The Pierce County Auditor’s Office this afternoon will unveil one of many new secure ballot drop boxes at the main entrance of the Annex, located at 2401 S. 35th St. Laserfab of Puyallup will remove the old box, excavate the foundation and install the new box. In the past, drop boxes were manufactured by a Portland, Ore. company and then shipped to Tacoma. Pierce County sought to contract with a local vendor for the boxes. The Auditor’s Office secured federal funding through a grant intended to increase accessibility for voters with disabilities. The boxes were approved for use by the Pierce County Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee. The accessible boxes provide 24-hour walk-up and drive-up access and allow voters to drop off ballots “postage free” as soon as they receive them. The Auditor’s Office plans to purchase 15 additional boxes with the grant funds. Each box costs approximately $1,000. “With the manufacturing talent in Pierce County, I knew we could find a high-quality company to design and manufacture these unique boxes,” said Auditor Julie Anderson.