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Local News

Barry County election equipment to be upgraded

Barry County Clerk Pam Palmer will submit a grant agreement to the Secretary of State for state and federal funds with a 10-year contract to pay for a replacement voting system for the 13-year-old system Barry County voters now use.

 

The Help America Vote Act funding and state funds, will pay for one tabulator and ballot box per precinct, one accessible voting device for those with handicaps per polling place and Election Management System software for each county.

 

The county will be responsible for one backup tabulator $4,395 Palmer requested, and $18,886 a year for programming and maintenance for years six through 10 of the contract. Palmer said they always pay for years six through 10, with the cost divided between the city, townships and county.

 

Palmer studied three bids and is recommending Dominion Voting.

There were originally high, middle and low bidders that ended up being offered for the same price.

With the bids the same, Palmer did more digging and she thinks when the county has to start paying, the original high bidder will try to make it up.  Also, they are located in Dallas Texas.

The original low bidder had a poor service record, which she didn’t like. “When something goes wrong, I get the phone calls,” she said.

She said she has worked with Dominion before, they give good service for a good price and they are local, so she is recommending them. Of the 83 Michigan counties, 58 counties use Dominion. The new system will be implemented in 2018. The Barry County committee of the whole Tuesday recommended approval of Palmer’s request to the full board.

 

The commissioners also recommended:

 

* approving the summer tax rate based on Headlee Amendment rollbacks. A copy will be sent to all townships, the City of  Hastings so the correct amount will be billed. A copy also goes to the state, Equalization Director Timothy Vandermark said.

* transferring a 25-year-old Chevrolet panel van from the Barry County Sheriff’s Office to Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office. Calhoun County officials know the vehicle needs about $7,600 in repairs, but they plan to use it for their Special Response Team. “No money will change hands, just the title, to promote cooperation between agencies,” Undersheriff Matt Houchlei said.

 

* approving replacing the heating and cooling system in the Courts & Law Building with a contract with Havel, a division of Shambaugh & Sons, for up to $50,000  with funds to be paid from the building rehabilitation fund.

 

* approving Jim Yarger making Homeland Security grant requests $7,200 for conferences, exercises and drills and $30,000 for equipment for the Emergency Management Department.

 

*continuing an arrangement with Blue Cross Blue Shield discount program for inmates at the Barry County Jail. Not an insurance policy, Administrator Michael Brown said, it is a discount program that helps defray medical cost for inmates the county is responsible for.

 

* renewing the county’s liability, vehicle and property and crime coverage for $381,914 through the Michigan Municipal Risk Management Authority, a self insurance pool with more than 300 local government members. The county gets substantial rebates, or distributions, from the arrangement.

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