To amend sections 131.23, 145.38, 303.12, 306.70, 307.791, 322.021, 324.021, 503.162, 504.02, 504.03, 511.28, 511.34, 513.14, 519.12, 745.07, 747.11, 1901.07, 1901.10, 1901.31, 2961.01, 2967.17, 3311.21, 3311.50, 3311.73, 3349.29, 3354.12, 3355.09, 3375.03, 3501.01, 3501.05, 3501.10, 3501.11, 3501.13, 3501.26, 3501.30, 3501.33, 3501.35, 3501.38, 3501.39, 3503.06, 3503.11, 3503.13, 3503.14, 3503.16, 3503.19, 3503.21, 3503.23, 3503.24, 3505.062, 3505.063, 3505.16, 3505.18, 3505.19, 3505.20, 3505.21, 3505.22, 3505.25, 3505.26, 3505.27, 3505.32, 3506.01, 3506.05, 3506.12, 3506.13, 3506.18, 3509.02, 3509.06, 3509.08, 3509.09, 3511.13, 3513.04, 3513.041, 3513.05, 3513.052, 3513.07, 3513.09, 3513.19, 3513.20, 3513.22, 3513.257, 3513.259, 3513.261, 3513.30, 3515.03, 3515.04, 3515.07, 3515.08, 3515.13, 3517.01, 3517.081, 3517.092, 3517.10, 3517.106, 3517.1011, 3517.12, 3517.13, 3517.153, 3517.992, 3519.01, 3519.03, 3519.04, 3519.05, 3523.05, 3599.11, 3599.111, 3599.13, 3599.14, 3599.21, 3599.24, 3599.38, 4301.33, 4301.331, 4301.332, 4301.333, 4301.334, 4305.14, 4504.021, 5705.191, 5705.194, 5705.196, 5705.21, 5705.218, 5705.25, 5705.251, 5705.261, 5705.71, 5739.022, 5748.02, 5748.04, 5748.08, and 6119.18, to enact sections 109.95, 3501.052, 3501.19, 3501.24, 3501.382, 3501.90, 3503.15, 3503.28, 3503.29, 3505.181, 3505.182, 3505.183, 3506.20, 3506.21, 3506.22, 3506.23, 3515.041, 3515.072, 3519.051, and 3519.07, and to repeal section 3503.27 of the Revised Code to revise the Election Law.

Section 1. That sections 131.23, 145.38, 303.12, 306.70, 307.791, 322.021, 324.021, 503.162, 504.02, 504.03, 511.28, 511.34, 513.14, 519.12, 745.07, 747.11, 1901.07, 1901.10, 1901.31, 2961.01, 2967.17, 3311.21, 3311.50, 3311.73, 3349.29, 3354.12, 3355.09, 3375.03, 3501.01, 3501.05, 3501.10, 3501.11, 3501.13, 3501.26, 3501.30, 3501.33, 3501.35, 3501.38, 3501.39, 3503.06, 3503.11, 3503.13, 3503.14, 3503.16, 3503.19, 3503.21, 3503.23, 3503.24, 3505.062, 3505.063, 3505.16, 3505.18, 3505.19, 3505.20, 3505.21, 3505.22, 3505.25, 3505.26, 3505.27, 3505.32, 3506.01, 3506.05, 3506.12, 3506.13, 3506.18, 3509.02, 3509.06, 3509.08, 3509.09, 3511.13, 3513.04, 3513.041, 3513.05, 3513.052, 3513.07, 3513.09, 3513.19, 3513.20, 3513.22, 3513.257, 3513.259, 3513.261, 3513.30, 3515.03, 3515.04, 3515.07, 3515.08, 3515.13, 3517.01, 3517.081, 3517.092, 3517.10, 3517.106, 3517.1011, 3517.12, 3517.13, 3517.153, 3517.992, 3519.01, 3519.03, 3519.04, 3519.05, 3523.05, 3599.11, 3599.111, 3599.13, 3599.14, 3599.21, 3599.24, 3599.38, 4301.33, 4301.331, 4301.332, 4301.333, 4301.334, 4305.14, 4504.021, 5705.191, 5705.194, 5705.196, 5705.21, 5705.218, 5705.25, 5705.251, 5705.261, 5705.71, 5739.022, 5748.02, 5748.04, 5748.08, and 6119.18 be amended and sections 109.95, 3501.052, 3501.19, 3501.24, 3501.382, 3501.90, 3503.15, 3503.28, 3503.29, 3505.181, 3505.182, 3505.183, 3506.20, 3506.21, 3506.22, 3506.23, 3515.041, 3515.072, 3519.051, and 3519.07 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 109.95. Notwithstanding any provision of the Revised Code to the contrary pertaining to prosecutorial authority, the attorney general may initiate criminal proceedings for election fraud under section 3599.42 of the Revised Code which results from a violation of any provision of Title XXXV of the Revised Code, other than Chapter 3517. of the Revised Code, involving voting, an initiative or referendum petition process, or the conducting of an election, by presenting evidence of criminal violations in question to the prosecuting attorney of any county in which the violations may be prosecuted. If the prosecuting attorney does not prosecute the violations within a reasonable time or requests the attorney general to do so, the attorney general may proceed with the prosecution of the violations with all of the rights, privileges, and powers conferred by law on a prosecuting attorney, including, but not limited to, the power to appear before a grand jury and to interrogate witnesses before a grand jury.

If the attorney general presents evidence to the prosecuting attorney in accordance with this section within two weeks prior to an election, the prosecuting attorney shall decide whether to prosecute or request the attorney general to do so within forty-eight hours after the attorney general presents the evidence. If the prosecuting attorney does not so decide within forty-eight hours, the attorney general may initiate criminal proceedings in accordance with this section.

Sec. 131.23.  The various political subdivisions of this state may issue bonds, and any indebtedness created by such that issuance shall not be subject to the limitations or included in the calculation of indebtedness prescribed by sections 133.05, 133.06, 133.07, and 133.09 of the Revised Code, but such the bonds may be issued only under the following conditions:

(A) The subdivision desiring to issue such the bonds shall obtain from the county auditor a certificate showing the total amount of delinquent taxes due and unpayable to such the subdivision at the last semiannual tax settlement.

(B) The fiscal officer of that subdivision shall prepare a statement, from the books of the subdivision, verified by the fiscal officer under oath, which shall contain the following facts of such the subdivision:

(1) The total bonded indebtedness;

(2) The aggregate amount of notes payable or outstanding accounts of the subdivision, incurred prior to the commencement of the current fiscal year, which shall include all evidences of indebtedness issued by the subdivision except notes issued in anticipation of bond issues and the indebtedness of any nontax-supported public utility;

(3) Except in the case of school districts, the aggregate current year's requirement for disability financial assistance and disability medical assistance provided under Chapter 5115. of the Revised Code that the subdivision is unable to finance except by the issue of bonds;

(4) The indebtedness outstanding through the issuance of any bonds or notes pledged or obligated to be paid by any delinquent taxes;

(5) The total of any other indebtedness;

(6) The net amount of delinquent taxes unpledged to pay any bonds, notes, or certificates, including delinquent assessments on improvements on which the bonds have been paid;

(7) The budget requirements for the fiscal year for bond and note retirement;

(8) The estimated revenue for the fiscal year.

(C) The certificate and statement provided for in divisions (A) and (B) of this section shall be forwarded to the tax commissioner together with a request for authority to issue bonds of such the subdivision in an amount not to exceed seventy per cent of the net unobligated delinquent taxes and assessments due and owing to such the subdivision, as set forth in division (B)(6) of this section.

(D) No subdivision may issue bonds under this section in excess of a sufficient amount to pay the indebtedness of the subdivision as shown by division (B)(2) of this section and, except in the case of school districts, to provide funds for disability financial assistance and disability medical assistance, as shown by division (B)(3) of this section.

(E) The tax commissioner shall grant to such the subdivision authority requested by such the subdivision as restricted by divisions (C) and (D) of this section and shall make a record of the certificate, statement, and grant in a record book devoted solely to such recording and which shall be open to inspection by the public.

(F) The commissioner shall immediately upon issuing the authority provided in division (E) of this section notify the proper authority having charge of the retirement of bonds of such the subdivision by forwarding a copy of such the grant of authority and of the statement provided for in division (B) of this section.

(G) Upon receipt of authority, the subdivision shall proceed according to law to issue the amount of bonds authorized by the commissioner, and authorized by the taxing authority, provided the taxing authority of that subdivision may submit, by resolution submit, to the electors of that subdivision the question of issuing such the bonds. Such The resolution shall make the declarations and statements required by section 133.18 of the Revised Code. The county auditor and taxing authority shall thereupon proceed as set forth in divisions (C) and (D) of such that section. The election on the question of issuing such the bonds shall be held under divisions (E), (F), and (G) of such that section, except that publication of the notice of such the election shall be made on four two separate days prior to such the election in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the subdivisions subdivision. Such The bonds may be exchanged at their face value with creditors of the subdivision in liquidating the indebtedness described and enumerated in division (B)(2) of this section or may be sold as provided in Chapter 133. of the Revised Code, and in either event shall be uncontestable.

(H) The per cent of delinquent taxes and assessments collected for and to the credit of the subdivision after the exchange or sale of bonds as certified by the commissioner shall be paid to the authority having charge of the sinking fund of the subdivision, which money shall be placed in a separate fund for the purpose of retiring the bonds so issued. The proper authority of the subdivisions shall provide for the levying of a tax sufficient in amount to pay the debt charges on all such bonds issued under this section.

(I) This section is for the sole purpose of assisting the various subdivisions in paying their unsecured indebtedness, and providing funds for disability financial assistance and disability medical assistance. The bonds issued under authority of this section shall not be used for any other purpose, and any exchange for other purposes, or the use of the money derived from the sale of such the bonds by the subdivision for any other purpose, is misapplication of funds.

(J) The bonds authorized by this section shall be redeemable or payable in not to exceed ten years from date of issue and shall not be subject to or considered in calculating the net indebtedness of the subdivision. The budget commission of the county in which the subdivision is located shall annually allocate such portion of the then delinquent levy due such the subdivision which is unpledged for other purposes to the payment of debt charges on the bonds issued under authority of this section.

(K) The issue of bonds under this section shall be governed by Chapter 133. of the Revised Code, respecting the terms used, forms, manner of sale, and redemption except as otherwise provided in this section.

The board of county commissioners of any county may issue bonds authorized by this section and distribute the proceeds of such the bond issues to any or all of the cities and townships of such counties the county, according to their relative needs for disability financial assistance and disability medical assistance as determined by such the county.

All sections of the Revised Code inconsistent with or prohibiting the exercise of the authority conferred by this section are inoperative respecting bonds issued under this section.

Sec. 145.38.  (A) As used in this section and sections 145.381 and 145.384 of the Revised Code:

(1) "PERS retirant" means a former member of the public employees retirement system who is receiving one of the following:

(a) Age and service retirement benefits under section 145.32, 145.33, 145.331, 145.34, or 145.46 of the Revised Code;

(b) Age and service retirement benefits paid by the public employees retirement system under section 145.37 of the Revised Code;

(c) Any benefit paid under a PERS defined contribution plan.

(2) "Other system retirant" means both of the following:

(a) A member or former member of the Ohio police and fire pension fund, state teachers retirement system, school employees retirement system, state highway patrol retirement system, or Cincinnati retirement system who is receiving age and service or commuted age and service retirement benefits or a disability benefit from a system of which the person is a member or former member;

(b) A member or former member of the public employees retirement system who is receiving age and service retirement benefits or a disability benefit under section 145.37 of the Revised Code paid by the school employees retirement system or the state teachers retirement system.

(B)(1) Subject to this section and section 145.381 of the Revised Code, a PERS retirant or other system retirant may be employed by a public employer. If so employed, the PERS retirant or other system retirant shall contribute to the public employees retirement system in accordance with section 145.47 of the Revised Code, and the employer shall make contributions in accordance with section 145.48 of the Revised Code.

(2) A public employer that employs a PERS retirant or other system retirant, or enters into a contract for services as an independent contractor with a PERS retirant, shall notify the retirement board of the employment or contract not later than the end of the month in which the employment or contract commences. Any overpayment of benefits to a PERS retirant by the retirement system resulting from delay or failure of the employer to give the notice shall be repaid to the retirement system by the employer.

(3) On receipt of notice from a public employer that a person who is an other system retirant has been employed, the retirement system shall notify the retirement system of which the other system retirant was a member of such employment.

(4)(a) A PERS retirant who has received a retirement allowance for less than two months when employment subject to this section commences shall forfeit the retirement allowance for any month the PERS retirant is employed prior to the expiration of the two-month period. Service and contributions for that period shall not be included in calculation of any benefits payable to the PERS retirant, and those contributions shall be refunded on the retirant's death or termination of the employment.

(b) An other system retirant who has received a retirement allowance or disability benefit for less than two months when employment subject to this section commences shall forfeit the retirement allowance or disability benefit for any month the other system retirant is employed prior to the expiration of the two-month period. Service and contributions for that period shall not be included in the calculation of any benefits payable to the other system retirant, and those contributions shall be refunded on the retirant's death or termination of the employment.

(c) Contributions made on compensation earned after the expiration of the two-month period shall be used in the calculation of the benefit or payment due under section 145.384 of the Revised Code.

(5) On receipt of notice from the Ohio police and fire pension fund, school employees retirement system, or state teachers retirement system of the re-employment of a PERS retirant, the public employees retirement system shall not pay, or if paid, shall recover, the amount to be forfeited by the PERS retirant in accordance with section 742.26, 3307.35, or 3309.341 of the Revised Code.

(6) A PERS retirant who enters into a contract to provide services as an independent contractor to the employer by which the retirant was employed at the time of retirement or, less than two months after the retirement allowance commences, begins providing services as an independent contractor pursuant to a contract with another public employer, shall forfeit the pension portion of the retirement benefit for the period beginning the first day of the month following the month in which the services begin and ending on the first day of the month following the month in which the services end. The annuity portion of the retirement allowance shall be suspended on the day services under the contract begin and shall accumulate to the credit of the retirant to be paid in a single payment after services provided under the contract terminate. A PERS retirant subject to division (B)(6) of this section shall not contribute to the retirement system and shall not become a member of the system.

(7) As used in this division, "employment" includes service for which a PERS retirant or other system retirant, the retirant's employer, or both, have waived any earnable salary for the service.

(C)(1) Except as provided in division (C)(3) of this section, this division applies to both of the following:

(a) A PERS retirant who, prior to September 14, 2000, was subject to division (C)(1)(b) of this section as that division existed immediately prior to September 14, 2000, and has not elected pursuant to Am. Sub. S.B. 144 of the 123rd general assembly to cease to be subject to that division;

(b) A PERS retirant to whom both of the following apply:

(i) The retirant held elective office in this state, or in any municipal corporation, county, or other political subdivision of this state at the time of retirement under this chapter.

(ii) The retirant was elected or appointed to the same office for the remainder of the term or the term immediately following the term during which the retirement occurred.

(2) A PERS retirant who is subject to this division is a member of the public employees retirement system with all the rights, privileges, and obligations of membership, except that the membership does not include survivor benefits provided pursuant to section 145.45 of the Revised Code or, beginning on the ninetieth day after September 14, 2000, any amount calculated under section 145.401 of the Revised Code. The pension portion of the PERS retirant's retirement allowance shall be forfeited until the first day of the first month following termination of the employment. The annuity portion of the retirement allowance shall accumulate to the credit of the PERS retirant to be paid in a single payment after termination of the employment. The retirement allowance shall resume on the first day of the first month following termination of the employment. On termination of the employment, the PERS retirant shall elect to receive either a refund of the retirant's contributions to the retirement system during the period of employment subject to this section or a supplemental retirement allowance based on the retirant's contributions and service credit for that period of employment.

(3) This division does not apply to any of the following:

(a) A PERS retirant elected to office who, at the time of the election for the retirant's current term, was not retired but, not less than ninety days prior to the primary election for the term or the date on which a primary for the term would have been held, filed a written declaration of intent to retire before the end of the term with the director of the board of elections of the county in which petitions for nomination or election to the office are filed;

(b) A PERS retirant elected to office who, at the time of the election for the retirant's current term, was a retirant and had been retired for not less than ninety days;

(c) A PERS retirant appointed to office who, at the time of appointment to the retirant's current term, notified the person or entity making the appointment that the retirant was already retired or intended to retire before the end of the term.

(D)(1) Except as provided in division (C) of this section, a PERS retirant or other system retirant subject to this section is not a member of the public employees retirement system, and, except as specified in this section does not have any of the rights, privileges, or obligations of membership. Except as specified in division (D)(2) of this section, the retirant is not eligible to receive health, medical, hospital, or surgical benefits under section 145.58 of the Revised Code for employment subject to this section.

(2) A PERS retirant subject to this section shall receive primary health, medical, hospital, or surgical insurance coverage from the retirant's employer, if the employer provides coverage to other employees performing comparable work. Neither the employer nor the PERS retirant may waive the employer's coverage, except that the PERS retirant may waive the employer's coverage if the retirant has coverage comparable to that provided by the employer from a source other than the employer or the public employees retirement system. If a claim is made, the employer's coverage shall be the primary coverage and shall pay first. The benefits provided under section 145.58 of the Revised Code shall pay only those medical expenses not paid through the employer's coverage or coverage the PERS retirant receives through a source other than the retirement system.

(E) If the disability benefit of an other system retirant employed under this section is terminated, the retirant shall become a member of the public employees retirement system, effective on the first day of the month next following the termination with all the rights, privileges, and obligations of membership. If such person, after the termination of the disability benefit, earns two years of service credit under this system or under the Ohio police and fire pension fund, state teachers retirement system, school employees retirement system, or state highway patrol retirement system, the person's prior contributions as an other system retirant under this section shall be included in the person's total service credit as a public employees retirement system member, and the person shall forfeit all rights and benefits of this section. Not more than one year of credit may be given for any period of twelve months.

(F) This section does not affect the receipt of benefits by or eligibility for benefits of any person who on August 20, 1976, was receiving a disability benefit or service retirement pension or allowance from a state or municipal retirement system in Ohio and was a member of any other state or municipal retirement system of this state.

(G) The public employees retirement board may adopt rules to carry out this section.

Sec. 303.12.  (A)(1) Amendments to the zoning resolution may be initiated by motion of the county rural zoning commission, by the passage of a resolution by the board of county commissioners, or by the filing of an application by one or more of the owners or lessees of property within the area proposed to be changed or affected by the proposed amendment with the county rural zoning commission. The board of county commissioners may require that the owner or lessee of property filing an application to amend the zoning resolution pay a fee to defray the cost of advertising, mailing, filing with the county recorder, and other expenses. If the board of county commissioners requires such a fee, it shall be required generally, for each application. The board of county commissioners shall, upon the passage of such a resolution, shall certify it to the county rural zoning commission.

(2) Upon the adoption of such a motion by the county rural zoning commission, the certification of such a resolution by the board of county commissioners to the commission, or the filing of such an application by property owners or lessees as described in division (A)(1) of this section with the commission, the county rural zoning commission shall set a date for a public hearing, which date shall not be less than twenty nor more than forty days from the date of adoption of such a motion, the date of the certification of such a resolution, or the date of the filing of such an application. Notice of such the hearing shall be given by the county rural zoning commission by one publication in one or more newspapers of general circulation in each township affected by such the proposed amendment at least ten days before the date of such the hearing.

(B) If the proposed amendment intends to rezone or redistrict ten or fewer parcels of land, as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, written notice of the hearing shall be mailed by the county rural zoning commission, by first class mail, at least ten days before the date of the public hearing to all owners of property within and contiguous to and directly across the street from such the area proposed to be rezoned or redistricted to the addresses of such those owners appearing on the county auditor's current tax list. The failure of delivery of such that notice shall not invalidate any such amendment.

(C) If the proposed amendment intends to rezone or redistrict ten or fewer parcels of land as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published and mailed notices shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing, and shall include all of the following:

(1) The name of the county rural zoning commission that will be conducting the public hearing;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, resolution, or application is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) A list of the addresses of all properties to be rezoned or redistricted by the proposed amendment and of the names of owners of these properties, as they appear on the county auditor's current tax list;

(4) The present zoning classification of property named in the proposed amendment and the proposed zoning classification of such that property;

(5) The time and place where the motion, resolution, or application proposing to amend the zoning resolution will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the public hearing;

(6) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the public hearing by publication or, by mail, or by both publication and mail;

(7) Any other information requested by the zoning commission;

(8) A statement that, after the conclusion of such the hearing, the matter will be submitted to the board of county commissioners for its action;

(8) Any other information requested by the commission.

(D) If the proposed amendment alters the text of the zoning resolution, or rezones or redistricts more than ten parcels of land, as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing, and shall include all of the following:

(1) The name of the county rural zoning commission that will be conducting the public hearing on the proposed amendment;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, application, or resolution is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) The time and place where the text and maps of the proposed amendment will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the public hearing;

(4) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the public hearing by publication;

(5) A statement that, after the conclusion of such the hearing, the matter will be submitted to the board of county commissioners for its action;

(6) Any other information requested by the zoning commission.

Hearings shall be held in the county court house or in a public place designated by the zoning commission.

(E) Within five days after the adoption of such the motion described in division (A) of this section, the certification of such the resolution described in division (A) of this section, or the filing of such the application described in division (A) of this section, the county rural zoning commission shall transmit a copy of it together with text and map pertaining to it to the county or regional planning commission, if there is such a commission.

The county or regional planning commission shall recommend the approval or denial of the proposed amendment or the approval of some modification of it and shall submit such its recommendation to the county rural zoning commission. Such The recommendation shall be considered at the public hearing held by the county rural zoning commission on such the proposed amendment.

The county rural zoning commission, within thirty days after such the hearing, shall recommend the approval or denial of the proposed amendment, or the approval of some modification of it, and shall submit such that recommendation together with such the motion, application, or resolution involved, the text and map pertaining to it the proposed amendment, and the recommendation of the county or regional planning commission on it to the board of county commissioners.

The board of county commissioners, upon receipt of such that recommendation, shall set a time for a public hearing on such the proposed amendment, which date shall be not more than thirty days from the date of the receipt of such that recommendation from the county rural zoning commission. Notice of such public the hearing shall be given by the board by one publication in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the county, at least ten days before the date of such the hearing.

(F) If the proposed amendment intends to rezone or redistrict ten or fewer parcels of land as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing and shall include all of the following:

(1) The name of the board of county commissioners that will be conducting the public hearing;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, application, or resolution is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) A list of the addresses of all properties to be rezoned or redistricted by the proposed amendment and of the names of owners of these those properties, as they appear on the county auditor's current tax list;

(4) The present zoning classification of property named in the proposed amendment and the proposed zoning classification of such that property;

(5) The time and place where the motion, application, or resolution proposing to amend the zoning resolution will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the public hearing;

(6) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the public hearing by publication or, by mail, or by both publication and mail;

(7) Any other information requested by the board.

(G) If the proposed amendment alters the text of the zoning resolution, or rezones or redistricts more than ten parcels of land as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing, and shall include all of the following:

(1) The name of the board of county commissioners that will be conducting the public hearing on the proposed amendment;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, application, or resolution is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) The time and place where the text and maps of the proposed amendment will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the public hearing;

(4) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the public hearing by publication;

(5) Any other information requested by the board.

(H) Within twenty days after such its public hearing, the board of county commissioners shall either adopt or deny the recommendation of the county rural zoning commission or adopt some modification of it. If the board denies or modifies the commission's recommendation of the county rural zoning commission, the unanimous vote of the board shall be required.

Such The proposed amendment, if adopted by the board, shall become effective in thirty days after the date of such its adoption, unless, within thirty days after the adoption of the amendment, there is presented to the board of county commissioners a petition, signed by a number of qualified voters residing in the unincorporated area of the township or part of that unincorporated area included in the zoning plan equal to not less than eight per cent of the total vote cast for all candidates for governor in such that area at the most recent general election at which a governor was elected, requesting the board to submit the amendment to the electors of such that area, for approval or rejection, at a special election to be held on the day of the next primary or general election. Each part of this petition shall contain the number and the full and correct title, if any, of the zoning amendment resolution, motion, or application, furnishing the name by which the amendment proposal is known and a brief summary of its contents. In addition to meeting the requirements of this section, each petition shall be governed by the rules specified in section 3501.38 of the Revised Code.

The form of a petition calling for a zoning referendum and the statement of the circulator shall be substantially as follows:

(if the proposal is identified by a particular name or number, or both, these should be inserted here) ........................

A proposal to amend the zoning map of the unincorporated area of .............. Township, ................... County, Ohio, adopted ....... (date) .......... (followed by brief summary of the proposal).

To the Board of County Commissioners of .................. County, Ohio:

We, the undersigned, being electors residing in the unincorporated area of ............... Township, included within the ................. County Zoning Plan, equal to not less than eight per cent of the total vote cast for all candidates for governor in the area at the preceding general election at which a governor was elected, request the Board of County Commissioners to submit this amendment of the zoning resolution to the electors of ............. Township residing within the unincorporated area of the township included in the ............... County Zoning Resolution, for approval or rejection at a special election to be held on the day of the next primary or general election to be held on ........(date)......., pursuant to section 303.12 of the Revised Code.

..............................................................

..............................................................

I, .....................(name of circulator)..................., declare under penalty of election falsification that I am an elector of the state of Ohio and reside at the address appearing below my signature; that I am the circulator of the foregoing part petition containing .....(number)....... signatures; that I have witnessed the affixing of every signature; that all signers were to the best of my knowledge and belief qualified to sign; and that every signature is to the best of my knowledge and belief the signature of the person whose signature it purports to be or of an attorney in fact acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code.

WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY OF THE FIFTH DEGREE."

No amendment for which such a referendum vote has been requested shall be put into effect unless a majority of the vote cast on the issue is in favor of the amendment. Upon certification by the board of elections that the amendment has been approved by the voters, it shall take immediate effect.

Within five working days after an amendment's effective date, the board of county commissioners shall file the text and maps of the amendment in the office of the county recorder and with the regional or county planning commission, if one exists.

The board shall file all amendments, including text and maps, that are in effect on January 1, 1992, in the office of the county recorder within thirty working days after that date. The board shall also file duplicates of the same documents with the regional or county planning commission, if one exists, within the same period.

The failure to file any amendment, or any text and maps, or duplicates of any of these documents, with the office of the county recorder or the county or regional planning commission as required by this section does not invalidate the amendment and is not grounds for an appeal of any decision of the board of zoning appeals.

Sec. 306.70.  A tax proposed to be levied by a board of county commissioners or by the board of trustees of a regional transit authority pursuant to sections 5739.023 and 5741.022 of the Revised Code shall not become effective until it is submitted to the electors residing within the county or within the territorial boundaries of the regional transit authority and approved by a majority of the electors voting thereon on it. Such question shall be submitted at a general election or at a special election on a day specified in the resolution levying the tax and occurring not less than seventy-five days after such resolution is certified to the board of elections, in accordance with section 3505.071 of the Revised Code.

The board of elections of the county or of each county in which any territory of the regional transit authority is located shall make the necessary arrangements for the submission of such question to the electors of the county or regional transit authority, and the election shall be held, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections for the election of county officers. Notice of the election shall be published in one or more newspapers which in the aggregate are of general circulation in the territory of the county or of the regional transit authority once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election stating and shall be posted on the board of elections' web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the type, rate, and purpose of the tax to be levied, the length of time during which the tax will be in effect, and the time and place of the election.

More than one such question may be submitted at the same election. The form of the ballots cast at such election shall be:

"Shall a(n) ................ (sales and use) ............. tax be levied for all transit purposes of the .................. (here insert name of the county or regional transit authority) at a rate not exceeding ................... (here insert percentage) per cent for ................ (here insert number of years the tax is to be in effect, or that it is to be in effect for a continuing period of time)?"

If the tax proposed to be levied is a continuation of an existing tax, whether at the same rate or at an increased or reduced rate, or an increase in the rate of an existing tax, the notice and ballot form shall so state.

The board of elections to which the resolution was certified shall certify the results of the election to the county auditor of the county or secretary-treasurer of the regional transit authority levying the tax and to the tax commissioner of the state.

Sec. 307.791.  The question of repeal of a county sediment control rule adopted under section 307.79 of the Revised Code may be initiated by filing with the board of elections of the county not less than seventy-five days before the general or primary election in any year a petition requesting that an election be held on such question. Such petition shall be signed by qualified electors residing in the county equal in number to ten per cent of those voting for governor at the most recent gubernatorial election in the county.

After determination by it that such petition is valid, the board of elections shall submit the question to the electors of the county at the next general or primary election. The election shall be conducted, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections for county offices in the county. Notice of the election shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the county once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election, stating and shall be posted on the board of elections' web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the purpose, the time, the and place of the election, and the complete text of each rule sought to be repealed. The form of the ballot cast at such election shall be prescribed by the secretary of state. The question covered by such petition shall be submitted as a separate proposition, but it may be printed on the same ballot with any other proposition submitted at the same election other than the election of officers. If a majority of the qualified electors voting on the question of repeal approve the repeal, the result of the election shall be certified immediately after the canvass by the board of elections to the board of county commissioners, who shall thereupon rescind the rule.

Sec. 322.021.  The question of a repeal of a county permissive tax adopted as an emergency measure pursuant to division (B) of section 322.02 of the Revised Code may be initiated by filing with the board of elections of the county not less than seventy-five days before the general election in any year a petition requesting that an election be held on such question. Such petition shall be signed by qualified electors residing in the county equal in number to ten per cent of those voting for governor at the most recent gubernatorial election.

After determination by it that such petition is valid, the board of elections shall submit the question to the electors of the county at the next general election. The election shall be conducted, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections for county offices in the county. Notice of the election shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the district once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election, stating and shall be posted on the board of elections' web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the purpose, time, and place of the election. The form of the ballot cast at such election shall be prescribed by the secretary of state. The question covered by such petition shall be submitted as a separate proposition, but it may be printed on the same ballot with any other proposition submitted at the same election other than the election of officers. If a majority of the qualified electors voting on the question of repeal approve the repeal, the result of the election shall be certified immediately after the canvass by the board of elections to the board of county commissioners, who shall thereupon, after the current year, cease to levy the tax.

Sec. 324.021.  The question of repeal of a county permissive tax adopted as an emergency measure pursuant to section 324.02 of the Revised Code may be initiated by filing with the board of elections of the county not less than seventy-five days before the general election in any year a petition requesting that an election be held on such question. Such petition shall be signed by qualified electors residing in the county equal in number to ten per cent of those voting for governor at the most recent gubernatorial election.

After determination by it that such petition is valid, the board of elections shall submit the question to the electors of the county at the next general election. The election shall be conducted, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections for county offices in the county. Notice of the election shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the district once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election, stating and shall be posted on the board of elections' web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the purpose, the time, and the place of the election. The form of the ballot cast at such election shall be prescribed by the secretary of state. The question covered by such petition shall be submitted as a separate proposition, but it may be printed on the same ballot with any other proposition submitted at the same election other than the election of officers. If a majority of the qualified electors voting on the question of repeal approve the repeal, the result of the election shall be certified immediately after the canvass by the board of elections to the board of county commissioners, who shall thereupon, after the current year, cease to levy the tax.

Sec. 503.162.  (A) After certification of a resolution as provided in section 503.161 of the Revised Code, the board of elections shall submit the question of whether the township's name shall be changed to the electors of the unincorporated area of the township in accordance with division (C) of that section, and the ballot language shall be substantially as follows:

"Shall the township of .......... (name) change its name to ........ (proposed name)?

.......... For name change

.......... Against name change"

(B)(1) At least forty-five days before the election on this question, the board of township trustees shall provide notice of the election and an explanation of the proposed name change twice in a newspaper of general circulation in the township for three consecutive weeks and shall post the notice and explanation in five conspicuous places in the unincorporated area of the township.

(2) For at least thirty days before the election on this question, the board of elections shall post notice of the election and an explanation of the proposed name change on the board's web site or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code.

(C) If a majority of the votes cast on the proposition of changing the township's name is in the affirmative, the name change is adopted and becomes effective ninety days after the board of elections certifies the election results to the fiscal officer of the township. Upon receipt of the certification of the election results from the board of elections, the fiscal officer of the township shall send a copy of that certification to the secretary of state.

(D) A change in the name of a township shall not alter the rights or liabilities of the township as previously named.

Sec. 504.02.  (A) After certification of a resolution as provided in division (A), (B), or (D) of section 504.01 of the Revised Code, the board of elections shall submit the question of whether to adopt a limited home rule government to the electors of the unincorporated area of the township, and the ballot language shall be substantially as follows:

"Shall the township of ........... (name) adopt a limited home rule government, under which government the board of township trustees, by resolution, may exercise limited powers of local self-government and limited police powers?

(B)(1) At least forty-five days before the election on this question, the board of township trustees shall have notice of the election and a description of the proposed limited home rule government published twice in a newspaper of general circulation in the township for three consecutive weeks and have the notice and description posted in five conspicuous places in the unincorporated area of the township.

(2) For at least thirty days before the election on this question, the board of elections shall post notice of the election and a description of the proposed limited home rule government on the board's web site or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code.

(C) If a majority of the votes cast on the proposition of adopting a limited home rule government is in the affirmative, that government is adopted and becomes the government of the township on the first day of January immediately following the election.

Sec. 504.03.  (A)(1) If a limited home rule government is adopted pursuant to section 504.02 of the Revised Code, it shall remain in effect for at least three years except as otherwise provided in division (B) of this section. At the end of that period, if the board of township trustees determines that that government is not in the best interests of the township, it may adopt a resolution causing the board of elections to submit to the electors of the unincorporated area of the township the question of whether the township should continue the limited home rule government. The question shall be voted upon at the next general election occurring at least seventy-five days after the certification of the resolution to the board of elections. After certification of the resolution, the board of elections shall submit the question to the electors of the unincorporated area of the township, and the ballot language shall be substantially as follows:

"Shall the township of ........... (name) continue the limited home rule government under which it is operating?

(2)(a) At least forty-five days before the election on the question of continuing the limited home rule government, the board of township trustees shall have notice of the election published twice in a newspaper of general circulation in the township for three consecutive weeks and have the notice posted in five conspicuous places in the unincorporated area of the township.

(b) For at least thirty days before the election on the question of continuing the limited home rule government, the board of elections shall post notice of the election on the board's web site or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code.

(B) The electors of a township that has adopted a limited home rule government may propose at any time by initiative petition, in accordance with section 504.14 of the Revised Code, a resolution submitting to the electors in the unincorporated area of the township, in an election, the question set forth in division (A)(1) of this section.

(C) If a majority of the votes cast under division (A) or (B) of this section on the proposition of continuing the limited home rule government is in the negative, that government is terminated effective on the first day of January immediately following the election, and a limited home rule government shall not be adopted in the unincorporated area of the township pursuant to section 504.02 of the Revised Code for at least three years after that date.

(D) If a limited home rule government is terminated under this section, the board of township trustees immediately shall adopt a resolution repealing all resolutions adopted pursuant to this chapter that are not authorized by any other section of the Revised Code outside this chapter, effective on the first day of January immediately following the election described in division (A) or (B) of this section. However, no resolution adopted under this division shall affect or impair the obligations of the township under any security issued or contracts entered into by the township in connection with the financing of any water supply facility or sewer improvement under sections 504.18 to 504.20 of the Revised Code or the authority of the township to collect or enforce any assessments or other revenues constituting security for or source of payments of debt service charges of those securities.

(E) Upon the termination of a limited home rule government under this section, if the township had converted its board of township trustees to a five-member board before the effective date of this amendment September 26, 2003, the current board member who received the lowest number of votes of the current board members who were elected at the most recent election for township trustees, and the current board member who received the lowest number of votes of the current board members who were elected at the second most recent election for township trustees, shall cease to be township trustees on the date that the limited home rule government terminates. Their offices likewise shall cease to exist at that time, and the board shall continue as a three-member board as provided in section 505.01 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 511.28.  A copy of any resolution for a tax levy adopted by the township board of park commissioners as provided in section 511.27 of the Revised Code shall be certified by the clerk of the board of park commissioners to the board of elections of the proper county, together with a certified copy of the resolution approving the levy, passed by the board of township trustees if such a resolution is required by division (C) of section 511.27 of the Revised Code, not less than seventy-five days before a general or primary election in any year. The board of elections shall submit the proposal to the electors as provided in section 511.27 of the Revised Code at the succeeding general or primary election. A resolution to renew an existing levy may not be placed on the ballot unless the question is submitted at the general election held during the last year the tax to be renewed may be extended on the real and public utility property tax list and duplicate, or at any election held in the ensuing year. The board of park commissioners shall cause notice that the vote will be taken to be published once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election in a newspaper of general circulation in the county within which the park district is located. Additionally, the board of elections shall post that notice on its web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the purpose of the proposed levy, the annual rate proposed expressed in dollars and cents for each one hundred dollars of valuation as well as in mills for each one dollar of valuation, the number of consecutive years during which the levy shall be in effect, and the time and place of the election.

The form of the ballots cast at the election shall be: "An additional tax for the benefit of (name of township park district) .......... for the purpose of (purpose stated in the order of the board) .......... at a rate not exceeding .......... mills for each one dollar of valuation, which amounts to (rate expressed in dollars and cents) .......... for each one hundred dollars of valuation, for (number of years the levy is to run) ..........

If the levy submitted is a proposal to renew, increase, or decrease an existing levy, the form of the ballot specified in this section may be changed by substituting for the words "An additional" at the beginning of the form, the words "A renewal of a" in the case of a proposal to renew an existing levy in the same amount; the words "A renewal of .......... mills and an increase of .......... mills to constitute a" in the case of an increase; or the words "A renewal of part of an existing levy, being a reduction of .......... mills, to constitute a" in the case of a decrease in the rate of the existing levy.

If the tax is to be placed on the current tax list, the form of the ballot shall be modified by adding, after the statement of the number of years the levy is to run, the phrase ", commencing in .......... (first year the tax is to be levied), first due in calendar year .......... (first calendar year in which the tax shall be due)."

The question covered by the order shall be submitted as a separate proposition, but may be printed on the same ballot with any other proposition submitted at the same election, other than the election of officers. More than one such question may be submitted at the same election.

Sec. 511.34.  In townships composed of islands, and on one of which islands lands have been conveyed in trust for the benefit of the inhabitants of the island for use as a park, and a board of park trustees has been provided for the control of the park, the board of township trustees may create a tax district of the island to raise funds by taxation as provided under divisions (A) and (B) of this section.

(A) For the care and maintenance of parks on the island, the board of township trustees annually may levy a tax, not to exceed one mill, upon all the taxable property in the district. The tax shall be in addition to all other levies authorized by law, and subject to no limitation on tax rates except as provided in this division.

The proceeds of the tax levy shall be expended by the board of township trustees for the purpose of the care and maintenance of the parks, and shall be paid out of the township treasury upon the orders of the board of park trustees.

(B) For the purpose of acquiring additional land for use as a park, the board of township trustees may levy a tax in excess of the ten-mill limitation on all taxable property in the district. The tax shall be proposed by resolution adopted by two-thirds of the members of the board of township trustees. The resolution shall specify the purpose and rate of the tax and the number of years the tax will be levied, which shall not exceed five years, and which may include a levy on the current tax list and duplicate. The resolution shall go into immediate effect upon its passage, and no publication of the resolution is necessary other than that provided for in the notice of election. The board of township trustees shall certify a copy of the resolution to the proper board of elections not later than seventy-five days before the primary or general election in the township, and the board of elections shall submit the question of the tax to the voters of the district at the succeeding primary or general election. The board of elections shall make the necessary arrangements for the submission of the question to the electors of the district, and the election shall be conducted, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections in the township for the election of officers. Notice of the election shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the township once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election, stating and shall be posted on the board of elections' web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the purpose of the tax, the proposed rate of the tax, expressed in dollars and cents for each one hundred dollars of valuation and mills for each one dollar of valuation, the number of years the tax will be in effect and, the first year the tax will be levied, and the time and place of the election.

The form of the ballots cast at an election held under this division shall be as follows:

"An additional tax for the benefit of ......... (name of the township) for the purpose of acquiring additional park land at a rate of ......... mills for each one dollar of valuation, which amounts to ........ (rate expressed in dollars and cents) for each one hundred dollars of valuation, for ......... (number of years the levy is to run) beginning in ........... (first year the tax will be levied).

The question shall be submitted as a separate proposition but may be printed on the same ballot with any other proposition submitted at the same election other than the election of officers. More than one such question may be submitted at the same election.

If the levy is approved by a majority of electors voting on the question, the board of elections shall certify the result of the election to the tax commissioner. In the first year of the levy, the tax shall be extended on the tax lists after the February settlement following the election. If the tax is to be placed on the tax lists of the current year as specified in the resolution, the board of elections shall certify the result of the election immediately after the canvass to the board of township trustees, which shall forthwith make the necessary levy and certify the levy to the county auditor, who shall extend the levy on the tax lists for collection. After the first year of the levy, the levy shall be included in the annual tax budget that is certified to the county budget commission.

Sec. 513.14.  The board of elections shall advertise the proposed tax levy question mentioned in section 513.13 of the Revised Code, in two newspapers of opposite political faith, if two such newspapers are published in the joint township hospital district, or otherwise, in one newspaper, published or of general circulation in the proposed township hospital district, once a twice during the week for three weeks immediately preceding such prior to the election and shall advertise that proposed tax levy question on its web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election.

Sec. 519.12.  (A)(1) Amendments to the zoning resolution may be initiated by motion of the township zoning commission, by the passage of a resolution by the board of township trustees, or by the filing of an application by one or more of the owners or lessees of property within the area proposed to be changed or affected by the proposed amendment with the township zoning commission. The board of township trustees may require that the owner or lessee of property filing an application to amend the zoning resolution pay a fee to defray the cost of advertising, mailing, filing with the county recorder, and other expenses. If the board of township trustees requires such a fee, it shall be required generally, for each application. The board of township trustees, upon the passage of such a resolution, shall certify it to the township zoning commission.

(2) Upon the adoption of a motion by the township zoning commission, the certification of a resolution by the board of township trustees to the commission, or the filing of an application by property owners or lessees as described in division (A)(1) of this section with the commission, the commission shall set a date for a public hearing, which date shall not be less than twenty nor more than forty days from the date of the certification of such a resolution, the date of adoption of such a motion, or the date of the filing of such an application. Notice of the hearing shall be given by the commission by one publication in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the township at least ten days before the date of the hearing.

(B) If the proposed amendment intends to rezone or redistrict ten or fewer parcels of land, as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, written notice of the hearing shall be mailed by the township zoning commission, by first class mail, at least ten days before the date of the public hearing to all owners of property within and contiguous to and directly across the street from the area proposed to be rezoned or redistricted to the addresses of those owners appearing on the county auditor's current tax list. The failure of delivery of that notice shall not invalidate any such amendment.

(C) If the proposed amendment intends to rezone or redistrict ten or fewer parcels of land as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published and mailed notices shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing and include all of the following:

(1) The name of the township zoning commission that will be conducting the hearing;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, resolution, or application is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) A list of the addresses of all properties to be rezoned or redistricted by the proposed amendment and of the names of owners of those properties, as they appear on the county auditor's current tax list;

(4) The present zoning classification of property named in the proposed amendment and the proposed zoning classification of that property;

(5) The time and place where the motion, resolution, or application proposing to amend the zoning resolution will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the hearing;

(6) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the hearing by publication, by mail, or by both publication and mail;

(7) Any other information requested by the commission;

(8) A statement that, after the conclusion of the hearing, the matter will be submitted to the board of township trustees for its action;

(8) Any other information requested by the commission.

(D) If the proposed amendment alters the text of the zoning resolution, or rezones or redistricts more than ten parcels of land as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing and include all of the following:

(1) The name of the township zoning commission that will be conducting the hearing on the proposed amendment;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, application, or resolution is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) The time and place where the text and maps of the proposed amendment will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the hearing;

(4) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the hearing by publication;

(5) A statement that, after the conclusion of the hearing, the matter will be submitted to the board of township trustees for its action;

(6) Any other information requested by the commission.

(E) Within five days after the adoption of the motion described in division (A) of this section, the certification of the resolution described in division (A) of this section, or the filing of the application described in division (A) of this section, the township zoning commission shall transmit a copy of it together with text and map pertaining to it to the county or regional planning commission, if there is such a commission.

The county or regional planning commission shall recommend the approval or denial of the proposed amendment or the approval of some modification of it and shall submit its recommendation to the township zoning commission. The recommendation shall be considered at the public hearing held by the township zoning commission on the proposed amendment.

The township zoning commission, within thirty days after the hearing, shall recommend the approval or denial of the proposed amendment, or the approval of some modification of it, and submit that recommendation together with the motion, application, or resolution involved, the text and map pertaining to the proposed amendment, and the recommendation of the county or regional planning commission on it to the board of township trustees.

The board of township trustees, upon receipt of that recommendation, shall set a time for a public hearing on the proposed amendment, which date shall not be more than thirty days from the date of the receipt of that recommendation. Notice of the hearing shall be given by the board by one publication in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the township, at least ten days before the date of the hearing.

(F) If the proposed amendment intends to rezone or redistrict ten or fewer parcels of land as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing and include all of the following:

(1) The name of the board of township trustees that will be conducting the hearing;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, application, or resolution is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) A list of the addresses of all properties to be rezoned or redistricted by the proposed amendment and of the names of owners of those properties, as they appear on the county auditor's current tax list;

(4) The present zoning classification of property named in the proposed amendment and the proposed zoning classification of that property;

(5) The time and place where the motion, application, or resolution proposing to amend the zoning resolution will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the hearing;

(6) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the hearing by publication, by mail, or by both publication and mail;

(7) Any other information requested by the board.

(G) If the proposed amendment alters the text of the zoning resolution, or rezones or redistricts more than ten parcels of land as listed on the county auditor's current tax list, the published notice shall set forth the time, date, and place of the public hearing and include all of the following:

(1) The name of the board of township trustees that will be conducting the hearing on the proposed amendment;

(2) A statement indicating that the motion, application, or resolution is an amendment to the zoning resolution;

(3) The time and place where the text and maps of the proposed amendment will be available for examination for a period of at least ten days prior to the hearing;

(4) The name of the person responsible for giving notice of the hearing by publication;

(5) Any other information requested by the board.

(H) Within twenty days after its public hearing, the board of township trustees shall either adopt or deny the recommendations of the township zoning commission or adopt some modification of them. If the board denies or modifies the commission's recommendations, the unanimous vote of the board shall be required.

The proposed amendment, if adopted by the board, shall become effective in thirty days after the date of its adoption, unless, within thirty days after the adoption, there is presented to the board of township trustees a petition, signed by a number of registered electors residing in the unincorporated area of the township or part of that unincorporated area included in the zoning plan equal to not less than eight per cent of the total vote cast for all candidates for governor in that area at the most recent general election at which a governor was elected, requesting the board of township trustees to submit the amendment to the electors of that area for approval or rejection at a special election to be held on the day of the next primary or general election that occurs at least seventy-five days after the petition is filed. Each part of this petition shall contain the number and the full and correct title, if any, of the zoning amendment resolution, motion, or application, furnishing the name by which the amendment is known and a brief summary of its contents. In addition to meeting the requirements of this section, each petition shall be governed by the rules specified in section 3501.38 of the Revised Code.

The form of a petition calling for a zoning referendum and the statement of the circulator shall be substantially as follows:

(if the proposal is identified by a particular name or number, or both, these should be inserted here) .......................

A proposal to amend the zoning map of the unincorporated area of ............. Township, ................. County, Ohio, adopted .....(date)..... (followed by brief summary of the proposal).

To the Board of Township Trustees of ..................... Township, ................. County, Ohio:

...................... County, Ohio:

We, the undersigned, being electors residing in the unincorporated area of ....................... Township, included within the ............. Township Zoning Plan, equal to not less than eight per cent of the total vote cast for all candidates for governor in the area at the preceding general election at which a governor was elected, request the Board of Township Trustees to submit this amendment of the zoning resolution to the electors of ........................ Township residing within the unincorporated area of the township included in the .................. Township Zoning Resolution, for approval or rejection at a special election to be held on the day of the primary or general election to be held on .....(date)....., pursuant to section 519.12 of the Revised Code.

..............................................................

..............................................................

I, .............(name of circulator).........., declare under penalty of election falsification that I am an elector of the state of Ohio and reside at the address appearing below my signature; that I am the circulator of the foregoing part petition containing .......(number)....... signatures; that I have witnessed the affixing of every signature; that all signers were to the best of my knowledge and belief qualified to sign; and that every signature is to the best of my knowledge and belief the signature of the person whose signature it purports to be or of an attorney in fact acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code.

WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY OF THE FIFTH DEGREE."

The petition shall be filed with the board of township trustees and shall be accompanied by an appropriate map of the area affected by the zoning proposal. Within two weeks after receiving a petition filed under this section, the board of township trustees shall certify the petition to the board of elections. A petition filed under this section shall be certified to the board of elections not less than seventy-five days prior to the election at which the question is to be voted upon.

The board of elections shall determine the sufficiency and validity of each petition certified to it by a board of township trustees under this section. If the board of elections determines that a petition is sufficient and valid, the question shall be voted upon at a special election to be held on the day of the next primary or general election that occurs at least seventy-five days after the date the petition is filed with the board of township trustees, regardless of whether any election will be held to nominate or elect candidates on that day.

No amendment for which such a referendum vote has been requested shall be put into effect unless a majority of the vote cast on the issue is in favor of the amendment. Upon certification by the board of elections that the amendment has been approved by the voters, it shall take immediate effect.

Within five working days after an amendment's effective date, the board of township trustees shall file the text and maps of the amendment in the office of the county recorder and with the county or regional planning commission, if one exists.

The failure to file any amendment, or any text and maps, or duplicates of any of these documents, with the office of the county recorder or the county or regional planning commission as required by this section does not invalidate the amendment and is not grounds for an appeal of any decision of the board of zoning appeals.

Sec. 745.07.  An ordinance passed pursuant to section 745.06 of the Revised Code, shall not take effect until submitted to the electors of the municipal corporation, at a special or general election held therein in the municipal corporation at such time as the legislative authority thereof determines, and approved by a majority of the electors voting thereon on it. The ordinance shall be passed by an affirmative vote of not less than a majority of the members of the legislative authority, and shall be subject to the approval of the mayor as provided by law. The ordinance shall specify the form or phrasing of the question to be placed upon the ballot. Thirty days' notice of the election shall be given by publication once a week for four consecutive weeks twice in two daily or weekly newspapers published or circulated in the municipal corporation, which and by posting for that period on the board of elections' web site or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code. The notice shall contain the full form or phrasing of the question to be submitted. The clerk of the legislative authority shall certify the passage of such the ordinance to the officers having control of elections in such the municipal corporation, who shall cause such the question to be voted on at the general or special election as specified in the ordinance.

Sec. 747.11.  The board of rapid transit commissioners may grant to any corporation organized for street or interurban railway purposes the right to operate, by lease or otherwise, the depots, terminals, and railways mentioned in section 747.08 of the Revised Code upon such terms as the board is authorized by ordinance to agree upon with such corporation, subject to the approval of a majority of the electors of the city voting thereon on the question.

The board of rapid transit commissioners shall certify such lease or agreement to the board of elections, which shall then submit the question of the approval of such lease or agreement to the qualified electors of the city at either a special or general election as the ordinance specifies. Thirty days' notice of the election shall be given by publication twice in one or more of the newspapers published in the city, once a week for four consecutive weeks prior to the time of holding such election, setting and the board of elections shall post notice of the election for thirty days prior to the election on its web site or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code. The notice shall set forth the terms of the lease or agreement and the time of holding the election. On the approval by a majority of the voters voting at such the election, the corporation may operate such depots, terminals, and railways as provided in the lease or agreement, and corporations organized under the laws of this state for street or interurban railway purposes may lease and operate such depots, terminals, and railways.

Sec. 1901.07.  (A) All municipal court judges shall be elected on the nonpartisan ballot for terms of six years. In a municipal court in which only one judge is to be elected in any one year, that judge's term commences on the first day of January after the election. In a municipal court in which two or more judges are to be elected in any one year, their terms commence on successive days beginning the first day of January, following the election, unless otherwise provided by section 1901.08 of the Revised Code.

(B) All candidates for municipal court judge may be nominated either by nominating petition or by primary election, except that if the jurisdiction of a municipal court extends only to the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which the court is located and that municipal corporation operates under a charter, all candidates shall be nominated in the same manner provided in the charter for the office of municipal court judge, or, if no specific provisions are made in the charter for the office of municipal court judge, in the same manner as the charter prescribes for the nomination and election of the legislative authority of the municipal corporation.

If a municipal corporation that has a municipal court has a charter that specifies a primary date other than the date specified in division (E) of section 3501.01 of the Revised Code, and if the jurisdiction of the a municipal court extends beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation, all candidates for the office of municipal judge of that court shall be nominated only by petition.

If in which it is located or if the jurisdiction of the court does not extend beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located and no charter provisions apply, all candidates for party nomination to the office of municipal court judge shall file a declaration of candidacy and petition not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, not later than four p.m. of the sixtieth day before the day of the presidential primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.07 of the Revised Code. The petition shall conform to the requirements provided for such those petitions of candidacy contained in section 3513.05 of the Revised Code, except that the petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court. If no valid declaration of candidacy is filed for nomination as a candidate of a political party for election to the office of municipal court judge, or if the number of persons filing the declarations of candidacy for nominations as candidates of one political party for election to the office does not exceed the number of candidates that that party is entitled to nominate as its candidates for election to the office, no primary election shall be held for the purpose of nominating candidates of that party for election to the office, and the candidates shall be issued certificates of nomination in the manner set forth in section 3513.02 of the Revised Code.

If the jurisdiction of a municipal court extends beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located or if the jurisdiction of the court does not extend beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located and no charter provisions apply, nonpartisan candidates filing for the office of municipal court judge shall file nominating petitions for the office of municipal judge shall file them not later than four p.m. of the day before the day of the primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.261 of the Revised Code. The petition shall conform to the requirements provided for such those petitions of candidacy contained in section 3513.257 of the Revised Code, except that the petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court.

The nominating petition or declaration of candidacy for a municipal court judge shall contain a designation of the term for which the candidate seeks election. At the following regular municipal election, the candidacies of the judges nominated shall be submitted to the electors of the territory on a nonpartisan, judicial ballot in the same manner as provided for judges of the court of common pleas, except that, in a municipal corporation operating under a charter, all candidates for municipal court judge shall be elected in conformity with the charter if provisions are made in the charter for the election of municipal court judges.

(C) Notwithstanding divisions (A) and (B) of this section, in the following municipal courts, the judges shall be nominated and elected as follows:

(1) In the Cleveland municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least one thousand fifty electors of the territory of the court. It shall be in the statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Cleveland for filing petitions of candidates for municipal offices. Each elector shall have the right to sign petitions for as many candidates as are to be elected, but no more. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(2) In the Toledo municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least one thousand fifty electors of the territory of the court. It shall be in the statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Toledo for filing nominating petitions for city council. Each elector shall have the right to sign petitions for as many candidates as are to be elected, but no more. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(3) In the Akron municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least two hundred fifty electors of the territory of the court. It shall be in statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Akron for filing nominating petitions of candidates for municipal offices. Each elector shall have the right to sign petitions for as many candidates as are to be elected, but no more. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(4) In the Hamilton county municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least one thousand fifty electors of the territory of the court, which petitions shall be signed, verified, and filed in the manner and within the time required by law for nominating petitions for members of council of the city of Cincinnati. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court at the regular municipal election and in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(5) In the Franklin county municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least one thousand fifty electors of the territory of the court. The petition shall be in the statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Columbus for filing petitions of candidates for municipal offices. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(6) In the Auglaize, Brown, Clermont, Crawford, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Madison, Miami, Morrow, Portage, and Wayne county municipal courts, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petitions shall be signed by at least two hundred fifty electors of the territory of the court and shall conform to the provisions of this section.

(D) As used in this section, as to an election for either a full or an unexpired term, "the territory within the jurisdiction of the court" means such that territory as it will be on the first day of January after the election.

Sec. 1901.10.  (A)(1)(a) The judges of the municipal court and officers of the court shall take an oath of office, as provided in section 3.23 of the Revised Code. The office of judge of the municipal court is subject to forfeiture, and the judge may be removed from office, for the causes and by the procedure provided in sections 3.07 to 3.10 of the Revised Code. A vacancy in the office of judge exists upon the death, resignation, forfeiture, removal from office, or absence from official duties for a period of six consecutive months, as determined under this section, of the judge and also by reason of the expiration of the term of an incumbent when no successor has been elected or qualified. The chief justice of the supreme court may designate a judge of another municipal court to act until that vacancy is filled in accordance with section 107.08 of the Revised Code. A vacancy resulting from the absence of a municipal judge from official duties for a period of six consecutive months shall be determined and declared by the legislative authority.

(b) If a vacancy occurs in the office of judge or clerk of the municipal court after the one-hundredth day before the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May and prior to the fortieth day before the day of the general election, all candidates for election to such the unexpired term for the office of the judge or clerk of the municipal court shall file nominating petitions with the board of elections not later than four p.m. on the tenth day following the day on which the vacancy occurs, provided except that, when the vacancy occurs fewer than six days before the fortieth day before the general election, the deadline for filing shall be four p.m. on the thirty-sixth day before the day of the general election.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1)(d) of this section, each Each nominating petition referred to in division (A)(1)(b) of this section shall be in the form prescribed in section 3513.261 of the Revised Code and shall be signed by at least fifty qualified electors of the territory of the municipal court not less in number than one per cent of the number of electors who voted for governor at the most recent regular state election in the territory over which such court has jurisdiction, or twenty-five hundred electors, whichever is the lesser number.

(d) For any such vacancy occurring in the office of judge or clerk of a municipal court named in division (C)(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), or (6) of section 1901.07 of the Revised Code, each nominating petition shall be signed by qualified electors of the territory of the municipal court not less in number than one per cent of the number of electors who voted for governor at the most recent regular state election in the territory over which the court has jurisdiction, or the number of qualified electors required to sign a nominating petition in each of those divisions, as applicable to each particular court, whichever is the lesser number.

(e) No. No nominating petition shall be accepted for filing or filed if it appears on its face to contain signatures aggregating in number more than twice the minimum aggregate number of signatures required by this section.

(2) If a judge of a municipal court that has only one judge is temporarily absent, incapacitated, or otherwise unavailable, the judge may appoint a substitute who has the qualifications required by section 1901.06 of the Revised Code or a retired judge of a court of record who is a qualified elector and a resident of the territory of the court. If the judge is unable to make the appointment, the chief justice of the supreme court shall appoint a substitute. The appointee shall serve during the absence, incapacity, or unavailability of the incumbent, shall have the jurisdiction and powers conferred upon the judge of the municipal court, and shall be styled "acting judge." During that time of service, the acting judge shall sign all process and records and shall perform all acts pertaining to the office, except that of removal and appointment of officers of the court. All courts shall take judicial notice of the selection and powers of the acting judge. The incumbent judge shall establish the amount of compensation of an acting judge upon either a per diem, hourly, or other basis, but the rate of pay shall not exceed the per diem amount received by the incumbent judge.

(B) When the volume of cases pending in any municipal court necessitates an additional judge, the chief justice of the supreme court, upon the written request of the judge or presiding judge of that municipal court, may designate a judge of another municipal court or county court to serve for any period of time that the chief justice may prescribe. The compensation of a judge so designated shall be paid from the city treasury or, in the case of a county-operated municipal court, from the county treasury. In addition to the annual salary provided for in section 1901.11 of the Revised Code and in addition to any compensation under division (A)(5) or (6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code to which the judge is entitled in connection with the judge's own court, a full-time or part-time judge while holding court outside the judge's territory on the designation of the chief justice shall receive actual and necessary expenses and compensation as follows:

(1) A full-time judge shall receive thirty dollars for each day of the assignment.

(2) A part-time judge shall receive for each day of the assignment the per diem compensation of the judges of the court to which the judge is assigned, less the per diem amount paid to those judges pursuant to section 141.04 of the Revised Code, calculated on the basis of two hundred fifty working days per year.

If a request is made by a judge or the presiding judge of a municipal court to designate a judge of another municipal court because of the volume of cases in the court for which the request is made and the chief justice reports, in writing, that no municipal or county court judge is available to serve by designation, the judges of the court requesting the designation may appoint a substitute as provided in division (A)(2) of this section, who may serve for any period of time that is prescribed by the chief justice. The substitute judge shall be paid in the same manner and at the same rate as the incumbent judges, except that, if the substitute judge is entitled to compensation under division (A)(5) or (6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, then section 1901.121 of the Revised Code shall govern its payment.

Sec. 1901.31.  The clerk and deputy clerks of a municipal court shall be selected, be compensated, give bond, and have powers and duties as follows:

(A) There shall be a clerk of the court who is appointed or elected as follows:

(1)(a) Except in the Akron, Barberton, Cuyahoga Falls, Toledo, Hamilton county, Portage county, and Wayne county municipal courts, if the population of the territory equals or exceeds one hundred thousand at the regular municipal election immediately preceding the expiration of the term of the present clerk, the clerk shall be nominated and elected by the qualified electors of the territory in the manner that is provided for the nomination and election of judges in section 1901.07 of the Revised Code.

The clerk so elected shall hold office for a term of six years, which term shall commence on the first day of January following the clerk's election and continue until the clerk's successor is elected and qualified.

(b) In the Hamilton county municipal court, the clerk of courts of Hamilton county shall be the clerk of the municipal court and may appoint an assistant clerk who shall receive the compensation, payable out of the treasury of Hamilton county in semimonthly installments, that the board of county commissioners prescribes. The clerk of courts of Hamilton county, acting as the clerk of the Hamilton county municipal court and assuming the duties of that office, shall receive compensation at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code. This compensation shall be paid from the county treasury in semimonthly installments and is in addition to the annual compensation that is received for the performance of the duties of the clerk of courts of Hamilton county, as provided in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(c) In the Portage county and Wayne county municipal courts, the clerks of courts of Portage county and Wayne county shall be the clerks, respectively, of the Portage county and Wayne county municipal courts and may appoint a chief deputy clerk for each branch that is established pursuant to section 1901.311 of the Revised Code and assistant clerks as the judges of the municipal court determine are necessary, all of whom shall receive the compensation that the legislative authority prescribes. The clerks of courts of Portage county and Wayne county, acting as the clerks of the Portage county and Wayne county municipal courts and assuming the duties of these offices, shall receive compensation payable from the county treasury in semimonthly installments at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(d) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1)(d) of this section, in the Akron municipal court, candidates for election to the office of clerk of the court shall be nominated by primary election. The primary election shall be held on the day specified in the charter of the city of Akron for the nomination of municipal officers. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code, the declarations of candidacy and petitions of partisan candidates and the nominating petitions of independent candidates for the office of clerk of the Akron municipal court shall be signed by at least two hundred fifty qualified electors of the territory of the court.

The candidates shall file a declaration of candidacy and petition, or a nominating petition, whichever is applicable, not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.07 or 3513.261 of the Revised Code. The declaration of candidacy and petition, or the nominating petition, shall conform to the applicable requirements of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code.

If no valid declaration of candidacy and petition is filed by any person for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to the office of clerk of the Akron municipal court, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office. If only one person files a valid declaration of candidacy and petition for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to that office, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office, and the candidate shall be issued a certificate of nomination in the manner set forth in section 3513.02 of the Revised Code.

Declarations of candidacy and petitions, nominating petitions, and certificates of nomination for the office of clerk of the Akron municipal court shall contain a designation of the term for which the candidate seeks election. At the following regular municipal election, all candidates for the office shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the territory of the court in the manner that is provided in section 1901.07 of the Revised Code for the election of the judges of the court. The clerk so elected shall hold office for a term of six years, which term shall commence on the first day of January following the clerk's election and continue until the clerk's successor is elected and qualified.

(e) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1)(e) of this section, in the Barberton municipal court, candidates for election to the office of clerk of the court shall be nominated by primary election. The primary election shall be held on the day specified in the charter of the city of Barberton for the nomination of municipal officers. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code, the declarations of candidacy and petitions of partisan candidates and the nominating petitions of independent candidates for the office of clerk of the Barberton municipal court shall be signed by at least two hundred fifty qualified electors of the territory of the court.

The candidates shall file a declaration of candidacy and petition, or a nominating petition, whichever is applicable, not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.07 or 3513.261 of the Revised Code. The declaration of candidacy and petition, or the nominating petition, shall conform to the applicable requirements of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code.

If no valid declaration of candidacy and petition is filed by any person for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to the office of clerk of the Barberton municipal court, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office. If only one person files a valid declaration of candidacy and petition for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to that office, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office, and the candidate shall be issued a certificate of nomination in the manner set forth in section 3513.02 of the Revised Code.

Declarations of candidacy and petitions, nominating petitions, and certificates of nomination for the office of clerk of the Barberton municipal court shall contain a designation of the term for which the candidate seeks election. At the following regular municipal election, all candidates for the office shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the territory of the court in the manner that is provided in section 1901.07 of the Revised Code for the election of the judges of the court. The clerk so elected shall hold office for a term of six years, which term shall commence on the first day of January following the clerk's election and continue until the clerk's successor is elected and qualified.

(f) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1)(f) of this section, in the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court, candidates for election to the office of clerk of the court shall be nominated by primary election. The primary election shall be held on the day specified in the charter of the city of Cuyahoga Falls for the nomination of municipal officers. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code, the declarations of candidacy and petitions of partisan candidates and the nominating petitions of independent candidates for the office of clerk of the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court shall be signed by at least two hundred fifty qualified electors of the territory of the court.

The candidates shall file a declaration of candidacy and petition, or a nominating petition, whichever is applicable, not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.07 or 3513.261 of the Revised Code. The declaration of candidacy and petition, or the nominating petition, shall conform to the applicable requirements of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code.

If no valid declaration of candidacy and petition is filed by any person for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to the office of clerk of the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office. If only one person files a valid declaration of candidacy and petition for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to that office, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office, and the candidate shall be issued a certificate of nomination in the manner set forth in section 3513.02 of the Revised Code.

Declarations of candidacy and petitions, nominating petitions, and certificates of nomination for the office of clerk of the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court shall contain a designation of the term for which the candidate seeks election. At the following regular municipal election, all candidates for the office shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the territory of the court in the manner that is provided in section 1901.07 of the Revised Code for the election of the judges of the court. The clerk so elected shall hold office for a term of six years, which term shall commence on the first day of January following the clerk's election and continue until the clerk's successor is elected and qualified.

(g) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1)(g) of this section, in the Toledo municipal court, candidates for election to the office of clerk of the court shall be nominated by primary election. The primary election shall be held on the day specified in the charter of the city of Toledo for the nomination of municipal officers. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code, the declarations of candidacy and petitions of partisan candidates and the nominating petitions of independent candidates for the office of clerk of the Toledo municipal court shall be signed by at least two hundred fifty qualified electors of the territory of the court.

The candidates shall file a declaration of candidacy and petition, or a nominating petition, whichever is applicable, not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.07 or 3513.261 of the Revised Code. The declaration of candidacy and petition, or the nominating petition, shall conform to the applicable requirements of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code.

If no valid declaration of candidacy and petition is filed by any person for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to the office of clerk of the Toledo municipal court, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office. If only one person files a valid declaration of candidacy and petition for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to that office, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office, and the candidate shall be issued a certificate of nomination in the manner set forth in section 3513.02 of the Revised Code.

Declarations of candidacy and petitions, nominating petitions, and certificates of nomination for the office of clerk of the Toledo municipal court shall contain a designation of the term for which the candidate seeks election. At the following regular municipal election, all candidates for the office shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the territory of the court in the manner that is provided in section 1901.07 of the Revised Code for the election of the judges of the court. The clerk so elected shall hold office for a term of six years, which term shall commence on the first day of January following the clerk's election and continue until the clerk's successor is elected and qualified.

(2)(a) Except for the Alliance, Auglaize county, Brown county, Columbiana county, Lorain, Massillon, and Youngstown municipal courts, in a municipal court for which the population of the territory is less than one hundred thousand, the clerk shall be appointed by the court, and the clerk shall hold office until the clerk's successor is appointed and qualified.

(b) In the Alliance, Lorain, Massillon, and Youngstown municipal courts, the clerk shall be elected for a term of office as described in division (A)(1)(a) of this section.

(c) In the Auglaize county and Brown county municipal courts, the clerks of courts of Auglaize county and Brown county shall be the clerks, respectively, of the Auglaize county and Brown county municipal courts and may appoint a chief deputy clerk for each branch that is established pursuant to section 1901.311 of the Revised Code, and assistant clerks as the judge of the court determines are necessary, all of whom shall receive the compensation that the legislative authority prescribes. The clerks of courts of Auglaize county and Brown county, acting as the clerks of the Auglaize county and Brown county municipal courts and assuming the duties of these offices, shall receive compensation payable from the county treasury in semimonthly installments at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(d) In the Columbiana county municipal court, the clerk of courts of Columbiana county shall be the clerk of the municipal court, may appoint a chief deputy clerk for each branch office that is established pursuant to section 1901.311 of the Revised Code, and may appoint any assistant clerks that the judges of the court determine are necessary. All of the chief deputy clerks and assistant clerks shall receive the compensation that the legislative authority prescribes. The clerk of courts of Columbiana county, acting as the clerk of the Columbiana county municipal court and assuming the duties of that office, shall receive compensation payable from the county treasury in semimonthly installments at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(3) During the temporary absence of the clerk due to illness, vacation, or other proper cause, the court may appoint a temporary clerk, who shall be paid the same compensation, have the same authority, and perform the same duties as the clerk.

(B) Except in the Hamilton county, Portage county, and Wayne county municipal courts, if a vacancy occurs in the office of the clerk of the Alliance, Lorain, Massillon, or Youngstown municipal court or occurs in the office of the clerk of a municipal court for which the population of the territory equals or exceeds one hundred thousand because the clerk ceases to hold the office before the end of the clerk's term or because a clerk-elect fails to take office, the vacancy shall be filled, until a successor is elected and qualified, by a person chosen by the residents of the territory of the court who are members of the county central committee of the political party by which the last occupant of that office or the clerk-elect was nominated. Not less than five nor more than fifteen days after a vacancy occurs, those members of that county central committee shall meet to make an appointment to fill the vacancy. At least four days before the date of the meeting, the chairperson or a secretary of the county central committee shall notify each such member of that county central committee by first class mail of the date, time, and place of the meeting and its purpose. A majority of all such members of that county central committee constitutes a quorum, and a majority of the quorum is required to make the appointment. If the office so vacated was occupied or was to be occupied by a person not nominated at a primary election, or if the appointment was not made by the committee members in accordance with this division, the court shall make an appointment to fill the vacancy. A successor shall be elected to fill the office for the unexpired term at the first municipal election that is held more than one hundred twenty days after the vacancy occurred.

(C)(1) In a municipal court, other than the Auglaize county, the Brown county, the Columbiana county, and the Lorain municipal courts, for which the population of the territory is less than one hundred thousand, the clerk of the municipal court shall receive the annual compensation that the presiding judge of the court prescribes, if the revenue of the court for the preceding calendar year, as certified by the auditor or chief fiscal officer of the municipal corporation in which the court is located or, in the case of a county-operated municipal court, the county auditor, is equal to or greater than the expenditures, including any debt charges, for the operation of the court payable under this chapter from the city treasury or, in the case of a county-operated municipal court, the county treasury for that calendar year, as also certified by the auditor or chief fiscal officer. If the revenue of a municipal court, other than the Auglaize county, the Brown county, the Columbiana county, and the Lorain municipal courts, for which the population of the territory is less than one hundred thousand for the preceding calendar year as so certified is not equal to or greater than those expenditures for the operation of the court for that calendar year as so certified, the clerk of a municipal court shall receive the annual compensation that the legislative authority prescribes. As used in this division, "revenue" means the total of all costs and fees that are collected and paid to the city treasury or, in a county-operated municipal court, the county treasury by the clerk of the municipal court under division (F) of this section and all interest received and paid to the city treasury or, in a county-operated municipal court, the county treasury in relation to the costs and fees under division (G) of this section.

(2) In a municipal court, other than the Hamilton county, Portage county, and Wayne county municipal courts, for which the population of the territory is one hundred thousand or more, and in the Lorain municipal court, the clerk of the municipal court shall receive annual compensation in a sum equal to eighty-five per cent of the salary of a judge of the court.

(3) The compensation of a clerk described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section is payable in semimonthly installments from the same sources and in the same manner as provided in section 1901.11 of the Revised Code.

(D) Before entering upon the duties of the clerk's office, the clerk of a municipal court shall give bond of not less than six thousand dollars to be determined by the judges of the court, conditioned upon the faithful performance of the clerk's duties.

(E) The clerk of a municipal court may do all of the following: administer oaths, take affidavits, and issue executions upon any judgment rendered in the court, including a judgment for unpaid costs; issue, sign, and attach the seal of the court to all writs, process, subpoenas, and papers issuing out of the court; and approve all bonds, sureties, recognizances, and undertakings fixed by any judge of the court or by law. The clerk may refuse to accept for filing any pleading or paper submitted for filing by a person who has been found to be a vexatious litigator under section 2323.52 of the Revised Code and who has failed to obtain leave to proceed under that section. The clerk shall do all of the following: file and safely keep all journals, records, books, and papers belonging or appertaining to the court; record the proceedings of the court; perform all other duties that the judges of the court may prescribe; and keep a book showing all receipts and disbursements, which book shall be open for public inspection at all times.

The clerk shall prepare and maintain a general index, a docket, and other records that the court, by rule, requires, all of which shall be the public records of the court. In the docket, the clerk shall enter, at the time of the commencement of an action, the names of the parties in full, the names of the counsel, and the nature of the proceedings. Under proper dates, the clerk shall note the filing of the complaint, issuing of summons or other process, returns, and any subsequent pleadings. The clerk also shall enter all reports, verdicts, orders, judgments, and proceedings of the court, clearly specifying the relief granted or orders made in each action. The court may order an extended record of any of the above to be made and entered, under the proper action heading, upon the docket at the request of any party to the case, the expense of which record may be taxed as costs in the case or may be required to be prepaid by the party demanding the record, upon order of the court.

(F) The clerk of a municipal court shall receive, collect, and issue receipts for all costs, fees, fines, bail, and other moneys payable to the office or to any officer of the court. The clerk shall each month disburse to the proper persons or officers, and take receipts for, all costs, fees, fines, bail, and other moneys that the clerk collects. Subject to sections 3375.50 and 4511.193 of the Revised Code and to any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court and except for the Hamilton county, Lawrence county, and Ottawa county municipal courts, the clerk shall pay all fines received for violation of municipal ordinances into the treasury of the municipal corporation the ordinance of which was violated and shall pay all fines received for violation of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code into the treasury of the township the resolution of which was violated. Subject to sections 1901.024 and 4511.193 of the Revised Code, in the Hamilton county, Lawrence county, and Ottawa county municipal courts, the clerk shall pay fifty per cent of the fines received for violation of municipal ordinances and fifty per cent of the fines received for violation of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code into the treasury of the county. Subject to sections 3375.50, 3375.53, 4511.19, and 5503.04 of the Revised Code and to any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court, the clerk shall pay all fines collected for the violation of state laws into the county treasury. Except in a county-operated municipal court, the clerk shall pay all costs and fees the disbursement of which is not otherwise provided for in the Revised Code into the city treasury. The clerk of a county-operated municipal court shall pay the costs and fees the disbursement of which is not otherwise provided for in the Revised Code into the county treasury. Moneys deposited as security for costs shall be retained pending the litigation. The clerk shall keep a separate account of all receipts and disbursements in civil and criminal cases, which shall be a permanent public record of the office. On the expiration of the term of the clerk, the clerk shall deliver the records to the clerk's successor. The clerk shall have other powers and duties as are prescribed by rule or order of the court.

(G) All moneys paid into a municipal court shall be noted on the record of the case in which they are paid and shall be deposited in a state or national bank, or a domestic savings and loan association, as defined in section 1151.01 of the Revised Code, that is selected by the clerk. Any interest received upon the deposits shall be paid into the city treasury, except that, in a county-operated municipal court, the interest shall be paid into the treasury of the county in which the court is located.

On the first Monday in January of each year, the clerk shall make a list of the titles of all cases in the court that were finally determined more than one year past in which there remains unclaimed in the possession of the clerk any funds, or any part of a deposit for security of costs not consumed by the costs in the case. The clerk shall give notice of the moneys to the parties who are entitled to the moneys or to their attorneys of record. All the moneys remaining unclaimed on the first day of April of each year shall be paid by the clerk to the city treasurer, except that, in a county-operated municipal court, the moneys shall be paid to the treasurer of the county in which the court is located. The treasurer shall pay any part of the moneys at any time to the person who has the right to the moneys upon proper certification of the clerk.

(H) Deputy clerks may be appointed by the clerk and shall receive the compensation, payable in semimonthly installments out of the city treasury, that the clerk may prescribe, except that the compensation of any deputy clerk of a county-operated municipal court shall be paid out of the treasury of the county in which the court is located. Each deputy clerk shall take an oath of office before entering upon the duties of the deputy clerk's office and, when so qualified, may perform the duties appertaining to the office of the clerk. The clerk may require any of the deputy clerks to give bond of not less than three thousand dollars, conditioned for the faithful performance of the deputy clerk's duties.

(I) For the purposes of this section, whenever the population of the territory of a municipal court falls below one hundred thousand but not below ninety thousand, and the population of the territory prior to the most recent regular federal census exceeded one hundred thousand, the legislative authority of the municipal corporation may declare, by resolution, that the territory shall be considered to have a population of at least one hundred thousand.

(J) The clerk or a deputy clerk shall be in attendance at all sessions of the municipal court, although not necessarily in the courtroom, and may administer oaths to witnesses and jurors and receive verdicts.

Sec. 2961.01.  (A) A person convicted of a felony under the laws of this or any other state or the United States, unless the conviction is reversed or annulled, is incompetent to be an elector or juror or to hold an office of honor, trust, or profit. When any person convicted of a felony under any law of that type is granted parole, judicial release, or a conditional pardon or is released under a non-jail community control sanction or a post-release control sanction, the person is competent to be an elector during the period of community control, parole, post-release control, or release or until the conditions of the pardon have been performed or have transpired and is competent to be an elector thereafter following final discharge. The full pardon of a convict person convicted of a felony restores the rights and privileges so forfeited under this section division, but a pardon shall not release a convict the person convicted of a felony from the costs of the convict's a conviction in this state, unless so specified.

(B) A person convicted of a felony under laws of this state or any other state or the United States is incompetent to circulate or serve as a witness for the signing of any declaration of candidacy and petition, voter registration application, or nominating, initiative, referendum, or recall petition.

(C) As used in this section:

(1) "Community control sanction" has the same meaning as in section 2929.01 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Non-jail community control sanction" means a community control sanction that is neither a term in a community-based correctional facility nor a term in a jail.

(3) "Post-release control" and "post-release control sanction" have the same meanings as in section 2967.01 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 2967.17.  (A) The adult parole authority, in its discretion, may grant an administrative release to any of the following:

(1) A parole violator or release violator serving another felony sentence in a correctional institution within or without this state for the purpose of consolidation of the records or if justice would best be served;

(2) A parole violator at large or release violator at large whose case has been inactive for at least ten years following the date of declaration of the parole violation or the violation of a post-release control sanction;

(3) A parolee taken into custody by the immigration and naturalization service of the United States department of justice and deported from the United States.

(B) The adult parole authority shall not grant an administrative release except upon the concurrence of a majority of the parole board and approval of the chief of the adult parole authority. An administrative release does not restore for the person to whom it is granted the rights and privileges forfeited by conviction as provided in section 2961.01 of the Revised Code. Any person granted an administrative release under this section may subsequently apply for a commutation of sentence for the purpose of regaining the rights and privileges forfeited by conviction, except that the privilege of circulating or serving as a witness for the signing of any declaration of candidacy and petition, voter registration application, or nominating, initiative, referendum, or recall petition forfeited under section 2961.01 of the Revised Code may not be restored under this section.

Sec. 3311.21.  (A) In addition to the resolutions authorized by sections 5705.194, 5705.21, 5705.212, and 5705.213 of the Revised Code, the board of education of a joint vocational or cooperative education school district by a vote of two-thirds of its full membership may at any time adopt a resolution declaring the necessity to levy a tax in excess of the ten-mill limitation for a period not to exceed ten years to provide funds for any one or more of the following purposes, which may be stated in the following manner in such resolution, the ballot, and the notice of election: purchasing a site or enlargement thereof and for the erection and equipment of buildings; for the purpose of enlarging, improving, or rebuilding thereof; for the purpose of providing for the current expenses of the joint vocational or cooperative school district; or for a continuing period for the purpose of providing for the current expenses of the joint vocational or cooperative education school district. The resolution shall specify the amount of the proposed rate and, if a renewal, whether the levy is to renew all, or a portion of, the existing levy, and shall specify the first year in which the levy will be imposed. If the levy provides for but is not limited to current expenses, the resolution shall apportion the annual rate of the levy between current expenses and the other purpose or purposes. Such apportionment may but need not be the same for each year of the levy, but the respective portions of the rate actually levied each year for current expenses and the other purpose or purposes shall be limited by such apportionment. The portion of any such rate actually levied for current expenses of a joint vocational or cooperative education school district shall be used in applying division (A) of section 3317.01 of the Revised Code. The portion of any such rate not apportioned to the current expenses of a joint vocational or cooperative education school district shall be used in applying division (B) of this section. On the adoption of such resolution, the joint vocational or cooperative education school district board of education shall certify the resolution to the board of elections of the county containing the most populous portion of the district, which board shall receive resolutions for filing and send them to the boards of elections of each county in which territory of the district is located, furnish all ballots for the election as provided in section 3505.071 of the Revised Code, and prepare the election notice; and the board of elections of each county in which the territory of such district is located shall make the other necessary arrangements for the submission of the question to the electors of the joint vocational or cooperative education school district at the next primary or general election occurring not less than seventy-five days after the resolution was received from the joint vocational or cooperative education school district board of education, or at a special election to be held at a time designated by the district board of education consistent with the requirements of section 3501.01 of the Revised Code, which date shall not be earlier than seventy-five days after the adoption and certification of the resolution.

The board of elections of the county or counties in which territory of the joint vocational or cooperative education school district is located shall cause to be published in one or more newspapers of general circulation in such that district an advertisement of the proposed tax levy question together with a statement of the amount of the proposed levy once each twice during the week for three consecutive weeks, prior to the election at which the question is to appear on the ballot, and shall post a similar advertisement on its web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to that election.

If a majority of the electors voting on the question of levying such tax vote in favor of the levy, the joint vocational or cooperative education school district board of education shall annually make the levy within the district at the rate specified in the resolution and ballot or at any lesser rate, and the county auditor of each affected county shall annually place the levy on the tax list and duplicate of each school district in his the county having territory in the joint vocational or cooperative education school district. The taxes realized from the levy shall be collected at the same time and in the same manner as other taxes on the duplicate, and the taxes, when collected, shall be paid to the treasurer of the joint vocational or cooperative education school district and deposited by him to a special fund, which shall be established by the joint vocational or cooperative education school district board of education for all revenue derived from any tax levied pursuant to this section and for the proceeds of anticipation notes which shall be deposited in such fund. After the approval of the levy, the joint vocational or cooperative education school district board of education may anticipate a fraction of the proceeds of the levy and from time to time, during the life of the levy, but in any year prior to the time when the tax collection from the levy so anticipated can be made for that year, issue anticipation notes in an amount not exceeding fifty per cent of the estimated proceeds of the levy to be collected in each year up to a period of five years after the date of the issuance of the notes, less an amount equal to the proceeds of the levy obligated for each year by the issuance of anticipation notes, provided that the total amount maturing in any one year shall not exceed fifty per cent of the anticipated proceeds of the levy for that year. Each issue of notes shall be sold as provided in Chapter 133. of the Revised Code, and shall, except for such limitation that the total amount of such notes maturing in any one year shall not exceed fifty per cent of the anticipated proceeds of the levy for that year, mature serially in substantially equal installments, during each year over a period not to exceed five years after their issuance.

(B) Prior to the application of section 319.301 of the Revised Code, the rate of a levy that is limited to, or to the extent that it is apportioned to, purposes other than current expenses shall be reduced in the same proportion in which the district's total valuation increases during the life of the levy because of additions to such valuation that have resulted from improvements added to the tax list and duplicate.

(C) The form of ballot cast at an election under division (A) of this section shall be as prescribed by section 5705.25 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3311.50.  (A) As used in this section, "county school financing district" means a taxing district consisting of the following territory:

(1) The territory that constitutes the educational service center on the date that the governing board of that educational service center adopts a resolution under division (B) of this section declaring that the territory of the educational service center is a county school financing district, exclusive of any territory subsequently withdrawn from the district under division (D) of this section;

(2) Any territory that has been added to the county school financing district under this section.

A county school financing district may include the territory of a city, local, or exempted village school district whose territory also is included in the territory of one or more other county school financing districts.

(B) The governing board of any educational service center may, by resolution, declare that the territory of the educational service center is a county school financing district. The resolution shall state the purpose for which the county school financing district is created which may be for any one or more of the following purposes:

(1) To levy taxes for the provision of special education by the school districts that are a part of the district, including taxes for permanent improvements for special education;

(2) To levy taxes for the provision of specified educational programs and services by the school districts that are a part of the district, as identified in the resolution creating the district, including the levying of taxes for permanent improvements for those programs and services;

(3) To levy taxes for permanent improvements of school districts that are a part of the district.

The governing board of the educational service center that creates a county school financing district shall serve as the taxing authority of the district and may use educational service center governing board employees to perform any of the functions necessary in the performance of its duties as a taxing authority. A county school financing district shall not employ any personnel.

With the approval of a majority of the members of the board of education of each school district within the territory of the county school financing district, the taxing authority of the financing district may amend the resolution creating the district to broaden or narrow the purposes for which it was created.

A governing board of an educational service center may create more than one county school financing district. If a governing board of an educational service center creates more than one such district, it shall clearly distinguish among the districts it creates by including a designation of each district's purpose in the district's name.

(C) A majority of the members of a board of education of a city, local, or exempted village school district may adopt a resolution requesting that its territory be joined with the territory of any county school financing district. Copies of the resolution shall be filed with the state board of education and the taxing authority of the county school financing district. Within sixty days of its receipt of such a resolution, the county school financing district's taxing authority shall vote on the question of whether to accept the school district's territory as part of the county school financing district. If a majority of the members of the taxing authority vote to accept the territory, the school district's territory shall thereupon become a part of the county school financing district unless the county school financing district has in effect a tax imposed under section 5705.211 of the Revised Code. If the county school financing district has such a tax in effect, the taxing authority shall certify a copy of its resolution accepting the school district's territory to the school district's board of education, which may then adopt a resolution, with the affirmative vote of a majority of its members, proposing the submission to the electors of the question of whether the district's territory shall become a part of the county school financing district and subject to the taxes imposed by the financing district. The resolution shall set forth the date on which the question shall be submitted to the electors, which shall be at a special election held on a date specified in the resolution, which shall not be earlier than seventy-five days after the adoption and certification of the resolution. A copy of the resolution shall immediately be certified to the board of elections of the proper county, which shall make arrangements for the submission of the proposal to the electors of the school district. The board of the joining district shall publish notice of the election in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the county once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election. Additionally, the board of elections shall post notice of the election on its web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The question appearing on the ballot shall read:

"Shall the territory within .......... (name of the school district proposing to join the county school financing district) .......... be added to .......... (name) .......... county school financing district, and a property tax for the purposes of ......... (here insert purposes) .......... at a rate of taxation not exceeding .......... (here insert the outstanding tax rate) ........... be in effect for .......... (here insert the number of years the tax is to be in effect or "a continuing period of time," as applicable) ..........?"

If the proposal is approved by a majority of the electors voting on it, the joinder shall take effect on the first day of July following the date of the election, and the county board of elections shall notify the county auditor of each county in which the school district joining its territory to the county school financing district is located.

(D) The board of any city, local, or exempted village school district whose territory is part of a county school financing district may withdraw its territory from the county school financing district thirty days after submitting to the governing board that is the taxing authority of the district and the state board a resolution proclaiming such withdrawal, adopted by a majority vote of its members, but any county school financing district tax levied in such territory on the effective date of the withdrawal shall remain in effect in such territory until such tax expires or is renewed. No board may adopt a resolution withdrawing from a county school financing district that would take effect during the forty-five days preceding the date of an election at which a levy proposed under section 5705.215 of the Revised Code is to be voted upon.

(E) A city, local, or exempted village school district does not lose its separate identity or legal existence by reason of joining its territory to a county school financing district under this section and an educational service center does not lose its separate identity or legal existence by reason of creating a county school financing district that accepts or loses territory under this section.

Sec. 3311.73.  (A) No later than seventy-five days before the general election held in the first even-numbered year occurring at least four years after the date it assumed control of the municipal school district pursuant to division (B) of section 3311.71 of the Revised Code, the board of education appointed under that division shall notify the board of elections of each county containing territory of the municipal school district of the referendum election required by division (B) of this section.

(B) At the general election held in the first even-numbered year occurring at least four years after the date the new board assumed control of a municipal school district pursuant to division (B) of section 3311.71 of the Revised Code, the following question shall be submitted to the electors residing in the school district:

"Shall the mayor of ..... (here insert the name of the applicable municipal corporation)..... continue to appoint the members of the board of education of the ..... (here insert the name of the municipal school district).....?"

The board of elections of the county in which the majority of the school district's territory is located shall make all necessary arrangements for the submission of the question to the electors, and the election shall be conducted, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections in the district for the election of county officers, provided that in any such election in which only part of the electors of a precinct are qualified to vote, the board of elections may assign voters in such part to an adjoining precinct. Such an assignment may be made to an adjoining precinct in another county with the consent and approval of the board of elections of such other county. Notice of the election shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the school district once a twice during the week for three consecutive weeks prior to the election stating, and the board of elections shall post notice of the election on its web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the question on which the election is being held. The ballot shall be in the form prescribed by the secretary of state. Costs of submitting the question to the electors shall be charged to the municipal school district in accordance with section 3501.17 of the Revised Code.

(C) If a majority of electors voting on the issue proposed in division (B) of this section approve the question, the mayor shall appoint a new board on the immediately following first day of July pursuant to division (F) of section 3311.71 of the Revised Code.

(D) If a majority of electors voting on the issue proposed in division (B) of this section disapprove the question, a new seven-member board of education shall be elected at the next regular election occurring in November of an odd-numbered year. At such election, four members shall be elected for terms of four years and three members shall be elected for terms of two years. Thereafter, their successors shall be elected in the same manner and for the same terms as members of boards of education of a city school district. All members of the board of education of a municipal school district appointed pursuant to division (B) of section 3311.71 of the Revised Code shall continue to serve after the end of the terms to which they were appointed until their successors are qualified and assume office in accordance with section 3313.09 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3349.29.  An agreement made pursuant to sections 3349.27 and 3349.28 of the Revised Code is not effective unless it has been approved by the legislative authority of the municipal corporation with which the municipal university is identified, upon such legislative authority's determination that such agreement will be beneficial to the municipal corporation, and also approved by the Ohio board of regents, and, if required by any applicable appropriation measure, by the state controlling board, and any payment from state tax moneys provided for in the agreement will be subject to appropriations made by the general assembly. If provision is to be made under such agreement for the transfer of, or grant of the right to use, all or a substantial part of the assets of the municipal university to the state university and assumption by the state university of educational functions of the municipal university, such agreement shall not become effective, under sections 3349.27 to 3349.30, inclusive, of the Revised Code until the electors of the municipal corporation have approved such transfer or grant.

The legislative authority of the municipal corporation shall, by ordinance, submit the question to the electors at a general, primary, or a special election to be held on the date specified in said the ordinance. Such The ordinance shall be certified to the board of elections not later than on the forty-fifth day preceding the date of such the election. Notice of such the election shall be published in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the municipal corporation once a twice during the week for four consecutive weeks prior to the election and shall be posted on the board of elections' web site, or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election. The form of the ballot to be used at said the election shall be substantially as follows, with such variations as may be appropriate to reflect the general nature of the transfer or grant of use of assets and the transfer of educational functions contemplated:

"Shall assets of the municipal university known as .......................... be transferred to (make available for use by) a state university known as ........................... and the state university assume educational functions of the municipal university and provide higher education in (or in close proximity to) the city of .......................... to the residents of the city of ........................ and of the state of Ohio and such others as shall be admitted?"

The favorable vote of a majority of those voting on the proposition constitutes such approval as is required by this section.

Sec. 3354.12.  (A) Upon the request by resolution approved by the board of trustees of a community college district, and upon certification to the board of elections not less than seventy-five days prior to the election, the boards of elections of the county or counties comprising such district shall place upon the ballot in their respective counties the question of levying a tax on all the taxable property in the community college district outside the ten-mill limitation, for a specified period of years or for a continuing period of time, to provide funds for any one or more of the following purposes: the acquisition of sites, the erection, furnishing, and equipment of buildings, the acquisition, construction, or improvement of any property which the board of trustees of a community college district is authorized to acquire, construct, or improve and which has an estimated life of usefulness of five years or more as certified by the fiscal officer, and the payment of operating costs. Not more than two special elections shall be held in any one calendar year. Levies for a continuing period of time adopted under this section may be reduced in accordance with section 5705.261 of the Revised Code.

If such proposal is to be or include the renewal of an existing levy at the expiration thereof, the ballot for such election shall state whether it is a renewal of a tax; a renewal of a stated number of mills and an increase of a stated number of mills, or a renewal of a part of an existing levy with a reduction of a stated number of mills; the year of the tax duplicate on which such renewal will first be made; and if earlier, the year of the tax duplicate on which such additional levy will first be made, which may include the tax duplicate for the current year unless the election is to be held after the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of the current tax year. The ballot shall also state the period of years for such levy or that it is for a continuing period of time. If a levy for a continuing period of time provides for but is not limited to current expenses, the resolution of the board of trustees providing for the election on such levy shall apportion the annual rate of the levy between current expenses and the other purpose or purposes. Such apportionment need not be the same for each year of the levy, but the respective portions of the rate actually levied each year for current expenses and the other purpose or purposes shall be limited by such apportionment. The portion of the rate apportioned to the other purpose or purposes shall be reduced as provided in division (B) of this section.

If a majority of the electors in such district voting on such question approve thereof, the county auditor or auditors of the county or counties comprising such district shall annually, for the applicable years, place such levy on the tax duplicate in such district, in an amount determined by the board of trustees, but not to exceed the amount set forth in the proposition approved by the electors.

The boards of trustees of a community college district shall establish a special fund for all revenue derived from any tax levied pursuant to this section.

The boards of elections of the county or counties comprising the district shall cause to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in each such county, an advertisement of the proposed tax levy question, once each twice during the week for three weeks immediately preceding prior to the election at which the question is to appear on the ballot and also shall post a similar advertisement on their web site, or, if a board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site operated and maintained on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to that election.

After the approval of such levy by vote, the board of trustees of a community college district may anticipate a fraction of the proceeds of such levy and from time to time issue anticipation notes having such maturity or maturities that the aggregate principal amount of all such notes maturing in any calendar year shall not exceed seventy-five per cent of the anticipated proceeds from such levy for such year, and that no note shall mature later than the thirty-first day of December of the tenth calendar year following the calendar year in which such note is issued. Each issue of notes shall be sold as provided in Chapter 133. of the Revised Code.

The amount of bonds or anticipatory notes authorized pursuant to Chapter 3354. of the Revised Code, may include sums to repay moneys previously borrowed, advanced, or granted and expended for the purposes of such bond or anticipatory note issues, whether such moneys were advanced from the available funds of the community college district or by other persons, and the community college district may restore and repay to such funds or persons from the proceeds of such issues the moneys so borrowed, advanced or granted.

All operating costs of such community college may be paid out of any gift or grant from the state, pursuant to division (K) of section 3354.09 of the Revised Code; out of student fees and tuition collected pursuant to division (G) of section 3354.09 of the Revised Code; or out of unencumbered funds from any other source of the community college income not prohibited by law.

(B) Prior to the application of section 319.301 of the Revised Code, the rate of a levy that is limited to, or to the extent that it is apportioned to, purposes other than current expenses shall be reduced in the same proportion in which the district's total valuation increases during the life of the levy because of additions to such valuation that have resulted from improvements added to the tax list and duplicate.

Sec. 3355.09.  Upon receipt of a request from the university branch district managing authority, the boards of elections of the county or counties comprising such district shall place upon the ballot in the district at the next primary or general election occurring not less than seventy-five days after submission of such request by such managing authority, the question of levying a tax outside the ten-mill limitation, for a specified period of years, to provide funds for any of the following purposes:

(A) Purchasing a site or enlargement thereof;

(B) The erection and equipment of buildings;

(C) Enlarging, improving, or rebuilding buildings;

(D) The acquisition, construction, or improvement of any property which the university branch district managing authority is authorized to acquire, construct, or improve and which has been certified by the fiscal officer to have an estimated useful life of five or more years.

If a majority of the electors in such district voting on such question approve, the county auditor of the county or counties comprising such district shall annually place such levy on the tax duplicate in such district, in the amount set forth in the proposition approved by the electors.

The managing authority of the university branch district shall establish a special fund pursuant to section 3355.07 of the Revised Code for all revenue derived from any tax levied pursuant to provisions of this section.

The boards of election of the county or counties comprising the district shall cause to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in each such county, an advertisement of the proposed tax levy question, once each twice during the week for three weeks immediately preceding prior to the election at which the question is to appear on the ballot and also shall post a similar advertisement on their web site, or, if a board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site operated and maintained on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code, for thirty days prior to the election.

After the approval of such levy by vote, the managing authority of the university branch district may anticipate a fraction of the proceeds of such levy and from time to time, during the life of such levy, issue anticipation notes in an amount not to exceed seventy-five per cent of the estimated proceeds of such levy to be collected in each year over a period of five years after the date of the issuance of such notes, less an amount equal to the proceeds of such levy previously obligated for such year by the issuance of anticipation notes, provided, that the total amount maturing in any one year shall not exceed seventy-five per cent of the anticipated proceeds of such levy for that year.

Each issue of notes shall be sold as provided in Chapter 133. of the Revised Code and shall mature serially in substantially equal amounts, during each remaining year of the levy, not to exceed five, after their issuance.

Sec. 3375.03.  Unless the transfer of certain library territory pursuant to division (G) of section 3375.01 of the Revised Code has been agreed to by the affected boards of library trustees, a referendum petition against the transfer of the territory to another library district, signed by qualified electors of the territory to be transferred and equal in number to at least ten per cent of such those electors who voted in the last gubernatorial election, may be filed with the library board of the territory's current library district within sixty days after certified copies of the boundary change order have been filed in final form with the secretary of state, and the order shall not become effective until after the outcome of the referendum procedure prescribed in this section.

Each part of a petition filed pursuant to this section shall contain a full and correct title of the petition, a brief summary of its purpose, and a statement by the person soliciting signatures for the petition, made under penalty of election falsification, certifying that, to the best of the circulator's knowledge and belief, each signature contained in the petition is that of the person whose name it purports to be or of an attorney in fact acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code, that each person is an elector residing in the territory subject to transfer entitled to sign the petition, and that each person signed the petition with knowledge of its contents. The petition may contain additional information that shall fairly and accurately present the question to prospective petition signers.

The form of a petition calling for a referendum and the statement of the circulator shall be substantially as follows:

A petition against the transfer of territory currently located in the ...................... library district and proposed for transfer by the state library board to the ..................... library district.

We, the undersigned, being electors residing in the area proposed to be transferred, equal in number to not less than ten per cent of the qualified electors in the area subject to transfer who voted at the last general election, request the ....................... library board to submit the question of the transfer of territory to the ......................... library district to the electors residing within the territory proposed to be transferred for approval or rejection at the next primary or general election.

..............................................................

..............................................................

I, ..................... (name of circulator) ........... ..............., declare under penalty of election falsification that I am an elector of the state of Ohio and reside at the address appearing below my signature; that I am the circulator of the foregoing part petition containing .........(number)........... signatures; that I have witnessed the affixing of every signature; that all signers were to the best of my knowledge and belief qualified to sign; that every signature is to the best of my knowledge and belief the signature of the person whose signature it purports to be or of an attorney in fact acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code; and that such person signed the petition with knowledge of its contents.

WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY OF THE FIFTH DEGREE."

The person presenting a referendum petition under this section shall be given a receipt containing the time of day and the date on which the petition is filed with the library board and noting the purpose of and the number of signatures on the petition. The secretary of the library board shall cause the board of elections of the county or counties in which the territory to be transferred is located to check the sufficiency of signatures on such the petition, and, if these are found to be sufficient, the secretary shall present the petition to the library board at a meeting of the board, which shall occur not later than thirty days following the filing of the petition with the board. The board shall promptly certify the question to the board of elections of the county or counties in which the territory to be transferred is located for the purpose of having the proposal placed on the ballot within that territory at the next general or primary election occurring not less than sixty days after the certification.

The form of the ballot to be used at the election on the question of the transfer shall be as follows:

"Shall the territory ..................... (here insert its boundaries) which is currently within the ................ ........ (here insert the name of the current library district) library district be transferred to the ....................... (here insert the name of the library district to which the territory is proposed to be transferred) library district?

The persons qualified to vote on the question are the electors residing in the territory proposed to be transferred. The costs of an election held under this section shall be paid by the board of library trustees of the current library district of the territory to be transferred. The board of elections shall certify the result of the election to the state library board and to the library boards of the affected library district.

If a majority of electors voting on the question vote in favor of the transfer, the transfer shall take effect on the date of the certification of the election to the state library board. If a majority of the voters voting on the question do not vote for the transfer, the transfer shall not take place.

Sec. 3501.01.  As used in the sections of the Revised Code relating to elections and political communications:

(A) "General election" means the election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in each November.

(B) "Regular municipal election" means the election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each odd-numbered year.

(C) "Regular state election" means the election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each even-numbered year.

(D) "Special election" means any election other than those elections defined in other divisions of this section. A special election may be held only on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in February, May, August, or November, or on the day authorized by a particular municipal or county charter for the holding of a primary election, except that in any year in which a presidential primary election is held, no special election shall be held in February or May, except as authorized by a municipal or county charter, but may be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March.

(E)(1) "Primary" or "primary election" means an election held for the purpose of nominating persons as candidates of political parties for election to offices, and for the purpose of electing persons as members of the controlling committees of political parties and as delegates and alternates to the conventions of political parties. Primary elections shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May of each year except in years in which a presidential primary election is held.

(2) "Presidential primary election" means a primary election as defined by division (E)(1) of this section at which an election is held for the purpose of choosing delegates and alternates to the national conventions of the major political parties pursuant to section 3513.12 of the Revised Code. Unless otherwise specified, presidential primary elections are included in references to primary elections. In years in which a presidential primary election is held, all primary elections shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March except as otherwise authorized by a municipal or county charter.

(F) "Political party" means any group of voters meeting the requirements set forth in section 3517.01 of the Revised Code for the formation and existence of a political party.

(1) "Major political party" means any political party organized under the laws of this state whose candidate for governor or nominees for presidential electors received no less than twenty per cent of the total vote cast for such office at the most recent regular state election.

(2) "Intermediate political party" means any political party organized under the laws of this state whose candidate for governor or nominees for presidential electors received less than twenty per cent but not less than ten per cent of the total vote cast for such office at the most recent regular state election.

(3) "Minor political party" means any political party organized under the laws of this state whose candidate for governor or nominees for presidential electors received less than ten per cent but not less than five per cent of the total vote cast for such office at the most recent regular state election or which has filed with the secretary of state, subsequent to any election in which it received less than five per cent of such vote, a petition signed by qualified electors equal in number to at least one per cent of the total vote cast for such office in the last preceding regular state election, except that a newly formed political party shall be known as a minor political party until the time of the first election for governor or president which occurs not less than twelve months subsequent to the formation of such party, after which election the status of such party shall be determined by the vote for the office of governor or president.

(G) "Dominant party in a precinct" or "dominant political party in a precinct" means that political party whose candidate for election to the office of governor at the most recent regular state election at which a governor was elected received more votes than any other person received for election to that office in such precinct at such election.

(H) "Candidate" means any qualified person certified in accordance with the provisions of the Revised Code for placement on the official ballot of a primary, general, or special election to be held in this state, or any qualified person who claims to be a write-in candidate, or who knowingly assents to being represented as a write-in candidate by another at either a primary, general, or special election to be held in this state.

(I) "Independent candidate" means any candidate who claims not to be affiliated with a political party, and whose name has been certified on the office-type ballot at a general or special election through the filing of a statement of candidacy and nominating petition, as prescribed in section 3513.257 of the Revised Code.

(J) "Nonpartisan candidate" means any candidate whose name is required, pursuant to section 3505.04 of the Revised Code, to be listed on the nonpartisan ballot, including all candidates for judicial office, for member of any board of education, for municipal or township offices in which primary elections are not held for nominating candidates by political parties, and for offices of municipal corporations having charters that provide for separate ballots for elections for these offices.

(K) "Party candidate" means any candidate who claims to be a member of a political party, whose name has been certified on the office-type ballot at a general or special election through the filing of a declaration of candidacy and petition of candidate, and who has won the primary election of the candidate's party for the public office the candidate seeks or is selected by party committee in accordance with section 3513.31 of the Revised Code.

(L) "Officer of a political party" includes, but is not limited to, any member, elected or appointed, of a controlling committee, whether representing the territory of the state, a district therein, a county, township, a city, a ward, a precinct, or other territory, of a major, intermediate, or minor political party.

(M) "Question or issue" means any question or issue certified in accordance with the Revised Code for placement on an official ballot at a general or special election to be held in this state.

(N) "Elector" or "qualified elector" means a person having the qualifications provided by law to be entitled to vote.

(O) "Voter" means an elector who votes at an election.

(P) "Voting residence" means that place of residence of an elector which shall determine the precinct in which the elector may vote.

(Q) "Precinct" means a district within a county established by the board of elections of such county within which all qualified electors having a voting residence therein may vote at the same polling place.

(R) "Polling place" means that place provided for each precinct at which the electors having a voting residence in such precinct may vote.

(S) "Board" or "board of elections" means the board of elections appointed in a county pursuant to section 3501.06 of the Revised Code.

(T) "Political subdivision" means a county, township, city, village, or school district.

(U) "Election officer" or "election official" means any of the following:

(1) Secretary of state;

(2) Employees of the secretary of state serving the division of elections in the capacity of attorney, administrative officer, administrative assistant, elections administrator, office manager, or clerical supervisor;

(3) Director of a board of elections;

(4) Deputy director of a board of elections;

(5) Member of a board of elections;

(6) Employees of a board of elections;

(7) Precinct polling place judges and clerks;

(8) Employees appointed by the boards of elections on a temporary or part-time basis.

(V) "Acknowledgment notice" means a notice sent by a board of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state, informing a voter registration applicant or an applicant who wishes to change the applicant's residence or name of the status of the application; the information necessary to complete or update the application, if any; and if the application is complete, the precinct in which the applicant is to vote.

(W) "Confirmation notice" means a notice sent by a board of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state, to a registered elector to confirm the registered elector's current address.

(X) "Designated agency" means an office or agency in the state that provides public assistance or that provides state-funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities and that is required by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to implement a program designed and administered by the secretary of state for registering voters, or any other public or government office or agency that implements a program designed and administered by the secretary of state for registering voters, including the department of job and family services, the program administered under section 3701.132 of the Revised Code by the department of health, the department of mental health, the department of mental retardation and developmental disabilities, the rehabilitation services commission, and any other agency the secretary of state designates. "Designated agency" does not include public high schools and vocational schools, public libraries, or the office of a county treasurer.

(Y) "National Voter Registration Act of 1993" means the "National Voter Registration Act of 1993," 107 Stat. 77, 42 U.S.C.A. 1973gg.

(Z) "Voting Rights Act of 1965" means the "Voting Rights Act of 1965," 79 Stat. 437, 42 U.S.C.A. 1973, as amended.

(AA) "Photo identification" means a document that meets each of the following requirements:

(1) It shows the name of the individual to whom it was issued, which shall conform to the name in the poll list or signature pollbook.

(2) It shows the current address of the individual to whom it was issued, which shall conform to the address in the poll list or signature pollbook.

(3) It shows a photograph of the individual to whom it was issued.

(4) It includes an expiration date that has not passed.

(5) It was issued by the government of the United States or this state.

Sec. 3501.05.  The secretary of state shall do all of the following:

(A) Appoint all members of boards of elections;

(B) Issue instructions by directives and advisories to members of the boards as to the proper methods of conducting elections;. In addition to any other publication of those directives and advisories, the secretary of state shall publish those directives and advisories on a web site of the office of the secretary of state within twenty-four hours after they are issued. The secretary of state shall not remove from the web site any directives and advisories so posted. The secretary of state shall provide on that web site access to all directives and advisories currently in effect and to an archive of all directives and advisories previously published on that web site.

(C) Prepare rules and instructions for the conduct of elections;

(D) Publish and furnish to the boards from time to time a sufficient number of indexed copies of all election laws then in force;

(E) Edit and issue all pamphlets concerning proposed laws or amendments required by law to be submitted to the voters;

(F) Prescribe the form of registration cards, blanks, and records;

(G) Determine and prescribe the forms of ballots and the forms of all blanks, cards of instructions, pollbooks, tally sheets, certificates of election, and forms and blanks required by law for use by candidates, committees, and boards;

(H) Prepare the ballot title or statement to be placed on the ballot for any proposed law or amendment to the constitution to be submitted to the voters of the state;

(I) Certify to the several boards the forms of ballots and names of candidates for state offices, and the form and wording of state referendum questions and issues, as they shall appear on the ballot;

(J) Give final approval to ballot language for any local question or issue approved and transmitted by boards of elections under section 3501.11 of the Revised Code;

(K) Receive all initiative and referendum petitions on state questions and issues and determine and certify to the sufficiency of those petitions;

(L) Require such reports from the several boards as are provided by law, or as the secretary of state considers necessary;

(M) Compel the observance by election officers in the several counties of the requirements of the election laws;

(N)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (N)(2) of this section, investigate the administration of election laws, frauds, and irregularities in elections in any county, and report violations of election laws to the attorney general or prosecuting attorney, or both, for prosecution;

(2) On and after August 24, 1995, report a failure to comply with or a violation of a provision in sections 3517.08 to 3517.13, 3517.17, 3517.18, 3517.20 to 3517.22, 3599.03, or 3599.031 of the Revised Code, whenever the secretary of state has or should have knowledge of a failure to comply with or a violation of a provision in one of those sections, by filing a complaint with the Ohio elections commission under section 3517.153 of the Revised Code;

(O) Make an annual report to the governor containing the results of elections, the cost of elections in the various counties, a tabulation of the votes in the several political subdivisions, and other information and recommendations relative to elections the secretary of state considers desirable;

(P) Prescribe and distribute to boards of elections a list of instructions indicating all legal steps necessary to petition successfully for local option elections under sections 4301.32 to 4301.41, 4303.29, 4305.14, and 4305.15 of the Revised Code;

(Q) Prescribe a general program Adopt rules pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to require each board of elections to remove ineligible voters from official registration lists by reason of change of the statewide voter registration database and, if already prepared for a particular election, from the poll list or signature pollbook used in each precinct, which rules shall provide for all of the following:

(1) A process for the removal of voters who have changed residence, which shall be uniform, nondiscriminatory, and in compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, including a program that uses the national change of address service provided by the United States postal system through its licensees;

(2) A process for the removal of ineligible voters under section 3503.21 of the Revised Code;

(3) A uniform system for marking or removing the name of an ineligible voter from the statewide voter registration database and, if already prepared for a particular election, from the poll list or signature pollbook used in each precinct and noting the reason for that mark or removal.

(R) Prescribe a general program for registering voters or updating voter registration information, such as name and residence changes, at designated agencies, the offices of deputy registrars of motor vehicles, public high schools and vocational schools, public libraries, and the offices of county treasurers, and prescribe a program of distribution of voter registration forms through those agencies, the offices of the registrar and deputy registrars of motor vehicles, public high schools and vocational schools, public libraries, and the offices of county treasurers;

(S) To the extent feasible, provide copies, at no cost and upon request, of the voter registration form in post offices in this state;

(T) Adopt rules pursuant to section 111.15 of the Revised Code for the purpose of implementing the program for registering voters at designated agencies and the offices of the registrar and deputy registrars of motor vehicles consistent with this chapter;

(U) Specify, by a directive issued not later than thirty-five days prior to the date of an election, the date by which the boards shall complete the canvass of election returns under section 3505.32 or 3513.22 of the Revised Code;

(V) Establish the full-time position of Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator within the office of the secretary of state to do all of the following:

(1) Assist the secretary of state with ensuring that there is equal access to polling places for persons with disabilities;

(2) Assist the secretary of state with ensuring that each voter may cast the voter's ballot in a manner that provides the same opportunity for access and participation, including privacy and independence, as for other voters;

(3) Advise the secretary of state in the development of standards for the certification of voting machines, marking devices, and automatic tabulating equipment.

(W)(V) Establish a computerized statewide database of all legally registered voters under section 3503.15 of the Revised Code that complies with the requirements of the "Help America Vote Act of 2002," Pub. L. No. 107-252, 116 Stat. 1666, and provide training in the operation of that system;

(W) Ensure that all directives, advisories, other instructions, or decisions issued or made during or as a result of any conference call with a board of elections to discuss the proper methods and procedures for conducting elections, to answer questions regarding elections, or to discuss the interpretation of directives, advisories, or other instructions issued by the secretary of state are posted on a web site of the office of the secretary of state as soon as is practicable after the completion of the conference call, but not later than the close of business on the same day as the conference call takes place.

(X) Publish a report on a web site of the office of the secretary of state not later than one month after the completion of the canvass of the election returns for each primary and general election, identifying, by county, the number of absent voter's ballots cast and the number of those ballots that were counted, and the number of provisional ballots cast and the number of those ballots that were counted, for that election. The secretary of state shall maintain the information on the web site in an archive format for each subsequent election.

(Y) Provide to each board of elections that does not operate and maintain its own web site free internet space to be used by the board for election-related purposes under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code;

(Z) Conduct voter education outlining voter identification requirements;

(AA) Perform other duties required by law.

Whenever a primary election is held under section 3513.32 of the Revised Code or a special election is held under section 3521.03 of the Revised Code to fill a vacancy in the office of representative to congress, the secretary of state shall establish a deadline, notwithstanding any other deadline required under the Revised Code, by which any or all of the following shall occur: the filing of a declaration of candidacy and petitions or a statement of candidacy and nominating petition together with the applicable filing fee; the filing of protests against the candidacy of any person filing a declaration of candidacy or nominating petition; the filing of a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate; the filing of campaign finance reports; the preparation of, and the making of corrections or challenges to, precinct voter registration lists; the receipt of applications for absent voter's ballots or armed service absent voter's ballots; the supplying of election materials to precincts by boards of elections; the holding of hearings by boards of elections to consider challenges to the right of a person to appear on a voter registration list; and the scheduling of programs to instruct or reinstruct election officers.

In the performance of the secretary of state's duties as the chief election officer, the secretary of state may administer oaths, issue subpoenas, summon witnesses, compel the production of books, papers, records, and other evidence, and fix the time and place for hearing any matters relating to the administration and enforcement of the election laws.

In any controversy involving or arising out of the adoption of registration or the appropriation of funds for registration, the secretary of state may, through the attorney general, bring an action in the name of the state in the court of common pleas of the county where the cause of action arose or in an adjoining county, to adjudicate the question.

In any action involving the laws in Title XXXV of the Revised Code wherein the interpretation of those laws is in issue in such a manner that the result of the action will affect the lawful duties of the secretary of state or of any board of elections, the secretary of state may, on the secretary of state's motion, be made a party.

The secretary of state may apply to any court that is hearing a case in which the secretary of state is a party, for a change of venue as a substantive right, and the change of venue shall be allowed, and the case removed to the court of common pleas of an adjoining county named in the application or, if there are cases pending in more than one jurisdiction that involve the same or similar issues, the court of common pleas of Franklin county.

Public high schools and vocational schools, public libraries, and the office of a county treasurer shall implement voter registration programs as directed by the secretary of state pursuant to this section.

Sec. 3501.052. (A) The secretary of state shall not serve as campaign treasurer or in any other official capacity for any campaign committee for any state or local office other than an office to which the secretary of state is seeking election.

(B) The secretary of state shall not serve as campaign treasurer or in any other official capacity for any principal campaign committee or other authorized committee for any federal office other than an office to which the secretary of state is seeking election.

(C) The secretary of state shall not serve as a treasurer or in any other official capacity for any committee named in an initiative petition, any committee named in a referendum petition, any person making disbursements for the direct costs of producing or airing electioneering communications, or any other committee regulated under Chapter 3517. of the Revised Code.

(D) The attorney general shall not serve as a treasurer or in any other official capacity for any committee named in an initiative petition or any committee named in a referendum petition.

(E) As used in this section:

(1) "Authorized committee" and "principal campaign committee" have the same meanings as in the Federal Election Campaign Act.

(2) "Campaign committee," "campaign treasurer," and "Federal Election Campaign Act" have the same meanings as in section 3517.01 of the Revised Code.

(3) "Electioneering communication" has the same meaning as in section 3517.1011 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3501.10.  (A) The board of elections shall, as an expense of the board, provide suitable rooms for its offices and records and the necessary and proper furniture and supplies for those rooms. The board may lease such offices and rooms, necessary to its operation, for the length of time and upon the terms the board deems in the best interests of the public, provided that the term of any such lease shall not exceed fifteen years.

Thirty days prior to entering into such a lease, the board shall notify the board of county commissioners in writing of its intent to enter into the lease. The notice shall specify the terms and conditions of the lease. Prior to the thirtieth day after receiving that notice and before any lease is entered into, the board of county commissioners may reject the proposed lease by a majority vote. After receiving written notification of the rejection by the board of county commissioners, the board of elections shall not enter into the lease that was rejected, but may immediately enter into additional lease negotiations, subject to the requirements of this section.

The board of elections in any county may, by resolution, request that the board of county commissioners submit to the electors of the county, in accordance with section 133.18 of the Revised Code, the question of issuing bonds for the acquisition of real estate and the construction on it of a suitable building with necessary furniture and equipment for the proper administration of the duties of the board of elections. The resolution declaring the necessity for issuing such bonds shall relate only to the acquisition of real estate and to the construction, furnishing, and equipping of a building as provided in this division.

(B) The board of elections in each county shall keep its offices, or one or more of its branch registration offices, open for the performance of its duties until nine p.m. on the last day of registration before a general or primary election. At all other times during each week, the board shall keep its offices and rooms open for a period of time that the board considers necessary for the performance of its duties.

(C) The board of elections may maintain permanent or temporary branch offices at any place within the county, provided that, if the board of elections permits electors to vote at a branch office, electors shall not be permitted to vote at any other branch office or any other office of the board of elections.

Sec. 3501.11.  Each board of elections shall exercise by a majority vote all powers granted to the board by Title XXXV of the Revised Code, shall perform all the duties imposed by law, and shall do all of the following:

(A) Establish, define, provide, rearrange, and combine election precincts;

(B) Fix and provide the places for registration and for holding primaries and elections;

(C) Provide for the purchase, preservation, and maintenance of booths, ballot boxes, books, maps, flags, blanks, cards of instructions, and other forms, papers, and equipment used in registration, nominations, and elections;

(D) Appoint and remove its director, deputy director, and employees and all registrars, judges, and other officers of elections, fill vacancies, and designate the ward or district and precinct in which each shall serve;

(E) Make and issue rules and instructions, not inconsistent with law or the rules, directives, or advisories issued by the secretary of state, as it considers necessary for the guidance of election officers and voters;

(F) Advertise and contract for the printing of all ballots and other supplies used in registrations and elections;

(G) Provide for the issuance of all notices, advertisements, and publications concerning elections, except as otherwise provided in division (G) of section 3501.17 of the Revised Code;

(H) Provide for the delivery of ballots, pollbooks, and other required papers and material to the polling places;

(I) Cause the polling places to be suitably provided with voting machines, marking devices, automatic tabulating equipment, stalls, and other required supplies;. In fulfilling this duty, each board of a county that uses voting machines, marking devices, or automatic tabulating equipment shall conduct a full vote of the board during a public session of the board on the allocation and distribution of voting machines, marking devices, and automatic tabulating equipment for each precinct in the county.

(J) Investigate irregularities, nonperformance of duties, or violations of Title XXXV of the Revised Code by election officers and other persons; administer oaths, issue subpoenas, summon witnesses, and compel the production of books, papers, records, and other evidence in connection with any such investigation; and report the facts to the prosecuting attorney;

(K) Review, examine, and certify the sufficiency and validity of petitions and nomination papers, and, after certification, return to the secretary of state all petitions and nomination papers that the secretary of state forwarded to the board;

(L) Receive the returns of elections, canvass the returns, make abstracts of them, and transmit those abstracts to the proper authorities;

(M) Issue certificates of election on forms to be prescribed by the secretary of state;

(N) Make an annual report to the secretary of state, on the form prescribed by the secretary of state, containing a statement of the number of voters registered, elections held, votes cast, appropriations received, expenditures made, and other data required by the secretary of state;

(O) Prepare and submit to the proper appropriating officer a budget estimating the cost of elections for the ensuing fiscal year;

(P) Perform other duties as prescribed by law or the rules, directives, or advisories of the secretary of state;

(Q) Investigate and determine the residence qualifications of electors;

(R) Administer oaths in matters pertaining to the administration of the election laws;

(S) Prepare and submit to the secretary of state, whenever the secretary of state requires, a report containing the names and residence addresses of all incumbent county, municipal, township, and board of education officials serving in their respective counties;

(T) Establish and maintain a voter registration of all qualified electors in the county who offer to register;

(U) Maintain voter registration records, make reports concerning voter registration as required by the secretary of state, and remove ineligible electors from voter registration lists in accordance with law and directives of the secretary of state;

(V) At least annually, on a schedule and in a format prescribed by the secretary of state, submit to the secretary of state an accurate and current list of all registered voters in the county for the purpose of assisting the secretary of state to maintain a master list of registered voters pursuant to section 3503.27 of the Revised Code;

(W) Give approval to ballot language for any local question or issue and transmit the language to the secretary of state for the secretary of state's final approval;

(X)(W) Prepare and cause the following notice to be displayed in a prominent location in every polling place:

Ohio law prohibits any person from voting or attempting to vote more than once at the same election.

Violators are guilty of a felony of the fourth degree and shall be imprisoned and additionally may be fined in accordance with law."

(X) In all cases of a tie vote or a disagreement in the board, if no decision can be arrived at, the director or chairperson shall submit the matter in controversy, not later than fourteen days after the tie vote or the disagreement, to the secretary of state, who shall summarily decide the question, and the secretary of state's decision shall be final.

(Y) Assist each designated agency, deputy registrar of motor vehicles, public high school and vocational school, public library, and office of a county treasurer in the implementation of a program for registering voters at all voter registration locations as prescribed by the secretary of state. Under this program, each board of elections shall direct to the appropriate board of elections any voter registration applications for persons residing outside the county where the board is located within five days after receiving the applications.

(Z) On any day on which an elector may vote in person at the office of the board or at another site designated by the board, consider the board or other designated site shall be considered a polling place for that day, and all. All requirements or prohibitions of law that apply to a polling place shall apply to the office of the board or other designated site on that day.

Sec. 3501.13.  (A) The director of the board of elections shall keep a full and true record of the proceedings of the board and of all moneys received and expended; file and preserve in its the board's office all orders and records pertaining to the administration of registrations, primaries, and elections; receive and have the custody of all books, papers, and property belonging to the board; and shall perform such other duties in connection with his the office of director and the proper conduct of elections as the board determines.

(B) Before entering upon the duties of his the office, the director shall subscribe to an oath that he the director will support the constitutions Constitution of the United States and of this state the Ohio Constitution, perform all the duties of the director office to the best of his the director's ability, enforce the election laws, and preserve all records, documents, and other property pertaining to the conduct of elections placed in his the director's custody.

(C) The director may administer oaths to such persons as are required by law to file certificates or other papers with the board, to judges and clerks of elections, to witnesses who are called to testify before the board, and to voters filling out blanks at the board's offices. Except as otherwise provided by state or federal law, the records of the board and papers and books filed in its office are public records and open to inspection under such reasonable regulations as shall be established by the board. The following notice shall be posted in a prominent place at each board office:

"Except as otherwise provided by state or federal law, records filed in this office of the board of elections are open to public inspection during normal office hours, pursuant to the following reasonable regulations: (the board shall here list its regulations). Whoever prohibits any person from inspecting the public records of this board is subject to the penalties of section 3599.161 of the Revised Code."

(D) Upon receipt of a written declaration of intent to retire as provided for in section 145.38 of the Revised Code, the director shall provide a copy to each member of the board of elections.

Sec. 3501.19.  (A) Except as otherwise provided in division (C) of this section, on the sixtieth day before the day of each general election in an even-numbered year, the board of elections shall send by nonforwardable mail to each elector who is registered to vote in a precinct in which an election will be conducted a notice that includes each of the following:

(1) The day of the election;

(2) The location of the polling place for the precinct in which the elector is registered to vote;

(3) A reminder, which shall be indicated in bold type, that the elector needs to bring to the polling place identification in the form of a current and valid photo identification, a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and current address of the elector, or the last four digits of the elector's social security number, but that the elector still will be able to vote if the elector does not have any of these forms of identification or the last four digits of the elector's social security number.

(B) If the notice sent under division (A) of this section is returned undelivered to the board, the board shall cause the elector's name in the official registration list and in the poll list or signature pollbook for that elector's precinct to be marked to indicate that the notice was returned to the board.

At the first election at which an elector whose name has been so marked appears to vote, the elector shall be required to provide identification to the election officials and to vote by provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. If the provisional ballot is counted pursuant to division (B)(3) of section 3505.183 of the Revised Code, the board shall correct that elector's registration, if needed, and shall remove the indication that the elector's notice was returned from that elector's name on the official registration list and on the poll list or signature pollbook.

(C) No board of elections shall be required to mail a notice under division (A) of this section to any elector who registered to vote within thirty days prior to the date for mailing the notice under that division.

Sec. 3501.24. Each board of elections that does not operate and maintain its own web site shall operate and maintain a web site using the free internet space provided by the secretary of state under division (Y) of section 3501.05 of the Revised Code. Among other election-related purposes for which that internet space may be used, the board shall use that internet space to post the required notices of elections on questions or issues for thirty days prior to the election under sections 306.70, 307.791, 322.021, 324.021, 503.162, 504.02, 504.03, 511.28, 511.34, 513.14, 745.07, 747.11, 3311.21, 3311.50, 3311.73, 3349.29, 3354.12, 3355.09, 4504.021, 5705.191, 5705.194, 5705.196, 5705.21, 5705.218, 5705.25, 5705.251, 5705.261, 5705.71, 5739.022, 5748.02, 5748.04, 5748.08, and 6119.18 of the Revised Code. The board may include in that internet space a feature that allows any person in that county to enter the person's address and promptly receive notification of the person's correct precinct number and polling place, regardless of whether the person is listed on the statewide voter registration list as being registered to vote in that county.

Sec. 3501.26.  When the polls are closed after a primary, general, or special election, the receiving officials shall, in the presence of the counting officials and attending witnesses observers, proceed as follows:

(A) Count the number of electors who voted, as shown on the poll books.;

(B) Count the unused ballots without removing stubs.;

(C) Count the soiled and defaced ballots.;

(D) Insert the totals of divisions (A), (B), and (C) of this section on the report forms provided therefor in the poll books.;

(E) Count the voted ballots. If the number of voted ballots exceeds the number of voters whose names appear upon the poll books, the presiding judge shall enter on the poll books an explanation of such that discrepancy, and such that explanation, if agreed to, shall be subscribed to by all of the judges. Any judge having a different explanation shall enter it in the poll books and subscribe to it.

(F) Put the unused ballots with stubs attached, and soiled and defaced ballots with stubs attached, in the envelopes or containers provided therefor, and certify the number.

The receiving officials shall deliver to and place in the custody of the counting officials all the supplies provided for the conduct of such that election and the ballots which that are to be counted and tallied, and take a receipt for the same, which receipt shall appear in and be a part of the poll books of such precinct. Having performed their duties, the receiving officials shall immediately depart.

Having receipted for the ballots, the counting officials shall proceed to count and tally the vote as cast in the manner prescribed by section 3505.27 of the Revised Code and certify the result of the election to the board of elections.

Sec. 3501.30. (A) The board of elections shall provide for each polling place the necessary ballot boxes, official ballots, cards of instructions, registration forms, pollbooks or poll lists, tally sheets, forms on which to make summary statements, writing implements, paper, and all other supplies necessary for casting and counting the ballots and recording the results of the voting at the polling place. The pollbooks or poll lists shall have certificates appropriately printed on them for the signatures of all the precinct officials, by which they shall certify that, to the best of their knowledge and belief, the pollbooks or poll lists correctly show the names of all electors who voted in the polling place at the election indicated in the pollbook pollbooks or poll list lists.

All of the following shall be included among the supplies provided to each polling place:

(1) A large map of each appropriate precinct, which shall be displayed prominently to assist persons who desire to register or vote on election day. Each map shall show all streets within the precinct and contain identifying symbols of the precinct in bold print.

(2) Any materials, postings, or instructions required to comply with state or federal laws;

(3) A flag of the United States approximately two and one-half feet in length along the top, which shall be displayed outside the entrance to the polling place during the time it is open for voting;

(4) Two or more small flags of the United States approximately fifteen inches in length along the top, which shall be placed at a distance of one hundred feet from the polling place on the thoroughfares or walkways leading to the polling place, to mark the distance within which persons other than election officials, witnesses, challengers observers, police officers, and electors waiting to mark, marking, or casting their ballots shall not loiter, congregate, or engage in any kind of election campaigning. Where small flags cannot reasonably be placed one hundred feet from the polling place, the presiding election judge shall place the flags as near to one hundred feet from the entrance to the polling place as is physically possible. Police officers and all election officials shall see that this prohibition against loitering and congregating is enforced.

When the period of time during which the polling place is open for voting expires, all of the flags described in this division shall be taken into the polling place, and shall be returned to the board together with all other election supplies required to be delivered to the board.

(B) The board of elections shall follow the instructions and advisories of the secretary of state in the production and use of polling place supplies.

Sec. 3501.33.  All judges of election shall enforce peace and good order in and about the place of registration or election. They shall especially keep the place of access of the electors to the polling place open and unobstructed and prevent and stop any improper practices or attempts tending to obstruct, intimidate, or interfere with any elector in registering or voting. They shall protect challengers and witnesses observers against molestation and violence in the performance of their duties, and may eject from the polling place any such challenger or witness observer for violation of any provision of Title XXXV of the Revised Code. They shall prevent riots, violence, tumult, or the disorder. In the discharge of these duties, they may call upon the sheriff, police, or other peace officers to aid them in enforcing the law. They may order the arrest of any person violating such title Title XXXV of the Revised Code, but such an arrest shall not prevent such the person from registering or voting if he the person is entitled to do so. The sheriff, all constables, police officers, and other officers of the peace shall immediately obey and aid in the enforcement of any lawful order made by the precinct election officials in the enforcement of such title Title XXXV of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3501.35. (A) During an election and the counting of the ballots, no person shall loiter or do any of the following:

(1) Loiter, congregate, or engage in any kind of election campaigning within the area between the polling place and the small flags of the United States placed on the thoroughfares and walkways leading to the polling place, and if the line of electors waiting to vote extends beyond those small flags, within ten feet of any elector in that line; in

(2) In any manner hinder or delay an elector in reaching or leaving the place fixed for casting his the elector's ballot; within such distance give,

(3) Give, tender, or exhibit any ballot or ticket to any person other than his the elector's own ballot to the judge of election within the area between the polling place and the small flags of the United States placed on the thoroughfares and walkways leading to the polling place, and if the line of electors waiting to vote extends beyond those small flags, within ten feet of any elector in that line; exhibit

(4) Exhibit any ticket or ballot which he the elector intends to cast; or solicit

(5) Solicit or in any manner attempt to influence any elector in casting his the elector's vote. No

(B) Except as otherwise provided in division (C) of section 3503.23 of the Revised Code, no person, who is not an election official, employee, witness, challenger observer, or police officer, shall be allowed to enter the polling place during the election, except for the purpose of voting or assisting another person to vote as provided in section 3505.24 of the Revised Code. No

(C) No more electors shall be allowed to approach the voting shelves at any time than there are voting shelves provided. The

(D) The judges of election and the police officer shall strictly enforce the observance of this section.

Sec. 3501.38.  All declarations of candidacy, nominating petitions, or other petitions presented to or filed with the secretary of state or a board of elections or with any other public office for the purpose of becoming a candidate for any nomination or office or for the holding of an election on any issue shall, in addition to meeting the other specific requirements prescribed in the sections of the Revised Code relating to them, be governed by the following rules:

(A) Only electors qualified to vote on the candidacy or issue which is the subject of the petition shall sign a petition. Each signer shall be a registered elector pursuant to section 3503.11 of the Revised Code. The facts of qualification shall be determined as of the date when the petition is filed.

(B) Signatures shall be affixed in ink. Each signer may also print the signer's name, so as to clearly identify the signer's signature.

(C) Each signer shall place on the petition after the signer's name the date of signing and the location of the signer's voting residence, including the street and number if in a municipal corporation or the rural route number, post office address, or township if outside a municipal corporation. The voting address given on the petition shall be the address appearing in the registration records at the board of elections.

(D) No Except as otherwise provided in section 3501.382 of the Revised Code, no person shall write any name other than the person's own on any petition. No Except as otherwise provided in section 3501.382 of the Revised Code, no person may authorize another to sign for the person. If a petition contains the signature of an elector two or more times, only the first signature shall be counted.

(E)(1) On each petition paper, the circulator shall indicate the number of signatures contained on it, and shall sign a statement made under penalty of election falsification that the circulator witnessed the affixing of every signature, that all signers were to the best of the circulator's knowledge and belief qualified to sign, and that every signature is to the best of the circulator's knowledge and belief the signature of the person whose signature it purports to be or of an attorney in fact acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code. On the circulator's statement for a declaration of candidacy, or nominating petition, or declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for a person seeking to become a statewide candidate or for a statewide initiative or a statewide referendum petition, the circulator shall identify the circulator's name and address and the name and address of the person employing the circulator to circulate the petition, if any.

(2) As used in division (E) of this section, "statewide candidate" means the joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor or a candidate for the office of secretary of state, auditor of state, treasurer of state, or attorney general.

(F) If Except as otherwise provided in section 3501.382 of the Revised Code, if a circulator knowingly permits an unqualified person to sign a petition paper or permits a person to write a name other than the person's own on a petition paper, that petition paper is invalid; otherwise, the signature of a person not qualified to sign shall be rejected but shall not invalidate the other valid signatures on the paper.

(G) The circulator of a petition may, before filing it in a public office, strike from it any signature the circulator does not wish to present as a part of the petition.

(H) Any signer of a petition or an attorney in fact acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code on behalf of a signer may remove the signer's signature from that petition at any time before the petition is filed in a public office by striking the signer's name from the petition; no signature may be removed after the petition is filed in any public office.

(I)(1) No alterations, corrections, or additions may be made to a petition after it is filed in a public office.

(2) No petition may be withdrawn after it is filed in a public office. Nothing in this division prohibits a person from withdrawing as a candidate as otherwise provided by law.

(J) All declarations of candidacy, nominating petitions, or other petitions under this section shall be accompanied by the following statement in boldface capital letters: WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY OF THE FIFTH DEGREE.

(K) All separate petition papers shall be filed at the same time, as one instrument.

(L) If a board of elections distributes for use a petition form for a declaration of candidacy, nominating petition, declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or any type of question or issue petition that does not satisfy the requirements of law as of the date of that distribution, the board shall not invalidate the petition on the basis that the petition form does not satisfy the requirements of law, if the petition otherwise is valid. Division (L) of this section applies only if the candidate received the petition from the board within ninety days of when the petition is required to be filed.

Sec. 3501.382. (A)(1) A registered voter who, by reason of physical disability, is unable to sign the voter's name as a candidate, signer, or circulator on a declaration of candidacy and petition, nominating petition, other petition, or other document under Title XXXV of the Revised Code may authorize a legally competent resident of this state who is eighteen years of age or older as an attorney in fact to sign that voter's name to the petition or other election document, at the voter's direction and in the voter's presence, in accordance with this division. The voter shall file with the board of elections of the voter's county of residence a notarized form that includes or has attached all of the following:

(a) The name of the voter who is authorizing an attorney in fact to sign petitions or other election documents on that voter's behalf, at the voter's direction and in the voter's presence;

(b) An attestation of the voter that the voter, by reason of physical disability, is unable to sign petitions or other election documents and that the voter desires the attorney in fact to sign them on the voter's behalf, at the direction of the voter and in the voter's presence;

(c) An attestation from a licensed physician that the voter is physically disabled and, by reason of that disability, is unable to sign petitions or other election documents;

(d) The name, residence address, date of birth, and, if applicable, Ohio supreme court registration number of the attorney in fact authorized to sign on the voter's behalf, at the voter's direction and in the voter's presence. A photocopy of the attorney in fact's driver's license or state identification card issued under section 4507.50 of the Revised Code shall be attached to the notarized form.

(e) The form of the signature that the attorney in fact will use in signing petitions or other election documents on the voter's behalf, at the voter's direction and in the voter's presence.

(2) In addition to performing customary notarial acts with respect to the power of attorney form described in division (A)(1) of this section, the notary public shall acknowledge that the voter in question orally affirmed in the presence of the notary public the information listed in divisions (A)(1)(a), (b), and (d) of this section. A notary public shall not perform any notarial acts with respect to such a power of attorney form unless the voter first gives such an oral affirmation. Only a notary public satisfying the requirements of section 147.01 of the Revised Code may perform notarial acts with respect to such a power of attorney form.

(B) A board of elections that receives a notarized form under division (A)(1)(e) of this section from a voter shall do both of the following:

(1) Use the signature provided in accordance with division (A)(1)(e) of this section for the purpose of verifying the voter's signature on all declarations of candidacy and petitions, nominating petitions, other petitions, or other documents signed by that voter under Title XXXV of the Revised Code;

(2) Cause the poll list or signature pollbook for the relevant precinct to identify the voter in question as having authorized an attorney in fact to sign petitions or other election documents on the voter's behalf, at the voter's direction and in the voter's presence.

(C) Notwithstanding division (D) of section 3501.38 or any other provision of the Revised Code to the contrary, an attorney in fact authorized to sign petitions or other election documents on a physically disabled voter's behalf, at the direction of and in the presence of that voter, in accordance with division (A) of this section may sign that voter's name to any petition or other election document under Title XXXV of the Revised Code after the power of attorney has been filed with the board of elections in accordance with division (A) of this section. The signature shall be deemed to be that of the physically disabled voter, and the voter shall be deemed to be the signer.

(D)(1) Notwithstanding division (F) of section 3501.38 or any other provision of the Revised Code to the contrary, the circulator of a petition may knowingly permit an attorney in fact to sign the petition on a physically disabled voter's behalf, at the direction of and in the presence of that voter, in accordance with division (A) of this section.

(2) Notwithstanding division (F) of section 3501.38 or any other provision of the Revised Code to the contrary, no petition paper shall be invalidated on the ground that the circulator knowingly permitted an attorney in fact to write a name other than the attorney in fact's own name on a petition paper, if that attorney in fact signed the petition on a physically disabled voter's behalf, at the direction of and in the presence of that voter, in accordance with division (C) of this section.

(E) The secretary of state shall prescribe the form and content of the form for the power of attorney prescribed under division (A) of this section and also shall prescribe the form and content of a distinct form to revoke such a power of attorney.

Sec. 3501.39.  (A) The secretary of state or a board of elections shall accept any petition described in section 3501.38 of the Revised Code unless one of the following occurs:

(1) A written protest against the petition or candidacy, naming specific objections, is filed, a hearing is held, and a determination is made by the election officials with whom the protest is filed that the petition is invalid, in accordance with any section of the Revised Code providing a protest procedure.

(2) A written protest against the petition or candidacy, naming specific objections, is filed, a hearing is held, and a determination is made by the election officials with whom the protest is filed that the petition violates any requirement established by law.

(3) The candidate's candidacy or the petition violates the requirements of this chapter, Chapter 3513. of the Revised Code, or any other requirements established by law.

(B) Except as otherwise provided in division (C) of this section or section 3513.052 of the Revised Code, a board of elections shall not invalidate any declaration of candidacy or nominating petition under division (A)(3) of this section after the fiftieth day prior to the election at which the candidate seeks nomination to office, if the candidate filed a declaration of candidacy, or election to office, if the candidate filed a nominating petition.

(C)(1) If a petition is filed for the nomination or election of a candidate in a charter municipal corporation with a filing deadline that occurs after the seventy-fifth day before the day of the election, a board of elections may invalidate the petition within fifteen days after the date of that filing deadline.

(2) If a petition for the nomination or election of a candidate is invalidated under division (C)(1) of this section, that person's name shall not appear on the ballots for any office for which the person's petition has been invalidated. If the ballots have already been prepared, the board of elections shall remove the name of that person from the ballots to the extent practicable in the time remaining before the election. If the name is not removed from the ballots before the day of the election, the votes for that person are void and shall not be counted.

Sec. 3501.90. (A) As used in this section:

(1) "Harassment in violation of the election law" means either of the following:

(a) Any of the following types of conduct in or about a polling place or a place of registration or election: obstructing access of an elector to a polling place; another improper practice or attempt tending to obstruct, intimidate, or interfere with an elector in registering or voting at a place of registration or election; molesting or otherwise engaging in violence against observers in the performance of their duties at a place of registration or election; or participating in a riot, violence, tumult, or disorder in and about a place of registration or election;

(b) A violation of division (A)(1), (2), (3), or (5) or division (B) of section 3501.35 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Person" has the same meaning as in division (C) of section 1.59 of the Revised Code and also includes any organization that is not otherwise covered by that division.

(3) "Trier of fact" means the jury or, in a nonjury action, the court.

(B) An elector who has experienced harassment in violation of the election law has a cause of action against each person that committed the harassment in violation of the election law. In any civil action based on this cause of action, the elector may seek a declaratory judgment, an injunction, or other appropriate equitable relief. The civil action may be commenced by an elector who has experienced harassment in violation of the election law either alone or as a party to a class action under Civil Rule 23.

(C)(1) In addition to the equitable relief authorized by division (B) of this section, an elector who has experienced harassment in violation of the election law may be entitled to relief under division (C)(2) or (3) of this section.

(2) If the harassment in violation of the election law involved intentional or reckless threatening or causing of bodily harm to the elector while the elector was attempting to register to vote, to obtain an absent voter's ballot, or to vote, the elector may seek, in a civil action based on the cause of action created by division (B) of this section, monetary damages as prescribed in this division. The civil action may be commenced by the elector who has experienced harassment in violation of the election law either alone or as a party to a class action under Civil Rule 23. Upon proof by a preponderance of the evidence in the civil action that the harassment in violation of the election law involved intentional or reckless threatening or causing of bodily harm to the elector, the trier of fact shall award the elector the greater of three times of the amount of the elector's actual damages or one thousand dollars. The court also shall award a prevailing elector reasonable attorney's fees and court costs.

(3) Whether a civil action on the cause of action created by division (B) of this section is commenced by an elector who has experienced harassment in violation of the election law alone or as a party to a class action under Civil Rule 23, if the defendant in the action is an organization that has previously been determined in a court of this state to have engaged in harassment in violation of the election law, the elector may seek an order of the court granting any of the following forms of relief upon proof by a preponderance of the evidence:

(a) Divestiture of the organization's interest in any enterprise or in any real property;

(b) Reasonable restrictions upon the future activities or investments of the organization, including, but not limited to, prohibiting the organization from engaging in any harassment in violation of the election law;

(c) The dissolution or reorganization of the organization;

(d) The suspension or revocation of any license, permit, or prior approval granted to the organization by any state agency;

(e) The revocation of the organization's authorization to do business in this state if the organization is a foreign corporation or other form of foreign entity.

(D) It shall not be a defense in a civil action based on the cause of action created by division (B) of this section, whether commenced by an elector who has experienced harassment in violation of the election law alone or as a party to a class action under Civil Rule 23, that no criminal prosecution was commenced or conviction obtained in connection with the conduct alleged to be the basis of the civil action.

(E) In a civil action based on the cause of action created by division (B) of this section, whether commenced by an elector who has experienced harassment in violation of the election law alone or as a party to a class action under Civil Rule 23, the elector may name as defendants each individual who engaged in conduct constituting harassment in violation of the election law as well as any person that employs, sponsors, or uses as an agent any such individual or that has organized a common scheme to cause harassment in violation of the election law.

Sec. 3503.06. (A) No person shall be entitled to vote at any election, or to sign or circulate any declaration of candidacy or any nominating, initiative, referendum, or recall petition, unless the person is registered as an elector and will have resided in the county and precinct where the person is registered for at least thirty days at the time of the next election.

(B)(1) No person shall be entitled to circulate any initiative, referendum, declaration of candidacy, nominating, or recall petition unless the person is a resident of this state.

(2) All election officials, in determining the residence of a person circulating a petition under division (B)(1) of this section, shall be governed by the following rules:

(a) That place shall be considered the residence of a person in which the person's habitation is fixed and to which, whenever the person is absent, the person has the intention of returning.

(b) A person shall not be considered to have lost the person's residence who leaves the person's home and goes into another state for temporary purposes only, with the intention of returning.

(c) A person shall not be considered to have gained a residence in any county of this state into which the person comes for temporary purposes only, without the intention of making that county the permanent place of abode.

(d) If a person removes to another state with the intention of making that state the person's residence, the person shall be considered to have lost the person's residence in this state.

(e) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(2)(f) of this section, if a person removes from this state and continuously resides outside this state for a period of four years or more, the person shall be considered to have lost the person's residence in this state, notwithstanding the fact that the person may entertain an intention to return at some future period.

(f) If a person removes from this state to engage in the services of the United States government, the person shall not be considered to have lost the person's residence in this state during the period of that service, and likewise should the person enter the employment of the state, the place where that person resided at the time of the person's removal shall be considered to be the person's place of residence.

(g) If a person goes into another state and, while there, exercises the right of a citizen by voting, the person shall be considered to have lost the person's residence in this state.

(C) No person shall be entitled to sign any initiative, referendum, declaration of candidacy, nominating, or recall petition unless the person is registered as an elector and will have resided in the county and precinct where the person is registered for at least thirty days at the time of the next election.

Sec. 3503.11.  When any person applies for a driver's license, commercial driver's license, a state of Ohio identification card issued under section 4507.50 of the Revised Code, or motorcycle operator's license or endorsement, or the renewal or duplicate of any license or endorsement under Chapter 4506. or 4507. of the Revised Code, the registrar of motor vehicles or deputy registrar shall offer the applicant the opportunity to register to vote or to update his or her the applicant's voter registration. The registrar of motor vehicles or deputy registrar also shall make available to all other customers voter registration applications or and change of residence or and change of name applications, forms, but is not required to offer assistance to these customers in completing the a voter registration application or other form.

The registrar or deputy registrar shall send any completed registration application or any completed change of residence and or change of name notice form to the board of elections of the county in which the office of the registrar or deputy registrar is located, within five days after accepting the application or notice other form.

The registrar shall collect from each deputy registrar through the reports filed under division (J) of section 4503.03 of the Revised Code and transmit to the secretary of state information on the number of voter registration applications and change of residence or change of name notices forms completed or declined, and any additional information required by the secretary of state to comply with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. No information relating to an applicant's decision to decline to register or update his or her the applicant's voter registration at the office of the registrar or deputy registrar may be used for any purpose other than voter registration record-keeping required by the secretary of state, and all such information shall be kept confidential.

The secretary of state shall prescribe voter registration applications and change of residence and change of name notices forms for use by the bureau of motor vehicles. The bureau of motor vehicles shall supply all of its deputy registrars with a sufficient number of voter registration applications and change of residence and change of name notices forms.

The bureau of motor vehicles, in consultation with a committee consisting of the directors of the boards of elections of the four counties in the state with the highest number of registered voters and the four counties in the state with the lowest number of registered voters as of the effective date of this amendment, shall develop and review, not later than thirty days after that effective date and annually thereafter, a system to make the information from each voter registration application completed pursuant to this section available to all boards of elections via electronic means, subject to each of the following:

(A) There shall not be a direct connection between the bureau of motor vehicles and the offices of a deputy registrar.

(B) The system shall employ sufficient security measures so as to prohibit unauthorized access to data.

(C) The system shall employ a means by which each voter's data can be matched with each voter's original voter registration form.

(D) Notwithstanding any provision of the Revised Code to the contrary, voter registration data provided to a board of elections pursuant to this section that cannot be matched to an original voter registration form with the voter's original signature shall not be considered sufficient to properly register the voter.

(E) Nothing in this section shall be construed to alleviate a voter of the responsibility to provide the voter's original signature on the voter registration form.

(F) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the bureau of motor vehicles to perform the data entry functions of the boards of elections in performing their duty to register voters or to alleviate the bureau of its responsibility to otherwise transmit completed voter registration forms under this section.

Sec. 3503.13. (A) Except as provided in division (C) of this section, registration forms shall consist of original and duplicate cards or loose-leaf pages as prescribed by the secretary of state. When such registration forms have been filled out and filed in the office of the board of elections, the original forms shall be filed together in one file and the duplicate forms shall be filed together in another file. Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, the original forms shall be filed by precincts and shall constitute the precinct register for use in polling places on election day. The duplicate forms shall be filed alphabetically and shall constitute the permanent office record of the board. It shall not be removed from the office of the board except upon the order of a court.

(B) Except as otherwise provided by state or federal law, the registration records forms submitted by applicants and the statewide voter registration database established under section 3503.15 of the Revised Code shall be open to public inspection at all times when the office of the board of elections is open for business, under such regulations as the board adopts, provided that no person shall be permitted to inspect such records voter registration forms except in the presence of an employee of the board.

(C) The board of elections of a county that adopts or has adopted electronic data processing for the registration of qualified electors of the county may use a single registration form complying with the requirements of division (A) of this section. The information contained on the form may be duplicated on punch cards, magnetic tape, discs, diskettes, or such other media as are compatible with the data processing system adopted by the board and may constitute the permanent office record in lieu of the duplicate registration card.

(D) Instead of using the original registration forms as the precinct register in the polling places on election day as provided in division (A) of this section, a

(B) A board of elections that has adopted electronic data processing may use a legible digitized signature list of voter signatures, copied from the signatures on the registration forms in a form and manner prescribed by the secretary of state, provided that the board continues to record and maintain at the board office the information obtained from the form prescribed under section 3503.14 includes the required voter registration information in the statewide voter registration database established under section 3503.15 of the Revised Code, and provided that the precinct election officials have computer printouts at the polls containing any necessary information specified by the secretary of state that would otherwise be available to them on the registration forms prepared in the manner required under section 3503.23 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3503.14.  (A) The secretary of state shall prescribe the form and content of the registration and, change of residence, and change of name form forms used in this state. The form forms shall set forth the eligibility requirements needed to qualify as an elector and meet the requirements of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and shall include spaces for all of the following:

(1) The voter's name;

(2) The voter's address;

(3) The current date;

(4) The voter's date of birth;

(5) The voter to provide one or more of the following:

(a) The voter's driver's license number, if any;

(b) The last four digits of the voter's social security number, if any;

(c) A copy of a current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the voter's name and address.

(6) The voter's signature. The

The registration form shall include a space on which the person registering an applicant shall sign the person's name and provide the person's address and a space on which the person registering an applicant shall name the employer who is employing that person to register the applicant. No election official or employee of a designated agency who is

Except for forms prescribed by the secretary of state under section 3503.11 of the Revised Code, the secretary of state shall permit boards of elections to produce forms that have subdivided spaces for each individual alphanumeric character of the information provided by the voter so as to accommodate the electronic reading and conversion of the voter's information to data and the subsequent electronic transfer of that data to the statewide voter registration database established under section 3503.15 of the Revised Code.

(B) None of the following persons who are registering an applicant in the course of that official's or employee's normal duties shall be required to sign the election official's or employee's person's name, provide the person's address, or to name the employer who is employing the election official or employee person to register an applicant on a form prepared under this section:

(1) An election official;

(2) A county treasurer;

(3) A deputy registrar of motor vehicles;

(4) An employee of a designated agency;

(5) An employee of a public high school;

(6) An employee of a public vocational school;

(7) An employee of a public library;

(8) An employee of the office of a county treasurer;

(9) An employee of the bureau of motor vehicles;

(10) An employee of a deputy registrar of motor vehicles;

(11) An employee of an election official.

(B) Any (C) Except as provided in section 3501.382 of the Revised Code, any applicant who is unable to sign the applicant's own name shall make an "X," if possible, which shall be certified by the signing of the name of the applicant by the person filling out the form, who shall add the person's own signature. If an applicant is unable to make an "X," the applicant shall indicate in some manner that the applicant desires to register to vote or to change the applicant's name or residence. The person registering the applicant shall sign the form and attest that the applicant indicated that the applicant desired to register to vote or to change the applicant's name or residence.

(C)(D) No registration and, change of residence and, or change of name form shall be rejected solely on the basis that a person registering an applicant failed to sign the person's name or failed to name the employer who is employing that person to register the applicant as required under division (A) of this section.

(D)(E) As used in this section, "registering an applicant" includes any effort, for compensation, to provide voter registration forms or to assist persons in completing or returning those forms or returning them to the board of elections, the office of the secretary of state, or another appropriate public office.

Sec. 3503.15.  (A) The secretary of state shall establish and maintain a statewide voter registration database that shall be continuously available to each board of elections and to other agencies as authorized by law.

(B) The statewide voter registration database established under this section shall be the official list of registered voters for all elections conducted in this state.

(C) The statewide voter registration database established under this section shall, at a minimum, include all of the following:

(1) An electronic network that connects all board of elections offices with the office of the secretary of state and with the offices of all other boards of elections;

(2) A computer program that harmonizes the records contained in the database with records maintained by each board of elections;

(3) An interactive computer program that allows access to the records contained in the database by each board of elections and by any persons authorized by the secretary of state to add, delete, modify, or print database records, and to conduct updates of the database;

(4) A search program capable of verifying registered voters and their registration information by name, driver's license number, birth date, social security number, or current address;

(5) Safeguards and components to ensure that the integrity, security, and confidentiality of the voter registration information is maintained.

(D) The secretary of state shall adopt rules pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code doing all of the following:

(1) Specifying the manner in which existing voter registration records maintained by boards of elections shall be converted to electronic files for inclusion in the statewide voter registration database;

(2) Establishing a uniform method for entering voter registration records into the statewide voter registration database on an expedited basis, but not less than once per day, if new registration information is received;

(3) Establishing a uniform method for purging canceled voter registration records from the statewide voter registration database in accordance with section 3503.21 of the Revised Code;

(4) Specifying the persons authorized to add, delete, modify, or print records contained in the statewide voter registration database and to make updates of that database.

(E) A board of elections promptly shall purge a voter's name and voter registration information from the statewide voter registration database in accordance with the rules adopted by the secretary of state under division (D)(3) of this section after the cancellation of a voter's registration under section 3503.21 of the Revised Code.

(F) The secretary of state shall provide training in the operation of the statewide voter registration database to each board of elections and to any persons authorized by the secretary of state to add, delete, modify, or print database records, and to conduct updates of the database.

Sec. 3503.16.  (A) Whenever a registered elector changes the place of residence of that registered elector from one precinct to another within a county or from one county to another, or has a change of name, that registered elector shall report the change by delivering a change of residence or change of name form, whichever is appropriate, as prescribed by the secretary of state under section 3503.14 of the Revised Code to the state or local office of a designated agency, a public high school or vocational school, a public library, the office of the county treasurer, the office of the secretary of state, any office of the registrar or deputy registrar of motor vehicles, or any office of a board of elections in person or by a third person. Any voter registration, change of address, or change of name application, returned by mail, may be sent only to the secretary of state or the board of elections.

A registered elector also may update the registration of that registered elector by filing a change of residence or change of name form on the day of a special, primary, or general election at the polling place in the precinct in which that registered elector resides or at the board of elections or at another site designated by the board.

(B)(1) Any registered elector who moves within a precinct or changes the name of that registered elector and remains within a precinct on or prior to the day of a general, primary, or special election and has not filed a notice of change of residence or change of name, whichever is appropriate, with the board of elections may vote in that election by going to that registered elector's assigned polling place, completing and signing a notice of change of residence or change of name, whichever is appropriate, and casting a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code.

(2) Any registered elector who moves from one precinct to another within a county or moves from one precinct to another and changes the name of that registered elector on or prior to the day of a general, primary, or special election and has not filed a notice of change of residence or change of name, whichever is appropriate, with the board of elections may vote in that election if that registered elector complies with division (G) of this section or does all of the following:

(a) Appears at anytime during regular business hours on or after the twenty-eighth day prior to the election in which that registered elector wishes to vote, or, if the election is held on the day of a presidential primary election, the twenty-fifth day prior to the election, through noon of the Saturday prior to the election or at the office of the board of elections, appears at any time during regular business hours on the Monday prior to the election at the office of the board of elections, or appears on the day of the election at either of the following locations:

(i) The polling place in the precinct in which that registered elector resides;

(ii) The location designated by the board of elections, which shall be the office of the board or another appropriate site designated by the board in the county in which that registered elector resides of elections or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections.

(b) Completes and signs, under penalty of election falsification, a notice of change of residence or change of name, whichever is appropriate, and files it with election officials at the polling place, at the office of the board of elections, or at the site designated by the board or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections, whichever is appropriate;

(c) Votes a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code at the polling place, at the office of the board of elections, or at the site designated by the board or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections, whichever is appropriate, by absent voter's ballots using the address to which that registered elector has moved or the name of that registered elector as changed, whichever is appropriate;

(d) Completes and signs, under penalty of election falsification, a statement attesting that that registered elector moved or had a change of name, whichever is appropriate, on or prior to the day of the election, has voted a provisional ballot at the polling place in the precinct in which that registered elector resides, at the office of the board of elections, or at the site designated by the board or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections, whichever is appropriate, and will not vote or attempt to vote at any other location for that particular election. The statement required under division (B)(2)(d) of this section shall be included on the notice of change of residence or change of name, whichever is appropriate, required under division (B)(2)(b) of this section.

(C) Any registered elector who moves from one county to another county within the state on or prior to the day of a general, primary, or special election and has not registered to vote in the county to which that registered elector moved may vote in that election if that registered elector complies with division (G) of this section or does all of the following:

(1) Appears at any time during regular business hours on or after the twenty-eighth day prior to the election in which that registered elector wishes to vote, or, if the election is held on the day of a presidential primary election, the twenty-fifth day prior to the election, through noon of the Saturday prior to the election or at the office of the board of elections or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections, appears during regular business hours on the Monday prior to the election at the office of the board of elections or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections, or appears on the day of the election at the location designated by the board of elections, which shall be either the office of the board or another appropriate site designated by the board in the county in which that registered elector resides of elections or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections;

(2) Completes and signs, under penalty of election falsification, a notice of change of residence and files it with election officials at the board or at the site designated by the board, whichever is appropriate of elections or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections;

(3) Votes a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code at the office of the board of elections or at a site designated by the board by absent voter's ballots or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections, using the address to which that registered elector has moved;

(4) Completes and signs, under penalty of election falsification, a statement attesting that that registered elector has moved from one county to another county within the state on or prior to the day of the election, has voted at the office of the board of elections or at the site designated by the board, whichever is appropriate or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location instead of the office of the board of elections, and will not vote or attempt to vote at any other location for that particular election. The statement required under division (C)(4) of this section shall be included on the notice of change of residence required under division (C)(2) of this section.

(D) A person who votes by absent voter's ballots pursuant to division (B), (C), or (G) of this section shall not make written application for the ballots pursuant to Chapter 3509. of the Revised Code. Ballots cast pursuant to division (B), (C), or (G) of this section shall be set aside in a special envelope and counted during the official canvass of votes in the manner provided for in sections 3505.32 and 3509.06 of the Revised Code insofar as that manner is applicable. The board shall examine the pollbooks to verify that no ballot was cast at the polls or by absent voter's ballots under Chapter 3509. or 3511. of the Revised Code by an elector who has voted by absent voter's ballots pursuant to division (B), (C), or (G) of this section. Any ballot determined to be insufficient for any of the reasons stated above or stated in section 3509.07 of the Revised Code shall not be counted.

A Subject to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code, a board of elections may lease or otherwise acquire a site different from the office of the board at which registered electors may vote pursuant to division (B) or (C) of this section.

(E) Upon receiving a change of residence or change of name form, the board of elections shall immediately send the registrant an acknowledgment notice. If the change of residence or change of name form is valid, the board shall update the voter's registration as appropriate. If that form is incomplete, the board shall inform the registrant in the acknowledgment notice specified in this division of the information necessary to complete or update that registrant's registration.

(F) Change of residence and change of name forms shall be available at each polling place, and when these forms are completed, noting changes of residence or name, as appropriate, they shall be filed with election officials at the polling place. Election officials shall return completed forms, together with the pollbooks and tally sheets, to the board of elections.

The board of elections shall provide change of residence and change of name forms to the probate court and court of common pleas. The court shall provide the forms to any person eighteen years of age or older who has a change of name by order of the court or who applies for a marriage license. The court shall forward all completed forms to the board of elections within five days after receiving them.

(G) A registered elector who otherwise would qualify to vote under division (B) or (C) of this section but is unable to appear at the office of the board or other location designated by the board of elections or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location, on account of personal illness, physical disability, or infirmity, may vote on the day of the election if that registered elector does all of the following:

(1) Makes a written application that includes all of the information required under section 3509.03 of the Revised Code to the appropriate board for an absent voter's ballot on or after the twenty-seventh day prior to the election in which the registered elector wishes to vote through noon of the Saturday prior to that election and requests that the absent voter's ballot be sent to the address to which the registered elector has moved if the registered elector has moved, or to the address of that registered elector who has not moved but has had a change of name;

(2) Declares that the registered elector has moved or had a change of name, whichever is appropriate, and otherwise is qualified to vote under the circumstances described in division (B) or (C) of this section, whichever is appropriate, but that the registered elector is unable to appear at the board or other location designated by the board of elections because of personal illness, physical disability, or infirmity;

(3) Completes and returns along with the completed absent voter's ballot a notice of change of residence indicating the address to which the registered elector has moved, or a notice of change of name, whichever is appropriate;

(4) Completes and signs, under penalty of election falsification, a statement attesting that the registered elector has moved or had a change of name on or prior to the day before the election, has voted by absent voter's ballot because of personal illness, physical disability, or infirmity that prevented the registered elector from appearing at the board or other location designated by the board of elections, and will not vote or attempt to vote at any other location or by absent voter's ballot mailed to any other location or address for that particular election.

Sec. 3503.19.  (A) Persons qualified to register or to change their registration because of a change of address or change of name may register or change their registration in person at any state or local office of a designated agency, at the office of the registrar or any deputy registrar of motor vehicles, at a public high school or vocational school, at a public library, at the office of a county treasurer, or at a branch office established by the board of elections, or in person, through another person, or by mail at the office of the secretary of state or at the office of a board of elections. A registered elector may also change the elector's registration on election day at any polling place where the elector is eligible to vote, on election day in the manner provided under section 3503.16 of the Revised Code.

Any state or local office of a designated agency, the office of the registrar or any deputy registrar of motor vehicles, a public high school or vocational school, a public library, or the office of a county treasurer shall transmit any voter registration application or change of registration form that it receives to the board of elections of the county in which the state or local office is located, within five days after receiving the voter registration application or change of registration form.

An otherwise valid voter registration application that is returned to the appropriate office other than by mail must be received by a state or local office of a designated agency, the office of the registrar or any deputy registrar of motor vehicles, a public high school or vocational school, a public library, the office of a county treasurer, the office of the secretary of state, or the office of a board of elections no later than the thirtieth day preceding a primary, special, or general election for the person to qualify as an elector eligible to vote at that election. An otherwise valid registration application received after that day entitles the elector to vote at all subsequent elections.

Any state or local office of a designated agency, the office of the registrar or any deputy registrar of motor vehicles, a public high school or vocational school, a public library, or the office of a county treasurer shall date stamp a registration application or change of name or change of address form it receives using a date stamp that does not disclose the identity of the state or local office that receives the registration.

Voter registration applications, if otherwise valid, that are returned by mail to the office of the secretary of state or to the office of a board of elections must be postmarked no later than the thirtieth day preceding a primary, special, or general election in order for the person to qualify as an elector eligible to vote at that election. If an otherwise valid voter registration application that is returned by mail does not bear a postmark or a legible postmark, the registration shall be valid for that election if received by the office of the secretary of state or the office of a board of elections no later than twenty-five days preceding any special, primary, or general election.

(B)(1) Any person may apply in person, by telephone, by mail, or through another person for voter registration forms to the office of the secretary of state or the office of a board of elections. Completed

(2)(a) An applicant may return the applicant's completed registration forms may be returned form in person or through another person or by mail to any state or local office of a designated agency, to a public high school or vocational school, to a public library, or to the office of a county treasurer, or in person, through another person, or by mail to the office of the secretary of state, or to the office of a board of elections.

(b) Subject to division (C)(2) of section 3599.11 of the Revised Code, an applicant may return the applicant's completed registration form through another person to the board of elections of the county in which the applicant is seeking to vote or to an office of a designated agency in that county.

(C)(1) A board of elections that receives a voter registration application and is satisfied as to the truth of the statements made in the registration form shall register the applicant and not later than twenty business days after receiving the application, unless that application is received during the thirty days immediately preceding the day of an election. The board shall promptly notify the applicant in writing of each of the following:

(a) The applicant's registration and the;

(b) The precinct in which the applicant is to vote;

(c) In bold type, that the applicant needs to bring to the polling place identification in the form of a current and valid photo identification, a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and current address of the applicant, or the last four digits of the applicant's social security number, but that the applicant shall still be able to vote if the applicant does not have any of these forms of identification or the last four digits of the applicant's social security number. The

The notification shall be by nonforwardable mail, and if. If the mail is returned to the board, it shall investigate and cause the notification to be delivered to the correct address; or if it determines that the voter is not eligible to vote for residency reasons it shall cancel the registration and notify the registrant, at the last known address, of a need to reregister. If the board does not accept the application for registration, it shall immediately notify the applicant of the reasons for rejecting the application and request the applicant to provide whatever information or verification is necessary to complete the application.

(2) If, after investigating as required under division (C)(1) of this section, the board is unable to verify the voter's correct address, it shall cause the voter's name in the official registration list and in the poll list or signature pollbook to be marked to indicate that the voter's notification was returned to the board.

At the first election at which a voter whose name has been so marked appears to vote, the voter shall be required to provide identification to the election officials and to vote by provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. If the provisional ballot is counted pursuant to division (B)(3) of section 3505.183 of the Revised Code, the board shall correct that voter's registration, if needed, and shall remove the indication that the voter's notification was returned from that voter's name on the official registration list and on the poll list or signature pollbook. If the provisional ballot is not counted pursuant to division (B)(4)(a)(i), (v), or (vi) of section 3505.183 of the Revised Code, the voter's registration shall be canceled. The board shall notify the voter by United States mail of the cancellation.

(3) If a notice of the disposition of an otherwise valid mail registration application is sent by nonforwardable mail and is returned undelivered, the person shall be registered as provided in division (C)(2) of this section and sent a confirmation notice by forwardable mail. If the person fails to respond to the confirmation notice, update the person's registration, or vote by provisional ballot as provided in division (C)(2) of this section in any election during the period of two federal elections subsequent to the mailing of the confirmation notice, the person's registration shall be canceled.

Sec. 3503.21.  (A) The registration of a registered elector shall be canceled upon the occurrence of any of the following:

(1) The filing by a registered elector of a written request with a board of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state and signed by the elector, that his the registration be canceled. The filing of such a request does not prohibit an otherwise qualified elector from reregistering to vote at any time.

(2) The filing of a notice of the death of the registered elector as provided in section 3503.18 of the Revised Code;

(3) The conviction of the registered elector of a felony under the laws of this state, any other state, or the United States as provided in section 2961.01 of the Revised Code;

(4) The adjudication of incompetency of the registered elector for the purpose of voting as provided in section 5122.301 of the Revised Code;

(5) The change of residence of the registered elector to a location outside the county of registration in accordance with division (B) of this section;

(6) The failure of the registered elector, after he has having been mailed a confirmation notice, to do either of the following:

(a) Respond to such a notice and vote at least once during a period of four consecutive years, which period shall include two general federal elections;

(b) Update his the elector's registration and vote at least once during a period of four consecutive years, which period shall include two general federal elections.

(B)(1) The secretary of state shall prescribe procedures to identify and cancel the registration in a prior county of residence of any registrant who changes his the registrant's voting residence to a location outside his the registrant's current county of registration. Any procedures prescribed in this division shall be uniform and nondiscriminatory, and shall comply with the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The secretary of state may prescribe procedures under this division that include the use of the national change of address service provided by the United States postal system through its licensees. Any program so prescribed shall be completed not later than ninety days prior to the date of any primary or general election for federal office.

(2) The registration of any elector identified as having changed his the elector's voting residence to a location outside his the elector's current county of registration shall not be canceled unless the registrant is sent a confirmation notice on a form prescribed by the secretary of state and the registrant fails to respond to the confirmation notice or otherwise update his the registration and fails to vote in any election during the period of two federal elections subsequent to the mailing of the confirmation notice.

(C) The registration of a registered elector shall not be canceled except as provided in this section, division (Q) of section 3501.05 of the Revised Code, division (C)(2) of section 3503.19 of the Revised Code, or division (C) of section 3503.24 of the Revised Code.

(D) Boards of elections shall send their voter registration lists information to the secretary of state semiannually as required under section 3503.15 of the Revised Code. In the first quarter of each odd-numbered year, the secretary of state shall send the information contained in these lists to the national change of address service described in division (B) of this section and request that service to provide the secretary of state with a list of any voters on the lists sent by the secretary of state who have moved within the last thirty-six months. The secretary of state shall transmit to each appropriate board of elections whatever lists he the secretary of state receives from that service. The board shall send a notice to each person on the list transmitted by the secretary of state requesting confirmation of the person's change of address, together with a postage prepaid, preaddressed return envelope containing a form on which the voter may verify or correct the change of address information.

(E) The registration of a registered elector described in division (A)(6) or (B)(2) of this section shall be canceled not later than one hundred twenty days after the date of the second general federal election in which the elector fails to vote or not later than one hundred twenty days after the expiration of the four-year period in which the elector fails to vote or respond to a confirmation notice, whichever is later.

Sec. 3503.23.  (A) At least fifteen Fourteen days before an election, the board of elections shall cause to be prepared from the registration cards statewide voter registration database established under section 3503.15 of the Revised Code a complete and official registration list for each precinct, containing the names, addresses, and political party whose ballot the elector voted in the most recent primary election within the current year and the immediately preceding two calendar years, of all qualified registered voters in the precinct. All the names, insofar as practicable, shall be arranged either in alphabetical order, or in geographical order according to streets in the precincts. All the The lists shall may be prepared either in sheet form and on one side of the paper or in electronic form, at the discretion of the board. Each precinct list shall be headed "Register of Voters," and under the heading shall be indicated the district or ward and precinct followed by the statement:

"Any voter of the county on or before the seventh day prior to the election may file with the board of elections at the board's offices located at ................. objections to the registration of any person on this list who, he has reason to believe, is not eligible to vote, or a request for the addition to the list of registered voters whose names have been omitted or who have been erroneously dropped from the registration list of the precinct.".

Appended to each precinct list shall be attached the names of the members of the board and the name of the director. A sufficient number of such lists may shall be provided for distribution to the candidates, political parties, or organized groups that apply for them. The board shall have each precinct list available at the board for viewing by the public during normal business hours. The board shall ensure that, by the opening of the polls on the day of a general or primary election, each precinct has a paper copy of the registration list of voters in that precinct.

(B) On the day of a general or primary election, precinct election officials shall do both of the following:

(1) By the time the polls open, conspicuously post and display at the polling place one copy of the registration list of voters in that precinct in an area of the polling place that is easily accessible;

(2) At 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. place a mark, on the official registration list posted at the polling place, before the name of those registered voters who have voted.

(C) Notwithstanding division (B) of section 3501.35 of the Revised Code, any person may enter the polling place for the sole purpose of reviewing the official registration list posted in accordance with division (B) of this section, provided that the person does not engage in conduct that would constitute harassment in violation of the election law, as defined in section 3501.90 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3503.24. (A) Application for the correction of any precinct registration list or a challenge of the right to vote of any registered elector may be made by any qualified elector of the county at the office of the board of elections not later than eleven twenty days prior to the election. The applications or challenges, with the reasons for the application or challenge, shall be filed with the board on a form prescribed by the secretary of state and shall be signed under penalty of election falsification.

(B) On receiving an application or challenge filed under this section, the board of elections promptly shall review the board's records. If the board is able to determine that an application or challenge should be granted or denied solely on the basis of the records maintained by the board, the board immediately shall vote to grant or deny that application or challenge.

If the board is not able to determine whether an application or challenge should be granted or denied solely on the basis of the records maintained by the board, the director shall promptly set a time and date for a hearing before the board. The Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, the hearing shall be held, and the application or challenge shall be decided, no later than two ten days prior to any election after the board receives the application or challenge. The director shall send written notice to any elector whose right to vote is challenged and to any person whose name is alleged to have been omitted from a registration list. The notice shall inform the person of the time and date of the hearing, and of the person's right to appear and testify, call witnesses, and be represented by counsel. The notice shall be sent by first class mail no later than three days before the day of any scheduled hearing. The director shall also provide the person who filed the application or challenge with such written notice of the date and time of the hearing.

At the request of either party or any member of the board, the board shall issue subpoenas to witnesses to appear and testify before the board at a hearing held under this section. All witnesses shall testify under oath. The board shall reach a decision on all applications and challenges immediately after hearing.

(C) If the board decides that any such person is not entitled to have the person's name on the registration list, the person's name shall be removed from the list and the person's registration forms canceled. If the board decides that the name of any such person should appear on such the registration list, it shall be added thereto to the list, and the person's registration forms placed in the proper registration files. All such corrections and additions shall be made on a copy of the precinct lists, which shall constitute the poll lists, to be furnished to the respective precincts with other election supplies on the day preceding the election, to be used by the clerks election officials in receiving the signatures of voters and in checking against the registration forms.

(D)(1) If an application or challenge for which a hearing is required to be conducted under division (B) of this section is filed after the thirtieth day before the day of an election, the board of elections, in its discretion, may postpone that hearing and any notifications of that hearing until after the day of the election. Any hearing postponed under this division shall be conducted not later than ten days after the day of the election.

(2) The board of elections shall cause the name of any registered elector whose registration is challenged and whose challenge hearing is postponed under division (D)(1) of this section to be marked in the official registration list and in the poll list or signature pollbook for that elector's precinct to indicate that the elector's registration is subject to challenge.

(3) Any elector who is the subject of an application or challenge hearing that is postponed under division (D)(1) of this section shall be permitted to vote a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. The validity of a provisional ballot cast pursuant to this section shall be determined in accordance with section 3505.183 of the Revised Code, except that no such provisional ballot shall be counted unless the hearing conducted under division (B) of this section after the day of the election results in the elector's inclusion in the official registration list.

Sec. 3503.28.  (A) The secretary of state shall develop an information brochure regarding voter registration. The brochure shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following information:

(1) The applicable deadlines for registering to vote or for returning an applicant's completed registration form;

(2) The applicable deadline for returning an applicant's completed registration form if the person returning the form is being compensated for registering voters;

(3) The locations to which a person may return an applicant's completed registration form;

(4) The location to which a person who is compensated for registering voters may return an applicant's completed registration form;

(5) The registration and affirmation requirements applicable to persons who are compensated for registering voters under section 3503.29 of the Revised Code;

(6) Information, which shall be indicated in bold type, explaining that, when a person attempts to vote, the person needs to bring identification in the form of a current and valid photo identification, a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and current address of the person, or the last four digits of the person's social security number, but that the person still will be able to vote if the person does not have any of these forms of identification or the last four digits of the person's social security number.

(B) Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, a board of elections, designated agency, public high school, public vocational school, public library, office of a county treasurer, or deputy registrar of motor vehicles shall distribute a copy of the brochure developed under division (A) of this section to any person who requests more than two voter registration forms at one time.

(C)(1) The secretary of state shall provide the information required to be included in the brochure developed under division (A) of this section to any person who prints a voter registration form that is made available on a web site of the office of the secretary of state.

(2) A board of elections shall provide the information required to be included in the brochure developed under division (A) of this section to any person who prints a voter registration form that is made available on the board of elections' web site or, if the board does not operate and maintain its own web site, on the web site it operates and maintains on free internet space under section 3501.24 of the Revised Code.

(D) A board of elections shall not be required to distribute a copy of a brochure under division (B) of this section to any of the following officials or employees who are requesting more than two voter registration forms at one time in the course of the official's or employee's normal duties:

(1) An election official;

(2) A county treasurer;

(3) A deputy registrar of motor vehicles;

(4) An employee of a designated agency;

(5) An employee of a public high school;

(6) An employee of a public vocational school;

(7) An employee of a public library;

(8) An employee of the office of a county treasurer;

(9) An employee of the bureau of motor vehicles;

(10) An employee of a deputy registrar of motor vehicles;

(11) An employee of an election official.

(E) As used in this section, "registering voters" includes any effort, for compensation, to provide voter registration forms or to assist persons in completing or returning those forms.

Sec. 3503.29.  (A) The secretary of state shall develop and make available through a web site of the office of the secretary of state a training program for any person who receives or expects to receive compensation for registering a voter. The secretary of state shall specify, by rule adopted pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, the information to be included in the online training program developed under this division.

(B) Except as otherwise provided in division (E) of this section, the secretary of state, by rules adopted pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, shall prescribe a program under which each board of elections shall register any person who receives or expects to receive compensation for registering a voter in the county.

(C) Except as otherwise provided in division (E) of this section, in each year in which a person receives or expects to receive compensation for registering a voter, that person, prior to registering a voter, shall do all of the following:

(1) Register with the board of elections of each county in which the person intends to register a voter in accordance with the program prescribed under division (B) of this section;

(2) Complete the training program established by the secretary of state under division (A) of this section.

(3) Sign an affirmation that includes all of the following:

(a) The person's name;

(b) The person's date of birth;

(c) The person's permanent address;

(d) A statement that the person has registered, as required under division (C)(1) of this section, with the board of elections of the county in which the person intends to register voters;

(e) A statement that the person has completed the training program required under division (C)(2) of this section;

(f) A statement that the person will follow all applicable laws of this state while registering voters.

(D) Except as otherwise provided in division (E) of this section, each time a person who receives or expects to receive compensation for registering a voter submits a completed registration form that has been entrusted to that person to a board of elections, the person also shall submit, with the voter registration form, a copy of the affirmation signed by the person under division (C)(3) of this section. A single copy of the signed affirmation may be submitted with all voter registration forms that are returned by that person at one time.

(E) None of the following officials or employees who are registering voters in the course of the official's or employee's normal duties shall be required to comply with divisions (C) and (D) of this section:

(1) An election official;

(2) A county treasurer;

(3) A deputy registrar of motor vehicles;

(4) An employee of a designated agency;

(5) An employee of a public high school;

(6) An employee of a public vocational school;

(7) An employee of a public library;

(8) An employee of the office of a county treasurer;

(9) An employee of the bureau of motor vehicles;

(10) An employee of a deputy registrar of motor vehicles;

(11) An employee of an election official.

(F) As used in this section, "registering a voter" and "registering voters" includes any effort, for compensation, to provide voter registration forms or to assist persons in completing or returning those forms.

Sec. 3505.062.  The Ohio ballot board shall do all of the following:

(A) Examine, within ten days after its receipt, each written initiative petition received from the attorney general under section 3519.01 of the Revised Code to determine whether it contains only one proposed law or constitutional amendment so as to enable the voters to vote on a proposal separately. If the board so determines, it shall certify its approval to the attorney general. If the board determines that the initiative petition contains more than one proposed law or constitutional amendment, the board shall divide the initiative petition into individual petitions containing only one proposed law or constitutional amendment so as to enable the voters to vote on each proposal separately and certify its approval to the attorney general.

(B) Prescribe the ballot language for constitutional amendments proposed by the general assembly to be printed on the questions and issues ballot, which language shall properly identify the substance of the proposal to be voted upon;

(B)(C) Prepare an explanation of each constitutional amendment proposed by the general assembly, which explanation may include the purpose and effects of the proposed amendment;

(C)(D) Certify the ballot language and explanation, if any, to the secretary of state no later than eighty days before the election at which the proposed question or issue is to be submitted to the voters;

(D)(E) Prepare, or designate a group of persons to prepare, arguments in support of or in opposition to a constitutional amendment proposed by a resolution of the general assembly, a constitutional amendment or state law proposed by initiative petition, or a state law, or section or item of state law, subject to a referendum petition, if the persons otherwise responsible for the preparation of those arguments fail to timely prepare and file them;

(E)(F) Direct the means by which the secretary of state shall disseminate information concerning proposed constitutional amendments to the voters;

(F)(G) Direct the chairperson to reimburse county boards of elections for public notice costs associated with statewide ballot issues, to the extent that the general assembly appropriates money for that purpose.

Sec. 3505.063.  (A) When the general assembly adopts a resolution proposing a constitutional amendment, it may, by resolution, designate a group of members who voted in support of the resolution to prepare arguments for the proposed amendment, and a group of members who voted in opposition to the resolution to prepare arguments against the proposed amendment. If no members voted in opposition to the resolution, or if the general assembly chooses not to designate a group of members to prepare arguments for the proposed amendment or chooses not to designate a group of members to prepare arguments against the proposed amendment, the Ohio ballot board shall prepare or designate a group of persons to prepare the relevant arguments. All arguments prepared under this division shall be filed with the secretary of state no not later than seventy-five eighty days before the date of the election. No argument shall exceed three hundred words.

(B)(1) If the group of members of the general assembly or other group of persons designated under division (A) of this section fail to prepare and file their arguments in support of or in opposition to the proposed amendment by the seventy-fifth eightieth day before the date of the election, the secretary of state shall notify the Ohio ballot board that those arguments have not been so prepared and filed. The board then shall prepare the missing arguments or designate a group of persons to prepare those arguments. All arguments prepared under this division shall be filed with the secretary of state no not later than seventy seventy-five days before the date of the election. No argument shall exceed three hundred words.

(2) If the Ohio ballot board fails to provide for the preparation of missing arguments under division (B)(1) of this section after being notified by the secretary of state that one or more arguments have not been timely prepared and filed, the positions of the four appointed members of the board shall be considered vacant, and new members shall be appointed in the manner provided for original appointments.

(C) The secretary of state shall disseminate information, which may include part or all of the official explanation and arguments concerning proposed amendments, by means of direct mail or other written publication, broadcast, or other means or combination of means, as the Ohio ballot board may direct, in order to inform the voters as fully as possible concerning proposed amendments.

Sec. 3505.16.  Before the opening of the polls, the package of supplies and the ballot boxes shall be opened in the presence of the precinct officials. The ballot boxes, the package of ballots, registration forms, and other supplies shall at all times be in full sight of the challenger or witnesses observers, and no ballot box or unused ballots during the balloting or counting shall be removed or screened from their full sight until the counting has been closed and the final returns completed and the certificate signed by the judges and clerks.

Sec. 3505.18. (A)(1) When an elector appears in a polling place to vote he, the elector shall announce his to the precinct election officials the elector's full name and current address to the precinct election officials. He and provide proof of the elector's identity in the form of either a current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and current address of the elector.

(2) If an elector is unable to provide to the precinct election officials any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of this section, the elector may provide the last four digits of the elector's social security number. Upon providing the social security number information, the elector may cast a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code, the envelope of which ballot shall include that social security number information.

(3) If an elector is unable to provide to the precinct election officials any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of this section or to provide the last four digits of the elector's social security number, the elector may cast a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code.

(4) If an elector does not have any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of this section and cannot provide the last four digits of the elector's social security number because the elector does not have a social security number, the elector may execute an affirmation under penalty of election falsification that the elector cannot provide the identification required under that division or the last four digits of the elector's social security number for those reasons. Upon signing the affirmation, the elector may cast a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. The secretary of state shall prescribe the form of the affirmation, which shall include spaces for all of the following:

(a) The elector's name;

(b) The elector's address;

(c) The current date;

(d) The elector's date of birth;

(e) The elector's signature.

(5) If an elector does not have any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of this section and cannot provide the last four digits of the elector's social security number because the elector does not have a social security number, and if the elector declines to execute an affirmation under division (A)(4) of this section, the elector may cast a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code, the envelope of which ballot shall include the elector's name.

(6) If an elector provides a form of photo identification that does not contain the elector's current residence address, the elector may cast a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code.

(B) After the elector has announced the elector's full name and current address and provided any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of this section, the elector shall then write his the elector's name and address at the proper place in the poll lists list or signature pollbooks pollbook provided therefor for the purpose, except that if, for any reason, an elector shall be is unable to write his the elector's name and current address in the poll list or signature pollbook, the elector may make his the elector's mark at the place intended for his the elector's name, and a precinct election official shall write the name of the elector at the proper place on the poll list or signature pollbook following the elector's mark, upon the presentation of proper identification. The making of such a mark shall be attested by the precinct election official, who shall evidence the same by signing his the precinct election official's name on the poll list or signature pollbook as a witness to such the mark. Alternatively, if applicable, an attorney in fact acting pursuant to section 3501.382 of the Revised Code may sign the elector's signature in the poll list or signature pollbook in accordance with that section.

The elector's signature in the poll lists list or signature pollbooks shall pollbook then shall be compared with his the elector's signature on his the elector's registration form or a digitized signature list as provided for in section 3503.13 of the Revised Code, and if, in the opinion of a majority of the precinct election officials, the signatures are the signatures of the same person, the clerks election officials shall enter the date of the election on the registration form or shall record the date by such other means as may be prescribed by the secretary of state. If The validity of an attorney in fact's signature on behalf of an elector shall be determined in accordance with section 3501.382 of the Revised Code.

If the right of the elector to vote is not then challenged, or, if being challenged, he the elector establishes his the elector's right to vote, he the elector shall be allowed to proceed into to use the voting machine. If voting machines are not being used in that precinct, the judge in charge of ballots shall then detach the next ballots to be issued to the elector from Stub B attached to each ballot, leaving Stub A attached to each ballot, hand the ballots to the elector, and call his the elector's name and the stub number on each of the ballots. The clerk judge shall enter the stub numbers opposite the signature of the elector in the pollbook. The elector shall then retire to one of the voting compartments to mark his the elector's ballots. No mark shall be made on any ballot which would in any way enable any person to identify the person who voted the ballot.

Sec. 3505.181.  (A) All of the following individuals shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot at an election:

(1) An individual who declares that the individual is a registered voter in the jurisdiction in which the individual desires to vote and that the individual is eligible to vote in an election, but the name of the individual does not appear on the official list of eligible voters for the polling place or an election official asserts that the individual is not eligible to vote;

(2) An individual who provides to the election officials the last four digits of the individual's social security number as permitted by division (A)(2) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code;

(3) An individual who is unable to provide to the election officials any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code or to provide the last four digits of the individual's social security number as permitted under division (A)(2) of that section.

(4) An individual who does not have any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code, who cannot provide the last four digits of the individual's social security number under division (A)(2) of that section because the individual does not have a social security number, and who has executed an affirmation as permitted under division (A)(4) of that section;

(5) An individual whose name in the poll list or signature pollbook has been marked under section 3509.09 or 3511.13 of the Revised Code as having requested an absent voter's ballot or an armed service absent voter's ballot for that election and who appears to vote at the polling place;

(6) An individual whose notification of registration has been returned undelivered to the board of elections and whose name in the official registration list and in the poll list or signature pollbook has been marked under division (C)(2) of section 3503.19 of the Revised Code;

(7) An individual who is challenged under section 3505.20 of the Revised Code and the election officials determine that the person is ineligible to vote or are unable to determine the person's eligibility to vote;

(8) An individual whose application or challenge hearing has been postponed until after the day of the election under division (D)(1) of section 3503.24 of the Revised Code;

(9) An individual whose notice of election has been returned undelivered to the board of elections and whose name in the official registration list and poll list or signature pollbook has been marked under division (B) of section 3501.19 of the Revised Code;

(10) An individual who moves within a precinct, changes the individual's name and remains within the precinct, moves from one precinct to another within a county, moves from one precinct to another and changes the individual's name, or moves from one county to another within the state, and completes and signs the required forms and statements under division (B) or (C) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code;

(11) An individual whose signature, in the opinion of the precinct officers under section 3505.22 of the Revised Code, is not that of the person who signed that name in the registration forms;

(12) An individual who is challenged under section 3513.20 of the Revised Code who refuses to make the statement required under that section, who a majority of the precinct officials find lacks any of the qualifications to make the individual a qualified elector, or who a majority of the precinct officials find is not affiliated with or a member of the political party whose ballot the individual desires to vote;

(13) An individual who does not have any of the forms of identification required under division (A)(1) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code, who cannot provide the last four digits of the individual's social security number under division (A)(2) of that section because the person does not have a social security number, and who declines to execute an affirmation as permitted under division (A)(4) of that section;

(14) An individual who provides a form of photo identification under division (A)(6) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code that does not contain the elector's current residence address.

(B) An individual who is eligible to cast a provisional ballot under division (A) of this section shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot as follows:

(1) An election official at the polling place shall notify the individual that the individual may cast a provisional ballot in that election.

(2) The individual shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot at that polling place upon the execution of a written affirmation by the individual before an election official at the polling place stating that the individual is both of the following:

(a) A registered voter in the jurisdiction in which the individual desires to vote;

(b) Eligible to vote in that election.

(3) An election official at the polling place shall transmit the ballot cast by the individual, the voter information contained in the written affirmation executed by the individual under division (B)(2) of this section, or the individual's name if the individual declines to execute such an affirmation to an appropriate local election official for verification under division (B)(4) of this section. If the individual provides a form of photo identification required under division (A)(1) of section 3505.18 of the Revised Code that does not contain the elector's current residence address, the individual shall inform the election official at the polling place, and the election official shall transmit to an appropriate local election official, for verification under division (B)(4) of this section, both the former and current residence addresses of the individual.

(4) If the appropriate local election official to whom the ballot or voter or address information is transmitted under division (B)(3) of this section determines that the individual is eligible to vote, the individual's provisional ballot shall be counted as a vote in that election.

(5)(a) At the time that an individual casts a provisional ballot, the appropriate local election official shall give the individual written information that states that any individual who casts a provisional ballot will be able to ascertain under the system established under division (B)(5)(b) of this section whether the vote was counted, and, if the vote was not counted, the reason that the vote was not counted.

(b) The appropriate state or local election official shall establish a free access system, in the form of a toll-free telephone number, that any individual who casts a provisional ballot may access to discover whether the vote of that individual was counted, and, if the vote was not counted, the reason that the vote was not counted. The free access system established under this division also shall provide to an individual whose provisional ballot was not counted information explaining how that individual may contact the board of elections to register to vote or to resolve problems with the individual's voter registration.

The appropriate state or local election official shall establish and maintain reasonable procedures necessary to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of personal information collected, stored, or otherwise used by the free access system established under this division. Access to information about an individual ballot shall be restricted to the individual who cast the ballot.

(6) If, at the time that an individual casts a provisional ballot, the individual provides identification in the form of a current and valid photo identification, in the form of a current and valid photo identification but with the individual's former address instead of current address, or in the form of a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the individual's name and current address, or provides the last four digits of the individual's social security number, or executes an affirmation that the elector does not have any of those forms of identification or the last four digits of the individual's social security number because the individual does not have a social security number, or declines to execute such an affirmation, the appropriate local election official shall record the type of identification provided, the social security number information, the fact that the affirmation was executed, or the fact that the individual declined to execute such an affirmation and include that information with the transmission of the ballot or voter or address information under division (B)(3) of this section. If the individual declines to execute such an affirmation, the appropriate local election official shall record the individual's name and include that information with the transmission of the ballot under division (B)(3) of this section.

(7) If an individual casts a provisional ballot pursuant to division (A)(3), (7), (8), or (13) of this section, the election official shall indicate, on the provisional ballot verification statement required under section 3505.182 of the Revised Code, that the individual is required to provide additional information to the board of elections or that an application or challenge hearing has been postponed with respect to the individual, such that additional information is required for the board of elections to determine the eligibility of the individual who cast the provisional ballot.

(8) During the ten days after the day of an election, an individual who casts a provisional ballot pursuant to division (A)(3), (7), or (13) of this section shall appear at the office of the board of elections and provide to the board any additional information necessary to determine the eligibility of the individual who cast the provisional ballot.

(a) For a provisional ballot cast pursuant to division (A)(3) or (13) of this section to be eligible to be counted, the individual who cast that ballot, within ten days after the day of the election, shall do either of the following:

(i) Provide to the board of elections proof of the individual's identity in the form of a current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the individual's name and current address;

(ii) Provide to the board of elections the last four digits of the individual's social security number.

(b) For a provisional ballot cast pursuant to division (A)(7) of this section to be eligible to be counted, the individual who cast that ballot, within ten days after the day of that election, shall provide to the board of elections any identification or other documentation required to be provided by the applicable challenge questions asked of that individual under section 3505.20 of the Revised Code.

(C)(1) If an individual declares that the individual is eligible to vote in a jurisdiction other than the jurisdiction in which the individual desires to vote, or if, upon review of the precinct voting location guide using the residential street address provided by the individual, an election official at the polling place at which the individual desires to vote determines that the individual is not eligible to vote in that jurisdiction, the election official shall direct the individual to the polling place for the jurisdiction in which the individual appears to be eligible to vote, explain that the individual may cast a provisional ballot at the current location but the ballot will not be counted if it is cast in the wrong precinct, and provide the telephone number of the board of elections in case the individual has additional questions.

(2) If the individual refuses to travel to the polling place for the correct jurisdiction or to the office of the board of elections to cast a ballot, the individual shall be permitted to vote a provisional ballot at that jurisdiction in accordance with division (B) of this section. If any of the following apply, the provisional ballot cast by that individual shall not be opened or counted:

(a) The individual is not properly registered in that jurisdiction.

(b) The individual is not eligible to vote in that election in that jurisdiction.

(c) The individual's eligibility to vote in that jurisdiction in that election cannot be established upon examination of the records on file with the board of elections.

(D) The appropriate local election official shall cause voting information to be publicly posted at each polling place on the day of each election.

(E) As used in this section and sections 3505.182 and 3505.183 of the Revised Code:

(1) "Jurisdiction" means the precinct in which a person is a legally qualified elector.

(2) "Precinct voting location guide" means either of the following:

(a) An electronic or paper record that lists the correct jurisdiction and polling place for either each specific residential street address in the county or the range of residential street addresses located in each neighborhood block in the county;

(b) Any other method that a board of elections creates that allows a precinct election official or any elector who is at a polling place in that county to determine the correct jurisdiction and polling place of any qualified elector who resides in the county.

(3) "Voting information" means all of the following:

(a) A sample version of the ballot that will be used for that election;

(b) Information regarding the date of the election and the hours during which polling places will be open;

(c) Instructions on how to vote, including how to cast a vote and how to cast a provisional ballot;

(d) Instructions for mail-in registrants and first-time voters under applicable federal and state laws;

(e) General information on voting rights under applicable federal and state laws, including information on the right of an individual to cast a provisional ballot and instructions on how to contact the appropriate officials if these rights are alleged to have been violated;

(f) General information on federal and state laws regarding prohibitions against acts of fraud and misrepresentation.

Sec. 3505.182.  Each individual who casts a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code shall execute a written affirmation. The form of the written affirmation shall be printed upon the face of the provisional ballot envelope and shall be substantially as follows:

STATE OF OHIO

I, .................... (Name of provisional voter), solemnly swear or affirm that I am a registered voter in the jurisdiction in which I am voting this provisional ballot and that I am eligible to vote in the election in which I am voting this provisional ballot.

I understand that, if the above-provided information is not fully completed and correct, if the board of elections determines that I am not registered to vote, a resident of this precinct, or eligible to vote in this election, or if the board of elections determines that I have already voted in this election, my provisional ballot will not be counted. I further understand that knowingly providing false information is a violation of law and subjects me to possible criminal prosecution.

I hereby declare, under penalty of election falsification, that the above statements are true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.

WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY OF THE FIFTH DEGREE.

The Provisional Ballot Affirmation printed above was subscribed and affirmed before me this .......... day of .......... (Month), .......... (Year).

(If applicable, the election official must check the following true statement concerning additional information needed to determine the eligibility of the provisional voter.)

...... The provisional voter is required to provide additional information to the board of elections.

...... An application or challenge hearing regarding this voter has been postponed until after the election.

(The election official must check the following true statement concerning identification provided by the provisional voter, if any.)

...... The provisional voter provided a current and valid photo identification.

...... The provisional voter provided a current valid photo identification but with the voter's former address instead of current address and has provided the election official both the current and former addresses.

...... The provisional voter provided a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document with the voter's name and current address.

...... The provisional voter provided the last four digits of the voter's social security number.

...... The provisional voter did not provide a current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document with the voter's name and current address but does have one of these forms of identification. The provisional voter must provide one of the foregoing items of identification to the board of elections within ten days after the election.

..... The provisional voter is not able to provide a current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document with the voter's name and current address. Additionally, the provisional voter does have a social security number but is not able to provide the last four digits of the voter's social security number before voting. The provisional voter must provide one of the foregoing items of identification or the last four digits of the voter's social security number to the board of elections within ten days after the election.

..... The provisional voter does not have a current and valid photo identification, a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document with the voter's name and current address, or a social security number, but has executed an affirmation.

..... The provisional voter did not provide a current and valid photo identification, a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document with the voter's name and current address, or the last four digits of the voter's social security number and did not execute an affirmation. The provisional voter must provide one of the foregoing items of identification or the last four digits of the voter's social security number to the board of elections within ten days after the election.

In addition to any information required to be included on the written affirmation, an individual casting a provisional ballot may provide additional information to the election official to assist the board of elections in determining the individual's eligibility to vote in that election, including the date and location at which the individual registered to vote, if known.

If the individual declines to execute the affirmation, an appropriate local election official shall comply with division (B)(6) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3505.183.  (A) When the ballot boxes are delivered to the board of elections from the precincts, the board shall separate the provisional ballot envelopes from the rest of the ballots. Teams of employees of the board consisting of one member of each major political party shall place the sealed provisional ballot envelopes in a secure location within the office of the board. The sealed provisional ballot envelopes shall remain in that secure location until the validity of those ballots is determined under division (B) of this section. While the provisional ballot is stored in that secure location, and prior to the counting of the provisional ballots, if the board receives information regarding the validity of a specific provisional ballot under division (B) of this section, the board may note, on the sealed provisional ballot envelope for that ballot, whether the ballot is valid and entitled to be counted.

(B)(1) To determine whether a provisional ballot is valid and entitled to be counted, the board shall examine its records and determine whether the individual who cast the provisional ballot is registered and eligible to vote in the applicable election. The board shall examine the information contained in the written affirmation executed by the individual who cast the provisional ballot under division (B)(2) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. If the individual declines to execute such an affirmation, the individual's name, written by either the individual or the election official at the direction of the individual, shall be included in a written affirmation in order for the provisional ballot to be eligible to be counted; otherwise, the following information shall be included in the written affirmation in order for the provisional ballot to be eligible to be counted:

(a) The individual's name and signature;

(b) A statement that the individual is a registered voter in the jurisdiction in which the provisional ballot is being voted;

(c) A statement that the individual is eligible to vote in the election in which the provisional ballot is being voted.

(2) In addition to the information required to be included in an affirmation under division (B)(1) of this section, in determining whether a provisional ballot is valid and entitled to be counted, the board also shall examine any additional information for determining ballot validity provided by the provisional voter on the affirmation, provided by the provisional voter to an election official under section 3505.182 of the Revised Code, or provided to the board of elections during the ten days after the day of the election under division (B)(8) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code, to assist the board in determining the individual's eligibility to vote.

(3) If, in examining a provisional ballot affirmation and additional information under divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section, the board determines that all of the following apply, the provisional ballot envelope shall be opened, and the ballot shall be placed in a ballot box to be counted:

(a) The individual named on the affirmation is properly registered to vote.

(b) The individual named on the affirmation is eligible to cast a ballot in the precinct and for the election in which the individual cast the provisional ballot.

(c) The individual provided all of the information required under division (B)(1) of this section in the affirmation that the individual executed at the time the individual cast the provisional ballot.

(d) If applicable, the individual provided any additional information required under division (B)(8) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code within ten days after the day of the election.

(e) If applicable, the hearing conducted under division (B) of section 3503.24 of the Revised Code after the day of the election resulted in the individual's inclusion in the official registration list.

(4)(a) If, in examining a provisional ballot affirmation and additional information under divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section, the board determines that any of the following applies, the provisional ballot envelope shall not be opened, and the ballot shall not be counted:

(i) The individual named on the affirmation is not qualified or is not properly registered to vote.

(ii) The individual named on the affirmation is not eligible to cast a ballot in the precinct or for the election in which the individual cast the provisional ballot.

(iii) The individual did not provide all of the information required under division (B)(1) of this section in the affirmation that the individual executed at the time the individual cast the provisional ballot.

(iv) The individual has already cast a ballot for the election in which the individual cast the provisional ballot.

(v) If applicable, the individual did not provide any additional information required under division (B)(8) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code within ten days after the day of the election.

(vi) If applicable, the hearing conducted under division (B) of section 3503.24 of the Revised Code after the day of the election did not result in the individual's inclusion in the official registration list.

(vii) The individual failed to provide a current and valid photo identification, a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document with the voter's name and current address, or the last four digits of the individual's social security number or to execute an affirmation under division (A) of section 3505.18 or division (B) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code.

(b) If, in examining a provisional ballot affirmation and additional information under divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section, the board is unable to determine either of the following, the provisional ballot envelope shall not be opened, and the ballot shall not be counted:

(i) Whether the individual named on the affirmation is qualified or properly registered to vote;

(ii) Whether the individual named on the affirmation is eligible to cast a ballot in the precinct or for the election in which the individual cast the provisional ballot.

(C)(1) For each provisional ballot rejected under division (B)(4) of this section, the board shall record the name of the provisional voter who cast the ballot, the identification number of the provisional ballot envelope, the names of the election officials who determined the validity of that ballot, the date and time that the determination was made, and the reason that the ballot was not counted.

(2) Provisional ballots that are rejected under division (B)(4) of this section shall not be counted but shall be preserved in their provisional ballot envelopes unopened until the time provided by section 3505.31 of the Revised Code for the destruction of all other ballots used at the election for which ballots were provided, at which time they shall be destroyed.

(D) Provisional ballots that the board determines are eligible to be counted under division (B)(3) of this section shall be counted in the same manner as provided for other ballots under section 3505.27 of the Revised Code. No provisional ballots shall be counted in a particular county until the board determines the eligibility to be counted of all provisional ballots cast in that county under division (B) of this section for that election. Observers, as provided in section 3505.21 of the Revised Code, may be present at all times that the board is determining the eligibility of provisional ballots to be counted and counting those provisional ballots determined to be eligible. No person shall recklessly disclose the count or any portion of the count of provisional ballots in such a manner as to jeopardize the secrecy of any individual ballot.

(E)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (E)(2) of this section, nothing in this section shall prevent a board of elections from examining provisional ballot affirmations and additional information under divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section to determine the eligibility of provisional ballots to be counted during the ten days after the day of an election.

(2) A board of elections shall not examine the provisional ballot affirmation and additional information under divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section of any provisional ballot for which an election official has indicated under division (B)(7) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code that additional information is required for the board of elections to determine the eligibility of the individual who cast that provisional ballot until the individual provides any information required under division (B)(8) of section 3505.181 of the Revised Code, until any hearing required to be conducted under section 3503.24 of the Revised Code with regard to the provisional voter is held, or until the eleventh day after the day of the election, whichever is earlier.

Sec. 3505.19.  Any person registered as an elector may be challenged by any qualified elector as to his the registered elector's right to vote at any prior to the nineteenth day before the day of an election. Such qualified elector may, at any time during the year, either by appearing in person at the office of the board of elections, or by letter addressed to the board, challenge the right of such registered elector to vote. Any such challenge must state the ground upon which the challenge is made, and must be signed by the challenger giving his the challenger's address and voting precinct. If, after public hearing, of which both the challenger and challenged shall be notified, the board is satisfied, in accordance with division (B) of section 3503.24 of the Revised Code, that the challenge is well taken, the director shall so indicate on the registration cards and he shall so notify in writing the judges and clerks of the precinct. If such challenged person offers to vote at such election he, the challenged person shall be examined as in the case of an original challenge. If such person establishes, to the satisfaction of the judges and clerks, that his the person's disabilities have been removed and that he the person has a right to vote, he the person shall be permitted to vote.

Sec. 3505.20.  Any person offering to vote may be challenged at the polling place by any challenger, any elector then lawfully in the polling place, or by any judge or clerk of elections. If the board of elections has ruled on the question presented by a challenge prior to election day, its finding and decision shall be final, and the presiding judge shall be notified in writing. If the board has not ruled, the question shall be determined as set forth in this section. If any person is so challenged as unqualified to vote, the presiding judge shall tender the person the following oath: "You do swear or affirm under penalty of election falsification that you will fully and truly answer all of the following questions put to you, touching your place of residence and concerning your qualifications as an elector at this election."

(A) If the person is challenged as unqualified on the ground that the person is not a citizen, the judges shall put the following questions:

(1) Are you a citizen of the United States?

(2) Are you a native or naturalized citizen?

(3) Where were you born?

(4) What official documentation do you possess to prove your citizenship? Please provide that documentation.

If the person offering to vote claims to be a naturalized citizen of the United States, the person shall, before the vote is received, either produce for inspection of the judges a certificate of naturalization and declare under oath that the person is the identical person named therein, or state under oath when and where the person was naturalized, that the person has had a certificate of the person's naturalization, and that it is lost, destroyed, or beyond the person's power to produce to the judges in the certificate. If the person states under oath that, by reason of the naturalization of the person's parents or one of them, the person has become a citizen of the United States, and when or where the person's parents were naturalized, the certificate of naturalization need not be produced. If the person is unable to provide a certificate of naturalization on the day of the election, the judges shall provide to the person, and the person may vote, a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. The provisional ballot shall not be counted unless it is properly completed and the board of elections determines that the voter is properly registered and eligible to vote in the election.

(B) If the person is challenged as unqualified on the ground that the person has not resided in this state for thirty days immediately preceding the election, the judges shall put the following questions:

(1) Have you resided in this state for thirty days immediately preceding this election? If so, where have you resided? Name two persons who know of your place of residence.

(2) Have you been absent from this state within the thirty days immediately preceding this election? If yes, then the following questions:

(a) Have you continuously resided outside this state for a period of four years or more?

(b) Did you, while absent, look upon and regard this state as your home?

(c) Did you, while absent, vote in any other state? Did you properly register to vote?

(3) Can you provide some form of identification containing your current mailing address in this precinct? Please provide that identification.

(4) Have you voted or attempted to vote at any other location in this or in any other state at this election?

(5) Have you applied for an absent voter's ballot in any state for this election?

If the judges are unable to verify the person's eligibility to cast a ballot in the election, the judges shall provide to the person, and the person may vote, a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. The provisional ballot shall not be counted unless it is properly completed and the board of elections determines that the voter is properly registered and eligible to vote in the election.

(C) If the person is challenged as unqualified on the ground that the person is not a resident of the county or precinct where he the person offers to vote, the judges shall put the following questions:

(1) Do you now reside in this county?

(2) Do you now reside in this precinct?

(2) When did you move into this precinct?

(3) When you came into this precinct, did you come for a temporary purpose merely or for the purpose of making it your home?

(4) What is your current mailing address?

(5) Do you have some official identification containing your current address in this precinct? Please provide that identification.

(6) Have you voted or attempted to vote at any other location in this or in any other state at this election?

(7) Have you applied for any absent voter's ballot in any state for this election?

The judges shall direct an individual who is not in the appropriate polling place to the appropriate polling place. If the individual refuses to go to the appropriate polling place, or if the judges are unable to verify the person's eligibility to cast a ballot in the election, the judges shall provide to the person, and the person may vote, a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. The provisional ballot shall not be counted unless it is properly completed and the board of elections determines that the voter is properly registered and eligible to vote in the election.

(D) If the person is challenged as unqualified on the ground that the person is not of legal voting age, the judges shall put the following question questions:

(1) Are you eighteen years of age or more to the best of your knowledge and belief?

(2) What is your date of birth?

(3) Do you have some official identification verifying your age? Please provide that identification.

If the judges are unable to verify the person's age and eligibility to cast a ballot in the election, the judges shall provide to the person, and the person may vote, a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. The provisional ballot shall not be counted unless it is properly completed and the board of elections determines that the voter is properly registered and eligible to vote in the election.

The presiding judge shall put such other questions to the person challenged under respective heads designated by this section, as are necessary to test determine the person's qualifications as an elector at the election. If a person challenged refuses to answer fully any question put to the person, is unable to answer the questions as they were answered on the registration form by the person under whose name the person offers to vote, or refuses to sign the person's name or make the person's mark, or if for any other reason a majority of the judges believes the person is not entitled to vote, the judges shall refuse the person a ballot. If a person is disqualified under division (C) of this section because the person does not now reside in the county or precinct, the presiding judge shall inform the person of the person's right to vote in the person's proper county or precinct of residence and instruct the person to contact the appropriate board of elections for information concerning the location of the person's voting precinct provide to the person, and the person may vote, a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. The provisional ballot shall not be counted unless it is properly completed and the board of elections determines that the voter is properly registered and eligible to vote in the election.

A qualified citizen who has certified the citizen's intention to vote for president and vice-president as provided by Chapter 3504. of the Revised Code shall be eligible to receive only the ballot containing presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

The decision of said judges shall be final as to the right of the person challenged to vote at such election.

However, prior to the nineteenth day before the day of an election and in accordance with section 3503.24 of the Revised Code, any person qualified to vote may challenge the right of any other person to be registered as a voter, or the right to cast an absent voter's ballot, or to make application for such ballot. Such challenge shall be made in accordance with section 3503.24 of the Revised Code, and the board of elections of the county in which the voting residence of the challenged voter is situated shall make a final determination relative to the legality of such registration or application.

Sec. 3505.21.  At any primary, special, or general election, any political party supporting candidates to be voted upon at such election and any group of five or more candidates may appoint to the board of elections or to any of the polling places precincts in the county or city one person, a qualified elector, who shall serve as challenger observer for such party or such candidates during the casting of the ballots, and one person, a qualified elector, who shall serve as witness during the counting of the ballots; provided that one such person separate observers may be appointed to serve as both challenger and witness during the casting and during the counting of the ballots. No candidate, no uniformed peace officer as defined by section 2935.01 of the Revised Code, no uniformed state highway patrol trooper, no uniformed member of any fire department, no uniformed member of the armed services, no uniformed member of the organized militia, no person wearing any other uniform, and no person carrying a firearm or other deadly weapon shall serve as a witness or challenger an observer, nor shall any candidate be represented by more than one challenger and one witness observer at any one polling place precinct except that a candidate who is a member of a party controlling committee, as defined in section 3517.03 of the Revised Code, may serve as a witness or challenger an observer. Any political party or group of candidates appointing witnesses or challengers observers shall notify the board of elections of the names and addresses of its appointees and the polling places precincts at which they shall serve. Notification shall take place not less than eleven days before the election on forms prescribed by the secretary of state and may be amended by filing an amendment with the board of elections at any time until four p.m. of the day before the election. The challenger and witness observer serving on behalf of a political party shall be appointed in writing by the chairman chairperson and secretary of the respective controlling party committees committee. Challengers and witnesses Observers serving for any five or more candidates shall have their certificates signed by such those candidates. Challengers and witnesses so Observers appointed to a precinct may file their certificates of appointment with the presiding judge of the precinct at the meeting on the evening prior to the election, or with the presiding judge of the precinct on the day of the election. Witnesses shall not be admitted to the booths before the closing of the polls except for the purpose of filing their certificates. Upon the filing of a certificate, the person named as challenger therein observer in the certificate shall be permitted to be in and about the polling place for the precinct during the casting of the ballots and shall be permitted to watch every proceeding of the judges and clerks of elections from the time of the opening until the closing of the polls. Any such witnesses so appointed The observer also may inspect the counting of the all ballots in the precinct polling place or board of elections from the time of the closing of the polls until the counting is completed and the final returns are certified and signed. Observers appointed to the board of elections under this section may observe at the board of elections and may observe at any precinct in the county. The judges of elections shall protect such challengers and witnesses observers in all of the rights and privileges granted to them by Title XXXV of the Revised Code.

No persons other than the judges and clerks of elections, the witnesses observers, a police officer, other persons who are detailed to any precinct on request of the board of elections, or the secretary of state or his the secretary of state's legal representative shall be admitted to the polling place, or any room in which a board of elections is counting ballots, after the closing of the polls until the counting, certifying, and signing of the final returns of each election have been completed.

Not later than eleven days four p.m. of the twentieth day prior to an election at which questions are to be submitted to a vote of the people, any committee which that in good faith advocates or opposes a measure may file a petition with the board of any county asking that such the petitioners be recognized as the committee entitled to appoint witnesses observers to the count at such the election. If more than one committee alleging themselves to advocate or oppose the same measure file such petitions a petition, the board shall decide and announce by registered mail to each committee not less than three twelve days immediately preceding the election which committee is recognized as being entitled to appoint such witnesses observers. Such The decision shall not be final, but any aggrieved party may institute mandamus proceedings in the court of common pleas of the county wherein such in which the board has jurisdiction to compel the judges of elections to accept the appointees of such aggrieved party. Any such recognized committee may appoint a challenger and a witness an observer to the count in each precinct. Committees appointing witnesses or challengers observers shall notify the board of elections of the names and addresses of its appointees and the polling places precincts at which they shall serve. Notification shall take place not less than eleven days before the election on forms prescribed by the secretary of state and may be amended by filing an amendment with the board of elections at any time until four p.m. on the day before the election. A person so appointed shall file his the person's certificate of appointment with the presiding judge in the precinct in which he the person has been appointed to serve. Witnesses Observers shall file their certificates before the polls are closed. In no case shall more than six such challengers and six witnesses observers be appointed for any one election in any one precinct. If more than three questions are to be voted on, the committees which have appointed challengers and witnesses observers may agree upon not to exceed six challengers and six witnesses observers, and the judges of elections shall appoint such challengers and witnesses observers. If such committees fail to agree, the judges of elections shall appoint six challengers and six witnesses observers from the appointees so certified, in such manner that each side of the several questions shall be represented.

No person shall serve as a witness or challenger an observer at any polling place precinct unless the board of elections of the county in which such witness or challenger observer is to serve has first been notified of the name, address, and polling place precinct at which such witness or challenger observer is to serve. Notification to the board of elections shall be given by the political party, group of candidates, or committee appointing such witness or challenger observer as prescribed in this section. No such challengers and witnesses observers shall receive any compensation from the county, municipal corporation, or township, and they shall take the following oath, to be administered by one of the judges of elections:

"You do solemnly swear that you will faithfully and impartially discharge the duties as an official challenger and witness observer, assigned by law; that you will not cause any delay to persons offering to vote, further than is necessary to procure satisfactory information of their qualification as electors; and that you will not disclose or communicate to any person how any elector has voted at such election."

Sec. 3505.22.  If any precinct officer, challenger, or other elector has reason to believe that a person is impersonating an elector, then such that person, before he is being given a ballot, shall be questioned as to his the person's right to vote, and shall be required to sign his the person's name or make his the person's mark in ink on a card to be provided therefor. If, in the opinion of a majority of the precinct officers, the signature is not that of the person who signed such the name in the registration forms, then such that person may shall be refused permitted to cast a provisional ballot under section 3505.181 of the Revised Code. Such person may appeal to the board of elections and if the board finds that he is eligible to vote, an order instructing the precinct officer to permit him to vote shall be given to such person. Such order shall be recognized by such precinct officers when presented and signed and such person shall be permitted to vote.

Sec. 3505.25.  No judge or clerk of elections, challenger observer, or police officer admitted into the polling rooms at the election, at any time while the polls are open, shall have in his the individual's possession, distribute, or give out any ballot or ticket to any person on any pretense during the receiving, counting, or certifying of the votes, or have any ballot or ticket in his the individual's possession or control, except in the proper discharge of his the individual's official duty in receiving, counting, or canvassing the votes. This section does not prevent the lawful exercise by a judge or clerk of elections, witness, or challenger observer of his the individual right to vote at such election.

Sec. 3505.26.  At the time for closing the polls, the presiding judge shall by proclamation announce that the polls are closed.

The judges and clerks shall then in the presence of witnesses observers proceed as follows:

(A) Count the number of electors who voted, as shown on the pollbooks.;

(B) Count the unused ballots without removing stubs.;

(C) Count the soiled and defaced ballots.;

(D) Insert the totals of (A), (B), and (C) on the report forms provided therefor in the pollbook.;

(E) Count the voted ballots. If the number of voted ballots exceeds the number of voters whose names appear upon the pollbooks, the presiding judge shall enter on the pollbooks an explanation of such that discrepancy, and such that explanation, if agreed to, shall be subscribed to by all of the judges and clerks. Any judge or clerk having a different explanation shall enter it in the pollbooks and subscribe to it.

(F) Put the unused ballots with stubs attached, and soiled and defaced ballots with stubs attached, in the envelopes or containers provided therefor, certify the number, and then proceed to count and tally the votes in the manner prescribed by section 3505.27 of the Revised Code and certify the result of the election to the board of elections.

Sec. 3505.27.  Unless otherwise ordered by the secretary of state or the board of elections, the counting and tallying of ballots shall be conducted according to procedures prescribed by the board of elections that assure an accurate count of all votes cast and that include all of the following:

(A) The counting and tallying of ballots at the appropriate office, as designated by the board, in the full view of members of the board and witnesses observers;

(B) The recording on a worksheet or other appropriate document of the number of votes cast for each candidate and the number of votes cast for and against each question or issue;

(C) The periodic reporting to the public and the office of the secretary of state of the number of votes cast for each candidate and the number of votes cast for and against each question or issue as tallied at the time of the report;

(D) An examination and verification by the appropriate authority, as designated by the board, of the votes so tallied and recorded in the pollbook under section 3505.26 of the Revised Code.

The board shall prescribe additional procedures as necessary to assure an accurate count of all votes cast. These procedures shall be followed until all of the ballots that are required to be counted on the day of the election after the close of the polls have been counted.

All work sheets that are prepared at the polling locations shall be preserved and placed inside the pollbook and returned to the board.

If there is any disagreement as to how a ballot should be counted, it shall be submitted to the members of the board for a decision on whether or to what extent the ballot should be counted. If three of the members do not agree as to how any part of the ballot shall be counted, only that part of such the ballot on which three of the members do agree shall be counted. A notation shall be made upon the ballot indicating what part has not been counted, and the ballot shall be placed in an envelope marked "Disputed Ballots."

Sec. 3505.32.  (A) Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, not earlier than the eleventh day or later than the fifteenth day after a general or special election or, if a special election was held on the day of a presidential primary election, not earlier than the twenty-first day or later than the twenty-fifth day after the special election, the board of elections shall begin to canvass the election returns from the precincts in which electors were entitled to vote at that election. It shall continue the canvass daily until it is completed and the results of the voting in that election in each of the precincts are determined.

The board shall complete the canvass not later than the date set by the secretary of state under division (U) of section 3501.05 of the Revised Code twenty-first day after the day of the election, or if a special election was held on the day of a presidential primary election, not later than the thirty-first day after the day of the special election. Sixty Eighty-one days after the date set by day of the secretary of state for the completion of the canvass election, or ninety-one days after the day of a special election held on the day of the presidential primary election, the canvass of election returns shall be deemed final, and no amendments to the canvass may be made after that date. The secretary of state may specify an earlier date upon which the canvass of election returns shall be deemed final, and after which amendments to the final canvass may not be made, if so required by federal law.

(B) The county executive committee of each political party, each committee designated in a petition nominating an independent or nonpartisan candidate for election at an election, each committee designated in a petition to represent the petitioners pursuant to which a question or issue was submitted at an election, and any committee opposing a question or issue submitted at an election that was permitted by section 3505.21 of the Revised Code to have a qualified elector serve as a witness an observer during the counting of the ballots at each polling place at an election may designate a qualified elector who may be present and may witness observe the making of the official canvass.

(C) The board shall first open all envelopes containing uncounted ballots and shall count and tally them.

In connection with its investigation of any apparent or suspected error or defect in the election returns from a polling place, the board may cause subpoenas to be issued and served requiring the attendance before it of the election officials of that polling place, and it may examine them under oath regarding the manner in which the votes were cast and counted in that polling place, or the manner in which the returns were prepared and certified, or as to any other matters bearing upon the voting and the counting of the votes in that polling place at that election.

Finally, the board shall open the sealed container containing the ballots that were counted in the polling place at the election and count those ballots, during the official canvass, in the presence of all of the members of the board and any other persons who are entitled to witness the official canvass.

(D) Prior to the tenth day after a primary, general, or special election, the board may examine the pollbooks, poll lists, and tally sheets received from each polling place for its files and may compare the results of the voting in any polling place with the summary statement received from the polling place. If the board finds that any of these records or any portion of them is missing, or that they are incomplete, not properly certified, or ambiguous, or that the results of the voting in the polling place as shown on the summary statement from the polling place are different from the results of the voting in the polling place as shown by the pollbook, poll list, or tally sheet from the polling place, or that there is any other defect in the records, the board may make whatever changes to the pollbook, poll list, or tally sheet it determines to be proper in order to correct the errors or defects.

Sec. 3506.01.  As used in this chapter and Chapters 3501., 3503., 3505., 3509., 3511., 3513., 3515., 3517., 3519., 3521., 3523., and 3599. of the Revised Code:

(A) "Marking device" means an apparatus operated by a voter to record the voter's choices through the piercing or marking of ballots enabling them to be examined and counted by automatic tabulating equipment.

(B) "Ballot" means the official election presentation of offices and candidates, including write-in candidates, and of questions and issues, and the means by which votes are recorded.

(C) "Automatic tabulating equipment" means a machine or electronic device, or interconnected or interrelated machines or electronic devices, that will automatically examine and count votes recorded on ballots.

(D) "Central counting station" means a location, or one of a number of locations, designated by the board of elections for the automatic examining, sorting, or counting of ballots.

(E) "Voting machines" means mechanical or electronic equipment for the direct recording and tabulation of votes.

(F) "Direct recording electronic voting machine" means a voting machine that records votes by means of a ballot display provided with mechanical or electro-optical components that can be actuated by the voter, that processes the data by means of a computer program, and that records voting data and ballot images in internal or external memory components. A "direct recording electronic voting machine" produces a tabulation of the voting data stored in a removable memory component and in printed copy.

(G) "Help America Vote Act of 2002" means the "Help America Vote Act of 2002," Public Law Pub. L. No. 107-252, 116 Stat. 1666.

(H) "Voter verified paper audit trail" means a physical paper printout on which the voter's ballot choices, as registered by a direct recording electronic voting machine, are recorded. The voter shall be permitted to visually or audibly inspect the contents of the physical paper printout. The physical paper printout shall be securely retained at the polling place until the close of the polls on the day of the election; the secretary of state shall adopt rules under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code specifying the manner of storing the physical paper printout at the polling place. After the physical paper printout is produced, but before the voter's ballot is recorded, the voter shall have an opportunity to accept or reject the contents of the printout as matching the voter's ballot choices. If a voter rejects the contents of the physical paper printout, the system that produces the voter verified paper audit trail shall invalidate the printout and permit the voter to recast the voter's ballot. On and after the first federal election that occurs after January 1, 2006, unless required sooner by the Help America Vote Act of 2002, any system that produces a voter verified paper audit trail shall be accessible to disabled voters, including visually impaired voters, in the same manner as the direct recording electronic voting machine that produces it.

Sec. 3506.05.  (A) As used in this section, except when used as part of the phrase "tabulating equipment" or "automatic tabulating equipment":

(1) "Equipment" means a voting machine, marking device, automatic tabulating equipment, or software.

(2) "Vendor" means the person that owns, manufactures, distributes, or has the legal right to control the use of equipment, or the person's agent.

(B) No voting machine, marking device, automatic tabulating equipment, or software for the purpose of casting or tabulating votes or for communications among systems involved in the tabulation, storage, or casting of votes shall be purchased, leased, put in use, or continued to be used, except for experimental use as provided in division (B) of section 3506.04 of the Revised Code, unless it, a manual of procedures governing its use, and training materials, service, and other support arrangements have been certified by the secretary of state and unless the board of elections of each county where the equipment will be used has assured that a demonstration of the use of the equipment has been made available to all interested electors. The secretary of state shall appoint a board of voting machine examiners to examine and approve equipment and its related manuals and support arrangements. The board shall consist of one competent and experienced election officer and two persons who are knowledgeable about the operation of such equipment, who shall serve during the secretary of state's term.

For the member's service, each member of the board shall receive three hundred dollars per day for each combination of marking device, tabulating equipment, and voting machine examined and reported, but in no event shall a member receive more than six hundred dollars to examine and report on any one marking device, item of tabulating equipment, or voting machine. Each member of the board shall be reimbursed for expenses the member incurs during an examination or during the performance of any related duties that may be required by the secretary of state. Reimbursement of these expenses shall be made in accordance with, and shall not exceed, the rates provided for under section 126.31 of the Revised Code.

Neither the secretary of state nor the board, nor any public officer who participates in the authorization, examination, testing, or purchase of equipment, shall have any pecuniary interest in the equipment or any affiliation with the vendor.

(C)(1) A vendor who desires to have the secretary of state certify equipment shall first submit the equipment, all current related procedural manuals, and a current description of all related support arrangements to the board of voting machine examiners for examination, testing, and approval. The submission shall be accompanied by a fee of eighteen hundred dollars and a detailed explanation of the construction and method of operation of the equipment, a full statement of its advantages, and a list of the patents and copyrights used in operations essential to the processes of vote recording and tabulating, vote storage, system security, and other crucial operations of the equipment as may be determined by the board. An additional fee, in an amount to be set by rules promulgated by the board, may be imposed to pay for the costs of alternative testing or testing by persons other than board members, record-keeping, and other extraordinary costs incurred in the examination process. Moneys not used shall be returned to the person or entity submitting the equipment for examination.

(2) Fees collected by the secretary of state under this section shall be deposited into the state treasury to the credit of the board of voting machine examiners fund, which is hereby created. All moneys credited to this fund shall be used solely for the purpose of paying for the services and expenses of each member of the board or for other expenses incurred relating to the examination, testing, reporting, or certification of voting machine devices, the performance of any related duties as required by the secretary of state, or the reimbursement of any person submitting an examination fee as provided in this chapter.

(D) Within sixty days after the submission of the equipment and payment of the fee, or as soon thereafter as is reasonably practicable, but in any event within not more than ninety days after the submission and payment, the board of voting machine examiners shall examine the equipment and file with the secretary of state a written report on the equipment with its recommendations and its determination or condition of approval regarding whether the equipment, manual, and other related materials or arrangements meet the criteria set forth in sections 3506.07 and 3506.10 of the Revised Code and can be safely used by the voters at elections under the conditions prescribed in Title XXXV of the Revised Code, or a written statement of reasons for which testing requires a longer period. The board may grant temporary approval for the purpose of allowing experimental use of equipment. If the board finds that the equipment meets the criteria set forth in sections 3506.06, 3506.07, and 3506.10 of the Revised Code, can be used safely and can be depended upon to record and count accurately and continuously the votes of electors, and has the capacity to be warranted, maintained, and serviced, it shall approve the equipment and recommend that the secretary of state certify the equipment. The secretary of state shall notify all boards of elections of any such certification. Equipment of the same model and make, if it provides for recording of voter intent, system security, voter privacy, retention of vote, and communication of voting records in an identical manner, may then be adopted for use at elections.

(E) The vendor shall notify the secretary of state, who shall then notify the board of voting machine examiners, of any enhancement and any significant adjustment to the hardware or software that could result in a patent or copyright change or that significantly alters the methods of recording voter intent, system security, voter privacy, retention of the vote, communication of voting records, and connections between the system and other systems. The vendor shall provide the secretary of state with an updated operations manual for the equipment, and the secretary of state shall forward the manual to the board. Upon receiving such a notification and manual, the board may require the vendor to submit the equipment to an examination and test in order for the equipment to remain certified. The board or the secretary of state shall periodically examine, test, and inspect certified equipment to determine continued compliance with the requirements of this chapter and the initial certification. Any examination, test, or inspection conducted for the purpose of continuing certification of any equipment in which a significant problem has been uncovered or in which a record of continuing problems exists shall be performed pursuant to divisions (C) and (D) of this section, in the same manner as the examination, test, or inspection is performed for initial approval and certification.

(F) If, at any time after the certification of equipment, the board of voting machine examiners or the secretary of state is notified by a board of elections of any significant problem with the equipment or determines that the equipment fails to meet the requirements necessary for approval or continued compliance with the requirements of this chapter, or if the board of voting machine examiners determines that there are significant enhancements or adjustments to the hardware or software, or if notice of such enhancements or adjustments has not been given as required by division (E) of this section, the secretary of state shall notify the users and vendors of that equipment that certification of the equipment may be withdrawn.

(G)(1) The notice given by the secretary of state under division (F) of this section shall be in writing and shall specify both of the following:

(a) The reasons why the certification may be withdrawn;

(b) The date on which certification will be withdrawn unless the vendor takes satisfactory corrective measures or explains why there are no problems with the equipment or why the enhancements or adjustments to the equipment are not significant.

(2) A vendor who receives a notice under division (F) of this section shall, within thirty days after receiving it, submit to the board of voting machine examiners in writing a description of the corrective measures taken and the date on which they were taken, or the explanation required under division (G)(1)(b) of this section.

(3) Not later than fifteen days after receiving a written description or explanation under division (G)(2) of this section from a vendor, the board shall determine whether the corrective measures taken or the explanation is satisfactory to allow continued certification of the equipment, and the secretary of state shall send the vendor a written notice of the board's determination, specifying the reasons for it. If the board has determined that the measures taken or the explanation given is unsatisfactory, the notice shall include the effective date of withdrawal of the certification. This date may be different from the date originally specified in division (G)(1)(b) of this section.

(4) A vendor who receives a notice under division (G)(3) of this section indicating a decision to withdraw certification may, within thirty days after receiving it, request in writing that the board hold a hearing to reconsider its decision. Any interested party shall be given the opportunity to submit testimony or documentation in support of or in opposition to the board's recommendation to withdraw certification. Failure of the vendor to take appropriate steps as described in division (G)(1)(b) or to comply with division (G)(2) of this section results in a waiver of the vendor's rights under division (G)(4) of this section.

(H)(1) The secretary of state, in consultation with the board of voting machine examiners, shall establish, by rule, guidelines for the approval, certification, and continued certification of the voting machines, marking devices, and tabulating equipment to be used under Title XXXV of the Revised Code. The guidelines shall establish procedures requiring vendors or computer software developers to place in escrow with an independent escrow agent approved by the secretary of state a copy of all source code and related documentation, together with periodic updates as they become known or available. The secretary of state shall require that the documentation include a system configuration and that the source code include all relevant program statements in low- or high-level languages. As used in this division, "source code" does not include variable codes created for specific elections.

(2) Nothing in any rule adopted under division (H) of this section shall be construed to limit the ability of the secretary of state to follow or adopt, or to preclude the secretary of state from following or adopting, any guidelines proposed by the federal election commission, any entity authorized by the federal election commission to propose guidelines, the election assistance commission, or any entity authorized by the election assistance commission to propose guidelines.

(3)(a) Before the initial certification of any direct recording electronic voting machine with a voter verified paper audit trail, and as a condition for the continued certification and use of those machines, the secretary of state shall establish, by rule, standards for the certification of those machines. Those standards shall include, but are not limited to, all of the following:

(i) A definition of a voter verified paper audit trail as a paper record of the voter's choices that is verified by the voter prior to the casting of the voter's ballot and that is securely retained by the board of elections;

(ii) Requirements that the voter verified paper audit trail shall not be retained by any voter and shall not contain individual voter information;

(iii) A prohibition against the production by any direct recording electronic voting machine of anything that legally could be removed by the voter from the polling place, such as a receipt or voter confirmation;

(iv) A requirement that paper used in producing a voter verified paper audit trail be sturdy, clean, and resistant to degradation.;

(v) A requirement that the voter verified paper audit trail shall be capable of being optically scanned for the purpose of conducting a recount or other audit of the voting machine and shall be readable in a manner that makes the voter's ballot choices obvious to the voter without the use of computer or electronic codes;

(vi) A requirement, for office-type ballots, that the voter verified paper audit trail include the name of each candidate selected by the voter;

(vii) A requirement, for questions and issues ballots, that the voter verified paper audit trail include the title of the question or issue, the name of the entity that placed the question or issue on the ballot, and the voter's ballot selection on that question or issue, but not the entire text of the question or issue.

(b) The secretary of state, by rule adopted under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, may waive the requirement under division (H)(3)(a)(v) of this section, if the secretary of state determines that the requirement is cost prohibitive.

Sec. 3506.12.  In counties where marking devices, automatic tabulating equipment, voting machines, or any combination of these are in use or are to be used, the board of elections:

(A) May combine, rearrange, and enlarge precincts; but the board shall arrange for a sufficient number of these devices to accommodate the number of electors in each precinct as determined by the number of votes cast in that precinct at the most recent election for the office of governor, taking into consideration the size and location of each selected polling place, available parking, handicap accessibility and other accessibility to the polling place, and the number of candidates and issues to be voted on. Notwithstanding section 3501.22 of the Revised Code, the board may appoint more than four precinct officers to each precinct if this is made necessary by the number of voting machines to be used in that precinct.

(B) Except as otherwise provided in this division, shall establish one or more counting stations to receive voted ballots and other precinct election supplies after the polling precincts are closed. Those stations shall be under the supervision and direction of the board of elections. Processing and counting of voted ballots, and the preparation of summary sheets, shall be done in the presence of witnesses observers approved by the board. A certified copy of the summary sheet for the precinct shall be posted at each counting station immediately after completion of the summary sheet.

In counties where punch card ballots are used, one or more counting stations, located at the board of elections, shall be established, at which location all punch card ballots shall be counted.

As used in this division, "punch card ballot" has the same meaning as in section 3506.16 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3506.13.  In precincts where marking devices, automatic tabulating equipment, voting machines, or any combination of these are used, challengers and witnesses observers may be appointed as prescribed in section 3505.21 of the Revised Code. The duties and privileges of challengers observers in such precincts during the hours the polls are open, shall be as provided in section 3505.21 of the Revised Code.

Challengers Observers shall be allowed to remain in the polling place after the polls close and may observe the processing of the ballots and the sealing and signing of the envelopes or containers or both containing the voted ballots.

Witnesses shall not be allowed in the polling place, but shall file their certificates of appointment at the proper counting station after the polls close, and may observe all functions there.

Sec. 3506.18.  (A) For any recount of an election in which ballots are cast using a direct recording electronic voting machine with a voter verified paper audit trail, the voter verified paper audit trail shall serve as the official ballot to be recounted.

(B) Voter verified paper audit trails shall be preserved in the same manner and for the same time period as paper ballots are preserved under section 3505.31 of the Revised Code.

(C) A voter verified paper audit trail shall be treated as are other ballots for purposes of section 149.43 of the Revised Code and shall be retained in accordance with the county records retention schedule established under section 149.38 of the Revised Code after the relevant time period prescribed for its preservation in section 3505.31 of the Revised Code, or as ordered by the secretary of state or a court of competent jurisdiction.

(D) If a voter verified paper audit trail is made available to the public, any information on that voter verified paper audit trail that identifies the particular direct recording electronic voting machine that produced it shall be redacted.

Sec. 3506.20.  (A) As used in this section, "ballots on demand voting system" means a system that utilizes ballots printed as needed by election officials at the board of elections for distribution to electors, either in person or by mail.

(B) No board of elections shall use a ballots on demand voting system unless each ballot printed by the system includes a tracking number.

Sec. 3506.21. (A) As used in this section, "optical scan ballot" means a ballot that is marked by using a specified writing instrument to fill in a designated position to record a voter's candidate, question, or issue choice and that can be scanned and electronically read in order to tabulate the vote.

(B)(1) In addition to marks that can be scanned and electronically read by automatic tabulating equipment, any of the following marks, if a majority of those marks are made in a consistent manner throughout an optical scan ballot, shall be counted as a valid vote:

(a) A candidate, question, or issue choice that has been circled by the voter;

(b) An oval beside the candidate, question, or issue choice that has been circled by the voter;

(c) An oval beside the candidate, question, or issue choice that has been marked by the voter with an "x," a check mark, or other recognizable mark;

(d) A candidate, question, or issue choice that has been marked with a writing instrument that cannot be recognized by automatic tabulating equipment.

(2) Marks made on an optical scan ballot in accordance with division (B)(1) of this section shall be counted as valid votes only if that optical scan ballot contains no marks that can be scanned and electronically read by automatic tabulating equipment.

(C) The secretary of state may adopt rules under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to authorize additional types of optical scan ballots and to specify the types of marks on those ballots that shall be counted as a valid vote to ensure consistency in the counting of ballots throughout the state.

Sec. 3506.22. (A) Beginning in the year 2013 and thereafter, a county that selects direct recording electronic voting machines as the primary voting system to be used in the county and not only for accessibility for individuals with disabilities as required under the Help America Vote Act of 2002 and section 3506.19 of the Revised Code shall acquire, if needed, sufficient direct recording electronic voting machines to meet the minimum number of direct recording electronic voting machines required to be established by the secretary of state under division (B) of this section.

(B) Beginning in the year 2013 and every eight years thereafter, the secretary of state shall establish, for each county, a minimum number of direct recording electronic voting machines that the county shall be required to have if it elects to use direct recording electronic voting machines as the primary voting system in the county. The minimum number for each county shall be calculated as follows:

(1) The total number of registered voters in the county as of the October deadline for voter registration for the last presidential election or the average of the total number of registered voters in the county as of the October deadline for voter registration for the last two presidential elections, whichever number is higher, shall be determined.

(2) The number resulting from the determination under division (B)(1) of this section shall be divided by one hundred seventy-five.

(3) Any fraction resulting from the calculation under division (B)(2) of this section shall be rounded up to the next whole number.

(C) A county that selects direct recording electronic voting machines as the primary voting system to be used in the county and not only for accessibility for individuals with disabilities as required under the Help America Vote Act of 2002 and section 3506.19 of the Revised Code after the effective date of this section but before the year 2013 shall do so in accordance with Section 514.03 of Am. Sub. H.B. 66 of the 126th general assembly.

Sec. 3506.23. A voting machine shall not be connected to the internet.

Sec. 3509.02.  (A) Any qualified elector may vote by absent voter's ballots at an election.

(B) Any qualified elector who is unable to appear at the office of the board of elections or other location designated by the board or, if pursuant to division (C) of section 3501.10 of the Revised Code the board has designated another location in the county at which registered electors may vote, at that other location on account of personal illness, physical disability, or infirmity, and who moves from one precinct to another within a county, changes the elector's name and moves from one precinct to another within a county, or moves from one county to another county within the state, on or prior to the day of a general, primary, or special election and has not filed a notice of change of residence or change of name may vote by absent voter's ballots in that election as specified in division (G) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3509.06.  (A) The board of elections shall determine whether absent voter's ballots shall be counted in each precinct, at the office of the board, or at some other location designated by the board, and shall proceed accordingly under division (B) or (C) of this section.

(B) When the board of elections determines that absent voter's ballots shall be counted in each precinct, the director shall deliver to the presiding judge of each precinct on election day identification envelopes purporting to contain absent voter's ballots of electors whose voting residence appears from the statement of voter on the outside of each of those envelopes, to be located in such presiding judge's precinct, and which were received by the director not later than the close of the polls on election day. The director shall deliver to such presiding judge a list containing the name and voting residence of each person whose voting residence is in such precinct to whom absent voter's ballots were mailed.

(C) When the board of elections determines that absent voter's ballots shall be counted at the office of the board of elections or at another location designated by the board, special election judges shall be appointed by the board for that purpose having the same authority as is exercised by precinct judges. The votes so cast shall be added to the vote totals by the board, and the absent voter's ballots shall be preserved separately by the board, in the same manner and for the same length of time as provided by section 3505.31 of the Revised Code.

(D) Each of the identification envelopes purporting to contain absent voter's ballots delivered to the presiding judge of the precinct or the special judge appointed by the board of elections shall be handled as follows: The election officials shall compare the signature of the elector on the outside of the identification envelope with the signature of that elector on the elector's registration form and verify that the absent voter's ballot is eligible to be counted under section 3509.07 of the Revised Code. Any of the precinct officials may challenge the right of the elector named on the identification envelope to vote the absent voter's ballots upon the ground that the signature on the envelope is not the same as the signature on the registration form, or upon any other of the grounds upon which the right of persons to vote may be lawfully challenged. If no such challenge is made, or if such a challenge is made and not sustained, the presiding judge shall open the envelope without defacing the statement of voter and without mutilating the ballots in it, and shall remove the ballots contained in it and proceed to count them.

The name of each person voting who is entitled to vote only an absent voter's presidential ballot shall be entered in a pollbook or poll list or signature pollbook followed by the words "Absentee Presidential Ballot." The name of each person voting an absent voter's ballot, other than such persons entitled to vote only a presidential ballot, shall be entered in the pollbook or poll list or signature pollbook and the person's registration card marked to indicate that the person has voted.

The date of such election shall also be entered on the elector's registration form. If any such challenge is made and sustained, the identification envelope of such elector shall not be opened, shall be endorsed "Not Counted" with the reasons the ballots were not counted, and shall be delivered to the board.

(E) Special election judges or, employees or members of the board of elections, or observers shall not disclose the count or any portion of the count of absent voter's ballots prior to the time of the closing of the polling places. No person shall recklessly disclose the count or any portion of the count of absent voter's ballots in such a manner as to jeopardize the secrecy of any individual ballot.

(F) Observers may be appointed under section 3505.21 of the Revised Code to witness the examination and opening of identification envelopes and the counting of absent voters' ballots under this section.

Sec. 3509.08.  (A) Any qualified elector, who, on account of the elector's own personal illness, physical disability, or infirmity, or on account of the elector's confinement in a jail or workhouse under sentence for a misdemeanor or awaiting trial on a felony or misdemeanor, will be unable to travel from the elector's home or place of confinement to the voting booth in the elector's precinct on the day of any general, special, or primary election may make application in writing for an absent voter's ballot to the director of the board of elections of the elector's county. The application shall include all of the information required under section 3509.03 of the Revised Code and shall state the nature of the elector's illness, physical disability, or infirmity, or the fact that the elector is confined in a jail or workhouse and the elector's resultant inability to travel to the election booth in the elector's precinct on election day. The application shall not be valid if it is delivered to the director before the ninetieth day or after twelve noon of the third day before the day of the election at which the ballot is to be voted.

The absent voter's ballot may be mailed directly to the applicant at the applicant's voting residence or place of confinement as stated in the applicant's application, or the board may designate two board employees belonging to the two major political parties for the purpose of delivering the ballot to the disabled or confined elector and returning it to the board, unless the applicant is confined to a public or private institution within the county, in which case the board shall designate two such board employees belonging to the two major political parties for the purpose of delivering the ballot to the disabled or confined elector and returning it to the board. In all other instances, the ballot shall be returned to the office of the board in the manner prescribed in section 3509.05 of the Revised Code.

Any disabled or confined elector who declares to the two board employees belonging to the two major political parties that the elector is unable to mark the elector's ballot by reason of physical infirmity that is apparent to the employees to be sufficient to incapacitate the voter from marking the elector's ballot properly, may receive, upon request, the assistance of the two employees in marking the elector's ballot, and they shall thereafter give no information in regard to this matter. Such assistance shall not be rendered for any other cause.

When two board employees belonging to the two major political parties deliver a ballot to a disabled or confined elector, each of the employees shall be present when the ballot is delivered, when assistance is given, and when the ballot is returned to the office of the board, and shall subscribe to the declaration on the identification envelope.

The secretary of state shall prescribe the form of application for absent voter's ballots under this division.

This chapter applies to disabled and confined absent voter's ballots except as otherwise provided in this section.

(B)(1) Any qualified elector who is unable to travel to the voting booth in the elector's precinct on the day of any general, special, or primary election because of being confined in a hospital as a result of an accident or unforeseeable medical emergency occurring before the election, may apply to the director of the board of elections of the county where the elector is a qualified elector to vote in the election by absent voter's ballot. This application shall be made in writing, shall include all of the information required under section 3509.03 of the Revised Code, and shall be delivered to the director not later than three p.m. on the day of the election. The application shall indicate the hospital where the applicant is confined, the date of the applicant's admission to the hospital, and the offices for which the applicant is qualified to vote. The applicant may also request that a member of the applicant's family, as listed in section 3509.05 of the Revised Code, deliver the absent voter's ballot to the applicant. The director, after establishing to the director's satisfaction the validity of the circumstances claimed by the applicant, shall supply an absent voter's ballot to be delivered to the applicant. When the applicant is in a hospital in the county where the applicant is a qualified elector and no request is made for a member of the family to deliver the ballot, the director shall arrange for the delivery of an absent voter's ballot to the applicant, and for its return to the office of the board, by two board employees belonging to the two major political parties according to the procedures prescribed in division (A) of this section. When the applicant is in a hospital outside the county where the applicant is a qualified elector and no request is made for a member of the family to deliver the ballot, the director shall arrange for the delivery of an absent voter's ballot to the applicant by mail, and the ballot shall be returned to the office of the board in the manner prescribed in section 3509.05 of the Revised Code.

(2) Any qualified elector who is eligible to vote under division (B) or (C) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code but is unable to do so because of the circumstances described in division (B)(1) of this section may vote in accordance with division (B)(1) of this section if that qualified elector states in the application for absent voter's ballots that that qualified elector moved or had a change of name under the circumstances described in division (B) or (C) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code and if that qualified elector complies with divisions (G)(1) to (4) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code.

(C) Any qualified elector described in division (A) or (B)(1) of this section who needs no assistance to vote or to return absent voter's ballots to the board of elections may apply for absent voter's ballots under section 3509.03 of the Revised Code instead of applying for them under this section.

Sec. 3509.09.  (A) The poll list or signature pollbook for each precinct shall identify each registered elector in that precinct who has requested an absent voter's ballot for that election.

(B)(1) If a registered elector appears to vote in that precinct and that elector has requested an absent voter's ballot for that election but the director has not received a sealed identification envelope purporting to contain that elector's voted absent voter's ballots for that election, the elector shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of under section 3503.16 3505.181 of the Revised Code, in that precinct on the day of that election.

(2) If a registered elector appears to vote in that precinct and that elector has requested an absent voter's ballot for that election and the director has received a sealed identification envelope purporting to contain that elector's voted absent voter's ballots for that election, the elector shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of under section 3503.16 3505.181 of the Revised Code, in that precinct on the day of that election.

(C)(1) In counting absent voter's ballots under section 3509.06 of the Revised Code, the board of elections or the precinct election officials shall compare the poll list or the signature pollbook for each precinct with the name of each elector in that precinct from whom the director has received a sealed identification envelope purporting to contain that elector's voted absent voter's ballots for that election. Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(2) of this section, if the board of elections determines that an elector who cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code, in the precinct on the day of the election also returned a sealed identification envelope for that election, the absent voter's ballot in the sealed identification envelope shall be counted, and the provisional ballot cast in the precinct on the day of the election shall not be counted.

(2) The board of elections shall count the provisional ballot cast in the precinct on the day of the election, instead of the absent voter's ballot in the returned sealed identification envelope of an elector, if both of the following apply:

(a) The board of elections determines that the signature of the elector on the outside of the identification envelope in which the absent voter's ballots are enclosed does not match the signature of the elector on the elector's registration form;

(b) The elector cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code, in the precinct on the day of the election.

If the board of elections counts the a provisional ballot cast in the precinct on the day of the election under this division, the identification envelope of that elector shall not be opened, and the ballot within that envelope shall not be counted. The identification envelope shall be endorsed "Not Counted" with the reason the ballot was not counted.

Sec. 3511.13. (A) The poll list or signature pollbook for each precinct shall identify each registered elector in that precinct who has requested an armed services service absent voter's ballot for that election;.

(B)(1) If a registered elector appears to vote in that precinct and that elector has requested an armed service absent voter's ballot for that election but the director has not received a sealed identification envelope purporting to contain that elector's voted armed service absent voter's ballots for that election, the elector shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of under section 3503.16 3505.181 of the Revised Code, in that precinct on the day of that election.

(2) If a registered elector appears to vote in that precinct and that elector has requested an armed service absent voter's ballot for that election and the director has received a sealed identification envelope purporting to contain that elector's voted armed service absent voter's ballots for that election, the elector shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of under section 3503.16 3505.181 of the Revised Code, in that precinct on the day of that election.

(C)(1) In counting armed service absent voter's ballots under section 3511.11 of the Revised Code, the board of elections or the precinct election officials shall compare the poll list or the signature pollbook for each precinct with the name of each elector in that precinct from whom the director has received a sealed identification envelope purporting to contain that elector's voted armed service absent voter's ballots for that election. Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(2) of this section, if the board of elections determines that an elector who cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code, in the precinct on the day of the election also returned a sealed identification envelope for that election, the armed service absent voter's ballot in the sealed identification envelope shall be counted, and the provisional ballot cast in the precinct on the day of the election shall not be counted.

(2) The board of elections shall count the provisional ballot cast in the precinct on the day of the election, instead of the armed service absent voter's ballot, of an elector from whom the director has received an identification envelope purporting to contain that elector's voted armed service absent voter's ballots, if both of the following apply:

(a) The board of elections determines that the signature of the elector on the outside of the identification envelope in which the armed service absent voter's ballots are enclosed does not match the signature of the elector on the elector's registration form;

(b) The elector cast a provisional ballot, generally in the manner prescribed in division (B) of section 3503.16 of the Revised Code, in the precinct on the day of the election.

If the board of elections counts the a provisional ballot cast in the precinct on the day of the election under this division, the identification envelope of that elector shall not be opened, and the ballot within that envelope shall not be counted. The identification envelope shall be endorsed "Not Counted" with the reason the ballot was not counted.

Sec. 3513.04.  Candidates for party nominations to state, district, county, and municipal offices or positions, for which party nominations are provided by law, and for election as members of party controlling committees shall have their names printed on the official primary ballot by filing a declaration of candidacy and paying the fees specified for the office under divisions (A) and (B) of section 3513.10 of the Revised Code, except that the joint candidates for party nomination to the offices of governor and lieutenant governor shall, for the two of them, file one declaration of candidacy. The joint candidates also shall pay the fees specified for the joint candidates under divisions (A) and (B) of section 3513.10 of the Revised Code.

The secretary of state shall not accept for filing the declaration of candidacy of a candidate for party nomination to the office of governor unless the declaration of candidacy also shows a joint candidate for the same party's nomination to the office of lieutenant governor, shall not accept for filing the declaration of candidacy of a candidate for party nomination to the office of lieutenant governor unless the declaration of candidacy also shows a joint candidate for the same party's nomination to the office of governor, and shall not accept for filing a declaration of candidacy that shows a candidate for party nomination to the office of governor or lieutenant governor who, for the same election, has already filed a declaration of candidacy or a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or has become a candidate by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code for any other state office or any federal or federal or county office.

No person who seeks party nomination for an office or position at a primary election by declaration of candidacy or by declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate and no person who is a first choice for president of candidates seeking election as delegates and alternates to the national conventions of the different major political parties who are chosen by direct vote of the electors as provided in this chapter shall be permitted to become a candidate by nominating petition or by declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate at the following general election for any office other than the office of member of the state board of education, office of member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, office of member of a governing board of an educational service center, or office of township trustee.

Sec. 3513.041.  A write-in space shall be provided on the ballot for every office, except in an election for which the board of elections has received no valid declarations of intent to be a write-in candidate under this section. Write-in votes shall not be counted for any candidate who has not filed a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate pursuant to this section. A qualified person who has filed a declaration of intent may receive write-in votes at either a primary or general election. Any candidate shall file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate before four p.m. of the fiftieth sixty-second day preceding the election at which such candidacy is to be considered. If the election is to be determined by electors of a county or a district or subdivision within the county, such declaration shall be filed with the board of elections of that county. If the election is to be determined by electors of a subdivision located in more than one county, such declaration shall be filed with the board of elections of the county in which the major portion of the population of such subdivision is located. If the election is to be determined by electors of a district comprised of more than one county but less than all of the counties of the state, such declaration shall be filed with the board of elections of the most populous county in such district. Any candidate for an office to be voted upon by electors throughout the entire state shall file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate with the secretary of state before four p.m. of the fiftieth sixty-second day preceding the election at which such candidacy is to be considered. In addition, candidates for president and vice-president of the United States shall also file with the secretary of state by said fiftieth that sixty-second day a slate of presidential electors sufficient in number to satisfy the requirements of the United States constitution.

A board of elections shall not accept for filing the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate of a person seeking to become a candidate if that person, for the same election, has already filed a declaration of candidacy, a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or a nominating petition, or has become a candidate through party nomination at a primary election or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 or 3513.31 of the Revised Code, for any federal, federal, state,, or county office, if the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate is for a state or county office, or for any municipal or township office, for member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, or for member of a governing board of an educational service center, if the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate is for a municipal or township office, or for member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, or for member of a governing board of an educational service center.

No person shall file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for the office of governor unless the declaration also shows the intent of another person to be a write-in candidate for the office of lieutenant governor. No person shall file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for the office of lieutenant governor unless the declaration also shows the intent of another person to be a write-in candidate for the office of governor. No person shall file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for the office of governor or lieutenant governor if the person has previously filed a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate to the office of governor or lieutenant governor at the same primary or general election. A write-in vote for the two candidates who file such a declaration shall be counted as a vote for them as joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor.

The secretary of state shall not accept for filing the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate of a person for the office of governor unless the declaration also shows the intent of another person to be a write-in candidate for the office of lieutenant governor, shall not accept for filing the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate of a person for the office of lieutenant governor unless the declaration also shows the intent of another person to be a write-in candidate for the office of governor, and shall not accept for filing the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate of a person to the office of governor or lieutenant governor if that person, for the same election, has already filed a declaration of candidacy, a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or a nominating petition, or has become a candidate through party nomination at a primary election or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 or 3513.31 of the Revised Code, for any other state office or any federal or federal or county office.

Protests against the candidacy of any person filing a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate may be filed by any qualified elector who is eligible to vote in the election at which the candidacy is to be considered. The protest shall be in writing and shall be filed not later than four p.m. of the forty-fifth fifty-seventh day before the day of the election. The protest shall be filed with the board of elections with which the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate was filed. Upon the filing of the protest, the board with which it is filed shall promptly fix the time for hearing it and shall proceed in regard to the hearing in the same manner as for hearings set for protests filed under section 3513.05 of the Revised Code. At the time fixed, the board shall hear the protest and determine the validity or invalidity of the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate. If the board finds that the candidate is not an elector of the state, district, county, or political subdivision in which the candidate seeks election to office or has not fully complied with the requirements of Title XXXV of the Revised Code in regard to the candidate's candidacy, the candidate's declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate shall be determined to be invalid and shall be rejected; otherwise, it shall be determined to be valid. The determination of the board is final.

The secretary of state shall prescribe the form of the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate.

Sec. 3513.05.  Each person desiring to become a candidate for a party nomination or for election to an office or position to be voted for at a primary election, except persons desiring to become joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor and except as otherwise provided in section 3513.051 of the Revised Code, shall, not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, not later than four p.m. of the sixtieth day before the day of the presidential primary election, file a declaration of candidacy and petition and pay the fees required under divisions (A) and (B) of section 3513.10 of the Revised Code. The declaration of candidacy and all separate petition papers shall be filed at the same time as one instrument. When the offices are to be voted for at a primary election, persons desiring to become joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor shall, not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, comply with section 3513.04 of the Revised Code. The prospective joint candidates' declaration of candidacy and all separate petition papers of candidacies shall be filed at the same time as one instrument. The secretary of state or a board of elections shall not accept for filing a declaration of candidacy and petition of a person seeking to become a candidate if that person, for the same election, has already filed a declaration of candidacy or a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or has become a candidate by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code for any federal, federal, state,, or county office, if the declaration of candidacy is for a state or county office, or for any municipal or township office, if the declaration of candidacy is for a municipal or township office.

If the declaration of candidacy declares a candidacy which is to be submitted to electors throughout the entire state, the petition, including a petition for joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor, shall be signed by at least one thousand qualified electors who are members of the same political party as the candidate or joint candidates, and the declaration of candidacy and petition shall be filed with the secretary of state; provided that the secretary of state shall not accept or file any such petition appearing on its face to contain signatures of more than three thousand electors.

Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, if the declaration of candidacy is of one that is to be submitted only to electors within a district, political subdivision, or portion thereof, the petition shall be signed by not less than fifty qualified electors who are members of the same political party as the political party of which the candidate is a member. If the declaration of candidacy is for party nomination as a candidate for member of the legislative authority of a municipal corporation elected by ward, the petition shall be signed by not less than twenty-five qualified electors who are members of the political party of which the candidate is a member.

No such petition, except the petition for a candidacy that is to be submitted to electors throughout the entire state, shall be accepted for filing if it appears to contain on its face signatures of more than three times the minimum number of signatures. When a petition of a candidate has been accepted for filing by a board of elections, the petition shall not be deemed invalid if, upon verification of signatures contained in the petition, the board of elections finds the number of signatures accepted exceeds three times the minimum number of signatures required. A board of elections may discontinue verifying signatures on petitions when the number of verified signatures equals the minimum required number of qualified signatures.

If the declaration of candidacy declares a candidacy for party nomination or for election as a candidate of an intermediate or minor party, the minimum number of signatures on such petition is one-half the minimum number provided in this section, except that, when the candidacy is one for election as a member of the state central committee or the county central committee of a political party, the minimum number shall be the same for an intermediate or minor party as for a major party.

If a declaration of candidacy is one for election as a member of the state central committee or the county central committee of a political party, the petition shall be signed by five qualified electors of the district, county, ward, township, or precinct within which electors may vote for such candidate. The electors signing such petition shall be members of the same political party as the political party of which the candidate is a member.

For purposes of signing or circulating a petition of candidacy for party nomination or election, an elector is considered to be a member of a political party if the elector voted in that party's primary election within the preceding two calendar years, or if the elector did not vote in any other party's primary election within the preceding two calendar years.

If the declaration of candidacy is of one that is to be submitted only to electors within a county, or within a district or subdivision or part thereof smaller than a county, the petition shall be filed with the board of elections of the county. If the declaration of candidacy is of one that is to be submitted only to electors of a district or subdivision or part thereof that is situated in more than one county, the petition shall be filed with the board of elections of the county within which the major portion of the population thereof, as ascertained by the next preceding federal census, is located.

A petition shall consist of separate petition papers, each of which shall contain signatures of electors of only one county. Petitions or separate petition papers containing signatures of electors of more than one county shall not thereby be declared invalid. In case petitions or separate petition papers containing signatures of electors of more than one county are filed, the board shall determine the county from which the majority of signatures came, and only signatures from such county shall be counted. Signatures from any other county shall be invalid.

Each separate petition paper shall be circulated by one person only, who shall be the candidate or a joint candidate or a member of the same political party as the candidate or joint candidate or joint candidates, and each separate petition paper shall be governed by the rules set forth in section 3501.38 of the Revised Code.

The secretary of state shall promptly transmit to each board such separate petition papers of each petition accompanying a declaration of candidacy filed with the secretary of state as purport to contain signatures of electors of the county of such board. The board of the most populous county of a district shall promptly transmit to each board within such district such separate petition papers of each petition accompanying a declaration of candidacy filed with it as purport to contain signatures of electors of the county of each such board. The board of a county within which the major portion of the population of a subdivision, situated in more than one county, is located, shall promptly transmit to the board of each other county within which a portion of such subdivision is located such separate petition papers of each petition accompanying a declaration of candidacy filed with it as purport to contain signatures of electors of the portion of such subdivision in the county of each such board.

All petition papers so transmitted to a board and all petitions accompanying declarations of candidacy filed with a a board shall, under proper regulations, be open to public inspection until four p.m. of the seventieth day before the day of the next primary election, or if that next primary election is a presidential primary election, the fifty-fifth day before that presidential primary election. Each board shall, not later than the sixty-eighth day before the day of that that primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, not later than the fifty-third day before such presidential primary election, examine and determine the validity or invalidity of the signatures on the petition papers so transmitted to or filed with it and shall return to the secretary of state all petition papers transmitted to it by the secretary of state, together with its certification of its determination as to the validity or invalidity of signatures thereon, and shall return to each other board all petition papers transmitted to it by such board, together with its certification of its determination as to the validity or invalidity of the signatures thereon. All other matters affecting the validity or invalidity of such petition papers shall be determined by the secretary of state or the board with whom such petition papers were filed.

Protests against the candidacy of any person filing a declaration of candidacy for party nomination or for election to an office or position, as provided in this section, may be filed by any qualified elector who is a member of the same political party as the candidate and who is eligible to vote at the primary election for the candidate whose declaration of candidacy the elector objects to, or by the controlling committee of that political that political party. The The protest shall shall be in writing, and shall shall be filed not later than four p.m. of the sixty-fourth day before the day of the primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, not later than four p.m. of the forty-ninth day before the day of the presidential primary election. The The protest shall be filed with the election officials with whom the declaration of candidacy and petition was filed. Upon the filing of the the protest, the election officials with whom it is filed shall promptly fix the time for hearing it, and shall forthwith mail notice of the filing of the the protest and the time fixed for hearing to the person whose candidacy is so protested. They shall also forthwith mail notice of the time fixed for such hearing to the person who filed the protest. At the time fixed, such election officials shall hear the protest and determine the validity or invalidity of the declaration of candidacy and petition. If they find that such candidate is not an elector of the state, district, county, or political subdivision in which the candidate seeks a party nomination or election to an office or position, or has not fully complied with this chapter, the candidate's declaration of candidacy and petition shall be determined to be invalid and shall be rejected;; otherwise,, it shall be determined to be valid. That That determination shall be final.

A protest against the candidacy of any persons filing a declaration of candidacy for joint party nomination to the offices of governor and lieutenant governor shall be filed, heard, and determined in the same manner as a protest against the candidacy of any person filing a declaration of candidacy singly.

The secretary of state shall, on the sixtieth day before the day of a primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, on the forty-fifth day before the day of the presidential primary election, certify to each board in the state the forms of the official ballots to be used at the the primary election, together with the names of the candidates to be printed on the ballots on the ballots whose nomination or election is to be determined by electors throughout the entire state and who filed valid declarations of candidacy and petitions.

The board of the most populous county in a district comprised of more than one county but less than all of the counties of the state shall,, on the sixtieth day before the day of a primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, on the forty-fifth day before the day of a presidential primary election, certify to the board of each county in the district the names of the candidates to be printed on the official ballots to be used at the the primary election, whose nomination or election is to be determined only by electors within the the district and who filed valid declarations of candidacy and petitions.

The board of a county within which the major portion of the population of a subdivision smaller than the county and situated in more than one county is located shall, on the sixtieth day before the day of a primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, on the forty-fifth day before the day of a presidential primary election, certify to the board of each county in which a portion of that that subdivision is located the names of the candidates to be printed on the official ballots to be used at the the primary election, whose nomination or election is to be determined only by electors within that that subdivision and who filed valid declarations of candidacy and petitions.

Sec. 3513.052. (A) No person shall seek nomination or election to any of the following offices or positions at the same election by filing a declaration of candidacy and petition, a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or a nominating petition, or by becoming a candidate through party nomination in a primary election, or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 or 3513.31 of the Revised Code:

(1) Two or more state offices;

(2) Two or more county offices;

(3) A state office and a county office;

(4) A federal office and a state or county office;

(5) A federal office and a state or county office;

(5) Any combination of two or more municipal or township offices, positions as a member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, or positions as a member of a governing board of an educational service center.

(B) The secretary of state or a board of elections shall not accept for filing a declaration of candidacy and petition, a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or a nominating petition of a person seeking to become a candidate if that person, for the same election, has already filed a declaration of candidacy, a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or a nominating petition, or has become a candidate through party nomination at a primary election or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 or 3513.31 of the Revised Code for:

(1) Any federal, federal, state,, or county office, if the declaration of candidacy, declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or nominating petition is for a state or county office;

(2) Any municipal or township office, or for member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, or for member of a governing board of an educational service center, if the declaration of candidacy, declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or nominating petition is for a municipal or township office, or for member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, or for member of a governing board of an educational service center.

(C)(1) If the secretary of state determines, before the day of the primary election, that a person is seeking nomination to more than one office at that election in violation of division (A) of this section, the secretary of state shall do one of the following:

(a) If each office or the district for each office for which the person is seeking nomination is wholly within a single county and none of those offices is a federal office and none of those offices is a federal office, the secretary of state shall notify the board of elections of that county. The board then shall determine the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for each of those offices by filing a declaration of candidacy or a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code. The board shall vote promptly to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office for which the person sought to become a candidate after the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for any of those offices. If the board determines that the person sought to become a candidate for more than one of those offices on the same date, the board shall vote promptly to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that would be listed on the ballot below the highest office for which that person seeks nomination, according to the ballot order prescribed under section 3505.03 of the Revised Code.

(b) If one or more of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a state office or an office with a district larger than a single county and none of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a federal office and none of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a federal office, the secretary of state shall determine the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for each of those offices by filing a declaration of candidacy or a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code. The secretary of state shall order the board of elections of each county in which the person is seeking to appear on the ballot to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office for which the person sought to become a candidate after the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for any of those offices. If the secretary of state determines that the person sought to become a candidate for more than one of those offices on the same date, the secretary of state shall order the board of elections of each county in which the person is seeking to appear on the ballot to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that would be listed on the ballot below the highest office for which that person seeks nomination, according to the ballot order prescribed under section 3505.03 of the Revised Code. Each board of elections so notified shall vote promptly to disqualify the person as a candidate in accordance with the order of the secretary of state.

(c) If each office or the district for each office for which the person is seeking nomination is wholly within a single county and any of those offices is a federal office, the secretary of state shall notify the board of elections of that county. The board then shall vote promptly to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that is not a federal office.

(d) If one or more of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a state office and any of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a federal office, the secretary of state shall order the board of elections of each county in which the person is seeking to appear on the ballot to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that is not a federal office. Each board of elections so notified shall vote promptly to disqualify the person as a candidate in accordance with the order of the secretary of state.

(c) If each office or the district for each office for which the person is seeking nomination is wholly within a single county and any of those offices is a federal office, the secretary of state shall notify the board of elections of that county. The board then shall vote promptly to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that is not a federal office.

(d) If one or more of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a state office and any of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a federal office, the secretary of state shall order the board of elections of each county in which the person is seeking to appear on the ballot to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that is not a federal office. Each board of elections so notified shall vote promptly to disqualify the person as a candidate in accordance with the order of the secretary of state.

(2) If a board of elections determines, before the day of the primary election, that a person is seeking nomination to more than one office at that election in violation of division (A) of this section, the board shall do one of the following:

(a) If each office or the district for each office for which the person is seeking nomination is wholly within that county and none of those offices is a federal office and none of those offices is a federal office, the board shall determine the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for each of those offices by filing a declaration of candidacy or a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code. The board shall vote promptly to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office for which the person sought to become a candidate after the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for any of those offices. If the board determines that the person sought to become a candidate for more than one of those offices on the same date, the board shall vote promptly to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that would be listed on the ballot below the highest office for which that person seeks nomination, according to the ballot order prescribed under section 3505.03 of the Revised Code.

(b) If one or more of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a state office or an office with a district larger than a single county and none of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a federal office and none of the offices for which the person is seeking nomination is a federal office, the board shall notify the secretary of state. The secretary of state then shall determine the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for each of those offices by filing a declaration of candidacy or a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code. The secretary of state shall order the board of elections of each county in which the person is seeking to appear on the ballot to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office for which the person sought to become a candidate after the date on which the person first sought to become a candidate for any of those offices. If the secretary of state determines that the person sought to become a candidate for more than one of those offices on the same date, the secretary of state shall order the board of elections of each county in which the person is seeking to appear on the ballot to disqualify that person as a candidate for each office that would be listed on the ballot below the highest office for which that person seeks nomination, according to the ballot order prescribed under section 3505.03 of the Revised Code. Each board of elections so notified shall vote promptly to disqualify the person as a candidate in accordance with the order of the secretary of state.