[VoteRescue] NEXT MONDAY: LBJ School sponsors panel on voting technology integrity

[Karen Renick]

/VoteRescuers!

Here's an event in Austin next Monday, September 29, 2008, that promises 
to be _very_ interesting. Don't forget to RSVP in case it's necessary 
for attending. And bring your great questions with which to stump the 
experts.

See you there!/


      Voting System Integrity: Can We Be Confident in the Accuracy of
      the Results?

Event Details

Monday, September 29, 2008 - 2:00 PM

AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center Amphitheater
Austin, TX


<http://www.utexas.edu/lbj/news/rsvp/579/>

The Center for Politics and Governance is planning to host a panel 
discussion on the integrity of voting technology.  The discussion, 
"Voting System Integrity:  Can We Be Confident in the Accuracy of the 
Results?" will take place at 2 p.m. on September 29 in the AT&T 
Executive Education and Conference Center Amphitheater.

The administration of voting and elections has changed rapidly at the 
state and local level since the 2000 presidential election.  Such 
changes include laws and procedures designed to ensure greater integrity 
and access in voting, more transparency in the process, and much closer 
scrutiny regarding the accuracy of voting systems.  At the federal 
level, the Help America Vote Act -- the most sweeping election 
administration reform legislation in the nation's history -- was written 
in part to ensure more effective operation of voting systems.  But have 
these laws actually improved the functioning and operation of the myriad 
of voting systems used throughout the country today?  Is the U.S. 
Election Assistance Commission's authority to "certify and decertify" 
voting systems improving the accuracy of vote totals? Should the voting 
public feel more confident in the accuracy of voting systems today than 
in 2000?  In Texas -- where most large counties utilize paperless 
electronic voting machines -- what laws and regulatory requirements are 
in place to ensure the proper testing and use of electronic voting 
systems?  Should the Texas legislature follow the lead of other states, 
such as Florida and New Mexico, which have added statutory requirements 
that counties use paper-based voting systems?

These and other related issues will be explored in this timely and 
relevant panel discussion.  Ray Martinez, adjunct professor of public 
affairs, will moderate the panel.  The following panelists have 
confirmed their participation:

    * Rosemary Rodriguez, commissioner and current chair, U.S. Election
      Assistance Commission
    * Doug Chapin, director, electionline.org (a division of the Pew
      Charitable Trusts and a national source for election law/policy news)
    * Dan Wallach, computer science professor at Rice University
      (well-known and outspoken critic of paperless electronic voting
      systems)
    * David Beirne, executive director, Election Technology Council (a
      national umbrella organization representing voting system vendors)
    * Ann McGeehan, director, Elections Division, Texas Secretary of State
    * Dana DeBeauvoir, Travis County Clerk (and LBJ School alumna)

For more information about this event contact the Center at 512.232.CPG1 
or via e-mail at trampes at mail.utexas.edu <mailto:trampes at mail.utexas.edu>.
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