HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Board of Civil Authority - 12/08/2016BOARD OF CIVIL AUTHORITY 8 DECEMBER 2016
The South Burlington Board of Civil Authority held a mee ng on Thursday, 8 December 2016, at 7:45 p.m., in
the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset Street.
MEMBERS PRESENT: P. Taylor, Chair; D. Kinville, P. Benner, C. Shaw, C. Bolton, M. St. Germain, T. Barri , A. Cli ,
T. Chi enden, M. Emery, A. Pugh
ALSO PRESENT: Rep. M. Townsend
1. Agenda Review: Addi ons, dele ons or changes in the order of Agenda items:
No changes were made to the Agenda.
2. Comments and Ques ons from the public not related to the Agenda:
No issues were raised.
3. Approve minutes of 26 October 2016:
Mr. Barri moved to approve the Minutes of 26 October 2016 as wri en. Ms. Emery seconded. Mo on passed
unanimously.
4. Discussion with South Burlington State Representa ves about elec on and vo ng issues:
a. Motor Voter Issues:
Ms. Kinville noted that there were about 90 people who used the DMV voter affirma on city-wide. There are 5
le ers out to people who gave informa on that does not agree with DMV’s database. 8 people did on-line
registra on a er the cutoff but before the elec on. The Secretary of State’s office said they have no authority
to deal with fraud. Ms. Kinville said she has called the State’s A orney’s office, but has not yet had a response
from them.
The concern is with same day registra on and not needing to produce an id nor proof of residency, there would
be no way to prove who registered and voted. There is li le concern about a ballot being voted which should
not have been.
b. Voter Registra on Process/Statewide Checklist:
Mr. Taylor said his concern is how accurate this will be. He noted that the “applica on to the voter checklist”
requires an ID. He assumed this will s ll be a requirement. He asked why an ID isn’t required of those who
register at a voter registra on drive.Mr. Shaw said he would like there to be a photo of a person who registers.
Ms. Kinville said that is the only way to prove who turned in the applica on.
Mr. Taylor stressed that whatever is done to insure the validity/openness of the process is good.
c. Clerk’s office absentee ballot vo ng/voter registra on mes prior to elec on day. 2017 rules
State/Federal – Monday before elec on being a gap day for Clerk’s final prepara ons for
elec on day:
Ms. Kinville said the Clerk’s Associa on is working to get that “gap day.” She said this year there was total chaos
the day before the elec on with trying to get ready for the elec on and people s ll coming in to vote.
d. Recount process? Machine vs. Hand Count:
Mr. Taylor said he had asked why there is not a hand count op on. Rep. Townsend said there are s ll counts
going on in the state due to a e. Originally, the machine count was considered more reliable, but it has been
discovered that there are mes when a crease in the ballot can register as a vote. There are also mes when
hand counts get different numbers from each counter. She said the Legislature will have to look at this issue.
e. Ballot envelop size:
Mr. Taylor noted the problem of previously folded ballots jamming the machines.
Mr. Barri said either the envelop needs to be wider or the ballot narrower.
f. Vo ng of absentee ballots which are postal delivered to the Clerk’s office on Elec on Day:
Ms. Kinville noted that on Elec on Day, the Assessor’s office collected these ballots and called her to pick them
up to get them to the polls.
g. Process to transfer from ballot not accepted by machines to a machine-acceptable ballot
(keep both together?):
Mr. Taylor said there should be a statewide process for this.
h. Emergency Ac on Plan for polling loca ons:
Mr. Taylor asked what should be taken with elec on officials leaving the polling place due to an emergency.
I. Secretary of State Process for inves ga ng possible elec on fraud?
Ms. Kinville said she has 15-20 issues with “ques ons.” Mr. Taylor said they have been told “there aren’t many,
so it isn’t an issue.”
Ms. Kinville said they have had no training on how to deal with this. She noted there is no requirement for
people to tell where/how they registered so it can be checked on. She stressed the need for accountability.
5. Other Business:
Ms. Kinville said the next mee ng will be in February.
As there was no further business to come before the Board, Ms. Emery moved to adjourn. Mr. Chi enden
seconded. Mo on passed unanimously. The mee ng was adjourned at 8:30 p.m.
_________________________________
Clerk