(a) "Ballot" means a paper ballot on which candidates' names or questions are printed and which is designed to receive opaque marks which can be detected by optical scanning equipment and which is capable of being counted manually.
(b) "Optical scanning equipment" means apparatus designed to examine and detect opaque marks on ballots which represent votes and count and tabulate those votes by electronic methods.
(c) "System" means an optical scanning system of automatically counting and tabulating ballots with optical scanning equipment.
(d) "Precinct count voting system" means an optical scanning voting system that tabulates ballots at the polling place.
(e) "Central count voting system" means an optical scanning voting system that tabulates ballots from multiple precincts at a central location. Voted ballots are placed into secure storage at the polling place and transported to a central counting location.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 1; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 24; July 1.
(b) The board of county commissioners of any county in which the board and county election officer have determined that a system using optical scanning equipment shall be used may issue bonds, without an election, to finance and pay for purchase, lease or rental of such a system and optical scanning equipment.
(c) The board of county commissioners and the county election officer of any county may adopt, experiment with or abandon any system using optical scanning equipment authorized under this act and approved by the secretary of state for use in the state and may use such a system in all or any part of the voting areas within the county or in combination with an electronic or electromechanical voting system or with regular paper ballots. Whenever the secretary of state rescinds approval of any such system or optical scanning equipment, the board of county commissioners and the county election officer shall abandon such system until changes therein required by the secretary of state have been made, or if the secretary of state advises that acceptable changes cannot be made therein, such abandonment shall be permanent.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 2; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 25; July 1.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 3; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 26; July 1.
(b) The secretary of state may require a review of any theretofore approved system using optical scanning equipment and the operation thereof. Such review shall be commenced by the secretary of state giving written notice to the person, firm or corporation which sought approval of the system and to each county election officer and county commissioner of counties known to have purchased, leased or rented any such system or equipment. Such notice shall fix a time and place of hearing at which those persons wishing to be heard may appear and give oral or written testimony and explanation of the system, its optical scanning equipment and operation and experience had therewith. After such hearing date and after such review as the secretary of state deems appropriate, the secretary of state may renew approval of the system and such equipment, require changes therein for continued approval thereof or rescind approval previously given on either a conditioned or permanent basis.
(c) The secretary of state may appoint persons to assist county election officers or county commissioners in the testing of any system using optical scanning equipment and the programs of the system.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 4; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 27; July 1.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 5; Repealed, L. 2007, ch. 125, § 36; July 1.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 6; April 29.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 7; L. 1992, ch. 6, § 6; L. 1999, ch. 105, § 11; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 28; July 1.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 8; L. 1992, ch. 6, § 7; Feb. 27.
(b) In case any elector after entering the voting booth asks for further instruction concerning the manner of voting, two election board members of opposite political parties shall give such instruction to such elector, but no election board member or other election officer or person assisting an elector shall in any manner request, suggest or seek to persuade or induce any elector to vote for or against any candidate, question or ticket.
(c) After the voter has marked the ballot or ballots, the voter shall place it or them in the ballot sleeve provided for this purpose and return it to the judge. The judge shall verify the unique mark on the ballot and deposit the ballot in the ballot box.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 9; L. 1987, ch. 131, § 1; L. 1992, ch. 6, § 8; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 29; July 1.
(b) Within five days prior to the date of the election, the county election officer shall have the optical scanning equipment tested to ascertain that the equipment will correctly count the votes cast for all offices and on all questions submitted. Public notice of the time and place of the test shall be given at least 48 hours prior thereto by publication once in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where such equipment is to be used. The test shall be open to representatives of the political parties, candidates, the press and the public. The test shall be conducted by processing a preaudited group of ballots marked as to record a predetermined number of valid votes for each candidate and on each question submitted, and shall include for each office one or more ballots which have votes in excess of the number allowed by law in order to test the ability of the optical scanning equipment to reject such votes. If any error is detected, the cause therefor shall be ascertained and corrected and an errorless count shall be made before the optical scanning equipment is approved. The test shall be repeated after the completion of the canvass. The programs and ballots shall be sealed, retained and disposed of in the same manner as paper ballots.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 10; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 30; July 1.
(b) The election judge shall place all ballots that have been cast in the container provided for the purpose, which shall be sealed and delivered by two election board members who shall not be of the same political party, to the counting location together with the provisional, unused, void and defective ballots and returns.
(c) All proceedings at the counting location shall be under the direction of the county election officer and under the observation of two election board members who shall not be of the same political party and shall be open to the public, but no persons except those employed and authorized for the purpose shall touch any ballot, ballot container or return. If any ballot is damaged or defective so that it cannot properly be counted by the optical scanning equipment, it shall be counted manually.
(d) Advance voting ballots may be counted by the optical scanning equipment if they have been marked in a manner which will enable them to be properly counted by such equipment. If any advance voting ballot is damaged or defective so that it cannot properly be counted by the optical scanning equipment, it shall be counted manually.
(e) The return printed by the optical scanning equipment, to which has been added the return of write-in and advance voting votes and manually counted votes, shall constitute the official return of each precinct or voting area. Upon completion of the count the returns shall be open to the public. A copy of the returns shall be posted at the office of the county election officer.
(f) If for any reason it becomes impracticable to count all or a part of the ballots with optical scanning equipment, the county election officer may direct that they be counted manually, following as far as practicable the provisions governing the counting of paper ballots.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 11; L. 1995, ch. 192, § 50; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 31; July 1.
(a) Being in unlawful or unauthorized possession of ballots, optical scanning equipment, computer programs, operating systems, firmware or software; or
(b) intentionally tampering with, altering, disarranging, defacing, impairing or destroying any optical scanning equipment or component part thereof, or any ballot, operating system, firmware or software used by a system.
Optical scanning equipment fraud is a severity level 9, nonperson felony.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 12; L. 1993, ch. 291, § 216; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 32; July 1.
(a) Shall be capable of being tested to ascertain that the equipment will correctly count votes cast for all offices and on all questions submitted; and
(b) shall be capable of printing in legible form, reports and summaries of the election results as required by articles 30 and 31 of chapter 25 of Kansas Statutes Annotated; and
(c) shall be capable of tabulating votes for candidates for nomination or election of all political parties officially recognized pursuant to K.S.A. 25-302a, and amendments thereto; and
(d) shall be capable of tabulating votes for any independent candidate of any office; and
(e) shall be capable of tabulating votes for constitutional amendments or other questions submitted; and
(f) shall be capable of tabulating the number of "write-in" votes cast for any office;
(g) shall not count any votes for an office or upon a question submitted when the voter has cast more votes for such office or upon such question than the voter is entitled to cast;
(h) shall provide notification when the voter has cast more votes for such office or upon such question than the voter is entitled to cast; and
(i) shall meet the requirements of the help America vote act of 2002 and other federal statutes and regulations governing voting equipment.
History: L. 1982, ch. 158, § 13; L. 2007, ch. 125, § 33; July 1.
(a) For the use of optical scanning systems to count votes under the election laws of this state; and
(b) necessary for the administration of this act.
History: L. 2007, ch. 125, § 34; July 1.
History: L. 2007, ch. 125, § 35; July 1.