Can a Virginia local election office accept grants, equipment, training, or website services from the Center for Tech and Civic Life or the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence?

Subject

Whether the prohibition in Virginia Code § 24.2-124.1 on private funding of election administration bars election officials from accepting money, grants, property, or services (including equipment, training, coaching, and website work) from the Center for Technology and Civic Life or the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence.

Plain-English summary

In 2021 the General Assembly passed § 24.2-124.1, the statute that ended private grant funding of Virginia election offices after the 2020 cycle, when the Center for Technology and Civic Life (CTCL) distributed hundreds of millions of dollars in private grants to local election offices nationwide. The statute is short and emphatic: the State Board of Elections, the Department of Elections, every local electoral board, and every general registrar's office "shall not solicit, accept, use, or dispose of any money, grants, property, or services" given by a private individual or nongovernmental entity for the purpose of funding voter education, voter registration, or any other expense incurred in the conduct of elections.

Senator Stanley asked AG Miyares whether the prohibition reached a new CTCL-led project called the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence, a five-year, $80 million effort to distribute equipment, training, coaching, and website modernization services to participating local election departments. The AG concluded yes, on both counts. CTCL and the Alliance are nongovernmental, so the source of the funding falls within the statute. The forms of help offered (equipment is "property"; training, coaching, and website modernization are "services") are expressly within the statute's enumerated categories. The result: Virginia election offices cannot participate.

Section 24.2-124.1 itself contains two narrow exceptions (not discussed in this opinion, which quoted the statute only "in relevant part"). The statute does not prohibit operating a polling place or voter satellite office in a private facility that meets the polling-place requirements, and it permits accepting a federal government grant that happens to be funded in whole or part by private donations. Outside those two carve-outs, private money cannot flow into Virginia election operations.

The AG also pointed out that the same logic would apply to any other nongovernmental entity offering similar assistance, not just CTCL and the Alliance.

What this means for you

For Virginia general registrars and election directors

The opinion holds that § 24.2-124.1 bars election officials from soliciting, accepting, using, or disposing of money, grants, property, or services from CTCL or the Alliance. It reads "property" to cover donated equipment and "services" to cover the offered training, coaching, and website modernization, so in-kind help is within the prohibition, not just cash. The opinion adds that the same prohibition applies to any other nongovernmental entity offering similar assistance.

For local electoral board members and local supervisors

Under the opinion, the prohibition names the State Board, the Department of Elections, every local electoral board, and every general registrar's office, so it reaches both state and local election bodies. The opinion turns on the statute's plain language ("any money, grants, property, or services" given by "a private individual or nongovernmental entity").

For anyone evaluating a private offer of election support

The opinion concludes that whether an offer is barred turns on its source and its subject: a nongovernmental source plus a purpose of voter education and outreach, voter registration, or any other expense in the conduct of elections puts it within § 24.2-124.1. The opinion notes the Alliance's structure as in-kind services rather than cash grants does not change that analysis.

For journalists and researchers tracking private election funding

The opinion is a clear statement that Virginia election offices, state and local, are statutorily prohibited from accepting CTCL or Alliance funding or in-kind support. It does not address enforcement mechanics or reporting; it resolves only the question of whether participation is permitted, and concludes it is not.

Common questions

Q: Does the statute only prohibit money, or does it also prohibit donated equipment?
A: It prohibits both. The statute lists "money, grants, property, or services." Donated equipment is property; donated training, coaching, and website modernization are services. The AG was clear that the categories cover the kinds of in-kind help the Alliance was offering.

Q: What if a private group offers free training to election workers without any direct financial transaction?
A: Still prohibited. Training is "services" under § 24.2-124.1. The General Assembly drafted the statute to reach exactly this kind of in-kind support, not just cash grants.

Q: Can a county accept a federal grant that started with private donations?
A: Yes. The statute carves out "acceptance of a federal government grant funded in whole or part by donations from private individuals or nongovernmental entities." Once private money becomes a federal appropriation, the prohibition does not apply.

Q: What about a private property owner who lets the county use a building as a polling place for free?
A: That is allowed under a separate carve-out. The statute does not prohibit operating a polling place or voter satellite office in a privately furnished facility, as long as the facility meets the polling-place requirements in §§ 24.2-310 and 24.2-310.1 or the satellite-office requirements in § 24.2-701.2.

Q: Does the prohibition apply to the State Board of Elections too, or just localities?
A: Both. The statute names the State Board, the Department of Elections, every local electoral board, and every general registrar's office. The state cannot accept private grants either.

Q: Could a local election office accept services from an in-state university or community college?
A: Probably yes, if the institution is a public institution. The statute targets private individuals and nongovernmental entities. A public university is governmental, so its assistance does not trigger the prohibition (although other rules, such as procurement and academic-freedom rules, may apply).

Background and statutory framework

Section 24.2-124.1 was enacted in 2021 (2021 Va. Acts ch. 489, ch. 488) following the controversy over CTCL "Zuckerbucks" grants distributed during the 2020 cycle. The General Assembly addressed the issue with a flat prohibition rather than a disclosure regime: rather than allow private grants subject to reporting requirements, Virginia chose to prohibit them altogether for election administration purposes.

The statute is unusual in its breadth. "Money, grants, property, or services" is comprehensive; "solicit, accept, use, or dispose of" covers every stage of receipt and handling. The AG's plain-meaning approach (citing Conyers v. Martial Arts World of Richmond) makes it hard for a private funder or recipient to argue around the language.

The 2022 launch of the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence prompted this opinion. The Alliance was structured as a partnership among CTCL, the Center for Civic Design, the Elections Group, the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford, the Prototyping Systems Lab at UC Davis, and others, and offered in-kind services rather than direct cash grants, apparently in an effort to navigate state restrictions like Virginia's. The AG opinion closes that path in Virginia.

The two carve-outs reflect realistic concessions. Polling places are often borrowed from churches, schools, community centers, and businesses, and forbidding that would have eliminated thousands of voting locations. Federal grants that include private donor money (some Election Assistance Commission funds qualify) would be unworkable to scrub at the recipient level. Outside those two doors, the rule is closed.

Citations and references

Statutes:
- Va. Code Ann. § 24.2-124.1 (private funding prohibition)
- Va. Code Ann. § 24.2-310 (polling places)
- Va. Code Ann. § 24.2-310.1
- Va. Code Ann. § 24.2-701.2 (voter satellite offices)

Cases:
- Conyers v. Martial Arts World of Richmond, Inc., 273 Va. 96 (2007) (plain-meaning canon)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.oag.state.va.us/annual-reports-opinions/official-opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.oag.state.va.us/files/Opinions/2022/22-038-Stanley-issued.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain; the linked PDF is authoritative.

COMMONWEALTH of VIRGINIA

Office of the Attorney General

Jason S. Miyares
Attorney General
202 North Ninth Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219
804-786-2071
Fax 804-786-1991
Virginia Relay Services

September 22, 2022

The Honorable William M. Stanley
Member, Senate of Virginia
Post Office Box 96
Glade Hill, Virginia 24092

Dear Senator Stanley:

I am responding to your request for an official advisory opinion in accordance with § 2.2-505 of the Code of Virginia.

Issues Presented

You ask, in light of a prohibition set forth in Virginia Code § 24.2-124.1, whether election officials in Virginia may solicit, accept, use, or dispose of any money, grants, property, or services provided by or through the Center for Technology and Civic Life or the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence for the purpose of funding voter education and outreach programs, voter registration programs, or any other expense incurred in the conduct of elections. You further inquire whether the prohibition encompasses new equipment, training, coaching, or website modernization services offered by or through these organizations for purposes of voter education and outreach programs, voter registration programs, or other aspects of the conduct of elections.

Background

You relate that in April of this year, a nonprofit organization known as the Center for Technology and Civic Life ("CTCL") announced the creation of a consortium called the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence (the "Alliance"). The Alliance was formed to carry out a five-year project to distribute $80 million in funding to local election departments throughout the United States. As part of this project, the Alliance has offered to provide new equipment, training, coaching, and website modernization services to local election departments that are selected to participate in the project. These resources ostensibly would be offered for the purpose of assisting the departments with voter education and outreach programs, voter registration programs, or other operational costs related to the conduct of elections. Neither the CTCL nor the Alliance are governmental entities.

Applicable Law and Discussion

Section 24.2-124.1 establishes a general prohibition against the funding of election procedures by private parties. It specifically provides, in relevant part, as follows:

The State Board, the Department, each local electoral board, and all offices of the general registrar shall not solicit, accept, use, or dispose of any money, grants, property, or services given by a private individual or nongovernmental entity for the purpose of funding voter education and outreach programs, voter registration programs, or any other expense incurred in the conduct of elections.

"When the language of a statute is unambiguous, we are bound by the plain meaning of that language." As noted above, neither the CTCL nor the Alliance are governmental entities. Application of the plain language of § 24.2-124.1 to your first inquiry makes clear that election officials in Virginia are prohibited from soliciting, accepting, using, or disposing of any money, grants, property, or services provided by or through the CTCL or the Alliance for the purpose of funding voter education and outreach programs, voter registration programs, or any other expense incurred in the conduct of elections.

With regard to your second question, the items you specify, i.e., new equipment, training, coaching, and website modernization services, fall within the scope of the statutory prohibition. The terms "property" and "services" are expressly included in the statute. Affording them their plain meaning, new equipment is "property" and training, coaching, and website modernization services constitute "services." Thus, based on the plain language of § 24.2-124.1, I conclude that election officials in Virginia are prohibited from soliciting, accepting, using, or disposing of any new equipment, training, coaching, or website modernization services provided by or through the CTCL or the Alliance for purposes related to voter education and outreach programs, voter registration programs, or other aspects of the conduct of elections.

Conclusion

Accordingly, it is my opinion that election officials in Virginia may not solicit, accept, use, or dispose of any money, grants, property, or services, including new equipment, training, coaching, or website modernization services, provided by or through the Center for Technology and Civic Life or the U.S. Alliance for Election Excellence for the purpose of funding voter education and outreach programs, voter registration programs, or any other expense incurred in the conduct of elections. Although your inquiry pertains to the CTCL and the Alliance, the same prohibition would apply to any such nongovernmental entity offering similar assistance related to voter education, outreach or registration programs, or expenses associated with the conduct of elections.

With kindest regards, I am,

Very truly yours,

Jason S. Miyares
Attorney General