Cohoes board alerted to new vote reporting and to find alternate voting machines after county limits sharing
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Summary
District business staff told the board that Albany County will not provide its voting machines for school votes and that new reporting rules require turnout and absentee-breakdown reporting; staff identified vendor options and estimated initial and recurring costs, and said they will return with purchase/lease recommendations and a communications plan.
Speaker 8, a business-office official, told the Cohoes City School District Board of Education on Jan. 7 that districts must now prepare detailed post‑vote reports by polling location and absentee-ballot breakdowns and that Albany County is no longer providing its voting machines for school budget elections. "They want graphs. They want mapping locations," Speaker 2 said, describing the reporting required under the new process.
Why it matters: The change affects how the district runs its annual budget vote and could alter the voter experience and the staffing needed at polling sites. Board members said they are concerned about older electors and volunteers who are accustomed to paper processes and asked for an outreach plan.
What officials said: Staff identified two vendors they evaluated at a recent conference: Bold and NTS. Speaker 2 said conversion and training would take roughly two to four weeks. The district gave a first‑year software and service estimate of about $17,000 and said ongoing annual license/maintenance could be roughly half that initial cost; staff described tablet/terminal hardware purchase prices in the range of about $12,000–$15,000 per device, characterizing those figures as approximate. "Once they put everything into the system for us, we can run a report at any time with the touch of a button," Speaker 2 said, noting that some vendors include built‑in backups and on‑site support on election day.
Board response and next steps: Trustees discussed leasing through BOCES versus buying hardware directly, whether BOCES has inventory to lease, the need for a budget transfer to cover software if required this fiscal year, and how to train poll workers and notify voters early to avoid turnout impacts. Speakers committed to presenting a more concrete procurement plan and a communication strategy at the next meeting.
What’s unresolved: No formal procurement decision was made at the Jan. 7 meeting. Board members directed staff to return with cost details for lease vs. purchase, implementation timing, and a community outreach plan ahead of the May budget vote.