The following is a press release from an organization unaffiliated with Voice of OC. The views expressed here are not those of Voice of OC.
OC Registrar of Voters Responds to the SAVE Act
SANTA ANA, CA – April 10, 2025
Today, the California Secretary of State released the following Press Release regarding the SAVE Act (H.R. 22):
Additionally, the Orange County Registrar of Voters has provided the following statement:
“From purely an election administrative point of view if the SAVE Act becomes law of the United States, the cost of assisting voters who would be required to provide documentary proof of citizenship in person every time they register or update their voter registration could exceed $6 million annually for the County of Orange Registrar of Voters.
This initial cost analysis is based on the number of Orange County voter-initiated new registration and registration update transactions that were completed online or by mail in 2024.
In 2024, we received 633,568 voter-initiated online and mail registration transactions. There were 250 County workdays in 2024. So, that would mean, we would have had to serve an average of 2,534.272 voters each day in our office.
Assuming each voter could have been served in 10 minutes (to scan a copy of the voter’s documentary proof of citizenship, to verify the proof, and to update the voter’s record), we would have needed 59 additional staff members in our office (57 to process and 2 to supervise) just focused on serving these voters providing proof of citizenship at a labor cost of more than $4.7 million.
The math: If 10 minutes to serve one voter during a 9-hour day (8a-5p) with each employee working 7.5 hours (two 15-minute breaks and a one-hour lunch during the nine-hour day), then… 2,534.272 per day ÷ 7.5 hours worked by each employee ÷ 6 voters served per hour = 56.317 employees plus 2 supervisors.
In addition to this initial labor cost estimate, we would expect to have cost impacts associated with:
– leasing workspace for each new employee would be $93,000 per month or $1,116,000 annually (County space standard – 175 square foot per employee at $3 per square foot monthly for OC office space)
– buying cubicles and furniture would be $354,000 as a one-time cost ($6,000 per employee)
– buying computers, scanners, and telephone equipment
– hiring and training of additional customer service representatives to work in Vote Centers during elections to assist new voters who register conditionally to vote provisionally (same day registration and voting) who would be required to show documentary proof of citizenship to vote
Will Congress appropriate the funds local and state elections officials need to implement the SAVE Act?”
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About the Registrar of Voters:
The Registrar of Voters is responsible for conducting elections in the County of Orange, the fifth largest voting jurisdiction in the United States with 1.9 million registered voters. We are a County agency, which receives funding from the County’s General Fund and periodic reimbursement from the federal government, the State of California and local jurisdictions. Read more >>
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