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Secretary of State seeks federal and state funds for VoteCal, CARS and NAP2; asks for AB 1392 implementation funding
Summary
The Secretary of State’s office requested federal Help America Vote Act funds and general-fund spending authority to maintain VoteCal, support the CalAccess Replacement System (CARS) and NAP2 modernization, and a $660,000 augmentation to implement AB 1392’s confidential voter-registration provisions. The committee recorded the presentations and approved related vote‑calendar items.
Representatives from the Secretary of State presented a package of requests to the subcommittee covering election systems and Help America Vote Act spending.
"VoteCal was developed in response to [a] federal mandate," the interim CFO said while asking for $10.3 million in one-time federal trust fund authority to support VoteCal maintenance, vendor contracts, security assessments and county connectivity costs. The office said federal HAVA funds supporting these activities are anticipated to be exhausted by fiscal year 2027–28.
On the CalAccess Replacement System (CARS), project staff reported a total project cost of about $92.35 million to replace an aging campaign finance and lobbying reporting system and requested $11.8 million one‑time general fund to support final execution and short-term maintenance. Project staff said about $36.88 million has been expended to date, with the remaining costs tied to later program increments and acceptance payments; the target date for system functionality remains November 2026.
For the Notary Automation Program (NAP2), the SOS described risks from obsolete application technology and requested one‑time funding to continue staffing and interagency services for migration and planning.
Finally, the office asked for $660,000 one‑time general fund to implement AB 1392, which modifies VoteCal to allow elected officials and candidates to be designated as confidential voters while preserving limited disclosure for journalism and government purposes. The request covered VoteCal modification and integration with county election management systems.
Committee members asked about project totals, how much has been spent and user testing; project staff said all historical data will be migrated, external stakeholders have participated in user acceptance testing and the project remains on a November 2026 target for full functionality.
The items were taken on the vote calendar and closed by the committee during the hearing; staff committed to provide additional documentation when requested.
