ENGROSSED

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR


H. B. 201

By Mr. Speaker, (Mr. Thompson) and Delegate Armstead)

(By Request of the Executive)

[Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary]


[July 15, 2010]


A BILL to amend and reenact §3-1-44 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new section designated as §3-10-4a, all relating to vacancies in the office of United States Senator; requiring the state to pay costs incurred in connection with a special election to fill a vacancy in the office of United States Senator; providing for an election to fill the unexpired term; requiring the election to occur in conjunction with the 2010 general election; providing for a special primary election to nominate party candidates for the 2010 general election; authorizing the Governor to appoint a person to serve as United States Senator until a successor is elected and qualified; providing that the provisions of the law relating to elections shall apply to the special primary election unless inconsistent with section; modifying statutory time periods; authorizing the Secretary of State to issue administrative orders and to establish procedures and deadlines necessary to assure for the orderly administration of the special primary election; and providing for the expiration of the section.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §3-1-44 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that said code be amended by adding thereto a new section designated as §3-10-4a, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS AND DEFINITIONS.
§3-1-44. Compensation of election officials; expenses.
(a) Each ballot commissioner is to be paid a sum, to be fixed by the county commission, not exceeding $125 for each day he or she serves as ballot commissioner, but in no case may a ballot commissioner receive allowance for more than ten days' services for any one primary, general or special election.
(b) Each commissioner of election and poll clerk is to be paid a sum, to be fixed by the county commission, not exceeding $125 for one day's services for attending the school of instruction for election officials if the commissioner or poll clerk provides at least one day's service during an election and a sum not exceeding $175 for his or her services at any one election: Provided, That each commissioner of election and poll clerk is to be paid a sum not exceeding $175 for his or her services at any of the three special elections described in subsection (f) of this section.
(c) Each alternate commissioner of election and poll clerk may be paid a sum, to be fixed by the county commission, not exceeding $50 for one day's services for attending the school of instruction for election officials: Provided, That no alternate may be eligible for compensation for election training unless the alternate is subsequently appointed as an election official or is instructed to attend and actually attends training as an alternate and is available to serve on election day.
(d) The commissioners of election or poll clerks obtaining and delivering the election supplies, as provided in section twenty- four of this article, and returning them, as provided in articles five and six of this chapter, are to be paid an additional sum, fixed by the county commission, not exceeding $125 for his or her services pursuant to this subsection at any one election. In addition, he or she is to be paid mileage up to the rate of reimbursement authorized by the travel management rule of the department of administration for each mile necessarily traveled in the performance of his or her services.
(e) The compensation of election officers, cost of printing ballots and all other expenses incurred in holding and making the return of elections, other than the three special elections described in subsection (f) of this section, are to be audited by the county commission and paid out of the county treasury.
(f) The compensation of election officers, cost of printing ballots and all other reasonable and necessary expenses in holding and making the return of a special election, held to fill a vacancy in the office of United States Senator that existed on July 1, 2010, of a special election for the purpose of taking the sense the voters on the question of calling a constitutional convention, of a special election to elect members of a constitutional convention and of a special election to ratify or reject the proposals, acts and ordinances of a constitutional convention are obligations of the state incurred by the ballot commissioners, clerks of the circuit courts, clerks of the county commissions and county commissions of the various counties as agents of the state. All expenses of these special elections are to be audited by the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall prepare and transmit to the county commissions forms on which the county commissions shall certify all expenses of these special elections to the secretary of state. If satisfied that the expenses as certified by the county commissions are reasonable and were necessarily incurred, the secretary of state shall requisition the necessary warrants from the auditor of the state to be drawn on the state treasurer and shall mail the warrants directly to the vendors of the special election services, supplies and facilities.
ARTICLE 10. FILLING VACANCIES.
§3-10-4a. Special Senate vacancy election.
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section three of this article establishing a process for the appointment and election of a successor to a vacancy in the office of United States Senator, a special election shall be held to fill the unexpired term of the vacancy in the office of United States Senator existing on July 1, 2010, and the election shall be in conjunction with the general election of November 2, 2010. A special primary election shall be held to nominate party candidates for the November election. If upon the closure of the filing deadline for filing a certificate of announcement for the special primary election there is only one certificate of announcement in a political party for nomination, the person filing the certificate shall be declared the nominee for the party. If only one person has filed a certificate of announcement in each political party or only one person has filed for the election in any party, then no special primary shall be held pursuant to this section.
(b) The Governor shall appoint a person to fill the vacancy in the office of United States Senator until a successor is elected and qualified pursuant to subsection (a).
(c)The Governor shall issue a proclamation calling for a special election. The proclamation for the special election shall be published prior to the election as a Class II-0 legal advertisement in accordance with article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code and the publication area for the publication is each county of the state. The notice shall be filed with the Secretary of State who shall immediately transmit the document to the clerk of the county commission of each county. The clerk of the county commission of each county shall cause the document to be published within the county in accordance with this section.
(d) The provisions of this chapter shall apply to the special vacancy elections authorized by this section to the extent that those provisions are consistent with the provisions of this section. Statutory time deadlines relating to availability of absentee ballots, certification, canvassing, and related election procedures that cannot be met in a timely fashion, for the purpose of this election are modified as follows:
(1) The special primary election shall be held on the 28th of August, 2010.
(2) Absentee ballots, other than military and overseas ballots, shall be mailed no later than fifteen days prior to the special primary election and the general election; military and overseas ballots shall be mailed no later than thirty days prior to the special primary election and the general election;
(3) A notarized declaration of candidacy and filing fee shall be filed and received in hand by the Secretary of State by 5:00 p.m. on the fourth business day following the proclamation of the special primary election. The declaration of candidacy may be filed in person, by United States mail, electronic means or any other means authorized by the Secretary of State;
(4) The early voting period shall begin eight calender days prior to the special primary election; and
(5) The canvas shall be completed and the results declared no later than four o'clock of the third business day following the special primary election.
(e) For the purposes of administering the special primary election authorized by this subsection, the Secretary of State shall by administrative order, establish all procedures and undertake all actions necessary to assure for the orderly administration of the special primary election authorized by this subsection.
(f) Upon the election and qualification of a United States Senator following the November 2, 2010 election, the provisions of this section will expire, and the process for selection and election of a United States Senator will revert to the process otherwise established by the provisions of this chapter.