INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — This spring, Governor Scott signed into law legislation allowing Florida to become the 24th member of the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC). ERIC is a multistate partnership that uses a sophisticated and secure data-matching tool to improve the accuracy and efficiency of state voter registration systems. ERIC helps affirm voters are eligible and registered in the correct location, as well as, identifies potential duplicate registrations.
In any given year tens of millions of Americans move, two million die, and other life changes occur. Through participation in ERIC, states can compare official data on eligible voters – such as voter and motor vehicle registrations, U.S. Postal Service addresses, and Social Security death records – to keep voter rolls more complete and up to date. ERIC compares data from many sources simultaneously, so a state will learn when a voter on their list has died, changed their name, or moved to another state. The results data is then shared with member states allowing election officials to update their voter registration rolls.
The Florida State Association of Supervisor of Elections advocated for this legislation because the sharing of data with member states will increase the accuracy of Florida’s voter registration database. In the past, there was no tool to identify and communicate with voters who may be registered to vote in other states.
ERIC is owned, managed, and funded by participating states and was formed in 2012 with assistance from The Pew Charitable Trusts. Any personal information such as dates of birth or driver’s license numbers is anonymized.
Indian River County’s Supervisor of Elections, Leslie Swan, stated that voter registration is the initial step in participating in our American Democracy.
“Keeping voter rolls current is always a challenge because voters move and neglect to notify the Elections Office,” Swan said. “ERIC is another tool to ensure the county’s voter rolls are as accurate as possible.”
The launch date for implementation in Florida of the ERIC program is Jan. 1, 2019.
