11 August 2005

N.C. House approves new voting machine restrictions

Associated Press - Aug 11, 2005

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The state House unanimously agreed late Thursday to permit only three types of voting methods in North Carolina and also agreed on how to disburse government grants to help pay for machine upgrades.

The measure, developed after Carteret County electronic voting machines lost 4,438 ballots in last November's election, also requires state election officials to hand out more than $36 million in grants to meet new standards.

With the 2006 elections, voting in North Carolina only will occur in the form of optical scan ballot machines, electronic recording machines or paper ballots counted by hand. Electronic machines would have to provide a paper copy of a voter's ballot, which could be corrected by the voter before they are recorded.

The bill will help voters know their ballots are being counted by accurate and reliable machines that have a backup if a machine fails, said Rep. Jean Preston, R-Carteret.

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