Georgia senators debate bill to require hand‑marked paper ballots as election officials and voters raise cost, access and audit questions

A Georgia Senate committee on Tuesday heard hours of questions and public comment on Senate Bill 214 (LC 473679S), a proposal to require hand‑marked paper ballots statewide, combined with ballot‑on‑demand printers and optical scanners.

The sponsor, Sen. Barnes, told the panel the bill “requires that all votes are cast on a hand marked paper ballot, and that that paper ballot is then optically scanned and tabulated.” He said the bill would replace electronic ballot‑marking devices (BMDs) with a print‑on‑demand approach that gives each voter a human‑readable ballot to mark by hand and then scan for tabulation.

The bill would, according to its text and the sponsor’s presentation, (1) mandate hand‑marked paper ballots that are optically scanned and imaged; (2) authorize the secretary of state to run pilot programs; and (3) require that each polling place be equipped with at least one electronic ballot marker to accommodate voters with disabilities. “The secretary of state is authorized to conduct pilot programs,” the sponsor said, and the measure also contemplates state provision of uniform optical scanning and ballot‑on‑demand printing systems.

Why it matters: supporters and some election officials said a hand‑marked paper ballot is the most auditable physical record of voter intent; opponents and several county election officials warned the committee there is no fiscal note yet, that procurement and certification would be complex, and that accessibility and rural‑precinct logistics need clearer answers before a rollout.

What propone…