ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Date: June 28, 2002
Author/Local: S. Baxter/7266

RTS No. 2839

CC File No. 113

Council: July 9, 2002

TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	City Clerk
SUBJECT:	Municipal Elections: Amendments to By-laws 7169, 7170 and 7600

RECOMMENDATION

THAT Council amend By-law 7169, Election Procedures By-law; By-law 7170, Mail Ballot Procedure By-law; and By-law 7600, Automated Vote Counting System Authorization and Procedure By-law, as described in Appendix A of this report;

FURTHER THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to prepare the amending by-laws for enactment substantially in the form of the draft By-laws in Appendices B, C and D.

CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The City Manager RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.

COUNCIL POLICY

There is no Council policy regarding this matter.

PURPOSE

This report recommends amendments to By-laws 7169, 7170 and 7600 each of which relates to authority and procedures for the conduct of the local general elections.

DISCUSSION

As is usual in the year of a municipal general election, we have undertaken a review of existing By-laws related to the authorities and procedures for the operation of the election. Attached in Appendix A is a description of the amendments which are necessary or desirable for the conduct of this year's election. A number of the proposed amendments clarify language or definitions in these By-laws. Others provide delegated authority to the Chief Election Officer as permitted under the Vancouver Charter to organize and direct the operation of the election as necessary. A few amendments clarify or change procedural steps or procedural requirements.

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APPENDIX A

Proposed Amendments to By-laws Related to Local General Elections

By-law 7169 Election Procedures By-law
Section 4	For ease of reference, incorporate the required Advance Voting Opportunities days.
Section 4A	Authorize the CEO to establish the additional advance voting opportunity dates, locations and hours.
Section 5(1)	Authorize the CEO to establish the special voting opportunity dates, locations and hours.
Various	To modernize the language of the By-law, substitute "shall" with "must" throughout the By-law.
By-law 7170 Mail Ballot Procedure
Section 5(1)	Authorize the CEO to set mail in ballot application time limits.
By-law 7600 as adopted by By-law 7612 Automated Vote Counting System Authorization and Procedure
Section 2	By-law name changed to "Automated Vote Counting System By-law" for simplification.
Section 3	"Memory Card": Clarify definition.
	"Secrecy Sleeve": Remove requirement to expose the initials of the official. (This process is deleted later in the by-law.)
	"Zeros tape": Define the printed record produced by the voting machine at the commencement of voting indicating that no votes have been recorded.
Section 5(6) and (7)	Substitute "zeros tape" in place of the words used to describe this record.
Section 6(3)	Remove requirement for ballot to be initialed by the official. (The voting machines are programmed to only accept official ballots.)
Section 7	Remove attachment of sample ballot to the by-law. (This is only necessary where the ballot does not meet the requirements of the Vancouver Charter. The ballot meets these requirements.)
Section 8(1)	Redefine voting compartments to "designated voting area".
Section 8(2)	Make concurrent with change to Section 6(3) above.
Sections 8(3)(d) and (e)	Clarify the reasons a voting machine may return a ballot to the voter and provide options for the voter to correct or obtain a new ballot.
Section 8(5)	Provide for procedure when voter opts not to change a ballot returned by the voting machine by overriding the return option thus having it accept any valid votes.
Section 9(4)	Insert procedure step requiring ballot account preparation.
Section 11(c)(d)(e)(f)	Substitute, as appropriate, "results tape" and the necessary words to agree with the definition of in Section 3.
Section 11(1)(j)	Substitute "prepare ballot account" for "make out a statement".
Section 11(1)(i) and (j)	Clarify that the number of voted ballots is the number reported by the voting machine and not a manual count of the voted ballots.
Section 11(2)(a)	Authorize any Presiding Election Officer to complete the counting procedure on election night for the advance and special voting opportunities.
Section 11(4)(a)(ii) and (iii); (b)(i) and (iii)	Substitute terminology consistent with those noted previously in these proposed amendments (ballot account; results tape).
Section 11(4)	Delete the requirement that the PEO be accompanied by another election official when delivering the voting machine to the CEO.
Section 12(5)(a)	Substitute current terminology usage for accumulation programs used to accumulate votes.
Section 12(5)(b); (8)(b), (e) and (f)	Substitute terminology (memory cards; ballot account; reader; results tape) to reflect current usage.
Section 12(10)	Clarify the accumulation of results, both automated and manual (if necessary) which, when certified by the CEO constitute the official results.
Various	Throughout the by-law replace "shall" and "will" with "must" or replace "shall" with "must" as linguistically appropriate.

APPENDIX B

Required advance, additional advance,
and special voting opportunities

BY-LAW NO.

A By-law to amend
Election Procedures By-law No. 7169

THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF VANCOUVER, in public meeting, enacts as follows:

1. This By-law amends or deletes the indicated sections of By-law No. 7169, and adds provisions to it.

2. Delete section 4, and substitute:

"4. Required Advance Voting Opportunities [VC s. 69]

Required advance voting opportunities will occur on each of the 10th day and 4th day before general voting day.

4A. Additional advance voting opportunities [s. 70]

Council authorizes the Chief Election Officer to:

(a) establish dates for additional advance voting opportunities in advance of general voting day; and

(b) designate the voting places and set the voting hours for the additional advance voting opportunities established by the Chief Election Officer under section 4A(a)."

3. Delete subsection (1) of section 5, and substitute:

"(1) Council authorizes the Chief Election Officer to establish the dates, voting hours, and places for the conduct of special voting opportunities."

4. From sections 1 to 9 inclusive, delete "shall" wherever that word appears, and substitute "must".

5. This By-law is to come into force and take effect on the date of its enactment.

ENACTED by Council this day of , 2002

Mayor

City Clerk

APPENDIX C

Mail ballot time limits

BY-LAW NO.

A By-law to amend
Mail Ballot Procedure By-law No. 7170

THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF VANCOUVER, in public meeting, enacts as follows:

1. Delete subsection (1) of section 5, and substitute:

"(1) A person wishing to vote by mail ballot must apply to the Chief Election Officer in writing, using the form required by the Chief Election Officer, within the time limits required by the Chief Election Officer, which time limits Council authorizes the Chief Election Officer to establish."

2. This By-law is to come into force and take effect on the date of its enactment.

ENACTED by Council this day of , 2002

Mayor

City Clerk

APPENDIX D

Miscellaneous amendments
to vote counting system
authorization and procedure

BY-LAW NO.

A By-law to amend Automated Vote Counting System Authorization

and Procedure By-law No. 7600 as adopted by By-law No. 7612

THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF VANCOUVER, in public meeting, enacts as follows:

1. This By-law amends or deletes the indicated sections of, and adds sections to, By-law No. 7600, as adopted by By-law No. 7612.

2. From section 1, delete "Automated Vote Counting System Authorization and Procedure By-law", and substitute "Automated Vote Counting System By-law".

3. In section 3:

(a) delete the definition of "Memory Card", and substitute:

` "Memory Card" means a hardware device inserted into the vote counting unit, and programmed:

(a) with the names of all candidates for each office to be contested in the election;

(b) with the alternatives of "yes" and "no" for each question; and

(c) to record and retain information on the number of acceptable marks made for each candidate.";

(b) from the definition of "Secrecy Sleeve", delete "but so as to expose the initials of the election official that issued the ballot to the elector"; and

(c) after the definition of "Vote Counting Unit", add:

` "Zeros Tape" means the printed record generated from a vote counting unit before the acceptance of any ballot at the opening of the voting places or at the beginning of any recount procedure, and which indicates as "zero" the number of votes for each candidate and, if applicable, the number of votes for and against each by-law and question.'.

4. In section 5:

(a) from subsection (6), delete "copy of all totals in its memory card", and substitute "zeros tape"; and

(b) from subsection (7), delete "zero printout", and substitute "zeros tape".

5. In section 6:

(a) from subsection (3), delete the second sentence; and

(b) delete subsection (7).

6. In section 8:

(a) from subsection (1), delete "into one of the compartments", and substitute "to the designated voting area";

(b) delete subsection (2), and substitute:

"(2) The election official stationed at the ballot box must, in the presence of the elector, and without removing the ballot from the secrecy sleeve, insert the ballot into the feed area of the vote counting unit, until the unit draws the ballot into the ballot box.";

(c) delete clauses (d) and (e) of subsection (3), and substitute:

"(d) advise the elector why the vote counting unit indicated return of the ballot, and request the elector to review the ballot card; and

(e) advise the elector to correct the ballot, if applicable, so that the vote counting unit can read it, or to obtain a new ballot, as the case may be.";

(d) delete subsection (5), and substitute:

"(5) If the elector declines the opportunity to correct a returned ballot, or to obtain a replacement ballot for a spoiled ballot, and has not damaged the ballot to the extent that reinsertion of the ballot into the vote counting unit is impossible, the election official, using the ballot return over-ride procedure, must reinsert the returned ballot into the vote counting unit to count any acceptable marks."

7. In subsection (4) of section 9:

(a) from clause (b), delete "and";

(b) re-letter clause (c) as clause (d); and

(c) insert:

"(c) prepare the ballot account as this By-law requires; and".

8. In section 11:

(a) from clause (c) of subsection (1), delete "obtain a printed record", and substitute "generate a results tape";

(b) from clauses (d) and (e) of subsection (1), delete "printed record", and substitute "results tape";

(c) from clause (f) of subsection (1), delete "printouts", and substitute "results tape";

(d) from clause (j) of subsection (1), delete "make out a statement", and substitute "prepare a ballot account";

(e) from clause (j) of subsection (1), delete subclause (ii), and substitute:

"(ii) the number of voted ballots reported by the vote counting unit,";

(f) delete the final sentence of subsection (1), which appears immediately before subsection (2);

(g) from subclause (iv) of clause (j) of subsection (1), delete ".", and substitute "; and";

(h) delete clause (i) of subsection (1);

(i) re-letter clause (j) of subsection (1) as clause (i);

(j) to subsection (1), add:

"(j) sign the completed ballot account, and cause one other election official to sign it.";

(k) delete clause (a) of subsection (2), and substitute:

"(a) direct a presiding election official to proceed in accordance with clauses (c) to (j) inclusive of subsection 11(1), so far as applicable for the advance and special voting opportunities; and";

(l) from subclause (ii) of clause (a) of subsection (4), delete "statement", and substitute "ballot account";

(m) from subclause (iii) of clause (a) of subsection (4), delete "printed record", and substitute "results tape";

(n) from subclause (iii) of clause (b) of subsection (4), delete "statement", and substitute "ballot account";

(o) from subclause (iii) of clause (b) of subsection (4), delete "printed results tape", and substitute "results tape"; and

(p) from the last sentence of subsection (4), delete ", accompanied by at least one other election official,".

9. In section 12:

(a) from subsection (5), delete clause (a), and substitute:

"(a) loading the required accumulation programs into the computer to be used for the accumulation of votes;";

(b) from clause (b) of subsection (5), delete "memory packs", and substitute "memory cards";

(c) from clause (b) of subsection (8), delete "statement", and substitute "ballot account";

(d) from clause (e) of subsection (8), delete "receiver", and substitute "reader";

(e) from clause (f) of subsection (8), delete "printout", and substitute "results tape"; and

(f) delete subsection (10), and substitute:

"(10) The Chief Election Officer must certify the results produced from the accumulation process under section 12(8)(e) and from any manual count under section 12(11), and those certified results will constitute the official results of the election."

10. From sections 1 to 13 inclusive, delete "shall" and "will" wherever those words appear, and substitute "must" except as section 10 of this By-law otherwise provides.

11. From sections 7, 9(3), 10, 11(2)(b), 12(2), and 12(4), delete "shall" wherever that word appears, except for the first reference to it in each of sections 10 and 12(4)in respect of which section 9 of this By-law applies, and substitute "will".

12. This By-law is to come into force and take effect on the date of its enactment.

ENACTED by Council this day of , 2002

Mayor

City Clerk

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(c) 1998 City of Vancouver