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Advocates Testify on Impact of
Help America Vote Act (HAVA):
New Yorkers May be Hindered, Not Helped
By New Voting Processes
July 10, 2003
Advocates representing
the ad hoc NYS Citizen's Coalition on HAVA Implementation testified
in New York City today at a public hearing scheduled by the NYS Task
Force on HAVA Implementation. The Help America Vote Act, passed in 2002,
offers new federal funds for state voting systems and includes new requirements
for states, such as identification requirements for new voters who register
by mail and a statewide registration database.
The Task Force
issued a draft plan for implementing the new federal law in New York
State last week, just prior to the hearings. Other states held hearings
before writing their plans. Prior to commenting on the substance of
the Task Force’s draft plan at the public hearing, the Coalition
first noted the primary reason for the plan's deficiencies: a flawed
planning process. The groups stated the composition of the Task Force
fails to adequately represent the diverse citizens of New York State,
especially those racial, ethnic and language minority communities protected
under the Voting Rights Act, who are entitled to representation as "stakeholders"
on the Task Force. Nor is the Task Force sufficiently diverse in terms
of gender or geography.
"The Board's
Task Force is stacked with the Governor's cronies," said Neal Rosenstein
of the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG). "The draft
plan they released for the future of elections in New York says 'Just
trust us', but we see no reason to.”
"Reform of the voting system should not be the victim of politics.
HAVA offers New York a future where the state takes responsibility for
a uniform, cleanly administered voting system for every citizen, yet
the process of how to implement the federal law has been nothing short
of ridiculous, "said Jillian Matundan of the Citizens Union of
the City of New York. "With so much federal money at stake, we
must ask: when will specific decisions be made, how, and by whom? Task
Force head Peter Kosinski has repeatedly said that no state legislation
will be needed to implement HAVA, but serious changes to New York’s
voting laws need to be made. With only three hearings, public debate
has been truncated. New York voters have a right to participate in decisions
and processes that affect their democracy."
The groups offered
detailed testimony on 7 key areas within HAVA that are not adequately
addressed by the draft plan: (1) voting system standards; (2) provisional
voting; (3) the creation of a computerized statewide voter list and
related voter identification requirements for voters who register by
mail; (4) new voter identification requirements; (5) voter education
and election worker training; (6) voters' bill of rights; and (7) administrative
complaint procedures and judicial review.
"The Task
Force is unrepresentative of New York's electorate, so it's not surprising
its draft plan lacks substance and specifics. This landmark legislation
could improve New York's elections and protect its voters – yet
the current plan overlooks the needs of many voters including immigrants,
youth, voters with disabilities, and those covered under the Voting
Rights Act. We urge the Task Force to incorporate our recommendations
on defining the range of acceptable voter ID, ensuring accessibility
to voters with disabilities, and selecting new voting machines that
are user-friendly and
accessible. Failure to do so will jeopardize the rights of New York's
voters and create a logistical nightmare for local election officials,"
noted Suman Raghunathan of the NY Immigration Coalition.
"This plan
and the whole process is too little, too late and too partisan. The
devil is in the details and New Yorkers deserve a concrete, transparent
plan as we face monumental changes to how we vote," stated Rachel
Leon, Executive Director of Common Cause/NY. The groups called on the
Task Force to dramatically alter the draft and open up the process by
adding more hearings and diversifying the task force.
"HAVA will
enable New York State to bring our elections into the 21st century.
However, the narrow half-hearted efforts thus far don't give us any
confidence that Governor Pataki is committed to an open, inclusive process
that will ensure that all eligible New Yorkers will be able to cast
a ballot," commented Ludovic Blain of Demos - A Network for Ideas
and Action.
The New York State
Citizens' Coalition on HAVA Implementation is an ad hoc and diverse
coalition of good government, voting rights, racial justice, disability
rights, and language rights organizations and academics who are concerned
about the way in which New York implements the Help America Vote Act.
The Coalition is committed to protecting voting rights and improving
the electoral process in New York. The Coalition includes the Asian
American Legal Defense & Education Fund, the Brennan Center for
Justice at NYU School of Law, Citizens Union, Common Cause/NY, Demos,
Disabilities Network of New York City, Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association,
the New York Immigration Coalition, New York Lawyers for the Public
Interest, the New York Public Interest Research Group, People for the
American Way, and several other organizations.
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