Menu Search Account

LegiStorm

Get LegiStorm App Visit Product Demo Website
» Get LegiStorm App
» Get LegiStorm Pro Free Demo

Bilingual Voting Assistance: Assistance Provided and Costs

  Premium   Download PDF Now (60 pages)
Report Type Reports and Testimonies
Report Date May 9, 1997
Report No. GGD-97-81
Subject
Summary:

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was intended to protect the voting rights of U.S. citizens of certain ethnic groups whose command of the English language may be limited. The legislation's "bilingual voting assistance requirements" apply to ethnic groups in 422 jurisdictions, mainly counties, in 28 states. Critics of the bilingual provisions charge that the implementation of these requirements has proved costly and has been of questionable benefit in boosting voter turnout among targeted ethnic groups. This report reviews (1) the types of assistance that jurisdictions provided for the 1996 general election and (2) how much covered jurisdictions spent to provide voting assistance in 1996 and in earlier years.

« Return to search Government Accountability Office reports