Wisconsin to negotiate voter system with Accenture
Accenture is in negotiations with the state of Wisconsin to build a statewide voter registration system $20 million.
Wisconsin intends to award a contract for a statewide voter registration system to Accenture Ltd., state officials said this week.
The work is estimated to be worth as much as $20 million for software development as well as maintenance and support, said Sharrie Hauge, a Wisconsin State Elections Board official.
The state hopes to negotiate final terms of the contract by Nov. 1, Hauge said. The state will require Accenture to complete the software implementation by Jan. 1, 2006, and then maintain and support the system for four years, she said.
"We want to go through an entire election cycle to make sure that it works for every election," Hauge said.
The Help America Vote Act of 2002 requires that all states build a centralized statewide voter registration system as part of the reforms initiated following the 2000 presidential election. The Wisconsin system, which is funded almost entirely by federal funds, will link the state's 1,850 local governments.
Accenture competed against Covansys Inc. of Farmington Hills, Mich., and EDS Corp. The other bidders have 10 days to protest the deal.