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NJ A251

NJ A251
Requires new voting machines purchased or leased for use in elections in this State to produce voter-verifiable paper record of each vote cast.


summary

Introduced
01/13/2026
In Committee
01/13/2026
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead

Introduced Session

2026-2027 Regular Session

Bill Summary

Under current law, the requirement for the purchase of new voting machines or retrofitting of existing voting machines to produce a paper record of the votes cast has been suspended until funding is made available from State or federal sources. This bill would require that new voting machines purchased or leased following the bill's effective date must produce a voter-verifiable paper record of each vote cast. Specifically, the bill requires that each voting machine be able to produce an individual permanent paper record for each vote cast, which must be made available for inspection and verification by the voter at the time the vote is cast, and preserved for later use in any manual audit. The bill also provides that the Secretary of State may waive the voter-verifiable paper record requirement for voting machines that were in use during an election in this State prior to the bill's effective date. However, the bill prohibits the Secretary of State from granting any such waiver for voting machines that were newly-purchased or leased following the bill's effective date.

AI Summary

This bill mandates that any new voting machines purchased or leased for use in elections in this State must produce a voter-verifiable paper record of each vote cast, meaning each voter will receive a printed record of their vote that they can check for accuracy before it is officially cast, and this record will be kept for potential audits or recounts. This requirement replaces a previous suspension that was tied to the availability of state or federal funding, and while the Secretary of State can grant waivers for older machines already in use, no waivers will be permitted for newly acquired machines.

Committee Categories

Government Affairs

Sponsors (1)

Last Action

Introduced, Referred to Assembly State and Local Government Committee (on 01/13/2026)

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