This legislation, mirroring SB 403, allows only optical scanning voting equipment to be used for federal, state and county primaries and elections by January 1, 2024.  Paper ballots will be utilized to cast votes, but they can be marked by electronic ballot markers, which will then be scanned.  By August 1, 2018, the Secretary of State must issue a competitive public solicitation to select a vendor to supply this equipment statewide, with the selection announced by December 31, 2018. The purchase of this equipment, by the Secretary of State, is specifically conditioned on the General Assembly appropriating monies by July 1, 2019, and equipment must be in place, statewide, by the 2020 presidential preference primary.  All polling places utilizing these optical scanning voting systems will be equipped with at least one electronic ballot marker, which must be certified by the Secretary of State.  The bill sets out conditions which ballot markers must meet; procedures by which markers are examined, tested, approved and audited; public transparency; responsibilities of elections superintendents in examining and utilizing the equipment; and includes election superintendents in these processes.