To: Board of Supervisors
From: Kristin Connelly, Clerk-Recorder
Report Title: APPROVE the commutation of the Elections Capital Replacement Fund to an Elections Technology Fund. No Fiscal Impact.
?Recommendation of the County Administrator ? Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE the commutation of the Elections Capital Replacement Surcharge assigned fund balance designation to an Elections Technology Surcharge fund balance designation.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The current assigned Elections Capital Replacement Surcharge fund balance designation is approximately $3.8 million1. Broadening the designation to encompass "elections technology" will help the department manage the costs of election system software and vendor support in addition to hardware costs. Technology fees will be charged to local jurisdictions for each election and reserved to cover these costs. Fee rates will be adjusted based on projected expenditures over the ensuing five years.
BACKGROUND:
The Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder-Elections Department is proposing to convert its existing Elections Capital Replacement Fund into an Elections Technology Fund. The original fund, established in 2016, was created to finance the periodic replacement of the ballot tally voting system. The proposed change aims to broaden the scope of the fund to include both the cyclical replacement of capital equipment and the payment of ongoing annual operating costs for elections technology and infrastructure, such as annual software licensing, maintenance, and warranties. This change is intended to stabilize the Division's budget by distributing these significant technology expenses more evenly over the four-year election cycle, offsetting the loss in revenue during non-election years.
Currently, jurisdictions that consolidate their elections with county elections (city, school, and special districts) pay their pro-rata portion of actual election costs based on a formula that considers the number of regi...
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