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Senate Ethics Committee advances bill moving Georgia toward hand‑marked paper ballots after amendments
Summary
The committee voted 8‑4 to advance HB 960 (LC 474277S) after accepting amendments that reduce proposed fines, clarify recount language and remove assigned early‑voting location rules; members raised implementation, cost and privacy concerns tied to ballot images and publication of elector lists.
The Senate Ethics Committee voted 8‑4 to advance HB 960 (LC 474277S) on Thursday after adopting amendments that cut civil fines tied to voter‑roll challenges and clarified recount provisions, moving the state closer to a system of hand‑marked paper ballots tabulated by machine.
Sen. Dolezal, the bill sponsor, told the committee the substitute (Senate Bill 568) includes three changes: "reduced fines" from $10,000 to $1,000 per incident in the version he presented, elimination of an assigned advanced early‑voting location proposal, and relocation of recount language into the proper section of the bill. "This moves us to hand‑marked paper ballots that will be machine tabulated, what we've kind of colloquially referred to as the Florida model," he said.
Why it matters: Sponsors said the changes respond to federal cybersecurity findings and aim to reduce reliance on existing voting software.…
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