When the county auditor or the county auditor’s designee is at a facility to conduct absentee voting in accordance with SDCL 12-19-9.1, a resident who wishes to vote using an absentee ballot must be given an absentee ballot and the instructions for how to vote by absentee ballot pursuant to § 5:02:10:01.03. The resident shall complete the ballot alone, but must remain in the presence of the auditor or the auditor's designee. Any notified person listed in SDCL 12-19-9.1 may also be present.

The auditor or the auditor's designee must be present during the entire time the absentee voting is being conducted.

The receptacle used at a facility must be sealed at the auditor's office prior to transporting to a facility and may only be used for absentee voting at a facility.

While at the facility, the auditor or the auditor's designee shall place the completed absentee ballot into a sealed receptacle before leaving the facility. If the receptacle is used at more than one facility, the auditor must maintain a log of the facilities and the date of the voting.

The auditor or the auditor's designee shall transport the sealed receptacle to the auditor's office and secure the sealed receptacle in accordance with SDCL chapter 12-20 and § 5:02:16:37.

Upon return to the auditor's office, the ballots must be processed in the same manner as all in-person absentee ballots and stored in a secure storage area.

For purposes of this section, the term, facility, means a nursing facility, assisted living center, or hospital as defined in SDCL 34-12-1.1.

Source: 50 SDR 66, effective December 5, 2023 .

General Authority: SDCL 12-1-9 (4)(9), 12-19-9.1 .

Law Implemented: SDCL 12-19-9.1 , 12-19-9.3 .