The Herald, Sharon, Pa.

Local News

May 29, 2007

Extended warranty for voting machines is costly

By Matt Snyder

MERCER COUNTY — Mercer County may own 290 touch-screen voting machines, but that doesn’t mean they’re done paying for them.

The warranty on the county’s ES&S; touch-screen voting machines is about to run out and commissioners will soon have a look at their maintenance options, said Jeff Greenburg, county elections director.

He said maintenance plans are available at a rate of either $45 or $95 per machine per year, depending on which service is requested. There is no way to simply purchase repairs as needed.

That had county Commissioner Brian Beader called the pricing scheme unfair.

The plans also have an added cost for software support, Greenburg said. In total, the plans would cost $113,250 or $148,050 over three years.

By purchasing all three years at once, the county will lock in the same rate. If they purchase them on a year-by-year basis, they risk the rates going up, he said.

The higher, $95 per machine cost is a full-service and preventative maintenance plan where the company will perform regular “tune-ups” and will send people to the county in order to make repairs.

The cheaper, $55 plan involves transporting the machines on the county’s dime to the company’s headquarters in Omaha, Neb., if they break down, Greenburg said.

If the county elects not to have a maintenance agreement, there will be no one to fix broken voting machines. “Somebody’s got to be able to fix the machines,” he said.

ES&S; officials said if the county chooses not to buy a maintenance agreement, but later needs one, they will need to make up the difference by paying for the years they went without service, Greenburg said.

It may be possible to train a county employee to repair the machines and Greenburg is still looking into that cost. He said it also raises questions, such as what to do if that employee goes elsewhere.

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