Wyoming Secretary of State

Rules for Possession of Ballots

CHAPTER 20

  Section 1. Authority. The Secretary of State, pursuant to W.S. 22-2-121, is authorized to promulgate such rules as are necessary to maintain uniform voting and vote counting procedures and orderly voting and to comply with the requirements of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), Public Law 107-252.

  Section 2. Purpose. These rules are promulgated to establish procedures for the possession of ballots.

  Section 3. Applicability. These rules apply to all local election officials with responsibilities as designated in W.S. 22-8-101, et seq.

  Section 4. Possession of Ballots.

  (a) W.S. 22-6-107 states ballots shall be in the County Clerk's possession forty (40) days before the election and under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) forty-five (45) days before the election.

  (b) In the event ballots are not in the possession of the County Clerks by the statutory deadline, County Clerks shall notify the Secretary of State and shall immediately prepare emergency ballots as follows:

    (i) Print absentee ballots in-house with a ballot-on-demand printer, if available to them; or

    (ii) Print ballots in another County with ballot-on-demand capabilities, if possible; or

    (iii) Prepare paper copies which cannot be machine read, but could be duplicated by the duplicating board, the absentee board or the election judges at the polls. Such duplicate ballots shall be machine counted.

    (iv) If there is not sufficient ballot stock that can be machine counted and stock cannot be obtained in another County using ballot-on-demand capabilities, the County Clerk shall immediately notify the Secretary of State. The duplicating board, absentee board or the election judges at the polls shall then hand count those ballots.