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92_HB1797
LRB9206303MWcd
1 AN ACT concerning voters' pamphlets.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The Election Code is amended by adding
5 Article 12A as follows:
6 (10 ILCS 5/Art.12A heading new)
7 ARTICLE 12A. COUNTY VOTERS' PAMPHLET
8 (10 ILCS 5/12A-1 new)
9 Sec. 12A-1. Definitions. As used in this Article,
10 unless the context otherwise requires:
11 "Board" means the State Board of Elections.
12 "Election authority" means a county clerk or a Board of
13 Election Commissioners.
14 (10 ILCS 5/12A-5 new)
15 Sec. 12A-5. County voters' pamphlet. When directed by
16 resolution of the county board, the election authority of any
17 county shall prepare, print, and distribute a county voters'
18 pamphlet for an election of judicial candidates.
19 (10 ILCS 5/12A-10 new)
20 Sec. 12A-10. Information required to be included in
21 voters' pamphlet; deadline for distribution.
22 (a) If a county produces a county voters' pamphlet, the
23 county voters' pamphlet shall include, when applicable, at
24 least the following information:
25 (1) A sample ballot containing the names of
26 candidates for the office of judge of the Supreme,
27 Appellate, or Circuit Courts in the county.
28 (2) Requirements for a citizen to qualify as an
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1 elector.
2 (3) Requirements for registration, transfer of
3 registration, and re-registration.
4 (4) Instructions as to how an elector may obtain and
5 use an absentee ballot.
6 (5) A statement that the voters' pamphlet may be
7 used to assist electors at the polls.
8 (6) Elector instructions, including the right of an
9 elector to request a second ballot if the first ballot is
10 spoiled, the right of an elector to take into the voting
11 booth a sample ballot marked in advance, and the right of
12 an elector to seek assistance of the judges of election
13 or someone of the elector's own choosing, other than the
14 elector's employer or agent of that employer or officer
15 or agent of the elector's union, in marking the ballot.
16 (7) The hours that the polling places are open.
17 (8) Any portraits and statements relating to
18 candidates submitted under the provisions of this
19 Article.
20 (9) A listing of the polling places.
21 (10) Any other information that the election
22 authority considers to be appropriate or necessary to
23 inform the voters.
24 (b) The election authority shall mail or otherwise
25 distribute the county voters' pamphlet not later than the 7th
26 day before the election.
27 (10 ILCS 5/12A-15 new)
28 Sec. 12A-15. Schedule and procedures for producing and
29 distributing pamphlet; fees.
30 (a) The State Board of Elections shall by rule adopt a
31 schedule and procedures for preparing, printing, and
32 distributing county voters' pamphlets. The schedule and
33 procedures shall include, but not be limited to, deadlines
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1 for filing material for the voters' pamphlet and except as
2 otherwise provided by law, the format of material to be
3 submitted and the size and other requirements applicable to
4 candidate portraits.
5 (b) The Board shall by rule adopt a schedule of fees to
6 be charged by the election authority for including portraits
7 of candidates and statements in the voters' pamphlet. The
8 fees need not reflect the actual cost of producing the
9 voters' pamphlet. The election authority shall refund the
10 filing fee to any person who applies for the refund not later
11 than the last day for filing material for inclusion in the
12 voters' pamphlet. When a refund is made, the material for
13 which the fee was paid shall not be included in the pamphlet.
14 (10 ILCS 5/12A-20 new)
15 Sec. 12A-20. Filing portrait and statement by or for
16 candidate. Not later than the date specified by the Board,
17 any candidate for election for the office of judge of the
18 Supreme, Appellate, or Circuit Courts within the county, or
19 an agent of the candidate, may file with the election
20 authority of a county that prepares a county voters' pamphlet
21 a portrait of the candidate and a typewritten statement of
22 the reasons the candidate should be elected. The portrait and
23 statement must comply with the applicable rules of the Board.
24 The election authority shall not accept the filing of a
25 statement or portrait of any candidate unless the filing is
26 accompanied by the appropriate fee as prescribed by the
27 Board.
28 (10 ILCS 5/12A-25 new)
29 Sec. 12A-25. Cost of pamphlet preparation. All fees
30 collected by an election authority under this Act shall be
31 transmitted to the State Board of Elections, as provided by
32 rule of the Board, and deposited by the Board into the
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1 General Revenue Fund. The State Board of Elections shall
2 reimburse the election authority for the actual costs of
3 preparing, printing, and distributing the county voters'
4 pamphlet from an appropriation made by the General Assembly.
5 (10 ILCS 5/12A-30 new)
6 Sec. 12A-30. Content of statements; notice of material
7 that may be excluded.
8 (a) Statements submitted for inclusion in a county
9 voters' pamphlet by a candidate, political party, political
10 committee, or other person shall consist only of words or
11 numbers.
12 (b) The election authority shall specify on any
13 instructions for filing a statement in the voters' pamphlet
14 that the statement may be excluded under Section 12A-40.
15 (10 ILCS 5/12A-35 new)
16 Sec. 12A-35. Names of persons or organizations excluded
17 from statements; exceptions.
18 (a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this
19 Section, the election authority shall not print the name of
20 any person or organization in any statement of any candidate,
21 filed for inclusion in a county voters' pamphlet, if the name
22 of the person or organization is cited as supporting or
23 endorsing the statement.
24 (b) The election authority may print the name of a
25 person or organization in a statement submitted for inclusion
26 in a county voters' pamphlet as supporting or endorsing the
27 statement if:
28 (1) not later than the deadline for filing a
29 statement with the election authority, the election
30 authority receives a statement signed by the person, or
31 by an authorized person on behalf of an organization,
32 stating that the person consents to the use of the name
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1 of the person or organization; or
2 (2) the name of a person or organization is used
3 with a quotation made by the person on behalf of the
4 person or by an authorized person on behalf of an
5 organization, the quotation was disseminated to the
6 public prior to its inclusion in the argument or
7 statement, and the quotation is identified by its source
8 and date.
9 (c) A person shall not submit a false signature under
10 subsection (b) of this Section.
11 (10 ILCS 5/12A-40 new)
12 Sec. 12A-40. Type of material to be excluded from
13 pamphlet; liability for libel; procedure if material
14 excluded.
15 (a) The election authority shall reject any statement
16 offered for filing and printing in a county voters' pamphlet
17 that:
18 (1) contains any obscene, profane, or defamatory
19 language;
20 (2) incites or advocates hatred, abuse, or violence
21 toward any person or group; or
22 (3) contains any language that may not legally be
23 circulated through the mails.
24 (b) Nothing in this Article shall make the author of any
25 statement exempt from any civil or criminal action because of
26 any defamatory statements offered for printing or contained
27 in the voters' pamphlet. The persons writing, signing, or
28 offering a statement for filing shall be deemed its authors
29 and publishers.
30 (c) The Board shall by rule establish a procedure to
31 notify a person who offered a statement that was rejected
32 under this Section. Subject to voters' pamphlet deadlines,
33 the procedure shall require the election authority to:
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1 (1) make reasonable attempts to notify the person of
2 the rejection; and
3 (2) allow the person, if notified under paragraph
4 (1) of this subsection, to revise the statement so that
5 it does not violate the provisions of this Section.
6 (10 ILCS 5/12A-45 new)
7 Sec. 12A-45. Format of candidate's statement. The
8 candidate's statement in a county voters' pamphlet shall
9 begin with a summary of the following: occupation,
10 educational and occupational background, and prior
11 governmental experience.
12 (10 ILCS 5/12A-50 new)
13 Sec. 12A-50. Exemption from public records law.
14 Notwithstanding any other provisions of law relating to
15 public records, materials filed by a candidate for inclusion
16 in a county voters' pamphlet are exempt from public
17 inspection until the 4th business day after the final date
18 for filing the materials.
19 (10 ILCS 5/12A-55 new)
20 Sec. 12A-55. Statements inadmissible in action to enjoin
21 publication of pamphlet. Material submitted for inclusion in
22 any county voters' pamphlet shall not be admitted as evidence
23 in any suit or action against the election authority to
24 restrain or enjoin the publication of the voters' pamphlet.