Hawaii lawmakers are presenting proposals that would give residents a more streamlined process when voting.
The proposal would allow voters an easier procedure when registering, more time to vote every election cycle, and have access to more voting locations. These steps would cut down voting lines and speed up the release of results.
Senate Bill 548 was a popular proposal among the Senate and would allow more voter centers and is prepared for a vote. Last year the Senate voted against this which was a key factor in the long lines during the General Election.
SB 548 sets in place the requirement for every county to have at least one voting center with the option of opening more with hours that vary. It also requires more voting sites open in counties on Election Day.
States like Colorado had more voting centers open than Hawaii and can serve up to 30,000 voters per site on Election Day.
The estimated cost per election site for the equipment would be $28,000 but according to Chief Elections Officer Scott Nago, there are enough federal funds leftover to cover the costs.
Hawaii has fallen short of the federal government recommendation of one dropbox for every 15,000 to 20,000 voters. Hawaii only has 44 dropboxes for 800,000 registered voters.
“We are woefully less than that amount,” Sandy Ma, executive director of Common Cause, told the Honolulu Civil Beat.
Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Karl Rhoads (D-District 13), added a provision that gives counties and state election offices the decision on how many dropboxes are needed in the state based on contributing factors such as how close to public transportation, parking, populations with low-income and communities with historically low voter turnout.
The House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs committees took a vote in favor of House Bill 740 on Feb. 4 which would automatically register any citizen who applies for a driver's license.
Both bills will need to pass through the first committees by Thursday, Feb. 18.