SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE BOARD OF ELECTION COMMISSIONERS FOR THE CITY OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

BACKGROUND

1. In February 2016, the United States Department of Justice (the "Department") conducted a compliance review of polling places under the jurisdiction of the Board of Election Commissioners for the City of Chicago, Illinois (the "Board") under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended ("ADA"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12131-12134, and the Department's Title-II-implementing regulation, 28 C.F.R. § 35, to determine the accessibility of the Board's polling places to persons with disabilities.

2. Pursuant to State law, it is the duty of the Board to divide the City of Chicago into election precincts, each of which shall be situated within a single congressional, legislative, and representative district insofar as is practicable, and in not more than one county board district and one municipal ward. Such precincts shall contain, as near as practicable, 400 voters. It is also the duty of the Board to appoint the polling place in each precinct. State law requires that all polling places shall be accessible to voters with disabilities, as determined by rule of the State Board of Elections.

3. The Board has in excess of 2,000 precincts for elections. One polling place site may house one or more polling divisions. In the spring of 2016, the Board had 1,452 polling place sites that housed 2,069 precincts.

4. In addition, it is the duty of the Board under State law to conduct "Early Voting" beginning the 40th day preceding Election Day in the Board's central office and at other temporary and permanent Early Voting polling place locations throughout the City of Chicago beginning on the 15th day preceding Election Day. For the March 2016 Primary Election, the Board used 50 temporary and permanent Early Voting polling place locations at remote locations.

5. Pursuant to State law, the Board reviews the accessibility of each potential polling place. The Board then designates them as "accessible," which indicates compliance with State guidelines, or "not fully accessible." In order for a facility that has been designated "not fully accessible" to be used as a polling place in an election, the Board must apply for and receive an exemption from the State Board of Elections.

6. If an individual with a disability is assigned to a polling place that has been designated "not fully accessible," he or she may obtain curbside voting assistance by submitting a written request to the Board by 5:00 pm the day before the election.

7. It is the Department's position that the exemption and curbside voting provisions are inconsistent with the ADA, which requires that jurisdictions select polling places that are or can be made accessible so that individuals with disabilities can vote on the same terms and with the same level of privacy afforded to others. 28 C.F.R. § 35.130(a). Nevertheless, in the rare circumstances that the Board is unable to select an accessible polling-place location that otherwise meets the requirements of this Agreement, then the Board may apply to the Department to use the program-accessibility provisions of Title II using the procedures set forth in Paragraph 26 of this Agreement. See, 28 C.F.R. § 35.150(b).

8. Based on polling-place reviews conducted during the March 2016 Primary Election, the Department concluded that many of the Board's "accessible" polling places as determined by rule of the State Board of Elections in fact contain, under the ADA, barriers to access for persons with mobility disabilities and persons who are blind or have other vision disabilities.

9. In response to the Department's initial findings, the Board engaged Equip for Equality ("EFE") to inspect over a thousand Chicago polling places not surveyed by the Department during the March 2016 election, and to serve as a consultant to assist the Board in identifying all ADA non-compliance issues relating to the Board's polling places. EFE, the federally mandated Protection and Advocacy system for people with disabilities in Illinois, is uniquely qualified to support the Board in this capacity, given its prior ADA polling-place experience in previous Illinois elections and pursuant to its statutory role under the Help America Vote Act.

10. In collaboration with the Board, EFE deployed over 200 staff and trained volunteers during the November 2016 General Election to review the accessibility of nearly all of the Board's polling places not previously inspected by the Department. Using a survey instrument modeled after the Department's ADA Checklist for Polling Places (June 2016), EFE found additional instances where polling-place locations were not accessible to voters with disabilities under the ADA.

11. The Board, a separate entity created under the laws of the State of Illinois, is a"public entity" within the meaning of the ADA, 42 U.S.C. § 12131(1), 28 C.F.R. § 35.104, and is therefore subject to Title II of the ADA, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12131-12134.

12. The Department is authorized under 28 C.F.R. Part 35, Subpart F, to determine the Board's compliance with Title II of the ADA and the Department's Title-II-implementing regulation, and to resolve the matter by informal resolution, such as through the terms of this Agreement. If informal resolution is not achieved, the Department is authorized to issue findings, and, where appropriate, to negotiate and secure voluntary compliance agreements. Furthermore, the Attorney General is authorized, under 42 U.S.C. § 12133, to bring a civil action enforcing Title II of the ADA should the Department fail to secure voluntary compliance pursuant to Subpart F.