After arson, WA lawmakers advance bill to warn of ballot box tampering penalties

Following an arson attack ahead of last November’s election that torched hundreds of ballots in a southwest Washington drop box, state lawmakers are looking at modest ways to better secure the boxes.

On Friday, a state Senate panel advanced a bill to include messaging on drop boxes about criminal penalties for tampering with them.

Senate Bill 5011 would require each visible side of ballot boxes to display two messages. One would note the box is the property of the county that bought the box. The other would state tampering with the box may violate state and federal law.

The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Jeff Wilson, R-Longview, said the deliberately set fire in Vancouver before the election inspired the legislation.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/01/24/after-arson-wa-lawmakers-advance-bill-to-warn-of-ballot-box-tampering-penalties/