Hinchey Co-Introduces Polling Bill

As part of an effort to ensure that every vote cast in the upcoming election is recorded and properly counted, Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) recently co-introduced a bill that would help ensure paper ballots are on hand at polling places for any voter who prefer such a ballot over electronic or other types of voting machines. The Confidence In Voting Act of 2006, which Hinchey sponsored with Congressman Rush Holt (D-NJ), would encourage all voting jurisdictions to have paper ballots on hand by covering the expense associated with using them.
“Voting is one of the most important individual rights we hold as citizens of the United States, which is why we must do everything possible to ensure that this right is never compromised,” Hinchey said. “Many states and counties rushed to purchase electronic touch screen voting machines in order to prevent the confusion and disenfranchisement that occurred in November 2000. Since then, many of these machines have proven to be susceptible to malfunctions. In order to eliminate these problems, voting machines must have paper verification systems. In the meantime, it is essential that we pass The Confidence in Voting Act so that paper ballots can be made available across the country to anyone who wants one in lieu of using an electronic voting machine or if technical problems arise with electronic voting machines on Election Day.”
The Confidence in Voting Act would have the federal government cover the cost of paper ballots and other related costs up to 75 cents per ballot for jurisdictions that use a voting system other than an optical scan or other paper ballot voting system. In order to receive federal funding, a voting jurisdiction must: allow all voters who request a paper ballot to be granted one; prominently post a sign at each polling place to let voters know that paper ballots are available upon request; and treat and count each paper ballot just like all other types of ballots available at a particular polling place.
A National Research Council bipartisan study conducted by former Ohio Governor Richard Celeste and former Pennsylvania Governor and U.S. Attorney General, concluded that, “it will be essential this year that jurisdictions have backup and contingency plans that anticipate a wide range of possible failures in their electronic voting systems,” and that contingency paper ballots provide a sufficient backup plan for the failure of such systems.
An estimated 40 percent of voters are expected to use electronic touch-screen machines this November. Many problems were reported with those types of machines when they were used during primaries earlier this year. Furthering concerns, is the fact that most touch-screen machines do not have a paper trail that could be used to verify votes.
If passed, The Confidence in Voting Act would amend the Help American Vote Act of 2002.