§ 7-5-532 - Direct electronic voting machines. - Arkansas Statutes

7-5-532. Direct electronic voting machines.

(a) For purposes of this section:

(1) "Direct electronic voting machine" means a voting machine that:

(A) Records votes by means of a ballot display provided with mechanical or electro-optical components that may be actuated by the voter;

(B) Processes the data by means of a computer program;

(C) Records voting data and ballot images in internal or external memory components; and

(D) Produces a tabulation of the voting data stored in a removable memory component and in a printed copy; and

(2) "Voter-verified paper audit trail" means a contemporaneous paper record of a ballot printed for the voter to confirm his or her votes before the voter casts his or her ballot.

(b) The Secretary of State or the county shall not purchase or procure a direct-recording electronic voting machine that does not include a voter-verified paper audit trail.

(c) (1) All direct-recording electronic voting machines in use on or after January 1, 2006, shall include a voter-verified paper audit trail, except for those direct recording electronic voting machines in use during the 2004 general election.

(2) All direct-recording electronic voting machines purchased on or after August 12, 2005, shall include a voter-verified paper audit trail.

(d) A direct-recording electronic voting machine with a voter-verified paper audit trail shall meet the following conditions:

(1) The voter-verified paper audit trail may be verified by the voter before the casting of the voter's ballot;

(2) The voter-verified paper audit trail shall not be retained by the voter;

(3) The voter-verified paper audit trail shall not contain individual voter information;

(4) The paper used in producing the voter-verified paper audit trail shall be sturdy, clean, and resistant to degradation; and

(5) The voter-verified paper audit trail shall be readable in a manner that makes the voter's ballot choices obvious to the voter without the use of computer or electronic code.

(e) Voter-verified paper audit trails shall be preserved in the same manner and for the same time period as ballots and certificates are preserved under 7-5-702.