PHOENIX — Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs announced Thursday that $2.3 million in American Rescue Plan (ARPA) funding, as well as three executive orders, will go towards making changes to elections.
The governor hopes the changes will improve the state's elections going into the 2024 election year and support free, fair, and secure elections.
“As Secretary of State, I oversaw the most secure elections in Arizona history, but I know we must continue to improve Arizona’s elections ahead of 2024,” said Governor Hobbs in a press release. “Election officials and voters are facing new challenges when it comes to administering elections and participating in our democracy. I am thrilled to immediately address some of the problems identified by the Bipartisan Elections Task Force to ensure Arizona voters can make their voices heard.”
The three executive orders will authorize paid civic duty leave for state employees to serve as poll workers, make state buildings available as polling locations, and require state agencies to provide voter registration information and assistance to Arizona citizens, according to Hobbs' administration.
The $2.3 million in ARPA funds will support election-related measures, including:
- $1 million for a statewide elections fellowship program, as well as temporary staffing support and expert consultants for counties, particularly those that have lost institutional knowledge and expertise due to staff turnover.
- $700,000 to maintain AVID, the statewide voter registration database.
- $600,000 for other 2024 election administration initiatives, including county-level election security, election security tabletop exercises for state and county officials, ballot reconciliation best practices, resources for county officials to better support voters with disabilities, and poll worker recruitment and emergency poll worker deployment efforts.
In January, the Governor established the Bipartisan Elections Task Force and co-chaired the group with former Maricopa County Recorder Helen Purcell.
The bipartisan group included Arizona election administration and security experts, voting rights advocates, legislators, and current and former election officials.
The group issued its final report Wednesday, with recommendations Hobbs' administration said focused on:
- Election Administration: poll worker communication platform; incentives to improve poll worker recruitment; annual election officer certification trainings; election fellowship program; comprehensive website for voter information
- Voter Registration: requiring provisional ballot forms to serve as voter registration forms; improving cross-county voter registration; voting rights restoration; funding for the statewide voter registration database, the Access Voter Information Database (AVID)
- Early Voting: disability resource liaison; changing emergency voting to final weekend voting; preventing ballot return interference
- Election Day and After: ensuring timely recounts; reconciliation best practices guidelines
- Election Equipment and Security: election security advancements; election worker code of conduct
“This Task Force is made up of talented, bipartisan experts who have diverse on-the-ground experience with Arizona’s elections,” said Purcell in a press release. “It was rewarding to see them come together week after week to brainstorm where additional support is needed, collaborate on potential solutions, and develop the proposals in the final report. Thank you to Governor Hobbs for bringing us together with a unified goal and for her unwavering commitment to protecting democracy in our State.”
