To: Board of Supervisors
From: Clerk/Recorder/Registrar of Voters
Agenda Section: Consent
SUBJECT:
title
Approval of Election Voting System and Associated Licensing, Service & Maintenance Agreement and Supplemental Budget (4/5 Vote Required)
end
RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Approve the selection of HART InterCivic as the vendor for a new election voting system;
2. Approve the attached master agreement, and authorize the Chair of the Board to sign the agreement;
3. Authorize the Registrar of Voters, or designee, to execute any and all amendments and/or change orders to the master agreement;
4. Ratify the Request for Proposals; and
5. Approve the attached supplemental budget (4/5 Vote Required).
Body
SOURCE OF FUNDING:
State Funding
Help America Vote Act (HAVA) Funding
General Fund
DISCUSSION:
On February 27, 2019, a Notice of Withdrawal of Certification and Conditional Approval of Voting Systems that were not certified to the most current California Voting Systems Standards (CVSS), was issued by the Secretary of State. The decertification included the voting machines and software used in Humboldt County. Humboldt County must procure a new voting system prior to the March 2020 Primary Election.
Public demonstrations of two certified voting solutions were conducted, those by HART InterCivic and Dominion Voting Systems. A Request for Proposal was issued and posted on the county website on July 9, 2019. Responses were received from each of these vendors. After an independent review and evaluation by each member of the review panel, HART InterCivic was unanimously selected as the best fit for Humboldt County.
Dominion did not provide a response based on a fully certified voting system. The response included the ImageCast Precinct 2 ballot scanner and ballot box which are part of a system currently going through the certification process with the California Secretary of State. No alternative solution was included.
The following table sets forth the combined ranking of the panel members for both the HART and Dominion systems.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Value |
Criteria |
Dominion |
HART |
|
13 |
Knowledge, understanding, experience |
9.75 |
13.00 |
|
15 |
Degree of compliance & ability to meet county model contract items, conditions & attachments |
11.25 |
15.00 |
|
25 |
Financial Response |
17.71 |
22.92 |
|
20 |
Narrative Response |
16.67 |
17.50 |
|
20 |
Scope of Work and Functional Responses |
17.14 |
20.00 |
|
5 |
Qualification Statement |
5.00 |
5.00 |
|
2 |
Ability for Certification |
1.22 |
2.00 |
|
100 |
|
78.74 |
95.42 |
The selected voting system and components will provide the Registrar of Voters (ROV) with a method to continue to operate polling place elections with ballot scanners at polling places, high-speed scanners for vote-by-mail tabulation and central count, accessible voting devices at each location, integration with our electronic poll books, and can be adjusted for future needs. The ROV has reviewed the components selected to ensure that the system would be compatible with a change to the Vote Center model in the future. HART InterCivic is the only vendor that provided a detailed cost breakdown for this transition.
The following table provides a comparison of the costs provided in the proposals (sales tax is not reflected in this comparison):
|
|
|
|
|
|
HART |
Dominion |
|
Ballot Creation/Scanning/Tabulating |
$123,762.00 |
$72,112.00 |
|
Polling Place Hardware |
$704,322.00 |
$477,067.80 |
|
Software |
$66,000.00 |
$39,000.00 |
|
Training |
$40,000.00 |
$25,500.00 |
|
Annual Licensing |
$41,547.00 |
Included 1st Year |
|
Shipping (Estimated) |
$5,475.00 |
$5,000.00 |
|
Discount |
-$186,810.00 |
$0.00 |
|
Total |
$794,296.00 |
$618,679.80 |
HART InterCivic is the only vendor that provided a cost breakdown for a fully certified voting system. Dominion’s cost breakdown includes detailed hardware that is currently going through the certification process in California. No figures were provided for the scanner and ballot box that is certified and was part of the vendor’s presentation in March 2019.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The total cost of the voting system, including tax, is $874,252.86 as set forth in the attached quote. It will be paid for with a combination of state and county funds at a ratio of three to one as set forth in the State Standard Amended Agreement which is attached.
The State of California allocated funding for the county in its 2018-2019 budget totaling $542,000. Additional funding for the replacement of voting systems and technology has been approved through the Voter Modernization Bond Act in the amount of $271,000. This additional amount is included in the attached supplemental budget. Pursuant to the attached Standard Agreement Amendment from the California Secretary of State, Humboldt County’s voting system replacement allocation totals $813,000. Any funds not utilized for the purchase of the voting equipment can be used for other election related purchases.
The county has $162,722 in HAVA 301 funding, plus $419,019 has been set aside from prior year budget savings for Elections Fund 1100, Budget Unit 140, for a total of $581,741 in potential matching funds.
The state contribution for the purchase of the new voting system will be $655,689.64, and the county match will be $218,563.22.
The ROV is looking into adding backup computers for tabulation and central count which can be added at a later date, but prior to the March 2020 Election. There is sufficient funding to purchase the HART voting system without additional impact to the general fund.
Ongoing costs for licensing and maintenance for the HART system total $41,547.
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK:
This action supports your Board’s Strategic Framework by fostering transparent, accessible, welcoming and user friendly services.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
N/A
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
The Board could choose not to approve the purchase of the HART voting system. However, this alternative is not recommended as the County does not currently have a certified voting system.
ATTACHMENTS:
Request for Proposal including attachments
Questions and Responses
HART Voting System Quote
Supplemental Budget
County Professional Services Agreement
State Standard Agreement Amendment
PREVIOUS ACTION/REFERRAL:
Board Order No.: N/A
Meeting of: N/A
File No.: N/A