County approves purchase of more voting machines
By Brandy Nance
Originally published 01:00 p.m., October 18, 2007
Updated 01:00 p.m., October 18, 2007
Lyon County will get three new touchscreen voting machines following a vote this morning by Lyon County commissioners authorizing the purchase of the machines. Karen Hartenbower, Lyon County clerk, said there is plenty of money in the election fund to cover the $8,400 cost.
“Even though it wasn’t budgeted, there is money in there,” Hartenbower said. “I will not be over budget.” Hartenbower said the machines are needed because there are a couple of precincts that are short of machines and one machine is needed to upload results, which are stored on cards.
“Three would get us in real good shape,” Hartenbower said.
Also this morning, commissioners voted to reject all bids received on a bridge-repair project because all bids came in over 110 percent of the Lyon County Engineer’s estimate. By law, commissioners cannot legally accept the bids that come in too far above estimates, said County Counselor Michael Halleran. The lowest bid came in at 115 percent. Commissioners gave the county engineer directions to re-advertise the project.
“I don’t see any way around this language,” Halleran said.
Halleran said the engineer’s estimate is key. On this project, the engineer’s estimate didn’t take into consideration some hand removal of concrete that had to be done.
Commissioners scheduled a public hearing at 10 a.m. Nov. 15 on a petition to attach lands to Lyon County Rural Water District No. 5.
dale3697 (anonymous) says...
Wait a minute, I thought the budgets were so tight that air couldn't pass through them, and yet we can "find" $8400 for new machines??? I wonder what else we could find if someone wanted to look hard enough?
October 18, 2007 at 4:37 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Wasp (anonymous) says...
Priorities....obviously, our roads are not among them.
October 18, 2007 at 7:26 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
MerleCrimbatt (anonymous) says...
Howdy folks, The Marlin here after a long hiatus.
I don’t know about you guys, but where I come from I honor a little something called the Constitution. And NOwheRe! In the Constitution!?! does it allow robots, or voting machines, to go around casting votes.
I don’t care how much these things cost, they shouldn’t be running (or ROLLING, more accurately) around electronically defying the electoral process. No THANK YOU. I (or we if you count them (and us)) will be at the Nov 15 meeting dressed like a roboots to make our point(s). known!
Hey, Hartenbower, 01001000110001100110011001. You know what that means? That’s ro-bo for you should be on the zinger line instead of creating this army of vote-bots.
I’d also like to use this opportunity to tell folks about a new service I’m offering this Halloween. For $10 I’ll come over your house and hang around in your backyard for a few hours dressed as Count Chocula. It’s a hit with kids and adults and economical; I can only do a few of these. I book fast, so let me know soon.
Merle “The Marlin” Crimbatt
October 19, 2007 at 11:31 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
MelissaE (anonymous) says...
I agree with Merle.
Plus, I think the entire county staff needs a big fat overhaul. Get them all out of there and start fresh.
M
October 19, 2007 at 11:43 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
maclaren816 (anonymous) says...
Can't we just use the $8400 to buy the kind of robots that build bridges instead of the voting ones? There has to be some model of Hitachi or Bosch bridge-repair robot available used someplace. I think our city govenrment needs to cut through the red tape and provide our city with the kind of robots we need. With all this time spent reviewing bids, can't a one of them get on eBay or craigslist and find Emporia a decent, used, $8400 robot?
_mac
October 19, 2007 at 11:57 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
maclaren816 (anonymous) says...
Kstrebuchet - sorry for the slip up county vs. city. And I am all about supporting the local economy but I don't believe there is a single industrial robot manufacturer or distributor in Lyon county, and our bridges need that repair robot immediately! And you can bet your bottom dollar they weren't buying those voting-kinda robots in-county any old way.
The bottom line: It's choose-up-sides time in Lyon county. You're either for Voting Robots or Bridge Repair Robots. There's no third side. Let's get this community in action!
_mac
October 19, 2007 at 12:24 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
maclaren816 (anonymous) says...
Kstrebuchet, the whole point of bridge repair is to do it before the bridges become uncrossable. That's just simple maintenance. Maintenance that was to be provided by a contractor, but troubles arose when none of the contractors could quote a price that was within bounds set by the County Engineer.
By sheer luck in that very same meeting we, the taxpaying public, learn that there is $8400 dollars in the Robot Budget that's available immediately. I'm not even talking about cracking into the road repair budget, but the monies from the election fund ALREADY ALLOCATED FOR BUYING ROBOTS. Let's just do what's right for everyone and spend the Robot Budget on a Bridge Building Robot, not the voting kind.
And my tractor happens to have been very reasonably priced, nowhere near $300k, and the only bridges it crosses are the little ones over irrigation which I maintain myself, out of pocket.
_mac
October 19, 2007 at 1:04 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
maclaren816 (anonymous) says...
Kstrebuchet - Re-read my last comment. No one is arguing that bridges have become uncrossable, nor that it is the fault of the County that contractors have not come in within budget. However it is a matter of public record that bridge repair is an absolute necessity, and is the reason the County Engineer assessed our bridges, determined their needs and put the project out to bid. We don't wait for bridges to collapse before we fix them.
Evidently it is within the power of the commissioners to move monies from the Election Fund to create a Robot Fund becuase THEY DID IT THIS MORNING. Now that the taxpayers of Lyon County have a Robot Fund I am suggesting we exercise democracy and pressure our elected officials to spend that money on a robot that can automatically repair bridges instead of a few of the kind that count votes.
As I said, it's choose-up-sides time. Safe roads or a little extra time spent counting votes? Lyon county needs to use our Robot Fund responsibly and in a fashion that provides taxpayers maximum benefit.
_mac
October 19, 2007 at 1:34 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
maclaren816 (anonymous) says...
Kstrebuchet: Guess what? Old people who take your voter registration card in a church basement on election day are part of the election process as well. Can we allocate election funds to buy old people, or even a church basement? You make it sound as though I'm advocating misappropriation of election funds for a rodeo or hot dog stand. Lyon County has an established, quantified and recognized bridge problem and we've just created a Robot Fund. Let's use the Robot Fund for the more pressing issue: the bridges. I don't understand you're logic that I'm whining, this is a matter or public safety.
Frankly, your comments are suspect, in that you apparently favor the purchase of voting robots over safe roadways? You probably work for the voting robot company and have no regard for those of us who live, work and love Emporia.
_mac
October 19, 2007 at 2:19 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
maclaren816 (anonymous) says...
Marlin: I will be at the next meeting dressed as a robot right along with you. The whole point is that we spend our Robot Fund money on the right kind of robots; the Bridge Repairing kind.
Lyon county needs to wake up and realize that there are certain elements afoot who apparently would rather spend our Robot Fund money on voting machines rather than Bridge Repairing Robots. I don't understand their motivation, but I don't need bridges to fall down before I tell my elected officials to buy a robot to fix them! I know the Voting Robot Company people want to line their greedy pockets, but at the expense of the safety of Lyon County motorists?
October 19, 2007 at 2:34 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )