N.C. House approves new voting machine restrictions

The Associated Press    11 August 2005

The state House unanimously agreed late Thursday to permit only three types of voting methods in North Carolina and also agreed on how to disburse government grants to help pay for machine upgrades.

The measure, developed after Carteret County electronic voting machines lost 4,438 ballots in last November's election, also requires state election officials to hand out more than $36 million in grants to meet new standards.

With the 2006 elections, voting in North Carolina only will occur in the form of optical scan ballot machines, electronic recording machines or paper ballots counted by hand. Electronic machines would have to provide a paper copy of a voter's ballot, which could be corrected by the voter before they are recorded.

The bill will help voters know their ballots are being counted by accurate and reliable machines that have a backup if a machine fails, said Rep. Jean Preston, R-Carteret.

"If we don't have people feeling good about their vote and making sure their vote was recorded as they intended ... and counted, then we are in a sad state of affairs in North Carolina," Preston said.

Counties only will be able to purchase machine brands that have been certified by the State Board of Elections.

The bill now returns to the Senate, which approved a slightly different version two weeks ago and must decide whether to accept the House version.

The House amended the Senate edition by laying out a formula by which federal and state grant money will be given to all 100 counties to meet the standards. As many as 88 counties may have to buy or upgrade machines.

Bill supporters say the amounts should be enough for most counties to purchase the least expensive optical scan machines. If they want to buy more expensive electronic machines, they'll have to pay the difference.

"This is a bargain for every county, whether you intend to buy a new machine or not," said Rep. Joe Kiser, R-Lincoln.

The bill also would allow the State Board of Elections to experiment during the 2006 elections with alternatives to a paper record of a ballot. That may include audio playbacks of a voter's choice or a photographic image of an electronic ballot.

Elections officials also would perform sample hand recounts statewide and compare totals to ensure voting systems are accurate.

The Carteret County mistake occurred when a vendor failed to change a setting on a group of electronic machines used in early voting. The lost ballots threatened to require election officials to call a new statewide election in the close agriculture commissioner's race.