[{"_1":2,"_108":-5,"_109":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,86,96],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6612453,"mediaKeyId","2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4","parentId",2891471,"title","Collin County delays $46,500 purchase of ballot‑redaction tool after public security concerns","audioSeconds",641,"startMs",98000,"endMs",739000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4&start=98&end=739","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4/thumbnail_98000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6612453/Collin-County/Texas/Collin-County-delays-46500-purchase-of-ballotredaction-tool-after-public-security-concerns","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6612453-de20b4db6bdc90f9f7b3d86717a20df0/orig.mp4?Expires=1771139578&Signature=IXNCvMX~bW8zdOszo97HvKCv5wCjgwosIS052WAhE42PKxL--78vi0Cmj85MPRI1NN0CXf7PRbUnocdV4HU0inW9fWbWeMYsBoxEn4hAtTCO~fcx97QYeyWpwRjzeCy~c5azOWFFa3rspizLT3h5M6GGoI9hLNX4juz0ZX8GYQPJ1GzIUXieZv6TV7lveAce8NBWp~DUU8gRjzMR96k9PtppwTy2nJEKY79pCE1WqJE4DB4g7OJxD25ZztpA73ilmkiavVTmwu9XZeneWeny-1lIvVbYhHmzGinTs9Hh1-zk24aM50bNugoD7qyY-ucOfARDnplZxSFxJ0Xdhev8eA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Collin","date","2025-04-07T00:00:00Z","article","The Collin County Commissioner’s Court delayed action on a proposed $46,500 purchase of a ballot‑redaction tool after public commenters and commissioners pressed staff for more information about the vendor and how ballot data would be handled.

The tool, identified in the meeting as Seviara, was the subject of two public comments opposing the purchase. Lee Moore, who identified herself during public comment as an election judge, said she “strongly oppose[d] this purchase for 2 key reasons,” arguing the product “doesn't solve the actual problem” and that turning over ballot images to a third party increases the number of people who see unredacted ballot information. Moore also raised concerns about the vendor’s background and political ties, saying the company “is in Massachusetts not Texas” and that its marketing materials reference “election conspiracy theorists.”

Another speaker, identified as a Collin County citizen, said the county should instead prioritize ‘‘the already well established foundational weakness in our current county election process’’ and urged officials to ‘‘halt moving forward on the additional third party tools that bring unknown security risk to our county.’’

County staff responded to questions about how the tool would be used. A staff member described an initial process in which the vendor would receive a batch of ballots to set formatting and the redaction process, then the county would perform redaction in‑house on an ongoing basis: “I believe when we first met with Severe, initially, we would send a batch of ballots for them to, redact, redact, to get our processes down… and eventually their service turns into a tool they were able to use in house.”

Commissioner Fletcher asked whether the vendor could work from mock or sample ballots so no actual personal data would be exposed. Fletcher suggested sending mock ballots that used placeholders such as “Jane Doe,” fabricated serial numbers and a notation where a judge’s signature would appear. The staff member said that mockups could be feasible and promised to “visit with a vendor about that” and explore the idea.

County staff also described limits in the county’s existing public tests: logic and accuracy test ballots are marked as demonstration and do not include judge signatures; mail ballots print with clerk initials. The staff member cautioned that handling of ballots that leave county custody, such as returned mail ballots, raises additional legal complexity under Attorney General and Secretary of State guidance.

After discussion, the presiding County Judge said, “Let's hold this item for a week, and we'll hold it over for for more discovery, and we'll bring it back,” and the court moved the item off the agenda for further review.

Votes and formal actions on the item: The court postponed consideration of the Seviara redaction tool for one week to allow additional vendor vetting and exploration of sending mock/sample ballots for setup. No purchase was approved at the meeting.

Background and context: Several speakers framed their concerns around a broader policy choice about precinct voting versus redaction. Moore told the court that returning to precinct‑level voting would address some ballot‑secrecy concerns she said redaction attempts to fix. County staff repeatedly noted that the Secretary of State has mandated ballot redaction for some requested images, which drives the county’s need to process and deliver redacted ballots on public‑records requests.

Next steps: Staff will follow up with the vendor on whether mock ballots or a controlled test set can be used for initial setup and will return with additional information when the court reconvenes the item.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Collin - Commissioners Court - Apr 07, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Collin County Commissioner’s Court delayed action on a proposed $46,500 purchase of a ballot‑redaction tool after public commenters and commissioners pressed staff for more information about the vendor and how ballot data would be handled.","taxTitle","Collin County, Texas","taxId",2696,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":79,"_47":80,"_49":81,"_51":82,"_53":83,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":84,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":85,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6612439,"Collin County court recesses into closed session for legal advice on Celina extraterritorial jurisdiction; no action planned",0,1647000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4&start=1647&end=1647","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4/thumbnail_1647000.jpg","/articles/6612439/Collin-County/Texas/Collin-County-court-recesses-into-closed-session-for-legal-advice-on-Celina-extraterritorial-jurisdiction-no-action-planned","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6612439-3c8c235953d9f0050dc8da8fd2c9558e/orig.mp4?Expires=1771139578&Signature=jfaSAJQoH-WU3kft4C~aRreGeD-KCdGHOPIYVeKSVdu~GX4tz1KVYiCwehRzlvDv9XfIhzerPt8Bz~6T6b5fI7fJJmjXG6mR3sEytVS4l-wlsICvPHTGXa7mhXLiqkx--bAAGTcYIw6~icUVubMHholhqQxl5jfieHBDjcPit8srOAAG1RqWu7nFJ5nYZSI9pjyR3rxqVY6NiHS8GFTbbJJfIt-pOlBsHahwvNeAIBPmllcBrrpX~Msm2gMBkVY-4UY-ZUQGF-IDTndQ-AOOtFvg2i0ZHn4hjXu00PI2OdBxLkxBJcFm7nQU4NXvGmwFy~BpPrlLHZXFCJ3n-yZYyQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Collin County Commissioner’s Court recessed into executive session to receive legal advice regarding the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) of the city of Celina and announced it would take no action after the closed session.

The presiding officer said the court would “recess under chapter 551.071, the legal chapter, to receive, legal advice and consultation on possible legal liabilities and outcomes, related to the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city of Celina.” The presiding officer added, “We are not gonna take any action in executive session. We are not going to have any action following that, so we will not return back to open court, but we will adjourn directly from executive session today.”

No details of the legal advice were disclosed in open session and no votes or directives were recorded following the announcement. The court indicated the executive session was for confidential legal consultation only.

","The court recessed into executive session under Chapter 551.071 to receive legal advice about possible liabilities related to the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city of Celina and announced it would not return to open court to take action on the matter.",{"_33":87,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":88,"_41":78,"_43":89,"_45":89,"_47":90,"_49":91,"_51":92,"_53":93,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":94,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":95,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6612443,"Collin County reports departments submitted FY26 budgets on time",1306000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4&start=1306&end=1306","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4/thumbnail_1306000.jpg","/articles/6612443/Collin-County/Texas/Collin-County-reports-departments-submitted-FY26-budgets-on-time","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6612443-f5c781f05c2798d8324e86308202085b/orig.mp4?Expires=1771139578&Signature=jtiygcLaQ4cGLtsL3GYH2vo-O84~LnsCcy2znwhe96fZt8rbPDS7J~GIOYsXxAZ-E6TSdfSuGBcJtHTnk1n0G5nAgPlqt-UR5QAB-GPXbPDHhIZnVoqa16NIFY1XhRBUUJz082PB5qiDddeTsr~mKx0rfKXB-ltaSXCz~fgWdpsgWolmcaTYPcPs558hBAfeMpxaNcrjmcjMO86BjcKYJI5zTLaynJfmQsu-qPjTkxZ~EnmbXCEr6DI96xu18TXgZS3oy8SxgOCN7kYQXMdd7vhkw6RJ2EUZzbAhYrzRweLcS4964VP1Ba9jEe7WnjGn-Xr9XMeUy9PkmKjuzWCsIQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Teresa Funk of the county budget department told the Collin County Commissioner’s Court that all department budgets for fiscal year 2026 were submitted on time on April 2.

“We are very pleased, to report that all the department budgets were submitted on time on April 2, and we'd like to thank all the departments for their hard work,” Funk said during the court’s discussion items.

The update was brief and the court moved on to legislative updates and other agenda items.","The county budget office reported that all department budgets for fiscal year 2026 were submitted on time on April 2, and thanked departments for their work on the budget process.",{"_33":97,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":98,"_41":99,"_43":100,"_45":101,"_47":102,"_49":103,"_51":104,"_53":105,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":106,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":107,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6612448,"Collin County court backs HB 1080 resolution, issues non‑opposition for two proposed MUD/MMD bills",254,1340000,1594000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4&start=1340&end=1594","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2891471-040f2afe1676156e49c3e011ca7e22f4/thumbnail_1340000.jpg","/articles/6612448/Collin-County/Texas/Collin-County-court-backs-HB-1080-resolution-issues-nonopposition-for-two-proposed-MUDMMD-bills","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6612448-1d880dcc59935998a102a7954494c869/orig.mp4?Expires=1771139578&Signature=WkTY0r-nzochuPw0Zy3vcV3RD5RX9bBdQkwxp9Ann5323RJg2LO84o65HDSYwbMmiSP3TPlKfe-8XejPbaw6sI6r0f8-UCn4zT~PxmcakZ~Vrhpn7mvF01qpGNd6t4wRdWUSZSxy1Ny-MGtF-NrzcbI5YU1Mini6ozeF~8bkxksB0iIQDh0ZfuvuVYwLs4AhHf4MXs7tXf2oa7ibbHgVCp-lsdPJ0EVh7OT7AGbx9fO~eE2hNAqrBSEHWvkbFeanxfpImBwr51YEwffwLbDfDZU3qHKHX1W~6Cu-519nMaTEgLv7V5kDar-WXZ1mQDqBZhqhQITNww9UMItRptzigg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Collin County Commissioner’s Court approved three legislative resolutions during its meeting, voting 3‑0 to support HB 1080 and to register non‑opposition for draft bills establishing a Colmena Ranch Municipal Management District and a Grasslands County Municipal Utility District.

County legislative staff told the court they prepared three resolutions for consideration. “The first resolution … supporting HB 1080,” said a staff member presenting the update, explaining the bill would “allow for an alternative means for, noticing, for our important activities that we do.” The presenter said the county spent $54,432 in fiscal 2024 on public notices in the Dallas Morning News and related outlets and that the bill could reduce those costs.

The court passed the HB 1080 resolution after a motion and second and a voice vote announced by the presiding officer. After the vote, the presiding officer asked staff to “get this to our delegation” and noted that “Galveston County has taken the lead” on the effort.

The next two resolutions concerned developer‑initiated legislation that would create a municipal management district (MMD) and a municipal utility district (MUD). The presenting staff member said neither bill had been filed yet but that draft legislation for both districts included the four components the county requires: contracts for supplemental police, fire, emergency services and animal control, plus a provision requiring the commissioner’s court to review those contracts. Because the drafts contained those elements, staff recommended a resolution of non‑opposition under the court’s policy.

A court member explained the county’s limited formal role in creating MUDs and MMDs: “county commissioner’s courts don't approve MUDs. We don't have a say in that. The state approves MUDs,” the presiding officer said, and added that the county’s local delegation has agreed to withhold support for districts the county opposes. The court passed the non‑opposition resolutions by voice vote, recorded as 3 to 0.

Staff also said additional resolutions will be brought back to the court next week concerning HB 23 and HB 4211; language is being finalized.

Votes and formal actions: Resolution supporting HB 1080 — motion and second; vote recorded as 3 to 0 in favor. Resolution of non‑opposition to draft Colmena Ranch MMD — motion and second; vote recorded as 3 to 0 in favor. Resolution of non‑opposition to draft Grasslands County MUD — motion and second; vote recorded as 3 to 0 in favor.

Why it matters: If enacted, HB 1080 could change required notice procedures and lower the county’s public‑notice expenditures. The MUD/MMD items affect proposed local development and the provision of supplemental services; county staff said the draft bills include required service contracts, which is why the court registered non‑opposition.

","The court voted 3‑0 to approve a resolution supporting HB 1080, which staff said could allow alternative public‑notice methods and reduce county public‑notice spending; the court also approved resolutions of non‑opposition for draft legislation to create the Colmena Ranch municipal management district and the Grasslands County municipal utility","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Collin County delays $46,500 purchase of ballot‑redaction tool after public security concerns

Collin County court recesses into closed session for legal advice on Celina extraterritorial jurisdiction; no action planned

Collin County reports departments submitted FY26 budgets on time

Collin County court backs HB 1080 resolution, issues non‑opposition for two proposed MUD/MMD bills