S486: Elections Security and Transparency Act

• Requires criminal history record checks for State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement employees, contractors, county directors of elections, and county board employees with access to voter registration systems, effective August 1, 2018.

• Permits the Executive Director of the State Board to delay appointment of county directors of elections pending criminal history checks and apply standards where convictions constitute just cause for denial or dismissal but do not automatically prohibit employment.

• Mandates ballot language for 2018 judicial elections stating that party affiliations listed are candidates' self-identified party status at filing, not reflecting primary competition since no judicial primaries were held.

• Restricts Direct Record Electronic (DRE) voting systems without paper ballots from use after December 1, 2019, and requires voting systems to be disconnected from all networks including Internet, intranet, and telephone lines.

• Expands vendor bonding requirements for voting systems to $10,000,000 or the cost of a statewide election and establishes source code escrow requirements for electronic poll books and ballot duplication systems.