HomeMy WebLinkAbout _ 9.1(b)--Letter to Shasta County Board of Supervisors Regarding Ballot Counting Process
CITY OF REDDING
REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
Recommendation
Accept the report and provide direction to staff regarding submission of a letter to the Shasta
County Board of Supervisors regarding the County Elections ballot counting process.
Fiscal Impact
There is no fiscal impact associated with accepting the report or the submission of the letter to
the Shasta County Board of Supervisors.
Alternative Action
The City Council could choose not to accept the report and direct that no further action be taken.
Background/Analysis
At its meeting of July 18, 2023, the City Council authorized Vice Mayor Mezzano and Council
Member Winter to craft a letter to the Shasta County Board of Supervisors regarding the decision
to change the local election ballot counting process and the associated potential cost increase.
The attached letter is presented to the full Council for consideration.
Environmental Review
This is not a project defined under the California Environmental Quality Act, and no further
action is required.
Council Priority/City Manager Goals
• Communication and Transparency – “Improve the quality of communication with the
public and City employees to enhance knowledge and increase transparency to improve
public trust.”
MEETING DATE: September 19, 2023
ITEM NO. 9.1(b)
FROM:
***APPROVED BY***
btippin@cityofredding.org
btippin@cityofredding.org
SUBJECT: 9.1(b)--Consider accepting report regarding submission of letter to the Shasta
County Board of Supervisors regarding the County Elections ballot counting process.
Barry Tippin, City Manager
Report to Redding City Council September 14, 2023
Re: 9.1(b)--Letter to Shasta County Board of Supervisors Regarding Ballot Counting ProcessPage 2
Attachments
^Elections Letter to Shasta County BOS
Michael Dacquisto, Mayor
mdacquisto@cityofredding.org
530.225.4447
September XX, 2023
Shasta County Board of Supervisors
1450 Court Street
Suite 308B
Redding, CA 96001
Re: Shasta County Elections and Ballot Counting Process
Honorable Chair Jones and Shasta County Board of Supervisors,
We write to you today in the spirit of collaboration. Both of our agencies are facing a challenging
economic climate, where projections for sales tax and transient occupancy tax are falling. The City of
Redding is deeply concerned about its ability to maintain current public safety service levels should an
increase in election costs become a reality.
Our community has identified public safety as a top priority, consequently, the Redding City Council has
worked diligently to restore both Police and Fire staffing levels to 2008 levels or higher. Maintaining
these levels in a time of escalating costs and declining revenues will be a top focus of the City Council
over the next few years.
We also recognize the County of Shasta places significant focus on public safety and is experiencing
similar economic stress. Therefore, the Redding City Council formally requests that the County
collaborate with the City to select and implement a voting system that aligns with each of our current cost
structures.
Recent information from the Shasta County Clerk and Registrar of Voter’s Office presents an alarming
potential increased cost to the City of Redding for future elections. Should a full-hand tally system be
implemented, costs could increase by a staggering 380 percent. This cost is estimated using the
November 2022 election data and modeling the cost of a hand tally, which, using the County Clerk’s
figures, indicates the City of Redding’s costs would increase from $46,630 to $176,645 per election.
While some have challenged this cost estimate, there are also concerns that the cost will be even higher
than estimated. This increased cost, should it occur, poses a burden to the City’s General Fund, impacting
our ability to properly fund our police and fire departments, as well as other essential services.
In light of our shared commitment to public safety, we earnestly request that our organizations work
together to find an industry-standard voting system that is affordable to all agencies. If the County
ultimately chooses a voting system that is substantially more expensive than a more traditional system, we
request that the County pay the difference beyond our current pricing structure.
City of Redding – Shasta County Board of Supervisors September XX, 2023
Shasta County Elections Ballot County Process Page 2 of 2
As of this writing, Assembly Bill 969 was passed by the California State Senate and is now awaiting the
Governor’s signature. Regardless of the legislative outcome in Sacramento, we do know that the County
needs to implement a new voting system. As this affects many local municipalities, we are very
interested in developing a collaborative consensus on this issue.
We genuinely appreciate your attention to this urgent matter. We look forward to working with the
County to secure a feasible solution that protects the public safety of our citizens.
Sincerely,
Michael P. Dacquisto
City of Redding
Mayor