On Staten Island: Several Polling Locations Will Have Translation Services Provided By Civic Engagement Commission, Where Gaps Exist, Rights To Bring Your Own Interpreter Discussed

1. The slide deck said there are Bengali services in Brooklyn & Queens, but there is a large population in the Bronx?
   1. The slide you are referencing is about the Board of Elections’ (BOE) services. BOE covers Bengali in Brooklyn and Queens, while the CEC covers Bengali services in the Bronx, as we do not duplicate BOE services.
2. Which poll site locations will the CEC be at?
   1. See our Early Voting Services Map and our Election Day Services Map on our website.
3. What are the requirements for bringing one’s own interpreter?
   1. Voters have the right to bring an interpreter with them to the voting booth — it just cannot be a union representative or an employer.
4. How does CEC decide what language service to provide and where? Why are there gaps?
   1. The VLA Program is Charter-mandated, and its implementation is based on a publicly vetted methodology that is amended as needed by CEC commissioners. CEC serves the poll sites with highest concentration of Citizen of Voting Age with Limited English Proficiency (CVALEP) that speak a VLA Program language and allocates services to each language community based on the percent share of each language group. The total number of poll sites covered is dependent on available resources.

See the full deck for the meeting here. 

Election Day Services by Language/Borough

Early Voting Service by Language/Borugh