Bill Text: AZ SB1389 | 2023 | Fifty-sixth Legislature 1st Regular | Introduced
Bill Title: Ballots; pollbooks; instructions; tabulating; storage
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-02-13 - Senate ELEC Committee action: Do Pass, voting: (8-0-0-0) [SB1389 Detail]
Download: Arizona-2023-SB1389-Introduced.html
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REFERENCE TITLE: ballots; pollbooks; instructions; tabulating; storage |
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State of Arizona Senate Fifty-sixth Legislature First Regular Session 2023
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SB 1389 |
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Introduced by Senator Bennett
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An Act
amending sections 16-246, 16-502, 16-542, 16-572, 16-583, 16-584, 16-624 and 45-415, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to elections.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 16-246, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-246. Early balloting; satellite locations; additional procedures
A. Within ninety-three days before the presidential preference election and not later than 5:00 p.m. on the eleventh day preceding the election, any elector who is eligible to vote in the presidential preference election may make a verbal or signed, written request for an official early ballot to the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections for the county in which the elector is registered to vote. If the request is verbal, the requesting elector shall provide the date of birth and birthplace or other information that if compared to the voter registration records for that elector would confirm the identity of the elector.
B. Absent uniformed services voters or overseas voters who are otherwise eligible to vote in the election may vote as prescribed by sections 16-543 and 16-543.02.
C. The county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may establish on-site early voting locations at the office of the county recorder or at other locations in the county deemed necessary or appropriate by the recorder. Early voting shall begin within the time limits prescribed in section 16-542 unless otherwise prescribed by this section.
D. The county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall send by nonforwardable mail that is marked with the statement required by the postmaster to receive an address correction notification any early ballots that are requested pursuant to subsections A and B of this section and shall include a preaddressed envelope for the elector to return the completed ballot.
E. The county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall provide to each election board an appropriate alphabetized list of voters who have requested and have been sent an early ballot. Any person who is on that list of voters and who was sent an early ballot shall not vote at the polling place for that election precinct except as prescribed by section 16-579, subsection B.
F. E. The county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may provide for any of the following in the same manner prescribed by law for other elections:
1. Special election boards.
2. Emergency balloting for persons who experience an emergency after 5:00 p.m. on the Friday preceding the presidential preference election and before 5:00 p.m. on the Monday immediately preceding the presidential preference election. Before receiving a ballot pursuant to this paragraph, a person who experiences an emergency shall provide identification as prescribed in section 16-579 and shall sign a statement under penalty of perjury that states that the person is experiencing or experienced an emergency after 5:00 p.m. on the Friday immediately preceding the election and before 5:00 p.m. on the Monday immediately preceding the election that would prevent the person from voting at the polls. Signed statements received pursuant to this subsection paragraph are not subject to inspection pursuant to title 39, chapter 1, article 2.
G. F. Notwithstanding section 16-579, subsection A, paragraph 2, for emergency balloting pursuant to subsection F E, paragraph 2 of this section, the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may allow a qualified elector to update the elector's voter registration information as provided for in the secretary of state's instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant to section 16-452.
H. G. Sections 16-550, 16-551 and 16-552 govern the use of early balloting for the presidential preference election.
Sec. 2. Section 16-502, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-502. Form and contents of ballot
A. Ballots shall be printed with black ink on white paper of sufficient thickness to prevent the printing thereon from being discernible from the back, and the same type shall be used for the names of all candidates. The ballots shall be headed "official ballot" in bold-faced plain letters, with a heavy rule above and below the heading. Immediately below shall be placed the words "type of election, (date of election)" and the name of the county and state in which the election is held. The name or number of the precinct in which the election is held shall be placed on the ballot in a uniform location for all ballots. No other matter shall be placed or printed at the head of any ballot. Instructions to the voter on marking the ballot may be printed below the heading as follows:
1. Put a mark according to the instructions next to the name of each candidate for each office for whom Use a black or blue pen to fill in the oval next to your choice for each contest for which you wish to vote.
2. If you wish to vote for a person whose name is not printed on the ballot, write such name in the blank space provided on the ballot and put a mark according to the instructions next to the name so written.
2. To vote for an official write-in candidate, write the name in the blank space provided for that contest and fill in the oval next to the written name.
3. Put a mark according to the instructions next to the word "yes" or "for" for each proposition or question you wish to be adopted. Put a mark according to the instructions next to the word "no" or "against" for each proposition or question you wish not to be adopted.
B. Immediately below the ballot instructions shall be placed the following:
Section One
Partisan Ballot
C. Immediately below the heading for section one there shall be placed in columns the names of the candidates of the several political parties. Next to each candidate's name there shall be printed in bold-faced letters the name of the political party. At the head of each column shall be printed the names of the offices to be filled with the name of each office being of uniform type size. At the head of each column shall be printed in the following order the names of candidates for:
1. Presidential electors, which shall be in a list and next to the list shall be printed in bold type the surname of the presidential candidate, and the surname of the vice presidential candidate who is seeking election jointly with the presidential candidate shall be listed directly below the name of the presidential candidate. The indicator for the selection of the presidential and vice presidential candidates shall be directly next to the surname of the presidential candidate, and one mark directly next to a presidential candidate's surname shall be counted as a vote for each elector in the list next to the presidential and vice presidential candidates.
2. United States senator.
3. Representatives in Congress.
4. The several state offices.
5. The several county and precinct offices.
D. The names of candidates for the offices of state senator and state representative along with the district number shall be placed within the heading of each column to the right of the office name for state offices and immediately below the candidates for the office of governor. The number of the supervisorial district of which a candidate is a nominee shall be printed within the heading of each column to the right of the name of the office.
E. The lists of the candidates of the several parties shall be arranged with the names of the parties in descending order according to the votes cast for governor for that county in the most recent general election for the office of governor, commencing with the left-hand column. In the case of political parties that did not have candidates on the ballot in the last general election, such parties shall be listed in alphabetical order below the parties that did have candidates on the ballot in the last general election. The names of all candidates nominated under section 16-341 shall be placed in a single column below that of the recognized parties. Next to the name of each candidate, in parentheses, shall be printed a three-letter abbreviation that is taken from the three words prescribed in the candidate's certificate of nomination.
F. Immediately below the designation of the office to be voted for shall appear the words: "Vote for not more than _________" (insert the number to be elected).
G. In each column at the right or left of the name of each candidate and on the same line there shall be a place for the voter to put a mark. Below the name of the last named candidate for each office there shall be as many blank lines as there are offices of the same title to be filled, with a place for the voter to put a mark. On the blank line the voter may write the name of any person for whom the voter desires to vote whose name is not printed, and next to the name so written the voter shall designate his choice by a mark as in the case of printed names.
H. When there are two or more candidates of the same political party for the same office, or more than one candidate for a judicial office, the names of all such candidates shall be so alternated on the ballots used in each election district that the name of each candidate shall appear substantially an equal number of times in each possible location. If there are fewer or the same number of candidates seeking office than the number to be elected, the rotation of names is not required and the names shall be placed in alphabetical order.
I. Immediately below section one of the ballot shall be placed the following:
Section Two
Nonpartisan Ballot
J. Immediately below the heading for section two shall be placed the names of the candidates for justices of the supreme court, judges of the court of appeals, judges of the superior court standing for retention or rejection pursuant to article VI, section 38, Constitution of Arizona, judges of the superior court standing for election pursuant to article VI, section 12, Constitution of Arizona, school district officials and other nonpartisan officials in a column or in columns without partisan or other designation except the title of office in an order determined by the officer in charge of the election.
K. Immediately below the offices listed in subsection J of this section, the ballot shall contain a separate heading of any nonpartisan office for a vacant unexpired term and shall include the expiration date of the term of the vacated office.
L. All proposed constitutional amendments and other propositions or questions to be submitted to the voters shall be printed immediately below the names of candidates for nonpartisan positions in such order as the secretary of state, or if a city or town election, the city or town clerk, designates. Placement of county and local charter amendments, propositions or questions shall be determined by the officer in charge of the election. Except as provided by section 19-125, each proposition or question shall be followed by the words "yes" and "no" or "for ______" and "against ______" as the nature of the proposition or question requires, and at the right or left of and next to each of such words shall be a place for the voter to put a mark according to the instructions that is similar in size to those places appearing opposite the names of the candidates, in which the voter may indicate his vote for or against such proposition or question by a mark as defined in section 16-400.
M. Instead of printing the official and descriptive titles or the full text of each measure or question on the official ballot, the officer in charge of elections may print phrases on the official ballot that contain all of the following:
1. The number of the measure in reverse type and at least twelve point twelve-point type.
2. The designation of the measure as prescribed by section 19-125, subsection C or as a question, proposition or charter amendment, followed by the words "relating to..." and inserting the subject.
3. Either the statement prescribed by section 19-125, subsection D that describes the effects of a "yes" vote and a "no" vote or, for other measures, the text of the question or proposition.
4. The words "yes" and "no" or "for" and "against", as may be appropriate and a place for the voter to put a mark.
N. For any ballot printed pursuant to subsection M of this section, the instructions on the official ballot shall direct the voter to the full text of the official and descriptive titles and the questions and propositions as printed on the sample ballot and posted in the polling place.
Sec. 3. Section 16-542, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-542. Request for ballot; civil penalties; violation; classification
A. Within ninety-three days before any election called pursuant to the laws of this state, an elector may make a verbal or signed request to the county recorder, or other officer in charge of elections for the applicable political subdivision of this state in whose jurisdiction the elector is registered to vote, for an official early ballot. In addition to name and address, the requesting elector shall provide the date of birth and state or country of birth or other information that if compared to the voter registration information on file would confirm the identity of the elector. If the request indicates that the elector needs a primary election ballot and a general election ballot, the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall honor the request. For any partisan primary election, if the elector is not registered as a member of a political party that is entitled to continued representation on the ballot pursuant to section 16-804, the elector shall designate the ballot of only one of the political parties that is entitled to continued representation on the ballot and the elector may receive and vote the ballot of only that one political party, which also shall include any nonpartisan offices and ballot questions, or the elector shall designate the ballot for nonpartisan offices and ballot questions only and the elector may receive and vote the ballot that contains only nonpartisan offices and ballot questions. The county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall process any request for an early ballot for a municipal election pursuant to this subsection. The county recorder may establish on-site early voting locations at the recorder's office, which shall be open and available for use beginning the same day that a county begins to send out the early ballots. The county recorder may also establish any other early voting locations in the county the recorder deems necessary. Any on-site early voting location or other early voting location shall require each elector to present identification as prescribed in section 16-579 before receiving a ballot. Notwithstanding section 16-579, subsection A, paragraph 2, at any on-site early voting location or other early voting location the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may provide for a qualified elector to update the elector's voter registration information as provided for in the secretary of state's instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant to section 16-452.
B. Notwithstanding subsection A of this section, a request for an official early ballot from an absent uniformed services voter or overseas voter as defined in the uniformed and overseas citizens absentee voting act of 1986 (P.L. 99-410; 52 United States Code section 20310) or a voter whose information is protected pursuant to section 16-153 that is received by the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections more than ninety-three days before the election is valid. If requested by the absent uniformed services or overseas voter, or a voter whose information is protected pursuant to section 16-153, the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall provide to the requesting voter early ballot materials through the next regularly scheduled general election for federal office immediately following receipt of the request unless a different period of time, which does not exceed the next two regularly scheduled general elections for federal office, is designated by the voter.
C. The county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall mail the early ballot and the envelope for its return postage prepaid to the address provided by the requesting elector within five days after receipt of the official early ballots from the officer charged by law with the duty of preparing ballots pursuant to section 16-545, except that early ballot distribution shall not begin more than twenty-seven days before the election. If an early ballot request is received on or before the thirty-first day before the election, the early ballot shall be distributed not earlier than the twenty-seventh day before the election and not later than the twenty-fourth day before the election.
D. Only the elector may be in possession of that elector's unvoted early ballot. If a complete and correct request is made by the elector within twenty-seven days before the election, the mailing must be made within forty-eight hours after receipt of the request. Saturdays, Sundays and other legal holidays are excluded from the computation of the forty-eight hour forty-eight-hour period prescribed by this subsection. If a complete and correct request is made by an absent uniformed services voter or an overseas voter before the election, the regular early ballot shall be transmitted by mail, by fax or by other electronic format approved by the secretary of state within twenty-four hours after the early ballots are delivered pursuant to section 16-545, subsection B, excluding Sundays.
E. In order to be complete and correct and to receive an early ballot by mail, an elector's request that an early ballot be mailed to the elector's residence or temporary address must include all of the information prescribed by subsection A of this section and must be received by the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections no not later than 5:00 p.m. on the eleventh day preceding the election. An elector who appears personally no not later than 5:00 p.m. on the Friday preceding the election at an on-site early voting location that is established by the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall be given a ballot after presenting identification as prescribed in section 16-579 and shall be permitted to vote at the on-site location. Notwithstanding section 16-579, subsection A, paragraph 2, at any on-site early voting location the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may provide for a qualified elector to update the elector's voter registration information as provided for in the secretary of state's instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant to section 16-452. If an elector's request to receive an early ballot is not complete and correct but complies with all other requirements of this section, the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall attempt to notify the elector of the deficiency of the request.
F. Unless an elector specifies that the address to which an early ballot is to be sent is a temporary address, the recorder may use the information from an early ballot request form to update voter registration records.
G. The county recorder or other officer in charge of early balloting shall provide an alphabetized list of all voters in the precinct who have requested and have been sent an early ballot to the election board of the precinct in which the voter is registered not later than the day before the election.
H. G. As a result of experiencing an emergency between 5:00 p.m. on the Friday preceding the election and 5:00 p.m. on the Monday preceding the election, qualified electors may request to vote in the manner prescribed by the board of supervisors of their respective county. Before voting pursuant to this subsection, an elector who experiences an emergency shall provide identification as prescribed in section 16-579 and shall sign a statement under penalty of perjury that states that the person is experiencing or experienced an emergency after 5:00 p.m. on the Friday immediately preceding the election and before 5:00 p.m. on the Monday immediately preceding the election that would prevent the person from voting at the polls. Signed statements received pursuant to this subsection are not subject to inspection pursuant to title 39, chapter 1, article 2. For the purposes of this subsection, "emergency" means any unforeseen circumstances that would prevent the elector from voting at the polls.
I. H. Notwithstanding section 16-579, subsection A, paragraph 2, for any voting pursuant to subsection H G of this section, the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections may allow a qualified elector to update the elector's voter registration information as provided for in the secretary of state's instructions and procedures manual adopted pursuant to section 16-452.
J. I. A candidate, political committee or other organization may distribute early ballot request forms to voters. If the early ballot request forms include a printed address for return, the addressee shall be the political subdivision that will conduct the election. Failure to use the political subdivision as the return addressee is punishable by a civil penalty of up to three times the cost of the production and distribution of the request.
K. J. All original and completed early ballot request forms that are received by a candidate, political committee or other organization shall be submitted within six business days after receipt by a candidate, political committee or other organization or eleven days before the election day, whichever is earlier, to the political subdivision that will conduct the election. Any person, political committee or other organization that fails to submit a completed early ballot request form within the prescribed time is subject to a civil penalty of up to $25 per day for each completed form withheld from submittal. Any person who knowingly fails to submit a completed early ballot request form before the submission deadline for the election immediately following the completion of the form is guilty of a class 6 felony.
L. K. Except for a voter who is on the active early voting list prescribed by section 16-544, a voter who requests a onetime early ballot pursuant to this section 16-542 or for an election conducted pursuant to section 16-409 or article 8.1 of this chapter, a county recorder, city or town clerk or other election officer may not deliver or mail an early ballot to a person who has not requested an early ballot for that election. An election officer who knowingly violates this subsection is guilty of a class 5 felony.
Sec. 4. Section 16-572, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-572. Delivery and custody of ballots at polling place
A. On opening the polls, the inspector shall produce the sealed package of official ballots and publicly open it and deliver one book or block of ballots therein contained to the judges. The inspector shall retain the other blocks or books of ballots, if any, shall be retained by the inspector until called for by the judges and required for voting.
B. One of the judges of election shall keep the ballots within the polling place in plain view of the public and deliver them only to qualified voters.
C. A person shall not take or remove a ballot from the polling place before the polls are closed, except that early ballots that are returned at voting locations on election day may be removed either by two authorized election WORKERS who must be members of different political parties or, if extenuating circumstances exist, a sworn OFFICIAL election MESSENGER who is appointed as prescribed by section 16-615, such as a sheriff's deputy, and who DELIVERS the ballots to a designated receiving site.
Sec. 5. Section 16-583, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-583. Inactive electors; procedures
A. On or before election day, the county recorder shall provide to each precinct election board the names of inactive electors on the inactive voter list. If a person whose name is not on the precinct register appears at a polling place, an election official shall determine whether the person is on the inactive voter list. If the a person who appears at a polling place is listed on the precinct register or electronic pollbook as inactive voter list, the registrant, on affirmation by the registrant before an election official at the polling place that the registrant continues to reside at the address indicated on the inactive voter list precinct register or electronic pollbook, shall be permitted allowed to vote at that precinct polling place. The elector's name shall be entered on a separate signature roster page at the end of the signature roster, and voters' names shall be numbered consecutively. If the registrant indicates that the registrant lives at a new residence, the election official shall either direct the registrant to the precinct polling place for the new address or allow the registrant to cast a vote pursuant to section 16-584, subsection C at a voting center.
B. Following the election, the county recorder shall remove from inactive status all electors who voted pursuant to subsection A of this section, shall place the electors' names back on the general register and shall return the electors' status to active.
Sec. 6. Section 16-584, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-584. Qualified elector not on precinct register or electronic pollbook; recorder's certificate; verified ballot; procedure
A. A qualified elector whose name is not on the precinct register or electronic pollbook and who presents a certificate from the county recorder showing that the elector is entitled by law to vote in the precinct shall be entered on the signature roster on the blank following the last printed name and shall be given the next consecutive register number, and the qualified elector shall sign in the space provided.
B. A qualified elector whose name is not on the precinct register or electronic pollbook, on presentation of identification verifying the identity of the elector that includes the voter's given name and surname and the complete residence address that is verified by the election board to be in the precinct or on signing an affirmation that states that the elector is a registered voter in that jurisdiction and is eligible to vote in that jurisdiction, shall be allowed to vote a provisional ballot.
C. If a voter has moved to a new address within the county and has not notified the county recorder of the change of address before the date of an election, the voter shall be permitted allowed to correct the voting records for purposes of voting in future elections at the appropriate polling place for the voter's new address. The voter shall be permitted allowed to vote a provisional ballot. The voter shall present a form of identification that includes the voter's given name and surname and the voter's complete residence address. The residence address must be within the precinct in which the voter is attempting to vote, and the voter shall affirm in writing that the voter is registered in that jurisdiction and is eligible to vote in that jurisdiction.
D. On completion of the ballot, the election official shall place the ballot in a provisional ballot envelope and shall deposit the envelope in the ballot box. Within ten calendar days after a general election that includes an election for a federal office and within five business days after any other election or no not later than the time at which challenged early voting ballots are resolved, the signature shall be compared to the precinct signature roster of the former precinct where the voter was registered. If the voter's name is not signed on the roster and if there is no indication that the voter voted an early ballot, the provisional ballot envelope shall be opened and the ballot shall be counted. If there is information showing the person did vote, the provisional ballot shall remain unopened and shall not be counted. When provisional ballots are confirmed for counting, the county recorder shall use the information supplied on the provisional ballot envelope to correct the address record of the voter.
E. When a voter is allowed to vote a provisional ballot, the elector's name shall be entered on a separate signature roster page at the end of the signature roster. Voters' names shall be numbered consecutively beginning with the number V-1 or noted in the electronic pollbook. The elector shall sign in the space provided. The ballot shall be placed in a separate envelope, the outside of which shall contain the precinct name or number, a sworn or attested statement of the elector that the elector resides in the precinct, is eligible to vote in the election and has not previously voted in the election, the signature of the elector and the voter registration number of the elector, if available. The ballot shall be verified for proper registration of the elector by the county recorder before being counted. The verification shall be made by the county recorder within ten calendar days after a general election that includes an election for a federal office and within five business days following any other election. Verified ballots shall be counted by depositing the ballot in the ballot box the officer in charge of elections and showing shown on the records of the election that the elector has voted. If registration is not verified, the ballot shall remain unopened and shall be retained in the same manner as voted ballots as prescribed by section 16-624, subsection B.
F. For any person who votes a provisional ballot, the county recorder or other officer in charge of elections shall provide for a method of notifying the provisional ballot voter at no cost to the voter whether the voter's ballot was verified and counted and, if not counted, the reason for not counting the ballot. The notification may be in the form of notice by mail to the voter, establishment of a toll free toll-free telephone number, internet access or other similar method to allow the voter to have access to this information. The method of notification shall provide reasonable restrictions that are designed to limit transmittal of the information only to the voter.
Sec. 7. Section 16-624, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-624. Disposition of official returns and ballots
A. After the canvass has been completed, the officer in charge of elections shall deposit the package or envelope containing the tabulated ballots in a secure facility managed by the county treasurer, who shall keep it unopened and unaltered for twenty-four months for elections for a federal office or for six months for all other elections, at which time he the county treasurer shall destroy it without opening or examining the contents.
B. Irregular ballots shall be preserved for six months after the election and the packages containing them may be opened and the contents examined only upon an order of court. At the expiration of such time, the ballots may be disposed of in the discretion of the officer or board having charge of them.
B. After the canvass is completed, the county recorder shall deposit all rejected provisional and early ballots in a secure facility that is managed by the county treasurer as prescribed by subsection A of this section.
C. The officer in charge of elections shall produce the other packages or envelopes before the county board of supervisors when it is in session for the purpose of canvassing the returns.
D. If a recount is ordered or a contest begun within six months, the court may order the county treasurer may be ordered by the court to deliver to it the court the packages or envelopes containing the ballots, and thereupon at which time they shall be in the custody and control of the court.
Sec. 8. Section 45-415, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
45-415. Local initiation for active management area; procedures
A. A groundwater basin that is not included within an initial active management area may be designated an active management area on petition by ten percent of the registered voters residing within the boundaries of the proposed active management area, as of the most recent report compiled by the county recorder in compliance with section 16-168, subsection G, and a subsequent election held pursuant to the general election laws of this state. The form of the petition shall be the same as for initiative petitions, and the applicant for the petition shall comply with section 19-111.
B. On application for a petition number with the clerk of the board of supervisors or county election officer, the director shall transmit a map of the groundwater basin to the county recorder of each county in which the proposed active management area is located. The map shall be on a scale adequate to show with substantial accuracy where the boundaries of the groundwater basin cross the boundaries of county voting precincts. The director shall also transmit to the county recorder all other factual data concerning the boundaries of the groundwater basin that may aid the county recorder in the determination of which registered voters of the county are residents of the groundwater basin.
C. Any registered voter of a county whose residency in the groundwater basin is in question shall be allowed to vote. The ballot shall be placed in a separate envelope, the outside of which shall contain the precinct name and number, the signature of the voter, the residence address of the voter and the voter registration number of the voter, if available. The voter receipt card shall be attached to the envelope. The county recorder shall verify the ballot for proper residency of the voter before counting. Such verification shall be made within five business days following the election, and the voter receipt card shall be returned to the voter. Verified ballots shall be counted using the procedure outlined for counting early ballots. If residency in the groundwater basin is not verified, the ballot shall remain unopened and shall be destroyed created, validated and counted in accordance with title 16, chapter 4, article 8.
D. Except as provided in subsection E of this section, all election expenses incurred pursuant to this section are the responsibility of the county involved.
E. If a groundwater basin is located in two or more counties, the following procedures apply:
1. The petition shall be filed with the clerk of the board of supervisors or county election officer of the county in which the plurality of the registered voters in the groundwater basin resides.
2. The number of registered voters required to sign the petition shall be ten percent of the registered voters residing within the boundaries of the proposed active management area, as of the most recent report compiled by the county recorder in compliance with section 16-168, subsection G, within the county in which the plurality of the registered voters in the groundwater basin resides.
3. The election shall be called by the board of supervisors of the county in which the petition is filed, and the board shall immediately notify the board of supervisors of any other county included in the groundwater basin of the date of the election. The election shall be held not less than sixty days or more than ninety days from the date of the call. The board of supervisors so notified shall then call the election in that county for the same date and follow the procedures for conducting the general elections in this state.
4. All election expenses incurred pursuant to this subsection are the responsibilities of the counties involved on a proportional basis considering the number of registered voters of each county that are residents of the groundwater basin.
F. The ballot shall be worded, "should the (insert name of basin) groundwater basin be designated an active management area?" followed by the words "yes" and "no".
