Elections; certain prohibitions for local electoral boards. (HB1508)

If you mainly eliminated a spouse or family member, what about those who are not related, same sex partners, adoptees, A unit Chair must submit 3 names as it is and the judge chooses the person, If there was a question, could not the judge check on this? This seems too broad.

I am a Unit Chair and frankly I look for people willing to serve in an unpaid position that I think are honest and understand the rules so the process will go smoothly and swiftly.

This Bill is overly broad and in many locations could make finding qualified Board Members impossible to find or retain. This provision may be well intentioned but is subject to significant unintended consequences.

For example, the spouse of a distant or estranged relative could, for spite, file as a candidate to force the removal of a Board Member. (Once the Board Member is replaced, they could withdraw from the race.) We could expend untold time and expense in replacing and training Board Members when so few are willing to serve as it is.

The Bill addresses only traditional marriages and relationships. Integrity and trust of individuals selected and appointed is paramount. Too many relationships are not covered by this amendment. No Bill could possibly cover every possible relationship that could result in, or create the potential appearance of conflict. As we automatically suspect traditional family relationships, no matter how distant, should we not explore non-traditional relationships? Divorcees or widowed individuals living together without remarrying would not be subject to the same rules, yet could just as easily have a conflict of interest this Bill attempts to preclude.

This Bill is much too broad and unenforcable. Extensive investigation into all relations of every potential appointee would be prohibitive and probably counterproductive.

While I don't believe this bill should have passed and I certainly hope the Governor will refuse to sign it into law, the timing could not be worse. Consider the difficulty of training new Electoral Board members during a year that local elections are held, redistricting occurs, and a shortened election season takes place. Having served on the Electoral Board of my county for many years in the past, I understand the importance of having knowledgeable, well-trained people as Electoral Board members. This bill will force those people to resign. This bill will not make elections and recounts more efficient or serve the citizens better. There is a saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Why was this bill introduced in the first place?