Board for Registration of Voters

Regular Meeting

Burlington, VT · December 2, 2025

Minutes

BURLINGTON BOARD FOR REGISTRATION OF VOTERS CITY HALL, 1ST FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, 149 CHURCH STREET, BURLINGTON, VT, 05401 OR REMOTELY VIA ZOOM. MINUTES OF MEETING December 2, 2025 1. Call Meeting to Order 1. Call Meeting to Order Meeting called to order by Chair Grace Grundhauser at 6:03pm In Attendance: Janet Stambolian, Michelle Lefkowitz, Jeanne Keller, Kevin Lewis, Karen Rowell, Colleen Montgomery, Adam Franz, Lesley Gendron, Lauren Ebersol, Grace Grundhauser, Annie Schneider, Alison Harte, Youth Member Will Cunningham Also 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 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 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes File Attachments 1. Board for Registration of Voters Minutes Board for Registration of Voters Minutes.pdf 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes Colleen Montgomery made a motion to adopt the minutes from the November meeting. Seconded by Karen Rowell. Passed 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 29,309 registered voters in Burlington. Out of this total, 5,072 are currently challenged. In November, 128 new voters registered, 90 voters were transferred out of Burlington into other Vermont towns, and 27 voters were removed from the checklist. Janet Stambolian asked what happens when a voter is challenged. Sarah Montgomery answered that once challenged, a voter is sent a letter alerting them and requesting their response. The voter can either respond by saying that they are no longer eligible to vote in Burlington and would like to be removed from the checklist, they still live at the same address in Burlington and would like to be reactivated, or they have moved to a different address in Burlington and would like to update their address and be reactivated. If a voter does not respond to the challenge, they remain on the checklist for two General Elections, after which the board can vote to remove them. 8. Approval of Voter Challenges 8. Approval of Voter Challenges The board reviewed the proposed challenges they received from the Clerk's office. Jeanne Keller made a motion to approve the challenges. Seconded by Michelle Lefkowitz. Approved unanimously. 9. Election Day Flowchart Review 9. Election Day Flowchart Review Lesley Gendron shared the election day flowchart — a visual guide to the processes and forms used to help resolve voter issues on election days. She walked the board through the processes laid out in the flowchart. Lesley will share the flowchart with the board. Grace Grundhauser noted that, for newer members, the whole flow chart might feel overwhelming, but that it will make more sense once they have election day experience. Kevin Lewis asked if there are wards where there are more voter challenges where it would be beneficial to train getting more hands-on experience. Lesley Gendron said that there are wards that have a higher percentage of address changes. Grace Grundhauser made a note that the voters who are challenged on election day are the same individuals that the board has voted to challenge. Jeanne Keller shared her appreciation for Lesley Gendron creating the flowcharts. Grace Grundhauser suggested that it might be helpful to, as the first step in the proposed flowchart process, look up the voter's address and look them up in VEMs at the same time. Other members noted that this is a good idea, but may be difficult if they have several voters waiting for help. Annie Schneider suggested that she always starts helping a voter by looking up their address to ensure they are in the correct ward. Jeanne Keller noted that some wards are doing a thorough screening at the door to ensure they are in the correct ward. Lauren Ebersol shared that even with greeters helping voters at the entrance, some voters come through who are in the wrong ward, so it is always worth checking the address to confirm. Grace Grundhauser noted that all new members will ideally train for two elections prior to working solo. 10. New Business 10. New Business Grace Grundhauser asked board members to think about how they would like to spend the next two meetings preparing for the March election. She asked if fully trained members are interested in splitting shifts between multiple wards or spending the whole day at a single location as they have in the past. Lesley Gendron asked who is fully trained and ready to work solo; she noted that there may not be enough coverage to split shifts. Annie Schneider noted that, if possible, she would like to start her day at noon, but she can work the full day if needed. Members expressed their ward preferences. Janet Stambolian asked how the training shifts work; Grace Grundhauser shared that trainees usually rotate between three wards throughout the day, but noted that some newer members haven't found that the best way to learn. Grace asked the new members if they preferred to rotate between wards. Janet Stambolian noted a preference for staying in one ward. Jeanne Keller said it is helpful to see multiple wards because each polling place is run differently. Janet amended that she would be open to splitting her day between two polling places. Adam Franz said he preferred rotating through multiple wards. Kevin Lewis has no preference. Grace Grundhauser will draft a schedule for coverage. Everyone is available and able to work. Grace also asked members to save the date for the pre-election volunteer training, which will either be the Wednesday or Thursday evening prior to the election. In the January meeting, Lauren Ebersol will ask members to help with volunteer recruitment for the March election. Grace Grundhauser proposed doing an election work refresher at the next meeting. She asked if anything else should be discussed at the next meeting. Adam Franz said that UVM requested a $30 fee to table there for a voter registration drive. Annie Schneider asked if there is a UVM club that would sponsor the registration drive. Adam will look into it and circle back. 11. Adjournment 11. Adjournment 11.1. Motion to Adjourn 11.1. Motion to Adjourn Karen Rowell made a motion to adjourn. Seconded by Jeanne Keller. Approved unanimously.

Agenda

Packet

Board for Registration of Voters Tuesday, December 2, 2025, 6:00 PM, City Hall, 1st Floor Conference Room, 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 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes File Attachments 1. Board for Registration of Voters Minutes Board for Registration of Voters Minutes.pdf 6. Public Forum 7. Clerk's Report 8. Approval of Voter Challenges 9. Election Day Flowchart Review 10. New Business 11. Adjournment 11.1. Motion to Adjourn Page 1 of 5 Page 2 of 5 BURLINGTON BOARD FOR REGISTRATION OF VOTERS CITY HALL, 1ST FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, 149 CHURCH STREET, BURLINGTON, VT, 05401 OR REMOTELY VIA ZOOM. MINUTES OF MEETING November 4, 2025 1. Call Meeting to Order 1. Call Meeting to Order The meeting was called to order by Chair Grace Grundhauser at 6:00pm. In Attendance: Grace Grundhauser, Kevin Lewis, Adam Franz, Karen Rowell, Colleen Montgomery, Lauren Ebersol, Lesley Gendron, Alison Harte, Annie Schneider, Youth Member Will Cunningham Absent: Jeanne Keller, Janet Stambolian, Michelle Lefkowitz Also Present: Sarah Montgomery, Assistant City Clerk 2. Agenda 2. Agenda 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda Lesley Gendron made a motion to adopt the agenda. Seconded by Kevin Lewis. 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 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes File Attachments 1. BRV Minutes 10/7/25 BRV Minutes 10/7/25.pdf 5.1. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes Page 3 of 5 Colleen Montgomery made a motion to adopt the minutes. Seconded by Lesley Gendron. 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 29,270 registered voters in Burlington. Out of those, 5,084 are currently challenged. In October: 200 new voters registered, 40 were purged, and 117 were transferred from Burlington into other Vermont towns. 8. Approval of Voter Challenges 8. Approval of Voter Challenges Alison Harte made a motion to approve the proposed challenges. Seconded by Lauren Ebersol. Approved unanimously. 9. Board Member Expectations 9. Board Member Expectations 9.1. Rules and Procedures for the Board for the Registration of Voters 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 shared the updated draft of the board's rules and procedures, noting that this will be the third time the board discusses these changes. She highlighted the proposed changes from last month's version, which included revisions to election day attendance requirements and automating the process in which absences exceeding the threshold would be added to a meeting agenda. Grace Grundhauser noted that once the agenda is approved, a board member can always make a motion to remove the item from the agenda, which could be done by the vote of a simple majority of the board. Alison Harte noted that a previous member was unable to work election days because her employer would not give her the day off, and she wondered if these added attendance requirements might prevent great board members from joining the board. She said this is something potential applicants would need to consider. Lauren Ebersol noted that the proposed process would allow board members to defend their position during the meeting discussion where the absences were addressed. Will Cunningham highlighted that the current language requires all members to attend every election, which is a change from the current practice. Colleen Montgomery noted that if there are more members trained and available than there are polling places, shorter shifts could be worked, which might accommodate board members who can't work a full day, due to work or other obligations. Karen Rowell asked if, under the membership section, the language could state a minimum of 12 members, to allow for greater political representation, since this is something that is being pursued. Colleen Montgomery and Grace Grundhauser noted that it likely couldn't be changed because that language is derived from the City Charter. Lesley Gendron wondered if that language would only need to be amended if action was taken to increase the board size. Alison Harte asked what the process would be for a charter change. Grace Grundhauser stated that it would need to be approved by the voters. Colleen Montgomery noted that the city charter reference on the website states that there can not be more than six members from the same political party on the board. Karen asked what the current political make-up of the board currently is. Lesley Gendron shared the members' party affiliations that are listed on the website. Alison Harte asked if the same individual needed to cover the full 12 hours at each polling place; Grace Grundhauser answered no. Grace Grundhauser also brought up the idea of members rotating wards for different elections, rather than each member always working at the same polling place. Lesley Gendron Page 4 of 5 agreed that there could be some benefits to that, but noted that it is also important to have stability and experience within wards. Lesley Gendon said she thought the discussion about member availability at polling places was getting too in the weeds, since there are always new incoming members who have varying levels of experience, and the number of trained and available members always fluctuates. Lauren Ebersol noted the framework in the procedure can always be updated as the board learns what might not be working. Kevin Lewis called the question to approve the proposed changes as written. Kevin Lewis made a motion to adopt the proposed changes. Seconded by Karen Rowell. Approved unanimously. 10. New Business 10. New Business Lesley Gendron noted that she will be making some updates to the election day process flowchart and will share the revised version with the board. She also proposed adding VEMS training to a future agenda once the flowchart is updated. Lesley will also look at the written scenarios and see if any of them need updates due to the new system. 11. Adjournment 11. Adjournment 11.1. Motion to Adjourn 11.1. Motion to Adjourn Lesley Gendron made a motion to adjourn. Seconded to Lauren Ebersol. Passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 6:35pm. Page 5 of 5