Help America Vote Act
Missouri's State Plan

Section 9

SEC. 254. (a) In General.--The State plan shall contain a description of each
of the following:

(9) A description of the uniform, nondiscriminatory State-based administrative complaint procedures in effect under section 402.

House Bill No. 511 requires the Secretary of State to establish state-based administrative complaint procedures to remedy grievances concerning a violation of title III of HAVA. These procedures shall:

(1) Require complaints to be in writing and notarized, and signed and sworn by the person filing the complaint;

(2) Allow complaints to be consolidated;

(3) At the request of the complainant, require a hearing on the record which may be conducted exclusively by written testimony and information;

(4) Provide an appropriate remedy for any substantiated violation of Title III of the Help America Vote Act of 2002;

(5) Dismiss the complaint and publish the results of the procedures when there is a determination of no violation;

(6) Require a final determination with respect to the complaint before the expiration of the ninety-day period which begins on the date the complaint is filed, unless the complainant consents to a longer period for making such a determination; and

(7) If the final determination is not completed within ninety days, resolve the complaint within sixty days under alternative dispute resolution procedures. The record and any other materials from proceedings conducted pursuant to this subsection shall be made available for use under the alternative dispute resolution procedures.

The Secretary of State is authorized to promulgate rules to execute these procedures. Therefore, the Secretary of State will promulgate rules to develop a uniform statewide complaint system that is consistent with State and Federal law.

Elements of Missouri's uniform statewide complaint system include the following:

• Who may file a grievance;
• What is the proper subject for a grievance;
• Grievance must be filed (notarized and in writing) with the Secretary of State within 30 days after the certification of the election;
• The Secretary of State shall designate a hearing officer;
• The hearing officer shall provide each party an opportunity to explain their positions in writing or, if the circumstances so dictate, a hearing on the record, within ten days of the filing of the complaint;
• The hearing officer shall issue a decision in writing;
• Any nonprevailing party may request a review of the hearing officer's decision by the Secretary of State or his designee and that review and determination will be final, to be judicially reviewable only through Chapter 536, RSMo;