Ohio: Bill providing election equipment funding updated | News-Herald

State Sen. Frank LaRose, R-Hudson, has updated his legislation that would provide funding to replace Ohio’s aging voting equipment. Under LaRose’s proposal, counties will be given a fixed amount of funding based on the number of registered voters to help with the startup costs associated with buying new machines.

The funding breakdown would be:

• Counties with zero to 19,000 registered voters will be given a base amount of $205,000

• Counties with 20,000 to 99,999 registered voters will be given a base amount of $250,000

• Counties with 100,000-plus registered voters will be given $406,000

• Remaining funds will then be distributed on a per registered voter basis.

Of the $114.5 million allocation, $10 million would be general revenue funding reimbursement for counties that have already purchased new machines.

Legislation: Local lawmaker encourages more spending to safeguard Ohio elections | Beacon Journal

Ohio Sen. Frank LaRose, R-Hudson, is asking for more money to upgrade Ohio voting machines than he had originally proposed nearly a year ago. The push for better elections equipment comes as national elections officials and experts caution that outdated systems may be compromised by cyber attackers who may find weak points to enter local and state systems, though they are disconnected from each other. Originally introduced in April, LaRose has increased from $89 million to $114.5 million the amount Senate Bill 135 would provide counties that buy new voting equipment. About $10 million would be drawn from the general revenue fund and the rest financed through borrowing via bond sales.