Florida Senate - 2013                                      SB 82
       
       
       
       By Senator Margolis
       
       
       
       
       35-00146A-13                                            201382__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to early voting; amending s. 101.657,
    3         F.S.; expanding the list of available sites at which
    4         early voting may be held to include specified
    5         facilities or any other location designated by a
    6         supervisor of elections as meeting the requirements of
    7         state law; deleting a requirement that an early voting
    8         site be designated and used as such for at least 1
    9         year before an election; requiring that each county
   10         operate a certain total number of voting sites;
   11         revising the beginning and ending dates of early
   12         voting; requiring a specified number of preprinted
   13         ballots to be provided to each early voting site;
   14         revising the hours of early voting to 12 hours per
   15         weekday and 12 hours in the aggregate each weekend at
   16         each site during the applicable periods; deleting
   17         provisions that authorize the supervisor of elections
   18         to provide early voting for certain elections and to
   19         determine the hours of operation of early voting sites
   20         in those elections; providing an effective date.
   21  
   22  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   23  
   24         Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (d) of subsection (1) of
   25  section 101.657, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   26         101.657 Early voting.—
   27         (1)(a) As a convenience to the voter, the supervisor of
   28  elections shall allow an elector to vote early in the main or
   29  branch office of the supervisor and may allow such early voting
   30  in any city hall, public library facility, courthouse, place of
   31  worship, civic center, convention center, community center,
   32  county government center, conference center, community college
   33  facility, university or college, or any other location
   34  designated by the supervisor as meeting the requirements of this
   35  section. The supervisor shall mark, code, indicate on, or
   36  otherwise track the voter’s precinct for each early voted
   37  ballot. In order for a branch office to be used for early
   38  voting, it shall be a permanent facility of the supervisor and
   39  shall have been designated and used as such for at least 1 year
   40  prior to the election. The supervisor may also designate any
   41  city hall or permanent public library facility as Early voting
   42  sites; however, if so designated, the sites must be
   43  geographically located so as to provide all voters in the county
   44  an equal opportunity to cast a ballot, insofar as is
   45  practicable. Each county shall operate the same total number of
   46  early voting sites that the county used for the 2012 general
   47  election, or one early voting site plus one additional early
   48  voting site for every complete set of 50,000 registered voters
   49  in the county as of July 1 of each general election year,
   50  whichever is greater. The results or tabulation of votes cast
   51  during early voting may not be made before the close of the
   52  polls on election day. Results shall be reported by precinct.
   53         (d) Early voting for a general election shall begin on the
   54  15th 10th day before the an election that contains state or
   55  federal races and end on the 2nd 3rd day before the election. In
   56  addition to providing for printing ballots on site during early
   57  voting, each early voting site shall be provided with the same
   58  number of preprinted ballots as the number of ballots cast at
   59  such site in the last general election. Early voting for any
   60  other election shall begin on the 10th day before the election
   61  and end on the 3rd day before the election. Early voting, and
   62  shall be provided for 12 no less than 6 hours per weekday and 12
   63  hours in the aggregate each weekend no more than 12 hours per
   64  day at each site during the applicable periods. Early voting
   65  sites shall open no sooner than 7 a.m. and close no later than 7
   66  p.m. on each applicable day period. The supervisor of elections
   67  may provide early voting for elections that are not held in
   68  conjunction with a state or federal election. However, the
   69  supervisor has the discretion to determine the hours of
   70  operation of early voting sites in those elections.
   71         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.