Legislation to implement post-election audits across all Alabama counties advanced out of the Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund on Wednesday, with Republican lawmakers touting the proposal as a measure to promote public confidence in elections.
HB30, sponsored by State Rep. Debbie Wood (R-Valley), passed 9-5 out of committee and now heads to the Senate floor for final passage.
HB30, known as the Alabama Post-Election Audit Act, passed the House of Representatives 63-30 on March 19 and would require each county’s probate judge to conduct an audit of one precinct after every county and statewide general election.
The bill mandates that the audit be conducted manually or with certified ballot counters to verify the accuracy of vote tabulation machines, some of which are more than a decade old.
“The machines that count our votes are over 10 years old,” Wood said during committee debate. “Do any of you have a cell phone that’s over 10 years old? Do any of you want that push button like my mom? Do any of you have a computer? But these are processing our votes, and they’re over 10 years old. The machines that tabulate our votes are aged.”
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The bill allows counties to audit additional precincts and races, and findings must be reported to the Secretary of State and made public. The audits would occur no earlier than 31 days after an election or after any contest period ends. Counties would be reimbursed by the state for expenses related to the audits, which are estimated to cost $35,000 statewide.
While the bill received a favorable 9–5 report from the Senate committee, several senators voiced concerns during a lengthy discussion.
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State Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison questioned whether the legislation addressed a real problem. “Are we doing something just stirring the water, or are we trying to get to solutions that’s going to solve the problem?” she asked.
State Sen. Larry Stutts (R-Tuscumbia) echoed the concern, warning that the audits may offer “false reassurance” without achieving real accountability. “Are we just falsely reassuring ourselves if we do it?” he asked. “How big of an audit would we need to actually prove there’s no fraud? We do have trustworthy elections — but what do we have to do to prove it?”
Wood responded that while the bill doesn’t promise statistical certainty, it provides a starting point. “If we uncover something, then we’ll feel better about spending more money to do a wider audit,” she said. “Where we err is in doing nothing — and that’s what we’ve been doing.”
Wood emphasized the need to bring Alabama in line with other states. “Forty-nine states have some type of post-election audits,” she said.
The bill moves next to the full Senate for a vote. Today is the 18th legislative day.
Grace Heim is a state and political reporter for Yellowhammer News. You can follow her on X @graceeheim or email her at [email protected].
