New Mexico Administrative Code › Title 1 - GENERAL GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION › Chapter 10 - ELECTIONS AND ELECTED OFFICIALS › Part 19 - SECURED CONTAINERS › Section 1.10.19.9 - SECURED CONTAINER SECURITY REQUIREMENTS

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 13, July 16, 2024
A. A county clerk shall request approval from
				the secretary of state prior to installation of a secured container to ensure
				it meets minimum security requirements. The secretary of state shall respond to
				such requests within 14 days.
B. A
				secured container shall be permanently bolted to the ground in accordance with
				the instructions provided by the container manufacturer. A secured container
				shall be constructed of weather-resistant metal and capable of securely
				receiving and holding voted mailed ballots. A secured container shall have
				network accessibility and shall have installed heat, humidity and motion
				sensors.
C. A secured container and
				monitoring network hardware shall be secured and locked at all times. Only the
				county clerk or deputy county clerk, election board member or appointed
				messenger shall have access to the keys or combination of the lock. The county
				clerk shall maintain a key control log on a form prescribed by the secretary of
				state to document the utilization of and to account for secured container keys.
				All keys issued by the secretary of state shall be controlled, accounted for,
				and not easily accessible. Upon the election or appointment of a new county
				clerk and after each U.S. presidential election, lock combinations shall be
				changed and documented on a form prescribed by the secretary of state. All
				forms utilized pursuant to this section shall be retained by the county clerk
				as a record related to voting pursuant to Subsection G of Section
				1-12-69 NMSA 1978.
D. In addition to locks, all secured
				containers shall be sealed with one or more tamper-evident seals while in use.
				Lock combinations shall be changed when a new clerk is appointed or elected and
				after each U.S. presidential election. Combination lock changes shall be
				documented by the county clerk.
E.
				Secured containers shall be installed in a lighted area and monitored by a
				centralized video surveillance camera system provided by the secretary of
				state. The video surveillance system shall otherwise be monitored and
				controlled by the county clerk through a video surveillance dashboard. The
				county clerk shall immediately review video surveillance footage upon receiving
				a report of an irregular or illegal incident or upon receipt of a sensor alert
				and:
(1) beginning 28 days prior to election
				day and through the certification of the county canvass, the county clerk shall
				log into the video surveillance dashboard each day. During all other weeks of a
				calendar year, the county clerk shall log into the video surveillance dashboard
				on a weekly basis.
(2) The county
				clerk shall maintain a list of the clerk's office personnel with access to the
				video surveillance dashboard and shall notify the secretary of state's office
				of any changes to the list. The county clerk shall contact the secretary of
				state for required training and shall ensure that all persons granted dashboard
				access complete required training, provided by the secretary of state, prior to
				utilizing the dashboard.