Elections Commission: More Ad Hoc Committees and a Second Recommendation for Paper Poll Books
Commissioners added two new ad hoc committees and sent a recommendation to the Board to cancel the county’s contract for electronic poll books.
Fourteen members of the public attended the most recent Shasta County Elections Commission held on Monday, August 12. The Commission, which was put in place by the Board last year, is currently operating with only three members after multiple resignations and subsequent failed appointments have left two seats vacant.
Community members who attended the meeting shared an almost identical list of concerns as those reported at the last one, asking for a number of changes to elections that aren’t allowed under state law. Those suggestions included implementing one-day elections, requiring voter identification to register and vote, and eliminating voting machines. Community member Larry Burnett also asked for “meaningful observation” of elections. Certain changes could legally be made to the County’s observation policy, if approved by the appointed Registrar of Voters (ROV), Tom Toller.
Commission members voted to add two additional ad hoc committees to the nine existing ad hoc committees already in place. The first new committee, which includes Commissioners Patty Plumb and Margaret Hansen, will examine the cost of elections. It’s not clear if they mean the current cost of elections, something that’s already available in the Elections Office budget. The second new ad hoc committee, consisting of Commissioners Hansen and Ronnean Lund, will research elections records retention policy, something that’s set by federal and state laws. Neither ad hoc committee appears to meet Brown Act requirements because they lack an end date, as required for committees which meet out of view of the public.
The Commission also unanimously voted to recommend that county supervisors immediately cancel the County’s contract for electronic poll books (EPBs). That’s something ROV Toller has already told the Commission he doesn’t want to do, at least not yet.
Among their reasoning for this recommendation, the Commission wrote:
“Electronic poll books are not a reliable method of voter check-in and signature documentation, since they require electricity and internet connectively (sic), which may or may not be available; and they are a machine (sic) which may or may not be properly working.”
Notably, the Elections Office already has a policy for the use of poll books that provides directions for what to do when electricity or connectivity is interrupted and poll workers are trained on the same, as outlined in the County’s Poll Worker manual. Broadly, in the case of interruptions to EPBs, poll workers fall back to paper and pen “street rosters”, a kind of paper poll book. The updates made on paper are then transferred back into the electronic system when connectivity/electricity is restored.
The recommendation will go to the Board of Supervisors in the coming weeks or months for review.
During individual Commissioner reports, Plumb said she’s recently met with the public on weekends for “training purposes” related to elections. Plumb clarified for Shasta Scout later that she did not provide training to the public in her official role as Commissioner.
County Counsel Joseph Larmour responded briefly to questions from Shasta Scout after the meeting, saying Commissioners can hold or attend public events when they wish, just like supervisors can hold town halls, and that they can report on those events to the public as part of Commission business. Asked if individual Commissioners sharing elections-related training information with the public could create confusion about official Shasta County Elections Office policy, Larmour said “that’s a perception issue, not a legal issue.”
Earlier this year, former Elections Commissioner Bev Gray resigned not long after voicing a radio ad in which she identified herself as a Shasta County Elections Commissioner and asked people to call or text a private phone number to report issues with ballots. The ad was pulled from the air within a day and prompted the County to release a statement clarifying that the ad was “not from, nor approved by the Shasta County Registrar of Voters, the Shasta County Board of Supervisors, or the Shasta County Elections Commission.”
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And, regarding this additional Commission finding…
The Commission stated:
“There is an excessive and unnecessary amount of staff time needing to be devoted to use of the EPBs, including but not limited to: preparation of the EPBs, transportation of the EPBs, security of the EPBs, testing of the EPBs, training on usage of the EPBs, and reconciliation of documents produced by the EPBs.”
Did the Commission compare staff time related to the use of electronic poll books to prior staff time related to…
– manual reconciliation of voter check ins on the paper voter rosters with vote-by-mail ballots cast after the paper rosters were printed and
– processing of a larger number of provisional ballots from voters who did not surrender the vote-by-mail ballot mailed to them
…to prevent double voting?
Electronic poll books allow poll workers to quickly determine whether a voter is registered and whether they have previously voted, and immediately update the voter file to reflect that a voter has voted once they have done so. This prevents double voting and eliminates almost all provisional ballots, except for new voters completing a same-day registration at the polling place.
Regarding one of the Commission’s findings in its poll book report…
The Commission stated:
“Even when EPBs were working, some poll workers were not printing out routine reports and posting them for public review as required,…”
The printing and posting of the list of voters who have voted in every polling place is not mandated by the State law when the county uses electronic poll books.
See Elections Code section 14294(b):
“If an electronic poll book is used at the polling place, the elections official may use a printout or an electronic means of notification of the list of each person who has voted. The elections official shall provide the printout or electronic notification at least once each hour, to and including 6 p.m., or at the time of discontinuation of this procedure, whichever occurs last.”
Did the Registrar of Voters post the voter list electronically?
From an outsider’s perspective, and someone who has a role in another county, the “election commission” can make recommendations all day long that violate CA State and Federal Elections codes (laws) all they want, but the minute the Shasta County BOS or ROV violates the law, they will get their arses handed to them on a platter. I am so sorry to see that Shasta County BOS thought that spending $100k on a commission that can’t affect law, code or statute, is mind boggling to me, as if Shasta County has an extra $100k lying around. Hopefully, Rickert wins her district, then the board will hopefully be more balanced with Jones gone. But who knows…
Good luck and whatever you do please don’t vote for Tennessa Audette!!!!!
Is a quorum required for the election commission to be able to vote on and pass or reject their recommendations?
Jim: Yes, a quorum of five is three so at the moment the Commission must vote unanimously to pass any recommendations.
Thank you
Most of the County BOS have big balls! Their self perceived power is so misused. Three members are true narcissists. Just like their hero. The current majority of the BOS do not act in the best interest of the community at large. They foolishly act to serve the needs of a few. One by one you shall be voted out of your positions. Then the Board will be tasked undoing the damage you have caused.
Maybe if they get on enough committees they won’t have time to actually do anything to upset the County voting system…just wishful thinking
These kinds of crazy interference tactics are why I’m very reluctant to re-up as a poll worker this fall. And just to be very clear, that’s exactly what these little committees and schemes are all about, creating chaos and disruption to a voting system that has worked extremely well for many years.
OMG ! Patty Plumb, you’ll be resigning soon if you hold ‘election training’ sessions. You simply don’t have the qualifications. You need to check with the current ROV before you step into something you’ll regret. But, of course, that didn’t stop your friend Bev Gray, or Patrick Jones from being right there along side of her. The so-called Elections Commission has zero authority and must follow the rules of the Secretary of State; or Hello, Atty General Bonta ?
In my opinion the Elections Commission is a made up organization spearheaded by one person who has tried to manipulate the elections process to the detriment of the people. It should be disbanded and should never have been condoned by the BOS.
Kandi, you are correct. This commission is nothing but a red meet MAGA propaganda machine, to spread unethical lies, court proven disinformation and find ways to obstruct the vote of the American people here in Shasta County. What is very concerning is that taxpayers are paying up to $100,000 for this mouth thesis of ethics. The good news is absolutely nothing this panel does means anything legally. No we do not live in Patty Plums / Chriss Street delusional fantasy of a state of Jefferson and we never will. Think of the programs that could be using these propaganda funds to help people. One population that seems to need help in our county has evidenced by activity a little too close to home, is fentanyl abuse. Maybe these supervisors should be focusing in on reality instead of some kind of a trumped-up fantasy.