Preliminary Draft of Proposed Rules

Office of the Colorado Secretary of State
Election Rules
8 CCR 1505-1

May 15, 2013

Disclaimer:
In accordance with the State Administrative Procedure Act, this draft is filed with the Secretary of State and submitted to the Department of Regulatory Agencies.

This is a preliminary draft of the proposed rules that may be revised before the June 14, 2013 rulemaking hearing. If changes are made, a revised copy of the proposed rules will be available to the public and a copy will be posted on the Department of State’s website no later than June 7, 2013.

small caps indicate proposed additions to the current rules.
Stricken type indicates proposed deletions from current rules.
(Annotations) may be included.

Amendments to Rule 40:
Rule 40.  Rules Concerning Certification and Education of Designated Election Officials
40.1	Purpose and Definitions:.
40.1.1	The Secretary of State recognizes that the oversight of elections is a profession that requires thorough knowledge of complex state and federal election law and election procedures. It is recognized that state Considering the complexity of state and federal law, voting equipment, and election procedures are complex, and therefore necessitates extensive training, extensive training is necessary. The purpose of the certification program is to standardize standardizes election procedures and education. so that The program also promotes Colorado voters have a greater voters’ confidence in their election officials and the election process.
40.1.2	“local Local election official”  for the purpose of section 1-1-301(1), C.R.S., shall mean means a county clerk and recorder. (Section 1‑1‑301(1), C.R.S.)
40.1.3	“Persons required to complete certification”  for the purpose of section 1-1-302, C.R.S., and this rule shall mean means:
(a)	The county clerk and recorder; and
(b)	Employees in the clerk and recorder’s office who are directly responsible for overseeing election activities, including but not limited to: voter registration, candidate qualifications and ballot certification, poll worker training, ballot design and setup, ballot counting, and canvassing.
(Section 1‑1‑302, C.R.S.)
40.2	Advisory Board created .
40.2.1	The Secretary of State shall create an advisory board to oversee the certification program and curriculum. 
40.2.2 40.2.1	The advisory board shall must meet at least twice each calendar year to approve the curriculum and make necessary changes. The advisory board shall must also review evaluations and recommend changes to the certification program.
40.2.2 40.2.2	The advisory board shall must review individual applications for certification and shall must approve applications that are accurate and complete. The advisory board shall have the authority to may take into account special circumstances in reviewing and approving applications.
40.2.3 40.2.3	The advisory board shall include the following members appointed by the Secretary of State will appoint the following as board members:
(a)	Four county clerks or designated staff members;
(b)	Two Secretary of State Office representatives; and
(c)	Any individual(s) whom the Secretary of State believes could make a valuable contribution to the Board.
40.2.4 40.2.4	Board members shall be appointed by the Secretary of State to serve at least a two-year term. Board members may be terminated 
40.2.5 40.2.5	The Secretary of State may terminate board members without cause. Failure to attend meetings or meaningfully contribute may result in termination.
40.3	Core Curriculum.
40.3.1	The Secretary of State will develop the core and elective curriculum offered for certification and continuing elections education. The Secretary will post curriculum information on the Secretary of State’s website.
40.3.2	The Secretary of State will develop and administer all training outlined in this Rule 40.
[Current Rules 40.3.1 and 40.4.1 are amended and relocated to New Rule 40.3.2]
40.3.3	To obtain Colorado certification, a person must complete the following minimum curriculum prescribed by the Secretary of State:
(a)	Seven basic core courses;
(b)	One core course relevant to primary job duty; and
(c)	Six electives.
40.3.4	To maintain Colorado certification, a person must complete at least five Continuing Elections Education courses by July 31 of every even year. 
40.3.1	The certification program shall include core requirements. All training outlined herein shall be provided under the direction of the Secretary of State. Persons applying for certification shall complete at least eight core classes. The core classes shall generally include but are not limited to:
(a)	Navigating election laws and procedures
(b)	Testing and maintenance of voting equipment
(c)	Canvass procedures
(d)	Mail-in voting
(e)	Pollworker training and recruiting
(f)	Overseas and military voting
(g)	Ethics
(h)	Mail ballot elections
(i)	Accessibility for people with disabilities
(j)	Provisional voting
(k)	Issues in voter registration
40.3.2	The classes may be offered as a whole or in sections.
40.4	Elective Curriculum
40.4.1	The certification program shall include electives as part of the certification program. All training outlined herein shall be provided under the direction of the Secretary of State. Persons applying for certification shall select and complete at least six elective courses. The elective courses shall generally include but are not limited to:
(a)	Voter outreach
(b)	Media relations and the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA)
(c)	Elections refresher course
(d)	Petitions
(e)	Recall elections
(f)	Security planning
(g)	SCORE functional training
(h)	Polling place set up/management
(i)  Vote Center training
(j)	Budgeting
(k)	Recounts and election contests
(l)	Other timely, relevant topics as determined by the Secretary of State
40.4.2	The classes may be offered as a whole or in sections.
40.4	Training Format.
40.4.1	Web-based training may be conducted live or by reviewing material previously presented by the Secretary of State. In either case, participants must achieve a satisfactory score on assessments before receiving credit for the course.
40.4.2	The Secretary of State will provide classroom training. For certification, a person must complete at least one course in-class.
[Current Rule 40.11 is amended and relocated to New Rule 40.4]
40.5	Credit for training offered by the Secretary of State.
40.5.1	Individuals applying for certification shall have received at least eight unique core credits and six unique elective credits must successfully complete the curriculum prescribed by the Secretary of State. The If an applicant submits duplicate coursework, the advisory board may reject applications the application for certification if any of the core or elective credit requirements have been achieved through a duplication of course credits.
40.5.2	The advisory board shall not accept applications for certification if more than two SCORE functional training elective credits are submitted to achieve the six elective credit requirement.
40.5.3	One credit shall be awarded after successful completion of any course scheduled for two hours or less. Two credits shall be awarded for successful completion of any course scheduled for more than two hours. However, only one elective credit shall be awarded for each four hours of SCORE Functional Training.
40.5.4 40.5.2	Training assessment.
(a)	To receive certification credit for any course presented by the Secretary of State in accordance with under this rule, participants shall a participant must successfully complete a training assessment with a minimum score of 85%.
(b)	Participants failing A participant who fails to achieve a score of at least 85% may retake the assessment.
(c)	Assessments may be administered by the The Secretary of State may administer either paper or electronic assessments during or after presentation of the course, either by a paper assessment or by utilizing electronic assessment software.
40.5.3	Credit for Teaching Classes. A person who teaches or substantially assists with preparation of a class offered for certification is excused from the assessment requirement outlined in Rule 40.5.2 and will receive credit for the course.
[Current Rule 40.10 is amended and relocated to New Rule 40.5.3]
40.5.4	No election official may receive credit toward his or her Colorado certification for training offered by other agencies or organizations.
40.6	Credit for training offered by other agencies or organizations.
40.6.1	Persons may apply to the advisory board to request credit towards Colorado certification for training provided by other agencies or organizations.
40.6.2	The Board shall grant core or elective hours if such trainings are elections related and provide an appropriate level of specificity and applicability as similar courses provided by the Secretary of State.
40.6.3	The Board may review agendas, materials, and other documentation for training not provided by the Secretary of State prior to granting core or elective credit.
40.6.4	For initial certification, the Board may grant up to one core and two elective credits to any participant for training provided by other agencies or organizations.
40.6.5	Successful completion of an assessment shall not be required for training provided by other agencies or organizations.
40.7	Continuing Elections Education (CEE)
40.7.1	In order to maintain certification, a person shall attend and complete at least two electives or one core class every calendar year.
40.7.2	Credit received for duplicate classes within the same calendar year may be applied only once toward maintaining certification. No more than two SCORE functional training elective credits may be submitted within the same calendar year towards maintaining certification.
40.7.3	After a person has completed the requirements for maintaining certification, he or she shall submit an application for continuing certification to the Secretary of State’s office on the form approved by the Secretary of State.
40.8 40.6	Completing Colorado certification Application Review, Certification, and Maintenance of Records.
40.6.1	Once a person completes the required coursework, he or she must promptly submit an application for certification or continuing certification to the Secretary of State’s office on the form approved by the Secretary of State.
40.8.1	After a person has completed the requirements for certification, the person shall submit an application for Colorado certification to the Secretary of State’s office on the form approved by the Secretary of State.
40.8.2	Repealed.
40.8.3 40.6.2	The Secretary of State shall must review the application with reference to the Secretary of State records. If the application is complete and accurate, the Secretary of State shall must forward it to the advisory board for its review and approval. Upon approval by the advisory board, the Secretary of State shall must issue a certificate that the person is a Certified Colorado Election Official.
40.8.4 40.6.3	The Secretary of State shall must track attendance at all classes and keep records of attendance, continuing elections education, and records of those persons who are certified and persons who are in the certification process.
40.9	Decertification.
40.9.1	Repealed.
40.9.2	If a certified election official fails to satisfy continuing elections education requirements in one calendar year, then the election official shall have a maximum of 12 months to complete continuing education requirements for the previous calendar year and the current calendar year.
40.9.3	Failure A person who fails to satisfy continuing education requirements for two consecutive years shall result in de-certification will lose certification.
40.10	Credit for Teaching Classes.
40.10.1	Any person who teaches or substantially assists with preparation of a class offered for certification may receive the equivalent of two core or three elective credits.
40.10.2	The participant shall submit a written request to the Secretary of State’s office requesting either two core or three elective credits.
40.10.3	The Secretary of state shall forward the application to the advisory board, which shall determine whether the applicant is eligible to receive the requested credits.
40.11	Web-based training.
40.11.1	The Secretary of State may utilize web-based technology to make certification and training more accessible. Virtual and web-based training may be provided for any course the Secretary of State deems appropriate.
40.11.2	Web-based training may be conducted live or by reviewing material previously presented by the Secretary of State. In either case, participants must achieve a satisfactory score on assessments prior to receiving credit for the course.