Secretary of State outlines election-related duties in SB 851 and seeks funding for voting system standards, Cal-Access replacement

The Secretary of State27s office briefed Subcommittee 4 on SB 851 implementation, voting system standards work and technology projects to replace aging systems.

Kristen Dagscher, interim chief financial officer for the Secretary of State, said SB 851 would require the office to receive notice within three days of certain elections-related court actions and before settlements, expand the SOS27s authority to publish voting system standards aligned with the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), and require vendors to notify the office of voting-system defects. She said the request includes $1.1 million in ongoing general fund to support four permanent positions and litigation-tracking software to meet the statutory requirements.

Department legal staff told the committee they are coordinating with the Attorney General and county election officials and cited ongoing uncertainty about the scope of litigation and federal developments. "We are working closely with our AG counterparts, and county election officials and all of our local partners to make sure that we're apprised of everything going on," Janelle Callahan, the department27s legal affairs staffer, said.

On technology, the SOS requested $11.8 million in one-time funds to continue the CARS project (the Cal-Access replacement) to support final months of execution, initial maintenance and the 33 previously approved positions. John Heinlein, assistant CARS project director, said the project plans a November 2026 go-live for this iteration and emphasized stakeholder engagement and a three-month stabilization period after launch.

The department also requested nearly $9.8 million in business fees fund to continue NAP2 (notary automation) replacement because the current system is obsolete and running on unsupported technology.

The subcommittee held the items open while members asked about staffing, the expiration of federal HAVA funds and whether the requested positions and procurement timing are sufficient to meet implementation timelines.