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TEXAS OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR | WEBINAR

MANAGING ATTORNEY FOR THE ELECTIONS DIVISION AT THE OFFICE OF THE TEXAS SECRETARY OF STATE

FEBRUARY 25TH, 2026
2:00 PM TO 3:00 PM CST

Services provided by:
Visual Language Professionals
957 Nasa Parkway #914
Houston, TX 77058

Phone ‑ 832‑564‑0844
Email ‑ visuallanguagepro.com

This text, document, or file is based on live transcription.  Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART), captioning, and/or live transcription are provided in order to facilitate communication accessibility and may not be a totally verbatim record of the proceedings.  This text, document, or file is not to be distributed or used in any way that may violate copyright law.

>> OPERATOR:  Recording in progress.  
>> MATTHEW DICKENS:  Good afternoon, everyone.  Thank you for coming to the ‑‑ our CPD webinar this afternoon.  We have Lena Proft from the secretary of state to share information of the election accessibility for voters, and then I'll ‑‑ once I turn the floor over to you we'll be talking about some basic guidelines.
     So the chat is not available.  If you want to have any questions, please use your Q & A tool that's available on the toolbar.  If you have any questions, it will be answered at the end of this webinar, if time permits.
     Now, once the webinar is completed then we'll get a pop‑up screen to do a survey and gust some feedback and ideas for future webinars.
     And also you will receive an email from us later on if you would like to complete that survey.
     The email will also have the link to our page for the webinars, so that way you can access the recordings and any other materials or transcripts or PowerPoints.
     Now we're going to go ahead and turn it over to Lena.  Thank you.  
>> LENA PROFT:  All right.  Good afternoon, everyone.  As said my name is Lena Proft, and I am the managing attorney for the secretary of state's elections division.  I'd like to thank the governor's committee on people with disabilities for inviting us to present today on election accessibility for voters.  
     As I'm sure many of you know we're in the middle of early voting for the March 3rd primary election.  While some of the dates in this presentation will be specific to the March primary election, the information on how Texas makes sure that voting is accessible to all Texans applies to all elections.  From local, city and school elections to the November general election.
     We hope you find this information useful when preparing to vote for any Texas election.
     Next slide.
     All right.  So first I want to make sure everyone is aware of the resources produced by the Texas secretary of state's office.  VoteTexas.gov, that's one word, is the official resource for all voter information from the secretary of state's office of ‑‑ office.  Our office updates this website before each primary and uniform election dates and voters can go to this website to get information on how to register to vote in Texas.  And can even check their voter registration from the website.
     Additionally, the website has information on what to expect when voting in person, including detailed information on Voter ID, curbside voting, voting systems and other topics that we will be discussing during this webinar today.  
     We also have information on how to vote by mail including how to request an application for a ballot by mail and the ability to track your status of a mail ballot using our online vote tracker.
     It has a dedicated page for voters with disabilities.  That page is a good summary of what I will will be talking about in detail today.  
     So if you want to review any of the topics or information discussed today in the future, I recommend visiting that page.  
     And that page is highlighted in the red box on the slide.  Finally, Vote Texas has a page with several answers and frequently asked questions.  We have grouped the questions and answers in categories to help you find the answer of your question faster and also provided links for additional information where needed.
     Next slide.
     All right.  Now that you're familiar with Vote Texas, let's give you an idea of the topics we're going to be to discuss today.  
     First, we will talk about Voter ID.  What forms of Voter ID are accepted and what you can do if you don't have a photo ID?  
     Second we will discuss polling place accessibility and what requirements exist under Texas law to make sure polling places are accessible to all Texans.
     Next, we will talk about curbside voting.  For voters who cannot enter the voting place there's a place you can give your ballot from your car.  Voters who want or need assistance or an interpreter, we will talk about what that process looks like and who and cannot serve as an assistant or as an interpreter.
     Wednesday that several voters prefer to vote their ballot privately without the need of an assistant, so we will talk about accessible voting equipment and how that can accommodate different voters based on their needs.
     It will also discuss how voting by mail works in Texas.  And finally we can talk about what you can do when encountering a problem when voting.
     Next slide, please.
     All right.  We're going to start first with voter identification.
     Next slide.
     So when a voter arrives at a polling place, the voter will be asked to present one of 7 forms of acceptable photo IT.  Sometimes we refer to these as List A accept forms of acceptable acid and the seven acceptable forms ID are a Texas driver's license issued by the Texas Department of Public safety.  Texas election identification certificate issued by DPS.  A Texas personal identification card issued by DPS.  A Texas handgun license issued by DPS.  United States military identification card containing the person's photograph.  United States citizenship containing the person's photograph or a United States passport or card.  Between the ages of 18 and 69, your acceptable form of photo identification may be expired for no more than four years before presenting it for voter qualification at the polling place.
     So if your ID is expired, that can still be used for Voter ID purposes.  
     For voters 70 years of age or older, your acceptable form of photo ID may be expired for any length of time but can be used for Voter ID purposes.
     Next slide.
     Now, some of you might be asking what do I do one of those forms of identification, can I still vote?  And the answer is yes.  Do not worry.  You can still vote.  If a voter does not possess and cannot reasonably obtain a List A form of acceptable photo identification, then Texas law allows the voter to present a list E former complete a reasonable impediment declaration or we refer to as a RID.  Once a voter shows a supporting form of ID and completes the reasonable impediment declaration they are entitled to vote a regular ballot.  Some examples of a List B identification includes a current utility bill, a bank statement, a government check, paycheck, additionally the two most common forms of List B supporting forms of ID that we see your voter registration certificate or an out of date driver's license these are commonly used for voters.  And if you do want to point out this is only used if the voter does not possess and cannot reasonably obtain a photo ID.  If the voter has an acceptable form of photo ID but simply left it at home, then the voter, use the next process that we're going to discuss on how to vote.
     Next slide.
     So if a voter does not possess but can reasonably obtain an acceptable form of ID, or if the voter does not possess a List A form of ID and did not bring their supporting form of photo ID with them.  Then their option is to vote a provisional ballot.  There's a common fear provisional ballots do not count, and that is not always the case.  There's several ways that a provisional ballot may be counted, and this is one of those situations.  In a situation where a voter left their acceptable form of photo ID at home or supporting the items the home they will vote a provisional ballot the election worker will give the voter with instructions on the voter's able to go home, get their ID and bring it to the count voter registrar within 6 days of election days.  As long as the voter presents an acceptable form of photo ID or supporting form of photo ID and completes a reasonable impediment declaration within that period, their provisional ballot will be counted.
     Next slide.  
     There's one other topic that we need to discuss when it comes to fight acid.  Photo ID.  Voters may vote with the county registrar for a permanent exemption by presenting an photoable detection of what we discussed with the county.  They must obtain a written documentation within the U.S. Social Security Administration evidencing the applicant's disability or from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, evidencing a disability rating of at least 50%.  The applicant must also state he or she does not have a form of identification as we previously discussed.
     For those who are able to obtain a disability exemption, you will be allowed to vote 'cause this will be displayed on your voter registration certificate reflecting this permanent exemption, and you will not need to execute a reasonable impediment declaration.
     If you have additional questions on how to apply for this permanent exemption please contact your county registrar.
     Next slide, please.
     All right.  Now we're going to talk about polling place accessibility.  
     Next slide.
     Let's first start when does early voting occur?  Generally the rule is that early voting begins the 17th day before election day and continues through the fourth day before election day.  This March primary was a little bit unique in that it had one exception because the first day of early voting ‑‑ the first day of early voting would have normally begun Presidents' Day a federal holiday which early voting began on this Tuesday February 13th and will end this coming Friday, February 27th.
     In order to make sure that polling places ‑‑ polling place days and hours are uniformed county to county, Texas' law requires for certain elections polling places must be open for additional hours on the weekend of early voting and extended hours the last week of early voting.  
     For the primary election, counts are required to have polling places open for at least 12 he have hours on the Saturday and 6 hours on Sunday.  Of the early voting period, so maybe some of you took advantage of weekend voting this past weekend.  If not, you still have time to vote as this week, counties are required to conduct early voting for at least 12 hours each day of the last week of early voting.
     Remember, that early voting ends this Friday.  
     There is no it early voting this coming weekend, February 28th or March 2nd, so if you prefer to vote on election day, the polls are open from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM on election day.  
     Next slide, please.  In addition to making sure that early voting days and hours are accessible to hours Texas law has legal requirements in place to ensure that polling places are physically accessible to all voters.  All polling places must meet strict accessibility standards including making sure that the polling place is located on the ground floor and can be entered from the street or via an elevator with a door that is open at least 36 inches.
     Doors, instances and exits used to enter or leave the polling place must be 32 inches wide.  Any curb next to the main entrance to the polling place must have curb‑cutouts or temporary nonslip ramps.  Stairs necessary to enter or leave the polling place must have handrails on each side and a nonslip ramp.  
     And the polling place must remove all barriers such as gravel, automatically closing gates, closed doors without letter of of‑type of handles or any other type of barrier that impedes the path of a person with physical disabilities access to the voting station.
     Next slide, please.
     Oh, sorry, I forgot a part.
     Our office periodically does send out inspectors to various counties to independent their polling places and in addition to making sure that election workers are following certain procedures, our inspectors are there to make sure that coalitions meet these accessibility standards so if you ever encounter a situation at a polling place, I'd encourage you to reach out to our office, so we can inform the county.  Now, next slide.
     So next time you're at the polling place you may want to look around and look for the required voting order priority notice.  This notice is required to be posted at every polling location, and it is there to inform voters with a mobility problem of their right to be given voting order priority.  Texas law states that if a voter has mobility problems that substantially impairs the voter's ability to ambulate, that the voter ‑‑ and if the voter agrees to be given voting order priority, then the election officer must move the voter to the front of the line to be accepted for voting before others at the polling place.  This voting order priority is only if the voter agrees to be given the priority.  We understand that some people do not mind waiting in line for their turn.
     However, we also understand that for some voters with mobility problems, long at all lines can be very painful.  This voting order priority is for those voters.
     Additionally, a person assisting an individual with a mobility problem may also be given voting order priority at that individual's request.  That way the voter isn't stuck waiting for another reason.
     Election workers are trained to routinely monitor the line at a polling place and see if are there any voters who wish to request this form of voting accommodation.
     Next slide, please.
     Finally, I want to talk about wireless communication devices or phones in the polling place.  As some of you may know wireless communication devices are prohibited in the room where voting is taking place.  This is why we recommend that voters bring notes on a piece of paper or use a sample ballot because they cannot use their phones while in the polling place.
     However, wireless communication devices may be used to assist voters with disabilities for a reasonable accommodation.  One example our office gives is a permissible use of a foaling in a at that polling place is for voters who use a program or application on their phone to translate verbal communication and to sign language.  Allowing the voter to understand ‑‑ to understand communication with the election official.
     Next slide, please.
     All right.  We talked about how coalitions are required to be accessible to voters, but we also understand that for some people entering a polling place puts them at risk of physical injury or harming their health, and for those voters, there's the ability be to vote curbside voting or from a car, so now we're going to talk about that process.
     Next slide.
     As I briefly stated on the previous slides, voters who are physically unable to enter the polling place without substance or likelihood of injuring their health are entitled to vote curbside voting.  Voters are not required to show any proof of their disability and election judges and clerks are prohibited from questioning a voter's disability or need for using curbside voting.
     Curbside voting is required to be available at all coalitions during both early voting and on election day, and each polling place must clearly designate a reserve ‑‑ designate a reserved area that is equivalent to at least one parking space for curbside voting.  Importantly the curbside voting must be separate from the designated accessible parking spaces reserved for vehicles displaying disability placards or license plates.  We want to make sure we keep those spaces available for those who are parking and going into the polling place, and so curbside voting has its own designated area.
     You can see an example of where the curbside voting area is in the picture on the slide.
     Okay.
     Next slide, please
     So you may be wondering how do you identify where the curbside voting area is?  The county is required to clearly indicate that the curbside voting area with a sign that a indicates with those spaces required for curbside voting.  It must display a telephone number a voter may call or text to request permission from a person or there may be a button or intercom to request assistance.
     I've tried to include some photo examples of what the curbside voting area may look like in the lower left hand pictures you'll see that the curbside voting area separated from the accessible parking area so, that was on the previous slide and pictures on this slide you can see going from left to right.  The first two signs have an examples of a curbside where the voter has a number to call or text assistance; whereas, the next two pictures show a sign with an intercom or a bell that the curbside voter may use to request assistance.  
     The counties get to choose which system they use, phone or buzzer, and it's going to depend what works best for their voters and their resources.
     Next slide, please.
     So now I want to kind of talk you through how the curbside voting process works.  First you or the person driving you, will need to park in the designated curbside voting spot.  Next, someone will need to call or text the number provided on the sign or press the intercom or bell button to alert an election worker that a curbside voter is there and needs assistance.
     Next, and new from last year, the election worker will have the voter complete a curbside voter statement before checking the voter in on a poll book and finally bringing the curbside voter their ballot so if you get a curbside voter statement, and you have not previously received one, I do want to alert you this is a new requirement as of last year.
     Next, the curbside voter will mark their ballot just like a voter voting in the polling place and when they are done, an election worker will deposit the ballot for the voter in the ballot box.
     Next slide, please.  
     Curbside voters are entitled to the same procedures and accommodations as other voters when it comes to checking in or qualifying as well as the use of acceptable voting equipment, so if an ePoll book is used to qualify voters inside the polling place, then election workers are required to make that same ePoll book available to curbside voters.  An ePoll book will often look like a tablet, pictured there on the slide, and they are used to check in voters.
     Next slide, please.
     Similarly when it comes to the method of voting, the county gets to choose what method works best for their community, but they are required to have accessible voting equipment available, so if an electronic voting system that we're going to talk about in more detail later is the primary method of voting used, then they must provide that system to all voters.  Whether they're voting curbside or inside the polling place.  I know that several counties have purchased various carts that allows them to roll machines out to voters.  It's not uncommon for smaller counties to instead use hand marked paper ballots.  If hand marked paper ballots are the primary way of use then electronic must be available for voters needing accommodations.  If the paper ballot can be offered to curbside voters but workers should also be prepared to provide the electronic voting system to any curbside voters who request that accommodation.
     Next slide, please.  
     So just because a person is voting curbside doesn't mean they get less privacy and when people vote curbside their vehicle is their voting booth so curbside voters are required to have the same opportunity to vote the same way the same way a voter is voting in a voting booth.  Campaigns or other bystanders are there be prohibited from interfering with curbside voters.  Thanks to a new law passed last year individuals are now prohibited from loitering our election engineering within 20 feet of a parking space designated for curbside voting.  Texas law prohibits electionary for or against any candidate regardless whether they're on the ballot or not, party or measure.  To ensure that everyone knows where the boundary is each polling place is required to post distance markers to mark the boundaries within which loitering and electionary are prohibited, so you'll see on the diagram that I have here law prohibits election engineering and loitering 100 feet from a practice door to which a voter can enter a polling place, and then additionally curbside voting electionary loitering is prohibited 20 feet from that parking space.
     All right.
     Next slide, please
     One final note I want to make you aware of on curbside voting, if an individual is transporting a voter to vote curbside, then that accompanying individual may also receive a regular ballot and vote curbside.
     So for example, if a husband is transporting his wife to vote curbside, the husband can vote curbside too.  This prevents a curbside voter from sitting there and waiting in the car while their friend or family member that drove them goes inside.
     That being said, an election worker must ask a voter who is provided transportation whether or not they have assisted a total have 7 or more voters in both the early voting and the election day period by providing transportation to vote curbside.
     If the person indicated that they have transported 7 or more individuals, then that person is going to be required to complete and sign a form that the election worker will give them.  
     Next slide, please.  
     Okay, now we're going to briefly talk about voter assistance and interpreters.
     Next slide, thank you.
     An eligible voter is entitled to receive assistance from a person of his or her choosing and that assistance is not limited to marking or reading the ballot or otherwise, limited to conduct that occurs in the voting booth.  A voter who is eligible to receive assistance is entitled to be assisted by a person of that voter's choice, so a person may ‑‑ may be assisted by any person selected by the voter other than the voters ears employer, an agent of the voters' employer or the officer or agent of a labor union to which the voter belongs.
     If the voter is assisted by a person of the person's choice, then the assistant ‑‑ the assistant must take an oath of assistants.  The name and address will be entered in the poll list or electronic poll box besides the voter's name and the assistant must also complete a form stating the name and address of the person assisting the voter, the relationship to the voter and whether the assistant is receiving any form of compensation or other benefit from the candidate, campaign or political committee.  
     Alternatively, if the voter does not select his or her own assistant, then the voter may be assisted by two election officers if the voter is voting on election day or one election officer if the voter is voting during early voting.
     If the voter is assisted by an election officer on election day, then they'll need to have one from at least one from it each political party there it.  Persons is assisting the voter must read him or her the ballot, the entire ballot, unless the voter asks only have to parts of the ballot read.  The person assisting the voter must take an oath that says he or she will not have suggest by word, sign or gesture how the voter should vote and will mark the ballot as the voter directs.  
     If the voter chooses to be assisted by polling place officials then poll watchers and election inspectors may observe the voting process.
     Next slide, please.
     So voters who cannot speak English or who communicate only with sign language may use an interpreter to help them communicate with election officials regardless of whether the election officials attending to the voter can perspective same language as the voter.
     The voter may select any person other than the voter's employer an agent of the voter's employer or an officer or agent of labor union to which the voter belongs.
     If the voter cannot read the languages on the ballot then the interpreter may also act as an assistant to the voter, but they must follow the same procedures as an assistant.
     Next slide, please.
     Now I know several voters do not want to use an that assistant.  They want to vote their own ballot by themselves privately without the use of an assistant, so I want to spend some time now talking about accessible voting system equipment and the various accessibility features that are available to voters.
     Next slide.
     Texas was actually the first state to require all new voting systems be accessible to voters with disability and to provide practical and effective means for voters to cast a secret ballot.  With few exceptions every polling place during early voting and on election day must have at least one voting device that is accessible to voters with disabilities.  As I mentioned earlier, this equipment must be available to a voter voting in the polling place as well as to curbside voters.  
     This equipment allows voters with disabilities to vote directly on the system or a system in marking a paper ballot.  Most accessible voting systems in Texas today are what we call ballot‑marking devices and voters can use the screen to make their selections, which are then printed onto a paper ballot which voters then deposit in a ballot box.
     As we're going to discuss, voters may use headphones or other assistive devices to help them vote independently or secretly.
     Next slide, please.
     First we will begin with discussing accessibility features that are available to voters who may have visual disabilities.  For voters with visual disabilities the electronic voting systems include the following accommodating features.  
     Voters will have the ability to increase the font size or to change to high contrast colors that it make the screen easier to read.
Additionally, the devices have the ability to read the ballot to the voter.
     Next slide, please.  
     Next I want to discuss accessibility features for voters that have limited dexterity.  Voting systems used in Texas have a tactile switch or a rocker switch which allows voters to navigate around the screen and make their selections.  I've included examples of what the tactile input switches look like.  On the screen.
     Next slide, please
     And then finally for voters who routinely use a sip and puff voting systems are compatible with sip and puff tube devices which allows voters to navigate the screen and make the selections on their ballot.  If you ever have any questions about how to use any of these accessible features, please ask an election worker when you're at the polling place.
     Next slide.  
     Finally, I want to discuss voting by mail.
     Next slide.
     So the following individuals are eligible to vote by mail in Texas.  Voters 65 years of annual or older.  Voters with a disability.  Voters expecting to give birth within 3 weeks before or after election day.  Voters who will be absent from the county during early voting and on election day.  And voters who are civilly committed or confined in jail, but, otherwise, eligible to vote.
     Voters who are 65 years of age or older and voters with a disability are additionally eligible to submit what is called an annual application.  An annual application allows these voters to request all ballots they are eligible to vote for an entire calendar.  The application is only good for one calendar, though, so annual ABBM voters, which you'll hear me use ABBM in place of application for a ballot by mail.
     So those annual voters will need to submit a new application each year if they wish to continue to receive their ballots by mail.
     Next slide, please.  
     The deadline for the county to receive a voters' application for a ballot by mail is the 11th day before election day so for the upcoming March 3rd primary election, this deadline was last Friday, February 20th.  
     An application to vote by mail can be submitted by in‑person delivery but only by the voter.  An assistant cannot deliver an application for them.  By regular mail, by common or contract carrier like UPS, FedEx, DHL.  Fax, if the county still has one or by email, however, I do want to say an email application only serves as a place‑holder.  The voter will still need to mail a hard copy of the application to the early voting clerk and the early voting clerk cannot process or send their voting mail before they receive their application for early voting mail.
     Next slide, please.
     So if a person wishing to vote by mail needs assistance with completing or mailing their application, then an individual may assist with the application.  There is required information on the application that the assistant is going to need to complete, though, and that information is highlighted in the red box at the bottom of this application.
     I want to stress this again.  That while an assistant can assist in mailing an application, they cannot hand‑deliver an application for a voter.  Only the voter can hand‑deliver their own application to the county.
     Additionally, ith person is unable to sign their name or make a mark on their application, then an applicant may have someone serve as a witness.  
     Similarly to an assistant, a witness is required to provide information on the application.  
     There are two common situations we typically see when needing applicants needing a witness.  First is a voter who may have had a stroke or other condition where they can write or make a mark.  In this situation a witness will indicate that they witnessed the applicant making their mark.  Second situation is a voter who is completely unable to sign their name or make a mark on a piece of paper.  In this situation, the witness must also check a box indicating that the applicants is unable to make a mark on the application.
     I do want to point out one limitation here.  A person only allowed to act as a witness for one single application per election or one annual application unless the person is serving as a witness to a close family member such as the applicant's parent, grandparent, sibling, spouse or child.  
     Next slide.  
     So once a voter gets their balloting materials, they will need to return their information and the provided carrier envelope and mail it back to the county.  The early voting clerk must receive your marked ballot by the following date and time.  That mailed ballot will need to be received by 7:00 PM on election day if the carrier envelope is not postmarked or by 5:00 PM the next business day after election day as long as the carrier envelope has a postmark showing it was mailed by 7:00 PM on election day.
Next slide.
     Similar to an application for a ballot by mail, a voter may use an assistant or a witness on their carrier envelope.  An individual acting as an assistant must complete the required assistance information on the carrier envelope.  Failure to provide this information could result in the carrier envelope being rejected and the ballot not counting, so it's very important that this information is completed.
     Also similar to an application, which the assistant can assist the voter in mailing their ballot, they cannot hand‑deliver the carrier envelope for the voter.  Only the voter can hand‑deliver their own carrier envelope to the early voting clerk's office and only while the polls are open on election day.  
     Also similar to an application, a witness can be used on a carrier envelope if the voter is unable to sign the carrier.  A person serving as the witness must complete the required information on the carrier envelope and failure to do so could result in the carrier envelope being rejected.  
     Unlike applications, a person can serve as a witness on any number of carrier envelopes as long as they complete the required witness information each time.  
     All right.
     Next slide, please
     So now that we've talked about all the accessible voting requirements and options under Texas law, I wanted to end our discussion today on what you can do if you encounter a problem while voting.  
     Next slide, please.
     So if a voter encounters any issues while at the polling place we recommend you take the following steps.  First depending on what the issue, bring the issue to the attention of the election worker.  If the accessible voting system is on the table, and that's too difficult for your wheelchair to access, or if you need to sit down while voting, let an election worker know.  I've seen, and I've heard election workers being very creative in finding solutions that allow voters to vote a secret ballot independently.
     Next, if an election worker cannot resolve the issue, or if there was a problem with the polling place building itself, I recommend contacting your county election official because their proximity they're able to resolve issues quicker than our office can but finally, please always feel free to reach out to the secretary of state's elections division.  We have staff answering the phones from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM each day of early voting and from the time the polls open at 7:00 AM to the time the polls close at 7:00 PM on election day.
     If there is an issue we want to hear about it, and we will do our best to make sure that it gets resolved.
     Next slide.
     So thank you again to the governor's committee on people with disabilities for inviting us to join you today.  If you need to reach our office, our email office is elections@SOS.Texas.gov.  Our phone number is 1‑800‑252‑8683 or 1‑800‑252‑VOTE and our local area number is 512‑463‑5650.  
     The secretary of state's website is SOS.Texas.GOV.  As we talked about at the beginning of this webinar voteTexas.gov is your official information for voter information in Texas.  Our office puts on our own webinars those are geared more towards the counties, and those administering elections, and those are recorded so if you want to learn more about Texas election law those webinars are posted on our website.
     And with that, we have time for questions, and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.  
>> MATTHEW DICKENS:  We have a couple live questions, Lena.  We have a couple line questions before we open it up to the audience.  The first question is in regards to the BID.  The BID forms with documentation, and you mentioned there was a list of different types of possible ‑‑ that you use for IDs.  I'm curious so how would you use that information to identify which precinct to vote in, for example, if you're ‑‑ if it's a city or your local that has a different state address or how would you figure that out.  
>> LENA PROFT:  So are you talking about the reasonable impediment declarations.  
>> MATTHEW DICKENS:  Well, no, no, so I'm talking ‑‑ when you're using List B, how do they ‑‑ how does that work with a district voting or if it applies, you know, to their city or whatnot you know what I mean?  
>> LENA PROFT:  So what that List B form of ID is going to so do they're still going to look up the voter on the list of registered voters.  They're going to manually look you up instead of scanning your driver's license, they will use your last name, address ‑‑ use that to look you up, and then that will be pulling from the county's official list of registered voters and that will contain your ballot style or essentially which ballot you are able to vote, which will include, you know ‑‑ depending on the election everything from federal down to city and school elections.  
>> MATTHEW DICKENS:  Okay.  Great, great, thank you, thank you, and the next question we have is in regards to the interpreters.  You mentioned that a person that can bring their own interpreter.  I thought that if I remember correctly, that the state law also requires a larger precinct, voting precinct, to provide one person at each polling place to have a video remote interpreter?  
>> LENA PROFT:  They do need to at least for ‑‑ like Spanish‑speaking, they do need to have each polling location does need to have bilingual election workers and if they don't have one, then they need to have one at least centrally located.  But again, they can ‑‑ for voters who need, like, an ASL interpreter, they can ‑‑ if they didn't bring one with them, use the device or some sort of resource that way.  That is an acceptable use of an interpreter in a polling place.  
>> MATTHEW DICKENS:  Awesome thank you so much.  Now the last question in regards to this usually comes up that will ‑‑ at the coalitions when they have delayed voting at the end, and they can't solve the problem, you know, for the accessibility issues, so it's better to go early and that way you can get your vote counted; correct?  
>> LENA PROFT:  I mean, I would say voters should always vote whenever it works best in their schedule.  Voting early has its benefits if there is an issue, you can come back later, but I'm never going to tell a voter not to vote on election day if that's what works best into their schedule.  We will find ‑‑ if they're having an issue, and it's not getting resolved quickly I would say call our office, and we will help get it resolved as much as we can.  
>> MATTHEW DICKENS:  Okay.  So if the voters close at 7:00, and it's still not resolved, can that be delayed and their vote still will be counted?  
>> LENA PROFT:  So anyone who is in line before, is still allowed to vote a regular ballot, so my answer would be stay in line, and we'll find a solution.  Your ballot will still be counted.  
>> MATTHEW DICKENS:  Okay.  Perfect, thank you, thank you so now I'm going to open it up to even other questions ‑‑ to any other questions.  
>> ANDRE MONTGOMERY:  I think we just had a few other questions that I wasn't able to get in the chat.  We had an overarching question, Lena, about general applications ballot for mail and why is it only available for a year.  Simple answer it's state law it would require a change in state law that would make that ballot for longer.
     Another question we got was the availability of ASL interpreters.  You just kind of went over that, and then we also have a question about the use of signature you go stamps on application for ballot by mail.  For voters, whoever those available, and I think, you know, typically ‑‑ well, do you want to go into your answer about signature stamps.  
>> LENA PROFT:  Yeah, I think ‑‑ what I would normally do in that situation you pair that with a witness.  I would say that a signature stamp is considered making a mark, so I would have someone act as a witness and indicate the witness that they watched you make your mark.  
>>  ANDRE MONTGOMERY:  Yeah, I agree with that, and then we have a question about sample ballots.  Sample ballots are available at all polling locations, so when you go to vote those are required by law to be there to show you what you're voting on.  There should be for each precinct styles, so you should get one for your specific precinct.
Then we have a question about voter registration card not being delivered to a voter and for that you'd have to reach out directly to your county voter registrar's office?  
>> LENA PROFT:  Yes.  
>> ANDRE MONTGOMERY:  And I think that's it that I can see in the chat.  
>> LENA PROFT:  Other questions that come up, please email our office, and we're happy ‑‑ 
>> ANDRE MONTGOMERY:  Oh, we did ‑‑ we did have one more, I'm sorry.  
>> LENA PROFT:  Yeah.  
>> ANDRE MONTGOMERY:  There's a question about individuals who are confined to a state hospital or a state school.  The boot by mail provisions in the Texas election code don't envision state schools.
   However, if a person is residing outside of the county where they're registered to vote, they can always request a ballot be sent to them out of the county so if you're out at a state school out of the county that's an option available for you.
     If you're in the hospital with a disability, of course, you can also vote by mail under the grounds of disability and have the ballot mailed to you in the hospital.  I don't know if you want to add anything, Lena some 
>> LENA PROFT:  No, I think you covered everything.  Thank you, Andre.  
>> ANDRE MONTGOMERY:  Yeah.  
>> LENA PROFT:  Well, thank you again for inviting us to present to you all.  I hope this was helpful.  
>> All your information and ‑‑ we're going to wrap up a little bit early if people want to finish that survey for us we thank you for your time in joining us, and you all have a wonderful rest of your week.  Thank you.  
>> LENA PROFT:  Thank you, thank you.  
>> OPERATOR:  Recording stopped.