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New voting machines nashville { June 25 2003 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/state/article/0,1406,KNS_348_2064991,00.htmlhttp://www.knoxnews.com/kns/state/article/0,1406,KNS_348_2064991,00.html
New voting machines eyed
Plan calls for 3,363 modern devices throughout state
By Tomhumphrey3@aol.com
June 25, 2003
NASHVILLE - A new election reform plan recommends that Tennessee get 3,363 new voting machines and that $5 million be spent on a statewide voter database and $1 million on voter and poll worker education.
The plan, drafted by a 15-member advisory committee working with state Election Coordinator Brook Thompson, is designed to bring Tennessee into compliance with the Help America Vote Act enacted by Congress last year in response to the confusion surrounding the 2000 presidential election.
The plan anticipates that just over $26 million will be available in Tennessee with the state putting up $869,947 as its share and the federal government providing the rest.
Thompson said the state has already received $5 million in federal money, which was placed in a special account, and the rest is expected by Sept. 30.
Though a final decision has not been made by the State Election Commission, Thompson said he anticipates that county election commissions will pick whichever voting machines they wish from a list of products certified by state officials as qualifying under HAVA.
"It's kind of in flux right now, but my guess is, when it comes time to buy, we'll be talking to about four or five companies," Thompson said.
Not all HAVA requirements involved money and, in many parts of the country, state laws have to be revised to comply with HAVA mandates. Tennessee's laws are in accord with the federal requirements since the Legislature approved a "provisional voting" bill earlier this year.
Under provisional voting, a voter who finds his or her qualifications challenged at the polls may nonetheless cast a vote to be held separately. The questioned voter's qualifications are then reviewed with an appeal process built into the procedure. If the voter is found to be qualified, the vote is counted; if not, it is discarded.
The most costly provisions of HAVA are the requirements for new voting machines.
First, each of about 2,400 precincts across the state must have at least one special voting machine that allows the disabled - including blind persons - to vote unassisted.
The plan estimates that the "direct recording electronic system" machines, which have headphones and a recording to instruct the blind and allow them to verify they voted as wished after the ballot is cast, will cost $4,500 each or about $10.8 million statewide.
Forty-one of the state's 95 counties are already in compliance with HAVA standards, insofar as voting machines go, except for the special machines to help the disabled. That includes Knox, Anderson, Blount, Grainger, Jefferson, Loudon, Roane and Sevier counties.
Second, HAVA requires replacement of all "punchcard" and lever voting machines, which were the source of most problems in the 2000 controversy over Florida ballots. The plan says that 775 precincts in Tennessee now have punchcard or lever machines that must be replaced and estimates the cost averaging $9,000 per precinct for a total of about $6.9 million.
Most of the 35 counties with such machines are in West and Middle Tennessee. In East Tennessee, only Marion, McMinn, Monroe and Polk are listed as having punchcard machines while Greene, Rhea, Unicoi and Union have lever machines.
A third category of voting devices, called "optical scan" machines, that in most cases will have to be either replaced or supplemented to comply with the HAVA mandate that voters have a chance to make a final review of their ballot and change it before it is finally cast.
With optical scan machines, the voter puts a mark beside his or her chosen candidate on a ballot. In most counties, the ballot is then collected at the precinct and then taken with all other ballots to a central location where they are run through another machine that counts them.
Hamilton County has an optical scan counting machine at each precinct with ballots immediately fed into that machine, which either counts the vote or rejects it and spits it back out - giving the voter a chance to correct the mistake. That complies with HAVA.
The total cost of 3,363 new voting devices is estimated at $16,529,000 in the plan. HAVA sets a Nov. 2, 2004 deadline for having the new machines in place, but Thompson said that is impractical for Tennessee and the state expects to be granted a waiver that would move the deadline to Jan. 1, 2006.
The next most expensive item is just over $5 million for a statewide voter database, required by HAVA. Tennessee already has voter data collected in each county, which is available to state officials.
The plan says the enhanced voter database will be maintained at the state level, will assign a "unique identifier to each registered voter" and will provide "immediate electronic access" and regular updating.
The proposed budget allocates $1 million in the first year to voter education and training of those who work in elections. The plan says that will include training seminars for election officials and poll workers as well as public service announcements and videos designed to explain HAVA and voting rules to citizens.
The draft voting plan is posted on the state Division of Elections Web site, www.state.tn.us/ sos/election.htm. Public comment is invited on the draft through July 15, after which the comments will be considered and perhaps incorporated into a final plan for submission to federal officials.
Tom Humphrey may be reached at 615-242-7782.
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