Livonia accepts $60,000 nonpartisan grant to help cover rising election costs

The Livonia City Council on a study‑meeting consent vote accepted a $60,000 grant from the Institute for Responsive Government to help offset sharply rising election costs, the city clerk told the council.

The city clerk said the award was "the maximum dollar amount that was allowable for a community our size, so the dollar value is $60,000," and described four allowable spending categories: human expenses, physical expenses, technological expenses and security expenses. She said a large share will cover improved security vests for precinct workers, and that postage and printing costs for absentee ballots — which exceeded 23,000 in the first mailing this year — account for a substantial portion of the need.

"This year we had the presidential primary, the August primary, and now the November," the clerk said, adding that reimbursements already approved by the state included $188,000 for the presidential primary. The clerk told council members the grant funds are available for use from June 1 through the following May and that part of the award can be used for wage reimbursement for staff who must be on site at early‑voting locations.

Council members praised the effort to secure outside funding and asked for specifics about how the money would be spent. A council member noted the rising per‑election cost borne by clerks and asked whether the $60,000 had designated targets — the clerk replied that a large chunk would be for security items and absentee ballot postage, and reminded the public that poll workers are still needed and that applications are on the city website.

The council approved acceptance of the grant on consent; no roll‑call tally was recorded in the study transcript. The clerk said the city had also received state funding earlier this year for early‑voting equipment and other reimbursements.