Washington, D.C. – Rep. Rush Holt strongly criticized House members Tuesday for blocking legislation – the Emergency Assistance for Secure Elections Act of 2008 – that would encourage state s to conduct verifiable elections by converting to a paper ballot voting system, offer ing emergency paper ballots, and con duct ing hand-counted audits . Two weeks ago, the same legislation passed the House Administration Committee with bipartisan, unanimous support, including from some of those who voted to block the bill ’ s passage on Tuesday.
“This bill would represent a real step forward in our effort to protect the accuracy, integrity and security of the November elections,” Holt said. “The bill that the House leadership scheduled for a vote today is the same one that passed two weeks ago without the objection of a single Committee member. There is no reason why this should be a partisan issue but the Republicans evidently have chosen to make it so. The White House issued a statement opposing the bill and 176 of 203 Republicans voted that way”
H.R. 5036 , as reported to the floor by the committee, would authorize funding to reimburse states with paperless jurisdictions that co nvert to paper-based voting systems in 2008 or provide emergency paper ballots that would be counted as regular ballots in the event of machine failure. The reimbursements would cover the cost of equipment conversion (from paperless touch screen machines t o paper-based systems, such as optical scanners or computers with printers ) and the cost of developing procedures for conducting hand-counted audits using independent, random selection of at least 2 percent of the precincts for audits under public observation.
If the bill does not pass or jurisdictions do not opt in, six complete states and some number of counties in 14 other states will be conducting completely unauditable elections in 2008. In add ition, only about a dozen states will conduct audits.
“ What everyone should want is a national standard that would help ensure verifiable elections ,” Holt added. “ We made this a n even more modest bill to gain bipartisan support and pass quickly. It mere ly offers reimbursement to states that chose the option of auditable and audited elections; there is no mandate. Republicans are evidently unwi lling to accept even this modest attempt to bring about verifiable elections. ”
Holt noted that the main objection to the bill was, according to Republicans, its cost.
“ I ’ d like to ask the opponents how much spending is too much to have verifiable elections in the United States. I note that many people who opposed this legislation supported spending almost $330 million in recent years to provide election assistance in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. I would have hoped those who supported efforts to export democracy abroad would be equally committed to strengthening democracy here at home,” Holt said.

Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose expressed her outrage at the state Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) announcement on Tuesday that it will close at least nine state parks and cut services at three others at the height of the summer tourist season due to Governor Jon Corzine’s proposed budget cuts.
McHose, R-Sussex, Morris and Hunterdon, noted that most of the parks slated for closure are located in Republican areas of the state, including High Point State Park and Worthington State Park. She said the move is further proof that the governor is not considering efficiency when making his cuts, but instead is “seeking cuts that will be expedient for him.
“It couldn’t be more clearer,” she said. “First he said he plans on eliminating the state’s Agriculture Department, which is one of the most efficiently run departments we have, and now he intends on closing down our state parks. How interesting that most of them are located in primarily Republican territory. “New Jersey parks are not the cause of our state budget problems,” McHose, a member of the Assembly Budget Committee, continued, “a self-serving governor who is clearly out of touch with our residents is.”
McHose said she is disappointed that Governor Corzine is spending his time pledging to raise $30 million to resolve the Democratic primary in Florida and Michigan when his own state is in the throes of a financial crisis and New Jersey taxpayers are suffering. According to an Associated Press report today, one in five state parks will be forced to close resulting in the layoff of 80 park workers. Offseason hours at all of the state’s 42 sites will be reduced as well. McHose said the governor’s decision is the epitome of hypocrisy because he is going after an entity that actually benefits the state’s economy.
“These parks attract millions of recreational visitors and tourists each year that are a much needed boost to the state’s economy and the economies of the regions surrounding these parks,” she explained. “Mr. Corzine should spend his time battling the real problem – excessive government spending, waste and abuse – and not targeting our resources that actually benefit the state. He should take a long, hard look at the waste in so many of our school districts and the abuse in the state’s New Jersey Family Care program.”
The results of new state audits released Monday revealed shocking displays of waste and abuse in a state-run health care program for working poor families. The audits showed that people earning six figure salaries are enrolled in the program.
“That is absolutely unconscionable,” said McHose of the report.
“The waste in this state is absolutely rampant. But instead of targeting that, Governor Corzine chooses to close our parks and eliminate the Garden State ’s Agriculture Department. It’s absurd and a slap in the face to our residents. How dare he play politics with the well being of our hard working taxpayers and our state.”