(a) The State Board shall establish guidelines for the administration of absentee voting by the local boards.
(b) The guidelines shall provide for:
(1) the application process;
(2) late application for absentee ballots;
(3) ballot security, including storage of returned ballots;
(4) determining timeliness of receipt of applications and ballots, including applications and ballots for overseas voters;
(5) the canvass process;
(6) notice of the canvass to candidates, political parties, campaign organizations, news media, and the general public;
(7) observers of the process;
(8) review of voted ballots and envelopes for compliance with the law and for machine tabulation acceptability;
(9) standards for disallowance of ballots during the canvass;
(10) storage and retention of ballots following canvass and certification; and
(11) the permanent absentee ballot list.
(c) The State Board shall:
(1) in consultation with the local boards, assess the guidelines before each primary election; and
(2) revise the guidelines if indicated.