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sHB5529 / File No. 546 1
General Assembly File No. 546
February Session, 2026 Substitute House Bill No. 5529
House of Representatives, April 9, 2026
The Committee on Government Administration and Elections
reported through REP. BLUMENTHAL of the 147th Dist.,
Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the House, that the
substitute bill ought to pass.
AN ACT CONCERNING POLL BOOKS FOR THE CHECKING OF
ELECTORS AT ELECTIONS, PRIMARIES AND REFERENDA.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective January 1, 2027) (a) As used in this section, 1
"election", "referendum", "municipality" and "elector" have the same 2
meanings as provided in section 9 -1 of the general statutes; "primary" 3
has the same meaning as provided in section 9 -372 of the general 4
statutes; and "political committee" and "candidate committee" have the 5
same meanings as provided in section 9-601 of the general statutes. 6
(b) Not later than fourteen days prior to any election, primary or 7
referendum held in a municipality, the registrars of voters of such 8
municipality shall provide notice to each (1) town committee within 9
such municipality, (2) political committee formed solely to aid or 10
promote the success or defeat of a referendum question that is to appear 11
on the ballot at such referendum, and (3) candidate committee of a 12
candidate whose name is to appear on the ballot at such election or 13
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primary, of whether the poll books containing the official checklist to be 14
used at such election, primary or referendum for the checking of any 15
elector appearing at the polling place or location designated for the 16
conduct of early voting will include an electronic version. 17
(c) Each registrar of voters who fails to provide notice in accordance 18
with the provisions of subsection (b) of this section shall be fined not 19
less than fifty dollars. 20
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 January 1, 2027 New section
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Subsec. (b)(2), "that is to appear on the ballot at such referendum" was
added for clarity; and in Subsec. (b)(3), "such election, primary or
referendum" was changed to "such election or primary" for accuracy.
GAE Joint Favorable Subst.
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The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $
Resources of the General Fund GF - Potential
Revenue Gain
Minimal Minimal
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill requires registrars to notify electors at least 14 days prior to
an election what kind of poll book 1 will be used in that election or
referendum, and establishes a $50 minimum penalty for each registrar
who fails to provide that notice, resulting in a potential minimal revenue
gain to the General Fund beginning in FY 27. The exact revenue gain
will depend on the number and amount of fines imposed due to the
legislation.
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future, subject to inflation and the number of penalties
imposed.
1 The Secretary of the State (SOTS) is required to approve any electronic poll book prior
to it being used by towns. SOTS has not approved any electronic poll book at this time.
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OLR Bill Analysis
sHB 5529
AN ACT CONCERNING POLL BOOKS FOR THE CHECKING OF
ELECTORS AT ELECTIONS, PRIMARIES AND REFERENDA.
SUMMARY
This bill requires each registrar of voters, at least 14 days before any
election, primary, or referendum in a municipality, to notify certain
entities whether electronic polls books containing the official checklist
will be used to check in voters on election day or for early voting (under
current practice, these can only be used as a backup to paper-based poll
books). The registrars must notify all (1) town committees in the
municipality, (2) political committees formed solely to aid or promote
the succes s or defeat of a referendum question , and (3) candidate
committees for candidates on the ballot.
The bill subjects any registrar who fails to provide the notice to a fine
of at least $50. (The bill does not specify a maximum allowable amount
for the fine nor how it will be imposed or enforced.)
EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 2027
COMMITTEE ACTION
Government Administration and Elections Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 19 Nay 0 (03/20/2026)