Assessment Shows Confidence in Colorado's Statewide Voter Registration System

In a joint effort between Colorado Secretary of State Mike Coffman and the Governor's Office, a third-party consultant performed an assessment of the statewide voter registration system, also known as SCORE. The assessment, conducted by North Highland Company, was performed to provide a status update of the project. The evaluation reviewed the system's planned roll-out and technical and operational issues, including proposed contingencies.

As stated in the assessment, "Based upon the data available, the assessment identified various options for meeting HAVA compliance and concluded the most feasible option was to continue with the full deployment of SCORE as planned with the recommendations identified."

In coordinating with the results of the assessment, Coffman released an action plan dedicating additional resources and personnel to further assist county election officials with the implementation of the statewide voter registration system.

"The assessment helped to confirm some of the strategies already targeted by my office and, most importantly, identifies additional resources and options for deployment," said Coffman. "My office looks forward to implementing the recommendations from the assessment."

Prior to the results of the assessment, Coffman planned to roll out a field support team composed of seven individuals. In working with North Highland, Coffman's action plan now commits additional personnel to provide greater user support at the county clerks' offices. In keeping with the assessment's recommendations, Coffman also planned to reorganize SCORE's management team to foster additional coordination with county election officials and to partner with the Governor's Office of Information Technology as needed.

"With an IT project of this magnitude, this office is more than happy to play a supportive role," said Michael Locatis, Colorado's Chief Information Officer.

Mandated by the federal government's Help America Vote Act, or HAVA, states have had to implement a statewide voter registration system by 2006. Colorado's previous vendor failed to successfully provide the statewide system in 2005, according to a release from Coffman's office, and in turn, another vendor was selected by former Secretary of State Gigi Dennis.

The new statewide voter registration system is linked with other state agencies to allow for verification of voter information, which includes confirmation of information from the Department of Corrections, Department of Revenue and Department of Public Health and Environment. These agencies will provide verification related to such items as incarcerations, driver's licenses, social security numbers and death records in order to maintain the integrity of the voter rolls.