R 168.778 Public accuracy test.

Rule 8. (1) If early voting is being offered for the jurisdiction, the election commission responsible for early voting shall designate a time and place for a public accuracy test, which must be held not less than 5 days before the start of early voting in accordance with the requirements of section 798 of the act, MCL 168.798. (2) If no early voting is being offered for the jurisdiction, the election commission responsible for the election shall designate a time and place for a public accuracy test, which must be held not less than 5 days before the election. (3) The public accuracy test must be conducted by the election commission responsible for the election. A member of the commission may designate an individual to serve in the member’s place . A member of the commission who designates an individual to serve at the public accuracy test shall notify the clerk before the test. The clerk of the commission or the designated representative of the clerk is the chairperson. (4) The clerk responsible for the election may limit the number of individuals who may be present for the public accuracy test based on room capacity. (5) The initial testing of the tabulators and programs must be with the official test deck prepared under the direction of the commission. The number of precincts to be tested must be determined by the commission. The commission may prepare or cause to have prepared additional ballots to be included in the official test deck. (6) Each program and test deck must be tested on the tabulator on which it is to be used for the election. (7) The election commission shall test the accessible voting devices as prescribed by the secretary of state as part of the public accuracy test. (8) The election commission shall test the on-demand ballot printing system as prescribed by the secretary of state as part of the public accuracy test. (9) The commission supplying the program shall provide the following items at the accuracy test: (a) Test ballots. (b) At least 1 set of sample ballots for each precinct. (c) The chart of predetermined results. (10) If an error is detected in the testing, the cause must be ascertained, the error must be corrected, and an errorless count must be made for all precincts. If determined by the commission, the meeting may be adjourned to a time and date certain. (11) The secretary of state or a designated representative may provide a test deck for a program. If so, it must be delivered at the public accuracy test. At the discretion of the secretary of state, it may be used in place of, or in addition to, the test deck prepared by the commission. (12) The commission shall certify the accuracy of the test. The certification may be attached to, or written on, the printed results of the public accuracy test. (13) The commission shall secure all programs, test decks, certified results of the test, and the predetermined results in an approved container, which must be sealed with an approved seal in a manner so that the container cannot be opened without breaking the seal. There must be a certificate describing its contents with the number of the seal attached to or inside the container. The certificate must be signed by the members of the commission, and if attached to the container in a plastic envelope, it must be attached in a manner that it cannot be removed without breaking the seal. (14) The commission shall immediately deliver to the clerk in charge of the election the approved ballot container containing the programs and test decks. The clerk shall retain and secure the programs.