Florida Senate - 2017                                     SB 242
       
       
        
       By Senator Rouson
       
       19-00422-17                                            2017242__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to presidential elections;
    3         establishing the Agreement Among the States to Elect
    4         the President by National Popular Vote; defining
    5         terms; providing a method by which any state may
    6         become a member state; requiring a statewide popular
    7         election for President and Vice President of the
    8         United States; establishing a procedure for appointing
    9         presidential electors in member states; providing that
   10         the agreement becomes effective upon the occurrence of
   11         specified actions; providing for the withdrawal of a
   12         member state; specifying circumstances under which
   13         certain notification be provided to a member state;
   14         providing for severability; providing an effective
   15         date.
   16          
   17  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   18  
   19         Section 1. The Agreement Among the States to Elect the
   20  President by National Popular Vote.—The Agreement Among the
   21  States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote is
   22  enacted into law and entered into by this state with all states
   23  legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows:
   24  
   25                              Article I                            
   26         DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this agreement:
   27         (1)“Chief election official” means the state official or
   28  body authorized to certify the total number of popular votes for
   29  each presidential slate.
   30         (2)“Chief executive” means the Governor of a state of the
   31  United States or the Mayor of the District of Columbia.
   32         (3)“Elector slate” means a slate of candidates who have
   33  been nominated in a state for the position of presidential
   34  elector in association with a presidential slate.
   35         (4)“Presidential elector” means an elector for President
   36  and Vice President of the United States.
   37         (5)“Presidential elector certifying official” means the
   38  state official or body authorized to certify the appointment of
   39  the state’s presidential electors.
   40         (6)“Presidential slate” means a slate of two persons, the
   41  first of whom has been nominated as a candidate for President of
   42  the United States and the second of whom has been nominated as a
   43  candidate for Vice President of the United States, or any legal
   44  successors to such persons, regardless of whether both names
   45  appear on the ballot presented to the voters in a particular
   46  state.
   47         (7)“State” means a state of the United States or the
   48  District of Columbia.
   49         (8)“Statewide popular election” means a general election
   50  in which votes are cast for presidential slates by individual
   51  voters and counted on a statewide basis.
   52  
   53                             Article II                            
   54         MEMBERSHIP.—Any state may become a member of the league of
   55  states officially supporting this agreement by enacting this
   56  agreement.
   57  
   58                             Article III                           
   59         RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE IN MEMBER STATES TO VOTE FOR THE
   60  PRESIDENT AND THE VICE PRESIDENT.—Each member state shall
   61  conduct a statewide popular election for President and Vice
   62  President of the United States.
   63  
   64                             Article IV                            
   65         MANNER OF APPOINTING PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS IN MEMBER
   66  STATES.—
   67         (1)Before the time set by law for the meeting of and
   68  voting by the presidential electors, the chief election official
   69  of each member state shall determine the number of votes cast in
   70  a statewide popular election for each presidential slate in each
   71  state and shall add the total number of votes from each state to
   72  produce a national popular vote total for each presidential
   73  slate.
   74         (2)The chief election official of each member state shall
   75  designate the presidential slate having the largest national
   76  popular vote total as the national popular vote winner.
   77         (3)The presidential elector certifying official of each
   78  member state shall certify the appointment in that official’s
   79  respective state of the elector slate nominated in that state in
   80  association with the national popular vote winner.
   81         (4)At least 6 days before the day established by law for
   82  the meeting of and voting by the presidential electors, each
   83  member state shall make a final determination of the number of
   84  popular votes cast in the state for each presidential slate and
   85  shall communicate an official statement of such determination
   86  within 24 hours to the chief election official of each other
   87  member state.
   88         (5)The chief election official of each member state shall
   89  treat as conclusive an official statement containing the number
   90  of popular votes in a state for each presidential slate made by
   91  the day established by federal law for making a state’s final
   92  determination conclusive as to the counting of electoral votes
   93  by Congress.
   94         (6)If the election results in a tie for the national
   95  popular vote winner, the presidential elector certifying
   96  official of each member state shall certify the appointment of
   97  the elector slate nominated in association with the presidential
   98  slate receiving the largest number of popular votes within that
   99  official’s respective state.
  100         (7)If, for any reason, the number of presidential electors
  101  nominated in a member state in association with the national
  102  popular vote winner is fewer than or greater than that state’s
  103  number of electoral votes, the presidential candidate on the
  104  presidential slate who has been designated as the national
  105  popular vote winner may nominate the presidential electors for
  106  that state, and that state’s presidential elector certifying
  107  official shall certify the appointment of such nominees.
  108         (8)The chief election official of each member state shall
  109  immediately release to the public all vote counts or statements
  110  of votes as they are determined or obtained.
  111         (9)This article shall govern the appointment of
  112  presidential electors in each member state in any year in which
  113  this agreement is, on July 20, in effect in states cumulatively
  114  possessing a majority of the electoral votes.
  115  
  116                              Article V                            
  117         OTHER PROVISIONS.—
  118         (1)This agreement shall take effect when states
  119  cumulatively possessing a majority of the electoral votes have
  120  enacted this agreement in substantially the same form and the
  121  enactments by such states have taken effect in each state.
  122         (2)Any member state may withdraw from this agreement,
  123  except that a withdrawal occurring 6 months or less before the
  124  end of a President’s term does not become effective until a
  125  President or Vice President has been qualified to serve the next
  126  term.
  127         (3)The chief executive of each member state shall promptly
  128  notify the chief executive of all other states when this
  129  agreement has been enacted and has taken effect in that
  130  official’s state, or when the state has withdrawn from this
  131  agreement.
  132         (4)This agreement shall terminate if the electoral college
  133  is abolished.
  134         (5)If any provision of this agreement is held invalid, the
  135  remaining provisions are not affected.
  136         Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.