Buescher continues efforts to identify efficiencies in elections

Applauds Speaker’s decision to table legislation for 2010

Denver, April 21, 2010 – Secretary of State Bernie Buescher praised the Colorado County Clerks Association and House Speaker Terrance Carroll for their efforts to improve and modernize Colorado’s election processes and procedures.

“As I stated during the start of these discussions, my aim is to streamline election processes and identify efficiencies without compromising the safeguards and security measures already in place,” Buescher said. “Thanks to Speaker Carroll and the county clerks, these discussions were incredibly productive and will most certainly continue. The ultimate goals are to effectively utilize proven technology, improve convenience for the voters and to save county taxpayer dollars.”

Many counties will see an end to their voting equipment’s life cycle in the next couple of years. As they begin to make arrangements to supplement their fleets of equipment, clerks are seeking a clear indication of how elections will look in Colorado in the future. Should the state continue to utilize touch screen machines in polling centers or move more toward mail ballots fed through high-speed scanners?
“These counties deserve to know the voting systems that the General Assembly will request for our elections,” Buescher said.

Buescher also agreed with the vast majority of the county clerks polled that it is appropriate to remove outdated barriers that may exist for voters updating registration records or for new voter registrations. However, more discussion was needed to prevent any unintended consequences during an election year.

The decision by Carroll to table legislation for this legislative session fell on the day of Buescher’s first scheduled meeting for his Elections Best Practices and Vision Commission. The commission’s membership was finalized last month.

“I hope to use this commission’s balanced membership to continue the discussions over the course of the year,” Buescher said. “The three overarching goals for the commission are to make it as easy as possible for every eligible citizen to vote, to make sure every vote is counted accurately and to limit in every reasonable way, the opportunity for fraud or abuse.”