| Chapter 251 |
| 2023 -- S 0613 SUBSTITUTE A Enacted 06/22/2023 |
| A N A C T |
| RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- VOTING DISTRICTS AND OFFICIALS |
Introduced By: Senators F. Lombardi, Felag, Britto, Burke, and Ciccone |
| Date Introduced: March 07, 2023 |
| It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
| SECTION 1. Sections 17-11-1 and 17-11-1.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-11 entitled |
| "Voting Districts and Officials" are hereby amended to read as follows: |
| 17-11-1. Division of towns and representative district into voting districts. |
| (a) The local board of any city or town may, on or before the sixtieth (60th) day preceding |
| any election, divide or redivide the city or town, or any representative district in the city or town, |
| into voting districts. The local board of each city or town shall determine voting districts by |
| geographical boundaries and by no other means. No voting district shall at any time comprise parts |
| of two (2) or more wards. It shall be the duty of the board to divide the city or town, representative |
| district, or ward, so that substantially not more than three thousand (30003,000) total eligible |
| registered voters shall be served by the same polling place; provided, however, that any divisions |
| conducted by the local board pursuant to this section shall not result in creating a polling place |
| serving less than five hundred (500) total eligible registered voters, except when a polling place is |
| located in a low-income or elderly residential development, or when it is caused by legislative |
| district boundaries; and provided, further, that no existing polling place which that is presently |
| located in a low-income or elderly residential development shall be eliminated. Upon the |
| establishment and approval of any polling place by the state board, changes to the polling place |
| shall not be allowed until the next redistricting by the general assembly, unless the polling place |
| becomes unavailable to the city or town, or no longer meets polling place minimum requirements |
| as established by the state board, then the city or town may take the appropriate action to replace |
| the polling place. A polling place may be located either within or without the voting district for |
| which it is established; provided, that a polling place may be located outside the district only upon |
| unanimous determination of the local board and subject to the approval of the state board that a |
| suitable place is not available within the voting district. |
| (b) Uniform standards for polling place location. When cities and towns shall, subject to |
| the approval of the state board, designate polling locations in accordance with the provisions of this |
| section and § 17-19-3.2, they shall take into account the following factors: |
| (1) Accessibility of the polling place to historically disenfranchised communities, |
| including cultural groups, ethnic groups, and minority groups; |
| (2) Proximity of polling places to dense concentrations of voters; |
| (3) Accessibility of polling places by public transportation; |
| (4) Ensuring equitable distribution of polling places in the city or town; and |
| (5) Maximizing voter participation, including through the use of community centers and |
| public gathering places as polling places. |
| 17-11-1.1. Combination of voting districts for special election. |
| (a) The board of canvassers of any city or town at which there shall be submitted to the |
| voters a question or questions for their approval or rejection or at which officials will be elected, |
| shall have the authority to combine two (2) or more voting districts, when in its judgment the |
| combination is advisable,. and when combined shall be treated as a voting district, The board may |
| by unanimous vote make such designation for any special election, but only upon the approval of |
| the board of elections. |
| (b) If voting districts are combined as provided in subsection (a), the local board must |
| advertise the combination of districts in a newspaper of general circulation in the city or town no |
| less than seven (7) days and no more than twenty-one (21) days before the special election. |
| (c) [Deleted by P.L. 2019, ch. 69, § 1 and P.L. 2019, ch. 79, § 1.] |
| (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and (b), the board of canvassers of |
| the town of Bristol may combine two (2) or more voting districts for the representative district 68 |
| special election in March, 2019, and when combined shall be treated as a voting district, but only |
| upon the approval of the board of elections. |
| SECTION 2. Section 17-15-5 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-15 entitled "Primary |
| Elections" is hereby amended to read as follows: |
| 17-15-5. Combination of voting districts. |
| Local boards shall have the power to combine two (2) or more voting districts within the |
| same ward, and senatorial or representative district, if applicable. and the combined district shall |
| be treated as a voting district, The local board may by unanimous vote make such designation for |
| any primary, special primary, or presidential preference primary, but only upon the approval of the |
| board of elections. |
| SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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| LC002384/SUB A |
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