SB 70-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
8Jun2023... 1280h
2023 SESSION
23-1013
08/10
SENATE BILL 70-FN
SPONSORS: Sen. Gray, Dist 6; Sen. Murphy, Dist 16
COMMITTEE: Election Law and Municipal Affairs
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AMENDED ANALYSIS
This bill directs the secretary of state to establish an election information portal.
This bill also allows grants to be given to cities and towns for the purchase of election equipment.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
8Jun2023... 1280h 23-1013
08/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Three
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Purpose. It is the intent of the legislature to modernize the application processes for new voter registration, requesting absentee ballots, and requesting changes to name, domicile, and party affiliation in the statewide voter database.
2 New Subdivision; Election Information Portal. Amend RSA 652 by inserting after section 27 the following new subdivision:
Election Information Portal
652:28 Election Information Portal.
I. The secretary of state is hereby authorized to develop, in consultation with the department of information technology, the department of safety, division of motor vehicles, and city and town clerks and supervisors of the checklist, an online election information portal which citizens may use to:
(a) Complete a new voter application.
(b) Request an absentee ballot.
(c) Request changes to the statewide centralized voter registration database, such as name, domicile address, mailing address, and party affiliation.
II. A request by the voter placed in the election information portal shall be submitted to the appropriate municipal official for verification and processing per RSA 654:7, RSA 654:8, RSA 654:16 through RSA 654:19, and RSA 654:34, except that the information may be provided in a format the secretary of state deems suitable for electronic submission. Any information submitted to the portal shall be handled in a manner consistent with relevant voter and election laws, including RSA 654, and shall be retrievable and printable at any time including during the processing of the information. In addition, nonpublic data related to individual voter data shall remain confidential.
III. The secretary of state shall not implement any election information portal established pursuant to this section, such that the public can access or otherwise utilize such portal, until January 1, 2024.
3 Election Fund; Grants for Cities and Towns. Amend RSA 5:6-d, III to read as follows:
III. The secretary of state is authorized to accept, budget, and, subject to the limitations of this paragraph, expend monies in the election fund received from any party for the purposes of conducting elections, voter and election official education, the purchase or lease of equipment that complies with the Help America Vote Act of 2002, Public Law 107-252, or with RSA 659:13, V, reimbursing the department of safety for the actual cost of voter identification cards, election law enforcement, enhancing election technology, making election security improvements, and improvements to related information technology, including acquisition and operation of an automated election management system. [With the exception of federal and state portions of funds associated with the 2018 Election Reform Program, the secretary of state shall not expend any monies in the election fund unless the balance in the fund following such expenditures shall be at least 12 times the estimated annual cost of maintaining the programs established to comply with the Help America Vote Act of 2002, Public Law 107-252.] The secretary of state shall establish a grant system for cities and towns to access monies from Help America Vote Act of 2002, Public Law 107-252 grants for the use of improving election security and technology. The grants shall be used for technology including ballot counting devices, electronic poll books, and secure laptops to be used to access ElectioNet.
4 Help America Vote Act Funding. Any expenditures made for the purpose of establishing the election portal in section 2 of this act or the establishment of the grant system required by section 3 of this act shall be paid for with funding from the Help America Vote Act of 2002, Public Law 107-252.
5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
23-1013
Amended 6/19/23
SB 70-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE (AMENDMENT #2023-1280h)
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ X ] Local [ ] None
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| Estimated Increase / (Decrease) | |||
STATE: | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 | FY 2026 |
Appropriation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | $515,000 | $164,000 | $167,000 |
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | Indeterminable |
Funding Source: | [ ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ X ] Other - Election Fund - HAVA Funds | |||
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LOCAL: |
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Revenue | $0 | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | Indeterminable |
Expenditures | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
METHODOLOGY:
The Department of State indicates that this bill would establish a New Hampshire voter election information portal, which would require the development of a new system. This portal would enable voters to log in online and perform various tasks such as submitting a new voter application, requesting an absentee ballot, or making changes to their voter registration details. Additionally, the bill would mandate the creation of a grant system to enhance election security and technology in cities and towns. The funding for both the portal and the grants would be from the election fund, also known as HAVA Funds.
Portal:
To implement the online election information portal, the Department of State would collaborate with the department of information technology, the department of safety, the division of motor vehicles, city and town clerks, and supervisors of the checklist. Qualified voters opting to use the portal would be required to provide the same information within the same statutory time frames as outlined in voter registration statutes. However, the information may be submitted in a format suitable for electronic submission, as determined by the Secretary of State.
The estimated cost for designing, building, and testing the portal is $426,000. Additionally, the Department anticipates annual maintenance fees of approximately $84,000 and the need for a new ongoing position, specifically a Program Assistant III.
Considering the time required for design, bidding, building, testing, and creating training materials, the earliest operational date for the new portal would be May of 2024. This assumes the bill is signed into law on July 1, 2023, and takes effect 60 days after passage.
Projected Costs:
Fiscal Year 2024:
Fiscal Year 2025:
Fiscal Year 2026 and forward:
Grant System:
The bill eliminates the requirement for the Secretary of State to maintain a balance in the election fund equal to at least 12 times the estimated annual cost of maintaining programs established to comply with the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA).
The current balance in the election fund is approximately $12.6 million. In order to create and administer the grant program, an additional position within the HAVA office is necessary, most likely a Program Specialist III. The estimated salary for this position is as follows:
When the election fund is exhausted, this additional position would no longer be required.
Depending on the volume of grant applications received, another position may be necessary within the HAVA office to ensure compliance with federal requirements regarding the election funds (HAVA funds). This position would handle tasks such as city and town compliance reporting follow-up and federal HAVA reporting requirements.
The cost of new election equipment grants would vary based on the preferences of local election officials. The approximate costs by category are as follows:
Poll Pad:
Ballot Counting Device:
Additional programming fees would apply for each poll pad and ballot counting device used during elections.
During the last state election in New Hampshire, there were 308 polling locations. The number of pieces of equipment and the number of locations participating as well as the potential cost is indeterminable.
The Department of Information Technology states they will not require any additional resources to support this effort.
The Department of Safety states there will be an indeterminable increase in State expenditures. The Department states there is an unknown cost associated with forms, rulemaking, system updates, and the amount Department of Motor Vehicle is tasked with overseeing the process.
The New Hampshire Municipal Association states the fiscal impact of the grant program for ballot counting devices, electronic poll books, and secure laptops is uncertain due to several factors. The Secretary of State's website provides a list of towns and wards currently using ballot counting devices, electronic poll books, and secure laptops. The exact number of machines and their locations can be obtained from the Secretary of State's office, allowing determination of municipalities eligible for the direct-replacement portion of the grant program and the corresponding funding amount.
However, the number of municipalities seeking these devices for the first time is unknown and cannot be estimated. Assuming all 308 polling locations required electronic poll books, secure laptops, and new ballot counting devices at maximum cost, the maximum revenue to municipalities would be $3,888,500. This assumes $1,024,100 for electronic poll books, $246,400 for secure laptops, and $2,618,000 for ballot counting devices. However, it is reasonable to expect that the total cost would be lower due to factors such as multiple device usage in some locations, continued use of manual processes, or non-participation in the grant program.
Considering the uncertainty surrounding these variables, the revenues for municipalities are considered "indeterminable."
Department of State, Department of Information Technology, Department of Safety, and New Hampshire Municipal Association