Bill Text: IL HB2555 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Creates the Illinois Election Integrity Act. Amends the Election Code. Requires that each election authority (i) conduct an election day audit of a random sample of 10% of votes cast and (ii) provide by contract or employment for the performance by one or more independent auditors of post-election parallel tabulations and audits. Provides for the scope of the audits and the resulting reports. Requires that optical scan technology and direct recording electronic voting systems meet certain federal and independent testing standards. Creates a voluntary tax checkoff for the Fund. With respect to early voting, requires that an election authority using only direct recording electronic voting systems have paper ballots available for voters wishing to use them. Amends the State Finance Act. Creates the Election Integrity Fund as a special fund in the State treasury.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-02-15 - Referred to Rules Committee [HB2555 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB2555-Introduced.html


103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB2555

Introduced , by Rep. Suzanne M. Ness

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
See Index

Creates the Illinois Election Integrity Act. Amends the Election Code. Requires that each election authority (i) conduct an election day audit of a random sample of 10% of votes cast and (ii) provide by contract or employment for the performance by one or more independent auditors of post-election parallel tabulations and audits. Provides for the scope of the audits and the resulting reports. Requires that optical scan technology and direct recording electronic voting systems meet certain federal and independent testing standards. Creates a voluntary tax checkoff for the Fund. With respect to early voting, requires that an election authority using only direct recording electronic voting systems have paper ballots available for voters wishing to use them. Amends the State Finance Act. Creates the Election Integrity Fund as a special fund in the State treasury.
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A BILL FOR

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1 AN ACT concerning elections.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be referred to as the
5Illinois Election Integrity Act.
6 Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing
7Sections 19A-75, 24B-2, 24B-16, 24C-2, 24C-9, and 24C-16 and
8by adding Article 17A as follows:
9 (10 ILCS 5/19A-75)
10 Sec. 19A-75. Early voting in jurisdictions using Direct
11Recording Electronic Voting Systems under Article 24C.
12Election authorities that have adopted for use Direct
13Recording Electronic Voting Systems under Article 24C may (i)
14either use those voting systems to conduct early voting,
15provided that each early voting polling place shall have
16available sufficient paper ballots for those voters who
17request them, consistent with the limitations set forth in
18subsection (b) of Section 19A-10, or (ii) , so long as at least
19one Direct Recording Electronic Voting System device is
20available at each early voting polling place, use whatever
21method the election authority uses for vote by mail balloting;
22provided that no early ballots are counted before the polls

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1close on election day.
2(Source: P.A. 98-1171, eff. 6-1-15.)
3 (10 ILCS 5/Art. 17A heading new)
4
ARTICLE 17A. AUDITS
5 (10 ILCS 5/17A-5 new)
6 Sec. 17A-5. Election day audit. There shall be conducted
7a 10% election day audit of all votes cast for each designated
8race or proposition on election day.
9 (10 ILCS 5/17A-10 new)
10 Sec. 17A-10. Scope of the audit. The 10% audit shall be
11conducted for all races or propositions that meet the
12following criteria:
13 (1) all statewide offices and propositions;
14 (2) all countywide offices and propositions;
15 (3) all federal races; and
16 (4) any municipal or other political sub-division or
17 taxing entity races where the number of registered voters
18 eligible to vote on that race or proposition exceeds
19 50,000 voters.
20 (10 ILCS 5/17A-15 new)
21 Sec. 17A-15. Time and place of the audit. The 10% audits
22shall take place on election day as soon as practicable after

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1the close of the polls and shall take place at the location
2where votes are originally counted (in-precinct for all votes
3cast on election day and at the central counting location for
4early voting, grace, and absentee ballots), provided that the
510% hand count shall be subordinate to and not interfere with
6the reporting of election results.
7 (10 ILCS 5/17A-20 new)
8 Sec. 17A-20. Conduct. The election day audit shall be
9conducted by election judges selected and appointed in the
10same manner as set forth in Sections 13-1, 13-2, 14-1, 14-2,
11and 14-3 of this Code. Election authorities may implement the
12appointment of part-time judges, job-sharing, split shifts, or
13other methods of allocating election judge resources to ensure
14that sufficient judges are available to conduct the election
15day audits in a timely and efficient manner.
16 (10 ILCS 5/17A-25 new)
17 Sec. 17A-25. Random selection of ballots to be examined.
18 (a) The election authority shall provide to each polling
19place, precinct, or central counting location as appropriate
20one set of 10 plastic disks, each imprinted on one or both
21sides with a number from 1 to 10. Each disk shall have one such
22number imprinted, with the same number on each side, and no 2
23disks shall have the same number. In addition, a suitable
24opaque container shall be provided sufficient to contain the

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1set.
2 (b) After the close of the polls and prior to the
3commencement of the election day audit, the election judges
4present shall select one of their number to place the numbered
5disk in the container and shake the container sufficiently so
6that the disks shall be in random order. The judges shall
7select another of their number to select one such disk from the
8container in such a manner that the selecting judge has no
9knowledge of which disk he or she is selecting. The disk drawn
10from the container shall be examined and the number of the disk
11chosen publicly announced. That result shall indicate which
12ballots are to be examined, e.g. a result of 7 shall require
13that the seventh and every tenth ballot thereafter be examined
14(7, 17, 27, etc.). The result of the drawing shall be recorded
15on the summary report section set forth in Section 17A-35.
16 (10 ILCS 5/17A-30 new)
17 Sec. 17A-30. Ballots or paper records to be examined.
18 (a) The election authority shall provide to each polling
19place, precinct, or central counting location as appropriate
20one self-inked consecutive numbering stamp capable of
21numbering from 1 to 999,999.
22 (b) All paper ballots shall be placed in a single stack in
23a random order as retrieved from the ballot boxes and each
24ballot shall be stamped with a consecutive number, starting
25with the number 1 until all ballots have been numbered.

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1 (c) The starting number and tenth ballot thereafter shall
2be examined in accordance with the selection number resulting
3from the operation of Section 17A-25.
4 (d) For paper records printed by Direct Recording
5Electronic voting machines, the paper records shall be
6examined in the order printed on the Direct Recording
7Electronic-produced paper records selecting each starting and
8tenth paper record thereafter in accordance with the selection
9number resulting from the operation of Section 17A-25.
10 (e) For paper records printed by Direct Recording
11Electronic voting machines, only the human-readable portion of
12the paper record shall be used in the election day audit. The
13use of bar codes or other human unreadable records of votes
14shall not be permitted.
15 (10 ILCS 5/17A-35 new)
16 Sec. 17A-35. Reports.
17 (a) Prior to election day, the appropriate election
18authority shall cause to be created and printed an audit
19summary form that shall state the races and propositions to be
20audited in accordance with Section 17A-10 and shall have
21pre-printed spaces, boxes, or both in which the results of the
22election day audit shall be recorded. This form shall also
23include a reconciliation of all ballots counted by category,
24such as provisional, federal only, standard, etc., and shall
25be provided in sufficient number to all auditing locations to

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1facilitate the required distribution.
2 (b) Upon completion of the audit, 6 copies of the election
3day audit summary shall be signed by all the judges
4participating in the election day audit and shall be
5distributed as follows:
6 (1) One copy shall be posted in the polling or
7 counting location in a manner that the election day audit
8 summary is clearly visible and available for public
9 inspection for a period of not less than one hour.
10 (2) Two copies shall be placed in the ballot box or
11 designated envelope or envelopes and transported to the
12 election authority in the same manner as ballots.
13 (3) Three copies shall be made available on request to
14 pollwatchers or members of the public in that order of
15 preference.
16 (4) Pollwatchers and other observers in the polls may
17 take photographs of the posted copies without restriction.
18 (c) The audit reports from all in-precinct and central
19counting locations shall be received by the election authority
20and a consolidated report shall be prepared. The consolidated
21reports shall be published by the election authority within 24
22hours after the closing of the polls, and the authorities
23shall certify the election day audit results and maintain both
24consolidated and individual location reports in the same
25manner and for the same period of time as ballots, except that
26copies of consolidated and individual location reports shall

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1be available to the public upon request. If that election
2authority maintains a public website, then the copies shall
3also be made freely available to the public via the Internet
4for a period of not less than 60 days.
5 (d) The certified consolidated and individual location
6reports shall be deemed admissible as evidence to the extent
7permitted by law in any action for discovery or other recount.
8 (10 ILCS 5/17A-40 new)
9 Sec. 17A-40. Parallel, independent audits. There shall be
10conducted an independent parallel tabulation and audit for
11each race or proposition in every election.
12 (10 ILCS 5/17A-45 new)
13 Sec. 17A-45. Authority. Each election authority shall be
14empowered on behalf of all voters in that jurisdiction to
15contract for, employ, or both contract for and employ one or
16more independent auditors to conduct a parallel count and
17tabulation of the results of every election conducted by the
18election authority for every race and proposition in the
19election.
20 (10 ILCS 5/17A-50 new)
21 Sec. 17A-50. Independent election audit committee. Each
22election authority shall cause to be constituted an
23independent election audit committee of not less than 5

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1members, that shall have as its primary duties: (1) the
2preparation of a request for proposal for the parallel
3election tabulation and audit and (2) the selection of the
4independent auditor or auditors to perform such audit.
5 (10 ILCS 5/17A-55 new)
6 Sec. 17A-55. Time of convening. The election audit
7committee for each jurisdiction shall convene at least 120
8days prior to election day and meet thereafter as often as
9shall be deemed necessary and proper by its membership.
10 (10 ILCS 5/17A-60 new)
11 Sec. 17A-60. Committee composition. The election audit
12committee shall consist of the following members:
13 (1) One member appointed by each political party that
14 shall have had a candidate for jurisdiction-wide public
15 office in that jurisdiction on the ballot for the previous
16 general election, provided that the party shall have had
17 at least one candidate who received 10% of the ballots
18 cast in that election.
19 (2) Two members appointed by the election authority
20 for the jurisdiction.
21 (3) One election judge from each of the political
22 parties qualifying under paragraph (1) who has served as
23 an election judge in the most recent election conducted in
24 that jurisdiction and at least 2 previous elections. The

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1 election judge members shall be selected by lot from among
2 the pool of available judges from the most recent election
3 conducted in that jurisdiction.
4 (10 ILCS 5/17A-65 new)
5 Sec. 17A-65. Request for proposal. Each election authority
6shall issue a request for proposal for a parallel election
7tabulation and audit as prepared by the independent election
8audit committee not less than 90 days before election day. The
9proposals shall be examined and reviewed by the election audit
10committee, and the election authority (or other governmental
11body with appropriation and contracting authority for the
12jurisdiction) shall award the contract for the audit not less
13than 45 days before each election.
14 (10 ILCS 5/17A-70 new)
15 Sec. 17A-70. Funding. The public accounting firm
16conducting the parallel election tabulation and audit shall be
17paid from public funds appropriated by each election
18jurisdiction and designated for that purposes.
19 (10 ILCS 5/17A-75 new)
20 Sec. 17A-75. Contractor qualifications. To qualify to
21submit a proposal, a potential parallel election tabulation
22and audit contractor shall include in its response to the
23request for proposal:

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1 (1) Evidence that it is a public accounting firm
2 licensed by the State of Illinois to perform financial
3 audits.
4 (2) Provide evidence that upon awarding of a contract
5 to conduct the parallel election tabulation, the firm can
6 post a performance bond equal to $1 for every registered
7 voter in that jurisdiction.
8 (3) An agreement to submit a response to the request
9 for proposal that shall limit the aggregate amount to be
10 paid the contractor to not more than (i) $75 per precinct
11 audited, (ii) $0.075 per ballot or paper record counted
12 and tallied at central counting locations, or (iii) both
13 (i) and (ii).
14 (4) A statement of performance secured by the
15 performance bond in item (2) that above the parallel
16 election tabulation and audit shall be completed and
17 public reports submitted within the time limitations set
18 forth in Section 17A-85.
19 (10 ILCS 5/17A-80 new)
20 Sec. 17A-80. Award. The public accounting firm awarded the
21contract shall be granted access to any and all records of the
22election, including, but not limited to, paper ballots,
23portable computer memory devices from Direct Recording
24Electronics, scanning devices, central count devices, paper
25records, ballot generating software, counting and tabulation

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1software, computer logs and error reports of all voting
2machines and central tabulation devices, servers,
3communications protocols, databases of all types including
4registration databases, pollwatcher and election judge logs
5and reports, and any other records deemed relevant to the
6conduct of the election as the auditing entity shall deem
7necessary and reasonable for the conduct of the parallel
8election tabulation and audit.
9 (10 ILCS 5/17A-85 new)
10 Sec. 17A-85. Reports.
11 (a) The public accounting firm shall produce an initial
12results report within 72 hours after the close of the polls
13that shall examine and comment on at least, but not limited to,
14the following:
15 (1) Whether proper procedures were used in the
16 compilation and tabulation of the 10% election day audit.
17 (2) Whether each voter's choices were accurately
18 summarized in the precinct or central count tallying.
19 (3) To the extent possible to determine from the
20 records available, that the central tabulation procedures,
21 equipment, and software functioned correctly and that the
22 totals reflected in the internal and public tabulation of
23 votes was consistent and accurate.
24 The auditing entity shall certify, with any exceptions
25noted thereto, the tabulated results of each race or

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1proposition of the election as being accurate to the extent
2that the winner of each race or the prevailing result for each
3proposition is correct. For each and every race for which the
4auditing entity is unable to certify, it shall state the
5reasons therefore, citing specific circumstances as to why it
6is unable to certify the outcome.
7 (b) The public accounting firm shall produce an
8operational report within 21 days after the close of the polls
9that shall examine and comment on at least, but not limited to,
10the following:
11 (1) Pre-election preparation including the compiling
12 and production of registration and eligible voter lists,
13 including printed ballot applications and voter records in
14 electronic poll books, and candidate, voter, and poll
15 worker accessible records of eligibility.
16 (2) Proper compiling and production of ballots, both
17 paper and electronic, as to completeness and accuracy for
18 each ballot style produced.
19 (3) Adequacy and completeness of training manuals,
20 election judge's manuals, voter instruction materials, and
21 other internal and public documents related to the
22 election.
23 (4) The election process during the time the polls
24 were open, including reports of machine failures, election
25 problems of all varieties, poll workers and pollwatchers,
26 reports in order to determine and express an opinion of

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1 the efficacy of the election process and to determine to
2 the extent possible that:
3 (A) All eligible voters were given an opportunity
4 to vote.
5 (B) Each voter received a proper and complete
6 ballot.
7 (C) Each voter's choices were properly recorded by
8 the electronic or mechanical machines used in the
9 voting process.
10 (b-5) The auditors of the parallel election tabulation
11shall examine the processes used after the polls closed to
12determine, to the extent possible from the records available,
13if:
14 (1) All election materials were properly secured and
15 that a complete and unbroken chain of custody exists for
16 all election materials.
17 (2) In the case where election authorities gather
18 election results through electronic transmission, either
19 through land lines or wireless networks, the transmissions
20 were secure, reliable, and accurate.
21 (c) The auditing entity shall produce a report that
22adequately describes all problems associated with the election
23process and to the extent possible the causes of those
24problems.
25 (d) To the extent possible within the time constraints
26imposed by the 21-day requirement, the auditing entity shall

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1include in its report recommendations for modifications to
2procedures, equipment, or software that would eliminate
3problems or improve the efficiency and accuracy of the process
4in whatever stage examined or reported.
5 (10 ILCS 5/17A-90 new)
6 Sec. 17A-90. Availability and ownership of parallel
7election tabulation and audit reports.
8 (a) The report of the auditing entity shall be public
9property, in the public domain, and available to anyone upon
10request and payment of a reasonable fee, subject to the
11provisions of the Freedom of Information Act.
12 (b) If the election authority contracting for the parallel
13election tabulation and audit report maintains a website, the
14Report shall be posted on the publicly accessible portion of
15the website in an appropriate format for downloading and
16printing by the public.
17 (10 ILCS 5/17A-95 new)
18 Sec. 17A-95. Legal effect. The parallel election
19tabulation and audit reports shall be deemed admissible as
20evidence to the extent permitted by law in any action for
21discovery or other recount.
22 (10 ILCS 5/17A-100 new)
23 Sec. 17A-100. Illinois Election Integrity Fund. The

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1Illinois Election Integrity Fund is created as a special fund
2in the State treasury. All voluntary citizen contributions
3shall be deposited into the Fund. All moneys deposited into
4the Fund shall be used by the Illinois Board of Elections to
5administer this Fund and to use Fund proceeds for all required
6election audits. Approximately $2,000,000 in funding shall be
7required for the first election cycle covered under this Act.
8The Department must print on its standard individual income
9tax form a provision indicating that if the taxpayer wishes to
10contribute to the Election Integrity Fund, he or she may do so
11by stating the amount of the contribution on the return and
12that the contribution will reduce the taxpayer's refund or
13increase the amount of payment to accompany the return.
14Failure to remit any amount of increase payment shall reduce
15the contribution accordingly. This Section does not apply to
16any amended return. All proceeds from voluntary taxpayer
17checkoffs shall provide additional funding to cover the
18administration of this Act and the costs of required election
19audits.
20 (10 ILCS 5/24B-2)
21 Sec. 24B-2. Definitions. As used in this Article:
22 "Approved independent testing authority" means an
23independent laboratory or authority certified by the federal
24Election Assistance Commission.
25 "Computer", "automatic tabulating equipment" or

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1"equipment" includes apparatus necessary to automatically
2examine and count votes as designated on ballots, and data
3processing machines which can be used for counting ballots and
4tabulating results.
5 "Ballot" means paper ballot sheets.
6 "Ballot configuration" means the particular combination of
7political subdivision ballots including, for each political
8subdivision, the particular combination of offices, candidate
9names and questions as it appears for each group of voters who
10may cast the same ballot.
11 "Ballot sheet" means a paper ballot printed on one or both
12sides which is (1) designed and prepared so that the voter may
13indicate his or her votes in designated areas, which must be
14areas clearly printed or otherwise delineated for such
15purpose, and (2) capable of having votes marked in the
16designated areas automatically examined, counted, and
17tabulated by an electronic scanning process.
18 "Central counting" means the counting of ballots in one or
19more locations selected by the election authority for the
20processing or counting, or both, of ballots. A location for
21central counting shall be within the territorial jurisdiction
22of the election authority unless there is no suitable
23tabulating equipment available within his territorial
24jurisdiction. However, in any event a counting location shall
25be within this State.
26 "Computer operator" means any person or persons designated

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1by the election authority to operate the automatic tabulating
2equipment during any portion of the vote tallying process in
3an election, but shall not include judges of election
4operating vote tabulating equipment in the precinct.
5 "Computer program" or "program" means the set of operating
6instructions for the automatic tabulating equipment that
7examines, counts, tabulates, canvasses and prints votes
8recorded by a voter on a ballot.
9 "Edit listing" means a computer generated listing of the
10names of each candidate and proposition as they appear in the
11program for each precinct.
12 "Header sheet" means a data processing document which is
13coded to indicate to the computer the precinct identity of the
14ballots that will follow immediately and may indicate to the
15computer how such ballots are to be tabulated.
16 "In-precinct counting" means the counting of ballots on
17automatic tabulating equipment provided by the election
18authority in the same precinct polling place in which those
19ballots have been cast.
20 "Marking device" means a pen, computer, or other device
21approved by the State Board of Elections for marking, or
22causing to be marked, a paper ballot with ink or other
23substance which will enable the ballot to be tabulated by
24automatic tabulating equipment or by an electronic scanning
25process.
26 "Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan Technology" means the

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1capability to examine a ballot through electronic means and
2tabulate the votes at one or more counting places.
3 "Redundant count" means a verification of the original
4computer count by another count using compatible equipment or
5by hand as part of a discovery recount.
6 "Security designation" means a printed designation placed
7on a ballot to identify to the computer program the offices and
8propositions for which votes may be cast and to indicate the
9manner in which votes cast should be tabulated while negating
10any inadmissible votes.
11 "Separate ballot", with respect to ballot sheets, means a
12separate portion of the ballot sheet which is clearly defined
13by a border or borders or shading.
14 "Specimen ballot" means a representation of names of
15offices and candidates and statements of measures to be voted
16on which will appear on the official ballot or marking device
17on election day. The specimen ballot also contains the party
18and position number where applicable.
19 "Voting defect identification" means the capability to
20detect overvoted ballots or ballots which cannot be read by
21the automatic tabulating equipment.
22 "Voting defects" means an overvoted ballot, or a ballot
23which cannot be read by the automatic tabulating equipment.
24 "Voting system" or "electronic voting system" means that
25combination of equipment and programs used in the casting,
26examination and tabulation of ballots and the cumulation and

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1reporting of results by electronic means.
2(Source: P.A. 93-574, eff. 8-21-03.)
3 (10 ILCS 5/24B-16)
4 Sec. 24B-16. Approval of Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan
5Technology Voting Systems; Requisites. The State Board of
6Elections shall approve all Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan
7Technology voting systems provided by this Article that
8fulfill the voluntary provisions and mandatory requirements of
9the federal voting system standards pertaining to Precinct
10Tabulation Optical Scan Technology voting systems promulgated
11by the Federal Election Commission or the Election Assistance
12Commission and that fulfill the testing requirements of an
13approved independent testing authority.
14 No Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan Technology voting
15system shall be approved unless it has been certified by the
16Federal Election Commission or the Election Assistance
17Commission and fulfills the following requirements:
18 (a) It enables a voter to vote in absolute secrecy;
19 (b) (Blank);
20 (c) It enables a voter to vote a ticket selected in
21 part from the nominees of one party, and in part from the
22 nominees of any or all parties, and in part from
23 independent candidates, and in part of candidates whose
24 names are written in by the voter;
25 (d) It enables a voter to vote a written or printed

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1 ticket of his or her own selection for any person for any
2 office for whom he or she may desire to vote;
3 (e) It will reject all votes for an office or upon a
4 proposition when the voter has cast more votes for the
5 office or upon the proposition than he or she is entitled
6 to cast;
7 (e-5) It will identify when a voter has not voted for
8 all statewide constitutional offices; and
9 (f) It will accommodate all propositions to be
10 submitted to the voters in the form provided by law or,
11 where no form is provided, then in brief form, not to
12 exceed 75 words.
13 The State Board of Elections shall not approve any voting
14equipment or system that includes an external Infrared Data
15Association (IrDA) communications port.
16 The State Board of Elections is authorized to withdraw its
17approval of a Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan Technology
18voting system if the system fails to fulfill the above
19requirements.
20 The vendor, person, or other private entity shall be
21solely responsible for the production and cost of: all
22application fees; all ballots; additional temporary workers;
23and other equipment or facilities needed and used in the
24testing of the vendor's, person's, or other private entity's
25respective equipment and software.
26 Any voting system vendor, person, or other private entity

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1seeking the State Board of Elections' approval of a voting
2system shall, as part of the approval application, submit to
3the State Board a non-refundable fee. The State Board of
4Elections by rule shall establish an appropriate fee
5structure, taking into account the type of voting system
6approval that is requested (such as approval of a new system, a
7modification of an existing system, the size of the
8modification, etc.). No voting system or modification of a
9voting system shall be approved unless the fee is paid.
10 No vendor, person, or other entity may sell, lease, or
11loan, or have a written contract, including a contract
12contingent upon State Board approval of the voting system or
13voting system component, to sell, lease, or loan, a voting
14system or Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan Technology voting
15system component to any election jurisdiction unless the
16voting system or voting system component is first approved by
17the State Board of Elections pursuant to this Section.
18(Source: P.A. 94-1000, eff. 7-3-06; 95-699, eff. 11-9-07.)
19 (10 ILCS 5/24C-2)
20 Sec. 24C-2. Definitions. As used in this Article:
21 "Approved independent testing authority" means an
22independent laboratory or authority certified by the federal
23Election Assistance Commission.
24 "Audit trail" or "audit capacity" means a continuous trail
25of evidence linking individual transactions related to the

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1casting of a vote, the vote count and the summary record of
2vote totals, but which shall not allow for the identification
3of the voter. It shall permit verification of the accuracy of
4the count and detection and correction of problems and shall
5provide a record of each step taken in: defining and producing
6ballots and generating related software for specific
7elections; installing ballots and software; testing system
8readiness; casting and tabulating ballots; and producing
9images of votes cast and reports of vote totals. The record
10shall incorporate system status and error messages generated
11during election processing, including a log of machine
12activities and routine and unusual intervention by authorized
13and unauthorized individuals. Also part of an audit trail is
14the documentation of such items as ballots delivered and
15collected, administrative procedures for system security,
16pre-election testing of voting systems, and maintenance
17performed on voting equipment. All test plans, test results,
18documentation, and other records used to plan, execute, and
19record the results of the testing and verification, including
20all material prepared or used by independent testing
21authorities or other third parties, shall be made part of the
22public record and shall be freely available via the Internet
23and paper copy to anyone. "Audit trail" or "audit capacity"
24also means that the voting system is capable of producing and
25shall produce immediately after a ballot is cast a permanent
26paper record of each ballot cast that shall be available as an

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1official record for any recount, redundant count, or
2verification or retabulation of the vote count conducted with
3respect to any election in which the voting system is used.
4 "Ballot" means an electronic audio or video display or any
5other medium, including paper, used to record a voter's
6choices for the candidates of their preference and for or
7against public questions.
8 "Ballot configuration" means the particular combination of
9political subdivision or district ballots including, for each
10political subdivision or district, the particular combination
11of offices, candidate names and public questions as it appears
12for each group of voters who may cast the same ballot.
13 "Ballot image" means a corresponding representation in
14electronic or paper form of the mark or vote position of a
15ballot.
16 "Ballot label" or "ballot screen" means the display of
17material containing the names of offices and candidates and
18public questions to be voted on.
19 "Central counting" means the counting of ballots in one or
20more locations selected by the election authority for the
21processing or counting, or both, of ballots. A location for
22central counting shall be within the territorial jurisdiction
23of the election authority unless there is no suitable
24tabulating equipment available within his territorial
25jurisdiction. However, in any event a counting location shall
26be within this State.

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1 "Computer", "automatic tabulating equipment" or
2"equipment" includes apparatus necessary to automatically
3examine and count votes as designated on ballots, and data
4processing machines which can be used for counting ballots and
5tabulating results.
6 "Computer operator" means any person or persons designated
7by the election authority to operate the automatic tabulating
8equipment during any portion of the vote tallying process in
9an election, but shall not include judges of election
10operating vote tabulating equipment in the precinct.
11 "Computer program" or "program" means the set of operating
12instructions for the automatic tabulating equipment that
13examines, records, displays, counts, tabulates, canvasses, or
14prints votes recorded by a voter on a ballot or that displays
15any and all information, graphics, or other visual or audio
16information or images used in presenting voting information,
17instructions, or voter choices.
18 "Direct recording electronic voting system", "voting
19system" or "system" means the total combination of mechanical,
20electromechanical or electronic equipment, programs and
21practices used to define ballots, cast and count votes, report
22or display election results, maintain or produce any audit
23trail information, identify all system components, test the
24system during development, maintenance and operation, maintain
25records of system errors and defects, determine specific
26system changes to be made to a system after initial

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1qualification, and make available any materials to the voter
2such as notices, instructions, forms or paper ballots.
3 "Edit listing" means a computer generated listing of the
4names of each candidate and public question as they appear in
5the program for each precinct.
6 "In-precinct counting" means the recording and counting of
7ballots on automatic tabulating equipment provided by the
8election authority in the same precinct polling place in which
9those ballots have been cast.
10 "Marking device" means any device approved by the State
11Board of Elections for marking a ballot so as to enable the
12ballot to be recorded, counted and tabulated by automatic
13tabulating equipment.
14 "Permanent paper record" means a paper record upon which
15shall be printed in human readable form the votes cast for each
16candidate and for or against each public question on each
17ballot recorded in the voting system. Each permanent paper
18record shall be printed by the voting device upon activation
19of the marking device by the voter and shall contain a unique,
20randomly assigned identifying number that shall correspond to
21the number randomly assigned by the voting system to each
22ballot as it is electronically recorded.
23 "Redundant count" means a verification of the original
24computer count of ballots by another count using compatible
25equipment or other means as part of a discovery recount,
26including a count of the permanent paper record of each ballot

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1cast by using compatible equipment, different equipment
2approved by the State Board of Elections for that purpose, or
3by hand.
4 "Separate ballot" means a separate page or display screen
5of the ballot that is clearly defined and distinguishable from
6other portions of the ballot.
7 "Voting device" or "voting machine" means an apparatus
8that contains the ballot label or ballot screen and allows the
9voter to record his or her vote.
10(Source: P.A. 93-574, eff. 8-21-03; 94-645, eff. 8-22-05.)
11 (10 ILCS 5/24C-9)
12 Sec. 24C-9. Testing of Direct Recording Electronic Voting
13System Equipment and Programs; Custody of Programs, Test
14Materials and Ballots. Prior to the public test, the election
15authority shall conduct an errorless pre-test of the Direct
16Recording Electronic Voting System equipment and programs to
17determine that they will correctly detect voting defects and
18count the votes cast for all offices and all public questions.
19On any day not less than 5 days prior to use in an the election
20day, the election authority shall publicly test the Direct
21Recording Electronic Voting System equipment and programs to
22determine that they will correctly detect voting errors and
23accurately count the votes legally cast for all offices and on
24all public questions. Public notice of the time and place of
25the test shall be given at least 48 hours before the test by

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1publishing the notice in one or more newspapers within the
2election jurisdiction of the election authority, if a
3newspaper is published in that jurisdiction. If a newspaper is
4not published in that jurisdiction, notice shall be published
5in a newspaper of general circulation in that jurisdiction.
6Timely written notice stating the date, time, and location of
7the public test shall also be provided to the State Board of
8Elections. The test shall be open to representatives of the
9political parties, the press, representatives of the State
10Board of Elections, and the public. The test shall be
11conducted by entering a pre- audited group of votes designed
12to record a predetermined number of valid votes for each
13candidate and on each public question, and shall include for
14each office one or more ballots having votes exceeding the
15number allowed by law to test the ability of the automatic
16tabulating equipment to reject the votes. The test shall also
17include producing an edit listing. In those election
18jurisdictions where in-precinct counting equipment is used, a
19public test of both the equipment and program shall be
20conducted as nearly as possible in the manner prescribed
21above. The State Board of Elections may select as many
22election jurisdictions as the Board deems advisable in the
23interests of the election process of this State, to order a
24special test of the automatic tabulating equipment and program
25before any regular election. The Board may order a special
26test in any election jurisdiction where, during the preceding

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112 months, computer programming errors or other errors in the
2use of System resulted in vote tabulation errors. Not less
3than 30 days before any election, the State Board of Elections
4shall provide written notice to those selected jurisdictions
5of their intent to conduct a test. Within 5 days of receipt of
6the State Board of Elections' written notice of intent to
7conduct a test, the selected jurisdictions shall forward to
8the principal office of the State Board of Elections a copy of
9all specimen ballots. The State Board of Elections' tests
10shall be conducted and completed not less than 2 days before
11the public test and under the supervision of the Board. The
12vendor, person, or other private entity shall be solely
13responsible for the production and cost of: all ballots;
14additional temporary workers; and other equipment or
15facilities needed and used in the testing of the vendor's,
16person's, or other private entity's respective equipment and
17software. After an errorless test, materials used in the
18public test, including the program, if appropriate, shall be
19sealed and remain sealed until the test is run again on
20election day. If any error is detected, the cause of the error
21shall be determined and corrected, and an errorless public
22test shall be made before the automatic tabulating equipment
23is approved. Each election authority shall file a sealed copy
24of each tested program to be used within its jurisdiction at an
25election with the State Board of Elections before the
26election. The Board shall secure the program or programs of

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1each election jurisdiction so filed in its office until the
2next election of the same type (general primary, general
3election, consolidated primary, or consolidated election) for
4which the program or programs were filed. At the expiration of
5that time, if no election contest or appeal is pending in an
6election jurisdiction, the Board shall destroy the sealed
7program or programs. Except where in-precinct counting
8equipment is used, the test shall be repeated immediately
9before the start of the official counting of the ballots, in
10the same manner as set forth above. After the completion of the
11count, the test shall be re-run using the same program.
12Immediately after the re-run, all material used in testing the
13program and the programs shall be sealed and retained under
14the custody of the election authority for a period of 60 days.
15At the expiration of that time the election authority shall
16destroy the voted ballots, together with all unused ballots
17returned from the precincts. Provided, if any contest of
18election is pending at the time in which the ballots may be
19required as evidence and the election authority has notice of
20the contest, the same shall not be destroyed until after the
21contest is finally determined. If the use of back-up equipment
22becomes necessary, the same testing required for the original
23equipment shall be conducted.
24(Source: P.A. 93-574, eff. 8-21-03; 94-1000, eff. 7-3-06.)
25 (10 ILCS 5/24C-16)

HB2555- 30 -LRB103 30254 BMS 56682 b
1 Sec. 24C-16. Approval of Direct Recording Electronic
2Voting Systems; Requisites. The State Board of Elections
3shall approve all Direct Recording Electronic Voting Systems
4that fulfill the functional requirements provided by Section
524C-11 of this Code, voluntary provisions and the mandatory
6requirements of the federal voting system standards pertaining
7to Direct Recording Electronic Voting Systems promulgated by
8the Federal Election Commission or the Election Assistance
9Commission, the testing requirements of an approved
10independent testing authority and the rules of the State Board
11of Elections.
12 The State Board of Elections shall not approve any Direct
13Recording Electronic Voting System that (i) has not been
14certified by the Federal Election Commission or the Election
15Assistance Commission or (ii) includes an external Infrared
16Data Association (IrDA) communications port.
17 The State Board of Elections is authorized to withdraw its
18approval of a Direct Recording Electronic Voting System if the
19System, once approved, fails to fulfill the above
20requirements.
21 The vendor, person, or other private entity shall be
22solely responsible for the production and cost of: all
23application fees; all ballots; additional temporary workers;
24and other equipment or facilities needed and used in the
25testing of the vendor's, person's, or other private entity's
26respective equipment and software.

HB2555- 31 -LRB103 30254 BMS 56682 b
1 Any voting system vendor, person, or other private entity
2seeking the State Board of Elections' approval of a voting
3system shall, as part of the approval application, submit to
4the State Board a non-refundable fee. The State Board of
5Elections by rule shall establish an appropriate fee
6structure, taking into account the type of voting system
7approval that is requested (such as approval of a new system, a
8modification of an existing system, the size of the
9modification, etc.). No voting system or modification of a
10voting system shall be approved unless the fee is paid.
11 No vendor, person, or other entity may sell, lease, or
12loan, or have a written contract, including a contract
13contingent upon State Board approval of the voting system or
14voting system component, to sell, lease, or loan, a Direct
15Recording Electronic Voting System or system component to any
16election jurisdiction unless the system or system component is
17first approved by the State Board of Elections pursuant to
18this Section.
19(Source: P.A. 94-1000, eff. 7-3-06; 95-699, eff. 11-9-07.)
20 Section 10. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
21Section 5.990 as follows:
22 (30 ILCS 105/5.990 new)
23 Sec. 5.990. The Election Integrity Fund.

HB2555- 32 -LRB103 30254 BMS 56682 b
1 INDEX
2 Statutes amended in order of appearance
3 10 ILCS 5/19A-75
4 10 ILCS 5/Art. 17A heading
5 new
6 10 ILCS 5/17A-5 new
7 10 ILCS 5/17A-10 new
8 10 ILCS 5/17A-15 new
9 10 ILCS 5/17A-20 new
10 10 ILCS 5/17A-25 new
11 10 ILCS 5/17A-30 new
12 10 ILCS 5/17A-35 new
13 10 ILCS 5/17A-40 new
14 10 ILCS 5/17A-45 new
15 10 ILCS 5/17A-50 new
16 10 ILCS 5/17A-55 new
17 10 ILCS 5/17A-60 new
18 10 ILCS 5/17A-65 new
19 10 ILCS 5/17A-70 new
20 10 ILCS 5/17A-75 new
21 10 ILCS 5/17A-80 new
22 10 ILCS 5/17A-85 new
23 10 ILCS 5/17A-90 new
24 10 ILCS 5/17A-95 new
25 10 ILCS 5/17A-100 new

HB2555- 33 -LRB103 30254 BMS 56682 b