Connecticut SB 467: AN ACT CONCERNING THE REPEAL OF THE MINIMUM BUDGET REQUIREMENT.

Bill Text

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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 467
February Session, 2026

AN ACT CONCERNING OBSERVATION OF THE CONDUCT OF
ELECTION RECANVASS PROCEDURES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsections (b) to (d), inclusive, of section 9-311 of the 2026 1
supplement to the general statutes, as amended by section 92 of public 2
act 26-1, are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof 3
(Effective from passage): 4
(b) (1) The moderator shall determine the place or places where the 5
recanvass shall be conducted and, if such recanvass is held before the 6
tabulators are boxed and collected in the manner required by section 9-7
266, the moderator may require that such recanvass of such tabulators 8
be conducted in each place where the tabulators are located, or the 9
moderator may require that such tabulators be removed to one central 10
place where such recanvass shall be conducted. [All recanvassing 11
procedures shall be open to public observation, subject to the provisions 12
of subsection (d) of this section.] Such recanvass officials shall, in the 13
presence of such moderator and registrars of voters, make a record of 14
the number on the seal and the number on the protective counter, if one 15
is provided, on each voting tabulator specified by such moderator. Such 16
registrars of voters in the presence of such moderator shall turn over the 17
keys of each such tabulator to such recanvass officials, and such 18
recanvass officials, in the presence of such registrars of voters and 19
moderator, shall immediately proceed to recanvass the vote cast 20

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thereon, and shall then open the package of absentee ballots and 21
recanvass the vote cast thereon. In the course of the recanvass of the 22
absentee ballot vote the recanvass officials shall check all outer 23
envelopes for absentee ballots against the inner envelopes for such 24
ballots and against the registry list to verify postmarks, addresses and 25
registry list markings and also to determine whether the number of 26
envelopes from which absentee ballots have been removed is the same 27
as the number of persons checked as having voted by absentee ballot. 28
The write-in ballots shall also be recanvassed at this time. Any party 29
representative present shall have a right to view each ballot as it is being 30
recanvassed by the recanvass officials, so as to be able to discern the 31
markings on such ballot. All of the recanvass officials shall use the same 32
forms for tallies and returns as were used at the original canvass and the 33
absentee ballot counters shall also sign the tallies. 34
(2) (A) Subject to the provisions of subsection (d) of this section: 35
(i) All recanvassing procedures shall be open to public observation 36
and shall afford members of the public the right to observe such 37
procedures in person and without the need to so observe through 38
electronic means; 39
(ii) The moderator shall not impede the ability of members of the 40
public to observe such recanvassing procedures; and 41
(iii) Any moderator who violates the provisions of subparagraph 42
(A)(i) or (A)(ii) of this subdivision shall be fined not less than one 43
hundred dollars. 44
(B) Nothing in subparagraph (A) of this subdivision shall be 45
construed to allow any member of the public observing recanvass 46
procedures pursuant to said subparagraph to interfere with the conduct 47
of a recanvass. 48
(c) The votes shall be announced and recorded in the manner 49
prescribed in section 9-309 on return forms provided by the registrars of 50
voters and appended thereto shall be a statement signed by the 51

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moderator indicating the time and place of the recanvass and the names, 52
addresses, titles and party affiliations of the recanvass officials. The 53
write-in ballots shall be replaced in a properly secured sealed package. 54
Upon the completion of such recanvass, any tabulator used in such 55
recanvass shall be locked and sealed, the keys thereof shall immediately 56
be returned to such registrars of voters and such tabulator shall remain 57
so locked until the expiration of fourteen days after such election or for 58
such longer period as is ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction. 59
The absentee ballots shall be replaced in their wrappers and be resealed 60
by the moderator in the presence of the recanvass officials. Upon the 61
completion of such recanvass, such moderator and at least two of the 62
recanvass officials of different political parties shall forthwith prepare 63
and sign such return forms which shall contain a written statement 64
giving the result of such recanvass for each tabulator and each package 65
of absentee ballots whose returns were so recanvassed, setting forth 66
whether or not the original canvass was correctly made and stating 67
whether or not the discrepancy still remains unacco