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Supervisor of Elections urges commissioners to fund mail‑ballot outreach and warns of budget timing tradeoffs
Summary
Supervisor of Elections Julie Watson told commissioners the office is proposing to postpone its main mail‑ballot renewal mailing into FY27 to keep the FY26 budget flat, a move that would save roughly $140,000–$150,000 but shorten voters’ lead time to receive and return ballots in some elections.
Supervisor of Elections Julie Watson told the Board of County Commissioners that her office is holding proposed personnel steady but is proposing timing changes to mail‑ballot mailings to keep the FY26 budget flat.
Watson said election administration is largely mandated by state law and that “you cannot put a price on integrity,” drawing on decades of experience running large, complex elections. She described the county’s strategy that favors mail ballots as a cost and service efficiency: the county mailed ballots to roughly 280,000 requests in the 2024 general election and needs a similar scale to avoid long early‑voting lines in big elections.
Why it matters: Voting method affects county costs. Supervisor Watson explained that an early all‑mail emphasis (more voters on file for mail) lowers per‑voter administrative costs — she cited cost per voter in 2024: $6.77 on Election Day, $4.39 for early voting, and $2.15 for vote‑by‑mail processing — and warned that the county’s mail‑ballot request list has fallen from 280,000 to about 30,000 and must be rebuilt to preserve efficiency.
Watson proposed delaying the large voter mailing that renews mail‑ballot requests so the postage and printing cost falls in FY27 rather than FY26. She told commissioners the decision would likely save the FY26 budget about $140,000–$150,000 but would shorten the time voters have to receive and return ballots for certain elections. She added the statutory deadline for mailing ballots is 33 days before an election, and pushing the county’s regular mailing to October 1 would be the latest lawful window in many calendar scenarios.
Watson also described the office’s litigation and public‑records experience: the office has defended roughly 24 lawsuits since 2020, most resolved in the supervisor’s favor, and has sought to reduce translation costs via reassigned staff and by pursuing rule changes on certified‑translator requirements.
Ending: Watson asked commissioners to weigh a tradeoff: accept the FY26 budget reduction by shifting the large mail‑ballot mailing into FY27 — and the shorter return window for some voters — or fund the mailing in FY26 to preserve the longer lead time. The board did not take a final vote during the briefing.
