SENATE BILL 97031
BY SENATORS Reeves, Bishop, Hernandez, Pascoe, and Weddig;
also REPRESENTATIVES Tucker and Mace.
CONCERNING RECALL ELECTIONS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State
of Colorado:
SECTION 1. 112102,
Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is amended
BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW SUBSECTION to read:
112102. Limitations.
(4) NO RECALL PETITION SHALL BE CIRCULATED OR FILED
AGAINST ANY ELECTED OFFICER WHOSE TERM OF OFFICE WILL EXPIRE WITHIN
SIX MONTHS.
SECTION 2. 112104
(1), Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is
amended to read:
112104. Signatures required
for state and county officers. (1) A
petition to recall a state or county officer shall be signed by
eligible electors equal in number to twentyfive percent
of the entire vote cast at the last preceding general election
for all candidates for the office which the incumbent sought to
be recalled occupies. and shall be
filed in the office of the county clerk and recorder unless otherwise
required.
SECTION 3. 112105,
Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is amended
to read:
112105. Signatures required
for school district officers. A petition
to recall a school district officer shall be signed by eligible
electors of the school district equal in number to at least forty
percent of those electors who voted for
school directors in SUCH DISTRICT
IN the LAST PRECEDING election at which the director to be recalled
was elected AS INDICATED BY THE POLLBOOK OR ABSTRACT FOR SUCH
ELECTION. IF NO SUCH ELECTION WAS HELD, SUCH PETITION SHALL BE
SIGNED BY ELIGIBLE ELECTORS OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT EQUAL IN NUMBER
TO AT LEAST TEN PERCENT OF THOSE ELECTORS RESIDING WITHIN THE
SCHOOL DISTRICT ON THE DATE THAT THE FORM OF THE PETITION IS APPROVED
UNDER SECTION 112108 (4). In no case shall the number
required for recall be less than ten percent of eligible electors
qualified to vote in the most recent biennial school election;
except that no more than fifteen thousand signatures shall be
required.
SECTION 4. 112106,
Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is amended
to read:
112106. Signatures required
for nonpartisan officers. A petition
to recall any other nonpartisan officer shall be signed by three
hundred eligible electors of the political subdivision who are
entitled to vote for a successor to the incumbent sought to be
recalled or forty percent of the ELIGIBLE electors OF THE POLITICAL
SUBDIVISION AT THE TIME THE FORM OF THE PETITION IS APPROVED UNDER
SECTION 112108 (4), whichever number is less.
SECTION 5. 112108
(4), (7), (8) (c), (9) (a), and (9) (c), Colorado Revised Statutes,
1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, are amended, and the said 112108
is further amended BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW SUBSECTION, to read:
112108. Petition requirements.
(4) No petition shall be circulated until it has been
approved as meeting the requirements of this subsection (4) as
to form. The secretary of state and
the official with whom the petitions
are to be filed PURSUANT TO SECTION 112107 shall approve
or disapprove a petition as to form by the close of the second
business day following submission of the proposed petition. The
official shall mail written notice of the action taken to the
person who submitted the petition and to the officer whom the
petition seeks to recall on the day the action is taken.
(7) The petition,
when executed and acknowledged as prescribed in this section,
shall be filed as follows: With the secretary of state if it
is for an office voted on by the electors of the entire state
or of a congressional district or for the offices of members of
the general assembly or district attorney or a district office
of state concern; with the county clerk and recorder if it is
for a county office; and with the designated election official
if it is for a nonpartisan local election.
(7.5) THE PETITION MAY BE FILED AT ANY
TIME DURING THE SIXTYDAY PERIOD AFTER THE DESIGNATED ELECTION
OFFICIAL'S APPROVAL OF THE PETITION FORM AS SPECIFIED IN SUBSECTION
(1) OF THIS SECTION.
(8) (c) After review, AND NO LATER
THAN TEN WORKING DAYS AFTER THE INITIAL FILING OF THE PETITION,
the designated election official shall notify the committee and
the incumbent of the number of valid signatures and whether the
petition appears to be sufficient or insufficient. Upon determining
that the petition is sufficient and after the time for protest
has passed, the designated election official shall certify the
recall question to the ballot and, if the election is a coordinated
election, notify the coordinated election official.
(9) (a) A recall petition that has
been verified by the designated election official shall be held
to be sufficient unless a protest in writing under oath is filed
in the office of the designated election official by an eligible
elector within fifteen days after the petition
is filed or an amendment is filed pursuant to paragraph (c) of
this subsection (9) DESIGNATED ELECTION
OFFICIAL HAS DETERMINED THE SUFFICIENCY OR INSUFFICIENCY OF THE
PETITION UNDER PARAGRAPH (c) OF SUBSECTION (8) OF THIS SECTION.
The petition shall set forth specific grounds for the protest.
Grounds include but are not limited to failure of any portion
of a petition or circulator affidavit to meet the requirements
of this article or any conduct on the part of petition circulators
that substantially misleads persons signing the petition. The
designated election official shall forthwith mail a copy of the
protest to the committee named in the petition as representing
the signers, together with a notice fixing a time for hearing
the protest not less than five nor more than ten days after the
notice is mailed. Every hearing shall be before the designated
election official with whom the protest is filed or before a district
judge sitting in that county if the designated election official
is the subject of the recall. The testimony in every hearing
shall be under oath. The hearing shall be summary and not subject
to delay and shall be concluded within thirty days after the petition
is filed, and the result shall be forthwith certified to the committee.
(c) In case
A petition for recall is not sufficient,
it may be withdrawn by a majority of the committee and
may be amended ONCE at any time within sixty days from the date
the petition FORM was approved by the designated election official
UNDER SUBSECTION (4) OF THIS SECTION. Any signer may request
that his or her name be stricken from the petition within the
sixtyday period.
SECTION 6. 112111,
Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is amended
to read:
112111. Date of election.
If the recall petition is found
HELD to be sufficient UNDER SECTION 112108 (8) (c)
AND AFTER THE TIME FOR PROTEST HAS PASSED, the officer with whom
the recall petition was filed, without delay, shall submit the
petition, together with a certificate of its sufficiency, to the
appropriate governing body. The governing body shall set a date
for the recall election not less than thirty
FORTYFIVE nor more than sixty
SEVENTYFIVE days from the date of determination of sufficiency;
however, if a general election is to be held within ninety days
after the determination of sufficiency, the recall election shall
be held as a part of the general election.
SECTION 7. 112112
(1), Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is
amended to read:
112112. Ballots.
(1) In addition to all other requirements of law,
the official ballot shall contain a statement consisting of two
hundred words or less stating the reasons set forth in the petition
for demanding the officer's recall. If
desired by The officer sought to
be recalled the official ballot shall
also contain MAY SUBMIT a statement
of justification of the officer's course in conduct in three hundred
words or less TO THE DESIGNATED ELECTION OFFICIAL. THE OFFICER
SHALL SUBMIT ANY SUCH STATEMENT NO LATER THAN TEN WORKING DAYS
AFTER THE DATE OF ISSUANCE OF THE CERTIFICATE OF SUFFICIENCY BY
THE DESIGNATED ELECTION OFFICIAL. THE OFFICIAL BALLOT SHALL CONTAIN
SUCH STATEMENT OF JUSTIFICATION IF SUBMITTED PURSUANT TO THIS
SUBSECTION (1).
SECTION 8. 112117,
Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is amended
to read:
112117. Nomination of successor.
A candidate to succeed the officer sought to be recalled shall
meet the qualifications of a party candidate or an unaffiliated
candidate as provided in part 8 of article 4 of this title and
shall be nominated by a political party petition or an unaffiliated
petition as provided in part 9 of article 4 of this title. Nomination
petitions and affidavits of intent to run as a writein candidate
shall be filed no later than fifteen days after the date that
the recall petition is found to be sufficient
ON WHICH THE APPROPRIATE GOVERNING BODY CONVENES AND SETS THE
ELECTION DATE. Every petition shall be signed by the number of
eligible electors required for the office in part 8 of article
4 of this title or as otherwise provided by law. The name of
the officer who was sought to be recalled shall not be eligible
as a candidate in the election to fill any vacancy resulting from
the recall election.
SECTION 9. 112120
(2), Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl. Vol., as amended, is
amended to read:
112120. Cost of recall
election. (2) If at any recall
election for a county or local government office the incumbent
whose recall is sought is not recalled, the governing body shall
authorize a resolution for repayment from the general fund of
the political subdivision any money authorized to be repaid to
the incumbent by this article which the incumbent actually expended
as an expense of the election. In no event shall the sum repaid
exceed forty cents per voter
ELIGIBLE ELECTOR AS DEFINED IN SECTION 11104 (16),
subject to a maximum repayment of ten thousand dollars.
SECTION 10. Part
1 of article 12 of title 1, Colorado Revised Statutes, 1980 Repl.
Vol., as amended, is amended BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION
to read:
112123. Constitutional
requirements for recall of state officers.
TO THE EXTENT THAT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS PART 1 CONCERNING THE
RECALL OF STATE OFFICERS CONFLICT WITH THE PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE
XXI OF THE STATE CONSTITUTION, THE PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE XXI OF
THE STATE CONSTITUTION SHALL CONTROL.
SECTION 11. Safety
clause. The general assembly hereby finds, determines, and
declares that this act is necessary for the immediate preservation
of the public peace, health, and safety.
____________________________ ____________________________
Tom Norton Charles E. Berry
PRESIDENT OF SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
THE SENATE OF REPRESENTATIVES
____________________________ ____________________________
Joan M. Albi Judith M. Rodrigue
SECRETARY OF CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE
THE SENATE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APPROVED________________________________________
_________________________________________
Roy Romer
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE
OF COLORADO