Pierce County Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee Minutes

Transcription

1 Pierce County Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee Minutes Tacoma Area Coalition of Individuals with Disabilities, 6315 S 19 th St, Tacoma, Washington Christine Seymour called the meeting to order at 12:24 p.m. September 17, 2010 Voting Members Present: Voting Members Absent (regrets sent): Voting Members Absent: Non voting Members Present: Christine Seymour, Penny Condoll, Wayne Terry, Lynn Stagg, and David Rand. Dan Eberle, Robert Wardell, Ron Stone, Linda Lohdefinck, and Alice Stephenson. None. Chris Ensor, Trina Forest, Cindy Hartman, Mike Rooney, Bob Riler, and Anthony Bonura. Approval of July 9, 2010 Minutes Lynn motioned to approve the minutes. David moved to approve the minutes of July 9, Penny seconded. No discussion ensued. The minutes were declared approved. Ballot Drop Box Update Lynn, Robert, Dan and Wayne toured the proposed drop box locations with Cindy and Mike. Locations visited: Bonney Lake Park and Ride Bonney Lake Library The subcommittee preferred the Park and Ride. Kobetich Library NE Tacoma Police sub station The subcommittee preferred the Police Sub Station Tacoma Dome Park and Ride on Puyallup Ave. (Walk up only) David moved to proceed in pursuing these locations. Wayne seconded. Voice vote was taken and carried. The motion was declared adopted.

2 Disability Awareness Manual Mike thanked Mary Beth for all her hard work on the manual. The manual was produced and provided to 332 Poll Workers during training. Pierce County will print the manual with a bound cover, hopefully next week. Price ranges are 1,000 copies for $1,314 and 1,500 for $1,666. The number of copies needed was discussed. Bob Riley will add a link for the manual on the Pierce County website. He felt many businesses would benefit from it and use it. Many members stated they felt the manual was less effective without training. Wayne moved to print 1,500 copies of the manual. Lynn seconded. Voice vote was taken and carried. The motion was declared adopted. Mike provided budget spreadsheets for grants #2 and #3. They are included below. The grant #2 spreadsheet included the cost of the larger drop box and installation at the Pierce County Annex. Bids for future installations will be requested. Advisory Committee Membership Christine reported the steps taken to fill 2 vacancies on the advisory committee. The committee currently has 10 members (one of who may be unable to attend daytime meetings) and the Advisory Committee guidelines allow a maximum of 12 members. Christine printed a recruitment letter. Chris and David attended the Heroes to Hometown and David presented the information contained in the letter at the meeting. The committee members were encouraged to use their contacts to recruit people. Christine was asked to supply members with a copy of the recruitment letter. Linda Lohdefinck s work schedule makes it difficult for her to attend Friday meetings and her preference for Mondays was shared. The question was raised whether it would be beneficial for the meetings to be scheduled in advance to enable people to attend. The committee agreed that a consistent date and time was more beneficial. Discussion ensued regarding frequency of meetings before setting a date and time. Bi-monthly meetings, the 2nd Friday of the month was presented. Lynn moved to accept that timeframe. David seconded. Voice vote was taken and carried. The motion was declared adopted. Chris will contact Linda to see if she can alter her work schedule or withdraw from the committee. Disability representatives to pursue include military, senior, mobility, ethnic diversity, and physical disabilities. Voter Education and Forums Aging and Long Term Care Forum Bob thanked the committee members for distribution of the flyers for the September 18 th forums. Candidates were given material related to the eight seed questions for the forum. Interpreters were scheduled. There had been a very good response to the forums. All candidates from two districts were expected to attend the TACID forum and about half the candidates for the Lakewood and Puyallup forums were expected to attend. Pierce County Voting and Accessibility Committee Forum, Sept 29: 2

3 Trina is coordinating the number of posters needed. The forum will include a demo Touch Screen. The Auditor s Office will provide a voting registrant. Publicity included ed and hard copy letters to Bob s forums, posting on the County website, and public service announcements. Libraries and colleges will receive fliers also. All candidates have been notified. Set-up starts at three o clock. Volunteers were encouraged. The forum begins at 4:30 p.m. at the TACID Center. Accessibility Review by Disability Rights WA Disability Rights is a non-profit state organization awarded grants to protect civil rights. David Lord will speak at the September 29th forum. DRW has visited counties in Washington State and were very complimentary of the PCVAAC committee and the information provided on websites. They would like to be more inclusive of the advisory committee. ASL Video for Pierce County Elections Website Christine and Mike met this week. They reported that Thurston County has provided ASL for their Voter pamphlets since Sustainability was discussed. Once ASL was provided, it would need to continue to be provided. Costs for Thurston County are outlined below. Purchased Video camera in 2008 Sony Pro Pack Editing Primary ASL $3,000 Discussion ensued regarding audio provided on the County phone system. A motion was made to move forward to produce a public service announcement with ASL through Pierce County TV. The video would include: Election date Directing them to our website HSDC for assistance The use of audio and video with voice over, open caption, and ASL was discussed. David moved to proceed with creating a PSA. Wayne seconded. Voice vote was taken and carried. The motion was declared adopted. Primary Election: comparison of votes cast by mail and at polling stations. Chris inquired regarding the value of maintaining neighborhood and/or County-wide polling stations for voters with disabilities. Statistics were provided by Mike with a letter from the Auditor. Meeting Date The next committee meeting will be the 2 nd Friday of November 2010 (November 12 th ) from 12-2 p.m. at TACID. Lunch will be provided. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 2:05 p.m. 3

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5 c ierce County Voting Accessibility Grant #2 - CUMULATIVE ACTUALS by ~ssi~nrnent- TOTAL :rant Period: July 1,2009 through December 31,2010 TOTAL GRANT TAClD CFI PC ACTUALS BUDGET BALANCE Pierce County Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee Food & Beverages for Meetings Consultation/support (***shared task) ASL Interpreters / CART Total for PCVAAC.r Committee Training/Devel (***shared task) Awareness/Sensitivity Trainings * * Printing of Disability Manual (750) ** ASt Interpreters / CART * (ALTC Forum) Total for Training/Forums * $418 for Volunteer Luncheon ** Updated/Printed Disability Manual Voter Education Materials Development - Professional Services Publishing Alternative Formats Postage Voter Pamphlets Alternative Formats (eg: Audio Recordings) Total Voter Eductation Materials Locked Ballot Boxes Accessible Voting Sites Fourteen Locked Ballot Boxes up to four locations - TOTAL GRANT BUDGET $4, $0.00 $9, $14, $49, $35, ** Costs for Shared Tasks cannot exceed the Total Grant Budget. Contracts with TAClD and CFI will provide for $1,230 in flexibility 9/17/2010 N:\Ekctions\HAVA\HAVA Grants\HAVA - Accessiblllty Grant #2\flscal\lkcesslbil I G rant#2 Budget.xls

6 Grant Period: July 1,2010 through December 31,2011 Pierce County Voting Accessibility Advls~y Committee 4 quarterly meetings Pierce County - Voting Accessibility Grant #3 - Budget by Assignment Food & Beverages for Meetings Consultation/support (***shared task) ASL Interpreters / CART Total for PCVAAC TOTAL GRANT TACl D CFI PC BUDGET Disability Awareness Training (summer of 2011) Pamphlets,Brodrures, and Voter Guides Voter Outreach Lodtd Ballot Drop Boxes Trainings (includes materials) ASt Interpreters / CART Total for Disability Awareness Training Easy to Read Brochures: Development - Professional Services Printing (10,000 copies) Ahernat lve Formats (Audio): Professional Services Alternative Sign Language Format Professional Services Total for Pamphiets,Brochures,Voter Guides Voter Outreach (4) (***shared task) Public Forum (1) (***shared task) ASL Interpreters / CART Total for Voter Outteach Five Locked Ballot Boxes Accessible Voting Sites TOTAL GRANT BUDGET * * flexibility on shared tasks Total Contmct Amount Idudlng Flexibjlity $1 6, $ll,laam *** Costs for Shared Tasks cannot exceed the Total Grant Budget. Contracts with TAClD and CFI will provide for $4,750 in flexibility B:00 A;M N:\EldicmVIAVAWAVA GrankktAVA - AccessibiMy GFant #Msm-lMlity [jrant#3 Budget.XIS

7 Public Voting Forum You are invited to a Public Voting Forum September 29,2010 4:30-8:00 p.m. TAC l D 6315 S 19th St Tacoma, WA Space is limited. Reserve your place by September 27,2010 Call Christina or Alonzo CFI (253) TWNP (253) This forum is sponsored by: Forum Schedule 1. Voter Registration Activities Register to Vote Political Party lnformation II. Accessible Voting Activities Learn Where to go to Vote Practice Voting Machines 111. Meet & Greet Candidates IV. Information on Disability Organizations 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. Appetizers I. Navigating the Election TACID Amromp~rdppendwwe d-inihckrlyer 4 Funded by the Help America Vote Act I I. Candidates Speak & Answer Questions ASL and CART available.

8 = Pierce County pcauditor@co.pierce.wa.us piercecountywa.org/auditor OMC~ h ";- Auditor's Office 1 To: Julie Anderson County Auditor Pierce County Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee From: Julie Anderson, Pierce County Auditor Date: September 17,2010 Subject: Vote-By-Mail and Polling Place Elections LOdAugino Deputy Auditor LaTasha SmM iaslstant to the Auditor Mary Schmidtke f i l Manager Mlke Fitta IT Systems Englneer lead Michael Roony Elections Manager Mary Johnson-Hall Elections Supervisor Patti Shay RecordingRicensing Supervisor Tim Animal Anderson Control I Should the Accessibility Advisory Committee wish to debate Vote-By-Mail and Polling Place Elections, I would offer the following polltical comments: I am the third consecutive Auditor to recommend that Pierce County convert to Vote-By-Mail. The Secretary of State, Sam Reed, has twice advanced State Legislation to make Washington State an all Vote-By-Mail election system. Until such legislation passes, the decision lies with Pierce County's Legislative Aut hor*ry, which is the Pierce County Council. The County Council has twice voted to keep Polling Place Elections as an option for Pierce County voters. They continue to indicate that this is a firm position. The Auditor's Office will happily comply wlth this policy directive. Please bear in mind that the Accessibility Advisory Committee is established to provide advice and expertise to the Pierce County Auditor on issues pertaining to the accessibility of elections for individuals living with disabilities. The committee is not expected to function as an advocate for the Auditof s Office. And, I would be concerned about the political fall-out that might occur should the committee form and advance a position on Polling Place Elections. This would readily be interpreted as the Auditof s Office "using" or "manipulating" the committee to conduct political work on its behalf. These are some points to keep in mind before embarking on the discussion. With that said, each of you represent communities and organizations that ARE advocates. My comments are not intended to muzzle or discourage your political voice. Mike Rooney, Elections Manager, stands ready to provide you with election data, as well as information about Voting Service Centers. We're an open book! W i ' s OWim Admlnirtration Recording Licensing Animal Control Ekth bntw P S 35th St, Urn 200 P P P P S 35th St, St8 C F Tacoma, WA F F F F Tacoma, WA P

9 Pierce County Voting Statistics September August Primary Election Voter Statistics Registered voters Total number of VoteBy-Mail voters Total number of poll voters Voter Turnout Statistics Total ballots counted Vote-By-Mail ballots counted Polling Place ballots counted (56 polling places) Voted at TACID Voted at CFI Voted on Pierce County touch screen... 4 Voted on touch screen (county-wide)... 2, 229 November General Election Voter Statistics Registered voters Total number of Vote-By-Mail voters Total number of poll voters Voter Turnout Statistics Total ballots counted Vote-8y-Mail ballots counted Polling Place ballots counted (56 polling places) Voted at TACID Voted at CFI Voted on Pierce County touch screen... N/A Voted on touch screen (County-wide)

10 Disability Awareness Manual Mike thanked Mary Beth for all her hard work on the manual. The manual was produced and provided to 332 Poll Workers during training. Pierce County will print the manual with a bound cover, hopefully next week. Price ranges are 1,000 copies for $1,314 and 1,500 for $1,666. The number of copies needed was discussed. Bob Riley will add a link for the manual on the Pierce County website. He felt many businesses would benefit from it and use it. Many members stated they felt the manual was less effective without training. Wayne moved to print 1,500 copies of the manual. Lynn seconded. Voice vote was taken and carried. The motion was declared adopted. Mike provided budget spreadsheets for grants #2 and #3. They are included below. The grant #2 spreadsheet included the cost of the larger drop box and installation at the Pierce County Annex. Bids for future installations will be requested. Advisory Committee Membership Christine reported the steps taken to fill 2 vacancies on the advisory committee. The committee currently has 10 members (one of who may be unable to attend daytime meetings) and the Advisory Committee guidelines allow a maximum of 12 members. Christine printed a recruitment letter. Chris and David attended the Heroes to Hometown and David presented the information contained in the letter at the meeting. The committee members were encouraged to use their contacts to recruit people. Christine was asked to supply members with a copy of the recruitment letter. Linda Lohdefinck s work schedule makes it difficult for her to attend Friday meetings and her preference for Mondays was shared. The question was raised whether it would be beneficial for the meetings to be scheduled in advance to enable people to attend. The committee agreed that a consistent date and time was more beneficial. Discussion ensued regarding frequency of meetings before setting a date and time. Bi-monthly meetings, the 2nd Friday of the month was presented. Lynn moved to accept that timeframe. David seconded. Voice vote was taken and carried. The motion was declared adopted. Chris will contact Linda to see if she can alter her work schedule or withdraw from the committee. Disability representatives to pursue include military, senior, mobility, ethnic diversity, and physical disabilities. Voter Education and Forums Aging and Long Term Care Forum Bob thanked the committee members for distribution of the flyers for the September 18 th forums. Candidates were given material related to the eight seed questions for the forum. Interpreters were scheduled. There had been a very good response to the forums. All candidates from two districts were expected to attend the TACID forum and about half the candidates for the Lakewood and Puyallup forums were expected to attend. Pierce County Voting and Accessibility Committee Forum, Sept 29: 2

11 Trina is coordinating the number of posters needed. The forum will include a demo Touch Screen. The Auditor s Office will provide a voting registrant. Publicity included ed and hard copy letters to Bob s forums, posting on the County website, and public service announcements. Libraries and colleges will receive fliers also. All candidates have been notified. Set-up starts at three o clock. Volunteers were encouraged. The forum begins at 4:30 p.m. at the TACID Center. Accessibility Review by Disability Rights WA Disability Rights is a non-profit state organization awarded grants to protect civil rights. David Lord will speak at the September 29th forum. DRW has visited counties in Washington State and were very complimentary of the PCVAAC committee and the information provided on websites. They would like to be more inclusive of the advisory committee. ASL Video for Pierce County Elections Website Christine and Mike met this week. They reported that Thurston County has provided ASL for their Voter pamphlets since Sustainability was discussed. Once ASL was provided, it would need to continue to be provided. Costs for Thurston County are outlined below. Purchased Video camera in 2008 Sony Pro Pack Editing Primary ASL $3,000 Discussion ensued regarding audio provided on the County phone system. A motion was made to move forward to produce a public service announcement with ASL through Pierce County TV. The video would include: Election date Directing them to our website HSDC for assistance The use of audio and video with voice over, open caption, and ASL was discussed. David moved to proceed with creating a PSA. Wayne seconded. Voice vote was taken and carried. The motion was declared adopted. Primary Election: comparison of votes cast by mail and at polling stations. Chris inquired regarding the value of maintaining neighborhood and/or County-wide polling stations for voters with disabilities. Statistics were provided by Mike with a letter from the Auditor. Meeting Date The next committee meeting will be the 2 nd Friday of November 2010 (November 12 th ) from 12-2 p.m. at TACID. Lunch will be provided. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 2:05 p.m. 3