Concord study committee advances electronic‑voting preparations, plans vendor trial and Select Board rule

The Town Meeting Study Committee on Feb. 11 discussed moving forward with electronic voting at Concord Town Meeting, focusing on a likely lease of 1,000 hand‑held voting devices, training for town staff, and a trial observation visit to a neighboring town that already uses the system.

Committee members and staff said the town has solicited vendor quotes and that the lowest bid was substantially less if the town rents 1,000 clickers rather than 1,300. A committee member involved in procurement said the devices would be leased for an initial trial so staff can assess the technology before committing to a longer contract. The committee discussed logistics, including the need for additional base stations to support use in multiple rooms and a paper‑ballot backup for overflow if the auditorium were used.

Why it matters: Electronic voting would change how Concord Town Meeting counts and records votes. The committee said a limited lease and staff training would let the town test equipment and draft rules before asking the full Town Meeting to adopt any procedural change.

Committee discussion and staff updates

Shannon, who led the update on electronic voting, told the committee the vendor offering the lowest bid gave “a substantial discount on price if we rent a thousand clickers rather than 1,300.” She said the town clerk, the IT director and herself planned a vendor tutorial and a test run, and that the town team will observe Westford’s May Town Meeting to see the Meridian system in use.

The group discussed where the devices could be used. The vendor setup would likely cover the gymnasium (the committee estimated gym capacity at about 1,000). Using the auditorium would require additional base stations or a different setup; in that case, voters in the auditorium would vote by paper slips as a backup. Committee members emphasized that the lease approach would let IT staff evaluate whether the town could operate the system in‑house in future years rather than paying the vendor to operate it on site.

Policy and next steps

Committee members said the Select Board will consider a motion that would adopt a rule describing how the clickers would be used (for example, whether to enable electronic voting for all votes or only for counted/secret ballots). The committee noted practice varies across towns: some leave the choice to the moderator, others adopt a bylaw.

The committee did not take a formal vote approving purchase or a permanent contract. Members asked staff to finish procurement checks, confirm rental terms, complete the staff tutorial, and report back. The committee noted a letter of comparative pricing research from Mark Martinez and that staff would reconcile that information with the vendor proposals already on file.

What remains unresolved

Committee members flagged three open items: final procurement clearance, IT acceptance after the trial, and an explicit recommendation about which votes (all votes versus only counted/secret ballots) should be handled electronically. The committee expects the Select Board to consider a rule at its March meeting and the moderator to bring any final rule to Town Meeting for a floor vote if the Select Board moves forward.

Next steps and timing

Staff said they will proceed with vendor training and a short pilot; they will visit Westford in May to observe an operating system. The Select Board is expected to consider a motion relating to a rule on clicker use in early March; any town‑meeting rule would then be presented at Town Meeting for the floor to accept or amend.