Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

Legislative Analysis
                                                                            Phone: (517) 373-8080
PROHIBIT INTIMIDATION OF OR INTERFERENCE                                    http://www.house.mi.gov/hfa
WITH ELECTION WORKERS
                                                                            Analysis available at
House Bills 4129 (H-1) and 4130 (H-1) as reported                           http://www.legislature.mi.gov
Sponsor: Rep. Kara Hope
Committee: Elections
Complete to 10-26-23
SUMMARY:
       House Bills 4129 and 4130 would make it illegal to intimidate an election official or
       otherwise prevent election officials from performing their duties.
       House Bill 4129 would add a new section to the Michigan Election Law to provide that an
       individual who prevents an election official from performing their duties in conducting an
       election or who intimidates an election official because of their status as an election official
       with the specific intent to interfere with the official’s duties is guilty of a crime.
               Election official would mean a public officer, public employee, election inspector,
               member of the Board of State Canvassers, member of a board of county canvassers,
               member of an absent voter counting board, county clerk, or city or township clerk
               who has a duty to perform in connection with an election conducted under the
               Michigan Election Law.
               Intimidate would mean a willful course of conduct involving harassment of another
               individual that is intended to cause the individual to fear physical injury, that would
               cause a reasonable individual to fear physical injury, and actually causes the
               individual to fear physical injury. It would not include constitutionally protected
               activity or conduct that serves a legitimate purpose.
       The bill’s provisions would not apply to any constitutionally protected activity, such as
       reporting, protesting, lobbying, advocacy, or other activities intended to inform or
       influence on matters of public interest or concern.
       A first violation of these provisions would be a misdemeanor punishable by up to 93 days’
       imprisonment or a fine of $500, or both. A second violation would be a misdemeanor
       punishable by up to one year’s imprisonment or a fine of $1,000, or both. A third or
       subsequent violation would be a felony punishable by up to five years’ imprisonment or a
       fine of up to $1,000, or both, as provided under section 935 of the act.
       Proposed MCL 168.931b
       House Bill 4130 would amend the sentencing guidelines chapter of the Code of Criminal
       Procedure to incorporate the proposed new felonies of intimidating an election official and
       preventing an election official from performing their duties. Under the bill, a third or
House Fiscal Agency                                                                          Page 1 of 3
       subsequent offense would be a Class E felony against the public trust punishable by a
       statutory maximum of five years.
       The bill is tie-barred to HB 4129, which means it could not go into effect unless HB 4129
       were also enacted.
       MCL 777.11d
FISCAL IMPACT:
       House Bill 4129 would have an indeterminate fiscal impact on the state and on local units
       of government. The number of convictions that would result under provisions of the bill is
       not known. Violations could be either misdemeanors or felonies, depending on the
       circumstances. First and second offenses would be misdemeanors and third and subsequent
       offenses would be felonies. New misdemeanor convictions would increase costs related to
       county jails and/or local misdemeanor probation supervision. Costs of local incarceration
       in county jails and local misdemeanor probation supervision, and how those costs are
       financed, vary by jurisdiction. New felony convictions would result in increased costs
       related to state prisons and state probation supervision. In fiscal year 2022, the average
       cost of prison incarceration in a state facility was roughly $47,900 per prisoner, a figure
       that includes various fixed administrative and operational costs. State costs for parole and
       felony probation supervision averaged about $5,000 per supervised offender in the same
       year. Those costs are financed with state general fund/general purpose revenue. The fiscal
       impact on local court systems would depend on how provisions of the bill affected court
       caseloads and related administrative costs. It is difficult to project the actual fiscal impact
       to courts due to variables such as law enforcement practices, prosecutorial practices,
       judicial discretion, case types, and complexity of cases. Any increase in penal fine revenue
       would increase funding for public and county law libraries, which are the constitutionally
       designated recipients of those revenues.
       House Bill 4130 is a companion bill to HB 4129 and amends sentencing guidelines to
       include third or subsequent offenses of intimidating an election official or preventing an
       election official from performing their duties as felonies. The bill would not have a direct
       fiscal impact on the state or on local units of government.
POSITIONS:
       Representatives of the following entities testified in support of the bills (9-12-23):
          • Department of State
          • Campaign Legal Center
          • Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks
       The following entities indicated support for the bills:
          • Department of the Attorney General (2-28-23)
          • American Association of University Women of Michigan (9-12-23)
          • Center for Change Northern Michigan (2-28-23)
House Fiscal Agency                              HBs 4129 (H-1) and 4130 (H-1) as reported   Page 2 of 3
           •   League of Women Voters of Michigan (9-12-23)
           •   Michigan Municipal League (9-12-23)
           •   Michigan Townships Association (2-28-23)
           •   Progress Michigan (2-28-23)
           •   Voters Not Politicians (9-19-23)
       The following entities indicated support for House Bill 4129:
          • Michigan Democratic Party (2-28-23)
          • Promote the Vote (9-12-23)
       The Michigan League of Conservation Voters indicated a neutral position on the bills.
       (9-12-23)
       A representative of Pure Integrity for Michigan Elections testified in opposition to the bills.
       (9-12-23)
       Detroit Disability Power indicated opposition to the bills. (2-28-23)
                                                         Legislative Analyst: Holly Kuhn
                                                            Fiscal Analysts: Robin Risko
                                                                              Michael Cnossen
■ This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House Fiscal Agency staff for use by House members in their
deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.
House Fiscal Agency                               HBs 4129 (H-1) and 4130 (H-1) as reported   Page 3 of 3
Statutes affected: 
Substitute (H-1): 777.11
House Introduced Bill: 777.11
As Passed by the House: 777.11