO asked Ms. Fenumiai if it is realistic to think
that the division will be able to promulgate regulations before
the Act takes effect in April 2022 or if the division will need
assistance.
MS. FENUMIAI offered her belief that the regulations that need
to be promulgated should this legislation pass would need to be
done in the emergency regulation process. They would be
effective immediately and public comment would come afterwards.
If the regulations are not made permanent after a certain number
of days, they expire.
SENATOR COSTELLO asked if the language is sufficient to allow
the emergency regulation process.
MS. FENUMIAI deferred the question to Mr. Flynn.
MR. FLYNN answered that the authority for emergency regulations
comes from the Administrative Procedures Act and he believes
that authority would extend to this situation.
MR. APPLEBEE mentioned the "may" versus "shall" discussion and
highlighted that there are sections that clearly require the
division to write regulations.
CHAIR SHOWER asked if he had concluding comments on the
sectional analysis.
MR. APPLEBEE said the remainder of the bill contains standard
language relating to effective dates and election crimes that
only apply to the offenses committed after the effective date.
Sections 34-38 read as follows:
Section 34: This section provides for the
applicability of the amendments to the election offenses in
sections 25 - 28.
Section 35: This section authorizes DOE to adopt
transition regulations.
Section 36 - 38: These sections provide that the
signature matching sections (20 - 22), the ballot tracking
and cure section (23), and the precinct tabulator
regulation section
(24) take effect on July 1, 2022. The transition
regulations section (35) takes effect immediately and the
rest of the bill takes effect on April 1, 2022.
CHAIR SHOWER asked for a short analysis of the fiscal note.
4:56:27 PM
MR. APPLEBEE stated that the major expense in SB 167 will be the
approximate $5 million one-time cost to provide signature
verification machines in all regional offices. There will also
be continuing costs in the out years.
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked for assurance that the division will
receive the revenue it needs for the toll free 800 number and
the staff necessary to answer the questions that come in.
MR. APPLEBEE said yes and the fiscal note will be revised
accordingly as language from the Chair's bill is incorporated
into SB 167.
4:57:59 PM
CHAIR SHOWER held SB 167 in committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 167.PDF |
SSTA 1/27/2022 3:30:00 PM |
SB 167 |
| HJR 16.PDF |
SSTA 1/27/2022 3:30:00 PM |
HJR 16 |
| SB0167A.PDF |
SSTA 1/27/2022 3:30:00 PM |
SB 167 |
| HB 286 - SB 167 Sectional Analysis - Final.pdf |
SSTA 1/27/2022 3:30:00 PM |
HB 286 SB 167 |
| SB167 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
SSTA 1/27/2022 3:30:00 PM |
SB 167 |
| SB 167 List of testifiers.docx |
SSTA 1/27/2022 3:30:00 PM |
SB 167 |