Board for Registration of Voters

Regular Meeting

Burlington, VT · October 7, 2025

Minutes

BURLINGTON BOARD FOR REGISTRATION OF VOTERS 1ST FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL, 149 CHURCH STREET, BURLINGTON, VT 05401 OR REMOTELY VIA ZOOM MINUTES OF MEETING October 7, 2025 1. Call Meeting to Order 1. Call Meeting to Order Meeting called to order by Vice-Chair Michelle Lefkowitz at 6:00pm. Members Present: Janet Stambolian, Karen Rowell, Michelle Lefkowitz, Annie Schneider, Grace Grundhauser, Kevin Lewis, Lauren Ebersol, Adam Franz, Colleen Montgomery, Jeanne Keller, Lesley Gendron, and Youth Member Will Cunningham Members Absent: Alison Harte Others Present: Sarah Montgomery, Assistant City Clerk 2. Agenda 2. Agenda 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda Agenda approved unanimously. 3. Announcements 3. Announcements There were no announcements. 4. Meeting Length 4. Meeting Length 4.1. Set Meeting Length 4.1. Set Meeting Length The meeting length was set to one hour. 5. Adopt Minutes 5. Adopt Minutes Subject File Attachments 1. 9/2/25 BRV Minutes 9/2/25 BRV Minutes.pdf 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes Karen Rowell made a motion to adopt the minutes. Seconded by Adam Franz. Approved unanimously. 6. Public Forum 6. Public Forum No members of the public were present. 7. Clerk's Report 7. Clerk's Report Sarah Montgomery reported that there are currently 29,231 registered voters in Burlington. Out of this total, 5,100 are currently challenged. In September:180 voters registered to vote, 52 voters were removed from the checklist, and 101 voters were transferred from Burlington to other Vermont towns. Sarah reported that the final district boundary audit was submitted to the state. Based on feedback from the board, additional information about participation of the affected voters was added to the report, better showing the impact of the incorrect assignments. 8. Approval of Voter Challenges 8. Approval of Voter Challenges Annie Schneider made a motion to approve the proposed voter challenges. Seconded by Jeanne Keller. Approved unanimously. 9. Board Member Expectations 9. Board Member Expectations Subject File Attachments 1. BRV Rules and Procedures - DRAFT BRV Rules and Procedures - DRAFT.docx 9.1. Rules and Procedures for the Board for the Registration of Voters Grace Grundhauser explained that this document has been in draft format for many years. The board is now discussing and updating it, specifically in regard to board member participation expectations. Grace suggested that the board approve it and keep track of the approved revision dates on the document. Grace Grundhauser asked Sarah Montgomery if this document should be approved by the attorney's office. Sarah Montgomery agreed that it could. Jeanne Keller asked if there should be more specific language about election day attendance — making it more explicit what the expectations are for attending elections. Will Cunningham agreed that there should be some more defined structure. Lauren Ebersol agreed, and suggested it be framed similarly to the meeting attendance requirements. Janet Stambolian asked what the context for making these changes to the attendance expectations is. Grace Grundhauser said that the rules and procedures didn't previously make it clear that election day attendance was necessary, but when she looked at statute, she realized that BRV members are required to be at the polling places because they have authority to determine election day voter registration eligibility. She also noted that there are more members than polling places, so in theory, not everyone will always need to work on election day, which is why she drafted language indicating members should be available. Adam Franz asked what the previous expectations had been. Lauren Ebersol proposed adding a sentence that says "inability to be available on election day is subject to review." Karen Rowell suggested increasing the allowance to 3 missed elections before reviewing, since there will inevitably be valid reasons for members to be unavailable for a single election. Members asked if, when thinking about the threshold of 3 missed elections, the missed elections should be consecutive or total. Karen Rowell suggested consecutive. Other members noted that a member could go a really long time without attending an election if the threshold was 3 consecutive elections missed. Jeanne Keller noted that in her original proposal, she wanted the process to be more objective, so it would be an automated process, rather than a member needing to initiate it. Grace Grundhauser noted that she added into the draft a semi-automatic trigger that would allow members to anonymously add an agenda item to a meeting if a member had missed enough meetings/elections. Colleen Montgomery said she does not like the idea of 3 consecutive elections because members could miss elections frequently, but never meet the threshold for board discussion. She added that the proposed semi-automatic trigger still puts the onus on the individual board members to report the absences and add the discussion item to an agenda. Kevin Lewis agreed that he understood that the purpose of the policy would be to automatically add the item to the agenda, so an individual member would not be required to take action — he would support the processes being fully automatic to add the discussion to an agenda, even if it would sometimes end up being a formality and the absences excused by the board. Michelle Lefkowitz added that all members should be able to work the elections — even if that meant doubling-up at a polling place. Other members noted that members could also do shorter shifts to allow everyone the opportunity to work. Lesley Gendron said that one election might be too harsh — she recommended two missed elections might be the right number. Lauren Ebersol asked if Grace purposely removed the language about "excused absences" from the draft procedure. Grace Grundhauser said she removed it intentionally to make the policy simpler and more concise. Adam Franz said he thinks any absence should be communicated, so he feels comfortable saying any unexcused absence would be discussed. Will Cunningham said that people's lives are too subjective and circumstantial to define absences as excused or unexcused - he thinks it should be two consecutive missed elections, with an automatic trigger to discuss at the next meeting. Janet Stambolian added that if people aren't showing up to do the work that they have agreed to do, it warrants a discussion. Annie Schneider made a motion to change the language to: If you miss 2 consecutive elections, there will be an automatic trigger to discuss at the next meeting, with the board discussing whether the absences are excused during the meeting. Adam Franz made a friendly amendment to edit the language to miss two elections in a two-year period. Annie Schneider accepted the amendment. Grace Grundhauser said that election attendance would be tracked in the minutes of the meeting following the election. She asked if this would be triggered if a member was not needed for a certain election. Lesley Gendon stated that everyone should have the opportunity to work at every election. Kevin Lewis suggested that any excused absence (like having a baby) could be recorded in the minutes prior to the meeting. Grace Grundhauser said she feels that might muddy things. Grace Grundhauser wanted to clarify if the board agrees that everyone will be expected to work every election. Annie Schneider made a motion to call the question. Seconded by Adam Franz. Question called. Question: Include in the expectations an automatic trigger to add an agenda item for board discussion if a member misses 2 elections within a 2-year period. In Favor: Adam Franz, Lauren Ebersol, Karen Rowell, Grace Grundhauser, Annie Schneider, Jeanne Keller, Colleen Montgomery, Kevin Lewis, Lesley Gendron, Janet Stambolian Opposed: Michelle Lefkowitz Motion passed. Jeanne Keller made a motion that the review process for non-participation be modified in accordance with the discussion and be brought back to the board next month for further review. Seconded by Colleen Montgomery. Passed unanimously. Grace Grundhauser will amend the draft document per the discussion and present at the next meeting. 10. New Business 10. New Business Karen Rowell said there will be action requested of the City Council about the recent BRV member appointment decision, because she feels she should not be the only Republican on the board. She stated that the City Council should have appointed the conservative applicant who applied. She stated that there should be 3 Republicans on the board, and it is not fair that the conservative applicant was not appointed by City Council. She noted that 37% of the voters in Burlington voted for President Trump, and they should be represented by the board. She stated that she is suing the city for non-citizen voting, and that she felt attacked by the board after a resolution regarding that was adopted. She stated that she is in support of legal immigration. She shared that it is difficult speaking about issues with the board, when everyone else has opposing political views. Will Cunningham said that he thinks that it is a good idea to add Republicans to the board — he asked how that would happen logistically. Annie Schneider noted that she is hearing the hurt and anger from Karen Rowell. Annie noted that it seems that City Council followed the procedures correctly because the applicant was not listed as a Republican. Grace Grundauser said that she heard Annie saying that the letter of the law was followed, but also heard Karen saying that the spirit of the law was not followed. Jeanne Keller noted that the quality of the applicant should also be considered — she does not believe that the City Council deserves the criticism being directed at them. Grace Grundhauser noted that conversations within the board are welcome, but discouraged back and fourths between individual members. Will Cunningham agreed that political representation is important, and he noted that the rule about political party requirements is to avoid subjective decisions by the appointing board. He asked what action was being asked of the board. Karen Rowell said that the request for action is being brought to City Council, not to the BRV. Annie Schneider said that despite political differences, she appreciates working with Karen Rowell on this board. Grace Grundhauser echoed the sentiment. Karen Rowell said it takes courage to speak up in this group, and it can be intimidating. Colleen Montgomery made a motion to extend the meeting by 5 minutes. Seconded by Janet Stambolian. Motion passed. Janet Stambolian asked why Jeff Comstock ran as an Independent. Karen Rowell answered that it is because being a Republican in Burlington is toxic. She noted that Jeff Comstock was a ward clerk and is well qualified. Colleen Montgomery asked about rules for party representation on the board. Grace Grundauser explained that if there is an applicant from an underrepresented major party, City Council should appoint that member. 11. Adjournment 11. Adjournment 11.1. Motion to Adjourn 11.1. Motion to Adjourn Annie Schneider made a motion to adjourn. Seconded by Lauren Ebersol. Passed unanimously.

Agenda

Packet

Board for Registration of Voters Tuesday, October 7, 2025, 6:00 PM, 1st Floor Conference Room, City Hall, 149 Church Street, Burlington, VT 05401 OR remotely via Zoom Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/93712437108 Meeting ID: 937 1243 7108 1. Call Meeting to Order 2. Agenda 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda 3. Announcements 4. Meeting Length 4.1. Set Meeting Length 5. Adopt Minutes Subject File Attachments 1. 9/2/25 BRV Minutes 9/2/25 BRV Minutes.pdf 6. Public Forum 7. Clerk's Report 8. Approval of Voter Challenges 9. Board Member Expectations Subject File Attachments 1. BRV Rules and Procedures - DRAFT BRV Rules and Procedures - DRAFT.docx 10. New Business 11. Adjournment 11.1. Motion to Adjourn Page 1 of 9 Page 2 of 9 BURLINGTON BOARD FOR REGISTRATION OF VOTERS CITY HALL, 1ST FLOOR, 149 CHURCH STREET, BURLINGTON, VT, 05401 OR REMOTELY VIA ZOOM. MINUTES OF MEETING September 2, 2025 1. Call Meeting to Order 1. Call Meeting to Order Meeting called to order by Chair Grace Grundhauser at 6:00pm Members Present: Alison Harte, Adam Franz, Lauren Ebersol, Lesley Gendron, Grace Grundhauser, Kevin Lewis, Annie Schneider, Colleen Montgomery, Jeanne Schwartz, Karen Rowell, Michelle Lefkowitz, Youth member WIll Cunningham Members Absent: Janet Stambolian Others Present: Sarah Montgomery, Assistant City Clerk 2. Agenda 2. Agenda 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda Grace Grundhauser suggested moving the board member expectations agenda item to the next meeting. Jeanne Keller, the member who asked for it to be added, stated that she was amenable to postponing this. Agenda adopted as amended. 3. Announcements 3. Announcements Grace Grundhauser shared that a new board member, Janet Stambolian, was appointed to the board. Karen Rowell stated that she feels she should not be the only Republican on the board and was upset by the appointment decision. She said that she would like to see equal political representation on the board. Jeanne Keller asked if any Republicans had applied for the position. Karen Rowell said that she does not know, but by only advertising it on Front Porch Forum, conservative residents were not reached. Karen added that there was a conservative applicant, Jeff Comstock, who was rejected. Will Cunningham asked if anything could be done now that the appointment has already been made. Grace Grundhauser shared that her understanding is that if a Republican had applied, and the City Council had rejected them, the Republican Party could object. Alison Harte noted that she did reach out to Karen Rowell asking for other places to post the vacancy. Karen said she did connect with Guy Page, who wrote an article, but it was at the last minute. Lauren Ebersol suggested that the board create a list of places where to post openings, so it could be standard in the future. Annie Schneider noted that it is a relatively new practice for the board to advertise board member vacancies, and it is not required. Karen Rowell said she will appeal it to City Council. She thinks it is important for the board to hear different perspectives and investigate and advocate to the Secretary of State when there are registration issues that should be investigated. 4. Meeting Length Page 3 of 9 4. Meeting Length 4.1. Set Meeting Length 4.1. Set Meeting Length The meeting was set to end at 7pm. 5. Adopt Minutes 5. Adopt Minutes 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes File Attachments 1. August BRV Minutes August BRV Minutes.pdf 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes LG made a motion. 2nd by AH. Unanimous. 6. Public Forum 6. Public Forum No members of the public were present. 7. Clerk's Report 7. Clerk's Report Sarah Montgomery reported that there are currently 29,139 registered voters in Burlington. 5,123 of these voters are challenged. In August, 174 new voters registered, 85 were transferred from Burlington to other Vermont towns, and 35 were removed from the checklist. 8. Approval of Voter Challenges 8. Approval of Voter Challenges Michelle Lefkowitz made a motion to challenge the voters presented to the board. Seconded by Lauren Ebersol. Passed unanimously. 9. State District Boundary Audit 9. State District Boundary Audit 9.1. Discussion about Draft State District Boundary Audit Report File Attachments 1. DRAFT Boundary Audit Report DRAFT Boundary Audit Report.pdf 9.1. Discussion about Draft State District Boundary Audit Report Sarah Montgomery gave an overview of the material presented in the draft report, stating that 34 voters were found to be incorrectly assigned — either to their state house district or their city ward. She stated that it was a productive process and all errors found have been corrected. Jeanne Keller asked if the voters affected by the correction would be notified. Sarah answered that she would notify them. Grace Grundhauser asked if these updates would cause voter confusion at the polling places for the next election. Sarah answered that she expects it might cause confusion for the 8 voters who had their ward assignment changed, since this would affect their polling place. She also noted that the address where the ward was incorrect was student housing, so those voters may no longer be at that address. Lesley Gendron asked if all of this had been updated and VEMS and if that now can be trusted as the source of truth. Sarah confirmed the updates have been made in the system. Adam Franz asked: would the voters who were incorrectly assigned state house districts have voted in the wrong house district in the 2024 election? Sarah Montgomery answered yes, any of those voters who participated would have received the incorrect ballot. She can report back on the participation of those voters, but agreed that it was a valid concern, and was the reason for the mandated audit across multi-district towns. Page 4 of 9 10. Board Member Expectations 10. Board Member Expectations 10.1. Rules and Procedures for the Board for Registration of Voters File Attachments 1. Rules and Procedures of the Board for the Rules and Procedures of the Board for the Registration of Voters Registration of Voters .pdf 10.1. Rules and Procedures for the Board for Registration of Voters This agenda item was postponed until the October meeting. 11. Voter Checklist Protections 11. Voter Checklist Protections 11.1. Discussion about Voter Checklist Protections File Attachments 1. Voter Registration Public Records Request Voter Registration Public Records Request Procedure Procedure.pdf 11.1. Discussion about Voter Checklist Protections Sarah Montgomery gave an overview of the voter checklist request procedure that her office created in conjunction with the attorney's office. Sarah also noted that the Secretary of State had recently released a statement about voter data. Annie Schneider asked if this procedure prevents the legal resident voter list being shared separately. Sarah confirmed that the procedure does not allow for that. Alison Harte asked if the voter checklist is public information. Sarah confirmed. Lauren Ebersol asked if the procedure could be made available to legal resident voters to share information about what is done with their voter information. Grace Grundhauser suggested pulling that information together into a more user-friendly FAQ. Grace noted that the information would still be available to BRV members and election workers. Sarah Montgomery added that for Election Day materials, there are public records that are created that indicate whether a voter is a citizen or non-citizen. She added that her office can think through that piece further, because having that distinction available for election workers is important in administering the election correctly. 12. New Business 12. New Business Lesley Gendron reminded everyone to review the flow chart. Colleen Montgomery said she wasn't able to get into VEMS and asked anyone else if they had issues. Sarah Montgomery will share the login link with everyone. All members should try to log in and let Sarah know if they cannot access it. Adam Franz asked what the board's policies are about tabling for voter registration, especially at UVM since the school year is starting. Will Cunningham added that he could do some work at the high schools, but that could be challenging because most high school students are not old enough to vote. Adam Franz said he feels like UVM students do not have enough information about their eligibility to vote in Burlington. Annie Schneider said that the City Clerk in Winooski does table at the high school and that she believes that would be allowed in Burlington schools as well. Michelle Lefkowitz shared that she has done plenty of voter registration outreach in tabling as a board member, but it hasn't happened much in recent years. Lesley Gendron asked if this type of activity would be mandatory. Grace Grundhauser does not think this is a core function of the board and should not be a requirement for members who are not interested. Adam Franz asked if the board would mind if he reached out to UVM to coordinate. Grace Grundhauser encouraged him to and reminded members that when doing board outreach, they should remain neutral, not have any campaign information etc. Alison Harte suggested that she, Lesley Gendron, and Adam Franz organize some materials/plans for voter outreach now so they can be prepared for next year's election-filled year. Adam Franz will reach out to folks at UVM and let the board know his plans. Michelle Lefkowitz said to make sure to Page 5 of 9 tell students that they can only be registered in one place. Michelle Lefkowitz noted that the Secretary of State's office has a published how to do a voter registration guide. Sarah Montgomery will share some other procedural resources. Jeanne Keller was surprised to recently learn that board members were not required to attend pre-election trainings, and asked for other board member opinions. She said that while policy decisions are not being made at trainings, it is a good opportunity to learn from each other. Lesley Gendron said that there is a nuance between board member training and volunteer training - the pre-election training is primarily tailored for volunteers. She shared that her understanding is that the BRV members should already have the knowledge that is shared at those training sessions. Lauren Ebersol said that she feels it is a good idea for members to attend the training, but does not feel like it should be a requirement. Lesley Gendron added that the post-mortem that the board members do after an election is a great opportunity to learn from issues that occurred. Jeanne Keller noted that the day of election training was challenging for her, but she found the pre-election training to be more helpful. Lesley Gendron said that previously there has also been training that has happened within the regular meetings. Grace Grundhauser said she wants to balance the demands placed on the members, who are volunteer community members. Jeanne Keller noted that the on-the-job training that rotated between several wards was especially challenging because everyone had different styles and specific workflows. Will Cunningham asked if it would be helpful for BRV members to stay at a single election for their 1st election, and then rotate for their 2nd training election. 13. Adjournment 13. Adjournment 13.1. Motion to Adjourn 13.1. Motion to Adjourn Lauren Ebersol made a motion to adjourn. Seconded by Adam Franz. Passed unanimously. Page 6 of 9 Rules and Procedures for the Board for the Registration of Voters (Proposal 6-1-2021) PURPOSE: The Board for Registration of Voters is committed to the enfranchisement of eligible residents through the voting process. Voting is a right and responsibility. The Board encourages voter registration and acknowledges the right of voters to freely participate in elections. The Board may actively initiate and participate in voter registration outreach. The Board’s legal responsibility is to maintain the voting checklist for the City of Burlington by upholding the Vermont Election Laws (Title 17 of the Vermont Statutes Annotated). AUTHORITY AND RESPONSIBILITIES: The Board for Registration of Voters is responsible for and has authority for all duties with respect to preparing The City of Burlington’s voter checklist pursuant to chapters 14, 15, 16 and 43 of the City’s Charter, and Title 17 of the Vermont Statutes Annotated. The Board shall comply with the Vermont Open Meeting Law and other laws covering public bodies. In order to effectively and justly carry out its responsibilities all members will be expected to familiarize themselves with the Vermont Election Law in Title 17 of the Vermont Statutes Annotated, along with pertinent sections of the Burlington City Charter. The Board will maintain an office in City Hall, wherein shall be kept available for public inspection the records of all legal voters. The Board shall advise any petitioner affected by an adverse decision of his or her statutory right to be included in the list of legal voters to seek judicial review of such decision. MEMBERSHIP: As established by the City-Charter, the Board for Registration of Voters shall consist of 12 registered Voters of the City of Burlington, appointed by the City Council, with the Mayor presiding. Appointments to the Board for Registration of Voters shall be for five (5) years. Members may reapply and may be appointed for successive terms without limitation. Members of the Board may be removed for incapacity, negligence, or bad conduct when a majority of the City Council, Mayor presiding vote to remove the member pursuant to Chapter 129 of the Burlington City Charter. In addition and pursuant to this same section, when in the judgment of two-thirds of the City Council, on the initiative of the Mayor, a member is no longer effectively serving the city, that member may be removed from the Board. Therefore because members are expected to actively participate in city elections, meetings and other Board activities, a member’s continued non-participation in Board activities may result in the Board’s recommendation to the City Council for removal from the Board. MEETING ATTENDANCE: Any member who is absent from three (3) or more regular meetings within any rolling twelve (12) month period shall be subject to review. Attendance is documented in the official minutes. ELECTION COVERAGE: Each polling place must be staffed by a Board member during all hours the polls are open on election day (7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.). With twelve (12) members and eight (8) wards, no individual member is required to serve at every election, but each member must remain generally available and willing to serve as assigned. The Clerk shall record in the official Page 7 of 9 minutes of the next regular meeting which members provided polling place coverage for every election. This obligation arises from state law and the Burlington City Charter: 17 V.S.A. § 2144 requires that voter registration and eligibility issues on Election Day be referred to members of the board of civil authority (or equivalent body) present at the polling place; and Burlington City Charter § 43 delegates those checklist duties to the Board for Registration of Voters. Accordingly, physical presence at each polling place is a legal responsibility of this Board. REVIEW PROCESS FOR NON-PARTICIPATION: Any member who is consistently unavailable for election coverage, or who has reached the meeting attendance threshold above, shall be subject to review. Upon confidential notice to the Chair or Clerk, the member’s record shall be included on the proposed agenda for the next regular meeting. If the Board votes to include the item, the Board shall then consider whether to recommend to the City Council that the member be removed and the vacancy advertised. The Board may not remove a member directly, but may only recommend removal to the City Council, which retains sole authority over appointments and vacancies. A two-third majority vote of the Board is required for such a recommendation to the City Council. OFFICERS: At the first meeting of the Board, following the annual appointments, the Board shall elect a Chair by majority vote. A Vice Chair and Secretary may be elected at the discretion of the Board. Terms of office shall be one year. QUORUM: A simple majority of the Board shall be considered a quorum MEETINGS AND MINUTES: The Board for Registration of Voters shall hold meetings on the first Tuesday of each month unless otherwise determined by a majority vote of the Board. Additional meetings are scheduled to accommodate closing of the checklist prior to elections (Vermont Statute Annotated, Title 17). All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public except at such times when an executive session is in order. No action shall be taken at any meeting of the Board without a quorum present. No action shall be taken in executive session. (See open meeting law) Roberts Rules of Order revised shall govern proceedings of the Board for all cases which are not specifically covered by other laws, ordinances, by-laws, or regulations. Minutes shall be kept of all meetings. The minutes shall be available for public inspection according to open meeting laws. WARNINGS OF MEETINGS: In accordance with Vermont Open Meeting Law, the Board shall provide the Clerk / Treasurer’s Office with notice of regular meetings on or before the Thursday before the week of the meeting. The Clerk / Treasurer’s Office will warn the meeting. For special meetings, the Board shall publicly announce at least 24 hours before the meeting the time, place and purpose with appropriate media and post with the Clerk / Treasurer’s office and two other public places. Emergency meetings may be held without public announcement, without posting notices and without 24 hours notices to members, provided some public notice is given as soon as possible before such meeting. Page 8 of 9 SPECIAL MEETINGS: Special meetings of the Board for Registration of Voters may be called by the Chair, when the Chair deems it expedient or upon the request of two (2) members of the Board for the purpose of transacting any business designated in the call. In accordance with Vermont Open Meeting Law, Notice for a special meeting may be made by telephone or other appropriate technology at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the date of such special meeting. At such special meeting no business shall be voted on other than that specified in the call. ADOPTION OF RULES AND PROCEDURES: The Board may adopt rules and procedures as it may deem wise for the regulation of its work. Rules may be amended by a two-thirds majority provided that the proposed amendment(s) have been discussed at two meetings prior to the meeting at which the amendment(s) will be voted upon. These Rules and Procedures were adopted by a two-thirds vote of the Board for Registration of Voters at its meeting on ___________________. Page 9 of 9