aper Trail of Ballots Sought

The Senate and the House of Delegates are headed for a showdown over paper receipts for the state's computerized voting systems.

Concerned about fraud and computer error, the Senate gave tentative approval yesterday to a bill that would require the state to maintain a verifiable paper trail of all ballots cast on the computerized system.

The measure, sponsored by Sen. Andrew P. Harris (R-Baltimore County), would require the receipts by the November election.

But legislative analysts estimate that it could cost $20 million to outfit the state's 16,000 voting machines with the capacity to create paper receipts. Earlier this week, the House cited that price tag when it passed a bill establishing a task force to study the issue. Harris, however, is vowing to amend the House bill when the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee considers it.

States across the country are grappling with the new computerized voting technology. Although manufacturers claim the system is foolproof, some computer scientists and elected officials want the additional guarantee provided by paper receipts.

"I think the more people think about this, the more they come to conclude there should be a paper audit trail," said Harris, adding that a conference committee will probably be needed to settle the differences between the House and Senate proposals.