DEADLINE FOR WRITTEN COMMENTS (to insure delivery to VSPP panel members prior to the meeting) is THURSDAY JUNE 9, 2005, BY 5:00 PM. (the Thursday before the meeting--the meeting is scheduled for Thurs. June 16).
Send written comments to:
Sec of State/VSPP, Attn. Bruce McDannold
FAX (916) 653-3214 - Tel. (916) 657-2166,
or mail to: 1500 11th St, 5th Floor, Sacramento, CA 95814
or email to: Bruce McDannold at
[email protected] (see WARNING, below).
Notify VSPP of intention to speak or present information, call Bruce McDannold, at (916) 657-2166, or email
[email protected]WARNING! The previous VSPP contact, Michael Wagaman, accepted written in-put for VSPP hearings by EMAIL. He printed it out and put it in their packets. I don't know if Bruce McDannold will do so. Be sure to check with Mr. McDannold if you intend to use email only. (Let him know you sent it; ask if email is sufficient.) If you go to the hearing and wish to speak, be sure to SIGN UP TO SPEAK at the door ahead of time.
The CA Voting Systems and Procedures Panel (VSPP) AGENDA: June 16, 10:00 am
1. Diebold Election Systems
a. GEMS central tabulation software
b. AccuVote TSx (touchscreen) DRE system
c. Spyrus voter card encoder
d. Key Card Tool software
e. VC Programmer software
f. AccuVote-OS optical scan system (& AccuFeed)
2. Election Systems & Software
a. Unity election management system
b. Model 100 precinct scanner
c. Model 550 central scanner
d. Model 650 central scanner
e. AutoMARK Voter Assist Terminal
f. AutoMARK Information Management System
3. Federal Qualification Process Report
(WARNING: They can rearrange the agenda, postpone items and postpone the hearing at their will.)
(COMMENTS ON THE ABOVE: Diebold GEMS central tabulation software is probably how they stole the 2004 election. This is likely where all our votes got rearranged, with Kerry votes tossed or re-assigned to Bush, etc., in small percentages here and there across the country, giving Bush his phony popular 'majority' (also done by the touchscreen voting machines themselves). Before he was destroyed by Bush Cartel 'black ops,' CA Sec of State Kevin Shelley was trying to get Diebold's secret, proprietary software disclosed. I don't know what the status of that demand is. This ought to be a key demand of any letters: NO secret, proprietary software or computer components of any kind. Also, throw Diebold out of this state! Period. And ES&S as well.) (Both run by rightwing Bush partisans.)
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Here is a SUMMARY of CEPN positions (as matter for your letter or presentation):
NO to vendors who use convicted felons for writing software, and who permit convicted felons access to election information.
NO to proprietary and/or secret computer components of any kind.
NO to remote access of any kind (such as modems or wireless--no "open back doors").
NO to private maintenance of machines.
NO to paper trails or ballots that are NOT archival.
NO to paper trails or ballots read by private entities.
NO to cash register roll type paper trails or ballots (can destroy secrecy of the ballot by tracing sequence of voting).
NO to vendors who have installed illegal voting equipment in CA.
NO to equipment that doesn't meet CA and Fed certification standards for all equipment.
NO to overly complex voting equipment that requires extra training or expense.
NO to modular data components vulnerable to exchanges with malicious data.
Additional CEPN positions:
CEPN affirms the goals of HAVA--the Help America Vote Act (Note: I do not support HAVA--I think HAVA was a deliberate setup of a fraudulent election; it may have beneficial stated goals, but it did not work out that way!)
CA's HAVA budget (hundreds of millions of dollars) should not be squandered on new equipment that doesn't meet all common sense and open election standards.
Don't spend that money if no acceptable equipment is presented at the June 16 meeting.
CEPN will vet the equipment to be presented, prior to the meeting
(contact Lara Shaffer, Open Voting Consortium, at
[email protected], or tel (831) 419-0758).
CEPN supports accessible, voter-verified, paper ballots on archival paper that can be shuffled to retain secrecy of the ballot, and
Five Star Audit
--mandatory audits of ALL elections
--genuine random sampling
--minimum 5% sampling of paper ballots (or paper audit trails) and ALL provisional and absentee ballots
--hand-counted
--non-partisan oversight in a public forum
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CEPN'S Announcment re: June 16
The California Election Protection Network ("CEPN") invites all citizens to join us in attending the Voting Systems and Procedures Panel ("VSPP") hearing on June 16, 2006.
This VSPP hearing will feature Diebold and Election Systems & Software ("ES&S") voting equipment manufacturers, seeking approval of their wares.
Thurs., June 16
9:00 am -- convene at Sec of State building: 1500 11th St., 1st Floor (Auditorium), Sacramento, CA 95814
10:00 am - the hearing; upon adjournment, go to citizen forums
If VSPP hearing is postponed (a trick they often pull), then citizen rally and lobby of the legislature. For further info.:
Marc Keenberg:
[email protected]Sherry Healy:
[email protected]