DOCSLIB.ORG

GAE Committee Hearing Transcript for 02/27/2019

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
GAE Committee Hearing Transcript for 02/27/2019 1 February 27, 2019 /ph GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 11:00 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE PUBLIC HEARING CHAIRPERSON: Representative Daniel Fox SENATORS: Flexer, Haskell, Maroney, Sampson REPRESENTATIVES: Blumenthal, Fox, France, Haddad, Harding, Mastrofrancesco, McCarthy, Perillo, Phipps, Santiago, Winkler REP. FOX (148TH): Good morning and I welcome to today’s public hearing for the GA Committee. Representative Winkler has an announcement before we begin, Representative. REP. WINKLER (56TH): In the interest of safety, I would ask you to note the location of an access to exits in this hearing room, the two doors to which you entered the room are the emergency exits and are marked with exit signs. In an emergency, the door behind the legislators can also be used. In the event of an emergency, please walk quickly to the nearest exit. After exiting the room, proceed to the main stairs and follow the exit signs to one of the fire stairs. Please quickly exit the building and follow any instructions from the Capitol Police. Do not delay and do not return unless and until you are advised that it is safe to do so. In the event of a lockdown announcement, please remain in the hearing room, stay away from the exit doors and wait until an all clear announcement is heard. REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative Winkler. To begin, we typically reserve the first hour of testimony for public officials. So, we are 2 February 27, 2019 /ph GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 11:00 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE PUBLIC HEARING going to maintain that procedure today, have the first hour, rotate back and forth between public officials and members of the public. So, first witness today is Secretary of State, Denise Merrill. Good morning, Secretary. Thank you for being here. DENISE MERRILL: Good morning, Chairman Fox, Vice Chairs Haskell and Winkler, nice to see you. Ranking members Sampson and France, oh he’s not here, just Senator Sampson. Members of the Committee thank you for being here. My name is Denise Merrill, I’m the Secretary of the State of Connecticut. I have submitted testimony on a number of bills before you today. So, I’m only going to speak about the proposal of mine, which is the only one on this agenda, which is House Bill 7213, AN ACT CONCERNING ELECTORAL PRIVILEGES OF CERTAIN PAROLEES AND CHALLENGERS IN THE POLLING PLACE, that would clarify voting rights in Connecticut by extending the franchise to people on parole and remove the antiquated challenger statute from Title 9. And I will leave it to you to read my testimony on the rest of the bills in the interest of time. I know there’s always lots of people that want to testify before you. Currently, Connecticut law allows people on probation to once again exercise their right to vote, but not people on parole. This bill would simply allow people on parole to also exercise their right to vote. We would join 16 states in the District of Columbia, including all our neighbors in New England by doing this. 3 February 27, 2019 /ph GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 11:00 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE PUBLIC HEARING A real problem we often face when we try to get every eligible voter to register and every registered voter to vote is in getting people to know at what point in the process of leaving the criminal justice system to get their vote back. And I will tell you that is the biggest problem that we have is just convincing people that’s it’s okay, once again, to register and vote. This bill would remove some of that confusion over parole versus probation and simplify the restoration of voting rights to the physical release from prison. Reattaching voting rights to people as they leave their period of confinement doesn’t just alleviate confusion, it will also help people to reintegrate into the civic life of their community. Voters who exercise their right to vote sooner are more likely to become lifetime voters. If this legislation passes, my office will work with the judicial branch and the Department of Corrections on the complexities of the categories of parole to determine what constitutes parole as opposed to incarceration. So, House Bill 7213, also eliminates the anachronistic challenger designation, election day polling locations from Title 9. Although challengers do still exist in statute, they have not been used in many years. This designation is a vestige from a time when everyone in a town knew everyone else in a town and has no real use in our modern election structure. The challenger designation is not necessarily necessary because we have changed the law since that time to allow every person lawfully inside a polling place, including people who are not poll workers, but are unofficial 4 February 27, 2019 /ph GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 11:00 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE PUBLIC HEARING checkers, appointed by registrars to communicate with local political parties. Anyone in the polling place can challenge someone who’s attempting to vote in that polling place, so long as the challenge is not made indiscriminately and the person issuing the challenge knows, suspects or reasonably believes that the challenge is valid. So, therefore, we propose that this challenger statute, which had the, basically a redundant position be eliminated and that’s why I support this bill. So, that’s it for my bill that you see before you. I’m happy to answer any questions. REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, Madam Secretary, good seeing you again. Any questions for -- Senator Haskell. SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you, Madam Secretary for being here. Thank you for your testimony and for being a champion of voting rights in the State of Connecticut. I was hoping you could speak very briefly to the importance of voting in civic life and in the, in ability, in individual’s ability to feel a part of their community. You mentioned in your testimony that allowing individuals who are on parole to vote will help them reintegrate after their period of incarceration. Could you speak a little bit more to that and that fundamental role that voting does play in individuals’ social cohesion? DENISE MERRILL: Yes, that’s a, you’ve put your finger on it. I think the most important reason to have anyone who is in a community, back in the 5 February 27, 2019 /ph GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 11:00 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE PUBLIC HEARING community, whether on parole, probation or anything else, be integrated back into that community. Voting behavior is very interesting because it does indicate that someone is aware of and treasures that right to participate in civic life. And I think anything we can do to encourage people to be involved and to, to be, feel, feel their part in civic life. And that’s the most difficult thing we find that after someone’s been incarcerated, they feel like they, they don’t belong anymore. And so I think in several ways, this session, I’ve proposed several bills that will do the same thing. I would point to the constitutional amendment I have introduced to allow 16-year-olds to preregister to vote is the same thing. I’m a former teacher and I remember that students, when they’re very young, if they’re part, if they feel they’re part of a system, they’re more likely to get information about it, to find out about candidates and to get interested in the whole electoral process. So, I think it’s the same theory and I think it’s a good one and we should be encouraging in anyway we can to let people reintegrate into civic life. SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Well, thank you very much for your testimony. I, I do appreciate your input. And just to make sure I understand, we are an outlier in this regard, right? Our neighbors in New England do allow individuals who are on parole to vote? DENISE MERRILL: Yes, yes. The 16 states and DC allow it, many of them are in New England, so Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and 6 February 27, 2019 /ph GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 11:00 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE PUBLIC HEARING Massachusetts, I believe, all allow parolees to vote. SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Wonderful. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Chair. REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator Haskell. Any further questions? Senator Sampson. SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Hello there, Madam Secretary. DENISE MERRILL: Good morning. SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Nice to see you. Just a question on your bill regarding the challengers. DENISE MERRILL: Yes. SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I honestly don’t know very much about this. I saw some news stories over this past election where the Stefanowski campaign was looking for challengers and I know that you kind of issued some sort of a rebuke to that. But outside of that, I don’t really know how often they are used. Could you speak to that? Is this a common practice or -- DENISE MERRILL: No. SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): -- not? DENISE MERRILL: No, in fact, many, many years, that’s why we say it’s anachronistic. Really, we didn’t really remember any time that it’s been invoked before that time when the Stefanowski campaign brought it up. And that’s when we looked at it again and said, well, anyone in the polling place can already do this. So, that’s why we thought it was a redundant kind of statute. 7 February 27, 2019 /ph GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 11:00 A.M.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • March 7, 2019 Ms. Eva Guidarini U.S. Politics & Government Outreach
    NASS EXECUTIVE BOARD Hon. Jim Condos, VT President March 7, 2019 Hon. Paul Pate, IA Ms. Eva Guidarini President-elect U.S. Politics & Government Outreach, Facebook Hon. Maggie Toulouse Oliver, NM 575 7th Street NW Treasurer Washington, D.C. 20004 Hon. Steve Simon, MN Secretary Dear Ms. Guidarini: Hon. Connie Lawson, IN Immediate Past President On behalf of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), I would like to thank you for your willingness to work with the Secretaries Hon. Denise Merrill, CT Eastern Region Vice President of State, election directors and other important stakeholders to address misinformation and disinformation on your platforms related to the Hon. Tre Hargett, TN elections process. We believe significant progress has been made to Southern Region Vice President understand and address these issues. As we move into 2019 and the 2020 Hon. Jay Ashcroft, MO general election, we urge Facebook to further engage on the following Midwestern Region Vice President issues: Hon. Alex Padilla, CA Western Region Vice President First, the elections community faced many challenges as a result of Facebook’s use of a non-government, third-party site to prompt Hon. Al Jaeger, ND Member-at-Large (NPA) users to register to vote. We instead encourage Facebook to either connect directly to the chief state election webpages, state online voter Hon. Matt Dunlap, ME registration system webpages, and/or vote.gov. These government- Member -at-Large (ACR) backed websites will provide accurate information to the public, eliminating confusion and frustration in the voter registration process. As we have previously discussed, in the 2018 midterm election cycle, a non- government, third-party site failed to properly notify users of incomplete voter registration applications initiated through their site.
    [Show full text]
  • States Reconvene National Task Force on Business Identity Theft
    NEWS RELEASE Louisiana Tom Schedler Department of State Secretary of State Meg Casper P.O. Box 94125 Press Secretary Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125 225.362.5086 www.sos.la.gov [email protected] March 10, 2016 STATES RECONVENE NATIONAL TASK FORCE ON BUSINESS IDENTITY THEFT BATON ROUGE, La.—Secretaries of State from more than a dozen states are joining together to re- establish the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) Task Force on Business Identity Theft, a bipartisan initiative aimed at combating the spread of business impersonation and other forms of ID- related fraud. North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine F. Marshall and Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate have been tapped to co-chair the task force's work. The body is tasked with reviewing state business identity theft prevention and security practices, as well as new issues which have emerged since the original task force wrapped up its in work in 2012. "As attempts to hijack business identities have increased and grown more sophisticated in North Carolina and other states, this task force can play an important role in coordinating information-sharing and responses," noted Marshall. "Our goal is to improve protections for business and offer practical solutions for the state registration and filing agencies that serve them." "I am extremely pleased to co-chair this task force," said Pate. "Business ID theft is a very serious issue across the country and requires a joint effort to combat it. We will work hard to develop best practices and provide guidance for business in Iowa and around the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • 18 Gen Election Endrsmnts Results
    2018 General Election Endorsements - FINAL RESULTS US Senate 11th Dist. MarZn Looney Chris Murphy Hamden, New Haven, North Haven 13th Dist. Mary Abrams* US House of Representatives Cheshire, Middletown, Meriden, Middlefield, 1st Dist. John Larson * 16th Dist. ViCkie Nardello* 2nd Dist. Joe Courtney ProspeCt, Southington, WolCoF, Cheshire 3rd Dist. Rosa DeLauro 17th Dist. Jorge Cabrera* Ansonia, Beacon Falls, NaugatuCk, Derby, 5th Dist. Jahana Hayes * Hamden, Bethany, Woodbridge 18th Dist. Robert Stachen CT Constitutional Office Groton, Sterling, Griswold, North Stonington, Voluntown, Plainfield, Preston, Stonington Governor Ned Lamont 19th Dist. Catherine Osten* Lt. Governor Susan BysiewiCz Columbia, Franklin, Hebron, Lebanon, AForney General William Tong Ledyard, Lisbon, Marlborough, NorwiCh, Sprague, Montville SeCretary of the State Denise Merrill 20th Dist. Martha Marx* Comptroller Kevin Lembo Griswold, Groton, North Stonington, Plainfield, Preston, Sterling, Stonington, Treasurer Shawn Wooden Voluntown 24th Dist. Julie Kushner * CT State Senate Bethel, Danbury, New Fairfield, Sherman 4th Dist. Steve Cassano 25th Dist. Bob Duff Andover, Bolton, Glastonbury, ManChester Darien and Norwalk 5th Dist. Beth Bye Bloomfield, Burlington, Farmington, West 29th Dist. Mae Flexer HarRord Brooklyn, Canterbury, Killingly, Mansfield, Putnam, SCotland, Thompson, Windham 6th Dist. Terry Gerratana 30th Dist. David Lawson * Berlin, Farmington, New Britain Brookfield, Canaan, Cornwall, Goshen, Kent, 7th Dist. Annie Hornish LitChfield, Morris, New Milford, North East Granby, Enfield, Somers, Suffield, Canaan, Salisbury, Sharon, Torrington, Windsor LoCks, Granby Warren 9th Dist. MaF Lesser 31st Dist. Chris Wright Cromwell, Middletown, Newington, RoCky Bristol, Plainville, Harwington, Plymouth, Hill, Wethersfield Thomaston 10th Dist. Gary Winfield* 33rd Dist. Norm Needleman New Haven and West Haven Chester, Clinton, ColChester, Deep River, East Haddam, East Hampton, Essex, Haddam, Lyme, Old Saybrook, Portland, Westbrook 34th Dist.
    [Show full text]
  • NASS Letter to House Committee on Appropriations Regarding NASS
    NASS EXECUTIVE BOARD April 25, 2019 Hon. Jim Condos, VT President Hon. Nita Lowey, Chair Hon. Paul Pate, IA Hon. Kay Granger, Ranking Member President-elect U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations Hon. Maggie Toulouse Oliver, NM H-307, The Capitol Treasurer Washington, D.C. 20515 Hon. Steve Simon, MN Secretary Dear Chair Lowey and Ranking Member Granger: Hon. Connie Lawson, IN Immediate Past President Thank you for your continued leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives and for your willingness to work with Secretaries of State, Hon. Denise Merrill, CT Eastern Region Vice President election directors and local election officials as Congress discusses possible future federal funding to support our nation’s elections—a state and local Hon. Tre Hargett, TN responsibility. Southern Region Vice President Hon. Jay Ashcroft, MO Due to the ongoing funding discussions, the National Association Midwestern Region Vice President of Secretaries of State (NASS) recently passed a resolution in support Hon. Alex Padilla, CA of federal funding and resources to supplement state-funded and Western Region Vice President state-led election cybersecurity efforts. Forty members of NASS serve as their state's designated chief election official, overseeing the Hon. Al Jaeger, ND Member-at-Large (NPA) conduct of elections according to law. Hon. Matt Dunlap, ME Importantly, the resolution says if new federal funding is allocated, Member -at-Large (ACR) federal law must make it clear that Help America Vote Act (HAVA) Section 209 applies to all aspects of such appropriations and cannot be circumvented with the imposition of rules, regulations, or requirements by federal agencies.
    [Show full text]
  • Capitol Place, Suite 500 21 Oak Street Hartford, CT 06106 860-525-5641
    Cong. Assembly Senate Cong. Assembly Senate Distric Town District District District Town District District t Andover 55 4 2 Monroe 112 21, 22 4 Ansonia 104 17 3 Montville 38, 42, 139 19, 20 2 Ashford 53 35 2 Morris 66 30 5 2021-2022 Avon 17, 19 8 5 Naugatuck 70, 131 15, 17 3 Barkhams 62 8 1 22, 24, 25, BeaconFated 105 17 3 NewBritain 26 6 5 lls Berlin 30, 83 6 1 NewCanaan 125, 142 26, 36 4 Bethany 89 17 3 NewFairfield 108, 138 24 5 NewHartford 62 8 1 Bethel 2, 107 24, 26 5 92, 93, 94, Bethlehe 66 32 5 95, 96, 97, Bloomfielm NewHaven 116 10, 11 3 15 2, 5 1 Boltond 55 4 2 Newington 24, 27, 29 9 1 Bozrah 139 20 2 NewLondon 39, 41 20 2 Branford 98, 102 12 3 NewMilford 67, 108 30 5 124, 126, 127, Newtown 2, 106, 112 28 5 Bridgepor Norfolk 64 8 5 128, 129, 130 22, 23 4 Bridgewatt 69 32 5 NorthBranford er 86 12 3 Bristol 77, 78, 79 31 1 Brookfield 107 30 5 NorthCanaan Brooklyn 50 29 2 64 30 5 Burlington 76 5 5 NorthHaven 87 11, 34 3 Canaan 64 30 5 NorthStonington 43 18 2 Canterbur 47 29 2 137, 140, Cantony 17 8 5 141, 142, Chaplin 47 35 2 Norwalk 143 25 4 Cheshire 89, 90, 103 13, 16 5 Norwich 46, 47, 139 19 2 Chester 36 33 2 OldLyme 23 20 2 Clinton 35 33 2 OldSaybrook Colcheste 34, 48 33 2 23 20, 33 2 r Colebrook 63 8 1 114, 117, Columbia 8 19 2 Orange 119 14 3 Cornwall 64 30 5 Oxford 131 32 4 Coventry 8 35 2 Plainfield 44, 45 18 2 Cromwell 32 9 1 Plainville 22 31 5 2, 107, 108, Plymouth 78 31 5 LEGISLATIVE DIRECTORY Pomfret 50 35 2 Danbury 109, 110, 138 24 5 Darien 141, 147 25, 27 4 Portland 32 33 1 DeepRive 36 33 2 Preston 42 18 2 Derbyr 104,
    [Show full text]
  • June 28, 2021 the Honorable Nancy Pelosi the Honorable Chuck
    June 28, 2021 The Honorable Nancy Pelosi The Honorable Chuck Schumer Speaker Majority Leader United States House of Representatives United States Senate 1236 Longworth House Office Building 322 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20510 The Honorable Kevin McCarthy The Honorable Mitch McConnell Minority Leader Minority Leader United States House of Representatives United States Senate 2468 Rayburn House Office Building 317 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20510 Re: Inclusion of funding for Election Infrastructure in Infrastructure package Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McCarthy, and Leader McConnell: We write to you as bipartisan Secretaries of State from across the United States, to urge you to include critical funding for election infrastructure in the infrastructure package Congress is considering this year. As Chief Election Officials of our respective states, we are entrusted with conducting, funding, and supporting local, state, and federal elections in jurisdictions across the country. Election security and integrity are a vital cornerstone of our democracy, and we strongly urge you to support this critical and necessary investment. In 2017, the Department of Homeland Security designated election infrastructure, including the systems, equipment, and facilities needed to administer our country’s elections, as a vital part of the federal government’s Critical Infrastructure. Like other sectors of critical infrastructure, we need to ensure that we can continue to build and strengthen our systems and equipment for the protection of our democracy: to ensure the ability of all eligible voters to exercise their fundamental right to vote in safe, secure, and accessible elections. Our success is dependent on substantial and sustained dedication of resources, and a federal commitment to longer-term investment must start now.
    [Show full text]
  • Minutes of the Public Meeting
    United States Election Assistance Commission Board of Advisors Meeting Held at The Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro 733 West Madison Chicago, Illinois 60661 Wednesday, May 4, 2016 VERBATIM TRANSCRIPT 1 The following is the verbatim transcript of the United States Election Assistance Commission (EAC) Board of Advisors meeting that was held on Wednesday, May 4, 2016. The meeting convened at 8:33 a.m., CDT and adjourned at 4:43 p.m., CDT. *** CHAIRMAN HICKS: Good morning everyone, a couple quick things before we get started. One, we have a packed day-and-a-half of meetings. The microphones on the table all you need to do is press them once and then they will light up and go, but the audience, when you are speaking you need to hold down your microphone. So you need to press the button and continually hold it to be able to speak, okay? With that, I want to introduce Lance Gough and David Orr to come up and give a presentation on welcoming to Chicago. Unfortunately, the mayor was not able to make it but Lance and David are experts here in Chicago and are going to do a great job. I also want to thank you both for the wonderful tour that we got yesterday at the warehouse, it was absolutely phenomenal. So with that, come on up. MR. ORR: Good morning, it’s good to see a lot of old friends out here and some new friends, you know. Welcome to Chicago. Chicago, as you know, is the biggest city in Illinois and we have no budget, but we don’t care.
    [Show full text]
  • Table 4.15 the SECRETARIES of STATE, 2016
    SECRETARIES OF STATE Table 4.15 THE SECRETARIES OF STATE, 2016 Maximum Length of Number of consecutive State or other Method of regular term Date of Present term previous terms allowed jurisdiction Name and party selection in years first service ends terms by constitution Alabama .................... John Merrill (R) E 4 1/2015 1/2019 . 2 Alaska ........................ .....................................................................................................(a) ................................................................................................ Arizona ...................... Michele Reagan (R) E 4 1/2015 1/2019 . 2 Arkansas .................... Mark Martin (R) E 4 1/2011 1/2019 1 2 California .................. Alex Padilla (D) E 4 1/2015 1/2019 . 2 Colorado .................... Wayne Williams (R) E 4 1/2015 1/2019 . 2 Connecticut ............... Denise Merrill (D) E 4 1/2011 1/2019 1 . Delaware ................... Jeffrey Bullock (D) A (c) 4 1/2009 . Florida ....................... Kenneth Detzner (R) (e) A 4 2/2012 . (e) 2 Georgia ...................... Brian Kemp (R) E (d) 4 1/2010 (d) 1/2019 (d) . Hawaii........................ .....................................................................................................(a) ................................................................................................ Idaho .......................... Lawerence Denney (R) E 4 1/2015 1/2019 . Illinois ........................ Jesse White (D) E 4 1/1999 1/2019 4 . Indiana ....................... Connie
    [Show full text]
  • Congressional Record—House H1023
    March 3, 2021 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H1023 is reckless and dangerous for our po- Turner Wagner Wenstrup Messrs. SCHNEIDER, SHERMAN, Upton Walorski Westerman lice. Valadao Waltz Williams (TX) GARAMENDI, O’HALLERAN, and Mr. Speaker, because of H.R. 1, which Van Drew Weber (TX) Wilson (SC) MORELLE changed their vote from is a federalization of our elections, I Van Duyne Webster (FL) Zeldin ‘‘yea’’ to ‘‘nay.’’ also, today, will make a motion to ad- NAYS—222 Mrs. BOEBERT and Mr. LAMALFA journ so that Democrats can think a Adams Gottheimer O’Halleran changed their vote from ‘‘nay’’ to little bit harder. Aguilar Granger Ocasio-Cortez ‘‘yea.’’ The SPEAKER pro tempore. Mem- Allred Green, Al (TX) Omar So the motion to adjourn was re- bers are reminded to address their re- Amodei Grijalva Pallone jected. Auchincloss Haaland Panetta The result of the vote was announced marks to the Chair. Axne Harder (CA) Pappas Bacon Hastings as above recorded. f Pascrell Banks Hayes Payne Stated against: Bass Higgins (NY) Perlmutter Mr. CRIST. Mr. Speaker, due to an unfore- MOTION TO ADJOURN Beatty Himes Peters seen recorded vote, I was unable to leave a Bera Horsford Phillips Mrs. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Speak- Beyer Houlahan previously scheduled engagement. Had I been er, I move that the House do now ad- Pingree Bishop (GA) Hoyer Pocan present, I would have voted ‘‘nay’’ on rollcall journ. Blumenauer Huffman Porter No. 56. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Blunt Rochester Issa Pressley Bonamici Jackson Lee Ms. JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on Price (NC) question is on the motion to adjourn Bourdeaux Jacobs (CA) Wednesday, March 3, 2021, I was not able to Quigley offered by the gentlewoman from Geor- Bowman Jayapal Raskin make the recorded vote below.
    [Show full text]
  • STATE of MINNESOTA Office of Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon
    STATE OF MINNESOTA Office of Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon September 8, 2017 The Honorable John McCain The Honorable Jack Reed United States Senate United States Senate 218 Russell Senate Office Building 728 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator McCain and Senator Reed: As Secretaries of State from across this nation, we write to urge adoption of the amendment proposed by Senators Klobuchar and Graham (S.A. 656) to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 (H.R. 2810). Over the past decade, our election processes have become more complex and increasingly dependent on technology. This amendment would provide vital and necessary resources to states to support the growing technology and infrastructure security demands of our nation’s elections. This amendment supports states’ efforts to secure, protect, and administer elections by: Requiring the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to work with stakeholder groups to develop best practices for elections cyber security and auditing; Providing states who wish to adopt these best practices with funds to assist with implementation; and Allowing states to use any additional funds to invest in essential election infrastructure such as modern and secure voting machines, improved election registration management systems, or other election technology. Strengthening and supporting the security of our nation’s election system is a bi-partisan issue. As our nation invests in the support and defense of democracies abroad, we ask that Congress assist states in meeting the challenges of securing our nation’s democratic process here at home. Sincerely, Steve Simon Kim Wyman Minnesota Secretary of State Washington Secretary of State Alex Padilla Denise Merrill California Secretary of State Connecticut Secretary of State September 8, 2017 Page 2 Alison Lundergan Grimes Tom Schedler Kentucky Secretary of State Louisiana Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske Pedro A.
    [Show full text]
  • GAE Committee Hearing Transcript for 02/22/2021
    1 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS: Senator Mae Flexer, Representative Daniel Fox SENATORS: Haskell, McCrory, Sampson, Slap REPRESENTATIVES: Blumenthal, Carpino, Fishbein, France, Haddad, Labriola, Mastrofrancesco, McCarthy Vahey, Morrin Bello, Palm, Rosario, Santiago, Thomas REP. FOX (148TH): I'd like to go ahead and call to order today's Government Administration & Elections Public Hearing Agenda for Monday February 22, 2021. Before beginning, any remarks or comments from the Chairs? Senator Flexer, any comments or remarks? SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): No. Thank you, Mr. Chair. REP. FOX (148TH): Senator Sampson or Representative Mastrofrancesco, any opening remarks? SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Good morning, Mr. Chairman and good morning to the rest of the Members and members of the public that are here to testify, and everyone watching. I'll just make the same caveat I've made at the beginning of all of our meetings and hearings, which is I'd like to register my objection to the entire Zoom process for hearings and Committee meetings. I do believe that while it is affording some additional access for some folks, it is also limiting access for others in the sense that there are some folks that just don't have the technology to access their state government through Zoom. They either don't understand the technology or they do not possess it or they don't have access to the internet where they are in the state, and I just want to make sure that was on the record. 2 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M.
    [Show full text]
  • Directory of Connecticut's Federal and State
    Directory of Connecticut’s Federal and State Elected Officials 2019 - 2020 League of Women Voters© of Connecticut Education Fund, Inc. LWVCT Education Fund, Inc. Directory of Connecticut’s Federal and State Elected Officials 2019 – 2020 Table of Contents Communicating with Your Elected Officials 3 Political Districts by Town 4 United States Congress 7 State Officials: Executive Branch 9 State Officials: Legislative Branch 10 Senators by District 11 Senators, Alphabetical Listing 13 Representatives by District 14 Representatives, Alphabetical Listing 21 Legislative Committees 22 Capitol Information and Tours 25 Additional Sources of Information 26 About The League of Women Voters of Connecticut 27 Updates available online: www.lwvct.org For online access to Connecticut state government: www.ct.gov Communicating With Your Elected Officials Your opinion is important to elected officials and can influence their votes. You can communicate with them by letter, email, telephone, FAX, or a personal visit. • Be brief; discuss only one or two issues. • Write to each legislator individually and use your own words. • Identify legislation by number or title, if possible. If you know the number, author or subject of a bill, a phone call to Hartford (860) 240-0555, will get you information on bill status in minutes or visit the CT General Assembly website at www.cga.ct.gov and click on Search. • Make your communications timely. Remember, the Connecticut General Assembly is a part-time legislature that begins its sessions early in the year and does not meet in the summer or fall. • Influence legislative committees by testifying at their public hearings on proposed bills.
    [Show full text]