Dallas County to lease some machines to city on Tuesday
Published 6:30 pm Monday, August 25, 2008
The City of Selma will receive some help with its election process Tuesday from Dallas County.
The Dallas County Commission on Monday agreed to lease to the city voting machines designed to accommodate people with disabilities.
The AutoMARK Machines, produced by Election Systems and Software, allows disabled voters to mark ballots independently and privately using an enlarged video screen and sound.
Probate Judge Kim Ballard said he researched lease rates for other counties around the state and also consulted ES&S about lease rates.
The county’s rate comes in considerably cheaper than several others.
“Most places get $500 per machine per day. Some were renting them for $450,” Ballard said. “We rented them to the city for $400 a day.”
Ballard, county attorney John Kelly III and city attorney Jimmy Nunn negotiated the agreement on 16 machines for use in today’s municipal elections, totaling a $6,400 lease price for the city.
The agreement will extend into October at the same rate in the case of a runoff election.