Oregon Secretary of State Elections Division

Oregon Central Voter Registration (OCVR):
Frequently Asked Questions

This is a living document and as more questions are asked, we will continue to update this list. If you have questions that are not addressed here, please e-mail them to:

Dave Franks, HAVA Manager
dave.franks@state.or.us

What is the project supposed to do?

Why is Oregon doing this project?

How is the project being funded?

So, will this change how I register to vote?

Will the state's voter eligibility requirements change because of this system?

Since the counties collect this information for their systems now, what is the benefit of adding another expensive system into the process?

What information about the voter will be kept in this statewide system?

That's a lot of personal information. How secure is this system?

Can counties scan in an absentee application or correspondence in the absentee area?

Can counties continue to export the address library to other county departments?

Will counties be able to re-print a batch of labels/envelopes for re-issued ballots and have a place to note the reason for the reissue?

How does the system process and track transferred voters including inter-county notifications?

Does the OCVR have that capability and how does it work?

Will the OCVR be compatible with our barcode readers?

If a county loses connectivity to OCVR, can they get copies of images locally in order to continue to verify signatures while the network connection is being restored?

What Internet browsers does OCVR support?

What network connection options are available to these counties and how will the State assist counties in this area?

How does the system verify addresses and what does it verify against?

How do counties add new addresses to the system?

Can counties add new addresses to the system that the Post Office or DMV may not have in their address libraries?

Can counties change records for voters who aren't registered in their county?

Can anyone add a political party to the system? How is that controlled and managed?

Is the Secretary of State planning to support all of the county election office desktops?

Who will support the OCVR and who pays for that support?

Do I have to pay both my current vendor and the State?

Does the OCVR comply with CJIS requirements?

What is the project supposed to do?
Create a single, centralized, interactive, and official data base system with all the names and addresses of Oregon's registered voters.

Why is Oregon doing this project?
The federal government passed HB 3295, the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) in October, 2002. This legislation was enacted to prevent another election fiasco like the one America experienced with the 2000 Presidential elections. HAVA requires all states to upgrade voting equipment, make voting more accessible, provide better voter and election official education, and reduce fraud through the implementation of a central voter registration system developed and managed by each state's Chief Election Official. For Oregon that is the Secretary of State. In anticipation of this federal legislation, the 2000 Oregon Legislature enacted HB 5200 requiring the Secretary to proceed with development of a central voter registration system.

Oregon is in a budget crisis. How is the project being funded?
Federal legislation was not finalized until October of 2002. Pending the release of the final legislative requirements and determination of federal funding, Oregon was delayed starting the project or spending any significant money until Fall of 2002. The federal government developed an allocation formula tied to the states' registered voter population.

So, will this change how I register to vote?
No. Voters will still send their voter registration cards to their resident County Election's Office. County election's staff will enter the information into the state's centralized database.

Will the state's voter eligibility requirements change because of this system?
No. The OCVR will validate voter registration data against existing eligibility requirements. County election's staffs will be able to see whether or not an individual is qualified to vote when they enter the registration data into the system.

Since the counties collect this information for their systems now, what is the benefit of adding another expensive system into the process?
All 36 Oregon counties collect and store voter registration information differently. At this time, there is no way to aggregate voter information at the state level. Also, if a voter who is registered in one county moves to another county, the voter could be registered in both counties for a period of time until the first county updates its records and removes that voter. Managing this information flow becomes more difficult with Oregon's unique vote by mail process. If voter registration information isn't updated frequently and isn't available to all counties at the same time, we run the risk of removing voters from the system inappropriately or of voter fraud by duplicate ballots.

What information about the voter will be kept in this statewide system?
Name, address, social security number, and driver's license number are the primary date elements. If the voter doesn't have a driver's license, the last four digits of the social security number become the voter identification number. If the voter doesn't have a driver's license or a social security number, a unique number identifier will be assigned to that voter. Voting history will also be kept in the system. The history file will only show the voter's political party affiliation, and whether or not they voted in the election.

That's a lot of personal information. How secure is this system?
The system is designed with best practices system security safeguards built in. As with any system, back office processes and appropriate staff training will be integral components to making sure the system is safe and secure from unauthorized users.

Can counties scan in an absentee application or correspondence in the absentee area? Or is there a place to scan correspondence other than where the voter registration cards are located to allow for individual county flexibility?
Counties can scan in any number or type of documents and attach them to the voter record.

Our county election's office is responsible for the maintenance of the addresses and other departments use that information. Can counties continue to export the address library to other county departments?
At this point, this has not been a requirement as per our functional specifications for the system. This may be addressed at a later date if it becomes a pressing need for the counties.

There are times when counties will need to reissue and mail ballots, for various reasons. Will counties be able to re-print a batch of labels/envelopes for re-issued ballots and have a place to note the reason for the reissue?
Yes.

How does the system process and track transferred voters including inter-county notifications?
Any time a voter moves between counties, a record is stored in the system. At any time, either county may use a screen and report to query what voters have moved between counties.

Currently, some county systems automatically assign the largest number of voters to a particular ballot style and then, in descending order, assigns the next largest number of voters, and so on, to particular ballot styles. Does the OCVR have that capability and how does it work?
The system automatically assigns a number to each ballot style, but it is irrespective of the number of voters. The ballot styles may be renumbered by the county if they wish. Enabling different methods of how the ballot styles are automatically named is on the list to be reviewed for a future release.

Will the OCVR be compatible with our barcode readers?
The system uses a common and standard barcode format, "Code 3 of 9", which can be read by most barcode readers. It has worked with all of the equipment we have borrowed from the counties.

If a county loses connectivity to OCVR, can they get copies of images locally in order to continue to verify signatures while the network connection is being restored? How will that process work?
All images and data are stored centrally in dispersed data centers state-wide. Losing their internet connection to the OCVR system will prevent them from being able to access any data or images that are stored centrally in the OCVR data centers. Counties are strongly encouraged to establish redundant internet connections to mitigate such risks.

What Internet browsers does OCVR support?
Any browser capable of supporting connectivity via Citrix Metaframe is suitable for OCVR usage. Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher, Mozilla FireFox 1.0 or higher, and Netscape Navigator 7.2 or higher have been successfully used to connect to OCVR's system via Citrix.

Our county relies on a local Internet Service Provider for connectivity to the Internet and their reliability isn't good. What network connection options are available to these counties and how will the State assist counties in this area?
Other options for Internet connectivity may include satellite-delivered service, though this may be prohibitively expensive for some smaller counties. Counties should consider secondary service providers in their local area.

How does the system verify addresses and what does it verify against?
The system verifies addresses against a library or address ranges that are maintained by the county. Streets are broken into house number segments that are assigned to a common precinct split (or portion). When an address is entered into the system, it is compared against all of the ranges defined for the county.

How do counties add new addresses to the system? Is this a real time update to the system?
An authorized user may create a new address range in the system. This change is in real time.

Can counties add new addresses to the system that the Post Office or DMV may not have in their address libraries?
Yes.

Can counties change records for voters who aren't registered in their county?
A county can only save changes to a voter's record if that voter resides in their county.

Can anyone add a political party to the system? How is that controlled and managed?
Any county can add a local political party to the system and other counties can subscribe to it if it applies in their county as well. Only a user from the Secretary of State's office can designate that a party is a state-recognized or major party. So, all of the state-recognized parties plus any local parties are listed in the voter data entry screen for a county. When a voter that has registered with a local party moves to a new county that does not subscribe to the party, the new county must reassign the party.

Is the Secretary of State planning to support all of the county election office desktops? What about the desktops and equipment purchased by the State?
The Secretary of State, in conjunction with OCVR vendors, will support all desktops and peripheral devices (e.g. scanners and printers) in terms of their connectivity and usage of the OCVR system.

Who will support the OCVR and who pays for that support?
The system vendor has been contracted by the Secretary of State to provide full ongoing desktop, data center hardware, and application support. County users will be provided a toll-free phone number to be used for all of their support issues related to OCVR. Counties and the SOS are currently developing an Intergovernmental Agreement to govern the ongoing support. Costs for the system will be allocated to counties and to the state. The formula for that allocation is currently by the number of voters. Funding and sustainability discussions are ongoing.

My county election system is pretty new and we're still in the middle of a maintenance contract. Do I have to pay both my current vendor and the State?
Counties with existing maintenance contracts for the voter registration and election management systems, not the vote tally systems, will be given a credit for the amount of the maintenance you are paying. Example: Your current vendor contract renews July 1, 2005. You won't go live on OCVR until August 1, 2005 and don't want to be without support. In addition, your current vendor wants a full year's payment with no refund. You would pay for the whole year unless you can negotiate an early termination but would be given a credit against your allocated payment to OCVR.

My county's network is connected to the Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS) and they have very specific requirements on network access. Does the OCVR comply with CJIS requirements?
As of March 1, 2005 the OCVR team, CJIS, and Lane County, one of the pilots, is developing a solution for this issue. We expect to put a state-county-vendor workgroup together in the next week to develop a long term solution that meets both the security concerns for OCVR and the CJIS requirements for the counties.

Elections Division

Oregon Central Voter Registration (OCVR):Frequently Asked Questions

Oregon Central Voter Registration (OCVR):
Frequently Asked Questions