Colorado § 31-10-616 - Preservation of ballots and election records.

§ 31-10-616. Preservation of ballots and election records.

(1) The ballots, when not required to be taken from the ballot box for the purpose of election contests, shall remain in the ballot box in the custody of the clerk until six months after the election at which such ballots were cast or until the time has expired for which the ballots would be needed in any contest proceedings, at which time the ballot box shall be opened by the clerk and the ballots destroyed by fire, shredding, or burial, or by any other method approved by the executive director of the department of personnel. If the ballot boxes are needed for a special election before the legal time for commencing any proceedings in the way of contests has elapsed or in case such clerk, at the time of holding such special election, has knowledge of the pendency of any contest in which the ballots would be needed, the clerk shall preserve the ballots in some secure manner and provide for their being kept so that no one can ascertain how any voter may have voted.

(2) The clerk shall preserve all other official election records and forms for at least six months following a regular or special election.

Source: L. 75: Entire title R&RE, p. 1053, § 1, effective July 1. L. 79: (1) amended, p. 1179, § 21, effective July 1. L. 96: (1) amended, p. 1543, § 135, effective June 1.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 31-10-616 as it existed prior to 1975.

ANNOTATION

Paper "ballots" are those paper documents that are to be printed and then possessed by the clerk at least 10 days prior to an election. Marks v. Koch, 284 P.3d 118 (Colo. App. 2011).

Digital copies of ballots do not meet the criteria for paper ballots. Marks v. Koch, 284 P.3d 118 (Colo. App. 2011).

When ballots are scanned and the resulting digital image is saved in tagged image file format (TIFF), the TIFF files are not ballots and the TIFF files are therefore open to inspection under the Colorado Open Records Act, provided that the files contain no content that could reveal the identity of the voter. Marks v. Koch, 284 P.3d 118 (Colo. App. 2011).

Subsection (2) requires "other official election records" to be preserved for six months, but does not specify later destruction of such records or any other requirements beyond such six-month preservation. Marks v. Koch, 284 P.3d 118 (Colo. App. 2011).

Because digital copies of ballots are not ballots, releasing them for public inspection would not be contrary to this section's ballot storage and destruction provision. Marks v. Koch, 284 P.3d 118 (Colo. App. 2011).