JFAC does a re-do on Secty of State’s budget, funds $1.2M election tech upgrade
The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee did a re-do on the Idaho Secretary of State’s budget today, and relented on providing $1.2 million in one-time funds next year for an elections system technological upgrade, which Denney said is needed to launch a new statewide, online, searchable campaign finance system in time for the 2020 presidential election, as recommended by a legislative interim working group on campaign finance reform and ethics.
“It was always the committee’s intent, I believe, to appropriate the $1.2 million,” said Rep. Neil Anderson, R-Blackfoot, who made the successful motion today. “The question was whether we could hold off and do that later in the next fiscal year through a supplemental request or not.”
JFAC has been pushing this session to apply more scrutiny to big technology requests, a move that includes bringing on some technical expertise within the JFAC staff starting in the next budget year, which starts July 1. The joint panel also backed legislation, which has now passed both houses, to create a technology stabilization fund, into which general funds are transferred, from which it appropriates major investments into tech upgrades; that separates them out for more scrutiny. That’s where the $1.2 million would come from for the election upgrade next year.
Anderson said he and other JFAC members met with Secretary of State Lawerence Denney yesterday. “We had a very cordial meeting,” said Rep. Rick Youngblood, R-Nampa, “and we talked about this piece of software and where they’d like to go.”
“It appeared the timing was in conflict,” Anderson said, “so we thought we’d go ahead and do that now to remove any questions.”
The new budget approved for Denney’s office today includes the $1.2 million for the software upgrade, but not an additional $90,000 in ongoing operating funds that he’d requested for the system, nor an additional cybersecurity position Denney had requested for his office. “It may come up later on during the year, when we’ve had more of a chance to see how things shake out in some of our other changes at the state level,” Anderson said.
The newly re-set budget also includes intent language requiring Denney to report to JFAC in detail on the “merit, need, cost, compatibility and maintenance of the elections system upgrade,” and also provide period updates and reports when requested by the Legislative Services Office.
Youngblood said, “I think we got there, with the idea that they will work with us and we will work with them.”
When Anderson moved to reopen the Secretary of State’s budget, which requires a two-thirds vote in the 20-member joint committee, Co-Chair Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint, seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously. Anderson’s motion to make the changes in the budget also won unanimous support.
Denney said the new system – which would make campaign finance reports from both local and state candidates available in a free, centralized, searchable database, a big step up from the current system – needs to be up and running by Jan. 1, 2020, to be available for the March 2020 presidential primary. The system was recommended by a legislative interim committee this year that backed more frequent and more detailed campaign finance reporting, and also was recommended for funding by Gov. Butch Otter. Denney said it’ll take his office 12 to 15 months to get the system in place.
“I can’t commit money unless I have an appropriation,” he said.
Legislation requiring the increased campaign finance reporting at both the local and state level was introduced earlier this session in the House State Affairs Committee, but never had a full hearing. Its implementation date wasn’t until July 1, 2019, however; Denney said he expected lawmakers might want to break the big, complex bill up into smaller pieces, and it could still be approved next year and come in time for the 2020 election.
But, he said, “If we don’t get the technology in place, we can’t do some of the things that are in that bill.”
Another version of the bill was introduced last week in the Senate at the behest of Senate Judiciary Chair Patti Anne Lodge, R-Huston, who co-chaired the interim working group; that measure, SB 1337, is co-sponsored by Denney and Ada County chief deputy clerk Phil McGrane. Lodge also introduced a resolution to continue the working group for another year as a formal interim committee.
