[EM] Legal Analysis of HR811 & Brennan Center Think-Tank Analysis of HR811

[Kathy Dopp]

On 6/13/07, Abd ul-Rahman Lomax <abd at lomaxdesign.com> wrote:
> I reviewed, on the Range Voting list, a blog that criticized HR 811.
> On that blog, it was claimed that the requirement of HR 811 that
> voters must be, on request, provided with a paper ballot to fill out,
> would not take effect until 2010. I could find nothing about this in
> the text of the bill, the latest I could find, as reported out of
> committee, which would otherwise be effective for November 2008 elections.
>
> Does anyone have more information on that point?

It's right in the bill. The only
jurisdictions which are given a 2010 deadline are those falling under
one of these two scenarios. All other bill provisions, save the part
requiring election officials to notify voters they have the option to
vote on paper, take effect for the November 2008 election (and
subsequent federal elections). Here are the two scenarios:

"(I) a jurisdiction which used thermal reel-to-reel voter verified paper
ballot printers attached to direct recording election voting machines
[DREs] ... [does not have to be swapped out for a machine that produces
the permanent, durable paper ballot until 2010]"

AND

"(II) a jurisdiction which used voting machines which met the
accessibility requirements [for the 2006 election does not have to swap
those out until 2010.]"

Re notifying the voter they can vote on paper, polling place workers do
not have to notify users of their right to vote on paper until 2010 if:

- the polling place uses only pre-printed ballots the voter marks (i.e.,
optical scan precincts, explicitly NOT created with a DRE),

OR

- the polling place is conducting early voting.

Those are the only two places in the bill the date 2010 is used.

>
> HR 811 appears to be very good legislation. It does not resolve all
> potential problems with DREs, for sure, but for the first time makes
> it possible to independently verify the vote with paper records.

True but it's a very good start to revising HAVA and gets us started
in the right direction in substantial ways.

Read the bill yourself and I'm sure you'll like it.  Don't believe
what you hear.

-- 
Kathy Dopp

The material expressed herein is the informed  product of the author
Kathy Dopp's fact-finding and investigative efforts. Dopp is a
Mathematician, Expert in election audit mathematics and procedures; in
exit poll discrepancy analysis; and can be reached at

P.O. Box 680192
Park City, UT 84068
phone 435-658-4657

http://utahcountvotes.org
http://kathydopp.com
http://electionmathematics.org
http://electionarchive.org

Election Audit Mathematics Bibliography
http://electionarchive.org/ucvAnalysis/US/paper-audits/KathyDoppAuditMathBibliography.pdf

Support Clean Elections in 2008
http://electionarchive.org/ucvAnalysis/US/SupportCleanElectionsIn2008.pdf

Important Facts About The Voter Confidence & Increased Accessibility Act (HR811)
http://electionarchive.org/ucvInfo/US/FactsAboutHR811.pdf

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