A state task force of local general registrars has crunched the numbers and discovered what they already suspected: Their workload has grown significantly over the past two decades. The trend has occurred, in part, due to a substantially greater number of voters, elections, and even new laws in the Commonwealth.
Since 1996, the number of registered voters has increased by 72 percent, and use of absentee ballots by 335 percent. The pages of new laws that registrars need to know have more than doubled. Chesterfield County General Registrar Larry Haake says administering elections has become much more complex.
“That began in 1996 with the National Voter Registration Act. That changed the whole work dynamic from seasonal to constant. I can tell you, in Chesterfield, we went from 20 or 30 applications a month to 1,500 to 2,000 a month. And that has subsided somewhat, but it is still a constant—nothing like it used to be. The salary has not kept pace.”
Haake says the number of elections has also grown by 32 percent, including special and “rolling” elections.
“So you get a delegate running for Senate—that creates a special election in the General Assembly. Maybe a supervisor or city councilman runs for that. And so it’s like a domino effect.”
Their official report recommends salaries that correspond to those of the local Treasurer. They say that is the constitutional office with the hours and workload that are closest to their own.
