Chapter 824 Oregon Laws 1999

Session Law

AN ACT

HB 3516

Relating to elections; creating new provisions; amending ORS 192.440, 246.021, 247.012 and 247.013; and prescribing an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:

SECTION 1. ORS 247.012 is amended to read:

247.012. (1) A qualified person may register to vote or update a registration to vote by:

(a) Delivering by mail or otherwise a completed registration card to any county clerk, the Secretary of State, any office of the Department of Transportation or any designated voter registration agency as described in ORS 247.208;

(b) Personally delivering the card to an official designated by a county clerk under subsection [(8)] (7) of this section; or

(c) Completing the voter registration portion of the application for issuance or renewal of a driver license, issuance of a state identification card under ORS 807.400 or a change of address at an office of the Department of Transportation under ORS 247.017.

(2) If a registration card is mailed or delivered to:

(a) Any person other than a county clerk or the Secretary of State, the person shall forward the card to a county clerk or the Secretary of State not later than the fifth day after receiving the card; or

(b) The Secretary of State or a county clerk for a county other than the county in which the person applying for registration resides, the Secretary of State or county clerk shall forward the card to the county clerk for the county in which the person resides not later than the fifth day after receiving the card.

(3) Registration of a qualified person occurs:

(a) When a legible, accurate and complete registration card is received in the office of any county clerk, the Office of the Secretary of State, an office of the Department of Transportation, a designated voter registration agency under ORS 247.208 or at a location designated by a county clerk under subsection [(8)] (7) of this section;

(b) On the date a registration card is postmarked if the card is received after the 21st day immediately preceding an election but is postmarked not later than the 21st day immediately preceding the election; or

(c) In the case of a registration card missing a date of birth, containing an incomplete date of birth or containing an unintentional scrivener's error that is supplied or corrected as described in subsection (4) or (6) of this section, on the date that registration would have occurred if the registration card had not been missing the date of birth, contained an incomplete date of birth or contained the scrivener's error.

(4) If a registration card is legible, accurate and contains, at a minimum, the registrant's name, residence address, date of birth and signature, the county clerk shall register the person. If this information is missing from the registration card or the date of birth is incomplete, the county clerk shall attempt to contact the person to obtain the missing or incomplete information. The county clerk may supply the registrant's date of birth from any previous registration of the registrant.

(5) If a registration card meets the requirements of subsection (4) of this section but is missing an indication of political party affiliation, the registrant shall be considered not affiliated with any political party. This subsection does not apply if an elector is updating a registration within the same county.

(6) If a registration card contains an unintentional scrivener's error, the county clerk may attempt to contact the person to correct the error.

[(7) If a registration card is missing the date of birth of the registrant, the county clerk may attempt to contact the person to obtain the missing information.]

[(8)] (7) A county clerk may appoint officials to accept registration of persons at designated locations. The appointments and locations shall be in writing and filed in the office of the county clerk. The county clerk shall be responsible for the performance of duties by those appointed.

[(9)] (8) A registration card received and accepted under this section shall be considered an active registration.

[(10)] (9) Subject to ORS 247.306, a registration may be updated at any time.

SECTION 2. ORS 247.013 is amended to read:

247.013. (1) A qualified person shall be considered registered to vote in a county when the person's first registration in the county occurs as described in ORS 247.012.

(2) An elector who changes residence address from the county in which the elector is registered to a different county within the state, in order to vote in an election, must be an elector registered in the county in which the new residence address of the elector is located.

(3) Except as provided in ORS 247.294 and 247.330, if there is a change in any information required for registration under this chapter, and the elector has not changed residence address to another county, the registration of the elector may be updated as provided in this chapter.

(4) Notwithstanding subsections (2) and (3) of this section, if an elector changes residence address from the county in which the elector is registered to a different county within the state, the elector need not register again if the registration of the elector is updated as provided in ORS 247.294.

(5) If the county clerk does not have evidence of a change in any information required for registration under this chapter for an elector, the registration of the elector shall be considered active.

(6) [If the county clerk has received evidence that there has been a change in the information required for registration under this chapter for an elector, and the county clerk has mailed the notice described in ORS 247.563, the registration of the elector shall be considered inactive.] The registration of an elector shall be considered inactive if:

(a) The county clerk has received evidence that there has been a change in the information required for registration under this chapter or the elector has not voted for a period of not less than five years; and

(b) The county clerk has mailed the notice described in ORS 247.563.

(7) The registration of an elector shall not be moved to an inactive file during the 60-day period prior to any election because the elector has not voted for a period of not less than five years.

(8) The inactive registration of an elector shall be updated before the elector may vote in an election.

SECTION 3. Section 4 of this 1999 Act is added to and made a part of ORS chapter 247.

SECTION 4. (1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, an individual's signature submitted under this chapter for purposes of registering to vote shall be subject to inspection as a public record under ORS 192.410 to 192.505. The signature shall be subject to inspection in the office of the county clerk.

(2) A person shall not make a copy of or provide to another person a copy of an individual's signature submitted under this chapter for purposes of registering to vote.

(3) Subsection (2) of this section does not apply to copies made by any elections official acting in an official capacity for purposes of administering the provisions of ORS chapters 246 to 260 or any rules adopted thereunder.

SECTION 5. ORS 192.440 is amended to read:

192.440. (1) The custodian of any public record which a person has a right to inspect shall give the person, on demand, a certified copy of it, if the record is of a nature permitting such copying, or shall furnish reasonable opportunity to inspect or copy.

(2) If the public record is maintained in a machine readable or electronic form, the custodian shall provide copies of the public record in the form requested, if available. If the public record is not available in the form requested, it shall be made available in the form in which it is maintained.

(3) The public body may establish fees reasonably calculated to reimburse it for its actual cost in making such records available including costs for summarizing, compiling or tailoring such record, either in organization or media, to meet the person's request. However, when the records are those filed with the Secretary of State under ORS chapter 79, the fees for furnishing copies, summaries or compilations of such records are those established by the Secretary of State by rule, under ORS chapter 79.

(4) The custodian of any public record may furnish copies without charge or at a substantially reduced fee if the custodian determines that the waiver or reduction of fees is in the public interest because making the record available primarily benefits the general public.

(5) A person who believes that there has been an unreasonable denial of a fee waiver or fee reduction may petition the Attorney General or the district attorney in the same manner as a person petitions when inspection of a public record is denied under ORS 192.410 to 192.505. The Attorney General, the district attorney and the court have the same authority in instances when a fee waiver or reduction is denied as it has when inspection of a public record is denied.

(6) This section does not apply to signatures of individuals submitted under ORS chapter 247 for purposes of registering to vote as provided in section 4 of this 1999 Act.

SECTION 6. Section 7 of this 1999 Act is added to and made a part of ORS chapter 260.

SECTION 7. (1) A candidate, political committee or chief petitioner required to file a statement under ORS 260.058, 260.063, 260.068, 260.073, 260.102 or 260.118 shall file the statement in an electronic format if:

(a) The filing officer for the candidate, political committee or chief petitioner is the Secretary of State; and

(b) During the total period described in ORS 260.058, 260.063, 260.068, 260.073, 260.102 or 260.118, the aggregate amount of contributions received and expenditures made by the candidate, political committee or chief petitioner is $50,000 or more.

(2) The Secretary of State by rule shall specify when a candidate, political committee or chief petitioner required to file statements in an electronic format under subsection (1) of this section shall file the first statement in an electronic format.

(3) If a candidate, political committee or chief petitioner is required to file statements electronically under subsection (1) of this section, the candidate, political committee or chief petitioner shall continue to file all subsequent statements required under ORS 260.058, 260.063, 260.068, 260.073, 260.102 or 260.118 in an electronic format, unless the Secretary of State determines that extraordinary and unforeseeable circumstances have made it impracticable for the candidate, political committee or chief petitioner to continue filing electronically.

(4) Statements filed electronically under this section shall conform to the technical specifications for electronic filing prescribed by the Secretary of State by rule.

(5) If a candidate, political committee or chief petitioner files an amendment to a statement that was filed electronically, the amendment shall also be filed in an electronic format. The Secretary of State by rule shall determine the methods and specifications for the filing of amended statements.

(6) Signatures required on any statement filed in an electronic format shall be supplied in the manner specified by the Secretary of State by rule.

SECTION 8. (1) Prior to January 1, 2004, the Secretary of State may waive the requirement that a candidate, political committee or chief petitioner file statements in an electronic format under section 7 (1) of this 1999 Act if the secretary determines that the requirement is impracticable or creates an undue hardship. A waiver granted under this section shall not extend beyond January 1, 2004.

(2) This section is repealed January 1, 2004.

SECTION 9. ORS 246.021 is amended to read:

246.021. (1) Except as provided in ORS 247.012, an election document and an accompanying payment of fees required to be filed with the Secretary of State, county clerk or other filing officer must be delivered to and actually received at the office of the designated officer not later than 5 p.m. of the day the document or fee is due or, if the day due is a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, on the next business day.

(2) The exception to subsection (1) of this section is, when at 5 p.m. an individual is physically present in the office of the designated officer and in line waiting to deliver a document, the individual shall be considered as having begun the act of delivering the document and shall be permitted to file it.

[(3) As used in this section, "election document" includes, but is not limited to, a declaration of candidacy for nomination for public or political party office, completed nominating petitions, statements and portraits for voters' pamphlets, reports of election campaign contributions and expenditures, and initiative, referendum or recall petitions.]

[(4)] (3) Any election document required to be filed with the filing officer other than ballots, voter registration cards or petitions requiring signatures of electors may also be filed by means of an electronic facsimile transmission machine. If an election document is required to be filed by a specified time, the entire document must be received in the office of the filing officer not later than 5 p.m. of the day the document is due or, if the day due is a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, on the next business day.

(4) Notwithstanding any provision of subsections (1) to (3) of this section, if a statement is required to be filed in an electronic format under section 7 of this 1999 Act:

(a) The statement must be received in an electronic format at the office of the Secretary of State not later than 5 p.m. of the day the statement is due or, if the day due is a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, on the next business day; and

(b) The Secretary of State shall not accept the filing of the statement in any form other than an electronic format.

(5) As used in this section, "election document" includes, but is not limited to, a declaration of candidacy for nomination for public or political party office, completed nominating petitions, statements and portraits for voters' pamphlets, statements of election campaign contributions and expenditures, and initiative, referendum or recall petitions.

SECTION 10. (1) The amendments to ORS 247.012 by section 1 of this 1999 Act apply to registrations of electors or updates to registrations of electors occurring on or after the effective date of this 1999 Act.

(2) The amendments to ORS 247.013 by section 2 of this 1999 Act apply to electors who have not voted for a period of not less than five years beginning prior to, on or after the effective date of this 1999 Act.

(3) Section 4 of this 1999 Act and the amendments to ORS 192.440 by section 5 of this 1999 Act apply to signatures of electors contained on registrations of electors or updates of registrations, where the registration or update occurs prior to, on or after the effective date of this 1999 Act.

SECTION 11. (1) Sections 7 and 8 of this 1999 Act and the amendments to ORS 246.021 by section 9 of this 1999 Act become operative January 1, 2000.

(2) The Secretary of State may take any action before the operative date specified in subsection (1) of this section that is necessary to enable the secretary to exercise and perform, on and after the operative date specified in subsection (1) of this section, all the duties, functions and powers conferred on or required of the secretary by sections 7 and 8 of this 1999 Act and the amendments to ORS 246.021 by section 9 of this 1999 Act.

SECTION 12. This 1999 Act takes effect on the 91st day after the date on which the regular session of the Seventieth Legislative Assembly adjourns sine die.

Approved by the Governor July 21, 1999

Filed in the office of Secretary of State July 21, 1999

Effective date October 23, 1999

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