§20102 Selection of Polling Facilities

Summary

Each local government that runs elections in a State must make sure every polling place used for Federal elections can be used by elderly and disabled voters. Two exceptions apply. One is when the State’s chief election officer declares an emergency. The other is when that officer finds no accessible sites in the area and the local government cannot make one temporarily. In that case the officer must have rules so any elderly or disabled voter who asks in advance will either be sent to an accessible polling place or given another way to vote on election day. By December 31 of each even-numbered year, the State’s chief election officer must report to the Federal Election Commission how many polling places were accessible and inaccessible on the date of the last general Federal election and explain why any were inaccessible. The FEC must compile those reports and send them to Congress by April 30 of each odd-numbered year. That reporting rule was effective only for 10 years beginning on September 28, 1984.