State lags on voting machines for disabled

Falling short of a federal requirement, at least two - thirds of the state's 1,700 polling places will not have voting machines to accommodate the disabled on Election Day, according to the secretary of state's office.

Under a federal law passed in 2002, states were required to provide voting machines that are accessible and provide privacy for disabled voters in every polling place this year. But Massachusetts Secretary of State William F. Galvin said the state has not met the deadline because of the differing needs of the disabled.

"We'll get to the federal requirement, but we'll do it in a way that makes sure this isn't a bureaucratic exercise," Galvin said. "The biggest problem we're confronting is that it's not one size fits all. We've discovered, and I think other states have, too, that different disabilities present different problems."

Voting machines for the disabled will be available in 28 municipalities, out of the state's 351 cities and towns. The cities -- including Boston, Springfield, and Lowell -- have a high concentration of disabled people. The machines will be available in about 440 of the state's 1,700 polling places.

Some advocates for the disabled maintain that Galvin dragged his feet.

"We've been looking at machines for two to four years, not two to four months," said Brian Charlson , vice president of computer training services at the Carroll Center for the Blind . "If he really intended to meet the Nov. 7 deadline, he should have set himself a deadline long enough ago to put in an order with some expectation that they could be filled."

Another advocate was disappointed that the state will not meet the federal deadline.

"It's a start, but it's not where we should be," said Bob Hachey , president of the Bay State Council of the Blind.

Galvin and his staff said he has worked for about two years with state offices and advocacy groups to meet the requirements of the 2002 Help America Vote Act, enacted after voting irregularities in the 2000 presidential election.

Galvin's office will lease the AutoMARK , AccuVote TSX , and eSlate for $1.5 million. Most communities, including Boston, Lowell, Springfield, and Worcester, will have the AutoMARK, which allows the voter to respond by voice to various options. The equipment, which marks a standard ballot card, does not retain the vote, and alerts the voter if he or she fails to vote in a particular race. The voter can reinsert the marked ballot into the AutoMARK to be checked, and the machine will read the ballot to the voter. Of 171 polling locations in Boston, between 75 and 80 will offer the device, said Michelle K. Tassinari , legal counsel to the state elections division.

The eSlate, which will be available only in Winthrop, is preferred by those with severe disabilities to their limbs, Galvin said. Ballots are presented on a colored screen and selections are made using an integrated rotary optical encoder -- a dial that highlights the candidate's name.

The third machine, the AccuVote TSX, is an electronic voting platform with a touch-tone screen that will be provided in 12 communities, including Amesbury, Hamilton, and Watertown. Some critics, including Galvin's opponent in the November election, say the AccuVote has caused problems in several states and should not be introduced to Massachusetts.

"Voters are being offered an untrustworthy voting machine, and already overburdened poll workers are being asked to master a notoriously unfriendly technology at the 11th hour," Jill Stein, the Green-Rainbow candidate for secretary of state, said in a statement.

Galvin said Stein's argument is "riddled with misinformation."

"Nowhere in her statement does it acknowledge that these machines will be used at the discretion of the voter," Galvin said. "Nowhere does she acknowledge that these machines have a paper trail. "

City and town clerks were trained to use the equipment this month and training teams are following up with visits to clerks.

For more information, call 617-878-3889 TTY or the elections division at 800-462-VOTE. April Simpson can be reached at asimpson@globe.com.