Latest news with #disabilityaccess
Associated Press
3 days ago
- General
- Associated Press
Wisconsin Elections Commission votes to let small communities hand count ballots
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin communities with fewer than 7,500 people can hand count ballots under a decision by the state elections commission this week. However, under the Wisconsin Elections Commission decision, those communities and all other Wisconsin towns, villages and cities must still comply with federal law and provide at least one electronic voting machine at a polling location to accommodate voters with disabilities. The commission's decision Tuesday came in reaction to a complaint against the northwestern Wisconsin town of Thornapple, population about 700, over its decision to hand count ballots in the April 2024 presidential primary or the August state primary. The decision also comes as a federal lawsuit over Thornapple's decision not to have an accessible voting machine continues. A federal judge in October sided with the U.S. Department of Justice and ruled Thornapple was violating 2002's Help America Vote Act, or HAVA. The judge ordered the town to offer disabled people accessible voting machines. An appeal by the town is pending. Under the commission's decision this week, communities with fewer than 7,500 people can choose to have no other electronic vote-casting or tabulating machines other than one for disabled voters. Elections commission staff determined state law makes it optional for communities with fewer than 7,500 people to provide voting machines in every ward in every election. The law says those communities may 'adopt and purchase voting machines or electronic voting systems for use in any ward … at any election.' Republican commissioner Bob Spindell said the decision will give smaller communities more flexibility, especially in low-turnout local elections. But But Democratic Commissioner Ann Jacobs, who cast the lone no vote, said she worried small communities could game the system by selling voting machines purchased with funding from a state grant and then keep the money. The complaint against Thornapple was filed by the liberal law firm Law Forward on behalf of two Thornapple residents. A spokesperson for the law firm did not immediately return an email seeking comment Friday. The commission's decision could be appealed to circuit court.
ABC News
07-05-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Community transport companies refuse new clients as demand surges
One of Australia's largest community transport providers is refusing new clients, denying people with disabilities and the elderly access to subsidised travel. TransitCare delivered more than 300,000 trips in the last financial year, but the Queensland-based not-for-profit organisation's CEO, Terry O'Toole, said they could not keep up with demand. "We are having to refuse referrals coming in," he said. Thousands of Australians rely on community transport services. ( ABC News: Alice Pavlovic ) Community transport, funded through a mixture of federal, state and commercial contracts, offers transport for people over 65 and people with a disability in capital cities and regional communities. "Whilst we've got a slogan, 'keeping people connected to their communities', it's not just a service, it's also about social connection," Mr O'Toole said. With the additional pressures of rising vehicle costs, wages, and insurance combined with an ageing population, community transport providers like TransitCare were beginning to limit how many trips they could make a year. In the past, TransitCare had been able to absorb over-delivery, but Mr O'Toole said they couldn't afford to do that anymore. "We're having to comply with what the government says in certain instances. We try to deliver the best service to as many people as possible." TransitCare now provides more than 300,000 trips annually. ( Supplied ) 'Human right' Leanne Claussen, who has a disability, had been using community transport for many years, but when she moved to a different city, she was no longer within the geographical boundary of her provider. The Queensland resident said the community transport service in her new area told her they didn't have suitable vehicles for her to access their service. Ms Claussen, who has limited mobility due to having lymphedema, relied on community transport to drive her to work. "If I was to walk from my house to a bus stop, I couldn't make that," she said Leanne Claussen, who has a disability, says she is unable to access community transport. ( Supplied ) For months, Ms Claussen funded her own transport, but it became too expensive and impacted her ability to go to work. "I was paying $120 return trip by Uber every single time I went to work," she said. She said travelling to work was costing more than she earned. Ms Claussen, who was deemed not eligible for the NDIS, now received support through My Aged Care for taxi rides but hoped to access community transport again. She said the government needed to address the situation with community transport providers for other people with a disability. "There are people in my circumstance that cannot get to appointments, they cannot go to work, they cannot be out in the community, which is our human right to be able to do so," she said. 'We can't provide anymore' Mr O'Toole wants the community transport sector to receive the same financial support as the taxi industry for transporting clients with a disability. "If you do the work, you should get paid for it," he said. TransitCare CEO Terry O'Toole says his company are refusing incoming referrals. ( Supplied ) He said his company would make 18,000 trips for clients in wheelchairs every year — it had now jumped to nearly 30,000. In Queensland, taxi companies received financial support such as a lift payment, where a driver of a wheelchair accessible taxi received an additional $25 for picking up a person who travelled in a wheelchair. The lift payments are not part of the taxi fare so there are no additional cost to the person with a disability. Mr O'Toole said it would make an "enormous difference" if community transport providers received the same payment. "We can't provide anymore, and we certainly can't invest into any more vehicles because of the cost of vehicles that have gone up in the past five years," he said. Queensland Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg said the state government supported transport services for people with disability, including through the Taxi Subsidy Scheme. Brent Mickelberg says the state government is reviewing accessible personalised transport services. ( ABC News ) "The Taxi Subsidy Scheme, lift payments, and the Wheelchair Accessible Taxi Grant scheme are currently available exclusively to services provided in taxis," he said in a statement. "We are starting a review into the approach to regulating and funding accessible personalised transport services, including considering the possible expansion of the TSS to other service types." Broader transport challenges People With Disability Australia president Trinity Ford said accessible and affordable community transport was essential for people with disability to fully participate in society. Trinity Ford says people with a disability are facing many issues accessing transport. ( Supplied ) She said the issues with community transport were part of the broader challenges the disability community faced with accessing other transport like public trains and buses and wheelchair-accessible taxis. "There's never going to be a one stop shop solution for things. We can't just put all of our money into making public transit accessible and then call that a job done," she said. "Community transport is one of the really important legs of this system."
