GET INVOVLED!

How Our Government Works &
How To Make Government Work For You*

Developed by the

Area 4 Board on Developmental Disabilities
236 Georgia Street #201
Vallejo, CA 94590
(707) 648-4073
1996

GET INVOLVED!
How Our Government Works &
How To Make Government Work For You

* * * * *

What You Will Find in this Workbook

• When You Write Your Representative
• When You Visit Your Representative
• Where to Write or Visit Your Representative

• Why Vote?
• Who Can Vote?
• How Do I Register to Vote?
• How Do I Vote?
• Where Do I Vote?
• Polling Place
• Accessibility at Polling Places
• Absentee Ballot
• If You Need Help...
• Important Dates for the November 5, 1996
• Election
• For More Information...
• Good For You!

This booklet is about our government, how it works, and what you can do to make sure your government helps you.



WHAT CAN GOVERNMENT DO FOR YOU?

It's important to know about government because the goverment does a lot for people. The government makes laws, collects taxes, and decides what services to spend money on.

Here are some examples of laws that the government has made:

• laws that say kids who have disabilities have the right to go to school with kids who don't have disabilities;
  
  
• a law that says people in California have to wear helmets when they ride a motorcycle or a bike; and
  
  
• the Lanterman Act which set up Regional Centers and Area Boards.

We talked before about the what you can do for your government. You can lobby your representatives, and you can vote.

Your representatives make decisions that could change your life, so they need to know what is important to you. Remember, their job is to represent, or stand up for, you and the other people in their area. You can tell your representatives what you think about different things, like what services you think the government should spend money on, or how you would like them to vote on proposed (suggested) laws. You can also ask your representative for help when you're having problems getting services from an agency that the government gives money to.

To tell your representatives what is important to you or to ask for help, you can write to them or visit them in their office. Whether you decide to write or visit, there are things you can do to have the most impact on your representative. In the following pages are some tips about how to write to your representative, how to prepare for a visit with your representative, and the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the representatives in the North Bay.

Voting is another way for you to affect what the government does. You can vote for who you want your representative to be, and you can vote for or against some new laws. The next time you can vote is on Tuesday, November 5, 1996. If you have never voted before, keep reading for information about why you should vote and how you go about voting.



WHEN YOU WRITE YOUR REPRESENTATIVE*

Writing a letter to your representative is a good way to let him or her know what is important to you and how he or she can help you. When you write to your representative, there are things you can do to make your letter have more impact:


1. Address your letter correctly. Elected representatives are called "The Honorable" followed by their name and address. For example:

• "My name is Corey Nguyen. I live in Santa Rosa, California. I work at a nursery."

• "I am registered to vote. I have been voting for more than 5 years."

• "I am writing to you about the SSI cuts."

• "I live in my own apartment and pay all my own bills. I like being independent, but if my SSI is cut, I don't know what will happen to me. I might not be able to pay my bills and I might have to move."

• "I hope you vote against the SSI cuts."

You know you can lobby your representatives to let them know what's important to you and to try to get them to help you. Another way to try to change what the government does is by voting.

When you vote, you are letting your elected representatives know what is important to you and whether or not you think they are doing a good job. If you like what your representative has been doing and he or she is trying to get elected again, you can vote for him or her. If you don't like what he or she has been doing, you can vote for someone else to be your representative. When you vote, you tell your representatives what is important to you, and you influence who works in the government and what they do. You can also vote about new laws and whether taxes should be raised to pay for certain projects.

The time when you can vote is called an election. Elections are held at least every two years, and sometimes more often. When you vote for who you want your representative to be, there are usually several choices. The people who want to become a representative are called candidates. You can vote for the candidate who is concerned about the same things you are. Besides voting for who you want your representative to be, you can vote for or against new laws. The laws that are proposed (suggested) are called propositions.

To vote in California, you must be:

• at least 18 years old on the day of the next election (so, you must be 18 years old on or before November 5, 1996);
  
  
• a citizen of the United States;
  
  
• a resident of California;
  
  
• not in prison or on parole for a felony conviction;
  
  
• not declared by a court to be mentally incompetent to vote; and
  
  
• you must be registered (signed up) to vote.

To be able to vote, you have to register. To register to vote, you only need to fill out a card that has a few questions. You will need to know: your name, address, birthdate, the state or foreign country where you were born. There are a few other questions on the card that you can choose to either answer or leave blank. You need to sign the form. You can have someone help you if you need help to fill out a voter registration card. There is no cost to register to vote. The voter registration form looks like this:

There are many places you can go to register to vote: libraries, fire stations, post offices, DMV (Department of Motor Vehicle) offices, North Bay Regional Center, Area 4 Board, or by calling the Registrar of Voters for your county. The phone numbers for the Registrars of Voters in the North Bay are:

Napa County Registrar of Voters (707) 253-4321
Solano County Registrar of Voters (707) 421-6675
Sonoma County Registrar of Voters (707) 527-1800

To be able to vote in the November 5, 1996 election, you must register by October 7, 1996. You need to register again if you have moved or changed your name (if you got married and changed your name, for example) since the last election.

SAMPLE BALLOT
After you register to vote, a sample ballot will be mailed to you about October 15. A sample ballot looks exactly like the real ballot you will use when you vote. Your sample ballot will tell you where to vote, if the place you can go to vote is accessible, and how to use the voting machine. You can write on your sample ballot. You should think about the candidates and propositions and decide how you want to vote before November 5.

About the same time you get your sample ballot, you will also get a ballot pamphlet. The ballot pamphlet is a booklet that lists the different things you can vote for on November 5th. It lists the candidates for each office, and the propositions, or proposed new laws, you can vote for. Sometimes there are statements from candidates, where they say why they think you should vote for them. There are also arguments why you should or should not vote for each proposition. You can use the ballot pamphlet to help you decide how to vote.

There are two ways you can vote. You can either go to a polling place on November 5, or you can use an absentee ballot.


POLLING PLACE
A polling place is where you can go to vote on election day. Your polling place may be at a church, a school, in someone's garage, or someplace else. It's someplace close to where you live. Your sample ballot will tell you where your polling place is and if it is accessible (see the next page for information about accessibility).

When you go to vote at a polling place, you can take a friend to help you. You should also take your sample ballot with you (you should decide who you want to vote for and how you want to vote on the propositions before you go to your polling place).

At the polling place, one of the people working there will ask you for your address. They'll check their list to make sure you are registered to vote and that you are voting in the right place. The poll worker will ask you to sign your name and write your address. Then they will give you your ballot and direct you to a booth. You can take a friend to help you in the booth. Different polling places have different ways to mark ballots. Your sample ballot will tell you how to mark your ballot at your polling place.

When you're done marking your ballot, you give it to a poll worker. The poll worker will tear stubs off your ballot and give them to you, put your ballot in the ballot box, and give you a sticker that says "I Voted!"



ACCESSIBILITY AT POLLING PLACES
If you need an accessible polling place or an adaptive device, here are some things that could help you:

Wheelchair Accessible Booths -
Some polling places have booths that are big enough for most wheelchairs to fit in, and the voting machine is lower so voters in a wheelchair can easily reach it.

Curbside Voting -
If your polling place is not accessible or does not have a wheelchair accessible booth, you can ask to do curbside voting. A poll worker will bring a ballot and a punching device to mark the ballot to the curb or parking lot close to the polling place. The poll worker can help you mark your ballot if you need help. When you're done marking your ballot, the poll worker will take your ballot and put it in the ballot box.

Large Type Instructions or Magnifiers -
Some polling places have voting instructions written in large type or magnifying devices to help voters who have visual impairments. At some polling places, the poll workers will read the instructions to you if you need this help.

Large and Small Handle Styluses and Pencil Grips -
Some polling places have these devices to help voters who cannot use a regular stylus to punch their ballot.

Absentee Ballot -
With an absentee ballot, you can vote from your home. Keep reading for more information about absentee ballots.

To find out if your polling place is accessible and what kinds of adaptive devices are available, you can call the Registrar of Voters in your county (see page 17 for the phone numbers).



ABSENTEE BALLOT
Instead of going to a polling place, some people use an absentee ballot. With an absentee ballot, your ballot is mailed to you and you mail it back or drop it off at a polling place on election day. There are several reasons why you might like using an absentee ballot instead of going to a polling place:

• Some polling places are not accessible or do not have the adaptive device you need;
  
  
• If you are away on vacation or you don't have time to vote on election day, you can mark your absentee ballot anytime before election day;
  
  
• You don't have to worry about transportation to get to your polling place falling through; and
  
  
• If you need help to vote, you don't have to worry about arranging for a friend or helper to go with you on election day.

It's your decision whether to use a polling place or an absentee ballot. The most important thing is to make sure you do vote!



IF YOU NEED HELP...

If you need help going through your sample ballot and thinking about how you want to vote, you can:

• read the ballot pamphlet that is mailed to you. The ballot pamphlet lists all the things you can vote on in the next election, and there are often statements written by the candidates, and arguments for and against propositions. If you need help reading, you can ask family, friends, or your personal assistant (attendant) to help you.
  
  
• talk with your family, friends, or neighbors and ask them how they plan to vote and why;
  
  
• listen to the news or read the newspaper. As it gets close to an election, there are usually many stories on TV, radio, and in the newspaper about different candidates and propositions.
  
  
• *sometimes there are candidate forums, where people who are trying to get elected talk about their plans, their experiences and why they think they would do a good job. You could go to a candidate forum or watch it if it's on TV (if candidate forums are on TV, they're usually on a local cable channel). To find out about candidate forums, you can look at the TV listings in the newspaper or call the League of Women Voters at (707) 546-5943.
  
  
• see if there is a self advocacy group or People First group near you that will be talking about candidates and propositions (you can call Area 4 Board or Citizen Advocacy to find out about the nearest People First group).

You've taken the time to read all this to learn how our government works and how you can influence government. . .good for you!

We hope you take the next step and GET INVOLVED! Tell your representatives what is important to you, and VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!

Absentee Ballot - This is what you use to vote if you do not want to or cannot go to a polling place to vote. You can mail in your absentee ballot or drop it off at a polling place.

Ballot - This is what you use to vote. The ballot lists all the candidates and propositions (proposed laws) that you can vote on in that election.

Ballot Pamphlet - A booklet that lists the things you can vote for in the next election, and gives some information to help you decide how to vote. If you are registered to vote, a ballot pamphlet will be mailed to you a few weeks before the next election.

Candidate - A person who wants to become a representative in government.

Election - Your chance to vote, or make choices, about who you want to be leaders in government and about some new laws.

Government - The people and the agencies that manage, or run, our country, states, counties, and cities.

Lobbying - Telling your elected representative what is important to you and what you want them to do.

Polling Place - The place where you go to vote. It's near your home. You can find out where your polling place is by looking on the back of your sample ballot.

Proposition - A proposed law. You vote for or against propositions in elections.

Representative - A person who is elected, or voted into their job, to stand up for the things that are important to you and the other people they represent.

Sample Ballot - This looks exactly like the real ballot that you use to vote. It lists all the things that you can vote for in the next election. If you are registered to vote, a sample ballot will be mailed to you a few weeks before the next election. You can write your choices on your sample ballot and you can use it as a guide to help you mark your real ballot.

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