Despite a lot of hard work at the legislature this
year, this session saw no action on election issues. Election bills
traveled through committees relatively easily and passed both houses
without much disagreement, but as the weather warmed up it seemed
feelings toward the election bills cooled off. The vetoes didn’t
help, of course. The bills covered an array of topics, from clarifying
how far someone can stand from the building of a polling place to
automatic voter registration. Yet due to disagreements and stalling
on the House floor, none of these provisions got heard or voted on
before session deadline, and so will have to wait for future sessions.
Among the rejected reforms
were two that would have expanded voting access for people with
disabilities. The first bill would have helped voters who are unable
to get to the polling place. It proposed to expand the “agent delivery process” to include individuals who
are disabled or otherwise have health issues that prevent them from
going to their polling place on Election Day. Under agent delivery,
a person can appoint an “agent” to pick up and deliver
their ballot on, or four days before, Election Day. The second bill
would have made it easier for people living in group homes to vote.
Group home voters can use a group home employee to vouch for them
at the polling place. Currently, the group home needs to submit a
list of employees in advance to the county auditor. The bill would
have eliminated the need to submit such a list.
The most controversial
issue this session centered on townships’ exemption
from having to use accessible voting machines. As you may recall,
this issue has been a hot one for the last three sessions. Under
state and federal law, polling places must provide accessible voting
machines. However, Minnesota townships have sought a legislative
exemption due to the financial hardship that purchasing the AutoMark
would pose to them. All stakeholders involved in the township issue
worked closely with the Office of the Secretary of State to continue
discussions in the hopes of finally coming to a compromise. Unfortunately,
there was none.
Here’s where the
township issue stands now. No agreement was reached this year,
with one exception. To allow more time for discussion, the deadline
for townships to get voting machines was extended from 2008 to
2010. A task force will continue discussions over the summer.
Efforts were made to secure at least some of these accessible voting
reforms, but ultimately failed. First, the various provisions were
passed by both houses and rolled into the State Government Finance
Omnibus Bill. Then, as committee deadlines approached, rumors of vetoes
flew around the capitol. The rumors then turned to regular conversations
and eventually became bitter arguments in committee hearings and floor
debates. The township provision and a few other key election items
in the bill were not strong enough to fight off the pen of the governor.
This bill was vetoed on May 7th. The governor had specific objections
with the election provisions in the bill and described them line by
line in his veto message.
After doing a strategy
check, legislators prepped the bill for a second appearance before
the governor. At the final hour, when things couldn’t
get any crazier at the legislature, members of the House were debating
the Tax Omnibus bill. All election provisions within the State Government
Finance omnibus bill had been stripped with the hopes that they would
be put into their own omnibus bill. Unfortunately, time ran out
and no action was taken.
The inaction of the legislature on election legislation is disappointing
not only for the disability community, but also for many other affected
parties, including the townships, county and city elections, and the
Office of the Secretary of State. Not to mention every eligible voter
in Minnesota.
One of the main objectives
of voting reform proponents between now and the next session will
be to educate the governor and key members of the legislature about
these voting barriers and why the right action is needed to provide
access to voting for people with disabilities. ![]()
