In the recently completed
2002-2004 State Plan for Independent Living, one of the goals is… “To
assure that all Texans have a fair and equal opportunity to participate
in the electoral process.” In pursuing that goal, members of the Texas
State Independent Living Council began contacting officials at both the
state and local levels. The following is information acquired from both
of those sources:
In 1984, Congress passed
a voter accessibility act which provided that all polling places must be
physically accessible to people with disabilities. It also provided for
the moving of polling places to temporarily accessible voting places and
for other possible alternatives such as curb side voting. We have an election
coming up in November in which many state and federal candidates will be
elected and it appears that based on 1998 and 2000 surveys, accessibility
of voting areas is still not very satisfactory in many areas.
Since it is now several
months before the actual voting, this is a good time for people who have
difficulty in casting their ballots because of a lack of accessibility to
take action to assure that they will be able to exercise their right to
vote. The Texas Secretary of
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Travis
County Clerk, Dana DeBeauvoir instructs consumers at ARCIL, Inc.,
on use of new accessible voting equipment currently available in Travis,
Tarrant and Harris counties.
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State is the Chief
Election Officer and he is responsible for making polling places accessible
and providing for practical and effective means for voters with disabilities
to exercise their right to cast a “secret ballot”. In 1999, our
state enacted a very specific provision concerning this issue in Section
122.001 of the Texas Election Code. Texas was one of the first states in
the country to aggressively formulate laws requiring all polling places
to be accessible to persons with disabilities.
The Secretary of State
has provided that if a written request by fifteen registered voters of a
political subdivision has been received by him in a timely fashion, he will
send an election inspector to insure the accessibility of polling places.
Texas Attorney General
John Cornyn, by letter dated July 18, 2001, has assured the SILC that he
is very interested in this matter and will lend assistance to us. The office
to contact concerning polling place accessibility is the Elections Division
of the Secretary of State’s office in Austin. Caroline Geppert is the
primary contact person and she can be reached at (512)463-5650 or (800)252-8683.
The Texas State Independent
Living Council will continue its efforts in this regard and welcomes any
information concerning polling place accessibility and comments about implementation
of the state’s policy concerning those matters, especially those which
are in Section 43.034 of the Texas Administrative Code defining standards
for polling places for persons with disabilities.
Similarly, in response
to questions posed by SILC member Marcia Ingram, the following letter was
received from Donna Robertson, Midland County Elections Administrator:
“Thank you for
your letter of June 20th regarding concerns about accessibility of polling
places. Your comments are important to us in the Midland County Elections
and Voter Registration Office.
One accommodation that you are probably aware of is “Ballot by Mail”.
Voting by mail can help alleviate the issues of confidentiality and accessibility.
Please contact our office if you want more information about this voting
alternative.
Texas was the first
state in the country to set out accessibility guidelines for electronic
voting systems. Midland County is looking at the various new voting systems
on the market that claim to make voting confidential and easier for voters
who are blind or visually impaired and/or have limited mobility. A few Texas
counties will implement new electronic voting systems this year, so we plan
to monitor their successes and problems before making any recommendations
for Midland County.
The timeliness of your
concern is especially pertinent since the Midland County Elections &
Voter Registration Office will be moving to a new location next year. I
would be pleased to visit with you and get your input and recommendations
on ways to make sure this new facility meets all ADA standards.
Thank you for your
interest in this issue.”
Additional information
concerning implementation of the Texas State Plan for Independent Living
will be addressed in future issues of the SILC Spiel. Return
to Contents
Network
Enhancements
The SILC’s on-line
network has recently been updated. Although additional improvements will
be made in the future, the network now includes the complete State Plan
for Independent Living and the SILC newsletter, SILC Spiel, as well as other
articles, resources and links of interest to persons with disabilities.
It may be accessed at il-net.org. Return to Contents
Texas
and the Nation
Lose Two Great Leaders
By
Paula Margeson & Ted Thayer
Sadly, two of the most
inspirational and dedicated leaders in the disability rights movement, Justin
Dart, Jr., and Virginia Roberts, passed away recently. Their passing hits
particularly close to home since both of these remarkable people had strong
ties to the state of Texas. They began and continued many of their advocacy
efforts in Texas. The following represent brief tributes to their outstanding
lives and work:
Justin Dart, Jr., a
leader of the international disability rights movement and a renowned human
rights activist, died June 21st at his home in Washington, D.C. Dart was
born on August 29, 1930, into a wealthy and prominent family. His grandfather
was the founder the Walgreen Drugstore chain, his father a successful business
executive, and his mother a matron of the American avant garde.
Widely recognized as “the father of the Americans with Disabilities
Act” and “the godfather of the disability rights movement,”
Dart had, for the past several years, struggled with the complications of
post-polio syndrome and congestive heart failure. He was seventy-one years
old. He is survived by his wife, Yoshiko, and their extended family of foster
children.
While people with disabilities
across the country and around the world grieve the loss of Justin Dart,
Jr., it was Justin’s wish that any service or commemoration be used
by activists to celebrate the accomplishments of the disability movement,
and as an opportunity to recommit themselves to “the revolution of
empowerment.” The following is excerpted from a recent letter written
by Justin Dart and speaks more eloquently of this outstanding leader’s
commitment to his fellow man than could any eulogy.
Michelle
Crain is the new representative of the Texas Association of Centers for
Independent Living on the SILC. Ms. Crain has been the executive director
of the Life/Run centers in Lubbock and Amarillo since November of 2000.
A wheelchair user, she has first-hand knowledge of the challenges faced
by persons with disabilities as they work to establish and maintain their
independence. Michelle holds a masters degree in psychology and has plans
to pursue her doctorate. Ms. Crain’s appointment follows the resignation
of Luis Chew, executive director of VOLAR in El Paso. Luis served on the
SILC for three years and made numerous contributions that significantly
improved the performance of the Council.