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Michigan panel hears opposition and support for rule allowing live electronic poll books and seven‑day device deletion
Summary
At a Joint Committee on Administrative Rules hearing, state election officials described a rule to permit live, connected electronic poll books on Election Day with a seven‑day minimum before deleting software from devices; clerks, lawmakers and voters raised concerns about record retention, federal law and local custody of records.
The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules heard testimony on a proposed rule (JCAR rule set 25‑49) that would allow clerks to use a live, connected electronic poll book (EPB) on Election Day and require deletion of EPB software and associated files from devices by the seventh day after the final canvas, with uploaded data preserved in the state Qualified Voter File (QVF).
The rule would let clerks operate the EPB with a secure live connection to the QVF where internet access and security standards permit, while requiring clerks to print and retain paper backups and to upload EPB data to the QVF. "Everything out of that poll book has to be printed and it is maintained in a paper form," Aaron Shore of the Michigan Department of State told the committee. "The download serves as that backup."
The change responds to clerk feedback and prior work to develop an early‑voting EPB that several clerks and the Bureau of Elections described as easier for poll workers to use. "Clerks overwhelmingly wanted us to…
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