SEATTLE — Washington must reimburse all 39 counties in the state for money spent on additional ballot drop boxes required to comply with state law, a judge said.
King County Superior Court Judge Nelson Lee ruled last Wednesday that the law violated a state statute, which prohibits the state from requiring local governments to provide new or expanded service without giving them money to cover the cost, The Daily Herald reported.
“The Court applauds the Washington State Legislature for taking affirmative and substantive steps towards increasing voter participation in elections,” Lee said. “That said, the counties should not be unduly forced to choose between full compliance and extreme economic hardship.”
The Washington State Association of Counties, the lead plaintiff representing the state’s 39 counties, filed the lawsuit last December based on the 2017 state law sponsored by former Republican state Sen. Kirk Pearson. The law requires counties provide at least one drop box for every 15,000 registered voters and a minimum of one box in each city, town and census-designated place with a post office.
