SB 89 - AS INTRODUCED
2021 SESSION
21-0999
11/05
SENATE BILL 89
AN ACT adopting omnibus legislation relative to election procedures and registers of
probate.
SPONSORS: Sen. Gray, Dist 6
COMMITTEE: Election Law and Municipal Affairs
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ANALYSIS
This bill adopts legislation relative to:
I. The city chief elections officer.
II. Prohibiting the taking of certain photographs within the guardrail.
III. Allowing the opening of the absentee ballot outer envelopes and the preprocessing of
absentee ballots.
IV. Establishing a committee to study post election audit counting devices.
V. The duties of the registers of probate.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
 SB 89 - AS INTRODUCED
21-0999
11/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty One
AN ACT adopting omnibus legislation relative to election procedures and registers of
probate.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 1 Sponsorship. This act consists of the following proposed legislation:
2 Part I. LSR 21-0999, relative to the city chief elections officer, sponsored by Sen. Gray,
3 Prime/Dist. 6.
4 Part II. LSR 21-1002, prohibiting the taking of certain photographs within the guardrail,
5 sponsored by Sen. Gray, Prime/Dist. 6.
6 Part III. LSR 21-1004, allowing the opening of absentee ballot outer envelopes and the
7 preprocessing of absentee ballots, sponsored by Sen. Gray, Prime/Dist. 6.
8 Part IV. LSR 21-1051, establishing a committee to study post election audit counting devices,
9 sponsored by Sen. Gray, Prime/Dist. 6.
10 Part V. LSR 21-0998, relative to the duties of the registers of probate, sponsored by Sen. Gray,
11 Prime/Dist. 6.
12 2 Legislation Enacted. The general court hereby enacts the following legislation:
13 PART I
14 Relative to the City Chief Elections Officer.
15 1 Chief Elections Officer; City Clerk. Amend RSA 659:9-a to read as follows:
16 659:9-a City [Chief Elections Officer Duties] Clerk Uniform Practices. The city [chief
17 elections officer] clerk shall establish uniform practices and procedures that conform to state and
18 federal law for the conduct of elections at all polling places within the city. The moderators and
19 other election officials who conduct elections at the individual polling places within the city shall
20 comply with the uniform procedures established for the city by the city [chief elections officer] clerk.
21 The secretary of state shall resolve any conflicting interpretations of state and federal laws arising
22 between the [chief elections officer] city clerk and other election officials. The legislative body of
23 any city may vote to have the duties of the ward officers relative to the selection and equipping of
24 polling places assigned to the city [chief elections officer] clerk.
25 2 Repeal. RSA 652:14-a, relative to city chief elections officers, is repealed.
26 3 Effective Date. Part I of this act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
27 PART II
28 Prohibiting the Taking of Certain Photographs within the Guardrail.
29 1 New Section; Election Procedure; Prohibited Acts; Photography. Amend RSA 659 by inserting
30 after section 45 the following new section:
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1 659:45-a Certain Photography Prohibited. No person shall take or cause any photograph to be
2 taken within the guardrail that captures another voter or another voter's ballot.
3 2 Effective Date. Part II of this act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
4 PART III
5 Allowing the Opening of Absentee Ballot Outer Envelopes and the Preprocessing of Absentee Ballots.
6 1 Processing Absentee Ballots. Amend RSA 659:49, II to read as follows:
7 II. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph I, [upon the written challenges of 10 or
8 more voters who are present at the polls no later than 1:00 p.m., the moderator shall postpone the
9 processing of all absentee ballots until after the polls close and prior to the counting of all ballots
10 cast in the election.] the moderator, or his or her designee, shall post the time at which the
11 processing of absentee ballots shall begin at the polling place and one other public location at least
12 24 hours before the polls open. In addition, when the polls open the moderator shall announce the
13 time at which the processing of absentee ballots shall begin.
14 2 Opening Absentee Ballot Outer Envelopes. RSA 659:49-b is repealed and reenacted to read as
15 follows:
16 659:49-b Opening Absentee Ballot Outer Envelopes.
17 I. The town and city clerks or their designee shall open outer envelope of all absentee ballots
18 received prior to 5:00 pm on the day prior to election day. The envelope containing the ballot shall
19 not be removed from the outer envelope at such time.
20 II. The clerk shall establish a policy identifying when the outer envelopes will be opened and
21 the review of the affidavit conducted. When election day is within 2 weeks the opening of the
22 envelops and review of the affidavit shall occur not later than the next business day after the clerks
23 receive the returned absentee ballot.
24 III. The affidavit shall be reviewed pursuant to RSA 659:50.
25 IV. If errors are identified during this review that would cause the ballot to be rejected the
26 town or city clerk or their designee shall attempt to contact the voter to notify them of the errors and
27 possible methods to correct the error using the telephone or email information, if provided, on the
28 application. The clerk shall make a record that notice was provided to the voter on the clerk's list of
29 absentee ballots.
30 3 New Section; Processing Absentee Ballots; Pre-processing of Absentee Ballots. Amend RSA
31 659 by inserting after section 49-b the following new section:
32 659:49-c Pre-processing of Absentee Ballots.
33 I. The moderator or the moderator’s designee may authorize the pre-processing of absentee
34 ballots as described below provided that the pre-processing occurs in public with notice of the time
35 and place.
36 II. After the corrected checklist to be used at the election has been posted, and based on the
37 reviews conducted per RSA 659:49-b, notations may be made on the checklist to help facilitate
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1 processing of the ballot on election day. The ballot shall remain secure in the unopened affidavit
2 envelope until final processing on election day.
3 III. The moderator or moderator's designee shall not initiate compliance with RSA 659:51
4 and RSA 659:52 until the time specified in RSA 659:49 on election day.
5 4 Processing Absentee Ballots; Challenges. Amend RSA 659:51, I to read as follows:
6 I. All absentee ballots are subject to challenge after the moderator publicly announces the
7 name of the absentee voter, except for voters provided for in RSA 7:46, but not after the checklist is
8 marked with the red "A.V." or the ballot is removed from the envelope. No challenge to an
9 absentee ballot may be asserted except in conformity with the requirements of RSA 659:27-a.
10 5 Processing Absentee Ballots; Opening Envelope; Depositing Ballot. Amend RSA 659:52 to
11 read as follows:
12 659:52 Opening Envelope; Depositing Ballot. If the absentee ballot is not challenged, the
13 moderator shall, after announcing the name of the voter, open the envelope containing the ballot so
14 the affidavit is not destroyed. The moderator shall then take the ballot out of the envelope without
15 unfolding the ballot or without permitting the ballot to be examined, and he or she shall preserve the
16 affidavit with the ballots cast at the election as provided in RSA 659:101. The moderator shall then
17 [have a checkmark placed beside the name of the absentee voter on the checklist and write
18 therewith] mark the checklist in such a way as to indicate the voter has voted, and write the
19 letters "A.V." in red ink and shall then deposit the ballot in the ballot box.
20 6 Effective Date. Part III of this act shall take effect August 1, 2021.
21 PART IV
22 Establishing a Committee to Study Post Election Audit Counting Devices.
23 1 Committee Established. There is established a committee to study post election audit
24 counting devices.
25 2 Membership and Compensation.
26 I. The members of the committee shall be as follows:
27 (a) Two members of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.
28 (b) Three members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the
29 house of representatives.
30 II. Members of the committee shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to
31 the duties of the committee.
32 3 Duties. The committee shall determine what ballot counting equipment is available which
33 would support a post election audit in New Hampshire, and shall study the feasibility, time
34 constraints, and cost of conducting a post election audit using any vote counting equipment
35 identified. The committee may use ballots cast in prior elections to test ballot counting equipment,
36 provided that such use is in conjunction with the secretary of state and with the approval of the
37 ballot law commission.
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1 4 Chairperson; Quorum. The members of the study committee shall elect a chairperson from
2 among the members. The first meeting of the committee shall be called by the first-named senate
3 member. The first meeting of the committee shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this
4 section. Three members of the committee shall constitute a quorum.
5 5 Report. The committee shall report its findings and any recommendations for proposed
6 legislation to the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate
7 clerk, the house clerk, the governor, the secretary of state, the attorney general, and the state library
8 on or before November 30, 2021.
9 6 Effective Date. Part IV of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
10 PART V
11 Relative to the Duties of the Registers of Probate.
12 1 Establishing Compensation; Register of Probate. Amend RSA 23:7 to read as follows:
13 23:7 Establishing Compensation. Every county convention shall have the power to establish
14 salaries, benefits, and other compensation paid to elected county officers including the county
15 attorney, sheriff, register of deeds, register of probate, treasurer, and county commissioners. For
16 the purposes of this section, except for the register of probate, "compensation'' shall include
17 salary, longevity pay, vacation and sick pay, allowances, and all other payments made by the county
18 to its officers, plus the fair market value of any compensation paid in kind if reportable as income for
19 federal income tax purposes, plus all fringe benefits that may be provided including health insurance
20 and retirement, and may also include an upper limit on the amount of mileage and out-of-pocket
21 expenditures reimbursable to each officer. Said compensation shall be established biennially by the
22 county convention prior to the filing date required under RSA 655:14 for the elected offices listed in
23 this section, upon recommendation of the executive committee which shall remain in effect during
24 their term of office. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, in counties in which
25 any of the officers listed in this section receive fees or mileage, or both, for services performed by
26 them as part of their compensation, the county convention may put such officer on a salary and
27 expenses basis. Such officer may be required to continue to collect the usual fees and mileage for the
28 service performed and to pay over all such fees and mileage to the county treasurer for the use of the
29 county. In such event, the amount such officer received in fees and mileage, less expenses, shall be
30 included in determining the minimum at which his or her salary may be established unless a lesser
31 amount is agreed upon by the incumbent officer at that time. In no case, except for the register of
32 probate, shall the salary or other compensation of any of such officers be established at a lesser
33 amount than that which was in effect December 31, 1972.
34 2 Salaries for Counties; Register of Probate. Amend RSA 23:8 to read as follows:
35 23:8 Salaries for Counties.
36 I. Every county shall establish the salary for its register of deeds at a fixed dollar value.
37 Said salaries may not be established either in part or in total as a percentage of fees or other charges
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1 or payments collected by said register. Said salaries shall be established not less than biennially by
2 the county convention, upon recommendation of the executive committee. In no case shall the salary
3 of any of said registers of deeds be a lesser amount than the salary which said register was receiving
4 on January 1, 1974.
5 II. Every county shall establish the salary for its register of probate at a fixed dollar
6 value. Said salaries may be established either in part or in total as a percentage of fees or
7 other charges or payments collected by the county treasurer or the state and consistent
8 with RSA 548:17. Said salaries shall be established not less than biennially by the county
9 convention, upon recommendation of the executive committee.
10 3 Supreme Court; Entry Fees. RSA 490:24, I is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
11 I. For the benefit of the state and counties, there shall be paid to the clerk for the entry of
12 every reserved case, bill of exceptions, petition, appeal, or other action, for the filing of every motion
13 or other document supplementary to the entered case, and for any service rendered by the clerk,
14 such fees as shall from time to time be established by the court. The clerk shall determine the total
15 amount of probate entry fees collected in each county. The clerk shall set aside 10 percent of each
16 probate entry fee paid to the probate division of the circuit court for allocation to the counties for the
17 salary, benefits, and other compensation costs of the registers of probate as set forth in RSA 490:27.
18 From the remaining entry fees, 6 percent shall be set aside for deposit into a special escrow account
19 established under RSA 490:26-c and 30 percent for deposit into the judicial branch information
20 technology fund established under RSA 490:26-h. The proceeds of fees for motions to appear in court
21 pro hac vice shall be paid into the law library revolving fund established in RSA 490:25, III.
22 4 Escrow Fund for Court Facility Improvements. Amend RSA 490:26-c to read as follows:
23 490:26-c Escrow Fund for Court Facility Improvements.
24 I. [Six] From the entry fees remaining after the deductions required under RSA
25 490:24, I, 6 percent of each entry fee collected in the supreme, superior, and circuit courts shall be
26 deposited in escrow for judicial branch facility improvements. Moneys in the escrow fund shall be
27 used for improvements to judicial branch facilities by the department of administrative services as
28 recommended and approved by the supreme court.
29 II. The state treasurer shall establish procedures for deposits to and expenditures from the
30 judicial escrow fund for court facilities. The judicial escrow fund shall be a dedicated capital
31 reserve fund for the improvement of existing court facilities, or those facilities acquired pursuant to
32 an act of the general court.
33 III. The funds on deposit in the judicial escrow fund for court facility improvements shall
34 be invested by the state treasurer in obligations of the United States government, in government
35 agency obligations, in obligations which are legal investments for savings banks and trust
36 companies, and in all types of savings accounts or certificates of deposit of both state or federally
37 chartered institutions.