How Much Your Town Got Reimbursed For Early Voting Costs

Communities across the state will be reimbursed a little more than $1.1 million for early voting costs in last year's general election. That was the cost of more than 584,000 Massachusetts voters to participate in the early voting period.

The early voting costs were unfunded and mandated. The money for reimbursements is coming from funds allocated to the Secretary of State William Galvin's Office via a supplemental budget passed late in the year.

The total reimbursements add up to $1,144,156.22, State Auditor Suzanne Bump and Galvin announced last week.

See how much your community got back below.

Early voting requires municipalities afford qualified voters the opportunity to cast their ballot during a 12-day "early voting" period. Bump's office determined last year that some parts of that law, which was passed in 2014, were an unfunded. Those parts included establishing and staffing early voting locations.

Communities were reimbursed over $1 million to reimburse them for the 2016 elections.

"We owe it to the voters of the Commonwealth to constantly strive to remove barriers that prevent them from making their voice heard in our democracy," Bump said in a press release."

Galvin said early voting has been "enormously popular" over the last two elections.

"As we look to expand early voting to increase voter access and convenience in the future, we need to make sure we are providing local election officials with the resources they need in order to hold successful elections," Galvin said.

TOWN-BY-TOWN REIMBURSEMENTS HERE

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