(A) Before any kind of vote recorder system, including an optical scan voting system, is used at any election, it shall be approved by the State Election Commission which shall examine the vote recorder and shall make and file in the commission's office a report, attested by the signature of the executive director, stating whether, in the opinion of the commission, the kind of vote recorder so examined can be accurately and efficiently used by electors at elections, as provided by law. No vote recorder or optical scan voting system may be approved for use in the State unless certified by an Independent Testing Authority (ITA) accredited by the National Association of State Election Directors and the State Election Commission as meeting or exceeding the minimum requirements of the Federal Election Commission's national voting system standards. If this report states that the vote recorder can be so used, the recorder shall be considered approved and vote recorders of its kind may be adopted for use at elections, as herein provided.
(B) No kind of vote recorder not approved pursuant to this section shall be used at any election and if, upon the reexamination of any type vote recorder previously approved, it appears that the vote recorder so reexamined can no longer be accurately and efficiently used by electors at elections as provided by law, the approval of the vote recorder must immediately be revoked by the State Election Commission, and no such type vote recorder shall thereafter be purchased for use or used in this State.
(C) If a vote recorder, including an optical scan voting system, which was approved for use before July 1, 1999, is improved or otherwise changed in a way since its approval that does not impair its accuracy, efficiency, or capacity, the vote recorder may be used in elections. However, if the software, hardware, or firmware of the system is improved or otherwise changed, the system must comply with the requirements of subsection (A).
(D) Any person or company who requests an examination of any type of vote recorder or optical scan voting system shall pay a nonrefundable examination fee of one thousand dollars for a new voting system and a nonrefundable examination fee of five hundred dollars for an upgrade to any existing system to the State Election Commission. The State Election Commission may at any time, in its discretion, reexamine any vote recorder or optical scan voting system when evidence is presented to the commission that the accuracy or the ability of the system to be used satisfactorily in the conduct of elections is in question.
(E) Any person or company who seeks approval for any vote recorder or optical scan voting system in this State must file with the State Election Commission a list of all states or jurisdictions in which the system has been approved for use. This list must state how long the system has been used in the state; contain the name, address, and telephone number of that state or jurisdiction's chief election official; and must disclose any reports compiled by state or local government concerning the performance of the system. The vendor is responsible for filing this information on an ongoing basis.
(F) Any person or company who seeks approval for any vote recorder or optical scan voting system must file with the State Election Commission copies of all contracts and maintenance agreements used in connection with the sale of the voting system. All changes to standard contracts and maintenance agreements must be filed with the State Election Commission.
(G) Any person or company who seeks approval for any vote recorder or optical scan voting system must conduct, under the supervision of the State Election Commission and any county election commission, a field test for any new voting system, as part of the certification process. The field test shall involve South Carolina voters and election officials and must be conducted as part of a scheduled primary, general, or special election. This test must be held in two or more precincts, and all costs relating to the voting system must be borne by the vendor. The test must be designed to gauge voter reaction to the system, problems that voters have with the system, and the number of voting units required for the efficient operation of an election. The test must also demonstrate the accuracy of votes cast and reported on the system.
(H) Before any vote recorder or optical scan voting system approved after July 1, 1999, may be used in elections in the State, all source codes for the system must be placed in escrow by the manufacturer, at the manufacturer's expense, with the approved software ITA. These source codes must be available to the State Election Commission in the event that the company goes out of business, pursuant to court order, or in the event that the State Election Commission determines that an examination of these source codes is necessary. It is the responsibility of the manufacturer to place all updates of these source codes in escrow and to notify the State Election Commission that this requirement has been met.
(I) After a vote recorder or optical scan voting system is approved, an improvement or change in the system must be submitted to the State Election Commission for approval pursuant to this section; however, this requirement does not apply to the technical capability of a general purpose computer or reader to electronically count and record votes or to a printer to accurately reproduce vote totals.
(J) If the State Election Commission determines that a vote recorder or optical scan voting system that was approved no longer meets the requirements set forth in subsections (A) and (C) or Section 7-13-1340, the commission may decertify that system. A decertified system shall not be used in elections unless the system is reapproved by the commission under subsections (A) and (C).
(K) Neither a member of the State Election Commission, any county election commission or custodian, nor a member of a county governing body shall have any pecuniary interest in any vote recorder, or in the manufacture or sale of the vote recorder.