Irrigation dist. elections

AN ACT Relating to irrigation district elections; amending RCW 1
87.03.031, 87.03.032, 87.03.033, 87.03.045, 87.03.051, 87.03.071, 2
87.03.075, 87.03.085, and 87.03.105; adding new sections to chapter 3
87.03 RCW; and prescribing penalties. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
Sec. 1. RCW 87.03.031 and 2013 c 23 s 481 are each amended to 6
read as follows: 7
Any qualified district elector ((who certifies as provided in RCW 8
87.03.032 through 87.03.034 that he or she cannot conveniently be 9
present to cast his or her ballot at his or her proper election 10
precinct on the day of any irrigation district election )) shall be 11
entitled to vote by absentee ballot ((in such election )) in the 12
manner herein provided. 13
Sec. 2. RCW 87.03.032 and 2013 c 23 s 482 are each amended to 14
read as follows: 15
(1) The notice of election shall conform to the requirements for 16
election notices provided by ((Title 87 RCW )) this chapter for the 17
election being held, and shall specify ((in addition )) that any 18
qualified district elector ((who certifies that he or she cannot 19
conveniently be present at his or her proper election precinct on the 20
S-1137.1
SENATE BILL 5669
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Senators Torres, Short, Dozier, Schoesler, and Warnick
Read first time 02/05/25. Referred to Committee on Agriculture &
Natural Resources.
p. 1 SB 5669
day of election )) may vote by absentee ballot, and that a ballot and 1
form of certificate of qualifications will be furnished to him or her 2
on written request being made of the district's secretary. The 3
requisite ballot and a form of certificate of qualifications shall be 4
furnished by the district's secretary to any person who prior to the 5
date of election makes written request therefor, stating that he or 6
she is a qualified district elector. Such ballot and form may be 7
furnished also to qualified district electors in any way deemed to be 8
convenient without regard to requests having been made therefor.9
(2) The board of directors may by adoption of a resolution choose 10
to conduct an election using only mail-in ballots in lieu of polling 11
places and absentee ballots. The district shall provide ballots to 12
qualified electors derived from its assessment roll, toll and charge 13
roll, or other district records and may also use the county 14
assessor's or other public records to assist in determining qualified 15
electors. Ballots will be in the same format as provided in RCW 16
87.03.033. Persons or entities who have not received a ballot and 17
believe they are qualified electors may provide documents 18
demonstrating they are qualified electors at the district main office 19
by the close of business on the day before the election and receive a 20
ballot if qualified to vote in the election.21
Sec. 3. RCW 87.03.033 and 2013 c 23 s 483 are each amended to 22
read as follows: 23
(1) To be counted in a given election, an absentee ballot or 24
ballots in a mail-in election must conform to these requirements:25
(a) It must be sealed in ((an unmarked )) a security envelope, 26
which may provide instructions for completing the ballot and which 27
position is being contested, but have no other marks that would 28
identify the elector, and then be placed in an additional outer 29
envelope and delivered to the district's principal office prior to 30
the close of the polls on the day of that election; or be ((sealed in 31
an unmarked envelope and )) mailed to the district's secretary, 32
postmarked not later than midnight of that election day and received 33
by the secretary within ((five)) seven days of that date.34
(b) To ensure secrecy of the vote, the security envelope must be 35
sealed within an additional outer envelope, requiring the ballot to 36
be provided with two envelopes for ballot return.37
(c) The sealed envelope containing the ballot shall be 38
accompanied by a certificate of qualifications stating, with respect 39
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to the voter, his or her name, age, citizenship, residence, that he 1
or she holds title or evidence of title to lands within the district 2
which, under ((RCW 87.03.045)) this chapter entitles him or her to 3
vote in the election ((, and that he or she cannot conveniently be 4
present to cast his or her ballot at his or her proper election 5
precinct on election day)). 6
(((c))) (d) The statements in the certificate of qualifications 7
shall be certified as correct by the voter by the affixing of his or 8
her signature thereto ((in the presence of a witness who is 9
acquainted with the voter, and the voter shall enclose and seal his 10
or her ballot in the unmarked envelope in the presence of this 11
witness but without disclosing his or her vote. The witness, by 12
affixing his or her signature to the certificate of qualifications, 13
shall certify that he or she is acquainted with the voter, that in 14
his or her presence the voter's signature was affixed and the ballot 15
enclosed as required in this paragraph )), certifying under penalty of 16
perjury that he or she meets the qualifications to vote.17
(2) The form of statement of qualifications and its certification 18
shall be substantially as prescribed by the district's board of 19
directors. The district may print the statement of qualifications on 20
the outer envelope in lieu of including a separate statement of 21
qualifications form. This form may also provide that the voter shall 22
describe all or some part of his or her lands within the district 23
which, under ((RCW 87.03.045)) this chapter entitles him or her to 24
vote in the election, but a voter otherwise qualified shall not be 25
disqualified because of the absence or inaccuracy of the description 26
so given. The regular form of irrigation district ballot shall be 27
used by absentee voters. 28
Sec. 4. RCW 87.03.045 and 2013 c 23 s 484 are each amended to 29
read as follows: 30
In districts with ((two hundred thousand)) 200,000 acres or more, 31
a person ((eighteen)) 18 years old, being a citizen of the United 32
States and a resident of the state and who holds title or evidence of 33
title to land that is assessed or is assessable by the district 34
pursuant to federal and state law, in the district or proposed 35
district shall be entitled to vote therein. He or she shall be 36
entitled to one vote for the first ((ten)) 10 acres of said land or 37
fraction thereof and one additional vote for all of said land over 38
ten acres. A majority of the directors shall be residents of the 39
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county or counties in which the district is situated and all shall be 1
electors of the district. If more than one elector residing outside 2
the county or counties is voted for as director, only that one who 3
receives the highest number of votes shall be considered in 4
ascertaining the result of the election. Where land is community 5
property both the ((husband and wife )) spouses may vote if otherwise 6
qualified. An agent of a corporation , general partnership, limited 7
partnership, limited liability company, or other legal entity formed 8
pursuant to the laws of the state of Washington or qualified to do 9
business in the state of Washington owning land in the district, duly 10
authorized in writing, may vote on behalf of the ((corporation)) land 11
owning entity by filing with the election officers his or her 12
instrument of authority. The agent of such entity is considered an 13
elector of the district, and shall vote in the precinct where the 14
entity's principal office is located or in the precinct nearest the 15
location of the principal office. An elector resident in the district 16
shall vote in the precinct in which he or she resides, all others 17
shall vote in the precinct nearest their residence.18
Sec. 5. RCW 87.03.051 and 1997 c 354 s 1 are each amended to 19
read as follows: 20
In districts with less than ((two hundred thousand )) 200,000 21
acres, a person ((eighteen)) 18 years old, being a citizen of the 22
United States and a resident of the state and who holds title or 23
evidence of title to ((assessable)) land in the district or proposed 24
district that is assessed or is assessable by the district pursuant 25
to federal and state law, shall be entitled to vote therein, and to 26
be recognized as an elector. A corporation, general partnership, 27
limited partnership, limited liability company, or other legal entity 28
formed pursuant to the laws of the state of Washington or qualified 29
to do business in the state of Washington owning land in the district 30
shall be recognized as an elector. As used in this section, "entity" 31
means a corporation, general partnership, limited partnership, 32
limited liability company, or other legal entity formed pursuant to 33
the laws of the state of Washington or qualified to do business in 34
the state of Washington. "Ownership" shall mean the aggregate of all 35
assessable acres owned by an elector, individually or jointly, within 36
one district. Voting rights shall be allocated as follows: Two votes 37
for each five acres of assessable land or fraction thereof. No one 38
ownership may accumulate more than ((forty-nine)) 49 percent of the 39
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votes in one district. If assessments are on the basis of shares 1
instead of acres, an elector shall be entitled to two votes for each 2
five shares or fraction thereof. The ballots cast for each ownership 3
of land or shares shall be exercised by common agreement between 4
electors or when land is held as community property, the accumulated 5
votes may be divided equally between ((husband and wife )) the 6
spouses. Except for community property ownership, in the absence of 7
the submission of the common agreement to the secretary of the 8
district at least ((twenty-four)) 24 hours before the opening of the 9
polls, the election board shall recognize the first elector to appear 10
on election day as the elector having the authority to cast the 11
ballots for that parcel of land for which there is more than one 12
ownership interest. A majority of the directors shall be residents of 13
the county or counties in which the district is situated and all 14
shall be electors of the district. If more than one elector residing 15
outside the county or counties is voted for as director, only that 16
one who receives the highest number of votes shall be considered in 17
ascertaining the result of the election. An agent of an entity owning 18
land in the district, duly authorized in writing, may vote on behalf 19
of the entity by filing with the election officers his or her 20
instrument of authority. The agent of such entity is considered an 21
elector of the district, and shall vote in the precinct where the 22
entity's principal office is located or in the precinct nearest the 23
location of the principal office. An elector resident in the district 24
shall vote in the precinct in which he or she resides, all others 25
shall vote in the precinct nearest their residence. No director shall 26
be qualified to take or retain office unless the director holds title 27
or evidence of title to land within the district. 28
Sec. 6. RCW 87.03.071 and 1985 c 66 s 3 are each amended to read 29
as follows: 30
In any irrigation district where more than ((fifty)) 50 percent 31
of the total acreage of the district is owned in individual 32
ownerships of less than five acres, each elector who is otherwise 33
qualified to vote pursuant to RCW ((87.03.045)) 87.03.051 shall be 34
entitled to two votes regardless of the size of ownership. Each 35
ownership shall be represented by two votes. If there are multiple 36
owners or joint owners of a single ownership, the owners shall decide 37
among themselves what their two votes shall be. If the ownership is 38
held as community property, ((the husband shall be entitled to one 39
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vote and the wife)) each spouse shall be entitled to one vote or they 1
may vote by common agreement. 2
Sec. 7. RCW 87.03.075 and 2013 c 23 s 485 are each amended to 3
read as follows: 4
Voting in an irrigation district shall be by ballot. Ballots 5
shall be of uniform size and quality, provided by the district, and 6
for the election of directors shall contain only the names of the 7
candidates who have filed with the secretary of the district a 8
declaration ((in writing)) of their candidacy((, or)) by submitting a 9
petition of nomination as hereinafter provided, not later than five 10
o'clock p.m. on the first Monday in ((November)) October. Ballots 11
shall contain space ((for sticker voting or )) for the writing in of 12
the name of an undeclared candidate. Ballots shall be issued by the 13
election board according to the number of votes an elector is 14
entitled to cast. A person filing a declaration of candidacy ((, or)) 15
by submitting a petition of nomination as hereinafter provided, shall 16
designate therein the position for which he or she is a candidate. No 17
ballots on any form other than the official form shall be received or 18
counted. 19
In any election for directors where the number of votes which may 20
be received will have no bearing on the length of the term to be 21
served, the candidates for the position of director ((, in lieu of 22
filing a declaration of candidacy hereunder, shall file with the 23
secretary of the district )) shall file with the secretary of the 24
district a declaration of their candidacy by submitting a petition of 25
nomination, on a form prescribed by the district, signed by at least 26
ten qualified electors of the district, or of the division if the 27
district has been divided into director divisions, not later than 28
five o'clock p.m. on the first Monday in ((November)) October. If, 29
after the expiration of the date for filing ((petitions of 30
nomination)) a declaration of candidacy , it appears that only one 31
qualified candidate has ((been nominated thereby )) declared their 32
candidacy for each position to be filled it shall not be necessary to 33
hold an election, and the board of directors shall at their next 34
meeting declare such candidate elected as director. The secretary 35
shall immediately make and deliver to such person a certificate of 36
election signed by him or her and bearing the seal of the district. 37
The procedure set forth in this paragraph shall not apply to any 38
other irrigation district elections. 39
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Sec. 8. RCW 87.03.085 and 1987 c 123 s 1 are each amended to 1
read as follows: 2
(1) Fifteen days before any election held under this chapter, 3
subsequent to the organization of any district, the secretary of the 4
board of directors shall cause notices to be posted in three public 5
places in each election precinct, of the time and place of holding 6
the election. The secretary shall also post a general notice of the 7
same in the office of the board, which shall be established and kept 8
at some fixed place to be determined by the board, specifying the 9
polling places of each precinct. Prior to the time for posting the 10
notices, the board must appoint for each precinct, from the electors 11
thereof, one inspector and two judges, who shall constitute a board 12
of election for the precinct. If the board fails to appoint a board 13
of election, or the members appointed do not attend at the opening of 14
the polls on the morning of election, the electors of the precinct 15
present at that hour may appoint the board, or supply the place of an 16
absent member thereof. The board of directors must, in its order 17
appointing the board of election, designate the house or place within 18
the precinct where the election must be held. However, in any 19
irrigation district that is less than ((two hundred thousand )) 20
200,000 acres in size and is divided into director divisions, the 21
board of directors in its discretion may designate one polling place 22
within the district to serve more than one election precinct. The 23
board of directors of any irrigation district may designate the 24
principal business office of the district as a polling place to serve 25
one or more election precincts and may do so regardless of whether 26
the business office is located within or outside of the boundaries of 27
the district. If the board of directors does designate a single 28
polling place for more than one election precinct, then the election 29
officials appointed by the board of directors may serve more than one 30
election precinct and the election officials may be electors of any 31
of the election precincts for which they are the election board.32
(2)(a) The following additional notice requirements apply to 33
districts that qualify and have designated their own treasurer as 34
provided in RCW 87.03.440:35
(i) The district must annually notify qualified electors, either 36
by mail, electronic communication, or by posting on the district's 37
website, of the following:38
(A) The names of the board of directors and dates their terms 39
expire;40
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(B) The method and deadline for declaring candidacy under RCW 1
87.03.075; and2
(C) A description of the district voting procedure and how the 3
qualified elector may request an absentee ballot, if the district is 4
not using the mail-in ballot procedure.5
(ii) The district will use its assessment roll, toll and charge 6
roll, or other district records to provide notice to known qualified 7
electors and may also use the county assessor's or other public 8
records to assist in determining qualified electors.9
(iii) A district that makes water deliveries to an entity which 10
is responsible for paying assessments or tolls and charges and that 11
entity subsequently distributes that water to lands within the 12
entity's jurisdiction is only required to provide the annual notice 13
to the entity paying the assessment or toll and charge.14
(iv) Any person who becomes a qualified elector after the annual 15
notice required by this section and before a subsequent election is 16
eligible to vote in the election. Receiving or not receiving the 17
annual notice provided in this section does not affect whether the 18
person or entity is a qualified elector.19
(b) Each district must establish and maintain election 20
information on a website, either individually or through the 21
Washington state water resources association, in order to communicate 22
with qualified electors. The website must include, but is not limited 23
to, the names of the board of directors, district election rules 24
provided in this chapter, information on elections including election 25
results, and contact information for the district.26
Sec. 9. RCW 87.03.105 and 1889-90 p 676 s 9 are each amended to 27
read as follows: 28
No list, tally paper or certificate returned from any election 29
shall be set aside or rejected for want of form, if it can be 30
satisfactorily understood. The board of directors must meet at its 31
usual place of meeting on the ((first Monday)) second Wednesday after 32
each election, to canvass the returns. If, at the time of meeting, 33
the returns from each precinct in the district in which the polls 34
were opened have been received, the board of directors must then and 35
there proceed to canvass the returns, but if all the returns have not 36
been received, the canvass must be postponed from day to day until 37
all the returns have been received, or until six postponements have 38
been had. The canvass must be made in public, and by opening the 39
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returns and estimating the vote of the district for each person voted 1
for, and declaring the result thereof. If an undeclared write-in 2
candidate for a position of director receives the most votes, the 3
board of directors must determine whether that candidate is a 4
qualified elector for that specific position. A qualified elector for 5
the position of director must be 18 years of age, a citizen of the 6
United States, a resident of the division of the district for which 7
the director is being elected, or the designated agent of an entity 8
that owns land within that division. If that candidate is not a 9
qualified elector, the qualified elector receiving the next highest 10
number of votes will be deemed elected to the position.11
NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. A new section is added to chapter 87.03 12
RCW to read as follows: 13
The following election security requirements apply to districts 14
that qualify and have designated their own treasurer as provided in 15
RCW 87.03.440: 16
(1) At all times when ballots are being controlled including, but 17
not limited to, receipt, opening of ballots, certification, 18
tabulation, reconciliation, or any other type of processing, two 19
individuals not on the ballot must be present. 20
(2)(a) Each ballot box must be secured and locked, with a deposit 21
slot, and clearly marked as an "official ballot box." Ballot box keys 22
must be provided to district election officials only, or designated 23
district staff if available; 24
(b) Each ballot box must be closed with tamper-evident seals with 25
a paper seal log: 26
(i) Each time the box is opened, a new seal log must be signed, 27
with the seal number noted and dated; 28
(ii) When the box is opened, the previous seal log must be 29
compared to the cut seal and initialed; and 30
(iii) All seal logs must be retained for six months after the day 31
of the election; 32
(c) Each ballot box must be physically secured so that it cannot 33
be stolen or moved, and may only be moved by district election 34
officials, or designated district staff if available;35
(d) Any election officials or district staff carrying out 36
official ballot or election duties may not be a candidate on the 37
election ballot. 38
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(3)(a) Ballot envelopes may not be opened immediately after voter 1
deposit. Ballot tabulation may only begin after the polls are closed 2
and ballots must be opened in batches, rather than individually;3
(b) The number of tabulated ballots must be reconciled with the 4
number of ballots received; 5
(c) Tabulated ballots must be stored separately from uncounted or 6
challenged ballots as referenced in subsection (4) of this section;7
(d) Canvassing of ballots must be open to observation by the 8
public; 9
(e) Any election officials or district staff participating in the 10
processing of ballots may not be a candidate on the ballot;11
(f) Once canvassing of ballots is completed, date and time of the 12
verification of canvassing must be posted in either: (i) The district 13
office, for at least two weeks; (ii) on the district website, for at 14
least two weeks; or (iii) at least once a week for two weeks in one 15
or more newspapers of general circulation within the irrigation 16
district. 17
(4)(a) Each district must establish a written challenge process 18
in order to allow individuals to challenge the vote of an individual 19
voter; 20
(b) Written challenge procedures must be established for 21
challenges made by both the public and district election officials or 22
staff, including the time period during which challenges must be 23
made; 24
(c) Within seven days of the resolution of the challenge, the 25
outcome of the challenge must be posted in either: (i) The district 26
office, for at least two weeks; (ii) on the district website, for at 27
least two weeks; or (iii) at least once a week for two weeks in one 28
or more newspapers of general circulation within the irrigation 29
district. 30
(5) Each district must establish a written cure procedure for 31
curing errors that occurred during ballot canvassing or are 32
discovered through valid voter challenges, including a clear timeline 33
for when the cure will occur. 34
(6) Lists and reports of ballots, election outcomes, voter 35
challenges and challenge outcomes, and curing of errors must be 36
maintained by each district for six months after the date of the 37
election and made available to the public. 38
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NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. A new section is added to chapter 87.03 1
RCW to read as follows: 2
(1) Any person who willfully violates any of the provisions of 3
section 10 (1) through (3) of this act is guilty of a gross 4
misdemeanor punishable under RCW 9A.20.021. 5
(2) Any person who, without lawful authority, removes a ballot 6
from a polling place or ballot drop location is guilty of a gross 7
misdemeanor punishable under RCW 9A.20.021. 8
(3) A person is guilty of a gross misdemeanor punishable under 9
RCW 9A.20.021 who knowingly: 10
(a) Deceives any voter in recording his or her vote by providing 11
incorrect or misleading recording information or by providing faulty 12
election equipment or records; or 13
(b) Records the vote of any voter in a manner other than as 14
designated by the voter. 15
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