Introduced Version
Senate Bill 13 History
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Senate Bill No. 13
(By Senators M. Hall, Blair, Sypolt and Carmichael)
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[Introduced February 13, 2013; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §3-1-34 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §17B-2-1 of said
code, all relating to voting procedures; presentation of
documentation identifying the voter to one of the poll clerks;
providing for the casting of a provisional ballot by a person
without adequate proof of identification; providing for the
issuance of identification cards; and requiring the state to
provide the same free of charge to any qualified voter.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §3-1-34 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted; and that §17B-2-1 of said code be amended
and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 3. ELECTIONS.
ARTICLE 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS AND DEFINITIONS.
§3-1-34. Voting procedures generally; identification; assistance
to voters; voting records; penalties.
(a) Any A person desiring to vote in an election shall, upon
entering the election room, clearly state his or her name and
residence to one of the poll clerks who shall thereupon announce
the same in a clear and distinct tone of voice. The person
desiring to vote shall present to one of the poll clerks an
identifying document issued either by the State of West Virginia or
by the United States government which contains the name, address,
and a photograph of the person desiring to vote. The poll clerk
shall inspect and confirm that the name on the identifying document
conforms to the name in the individual's voter registration record
and that the image displayed is truly an image of the person
presenting the document. If that the person is found to be duly
registered as a voter at that precinct, he or she shall sign his or
her name in the designated location provided at the precinct. If
that person is physically or otherwise unable to sign his or her
name, his or her mark shall be affixed by one of the poll clerks in
the presence of the other and the name of the poll clerk affixing
the voter's mark shall be indicated immediately under the
affixation. No ballot may be given to the person until he or she
signs his or her name on the designated location or his or her
signature is affixed thereon.
_____(1) If the person desiring to vote is unable to furnish an
identifying document which contains the name, address and a
photograph of the person desiring to vote or if the poll clerk
determines that the proof of identification presented by the voter
does not qualify as proof of identification under the above listed
criteria, the person desiring to vote shall be allowed to vote but
must cast a provisional ballot. An individual who appears at a
polling place without identification in the form described in
subsection (a) of this section and who is otherwise qualified to
vote at that polling place, may cast a provisional ballot after
executing an affidavit affirming his or her identity.__
_____(A) The provisional ballot is entitled to be counted provided
the election authority verifies the identity of the individual by
comparing that individual's signature to the current signature on
file with the election authority and determines that the individual
was otherwise eligible to cast a ballot at the polling place where
the ballot was cast.
_____(B) The affidavit to be used for voting shall be substantially
in the following form:
_____"State of West Virginia
_____County of .....................................
_____I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that my name is
.................................................; that I reside at
.............................; and that I am the person listed in
the precinct register under this name and at this address.
_____I understand that knowingly providing false information is a
violation of law and subjects me to possible criminal prosecution.
.......................................................
_____Signature of voter
_____Subscribed and affirmed before me this ........... day of
....................., 20....
___________________________________................................
___________________________________Signature of Election Official".
_____(2) A voter who votes in person at a precinct polling place
that is located at a state licensed care facility where the voter
is a resident is not required to provide proof of identification as
a condition before voting in an election.
(b) The clerk of the county commission is authorized, upon
verification that the precinct at which a handicapped person is
registered to vote is not handicap accessible, to transfer that
person's registration to the nearest polling place in the county
which is handicap accessible. A request by a handicapped person
for a transfer of registration must be received by the county clerk
no later than thirty days prior to the date of the election. Any
A handicapped person who has not made a request for a transfer of
registration at least thirty days prior to the date of the election may vote a provisional ballot at a handicap accessible polling
place in the county of his or her registration. If during the
canvass the county commission determines that the person had been
registered in a precinct that is not handicap accessible, the voted
ballot, if otherwise valid, shall be counted. The handicapped
person may vote in the precinct to which the registration was
transferred only as long as the disability exists or the precinct
from which the handicapped person was transferred remains
inaccessible to the handicapped. To ensure confidentiality of the
transferred ballot, the county clerk processing the ballot shall
provide the voter with an unmarked envelope and an outer envelope
designated "provisional ballot/handicapped voter". After
validation of the ballot at the canvass, the outer envelope shall
be destroyed and the handicapped voter's ballot shall be placed
with other approved provisional ballots prior to removal of the
ballot from the unmarked envelope.
(c) When the voter's signature is properly marked, the two
poll clerks shall sign their names in the places indicated on the
back of the official ballot and deliver the ballot to the voter to
be voted by him or her without leaving the election room. If he or
she returns the ballot spoiled to the clerks, they shall
immediately mark the ballot "spoiled" and it shall be preserved and
placed in a spoiled ballot envelope together with other spoiled ballots to be delivered to the board of canvassers and deliver to
the voter another official ballot, signed by the clerks on the
reverse side. The voter shall thereupon retire alone to the booth
or compartment prepared within the election room for voting
purposes and there prepare his or her ballot. In voting for
candidates in general and special elections, the voter shall comply
with the rules and procedures prescribed in section five, article
six of this chapter.
(d) It is the duty of a poll clerk, in the presence of the
other poll clerk, to indicate by a check mark, or by other means,
inserted in the appropriate place on the registration record of
each voter, the fact that the voter voted in the election. In
primary elections the clerk shall also insert thereon on the
registration record of each voter a distinguishing initial or
initials of the political party for whose candidates the voter
voted. If a person is challenged at the polls, the challenge shall
be indicated by the poll clerks on the registration record together
with the name of the challenger. The subsequent removal of the
challenge shall be recorded on the registration record by the clerk
of the county commission.
(e) (1) No voter may receive any assistance in voting unless,
by reason of blindness, disability, advanced age or inability to
read and write, that a voter is unable to vote without assistance. Any A voter qualified to receive assistance in voting under the
provisions of this section may:
(A) Declare his or her choice of candidates to an election
commissioner of each political party who, in the presence of the
voter and in the presence of each other, shall prepare the ballot
for voting in the manner hereinbefore provided in this section and,
on request, shall read to the voter the names of the candidates
selected on the ballot;
(B) Require the election commissioners to indicate to him or
her the relative position of the names of the candidates on the
ballot whereupon the voter shall then retire to one of the booths
or compartments to prepare his or her ballot in the manner
hereinbefore provided in this section
;
(C) Be assisted by any person of the voter's choice, other
than the voter's present or former employer or agent of that
employer, the officer or agent of a labor union of which the voter
is a past or present member or a candidate on the ballot or an
official write-in candidate; or
(D) If he or she is handicapped, vote from an automobile
outside the polling place or precinct by the absentee balloting
method provided in subsection (e), section five, article three of
this chapter in the presence of an election commissioner of each
political party if all of the following conditions are met:
(I) The polling place is not handicap accessible; and
(ii) No voters are voting or waiting to vote inside the
polling place.
(2) The voted ballot shall then be returned to the precinct
officials and secured in a sealed envelope to be returned to the
clerk of the county commission with all other election materials.
The ballot shall then be tabulated using the appropriate method
provided in section eight of this chapter as it relates to the
specific voting system in use.
(3) Any A voter who requests assistance in voting but who is
believed not to be qualified for assistance under the provisions of
this section shall nevertheless be permitted to vote a provisional
ballot with the assistance of any person herein authorized to
render assistance.
(4) Any One or more of the election commissioners or poll
clerks in the precinct may challenge the ballot on the ground that
the voter thereof received assistance in voting it when in his, her
or their opinion the person who received assistance in voting is
not so illiterate, blind, disabled or of such advanced age as to
have been unable to vote without assistance. The election
commissioner or poll clerk or commissioners or poll clerks making
the challenge shall enter the challenge and reason therefor the
reason on the form and in the manner prescribed or authorized by article three of this chapter.
(5) An election commissioner or other person who assists a
voter in voting:
(A) May not in any manner request or seek to persuade or
induce the voter to vote any a particular ticket or for any a
particular candidate or for or against any a public question and
must not keep or make any memorandum or entry of anything occurring
within the voting booth or compartment and must not, directly or
indirectly, reveal to any person the name of any a candidate voted
for by the voter, or which ticket he or she had voted or how he or
she had voted on any a public question or anything occurring within
the voting booth, or compartment or voting machine booth except
when required pursuant to by law to give testimony as to the matter
in a judicial proceeding; and
(B) Shall sign a written oath or affirmation before assisting
the voter on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State stating
that he or she will not override the actual preference of the voter
being assisted, attempt to influence the voter's choice or mislead
the voter into voting for someone other than the candidate of
voter's choice. The person assisting the voter shall also swear or
affirm that he or she believes that the voter is voting free of
intimidation or manipulation. Provided, That No person providing
assistance to a voter is required to sign an oath or affirmation where the reason for requesting assistance is the voter's inability
to vote without assistance because of blindness as defined in
section three, article fifteen, chapter five of this code and the
inability to vote without assistance because of blindness is
certified in writing by a physician of the voter's choice and is on
file in the office of the clerk of the county commission.
(6) In accordance with instructions issued by the Secretary of
State, the clerk of the county commission shall provide a form
entitled "list of assisted voters", the form of which list shall
likewise be on a form as prescribed by the Secretary of State. The
commissioners shall enter the name of each voter receiving
assistance in voting the ballot, together with the poll slip number
of that voter and the signature of the person or the commissioner
from each party who assisted the voter. If no voter has been
assisted in voting, the commissioners shall likewise make and
subscribe to an oath of that fact on the list.
(f) After preparing the ballot, the voter shall fold the
ballot so that the face is not exposed and so that the names of the
poll clerks thereon are seen. The voter shall announce his or her
name and present his or her ballot to one of the commissioners who
shall hand the same to another commissioner, of a different
political party, who shall deposit it in the ballot box if the
ballot is the official one and properly signed. The commissioner of election may inspect every ballot before it is deposited in the
ballot box to ascertain whether it is single but without unfolding
or unrolling it so as to disclose its content. When the voter has
voted, he or she shall retire immediately from the election room
and beyond the sixty-foot limit thereof and may and not return
except by permission of the commissioners.
(g) Following the election, the oaths or affirmations required
by this section from those assisting voters, together with the
"list of assisted voters", shall be returned by the election
commissioners to the clerk of the county commission along with the
election supplies, records and returns. The clerk of the county
commission shall make the oaths, affirmations and list available
for public inspection and shall preserve them for a period of
twenty-two months or until disposition is authorized or directed by
the Secretary of State or court of record. Provided, That The
clerk may use these records to update the voter registration
records in accordance with subsection (d), section eighteen,
article two of this chapter.
(h) Any A person making an oath or affirmation required under
the provisions of this section who knowingly swears falsely or any
a person who counsels, advises, aids or abets another in the
commission of false swearing under this section, is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than $1,000 or confined in jail for a period of not more than one
year, or both fined and confined.
(I) Any An election commissioner or poll clerk who authorizes
or provides unchallenged assistance to a voter when the voter is
known to the election commissioner or poll clerk not to require
assistance in voting, is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned in a
state correctional facility for a period of not less than one year
nor more than five years, or both fined and imprisoned.
CHAPTER 17B. MOTOR VEHICLE DRIVER'S LICENSES.
ARTICLE 2. ISSUANCE OF LICENSE, EXPIRATION AND RENEWAL.
§17B-2-1. Drivers must be licensed; types of licenses; licensees
need not obtain local government license; motorcycle
driver license; identification cards.
(a)(1) No person, except those hereinafter expressly exempted,
may drive any a motor vehicle upon a street or highway in this
state or upon any a subdivision street used by the public generally
unless the person has a valid driver's license issued pursuant to
this code for the type or class of vehicle being driven.
(2) Any A person licensed to operate a motor vehicle pursuant
to this code may exercise the privilege thereby granted in the
manner provided in this code and, except as otherwise provided by law, is not required to obtain any other license to exercise the
privilege by any a county, municipality or local board or body
having authority to adopt local police regulations.
(b) The division, upon issuing a driver's license, shall
indicate on the license the type or general class or classes of
vehicles the licensee may operate in accordance with this code,
federal law or rule. Licenses shall be issued in different colors
for those drivers under age eighteen, those drivers age eighteen to
twenty-one and adult drivers. The commissioner is authorized to
select and assign colors to the licenses of the various age groups.
(c) The following drivers licenses classifications are hereby
established:
(1) A Class A, B or C license shall be issued to those persons
eighteen years of age or older with two years of driving experience
who have qualified for the commercial driver's license established
by chapter seventeen-e of this code and the federal Motor Carrier
Safety and Improvement Act of 1999 and subsequent rules and have
paid the required fee.
(2) A Class D license shall be issued to those persons
eighteen years and older with one year of driving experience who
operate motor vehicles other than those types of vehicles which
require the operator to be licensed under the provisions of chapter
seventeen-e of this code and federal law and rule and whose primary function or employment is the transportation of persons or property
for compensation or wages and have paid the required fee. For the
purpose of regulating the operation of motor vehicles, wherever the
term "chauffeur's license" is used in this code, it shall be
construed to mean means the Class A, B, C or D license described in
this section or chapter seventeen-e of this code or federal law or
rule. Provided, That anyone A person not required to be licensed
under the provisions of chapter seventeen-e of this code and
federal law or rule and who operates a motor vehicle registered or
required to be registered as a Class A motor vehicle, as that term
is defined in section one, article ten, chapter seventeen-a of this
code, with a gross vehicle weight rating of less than eight
thousand one pounds, is not required to obtain a Class D license.
(3) A Class E license shall be issued to those persons who
have qualified for a driver's license under the provisions of this
chapter and who are not required to obtain a Class A, B, C or D
license and who have paid the required fee. The Class E license
may be endorsed under the provisions of section seven-b of this
article for motorcycle operation. The Class E or (G) G license for
any a person under the age of eighteen may also be endorsed with
the appropriate graduated driver license level in accordance with
the provisions of section three-a of this article.
(4) A Class F license shall be issued to those persons who successfully complete the motorcycle examination procedure provided
by this chapter and have paid the required fee but who do not
possess a Class A, B, C, D or E driver's license.
(5) A Class G driver's license or instruction permit shall be
issued to a person using bioptic telescopic lenses who has
successfully completed an approved driver training program and
complied with all other requirements of article two-b of this
chapter.
(d) All licenses issued under this section may contain
information designating the licensee as a diabetic, organ donor, as
deaf or hard-of-hearing, or as having any other handicap or
disability or that the licensee is an honorably discharged veteran
of any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, according
to criteria established by the division, if the licensee requests
this information on the license. An honorably discharged veteran
may be issued a replacement license without charge if the request
is made before the expiration date of the current license and the
only purpose for receiving the replacement license is to get the
veterans designation placed on the license.
(e) No person, except those hereinafter expressly exempted,
may drive any a motorcycle upon on a street or highway in this
state or upon any on a subdivision street used by the public
generally unless the person has a valid motorcycle license, a valid license which has been endorsed under section seven-b of this
article for motorcycle operation or a valid motorcycle instruction
permit.
(f) (1) An identification card may be issued to any a person
who:
(A) Is a resident of this state in accordance with the
provisions of section one-a, article three, chapter seventeen-a of
this code;
(B) Has reached the age of two years The division may also
issue an identification card to a person under the age of two
years,for good cause shown; or, for good cause shown, under the age
of two.
(C) Has paid the required fee of $2.50 per year Provided,
That the fee is not except that no fees or charges, including
renewal fees, are required if the applicant:
(i) Is sixty-five years or older; or
(ii) Is legally blind; and or
_____(iii) Will be at least eighteen years of age at the next
general, municipal or special election and intends to use this
identification card as a form of identification for voting; and
(D) Presents a birth certificate or other proof of age and
identity acceptable to the division with a completed application on
a form furnished by the division.
(2) The identification card shall contain the same information
as a driver's license except that the identification card shall be
clearly marked as an identification card. The division may issue
an identification card with less information to persons under the
age of sixteen. An identification card may be renewed annually on
application and payment of the fee required by this section.
(A) Every identification card issued to a person who has
attained his or her twenty-first birthday expires on the licensee's
birthday in those years in which the licensee's age is evenly
divisible by five. Except as provided in paragraph (B) of this
subdivision, no identification card may be issued for less than
three years or for more than seven years and expires on the
licensee's birthday in those years in which the licensee's age is
evenly divisible by five.
(B) Every identification card issued to a person who has not
attained his or her twenty-first birthday expires thirty days after
the licensee's twenty-first birthday.
(C) Every identification card issued to persons under the age
of sixteen shall be issued for a period of two years and shall
expire on the last day of the month in which the applicant's
birthday occurs.
(3) The division may issue an identification card to an
applicant whose privilege to operate a motor vehicle has been refused, canceled, suspended or revoked under the provisions of
this code.
(g) Any A person violating the provisions of this section is
guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not
more than $500. and Upon a second or subsequent conviction, shall
be fined not more than $500 or confined in jail not more than six
months, or both fined and confined.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require voters to provide
a photo identification when voting, to provide for provisional
ballots to be cast by voters who do not possess the required photo
identification and, additionally, to provide for complimentary
photo identification cards to a voter upon request.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.