Montpelier. Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz today announced that her
office has received a five million dollar appropriation from the federal
government to help Vermont implement the “Help America Vote Act” (HAVA).
Secretary Markowitz said “we are pleased that the promised Federal money has
arrived. This five million dollars will be used to help the state and
municipalities meet the many new federal mandates created by HAVA.”
HAVA was passed into law in November and requires broad changes to the way
Vermont conducts its elections. Most notably HAVA mandates the adoption of a
statewide voter checklist, the purchase of technology for every community to
allow individuals with visual disabilities to vote privately and
independently. It mandates extensive poll worker and voter education programs,
and requires voters to be given a chance to correct voting errors and to cast
provisional ballots if they are not on the checklist. HAVA also requires new
voters to show identification when they register or vote.
This week, the Vermont legislature will be considering changes to Vermont law
designed to bring Vermont into conformity with the new federal requirements.
Markowitz said, “having money in the bank will go a long way to convince our
legislatures to vote yes on this important bill.” Markowitz said, “the federal
money received under HAVA is in a special account that can only be used to
improve the administration of Vermont’s elections. Now that it is in the bank
we can begin to make the investments that will be necessary to help Vermont
meet the requirements of the federal election reform law.”
