OFFICE OF FISCAL ANALYSIS
Legislative Office Building, Room 5200
Hartford, CT 06106 (860) 240-0200
http://www.cga.ct.gov/ofa
sSB-1536
AN ACT CONCERNING THE USE OF RANKED -CHOICE VOTING
IN PARTY CAUCUSES, CONVENTIONS AND PRIMARIES,
INCLUDING PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE PRIMARIES, AND IN
CERTAIN MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS.
Primary Analyst: TM 4/14/25
Contributing Analyst(s):
Reviewer: PR
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 26 $ FY 27 $
Secretary of the State GF - Cost 965,791-
1,365,751
1,461,583
State Comptroller - Fringe
Benefits
1
GF - Cost 101,619 170,306
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact:
Municipalities Effect FY 26 $ FY 27 $
Various Municipalities Cost None Up to
2,400,000
Explanation
The bill authorizes ranked choice voting (RCV) for presidential
preference primaries beginning in FY 28, and for municipal elections
and all other primaries beginning in FY 27 resulting in the fiscal impacts
described below.
Section 1 of the bill requires the Secretary of the State (SOTS) to set
the type of ballot to be used in RCV elections and the secretary to
1
The fringe benefit costs for most state employees are budgeted centrally in accounts
administered by the Comptroller. The estimated active employee fringe benefit cost
associated with most personnel changes is 40.71% of payroll in FY 26. 2025SB-01536-R000675-FN.DOCX Page 2 of 3
preapprove the RCV ballots prior to printing and usage requiring SOTS
to hire one employee
2
at a cost of $129,683 in FY 26 and FY 27 with an
associated fringe cost of $61,081. The SOTS will need two
3
additional
positions at a cost of $145,832 beginning in FY 27, with an associated
fringe cost of $68,687. These positions are required to approve and
oversee the design of RCV ballots in each participating municipality in
compliance with the provisions of this section.
Additionally, this section requires that voting tabulators under
certain conditions can process RCV ballots and produce applicable
information from the ballots processed resulting in a one-time cost to
the state of $750,000 to $1,050,000 in FY 26 and an ongoing cost
beginning in FY 27 of $100,000. The FY 26 cost is associated with the
software
4
required for tabulators to process RCV ballots, and software
to update the states Election Management System (EMS) and Election
Night Reporting System (ENR)
5
to display and count RCV ballots. The
FY 27 cost is associated with the maintenance and upkeep of the
upgraded systems.
Sections 3-7 establish a variety of provisions related to RCV for
municipal elections, party conventions and most primaries beginning in
FY 27 resulting in a cost to municipalities of up to $2,400,000
6
beginning
in FY 27. This cost is associated with additional labor costs, and printing
costs related to the implementation of RCV. The exact cost will vary by
town, the number of towns that adopt RCV, and if a major party were
to adopt RCV for primaries.
To support participating municipalities, the SOTS will need to
conduct a public information campaign to inform the public of changes
to current procedures resulting in a cost of approximately $1,000,000 in
2
This position is an RCV Program Manager position.
3
These positions include an Administrative Assistant, and an Elections Officer.
4
The software itself is open source but would need to be calibrated for usage in
Connecticut and is expected to cost between $100,000-$500,000.
5
This is expected to cost approximately $650,000 in FY 26.
6
This figure assumes full implementation of RCV for the primary election beginning
in FY 27. This includes the cost of RCV ballots, additional labor for each polling station,
and transport costs for secure transport memory sticks from the town to SOTS. 2025SB-01536-R000675-FN.DOCX Page 3 of 3
FY 27. This funding is required to support public awareness of voting
changes, and procedures to reduce the number of ineligible ballots
during participating elections.
These sections also require SOTS to create regulations to implement
RCV where it is adopted, requiring SOTS to hire an additional
durational staff member
7
at a cost of $86,068 in FY 26 and FY 27, with an
associated fringe cost of $40,538 in FY 26 and FY 27. This position is
required to facilitate the adoption of regulations base on best practices
in RCV voting.
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to inflation, wage increases, and the
number of municipalities and parties that adopt RCV as a result of this
bill. The cost of the durational employee will terminate in FY 27 unless
continued.
7
This position is a Staff Attorney I.