Amendment 2597 to Senate Bill 48 P.N. 1076, Regular Session 2019-2020

S0048B1076A02597 MSP:JMT 06/26/19 #90 A02597

AMENDMENTS TO SENATE BILL NO. 48

Sponsor: REPRESENTATIVE SAYLOR

Printer's No. 1076

Amend Bill, page 1, line 22, by inserting after

"DECERTIFICATION"

and for voting systems bonds; establishing the County Voting

System Reimbursement Account

Amend Bill, page 1, line 30, by striking out "AND" and

inserting a comma

Amend Bill, page 1, line 31, by inserting after "BALLOTS"

and for public records

Amend Bill, page 16, line 23, by striking out "AN ARTICLE"

and inserting

articles

Amend Bill, page 20, by inserting after line 30

ARTICLE XI-C

VOTING SYSTEMS BONDS

Section 1101-C. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this article

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Account." The County Voting System Reimbursement Account

established under section 1106-C.

"Authority." The Pennsylvania Economic Development Financing

Authority.

"Bond." Any type of revenue obligation, including a bond or

series of bonds, note, certificate or other instrument, issued

by the authority for the benefit of the department under this

article.

"Bond administrative expenses." Expenses incurred to

administer bonds as provided under the Financing Law, or as

otherwise necessary to ensure compliance with applicable Federal

or State law.

"Bond obligations." The principal of a bond and any premium

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and interest payable on a bond, together with any amount owed

under a related credit agreement or a related resolution of the

authority authorizing a bond.

"Credit agreement." A loan agreement, a revolving credit

agreement, an agreement establishing a line of credit, a letter

of credit or another agreement that enhances the marketability,

security or creditworthiness of a bond.

"Department." The Department of State of the Commonwealth.

"Electronic voting system." As defined in section 1101-A.

"Financing Law." The act of August 23, 1967 (P.L.251,

No.102), known as the Economic Development Financing Law.

"Voting apparatus." A kind or type of electronic voting

system that received the approval of the Secretary of the

Commonwealth under section 1105-A.

Section 1102-C. Bond issuance.

(a) Declaration of policy.--The General Assembly finds and

declares that funding the replacement of voting apparatuses,

including interest, through the authority, is in the best

interest of this Commonwealth.

(b) Authority.--Notwithstanding any other law, the following

shall apply:

(1) The department may be a project applicant under the

Financing Law and may apply to the authority for the funding

of the replacement of voting apparatuses.

(2) The authority may issue bonds under the Financing

Law, consistent with this article, to finance a project to

fund the replacement of county voting apparatuses or to

reimburse counties for their cost to purchase voting

apparatuses.

(3) Participation of an industrial and commercial

development authority shall not be required to finance the

replacement of voting apparatuses.

(1) Bonds issued under this article shall not be a debt

or liability of the Commonwealth and shall not create or

constitute any indebtedness, liability or obligation of the

Commonwealth.

(2) Bond obligations and bond administrative expenses

shall be payable solely from revenues or money pledged or

available for repayment as authorized under this article.

This paragraph shall include the proceeds of any issuance of

bonds.

(3) Each bond shall contain on its face a statement

that:

(i) the authority is obligated to pay the principal

or interest on the bonds only from the revenues or money

pledged or available for repayment as authorized under

this article;

(ii) neither the Commonwealth nor a county is

obligated to pay the principal or interest; and

(iii) the full faith and credit of the Commonwealth

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or any county is not pledged to the payment of the

principal of or the interest on the bonds.

Section 1103-C. Criteria for bond issuance.

(a) Determination.--If the department decertifies a voting

apparatus in this Commonwealth that is in use in a county, the

department shall apply to the authority to issue bonds for

reimbursements to the county for the cost of procuring a new

voting apparatus.

(b) Terms.--

(1) The department, with the approval of the Office of

the Budget, shall specify in its application to the

authority:

(i) the maximum principal amount of the bonds for

each separate bond issue; and

(ii) the maximum term of the bonds consistent with

applicable law.

(2) The total principal amount of bonds outstanding

under this article for all bond issues may not exceed

$90,000,000.

(3) The term of the bonds issued under this article may

not exceed 10 years.

Section 1104-C. Issuance of bonds and security.

(a) Issuance.--The authority shall consider issuance of

bonds upon application by the department. Bonds issued under

this article shall be subject to the provisions of the Financing

Law, unless otherwise specified under this article.

(b) Service agreement authorized.--The authority and the

department may enter into an agreement or service agreement to

effectuate this article, including an agreement to secure bonds

issued for the purposes under section 1102-C(b), pursuant to

which the department shall agree to pay the bond obligations and

bond administrative expenses to the authority in each fiscal

year that the bonds or refunding bonds are outstanding in

amounts sufficient to timely pay in full the debt service and

any other financing costs due on the bonds issued for the

purposes under section 1102-C(b). The department's payment of

the service charges shall be subject to and dependent upon the

appropriation of funds by the General Assembly to the department

for payment of the service charges. The service agreement may be

amended or supplemented by the authority and the department in

connection with the issuance of any series of bonds or refunding

bonds authorized under this section.

expenses are secured, for the benefit of the holders of the

bonds and the obligees under credit agreements or the agreements

under subsection (b), by pledge of a security interest in and

first lien on the following:

(1) Money deposited into the account, including

investment income on money in the account.

(2) Money relating to the bonds held on deposit in any

other fund or account under an instrument or agreement

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pertaining to the bonds, including bond reserves and interest

income on the money.

(3) The security provided under this subsection shall

not apply to money in any fund relating to arbitrage rebate

obligations.

Section 1105-C. Sale of bonds.

The authority shall offer the bonds for sale by means of a

public, competitive sale or by means of a negotiated sale based

on the authority's determination of which method will produce

the most benefit to counties and the Commonwealth.

Section 1106-C. Deposit of bond proceeds.

The net proceeds of bonds, other than refunding bonds,

exclusive of costs of issuance, reserves and any other financing

charges, shall be transferred by the authority to the State

Treasurer for deposit into a restricted account established in

the State Treasury and held solely for the purposes under

section 1102-C(b) to be known as the County Voting System

Reimbursement Account. The department shall pay out the bond

proceeds to the counties from the account in accordance with

this article.

Section 1107-C. Payment of bond-related obligations.

For each fiscal year in which bond obligations and bond

administrative expenses will be due, the authority shall notify

the department of the amount of bond obligations and the

estimated amount of bond administrative expenses in sufficient

time, as determined by the department, to permit the department

to request an appropriation sufficient to pay bond obligations

and bond administrative expenses that will be due and payable in

the following fiscal year. The authority's calculation of the

amount of bond obligations and bond administrative expenses that

will be due shall be subject to verification by the department.

Section 1108-C. Commonwealth not to impair bond-related

obligations.

The Commonwealth pledges that it shall not do any of the

following:

(1) Limit or alter the rights and responsibilities of

the authority or the department under this article, including

the responsibility to:

(i) pay bond obligations and bond administrative

expenses; and

(ii) comply with any other instrument or agreement

pertaining to bonds.

(2) Alter or limit the service agreement under section

1104-C(b).

(3) Impair the rights and remedies of the holders of

bonds, until each bond issued at any time and the interest on

the bond, are fully met and discharged.

Section 1109-C. (Reserved).

Section 1110-C. Personal liability.

The members, directors, officers and employees of the

department and the authority shall not be personally liable as a

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result of good faith exercise of the rights and responsibilities

granted under this article.

Section 1111-C. Annual report.

No later than March 1 of the year following the first full

year in which bonds have been issued under this article and for

each year thereafter in which bond obligations existed in the

prior year, the department shall submit an annual report to the

chair and minority chair of the State Government Committee of

the Senate and to the chair and minority chair of the State

Government Committee of the House of Representatives providing

all data available on bonds issued or existing in the prior

year. The report shall include existing and anticipated bond

principal, interest and administrative costs, revenue,

repayments, refinancing, overall benefits to counties and any

other relevant data, facts and statistics that the department

believes necessary in the content of the report.

Section 1112-C. Reimbursement of county voting apparatus

expenses.

(a) Application.--A county may apply to the department to

receive funding to replace the county's voting apparatuses or to

reimburse the county's cost to purchase voting apparatuses. Each

county shall submit an application for funding on a form

containing information and documentation prescribed by the

department no later than December 31, 2019.

(b) Documentation for prior purchase.--If a county seeks

reimbursement of the county's cost to purchase a voting

apparatus that the county purchased before the date that the

county submits its application to the department, the county's

application shall include documentation prescribed by the

department to substantiate the county's cost to purchase the

voting apparatus, including copies of fully executed voting

apparatus contracts, invoices and proof of payment to the vendor

of the voting apparatus.

seeks funding to purchase a voting apparatus that the county

will purchase after the date that the county submits its

application to the department, the county's application shall

include documentation prescribed by the department to

substantiate the county's estimate to purchase the voting

apparatus including copies of fully executed voting apparatus

contracts, bids or price quotes submitted to the county by

voting apparatus vendors and other price estimates or cost

proposals.

(d) Review.--The department shall review each county

application on a rolling basis and shall either approve or deny

each county's application within 90 days of the date the

application is received by the department. A county may

supplement or amend submitted applications during the 90-day

review period in consultation with the department.

(e) Approval for prior purchase.--If the department approves

a county's application submitted under subsection (b), the

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department and the county shall enter into a written grant

agreement through which the department shall reimburse the

county at the amount approved by the department.

(f) Approval for subsequent purchase.--If the department

approves a county's application under subsection (c), the

department and the county shall enter into a written grant

agreement through which the department will provide funding to

reimburse the county's cost to purchase a voting apparatus at

the amount approved by the department. The county shall hold the

grant money in an account of the county that is separate from

each other county account. The county shall deliver quarterly

reports to the department of the voting apparatus costs paid

from the grant money in a form prescribed by the department. The

county shall return any unspent grant money to the department

within 30 days of the expiration of the grant agreement.

(g) Payments.--

(1) A county shall only receive grant payments under

this section to the extent that the department has bond

proceeds available in the account from which to make

payments.

(2) A county may not receive amounts greater than 60% of

the total cost to purchase a voting apparatus.

(3) If the total amount of costs incurred to purchase

voting apparatuses under subsections (b) and (c) exceeds the

total amount available, then each county shall receive a pro

rata amount of the total amount available.

(h) Certification.--For each year in which a county is

eligible to receive reimbursement or funding under this article,

a county shall only receive the reimbursement or funding after

making a certification to the department, the President pro

tempore of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of

Representatives, the Minority Leader of the Senate, the Minority

Leader of the House of Representatives, the chair and minority

chair of the Appropriations Committee of the Senate, the chair

and minority chair of the Appropriations Committee of the House

of Representatives, the chair and minority chair of the State

Government Committee of the Senate and the chair and minority

chair of the State Government Committee of the House of

Representatives that the county has completed a program under 25

Pa.C.S. § 1901(b)(1) (relating to removal of electors) and

mailed notices required under 25 Pa.C.S. § 1901(b)(3) within the

prior 12 months. The certification shall include information on

whether the county has undertaken a canvass under 25 Pa.C.S. §

1901(b)(2).

(i) Department application.--The department shall apply to

the authority for funding under section 1102-C only if the

department has approved county applications under this article

which total at least $50,000,000.

Amend Bill, page 38, lines 25 and 26, by striking out all of

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said lines and inserting

Section 5. Sections 1308(a), (b.1), (e), (f) and (g)(1), (2)

and (4) and 1309 of the act are amended to read:

Amend Bill, page 42, line 18, by inserting a bracket before

"IN"

Amend Bill, page 42, line 19, by striking out the bracket

before "LOCAL"

Amend Bill, page 42, line 19, by striking out "] COUNTY"

Amend Bill, page 42, line 21, by striking out the bracket

before "HE"

Amend Bill, page 42, line 21, by striking out "] THE PERSON"

Amend Bill, page 42, line 22, by inserting a bracket after

"MADE,"

Amend Bill, page 45, by inserting between lines 4 and 5

Section 1309. Public Records.--(a) All official absentee

ballots, files, applications for such ballots and envelopes on

which the executed declarations appear, and all information and

lists are hereby designated and declared to be public records

and shall be safely kept for a period of two years, except that

no proof of identification shall be made public, nor shall

information concerning a military elector be made public which

is expressly forbidden by the Department of Defense because of

military security.

(b) For each election, the county board shall maintain a

record of the following information, if applicable, for each

elector who makes application for an absentee ballot:

(1) The elector's name and voter registration address.

(2) The date on which the elector's application is received

by the county board.

(3) The date on which the elector's application is approved

or rejected by the county board.

(4) The date on which the county board mails or delivers the

absentee ballot to the elector.

(5) The date on which the elector's completed absentee

ballot is received by the county board.

(6) The date of the postmark on the mailing envelope of the

elector's completed absentee ballot.

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subsection (b) and make the records publicly available upon

request within 48 hours.

Amend Bill, page 45, line 10, by striking out "THIS" and

inserting

the

Amend Bill, page 45, line 28, by striking out "IMMEDIATELY."

and inserting

as follows:

(1) The amendment of section 1309 of the act shall take

effect in 60 days.

(2) The remainder of this act shall take effect

immediately.

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