The Virginia Municipal League supports the points made by registrars from a number of affected localities across the state in response to the study of DREs recently completed by the Department of Elections, the lack of notification of localities affected by the study prior to its release, and the failure to involve the manufacturer or affected localities in the conduct of the study.  

VML opposes the decertification of the WinVote equipment at this time.  The Board does not have complete information to take such action. 

Requiring localities to undertake the purchase of new voting equipment will throw local budgets in disarray in all but a few of the localities with WinVote equipment.  There is no reason for the Board to act so precipitously in requiring cities and counties to make these major expenditures in the waning months of the current fiscal year and at the time of the budget calendar when most localities are well on the way to completing their budgets for the upcoming fiscal year.

Should the Board vote to decertify, it should pay for the equipment that will be required.  The State has ample authority to take this action under the authority granted the Director of the Department of Planning and Budget under § 4-1.03 c.5 in the Appropriation Act.  Further, Item 468 D. 1. and 2. sets aside funding to be used by the Governor for conditions arising under § 4-1.03 and to provide for unbudgeted and unavoidable increases in costs to state agencies for essential commodities and services which cannot be absorbed within agency appropriations. 

Following the adoption of the Help America Vote Act, localities purchased voting equipment through the State Board of Elections contract.  The equipment that the Board is now proposing to decertify was on that list.  If the State says that the equipment that it certified is now deserving of decertification, the State should certainly take steps to pay for the equipment.