Officials back extension request to install a new voting system

By VIRGINIA ROSS
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- Lawrence County officials said they are endorsing a request being made to the Department of State for more time to have a new voting system in place.
This week, county elections officials said it is unlikely the county will be able to have a new system installed by the May primary -- the deadline set by the state department.
Several other counties are experiencing the same dilemma, commissioners said. They said the county is joining in an effort being spearheaded by Allegheny County to secure an extension.
"Even if we had identified a new system and ordered it yesterday, we wouldn't be set up in time, even if it arrived by the [May] primary," Commissioner Steve Craig said.
In order for the county to secure its receipt of nearly $1 million in federal aid, commissioners had to agree to comply with the Help America Vote Act, a measure that provides individuals with disabilities an opportunity to vote at the polls.
Earlier this month, commissioners adopted a resolution that obligates the county to comply with the act by making polling sites accessible and having a voting system in place that can be used by people with disabilities.
The county has 106 voting precincts, most of which are not accessible to people who have disabilities. Commissioners recently agreed to pay Hollister Bundy, a Chicago-based contractor, $103,750 to build the necessary ramps, handrails and other features.
Possible Plan B
Officials also have initiated an effort to consolidate smaller precincts throughout the county to cut costs of having the sites renovated to comply with the act.
But the county has not yet decided which voting system to buy for those polling sites. The county has used an optical-scan voting system for more than 20 years.
"We're nowhere near where we need to be," Craig said. "And, apparently, nine other counties are in the same boat. We need more time. That's all there is to it."
The county has until the end of February to identify an appropriate voting system and be in the process of buying that system, or be working toward that goal. The new system must be state approved.
An elections advisory committee, set up by the county elections department earlier this year, has been studying the matter for several months.
Officials said they intend to invite various vendors to the courthouse next month to allow officials and residents to have a closer look at several voting systems before a decision is made on which system to buy.