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1 | AN ACT concerning elections.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Election Code is amended by adding Section | ||||||
5 | 17-14.1 as follows: | ||||||
6 | (10 ILCS 5/17-14.1 new) | ||||||
7 | Sec. 17-14.1. Foreign language ballots. | ||||||
8 | (a) As used in this Section: | ||||||
9 | "Election information" means all information necessary for | ||||||
10 | the public to participate fully and freely in all elections, | ||||||
11 | including but not limited to, voter registration forms, | ||||||
12 | candidate qualifying forms (but not nomination petitions), | ||||||
13 | candidate information pamphlets, voter information pamphlets, | ||||||
14 | vote by mail and regular ballots, and information about poll | ||||||
15 | locations and hours of operation. "Election information" shall | ||||||
16 | not include the website of an election authority, but if an | ||||||
17 | election authority is required by this Section to provide | ||||||
18 | foreign language election information anywhere in its | ||||||
19 | jurisdiction, the front page of the website shall indicate how | ||||||
20 | persons speaking the foreign language or languages in the | ||||||
21 | jurisdiction can access foreign language election information. | ||||||
22 | The indication required in this subsection shall be in the | ||||||
23 | language or languages of the population that triggered the |
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1 | applicability of this Section. | ||||||
2 | "Foreign language" means Chinese, Korean, Polish, Spanish, | ||||||
3 | and any combination of Gujarati, Hindi, and Urdu. | ||||||
4 | "Limited English proficiency" means a person who has been | ||||||
5 | estimated by the American Community Survey to speak English | ||||||
6 | less than "very well". | ||||||
7 | "Table B16001" means the dataset published by the U.S. | ||||||
8 | Census Bureau or American Community Survey titled "Language | ||||||
9 | spoken at home by ability to speak English for the population 5 | ||||||
10 | years and over" and identified as Table B16001, or any | ||||||
11 | substantially similar dataset the U.S. Census or American | ||||||
12 | Community Survey publishes following any future survey. | ||||||
13 | (b) On or before June 1, 2016 and on or before June 1 of | ||||||
14 | every subsequent year ending in a 1 or a 6, each election | ||||||
15 | authority shall report to the State Board of Elections all | ||||||
16 | census tracts in its jurisdiction in which Table B16001 | ||||||
17 | demonstrates that the American Community Survey has estimated | ||||||
18 | that more than 10% of the persons residing within that census | ||||||
19 | tract who speak the same foreign language have been identified | ||||||
20 | as having limited English proficiency. The election authority | ||||||
21 | shall use information from the most recent American Community | ||||||
22 | Survey estimate. The State Board of Elections shall make this | ||||||
23 | list publicly available on its website on or before June 30 of | ||||||
24 | the same year. | ||||||
25 | (c) Beginning with the general election held in 2016, any | ||||||
26 | election authority reporting census tracts to the State Board |
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1 | of Elections pursuant to subsection (b) of this Section shall | ||||||
2 | make all election information available in the primary | ||||||
3 | non-English language of the persons having limited English | ||||||
4 | proficiency identified in Table B16001. Ballots in these | ||||||
5 | foreign languages need only be available to voters registered | ||||||
6 | in the precincts that overlap with the census tracts identified | ||||||
7 | in the reports required in subsection (b). If the foreign | ||||||
8 | language that triggers the applicability of this Section is the | ||||||
9 | combination of Gujarati, Hindi, and Urdu, then ballots shall be | ||||||
10 | made available in Hindi only, but the election authority shall | ||||||
11 | make a good-faith effort to recruit Gujarati and Urdu election | ||||||
12 | judges in precincts that overlap the census tracts where the | ||||||
13 | American Community Survey estimates Gujarati and Urdu speakers | ||||||
14 | reside. | ||||||
15 | (d) Nothing in this Section requires an election authority | ||||||
16 | to make election information available in the primary | ||||||
17 | non-English language of the Limited English Proficiency | ||||||
18 | persons prior to June 1, 2016.
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19 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
20 | becoming law. |