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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCL 03-03 CUt¡ o~ REPORT TO COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE Report Number: CL 03-03 Date: January 21,2003 From: Bruce Taylor City Clerk Subject: 2003 Municipal Elections - Advance Voting, Special Voting Locations, Touch-Screen Voting File: A-2140 Recommendation: 1. That the Clerk's Report CL 03-03 regarding the Year 2003 Municipal Election be received; and 2. That the draft by-law to provide for reduced hours of voting in institutions and retirement homes on voting day be enacted, and 3. That the draft by-law to provide for advance voting on Saturday, November 1, 2003 and Wednesday, November 5, 2003, between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. be enacted, and 4. That the draft by-law to amend by-law 4888/96, to allow for the use of touch- screen voting equipment in addition to vote scanning equipment, be enacted to enable visually impaired electors to vote without assistance. Executive Summary: In accordance with the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, Section 46(3), a by-law is being recommended to provide for early voting and reduced hours of voting in institutions and retirement homes on Voting Day. The facilities included in the by-law are: Village Retirement Centre, Rosebank Villa, Central Park Lodge, and Rougemount Co-op. In accordance with the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, Section 43(1), a by-law is being recommended to provide for advance voting to be held on Saturday, November 1, 2003 and Wednesday, November 5, 2003, at the Civic Complex between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Although over the past few municipal elections, the City of Pickering has ensured that all voting locations are wheelchair accessible, the passing of the Ontarians With Disabilities Act has inspired us to go beyond the requirements of the Municipal Elections Act and implement additional procedures to accommodate the needs of our visually impaired electors. The Accuvote- TS (touch-screen voting equipment), offered by Diebold Election Systems (formerly Global Elections Systems Inc), the supplier of Report CL 03-03 Subject: 2003 Municipal Elections Date: January 21,2003 Page 2 the optical scanning vote tabulating equipment used by the City in the 1997 and 2000 municipal elections, would sufficiently address this need via its voice guidance system communicated to the elector through headphones. In accordance with the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, Section 42, a by-law is being recommended to amend by-law 4888/96 to authorize the use of touch-screen voting equipment, in addition to optical scanning vote tabulators Financial Implications: 1. N/A 2. Staffing costs for each advance voting day is approximately $2150.00. 3. Costs estimated for incorporating touch-screen voting at two advance voting locations include: $950 for two staff members and $6000 rental of three touch- screen units. Background: Special Votinq Locations The Municipal Elections Act, 1996, provides that voting must be provided on the premises for institutions with 20 or more beds occupied by persons who are disabled, chronically ill or infirm and for retirement homes in which 50 or more beds are occupied. We refer to these locations as "special voting locations". Council may pass a by-law providing for reduced hours of voting for these special voting locations. Institutions qualifying as special voting locations include: Village Retirement Centre, Rosebank Villa, Central Park Lodge, and Rougemount Co-op. Voting hours per location are based on the analysis of time required to process electors at each location, and have been established in co-operation with the Administration staff of each facility. The Administration staff of three of the special voting locations have reviewed and approved the proposed schedule. Central Park Lodge has not yet opened, and as such, the voting hours for Central Park Lodge have been established based on the number of potential electors and the voting hours approved by the other facilities. It is recommended that election officials assigned to these special voting locations conduct the vote during the specified hours. Voting will be conducted with both roving vote and stationary voting processes. After the close of vote, the Election Officials working at the special voting locations would immediately proceed to the specified regular voting location. The ballots would then be removed from the special voting location ballot box and deposited through the vote tabulator into the ballot box for that voting subdivision. Report CL 03-03 Subject: 2003 Municipal Elections Date: January 21,2003 Page 3 The election results of the special voting locations will be included with the results of the voting subdivision in which the institution is located. The recommended voting hours for Pickering's special voting locations are as follows: Voting Place Hours of Voting Village Retirement Centre 9:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. 1955 Valley Farm Road Pickering Rosebank Villa 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon 534 Rodd Avenue Pickering Central Park Lodge 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon 900 Sandy Beach Road Pickering Rougemount Co-op 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon 400 Kingston Road Pickering Advance Votinq Section 43(1) of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, requires the City to pass a by-law, at least 30 days before voting day, establishing one or more dates for advance voting and the hours during which voting places shall be open on the advance voting date(s). In previous years, the City of Pickering has provided two advance voting dates, the Wednesday and Saturday immediately before Voting Day. The Civic Complex has traditionally been used as the location for advance voting because of its immediate proximity to the Pickering Town Centre, the Recreation Complex and the Library. As well, the Civic Complex has sufficient parking and is on the public transit route. The combination of two advance voting days, 10 hours of voting, and the Civic Complex has proven successful. We recommend, therefore, that the City enact a by-law to provide for advance voting on Wednesday, November 1, 2003 and Saturday, November 5, 2003 between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., and that the Civic Complex be used as the advance voting location. Report CL 03-03 Subject: 2003 Municipal Elections Date: January 21,2003 Page 4 Touch-Screen Votinq Equipment The traditional paper ballot voting process essentially caters to able-bodied electors. In recognition of those electors disenfranchised by the "traditional voting process", the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, Sections 45(1) and (2), requires the Clerk to establish voting places for the election which are convenient for electors, and, when choosing a location for a voting place, the Clerk shall consider the needs of electors whose mobility is impaired by disability or some other cause. The Act further requires the Clerk to conduct voting on site in the following facilities: . An institution for the reception, treatment or vocational training of members or former members of the Canadian Forces, and . An institution in which, on nomination day, 20 or more beds are occupied by persons who are disabled, chronically ill or infirm, and . A retirement home in which, on nomination day, 50 or more beds are occupied. In light of these requirements, and in respect of our physically disabled electors, the City of Pickering selects, as voting locations, only those facilities that are wheelchair accessible. As well, special voting locations are established for residents in Village Retirement Centre, Rosebank Villa, Central Park Lodge, and Rougemount Co-op. The remaining sector of electors whose needs have not been met through these aforementioned procedures, are our visually impaired electors. Traditionally, the needs of this select group of electors have been met only in part. The Act allows for the elector to appoint an individual to assist the elector in casting their ballot. This friend of the elector, or possibly an election official, would proceed into the voting compartment with the elector and read out the candidate options, and proceed to fill in the vote as instructed by the elector. Although the City of Pickering has not encountered any negative feedback from any of our visually impaired electors, following the 1997 Municipal Elections, the City of Ottawa experienced difficulties that resulted in a complaint to the Human Rights Commission against the City of Ottawa. The essence of the complaint was that the visually impaired electors were required to take "an oath of incapacity" and have another individual swear an affidavit and vote on their behalf. There were no support devices available, such as a Braille template, to enable them to vote on their own. The City of Ottawa reviewed its practices and took steps to ensure that persons with a visual disability could vote independently in the 2000 municipal elections. Report CL 03-03 Subject: 2003 Municipal Elections Date: January 21,2003 Page 5 Although the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 was not amended, the Chief Commissioner, Ontario Human Rights Commission, issued correspondence to all Municipalities in Ontario stating the following: ". ..1 believe that the settlement sets important standards that all municipalities across the province should be meeting to ensure that their services respect the needs of persons with disabilities. For this reason, I encourage you to review your practices and policies to assess whether there are any existing barriers and to take the necessary steps to remove them so that all voters, including those with disabilities, have an opportunity to participate fully in the election process, and to vote with dignity." In the 1997 and 2000 elections, the City of Pickering used Diebold (then Global Elections Systems Inc.) optical scanning vote tabulator equipment. This equipment is reasonably priced, secure, accurate and reliable, and the vendor has been supportive and reliable. In light of the Ontario Human Rights Commission settlement and the Ontarians With Disabilities Act (and the equivalent in the United States and worldwide), Diebold offers a new product, the Accuvote-TS. Dieblod's touch-screen is a voting unit, which is easily used by able-bodied, physically disabled and visually impaired electors. The bright, sharp screen has a high resolution and adjusts to work in virtually any lighting conditions. The system is able to display the full ballot on screen or to move through several screens, office by office, thus allowing for zooming in and out. Visually impaired voters can vote in private without assistance. A voice guidance system presents the candidate information to the voter via headphones, and the voter can make ballot selections by pressing keys on a standard keypad. The Accuvote- TS units can be deployed in a "touch-screen only" scenario or in conjunction with Diebold's paper ballot Accuvote optical scan units. Both systems accept the votes, tabulate results per unit, and communicate via uploads to the central database. Each Accuvote-TS ballot station is a self-contained stand-alone unit that does not rely on any local area network. The touch-screen units would be run through a rigorous diagnostic testing process prior to implementation, similar to the testing performed on the optical scan units. The Accuvote-TS technology has been used in several US elections, but recently it was used by the City of Windsor. In Windsor's bi-election five units were used in conjunction with one optical scan unit at their two advance polls. The Manager of Elections, City of Windsor reported that the two technologies worked very well together and successfully communicated to their central computer system. When an elector approached the voting table, they were offered the option to vote either by touch screen or by paper ballot. Approximately 43% of their advance vote turnout chose the touch screen system. As well, the City conducted a survey of those electors who used the touch-screen method of casting their votes, and the large majority commented that they preferred this method of voting to the traditional paper ballot. Report CL 03-03 Subject: 2003 Municipal Elections Date: January 21,2003 Page 6 The cost to rent an Accuvote- TS is the same price as renting an optical scanning vote tabulator unit. However, to implement a "touch-screen only" election process would be extremely costly as only one elector can use the equipment at a time. (The units can been compared to that of a banking machine.) With the optical scanning vote tabulators, however, several electors may be in various voting compartments simultaneously and although there may be more than one elector queued to cast their ballot through the vote tabulator, the wait is minimal (approximately 10 seconds). The City of Windsor reported that the electors using the touch screen units were actually quicker at completing their ballots and casting their votes than those electors who were completing a paper ballot; but again, only one elector can vote per unit with the touch screens. To incorporate touch screen into our advance voting process would require two additional election officials and the rental cost for three units, at a cost of approximately $6500.00 ($950 for staffing and equipment rental $1750/unit). Touch-screen voting is relatively new technology, which mayor may not be embraced by our electors. However, the opportunity for independent voting it offers to our visually impaired electors is undeniable. We recommend, therefore that three Accuvote-TS units be used at our two advance voting days in addition to our traditional one Accuvote optical scan unit. Thus, allowing our able-bodied electors the opportunity to choose between paper ballots and touch-screen, and enabling our visually impaired electors the opportunity to "vote with dignity". Attachments: 1. 2. 3. Draft By-law 6091/03 Draft By-law 6092/03 Draft By-law 6093/03 Prepared By: ~ / /~/ ~ /<P . ;<c J~- d. Anne Greentree .> Supervisor, Legislative Services Approved I Endorsed By: / ...("7 // Bruce Taylor City Clerk ~. BT:cag Attachments Report CL 03-03 Subject: 2003 Municipal Elections Date: January 21,2003 Page 7 Recommended for the consideration of Pickering City Council " II THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING BY-lAW NO.6092/03 Being a by-law to provide for advance votes to be held prior to the 2003 Voting Day. WHEREAS Section 43(1) of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 provides that a municipal council shall pass a by-law establishing one or more dates for an advance vote, and the hours during which voting places shall be open on that date or dates; NOW THEREFORE THE COUNCil OF THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING HEREBY ENACTS AS FOllOWS: 1. An advance vote shall be held on Saturday, November 1, 2003 between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. at the Pickering Civic Complex, One The Esplanade, Pickering. 2. A second advance vote shall be held on Wednesday, November 5, 2003 between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. at the Pickering Civic Complex, One The Esplanade, Pickering. BY-lAW read a first, second and third time and finally passed this 17th day of February, 2003. Wayne Arthurs, Mayor Bruce Taylor, Clerk I :1 II II Ii II ,I !I Ii THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING BY-lAW NO.6091/03 Being a by-law to provide for early voting and reduced hours of voting in institutions and retirement homes on Voting Day. WHEREAS Section 46(2) of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, S.O. 1996, provides that a municipal council may pass a by-law providing that specified voting places shall be open on Voting Day at a specified time before 10:00 a.m.; AND WHEREAS Section 46(3) of the aforesaid Act, provides that a municipal council may pass a by-law with respect to reduced voting hours in voting places in retirement homes or those institutions as defined in Section 45(7) of the said Act, where the voting place is only for the use of the residents; NOW THEREFORE THE COUNCil OF THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING HEREBY ENACTS AS FOllOWS: 1. That the voting places listed below shall be open during the hours specified: Voting Place Hours of Voting Village Retirement Centre 9:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. 1955 Valley Farm Road Pickering Rosebank Villa 10:00 a.m. -12:00 noon 534 Rodd Avenue Pickering Central Park lodge 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon 900 Sandy Beach Road Pickering Rougemount Co-op 10:00 a.m. -12:00 noon 400 Kingston Road Pickering BY-LAW read a first, second and third time and finally passed this 17th day of February, 2003. Wayne Arthurs, Mayor Bruce Taylor, Clerk I I : i II q II il ii II II il II Ii Ii II I I THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING BY-lAW NO.6093/03 Being a by-law to amend by-law 4888/96 to authorize the use of touch-screen voting equipment, in addition to optical scanning vote tabulators. WHEREAS Section 42 of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, S. O. 1996, provides that a municipal council may, by by-law, authorize the use of voting-counting equipment, such as voting machines, voting recorders or optical scanning vote tabulators; and WHEREAS by-law 4888/96 authorizes the use of only optical scanning vote tabulators; and WHEREAS council considers it desirable to use touch-screen voting equipment in addition to optical scanning vote tabulators; NOW THEREFORE THE COUNCil OF THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING HEREBY ENACTS AS FOllOWS: 1. That by-law 4888/96 be amended to include the words "and touch-screen voting equipment at" immediately after "optical scanning vote tabulators". BY-lAW read a first, second and third time and finally passed this 17th day of February, 2003. Wayne Arthurs, Mayor Bruce Taylor, Clerk