Bill would end requirement to post printed absentee voter lists at polling places

Representative Julie Darling introduced House Bill 167 to remove the requirement that election officials post printed absentee voter lists at polling locations and to give the change an immediate effective date.

Regina Plettenberg, Clerk Recorder and Election Administrator for Ravalli County, testified on behalf of the Montana Association of Clerk Recorders as a proponent. Plettenberg said the printed absentee book used to be small but has grown to as much as "a ream" of paper in large counties and that the public rarely comes to clerks’ offices to request the printed list because the same information is available electronically. She said precinct registers and provisional tables already provide election judges with the information they need at the polls.

Austin James, elections director for the secretary of state (Christy Jacobson), appeared as an informational witness and provided historical context: in earlier eras, lists and identification practices reflected different norms around ballot secrecy and identification, but current processes give poll workers the tools they need without a separate, large printed absentee book.

A staff member explained an amendment added during drafting that corrects cross-references and removes an extra subsection so the statute’s retention and internal references are consistent; the staff description characterized the change as cleanup rather than a substantive policy shift.

Representative Darling closed by characterizing the bill as cost-effective and modernizing for election administrators and requested a due pass. The committee did not take a final vote on HB167 during this hearing; members asked clarifying questions about the bill’s intent and the amendment.