BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 683
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Date of Hearing: April 29, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
Sebastian Ridley-Thomas, Chair
AB 683
(Low) - As Amended March 24, 2015
SUBJECT: Online ballot materials: accessibility.
SUMMARY: Requires the Visually Impaired Voter Assistance
Advisory Board (Board) to make additional recommendations to the
Secretary of State (SOS) for improving the accessibility of
election materials made available over the Internet, as
specified. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the Board to make recommendations to the SOS for
improving accessibility of election materials made available
over the Internet, including the state ballot pamphlet, the
sample ballot and notice of polling place, the voter pamphlet,
and any associated materials. Requires the Board, in making
recommendations, to consider the following:
a) Nonvisual accessibility for the blind and visually
impaired, in a manner that provides the same opportunity
for access as provided to other voters who are not
disabled; and,
b) Recommendations from representatives of blind consumer
organizations, experts in accessible software and hardware
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design, and any other individual or organization the SOS or
the Board determines to be appropriate.
2)Requires the online version of the state ballot pamphlet to
conform to the most current, ratified standards under Section
508 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Sec.
794d), as amended, and the Web Content Accessibility
Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 adopted by the World Wide Web Consortium
for accessibility. Permits the SOS to implement
recommendations of the Board made pursuant to the provisions
of this bill.
3)Requires county and city elections officials that make the
sample ballot, voter pamphlet, notice of polling place and
associated materials accessible on the county's or city's
Internet Web site to conform to the most current, ratified
standards under Section 508 of the federal Rehabilitation Act
of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 794d), as amended, and the WCAG 2.0
adopted by the World Wide Web Consortium for accessibility.
Permits an elections official to implement recommendations of
the Board made pursuant to the guidelines promulgated by the
SOS related to the accessibility of polling places by the
physically handicapped.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Provides that it is the intent of the Legislature to promote
the fundamental right to vote of visually impaired
individuals, and to make efforts to improve public awareness
of the availability of ballot pamphlet audio recordings and
improve their delivery to these voters.
2)Requires the SOS to establish the Board. Requires the Board
to consist of the SOS or his or her designee and the following
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membership, appointed by the SOS:
a) A representative from the State Advisory Council in
Libraries; and,
b) One member from each of three private organizations.
Requires two of the organizations to be representative of
organizations for blind persons in the state.
3)Requires the Board to do all of the following:
a) Establish guidelines for reaching as many visually
impaired persons as practical;
b) Make recommendations to the SOS for improving the
availability and accessibility of ballot pamphlet audio
recordings and their delivery to visually impaired voters;
c) Increase the distribution of public service
announcements identifying the availability of ballot
pamphlet audio recordings at least 45 days before any
federal, state, or local election; and,
d) Promote the SOS's toll-free voter registration telephone
line for citizens needing voter registration information,
including information for those who are visually
handicapped, and the toll-free telephone service regarding
the California State Library and regional library service
for the visually impaired.
4)Prohibits a member of the Board from receiving compensation.
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Provides that each member shall be reimbursed for his or her
reasonable and necessary expenses in connection with service
on the Board.
5)Requires the SOS to produce an audio recorded version of the
state ballot pamphlet. Requires the audio recorded version to
be made available in quantities to be determined by the SOS
and contain information concerning each statewide measure, as
specified.
6)Requires the SOS to make available the complete state ballot
pamphlet over the Internet. Requires the online version of
the state ballot pamphlet to contain certain voter
information, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose of the Bill: According to the author:
In 2010, legislation was passed to allow county and city
officials to provide election information in an electronic
format via email or by making them accessible on their
internet web site. While some counties and cities have
adopted this process, many counties and the state do not
provide election information in accessible forms for voters
with disabilities. Audio recordings of voter pamphlets or
sample ballots are sometimes available but there is little,
if any, candidate information available in an accessible
format. This is especially true for local elections where
candidate information or ballot issues are not accessible.
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AB 683 will provide accessible voting information, so
people with disabilities can use their own accessible
technologies to research candidates and issues that appear
on their ballot. AB 683 will help voters with disabilities
educate themselves and allow them to [be] better
participants in our democracy.
2)Visually Impaired Voter Assistance Act of 1989: Current law
required the SOS to establish the Board in 1989. One of the
main purposes of the Board is to establish guidelines for
reaching as many visually impaired individuals as practical
and make recommendations to the SOS for improving the
availability and accessibility of ballot pamphlet audio
recordings and their delivery to visually impaired voters.
However, according to the SOS's office, the Board is not
currently functioning and has been incorporated into the SOS's
Statewide Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee (VAAC).
3)Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee: On the state level,
the SOS has established the statewide VAAC, which is designed
to advise, assist, and provide recommendations to the SOS's
office on how voters with disabilities can vote independently
and privately. For instance, VAAC members have been
influential in assisting with numerous projects, including the
polling place accessibility guidelines. VAAC members have also
helped raise awareness of disability issues through their
involvement in the development of the voter accessibility
survey and production of the polling place accessibility
surveyor training video.
On the local level, some county elections officials have
established local voting accessibility advisory committees to
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help advise and assist on local election issues. For example,
Los Angeles County established a local VAAC in 2006 to assist
the registrar-recorder/county clerk in implementing innovative
strategies and improving accessibility and participation in
the election process for individuals within the full spectrum
of disabilities.
4)Voter Materials Online: On the state level, existing law
requires the SOS to make the state ballot pamphlet available
over the Internet, as specified. In addition, current law
requires the SOS to establish processes that enable a voter to
opt out of receiving by mail the state ballot pamphlet and
instead receive it in an electronic format or an electronic
notification making the pamphlet available by means of online
access. This requirement, however, is not operational until
the SOS certifies that the state has a statewide voter
database, also known as VoteCal. According to SOS, VoteCal is
expected to be operational in June 2016.
On the local level, current law permits county elections
officials to provide voter materials online. Specifically,
existing law permits county elections officials to establish
procedures designed to permit a voter to opt out of receiving
his or her sample ballot, voter pamphlet, notice of polling
place, and associated materials by mail, and instead obtain
them electronically via email or by accessing them on the
county's Internet Web site, as specified.
5)New Electronic and Information Technology Requirements: This
bill requires information made available over the Internet to
comply with standards under Section 508 of the federal
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 794d) and the WCAG
2.0 adopted by the World Wide Web Consortium for
accessibility.
Section 508 of the federal Rehabilitation Act requires federal
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agencies' electronic and information technology be accessible
to people with disabilities, including employees and members
of the public. Specifically, Section 508 establishes
requirements for any electronic and information technology
developed, maintained, procured, or used by the federal
government.
The WCAG 2.0 covers a wide range of recommendations for making
web content more accessible. The objective of the guidelines
is to make content accessible to a wider range of people with
disabilities, including blindness and low vision, deafness and
hearing loss, learning disabilities, cognitive limitations,
limited movement, speech disabilities, photosensitivity and
combinations of these. WCAG 2.0 was developed in cooperation
with individuals and organizations around the world, with a
goal of providing a shared standard for web content
accessibility that meets the needs of individuals,
organizations, and governments internationally. WCAG 2.0
builds on WCAG 1.0 and is designed to apply broadly to
different web technologies now and in the future, and to be
testable with a combination of automated testing and human
evaluation.
According to the SOS's office, the SOS's Internet Web site
mostly complies with Section 508 of the federal Rehabilitation
Act, however, it is unclear whether the SOS's Internet Web
site currently complies with the WCAG 2.0 adopted by the World
Wide Web Consortium for accessibility.
A search by committee staff revealed that some county elections
official's Internet Web sites may comply, to a certain extent,
with the online accessibility standards of the World Wide Web
Consortium, however, according to a county elections
official's representative, county elections officials are
required to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act,
but compliance with Section 508 of the federal Rehabilitation
Act does not extend to counties. As a result, this bill would
require those counties that do make voter materials accessible
online to abide by new technology guidelines outlined in this
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bill. Would the new technology standards in this bill be a
disincentive for counties to provide voter materials online?
Moreover, the online accessibility standards required in this
bill, particularly the WCAG 2.0, are very specific.
Theoretically, as technology changes and evolves, so too would
the online accessibility standards and guidelines. As a
result, the committee may wish to consider whether it is
prudent to place specific standards and guidelines in statute
and instead require the technology requirements to be broader.
6)Arguments in Support: Disability Rights California has a
position of support, with reservations, on this bill. In its
letter, the organization writes:
In order to provide access to voter information materials
on the internet, it is critical that materials are
accessible to people with disabilities and internet sites
comply with access requirements. This bill will take steps
to help improve access for people with visual impairments.
While we applaud increasing access for people with visual
impairments, we are concerned that access concerns for
other disabilities are not being addressed, such as people
who are deaf and people with intellectual disabilities.
People who are deaf need material in American Sign Language
and people with intellectual disabilities need material
that is in plain language and a website that is easy to
understand and navigate. Is the plan to set up boards and
committees for each disability community? It seems a
better approach would be to set up one board or committee
to make recommendations to improve disability access to
voting and ensure that board or committee has appropriate
staffing. Further, as far as [Disability Rights
California] knows, the Visually Impaired Voter Assistance
Board is not currently a functional board, even though the
statute created it in 1989.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Disability Rights California (with reservations)
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Nichole Becker / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094