Election officials must notify the secretary of state before acting on certain federal election directives or new federal election funding, and generally may not implement or use that funding without legal authority or committee approval.
§425.2. Election officials; requirements and prohibitions A. An election official who receives a federal directive or guidance pertaining to elections that is not published on the secretary of state's website or is offered new federal funding for the purpose of funding elections and wishes to implement the directive or guidance or accept the funding shall notify the secretary of state of such funding, directive, or guidance within five business days after receipt. B.(1) Except as provided in Subsection C of this Section, no election official shall implement any federal directive or guidance pertaining to elections or be authorized to accept or disburse new federal funding for the purpose of funding elections without either an explicit state or federal legal requirement to do so or prior approval of the House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs and the Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs as provided by this Subsection. (2) If the secretary of state wishes to seek approval of such implementation or authorization by the House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs and the Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs, the secretary shall submit such request to the chairman of each committee within five business days of the receipt of the notification by the secretary of state pursuant to Subsection A of this Section. Each election official shall implement or refrain from implementing the directive or guidance or accept or disburse or refrain from accepting or disbursing new federal funding as follows: (a) If, after consulting with the secretary of state or his designee, both committees vote to approve implementation or authorize acceptance and disbursal, the official shall implement the directive or guidance or accept or disburse the federal funding. (b) If neither committee votes, within thirty days after receipt of the request from the secretary of state, to prohibit implementation or acceptance and disbursal, the official shall implement the directive or guidance or accept or disburse the federal funding. (c) If, after consulting with the secretary of state or his designee, either committee votes, within thirty days after receipt of the request from the secretary of state, to prohibit the implementation or acceptance and disbursal, the official shall not implement the directive or guidance or accept or disburse the federal funding. C. Within ninety days of the initial declaration of a state of emergency, the secretary of state may implement any federal directive or guidance pertaining to elections or authorize the acceptance or disbursal of new federal funding for the purpose of funding elections without either an explicit state or federal legal requirement to do so by publishing the directive or authorization on his website and giving immediate notification of the directive or authorization to the House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs and the Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs. The secretary of state's authorization shall expire thirty days after publication unless the House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs and the Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs approve the directive or guidance or authorize the acceptance and disbursal of funds as provided in Paragraph (B)(2) of this Section. D. If an election official accepts and disburses federal election funds in violation of this Section, the attorney general shall pursue any available legal means to enjoin the official from doing so and to recover expended funds. E. This Section shall not apply to funds provided pursuant to the Help America Vote Act or any other funding subject to state or federal law regarding its acceptance and disbursal. F. Not later than March first of each year, the secretary of state shall report to the House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs and the Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs the following information for the prior calendar year: (1) Notifications received by the secretary of state from local election officials pursuant to Subsection A of this Section. (2) The source and amount of any federal funding, including grant awards, received within the prior calendar year by the department or local election officials for the purpose of conducting elections. G. For purposes of this Section, "election official" has the same meaning as provided in R.S. 18:1466. Acts 2024, No. 636, §1, eff. June 11, 2024.