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Elections administrator asks for matching funds, tablet replacements and a third staffer
Summary
Elections administrator Christy White said HAVA upgrades require an ~ $8,500 county match, the county must replace iPads now unsupported by Apple, the biannual voter‑registration mailer costs about $10,000 and the office needs a third staffer to manage election operations and keep the office open during active election work.
Christy White, Uvalde County’s elections administrator, told commissioners the office is over its current budget for this election cycle because required equipment upgrades and a biannual voter‑mailing cycle were not reflected in the line items.
White said the county will receive a HAVA grant but must cover approximately $8,500 as the local match to upgrade internal software on county voting devices. She also said many of the tablets and “poll pads” need full replacement because the manufacturer and operating system no longer support them. Separately, White said the statutorily required mass mail‑out of voter‑registration postcards — roughly 17,000 recipients — costs about $10,000 every two years and should be a recurring line item in even‑year budgets.
On staffing, White asked that the county restore a third, part‑time employee to the elections office so the office can stay open while staff set up and administer elections; she said two people cannot both run an election and staff the public counter simultaneously during active election periods. White identified current polling worker and judge pay rates set by the court ($15/hour for workers, $25/hour for judges) and said those rates remain adequate to recruit election‑day staff.
Next steps: White will provide a detailed list of equipment needs, procurement costs and a recommended staffing line item so commissioners can amend the budget as needed.
