U.S. Election Assistance Commission

1. U.S. Election Assistance Commission 2010 Voting Technology and Accessibility Research— Military Heroes Initiative www.eac.gov

2. Overview The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) and, more recently, the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act, recognized the necessity for improving the voting process for people with disabilities and military personnel. The Military Heroes Initiative will help further these vital goals. Funding from this grant comes from appropriations made available under the Consolidated Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (P.L. 111-8). The EAC made available approximately $500,000 in funds for a two-year grant focused on research to improve voting technology and processes for recently injured military personnel. Funds will support research to better understand the needs of injured military personnel in major hospital, recovery, and rehabilitation facilities related to election processes.

3. Award EAC awarded the grant to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) in September 2010. ITIF will partner with the Georgia Tech Applied Research Corporation, a leading research institute with extensive experience working with military institutions and conducting accessibility research, and Operation Bravo Foundation, a pioneer in developing voting alternatives for military and overseas citizens.

4. Grant Outcomes 1. Statistical analysis of affected populations including locations for treatment, types of injuries, duty status during and after treatment (active/veteran/reserve); 2. Mapping of the existing processes and the grantee recommended process flow, which includes the personnel and technology requirements necessary to implement the recommended processes in addition to control measures to monitor the ongoing effectiveness of the process; 3. Recommended procedures and effective practices for supporting MOVE implementation as it relates to supporting military personnel with disabilities; 4. Analysis and recommendations to support injured military personnel who transition from being UOCAVA to civilian voters using the military’s ‘Turbo Transition Assistance Program; and 5. Dissemination of research findings, effective practices and research results through field tests of new processes/technologies.

5. Current Activities • Reviews of DoD Personnel Casualty Matters, Policies and Procedures documents, DoD Wounded Warrior Program, and Military Service Transition Assistance Office and programs to identify appropriate policies and organizations regarding casualty operations the as well as Department of Labor transition assistance programs and Department of Veterans Affairs Programs. • Reviewed legal rights and legislative mandates for the wounded warrior population and began drafting a timeline for movement of casualties from the battlefield to U.S. Treatment facilities. • Met with Georgia Department of Veterans Affairs and Georgia Department of Labor to discuss their roles in assisting military personnel transition to civilian status. • Met with Georgia Secretary of State staff to flowchart procedures for military registration and voting and how they may be implemented in hospitals. • Analyzed Georgia Election Code and procedural rules for nursing homes. • Began literature review of human factors issues in voting systems to identify problems for potential wounded warrior voters.

6. Further Information More information available at www.eac.gov and Questions? Contact : Pat Leahy, 202-566-1675 pleahy@eac.gov