Tuesday, May 11, 2021
Hays County will soon purchase curbside voting equipment and upgrade its election system software, following approval from the commissioners court Tuesday.
With a unanimous vote during Tuesday s meeting, the Hays County Commissioners Court approved authorizations for the county’s elections administration office to use grant funding from the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL) to purchase Hart Verity Duo Go for curbside voting and to upgrade the Hart Verity Voting System.
“This particular item is a required update that was certified for the Hart equipment that we purchased,” Elections Administrator Jennifer Anderson said. “It’s important to note that these upgrades are certified the same way as the systems that we initially purchased through both the federal government and the state government.”
The Hays County Commissioners Court will consider utilizing grant funding to purchase equipment to support curbside voting.
The commissioners will discuss authorizing the county’s elections administration office to use grant funding from the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL) to purchase Hart Verity Duo Go for curbside voting and to upgrade the Hart Verity Voting System during Tuesday s meeting.
The county’s elections administrator has received authorization from CTCL to use the grant funding for the voting system upgrade and equipment purchase, according to the commissioners court agenda. Additionally, the system upgrade would put the Verity Election System to a Windows 10 Enterprise platform, which will ensure the voting system has the most recent software updates with enhanced functionality.
At its May 3 meeting, the Hays County Commissioners Court submitted a grant application for $1,085,325 to the Texas Indigent Defense Commission, Improvement Grant Program for the Hays County Holistic Public Defense Office and Managed Assigned Counsel Program, generating the request for a Public Defenderâs Office.
A renewal grant application was also authorized for submission to the Texas Indigent Defense Commission for the Indigent Defense Coordinator grant project in the amount of $77,292, for which the county will provide a cash match of up to 60%.
The Commissioners Court proclaimed May 9-15 as Police Week and May 15 as Peace Officers Memorial Day, acknowledging officers who have passed while in the line of duty.
Monday, May 3, 2021
The Hays County Commissioners will vote on the long-awaited resolution directing the grant application for holistic public defense to be submitted. If approved, the application would be submitted to the Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) for the Hays County Holistic Public Defense Office and Managed Assigned Counsel Program in the amount of $1,085,325.
This grant is intended to fund the first year of the proposed Holistic Public Defender Office and Managed Assigned Counsel Program.
From the grant application, the program calls for, “Sound hiring and state-of-the-art training; supportive supervision and oversight of attorneys; available investigation and social work services; ongoing data review and evaluation; and sustainable solutions to long-standing issues will generate improved case outcomes for clients and promote the smooth administration of the county s criminal justice system.”
Hays County Historic Court House. Star file photo
The Hays County Commissioners Court provided information regarding future evening and night COVID-19 vaccination sites at its April 27 meeting.
The vaccination sites aim to cater to individuals who work during regular hours of the day. The first evening site is scheduled from 5-10 p.m. on April 30 at Sinai Pentecostal Church located at 208 Laredo St.
The court also adopted proclamations declaring April 25 to May 2 as Soil & Water Stewardship Week. Soil & Water Stewardship Week encourages community members to continue to preserve natural resources like fertile soil and clean water.
During the meeting s COVID-19 updates, Emergency Services Office Director Mike Jones says Texas State and Hays County vaccinated 2,403 citizens at their April 22 joint mass vaccination site.