93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2003 and 2004
HB4192

 

Introduced 1/23/2004, by Jack D. Franks

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
10 ILCS 5/10-8   from Ch. 46, par. 10-8
10 ILCS 5/10-10   from Ch. 46, par. 10-10

    Amends the Election Code. Provides that upon the filing of an objector's petition to a certificate of nomination or nomination papers or a proposed amendment or question of public policy, a copy of the petition may be transmitted by fax machine to the necessary parties, rather than by mail. Effective immediately.


LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4192 LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

1     AN ACT concerning elections.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing
5 Sections 10-8 and 10-10 as follows:
 
6     (10 ILCS 5/10-8)  (from Ch. 46, par. 10-8)
7     Sec. 10-8. Certificates of nomination and nomination
8 papers, and petitions to submit public questions to a
9 referendum, being filed as required by this Code, and being in
10 apparent conformity with the provisions of this Act, shall be
11 deemed to be valid unless objection thereto is duly made in
12 writing within 5 business days after the last day for filing
13 the certificate of nomination or nomination papers or petition
14 for a public question, with the following exceptions:
15         A. In the case of petitions to amend Article IV of the
16     Constitution of the State of Illinois, there shall be a
17     period of 35 business days after the last day for the
18     filing of such petitions in which objections can be filed.
19         B. In the case of petitions for advisory questions of
20     public policy to be submitted to the voters of the entire
21     State, there shall be a period of 35 business days after
22     the last day for the filing of such petitions in which
23     objections can be filed.
24     Any legal voter of the political subdivision or district in
25 which the candidate or public question is to be voted on, or
26 any legal voter in the State in the case of a proposed
27 amendment to Article IV of the Constitution or an advisory
28 public question to be submitted to the voters of the entire
29 State, having objections to any certificate of nomination or
30 nomination papers or petitions filed, shall file an objector's
31 petition together with a copy thereof in the principal office
32 or the permanent branch office of the State Board of Elections,

 

 

HB4192 - 2 - LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

1 or in the office of the election authority or local election
2 official with whom the certificate of nomination, nomination
3 papers or petitions are on file. In the case of nomination
4 papers or certificates of nomination, the State Board of
5 Elections, election authority or local election official shall
6 note the day and hour upon which such objector's petition is
7 filed, and shall, not later than 12:00 noon on the second
8 business day after receipt of the petition, transmit by
9 registered mail, facsimile machine, or receipted personal
10 delivery the certificate of nomination or nomination papers and
11 the original objector's petition to the chairman of the proper
12 electoral board designated in Section 10-9 hereof, or his
13 authorized agent, and shall transmit a copy by registered mail,
14 facsimile machine, or receipted personal delivery of the
15 objector's petition, to the candidate whose certificate of
16 nomination or nomination papers are objected to, addressed to
17 the place of residence designated in said certificate of
18 nomination or nomination papers. In the case of objections to a
19 petition for a proposed amendment to Article IV of the
20 Constitution or for an advisory public question to be submitted
21 to the voters of the entire State, the State Board of Elections
22 shall note the day and hour upon which such objector's petition
23 is filed and shall transmit a copy of the objector's petition
24 by registered mail, facsimile machine, or receipted personal
25 delivery to the person designated on a certificate attached to
26 the petition as the principal proponent of such proposed
27 amendment or public question, or as the proponents' attorney,
28 for the purpose of receiving notice of objections. In the case
29 of objections to a petition for a public question, to be
30 submitted to the voters of a political subdivision, or district
31 thereof, the election authority or local election official with
32 whom such petition is filed shall note the day and hour upon
33 which such objector's petition was filed, and shall, not later
34 than 12:00 noon on the second business day after receipt of the
35 petition, transmit by registered mail, facsimile machine, or
36 receipted personal delivery the petition for the public

 

 

HB4192 - 3 - LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

1 question and the original objector's petition to the chairman
2 of the proper electoral board designated in Section 10-9
3 hereof, or his authorized agent, and shall transmit a copy by
4 registered mail, facsimile machine, or receipted personal
5 delivery, of the objector's petition to the person designated
6 on a certificate attached to the petition as the principal
7 proponent of the public question, or as the proponent's
8 attorney, for the purposes of receiving notice of objections.
9     The objector's petition shall give the objector's name and
10 residence address, and shall state fully the nature of the
11 objections to the certificate of nomination or nomination
12 papers or petitions in question, and shall state the interest
13 of the objector and shall state what relief is requested of the
14 electoral board.
15     The provisions of this Section and of Sections 10-9, 10-10
16 and 10-10.1 shall also apply to and govern objections to
17 petitions for nomination filed under Article 7 or Article 8,
18 except as otherwise provided in Section 7-13 for cases to which
19 it is applicable, and also apply to and govern petitions for
20 the submission of public questions under Article 28.
21 (Source: P.A. 86-1348.)
 
22     (10 ILCS 5/10-10)  (from Ch. 46, par. 10-10)
23     Sec. 10-10. Within 24 hours after the receipt of the
24 certificate of nomination or nomination papers or proposed
25 question of public policy, as the case may be, and the
26 objector's petition, the chairman of the electoral board other
27 than the State Board of Elections shall send a call by
28 registered or certified mail or transmit a call by facsimile
29 machine to each of the members of the electoral board, and to
30 the objector who filed the objector's petition, and either to
31 the candidate whose certificate of nomination or nomination
32 papers are objected to or to the principal proponent or
33 attorney for proponents of a question of public policy, as the
34 case may be, whose petitions are objected to, and shall also
35 cause the sheriff of the county or counties in which such

 

 

HB4192 - 4 - LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

1 officers and persons reside to serve a copy of such call upon
2 each of such officers and persons, which call shall set out the
3 fact that the electoral board is required to meet to hear and
4 pass upon the objections to nominations made for the office,
5 designating it, and shall state the day, hour and place at
6 which the electoral board shall meet for the purpose, which
7 place shall be in the county court house in the county in the
8 case of the County Officers Electoral Board, the Municipal
9 Officers Electoral Board, the Township Officers Electoral
10 Board or the Education Officers Electoral Board. The Township
11 Officers Electoral Board may meet in the township offices, if
12 they are available, rather than the county courthouse. In those
13 cases where the State Board of Elections is the electoral board
14 designated under Section 10-9, the chairman of the State Board
15 of Elections shall, within 24 hours after the receipt of the
16 certificate of nomination or nomination papers or petitions for
17 a proposed amendment to Article IV of the Constitution or
18 proposed statewide question of public policy, send a call by
19 registered or certified mail to the objector who files the
20 objector's petition, and either to the candidate whose
21 certificate of nomination or nomination papers are objected to
22 or to the principal proponent or attorney for proponents of the
23 proposed Constitutional amendment or statewide question of
24 public policy and shall state the day, hour and place at which
25 the electoral board shall meet for the purpose, which place may
26 be in the Capitol Building or in the principal or permanent
27 branch office of the State Board. The day of the meeting shall
28 not be less than 3 nor more than 5 days after the receipt of the
29 certificate of nomination or nomination papers and the
30 objector's petition by the chairman of the electoral board.
31     The electoral board shall have the power to administer
32 oaths and to subpoena and examine witnesses and at the request
33 of either party the chairman may issue subpoenas requiring the
34 attendance of witnesses and subpoenas duces tecum requiring the
35 production of such books, papers, records and documents as may
36 be evidence of any matter under inquiry before the electoral

 

 

HB4192 - 5 - LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

1 board, in the same manner as witnesses are subpoenaed in the
2 Circuit Court.
3     Service of such subpoenas shall be made by any sheriff or
4 other person in the same manner as in cases in such court and
5 the fees of such sheriff shall be the same as is provided by
6 law, and shall be paid by the objector or candidate who causes
7 the issuance of the subpoena. In case any person so served
8 shall knowingly neglect or refuse to obey any such subpoena, or
9 to testify, the electoral board shall at once file a petition
10 in the circuit court of the county in which such hearing is to
11 be heard, or has been attempted to be heard, setting forth the
12 facts, of such knowing refusal or neglect, and accompanying the
13 petition with a copy of the citation and the answer, if one has
14 been filed, together with a copy of the subpoena and the return
15 of service thereon, and shall apply for an order of court
16 requiring such person to attend and testify, and forthwith
17 produce books and papers, before the electoral board. Any
18 circuit court of the state, excluding the judge who is sitting
19 on the electoral board, upon such showing shall order such
20 person to appear and testify, and to forthwith produce such
21 books and papers, before the electoral board at a place to be
22 fixed by the court. If such person shall knowingly fail or
23 refuse to obey such order of the court without lawful excuse,
24 the court shall punish him or her by fine and imprisonment, as
25 the nature of the case may require and may be lawful in cases
26 of contempt of court.
27     The electoral board on the first day of its meeting shall
28 adopt rules of procedure for the introduction of evidence and
29 the presentation of arguments and may, in its discretion,
30 provide for the filing of briefs by the parties to the
31 objection or by other interested persons.
32     In the event of a State Electoral Board hearing on
33 objections to a petition for an amendment to Article IV of the
34 Constitution pursuant to Section 3 of Article XIV of the
35 Constitution, or to a petition for a question of public policy
36 to be submitted to the voters of the entire State, the

 

 

HB4192 - 6 - LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

1 certificates of the county clerks and boards of election
2 commissioners showing the results of the random sample of
3 signatures on the petition shall be prima facie valid and
4 accurate, and shall be presumed to establish the number of
5 valid and invalid signatures on the petition sheets reviewed in
6 the random sample, as prescribed in Section 28-11 and 28-12 of
7 this Code. Either party, however, may introduce evidence at
8 such hearing to dispute the findings as to particular
9 signatures. In addition to the foregoing, in the absence of
10 competent evidence presented at such hearing by a party
11 substantially challenging the results of a random sample, or
12 showing a different result obtained by an additional sample,
13 this certificate of a county clerk or board of election
14 commissioners shall be presumed to establish the ratio of valid
15 to invalid signatures within the particular election
16 jurisdiction.
17     The electoral board shall take up the question as to
18 whether or not the certificate of nomination or nomination
19 papers or petitions are in proper form, and whether or not they
20 were filed within the time and under the conditions required by
21 law, and whether or not they are the genuine certificate of
22 nomination or nomination papers or petitions which they purport
23 to be, and whether or not in the case of the certificate of
24 nomination in question it represents accurately the decision of
25 the caucus or convention issuing it, and in general shall
26 decide whether or not the certificate of nomination or
27 nominating papers or petitions on file are valid or whether the
28 objections thereto should be sustained and the decision of a
29 majority of the electoral board shall be final subject to
30 judicial review as provided in Section 10-10.1. The electoral
31 board must state its findings in writing and must state in
32 writing which objections, if any, it has sustained.
33     Upon the expiration of the period within which a proceeding
34 for judicial review must be commenced under Section 10--10.1,
35 the electoral board shall, unless a proceeding for judicial
36 review has been commenced within such period, transmit, by

 

 

HB4192 - 7 - LRB093 15973 RAS 41596 b

1 registered or certified mail, a certified copy of its ruling,
2 together with the original certificate of nomination or
3 nomination papers or petitions and the original objector's
4 petition, to the officer or board with whom the certificate of
5 nomination or nomination papers or petitions, as objected to,
6 were on file, and such officer or board shall abide by and
7 comply with the ruling so made to all intents and purposes.
8 (Source: P.A. 91-285, eff. 1-1-00.)
 
9     Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
10 becoming law.