Geauga County Board of Elections (BOE) - 05/18/2023
Meeting Info: Regular Meeting on May 18, 2023 called to order at 9:00 AM in BOE Conference Room at 470 Center St, Bldg 6A, Chardon, OH, 44024. In-person and virtual, via Microsoft Teams. An agenda and listing of bills was provided in advance.
Public Comment Policy: No written policy and not listed on agenda. In practice, the Board accepts public comment and addresses questions throughout the meeting.
Board Attendance: Present were Dennis Pavella (Chair), Nancy McArthur, and Joan Windnagel. Janet Carson was absent.
Staff Attendance: Director Michelle Lane, Deputy Director Nora McGinnis, and at times Office Administrator Scott Daisher. Ohio Secretary of State Liaison ShoMore DeNiro attended virtually.
County Representatives: Frank Antenucci, Chief Deputy Administrator of ADP
Public Attendance: Four members of the public attended in person and one attended virtually. This Observer attended virtually.
Minutes - APPROVED May 2, May 8 and May 10, 2023 minutes without corrections or discussion.
Bills - APPROVED routine bills totaling $2,398.68. That amount includes $1,565.00 for annual dues paid to Ohio Association of Elections Officials, $480.77 for fuel and mileage reimbursement paid to Election Marshalls, and $352.91 for office equipment and supplies.
APPROVED a separate motion to pay $300.00 in court fees per the terms of the Settlement Agreement which was considered later in the meeting.
Agenda - APPROVED moving Executive Session to later in the meeting
ADP Briefing - Mr. Antenucci reported that new internet switches for the 470 Center Street office complex had been approved and that ADP was working to acquire and install. Approximate cost of $23,000 will be shared among occupants, which currently includes, Board of Elections, CASA, Department on Aging, and the Building Department.
He also indicated the Secretary of State’s office had contacted him to discuss the recent security breach of the Department of Water Resources email server. He provided assurances that the issue has been remedied and that the Board of Elections systems are secure.
Mr. Pavella inquired about “the key card situation” at the Geauga County Office Building.
-
Observer Comment: Historically, building access has been controlled by the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) Maintenance Department. In recent years, building access has evolved from physical keys to electronic key card systems. During construction of the Geauga County Office building, ADP vetted and recommended a cloud based key card system to secure the building and control access. BOCC instead opted to purchase a system that uses an on-site access control driver, which BOCC currently houses and operates. ADP asserts it is the only party authorized to operate the driver and has requested that BOCC turn over control to them. BOCC has refused to do so. For more discussion see our Observer Report for the May 9, 2023 ADP Special Meeting.
Mrs. Lane stated that at last week’s ADP meeting, she indicated the Board of Elections required 2 physical locks plus complete control over key card access to BOE space, with support from ADP staff.
Mr. Antenucci said Mr. Morgan, BOCC Administrator, asked to meet with him about the key card issue but he declined, saying the issue should be discussed and resolved during public meetings.
Update on Voting Equipment Purchase: purchases approved during March 6, 2023, meeting are nearly complete. Includes voting equipment totaling $97,667 to be paid with remaining
grant funds from 2021. Purchase includes 10 DS200 scanners, 8 Express Vote Universal Voting machines, 1 Ballot on Demand Printer, a Ballot on Demand Laptop, and all necessary support equipment.
Update on Drop Box Installation: Maintenance Director Glenn Vernick requested Board sign-off for drop box installation. The Board decided to forward a report from Brett Harbage, ADA Coordinator for the Ohio Secretary of State, as guidance for Mr. Vernick. Mrs. McArthur inquired about video monitoring of the drop box and Mr. Pavella confirmed everything was in place as required by the Secretary of State.
Update on Replacement of 95 Poll Pads: On February 2, 2023, the Board agreed to replace 95 older Air2 model iPads that are unable to be updated with the latest IOS Operating System as required by the Secretary of State. The purchase from KNOWiNK included 95 iPads with tilting stand and integrated printer at a cost of $90,725, with 85% expected to be covered by state funding sources. On March 30, 2023 the Board rescinded the February 2, 2023 motion, citing operating problems noted by Mr. Daisher during his testing of the equipment.
Mr. Daisher reported that the vendor has fixed 60 units and the remaining 35 units are scheduled to be fixed on May 25. For the August 8th Special Election, 112 units will be needed. It was noted that the General Assembly has not yet provided funding to replace the outdated poll pads, which is an issue for Board of Elections offices across the entire state.
Mr. Daisher stated he had discussed the issue with the Secretary of State’s office and they indicated if the poll pads cannot be replaced in time for the August 8 Special Election that it may be necessary to go back to using the paper voter rolls. Mr. Pavella commented that he didn’t want us to go backwards and noted that the poll pads had made voter check-in much faster.
Observer Comment: Regardless of whether they check in using the poll pads or paper voter rolls, Geauga voters complete a paper ballot which is scanned and tabulated by equipment that is not connected to the internet.
August 8th Special Election Polling Locations: Some locations that typically are available for May and November elections will not be available for the August 8th Special Election. Staff have received verbal confirmation of availability but are waiting for written confirmations to arrive. Registered voters will be notified via USPS of any changes in polling location.
Update on Voting Booth Replacement: Continued discussions about replacing voting booths prior to the November election. Mrs. Lane stated they requested $86,930 in their budget to purchase 37 circular voting stations and 256 single units. It was agreed they should wait until a decision is made about the location of the Board of Elections office.
Poll Worker Pay for May Election: APPROVED $12,990 payroll for May election poll workers.
Certification of Official Canvas - For the May 2, 2023 Special Election:
-
Determined no ballots needed to be remade, there were no overvotes or blank ballots to review, and no board review to determine voter intent was required.
-
Reviewed results of the various issues and determined an automatic recount is needed for Thompson Township’s issue, which had resulted in a 101 to 101 tie. Mr. Pavella noted that for issues, a tied outcome results in the issue not passing.
APPROVED separate motions to certify the May 2, 2023 Election and to schedule the recount of Thompson Township’s tied Fire and EMS Issue for Tuesday, May 23 at 9 AM. Review Official Results
Public Comment - Guests asked questions at various points during the meeting as follows:
-
A guest inquired what the Board of Elections could do to make the public more aware of election dates. Mrs. Lane responded that they place all required notices but fewer people subscribe to local newspapers. This conversation was cut short as another agenda item was introduced.
-
A guest questioned why voting stations were being replaced, as she had recently worked as a poll worker at the West Woods location and found the equipment to be in good shape. Mrs. Lane explained that they are beyond their useful life and acknowledged that some are in good shape but many are not. The guest suggested including assembly of the voting stations as part of the poll worker training.
-
A guest inquired about the status of the website, which has been under construction for several months. Mrs. Lane commented that a “bridge” website is currently up and Mrs. McGinnis stated she and Mr. Daisher are gathering content for Company 119, a website design vendor recommended by ADP.
Executive Session - at 10:03 AM the Board entered into executive session under 121.22(G)(3) to conference with their legal counsel, Corey Colombo, concerning pending litigation. Mrs. Lane, Mrs. McGinnis and Mr. Daischer were invited to participate. At that point, the in-person and virtual guests departed and this Observer opted to wait in a virtual holding room. Regular session resumed around 11:13 AM.
Settlement Agreement Between Board of County Commissioners and Geauga County Board of Elections - APPROVED by unanimous roll call vote, the mediated Settlement Agreement to resolve Case No. 22M000299. Mr. Pavella commented that BOCC’s approval was delayed by a week as they first needed to take action with the Auditor’s office. Approval is expected at the next BOCC meeting on May 23, 2023..
Director’s Report - Mrs. Lane reported:
-
She has been reviewing the recently issued Secretary of State Directive 2023-07 which addresses the August Special Election
-
In-house printers need to be replaced
-
Security grant is nearly closed out
-
The July regional conference has been canceled due to the August Special Election
-
She has been attending a lot of ADP Special and Emergency meetings
Deputy Director’s Report - Mrs. McGinnis reported:
This Observer regretfully had to leave before the conclusion of the report. No other items remained on the agenda.
Next Meeting - May 23, 2023 at 9:00 AM for recount of Thompson Twp Fire & EMS issue. Next regular meeting is scheduled for June 15, 2023 at 9:00 AM.
Approved Minutes - Temporarily unavailable online while the website is updated.
See BOE Facebook page for meeting notices and agendas.
Observer: Shelly Lewis
Editor: Anne Ondrey
Reviewer: Gail Roussey
The League of Women Voters of Geauga is a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. They do not support or oppose individual candidates or parties. Learn more about the LWVG at www.lwvgeauga.org.