This bill revises the procedures for conducting audits of election results in New Jersey. It mandates that the Secretary of State appoint an independent audit team each year to oversee post-election audits of voter-verifiable paper records in each county. The bill allows for audits to be conducted using independent third-party electronic machines, in addition to the traditional hand-to-eye counts. It specifies that audits will be required for federal and state elections, as well as selected county and municipal elections, with a minimum of two percent of election districts being audited. The audits must begin 13 days after the election and be completed before the certification of results.

Additionally, the bill removes previous requirements that audit procedures ensure a certain statistical power to confirm that a manual recount would not change the reported electoral outcome. Instead, it requires that post-election audit procedures be published prior to elections, allowing for public comment. The bill also outlines the process for selecting election districts and audit units for auditing, ensuring transparency and public observation during the audits. If discrepancies are found that could affect election outcomes, further audits may be conducted to address these concerns. The act is set to take effect immediately upon passage.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 19:61-9