Current through Rules and Regulations filed through March 20, 2024
(1)
Preamble. In order to
implement the provisions of the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and
Handicapped Act (P.L. 98-435), the State Election Board promulgates the
following rules and regulations.
(2)
Definitions. As used in this
Rule, the terms:
(a) "Accessible" shall mean
that a facility has a continuous unobstructed path connecting the parking area
and the area within the facility which is being used for voting or voter
registration, whichever the case may be, which complies with the relevant
provisions of Sections 3 and 4 of American National Standards Institute
specifications A117.1-1980 for making buildings and facilities accessible to
and usable by physically disabled individuals.
(b) "Disabled" shall mean a temporary or
permanent physical disability.
(c)
"Elderly" shall mean persons 65 years of age or older.
(d) "Polling place" means the room provided
in each precinct for voting at a primary or election.
(e) "Registration place" shall mean any
place, either temporary or permanent, designated by the registrars of a county
or municipality as a place to be used for voter registration.
(3)
Polling Places.
All polling places in the State of Georgia shall be accessible to disabled and
elderly electors.
(5)
Implementation.
(a)
Polling
Places. The election superintendent of each county and municipality
shall conduct, or cause to be conducted, an on-site inspection of each polling
place located within the county or municipality to determine if the polling
place is accessible. This inspection shall be reported to the Secretary of
State on forms prepared by the Secretary of State at such times as the
Secretary of State shall prescribe. Any polling place found not to be
accessible shall either be made accessible prior to its use in a primary or
election or shall not be used as a polling place.
(6)
Waivers. No waiver shall be
granted for polling places which are not accessible.
(7)
Printed Instructions. The
Secretary of State shall provide instructions for use by election
superintendents at polling places and registrars at voter registration places,
printed in large type, to assist visually and hearing impaired electors in
voting and registering to vote.
(8)
Notice and Advertisement.
(a)
Each election superintendent shall mark or cause to be marked in a prominent
manner the accessible path for elderly and disabled voters at all polling
places.
(b) The display of the
international disabled access symbol shall be sufficient marking of a polling
place if the symbol is of a size and is located such that it can easily be seen
by the public and if the accessible path from the parking area to the polling
place is the same as the path used by non-disabled persons.
(c) Election superintendents shall take
reasonable steps to inform disabled and elderly electors of the availability of
accessible polling places.
(9) Voting Aids. The election superintendent
of each county and municipality shall provide at least one magnifying glass at
each polling place during each primary and election for use by visually
impaired electors.
(10) If the
voting equipment is not accessible to a disabled voter, the disabled voter
shall be permitted to use a paper ballot.
(11)
Enforcement.
(a) Election superintendents and boards of
registrars shall investigate all complaints concerning accessibility to polling
places and voter registration places and shall take such corrective action as
may be necessary to ensure compliance with these rules concerning
accessibility.
(b) Election
superintendents and boards of registrars shall report in writing to the State
Election Board through the Secretary of State all complaints concerning
accessibility, the results of the investigation of the complaints, and any
corrective actions taken.
(c) The
State Election Board may, in its discretion, investigate these complaints
further and take such actions as it deems appropriate to ensure that these
rules concerning accessibility are implemented and effectuated.
O.C.G.A. Sec.
21-2-31.
