|
2006 is the Deadline for HAVA Compliance! |
|
Will you be ready? HAVA
compliance requires polling locations to be accessible by January
1, 2006. Section
301 (a)(3) of HAVA requires an accessible voting system at each polling
location. On March 4, 2005, the US
Department of Justice said in a letter “Having an accessible voting system
does little good if voters cannot enter the polling place to use it. |
|
Hence,
not only must the voting system be accessible to persons with disabilities
but also the polling place where the voting system is located.” The United States Department of Justice has said many
times that it will vigorously enforce the January 1, 2006 deadline for
providing 100% accessibility in polling sites. Acceptance of HAVA funds also triggers the
obligation to comply with the Program Access requirements of Section 504 of
the Rehabilitation Act. Where HAVA
complaints are settled primarily through Alternative Dispute Resolution,
Section 504 complaints are handled in Federal Court. Beginning in 2005, the Department also began citing
municipalities for lack of polling access under its Project Civic Access
program, as documented on their website:
(http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/civicac.htm) A number of cities have entered into Settlement
Agreements regarding accessible polling locations. Missoula, Montana must … “Within six months
of the effective date of this Agreement, the County will survey its polling
locations for accessibility to persons with disabilities …and will report the
results of the survey to the Department. If barriers to access are
identified, the County will implement and report to the Department its plan
to provide program access.” The same
requirements were placed on Suffolk, Virginia, Sedona, California, and many
others. Many states and voting districts are using state
building codes or other standards to judge whether a polling site is
physically accessible. The US
Department of Justice is using the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility
Guidelines. There are no Americans
with Disabilities Act waivers. An area
that receives a state code waiver is not considered to be in compliance with
the Americans with Disabilities Act. Do you want the U.S. Department of Justice or the
Federal Courts to be in charge of your compliance timeframes? ADA, Inc. is experienced in performing large scale
facility evaluation projects. We offer
a number of potential approaches for use in assisting your district in its
HAVA compliance efforts. Ü Quality Assurance/Validation of Previous Surveys
Conducted Ü Surveyor Training Ü Comprehensive Approach - Our team of trained
professionals surveys and
reports findings on all polling locations Ü One-Stop Shop - We will survey all locations,
provide reports, and create a
custom database to help you sort, track, and distribute information
to your constituents Or we can customize an approach to fit your specific
needs! You have one chance to use Federal dollars to
provide accessible polling locations.
Having accurate information will enable your organization to maximum
its use of the available funds. We at ADA, Inc. understand the often complex nature
of determining polling site access.
ADA, Inc. believes that the officials charged with implementing HAVA
compliance can only benefit from having accurate, objective information. Access is what we do. Municipal staff and poll workers have many
other obligations; they are seldom accessibility experts. Well meaning work performed by
inexperienced personnel is not likely to produce optimal results. Let them do what they do best. And let us help you in your HAVA compliance
efforts. |
|
Accessibility Development Associates, Inc. |
|
Accessibility Related Services |
|
Representative Client Lists |
|
Credentials & Staff Bios |
|
Articles |
|
Resources |
