Sec. 103. Accessibility and ballot verification for individuals with disabilities
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Section 301(a)(3)(B) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 ( 52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(3)(B) ) is amended to read as follows: ensure that individuals with disabilities and others are given an equivalent opportunity to vote, including with privacy and independence, in a manner that produces a voter-verifiable paper ballot as for other voters; satisfy the requirement of subparagraph
(A)through the use of as many ballot marking devices at each polling place as necessary (but not less than 1) to reasonably accommodate the number of voters with accessibility needs expected to vote at the polling place) that— is equipped for individuals with disabilities, including nonvisual and enhanced visual accessibility for the blind and visually impaired and nonmanual and enhanced manual accessibility for the mobility and dexterity impaired; in the case of any election for Federal office occurring after the date that is 6 years after the date of the enactment of the Securing America's Federal Elections Act — marks ballots that are identical in size, ink, and paper stock to those ballots that would either be marked by hand or be marked by a ballot marking device made generally available to voters; and combines ballots produced by any ballot marking devices reserved for individuals with disabilities with ballots that have either been marked by voters by hand or marked by ballot marking devices made generally available to voters, in a way that prevents identification of the ballots that were cast using any ballot marking device that was reserved for individuals with disabilities; and is made available for use by any voter who requests to use it; and in the case of any election for Federal office occurring after the date that is 6 years after the date of the enactment of the Securing America's Federal Elections Act , meet the requirements of subparagraph
(A)and paragraph (2)(A) by using a system that— allows the voter to privately and independently verify the accuracy of the permanent paper ballot through the presentation, in accessible form, of the printed or marked vote selections from the same printed or marked information that would be used for any vote tabulation or auditing; and allows the voter to privately and independently verify and cast the permanent paper ballot without requiring the voter to manually handle the paper ballot; and . Section 301(a)(3) of such Act ( 52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(3) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new flush sentence: Nothing in subparagraph
(B)shall be construed to prohibit the use of an accessible ballot that may be printed or marked by the voter at home. . Title III of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 ( 52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 301 the following new section: Every individual who votes in person in an election for Federal office shall be informed by the individual administering such election of— the availability of accessible voting systems under section 301(a)(3)(B); and the right of the individual to use such voting systems upon request. The requirements of this section shall apply to elections for Federal office held in 2020 or any succeeding year. . The table of contents for such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 301 the following new item: Sec. 301A. Information on accessible voting systems. . Section 401 of such Act ( 52 U.S.C. 21111 ) is amended by striking sections 301, 302, and 303 and inserting subtitle A of title III . Subtitle C of title II of such Act ( 52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended— by redesignating section 247 as section 248; and by inserting after section 246 the following new section: The Director of the National Science Foundation shall make grants to not fewer than three eligible entities to study, test, and develop accessible paper ballot voting, verification, and casting mechanisms and devices and best practices to enhance the accessibility of paper ballot voting and verification mechanisms for individuals with disabilities, for voters whose primary language is not English, and for voters with difficulties in literacy, including best practices for the mechanisms themselves and the processes through which the mechanisms are used. An entity is eligible to receive a grant under this part if it submits to the Director (at such time and in such form as the Director may require) an application containing— certifications that the entity shall specifically investigate enhanced methods or devices, including non-electronic devices, that will assist such individuals and voters in marking voter-verifiable paper ballots and presenting or transmitting the information printed or marked on such ballots back to such individuals and voters, and casting such ballots; a certification that the entity shall complete the activities carried out with the grant not later than December 31, 2020; and such other information and certifications as the Director may require. Any technology developed with the grants made under this section shall be treated as non-proprietary and shall be made available to the public, including to manufacturers of voting systems. The Director shall carry out this section so that the activities carried out with the grants made under subsection
(a)are coordinated with the research conducted under the grant program carried out by the Commission under section 271, to the extent that the Director and Commission determine necessary to provide for the advancement of accessible voting technology. There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out subsection
(a)$5,000,000, to remain available until expended. . The table of contents of such Act is amended— by redesignating the item relating to section 247 as relating to section 248; and by inserting after the item relating to section 246 the following new item: Sec. 247. Study and report on accessible paper ballot verification mechanisms. . In adopting any voluntary guidance under subtitle B of title III of the Help America Vote Act with respect to the accessibility of the paper ballot verification requirements for individuals with disabilities, the Election Assistance Commission shall include and apply the same accessibility standards applicable under the voluntary guidance adopted for accessible voting systems under such subtitle. Section 292(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 ( 52 U.S.C. 21062(a) ) is amended by striking ; except that and all that follows and inserting a period.
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Sec. 103
Accessibility and ballot verification for individuals with disabilities
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