Campaign Finance Board Testimony on Election Law Reforms to City Council Committee on Governmental Operations

Testimony of Amy Loprest
Executive Director
New York City Campaign Finance Board

Good afternoon Chair Kallos, and the members of the Governmental Operations Committee. My name is Amy Loprest, and I am Executive Director of the New York City Campaign Finance Board.

Thank you for the invitation to provide testimony.

With a truly important election less than two weeks away, it is of utmost importance that New Yorkers have confidence in the election process. We thank the Council for supporting the Board of Elections in their efforts to administer this year’s historic vote in a manner that is efficient, honest, fair, and transparent.

Through our voter engagement arm, NYC Votes, the Campaign Finance Board strongly supports efforts to use technology to make it easier for more New Yorkers to register and vote.

That starts with universally accessible online voter registration. New York has a turnout problem, but we also have a voter registration problem—more than a million New York City residents are eligible, but not registered to vote. We can reduce that number by making voter registration as quick, simple, and easy as any Internet transaction for all New Yorkers, not only for those with driver’s licenses or a DMV-issued identification card.

That is why we have long supported reforms to that State Election Law that would bring our outdated, pen-and-paper voter registration system into the 21st century. The Voter Empowerment Act would enable online voter registration through the state Board of Elections, allow New Yorkers more control over their own voter registration records, and provide New Yorkers an automatic opportunity to register when they access government services. It would add efficiency and improve the accuracy of the voter rolls, by eliminating much of the data entry performed by BOE staff. There was a resolution considered in this committee earlier this year (Res. No. 1060-2016) in support of this important legislation.

We were encouraged, as were many advocates for better elections technology, when the Attorney General advised in April that online voter registration is consistent with current State Election Law—including the use of an electronic signature. However, the same opinion concluded that Election Law requires a form completed with an electronic signature to be printed and delivered to the local Board of Elections. The result? Voters can access something that looks like electronic registration, but administrators behind the scenes are left working with the same old paper-based system.

This is a step forward, but an incremental one at best. Intro. No. 508-A would codify an incomplete and temporary solution into the City Charter.

We understand and appreciate the Council’s desire to move forward in this area. However, we believe our primary objective should be to seek changes to State Election Law that will enable electronic transmission of the entire voter record to the relevant Board of Elections.

We offered testimony on much of the remaining legislation on today’s agenda in previous appearances before this Committee, and we refer you to our previous testimony for comment on those bills.

Many thanks for the opportunity to provide testimony today.