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From YouTube: Committee on Legislative Oversight 7-21-2020
Description
The Legislative Oversight Committee of the Council of the City of Philadelphia held a Public Hearing on Tuesday, July 21, 2020, at 1:00 PM, in a remote manner using Microsoft® Teams to hear testimony on the following items:
200376 Resolution authorizing the Philadelphia City Council Committee on Legislative Oversight to hold public hearings examining issues that arose from the primary election mail in ballot process, and recommendations for necessary procedures to improve voter education and voter processes for the upcoming general election, including potential funding and staffing needs of the Philadelphia City Commissioners Office.
A
A
D
G
A
A
A
A
Thank
you
again,
mrs
before
we
begin
this
hearing
and
the
testimony
we
want
to.
Let
people
know
today
that
we
are
being
recorded
and
by
you
continuing
to
be
on
this
call.
There
is
no
reasonable
expectation
of
privacy
and
that
you
will
be
recorded
and
we
make
you
make
it
clear
that
this
will
be
a
part
of
the
record
with
that.
A
A
That
I
promised
I
would
cut
down
my
opening
remarks,
which
were
written
so
every
election
since
I've
I've
been
able
to
vote,
and
I've
only
missed
one
election
in
my
lifetime.
People
will
tell
you
that
this
is
the
most
important
election
before
you.
They
said
that
all
the
way
back
to
the
charter
change
with
rizzo,
they
said
it
again
and
again
with
every
state
and
city
municipal
election,
but
I
absolutely
believe
that
just
maybe
this
time
it
may
be
true.
A
There
are
people
already
developing
narratives
about
how
this
election
process,
whether
it's
by
voting
by
mail
or
or
just
by
being
in
an
urban
blue
state
that
somehow
people
will
be
disenfranchised.
The
purpose
of
this
resolution,
and
I'm
so
very
thankful
to
represent
kevin
boyle
for
bringing
this
up,
is
to
be
transparent.
A
I
I
I
Yeah,
so
I
am
the
the
democratic
chair
of
the
state
government
committee
and
we
on
the
the
house
state
government
committee.
We
are
the
first
committee
that
usually
sees
any
election
related
bills,
we're
also
the
first
committee
to
see
all
the
the
negative
gop
and
the
shutdown
and
coven
19
related
bills
also,
but
that
that's
a
whole
nother
story.
Today.
I
So
with
with
that
in
mind,
I
reached
out
to
the
majority
leader,
shirelle,
parker
and
also
councilman
jones,
and
together
we
came
up
with
this
idea
of
a
joint
hearing
because,
as
councilman
jones
pointed
out,
all
eyes
are
going
to
be
on
the
state
of
pennsylvania,
specifically
on
the
city
of
philadelphia.
With
this
election
coming
in
november.
It
is
truly
the
most
important
election
in
our
lifetime
and,
I
think,
probably
the
most
important
election,
probably
since
1860.
I
So
we
need
to
be
on
philadelphia
needs
to
be
up
with
what
is
going
on
with
our
voting
systems
and
we
in
the
pennsylvania
state
legislature.
We
need
to
be
able
to
to
advocate
for
the
for
the
best
voting
system
that
can
possibly
be
put
in
place
for
for
the
election
in
the
city
of
philadelphia
and
also
throughout
the
commonwealth
of
pennsylvania.
I
I
If
the
june
primary
were
to
be
replicated
with
this
general
election,
it
would
be
a
national
and
probably
an
international
story,
and
that
is
certainly
not
to
criticize
the
city.
Commissioners
in
any
way
whatsoever,
they
were
thrown
a
a
situation
that
was
truly
unprecedented,
not
just
due
to
coven
19
or
the
protests
related
to
george
floyd's
murder,
but
also
the
the
changes
to
act,
77
which
greatly
expand
mail
and
voting
that
expansion
of
mail
and
voting
in
acts
77
actually
went
through
our
committee
in
harrisburg.
I
So
the
the
members
of
this
committee
that
are
on
this
call
right
now.
We
are
very
we're
intimately
aware
of
that
even
before
I
think
most
of
the
public
were
right
now,
an
update
to
to
my
colleagues
and
city
council
and
people
watching
at
home
democrats
in
the
state
house,
along
with
our
colleagues
in
the
state
senate,
and
also
perhaps
most
importantly,
with
our
governor
wolf,
that
we
are
in
negotiations
with
reforms
to
the
voting
system
with
the
republican
majorities
in
the
house
and
senate.
I
We
have
some
ideas
right
now
on
ways.
We
can
improve
the
voting
system,
but
I
want
to
hear
from
members
of
of
city
council
on
this,
so
I
can
be
a
better
advocate
in
harrisburg
and
maybe
most
importantly,
I
want
to
hear
from
our
very
able
chairwoman
of
the
city,
commissioners,
lisa,
dealey
and
also
omar
sabir
and
also
al
schmidt.
I
I
think
that
we
could
learn
a
lot
from
this
discussion
and
thank
you
to
councilman
jones
for
working
with
me
and
my
staff
to
put
this
together
and
I
think,
going
forth
in
the
future.
I
think
it's
very
good
for
us
democratic
members
of
the
state
house
to
work
with
our
our
colleagues
and
city
council,
so
we
can
be
a
better
voice
for
all
philadelphia.
A
B
B
I
want
to
thank
thank
our
state
partners
for
staying
on
top
of
this
whole
issue,
with
respect
to
our
ability
to
vote
and
mr
chair
and
members
of
the
committee,
thank
you
all
for
getting
on
this
early
and
not
waiting
until
the
problem
exists
and
being
ahead
of
the
curve,
so
to
speak.
So
we
can
be
sure
that
everybody
has
a
real
opportunity,
because
we
all
know
every
day
how
important
the
november
election
is.
So
thank
you.
Thank
you.
So
much.
A
D
A
G
G
I
think
I
speak
for
all
of
my
staff
and
the
elections
personnel
around
the
commonwealth.
When
I
say
that
it
is
less
than
thankful,
it
is
a
less
than
thankless
job.
We
are
frequently
faced
with
decisions
where
there
is
no
good
option
and
the
best
option
is
often
just
the
least
bad
one,
often
enough.
We
are
left
to
carry
the
water
for
decisions
that
are
made
in
washington,
harrisburg
or
on
the
second
or
fourth
floors
oftentimes
at
the
last
minute.
G
As
we
look
back
to
june.
We
know
that
poll
workers
were
and
continue
to
be,
the
true
heroes
of
the
day
in
following
public
health
procedures
to
the
best
of
our
ability,
coveted
19,
caused
the
cancellation
of
our
election
board
training
classes,
an
unprecedented
move
that
was
done
in
consultation
with
the
state
and
out
of
the
safety
of
our
election
board
workers,
our
training
host
sites
and
our
staff.
G
If
you
consider
that
we
changed
the
entire
way,
we
stand
up,
an
in-person
election
moved,
co-workers
out
of
their
usual
locations,
had
them
work
on
boards,
where
they
were
unfamiliar
with
each
other
on
a
still
new
voting
system
with
no
training.
It
is
a
true
testament
to
our
neighbors,
who
are
so
committed
to
the
voting
process.
G
That
election
day
proceeded
in
these
historic
conditions
for
the
primary,
a
huge
effort
to
highlight
the
mail-in
ballot
option
was
undertaken:
the
department
of
state
mailed,
every
democrat
and
republican
voter,
a
postcard
with
the
url
to
the
online
application
and
conducted
a
tv
and
social
media
campaign
in
philadelphia.
We
provided
information
and
paper
applications
with
the
city's
food
distribution
program
and
we
partnered
with
city
council
on
radio
advertising.
G
G
Philadelphia
already
has
over
one
hundred
and
forty
thousand
mail-in
ballot
applications
and
that
number
will
likely
more
than
double
before
the
october
deadline
for
comparison
purposes.
The
board
received
225
230
applications
for
the
june
primary
16,
101
applications
for
the
2012
general
election,
15
887
applications
for
the
2016
general
and
5742
for
the
2016
primary
for
the
general
election.
I
asked
the
state.
Please
continue
the
efforts
that
were
made
in
the
primary
and,
in
addition,
make
the
information
about
applying
for
a
mail-in
ballot
available.
G
I
am
I
just
my
screen
went
blank.
I
apologize
all
right
issa
to
please
continue
the
efforts
that
were
made
in
the
primary
and,
in
addition,
make
the
information
about
applying
for
mail-in
ballots
available
with
the
online
portal
pennsylvanian
jews
to
apply
for
unemployment
claims,
as
well
as
as
well
as
other
sites
that
access
other
state
resources
and
paper
applications
and
information
be
put
in
bags
at
wine
and
spirit
stores.
G
J
G
Where,
at
times
we
were
unsure,
if
we
would
certify
the
election
on
time,
new
york
city,
who,
like
us,
saw
a
spike
in
the
number
of
mail
ballots,
this
primary
is
still
counting
their
mail
ballots
three
weeks
after
their
primary
election.
I
am
proud
to
say
that,
despite
what
is
stated
in
the
resolution
authorizing
this
hearing,
we
did
certify
on
time
something
that
not
every
county
in
the
commonwealth
did,
and
this
could
not
have
happened
without
a
tremendous
undertaking
by
our
dedicated
staff.
G
We
are
looking
into
ways
that
can
speed
up
the
process
for
november
without
sacrificing
accuracy,
philadelphia,
voters
who
sent
us
a
message.
Philadelphia
voters
also
sent
us
a
message
on
june,
2nd
despite
a
pandemic
polling,
place,
changes,
civil
unrest,
curfews
and
the
evil
availability
of
the
new,
no
excuse
mail-in
ballot
option.
They
left
their
homes
to
go
vote
as
we
prepare
now
for
november.
We
cannot
lose
sight
of
the
fact
that
a
significant
percentage
of
philadelphia
voters
will
prefer
to
vote
in
person
on
the
machines
rather
than
through
the
mail.
G
Whatever
reason
that
may
be,
we
must
prepare
to
stand
up
to
elections
to
meet
the
needs
of
our
voters.
To
give
you
the
sense
of
the
scale
of
that
task,
one
election
will
look
like
our
gubernatorial
general
election
and
the
other
will
resemble
will
resemble
denver's
presidential
election
as
we
prepare
for
november.
There
are
new
changes
making
their
way
through
the
legislature,
which
means
the
counties
will
likely
not
get
new
guidance
from
the
department
of
state
who
are
also
swamped
and
underfunded
until
mid-august
or
just
about
when
poll
worker
trainings
will
be
starting
up.
G
G
The
presidential
general
election
is
a
totally
different
animal
than
any
other
election
in
the
cycle,
and
we
need
to
have
as
many
locations
available
as
possible.
Therefore,
we
are
working
to
prepare
for
a
normal
division-based
election.
Since
changes
are
going
through
the
legislature.
I
do
have
a
few
legislative
requests.
G
Please
eliminate
the
secrecy
envelope
requirement
for
the
mail
ballots.
Pennsylvania
is
currently
only
one
of
just
16
states
that
require
either
a
secrecy
envelope
or
state
to
be
included
with
the
mail
ballots.
It
is
a
vestige
of
the
past
back
when
these
ballots
were
counted
at
the
polling
place.
Mail
ballots
are
now
counted
on
an
industrial
level
and
the
secrecy
on
the
envelope
can
be
replaced
with
using
outer
declaration
envelopes
with
a
security
lining.
G
A
significant
amount
of
time
and
effort
goes
into
physically
removing
the
ballots
from
multiple
envelopes.
First,
the
secrecy
envelopes
must
be
removed
from
the
outer
declaration
envelope.
Then
all
of
the
secrecy
envelopes
must
re-pass
through
the
system
so
that
physical
voted
ballots
can
be
removed
from.
G
I
again
urge
the
same
for
the
november's
election
and
to
make
it
permanent
due
to
governor
wolf's
executive
order,
9143
philadelphia
voters
had
their
votes
counted
in
june.
That
otherwise
would
have
been
rejected
as
late
currently
voted
ballots
must
be
received
by
the
board
of
elections
by
8
pm
on
election
day
november
3rd.
I
ask
that
the
deadline
for
county
boards,
2
of
elections
to
receive
voted
ballots,
be
extended
to
november
10th
and
that
all
voted
ballots
received
by
the
date
post
by
that
date
and
postmarked
by
november
3rd
be
accepted.
G
I
also
I
ask.
I
also
ask
that
ballots
received
on
november
4th
with
a
missing
or
damaged
postmark
also
be
accepted.
This
change
needs
to
be
announced
early.
The
voters
of
philadelphia
deserve
clarity
when
dealing
with
their
right
to
vote,
and
we
have
a
responsibility
to
provide
clarity
and
common
sense
deadlines
for
voters
to
cast
their
ballot.
This
november
will
be
especially
difficult
with
coven
19
returning
to
the
region.
Sooner
than
expected,
unfunded
mandates,
a
high-stakes
election,
a
shortage
of
resources
and
a
mountain
of
expectations.
G
These
are
all
things
that
we
are
exploring,
but
they
come
with
a
cost.
At
the
same
time,
we
have
been
flat
funded.
This
means
that
we
currently
do
not
have
the
money
in
our
budget
for
the
ninety
five
thousand
dollar
per
election,
that
we
must
spend
on
paper
ballots
or
the
fifty
thousand
dollars
to
rent
the
vehicles
to
collect
the
paper
ballots
on
election
night.
We
only
have
one
hundred
and
fifty
thousand
dollars
budgeted
for
postage
in
fiscal
year.
G
G
The
department
of
public
property
still
does
not
have
the
funds
in
their
budget
to
move
us
into
a
long-term
warehouse
where
the
machines
can
be
laid
out
optimally
so
that
our
staff
can
quickly
inspect
repair
pack
and
ship
the
machines.
In
addition,
our
covet
related
expenses
from
the
primary
will
exceed
the
cares
act.
Funding
that
we
received
the
house
fiscal
note
for
act,
77
said
quote,
it
is
presumed.
G
We
estimate
that
the
cost
of
additional
staff
just
on
the
registration
piece
alone
will
be
nearly
two
million
dollars
a
year
or
we
risk
not
being
able
to
process
typical
presidential
level
application
volume
after
the
influx
of
mail-in
ballots
from
kovid,
we
now
have
to
look
at
the
possibly
trying
to
hire
even
more
people
to
process
all
those
applications,
though
this
is
difficult
with
our
space
limitations
and
the
need
for
social
distancing
before
covert
19.
The
administration
stepped
up
and
increased
our
budget,
but
this
was
later
rescinded.
G
As
I
said
earlier,
we
are
preparing
to
stand
up
to
elections
in
november,
an
in-person
election
and
an
all
mail
and
a
mail-in
election.
We
are
expecting
about
a
50-50
split
in
voters
between
the
two
methods
of
voting.
This
means
we
need
to
be
prepared
to
process
over
350
000
mail
ballots
twice
as
many
as
we
saw
in
the
primary
election
to
do
this.
In
a
timely
manner,
we
have
been
in
contact
with
other
large
voting
jurisdictions
around
the
country
who
process
hundreds
of
thousands
of
mail
ballots
for
best
practices.
G
Based
on
those
conversations,
we
are
exploring
purchasing
various
election
specialized
equipment
that
will
speed
up
the
ballot
sending
and
counting
process.
Basically,
we
not.
We
need
to
start
thinking
like
the
revenue
department
rather
than
the
elections
department,
in
terms
of
how
much
mail
is
moving
through
our
office
for
in-person
voting.
While
we
know
that
we
will
have
to
get
out
of
some
high-risk
polling
places,
we
are
working
to
return
voters
to
as
many
of
their
normal
polling
places
as
possible.
G
Our
polling
place
unit
is
currently
reaching
out
and
contacting
the
owners
of
our
of
polling
places,
preparing
a
list
of
polling
places
who
are
committed
to
hosting
us
in
november
and
finding
replacements
for
those
who
are
not.
While
the
process
is
still
ongoing.
We
are
over
halfway
confirmed
for
the
number
of
locations
that
were
used
in
the
2019
general.
I
am
pleased
with
this
progress,
given
it
is
in
the
middle
of
summer,
and
many
of
these
locations
have
been
closed
for
months.
G
The
other
key
aspect
of
standing
up
a
normal
election
in
november
is
the
poll
workers,
unlike
other
jurisdictions
around
the
country.
Pennsylvania
county
boards
of
elections
have
much
less
control
over
the
poll
workers
who
they
are
and
where
they
are
working.
We
do
not
possess
that
kind
of
control.
As
many
of
the
poll
workers
are
constitutionally
elected
or
court
appointed.
G
Much
of
what
we
do
is
to
fill
vacancies.
A
large
effort
goes
into
confirming
that
people
plan
on
showing
up
to
work
and
tracking
those
vacancies.
When
we
know
of
vacancy,
we
work
to
fill
it.
This
will
be
no
easy
task,
but
our
election
board
unit
is
starting
the
process.
Now
earlier
than
usual
in
the
primary,
we
paid
the
poll
workers
an
additional
100
as
incentive
pay,
which
we
were
able
to
do
budgetarily
because
of
the
consolidated
polling
place.
G
If
we
need
to
provide
incentive
pay
again
in
november,
it
will
cost
eight
hundred
and
fifty
one
thousand
five
hundred
dollars.
The
election
board
unit
is
also
working
to
secure
locations
for
training
and
will
begin
trainings
earlier
than
normal
and
hold
more
classes
to
reduce
class
size
to
allow
for
social
distancing.
G
One
change
from
act
77
that
I'm
afraid
everyone
has
forgotten
about,
but
could
cause
a
confusion
at
the
polls
in
november,
especially
at
the
in-person
locations,
is
the
elimination
of
the
straight
party
option
from
the
ballot
philadelphians
are
used
to
voting
straight
party.
Indeed,
about
52
percent
of
philadelphia's
voters
use
the
straight
party
option
in
the
2019
general
election.
G
G
In
closing,
I
want
to
thank
the
staff
of
the
philadelphia
city
commissioner's
office
who
have
been
working
throughout
this
pandemic
and
are
nothing
but
dedicated
and
committed
to
the
cause.
I
would
also
like
to
thank
election
staff
workers
throughout
this
commonwealth,
who
have
been
dealing
with
a
crisis
while
performing
their
duties.
Often
in
an
ever-changing
environment,
we
are
all
working
together
to
ensure
pennsylvanians
have
the
right
have
their
right
to
a
free,
fair
election
and
can
have
their
voices
heard
on
november
the
3rd.
Thank
you
for
this
opportunity
to
provide
testimony.
K
For
the
sake
of
moving
things
along
to
questions,
there's
just
two
issues
that
I
want
to
raise
very
quickly.
Both
regard
legislation
in
harrisburg,
one
has
to
do
with
how
soon
we
can
begin
opening
and
processing
those
ballots
waiting
until
election
day
is,
in
my
opinion,
much
too
late
to
begin
physically
processing
them
the
more
work
we
can
do
before
election
day,
the
quicker
we
can
begin
counting
on
election
day.
K
The
other
is-
and
I
realize
this
is
well
intentioned-
quoting
the
date
to
apply
for
a
mainland
ballot
a
week
before
the
date
that
it
is
due
back
to
us
unintentionally
disenfranchises
voters,
and
it
was
hopeful.
It
was
something
that
was
going
to
be
addressed
in
the
in
the
first
round
in
election
reforms
at
act
77.
K
If,
if
a
voter
does
what
they
should
do
when
they
apply
by
election
day,
it's
very
possible
that,
between
the
time,
even
if
we
turn
the
ballot
around
in
real
time,
the
application
of
real
time
and
mail
it
out
the
next
day,
there's
not
enough
time
to
make
it
to
the
voter
and
then
back
to
the
board
of
elections.
For
the
vote
to
be
counted
unless
a
couple
different
things
are
changed
again.
For
the
sake
of
brevity,
I
just
wanted
to
raise
those
quick
two
issues.
B
Okay,
good,
I
just
wanted
to
no
thank
you,
council.
Definitely
looking
for
your
support.
I
would
definitely
try
to
to
get
the
word
out
there.
You
know
we
need
strategic
outreach
with
strategic
community
partnerships
and
it's
definitely
gonna
cause
resources.
We
want
tv
commercials,
we
want
social
media
buys
we're
developing
a
mobile
app
and
we
have
to
inform
and
educate
our
voters.
B
We
have
to
inform
and
educate
our
poll
workers,
which
will
definitely
increase
and
enhance
the
voting
experience
from
our
average
voter
and
again
we
mentioned
earlier,
was
our
voter
turnout
definitely
was
higher.
It
was
32
for
the
last
couple
of
presidential
elections.
We
averaged
about
20
for
uncontested
presidential
election.
B
You
know
we
want
ads
on
buses,
we
want
billboards,
we
want
to
advertise,
we
have
to
explain
to
people
how
important
it
is
to
vote
for
civic
duty
and
letting
them
know
how
to
do
it.
It's
very
important,
so
people
don't
feel
disenfranchised.
We're
gonna
go
over
the
rules,
there's
just
across
the
country.
What
we
have
seen
we've
seen
a
lot
of
mistakes
on
vote
by
male
violence,
which
caused
a
lot
of
rejections.
B
We
saw
in
california
over
one
hundred
thousand
vote
by
mail.
Ballots
were
rejected
from
stakes
from
people
not
signing
them,
not
putting
appropriate
date
on
them,
so
that
all
goes
to
the
education
and
the
outreach
program,
and
if
we
do
that
efficiently,
we
do
it
well
again,
it
will
not
disenfranchise
our
voters.
So
please
definitely
some
more
resources
for
outreach.
A
Okay,
so
I'm
going
to
give
members
of
the
committee
an
opportunity
to
be
recognized,
but
I'm
going
to
ask
three
quick
questions.
While
people
use
that
chat
feature
and
I'm
gonna
call
on
samantha
to
recognize
them
the
most
pressing
question
I
would
have
based
on
the
increased
use
of
mail-in
ballots,
was
there
any
increase
in
voter
fraud.
G
G
A
G
Are
actually
we
are
working
with
our
colleagues
in
united
states
congress,
our
local
congress
people
to
arrange
a
dialogue
between
us
and
the
postal
service
because
it
is.
It
is
indeed
an
issue
when,
as
commissioner
schmidt
pointed
out,
voters
are
doing
exactly
what
we
are
instructing
them
that
they
can
do
by
waiting
until
the
end
to
apply
for
a
ballot.
But
it
is
unrealistic.
G
A
And
I
guess
finally,
I'm
I'm
very
pleased
to
hear
that
you
are
reevaluating
polling
locations
and
trying
to
increase
the
number
of
them
to
the
credit
of
the
voting
public
people
patiently
stood
in
line
for
hours
to
vote
in
some
circumstances,
and
I
understand
that
in
a
general
election
we
can
anticipate
greater
volume
and
hopefully
less
delays.
So
I'm
encouraged
by
the
notion
that
you're
looking
at
that-
and
you
know
the
sooner-
we
can
help
you
publicize-
where
polling
locations
are
the
better
and
with
that
samantha
williams.
E
Thank
you,
mr
chairman,
good
afternoon,
colleagues
good
afternoon.
Commissioners.
I
want
to
start
just
by
doing
what
probably
so
many
of
my
colleagues
will
do
is
just
commend
you
for
your
work
and
your
effort
during
this
time.
I
can
only
imagine
how
difficult
it
was
to
deal
with
a
process
and
a
system
that
was
so
new
to
all
of
us
and
then
to
have
to
deal
with
it
during
a
pandemic.
E
I
can
only
imagine
so
I
commend
you
for
the
job
you've
done
and
thank
you,
mr
chairman,
for
convening
this
important
conversation.
I
just
wanted
to
start
by
asking
about
early
voting
centers.
You
know
I'm
a
big
advocate
of
it.
I
know
you
need
resources
to
just
execute
the
expected
number
of
ballots
that
you're
going
to
receive,
but
I
think
that
it's
important
to
at
least
have
a
conversation.
G
Well,
thank
you
so
much
councilman
and
thank
you
for
your
help.
You
did
you
helped
us
out
with
some
staff,
and
I
appreciate
that
during
a
very
very
busy
time,
as
we
were
trying
to
get
those
ballots
out.
So
thank
you
so
very
much.
As
I
stated
in
my
testimony,
the
cost
of
satellite
early
voting
centers
are
roughly
about
140
000
each
and
that
doesn't
include
the
staff
to
staff
them,
but
we
do
recognize
as
part
of
act
77.
G
That
is
a
an
access
to
voting
that
we
absolutely
would
love
to
be
able
to
provide
to
philadelphia
voters.
So
I
ideally
we
would
like
to
see
you
know
early
voting
centers
in
each
council
district,
but
we
like
everything
else
that
we
are
working
on
and
preparing
a
you
know
a
plan,
for
it
all
depends
on
how
much
dollars
we
have
in
order
to
put
these
plans
forward.
E
G
G
Where
you
know
we
we
looked
at
it
and
it
looks
you
know
like
it's,
it's
great
and
it's
wonderful
to
be
able
to
be
able
to
offer
pennsylvanians
and
particularly
philadelphians
another
way
to
vote
where
they
might
even
feel
safer
or
more
at
ease
if
they
can
go
early
and
see
a
person
and
interact
with
somebody
rather
than
get
that
mail
ballot.
We
know
that
for
some
people
they're
just
not
there
yet
to
feel
confident,
confident
or
comfortable
mail.
G
You
know
filling
that
ballot
out
at
home
and
putting
it
in
a
mail,
but
they
may
feel
comfortable
and
confident
if
they
were
to
go,
see
somebody
and
see
an
actual
person
and
have
you
know
an
exchange
with
an
individual
from
the
board
of
elections.
So
it
will
not
give
us
any
less
work.
It
will
give
us
more
work
and
it
will
require
us
to
identify
staff
to
then
go
and
staff
these
remote
in-person
mail
and
voting
centers,
and
that
will
also
require
us
to
be
able
to
have
staff
that
will
be
there.
G
You
know
nights
and
weekends,
and
then
we
have
to
work
on
the
the
I.t
component.
As
commissioner
schmidt
mentioned,
we
also
have
to
work
on
the
ballot
security
issue,
because
we
can't
you
have
to
recognize
that
those
ballots
then
are
live
vote
about,
so
they
there's
a
whole
chain
of
custody
that
will
have
to
be
worked
out
and
a
whole
team
of
people
that
are
going
to
have
to
be
dedicated
just
to
the
the
customer
service.
G
E
Thank
you,
commissioner.
I
appreciate
that
and
again
thank
you
for
your
work.
If,
if
there
is
anything
that
I
can
do,
if
there's
anything
that
we
can
do
as
a
council
body
to
help
support
you
in
this
process,
please
let
you
let
us
know.
I
hear
you
when
you
talk
about
how
big
of
an
undertaking
it
will
be,
and
you
know
I
think
that
that
can
be
part
of
the
solution
to
help
some
of
the
anxiety
that
a
lot
of
the
voters
have.
E
So
we
can
put
us
in
a
position
where
we
are
assuring
that
every
vote
counts
and
we're
doing
it
in
a
timely
fashion.
Again,
thank
you
so
much.
I
appreciate
all
your
work
and,
of
course
anything
we
can
do
to
help
you
with
this
effort.
As
far
as
voting-
and
I
did
hear
commissioner
cyber
as
well
as
far
as
the
importance
of
marketing
and
advertising,
and
I
would
love
to
brainstorm
some
possible
areas
where
we
can
make
that
happen
as
well.
Thank
you
and
thank
you,
mr
chairman.
I
appreciate
you,
sir.
D
Thank
you,
mr
chair
good
afternoon,
commissioners.
I
just
have
a
few
questions.
During
the
june
primary,
the
poll
books
were
printed
prior
to
the
deadline
for
requesting
a
mail
and
ballot,
and
so,
while
counting
votes
employees
had
to
undertake
the
time-consuming
process
of
manually
confirming
that
people
did
not
vote
twice.
How
are
we
addressing
this
issue
for
the
election?
This
fall.
G
G
We
are
working
on
ways
to
expedite
it
and
we
are
working
on
ways
to
make
it
less
of
a
tedious
progress
process.
I
it
was,
it
was
made
more
difficult.
It
was
made
more
difficult
in
the
in
the
primary
because
the
books
were
so
voluminous,
but
with
our
abilities
to
hopefully
start
sooner.
That
should
really
cut
down
the.
D
Time
that
that
will
take
okay,
commissioner
dealey
and
your
testimony,
you
talked
about
using
technology
to
help
package
sort
and
tabulate
ballots.
Can
you
talk
more
about
the
technology
you're
looking
at
procuring
the
cost
of
the
technology
and
the
efficiency,
this
technology
will
bring
to
your
operations.
Sure.
G
So,
as
I
stated
earlier,
we
we
have
been
looking
around
the
country
at
best
practices
and
what
we
found
is
that
the
jurisdictions
where
they
have
really
amped
up
their
mail
and
voting
they've
been
able
to
do
so
by
pretty
much
automating
the
entire
process.
So
when
we
talk
about
equipment,
we
are
talking
about
a
sorter
that
is
election
specific,
so
that
the
ballots
can
be
sorted
and
mailed
out
and
they
can
be
electronically
adjudicated.
G
G
Put
the
put
the
insert
in
put
the
instructions
in
it
would
go
through
the
system
and
it
would
all
be
done
mechanically
and
in
addition,
when
we
get
the
ballots
back,
it
would
also
save
us
that
the
need
for
bodies
to
sit
and
open
envelopes
and
and
and
unpack
them.
So
we,
when
we're
talking
about
what
we
need,
we
need
a
high-speed
commercial
industrial
printer
specialized
boot
by
mail
inserter.
That
inserter
is
probably
the
most
expensive
piece:
it's.
It
could
deliver
a
million
dollars.
G
We
need
a
sorter
capable
of
sorting
up
to
70
trays
so
that
we
can
sort
by
by
word
and
we
need
extractors,
which
will
help
us,
take
the
secrecy
envelope
and
the
ballot
out
of
the
envelopes.
And
then
we
need
some
additional
scanners
that
will
help
us
to
count
the
ballots
on
a
more
high
speed,
a
more
high-speed
way.
G
G
We
hope
to
have
that
equipment
you
know
by
by
september,
so
that
you
know
we.
If
it
comes
later,
we
have.
We
are
confident
that
we'll
be
able
to
to
get
some
help
from
the
revenue
department,
because
they
have
a
mail
room
down
there
at
the
msb
concourse
that
we
might
be
able
they
might
be
able
to
help
us
get
the
initial.
The
initial
run
done
of
ballots
to
go
out
and
then
as
we're
as
we're
waiting
for
that
deadline
to
pass.
G
D
G
We
do
meet,
we
do
meet
regularly.
We
started
a
steering
committee
that
began
when
the
city
moved
to
purchase
a
new
voting
system
and
that
steering
committee
has
continued
formation
throughout.
So
we
will
just
continue
to
do
that.
We
were
we're
now,
as
we
get
closer
to
the
election,
we
meet
on
a
more
regular
basis.
More,
you
know,
weekly.
B
D
A
I
Thank
you
councilman
jones
again.
This
is
a
very
good
discussion,
we're
having
about
critical
reforms
and
thank
you
so
much
chairwoman
dealey
for
your
testimony
today,
but
also,
more
importantly,
for
stepping
up
to
the
plate
in
early
june
through
a
truly
truly
unique
and
a
unprecedented
crisis,
and
I
really
tip
my
hat
to
you
and
also
thank
you
thinking
of
the
the
november
election.
I
I
Ultimately,
when
we
do
count
our
votes
in
philly
and
also
some
of
the
suburban
counties,
we
could
have
a
different
result
in
pennsylvania
than
what
the
numbers
look
like
on
election
night.
I
think
everyone
would
be
on
the
same
page
that
we
want
to
prevent
that
from
happening,
and
I
I
know
I
went
and
visited
you
right
after
the
june
primary
in
person
and
and
you
and
I
talked
about
our
mutual
concerns
in
this
regard
and
you.
I
I
G
Well,
you
know,
as
I
told
you
when
I
when
I
was
talking
about
detroit,
they
have
just
so
everybody
knows
they.
They
count
their
ballots
on
election
day
night,
but
they
they
they
have
over
500
temporary
employees
that
are
hired
overnight.
They
work
overnight,
sequestered
with
no
cell
phone,
no
access
to
the
outside
world
and
they're
at
a
convention
center,
where
there
is
they're
all
set
up
by
division
and
there's
equipment
at
every
division,
a
scanner
and
and
all
that.
G
But
you
know
we
looked
at
that
and
we
think
that
the
way
they
did
that
was
pretty
pretty
good,
but
we're
prepared
after
going
to
colorado.
We
know
that
you
know
there
are
other
ways
to
do
it.
Although
all
the
ways
require
this
automated
equipment
that
we
do
not
have,
they
require
space
and
esp
the
space
requirement
is
even
more
critical.
When
we
look
at
the
social
distancing
needs.
I
can't
I
really
I
I
know
I
talk
about
it
all
the
time.
G
G
People
don't
realize
is
when
we
did
the
june
primary,
it
was
kind
of
like
everybody
was
rushed
into
the
mailing
mail
ballot.
Right
people
were
waiting,
they
didn't
know
whether
or
not
they
should
do
it.
They
waited
to
see.
If
maybe
it
was
going
to
get
better.
We've
never
been
through
a
pandemic
before
maybe
it'll
get
better.
Maybe
I
can
go
to
the
polls.
People
were
scared,
they
didn't
know
what
to
do.
They
waited
long
to
apply
for
the
mail-in
ballot.
G
Time
is
our
friend
right
now,
so
the
earlier
people
apply
for
the
mail-in
ballot
the
earlier
we
can
get
that
ballot
out
to
them
and
then
that
that
helps
us
too
the
earlier
we
get
them
out
the
earlier.
We
get
them
back
and
any
change
that
happens
in
the
legislature
to
allow
us
to
begin
canvassing
earlier
is
that's
all
things
that
we
need.
I
mean
there,
that's
something
that
really
doesn't
cost
anything
that
would
make
a
huge
difference,
just
the
ability
to
start
earlier.
I
mean
right
now.
G
We
you
know,
although
we're
able
to
start
on
election
day
our
election
day,
our
staff
is
completely
occupied
with
election
day,
but
you
know
if
we
could
start
you
know
doing
stuff
earlier
and
be
more
prepared
for
that,
and
people
got
their
ballots
back
to
us
fast.
Their
applications
back
to
us
sooner.
G
We
would
get
the
balance
back
faster
time
is
our
friend
right
now
and
we
should
all,
as
as
elected
officials
and
people
that
are
talking
to
to
voters-
and
you
know
constantly
in
this
conversation,
we
cannot
stress
enough
how
important
it
is
to
apply
early
and
get
your
ballot
back
to
us.
It
really
would
help
everything.
I
Thank
you,
chairwoman,
dealey
and,
as
the
democratic
chair
of
the
the
house
state
government
committee,
I
think
it
would
be
productive
just
for
me
to
let
everyone
on
this
call
know
a
little
bit
of
the
background
in
relation
to
when
you
can
actually
begin
counting
the
the
mailing
boats
right
now
under
pennsylvania
law.
It
is
7
a.m.
On
election
day
we
that
the
democrats
in
the
house
state
government
committee
had
actually
lobbied
for
it
to
be
friday
before
the
tuesday
general
election.
That
was
opposed
by
the
republican
majority
in
in
the
state
house.
I
So
that's
why
there
was
a
compromise
that
it
would
be
on
election
day
at
7.
00
am
and
then
also
just
update
you
on
legislation
that
has
gone
through
our
committee.
There
is
a
bill
that
has
gone
through
the
house
state
government
committee,
which
would
allow
for
opening
all
the
the
envelopes
that
are
basically
the
the
non-ballot
envelope
before
7
a.m.
On
election
day,
I
I
really
appreciate
you
really
setting
forth
what
you
need
and
I
wrote
it
down,
which
was
a
space.
G
G
I
I
D
Thank
you
appreciate
that
chairman.
Thank
you
for
this
opportunity,
appreciate
everybody's
hustle,
obviously
over
leading
up
to
june
2nd
and
trying
to
figure
out
how
we
could
do
it
better
smoother
for
november
3rd,
I've
been
in
conversations
with
the
department
of
state
chairwoman
dealey,
and
I
think
they
described
satellite
offices,
and
this
may
be
oversimplifying
it
or
it
may
be
a
communication
issue
as
a
vpn
line,
a
virtual
private
network,
so
that
you
know
if
a
county
chose
whether
it's
philadelphia,
montgomery
county.
I
represent
both.
D
If
the
county
chose
to
do
a
quote-unquote
satellite
office
for
the
purposes
of
even
getting
mail-in
ballot
applications,
they
could
put
a
tent
up
across
from
a
church
on
a
given
sunday,
with
a
virtual
private
network
line
and
from
a
former
life
of
mine.
A
vpn
line
is
not
a
super
super
big
deal.
This
would
connect
to
the
shore
system
and
you've
got
a
satellite.
D
So
I
can
appreciate
what
you
were
saying,
but
I
was
also
I
specifically
met
with
and
asked
the
department
of
state
that
question.
So
I'm
concerned
that
there
might
be
a
little
bit
of
a
communication
issue
and
if
there's
any
way
that
you
know
a
chairman,
boyle
or
any
of
us
can
help
facilitate
that
communication.
D
So
we're
clear
I
mean
I
can
appreciate
the
price
tag
that
you
were
putting
on
what
you're
describing
for
a
satellite
office,
but
I
was
surprised
that
that
would
be
acceptable
to
the
department
and
again
very
happy
to
facilitate
a
further
conversation,
so
nobody's
overthinking
it
and
the
city
is,
you
know,
even
within
the
fourth
castle
manic
district,
we
cover
a
lot
of
territory.
So
you
know
everything
from
east
falls
and
a
little
bit
of
north
philadelphia
and
all
the
way
over
to
the
delaware
county
line.
D
The
m
to
z
line
was
practically
non-existent,
so
I
don't
know
if
there's
a
way
to
set
it
up,
so
that
if
we
do
consolidate-
and
I
know
we're
hoping
there
isn't
consolidation,
but
if
there
is
even
any
consolidation,
if
we
could
take
a
look
at
those
polling
books
to
be
organized
differently
might
facilitate
some
of
these
lines
moving
a
little
quicker.
But
that
was
my
observation.
G
F
I'm
a
great
thank
you,
mr
chair,
for
convening
such
an
important
hearing
this
afternoon.
Also,
I
want
to
thank
madam
chair
as
as
well
as
your
fellow
commissioners
for
being
here
this
afternoon,
all
the
work
that
you've
been
doing
with
the
organization,
especially
during
october
19,
when
we
had
such
a
disruption
of
our
normal
lives,
especially
the
election
process.
F
Regarding
various
aspects
of
the
voting
process
going
into
the
fall,
I
know
you've
been
visiting
various
locations,
you
talked
about
wayne
county
and
detroit
and
other
locations
and
you've
learned
a
lot
from
this
past
election.
But
what
would
you
say
in
reference
to
trying
to
get
more
information
out
from
a
procedural
perspective
of
how
the
election
process
will
occur?
This
fall.
G
Well,
councilman,
thank
you
and
thank
you
also,
because
you
and
I
have
chatted
quite
frequently
about
about
our
situation
here
with
the
november
election.
Of
course,
you
know
we're.
Always
we
always
want
to
do
everything
we
can
to
get
the
information
out
to
the
voters,
but
we
are
challenged
by
the
lack
of
clarity.
G
So
you
know
we
don't
we
don't
it's
hard
to
push
out
procedures
when
there
are
still
unanswered
questions
going
through
the
legislature.
There
are
changes
that
have
not
yet
been
hammered
out.
There
is
guidance
from
the
state
that
we're
still
waiting
on
so
we
get
into
a
difficult,
a
difficult
position
where
to
the
public.
It
seems
as
though
we're
withholding
information
or
we're
not
telling
people.
You
know
everything
they
need
to
know,
but
from
our
standpoint
we
don't
really
have
the
final
answer.
G
We
don't
have
the
definitive
process,
we
don't
know
what
what's
going
to
happen.
We
don't
know
you
know
if
we're
going
to
be
able
to
start
to
count
the
bail
tool,
we
don't
know.
If
there's
going
to
be
any
changes
to
election
day,
we
so
we're
kind
of
limited
the
one
thing.
What
we
do
know
is
that
the
deadlines
are
set
and
people
should
start
applying
now
and
they
should
work
to
get
their
ballot
back
to
us
as
soon
as
possible
that
we
know.
G
G
We
know
people
should
make
that
decision,
whether
they're
going
to
vote
by
mail
or
or
vote
in
person,
and
they
should
right
now
check
their
voter
registration
and
they
should
make
sure
that
they're
registered.
You
know
to
vote
and
they're
able
to
participate
in
the
process,
and
we
have
done,
and
we
will
continue
to
push
out
the
information
that
we
can
at
this
point.
But
it's
how
it's
hard
for
us
to
really,
even
when
it
comes
to
like
where
my
where's
my
polling
place,
going
to
be,
you
know
we
should.
G
We
have
to
wait
until
we
know
for
certain,
because
we
risk
adding
more
confusion.
If
we
tell
people
one
thing
and
now
it's
you
know
the
end
of
august
and
it's
changed
again.
So
we
are
we're.
Always
you
know,
walking
a
fine
line
between
not
being
like
people,
thinking
that
we're
not
giving
out
information
or
giving
out
too
much
information.
That
could
then
confuse
voters-
and
you
know
unintentionally,
disenfranchise
them.
F
F
I'm
glad
that
our
colleagues
from
the
house
are
on
this
call,
so
they
can
hear
some
of
this
information
and
participate.
They
bring
a
different
perspective
than
being
in
harrisburg
regarding
some
of
the
issues
and
concerns
they
see
at
a
commonwealth
wide
level,
but
I
wanted
to
follow
up
on
the
question
I
was
asked
by
democratic
chair
representative
oil
in
reference
to
the
cost
factor.
I
know
that
some
of
the
things
you
talked
about
you
talked
about
four
million
dollars
for
equipment.
F
We
talked
about
500
staff,
the
space
issues-
and
I
know
it's
somewhat
challenging-
maybe
in
this
form
to
provide
the
full
detailed
budget,
but
is
there
any
way
that
you
can
communicate
that
information
to
city
council
as
well
as
on
the
administration?
I
know
you
had
made
requests
on
the
budget
process,
we're
not
sure
how
our
finances
may
change
in
the
coming
weeks.
G
Yes,
we
will
put
something
together
with
with
cost
estimates
that
we've
been
able
to
determine
through
our
work
and
our
research.
I
would
also
add
that
the
the
500
attempts
that
detroit
needs
that
that
number
would
be
greatly
reduced.
We
wouldn't
need
that
much
in
philadelphia,
because
the
equipment
will
eliminate
the
need
for
a
lot
of
the
temporary
staff
that
does
a
lot
of
the
libraries
work
of
opening
the
envelopes
and
and
whatnot.
B
Thank
you,
councilman
councilman.
I
can
just
add
to
that
in
denver,
denver
has
400
000
voters
and
their
budget
is
10
million
dollars,
and
we
have
about
a
million
voters
about
two
million
dollars
to
remember
just
making
that
commitment.
You
know
the
voting
process
and
again
you
know
we
actually
you
guys
to
make
this
kind
of
commitment.
G
F
Thank
you.
Commission
beer.
I
duly
noted
also
looking
forward
how
we
can
work
with
you
and
council
member
thomas,
as
well
as
the
other
members
of
council
and
our
state
representative
and
even
state
senate
counterparts,
to
help
work
and
get
the
information
out
regarding
the
election
in
the
fall
through
social
media
and
other
means
to
really
try
to
educate
the
citizens
of
the
city
of
philadelphia.
So
thank
you.
C
How
are
you
thank
you,
mr
chairman,
and
thank
you
samantha.
I
do
want
to
thank
the
commissioner
and
her
team,
all
the
commissioners
for
a
job
well
done
under
the
circumstances.
It
was
very
difficult,
but
I
did
go
around
election
day,
looking
at
some
of
the
polling
places
and
you're
right.
The
workers
that
were
there
in
in
the
time
frame
that
we
have
with
the
unrest
and
with
the
pandemic
and
everything
else
that's
going
on,
did
a
tremendous
job
and
they
should
be
thanked
and
praised
for
everything
that
they
did.
G
G
It's
a
training
issue,
so
I
mean
if
we,
if
we
were
to
do
something
new
right
now,
I
don't
it
would.
It
would
be
counterproductive,
because
we
are
we're
in
a
situation
where
we
have
to
teach
them
so
much
before
november,
already
with
the
act
77
and
that
and
the
mail-in
voting,
and
we
have
to
make
sure
that
they
another
thing
I
didn't
even
get
to
mention
when
we
gave
them
all
this
ppe
and
just
in
a
box
right.
C
G
We
are
looking
to
stand
up
the
election
day
in
a
typical
fashion,
similar
to
what
we
saw
in
november
of
last
year.
Having
every
division
stand
up
on
its
own.
We
do
know
that
we
will
lose
polling
locations
that
are
no
longer
available
to
us
because
of
the
pandemic,
but
but
the
divisions
right
now,
as
of
today,
will
stand
up
on
their
own.
C
I
think
that
will
be
easier
too,
knowing
that
I
think
the
amount
of
people
that
you'd
have
to
go
through
to
look
to
see
if
they
had
put
in
a
mail
invalid
or
not
would
be
a
lot
easier.
So
if
they
do
have
that
sheet
and
it's
not
on
an
ipad
or
not
virtual,
they
could
just
say
all
right.
You
know
you
already.
Did
you
mail
in
your
vote
or
did
you
not,
then
they
could
do
a
provisionary,
provisional
ballot
or.
G
C
And
I
know
you
stated
earlier
in
in
the
hearing
that,
as
far
as
mailing
out
everybody
and
mail
in
ballot
application
the
cost
of
that,
but
the
best
way
to
do
it
is
online
if
possible.
If
we
do,
I
mean,
can
we
have
counties
help
with
that?
Can
we
have?
I
mean,
I
know
individual
people
who
are
running
for
office
sent
out
applications
for
people
to
do
mail
and
balance.
Is
there
a
way
to
collaborate
with
people
so
that
we
don't
have
20
different
people
sending
out
applications
for
millions.
J
G
Mean
I've
already
heard
myself
personally
in
three
different
groups
that
are
male
and
going
to
be
on
applications.
So
it's
going
to
be
a
challenge
similar
to
the
voter
registration.
You
know
when
people
say:
oh
you're,
not
you
know
they.
They
somebody
says
oh
you're
not
registered.
Look
your
name's,
not
here,
and
then
people
don't
think
they're
registered,
so
they
register
again
or
they
don't
get
their
card
fast
enough.
So
they
think
we
didn't
get
it
so
they
register
again
we're
going
to
see
that
issue.
C
Yeah-
and
I
mean
if
we
can
encourage
them
to
do
it
online,
like
you,
said
it's
easier
to
process
and
get
through
than
the
manual
ones,
not
sure
if
these
third
parties
are
going
to
be
doing.
That
also
because
I
did
receive
them
to
my
home
and
even
names
that
I
don't
even
know
who
they
are
but
saying,
you're
not
registered,
and
we
see
that
you're
not
registered
at
this
address.
C
So
I
mean
there's
going
to
be
some
confusion
there
and
hopefully
that
doesn't
add
to
the
problems
that
people
think
that
there
might
be
inequities
in
the
in
the
process.
But
I
really
appreciate
everything.
You've
done
looking
forward
to
continue
to
working
with
you
and
our
state
legislators
to
make
sure
that
november's
process
is,
if
not
as
smooth
smoother
than
the
primary.
Thank
you
so
much.
A
Well
with
that,
I
think
you've
done
a
really
good
job
of
crystallizing
where
things
are
and
where
potentially
both
good
and
bad.
They
can
be
I'm
very
pleased
that
our
state
partners
were
able
to
hear
that
and
be
able
to
be
helpful
moving
forward.
So
thank
you
all
for
your
testimony
feel
free
to
stay
on
the
line
just
in
case
other
issues
come
up,
but
thank
you.
A
A
M
Okay,
I'll
go
first
pat
christmas
policy
director
for
the
committee
of
70,
I'm
happy
to
be
here
also
understand.
We
have
a
bit
of
a
a
time
crunch.
So
I'll
keep
my
comments
brief,
and
you
know
thank
you,
councilman
jones,
for
helping
organize
us
and
members
of
the
committee
for
having
this
public
discussion.
Obviously
around
of
all
the
crises
that
the
country
and
the
state
of
the
city
are
dealing
with.
M
This
is
the
one
that's
right
in
front
of
us
and
we
are
running
out
of
time
to
properly
prepare,
and
you
know,
representative
boyle
was
not
was
not
wrong
in
that
without
the
proper
investment
and
the
planning
and
the
collaboration
that
has
to
take
place
before
the
the
november
election.
If
we,
if
we
basically
just
repeat
what
we
did
in
june,
we're
going
to
have
a
disaster
in
our
hands,
so
it
is.
M
It
is
urgent
that
these
things,
these
things
are
taken
care
of-
and
I
I
have
to
you
know,
acknowledge
the
fact
that
the
city,
commissioners
and
their
staff
worked
extremely
hard
long
hours
on
weekends.
For
weeks
and
weeks
at
least
weeks
to
try
to
pull
off
the
june
primary
and
even
with
their
best
efforts,
there
were
a
lot
of
problems
and
a
lot
of
folks
were
disenfranchised.
So
that's
that's
why
this
is
urgent
and
again,
thank
you
again
for
having
the
space
to
talk
about
this.
M
You
know
political
noise
that
that's
out
there
out
there,
so
the
the
scale
is
is
substantial
and
the
the
commissioners
are
also
correct
in
that
they
need
this
equipment.
It's
it's
at
least
a
couple
million
dollars
worth
of
equipment
just
for
vote
by
mail.
These
are
the
things
that
will,
you
know,
put
the
ballot
packs
together
accurately
efficiently,
quickly
sort
them
for
the
u.s
postal
service.
M
Also,
you
know
when
the
when
the
ballots
come
in,
you
have
to
sort
them
open
them
quickly
and
get
them
get
them
ready
to
scan
part
of
the
reason
this
equipment
is
necessary.
It's
not
just
for
the
sake
of
you
know,
minimizing
staffing
costs,
but
because
there
are
surges
here
you
know
and
it's
an
additional
challenge
and
just
back
to
life
with
elections,
and
that
you
know
a
mail
and
applications
don't
come
in
all
the
same
time.
M
Voter
registration
applications
don't
come
in
all
the
same
time
and
the
ballots
don't
come
in
all
at
the
same
time
and
the
surges,
especially
as
the
deadlines
draw
near,
is
where
your
risk
is
where
we
risk
disenfranchisement.
So
you
know
the
equipment's
critical
the
space.
The
space
is
needed
too.
Allegheny
county
had
a
whole
warehouse
where
they
could
line
up
their
equipment
just
the
way
they
needed
and
and
work
things
efficiently.
M
We
had
to
you
know,
squeeze
things
into
our
regular
delaware
and
spring
garden
office
as
best
we
could-
and
you
know
folks
folks
were
crunched
together,
crunched
together
there.
You
know
the
other
critical
components
of
of
the
the
vote
by
mail.
You
know
election
that
has
to
be
run,
and
these
are
these
are
outlined
in
our
written.
Testimony
are
the
drop-off
options
and
the
early
voting
sites.
Now
you
know
some
of
this
is
being
litigated
right
now
and,
of
course,
the
general
assembly
hasn't
finalized
and
negotiated
their
changes.
M
The
election
code
either,
but
we
we
have
to
plan
right
now,
given
what
we,
what
we
do
know
and
the
early
voting
sites
and
the
drop-off
locations
are
essential
pieces
of
a
vote-by-mail
system.
And
the
reason
is
this:
I
mean
we
want
to
obviously
minimize
the
number
of
people
who
are
showing
up
on
election
day,
especially
during
these
pandemic
conditions.
So
the
early
voting
sites,
some
number
early
voting
sites
in
each
council
district
and
also
you
know
informed
by
the
voter
data.
What
will
be
needed?
M
They
also
provide
an
opportunity
for
people
to
get
replacement
ballots,
and
this
is
something
that
we
had
a
lot
of
trouble
with
in
the
spring,
because
this
was
a
brand
new
system.
Folks,
either
didn't
didn't
get
their
ballot
at
all.
That
happened
to
some
number
of
people,
a
small
number,
but
some
number
of
folks,
or
if
they
had
it,
you
know
the
ballot
got
damaged.
They
made
a
mismark
on
it.
They
need
a
chance
to
replace
that.
That's
something
that
can
happen
at
the
early
voting
locations
and
the
drop-off
boxes.
M
In
june
I
mean
thousands
of
thousands
of
voters
have
been
clipped
by
these
deadlines
for
for
years
for
years
now,
so,
just
just
on
the
vote
by
mail
side,
I
mean
we
could
be
looking
at.
You
know
300
400,
000
people
voted
in
my
mail,
potentially
it's
that
scale
that
the
commissioners
really
need
this
equipment
and
the
space
to
deal
with.
Just
just
a
couple
quick
remarks
about
the
in-person
voting
situation,
which
we've
already
discussed
extensively.
M
You
know
it
is
a
good
thing
that
we're
not
going
to
have
the
massive
consolidation
we
had
in
the
fall
that
you
know
that
that
does
have
a
suppressive
effect.
It's
tougher
for
people
to
get
around
the
corner
to
you
know
to
the
the
church
or
the
rec
center
or
the
school
that
they
usually
go
to.
So
that's
that's
a
good
thing.
The
challenge
will
be
getting
the
spaces
filled.
You
know,
pennsylvania
is
one
of
several
states
in
the
country
where
we
still
elect
our
poll
workers.
M
You
know
government
employees
can't
fill
in
those
slots
either.
Both
those
conditions
are
in
our
state
constitution.
We're
gonna
have
to
come
back
to
that
next
next
session,
but
but
one
of
the
things
that
we
need
the
general
assembly
to
do.
If
they're
not
gonna,
allow
limited
limited
polling
place
consolidation,
then
they
they
do
have
to.
You
know
at
a
minimum.
M
M
The
last
thing,
I'll
name
again,
keep
in
keeping
in
mind
that
you
know
time
is
short.
Is
that
you
know,
and
and
councilman
you
name
this
at
the
outset,
communications
and
voter
outreach
is
going
to
be
critical.
Two
basic
reasons.
One
is
that
when
you
change
voting
procedures
they
don't
have
the
same
impact
on
all
voters.
There's
there's
always
a
disproportionate
impact.
M
You
know
one
of
the
things
we
saw
in
the
primary
is
that
communities
of
color
were
did
not
use
mail
and
voting
at
the
same
rate,
a
number
of
different
reasons
for
that,
but
they
didn't
use
it
at
the
same
rate
and
further
they
applied
later
in
the
process
and
therefore
were
more
subject
to
the
tight
deadlines
and
and
the
crush
of
processing
that
happened
that
had
to
happen
at
the
variance.
So
that's
you
know,
that's
just
you
know.
You
know
hard
on
the
street
communications
using
everything
we
got.
That's.
You
know.
17.
M
Council
offices,
the
the
administration,
the
philly
council
infrastructure,
civic
groups,
organ
you
know:
community
community
organizations,
businesses,
everybody
has
got
to
be.
You
know
all
on
top
of
these
voting
procedures
once
they're,
clear
one
and-
and
they
aren't
entirely
clear
yet
once
they
are
clear
later
this
summer,
that
has
to
be
a
top
priority.
M
The
other
thing
you
named
was
the
fact
that
there
will
be
unfounded
allegations
of
of
widespread
voter
fraud
and
election
fraud,
and
you
know
we
know
it's
coming
right,
so
we
have
to
make
sure
that
the
the
trusted
messengers
are
there.
A
new
initiative
to
vote
safe
pa
actually
just
launched
this
week.
You
know
credible
republican
and
democratic
messengers,
we're
going
to
speak
to
the
fact
that
you
know
our
our
elections
aren't
perfect
and
here
in
pennsylvania,
they're,
they're,
actually
they're
in
many
ways:
they're
they're,
quite
old
and
antiquated.
M
M
It
is
true
that
they
have
to
run
two
big
elections
at
the
same
time
that
that
will
need
more
money
and
then
we'll
need
more
equipment
in
space,
but
there
does
have
to
be
a
plan
right
and
the
commissioners,
I
believe,
are
working
on
this
because,
and
these
questions
came
up
earlier,
we
we
need
to
know
exactly
what
equipment.
So
we
can
procure
that
right
now
I
mean
that's,
that's
really
at
the
top
of
a
list
of
really
urgent
needs,
that's
the
very
top!
M
We
need
to
know
how
many
early
voting
sites,
how
many
drop-off
locations,
how
much
those
will
actually
cost
and
then
and
then
you
know
ultimately
I
think,
a
degree
of
collaboration
we
have
not
had
in
the
city
of
philadelphia
around
elections.
You
know
ever
ever
before.
Really
this
is
this
is
the
most
challenging
election.
Perhaps
we've
ever
had
to
run
right
for
all
the
reasons
we
know
and
the
city
commissioners
need.
M
They
need
city
council,
they
need
the
administration,
they
need
a
state
and
they
need
all
the
other
stakeholders
around
the
table
to
make
this
happen.
So
again,
I
I
very
much
appreciate
you
and
the
committee
taking
time
this
afternoon
to
to
provide
a
poke
forum
about
this.
Of
course,
you
know
I'm
happy
to
answer
any
questions
now
or
later.
A
J
Great
thank
you
so
much
for
having
me,
my
name
is
suzanne
almeida,
I'm,
the
interim
executive
director
for
common
cause,
pennsylvania.
It
is
great
to
be
here-
and
this
is
such
an
important
conversation,
and
I
really
appreciate
that
we
are
taking
the
time
to
focus
in
on
what
needs
to
happen
to
make
november
a
success.
J
I
want
to
lift
up
something
that
pat
just
said,
which
is
about
teamwork
right.
We
know
that
this
is
going
to
be
a
complicated
election.
We
know
that
there
are
a
million
different
things,
a
that
have
to
be
done,
that
are
technical
b
that
have
to
be
communicated
to
voters
and
then
back
to
the
elections,
officials
and
c
that
have
to
work
between
elected
elected
officials
at
the
state,
county
and
federal
levels
right.
So
this
is
not
an
easy
thing
to
do.
J
All
of
that
being
said,
I
really
want
to
emphasize
the
need
for
open
and
transparent
communication
between
elected
officials,
our
city,
commissioners,
voters
and
advocates
right.
This
is
a
two-way
street,
and
so
I
think
it's
really
important
that,
in
the
midst
of
all
of
the
other
things
that
our
city
commissioners
are
doing-
and
I
commend
them
deeply
for
the
work
they
have
done
to
educate
voters
to
manage
the
minutia-
that
is
not
small.
It's
just
a
lot
of
it
of
running
an
election
to
deal
with
changing
election
regulations.
J
I
commend
them
for
all
of
that
work,
but
I
would
encourage
us,
as
we
go
into
november,
to
really
take
a
hard
look
at
how
we
are
communicating
with
the
public
expressly
right.
So
we
know
that
just
like
we
are
having
here
today.
It's
important
that
the
public
and
advocates
have
an
ability
to
ask
questions
and
get
responses.
J
We
know
that
published
meetings
make
a
difference.
We
know
that
taking
the
time,
even
though
that
time
is
so
precious
and
so
valuable
to
actually
respond
to
public
questions,
to
answer
the
phone
to
talk
to
people
who
are
having
a
problem,
whether
it
be
an
advocate
like
myself
or,
more
importantly,
a
voter
who
has
an
issue.
J
J
J
The
third
is
public
participation
and
then
the
fourth
is
public
deliberation,
so
allowing
members
of
the
public
to
be
part
of
these
decision
making
conversations
right,
and
we
know
that
that's
important,
not
just
because
we
want
people
to
feel
part
of
their
government
and
to
hold
their
government
accountable,
but
actually
leads
to
better
decision
making.
Which
brings
me
to
my
second
point-
and
I
want
to
echo
a
lot
of
what
pat
said
and
what
we've
heard
earlier
today.
There
are
a
list,
a
relatively
short
list
of
things,
that
we
can
do.
J
Policy
changes
that
can
happen
at
the
state
legislature.
Level
that
will
make
our
elections
run
more
smoothly
in
november,
first
and
foremost,
is
making
sure
that
we
are
allowing
pre-canvassing
of
ballots
to
start
earlier
than
that
7
a.m
on
election
day,
and
I
think
that
that
responds
to
a
lot
of
concerns
across
the
board,
including
those
of
chairman
boyles,
in
getting
those
election
results
out.
J
Despite
the
best
efforts
of
everyone,
we
know
that
we
are
in
the
midst
of
a
public
health
crisis,
we're
in
the
midst
of
a
public
health
crisis
that
seems
to
be
getting
worse
instead
of
better
at
this
current
point
in
time,
and
so
we
need
to
be
aware
that
what
happens
in
november,
while
we
can
plan
for
the
best,
we
also
have
to
plan
for
the
worst.
So
what
if
we
have
to
consolidate
our
polling
places?
What
is
what
are
the
parameters
around
that?
J
How
do
we
make
sure
that
they
are
consolidated
in
a
way
that
doesn't
disenfranchise
voters?
How
do
we
make
sure
that
say
no
more
than
5
000
voters
are
consolidated
into
any
single
polling
place?
How
do
we
make
sure
that,
if
possible,
those
polling
place,
consolidation,
those
consolidated
polling
places
are
located
in
public
on
easy
public
transportation
are
located
in
places
that
communities
can
actually
reach
and
that
they
are
staffed
appropriately
with
trained
poll
workers
to
make
that
process
possible.
J
It's
not
easy
and
I'm
not
trying
to
say
that
it
will
be,
but
I
do
think
that,
as
with
many
things,
if
we
start
contingency
planning
earlier,
it's
going
to
make
the
process
better
at
the
end.
And
finally-
and
this
is
a
request
kind
of
both
for
council
and
for
the
general
assembly,
and
if
we
have
any
of
our
friends
on
the
federal
level
listening
to
us
today,
I
think
that
it
is
absolutely
essential
that
we
fully
fund
our
elections,
infrastructure
elections.
J
Infrastructure
is
criminally
underfunded
across
the
country,
and
I
think
that
that's
really
evident
in
pennsylvania,
both
at
the
state
level
and
at
the
city
council
level.
We.
This
is
a
cornerstone
of
our
democracy
and
all
of
these
changes
that
we're
talking
about
this
contingency
planning
is
customer
service.
It's
making
sure
that
we
can
cut
out
time
to
engage
with
the
public
if
they
have
questions
or
concerns.
All
of
that
requires
resources
and
those
resources
have
to
come
from
somewhere
right.
We
cannot
draw
blood
from
a
stone.
J
We
have
to
make
sure
that
these,
the
commissioners
who
are
doing
yaleman's
work
of
running
the
infrastructure
of
our
democracy
have
the
ability
to
do
that,
and
so
I
will
leave
it
there,
there's
obviously
more
to
talk
about,
but
I
know
that
we
are
short
on
time.
So
I'm
happy
to
entertain
any
questions.
A
A
Yeah,
that's
all
right,
it's
before
a
lot
of
time,
but
it's
okay,
all
right,
but
thank
you
and
please
stay
engaged
we're
going
to
need
you.
I
know
nobody,
whether
you
talk
about
a
sports
analogy,
nobody
likes
losing
a
game,
but
they
really
don't
like
it
when
they
don't
think
the
referee
was
playing
fair
and
we're
at
a
critical
juncture
with
the
division
in
this
country.
That
one
thing
we
got
to
prove
is
that
the
game
was
fair,
and
so
we
count
on
you
for
that
all
right.
Thank
you!
L
Hi
good
afternoon,
chairman
and
committee
members,
thank
you
for
calling
this
important
hearing
on
philadelphia's
elections
and
for
this
opportunity
to
testify.
My
name
is
muriel
mccarthy
and
I'm
a
resident
of
philadelphia,
I'm
speaking
on
behalf
of
protect
our
vote.
Philly,
a
non-partisan
coalition
of
organizations
and
individuals
such
as
myself,
who
are
working
to
make
sure
that
we
have
free
and
fair
elections
in
philadelphia.
L
We
are
testifying
today
to
raise
election
security
issues
noted
in
that
letter,
as
well
as
a
number
of
other
issues
that
we
hope
will
be
answered
in
this
hearing
and
future
hearings.
Resolution
number
200376
outlines
several
important
concerns
related
to
the
delayed
counting
of
mail-in
ballots
in
last
month's
primary.
L
However,
there
are
a
number
of
other
significant
issues
in
urgent
need
of
solutions
before
november.
There
are
four
areas
of
concern
that
I'll
speak
to,
including
the
solutions
we
urge
the
city
commissioners
to
adopt
number
one
paper.
Mail-In
ballot
applications
were
not
accessible
to
all
voters.
It
was
a
prohibitively
difficult
and
lengthy
process
to
procure
a
paper
ballot
application
for
those
without
access
to
the
internet,
computer
or
printer.
This
issue
was
exacerbated
by
library
closings,
which
removed
access
to
public
computers
and
the
lack
of
communication
and
outreach.
L
This
particularly
affected
older
voters,
who
are
at
the
greatest
risk
of
if
exposed
to
cobit
at
polling,
places
the
solution.
A
paper,
mail
and
ballot
application
should
be
sent
to
every
registered
voter
in
philadelphia
or,
at
the
very
least.
The
commissioners
should
send
applications
upon
request
and
carry
out
widespread
outreach
to
ensure
voters
and
organizers
are
aware
of
this
option.
Two
dropboxes
love
stations
were
limited
and
confusing,
especially
given
the
risk
associated
with
public
transit.
During
this
pandemic,
drop
boxes
were
often
inaccessible
to
those
who
needed
the
most.
L
Those
who
lived
farthest
away
from
the
best
known
location,
which
was
outside
of
city
hall,
that
location
was
made
yet
more
inaccessible,
with
a
heavy
police
and
military
presence.
In
response
to
recent
protests,
other
locations
were
announced
at
the
last
minute
and
had
varying
dates
times
and
locations
leading
to
widespread
confusion.
L
Solution,
secure
about
dropbox
locations
should
be
established
throughout
the
city,
preferably
at
each
polling
location
and
should
be
announced
clearly
and
concisely.
At
least
two
weeks
before
election
day
number
three
vote,
counting
was
mismanaged
and
oversight
was
lacking.
Ballots
were
exposed
to
alteration
and
damage
during
canvassing
when
damaged
ballots
needed
to
be
duplicated.
L
This
duplication
occurred
without
adequate
supervision.
Watchers
were
prohibited
from
recording
what
they
saw
and
were
kept
too
far
away
to
adequately
observe
the
canvas.
These
concerns
were
outlined
in
greater
detail
in
an
open
letter
to
the
city
commissioners.
On
july,
8th,
which
sydney
council
members
received
solution,
there
should
be
clear,
written
policies
that
govern
the
canvas
process
and
allow
for
close
verifiable
observation
by
certified
watchers
and
the
public
through
available
technological
means.
L
Four
counting
vote
counting
was
delayed.
The
canvas
of
all
votes
took
nearly
two
weeks
in
june,
barely
meeting
the
legal
deadline,
but
thankfully
it
did
most
of
this
time
was
not
taken
by
scanning,
but
by
ballot
perspiration,
including
several
days,
delay
to
check
for
possible
double
votes.
This
delay
was
caused
by
the
failure
of
the
electronic
pullback
purchase
and
lack
of
poll
worker
training.
A
similar
delay
on
a
larger
scale
in
november
could
be
catastrophic
solution.
L
Poor
worker
training
and
procedures
must
be
improved.
Board
staff
should
do
as
much
preparation
of
mail
and
absentee
ballots
for
counting
as
the
law
permits
before
polls
close,
so
they
can
be
scanned
as
quickly
as
possible.
After
polls.
Close,
more
high-speed
scanners
can
help
accelerate
this
process.
Taking
together.
These
problems
threaten
the
integrity
of
our
elections.
They
have
the
potential
to
disenfranchise.
Thousands
of
voters
can
cast
doubt
on
our
elections
validity
and
expose
our
results
to
lawsuits,
but
the
city
commissioners
have
the
power
to
solve
them.
L
L
Commissioners
have
never
presented
cost
projections
for
the
various
additional
expenses
they
foresee,
such
as
increased
costs
for
handling
mail-in
ballots
versus
operating
expenses.
For
the
voting
machines,
therefore,
we
recommend
first
thoroughly
investigate
past
spending
of
the
city
commissioner's
office
to
ensure
taxpayer
dollars
were
spent
appropriately,
and
second,
we
recommend
involving
the
city
controller's
office
to
ensure
accountability
to
the
public
on
how
taxpayer
money
will
be
spent
going
forward.
L
In
closing
in
the
upcoming
public
meetings,
we
ask
that
you
investigate
these
issues
and
request
a
committed
plan
from
the
commissioner's
office
on
how
they
will
work
to
address
them.
We
would
like
to
emphasize
that
if
funding
is
to
be
provided,
it
is
done
so
with
a
detailed
audit
on
how
taxpayer
dollars
will
be
spent.
A
D
I
Thank
you,
councilman
jones,
just
adjusting
my
my
phone
again.
Thank
you
for
the
panel
being
here
serving
in
the
state
house.
We
deal
with
a
a
quite
ideologically
conservative,
pennsylvania
republican
house
caucus.
I
don't
think
that's
a
surprise
to
to
many
people,
and
often
we
deal
with
misinformation
and
during
debate
related
to
allowing
for
the
early
counting
of
votes
back
in
october.
I
I
was
interested
if
the
the
people
who
just
testify
committee
70
common
cause
and
and
protect
our
vote
if
they
had
any
knowledge
that
early
vote
tabulation
allowed
for
voting
results
to
get
out
to
the
media
and
the
broader
public
before
the
polls
close
at
8pm
on
election
night.
Thank
you,
councilman
jones.
M
Yeah
I'll
I'll
I'll
dive
in
first.
Thank
you
for
that
question
representative.
It's
it's
an
important
one,
because
there
are
there's
some
legitimate
concerns
about
elections
out
there
and
there's
some
illegitimate
ones.
Other
states,
as
you
said,
do
this
securely
and
safely
so
pennsylvania
should
be
as
as
well
with
regards
to.
Like
I
mean
you
know,
someone
within
an
elections
office
doing
something
they
shouldn't
do
and
letting
letting
results
you
know
sneak
out.
M
I
saw
an
election
director
quoted
a
few
weeks
ago
as
saying
he's,
never
met
a
candidate
worth
going
to
jail
for
so
I
I
mean
I
I
you
know
we're
not
concerned
at
all
again.
Other
jurisdictions
do
this
safely
securely
and
it's.
It
is
something
that
we
need
here
in
pennsylvania
to
avoid
you
know
a
a
delay
until.
J
Yeah,
this
is
suzanne
from
common
cause.
I
would
echo
all
of
that.
You
don't
have
any
concerns
with
things
being
released
early.
I
would
echo
what
you
said
chairman
boyle
about
the
level
of
disinformation
and
misinformation.
That's
out
there,
and
I
think
I
just
want
to
take
the
opportunity
to
really
lift
up
the
bonus
on
everyone
on
this
call.
J
We
are
all
folks
who
talk
to
people
about
elections
who
people
look
to
as
trusted
messengers
about
elections,
and
I
think
anything
we
can
do
to
bring
election
security
and
the
right
to
vote
out
of
a
partisan
and
into
a
democracy
framework
right.
This
is
a
cornerstone
of
our
democracy.
We
want
safe,
secure
and
accessible
elections
for
everyone,
regardless
of
which
party
you
vote
in.
I
think
that
is
ultimately
going
to
get
us
further,
and
this
is
not
in
response
to
anything.
L
I'd
like
to
make
a
remark
from
protect
our
vote
philly,
we
do
have
a
couple
of
instances
where
there
was
issues
at
the
at
the
poll
on
worker
level.
So
I
think,
what's
really
important
is
that
we
make
sure
that
there
are
strict
rules
about
not
reporting
any
information
outside
of
the
commissioner's
office.
L
You
know
any
any
during
the
canvas
so
that
there
has
to
be
you
know
the
felony
and
and
also
we
have
to
make
sure
that
that
if
we
are
to
the
most
time-consuming
part
of
processing
these
the
election
is
the
processing
of
the
ballots.
As
we
all
know,
right
and
the
shortest
period
of
time
is
in
the
scanning
of
the
ballots,
the
counting
and
if
we
get
high-speed
scanners
as
the
commissioners
are
wishing
to
get,
which
is
a
great
idea,
we
can
do
accounting
within
days,
so
we
don't.
L
I
Thank
you
thank
you
to
the
panel
and
you
know
I.
I
don't
think
there
are
any
examples
that
critics
of
allowing
for
an
early
vote,
tabulation
in
sight
on
any
sort
of
mass
level
of
vote
tabulations
getting
out
there,
and
I
appreciate
the
contributions
of
the
panel.
Thank
you
councilman
jones.
Thank
you.
K
M
Yeah
yeah,
thank
you
representative.
Well,
first,
it
is.
It
is
important
that
all
counties
are
doing
things
the
same
way
and
unfortunately
it's
it's
not
just
a
few
other
states
and
jurisdictions
that
manage
the
pre-canvas
process.
Safe
and
securely.
Two-Thirds
of
states
allow
some
version
of
this,
and
there
is
some
variation
I
mean
in
california.
They
can
start
opening
envelopes.
M
I
believe,
almost
almost
30
days
out
in
some
states,
it's
like
on
a
rolling
basis
as
a
ballot
comes
in
they're
able
to
you,
know,
open
and
pre-process
it
so
there
there
are
a
number
of
examples
to
look
at
you
know
I
don't
I
don't.
Have
those
specifics
like
to
talk
about
like
you
know
right
now,
but
we
can
certainly
pull
those
together
and
I
think,
if
anything
I
mean
to
your
question
and
and
represent
boyle's.
You
know
question
like
there.
M
K
K
N
N
Please
start
processing
ballots
earlier,
if
at
all
possible
the
multiple
poll
books,
I
noticed,
generate
a
lot
of
confusion
and
delay.
I
know
there
is
an
electronic
version
available.
We
should
actually
absolutely
use
it
if
possible
and
yeah
city
commission
must
have
the
staff
to
process
ballots
swiftly.
Please
send
mail
and
ballots
to
all
voters
and
encourage
voters
to
send
their
ballots
in
as
soon
as
they've
made
their
decisions.
Many
voters
don't
realize
that
sending
ballots
in
early
can
expedite
the
process.
N
The
number
of
people
that
we
had
to
redirect
from
the
crystal
rec
center
was
shameful.
Many
had
been
told
that
they
could
drop
off
mail-in
ballots
at
our
polling
place
after
having
already
been
redirected
to
a
weekend,
drop-off
location
from
yet
another
polling
place.
So
these
folks
had
to
be
sent
in
turn
to
the
blackwell
library.
That's
four
stops
for
a
mail-in
ballot.
I
wonder
how
many
were
dropped
in
the
trash,
because
the
voter
was
late
for
work.
We
need
drop
off
boxes
early
and
day
of
voting
at
every
polling.
N
Place
clearly
marked
what
they're
there
for
who
can
use
them.
We
also
need
more
early
voting
centers
and
they
need
to
have
deep
meaning
and
weekend
hours,
but
watching
voters
get
sent
from
one
polling
place
to
another
has
been
a
consistent
and
infuriating
feature
of
every
election
I
have
seen
since
taking
my
office.
Please
I
want
to
take
a
page
from
the
book
of
ms
mccarthy
and
provide
a
solution.
Please
equip
each
polling
place
with
a
tablet
so
that
people
can
look
up
their
polling
places
at
the
very
least.
N
Have
each
polling
place,
assign
one
person
the
task
of
helping
people
look
up
their
polling
place,
instead
of
just
any
given
poll
worker
sending
any
given
voter
to
wherever
they
think
might
be,
that
voters
polling
place.
People
kept
saying
that
they've
been
sent
from
place
to
place
to
place,
and
this
happens
every
single
year
twice
a
year.
I
know
that
66
wards
announced
that
the
consolidation
of
polling
places
cost
philadelphia,
almost
20
000
votes
in
the
primary.
N
N
K
Afternoon,
I
am
here
hello,
chairman
jones
and
members
of
the
legislative
oversight
committee.
My
name
is
brenda.
Shelton
dunstan-
and
I
am
here
to
testify
today
on
resolution
200376.,
I'm
coming
to
you
as
the
executive
director
of
the
philadelphia
black
women's
health
alliance,
a
public
health
professional,
a
committee
person,
a
poll
past
poll,
watcher
advocate
and
most
important
of
all
as
a
citizen
of
the
united
states,
who
has
a
right
to
vote
during
elections
as
do
other
citizens
in
the
u.s.
K
I
took,
I
successfully
exercised
my
option
to
vote
by
mail
and
ballot
during
the
primary.
However,
that
was
not
the
case
for
others
who
attempted
to
enroll
in
and
use
the
ballot
the
primary
election
incurred
at
a
time
as
you
all
as
we're
talking
about
when
covet
19
was
disproportionately
impacting
the
black
community
due
to
increased
vulnerability
based
on
chronic
health
disparity
conditions,
systemic
health
inequities
and
social
determinants
of
health.
As
of
july
20,
2020
46.5
of
the
coronavirus
coronaviruses
in
philly
are
occurring
in
the
black
community.
K
K
Before
I
submit
the
following
recommendations,
collaborate
with
community
advocates
leaders
ministers
to
ensure
that
all
citizens
are
educated
and
have
a
working
knowledge
of
how
to
request,
receive
and
submit
a
mail-in
ballot
conduct
a
marketing
campaign
to
increase
awareness,
inclusive
of
door-to-door
train
community
partners
advocates
and
others
to
do
this
outreach
and
assist
family
members
neighbors
church
members
to
enroll
to
vote
by
them
having
the
mailing
option
is
critically
needed.
Now,
as
we
move
towards
the
november
election
during
the
covet
19
pandemic.
K
That,
in
and
of
itself
is
a
crisis
within
the
crisis
within
the
black
community.
Thank
you
all
so
very
much.
I
also
would
like
to
give
thanks
for
the
recommendations
for
the
early
voting
centers,
as
well
as
the
urgent
need
for
the
funds
to
support
our
voting
and
our
ability
to
vote
it
is.
This
is
critical.
B
Yes,
hello,
my
name
is
john
zimmerman.
I'm
a
committee
person
down
in
south
philly
we're
26
division
12..
I
just
wanted
to
also
just
kind
of
discuss
the
letter
from
protect
our
vote
philly.
I
was
also
one
of
the
people
that
co-signed
that
letter
it
outlines
a
number
of
issues
that
that
they
were
concerned
about
that
we're
concerned
about.
B
Obviously
time
is
tight
and
I
think
we
all
are
very
aware
of
some
of
the
issues,
but
I
just
wanted
to
just
emphasize
the
desire
that
you
know
I
would
love
it
if
the
council
would
definitely
take
a
look
at
that
letter
and
try
to
implement
as
many
of
those
policies
as
possible.
But
one
thing
I
just
wanted
to
leave
you
guys
with
was
more
of
a
personal
thought
here.
I
L
B
In
south
florida
during
the
whole
2000
election
hanging,
chad,
nonsense
and
it
is
a
blemish
that
florida
will
never
live
down,
and
I
just
want
to
say
on
a
personal
note
like
it
is
not
something
that
I'd
like
to
see
philadelphia
be
a
club.
I
want
him
in
that
club
and
I
just
really
want
to
leave
you
guys
with
that
note
that
we
really
need
to
do
something
about
this
or
we're
going
to
be
in
trouble.
B
I
know
everybody
takes
it
seriously,
and
nobody
knows
that,
but
you
know
just
taking
someone
who
watched
some
of
that
stuff
go
down
firsthand.
I
was
like
a
county
away.
It
is
not
something
we
want
to
experience
or
be
a
part
of
in
any
way,
and
I
just
really
want
to
encourage
you
guys
to
to
really
just
take
this
very
seriously
and
just
do
what
needs
to
be
done
and
the
lady
that
said
that
the
committee
people
want
to
be
involved.
I'm
a
community
person.
B
I
totally
understand-
and
I
agree
with
her-
you
know
it's
it's
it's
difficult,
because
we
try
to
get
all
the
work
and
do
the
work
and
get
the
word
out
and
it's
tough
sometimes
and
we
can
use
all
the
support
we
can
get.
So
I
know
time
is
tight
and
I
don't
want
to
take
up
too
much
time,
but
I
just
want
to
thank
you
all
for
your
time.
A
Thank
you
for
your
testimony
and
it's
interesting.
I
was
sitting
here
thinking
about
that
very
close
election
with
the
first
bush.
No
george
was
it
junior.
It
was
junior
right
and
yeah
and
how
close
that
was,
and
how
that
could
have
a
recount
right
then
could
have
split
the
country
right
in
half.
So
fair
processes
are
very
important,
no
matter
who
wins
absolutely.
O
Hello,
everyone,
my
name,
is
emma
trample
and
I
am
a
philadelphia
voter
and
I
have
a
different
perspective
than
the
many
members
of
the
general
public
professionally.
I'm
a
community
involved
hello
professionally.
I'm
a
community
and
voter
engagement,
strategist,
who
works
locally
and
nationally,
including
georgia,
wisconsin
and
michigan.
So
I'm
very
familiar
with
quick,
changing
models
and
all
kind
of
things
that
may
happen
as
voters
go
to
the
polls.
O
But
the
reason
I'm
here
is
because
of
my
labor
of
love
in
philly,
I
run
a
grassroots
organization
called
my
family
votes
that
focuses
on
strengthening
the
power
of
black
voters
through
shared
information.
So
one
of
the
things
that
happened
in
may
I'm
sorry
april.
I
started
phoning
the
commissioner's
office
to
get
clarification
for
application
around
mail
and
voting,
and
I
called
so
much.
O
Basically,
they
know
my
voice
and
my
name
and
probably
my
number-
and
there
are
three
areas
that
became
crystal
clear
about
operationally-
that
we
could
see
improvement
in
I'm
really
grateful
to
the
commissioner's
office
as
well
as
people
who
specifically
work
in
room,
142
and
delaware
avenue,
because
they
actually
helped
provide
us
with
rules
and
regulations
around
metal
building
which
made
our
work
very
accurate.
So
one
thing
that
is
the
way
the
commissioner's
offices
are
set
up,
creates
information
silos.
O
The
next
area
is
more
nimble
and
better
online
landing
places
for
information.
Commissioner
sphere
did
mention
that
they
are
looking
at
the
online
app
and
some
other
advertisements,
but
philadelphia.
Votes.Com
is
like
the
official
landing
place,
and
most
voters
do
not
know
about
that
website.
It
contained
information
where
you
could
put
your
address
in
and
find
out
where
that
new
polling
place
was.
That
was
not
included
on
the
postcard.
So
any
information
that
the
commissioners
offices
send
out
to
voters.
O
O
O
We
were
able
to
stay
on
top
of
the
rapid
information
because
we
do
leverage
social
media
and
it
would
be
great
if
maybe
the
commissioner's
office
offered
like
a
cheat
sheet
for
elected
officials
when
they
do
give
like
telephone
town
halls.
So
they
have
the
basic
information
and
then
they
can
provide
phone
numbers
or
a
default
number
for
people
to
call
so
you
know
follow
up.
O
It
was
very
heartbreaking
to
hear
seniors
on
those
telephone
town
halls
weeks
before
the
election,
lamenting
about
how
they
may
not
be
able
to
vote.
There
are
safety
next
nets
and
checks
built
into
the
system,
but
because
of
the
information
flow,
it
wasn't
sufficient
for
people
to
know
what
to
do
so.
I
I
do
believe
that
we
can
do
better.
Philly
is
a
great
town.
We've
got
a
lot
of
smart
people,
and
I
I
appreciate
this
this
meeting
and
I
look
forward
to
whatever
I
can
do
to
help
us
move
forward.
A
K
Good
afternoon,
council
members,
my
name
is
sergio
I
use
el,
he
him
pronouns
and
I'm
a
democratic
committee
person
in
the
46th
ward.
In
my
view,
the
primary
election
was
a
confusing
mess
and
contributed
to
the
disenfranchisement
of
our
voters.
There
was
a
deep
disinvestment
when
we
look
at
communities
of
color
black
voters
make
up
nearly
50
of
our
our
active
voter
base,
but
when
it
came
to
mail
and
ballot,
applications
were
severely
underrepresented.
K
K
So,
like
many
people
invested
in
elections,
I
had
many
questions
about
the
primary
given
that
we're
going
through
changes
from
act
77
a
pandemic
civil
rights
uprising
that
is
ongoing.
We
can
all
agree
that
these
are
great
challenges.
Getting
information
from
the
city.
Commissioners
offices
was
difficult
and
we
would
get
last
minute
notice
about
drop-off
locations
both
for
ballot
applications
and
actual
ballots,
many
of
which
were
one-time
locations
only
for
two
hours.
Some
in
offices
candidates
were
running
for
primary.
K
Our
award
was
promised
by
city
commissioners
that
all
original
polling
places
would
that
sign,
informing
voters
that
their
location
had
changed
at
the
location
that
never
happened.
The
simple
solution
there
could
be
notifying
many
people
of
both
parties
in
advance
so
that
we
can
address
it
ourselves
because
we're
more
than
willing
to
do
that.
If
we're
informed.
If
we're
told
that
to
expect
something,
we
will
expect
it.
I'm
worried
about
litigation
targeting
ballot,
drop-off
locations
and
invalidating
votes
with
ballots
missing
secrecy
envelopes.
K
That's
a
mistake
that
many
voters
I
know
made,
including
my
partner
and
on
election
day
I
was
volunteering
from
opening
the
closing,
alongside
judith,
who
spoke
earlier
at
christie
in
west
philly.
That
was
where
a
combination
of
a
dozen
polls
have
been
consolidated
and
there
was
not
enough
hand,
sanitizer
or
being
provided,
and
voters
board
workers
and
volunteers
largely
relied
on
candidates
that
were
running
for
office
for
these
public
needs.
K
We
had
droves
of
people
all
day,
come
to
our
location,
assuming
it
was
the
ballot
drop
off
location,
as
judith
mentioned
folks
that
went
to
latin
boys,
went
to
us
and
then
had
to
go
to
blackwell
library,
some
of
them.
Many
of
them
came
like
right
before
the
end
of
time,
so
they
wouldn't
have
had
enough
time
to
go
from
christie
rec
center
to
blackwell
in
time
to
make
the
the
deadline.
So
that
was
the
act
of
disenfranchisement
that
we
were
seeing.
K
We
had
so
many
of
the
voters
who
applied
for
mail-in
and
never
received
it
and
were
confused.
What
to
do
next.
Many
of
those
voters
didn't
vote
because
of
health
concerns.
I
know
that
was
the
case
for
karen
beaujar,
who
is
a
committee
person
who
literally
wrote
the
book
on
committee.
People
think
that
this
might
be
the
first
election
that
she
wasn't
being
wasn't
able
to
go
because
she
didn't
receive
one
at
the
polls
on
election
day.
There
was
no
social
distancing.
K
K
Rec
were
members
of
the
black
community
who
faced
disproportionate
rates
of
infection
and
death
from
coca-19
when
compared
to
white
peers.
So
we
need
to
be
doing
better
committee.
People
at
other
polls
reported
long
lines,
election
board
workers
who
were
told
not
to
come
in,
but
the
replacement
for
no
shows
it's
clear,
that
more
training
is
needed
for
our
workers
and
we
should
be
feeding
paying
and
supporting
them
for
their
service
and
sacrifice.
K
We
also
need
to
actively
manage
expectations
for
election
results,
which
has
been
frustrating
for
many,
just
letting
folks
know
it
might
take
a
while,
but
on
election
day
I
would
say
I
was
hearing
people
really
close
to
the
democratic
party.
Saying
just
check
results
tomorrow,
which
was
definitely
not
the
case
in
this
political
moment.
Philadelphia
be
clear
that
if
black
lives
matter,
then
black
voters
should
matter
as
well.
K
Mail
and
applications
should
be
sent
to
every
voter,
like
they
have
been
done
in
other
counties,
and
postage
payments
should
be
covered
because
of
distrust
with
voting
by
mail,
much
of
it.
Coming
directly
from
the
president,
we
need
messaging
campaigns
and
informed
voters
that
vote
by
mail
is
the
most
healthy
and
reliable
way
to
vote,
but
also,
as
a
council
member
thomas
said
earlier,
making
space
for
folk
who
do
see
voting
in
person
as
like
a
tradition
and
maybe
making
space
for
early
voting
regardless
of
party
or
preferred
candidate.
A
H
Yes,
I'm
here
good
afternoon,
miss
rosenthal,
please
hi
again
and
begin
your
testimony.
Thank
you.
My
name
is
carol
rosenthal
I
live
in
fairmount
and
I
organize
fairmount
votes,
I'm
also
a
committee
person
here
in
the
15th
ward.
We
really
used
the
primary
in
the
15th
ward
as
a
dress
rehearsal
for
the
general,
and
we
had
a
lot
of
success
with
getting
folks
to
vote
by
mail.
H
Since
I
have
the
attention
of
both
of
these
categories
of
people,
one
of
them
is
training
all
of
your
constituent
services
staff
to
provide
support
to
voters
over
the
phone.
Maybe
some
of
you
have
already
done
this,
and
I
also
do
not
know
what
the
workload
currently
is
of
your
constituent
services
staff.
So
I
apologize
if
this
is
not
realistic,
but
I
think
it
would
be
very
useful
to
explore
in
the
primary
hold
times
at
the
department
of
state,
often
exceeded
30
minutes.
People
were
calling
to
learn
about
vote
by
mail.
H
These
are
the
things
that
we're
trying
to
call
about
unemployment.
I
mean
so
many
people
right
now
are
on
hold
just
in
their
daily
life
and
30
minutes
is
not
it's
not.
There's
no
excuse
for
that.
Also,
the
board
of
elections
was
often
just
simply
too
swamped
to
take
any
calls
at
all,
and
that's
so
understandable
when
we
hear
about
their
great
staffing
needs
that
they
have.
So.
H
I
think
it's
really
important
that
a
place
that
constituents
know
to
call
state
rep
city
council
that,
instead
of
referring
their
questions
out
to
a
different
phone
number
to
call,
if
you
can
instead
provide
the
answers
to
the
questions
that
they
have
if
they
need
a
paper
application
that
you
have
them
on
hand
along
with
stamped
return
envelopes,
the
city
commissioner's
office
was
phenomenal
about
providing
plenty
of
these
to
us.
We
ran
our
own
voter
hotline
here
in
fairmount.
I
get
many.
H
H
I
would
get
a
list
of
everybody
who
called
me
throughout
the
day
and
I
would
make
one
call
to
trish
or
donna
and
lisa
dealey's
office
who
were
phenomenal
and
I
saved
so
many
people,
the
time
waiting
on
hold
or
just
not
knowing
the
information,
and
so
if
there
is
the
capacity
to
build
out
the
constituent
services
staff
in
your
offices
to
help
alleviate
some
of
this
pressure
on
the
board
of
elections.
I
think
that
would
be
really
useful
for
voters
who
sometimes
feel
left
in
the
dark
and
frustrated.
H
Also,
every
person
who's
on
city
council
knows
how
to
run
a
campaign
because
you
got
elected.
You
ran
a
good
one
same
with
state
reps
you're
in
office
and
so
using
your
know-how
about
running
campaigns
to
reach
out
to
your
constituents
about
vote
by
mail
how
to
apply
and
also
when
to
return
the
ballots.
H
But
what
we
do
know,
as
commissioner
dealey
said,
is
we
have
time
and
we
have
to
start
now
and
we
believe
that
one
of
the
best
things
we
can
do
is
set
a
false
deadline
of
applying
to
vote
by
mail
for
september
14th.
That
doesn't
necessarily
mean
that
you
tell
voters
that
that's
when
they
have
to
do
it,
but
your
internal
organizing
around
this
needs
to
begin
now,
so
that
voters
apply
by
september
14th
and
then
that
you
begin
to
send
out
the
message
that
ballots
have
to
be
returned
immediately.
H
As
soon
as
they're
sent
in
the
mail
start
telling
people
you
get
your
ballot
return
it
immediately.
I
think
these
are
things
that
we
can
do
to
help
take
pressure
off
of
the
board
of
elections.
Another
thing
is
the
coordination
of
all
of
this
great
work
that
so
many
non-profits
are
doing.
Legislators,
counsel
people
when
I
heard
commissioner
dealey
say
well,
there
are
already
three
entities
that
are
going
to
be
sending
out
ballots
to
voters.
H
I
just
think
we
can
buy.
Can
we
can
we
have
one
person
who's,
helping
with
coordination?
We
need
to
make
sure
that
entities
and
organizations
aren't
duplicating
efforts.
It's
very
confusing
to
voters.
I
had
many
voters
call
me
and
say
I
just
got
a
paper
application
in
the
mail
from
my
council
person.
I
think
I
have
to
apply
again.
H
That
can
help
do
this
work
and
one
thing
that
I
think
would
be
very
useful
is
some
people
alluded
to
the
long
lines
that
happen
at
polling
locations,
and
so
many
of
people
like
people
being
sent
away,
because
maybe
they
don't
have
the
right
id
to
vote
for
the
first
time,
maybe
they're
in
the
wrong
polling
location.
They
don't
know
their
division,
they
weren't
sure
what
to
do
because
they've
already
applied
for
a
mail-in
ballot
but
they're
online
anyway.
H
I
think
it's
really
important
that
we
recruit
customer
service
workers
who
are
volunteers
that
can
work
the
lines,
particularly
in
communities
of
color,
where
there
is
a
higher
rate
of
disenfranchisement
and
voter
suppression
that
we
have
folks
who
can
beat
in
the
lines
and
help
people
make
sure
that
they're
in
the
right
polling
place
before
they
wait
for
two
hours
that
they
have
the
right
id
before.
They
wait
for
two
hours
that
we're
handing
out
to
people
diagrams
of
how
the
machines
work.
H
Many
people
who
only
vote
in
every
presidential
election,
but
not
the
elections
in
between,
will
never
have
used
these
machines
and
they're
confusing
when
you
look
at
it
for
the
first
time
so
that
we're
training
people
in
line
when
you
go
inside.
This
is
what
you're
going
to
need
to
do.
There
is
funding
to
do
this
work
and
we
just
need
the
leadership
to
coordinate
it.
H
I
believe
the
same
is
true
with
committee
people,
I
felt
extremely
underutilized
as
a
committee
person,
and
I
took
it
upon
myself
to
do
work
on
the
last
person
was
speaking
about
polling
locations,
not
having
any
signage
about
where
it
changed,
and
how
the
commissioners
said
that
they
were
going
to
hang
those
signs
up.
They
did
and
there
happened
to
be
many
barriers
that
prevented
them
from
being
able
to
do
that.
So,
as
committee
people
we
made
our
own
signs
to
tell
people
we're
polling
locations
had
changed
too.
H
We
made
our
own
sign
saying
here:
are
the
places
that
you
can
drop
off
a
ballot,
don't
walk
to
the
next
polling
location
and
think
you
can
take
it
there.
You
can't
here's
where
you
can
go
instead,
we
hope
that
systems
are
in
place
so
that
we
don't
need
to
have
this
sort
of
in
the
moment
triage.
However,
as
we've
seen
in
the
last
election,
challenges
do
arise
and
I
think
we
need
to
make
sure
that
we're
using
committee
people
on
the
ground
to
again
help
take
the
pressure
off
of
the
board
of
elections.
H
We
have
heard
how
much
work
it
is
going
to
be
to
simply
run
an
in-person
election
and
do
all
of
the
mail-in
counting
of
mail-in
ballots,
and
we
really
need
to
get
resourceful
about
how
volunteers
and
committee
people
can
best
use
their
time.
So
I
also
wanted
to
end
by
including
my
phone
number
and
saying,
please
feel
free
if
you
are
an
elected
and
you
are
interested
in
learning
more
about
non-partisan
funding
sources.
H
I
do
a
lot
of
fundraising.
I
am
connected
to
a
lot
of
national
funders
they're
very
interested
in
supporting
voting
infrastructure
throughout
the
country,
and
there
are
a
lot
of
eyes
on
philadelphia
right
now
and
I
think
they
could
use
some
direction
in
how
this
money
could
be
spent
and
who
the
best
leaders
in
the
community
are
to
put
the
message
about
vote
by
mail
force.
So
my
phone
number
is.
H
A
A
I
I
just
want
to
thank
you
councilman
jones,
and
I
think
we
got
a
lot
of
useful
information
from
this
hearing
and
we
need
to
to
get
to
work
to
make
sure
that
this
election,
this
pivotal
election,
which
I
said
earlier,
is
the
most
important
election
since
1860
run
smoothly
in
the
city
of
philadelphia
and
also
the
commonwealth
of
pennsylvania.
So
thank
you,
councilman
for
every
everything
you
did
to
put
this
together.
D
A
F
A
F
Just
multitasking
here
this
afternoon,
but
thank
you
for
a
great
hearing.
I
just
hope
that
we'll
be
able
to
reconvene
again,
especially
considering
this
was
joint
with
our
colleagues
in
harrisburg
and
here
in
philadelphia.
This
is
such
an
important
issue.
This
type
of
joint
collaboration
is
very
important,
and
I
know
before
we
know
it
will
be
labor
day
and
then
october
and
then
we'll
have
the
election.
A
We
want
to
again
thank
representative
boyle
for
initiating
this,
I'm
making
sure
that
city
and
state
issues
came
together,
because
if
you
don't
do
joint
hearings
like
this
by
the
time,
this
group
agrees
with
that
group.
The
election
will
be
over,
and
so
everyone
heard
what
they
needed
to
hear
from
all
of
the
panelists,
and
hopefully
we
can
take
this
information.
A
C
Is
them
mars
willa?
I
do
want
to
thank
you
too.
I
especially
want
to
thank
samantha
for
her
great
job
and
delegating
all
the
information
out
to
the
folks
and
it's
not
an
easy
job.
Everybody
has
a
lot
of
questions
and
your
team
did
a
great
job.
So
thank
you
and
representative
boyle
and
everybody
else
who
was
involved
in
this.
It's
a
lot
more
work
to
do,
but
I
think
we're
up
to
it
and
they're
looking
forward
to
positive
impact
from
it.
Thank
you.
A
So
I
feel
the
same
way,
but
I'll
tell
you
another
time
not
doing
it
publicly
now.
Thank
you
very
much,
miss
williams
for
your
your
your
hard
work
and
diligence.
This
concludes
the
business
before
us
today,
the
committee
on
legislative
oversight.
We
will
stand
at
recess
to
the
call
of
the
chair
just
in
case.
We
have
to
come
back
at
this.
Thank
you
all
very
much.