The Center for Tech and Civic Life has awarded the city of Bath $155,000 for any election-related expenses between June 15 and Dec. 31 for the public purpose of planning and operationalizing safe and secure election administration.
Bath City Clerk Darci Wheelers said she intended to use the funds to cover temporary pay for election workers, extra personal protective equipment not provided by the state, voting booths, signs and security cameras. She anticipates that there will be a large portion of grant funds leftover, however, which will be returned to the Center for Tech and Civic Life.
“It’s a huge relief to know that I can ensure this election is done to the best of my ability, without having to worry about having enough funding,” said Wheeler.
City officials will produce a report documenting how the grant funds were used by the end of January 2021.
The Chicago-based Center for Tech and Civic Life received $250 million from Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg that the center has been regranting to local election jurisdictions across the country. The center received over 2,500 applications, including Bath’s application for the minimum request of $5,000.
The center allocated the money based on a formula “that considers the citizen voting age population and other demographic data,” according to their website, which is why Bath was awarded significantly more than they asked for.
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