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Secretary of State requests $15M election fund refill and continued IT investments to meet compliance requirements
Summary
The Secretary of State asked for $15 million to restock the statutory election fund and for capital and IT funding to replace aging tabulators, upgrade voter‑registration and campaign‑finance systems, and cover security and PCI obligations after federal HAVA funding declines.
The Secretary of State briefed the committee on an operating request and a set of section 5 appropriations focused on election readiness and IT modernization. The office seeks a $15,000,000 infusion to the election fund—statutorily required to ensure counties and vendors have funds for the next election cycle—and additional capital for voting system compliance and campaign finance modernization.
The secretary said a statutory mechanism requires $15,000,000 be kept in an election fund to pay counties’ equipment and vendor costs; the office asked the committee to restore that balance. The office also stressed that federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA) grant funding has dropped and the agency has been using one‑time HAVA or other federal funds to pay for positions and election security support. The presentation included a request to convert an existing HAVA‑funded outreach position to an ongoing term FTE to preserve institutional capacity.
Why it matters: county election officials rely on the state for reimbursement of certain election expenses and to maintain voting systems that meet voluntary and mandatory security guidelines. The secretary emphasized that without the requested funding the office faces payroll instability, PCI compliance risk and potential delays in election readiness work.
Key details: the office also requested capital to replace up to 812 aging tabulators, to modernize the statewide voter registration system, and to continue campaign finance and lobbyist system upgrades. The Secretary of State noted the office has historically operated with funding gaps and has used supplementals and board of finance actions to cover shortfalls in prior years.
Next steps: the office will provide finer details on tabulator replacement cycles, expected procurement timelines, and cost estimates for phased equipment turnover.
