Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner issued a report Monday concluding it is not practical to establish a statewide maximum length wait time for voters standing in line to cast their ballots.

“It is my belief that the answer to what constitutes an ‘unreasonably long line’ is best determined by county boards of elections, presiding judges and poll workers,” said Brunner. “Just as the reasonableness of a line may vary depending upon the county or precinct, so too might it vary depending upon the time of day.”

The League of Women Voters of Ohio applauded Brunner’s report for its timeliness and thorough research and assessment of issues.

“We anticipate that the [sic] directives issued in 2008 addressing the issue will continue in effect, but believe that there [sic] are additional steps which must be taken,” the LWVO said in a statement Monday.

One major issue Brunner’s report expressed about issuing a maximum wait time for voters would be enforcement and penalties. Additional staff may be required to monitor the length of time a voter would be in line and to coordinate enforcement. County boards also asked what would poll workers, presiding judges and boards of elections be required to do if long lines occur.

The report also says other issues with a statewide maximum wait time would include a new costly oversight and enforcement. The wait time would also have to be long enough for larger counties, rendering the wait time meaningless for smaller counties.

In a survey of Ohio’s 88 county boards on July 17, only one believed a statewide maximum wait time for voters could be established, five of the county boards had established maximum wait times for voters and four considered establishing a maximum wait time. Only 82 county boards responded to the report.

Reasons for long lines during elections can be due to underestimated voter turnout, improper resources such as insufficient budget staffing or voting equipment or differences in voting technology.

Two states, Arizona and New York, have addressed maximum wait times with policies. Arizona’s policies include a maximum one hour wait time and moving poll workers from one location to another and adding additional voting booths and equipment based on necessity.