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Chair Hee, Vice Chair Shimabukuro, and Committee Members,
Aloha, my name is Carmille Lim, Board Member and Voter Services Chair of the League of Women Voters of Hawaii, and I thank you for this opportunity to testify on behalf of our
members throughout Hawai‘i.
On behalf of the League, I am respectfully submitting my testimony in support of SB2051. This bill would establish an online system for electronic voter registration, which would allow eligible voters to register entirely online instead of using hard-copy paper forms. If implemented, we can expect to see a decrease in monies spent on paper forms and an increase in voter registration and turnout.
There are currently 12 states that have implemented online voter registration, and we hope that Hawai‘i will soon follow. The League of Women Voters of Hawaii supports this bill for the following 4 reasons:
1 . Online voter registration is cost-effective and saves states millions of dollars each
year;
• In recent years, states like California, Louisiana, Indiana, and Colorado have
implemented the reform to great success – and this has also resulted in significant
savings. For example: in Maricopa County, Arizona, processing an online voter
registration now costs the state 3 cents, compared to 83 cents for each paper
registration. Due to its popularity, online registration has helped reduce printing costs
by 75% in the county. Washington State has also experienced a similar cost
reduction at both the state and county level. Washington’s Secretary of State’s office
(Washington’s Secretary of State serves as the state’s chief elections officer) reports
saving 25 cents per online application, while counties have saved anywhere from 50
cents to $2 with each application. 1
• Additionally, it cost Arizona less than $130,000 and Washington state $279,000 to
implement both online voter registration and automated voter registration at DMVs.2
2. Streamlines the registration process for election officials;
• Online voter registration ensures that citizens’ information goes directly to election
officials, thus reducing the number of people who have to handle a registration
application. This greatly reduces the chances for human and data entry errors.
• Allowing Hawai‘i residents to register to vote or update their registrations online
would likely reduce the number of provisional ballots cast at the polls, which can
prove costly and time-consuming to process.
3. Would likely increase the accuracy of voter lists;
• Again, online voter registration would significantly reduce the data entry work county
officials must do to process new registrations.
• Hawai‘i already has an electronic record of the signature for most people with a
Hawai‘i state driver's license or state-issued ID card. So by transferring electronic
data between the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Office of Elections, we can
allow people to register to vote online without the delays and errors that can occur
when mailing in a handwritten paper form which then has to be entered by hand into a registration
database.
4. Due to its convenience, online voter registration would likely increase voter
participation, especially from those of the “younger” generation.
• Completing an online voter registration form makes it easier for many voters to
register -- particularly among the “younger” generation and those who spend more
time online.
• In 2003, Arizona was the first state to implement Online Voter Registration, and
reported an improvement in voter turnout -- greatest among young voters. In 2008,
voters under 34 years old who registered online turned out at 93 percent compared
to a 73 percent turnout rate for younger voters who registered “offline.”3
• Registration rates among 18-24 year-old citizens rose from 28 to 53 percent after
Arizona introduced online and automated registration.
In these tough times, online voter registration is an important step in making voter registration more modern and cost-effective. We support the online voter registration to register new voters and allow existing voters to update their registrations online. The League of Women Voters of Hawaii humbly asks you to support this bill, too. Mahalo for this opportunity to submit testimony.
Footnotes:
1 Anonymous. “Cost Savings Win Bipartisan Support for Online Voter Registration.” Progressive States Network. March 3, 2011.
http://www.progressivestates.org/news/dispatch/cost-savings-win-bipartisan-support-online-voter-registration
2 Ponoroff. “Voter Registration in a Digital Age.” Brennan Center for Justice. July 13, 2010.
3
Baretto, Glaser, Mac Donald, Collingwood, Pedraza, Pump. “Online Voter Registration Systems in Arizona and Washington:
Evaluating
Usage, Public Confidence and Implementation Process.” Wiser Institute of the Study of Ethnicity and Race& Election
Administration Research
Center. April 10, 2010.
http://www.pewcenteronthestates.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewcenteronthestatesorg/Initiatives/MVW/online_voter_reg.pdf?n=2908
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