Government
WilCo to use hand-marked ballots in November Starting in November, registered voters in Williamson County will fill in their ballots by hand instead of scanning them and using a machine to vote electronically. The change comes after the Trump Administra- tion issued an executive order earlier this year to eliminate barcodes on ballots. What’s happening During a June 24 meeting, commissioners approved purchasing $1.4 million of new bal- lot-on-demand voting equipment ahead of a return to hand-marked ballots this fall. Voters will fill in bubbles by hand to mark their preferences for candidates and propositions. Williamson County Elections Administrator Bridgette Escobedo said the county currently uses ballot-marking devices, or BMDs, to mark paper ballots electronically. The BMD prints a ballot
New youth therapy program gets funding Using $1.2 million in new state funding, Williamson County is launching a new youth multisystemic therapy program, which will offer personalized therapy for adolescents facing serious behavioral problems. The details The Williamson County multisystemic therapy team will serve youth already involved in the juvenile justice system or identified as high-risk for the system.
“I know that we are going to do our very best to protect the
secrecy of everyone’s ballot, and this is a way that we can do that.” BRIDGETTE ESCOBEDO, WILLIAMSON COUNTY ELECTIONS ADMINISTRATOR
with a barcode, which a machine reads to tabulate votes, Community Impact previously reported. What else? During the meeting, commissioners approved a resolution to apply for a Help America Vote Act election security grant, which guarantees the county will receive $52,000 in funding to reim- burse the purchase of ballot-on-demand printers. Escobedo will request the entire purchase amount from the grant, but said the county’s election budget will fund anything not covered.
How it works
• Chronic truancy • Aggression • Substance use • Involvement in the justice or welfare system Multisystemic therapy is designed to serve 12-to-17-year-olds who exhibit:
SOURCE: WILLIAMSON COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
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