By Tim SchmidtRecord Managing EditorWarren County will spend $154,000 to purchase 25 new paper-based optical scan voting machines.The expenditure will be paid over a three-year period. The first payment of $77,800 was made at the end of December, at the time the purchase was finalized and the bid awarded to Elkins-Swyers Co., Inc.Payments of $46,200 and $30,800 will be made in 2015 and 2016, respectively.In addition, the county agreed to a $11,575 annual maintenance fee that will go into effect following the first year the machines are used.The new machines are expected to be ready for county voters beginning in 2016, County Clerk Barb Daly said.They will be ADA accessible and replace touch-screen voting machines that are used by disabled voters.At least one of the new machines will be in place at every precinct in the county and for absentee voters. There are two extra machines that will be used as needed.The current touch-screen machines are old and antiquated and must be programmed for each state and federal election.“In using the equipment, the touch screen proved to be a great disappointment,” Daly said.She noted that the machines that are being replaced cost $234,750 when purchased in 2004 with federal funds.The new voting machines will be similar to the optical scan systems the county already uses.Most of the expenditure will be covered with funds from the capital improvement budget, with the remaining amount allocated from the election services fund, according to Daly.County to purchase new voting machines