Memorandum
Date: May 13, 2025
To: The Honorable Lake County Board of Supervisors
From: Maria Valadez, Registrar of Voters
Subject: Consideration of Proposal - Investing in Staffing, Infrastructure, and Technology
Summary:
On Election Night, November 5, 2024, 7,960 ballots were counted and reported, nearly 29% of the 27,127 total votes cast. During the following week, the Registrar of Voters Office processed approximately 681 ballots-despite our team operating at full capacity. This reduced pace is not due to a lack of commitment or effort; rather, it reflects the structural limitations of an office that has outgrown its current resources.
We are asking for your support to address this gap-not through a change to certification timelines, but through targeted, cost-effective investments that will allow our team to meet rising demands and public expectations.
Background:
Lake County’s elections office performs every task required of larger counties, with significantly fewer staff and outdated infrastructure. Our ability to deliver accurate, timely, and transparent election results depends on aligning our operational capacity with the complexity of our mandate.
The public sees seamless voting. Behind the scenes, we’re working around the clock with minimal margin for error-and no margin for delay. Without meaningful investment, we cannot sustain this performance, let alone improve it.
Targeted Solutions for Faster Results:
1. Priority 1 - Immediate Efficiency Gains (Directly impacts canvass speed and reporting frequency)
o 1 Full-Time Elections Technician (IT/GIS): Adds internal capacity for ballot layout, mapping, equipment troubleshooting, and election system performance-key bottlenecks during tabulation.
o Reclassification of 1 Elections Specialist to Analyst: Streamlines campaign finance oversight, public records response, and data tracking-freeing technical staff to focus on ballot processing.
o 6 Additional Extra Help Staff for Canvass Period: Enables shift work to maintain ballot processing throughout extended hours, reducing multi-day delays.
o Replacement of Aging Ballot Scanner: The existing tabulation scanner has reached the end of its life. A new unit will significantly improve ballot throughput during the first critical days after Election Day.
2. Priority 2 - Staffing Structure for Stability and Scalability (Improves workload distribution and election preparedness)
o 1.5 Additional FTE: A full-time Elections Manager to supervise day-to-day operations and staff, and a part-time Elections Specialist to support office coverage and continuity during high-volume election periods.
3. Priority 3 - Infrastructure to Sustain Speed & Accuracy (Eliminates major structural obstacles to quicker turnaround)
o Signature Verification System: Signature matching is one of the most labor-intensive tasks in vote-by-mail processing. Automating even 20% of this work will accelerate ballot qualification and allow earlier reporting.
o Facility Expansion (~4,000 sq. ft.): Our current space constrains staff movement, equipment layout, and public accessibility. A larger facility would accommodate secure, high-volume processing and support early voting and training.
4. Priority 4 - Support Operations and Long-Term Planning (Improves reliability of critical election-day and off-cycle functions)
o Department-Owned Elections Van: Needed to conduct legally required accessibility surveys, ensure secure and timely ballot box retrieval, and support election-day logistics.
o Planning for System Modernization: Begin developing a long-term roadmap to replace and modernize our Election Information Management System and voting equipment, both of which are aging and increasingly vulnerable to failure.
Fiscal Impact:
Wherever possible, we have structured this request to prioritize operational efficiency and long-term savings. These recommendations reflect a broad review of comparable elections offices across the state and a thorough internal assessment of Lake County’s current staffing, systems, and workflow.
If the Board is amenable to moving forward with these recommendations, we will conduct further research and return with detailed cost projections and staffing models to guide implementation in a transparent and fiscally responsible manner.
Recommendation:
Approve phased investments in staffing, infrastructure, and technology to improve the timeliness, efficiency, and sustainability of Lake County’s election operations. These requests respond directly to the Board’s interest in accelerating election result reporting while maintaining the current state-mandated certification timeline.
Conclusion:
This proposal directly supports the Board’s interest in accelerating election results while maintaining compliance with California’s certification deadlines. These are not luxury items. They are foundational needs for any county seeking to run modern, trusted elections at the speed the public now expects.
I respectfully request your approval of this plan so our office can meet the moment-and the mandate-with the professionalism Lake County voters deserve.
If not budgeted, fill in the blanks below only:
Estimated Cost: ________ Amount Budgeted: ________ Additional Requested: ________ Future Annual Cost: ________
Purchasing Considerations (check all that apply): ☐ Not applicable
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☐ Other (Please describe in Executive Summary)
Consistency with Vision 2028 <http://www.lakecountyca.gov/Government/Directory/Administration/Visioning/Vision2028.htm> (check all that apply): ☐ Not applicable
☐ Well-being of Residents ☐ Public Safety ☐ Disaster Prevention, Preparedness, Recovery
☐ Economic Development ☐ Infrastructure ☐ County Workforce
☐ Community Collaboration ☐ Business Process Efficiency ☐ Clear Lake
Recommended Action:
Direction to return with a resolution to add more position allocations and additional funding.