Martin's Additions election committee to seek contractor for voter‑roll verification, votes to prepare RFP

The Martin's Additions Election Committee voted to draft a request for proposals asking the Village Council to authorize a part‑time contractor to assist with voter‑roll verification and to develop an operations manual for the village's mail‑ballot process.

Marty, chair of the election committee, said the verification work is labor‑intensive and that an outside contractor helped clean up the roll in 2024. “It would really help to have a contractor, someone systematic, obviously, to do those steps with us,” Marty said during the meeting. The committee formally moved to prepare an RFP and present it to council in October; the motion was seconded and carried.

Committee members described the verification process: spreadsheet comparisons between current residents and the previous voter roll, follow‑up calls and email, checks of property transactions and obituaries, then a polite written notice for people the committee cannot verify. Marty said the committee follows a two‑mailing process — an initial verification mailing followed by a postcard notifying individuals the committee voted to remove them, with a simple appeal process for anyone who thinks they were wrongly removed.

Members cited past contractor assistance and costs when discussing budget needs. Elizabeth, the committee secretary, recalled the prior contractor’s work and said the village has an existing mail‑vote vendor contract that typically costs about $10,000; the incremental contractor work for verification and the manual was estimated in discussion at roughly $5,000–$8,000 depending on scope. The contractor who assisted previously, Julian Lampier, was praised for being “analytical and thorough.” One participant noted prior figures that ranged from about $8,000 for an election cycle to a contractor rate of about $70 an hour; the transcript contains one conflicting figure that cited $80,000, which the committee did not reconcile during the meeting.

The committee asked the village manager, Michael Silliman, to post the RFP (via the Maryland Municipal League or other municipal procurement channels) if the council authorizes the expenditure. The committee will review bids and recommend a contractor to the council.

The committee emphasized both protecting voter access and election security: ensuring eligible residents receive ballots while minimizing sending ballots to ineligible addresses. The chair said the draft RFP will be circulated to committee members for review before it is posted.

Next steps: the election committee will draft the RFP, circulate it to members for approval, and bring the request to the Village Council in October for authorization to contract the work.