State Agencies & Govt'l Affairs-Senate

Senate state agencies will come to order. We have anyone to run the Senate bill two seventy five. Senate bill three forty nine. All right. Senate bill the three sixty three. He's in another committee. The Senate bill two fifty three. Steve Kroll the Senator district three. You're recognized. this bill hi codifies the procedure on how damage ballots are currently remade the bill has clear guidelines in sequence numbers for the damage ballots this bill make it make it easy to tract damage ballots and the replacement ballots through promoting transit ballot trance parent C.. So it's just clean up the process to make sure that we don't have any. Issues if there is damage ballots. Your any questions. Go ahead Senator flowers. This. We got a first copy it that what you mean by duplicate. Means that if there's damage out there won't go through the machine that I think they they can copy it or they can if they want to they can get rid of the ballot redo about what we want to make sure that the they are marked with sequential number so we don't. We don't know who is doing the duplication the voter. The way the process was before DO you wanna come up in. Correct an incumbent chairman. Yes. Introduce yourself and you're recognized. The initial structures Election Commission so. He. Yes Sir Daschle's stay lection Commission rector currently the in that was the amendment actually dressing up there's a little bit of ambiguity but it's the officials who are doing the counting of the ones and right now the law requires it be duplicated but the only who by the the election officials are doing accounting so that at the whole the voter can simply re vote if they choose to do so but if the voter but so ninety nine times out of a hundred when you're dealing with the damaged ballot it's going to be when you're doing a central count of defective ballots in the central council tuition usually absentee ballots under the current process right now the only statutory requirement is that you write duplicate on the duplicate so what we wanna do is borrow some of the innovations of counties in other states that require you to put a serial number on the original and the duplicate so that they can be linked at a later time it would be the same number as the original bass Act place you can go back and compare to confirm it's done correctly in the context of a recount or any further review that occurs that's our our main goal is to put that in place that isn't currently in the law. And so we're is the duplicate. Okay so you store the original. In the same manner as the other ballots. Is it going to be stapled together or what. No ma'am it will not be stapled together they'll be stored separately the original will duplicate would take the place of the original which is the current law to required process but the this that's why you need the number that we don't currently have in the loss you can go back and confirm later that it was done correctly and again this is a process done in other states and some of our counties of their own initiative but we like to make it a required process. Okay it all be kept as anybody can see it at the time the votes are counted. If if there if somebody ask for. Yes yes ma'am this is a process is required to be done and in public where the public has access so if they want to view it they will have the ability to do so. Thank you. Thank you senator any other questions from the committee. Seeing none the. There's no one signed up to speak for against. Comported. You. Last the introduce yourself or you speak for against for the interview sure self you're recognized thank you my name's Clint Lancaster I represent the Arkansas voter integrity initiative I would like to think Senator corral for bringing this bill this bill in my opinion is a product of what happened in Crawford County during the primary during the primary my client who is running for the Republican nomination was leading the race in her district when eleven o'clock at night is about that time period the County Board of election commissioners allegedly found about twenty something ballots and then just absentee ballots and then decided to count them and they did not mark them they do not mark them as duplicate and they did nothing to make them identifiable when they put them in the DS two hundred tabulator we lost all ability to track those ballots to see if they were remade properly and this this bill would fix that problem it would make our election integrity efforts to make sure our boats are fair and our elections are fair and conducted fairly it will it will further that by miles and I would encourage you to to pass this bill out of committee. Thank you for your testimony anybody have any questions. Sam nine. The your clothes your bill I'd like to vote do pass please the motion by Senator Kroll. The second by Senator Payton the in the discussion. All in favor say aye hi All opposed Like sign thank you senator Crowe. What was the other one H. B. fourteen oh five all right. H. the fourteenth. Ladies and gentlemen this is a very simple bill this just gets our code up to the twenty first century And takes off the old terminal terminology that we no longer use. One second the members get to that. Is there any questions. Go ahead senator flowers so is consistent with what. Board of elections of. Yes yes ma'am they came to me to help to clear this up for them yes ma'am okay thank. J.. Is there anything other. No one signed up for and to speak for against this bill your clothes your bill yes please make a motion to pass please motion by Senator crawl. Second by Senator Payton any discussion all in favor say aye All opposed Like sign thank you senator senator. We will move on to House Bill fourteen eleven. We don't have anybody for fourteen eleven right now. The fourteen sixty one. Introduce yourself and you're recognized. Thank you Mr gym Petty senator District twenty nine. So HB fourteen sixty one is a bill that provides a means for counties to notify the state of of any federal inquiry into the election issues all state and county election officials must submit any new federal election guidance to the Secretary of State within two business days of receipt and this will help prevent federal over reach and protect state sovereignty with regards to elections it's. And that's in in short what it is I'm happy to answer any questions. Thank you senator any questions from the committee. Seeing none we have one to speak for this bill Clint Lancaster. Thank you Mister chair may I just go ahead and enter yourself again you're recognized sure I'm Clint Lancaster still with the AV I. Arkansas voter integrity initiative I am speaking for this bill because the election assistance commission a federal entity does reviews of election related problems especially to voting machines across the United States and the issue guidance and instructions and sometimes directives to machine manufacturers to fix defects in machines including both dominion an E. SNS machine a lot of times these these defects are not found or known and so to give the legislature the chance to have oversight and review about our voting system and processes it's a good thing and so I would ask you pass this bill. Thank you Sir yes Sir Senator Senator Tucker and senator flowers. Thank you Mr chairman and this really means this could be for Mister Lancaster sports centre Petty Michelin cash you really I think just identified a at least a partial answer to this question but I'm just curious what sorts of federal election guidance comes comes down from the feds at this point I mean is there is there more beyond what you mentioned there is more beyond what I mentioned however I'm most familiar with the ones related to voting machines in the electronic machines the the reason for the benefit is that various machine very other states use various machines including the S. and S. machines identical to ours that are connected to the internet via a motor and so knowing how those machines are hacked or access or whatever improperly used is very important to know how to protect us in Arkansas from what's happening in other states so in that example the federal say Hey this machine has been hacked we just want to make sure that you're aware so you can take whatever steps you need to take to protect against it that's that's sort of thing that kind of thing is they would update the cybersecurity protocols in one but one more recent wanted to million tabulator was not properly tabulating votes and it was and they would put the votes the ballots in but it wouldn't count correctly so they flag that and allow those updates to happen nationwide to direct okay Thanks to my understanding and it senator Patty do you want to is there anything else that you're aware of. That. Sorry not to my knowledge no okay it's covered that's helpful to me thank you but it's not like the feds make any policy on voting because that's strictly state to state issue that's where I guess my confusion was coming from the it is nonbinding policy and then the form of guidance like we highly suggest you do this or they can order machine manufacturers or those who provide contracted services to change but the the clause in the U. S. constitution gives you the the legislature oversight of federal elections no change thank you and I think we just want to have someone representing the state by the secretary of state's office involved in in what they are telling us at least aware of at least aware of that's correct okay thank you. Senator flowers. So so the guidance from the feds are sent to. Each of the counties is that how this goes or is it sent to the secretary of state's office. may I answer that Senator so the guidance is sent to the secretary of state each state must designate an election official in the state for this purpose under federal law and that's where they're sent to and they're also public posted on the EACs website. The AC what is that election assistance commission so is that state no ma'am that's a federal it's a federal entity okay so this the Secretary of State gets it the federal guidance. So how do the counties get it except to the secretary of state's office that would be through the secretary of state's office unless they care to look on the EACs website why is there this a. Requirement that the secretary of state on second page shell online team compiled from the following persons or entities all new federal election guidance concerning elections in the state given by the United States Department justice or any other federal executive agency one County Board of election commissioners county election officials what what are those two. In their. I didn't I didn't draft this bill but my understanding of why that is in there is because your elections happen at the county level and often times there are DOJ investigations into election fraud we're rather used to be where they would investigate election fraud and make findings and only maybe the CBC with no and so the bill is designed to capture a vote cast a wide net for information is how I would describe that. Well if it's mandating that this list be compiled. From County Board of election commissioners and county election officials. And they get it from the secretary of state's office thank. What I don't understand that I think it's it's reverse I think a lot of these inquiries on a lot of these suggestions are we shall call on this date a current if at the local level in this is allowing the Secretary of State to gather that information and I I don't know if the Secretary states wants to come and add to this but but I think this is allowing us to have a central to to gather all that information and then they can just disseminate that out throughout the state. Well if the county. Board center election officials don't have the information except from the secretary of state's office. How are they going to be. A responsible for given something that the secretary of state is given them out. And this is a mandate. I think what the what this is intended to do is to create a source for all of those that come in primarily have been occurring at the local level to the secretary of state who will disseminate that out across as opposed to coming into the currently coming into the county that may or may not be sent to the secretary of state's office. What I'd like to hear from secretary of state's office because I don't understand if the secretary of state's office is the where the guidance is deposited from the fed and then disseminated down to the county level. How is it that the county level is given something back I mean. So is this going to cost someone from secretary of state's office will come up with this Mastana side Mr stand thank you. Yes. Well let them clean this up for me but I'm I'm as I understand it it is not going to the secretary of state's first initially that's what you just said bill. Go ahead. Groth assistant director of elections for the secretary of state's office you understand what I'm asking is this is this is secretary of state bill it is not. What will have you have you had an opportunity to look at it I have looked at it how is this supposed to work on that second page Sturch next line twelve but first off is the guidance from the department of justice part any federal executive agency related. Two voting. Our election laws this guidance given to the Secretary of State. Our is it sent to each county do you know this so I don't think that we have had an instance in Arkansas for any guidance from the federal government on any election complaint has been filed with our office and if it were and this is just to my knowledge if it were we would definitely I. Take that information and send it on to the counties. Are you aware of federal guidance being sent down to the county level of each state I'm not. I'm just I'm I'm trying to understand how. We can mandate. That the secretary of state. Shell bill. Get this list. Startin at. Line eighteen on page who. From county boards. Of election commissioners and county election officials. And even the employees of the secretary of state's office. All new federal election guidance. Concerning the elections in the state. By the department of justice. The only thing I can think of is we did have a county at reading we have a county that was visited by the department of justice I believe it was in the twenty twenty election. And they had some ADA requirements that weren't being that's Americans with disability act requirements that weren't being followed so the department of justice did visit their County and they provided them some guidance. To the county itself the end I think with this bill is doing is just asking the the county boards to. Send out on up to the secretary of state's office so we can notify the entire state of what that guidance was. Senator Patty when you use the term new on line eighteen new federal election guidance I guess. After September one of each year. On line sixteen says I guess. Is that what you're doing this so I think this is intended this this bill is intended to create a structure that we don't currently have and maybe maybe it's only one or two isolated instances but this is this is to create a structure so we do have a clearing house so we don't have something coming in at a local level that another local individual council would would not be aware of and so you have a bunch of different interpretations and guidance this is going to set this set the procedure or policy in place to create a method to disseminate the information to all the counties whether to initiate in a single county or initiate to the secretary of state this is saying that this is how we will disseminate the the the guidance to our to our county election officials this new guidance. It says new got some on line eighteen Page two. So. They're going to be rules gathered to help the county. Lords I understand what. What you're trying to do me I can't speak for the federal government and what they're gonna be issuing it this is just saying if if there is new guidance on a tabulator or some other election related matter B. I've got it thank you it is it is it is going to be disseminated through the secretary of state's office. And and you know in the in terms of the Legislative intended it says or in the first to review. Any new doesn't mean that that there is any right now but any new election Federal Election guidance to allow the the Legislative review of those through eight a central collection point in the secretary of state's office. It also says. Research the interaction between the new federal election guidance and state law. Who does that the secretary of state's office who who does this the County Board of elections are they. Capable of doing that. Who does this. Currently nobody and I think that's the crews who has the capacity to do it is what I'm asking. What really has the capacity to do this is that the secretary of state is the state board of elections cool. I'm not sure that the. Local county boards of election have the capacity to do this. The capacity to do what to say to the Secretary surveys or you say be informed of the new federal election on page one guidance and to research the interaction between the new federal election guidance in state law. Senator. I understand what senator thank you the under D. one. The they're of the secretary of state's office becomes a custodian so it would be the the secretary of state's office DO in the The compiling whether the notification went to a local council they would be compiling that new information as the custody and and and they have they have the staff to do that. Compiling whether it be a communication from the feds to secretary of state or or from the fence to the local Election commission or board like they said with the ADA's motion so secretary of state's office would be the custodian and and the responsible party and in this in this piece of legislation. I'm just concerned about this mandatory language shale. That's. At one twelve. As it relates to. Three eight. Hello I. Little to a. I don't understand how this works. And if it shall. What happens I mean if they don't have any report I guess they don't have anything to report. Are they in trouble. There's nothing new than now I would say I would assume it's not a not a situations that's that's right this is this is this is creating something that we don't have currently in terms of a a central collection point the custodian as the chair said for anything that happens as as you heard secretary state so far we only know of one instance where that occurred and it occurred at the local level and and and I don't know that one instance is what triggered this or or what but we want to make sure that. When. Whoever comes in and it says it it again including without limitation the time place matters suggestions for carrying out an election the state this is guidance from the federal government a potential violation of federal election laws or guidance issued by the United States Department anytime any of that comes in at any point in any. Local level this is requiring that it be reported to the secretary of state so they can be in colluded in that conversation of whether or not they agree or not or whether or not that is a true violation of federal election it's reporting them to a local I mean to a central so if it is a matter that we maybe we interpreted the guidance wrong then we can get that out or we can decide whether or not legislatively we agree with the Federal Election interpretation or not so I don't think it's a I don't think it's a creation of a mandate that there are thousands of these happening and it's it's it's it's just getting ahead of what potentially could be a confusing matter because there is no central point if if council acts does not share that information with anybody else or doesn't come up in a in a conversation then that that is not going to be accumulated in in that may create a violation over here that you know accounting why inadvertently did have they had that information they could have avoided that I think that's the legislative intent with this with this bill. Senator flowers may I go to yes sounds like it creates confusion and. Thank you senator Payton. Thank you Mr and so when I look at to begin the bill for the legislative intent it says the allow the legislature to review. New federal guidance and new federal guidance as defined on line thirty six there page one. Do you think that it's within the purview of the Arkansas General Assembly to know about and be informed about any guidance that the federal government is giving to our political subdivisions do I think so yes and so if we pass this bill and the secretary of state compiles a list. Through communication with those local subdivisions and then reports to the General Assembly that would be a healthy process to make sure that federal guidance was in line with the legislative intent of the General Assembly on our elections is that is that we're trying to do that so exactly how you articulated much but okay thanks actually have thank you Mr. Right thank you senator Payton the three other questions. The senator your clothes your bill I'm closed thank you thank you the what's will of committee. Motion by Senator Payton. Second second the all in favor say aye on All opposed Like sign. Thank you senator you faster. The school one fifteen ten representative ray. The entity stuff you're recognized thank you Mr chairman representative ray District sixty nine thank you committee this is house bill fifteen ten this is the special election reform bill I think most people or have seen it in previous years that are familiar with the arguments for or against but I'll just briefly summarize what it does is it would standardize the election calendar for local measures and questions these are issues such as local option sales tax property tax increase for your library and it would put them on one of two dates each year that are pretty predictable and consistent for voters. Those being the primary election or the general election in years in which there's a primary or general in an odd numbered years the bill would still allow for these local measures and questions to be brought before voters on the on the two dates each year when the primary or general would occur the benefits to this bill it's going to make it harder for tax increases to sneak past people without thank reasonable cross section of the electorate turning out we often see elections with two and a half three and a half to five percent turnout which is which is really bad for number reasons so it'll also increase voter participation and then it will save a lot of money on not having to have extraneous special elections outside of the primary and general election the bill does allow for emergency special elections if they meet the criteria outlined in the bill. And that's what the bill does be happy to answer any questions the regular rate three questions Senator Tucker. Can you just expand on those emergency circumstances. Yes Sir happy to do that starting on line twenty the person would be interpretation of law by federal or state court which if not addressed by an election would render the governing entity incapable of performance lawful duties the second would be sort of a natural disaster exemption fire flood tornado things of that nature and then the third is a more broad exemption for things that are the present an imminent threat to public health or safety. Thank you it basically is the reason why you have those because I haven't special elections only twice a year and means you might have to wait six months or more. To have a special election and you might have a more urgent need at times that's right and there you know in past years folks of brought forward hypothetical situations you know what happens if a tornado level levels our town and we need to hold an emergency special election so that's why we went back in and put those in to provide for some some latitude in those instances. I appreciate that my concern is that I'm not sure that we can as we sit here today in this room know what all the Emergency circumstances might be in the future so there may be something that we're missing. data the city or county or. School district where the case might be. They might have an urgent need for something but it's not accounted for these exceptions and you the people of that district will suffer as a result of this because they might have to wait six months from. Around six months or in some cases even more for for a special election. Well I would say we you know waiting six months is that's not an extremely long length of time but also you know these these exceptions were developed in consultation with local governments they brought their concerns to this and all of the concerns that they that they brought to us would fall it would fall that would constitute an actual emergency right would fall under one of these three exceptions obviously you're correct in that it is impossible to know every possible scenario in the future and if something comes up that is a legitimate emergency need that's not addressed by this language I would certainly be open to considering adding it in. In those conversations with local governments to they talk about because it it it's not Adam you know necessarily public health or safety emergency it's it's it in a different category but if there what they want to put a bond issue on the ballot and interest rates are moving like they have been in twenty twenty three and and like they did in twenty twenty two if they have to wait six months to put something on the ballot it might have a real impact on. The success of the bond issue and the return so I'm just curious about that as well did did did they raise that as a concern sure folks of folks have brought that issue or mention that issue you know I guess what I would say regarding bond issues is you know the the election just simply authorizes approval of the bond that there's nothing that says they have to issue it the next day or week or even month they should have the flexibility to to issue the bond of time that is advantageous for them but again that doesn't constitute an emergency necessarily and I did I did add an amendment to the bill in the House Committee in response to concerns from Bon Bon folks and they they said Hey you know we have some bonds this year that are going to be re authorized in August in the August election and so I just said Hey I understand I don't want to cause any real and legitimate problems with bonds that are scheduled to be re authorized this August so I put an effective date on the bill of January one of next year so they still be able to have that August election this year. All right thank you Sir thank you. Senator king. Thank you Mr. So what I mean I'm not familiar with your district what cities do you represent County. A service in the northern part of Pulaski County in the southern part of Faulkner County. So do any of those cities or counties that you represent DO this sneaky tax rate stuff and. I would I would definitely say we've seen instances of that in your district. yes cider district yes I don't represent any of the city of North Little Rock but just two weeks ago I represent a lot of voters who have North Little Rock addresses and commute to north little rock north little rock at an Election three weeks ago on Valentine's day where on February fourteenth where they tried to raise the but they try to raise five mills for the library and North Little Rock is a town of approximately seventy thousand people there were twenty one hundred voters it turned out the turnout was three point eight percent which is just really embarrassing in my opinion and the route directly to precincts were not even a single person showed up to vote. so we do we do see this in my district but I I talk to people as a as I travel state this is it's not uncommon for folks in many areas of the state to have the same issue I was on Election Commission years ago in Carroll County and you're review would have a lot of these elections but to a so like in my district my past opposition has been to this it's like of. Now I mean when we typically your truck and your your basic go in this is trying to stop tax increases in the sneaky things as you said in your testimony. That's a big part of it yes so like in my district. They're not run a special election tax things because they get beat and then they would they put him in the general election they pass. Well I don't know I don't know which specific instances you're referring to the I don't I don't have any reason to not believe that that that's correct but I will I will say that the Arkansas center for research in economics it acre ECA they've conducted a very extensive review of local option sales taxes dating back to nineteen eighty one when that was first authorized and they found there's been one thousand and four local option sales tax elections since nineteen eighty one and eighty two percent of those have been held on a special election date and it's not hard to figure out why they opt to put them on the special election day with that it's there is they passed us at a seventy six percent rate when their hold on the special day they still passed with some regularity on the other days but the person the past percentages fifty seven percent when they're held in conjunction with the primary date and forty four percent when they're held in conjunction with the general day and that's of with the with over a thousand elections to look at that's a very big sample size so if you look I'm trying to think back in Madison County they put a tax on the special election it failed to put on the general election it barely pass in my district and I try until people down here it's con artist some people understand out here I mean when I cross the Senate district twenty eight line no one else pays my salary it's those people and so how they manage things is you know different than what you're saying I totally agree with you about the abuse everything like that you know I've seen that happen but in my district you know it it's a different thing so I mean. Why are we continuing to and I like I said I go back to I remember when I was involved in party politics back when marker can be ran for US Senate people who remember that and you know we were just always like you know what local control even when I disagree with I mean there's been bills up here even this session and you know I agree with what they're trying to do but I go back to local control and you know we've seen since situations of like one city know what mention the name went to having these in raising taxes will guess what the city down the road benefit if they didn't do it. Will move so I get into like it is about local control and you know I mean I get exactly what you're saying I mean maybe I'm getting soft on this issue because in my district we beat back these things and special let me say the ship though the clip side this we're just gonna throw this out is like in my district we're special election things are getting beat the opposite of what you're talking about trying to do let's say the citizens initiative or something like that wanted to lower taxes and have been in the special election because they felt like it would pass do that chances that happens small. Then basically your by your thing you're managing our fares by your bill to make it in that situation where they can't do it I have a harder. I feel fine yes I certainly understand and respect your concerns on that look everyone wants to Allow for local control where it makes sense with regard to elections elections or the province of the state we set the parameters for those and then there implemented at the local level you know we certainly wouldn't we wouldn't allow for local control and something like voter ID you know for example would want us we wouldn't want to say aye we're gonna have voter ID will just let the the cities or the county decide whether they want to do that or not so I believe with regard to elections yeah the state says the parameters in their implemented locally on the photo ID thing is somebody that can use can we come back to you have got one more and okay yeah I do have a couple more points center Payton thank you Mr on the Senate sponsor on this bill should I go to them to the table because I'd like to answer some of Senator cans question absolutely thank. Thank you Mr chairman thank you Committee cell. In my district since since we're talking about within the district and you were asking questions about specifically within his district. In my district there's been an outcry of my constituents to me on this subject because last November there was an issue on the ballot it was soundly defeated. And then they put it back on the ballot on Valentine's day. And it was soundly defeated again so your point to the fact that the the constituents can defeat these measures is true but there was a lot of money wasted. By running a second election and those are tax dollars of the constituents in that area that paid for running the second election to defeat the measure the second time on Valentine's day after he'd been soundly defeated in November one in close and I had. At least forty or fifty constituents calling and emailing and texting saying this is ridiculous we shouldn't have to spend our time going around in informing our neighbors that they need to get out on Valentine's day and vote we shouldn't have to spend our time going to the polls again because it was defeated in November and they're bringing it back up on Valentine's day so when you ask those questions about within the district specifically I wanted to be sure and give you my example of what's happened in my district. All. You're saying I mean it gets back to you know letting people manage things and if the me on Markle's back there and I've never you need to carry out you know I had very libertarian if people want to do thanks to not manage things but they should run for the city council a quorum court and fix those things I mean you know on the photo ID is somebody that was of running a photo ID bill back in two thousand seven the difference is when somebody cheats in one part of the area no use Hudson how may as example then it impacts the rest of state when it's a local issue within the city the it's more localized but so I don't I don't go with that argument but I mean so you're just basically saying you know you're committed you don't like the sneaky things and tax raises and all this stuff I mean the worst place an example I've seen of sneaky things and tax raises as been right here in the capital. Far more than any city that you ever mention. Clips is everything. So let's just have that standard if we're gonna stop sneaky stuff and Tax races and stuff like that there's been more taxes raised you know that Republicans I mean I I sit here and you come up here and have bills here that they lower one tax on one thing a raisin on three other things was a straightforward thing on that I mean if you're gonna preach down on these other things once preaching down on what goes on up here yeah I know I I I agree and you know that was actually one of the things probably the the thing that most motivated me to run for the legislature were all the tax increases that passed during the twenty nineteen session it in basically we're going to another point of like the reason people are doing these things is they want to raise spending at a library really want to raise spending at a pool or they want to raise spending somewhere else so you know we have the other issue spending which there's knows sign of stopping any spending here at all of any measure so. Anyway I just had made my points and like I said I just think that you know we used to Republican and it's gone today of like letting people manage their local local affairs and how they do things that they want to do things different I mean are some things that that rise above that but you know I mean. Before getting to a point that was cities and counties and everything like that for so Senator on standardized why we criticize in these other countries on socialism where few people make everything I've made my point since I was probably won't pass in anyway well and I'd like to say makes some great points spending is a problem and we spent ten million dollars on special elections. On. Managing and orchestrating and put on special elections those we spent ten million tax dollars doing that when they could have been held in conjunction with regular elections and saved a lot of that money we've spent millions more much that on consultants everything else down here that was a total waste of money that paid into it and gave us the wrong advice to everything else to I'm just saying you know what if you're gonna get on the cities and I agree with everything you're saying on turned out everything like that but you know what I mean I think we're getting four more to centralized in all these Republicans go out criticized all this socialism in Q. and everything like that that's and I'm not saying we're near like that I'm not even close to saying that we're going to the point of light you know only a few people down here is trying to make every decision to correct every decision out there and as I said before when one city went to doing all that people picked up in last I mean that's what people leave California you know that's what we allow flexibility do things when one city or something like that then another one benefits I may not think Senator Teague any other questions sing none your closing bill. Yes Sir your clothes with bill and I appreciate a good vote. I make a motion to pass motion do pass by cedar Payton second by Senator Dotson any discussion. All in favor say aye aye aye All opposed like sign. Thank you senator you passed your bill road Roko. Senator flowers. Senator flowers no Senator Hester yes Senator Hester yes senator king. Senator came. Senator Crowe senator Kroll yes senator Peyton senator Peyton yes senator Dotson yes senator Dotson yes Senator Tucker. Senator Tucker now. If the vote of five to five days to nays and one not voting bill passes the. You Hammer thank you. Senator Hammer you have. All. Senator Hammer. Or which one six fourteen sixty four. Kim Hammer station District sixteen. The initials stylish Commission. You're recognized thing sure this bill allows for more time of complaints with regard to election law to be filed thirty days after the deadline to certify this bill also allows for an offer of settlement hearing and or final action mature straight into the look maybe Daniel give a brief explanation will go straight to the questions it in and what this bill does is simply some clean up this our complaint statute was modified the prior session and that's just clarifies a few things regarding uniform statewide deadlines to file a complaint regarding when the cure period how the cure period works that you have to follow a complaint that the substantive but has a technical issue that can be cured and also it has a explanation of when you the the the board gets an additional time that was a little vague and the last thing is allows access to ballots that are in long term secure storage for investigative purposes or other materials. All right thank you very questions Senator Payton. Thank you and this is something. I don't know maybe one trying to teach me something off line here but this certification and deadline to certify and whether whether when we say that somebody shall certify I mean how could those be two different dates. So so the way the state this is the remember this is the the state Election Commission statute that governs the Arkansas plant process and it said that it's ten days after the date of certification that can vary from county to county if we make it ten days after the deadline to certify they'll be uniform statewide deadline to file a complaint will be the last possible day in the county could under current law for all counties. Okay not to take up too much time here but so the date of certification can be different because then we had lined the certified that's correct thank you bye bye led to the deadline no Sir so so plus the council may need all right before the deadline the there's a range of time that they can have their meeting thank you that answers my. Dotson. Thank you Mr on page two line thirty I guess I'm just confused on this is some you're adding makes its offer of settlement settlement to me implies monetary something another what what is a settlement so that the law currently requires the board to make an offer of settlement that would allow It in an instant so that maybe usually that's gonna be a letter of sanction caution warning reprimand could be monetary there some other possibilities the certification for instance of a of a local official but the that is all and change the simply defines when we have to complete one hundred eighty days and when we can complete to forty days in a way that's consistent with current practice but not explicitly clear to our mind in the code to allow for some is not new no well it is no Sir it is in a different section somewhere just not in the bill is just better defines how it worked to system with current practice okay thank you thank you for the questions Sam Nunn NO no one signed up to speak for against this bill you'll close a close vote closure the bill motion there was a will motion by Senator cross second by Senator