LAW
Writer®
Ohio Laws and Rules
(A) Five trustees, known as employee-members, shall be elected by ballot by contributing members of the retirement system.
(B) Each employee member of the board shall be elected for a four-year term, with each term expiring July thirty-first of each successive year.
(C) Notification of the impending expiration of the term of each trustee eligible for election shall be directed to all facilities where members are assigned no later than May first of each year. Such notice shall include the necessity of having correct member mailing addresses on file. The correct address is considered to be that which appears on each member’s state payroll voucher stub. In the event an address change is necessary, the retirement system office must receive written notification of any corrected address no later than June first of the election year.
(D) Such notification shall include the requirement that all candidates formally notify the executive director by submitting a candidacy form or letter of intent no later than June first of the election year.
(E) Such candidacy form and/or letter of intent shall be reproduced and distributed to all facilities where members are assigned.
(F) No later than June twentieth of the election year, the executive director will prepare ballots listing all eligible candidates, and forward a ballot with return mailing instructions to the home address on file for each member.
(1) Each return mailing envelope shall be identified with the member’s individual retirement system account number assigned.
(2) The position of the names of the candidates as they appear on the ballot shall be rotated.
(3) Any member who has not received a ballot by June thirtieth of the election year may contact the executive director for issuance of another ballot and return mailing envelope no later than July tenth. Any undelivered ballots returned by the postal service shall be remailed if a corrected address is received at the retirement system office.
(4) Write-in candidates will not be accepted.
(5) Each voting member shall return a ballot via U.S, mail in the stamped pre-addressed return envelope provided which must be post-marked no later than July twentieth of the election year.
(6) If more than one ballot is enclosed in each ballot envelope, all such ballots shall be considered invalid.
(7) If any ballot return mailing envelopes are returned that have the same member account number, all such ballots shall be considered invalid.
(8) Any ballots received after the election results have been certified shall be considered invalid.
(9) Ballots received which do not have the enclosed return address label affixed to the return mailing envelope shall be considered invalid.
(G) Upon receipt of ballot mailing envelopes at the office of the retirement system, each shall be date and time-stamped and individually recorded on the master list of those members who were mailed ballots. Such member list shall include the individual member account numbers, and must match the account number on the preaddressed return mailing envelope.
(H) Ballots will be counted by a committee that includes at least one trustee appointed by the chair, and the results forwarded within twenty-four hours to all facilities where members are assigned.
(1) There shall be no provision for a recount; however, ballots will be held for public inspection for thirty days. Ballots may be destroyed by the executive director after the public inspection period ends.
(2) The official certification of the ballot totals may be destroyed after four years.
(3) The executive director shall request the presence of a representative from the office of secretary of state for the purpose of monitoring the counting process and to rule on the validity of any questionable ballots.
(4) Candidates may designate one member to be present during the counting of ballots. Candidates must make such designee known to the executive director no later than July twentieth of the election year.
(5) In the event of a tie, the winner shall be detemined by a coin toss.
(I) Employment termination, death, or the resignation as trustee, or official retirement board action invalidating any election process shall be cause for a special election.
(1) The election process shall be the same, and held within the same time periods as the regular election.
(2) No election will take place if the remainder of the unexpired term is six months or less.
(3) Ballots shall be counted and a certificate of such count, signed by committee members, shall be forwarded to all facilities where members are assigned as soon as practical to do so.
(4) Ballots found not to be in compliance with all provisions of this rule shall be considered invalid.
(J) If the number of candidates is less than or equal to the number of available board seats, each candidate shall be certified as a trustee without the need for an election.
(K) In the event that two board seats come up for election at the same time and for the same term, a single election shall be held to elect both trustees. Each member may vote for up to two candidates and the two candidates with the most votes shall be elected.
(L) In its discretion, the board may invalidate an election and hold a new election if the board determines that actions or improprieties have taken place that will or have had a substantial impact on the fairness of the election.
Effective: 12/09/2005
R.C. 119.032 review dates: 09/19/2005 and 11/28/2010
Promulgated Under: 119.03
Statutory Authority: 5505.07, 5505.047
Rule Amplifies: 5505.04, 5505.041, 5505.042, 5505.043
Prior Effective Dates: 2/1/1994, 5/1/1990, 1/1/1989, 1/1/1987, 1/1/1986