Derailed Ohio voter-registration-vendor requirements back before Senate

(The Center Square) – A bill before the Ohio Senate would add an extra layer of security to voting systems and procedures across the state.

While Ohio currently sets standards vendors must meet for voting machines, marking devices, tabulating equipment, software and electronic pollbooks, there are no requirements for vendors when it comes to voter registration systems.

A bill sponsored by Sen. Michael Rulli, R-Salem, changes that and, he believes, adds a layer of confidence to Ohio elections.

“Ohio voters need to have the confidence that their registrations are secure and accurate and our county boards deserve systems that are properly vetted so they can do that jobs,” Rulli said in testimony before the Local Government and Elections Committee earlier this month.

The bill was schedule for its second hearing Tuesday before inclement weather forced the committee to cancel its meeting.

Senate Bill 14 adds voter registration databases to the list of things the Ohio Board of Voting Machine Examiners can establish standards for, and it allows for the appointment of a cybersecurity expert as a nonvoting member to the board.

Secretary of State Frank LaRose released a report last week under his Vulnerability Disclosure Policy, established to have outside researchers inspect the Secretary of State’s website for issues. LaRose said a few minor issues have been found and were resolved.

“Whether you’re Verizon, Uber, the Pentagon, or our office, asking white hat hackers to dig into your website’s vulnerabilities is just smart policy,” LaRose said. “Voters need to have confidence in Ohio’s elections systems, and we’re going above and beyond to provide that assurance.”

The same bill as the current SB 14 unanimously passed the Senate as last year’s legislative session neared an end, but it the House passed an unrelated amendment that would allow charitable organizations to operate electronic bingo that resembles slot machines, causing it to stall.

In its original form, it had support from the Ohio Association of Election Officials, a bipartisan association that represents all 88 county boards of election, along with LaRose.

“Our voter registration system is the backbone of our information technology system. A faulty or inaccurate VR system causes issues that ripple throughout the rest of the elections system,” Michelle Wilcox, director of the Auglaize County Board of elections and president of the OAEO, testified last year. “Creating a process to test and certify these critical systems will serve Ohio’s boards of elections and Ohio’s voters well.”

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