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Pima County elections office says vote centers saved ballot costs; board accepts federal HAVA security grant
Summary
County elections director reported lower ballot printing costs after switching to vote centers and ballot-on-demand printers and the board accepted a federal Help America Vote Act grant for election security work.
Pima County elections officials told supervisors on May 6 that the switch from precinct-based voting to a vote-center model, combined with on-demand ballot printing, reduced the county’s ballot printing costs in the 2024 elections and helped lower total election costs despite some higher temporary staffing needs.
Elections Director (acting) provided a comparative review of election-year expenses going back to 2012, noting that the county spent roughly $474,000 on ballots for the 2024 election cycle — substantially less than in prior years when the precinct model required preprinting many more ballots.
“We now have ballot-on-demand printers,” the director said. “That allows us to print ballots for the individuals when they come in as opposed to ordering thousands of ballots that may never be used.” The board also voted to accept federal Help America Vote Act election-security funds from the Department of Justice/Department of Homeland Security (HAVA), authorizing staff to receive the grant award.
Takeaway: The elections office said the new equipment and vote-center approach requires some initial investment (electronic poll books, data plans and consumables) but reduces waste and long-run ballot costs. The office said it will continue to refine center locations to balance staffing and turnout and is coordinating with the county recorder on new 2026 statutory changes affecting early-ballot drop-off process requirements.
HAVA grant acceptance: The board unanimously approved acceptance of the election-security grant; staff said funds will support equipment, security and training to harden election operations.
Next steps: Elections staff will provide board members requested breakdowns comparing earlier projections to actual costs and will continue outreach on vote-center siting, training and contingency planning for complex ballots.
