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description of the transaction, and
details of the transaction
(5) Describe the error detection capabilities for your absentee/mail/
provisional ballot features.
Hart InterCivic Response
Ballot Now includes several safeguards designed to detect errors in ballot
processing or in marked ballots after voters return them. For example, when
voted ballots are scanned, Ballot Now produces a Scanned Ballots Report. The
Scanned Ballots Report lists the number of ballots processed by the system for an
Election, sorted by Batch ID, and identifies ballots with marked areas that are
unable to be processed or violate any voting logic (for example overvotes, write-
ins, etc.).
This report is updated every time a batch of returned ballots is scanned. After
first scanning ballots, there may be a number of unresolved ballots, and the report
reflects these. However, after all ballots are resolved, the report does not show
any unresolved ballots.
For each scan batch, the Scanned Ballots By Batch report shows:
batch ID
username of the user logged in to Ballot Now when ballots were scanned
date ballots were scanned
time of day ballots were scanned
precinct name
number of ballots scanned in each precinct
number of unresolved ballots in each precinct
number of resolved ballots in each precinct
number of resolved ballots in each precinct that have been written to the
MBB, and
number of ballots in each precinct that are not yet processed
For ballots with unreadable marks, Ballot Now offers an innovative option to
Elections Officials faced with the challenge of interpreting voter intent. When
Elections Officials are ready to resolve questionable ballots, resolution problems
are completed using Ballot Now's unique on-screen resolution feature. Ballot
Now identifies ballots requiring resolution, according to parameters set by the
Elections Official. The ballot resolution process is accomplished by reviewing
the digital image of the ballot on the computer screen to record write-in votes or
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resolve questions of voter intent. As issues are resolved, Elections Officials use a
simple menu-driven interface to make and record decisions.
Since all resolution is accomplished on-screen there is no need to alter or handle
the paper ballots. Therefore all ballots are preserved in original form, without
alteration, in the event re-evaluation of the voter's intent is required. All actions
taken during the ballot resolution activity are descriptively added to the audit log.
A tremendous advantage provided by Ballot Now is that it uses off-the-shelf
digital high speed scanners. This means that advances to scanning technology are
brought to the election industry by Ballot Now. The digital imaging industry is
growing with millions of dollars a year spent on research and development to
advance the technology. Hart has teamed with Kodak, an industry-leading
manufacturer of digital scanners and is committed to continuous improvement of
the technology.
The proposed i830 Document Scanner scans up to 160 pages per minute (A4
letter, landscape mode, 200 dpi). It handles an unsurpassed range of document
sizes, thickness, and surface quality to minimize stoppages and the need for
rescans.
(6) Describe the report generation faculty of your absentee/mail/provisional
ballot component.
Hart InterCivic Response
Ballot Now produces a series of standard reports designed to provide complete
management control of the application and ballot production and processing. The
reports include:
Election Report
Scan Batch Report
Scanned Ballots By Precinct Report
Scanned Ballots By Batch Report
Unresolved Ballots Report
Printed Ballots By Precinct Report
Certified Write-ins Report
Audit Trail Report
In addition to the standard reports, ad-hoc reports designed per customer
specification may be delivered using Crystal Reports, the leading database
reporting tool, which is included in Hart InterCivic's proposal.
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We provide a complete list of the reports printed from the eSlate Voting System
in Attachment 2: eSlate System Reports.
(7) Provide a description of your experience in generating absentee/mail/
provisional ballot processes in live elections.
Hart InterCivic Response
Ballot Now has been used to process nearly a quarter of a million ballots for live
elections.
Harris County (Houston), Texas, uses Ballot Now to provide absentee by-mail
capabilities as part of the overall eSlate Electronic Voting System
implementation. Ballot Now was successfully used for absentee/mail voting in the
March 2002 primary and runoff. Both Travis County (Austin), Texas, and the
City of Philadelphia used Ballot Now for absentee/mail voting for the first time in
their November 2002 Election.
Using Ballot Now, Hart InterCivic also successfully completed the recent election
for the State Bar of Texas and Texas Young Lawyers Association, including:
formatting and printing of ballots,
overseeing the mail house operation for ballot packet assembly and
mailing,
daily reporting of return rates,
ballot scanning and resolution, and
tabulating and reporting of results.
During the 2003 election cycle, members were provided ballots using 64 different
ballot styles. Of the 71,190 ballots distributed, 20,865 ballots were returned to
Hart for processing and tabulation. This was the third year Ballot Now was used
by the State Bar of Texas for this Election.
Arapahoe County, Colorado, recently concluded a successful election, including
the use of Ballot Now to process approximately 28,000 ballots. Arapahoe County
also employed a technique of projecting Ballot Now's resolution screen for
discussion by the Resolution Board.
In December 2002, Hart InterCivic provided services for the City of Longmont
Special Municipal election, which was a mail election. This was a complete
election services contract, with Hart InterCivic performing all ballot related
activities including coordinating mail house vendor participation. A total of 48,
769 ballots were mailed out, with 7,673 returned. Results were available just over
one hour after the polls closed.
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(8) Include actual samples of absentee/mail/provisional ballots generated
from your system. These samples should include ballots of various sizes
and colors.
Hart InterCivic Response
We present samples of ballots printed by Ballot Now as Attachment 3: Ballot
Now Ballot Samples.
(9) Describe all options for printing ballots generated by your system. Can
they be generated by third party vendors, printed "on-demand", printed
on-site, etc.?
Hart InterCivic Response
Ballots are printed on demand or sent in electronic format to commercial printers
and mailed to voters in standard sized envelopes according to the requirements of
the voting jurisdiction. Ballot Now can print on-demand, on-site, using
commercial, off-the-shelf printers. A key advantage of the Ballot Now
application, however, is that ballots do not have to have the precise registration
typical of older generation optical scanning systems. Therefore, there is no need
to employ costly pre-printed ballot templates.
The competitors' "on-demand" systems require ballots to be preprinted for
specific precincts or ballot styles. This means that County election officials must
forecast and manage the inventory of ballots for requirements that are difficult to
anticipate. Other ballot on-demand systems require special stock with preprinted
"ovals" or other target marks which may or may not conform to particular ballot
requirements; this is typical of traditional optical scan systems. Ballot Now ballots
require no pre-formatting, and can be printed directly on blank Colorado certified
ballot stock.
Ballot Now can also export .PDF files for delivery to commercial printers for
volume printing. Returned mailed ballots are processed using commercially
available scanners. For Boulder County, we are recommending Kodaks i380
high-speed document scanner. Processing includes scanning of the ballots,
extraction of cast vote data, and delivery of Cast Vote Records (CVRs) on the
same elections MBBs to the Tally application for tallying.
(10) Describe how the optical scan type ballot system would be integrated
if its use were to become necessary.
Hart InterCivic Response
Ballot Now ballots can be distributed by mail or at a polling place. When a voter
finishes casting his/her vote, the ballots are returned and processed. As described
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previously, the cast votes are then tabulated in a process that is fully integrated
with votes cast on the eSlate DRE System.
If the question is asking how an optical scan system from another vendor will be
integrated in the event that becomes necessary, the eSlate System can also
accommodate this possibility. Integration with a third party optical scan system, if
necessary, would occur at the point cast votes are tabulated and reported. Hart
would work with the vendor to establish a standard output file format from their
system and then use it to import the data into a consolidated, comprehensive
report. The eSlate System's Fusion utility was designed to facilitate this kind of
integration.
Hart InterCivic has substantial experience in such integration. This expertise has
been demonstrated in several recent applications:
In Harris County (Houston), Texas, the Hart InterCivic team installed a
completely new PC based network election management system using
Citrix metaframe driving thin-clients, fully integrated with the eSlate
Electronic Voting System, to provide county election officials with a
seamless process for early voting in-person. The team also integrated cast
vote data from the County's existing ES&S punch card system with the
electronic totals from eSlate, and provided tabulation and reporting
through eSlate's Tally software.
In Tarrant County (Fort Worth), Texas, the Hart InterCivic team integrated
the eSlate System with a county-developed, mainframe voter registration
system, and provided consolidated cumulative and final reports integrating
results from the County's (ES&S) Optech Eagle Optical Scan system used
on Election Day with Early Voting results cast on eSlate.
In Travis County (Austin), Texas, election results from two different
election vendors (Global's AccuVote touch screen system and ES&S'
optical scan system) were merged by Hart InterCivic's technical team into
eSlate's Tally tabulation and reporting software to provide consolidated
totals.
6.0
EARLY VOTING
One or more DRE voting units will be used at each early voting site.
Hart InterCivic Response
The eSlate Electronic Voting System is ideal for In-Person Early Voting
locations. Each MBB holds all ballot styles required by the County, and when
inserted into a Judge's Booth Controller (JBC), can present ballot styles for any
precinct at every early voting location.
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6.1 Requirements
a. DRE units used for early voting shall have the capabilities of the DRE
units used for precinct/polling place voting.
Hart InterCivic Response
The same eSlate devices are used during Early Voting and on Election Day. When
used for Early Voting, the eSlate operates identically to those used on Election
Day, although eSlate includes specific functionality supporting efficient operation
of Early Voting.
For example, an important feature of the eSlate System is the suspended polls tape
for Early Voting. Printed at the close of polls after each day of voting, these
reports contain daily and cumulative summaries of Access Code activity,
summary vote totals from each voting unit, and detailed precinct-by-precinct
listings of how many voters from each precinct voted at that location. This
information provides a wide degree of flexibility in monitoring the number of
votes cast and comparing these totals daily to the poll list.
b. The proposed system shall be capable of presenting the correct ballot
style to the voter.
Hart InterCivic Response
The eSlate consistently delivers the correct ballot to the voter. Through the BOSS
application, ballot styles are linked to precincts. This information, along with all
formatted ballot styles, is stored on the MBB.
When the MBB is inserted in a Judge's Booth Controller placed at an Early
Voting site, all ballot styles are immediately available at the site. The voter is
issued a four digit Access Code that is linked to the voter's precinct (but not the
voter's identity). The voter then goes to any available machine and enters the
Access Code. The Access Code instructs the JBC which ballot to present to the
voter.
c. The proposed system shall be able to accommodate multiple ballot
combinations on a single DRE voting unit.
Hart InterCivic Response
Any eSlate unit at an Early Voting polling place can accommodate any ballot
combination required for an election. The MBB can hold well in excess of 50,000
ballot styles.
d. The proposed system shall allow for units used during early voting to be
de-programmed and re-programmed for use at polling places, if
necessary.
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Hart InterCivic Response
eSlate units used during early voting are easily reset for use at Election Day
polling places, if necessary. When Early Voting is complete, the Early Voting
MBBs are removed from the JBCs and secured for later use with Tally to tabulate
election results. The Cast Vote Records and other data stored redundantly on
early voting equipment (internal memory of the JBC and eSlate/DAU units to be
used on Election Day) is backed up and reset using SERVO. The eSlates are then
ready for Election Day deployment.
e. Results from the early voting period shall be easily moved to the final
vote tally. The proposed system shall provide the Boulder County Clerk
& Recorder with the option to move the results daily or at the end of the
early voting period.
Hart InterCivic Response
Cast Vote Records are moved through the Early Voting MBB. One MBB is used
for each Judge's Booth Controller at an Early Voting location. The MBB holds all
votes cast at the location during the Early Voting period. Therefore, the MBB is
moved to tabulation at the close of Early Voting. The MBB is secured for later
use with Tally.
f. The vendor shall build an automated interface between the Election
Management Absentee System and the early voting components to allow
the issuance of correct ballot styles to the voters electronically.
Hart InterCivic Response
The Hart staff is experienced in the integration of the eSlate System with other
Election Management Information Systems. For example, in Harris County,
issuance of Access Codes and presentation of the correct ballot style to early
voters is fully integrated and automated at the Early Voting polling place.
As part of this response, Hart has included the implementation of this automated
interface. During the initial Work Process Analysis, Hart will assess the system
requirements for automating the interface between that Election Management
Absentee System and the eSlate System, and ensure that operational requirements
to support Early Voting are achieved.
The votes cast through the early voting process shall be identifiable in the vote
tabulation system for balancing purposes. Ballots cast in early voting will be
recorded in a declared absentee precinct, requested absentee precinct or polls
precinct when reporting results.
g. The votes cast through the early voting process shall be identifiable in the
vote tabulation system for balancing purposes. Ballots cast in early voting
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will be recorded in a declared absentee precinct, requested absentee
precinct or polls precinct when reporting results.
Hart InterCivic Response
Tabulation and reporting for early voting is accomplished through the same
process used to tabulate and report Election Day Cast Vote Records and
absentee/mail/provisional appear ballots. Votes cast during the Early Voting
period are tracked separately by the eSlate System. Consolidated results are
reported through the Tally tabulation application and these reports identify votes
cast by type.
h. Reports and/or data export that detail where the ballots were cast will be
generated and used to balance the ballots cast against the absentee
request system by precinct as part of the canvass process.
Hart InterCivic Response
The eSlate System tracks cast ballots by polling location (or early voting site) and
by precinct both on the MBB and on the JBC. The MBB is read by Tally and the
information is reported by precinct. SERVO can produce a report that details the
number of ballot cast by precinct, and the information can be used to reconcile
against the County's absentee request system.
6.2 Proposer's Response
a. Will you meet these requirements?
Yes X No
b. How do you propose to meet these requirements? Address all
requirements listed above, making sure to include item(s) listed below:
(1) Provide a detailed description of your abilities to meet the conditions for
a successful early voting project.
Hart InterCivic Response
With the eSlate System, voters from any precinct in the County may cast their
ballots at any voting site. The eSlates utilized in Early Voting are the same as
those used for Election Day voting, and feature all of the capabilities of the eSlate,
DAUs, and JBCs. All eSlate components are part of a comprehensive architecture
that was designed as an integrated voting system. This produces uniform and
consistent ballot definition, vote tabulation, and integrated results reporting
whether using the eSlate voting device, the DAU, or the Ballot Now digital
scanning component.
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(2) Provide a description of your experience in successfully conducting early
voting projects.
Hart InterCivic Response
The eSlate System has been used extensively to support Early Voting in each of
the counties that have acquired it. Examples of early voting use of the system
include:
In Harris County Texas, eSlate has been used in Early Voting in the last
six elections, including statewide primary and municipal elections. Harris
County operates 30 Early Voting locations.
In May 2003, 25 entities in Harris County used the eSlate for early voting.
These entities ran their elections independently, with support from Harris
County based on previous training and support from Hart.
Tarrant County, Texas, operates 28 Early Voting locations, and has also
used eSlate for six election cycles.
Arapahoe County, Colorado, uses the eSlate System for Early Voting in
seven locations. The County also operates a mobile voting unit during the
early voting period, which is also equipped with eSlate units. The County
acquired the eSlate System despite having purchased a competing DRE
system prior to the commercial release of eSlate in 2000. The County's
decision to replace the competing DRE with eSlate was based upon
eSlate's greater ease of administration in supporting countywide Early
Voting and a much lower cost of ownership.
Travis County, Texas, recently implemented the system and has used
eSlate for Early Voting in three elections. The County operates 26
locations for Early Voting. Travis County has emphasized the availability
of Early Voting, and as a consequence it is not unusual to see as much as
40% of the turnout in Early Voting. The eSlate has accommodated this
volume with no issues.
Brazos County, Texas, successfully used the eSlate in its first election
cycle in May 2003. This included early voting sites.
For each of these counties, Hart InterCivic has provided pre-election support,
training, voter education, Early Voting and Election Day support, and Post
Election support, serving in all cases as an extension of the local election
authority.
7.0 BALLOT
MANAGEMENT
(AUTOMATED BALLOT LAYOUT)
The Boulder County Clerk & Recorder currently uses Integrity Software to
manage contests and candidates for countywide elections. Information is
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extracted and sent to for input into the ballot layout process, including:
election precincts, district information, ballot typing, contests (including
party, vote for, order of candidates), and measures.
The printing vendor currently performs all tasks necessary to produce the
ballot layout for each ballot type used to generate ballot cards for our
existing DataVote devices. They also merge this data to generate the required
TABOR notice packets.
7.1 Requirements
a. The proposed software will contain automated routines capable of
performing all ballot layout functions now performed by the County's
printing vendor.
Hart InterCivic Response
Ballot layout is managed by the eSlate's Ballot Origination Software System
(BOSS) application. BOSS supports automated routines capable of performing
ballot layout functions now performed by the County's ballot printing vendor.
BOSS provides Automated Ballot Layout and Ballot Management through a
Windows-based software application that manages all the election-specific data,
creates the ballot formats, and writes the multiple flash memory cards (MBBs).
b. The proposed software shall support both automated and manual ballot
layout for DRE and optical scan ballots.
Hart InterCivic Response
The ballot generation feature of BOSS creates electronic ballot styles based on the
information specific to the jurisdiction and election supplied by the user. Manual
layout options, such as page breaks and column breaks, are also supported
through BOSS.
c. The proposed DRE system shall have the capability to print the ballot in
its original format.
Hart InterCivic Response
The eSlate System prints ballots in original formats.
d. It is desirable for the software to automatically lay out the DRE ballots
and optical scan ballots in one operation.
Hart InterCivic Response
BOSS automatically lays out the DRE ballots, for Election Day, Early Voting,
and absentee/mail/provisional ballots in one operation. Ballot generation creates a