Effective: September 29, 2017
Latest Legislation: House Bill 49 - 132nd General Assembly
(A) A program participant who is eligible to vote may apply to the board of elections of the county in which the program participant resides to request that the program participant's voter registration record be kept confidential. The program participant shall submit an application to the director of the board of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state, that includes all of the following:
(1) The information required under section 3503.14 of the Revised Code to register to vote;
(2) The program participant's program participant identification number;
(3) If the program participant is currently registered to vote at another address, the address at which the program participant is registered to vote and a statement that, if the program participant is registered in another county or state, the program participant authorizes the director to instruct the appropriate authority to cancel the program participant's existing voter registration;
(4) A statement that the program participant understands all of the following:
(a) That during the time the program participant chooses to have a confidential voter registration record, the program participant may vote only by absent voter's ballots;
(b) That the program participant may provide the program participant's program participant identification number instead of the program participant's residence address on an application for absent voter's ballots or on an absent voter's ballot identification envelope statement of voter;
(c) That casting any ballot in person will reveal the program participant's precinct and residence address to precinct election officials and employees of the board of elections and may reveal the program participant's precinct or residence address to members of the public;
(d) That if the program participant signs an election petition, the program participant's residence address will be made available to the public.
(B)(1) A program participant who is not currently registered to vote in this state must submit an application under this section not later than the thirtieth day before the day of an election in order to be eligible to vote in that election, as provided in sections 3503.01 and 3503.19 of the Revised Code.
(2) A program participant who is currently registered to vote in this state may submit an application under this section at any time to request that the program participant's voter registration record be kept confidential.
(C) Upon the receipt by the director of the board of elections of a valid application under division (A) of this section, all of the following shall apply:
(1) The director or the deputy director shall contact the secretary of state to confirm that the program participant identification number provided on the application matches the number the secretary of state issued to the program participant.
(2) The application shall be treated as the program participant's voter registration form. The form shall be stored in a secure manner, such that only the members of the board of elections, the director, and the deputy director have access to the form and to the residence address contained in the form.
(3) The director or the deputy director shall record the program participant's program participant identification number in the statewide voter registration database and the official registration list instead of the program participant's residence address and precinct.
(4) If the program participant is currently registered to vote in the county, the director or the deputy director shall do all of the following:
(a) Remove the residence address and precinct information from the program participant's voter registration record, the statewide voter registration database, and the official registration list;
(b) Remove the program participant's name and registration information from any pollbook, poll list, or signature pollbook in which it appears and from any publicly available registration list in which it appears.
(5) If the program participant is currently registered to vote in another county, the director or the deputy director shall notify the board of elections of the county in which the program participant is registered to cancel the program participant's registration.
(6) If the program participant is currently registered to vote in another state, the director or the deputy director shall notify the appropriate authority in that state to cancel the program participant's registration.
(7) The director or the deputy director shall promptly send an acknowledgment notice to the program participant on a form prescribed by the secretary of state.
(D)(1)(a) The residence address or precinct of a program participant who has a confidential voter registration record, as described in this section, shall not appear in the statewide voter registration database or in the official registration list. The program participant's program participant identification number shall appear in place of that information.
(b) No information concerning the program participant, including the program participant's name, shall be included in any pollbook, poll list, or signature pollbook.
(c) No information concerning the program participant, including the program participant's name, shall be included in the version of the statewide voter registration database that is available to the public or in any version of an official registration list that is available to the public.
(2) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of the Revised Code, a program participant who has a confidential voter registration record may vote only by casting absent voter's ballots.
(3) Not later than the forty-fifth day before the day of an election, the secretary of state shall mail a notice to each program participant who has a confidential voter registration record. The notice shall inform the program participant of all of the following:
(a) That if the program participant wishes to vote in the election, the program participant should cast absent voter's ballots by mail;
(b) The procedure for the program participant to cast absent voter's ballots;
(c) That casting any ballot in person will reveal the program participant's precinct and residence address to precinct election officials and employees of the board of elections and may reveal the program participant's precinct or residence address to members of the public.
(E)(1) A program participant who has a confidential voter registration record and who has had a change of name or change of address may submit an application under division (A) of this section that includes the program participant's updated information. The director or the deputy director shall treat that application as a notice of change of name or change of address.
(2) If the program participant currently resides in that county, the director or the deputy director shall replace the program participant's existing registration form with the new registration form.
(3) If the program participant currently resides in another county in this state, the director or the deputy director shall cancel the program participant's existing registration form and shall transmit the program participant's new registration form to the director of the board of elections of the county in which the elector currently resides, and the new registration form shall be processed in accordance with division (C) of this section.
(F) A person who has a confidential voter registration record and who ceases being a program participant or who wishes to cease having a confidential voter registration record shall submit an application, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state, that includes all of the following:
(1) The information required under section 3503.14 of the Revised Code to register to vote;
(2) The person's program participant identification number;
(3) A statement that the person has ceased being a program participant or that the person wishes to cease having a confidential voter registration record;
(4) A statement that the director should do one of the following:
(a) Treat the person's existing voter registration form in the same manner as other voter registration forms;
(b) Cancel the person's voter registration.
(G)(1) Upon receiving a valid application under division (F) of this section from a person who wishes the board of elections to treat the person's existing voter registration form in the same manner as other voter registration forms, or upon receiving a notice from the secretary of state under division (B) of section 111.45 of the Revised Code concerning a person who has a confidential voter registration record, the director or the deputy director shall do all of the following:
(a) Store the person's voter registration form in the same manner as other voter registration forms;
(b) Remove the person's program participant identification number from the person's registration form and from the statewide voter registration database;
(c) Ensure that the statewide voter registration database and any poll list, pollbook, or registration list accurately reflect the person's current name and registration information.
(2) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of section 3503.01 of the Revised Code, if the director receives an application or notice described in division (G)(1) of this section concerning an elector less than thirty days before the day of an election, the elector shall be eligible to vote in that election.
(H) Upon receiving a valid application under division (F) of this section from a person who wishes to have the person's voter registration canceled, the director or the deputy director shall cancel the person's voter registration.