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Elections director reports staff trainings, awards and legal developments; county warns against proactive voter contact
Summary
Director Duncan reported staff trainings, a move to 35 Woodfin, two awards from the Election Assistance Commission, and an ongoing legal matter over S382 that remains stayed pending appeals; state guidance discourages proactively contacting voters on certain lists.
At the start of the meeting, Director Duncan provided routine office updates for Buncombe County Elections, including staff training, facility moves and recognition the office received this year.
Duncan said the office held an in‑house team‑building exercise using a DISC personality assessment, coordinated with county HR and Parks & Recreation to reduce costs. She said the move of some functions to 35 Woodfin was in progress and that staff might be seen "tagging things" as part of the relocation.
Staff training and awards
Duncan said six staff members attended an Election Center workshop in Pittsburgh on scholarship; the training contributes to national certification. She also said the office had submitted entries and received two awards from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) — one in communications for an "NC Together" video and another in contingency planning — and that county staff helped other counties with related projects.
Legal developments and voter‑list guidance
Duncan briefed the board on a state law often referred to in the meeting as "S382." She said the law had been ruled unconstitutional in a lower court but that the U.S. Court of Appeals placed a stay on that ruling, meaning the law remained in effect while the appeals court considers the case. "That should be very quick because May 1 is the day that they would make the appointments," Duncan said about the timing the board expected from the appeals process.
Duncan also explained state board guidance that county election offices should not proactively contact voters on certain lists. She described the state’s position as discouraging county offices from mailing or calling voters to prompt them to update records — staff will update records when voters call to request changes.
Other operational notes
- The office is working with county Strategy and Innovation on a customer service survey for the 35 Woodfin location, with both paper and contact‑back options. - The office is cataloging its internal data needs and updating spreadsheets and diagrams to support the warehouse planning described later in the meeting.
Procedural actions at start of meeting
The board approved the meeting agenda and the minutes from its previous meeting by unanimous consent; no formal roll‑call votes or named movers/seconders were recorded in the transcript on those items.
