Minnesota Statutes Elections (Ch. 200-212) § 206.805. State voting systems contracts

Subdivision 1. Contracts required. (a) The secretary of state, with the assistance of the commissioner of administration, must establish one or more state voting systems contracts. The contracts should, if practical, include provisions for maintenance of the equipment purchased. The voting systems contracts must address precinct-based optical scan voting equipment, assistive voting technology, automatic tabulating equipment, and electronic roster equipment. The contracts must give the state a perpetual license to use and modify the software. The contracts must include provisions to escrow the software source code. Bids for voting systems and related election services must be solicited from each vendor selling or leasing voting systems that have been certified for use by the secretary of state. Bids for electronic roster equipment, software, and related services must be solicited from each vendor selling or leasing electronic roster equipment that meets the requirements ofsection 201.225, subdivision 2. The contracts must be renewed from time to time.

(b) Counties and municipalities may purchase or lease voting systems and obtain related election services from the state contracts. All counties and municipalities are members of the cooperative purchasing venture of the Department of Administration for the purpose of this section. For the purpose of township elections, counties must aggregate orders under contracts negotiated under this section for products and services and may apportion the costs of those products and services proportionally among the townships receiving the products and services. The county is not liable for the timely or accurate delivery of those products or services.