January 19, 2006

"Most of State's Vote Machines Not Ready for Primary Time"

"Only five of California's 58 counties have electronic voting systems ready for the June primary, state election officials told a state Senate committee hearing Wednesday.

"While we're moving as fast as possible, much of the time needed for each system is out of our control," said Bill Wood, undersecretary of state.

To be ready by June, manufacturers must apply for state certification by Jan. 31, he said. Officials have not said what will happen to counties whose systems are not certified.

Election officials with the secretary of state's office were grilled about their progress by Sen. Debra Bowen (D-Marina del Rey), chairwoman of the Senate committee charged with overseeing election laws.

A county's voting system must be certified by the state in time for counties to comply with state and federal mandates that voters be able use the machines and verify their choices from a paper printout.

The counties with systems already certified are Contra Costa, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Stanislaus.

The rest have urged Secretary of State Bruce McPherson to speed up testing and approvals.

"Obviously, if a county is relying on certification to be done in time and it doesn't happen, it's going to be a hell of a scramble," Bowen said at the conclusion of the four-hour hearing in Sacramento.

"We have a very big task ahead of us," said committee co-chairman Sen. Jim Battin (R-La Quinta)."

Posted by Randy Riddle at January 19, 2006 08:08 AM