La. Admin. Code tit. 31 § I-109

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024

Section I-109 - Exemption Procedures

A. If the present polling place building or facility cannot reasonably be made either permanently accessible or temporarily accessible for election day by the owner or the parish for use on election day, and the parish governing authority cannot locate any other building or facility in the precinct area for use as a polling place on election day that meets these accessibility rules or it is not feasible to move the polling place to an accessible building or facility outside of the precinct, then the parish governing authority may request an exemption for use of the non-accessible polling place.

B. A request for an exemption shall be in writing to the Secretary of State, and shall include the following:

1. an accessibility survey for the present polling place for which the exemption is being sought, identifying all of the deficiencies of the building or facility;

2. a description of all efforts made to relocate the polling place to an accessible building;

3. a description of what continued efforts will be made by the parish to achieve compliance during the period that the exemption is in effect;

4. a statement of the approximate length of time needed to meet the compliance requirements; and

5. the signature of the presiding official of the parish governing authority; and

6. any document(s) supporting the parish's request for the exemption shall be included in the request.

C. The Secretary of State may grant an exemption to the accessibility requirements for a requested polling place in the case of an emergency as provided under R.S. 18:401 et seq., or upon a showing in writing by the parish governing authority that a polling place cannot reasonably be made either permanently accessible or temporarily accessible for an election for non-emergency reasons.

D. Any granted exemption to a polling place is valid for only one election cycle which includes all primary and general elections, unless otherwise stated by the Secretary of State.

E. For any polling place which receives an exemption hereunder, the parish governing authority shall certify to the Secretary of State, in writing, that reasonable notice was given to all eligible voters in the precinct that their polling place is not accessible but that they may vote either at the registrar of voter's office during early voting, or at an alternate accessible polling location on election day as directed by the registrar of voters. The address of the alternate accessible location shall be specified in the notice. Reasonable notice shall include posting of public notice at the parish courthouse and at the non-accessible polling place, mailing of notice no later than 21 days to all eligible voters prior to an election, and advertisement in the official parish journal or the local newspaper of general circulation, telephone, television, and/or radio at the cost of the parish governing authority.

F. A certification of exemption from these accessibility requirements may be requested by the parish to the Secretary of State by telephone or other electronic means, provided it is followed up in writing as soon as practicable as provided for herein.

La. Admin. Code tit. 31, § I-109

Promulgated by the Department of State, Elections Division, LR 35:1263 (July 2009).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 18: 533, R.S. 36:742, 42 U.S.C. 1973 ee et seq., and Public Law 107-252.