HAVA Annual Report 2005–2006

Content

Help America Vote Act (HAVA) Annual Report Fiscal Years 2005–2006

1. Protection and Advocacy Systems—Help America Vote Act
2. State Grants for Election Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities (EAID)
3. Training and Technical Assistance to Assist Protection and Advocacy Systems to Establish or Improve Voting Access for Individuals with Disabilities

Help America Vote Act (HAVA) Annual Report Fiscal Years 2005–2006

The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), Public Law 107-252, was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 29, 2002. The administration of disability provisions for sections 261 and 291 was assigned to the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The Secretary of DHHS delegated responsibility to the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) who has assigned oversight for carrying out HAVA program responsibilities to the Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD).

HAVA contains three (3) grant programs that are designed for elections and individuals associated with operating the election process to establish, expand, and improve access to and participation in the election process for individuals with the full range of disabilities. Two of these are formula grants, one available to states and territories to improve accessibility in the voting process, the second to state Protection and Advocacy Systems (P&As) to assist individuals with disabilities in the voting process. Additionally, seven percent of the funds for P&As was set aside for the third grant program, a discretionary program for the purpose of providing training and technical assistance to P&As.

Since HAVA was signed into law, ADD has awarded 452 grants totaling approximately $53,000,000. These grants are used to make polling places accessible to individuals with disabilities, to provide the same opportunity for access and participation in the electoral process (including privacy and independence) to voters with disabilities as available to voters with no disabilities, to provide training for election workers on how best to promote the access and participation of individuals with disabilities in elections for Federal office, and to provide information to individuals with disabilities about the accessibility of polling places. All of these provisions apply to individuals with the full range of disabilities, not just those with developmental disabilities. Progress is being made towards the goal of making all polling places fully accessible, including making available one voting system within each polling place that allows for the privacy and independence of voters with disabilities (Section 261 (b)(1)).

Information found in this report reflects the requirements as set forth in Title II, Subtitle D, Part 2, Section 265 (b) of HAVA:

(b) Report by Secretary to Committees -With respect to each fiscal year for which the Secretary makes payments under this part, the Secretary shall submit a report on the activities carried out under this part to the Committee on House Administration of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate.

The programs authorized under Sections 261 and 291 and managed by ADD are described in areas I, II and III of this report.