The bill amends the Code of West Virginia by adding a new section, 3-4A-27a, which establishes requirements for the preservation and publication of voting data from electronic voting machines. It mandates that counties using the Express Vote system enable ballot tabulator functionality to capture ballot images. Additionally, county election officials are required to provide the Secretary of State with cast vote records and images of each ballot cast, organized by precinct, after the election results are declared. The Secretary of State must then publish this information on a publicly accessible website within 24 hours, ensuring that no personally identifiable information of voters is disclosed.

Furthermore, the bill includes provisions to protect voter privacy, particularly for precincts with fewer than 10 absentee-by-mail and provisional or challenged ballots. In such cases, the Secretary of State must ensure that the published data does not allow for the identification of individual voters or their choices. The bill also defines "cast vote record" and grants the Secretary of State the authority to create legislative rules to implement these provisions while safeguarding the constitutional right to privacy in voting.

Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 3-4A-27a
Committee Substitute: 3-4A-27a