Title: Access to Testing of Tabulating Equipment

Summary: Requiring that designated experts be allowed to observe certain tests being conducted and votes being counted, etc.

Full Text:
An act relating to access to testing of tabulating equipment; amending s. 101.5612, F.S.; requiring that designated experts be allowed to observe certain tests being conducted and votes being counted; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Subsection (2) of section 101.5612, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 101.5612 Testing of tabulating equipment.  (2) On any day not more than days before the commencement of early voting as provided in s. 101.657, the supervisor of elections shall have the automatic tabulating equipment publicly tested to ascertain that the equipment will correctly count the votes cast for all offices and on all measures. If the ballots to be used at the polling place on election day are not available at the time of the testing, the supervisor may conduct an additional test not more than days before election day. Public notice of the time and place of the test must shall be given at least hours prior thereto by publication on the county website as provided in s. 50.0311, on the supervisor of elections  website, or once in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the county. If the applicable website becomes unavailable or if there is no newspaper of general circulation in the county, the notice must be posted in at least four conspicuous places in the county. The supervisor or the municipal elections official may, at the time of qualifying, give written notice of the time and location of the public preelection test to each candidate qualifying with that office and obtain a signed receipt that the notice has been given. The Department of State shall give written notice to each statewide candidate at the time of qualifying, or immediately at the end of qualifying, that the voting equipment will be tested and advise each candidate to contact the county supervisor of elections as to the time and location of the public preelection test. The supervisor or the municipal elections official shall, at least days before the commencement of early voting as provided in s. 101.657, send written notice by certified mail to the county party chair of each political party and to all candidates for other than statewide office whose names appear on the ballot in the county and who did not receive written notification from the supervisor or municipal elections official at the time of qualifying, stating the time and location of the public preelection test of the automatic tabulating equipment. The canvassing board shall convene, and each member of the canvassing board shall certify to the accuracy of the test. For the test, the canvassing board may designate one member to represent it. The test is shall be open to representatives of the political parties, the press, and the public. Each political party may designate one person with expertise in the computer field who is shall be allowed in the central counting room when all tests are being conducted and when the official votes are being counted. The designated expert must be allowed to observe the tests being conducted and the votes being counted. The designee may not interfere with the normal operation of the canvassing board. Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.