MINUTES OF THE

GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS INTERIM COMMITTEE

Wednesday, August 18, 2004 – 2:00 p.m. – Room W020 House Building

Note:      A list of others present and a copy of materials can be found at www.le.utah.gov or by contacting the committee secretary, Cassandra Bauman, at 538-1032. A recording of the meeting may also be available from the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel.

1.   Committee Business

Rep. Bush called the meeting to order at 2:29 p.m.

2.   Review of DFCM (Division of Facilities and Construction Management) Rules

Mr. Cannon introduced the issue.

Mr. Keith Steffen, Director, DFCM, and Mr. Ken Nye, Deputy Director, DFCM, distributed "DFCM Dispute Resolution Process." They reviewed the rules and the process for writing them. They responded to questions.

Mr. Richard Thorn, President, Associated General Contractors, and Mr. Todd Bingham, Associated Builders and Contractors spoke in support of the rules.

3.   Election Law Update

Mr. Weeks distributed and reviewed "Utah Clean Water, Quality Growth and Open Space Initiative" and a recent Utah Supreme Court case, "Page v. McKeachnie."

Ms. Amy Naccarato, Director, State Election's Office, explained "Memo Re: Changes to Bond Election Process to Conform with Regular Election Process" and "Executive Summary: Voting Equipment Selection Committee Requests for Proposal" as distributed prior to the meeting. She explained current efforts to obtain uniformity throughout each voting district in each county to comply with the regulations of HAVA (Help America Vote Act). She stated that voter confidence in electronic voting equipment is as important as having secure voting equipment. She indicated that obtaining and using voting equipment is the only way to provide people with disabilities a way to vote. She responded to questions.

Mr. Gary Shay, citizen, stated that the RFP is a good step but expressed concern with the timing, technology, and transparency.

Ms. Cathy Dopp, founder, Utah Count Votes, expressed concern with the current process, opining that the process is rushed and that the RFP may exclude equipment which would meet HAVA requirements while being more secure and less expensive. She distributed "Concept for Proposal: Utah Voting & Elections System," "Advice from Utah Computer Science Professors," and "Information about Utah's process for selecting voting equipment to help you make sure that Utah Count Votes."

Ms. Liz McCoy, Disability Law Center, indicated that many of the center's clients supported waiting until the 2006 General Election to use the new voting system. She stated that the system needs to be in place in time to train election judges.

Mr. Curt Crosby, citizen, spoke to the issue.

Committee members requested that staff begin working on draft legislation to correct inconsistencies with bond elections and regular general elections and look at establishing statutory standards for initiative signature verification consistency.

Rep. McGee requested that the chairs bring the issue back to the Committee at a future date.

4.   Boards and Commissions

Mr. Cannon introduced the issue.

Mr. Spencer Burton, Research Assistant, Legislative Research and General Counsel, distributed updated information on the survey results from the advisory boards in Utah.

Mr. Michael Sullivan, Department of Workforce Services, indicated that the Child Care Licensing Advisory Committee should continue.

Rep. McGee noted that the Child Support Guidelines Committee is needed to secure federal funds.

5.   Other Items / Adjourn

With no quorum present, Rep. Bush adjourned the meeting at 4:17 p.m.