This bill mandates that all cities, towns, and school districts utilizing an official ballot system must ensure the availability of at least one accessible voting system at each polling place. It requires local clerks to enter into agreements with the secretary of state for the use of these systems, which the state will provide. The bill also stipulates that local clerks must maintain these systems securely and share them with school clerks for school elections. The secretary of state is tasked with providing guidance on the use and maintenance of these systems and will bear the costs associated with programming for state and federal elections.

Additionally, the bill modifies the effective date of a prospective repeal from June 30, 2025, to December 31, 2025, thereby extending the pilot program for sharing accessible voting systems. The bill does not allocate new funding or positions but anticipates local expenditures related to programming fees for elections, which could range from $600 to $2,400 per election cycle. The estimated costs for replacing the current accessible voting systems are projected to be between $1.2 million and $1.5 million, with ongoing maintenance and programming fees expected to be between $75,000 and $250,000 annually.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 659:20-b
As Amended by the House: 659:20-b