Voter Registration at DMV to Add Election Costs, Officials Warn : Balloting: A U.S. statute requiring states to conduct sign-ups at motor vehicle offices could force Ventura County to equip at least 50 more polling sites.

A new federal law that requires states to make voter registration available at motor vehicle offices could drive up the costs of Ventura County elections without significantly increasing the number of voters who turn out at the polls, officials said Monday.

The new law, which is being challenged in court by Gov. Pete Wilson, is expected to increase the number of registered voters throughout California by as much as 15%.

If this happens, Ventura County would have to spend about $150,000 to equip at least 50 new polling sites that would be necessary to accommodate the new voters, said Bruce Bradley, assistant registrar of voters.

It would also have to spend tens of thousands of dollars more to cover the cost of each new election, money the county does not have, he said.

But Bradley said he does not expect the law to greatly increase voter registration or the number of people casting ballots.

“I don’t think the rolls will go up here,” Bradley said. “We’re already 80% registered.” Of the seven largest counties in Southern California, only Santa Barbara has a higher voter-registration rate with 85%.

And even if the registration rate were to increase here, that would not necessarily translate into more ballots being cast, Bradley said. For instance, only 63% of the county’s 352,000 registered voters actually cast ballots in November’s election.

“There’s a big difference in increasing registration numbers and getting people on the rolls to turn out to vote,” Bradley said.

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The new law, which took effect Jan. 1, requires motor vehicle and social service offices to make voter registration forms available. Registration forms must also be sent to each motorist with applications for a driver’s license renewal.

Bradley said the the so-called “motor voter” law would increase the workload on county election employees, who would have to process about 1,500 registration forms a week instead of the current level of 500 forms. And most of those would involve people who are already registered to vote, he said.

“We’re going to wind up with a tremendous amount of duplication,” he said.

The new law would also mean more work for social service employees, who under the new law would be required to provide voter information and registration forms to all welfare recipients. Should a person decline to register, Bradley said, the county employee would still be required to fill out a form explaining the reason.

“Agencies will wind up spending more time and effort on this than most people realize,” he said, adding that departments are already understaffed and overworked.

In his lawsuit, Wilson estimated it would cost the state $18 million annually and argues that the law should not be implemented unless the federal government bears the full cost.

But supporters of the law said the costs of implementing it have been exaggerated. What’s more important, they said, is that the law would improve the elections system by making it easier for all people, particularly the underprivileged, to vote.

“If we can get more people to vote, that strengthens our democracy,” said Elizabeth Lambe, a government affairs director with California Common Cause.

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Long-sought by Democrats, the law was passed by Congress in 1993 and signed into law by President Clinton. In addition to Wilson, the Republican governors of Illinois, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Michigan have refused to enforce it.

Although California has been ordered to implement the law June 16, a court hearing that could delay its enforcement is scheduled for Friday in San Francisco.