June 19, 2015

Polling Place Evaluation Series

This article is the fifth in a series of articles geared toward the polling place and accessibility. The odd year is a good time to take a look at your polling locations and determine if improvements need to be made or a new facility should be found.  The polling place is a vital part to a successful election, especially a large turnout election like the November 2016 Presidential election.

Polling Location Layout
Putting a well thought out layout on paper for election inspectors to work from is ideal.  But remember, well thought out layouts on paper, don’t always work as well in practice. Construct a layout where possible and be sure to evaluate the effectiveness.  Make sure your layout:

• Allows for an orderly flow of voters
• Gives your election inspectors control of the environment
• Uses one door as an entrance and another as an exit when possible
• Maintains privacy and accessibility for voters throughout the process, including a 10-foot free zone around the tabulator
• Provides a public area for poll watchers 

Review the Sample Polling Place Layout for ideas on good setup.

Accessibility - Walkways

Pathways inside and outside of polling locations can change over time, especially side walks.  ADA standards for interior and exterior walkways are very specific.  Review the Polling Place Accessibility Worksheet to ensure your walkways are fully compliant. An accessible exterior or interior walkway is:

• free from steps and abrupt level changes over ½ INCH
• at least 36 inches wide
• free of objects that protrude from the wall more than 4 inches (ex. fire extinguishers, light fixtures, coat hooks, etc.)
• free of overhead objects that voters may pass under (objects should be placed higher than 80”)

An Accessible Walkway Flyer is available for educational purposes.

If your polling location is deficient in any of the areas above, remember, Michigan’s cities and townships can recover the costs they incur in making their polling places ADA compliant through the Polling Place Accessibility Improvement Program, a federal grant program (funded through the Help America Vote Act). A new application period is now open through July  1, 2015. For more information, visit the eLearning Center to view the instructions, application, and polling place accessibility worksheet. 

QVF - Precinct and Polling Locations Survey The Bureau of Elections is in the process of reviewing the “Precinct and Polling Locations” module of the QVF with the goal of improving its functionality. We would appreciate feedback from the QVF user community by asking you to complete this very short survey. Please respond by Friday, June 26th.

IN THIS ISSUE

• Polling Location Layout & Accessible Walkways
• QVF - Precinct and Polling Locations Survey
• May Election Reimbursement Reminder

May Election Reimbursement Reminder

Jurisdictions for over 60% of the precinct in the state have requested reimbursement for the May statewide special election.  Online Forms were released last month in the eLearning Center for

use in requesting reimbursement for the May 5th special election.

As with all reports and forms required by the Bureau of Elections of each jurisdiction, the Reimbursement forms have been assigned to the Clerk of each jurisdiction and can be found in the Clerk's "In Progress" box. Deputies or other staff members may submit the form on behalf of the jurisdiction by using the links provided below or clicking on the appropriate form in the scrolling newsfeed.

Important Reminders for using the online form:

• Use the TAB key to go to the next box. Do not use the ENTER key.
• Grey boxes are system calculated fields and are not available to type in. If your calculated total isn't correct, make the necessary changes in the itemized boxes.　
• Each section has a certify check box. Please mark each box, signifying you have reviewed and agree the section total is correct.
• Some boxes are required fields marked with * or require a specific type of entry. When you click the submit button at the end of the form, any fields that are not correct will be highlighted with yellow and red messages. You must correct all errors before you can successfully submit your form.
• USD indicates US dollars: please enter only numbers with a decimal. No $ or text or commas will be accepted . i.e. 1250.75 or 0.00. All Section Amounts must have a number or 0.00 in order for the section to total. 

Please review the

Reimbursement Guidelines

prior to submission as not every expense is reimbursable.

By law submissions must be received no later than August 3, 2015. The Department of Treasury must release payment within 90 days after that (early November), but has indicated they hope to process all payments by the end of September. BOE will continue to provide updates throughout this process.

The forms can be found at the links below:

Reimbursement Online Form for Cities and Townships for Special Election expenses

Reimbursement Online form for Counties for Special Election expenses

or they can be accessed in the scrolling news feed. Simply click on the City Twp Reimbursement icon or the County Reimbursement icon.

Helpful Links