Hartford Board of Civil Authority finds no voter mismatches in legislative district audit and authorizes submission to Secretary of State

The Hartford Board of Civil Authority on Sept. 3 reviewed a legislative voting-district audit required by Act 70 of 2025 and concluded the town’s voter checklist places residents in the correct House districts. Lisa, presenting the audit, said the work compared the town’s 2025 voter checklist against the 2022 legislative maps and a memo of street number ranges compiled by the town’s E911 coordinator.

"The audit confirmed the voters in Hartford are in the correct voting districts," Lisa said, noting the check covered both Windsor 4 and Windsor 6. She told the board she had compared split-street number ranges (for streets such as Castello Road, Old Quichi Road and Costello Road) in the town’s voter management system against Jack Hedges’s April 2022 memo and the Vermont open geodata used for the 2022 reapportionment.

Lisa explained clerks had to enter number ranges manually into the town’s voter management system so the system would assign voters by legal street address. She said the Secretary of State Elections Division and the town’s E911 coordinator assisted the effort and that the statutory district language used for the maps had not changed since 2022.

Board members asked for clarification about packet pages and a member checked that River Street is listed as Windsor 6. After discussion, a member moved to authorize the chair and town clerk to sign and submit a cover letter to the Vermont Secretary of State Elections Division certifying the audit. Pat moved the motion; Jen seconded it. The board voted by voice and the chair announced the motion carried.

Act 70 of 2025 requires municipalities on the list to complete the audit on or before Sept. 15, 2025; Lisa said the town’s materials and the proposed cover letter respond to the questions the Secretary of State requested, including when the audit was conducted (Sept. 3), the process used, whether the street-list comparisons aligned with statutory descriptions, and whether any incorrect district assignments were identified. Lisa recommended that she and Nancy sign the cover letter later the same day if the board authorized submission.

The board also heard brief other business. Lisa said she will email the chair and vice chair with potential fall abatement dates, noted at least two meetings are likely this fall because of new applications, and reminded members of hearings scheduled Sept. 9 and Sept. 11. The meeting adjourned following a motion and second.