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Georgia voters can expect further “tweaks” to state elections laws this year, House Speaker Jon Burns said Wednesday.
House Republican leaders will push to eliminate QR codes from the paper ballots voting machines spit out to voters after they cast their ballots and consider strengthening the powers of the State Election Board, potentially at the expense of the secretary of state, said Burns, R-Newington.
The General Assembly passed legislation in 2019 providing for a paper backup to electronic ballots, a move aimed at giving Georgians more confidence their votes are being recorded accurately. But some voters have complained that the QR codes are confusing and impose a barrier on transparency.
“We need to give voters confidence … to feel like there’s transparency when they vote,” Burns said.
The other potential change to election laws Burns talked about Wednesday would shift investigations of voter complaints of election fraud from the secretary of state’s office to the State Election Board. Burns said such a move would help make the board more independent.
The most sweeping changes in Georgia election laws occurred in 2021, following 2020 elections that saw Democrats capture both of the state’s U.S. Senate seats and Democrat Joe Biden narrowly carry the Peach State on his way to the White House.
Senate Bill 202 that year required voters seeking to cast absentee ballots to show a photo ID, a provision that already applied to in-person voting. The 2021 measure also limits the number of absentee ballot drop boxes and prohibits non-poll workers from handing out food and drinks within 150 feet of voters standing in line.
On other issues Wednesday, Burns said he remains committed to Georgia Pathways, the limited Medicaid expansion…
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