The bill amends various sections of the Iowa Code to enhance election procedures and the responsibilities of county officers. A significant addition is the definition of "election day" to encompass any day of in-person voting. It also requires law enforcement agencies to promptly inform the state commissioner of elections when an investigation into election misconduct begins, with the governor being notified in cases involving the state commissioner. New criteria for initiating recounts for public measures are established, including specific vote difference thresholds based on the type of measure and total votes cast. Additionally, the bill streamlines the nomination process by transferring the responsibility of filing nomination papers from school board secretaries to county commissioners of elections.

Further changes include the implementation of tamper-evident seals for election equipment and updates to the testing protocols for optical scan voting systems to meet federal standards. The bill also revises procedures for city elections, absentee ballots, and the duties of county officers, such as requiring nomination petitions to be filed with county commissioners instead of city clerks and establishing new deadlines for these filings. It allows for the declaration of write-in candidates as winners and outlines the process for their resignations. Moreover, the responsibilities of the county commission of veteran affairs and the county treasurer are modified, with several subsections deleted to clarify their roles in managing school funds and veteran assistance payments. The bill is scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2027.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 39A.1, 53.10, 48A.37, 52.5, 53.23, 44.8, 44.7, 44.9, 277.3, 279.6, 277.4, 362.4, 376.11
Reprinted: 39A.1, 53.10, 48A.37, 52.5, 53.23, 44.8, 44.7, 44.9, 277.3, 279.6, 277.4, 362.4, 376.11, 53.17A, 9E.6, 49.81, 49.78, 298.11, 331.502, 331.508, 658.10, 658.9