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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
South Australia
Electoral (Miscellaneous) Amendment
Bill 2012
A BILL FOR
An Act to amend the Electoral
Act 1985.
Contents
Part 1—Preliminary
1Short title
2Commencement
3Amendment
provisions
Part 2—Amendment of Electoral
Act 1985
4Amendment of section
4—Interpretation
5Amendment of section 7—Remuneration and
conditions of office
6Amendment of section 21—Suppression of
elector's address
7Amendment of section 23—Rolls to be kept
up to date
8Amendment of section 29—Entitlement to
enrolment
9Repeal of Part 5 Division 2
10Amendment of section 31A—Itinerant
persons
11Amendment of section 32—Making of claim
for enrolment or transfer of enrolment
12Amendment of section
32A—Notification of transfer within the same subdivision
13Insertion of section
32B
32BEnrolment or transfer
of enrolment
14Amendment of section 53—Multiple
nominations of candidates endorsed by political party
15Substitution of
section 68
68Certified list
of electors
16Amendment of section 74—Issue of
declaration voting papers by post or other means
17Insertion of
section 74A
74AOffence to
distribute application form for issue of declaration voting
papers
18Amendment of section 94—Informal ballot
papers
19Amendment of section 95—Scrutiny of
votes in Legislative Council election
20Amendment of section
96—Scrutiny of votes in House of Assembly election
21Amendment of section 112—Publication of
electoral advertisements, notices etc
22Substitution of section
112A
112ASpecial provision
relating to how-to-vote cards
23Amendment of section
112B—Certain descriptions not to be used
24Amendment of
section 116—Published material to identify person responsible for
political content
The Parliament of South Australia enacts as
follows:
This Act may be cited as the Electoral (Miscellaneous) Amendment
Act 2012.
This Act will come into operation on a day to be fixed by
proclamation.
In this Act, a provision under a heading referring to the amendment of a
specified Act amends the Act so specified.
Part 2—Amendment
of Electoral
Act 1985
4—Amendment
of section 4—Interpretation
Section 4(1)—after the definition of bribery
insert:
Commonwealth Act means the Commonwealth Electoral Act
1918 of the Commonwealth;
Commonwealth roll means the roll of electors for the State of
South Australia kept under section 81 of the Commonwealth Act;
5—Amendment
of section 7—Remuneration and conditions of office
(1) Section 7(6)—delete "or Deputy Electoral
Commissioner"
(2) Section 7—after subsection (6) insert:
(6a) A person appointed after the commencement of this subsection as
Deputy Electoral Commissioner is so appointed for a term of 5 years and, at
the expiration of a term of appointment, is eligible for
reappointment.
(6b) However, a person so appointed as Deputy Electoral Commissioner may
not hold office for consecutive terms that exceed 10 years in
total.
(3) Section 7(9)(c)—before "having" insert:
in the case of the Electoral Commissioner—
6—Amendment
of section 21—Suppression of elector's address
Section 21—after its present contents (now to be designated as
subsection (1)) insert:
(2) If a person's address has not been included on, or has been deleted
from, the Commonwealth roll under section 104 of the Commonwealth Act, the
person's address must be suppressed from any roll under this Act.
7—Amendment
of section 23—Rolls to be kept up to date
(1) Section 23(a)—delete "pursuance of claims for enrolment
under this Act" and substitute:
accordance with Part 5
(2) Section 23—after paragraph (e) insert:
(f) in relation to a person who is enrolled on the Commonwealth
roll—reflecting any change under the Commonwealth Act in relation to that
enrolment.
8—Amendment
of section 29—Entitlement to enrolment
Section 29(1) and (2)—delete subsections (1)
and (2) and substitute:
(1) A person is
entitled to be enrolled on the roll for a subdivision if—
(a) the person—
(i) has attained
the age of 18 years; and
(A) is an Australian citizen; or
(B) is a person who by virtue of his or her status as a British subject
was, at some time within the period of 3 months commencing on
26 October 1983, enrolled under the repealed Act as an Assembly
elector or enrolled on an electoral roll maintained under a law of the
Commonwealth or a Territory of the Commonwealth; and
(iii) has his or
her principal place of residence in the subdivision and has lived at that place
of residence for a continuous period of at least 1 month immediately
preceding the date of the claim for enrolment; and
(iv) is not of
unsound mind; or
(b) the person is properly enrolled on the Commonwealth roll, other than
under section 100 of the Commonwealth Act, in respect of an address in the
subdivision.
(2) A person is entitled to provisional enrolment on the roll for a
subdivision if—
(a) the person—
(i) has attained the age of 16 years; and
(ii) would, if he or she had attained the age of 18 years, be
entitled to be enrolled on the roll for that subdivision under
subsection (1);
or
(b) the person is properly enrolled on the Commonwealth roll under
section 100 of the Commonwealth Act in respect of an address in the
subdivision.
Part 5 Division 2—delete Division 2
10—Amendment
of section 31A—Itinerant persons
(1) Section 31A(1)(b)—delete "section 29(1)(a), (b)
and (d)" and substitute:
section 29(1)(a)(i), (ii) and (iv)
(2) Section 31A—delete "section 29(1)(c)" wherever occurring
and substitute in each case:
section 29(1)(a)(iii)
(3) Section 31A(2)(b)—delete "and attested as required by the
Electoral Commissioner"
(4) Section 31A(3)(b)—delete "Division 2" and
substitute:
Division 3
11—Amendment
of section 32—Making of claim for enrolment or transfer of
enrolment
(1) Section 32(1)—delete "A person" and substitute:
Subject to this Division, a person
(2) Section 32—after subsection (1) insert:
(1a) A claim for enrolment or the transfer of enrolment—
(a) must be made in a manner and form approved by the Electoral
Commissioner; and
(b) must be made to an electoral registrar.
12—Amendment
of section 32A—Notification of transfer within the same
subdivision
Section 32A(1)—delete "An elector" and substitute:
Subject to section 32B(4), an elector
After section 32A insert:
32B—Enrolment or transfer of
enrolment
(1) Where a claim for enrolment or transfer of enrolment made in
accordance with section 32(1a) is received at the office of an electoral
registrar, the electoral registrar must—
(a) if satisfied of the validity of the claim—enrol the claimant or
transfer the enrolment of the claimant, in accordance with the claim;
or
(b) if not satisfied of the validity of the claim—reject the
claim.
(2) No enrolment may—
(a) be made on the roll for a subdivision; or
(b) be transferred from or to the roll for a subdivision,
on the basis of a claim received at the office of an electoral registrar or
by operation of
subsection (4)
between the time on which rolls for an election in the relevant district close
and polling day for that election.
(3) Where a claim is rejected, the electoral registrar must notify the
claimant in writing—
(a) of the rejection of the claim; and
(b) of the reasons for its rejection; and
(c) of the claimant's rights under this Act to appeal against the
decision.
(4) If a person is
enrolled on the Commonwealth roll and the person's address recorded on that roll
is an address in a subdivision—
(a) the person is, for the purposes of this Act, to be
taken—
(i) in the case of a person enrolled on the Commonwealth roll under
section 100 of the Commonwealth Act—
(A) to have made a claim for enrolment; and
(B) to be provisionally enrolled; and
(ii) in any other case—
(A) to have made a claim in accordance with this Act, or given notice
under section 32A (as the case requires); and
(B) to be enrolled as an elector for the subdivision for the purposes of
this Act; and
(b) the particulars on the Commonwealth roll in relation to the person
are, with such modifications (if any) as an electoral registrar considers
necessary for the purposes of Part 4 of this Act, to be taken to be the
particulars in relation to the person on the roll for the subdivision.
14—Amendment
of section 53—Multiple nominations of candidates endorsed by political
party
Section 53(4)—delete subsection (4) and
substitute:
(4) The Electoral Commissioner must, in respect of each district for which
a candidate has been nominated under this section, deliver to the returning
officer a copy or facsimile of the nomination paper as soon as practicable after
the receipt of the nomination paper under this section (and in any event before
the hour of nomination).
Section 68—delete the section and substitute:
68—Certified list of electors
(1) The relevant electoral registrars in relation to a district must, as
soon as practicable after the date fixed for the closing of the rolls for an
election, supply the Electoral Commissioner with a certified list of the
electors enrolled for the district.
(2) The Electoral Commissioner must, as soon as practicable after receipt
of the certified list of electors for a district, supply the returning officer
for the district with a copy of the certified list of electors.
16—Amendment
of section 74—Issue of declaration voting papers by post or other
means
(1) Section 74(4)(c)—delete "—the address of the
principal place of residence" and substitute:
—
(i) the address of the principal place of residence; and
(ii) if an elector who has applied for the issue of declaration voting
papers under subsection (1)(b) has provided an address to which declaration
voting papers are to be issued that is different from the address of the
principal place of residence—the address to which the papers are to be
issued.
(2) Section 74—after subsection (6) insert:
(6a) The Electoral
Commissioner must, on request, provide (in a form determined by the Electoral
Commissioner)—
(a) the registered officer of a registered political party with a copy of
the information contained in the register in relation to electors in any
district who have applied for the issue of declaration voting papers under
subsection (1)(b); or
(b) a person who is a nominated candidate in an election with a copy of
the information contained in the register in relation to electors who have
applied for the issue of declaration voting papers under subsection (1)(b)
for—
(i) in the case of a person who is a candidate in an election for a House
of Assembly district—that district; or
(ii) in the case of a person who is a candidate in a Legislative Council
election—the Legislative Council district.
After section 74 insert:
74A—Offence to distribute application form for
issue of declaration voting papers
(1) A person, other than a person authorised by the Electoral
Commissioner, must not distribute, or cause or permit to be distributed, a form
for the application by an elector for the issue of declaration voting papers (an
application form).
Maximum penalty: $5 000.
(2) In this section—
distribute an application form includes make the form
available (including in electronic form) to other persons.
18—Amendment
of section 94—Informal ballot papers
Section 94(1)(c)—delete paragraph (c)
19—Amendment
of section 95—Scrutiny of votes in Legislative Council
election
Section 95(2)(f)—delete "by telegram or in some other" and
substitute:
in an
20—Amendment
of section 96—Scrutiny of votes in House of Assembly
election
Section 96(2)(f)—delete "by telegram or in some other" and
substitute:
in an
21—Amendment
of section 112—Publication of electoral advertisements, notices
etc
Section 112(1)—after paragraph (a) insert:
(ab) if the advertisement is authorised for a registered political party
or a candidate endorsed by a registered political party—the party's name
or, if the Register of Political Parties includes an abbreviation of the party's
name, that abbreviation appears at the end; and
22—Substitution
of section 112A
Section 112A—delete the section and substitute:
112A—Special provision relating to how-to-vote
cards
(1) During the
election period for an election, a person must not distribute, or cause or
permit to be distributed, a how-to-vote card unless—
(a) the name (being the name by which the person is usually known) and
address (not being a post office box) of the person who authorised the card
appears at the bottom of the card; and
(b) if the card is authorised—
(i) for a registered political party or a candidate endorsed by a
registered political party—the party's name or, if the Register of
Political Parties includes an abbreviation of the party's name, that
abbreviation; or
(ii) for a candidate who is not endorsed by a registered political
party—the candidate's name and the word "candidate",
is stated on the card in accordance with any requirements prescribed by the
regulations; and
(c) the card has substantially the same appearance as a how-to-vote card
that—
(i) has been submitted for inclusion in posters under section 66;
or
(ii) has been lodged with the Electoral Commissioner no later than
2 days before polling day.
Maximum penalty: $5 000.
(2) A how-to-vote card lodged with the Electoral Commissioner under
subsection (1)(c)(ii) must—
(a) be lodged in a manner determined by the Electoral Commissioner;
and
(b) comply with any requirements prescribed by the regulations.
(3) If a
how-to-vote card is submitted to the Electoral Commissioner by or on behalf of a
candidate in accordance with section 66 (the initial submitted
how-to-vote card), any how-to-vote card that—
(a) is subsequently lodged with the Electoral Commissioner under
subsection (1)(c)(ii) or distributed in relation to the same election; and
(b) relates to the candidate; and
(c) is authorised by or for the candidate or a registered political party
of which the candidate is a member,
must have substantially the same appearance as the initial submitted
how-to-vote card.
(4) A person who distributes a how-to-vote card in contravention of
subsection (3)
is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty: $5 000.
(5) For the purposes of this section, how-to-vote cards will be taken to
have substantially the same appearance if the cards are identical
except for—
(a) the size or shape of the cards; or
(b) the fonts used in the cards; or
(c) the material or medium on which the cards are printed or published;
or
(d) the manner in which the cards suggest that a voter indicate the order
of preference for candidates on the ballot paper; or
(e) any other matter prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of
this subsection.
(6) In this section—
distribute a how-to-vote card includes make the card
available (including in electronic form) to other persons;
how-to-vote card includes any material that has the
appearance of a how-to-vote card (whether published on its own or as part of any
other material).
23—Amendment
of section 112B—Certain descriptions not to be used
Section 112B(4), definition of distribute—after
"available" insert:
(including in electronic form)
24—Amendment
of section 116—Published material to identify person responsible for
political content
(1) Section 116(1)—delete "in a journal published in electronic
form on the Internet"
(2) Section 116(1)—delete "or broadcast on the
Internet"
(3) Section 116(2)(a)—delete "(including a journal published in
electronic form on the Internet)"
(4) Section 116(2)(c)—delete paragraph (c) and
substitute:
(c) the publication in a journal of an article, letter, report or other
matter if the journal contains a statement to the effect that a person whose
name and address (not being a post office box) appears in the statement takes
responsibility for the publication of all electoral matter published in the
journal;
(5) Section 116(2)(d)—delete "or broadcast on the
Internet"