Government Administration and Elections Committee
JOINT FAVORABLE REPORT
Bill No.: HB-6575
Title: AN ACT CONCERNING RISK-LIMITING AUDITS FOR ELECTION RESULTS.
Vote Date: 3/31/2021
Vote Action: Joint Favorable
PH Date: 3/10/2021
File No.:
Disclaimer: The following JOINT FAVORABLE Report is prepared for the benefit of the
members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and
explanation and does not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber
thereof for any purpose.
SPONSORS OF BILL:
The Government Administration and Elections Committee
REASONS FOR BILL:
This bill would establish a working group to look at the practicality of using risk-limiting audits
to determine the accuracy of elections in Connecticut. The bill requires the working group to
submit to the Government Administration and Elections Committee a report with its findings
by January 31, 2022.
RESPONSE FROM ADMINISTRATION/AGENCY:
Denise W. Merrill, Secretary of the State, Connecticut: Secretary of the State, Merrill,
testified that they proposed this bill to examine and test the possibility of creating a system of
post-election risk-limiting audits. They explain that this bill would, create a study committee
to determine the feasibility and practicability of Connecticut implementing risk-limiting audits,
including needs related to equipment, procedures, and statutes. This bill would also create a
pilot program to test one or more methods of risk limiting audits in the 2021 municipal
elections.
NATURE AND SOURCES OF SUPPORT:
Judy Lhamon, VP Advocacy, League of Women Voters of Connecticut: Lhamon testified
that this bill should help build confidence in elections conducted by Connecticuts elections
officials, and identify any areas that need attention.
John Marion, Executive Director, Common Cause, Rhode Island: Marion testified that
certain risk limiting audits can help prevent and address various issues that may arise in the
election process including ballot polling, ballot comparison and batch comparison. They
explain that if this legislation were to pass, the Rhode Island Board of Elections, should be
able to provide it with information about the cost the state has incurred to plan and execute
the two risk-limiting audits conducted so farAdditionally, groups and individuals involved in
the Rhode Island audit implementation work group would be willing to testify on a variety of
topics, including the statistics, software, sampling method, ballot accounting, and other
aspects of RLAs.
Dennis Mema: Mema testified in support of HB 6575.
Cheri Quickmire, Executive Director, Common Cause in Connecticut: Quickmire testified
that they support the bill to help ensure our election results are as accurate as possible. They
explain that Rhode Island has successfully implemented risk-limiting audits in the last tow
elections. Quickmire explains that these audits will give our elections more protection and our
voters more confidence.
Peter D. Spain: Spain testified in support of HB 6575.
Dr. Philip B. Stark, Board Advisor, The Open Source Election Technology (OSET)
Institute: Stark testified that risk-limiting audits allow elections to be conducted in a way that
gives the public convincing evidence that the results of the election are correct. They
recommend that legislation be passed requiring the Secretary of the State, to develop
regulations for the secure, verifiable custody of voted ballots (including protocols for using
seals, transporting ballots, and storing ballots), and regulations for compliance audits to
ensure that eligibility was determined correctly and that the security of the physical ballots
was maintained. They also suggest passing legislation requiring risk-limiting audits for all
statewide contests and risk-measuring audits for all other contests based on the ballots
selected for the risk-limiting audits, as well as developing a publicly owned, open source
voting system. Stark explains that there is no perfect way to count votes but utilizing
evidence-based elections requires local election officials to provide the electorate convincing
evidence.
Luther Weeks, Executive Director, CTVotersCount: Weeks testified that risk-limiting audits
can help contribute to justified confidence in elections. They explain that aspects of the bill
that they believe need to be clarified or addressed; I recommend that such a Task Force
take advantage of some of the expertise, experience, and software available to help develop
valuable prototypes and effective laws.
NATURE AND SOURCES OF OPPOSITION:
None Expressed
Reported by: Jenna Schwerdtle Date: 03/31/2021
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