JUNE 7, 2006

Continuing cooperative efforts between state and local officials to ensure the accuracy of voter lists in Michigan, Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land today presented the city of Detroit with a reimbursement check for nearly $116,000 to cover costs of verifying registered voters.

Land made the presentation to Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey during a meeting of the Detroit City Council.

According to Winfrey’s office, more than 75,000 out-of-date voter records have been identified and flagged for possible removal—53,000 of them since the state began reimbursing local clerks for costs of verifying voters. Statewide, approximately 229,000 voter files have been marked for potential deletion under the reimbursement program.

"My administration has made it a high priority to ensure that voter lists in our state are as accurate as possible and Detroit is making excellent progress toward this goal," Land said. "By identifying tens of thousands of registered voter records that are obsolete and subject to cancellation, local officials are reducing opportunities for fraud and the costs of administering future elections."

Since last July, using funds from the federal Help America Vote Act, the Department of State has reimbursed local clerks more than $361,000 for the costs of mailing new voter ID cards to registered voters. The mailings are the main method for verifying those records in the state’s Qualified Voter File (QVF) that are up-to-date.

If the ID cards are returned as "undeliverable," the clerk sends a confirmation notice to the voters’ last address on file. The notice informs the voters that their registration will be canceled if they fail to respond to the notice or vote over the course of the next two federal election cycles.

According to Land, more accurate registered voter counts allow administrators to plan better for elections. More precise determinations of the number of ballots and precincts needed reduces inefficiency and saves taxpayer dollars, she said.

Land noted the strong working relationship between state elections officials and the city clerk’s office in Detroit and said because of the cooperation, much is being accomplished for the city and state.

Winfrey credited her staff and the city’s Department of Elections with earning Detroit the funds from the state.

"I’m pleased the hard work of many individuals on behalf of the voters of Detroit has been recognized with the awarding of this reimbursement money to the city," Winfrey said. "We continue to work diligently to clean up our voter lists to benefit Detroit and the democratic process in our state. I would like to thank Secretary Land for providing my office with the support and necessary tools to assure that our voter files are accurate."

Michigan’s QVF, created in 1998, was the first statewide voter database of its kind in the nation and contains a number of records for which verification has been difficult. The QVF was compiled using existing voter lists from all 1,516 cities and townships, which included the names of deceased voters as well as duplicate names.

For more information on the Department of State’s efforts to continue Michigan’s election system as a model for the nation, visit www.Michigan.gov/sos.

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