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Dollars and Amendments: Reviewing State Funding and County Charter Amendments
FEBRUARY 17, 2010
Dollars and Amendments: Reviewing State Funding and County Charter Amendments
While states are tasked with writing their own election laws so long as they meet HAVA requirements, the question remains as to whether a county may make additional mandates on election administrators beyond state laws. The EAC recently released its annual report on grants, which help states become compliant with HAVA. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court of Florida ruled on the constitutionality of county charter amendments, finding that counties may add supplemental requirements like more election audits and bans on specific voting systems.
Featured Resources
The Indiana Election Division published its Outreach Library for the 2010 elections. Among the resources available for both voters and election officials are guides for military and overseas voters, voter identification requirement outlines, and a handbook for election officials.
This supplemental report provides in-depth information on each state's election system.
This NASS document provides a state-level review of voter registration list maintenance practices.
A pilot study examined the effectiveness of combining in-person training with on-line educational tools. Those who participated in on-line training performed better, were more confident in their work, and knew the specifics of their job better than those who had not participated in on-line training.
The Florida Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of Sarasota County’s charter election law amendments, finding that state law does not bar individual counties from creating their own election laws.
Research Projects
Dēmos is a non-partisan public policy research and advocacy organization founded in 2000. A multi-issue national organization, Dēmoscombines research, policy development, and advocacy to influence public debates and catalyze change.
The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law is a non-partisan public policy and law institute that focuses on fundamental issues of democracy and justice.
electionline.org provides daily news updates on election reform issues, as well as deeper analysis of selected topics, including recent reports on voter registration, recount procedures, and the progress in implementing the Help America Vote Act since 2002.
Center for Democracy & Election Management was established at the School of Public Affairs at American University in 2002. Their broader goal is to pave the way for and strengthen democracy through improved electoral performance.
Part of the Institute for Governmental Studies at the University of California at Berkeley, the Election Administration Research Center (EARC) aims to improve the administration of elections.
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
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The Brookings Institution
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