Commission approves elections budget that keeps primary costs separate; official cites possible federal equipment mandate

Houston County commissioners voted to approve the county elections budget after election staff recommended isolating potential primary and equipment costs in separate line items.

The elections official recommended putting funds for a possible primary into account 599-1 so the line can be removed if a primary is not called. The official said August is the deadline for a party to call a primary and that both parties do not have to call primaries for every office; that uncertainty drove the request to hold a primary contingency separate from recurring operating lines.

The official also described proposed work on courthouse doors tied to polling access. She said one main glass door is old and hard to operate and a full replacement had been priced previously at about $78,000, but she recommended keeping that estimate separate and seeking lower-cost alternatives. She said some threshold and handle fixes could meet ADA needs at lower cost but that replacing the main glass door would require the alarm company to remove and reinstall door sensors, creating added expense.

The budget includes line item 193 with $6,500 for election workers for pre-election preparation even in no-primary years; staff estimated roughly 500 hours of preparatory work in the early voting period. For two-election years, the official said the elections budget typically reaches about $18,000 for worker pay and related costs.

The official noted a recent federal executive order reported that day could require replacement of some voting equipment and that, if so, the federal government would provide grant money for replacement. She said the state coordinator of elections was reviewing the order’s impact on local requirements and equipment planning.

The commission’s motion to approve the elections budget passed after a request to keep the primary contingency clearly separated in the budget, with no individual roll-call vote counts recorded in the transcript.

The commission did not change the recommended budget allocations at the meeting; commissioners directed staff to return items for reallocation to specific line items if a primary is called.

Quotes in this article are taken from remarks by Annette, identified in the meeting as the county elections official.

The county will revisit specific expenditures (for example, moving funds from 599-1 into detailed line items) only if a primary is called or if staff return with updated bids or grant confirmations.