A federal performance audit said New Hampshire failed to get prior approval to use $1 million in federal election grant money as part of a $3.7 million renovation to the state archives building. This was one of four conditions found in the 76-page audit the U.S. Election Assistance Commission published in the past week and posted in the Federal Register. State election officials said they have been trying for more than seven years to get retroactive approval of that archives building spending state lawmakers first approved in 2003. New Hampshire is one of the last states in the country to undergo this audit, which is mandatory under the Help America Vote Act of 2002.
That’s in part because most states have gone through much of their HAVA dollars through expenses such as purchasing new voting machines, holding training sessions and making polling places more accessible to the disabled and developmentally impaired.
New Hampshire received $18 million in these HAVA grants, and by the end of 2015 the state still had a $10.4 million balance.
This audit covered the period from the inception of the HAVA law, May 1, 2003, to Sept. 30, 2015. Secretary of State William Gardner said the state has an enviable record of financial management of HAVA money.
Full Article: Federal election audit questions NH spending | New Hampshire.