HB999 SB1028 / Requires secure watermarks on ballots and expands ballot scanning and audit programs.

This bill overhauls Tennessee’s paper‐ and machine‐based voting system to tighten ballot security and auditability. Every ballot—whether printed by a machine at the polling place or mailed out as an absentee ballot—must carry a visible secure watermark approved by the Coordinator of Elections. QR codes, bar codes, or any machine‐only coding may not be used to record voter selections. Instead, tabulators must rely solely on human‐readable text or a clear machine mark to tally votes.

To bolster transparency, the bill requires that every paper ballot scanned during early voting, Election Day, or absentee processing produce a high‐resolution (600 dpi minimum) digital image. These images are preserved under strict chain‐of‐custody rules—sealed containers, unique identifiers, signed custody logs—and then posted on the Secretary of State’s website for public audit within two weeks of each election. A concurrent statewide audit program, leveraging OCR or similar technology, must compare the digital images against official results and publish its report before final certification.

Proponents argue these changes build on successful reforms in other states (notably Georgia SB 189) by anchoring vote tabulation in plain text, deterring fraud via secure watermarks, and empowering citizens with verifiable ballot scans. Critics warn of significant upfront and ongoing costs—machine upgrades, watermarking supplies, third‐party contracting for image hosting, and expanded storage needs at the county level—which the Fiscal Review Committee pegs at over $11 million locally in the first year and roughly $2–3 million in subsequent cycles.

At its core, this legislation seeks to restore public confidence in Tennessee elections by removing opaque coding technology, mandating paper-based records, and ensuring every step—from printing to final count—is both secure and open to scrutiny.