II 

Calendar No. 77 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2093 

To expand Americans’ access to the ballot box, reduce the influence of 

big money in politics, strengthen ethics rules for public servants, and 

implement other anti-corruption measures for the purpose of fortifying 

our democracy, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 16, 2021 

Mr. MERKLEY (for himself, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, and Mr. SCHUMER) introduced 

the following bill; which was read the first time 

JUNE 17, 2021 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 

A BILL 

To expand Americans’ access to the ballot box, reduce the 

influence of big money in politics, strengthen ethics rules 

for public servants, and implement other anti-corruption 

measures for the purpose of fortifying our democracy, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘For the People Act 

3 of 2021’’. 

4 SEC. 2. ORGANIZATION OF ACT INTO DIVISIONS; TABLE OF 

5 CONTENTS. 

6 (a) DIVISIONS.—This Act is organized into divisions 

7 as follows: 

8 (1) Division A—Voting. 

9 (2) Division B—Campaign Finance. 

10 (3) Division C—Ethics. 

11 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

12 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Organization of Act into divisions; table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Findings of general constitutional authority. 

Sec. 4. Standards for judicial review. 

DIVISION A—VOTING 

TITLE I—ELECTION ACCESS 

Sec. 1000. Short title; statement of policy. 

Subtitle A—Voter Registration Modernization 

Sec. 1000A. Short title. 

PART 1—PROMOTING INTERNET REGISTRATION

Sec. 1001. Requiring availability of internet for voter registration. 

Sec. 1002. Use of internet to update registration information. 

Sec. 1003. Provision of election information by electronic mail to individuals 

registered to vote. 

Sec. 1004. Clarification of requirement regarding necessary information to 

show eligibility to vote. 

Sec. 1005. Prohibiting State from requiring applicants to provide more than 

last 4 digits of Social Security number. 

Sec. 1006. Application of rules to certain exempt States. 

Sec. 1007. Report on data collection. 

Sec. 1008. Permitting voter registration application form to serve as application 

for absentee ballot. 

Sec. 1009. Effective date. 


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PART 2—AUTOMATIC VOTER REGISTRATION

Sec. 1011. Short title; findings and purpose. 

Sec. 1012. Automatic registration of eligible individuals. 

Sec. 1013. Contributing agency assistance in registration. 

Sec. 1014. Voter protection and security in automatic registration. 

Sec. 1015. Payments and grants. 

Sec. 1016. Treatment of exempt States. 

Sec. 1017. Miscellaneous provisions. 

Sec. 1018. Definitions. 

Sec. 1019. Effective date. 

PART 3—SAME DAY VOTER REGISTRATION

Sec. 1031. Same day registration. 

PART 4—CONDITIONS ON REMOVAL ON BASIS OF INTERSTATE CROSSCHECKS

Sec. 1041. Conditions on removal of registrants from official list of eligible voters on basis of interstate cross-checks. 

PART 5—OTHER INITIATIVES TO PROMOTE VOTER REGISTRATION

Sec. 1051. Biennial reports on voter registration statistics. 

Sec. 1052. Ensuring pre-election registration deadlines are consistent with timing of legal public holidays. 

Sec. 1053. Use of Postal Service hard copy change of address form to remind 

individuals to update voter registration. 

Sec. 1054. Grants to States for activities to encourage involvement of minors 

in election activities. 

Sec. 1055. Authorizing the dissemination of voter registration information displays following naturalization ceremonies. 

Sec. 1056. Requiring states to establish and operate voter privacy programs. 

Sec. 1057. Inclusion of voter registration information with certain leases and 

vouchers for federally assisted rental housing and mortgage applications. 

PART 6—AVAILABILITY OF HAVA REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS

Sec. 1061. Availability of requirements payments under HAVA to cover costs 

of compliance with new requirements. 

PART 7—PROHIBITING INTERFERENCE WITH VOTER REGISTRATION

Sec. 1071. Prohibiting hindering, interfering with, or preventing voter registration. 

Sec. 1072. Establishment of best practices. 

PART 8—VOTER REGISTRATION EFFICIENCY ACT

Sec. 1081. Short title. 

Sec. 1082. Requiring applicants for motor vehicle driver’s licenses in new State 

to indicate whether State serves as residence for voter registration purposes. 

PART 9—PROVIDING VOTER REGISTRATION INFORMATION TO SECONDARY

SCHOOL STUDENTS


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Sec. 1091. Pilot program for providing voter registration information to secondary school students prior to graduation. 

Sec. 1092. Reports. 

Sec. 1093. Authorization of appropriations. 

PART 10—VOTER REGISTRATION OF MINORS

Sec. 1094. Acceptance of voter registration applications from individuals under 

18 years of age. 

Subtitle B—Access to Voting for Individuals With Disabilities 

Sec. 1101. Requirements for States to promote access to voter registration and 

voting for individuals with disabilities. 

Sec. 1102. Establishment and maintenance of State accessible election websites. 

Sec. 1103. Protections for in-person voting for individuals with disabilities and 

older individuals. 

Sec. 1104. Protections for individuals subject to guardianship. 

Sec. 1105. Expansion and reauthorization of grant program to assure voting 

access for individuals with disabilities. 

Sec. 1106. Appointments to EAC Board of Advisors. 

Sec. 1107. Funding for protection and advocacy systems. 

Sec. 1108. Pilot programs for enabling individuals with disabilities to register 

to vote privately and independently at residences. 

Sec. 1109. GAO analysis and report on voting access for individuals with disabilities. 

Subtitle C—Prohibiting Voter Caging 

Sec. 1201. Voter caging and other questionable challenges prohibited. 

Sec. 1202. Development and adoption of best practices for preventing voter 

caging. 

Subtitle D—Prohibiting Deceptive Practices and Preventing Voter 

Intimidation 

Sec. 1301. Short title. 

Sec. 1302. Prohibition on deceptive practices in Federal elections. 

Sec. 1303. Corrective action. 

Sec. 1304. Reports to Congress. 

Subtitle E—Democracy Restoration 

Sec. 1401. Short title. 

Sec. 1402. Findings. 

Sec. 1403. Rights of citizens. 

Sec. 1404. Enforcement. 

Sec. 1405. Notification of restoration of voting rights. 

Sec. 1406. Definitions. 

Sec. 1407. Relation to other laws. 

Sec. 1408. Federal prison funds. 

Sec. 1409. Effective date. 

Subtitle F—Promoting Accuracy, Integrity, and Security Through VoterVerifiable Permanent Paper Ballot 

Sec. 1501. Short title. 

Sec. 1502. Paper ballot and manual counting requirements. 


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Sec. 1503. Accessibility and ballot verification for individuals with disabilities. 

Sec. 1504. Durability and readability requirements for ballots. 

Sec. 1505. Study and report on optimal ballot design. 

Sec. 1506. Paper ballot printing requirements. 

Sec. 1507. Ballot marking device cybersecurity requirements. 

Sec. 1508. Effective date for new requirements. 

Subtitle G—Provisional Ballots 

Sec. 1601. Requirements for counting provisional ballots; establishment of uniform and nondiscriminatory standards. 

Subtitle H—Early Voting 

Sec. 1611. Early voting. 

Subtitle I—Voting by Mail 

Sec. 1621. Voting by mail. 

Sec. 1622. Balloting materials tracking program. 

Sec. 1623. Election mail and delivery improvements. 

Sec. 1624. Carriage of election mail. 

Subtitle J—Absent Uniformed Services Voters and Overseas Voters 

Sec. 1701. Pre-election reports on availability and transmission of absentee ballots. 

Sec. 1702. Enforcement. 

Sec. 1703. Transmission requirements; repeal of waiver provision. 

Sec. 1704. Use of single absentee ballot application for subsequent elections. 

Sec. 1705. Extending guarantee of residency for voting purposes to family 

members of absent military personnel. 

Sec. 1706. Technical clarifications to conform to 2009 move act amendments 

related to the federal write-in absentee ballot. 

Sec. 1707. Treatment of post card registration requests. 

Sec. 1708. Applicability to Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

Sec. 1709. Elimination of 14-day time period between general election and runoff election for Federal elections in the Virgin Islands and 

Guam. 

Sec. 1710. Department of justice report on voter disenfranchisement. 

Sec. 1711. Effective date. 

Subtitle K—Poll Worker Recruitment and Training 

Sec. 1801. Grants to States for poll worker recruitment and training. 

Sec. 1802. State defined. 

Subtitle L—Enhancement of Enforcement 

Sec. 1811. Enhancement of enforcement of Help America Vote Act of 2002. 

Subtitle M—Federal Election Integrity 

Sec. 1821. Prohibition on campaign activities by chief State election administration officials. 

Subtitle N—Promoting Voter Access Through Election Administration 

Improvements 


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PART 1—PROMOTING VOTER ACCESS

Sec. 1901. Treatment of institutions of higher education. 

Sec. 1902. Minimum notification requirements for voters affected by polling 

place changes. 

Sec. 1903. Permitting use of sworn written statement to meet identification requirements for voting. 

Sec. 1904. Accommodations for voters residing in Indian lands. 

Sec. 1905. Ensuring equitable and efficient operation of polling places. 

Sec. 1906. Requiring States to provide secured drop boxes for voted ballots in 

elections for Federal office. 

Sec. 1907. Prohibiting States from restricting curbside voting. 

Sec. 1908. Prohibiting restrictions on donations of food and beverages at polling stations. 

Sec. 1909. GAO study on voter turnout rates. 

PART 2—DISASTER AND EMERGENCY CONTINGENCY PLANS

Sec. 1911. Requirements for Federal election contingency plans in response to 

natural disasters and emergencies. 

PART 3—IMPROVEMENTS IN OPERATION OF ELECTION ASSISTANCE

COMMISSION

Sec. 1921. Reauthorization of Election Assistance Commission. 

Sec. 1922. Requiring States to participate in post-general election surveys. 

Sec. 1923. Reports by National Institute of Standards and Technology on use 

of funds transferred from Election Assistance Commission. 

Sec. 1924. Recommendations to improve operations of Election Assistance 

Commission. 

Sec. 1925. Repeal of exemption of Election Assistance Commission from certain 

government contracting requirements. 

PART 4—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Sec. 1931. Application of laws to Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. 

Sec. 1932. Definition of election for Federal office. 

Sec. 1933. Clarification of exemption for States which do not collect telephone 

information. 

Sec. 1934. No effect on other laws. 

Sec. 1935. Clarification of exemption for States without voter registration. 

Subtitle O—Increased Protections for Election Workers 

Sec. 1941. Harassment of election workers prohibited. 

Sec. 1942. Protection of election workers. 

Subtitle P—Severability 

Sec. 1951. Severability. 

TITLE II—ELECTION INTEGRITY 

Subtitle A—Findings Reaffirming the Commitment of Congress to Restore 

the Voting Rights Act of 1965 

Sec. 2001. Findings reaffirming commitment of Congress to restore the Voting 

Rights Act. 


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Subtitle B—Findings Relating to Native American Voting Rights 

Sec. 2101. Findings relating to Native American voting rights. 

Subtitle C—Findings Relating to District of Columbia Statehood 

Sec. 2201. Findings relating to District of Columbia statehood. 

Subtitle D—Territorial Voting Rights 

Sec. 2301. Findings relating to territorial voting rights. 

Sec. 2302. Congressional Task Force on Voting Rights of United States Citizen 

Residents of Territories of the United States. 

Subtitle E—Redistricting Reform 

Sec. 2400. Short title; finding of constitutional authority. 

PART 1—REQUIREMENTS FOR CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING

Sec. 2401. Requiring congressional redistricting to be conducted through plan 

of independent State commission. 

Sec. 2402. Ban on mid-decade redistricting. 

Sec. 2403. Criteria for redistricting. 

PART 2—INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSIONS

Sec. 2411. Independent redistricting commission. 

Sec. 2412. Establishment of selection pool of individuals eligible to serve as 

members of commission. 

Sec. 2413. Public notice and input. 

Sec. 2414. Establishment of related entities. 

Sec. 2415. Report on diversity of memberships of independent redistricting 

commissions. 

PART 3—ROLE OF COURTS IN DEVELOPMENT OF REDISTRICTING PLANS

Sec. 2421. Enactment of plan developed by 3-judge court. 

Sec. 2422. Special rule for redistricting conducted under order of Federal 

court. 

PART 4—ADMINISTRATIVE AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Sec. 2431. Payments to States for carrying out redistricting. 

Sec. 2432. Civil enforcement. 

Sec. 2433. State apportionment notice defined. 

Sec. 2434. No effect on elections for State and local office. 

Sec. 2435. Effective date. 

PART 5—REQUIREMENTS FOR REDISTRICTING CARRIED OUT PURSUANT TO

2020 CENSUS

SUBPART A—APPLICATION OF CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS FOR REDISTRICTING

CARRIED OUT PURSUANT TO 2020 CENSUS

Sec. 2441. Application of certain requirements for redistricting carried out pursuant to 2020 Census. 

Sec. 2442. Triggering events. 


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SUBPART B—INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSIONS FOR REDISTRICTING

CARRIED OUT PURSUANT TO 2020 CENSUS

Sec. 2451. Use of independent redistricting commissions for redistricting carried out pursuant to 2020 Census. 

Sec. 2452. Establishment of selection pool of individuals eligible to serve as 

members of commission. 

Sec. 2453. Criteria for redistricting plan; public notice and input. 

Sec. 2454. Establishment of related entities. 

Sec. 2455. Report on diversity of memberships of independent redistricting 

commissions. 

Subtitle F—Saving Eligible Voters From Voter Purging 

Sec. 2501. Short title. 

Sec. 2502. Conditions for removal of voters from list of registered voters. 

Subtitle G—No Effect on Authority of States to Provide Greater 

Opportunities for Voting 

Sec. 2601. No effect on authority of States to provide greater opportunities for 

voting. 

Subtitle H—Residence of Incarcerated Individuals 

Sec. 2701. Residence of incarcerated individuals. 

Subtitle I—Findings Relating to Youth Voting 

Sec. 2801. Findings relating to youth voting. 

Subtitle J—Severability 

Sec. 2901. Severability. 

TITLE III—ELECTION SECURITY 

Sec. 3000. Short title; sense of Congress. 

Subtitle A—Financial Support for Election Infrastructure 

PART 1—VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVEMENT GRANTS

Sec. 3001. Grants for obtaining compliant paper ballot voting systems and carrying out voting system security improvements. 

Sec. 3002. Coordination of voting system security activities with use of requirements payments and election administration requirements 

under Help America Vote Act of 2002. 

Sec. 3003. Incorporation of definitions. 

PART 2—POST-ELECTION AUDIT REQUIREMENT

Sec. 3011. Post-election audit requirement. 

Sec. 3012. GAO analysis of effects of audits. 

PART 3—ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION GRANT PROGRAM

Sec. 3021. Election infrastructure innovation grant program. 

Subtitle B—Security Measures 


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Sec. 3101. Election infrastructure designation. 

Sec. 3102. Timely threat information. 

Sec. 3103. Security clearance assistance for election officials. 

Sec. 3104. Security risk and vulnerability assessments. 

Sec. 3105. Annual reports. 

Sec. 3106. Pre-election threat assessments. 

Subtitle C—Enhancing Protections for United States Democratic Institutions 

Sec. 3201. National strategy to protect United States democratic institutions. 

Sec. 3202. National Commission to Protect United States Democratic Institutions. 

Subtitle D—Promoting Cybersecurity Through Improvements in Election 

Administration 

Sec. 3301. Election cybersecurity. 

Sec. 3302. Guidelines and certification for electronic poll books and remote ballot marking systems. 

Sec. 3303. Pre-election reports on voting system usage. 

Sec. 3304. Streamlining collection of election information. 

Subtitle E—Preventing Election Hacking 

Sec. 3401. Short title. 

Sec. 3402. Election security bug bounty program. 

Subtitle F—Election Security Grants Advisory Committee 

Sec. 3501. Establishment of advisory committee. 

Subtitle G—Miscellaneous Provisions 

Sec. 3601. Definitions. 

Sec. 3602. Initial report on adequacy of resources available for implementation. 

Subtitle H—Use of Voting Machines Manufactured in the United States 

Sec. 3701. Use of voting machines manufactured in the United States. 

Subtitle I—Severability 

Sec. 3801. Severability. 

DIVISION B—CAMPAIGN FINANCE 

TITLE IV—CAMPAIGN FINANCE TRANSPARENCY 

Subtitle A—Establishing Duty to Report Foreign Election Interference 

Sec. 4001. Findings relating to illicit money undermining our democracy. 

Sec. 4002. Federal campaign reporting of foreign contacts. 

Sec. 4003. Federal campaign foreign contact reporting compliance system. 

Sec. 4004. Criminal penalties. 

Sec. 4005. Report to congressional intelligence committees. 

Sec. 4006. Rule of construction. 

Subtitle B—DISCLOSE Act 

Sec. 4100. Short title. 


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PART 1—CLOSING LOOPHOLES ALLOWING SPENDING BY FOREIGN

NATIONALS IN ELECTIONS

Sec. 4101. Clarification of prohibition on participation by foreign nationals in 

election-related activities. 

Sec. 4102. Clarification of application of foreign money ban to certain disbursements and activities. 

Sec. 4103. Audit and report on illicit foreign money in Federal elections. 

Sec. 4104. Prohibition on contributions and donations by foreign nationals in 

connection with ballot initiatives and referenda. 

Sec. 4105. Disbursements and activities subject to foreign money ban. 

Sec. 4106. Prohibiting establishment of corporation to conceal election contributions and donations by foreign nationals. 

PART 2—REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSEMENTS

Sec. 4111. Reporting of campaign-related disbursements. 

Sec. 4112. Application of foreign money ban to disbursements for campaign-related disbursements consisting of covered transfers. 

Sec. 4113. Effective date. 

PART 3—OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS

Sec. 4121. Petition for certiorari. 

Sec. 4122. Judicial review of actions related to campaign finance laws. 

Subtitle C—Honest Ads 

Sec. 4201. Short title. 

Sec. 4202. Purpose. 

Sec. 4203. Findings. 

Sec. 4204. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 4205. Expansion of definition of public communication. 

Sec. 4206. Expansion of definition of electioneering communication. 

Sec. 4207. Application of disclaimer statements to online communications. 

Sec. 4208. Political record requirements for online platforms. 

Sec. 4209. Preventing contributions, expenditures, independent expenditures, 

and disbursements for electioneering communications by foreign nationals in the form of online advertising. 

Sec. 4210. Requiring online platforms to display notices identifying sponsors of 

political advertisements and to ensure notices continue to be 

present when advertisements are shared. 

Subtitle D—Stand By Every Ad 

Sec. 4301. Short title. 

Sec. 4302. Stand By Every Ad. 

Sec. 4303. Disclaimer requirements for communications made through 

prerecorded telephone calls. 

Sec. 4304. No expansion of persons subject to disclaimer requirements on internet communications. 

Sec. 4305. Effective date. 

Subtitle E—Deterring Foreign Interference in Elections 

PART 1—DETERRENCE UNDER FEDERAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN ACT OF

1971 


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Sec. 4401. Restrictions on exchange of campaign information between candidates and foreign powers. 

Sec. 4402. Clarification of standard for determining existence of coordination 

between campaigns and outside interests. 

Sec. 4403. Prohibition on provision of substantial assistance relating to contribution or donation by foreign nationals. 

Sec. 4404. Clarification of application of foreign money ban. 

PART 2—NOTIFYING STATES OF DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGNS BY FOREIGN

NATIONALS

Sec. 4411. Notifying States of disinformation campaigns by foreign nationals. 

PART 3—PROHIBITING USE OF DEEPFAKES IN ELECTION CAMPAIGNS

Sec. 4421. Prohibition on distribution of materially deceptive audio or visual 

media prior to election. 

PART 4—ASSESSMENT OF EXEMPTION OF REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS

UNDER FARA FOR REGISTERED LOBBYISTS

Sec. 4431. Assessment of exemption of registration requirements under FARA 

for registered lobbyists. 

Subtitle F—Secret Money Transparency 

Sec. 4501. Repeal of restriction of use of funds by Internal Revenue Service to 

bring transparency to political activity of certain nonprofit organizations. 

Subtitle G—Shareholder Right-to-Know 

Sec. 4601. Repeal of restriction on use of funds by Securities and Exchange 

Commission to ensure shareholders of corporations have knowledge of corporation political activity. 

Sec. 4602. Shareholder approval of corporate political activity. 

Subtitle H—Disclosure of Political Spending by Government Contractors 

Sec. 4701. Repeal of restriction on use of funds to require disclosure of political 

spending by government contractors. 

Subtitle I—Limitation and Disclosure Requirements for Presidential 

Inaugural Committees 

Sec. 4801. Short title. 

Sec. 4802. Limitations and disclosure of certain donations to, and disbursements by, Inaugural Committees. 

Subtitle J—Miscellaneous Provisions 

Sec. 4901. Effective dates of provisions. 

Sec. 4902. Severability. 

TITLE V—CAMPAIGN FINANCE EMPOWERMENT 

Subtitle A—Findings Relating to Citizens United Decision 

Sec. 5001. Findings relating to Citizens United decision. 


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Subtitle B—Senate Elections 

Sec. 5100. Short title. 

PART 1—SMALL DONOR INCENTIVE PROGRAMS

Sec. 5101. Sense of the Senate regarding small donor incentive programs. 

PART 2—SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING OF SENATE ELECTION CAMPAIGNS

Sec. 5111. Eligibility requirements and benefits of fair elections financing of 

Senate election campaigns. 

Sec. 5112. Prohibition on joint fundraising committees. 

Sec. 5113. Exception to limitation on coordinated expenditures by political 

party committees with participating candidates. 

Sec. 5114. Assessments against fines and penalties. 

Sec. 5115. Study and report on small dollar financing program. 

Sec. 5116. Effective date. 

PART 3—RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION

Sec. 5121. Petition for certiorari. 

Sec. 5122. Electronic filing of FEC reports. 

PART 4—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Sec. 5131. Severability. 

Subtitle C—Presidential Elections 

Sec. 5200. Short title. 

PART 1—PRIMARY ELECTIONS

Sec. 5201. Increase in and modifications to matching payments. 

Sec. 5202. Eligibility requirements for matching payments. 

Sec. 5203. Repeal of expenditure limitations. 

Sec. 5204. Period of availability of matching payments. 

Sec. 5205. Examination and audits of matchable contributions. 

Sec. 5206. Modification to limitation on contributions for Presidential primary 

candidates. 

PART 2—GENERAL ELECTIONS

Sec. 5211. Modification of eligibility requirements for public financing. 

Sec. 5212. Repeal of expenditure limitations and use of qualified campaign contributions. 

Sec. 5213. Matching payments and other modifications to payment amounts. 

Sec. 5214. Increase in limit on coordinated party expenditures. 

Sec. 5215. Use of general election payments for general election legal and accounting compliance. 

PART 3—EFFECTIVE DATE

Sec. 5221. Effective date. 

Subtitle D—Personal Use Services as Authorized Campaign Expenditures 

Sec. 5301. Short title; findings; purpose. 


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Sec. 5302. Treatment of payments for child care and other personal use services as authorized campaign expenditure. 

Subtitle E—Empowering Small Dollar Donations 

Sec. 5401. Permitting political party committees to provide enhanced support 

for candidates through use of separate small dollar accounts. 

Subtitle F—Severability 

Sec. 5501. Severability. 

TITLE VI—CAMPAIGN FINANCE OVERSIGHT 

Subtitle A—Restoring Integrity to America’s Elections 

Sec. 6001. Short title. 

Sec. 6002. Membership of Federal Election Commission. 

Sec. 6003. Assignment of powers to Chair of Federal Election Commission. 

Sec. 6004. Revision to enforcement process. 

Sec. 6005. Permitting appearance at hearings on requests for advisory opinions 

by persons opposing the requests. 

Sec. 6006. Permanent extension of administrative penalty authority. 

Sec. 6007. Restrictions on ex parte communications. 

Sec. 6008. Clarifying authority of FEC attorneys to represent FEC in Supreme 

Court. 

Sec. 6009. Requiring forms to permit use of accent marks. 

Sec. 6010. Extension of the statutes of limitations for offenses under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. 

Sec. 6011. Effective date; transition. 

Subtitle B—Stopping Super PAC–Candidate Coordination 

Sec. 6101. Short title. 

Sec. 6102. Clarification of treatment of coordinated expenditures as contributions to candidates. 

Sec. 6103. Clarification of ban on fundraising for super PACs by Federal candidates and officeholders. 

Subtitle C—Disposal of Contributions or Donations 

Sec. 6201. Timeframe for and prioritization of disposal of contributions or donations. 

Sec. 6202. 1-year transition period for certain individuals. 

Subtitle D—Recommendations to Ensure Filing of Reports Before Date of 

Election 

Sec. 6301. Recommendations to ensure filing of reports before date of election. 

Subtitle E—Severability 

Sec. 6401. Severability. 

DIVISION C—ETHICS 

TITLE VII—ETHICAL STANDARDS 

Subtitle A—Supreme Court Ethics 


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Sec. 7001. Code of conduct for Federal judges. 

Subtitle B—Foreign Agents Registration 

Sec. 7101. Establishment of FARA investigation and enforcement unit within 

Department of Justice. 

Sec. 7102. Authority to impose civil money penalties. 

Sec. 7103. Disclosure of transactions involving things of financial value conferred on officeholders. 

Sec. 7104. Ensuring online access to registration statements. 

Subtitle C—Lobbying Disclosure Reform 

Sec. 7201. Expanding scope of individuals and activities subject to requirements of Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995. 

Sec. 7202. Requiring lobbyists to disclose status as lobbyists upon making any 

lobbying contacts. 

Subtitle D—Recusal of Presidential Appointees 

Sec. 7301. Recusal of appointees. 

Subtitle E—Clearinghouse on Lobbying Information 

Sec. 7401. Establishment of clearinghouse. 

Subtitle F—Foreign Lobbying 

Sec. 7501. Prohibition on foreign lobbying. 

Subtitle G—Severability 

Sec. 7601. Severability. 

TITLE VIII—ETHICS REFORMS FOR THE PRESIDENT, VICE 

PRESIDENT, AND FEDERAL OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES 

Subtitle A—Executive Branch Conflict of Interest 

Sec. 8001. Short title. 

Sec. 8002. Restrictions on private sector payment for government service. 

Sec. 8003. Requirements relating to slowing revolving door. 

Sec. 8004. Prohibition of procurement officers accepting employment from government contractors. 

Sec. 8005. Revolving door restrictions on employees moving into the private 

sector. 

Sec. 8006. Guidance on unpaid employees. 

Sec. 8007. Limitation on use of Federal funds and contracting at businesses 

owned by certain Government officers and employees. 

Subtitle B—Presidential Conflicts of Interest 

Sec. 8011. Short title. 

Sec. 8012. Divestiture of personal financial interests of the President and Vice 

President that pose a potential conflict of interest. 

Sec. 8013. Initial financial disclosure. 

Sec. 8014. Contracts by the President or Vice President. 

Sec. 8015. Legal Defense Funds. 


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Subtitle C—White House Ethics Transparency 

Sec. 8021. Short title. 

Sec. 8022. Procedure for waivers and authorizations relating to ethics requirements. 

Subtitle D—Executive Branch Ethics Enforcement 

Sec. 8031. Short title. 

Sec. 8032. Reauthorization of the Office of Government Ethics. 

Sec. 8033. Tenure of the Director of the Office of Government Ethics. 

Sec. 8034. Duties of Director of the Office of Government Ethics. 

Sec. 8035. Agency ethics officials training and duties. 

Sec. 8036. Prohibition on use of funds for certain Federal employee travel in 

contravention of certain regulations. 

Sec. 8037. Reports on cost of Presidential travel. 

Sec. 8038. Reports on cost of senior Federal official travel. 

Subtitle E—Conflicts From Political Fundraising 

Sec. 8041. Short title. 

Sec. 8042. Disclosure of certain types of contributions. 

Subtitle F—Transition Team Ethics 

Sec. 8051. Short title. 

Sec. 8052. Presidential transition ethics programs. 

Subtitle G—Ethics Pledge for Senior Executive Branch Employees 

Sec. 8061. Short title. 

Sec. 8062. Ethics pledge requirement for senior executive branch employees. 

Subtitle H—Travel on Private Aircraft by Senior Political Appointees 

Sec. 8071. Short title. 

Sec. 8072. Prohibition on use of funds for travel on private aircraft. 

Subtitle I—Severability 

Sec. 8081. Severability. 

TITLE IX—CONGRESSIONAL ETHICS REFORM 

Subtitle A—Requiring Members of Congress To Reimburse Treasury for 

Amounts Paid as Settlements and Awards Under Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 

Sec. 9001. Requiring Members of Congress to reimburse Treasury for amounts 

paid as settlements and awards under Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 in all cases of employment discrimination 

acts by Members. 

Subtitle B—Conflicts of Interests 

Sec. 9101. Prohibiting Members of House of Representatives from serving on 

boards of for-profit entities. 

Sec. 9102. Conflict of interest rules for Members of Congress and congressional 

staff. 


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Sec. 9103. Exercise of rulemaking powers. 

Subtitle C—Campaign Finance and Lobbying Disclosure 

Sec. 9201. Short title. 

Sec. 9202. Requiring disclosure in certain reports filed with Federal Election 

Commission of persons who are registered lobbyists. 

Sec. 9203. Effective date. 

Subtitle D—Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports 

Sec. 9301. Short title. 

Sec. 9302. Definitions. 

Sec. 9303. Establishment of online portal for congressionally mandated reports. 

Sec. 9304. Federal agency responsibilities. 

Sec. 9305. Removing and altering reports. 

Sec. 9306. Rules of construction; inspectors general. 

Sec. 9307. Implementation. 

Subtitle E—Reports on Outside Compensation Earned by Congressional 

Employees 

Sec. 9401. Reports on outside compensation earned by Congressional employees. 

Subtitle F—Severability 

Sec. 9501. Severability. 

TITLE X—PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE PRESIDENTIAL TAX 

TRANSPARENCY 

Sec. 10001. Presidential and Vice Presidential tax transparency. 

1 SEC. 3. FINDINGS OF GENERAL CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHOR2 ITY. 

3 Congress finds that the Constitution of the United 

4 States grants explicit and broad authority to protect the 

5 right to vote, to regulate elections for Federal office, to 

6 prevent and remedy discrimination in voting, and to de7 fend the Nation’s democratic process. Congress enacts the 

8 ‘‘For the People Act of 2021’’ pursuant to this broad au9 thority, including but not limited to the following: 

10 (1) Congress finds that it has broad authority 

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1 sional elections under the Elections Clause of the 

2 Constitution, article I, section 4, clause 1. The Su3 preme Court has affirmed that the ‘‘substantive 

4 scope’’ of the Elections Clause is ‘‘broad’’; that 

5 ‘‘Times, Places, and Manner’’ are ‘‘comprehensive 

6 words which embrace authority to provide for a com7 plete code for congressional elections’’; and ‘‘[t]he 

8 power of Congress over the Times, Places and Man9 ner of congressional elections is paramount, and may 

10 be exercised at any time, and to any extent which 

11 it deems expedient; and so far as it is exercised, and 

12 no farther, the regulations effected supersede those 

13 of the State which are inconsistent therewith’’. Ari14 zona v. Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, 570 U.S. 1, 

15 8–9 (2013) (internal quotation marks and citations 

16 omitted). Indeed, ‘‘Congress has plenary and para17 mount jurisdiction over the whole subject’’ of con18 gressional elections, Ex parte Siebold, 100 U.S. (10 

19 Otto) 371, 388 (1879), and this power ‘‘may be ex20 ercised as and when Congress sees fit’’, and ‘‘so far 

21 as it extends and conflicts with the regulations of 

22 the State, necessarily supersedes them’’. Id. At 384. 

23 Among other things, Congress finds that the Elec24 tions Clause was intended to ‘‘vindicate the people’s 

25 right to equality of representation in the House’’. 


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1 Wesberry v. Sanders, 376 U.S. 1, 16 (1964), and to 

2 address partisan gerrymandering, Rucho v. Common 

3 Cause, 139 S. Ct. 2484 (2019). 

4 (2) Congress also finds that it has both the au5 thority and responsibility, as the legislative body for 

6 the United States, to fulfill the promise of article IV, 

7 section 4, of the Constitution, which states: ‘‘The 

8 United States shall guarantee to every State in this 

9 Union a Republican Form of Government[.]’’. Con10 gress finds that its authority and responsibility to 

11 enforce the Guarantee Clause is particularly strong 

12 given that Federal courts have not enforced this 

13 clause because they understood that its enforcement 

14 is committed to Congress by the Constitution. 

15 (3)(A) Congress also finds that it has broad au16 thority pursuant to section 5 of the Fourteenth 

17 Amendment to legislate to enforce the provisions of 

18 the Fourteenth Amendment, including its protec19 tions of the right to vote and the democratic process. 

20 (B) Section 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment 

21 protects the fundamental right to vote, which is ‘‘of 

22 the most fundamental significance under our con23 stitutional structure’’. Ill. Bd. of Election v. Socialist 

24 Workers Party, 440 U.S. 173, 184 (1979); see 

25 United States v. Classic, 313 U.S. 299 (1941) (‘‘ObVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 viously included within the right to choose, secured 

2 by the Constitution, is the right of qualified voters 

3 within a state to cast their ballots and have them 

4 counted . . .’’). As the Supreme Court has repeatedly 

5 affirmed, the right to vote is ‘‘preservative of all 

6 rights’’, Yick Wo v. Hopkins, 118 U.S. 356, 370 

7 (1886). Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment 

8 also protects the right to vote, granting Congress 

9 additional authority to reduce a State’s representa10 tion in Congress when the right to vote is abridged 

11 or denied. 

12 (C) As a result, Congress finds that it has the 

13 authority pursuant to section 5 of the Fourteenth 

14 Amendment to protect the right to vote. Congress 

15 also finds that States and localities have eroded ac16 cess to the right to vote through restrictions on the 

17 right to vote including excessively onerous voter 

18 identification requirements, burdensome voter reg19 istration procedures, voter purges, limited and un20 equal access to voting by mail, polling place closures, 

21 unequal distribution of election resources, and other 

22 impediments. 

23 (D) Congress also finds that ‘‘the right of suf24 frage can be denied by a debasement or dilution of 

25 the weight of a citizen’s vote just as effectively as by 


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1 wholly prohibiting the free exercise of the franchise’’. 

2 Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533, 555 (1964). Con3 gress finds that the right of suffrage has been so di4 luted and debased by means of gerrymandering of 

5 districts. Congress finds that it has authority pursu6 ant to section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to 

7 remedy this debasement. 

8 (4)(A) Congress also finds that it has authority 

9 to legislate to eliminate racial discrimination in vot10 ing and the democratic process pursuant to both sec11 tion 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment, which grants 

12 equal protection of the laws, and section 2 of the 

13 Fifteenth Amendment, which explicitly bars denial 

14 or abridgment of the right to vote on account of 

15 race, color, or previous condition of servitude. 

16 (B) Congress finds that racial discrimination in 

17 access to voting and the political process persists. 

18 Voting restrictions, redistricting, and other electoral 

19 practices and processes continue to disproportion20 ately impact communities of color in the United 

21 States and do so as a result of both intentional ra22 cial discrimination, structural racism, and the ongo23 ing structural socioeconomic effects of historical ra24 cial discrimination. 


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1 (C) Recent elections and studies have shown 

2 that minority communities wait longer in lines to 

3 vote, are more likely to have their mail ballots re4 jected, continue to face intimidation at the polls, are 

5 more likely to be disenfranchised by voter purges, 

6 and are disproportionately burdened by voter identi7 fication and other voter restrictions. Research shows 

8 that communities of color are more likely to face 

9 nearly every barrier to voting than their white coun10 terparts. 

11 (D) Congress finds that racial disparities in dis12 enfranchisement due to past felony convictions is 

13 particularly stark. In 2020, according to the Sen14 tencing Project, an estimated 5,200,000 Americans 

15 could not vote due to a felony conviction. One in 16 

16 African Americans of voting age is disenfranchised, 

17 a rate 3.7 times greater than that of non-African 

18 Americans. In seven States—Alabama, Florida, 

19 Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wy20 oming—more than one in seven African Americans 

21 is disenfranchised, twice the national average for Af22 rican Americans. Congress finds that felony dis23 enfranchisement was one of the tools of intentional 

24 racial discrimination during the Jim Crow era. Con25 gress further finds that current racial disparities in 


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1 felony disenfranchisement are linked to this history 

2 of voter suppression, structural racism in the crimi3 nal justice system, and ongoing effects of historical 

4 discrimination. 

5 (5)(A) Congress finds that it further has the 

6 power to protect the right to vote from denial or 

7 abridgment on account of sex, age, or ability to pay 

8 a poll tax or other tax pursuant to the Nineteenth, 

9 Twenty-Fourth, and Twenty-Sixth Amendments. 

10 (B) Congress finds that electoral practices in11 cluding voting rights restoration conditions for peo12 ple with convictions, voter identification require13 ments, and other restrictions to the franchise burden 

14 voters on account of their ability to pay. 

15 (C) Congress further finds that electoral prac16 tices including voting restrictions related to college 

17 campuses, age restrictions on mail voting, and simi18 lar practices burden the right to vote on account of 

19 age. 

20 SEC. 4. STANDARDS FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—For any action brought for declar22 atory or injunctive relief to challenge, whether facially or 

23 as-applied, the constitutionality or lawfulness of any provi24 sion of this Act or any amendment made by this Act or 


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1 any rule or regulation promulgated under this Act, the fol2 lowing rules shall apply: 

3 (1) The action shall be filed in the United 

4 States District Court for the District of Columbia 

5 and an appeal from the decision of the district court 

6 may be taken to the Court of Appeals for the Dis7 trict of Columbia Circuit. These courts, and the Su8 preme Court of the United States on a writ of cer9 tiorari (if such writ is issued), shall have exclusive 

10 jurisdiction to hear such actions. 

11 (2) The party filing the action shall concur12 rently deliver a copy the complaint to the Clerk of 

13 the House of Representatives and the Secretary of 

14 the Senate. 

15 (3) It shall be the duty of the United States 

16 District Court for the District of Columbia and the 

17 Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir18 cuit to advance on the docket and to expedite to the 

19 greatest possible extent the disposition of the action 

20 and appeal. 

21 (b) CLARIFYING SCOPE OF JURISDICTION.—If an ac22 tion at the time of its commencement is not subject to 

23 subsection (a), but an amendment, counterclaim, cross24 claim, affirmative defense, or any other pleading or motion 

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1 stitutionality or lawfulness of this Act or any amendment 

2 made by this Act or any rule or regulation promulgated 

3 under this Act, the district court shall transfer the action 

4 to the District Court for the District of Columbia, and 

5 the action shall thereafter be conducted pursuant to sub6 section (a). 

7 (c) INTERVENTION BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.—In 

8 any action described in subsection (a), any Member of the 

9 House of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resi10 dent Commissioner to the Congress) or Senate shall have 

11 the right to intervene either in support of or opposition 

12 to the position of a party to the case regarding the con13 stitutionality of the provision. To avoid duplication of ef14 forts and reduce the burdens placed on the parties to the 

15 action, the court in any such action may make such orders 

16 as it considers necessary, including orders to require 

17 interveners taking similar positions to file joint papers or 

18 to be represented by a single attorney at oral argument. 

19 DIVISION A—VOTING 

20 TITLE I—ELECTION ACCESS 

21 SEC. 1000. SHORT TITLE; STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

22 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This title may be cited as the 

23 ‘‘Voter Empowerment Act of 2021’’. 

24 (b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 

25 United States that— 


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1 (1) the ability of all eligible citizens of the 

2 United States to access and exercise their constitu3 tional right to vote in a free, fair, and timely manner 

4 must be vigilantly enhanced, protected, and main5 tained; and 

6 (2) the integrity, security, and accountability of 

7 the voting process must be vigilantly protected, 

8 maintained, and enhanced in order to protect and 

9 preserve electoral and participatory democracy in the 

10 United States. 

11 Subtitle A—Voter Registration 

12 Modernization 

13 SEC. 1000A. SHORT TITLE. 

14 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Voter Registration 

15 Modernization Act of 2021’’. 

16 PART 1—PROMOTING INTERNET REGISTRATION 

17 SEC. 1001. REQUIRING AVAILABILITY OF INTERNET FOR 

18 VOTER REGISTRATION. 

19 (a) REQUIRING AVAILABILITY OF INTERNET FOR

20 REGISTRATION.—The National Voter Registration Act of 

21 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

22 after section 6 the following new section: 

23 ‘‘SEC. 6A. INTERNET REGISTRATION. 

24 ‘‘(a) REQUIRING AVAILABILITY OF INTERNET FOR

25 ONLINE REGISTRATION.—Each State, acting through the 


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1 chief State election official, shall ensure that the following 

2 services are available to the public at any time on the offi3 cial public websites of the appropriate State and local elec4 tion officials in the State, in the same manner and subject 

5 to the same terms and conditions as the services provided 

6 by voter registration agencies under section 7(a): 

7 ‘‘(1) Online application for voter registration. 

8 ‘‘(2) Online assistance to applicants in applying 

9 to register to vote. 

10 ‘‘(3) Online completion and submission by ap11 plicants of the mail voter registration application 

12 form prescribed by the Election Assistance Commis13 sion pursuant to section 9(a)(2), including assist14 ance with providing a signature as required under 

15 subsection (c). 

16 ‘‘(4) Online receipt of completed voter registra17 tion applications. 

18 ‘‘(b) ACCEPTANCE OF COMPLETED APPLICATIONS.— 

19 A State shall accept an online voter registration applica20 tion provided by an individual under this section, and en21 sure that the individual is registered to vote in the State, 

22 if— 

23 ‘‘(1) the individual meets the same voter reg24 istration requirements applicable to individuals who 

25 register to vote by mail in accordance with section 


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1 6(a)(1) using the mail voter registration application 

2 form prescribed by the Election Assistance Commis3 sion pursuant to section 9(a)(2); and 

4 ‘‘(2) the individual meets the requirements of 

5 subsection (c) to provide a signature in electronic 

6 form (but only in the case of applications submitted 

7 during or after the second year in which this section 

8 is in effect in the State). 

9 ‘‘(c) SIGNATURE REQUIREMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec11 tion, an individual meets the requirements of this 

12 subsection as follows: 

13 ‘‘(A) In the case of an individual who has 

14 a signature on file with a State agency, includ15 ing the State motor vehicle authority, that is 

16 required to provide voter registration services 

17 under this Act or any other law, the individual 

18 consents to the transfer of that electronic signa19 ture. 

20 ‘‘(B) If subparagraph (A) does not apply, 

21 the individual submits with the application an 

22 electronic copy of the individual’s handwritten 

23 signature through electronic means. 

24 ‘‘(C) If subparagraph (A) and subpara25 graph (B) do not apply, the individual executes 


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1 a computerized mark in the signature field on 

2 an online voter registration application, in ac3 cordance with reasonable security measures es4 tablished by the State, but only if the State ac5 cepts such mark from the individual. 

6 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF INDIVIDUALS UNABLE TO

7 MEET REQUIREMENT.—If an individual is unable to 

8 meet the requirements of paragraph (1), the State 

9 shall— 

10 ‘‘(A) permit the individual to complete all 

11 other elements of the online voter registration 

12 application; 

13 ‘‘(B) permit the individual to provide a sig14 nature at the time the individual requests a bal15 lot in an election (whether the individual re16 quests the ballot at a polling place or requests 

17 the ballot by mail); and 

18 ‘‘(C) if the individual carries out the steps 

19 described in subparagraph (A) and subpara20 graph (B), ensure that the individual is reg21 istered to vote in the State. 

22 ‘‘(3) NOTICE.—The State shall ensure that in23 dividuals applying to register to vote online are noti24 fied of the requirements of paragraph (1) and of the 


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1 treatment of individuals unable to meet such re2 quirements, as described in paragraph (2). 

3 ‘‘(d) CONFIRMATION AND DISPOSITION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) CONFIRMATION OF RECEIPT.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon the online sub6 mission of a completed voter registration appli7 cation by an individual under this section, the 

8 appropriate State or local election official shall 

9 provide the individual a notice confirming the 

10 State’s receipt of the application and providing 

11 instructions on how the individual may check 

12 the status of the application. 

13 ‘‘(B) METHOD OF NOTIFICATION.—The 

14 appropriate State or local election official shall 

15 provide the notice required under subparagraph 

16 (A) though the online submission process and— 

17 ‘‘(i) in the case of an individual who 

18 has provided the official with an electronic 

19 mail address, by electronic mail; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) at the option of the individual, 

21 by text message. 

22 ‘‘(2) NOTICE OF DISPOSITION.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 7 days 

24 after the appropriate State or local election offi25 cial has approved or rejected an application 


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1 submitted by an individual under this section, 

2 the official shall provide the individual a notice 

3 of the disposition of the application. 

4 ‘‘(B) METHOD OF NOTIFICATION.—The 

5 appropriate State or local election official shall 

6 provide the notice required under subparagraph 

7 (A) by regular mail and— 

8 ‘‘(i) in the case of an individual who 

9 has provided the official with an electronic 

10 mail address, by electronic mail; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) at the option of the individual, 

12 by text message. 

13 ‘‘(e) PROVISION OF SERVICES IN NONPARTISAN

14 MANNER.—The services made available under subsection 

15 (a) shall be provided in a manner that ensures that— 

16 ‘‘(1) the online application does not seek to in17 fluence an applicant’s political preference or party 

18 registration; and 

19 ‘‘(2) there is no display on the website pro20 moting any political preference or party allegiance, 

21 except that nothing in this paragraph may be con22 strued to prohibit an applicant from registering to 

23 vote as a member of a political party. 

24 ‘‘(f) PROTECTION OF SECURITY OF INFORMATION.— 

25 In meeting the requirements of this section, the State shall 


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1 establish appropriate technological security measures to 

2 prevent to the greatest extent practicable any unauthor3 ized access to information provided by individuals using 

4 the services made available under subsection (a). 

5 ‘‘(g) ACCESSIBILITY OF SERVICES.—A state shall en6 sure that the services made available under this section 

7 are made available to individuals with disabilities to the 

8 same extent as services are made available to all other in9 dividuals. 

10 ‘‘(h) NONDISCRIMINATION AMONG REGISTERED

11 VOTERS USING MAIL AND ONLINE REGISTRATION.—In 

12 carrying out this Act, the Help America Vote Act of 2002, 

13 or any other Federal, State, or local law governing the 

14 treatment of registered voters in the State or the adminis15 tration of elections for public office in the State, a State 

16 shall treat a registered voter who registered to vote online 

17 in accordance with this section in the same manner as the 

18 State treats a registered voter who registered to vote by 

19 mail.’’. 

20 (b) SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS FOR INDIVIDUALS

21 USING ONLINE REGISTRATION.— 

22 (1) TREATMENT AS INDIVIDUALS REGISTERING

23 TO VOTE BY MAIL FOR PURPOSES OF FIRST-TIME

24 VOTER IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

25 303(b)(1)(A) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 


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1 (52 U.S.C. 21083(b)(1)(A)) is amended by striking 

2 ‘‘by mail’’ and inserting ‘‘by mail or online under 

3 section 6A of the National Voter Registration Act of 

4 1993’’. 

5 (2) REQUIRING SIGNATURE FOR FIRST-TIME

6 VOTERS IN JURISDICTION.—Section 303(b) of such 

7 Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(b)) is amended— 

8 (A) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 

9 paragraph (6); and 

10 (B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 

11 following new paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(5) SIGNATURE REQUIREMENTS FOR FIRST13 TIME VOTERS USING ONLINE REGISTRATION.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State shall, in a 

15 uniform and nondiscriminatory manner, require 

16 an individual to meet the requirements of sub17 paragraph (B) if— 

18 ‘‘(i) the individual registered to vote 

19 in the State online under section 6A of the 

20 National Voter Registration Act of 1993; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(ii) the individual has not previously 

23 voted in an election for Federal office in 

24 the State. 


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1 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—An individual 

2 meets the requirements of this subparagraph 

3 if— 

4 ‘‘(i) in the case of an individual who 

5 votes in person, the individual provides the 

6 appropriate State or local election official 

7 with a handwritten signature; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) in the case of an individual who 

9 votes by mail, the individual submits with 

10 the ballot a handwritten signature. 

11 ‘‘(C) INAPPLICABILITY.—Subparagraph 

12 (A) does not apply in the case of an individual 

13 who is— 

14 ‘‘(i) entitled to vote by absentee ballot 

15 under the Uniformed and Overseas Citi16 zens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 

17 20302 et seq.); 

18 ‘‘(ii) provided the right to vote other19 wise than in person under section 

20 3(b)(2)(B)(ii) of the Voting Accessibility 

21 for the Elderly and Handicapped Act (52 

22 U.S.C. 20102(b)(2)(B)(ii)); or 

23 ‘‘(iii) entitled to vote otherwise than 

24 in person under any other Federal law.’’. 


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1 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

2 EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 303(d)(2)(A) of such 

3 Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(d)(2)(A)) is amended by 

4 striking ‘‘Each State’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as pro5 vided in subsection (b)(5), each State’’. 

6 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (1) TIMING OF REGISTRATION.—Section 8(a)(1) 

8 of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 

9 U.S.C. 20507(a)(1)) is amended— 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub11 paragraph (C); 

12 (B) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as 

13 subparagraph (E); and 

14 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (C) 

15 the following new subparagraph: 

16 ‘‘(D) in the case of online registration 

17 through the official public website of an election 

18 official under section 6A, if the valid voter reg19 istration application is submitted online not 

20 later than the lesser of 28 days, or the period 

21 provided by State law, before the date of the 

22 election (as determined by treating the date on 

23 which the application is sent electronically as 

24 the date on which it is submitted); and’’. 


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1 (2) INFORMING APPLICANTS OF ELIGIBILITY

2 REQUIREMENTS AND PENALTIES.—Section 8(a)(5) 

3 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20507(a)(5)) is amended by 

4 striking ‘‘and 7’’ and inserting ‘‘6A, and 7’’. 

5 SEC. 1002. USE OF INTERNET TO UPDATE REGISTRATION 

6 INFORMATION. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

8 (1) UPDATES TO INFORMATION CONTAINED ON

9 COMPUTERIZED STATEWIDE VOTER REGISTRATION

10 LIST.—Section 303(a) of the Help America Vote Act 

11 of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21083(a)) is amended by adding 

12 at the end the following new paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(6) USE OF INTERNET BY REGISTERED VOT14 ERS TO UPDATE INFORMATION.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The appropriate State 

16 or local election official shall ensure that any 

17 registered voter on the computerized list may at 

18 any time update the voter’s registration infor19 mation, including the voter’s address and elec20 tronic mail address, online through the official 

21 public website of the election official responsible 

22 for the maintenance of the list, so long as the 

23 voter attests to the contents of the update by 

24 providing a signature in electronic form in the 


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1 same manner required under section 6A(c) of 

2 the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. 

3 ‘‘(B) PROCESSING OF UPDATED INFORMA4 TION BY ELECTION OFFICIALS.—If a registered 

5 voter updates registration information under 

6 subparagraph (A), the appropriate State or 

7 local election official shall— 

8 ‘‘(i) revise any information on the 

9 computerized list to reflect the update 

10 made by the voter; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) if the updated registration infor12 mation affects the voter’s eligibility to vote 

13 in an election for Federal office, ensure 

14 that the information is processed with re15 spect to the election if the voter updates 

16 the information not later than the lesser of 

17 7 days, or the period provided by State 

18 law, before the date of the election. 

19 ‘‘(C) CONFIRMATION AND DISPOSITION.— 

20 ‘‘(i) CONFIRMATION OF RECEIPT.— 

21 Upon the online submission of updated 

22 registration information by an individual 

23 under this paragraph, the appropriate 

24 State or local election official shall send 

25 the individual a notice confirming the 


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1 State’s receipt of the updated information 

2 and providing instructions on how the indi3 vidual may check the status of the update. 

4 ‘‘(ii) NOTICE OF DISPOSITION.—Not 

5 later than 7 days after the appropriate 

6 State or local election official has accepted 

7 or rejected updated information submitted 

8 by an individual under this paragraph, the 

9 official shall send the individual a notice of 

10 the disposition of the update. 

11 ‘‘(iii) METHOD OF NOTIFICATION.— 

12 The appropriate State or local election offi13 cial shall send the notices required under 

14 this subparagraph by regular mail and— 

15 ‘‘(I) in the case of an individual 

16 who has requested that the State pro17 vide voter registration and voting in18 formation through electronic mail, by 

19 electronic mail; and 

20 ‘‘(II) at the option of the indi21 vidual, by text message.’’. 

22 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

23 EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 303(d)(1)(A) of such 

24 Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(d)(1)(A)) is amended by 


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1 striking ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub2 paragraph (B) and subsection (a)(6)’’. 

3 (b) ABILITY OF REGISTRANT TO USE ONLINE UP4 DATE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION ON RESIDENCE.—Sec5 tion 8(d)(2)(A) of the National Voter Registration Act of 

6 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20507(d)(2)(A)) is amended— 

7 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting after ‘‘re8 turn the card’’ the following: ‘‘or update the reg9 istrant’s information on the computerized Statewide 

10 voter registration list using the online method pro11 vided under section 303(a)(6) of the Help America 

12 Vote Act of 2002’’; and 

13 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘re14 turned,’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘returned or if 

15 the registrant does not update the registrant’s infor16 mation on the computerized Statewide voter reg17 istration list using such online method,’’. 

18 SEC. 1003. PROVISION OF ELECTION INFORMATION BY 

19 ELECTRONIC MAIL TO INDIVIDUALS REG20 ISTERED TO VOTE. 

21 (a) INCLUDING OPTION ON VOTER REGISTRATION

22 APPLICATION TO PROVIDE E–MAIL ADDRESS AND RE23 CEIVE INFORMATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 9(b) of the National 

2 Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

3 20508(b)) is amended— 

4 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para5 graph (3); 

6 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

7 paragraph (4) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

8 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

9 paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(5) shall include a space for the applicant to 

11 provide (at the applicant’s option) an electronic mail 

12 address, together with a statement that, if the appli13 cant so requests, instead of using regular mail the 

14 appropriate State and local election officials shall 

15 provide to the applicant, through electronic mail sent 

16 to that address, the same voting information (as de17 fined in section 302(b)(2) of the Help America Vote 

18 Act of 2002) which the officials would provide to the 

19 applicant through regular mail.’’. 

20 (2) PROHIBITING USE FOR PURPOSES UNRE21 LATED TO OFFICIAL DUTIES OF ELECTION OFFI22 CIALS.—Section 9 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20508) is 

23 amended by adding at the end the following new 

24 subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITING USE OF ELECTRONIC MAIL AD2 DRESSES FOR OTHER THAN OFFICIAL PURPOSES.—The 

3 chief State election official shall ensure that any electronic 

4 mail address provided by an applicant under subsection 

5 (b)(5) is used only for purposes of carrying out official 

6 duties of election officials and is not transmitted by any 

7 State or local election official (or any agent of such an 

8 official, including a contractor) to any person who does 

9 not require the address to carry out such official duties 

10 and who is not under the direct supervision and control 

11 of a State or local election official.’’. 

12 (b) REQUIRING PROVISION OF INFORMATION BY

13 ELECTION OFFICIALS.—Section 302(b) of the Help Amer14 ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082(b)) is amended 

15 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

16 ‘‘(3) PROVISION OF OTHER INFORMATION BY

17 ELECTRONIC MAIL.—If an individual who is a reg18 istered voter has provided the State or local election 

19 official with an electronic mail address for the pur20 pose of receiving voting information (as described in 

21 section 9(b)(5) of the National Voter Registration 

22 Act of 1993), the appropriate State or local election 

23 official, through electronic mail transmitted not later 

24 than 7 days before the date of the election for Fed25 eral office involved, shall provide the individual with 


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1 information on how to obtain the following informa2 tion by electronic means: 

3 ‘‘(A)(i) If the individual is assigned to vote 

4 in the election at a specific polling place— 

5 ‘‘(I) the name and address of the poll6 ing place; and 

7 ‘‘(II) the hours of operation for the 

8 polling place. 

9 ‘‘(ii) If the individual is not assigned to 

10 vote in the election at a specific polling place— 

11 ‘‘(I) the name and address of loca12 tions at which the individual is eligible to 

13 vote; and 

14 ‘‘(II) the hours of operation for those 

15 locations. 

16 ‘‘(B) A description of any identification or 

17 other information the individual may be re18 quired to present at the polling place or a loca19 tion described in subparagraph (A)(ii)(I) to vote 

20 in the election.’’. 

21 SEC. 1004. CLARIFICATION OF REQUIREMENT REGARDING 

22 NECESSARY INFORMATION TO SHOW ELIGI23 BILITY TO VOTE. 

24 Section 8 of the National Voter Registration Act of 

25 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20507) is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating subsection (j) as sub2 section (k); and 

3 (2) by inserting after subsection (i) the fol4 lowing new subsection: 

5 ‘‘(j) REQUIREMENT FOR STATE TO REGISTER APPLI6 CANTS PROVIDING NECESSARY INFORMATION TO SHOW

7 ELIGIBILITY TO VOTE.—For purposes meeting the re8 quirement of subsection (a)(1) that an eligible applicant 

9 is registered to vote in an election for Federal office within 

10 the deadlines required under such subsection, the State 

11 shall consider an applicant to have provided a ‘valid voter 

12 registration form’ if— 

13 ‘‘(1) the applicant has substantially completed 

14 the application form and attested to the statement 

15 required by section 9(b)(2); and 

16 ‘‘(2) in the case of an applicant who registers 

17 to vote online in accordance with section 6A, the ap18 plicant provides a signature in accordance with sub19 section (c) of such section.’’. 

20 SEC. 1005. PROHIBITING STATE FROM REQUIRING APPLI21 CANTS TO PROVIDE MORE THAN LAST 4 DIG22 ITS OF SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER. 

23 (a) FORM INCLUDED WITH APPLICATION FOR

24 MOTOR VEHICLE DRIVER’S LICENSE.—Section 

25 5(c)(2)(B)(ii) of the National Voter Registration Act of 


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1 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20504(c)(2)(B)(ii)) is amended by strik2 ing the semicolon at the end and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘, and to the extent that the application requires the appli4 cant to provide a Social Security number, may not require 

5 the applicant to provide more than the last 4 digits of such 

6 number;’’. 

7 (b) NATIONAL MAIL VOTER REGISTRATION FORM.— 

8 Section 9(b)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20508(b)(1)) is 

9 amended by striking the semicolon at the end and insert10 ing the following: ‘‘, and to the extent that the form re11 quires the applicant to provide a Social Security number, 

12 the form may not require the applicant to provide more 

13 than the last 4 digits of such number;’’. 

14 SEC. 1006. APPLICATION OF RULES TO CERTAIN EXEMPT 

15 STATES. 

16 Section 4 of the National Voter Registration Act of 

17 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20503) is amended by adding at the end 

18 the following new subsection: 

19 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF INTERNET VOTER REGISTRA20 TION RULES.—Notwithstanding subsection (b), the fol21 lowing provisions shall apply to a State described in para22 graph (2) thereof: 

23 ‘‘(1) Section 6A (as added by section 1001(a) 

24 of the Voter Registration Modernization Act of 

25 2021). 


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1 ‘‘(2) Section 8(a)(1)(D) (as added by section 

2 1001(c)(1) of the Voter Registration Modernization 

3 Act of 2021). 

4 ‘‘(3) Section 8(a)(5) (as amended by section 

5 1001(c)(2) of Voter Registration Modernization Act 

6 of 2021), but only to the extent such provision re7 lates to section 6A. 

8 ‘‘(4) Section 8(j) (as added by section 1004 of 

9 the Voter Registration Modernization Act of 2021), 

10 but only to the extent such provision relates to sec11 tion 6A.’’. 

12 SEC. 1007. REPORT ON DATA COLLECTION. 

13 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

14 of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit to Congress 

15 a report on local, State, and Federal personally identifi16 able information data collections efforts, the cyber security 

17 resources necessary to defend such efforts from online at18 tacks, and the impact of a potential data breach of local, 

19 State, or Federal online voter registration systems. 

20 SEC. 1008. PERMITTING VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICA21 TION FORM TO SERVE AS APPLICATION FOR 

22 ABSENTEE BALLOT. 

23 Section 5(c)(2) of the National Voter Registration 

24 Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20504(c)(2)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara2 graph (D); 

3 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub4 paragraph (E) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub6 paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(F) at the option of the applicant, shall 

8 serve as an application to vote by absentee bal9 lot in the next election for Federal office held 

10 in the State and in each subsequent election for 

11 Federal office held in the State.’’. 

12 SEC. 1009. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

14 (b), the amendments made by this part (other than the 

15 amendments made by section 1004) shall take effect Jan16 uary 1, 2022. 

17 (b) WAIVER.—If a State certifies to the Election As18 sistance Commission not later than January 1, 2022, that 

19 the State will not meet the deadline described in sub20 section (a) because it would be impracticable to do so and 

21 includes in the certification the reasons for the failure to 

22 meet such deadline, subsection (a) shall apply to the State 

23 as if the reference in such subsection to ‘‘January 1, 

24 2022’’ were a reference to ‘‘January 1, 2024’’. 


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1 PART 2—AUTOMATIC VOTER REGISTRATION 

2 SEC. 1011. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This part may be cited as the 

4 ‘‘Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2021’’. 

5 (b) FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.— 

6 (1) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

7 (A) the right to vote is a fundamental 

8 right of citizens of the United States; 

9 (B) it is the responsibility of the State and 

10 Federal Governments to ensure that every eligi11 ble citizen is registered to vote; 

12 (C) existing voter registration systems can 

13 be inaccurate, costly, inaccessible and con14 fusing, with damaging effects on voter partici15 pation in elections for Federal office and dis16 proportionate impacts on young people, persons 

17 with disabilities, and racial and ethnic minori18 ties; and 

19 (D) voter registration systems must be up20 dated with 21st Century technologies and pro21 cedures to maintain their security. 

22 (2) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this part— 

23 (A) to establish that it is the responsibility 

24 of government at every level to ensure that all 

25 eligible citizens are registered to vote in elec26 tions for Federal office; 


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1 (B) to enable the State and Federal Gov2 ernments to register all eligible citizens to vote 

3 with accurate, cost-efficient, and up-to-date pro4 cedures; 

5 (C) to modernize voter registration and list 

6 maintenance procedures with electronic and 

7 internet capabilities; and 

8 (D) to protect and enhance the integrity, 

9 accuracy, efficiency, and accessibility of the 

10 electoral process for all eligible citizens. 

11 SEC. 1012. AUTOMATIC REGISTRATION OF ELIGIBLE INDI12 VIDUALS. 

13 (a) REQUIRING STATES TO ESTABLISH AND OPER14 ATE AUTOMATIC REGISTRATION SYSTEM.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The chief State election offi16 cial of each State shall establish and operate a sys17 tem of automatic registration for the registration of 

18 eligible individuals to vote for elections for Federal 

19 office in the State, in accordance with the provisions 

20 of this part. 

21 (2) DEFINITION.—The term ‘‘automatic reg22 istration’’ means a system that registers an indi23 vidual to vote in elections for Federal office in a 

24 State, if eligible, by electronically transferring the 

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1 ment agencies to election officials of the State so 

2 that, unless the individual affirmatively declines to 

3 be registered, the individual will be registered to vote 

4 in such elections. 

5 (b) REGISTRATION OF VOTERS BASED ON NEW

6 AGENCY RECORDS.—The chief State election official 

7 shall— 

8 (1) not later than 15 days after a contributing 

9 agency has transmitted information with respect to 

10 an individual pursuant to section 1013, ensure that 

11 the individual is registered to vote in elections for 

12 Federal office in the State if the individual is eligible 

13 to be registered to vote in such elections; and 

14 (2) not later than 120 days after an individual 

15 is registered under this part, send written notice to 

16 the individual, in addition to other means of notice 

17 established by this part, of the individual’s voter reg18 istration status. 

19 (c) TREATMENT OF INDIVIDUALS UNDER 18 YEARS

20 OF AGE.—A State may not refuse to treat an individual 

21 as an eligible individual for purposes of this part on the 

22 grounds that the individual is less than 18 years of age 

23 at the time a contributing agency receives information 

24 with respect to the individual, so long as the individual 

25 is at least 16 years of age at such time. Nothing in the 


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1 previous sentence may be construed to require a State to 

2 permit an individual who is under 18 years of age at the 

3 time of an election for Federal office to vote in the elec4 tion. 

5 (d) CONTRIBUTING AGENCY DEFINED.—In this part, 

6 the term ‘‘contributing agency’’ means, with respect to a 

7 State, an agency listed in section 1013(e). 

8 SEC. 1013. CONTRIBUTING AGENCY ASSISTANCE IN REG9 ISTRATION. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with this part, each 

11 contributing agency in a State shall assist the State’s chief 

12 election official in registering to vote all eligible individuals 

13 served by that agency. 

14 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR CONTRIBUTING AGEN15 CIES.— 

16 (1) INSTRUCTIONS ON AUTOMATIC REGISTRA17 TION.—Except as otherwise provided in this section, 

18 with each application for service or assistance, and 

19 with each related recertification, renewal, or change 

20 of address, or, in the case of a covered institution 

21 of higher education, upon initial enrollment of an in22 State student, each contributing agency (other than 

23 a contributing agency described in subsection 

24 (e)(1)(B)(ii)) that (in the normal course of its oper25 ations) requests individuals to affirm United States 


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1 citizenship (either directly or as part of the overall 

2 application for service or assistance or enrollment) 

3 shall inform each such individual who is a citizen of 

4 the United States of the following: 

5 (A) Unless that individual declines to reg6 ister to vote, or is found ineligible to vote, the 

7 individual will be registered to vote or, if appli8 cable, the individual’s registration will be up9 dated. 

10 (B) The substantive qualifications of an 

11 elector in the State as listed in the mail voter 

12 registration application form for elections for 

13 Federal office prescribed pursuant to section 9 

14 of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, 

15 the consequences of false registration, and the 

16 individual should decline to register if the indi17 vidual does not meet all those qualifications. 

18 (C) In the case of a State in which affili19 ation or enrollment with a political party is re20 quired in order to participate in an election to 

21 select the party’s candidate in an election for 

22 Federal office, the requirement that the indi23 vidual must affiliate or enroll with a political 

24 party in order to participate in such an election. 


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1 (D) Voter registration is voluntary, and 

2 neither registering nor declining to register to 

3 vote will in any way affect the availability of 

4 services or benefits, nor be used for other pur5 poses. 

6 (2) OPPORTUNITY TO DECLINE REGISTRATION

7 REQUIRED.—Except as otherwise provided in this 

8 section, each contributing agency shall ensure that 

9 each application for service or assistance, and each 

10 related recertification, renewal, or change of address, 

11 cannot be completed until the individual is given the 

12 opportunity to decline to be registered to vote. 

13 (3) INFORMATION TRANSMITTAL.—Each con14 tributing agency shall electronically transmit to the 

15 appropriate State election official the following infor16 mation for each individual described in paragraph 

17 (1) who did not decline to be registered to vote: 

18 (A) The individual’s given name(s) and 

19 surname(s). 

20 (B) The individual’s date of birth. 

21 (C) The individual’s residential address. 

22 (D) Information showing that the indi23 vidual is a citizen of the United States. 


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1 (E) The date on which information per2 taining to that individual was collected or last 

3 updated. 

4 (F) If available, the individual’s signature 

5 in electronic form. 

6 (G) Except in the case in which the con7 tributing agency is a covered institution of 

8 higher education, in the case of a State in 

9 which affiliation or enrollment with a political 

10 party is required in order to participate in an 

11 election to select the party’s candidate in an 

12 election for Federal office, information regard13 ing the individual’s affiliation or enrollment 

14 with a political party, but only if the individual 

15 provides such information. 

16 (H) Any additional information listed in 

17 the mail voter registration application form for 

18 elections for Federal office prescribed pursuant 

19 to section 9 of the National Voter Registration 

20 Act of 1993, including any valid driver’s license 

21 number or the last 4 digits of the individual’s 

22 social security number, if the individual pro23 vided such information. 

24 (4) PROVISION OF INFORMATION REGARDING

25 PARTICIPATION IN PRIMARY ELECTIONS.—In the 


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1 case of a State in which affiliation or enrollment 

2 with a political party is required in order to partici3 pate in an election to select the party’s candidate in 

4 an election for Federal office, if the information 

5 transmitted under paragraph (3)(G) for an indi6 vidual does not include information regarding the in7 dividual’s affiliation or enrollment with a political 

8 party, the chief State election official shall— 

9 (A) notify the individual that such affili10 ation or enrollment is required to participate in 

11 primary elections; and 

12 (B) provide an opportunity for the indi13 vidual to update their registration with a party 

14 affiliation or enrollment. 

15 (5) CLARIFICATION.—Nothing in this section 

16 shall be read to require a contributing agency to 

17 transmit to an election official the information de18 scribed in paragraph (3) for an individual who is in19 eligible to vote in elections for Federal office in the 

20 State, except to the extent required to pre-register 

21 citizens between 16 and 18 years of age. 

22 (c) ALTERNATE PROCEDURE FOR CERTAIN CON23 TRIBUTING AGENCIES.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—With each application for 

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1 cation, renewal, or change of address, a contributing 

2 agency described in paragraph (2) shall— 

3 (A) complete the requirements of section 

4 7(a)(6) of the National Voter Registration Act 

5 of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20506(a)(6)); 

6 (B) ensure that each applicant’s trans7 action with the agency cannot be completed 

8 until the applicant has indicated whether the 

9 applicant wishes to register to vote or declines 

10 to register to vote in elections for Federal office 

11 held in the State; and 

12 (C) for each individual who wishes to reg13 ister to vote, transmit that individual’s informa14 tion in accordance with subsection (b)(3). 

15 (2) CONTRIBUTING AGENCIES DESCRIBED.— 

16 The following contributing agencies are described in 

17 this paragraph: 

18 (A) Any contributing agency (other than a 

19 contributing agency that is a covered institution 

20 of higher education) that in the normal course 

21 of its operations does not request individuals 

22 applying for service or assistance to affirm 

23 United States citizenship (either directly or as 

24 part of the overall application for service or as25 sistance). 


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1 (B) A contributing agency described in 

2 subsection (e)(1)(B)(ii). 

3 (d) REQUIRED AVAILABILITY OF AUTOMATIC REG4 ISTRATION OPPORTUNITY WITH EACH APPLICATION FOR

5 SERVICE OR ASSISTANCE.—Each contributing agency 

6 shall offer each individual, with each application for serv7 ice or assistance, and with each related recertification, re8 newal, or change of address, or in the case of an institu9 tion of higher education, upon initial enrollment of a stu10 dent, the opportunity to register to vote as prescribed by 

11 this section without regard to whether the individual pre12 viously declined a registration opportunity. 

13 (e) CONTRIBUTING AGENCIES.— 

14 (1) STATE AGENCIES.—In each State, each of 

15 the following agencies shall be treated as a contrib16 uting agency: 

17 (A) Each agency in a State that is re18 quired by Federal law to provide voter registra19 tion services, including the State motor vehicle 

20 authority and voter registration agencies under 

21 the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. 

22 (B) Each agency in a State that admin23 isters a program pursuant to— 

24 (i) title III of the Social Security Act 

25 (42 U.S.C. 501 et seq.); 


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1 (ii) title XIX of the Social Security 

2 Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.); or 

3 (iii) the Patient Protection and Af4 fordable Care Act (Public Law 111–148). 

5 (C) Each State agency primarily respon6 sible for regulating the private possession of 

7 firearms. 

8 (D) Each State agency primarily respon9 sible for maintaining identifying information for 

10 students enrolled at public secondary schools, 

11 including, where applicable, the State agency 

12 responsible for maintaining the education data 

13 system described in section 6201(e)(2) of the 

14 America COMPETES Act (20 U.S.C. 

15 9871(e)(2)). 

16 (E) In the case of a State in which an in17 dividual disenfranchised by a criminal convic18 tion may become eligible to vote upon comple19 tion of a criminal sentence or any part thereof, 

20 or upon formal restoration of rights, the State 

21 agency responsible for administering that sen22 tence, or part thereof, or that restoration of 

23 rights. 


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1 (F) Any other agency of the State which is 

2 designated by the State as a contributing agen3 cy. 

4 (2) FEDERAL AGENCIES.—In each State, each 

5 of the following agencies of the Federal Government 

6 shall be treated as a contributing agency with re7 spect to individuals who are residents of that State 

8 (except as provided in subparagraph (C)): 

9 (A) The Social Security Administration, 

10 the Department of Veterans Affairs, the De11 fense Manpower Data Center of the Depart12 ment of Defense, the Employee and Training 

13 Administration of the Department of Labor, 

14 and the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Serv15 ices of the Department of Health and Human 

16 Services. 

17 (B) The Bureau of Citizenship and Immi18 gration Services, but only with respect to indi19 viduals who have completed the naturalization 

20 process. 

21 (C) In the case of an individual who is a 

22 resident of a State in which an individual 

23 disenfranchised by a criminal conviction under 

24 Federal law may become eligible to vote upon 

25 completion of a criminal sentence or any part 


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1 thereof, or upon formal restoration of rights, 

2 the Federal agency responsible for admin3 istering that sentence or part thereof (without 

4 regard to whether the agency is located in the 

5 same State in which the individual is a resi6 dent), but only with respect to individuals who 

7 have completed the criminal sentence or any 

8 part thereof. 

9 (D) Any other agency of the Federal gov10 ernment which the State designates as a con11 tributing agency, but only if the State and the 

12 head of the agency determine that the agency 

13 collects information sufficient to carry out the 

14 responsibilities of a contributing agency under 

15 this section. 

16 (3) INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each covered institu18 tion of higher education shall be treated as a 

19 contributing agency in the State in which the 

20 institution is located with respect to in-State 

21 students. 

22 (B) PROCEDURES FOR INSTITUTIONS OF

23 HIGHER EDUCATION.—Notwithstanding section 

24 444 of the General Education Provisions Act 

25 (20 U.S.C. 1232g; commonly referred to as the 


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1 ‘‘Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 

2 1974’’) or any other provision of law, each cov3 ered institution of higher education shall com4 ply with the requirements of subsection (b) with 

5 respect to each in-State student. In complying 

6 with such requirements, an institution of higher 

7 education— 

8 (i) may use information provided in 

9 the Free Application for Federal Student 

10 Aid described in section 483 of the Higher 

11 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1090) 

12 to collect information described in para13 graph (3) of such subsection (b) for pur14 poses of transmitting such information to 

15 the appropriate State election official pur16 suant to such paragraph; 

17 (ii) shall not be required to prevent or 

18 delay students from enrolling in a course 

19 of study or otherwise impede the comple20 tion of the enrollment process; 

21 (iii) shall not request information on 

22 the affiliation or enrollment with a political 

23 party of a student in accordance with sub24 section (b)(3)(G); and 


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1 (iv) shall not withhold, delay, or im2 pede the provision of Federal financial aid 

3 provided under title IV of the Higher Edu4 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et 

5 seq.). 

6 (C) CLARIFICATION.—Nothing in this part 

7 shall be construed to require an institution of 

8 higher education to request each student affirm 

9 whether or not the student is a United States 

10 citizen or otherwise collect information with re11 spect to citizenship. 

12 (4) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 180 days 

13 prior to the date of each election for Federal office 

14 held in the State, the chief State election official 

15 shall publish on the public website of the official an 

16 updated list of all contributing agencies in that 

17 State. 

18 (5) PUBLIC EDUCATION.—The chief State elec19 tion official of each State, in collaboration with each 

20 contributing agency, shall take appropriate measures 

21 to educate the public about voter registration under 

22 this section. 

23 (6) PERMITTING STATE MEDICAID AGENCIES TO

24 SHARE INFORMATION WITH ELECTION OFFICIALS

25 FOR VOTER REGISTRATION PURPOSES.—Section 


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1 1902(a)(7)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 1396a(a)(7)(A)) is amended— 

3 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

4 inserting a semicolon; and 

5 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

6 clause: 

7 ‘‘(iii) the provision to an appropriate 

8 State election official, in accordance with 

9 subsection (c) of section 1013 of the Auto10 matic Voter Registration Act of 2021, of 

11 information described in subsection (b)(3) 

12 of such section with respect to an applicant 

13 or recipient; and’’. 

14 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 (1) COVERED INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDU16 CATION.—The term ‘‘covered institution of higher 

17 education’’ means an institution of higher education 

18 that— 

19 (A) has a program participation agreement 

20 in effect with the Secretary of Education under 

21 section 487 of the Higher Education Act of 

22 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094); 

23 (B) is located in a State to which section 

24 4(b)(1) of the National Voter Registration Act 


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1 of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20503(b)(1)) does not 

2 apply. 

3 (2) IN-STATE STUDENT.—The term ‘‘in-State 

4 student’’— 

5 (A) means a student enrolled in a covered 

6 institution of higher education who— 

7 (i) for purposes related to in-State 

8 tuition, financial aid eligibility, or other 

9 similar purposes, resides in the State; or 

10 (ii) the institution otherwise knows 

11 maintains permanent residence in the 

12 State; and 

13 (B) includes a student described in clause 

14 (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A) who is enrolled 

15 in a program of distance education, as defined 

16 in section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 

17 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1003). 

18 SEC. 1014. VOTER PROTECTION AND SECURITY IN AUTO19 MATIC REGISTRATION. 

20 (a) PROTECTIONS FOR ERRORS IN REGISTRATION.— 

21 An individual shall not be prosecuted under any Federal 

22 or State law, adversely affected in any civil adjudication 

23 concerning immigration status or naturalization, or sub24 ject to an allegation in any legal proceeding that the indiVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 vidual is not a citizen of the United States on any of the 

2 following grounds: 

3 (1) The individual notified an election office of 

4 the individual’s automatic registration to vote under 

5 this part. 

6 (2) The individual is not eligible to vote in elec7 tions for Federal office but was automatically reg8 istered to vote under this part. 

9 (3) The individual was automatically registered 

10 to vote under this part at an incorrect address. 

11 (4) The individual declined the opportunity to 

12 register to vote or did not make an affirmation of 

13 citizenship, including through automatic registration, 

14 under this part. 

15 (b) LIMITS ON USE OF AUTOMATIC REGISTRA16 TION.—The automatic registration of any individual or the 

17 fact that an individual declined the opportunity to register 

18 to vote or did not make an affirmation of citizenship (in19 cluding through automatic registration) under this part 

20 may not be used as evidence against that individual in any 

21 State or Federal law enforcement proceeding, and an indi22 vidual’s lack of knowledge or willfulness of such registra23 tion may be demonstrated by the individual’s testimony 

24 alone. 


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1 (c) PROTECTION OF ELECTION INTEGRITY.—Noth2 ing in subsections (a) or (b) may be construed to prohibit 

3 or restrict any action under color of law against an indi4 vidual who— 

5 (1) knowingly and willfully makes a false state6 ment to effectuate or perpetuate automatic voter 

7 registration by any individual; or 

8 (2) casts a ballot knowingly and willfully in vio9 lation of State law or the laws of the United States. 

10 (d) CONTRIBUTING AGENCIES’ PROTECTION OF IN11 FORMATION.—Nothing in this part authorizes a contrib12 uting agency to collect, retain, transmit, or publicly dis13 close any of the following, except as necessary to comply 

14 with title III of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 

15 20701 et seq.): 

16 (1) An individual’s decision to decline to reg17 ister to vote or not to register to vote. 

18 (2) An individual’s decision not to affirm his or 

19 her citizenship. 

20 (3) Any information that a contributing agency 

21 transmits pursuant to section 1013(b)(3), except in 

22 pursuing the agency’s ordinary course of business. 

23 (e) ELECTION OFFICIALS’ PROTECTION OF INFOR24 MATION.— 

25 (1) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE PROHIBITED.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara2 graph (B), with respect to any individual for 

3 whom any State election official receives infor4 mation from a contributing agency, the State 

5 election officials shall not publicly disclose any 

6 of the following: 

7 (i) The identity of the contributing 

8 agency. 

9 (ii) Any information not necessary to 

10 voter registration. 

11 (iii) Any voter information otherwise 

12 shielded from disclosure under State law or 

13 section 8(a) of the National Voter Reg14 istration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

15 20507(a)). 

16 (iv) Any portion of the individual’s so17 cial security number. 

18 (v) Any portion of the individual’s 

19 motor vehicle driver’s license number. 

20 (vi) The individual’s signature. 

21 (vii) The individual’s telephone num22 ber. 

23 (viii) The individual’s email address. 

24 (B) SPECIAL RULE FOR INDIVIDUALS REG25 ISTERED TO VOTE.—The prohibition on public 


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1 disclosure in subparagraph (A) shall not apply 

2 with respect to the telephone number or email 

3 address of any individual for whom any State 

4 election official receives information from a con5 tributing agency and who, on the basis of such 

6 information, is registered to vote in the State 

7 under this part. 

8 (2) VOTER RECORD CHANGES.—Each State 

9 shall maintain for at least 2 years and shall make 

10 available for public inspection (and, where available, 

11 photocopying at a reasonable cost), including in elec12 tronic form and through electronic methods, all 

13 records of changes to voter records, including remov14 als, the reasons for removals, and updates. 

15 (3) DATABASE MANAGEMENT STANDARDS.— 

16 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enact17 ment of this Act, the Director of the National Insti18 tute of Standards and Technology, in consultation 

19 with State and local election officials, shall, after 

20 providing the public with notice and the opportunity 

21 to comment— 

22 (A) establish standards governing the com23 parison of data for voter registration list main24 tenance purposes, identifying as part of such 

25 standards the specific data elements, the 


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1 matching rules used, and how a State may use 

2 the data to determine and deem that an indi3 vidual is ineligible under State law to vote in an 

4 election, or to deem a record to be a duplicate 

5 or outdated; 

6 (B) ensure that the standards developed 

7 pursuant to this paragraph are uniform and 

8 nondiscriminatory and are applied in a uniform 

9 and nondiscriminatory manner; 

10 (C) not later than 45 days after the dead11 line for public notice and comment, publish the 

12 standards developed pursuant to this paragraph 

13 on the Director’s website and make those 

14 standards available in written form upon re15 quest; and 

16 (D) ensure that the standards developed 

17 pursuant to this paragraph are maintained and 

18 updated in a manner that reflects innovations 

19 and best practices in the security of database 

20 management. 

21 (4) SECURITY POLICY.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

23 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

24 Director of the National Institute of Standards 

25 and Technology shall, after providing the public 


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1 with notice and the opportunity to comment, 

2 publish privacy and security standards for voter 

3 registration information not later than 45 days 

4 after the deadline for public notice and com5 ment. The standards shall require the chief 

6 State election official of each State to adopt a 

7 policy that shall specify— 

8 (i) each class of users who shall have 

9 authorized access to the computerized 

10 statewide voter registration list, specifying 

11 for each class the permission and levels of 

12 access to be granted, and setting forth 

13 other safeguards to protect the privacy, se14 curity, and accuracy of the information on 

15 the list; and 

16 (ii) security safeguards to protect per17 sonal information transmitted through the 

18 information transmittal processes of sec19 tion 1013, the online system used pursuant 

20 to section 6A of the National Voter Reg21 istration Act of 1993 (as added by section 

22 1001), any telephone interface, the mainte23 nance of the voter registration database, 

24 and any audit procedure to track access to 

25 the system. 


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1 (B) MAINTENANCE AND UPDATING.—The 

2 Director shall ensure that the standards devel3 oped pursuant to this paragraph are maintained 

4 and updated in a manner that reflects innova5 tions and best practices in the privacy and secu6 rity of voter registration information. 

7 (5) STATE COMPLIANCE WITH NATIONAL

8 STANDARDS.— 

9 (A) CERTIFICATION.—The chief State elec10 tion official of the State shall annually file with 

11 the Election Assistance Commission a state12 ment certifying to the Director of the National 

13 Institute of Standards and Technology that the 

14 State is in compliance with the standards re15 ferred to in paragraphs (3) and (4). A State 

16 may meet the requirement of the previous sen17 tence by filing with the Commission a statement 

18 which reads as follows: ‘‘lllll hereby 

19 certifies that it is in compliance with the stand20 ards referred to in paragraphs (3) and (4) of 

21 section 1014(e) of the Automatic Voter Reg22 istration Act of 2021.’’ (with the blank to be 

23 filled in with the name of the State involved). 

24 (B) PUBLICATION OF POLICIES AND PRO25 CEDURES.—The chief State election official of a 


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1 State shall publish on the official’s website the 

2 policies and procedures established under this 

3 section, and shall make those policies and pro4 cedures available in written form upon public 

5 request. 

6 (C) FUNDING DEPENDENT ON CERTIFI7 CATION.—If a State does not timely file the cer8 tification required under this paragraph, it shall 

9 not receive any payment under this part for the 

10 upcoming fiscal year. 

11 (D) COMPLIANCE OF STATES THAT RE12 QUIRE CHANGES TO STATE LAW.—In the case 

13 of a State that requires State legislation to 

14 carry out an activity covered by any certifi15 cation submitted under this paragraph, for a 

16 period of not more than 2 years the State shall 

17 be permitted to make the certification notwith18 standing that the legislation has not been en19 acted at the time the certification is submitted, 

20 and such State shall submit an additional cer21 tification once such legislation is enacted. 

22 (f) RESTRICTIONS ON USE OF INFORMATION.—No 

23 person acting under color of law may discriminate against 

24 any individual based on, or use for any purpose other than 

25 voter registration, election administration, juror selection, 


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1 or enforcement relating to election crimes, any of the fol2 lowing: 

3 (1) Voter registration records. 

4 (2) An individual’s declination to register to 

5 vote or complete an affirmation of citizenship under 

6 section 1013(b). 

7 (3) An individual’s voter registration status. 

8 (g) PROHIBITION ON THE USE OF VOTER REGISTRA9 TION INFORMATION FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES.—In10 formation collected under this part shall not be used for 

11 commercial purposes. Nothing in this subsection may be 

12 construed to prohibit the transmission, exchange, or dis13 semination of information for political purposes, including 

14 the support of campaigns for election for Federal, State, 

15 or local public office or the activities of political commit16 tees (including committees of political parties) under the 

17 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. 

18 SEC. 1015. PAYMENTS AND GRANTS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Election Assistance Commis20 sion shall make grants to each eligible State to assist the 

21 State in implementing the requirements of this part (or, 

22 in the case of an exempt State, in implementing its exist23 ing automatic voter registration program or expanding its 

24 automatic voter registration program in a manner con25 sistent with the requirements of this part). 


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1 (b) ELIGIBILITY; APPLICATION.—A State is eligible 

2 to receive a grant under this section if the State submits 

3 to the Commission, at such time and in such form as the 

4 Commission may require, an application containing— 

5 (1) a description of the activities the State will 

6 carry out with the grant; 

7 (2) an assurance that the State shall carry out 

8 such activities without partisan bias and without 

9 promoting any particular point of view regarding 

10 any issue; and 

11 (3) such other information and assurances as 

12 the Commission may require. 

13 (c) AMOUNT OF GRANT; PRIORITIES.—The Commis14 sion shall determine the amount of a grant made to an 

15 eligible State under this section. In determining the 

16 amounts of the grants, the Commission shall give priority 

17 to providing funds for those activities which are most like18 ly to accelerate compliance with the requirements of this 

19 part (or, in the case of an exempt State, which are most 

20 likely to enhance the ability of the State to automatically 

21 register individuals to vote through its existing automatic 

22 voter registration program), including— 

23 (1) investments supporting electronic informa24 tion transfer, including electronic collection and 


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1 transfer of signatures, between contributing agencies 

2 and the appropriate State election officials; 

3 (2) updates to online or electronic voter reg4 istration systems already operating as of the date of 

5 the enactment of this Act; 

6 (3) introduction of online voter registration sys7 tems in jurisdictions in which those systems did not 

8 previously exist; and 

9 (4) public education on the availability of new 

10 methods of registering to vote, updating registration, 

11 and correcting registration. 

12 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

13 (1) AUTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to 

14 be appropriated to carry out this section— 

15 (A) $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2021; and 

16 (B) such sums as may be necessary for 

17 each succeeding fiscal year. 

18 (2) CONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.— 

19 Any amounts appropriated pursuant to the authority 

20 of this subsection shall remain available without fis21 cal year limitation until expended. 

22 SEC. 1016. TREATMENT OF EXEMPT STATES. 

23 (a) WAIVER OF REQUIREMENTS.—Except as pro24 vided in subsection (b), this part does not apply with re25 spect to an exempt State. 


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1 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—The following provisions of this 

2 part apply with respect to an exempt State: 

3 (1) Section 1015 (relating to payments and 

4 grants). 

5 (2) Section 1017(e) (relating to enforcement). 

6 (3) Section 1017(f) (relating to relation to 

7 other laws). 

8 SEC. 1017. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. 

9 (a) ACCESSIBILITY OF REGISTRATION SERVICES.— 

10 Each contributing agency shall ensure that the services 

11 it provides under this part are made available to individ12 uals with disabilities to the same extent as services are 

13 made available to all other individuals. 

14 (b) TRANSMISSION THROUGH SECURE THIRD PARTY

15 PERMITTED.—Nothing in this part shall be construed to 

16 prevent a contributing agency from contracting with a 

17 third party to assist the agency in meeting the information 

18 transmittal requirements of this part, so long as the data 

19 transmittal complies with the applicable requirements of 

20 this part, including the privacy and security provisions of 

21 section 1014. 

22 (c) NONPARTISAN, NONDISCRIMINATORY PROVISION

23 OF SERVICES.—The services made available by contrib24 uting agencies under this part and by the State under sec25 tion 1014 shall be made in a manner consistent with paraVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 graphs (4), (5), and (6)(C) of section 7(a) of the National 

2 Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20506(a)). 

3 (d) NOTICES.—Each State may send notices under 

4 this part via electronic mail if the individual has provided 

5 an electronic mail address and consented to electronic mail 

6 communications for election-related materials. All notices 

7 sent pursuant to this part that require a response must 

8 offer the individual notified the opportunity to respond at 

9 no cost to the individual. 

10 (e) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 11 of the National 

11 Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20510), relat12 ing to civil enforcement and the availability of private 

13 rights of action, shall apply with respect to this part in 

14 the same manner as such section applies to such Act. 

15 (f) RELATION TO OTHER LAWS.—Except as pro16 vided, nothing in this part may be construed to authorize 

17 or require conduct prohibited under, or to supersede, re18 strict, or limit the application of any of the following: 

19 (1) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

20 10301 et seq.). 

21 (2) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab22 sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.). 

23 (3) The National Voter Registration Act of 

24 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.). 


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1 (4) The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 

2 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.). 

3 (5) The Americans with Disabilities Act of 

4 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 

5 SEC. 1018. DEFINITIONS. 

6 In this part, the following definitions apply: 

7 (1) The term ‘‘chief State election official’’ 

8 means, with respect to a State, the individual des9 ignated by the State under section 10 of the Na10 tional Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

11 20509) to be responsible for coordination of the 

12 State’s responsibilities under such Act. 

13 (2) The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Election 

14 Assistance Commission. 

15 (3) The term ‘‘exempt State’’ means a State 

16 which, under law which is in effect continuously on 

17 and after the date of the enactment of this Act, op18 erates a system of automatic registration (as defined 

19 in section 1012(a)(2)) at the motor vehicle authority 

20 of the State or a Permanent Dividend Fund of the 

21 State under which an individual is provided the op22 portunity to decline registration during the trans23 action or by way of a notice sent by mail or elec24 tronically after the transaction. 


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1 (4) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 

2 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 

3 of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, 

4 Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of 

5 the Northern Mariana Islands. 

6 SEC. 1019. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

8 (b), this part and the amendments made by this part shall 

9 apply with respect to a State and contributing agencies 

10 within a State— 

11 (1) beginning January 1, 2023, for State motor 

12 vehicle authorities; and 

13 (2) beginning January 1, 2025, for all other 

14 contributing agencies. 

15 (b) WAIVER.— 

16 (1) DEADLINE FOR STATE MOTOR VEHICLE AU17 THORITIES.—If a State certifies to the Commission 

18 not later than January 1, 2023, that the State will 

19 not meet the deadline described in subsection (a)(1) 

20 because it would be impracticable to do so and in21 cludes in the certification the reasons for the failure 

22 to meet such deadline, subsection (a)(1) shall apply 

23 to the State as if the reference in such subsection 

24 to ‘‘January 1, 2023’’ were a reference to ‘‘January 

25 1, 2025’’. 


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1 (2) DEADLINE FOR ALL OTHER CONTRIBUTING

2 AGENCIES.—If a State certifies to the Commission 

3 not later than January 1, 2025, that the State will 

4 not meet the deadline described in subsection (a)(2) 

5 because it would be impracticable to do so and in6 cludes in the certification the reasons for the failure 

7 to meet such deadline, subsection (a)(2) shall apply 

8 to the State as if the reference in such subsection 

9 to ‘‘January 1, 2025’’ were a reference to ‘‘January 

10 1, 2028’’. 

11 PART 3—SAME DAY VOTER REGISTRATION 

12 SEC. 1031. SAME DAY REGISTRATION. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 

14 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating sections 304 and 305 as 

16 sections 305 and 306, respectively; and 

17 (2) by inserting after section 303 the following 

18 new section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 304. SAME DAY REGISTRATION. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

21 ‘‘(1) REGISTRATION.—Each State shall permit 

22 any eligible individual on the day of a Federal elec23 tion and on any day when voting, including early 

24 voting, is permitted for a Federal election— 


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1 ‘‘(A) to register to vote in such election at 

2 the polling place using a form that meets the 

3 requirements under section 9(b) of the National 

4 Voter Registration Act of 1993 (or, if the indi5 vidual is already registered to vote, to revise 

6 any of the individual’s voter registration infor7 mation); and 

8 ‘‘(B) to cast a vote in such election. 

9 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The requirements under 

10 paragraph (1) shall not apply to a State in which, 

11 under a State law in effect continuously on and after 

12 the date of the enactment of this section, there is no 

13 voter registration requirement for individuals in the 

14 State with respect to elections for Federal office. 

15 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.—For purposes of this 

16 section, the term ‘eligible individual’ means, with respect 

17 to any election for Federal office, an individual who is oth18 erwise qualified to vote in that election. 

19 ‘‘(c) ENSURING AVAILABILITY OF FORMS.—The 

20 State shall ensure that each polling place has copies of 

21 any forms an individual may be required to complete in 

22 order to register to vote or revise the individual’s voter 

23 registration information under this section. 

24 ‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

2 each State shall be required to comply with the re3 quirements of this section for the regularly sched4 uled general election for Federal office occurring in 

5 November 2022 and for any subsequent election for 

6 Federal office. 

7 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULES FOR ELECTIONS BEFORE

8 NOVEMBER 2026.— 

9 ‘‘(A) ELECTIONS PRIOR TO NOVEMBER

10 2024 GENERAL ELECTION.—A State shall be 

11 deemed to be in compliance with the require12 ments of this section for the regularly scheduled 

13 general election for Federal office occurring in 

14 November 2022 and subsequent elections for 

15 Federal office occurring before the regularly 

16 scheduled general election for Federal office in 

17 November 2024 if at least one location for each 

18 15,000 registered voters in each jurisdiction in 

19 the State meets such requirements. 

20 ‘‘(B) NOVEMBER 2024 GENERAL ELEC21 TION.—If a State certifies to the Commission 

22 not later than November 5, 2024, that the 

23 State will not be in compliance with the require24 ments of this section for the regularly scheduled 

25 general election for Federal office occurring in 


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1 November 2024 because it would be impracti2 cable to do so and includes in the certification 

3 the reasons for the failure to meet such require4 ments, the State shall be deemed to be in com5 pliance with the requirements of this section for 

6 such election if at least one location for each 

7 15,000 registered voters in each jurisdiction in 

8 the State meets such requirements.’’. 

9 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO EN10 FORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) 

11 is amended by striking ‘‘sections 301, 302, and 303’’ and 

12 inserting ‘‘subtitle A of title III’’. 

13 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

14 of such Act is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec16 tions 304 and 305 as relating to sections 305 and 

17 306, respectively; and 

18 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec19 tion 303 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 304. Same day registration.’’. 


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1 PART 4—CONDITIONS ON REMOVAL ON BASIS OF 

2 INTERSTATE CROSS-CHECKS 

3 SEC. 1041. CONDITIONS ON REMOVAL OF REGISTRANTS 

4 FROM OFFICIAL LIST OF ELIGIBLE VOTERS 

5 ON BASIS OF INTERSTATE CROSS-CHECKS. 

6 (a) MINIMUM INFORMATION REQUIRED FOR RE7 MOVAL UNDER CROSS-CHECK.—Section 8(c)(2) of the 

8 National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

9 20507(c)(2)) is amended— 

10 (1) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub11 paragraph (D); and 

12 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol13 lowing new subparagraphs: 

14 ‘‘(B) To the extent that the program carried out by 

15 a State under subparagraph (A) to systematically remove 

16 the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of eligi17 ble voters uses information matched in an interstate cross18 check, in addition to any other conditions imposed under 

19 this Act on the authority of the State to remove the name 

20 of the voter from such a list, the State may not remove 

21 the name of the voter from such a list unless— 

22 ‘‘(i) the State matched the voter’s full name 

23 (including the voter’s middle name, if any) and date 

24 of birth, and the last 4 digits of the voter’s social 

25 security number, in the interstate cross-check; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the State matched documentation from the 

2 ERIC system that the voter is no longer a resident 

3 of the State. 

4 ‘‘(C) In this paragraph— 

5 ‘‘(i) the term ‘interstate cross-check’ means the 

6 transmission of information from an election official 

7 in one State to an election official of another State; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the term ‘ERIC system’ means the system 

10 operated by the Electronic Registration Information 

11 Center to share voter registration information and 

12 voter identification information among participating 

13 States.’’. 

14 (b) REQUIRING COMPLETION OF CROSS-CHECKS NOT

15 LATER THAN 6 MONTHS PRIOR TO ELECTION.—Sub16 paragraph (A) of section 8(c)(2) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

17 20507(c)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘not later than 90 

18 days’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘not later than 90 days 

19 (or, in the case of a program in which the State uses inter20 state cross-checks, not later than 6 months)’’. 

21 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subparagraph (D) 

22 of section 8(c)(2) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20507(c)(2)), 

23 as redesignated by subsection (a)(1), is amended by strik24 ing ‘‘Subparagraph (A)’’ and inserting ‘‘This paragraph’’. 


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1 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this Act shall apply with respect to elections held on or 

3 after the expiration of the 6-month period which begins 

4 on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

5 PART 5—OTHER INITIATIVES TO PROMOTE 

6 VOTER REGISTRATION 

7 SEC. 1051. BIENNIAL REPORTS ON VOTER REGISTRATION 

8 STATISTICS. 

9 (a) BIENNIAL REPORTS.—Not later than 90 days 

10 after the end of each even-numbered year, each State shall 

11 submit to the Election Assistance Commission a report 

12 containing the following categories of information for the 

13 preceding 2 years: 

14 (1) The number of individuals who were reg15 istered under part 2. 

16 (2) The number of voter registration applica17 tion forms completed by individuals that were trans18 mitted by motor vehicle authorities in the State 

19 (pursuant to section 5(e) of the National Voter Reg20 istration Act of 1993) and voter registration agen21 cies in the State (as designated under section 7 of 

22 such Act) to the chief State election official of the 

23 State, broken down by each such authority and 

24 agency. 


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1 (3) The number of such individuals whose voter 

2 registration application forms were accepted and 

3 who were registered to vote in the State and the 

4 number of such individuals whose forms were re5 jected and who were not registered to vote in the 

6 State, broken down by each such authority and 

7 agency. 

8 (4) The number of change of address forms and 

9 other forms of information indicating that an indi10 vidual’s identifying information has been changed 

11 that were transmitted by such motor vehicle authori12 ties and voter registration agencies to the chief State 

13 election official of the State, broken down by each 

14 such authority and agency and the type of form 

15 transmitted. 

16 (5) The number of individuals on the Statewide 

17 computerized voter registration list (as established 

18 and maintained under section 303 of the Help 

19 America Vote Act of 2002) whose voter registration 

20 information was revised by the chief State election 

21 official as a result of the forms transmitted to the 

22 official by such motor vehicle authorities and voter 

23 registration agencies (as described in paragraph 

24 (3)), broken down by each such authority and agen25 cy and the type of form transmitted. 


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1 (6) The number of individuals who requested 

2 the chief State election official to revise voter reg3 istration information on such list, and the number of 

4 individuals whose information was revised as a result 

5 of such a request. 

6 (b) BREAKDOWN OF INFORMATION.—In preparing 

7 the report under this section, the State shall, for each cat8 egory of information described in subsection (a), include 

9 a breakdown by race, ethnicity, age, and gender of the 

10 individuals whose information is included in the category, 

11 to the extent that information on the race, ethnicity, age, 

12 and gender of such individuals is available to the State. 

13 (c) CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.—In pre14 paring and submitting a report under this section, the 

15 chief State election official shall ensure that no informa16 tion regarding the identification of any individual is re17 vealed. 

18 (d) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 10 

19 days after receiving a report under subsection (a), the 

20 Election Assistance Commission shall transmit such re21 port to Congress. 

22 (e) STATE DEFINED.—In this section, a ‘‘State’’ in23 cludes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 

24 Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, 

25 American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 


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1 Mariana Islands, but does not include any State in which, 

2 under a State law in effect continuously on and after the 

3 date of the enactment of this Act, there is no voter reg4 istration requirement for individuals in the State with re5 spect to elections for Federal office. 

6 (f) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the Sense of Con7 gress that for any State participating in the Election Ad8 ministration and Voting Survey administered by the Elec9 tion Assistance Commission, the Commission should use 

10 the information submitted in the report under subsection 

11 (a) as part of the State’s participation in the survey. 

12 SEC. 1052. ENSURING PRE-ELECTION REGISTRATION DEAD13 LINES ARE CONSISTENT WITH TIMING OF 

14 LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAYS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8(a)(1) of the National 

16 Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20507(a)(1)) 

17 is amended by striking ‘‘30 days’’ each place it appears 

18 and inserting ‘‘28 days’’. 

19 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

20 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections held 

21 in 2022 or any succeeding year. 


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1 SEC. 1053. USE OF POSTAL SERVICE HARD COPY CHANGE 

2 OF ADDRESS FORM TO REMIND INDIVIDUALS 

3 TO UPDATE VOTER REGISTRATION. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Postmaster General 

6 shall modify any hard copy change of address form used 

7 by the United States Postal Service so that such form con8 tains a reminder that any individual using such form 

9 should update the individual’s voter registration as a re10 sult of any change in address. 

11 (b) APPLICATION.—The requirement in subsection 

12 (a) shall not apply to any electronic version of a change 

13 of address form used by the United States Postal Service. 

14 SEC. 1054. GRANTS TO STATES FOR ACTIVITIES TO EN15 COURAGE INVOLVEMENT OF MINORS IN 

16 ELECTION ACTIVITIES. 

17 (a) GRANTS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Election Assistance 

19 Commission (hereafter in this section referred to as 

20 the ‘‘Commission’’) shall make grants to eligible 

21 States to enable such States to carry out a plan to 

22 increase the involvement of individuals under 18 

23 years of age in public election activities in the State. 

24 (2) CONTENTS OF PLANS.—A State’s plan 

25 under this subsection shall include— 


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1 (A) methods to promote the use of pre-reg2 istration processes; 

3 (B) modifications to the curriculum of sec4 ondary schools in the State to promote civic en5 gagement; and 

6 (C) such other activities to encourage the 

7 involvement of young people in the electoral 

8 process as the State considers appropriate. 

9 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—A State is eligible to receive a 

10 grant under this section if the State submits to the Com11 mission, at such time and in such form as the Commission 

12 may require, an application containing— 

13 (1) a description of the State’s plan under sub14 section (a); 

15 (2) a description of the performance measures 

16 and targets the State will use to determine its suc17 cess in carrying out the plan; and 

18 (3) such other information and assurances as 

19 the Commission may require. 

20 (c) PERIOD OF GRANT; REPORT.— 

21 (1) PERIOD OF GRANT.—A State receiving a 

22 grant under this section shall use the funds provided 

23 by the grant over a 2-year period agreed to between 

24 the State and the Commission. 


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1 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after 

2 the end of the 2-year period agreed to under para3 graph (1), the State shall submit to the Commission 

4 a report on the activities the State carried out with 

5 the funds provided by the grant, and shall include 

6 in the report an analysis of the extent to which the 

7 State met the performance measures and targets in8 cluded in its application under subsection (b)(2). 

9 (d) STATE DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

10 ‘‘State’’ means each of the several States and the District 

11 of Columbia. 

12 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

13 are authorized to be appropriated for grants under this 

14 section $25,000,000, to remain available until expended. 

15 SEC. 1055. AUTHORIZING THE DISSEMINATION OF VOTER 

16 REGISTRATION INFORMATION DISPLAYS 

17 FOLLOWING NATURALIZATION CEREMONIES. 

18 The Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish 

19 a process for authorizing the chief State of a State to dis20 seminate voter registration information at the conclusion 

21 of any naturalization ceremony in such State, which may 

22 involve a display or exhibit. 


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1 SEC. 1056. REQUIRING STATES TO ESTABLISH AND OPER2 ATE VOTER PRIVACY PROGRAMS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 

4 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as amended 

5 by section 1031(a), is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating sections 305 and 306 as 

7 sections 306 and 307, respectively; and 

8 (2) by inserting after section 304 the following 

9 new section: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 305. VOTER PRIVACY PROGRAMS. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall establish and 

12 operate a privacy program to enable victims of domestic 

13 violence, dating violence, stalking, sexual assault, and traf14 ficking to have personally identifiable information that 

15 State or local election officials maintain with respect to 

16 an individual voter registration status for purposes of elec17 tions for Federal office in the State, including addresses, 

18 be kept confidential. 

19 ‘‘(b) NOTICE.—Each State shall notify residents of 

20 that State of the information that State and local election 

21 officials maintain with respect to an individual voter reg22 istration status for purposes of elections for Federal office 

23 in the State, how that information is shared or sold and 

24 with whom, what information is automatically kept con25 fidential, what information is needed to access voter inforVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00091 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 mation online, and the privacy programs that are avail2 able. 

3 ‘‘(c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Each State shall make 

4 information about the program established under sub5 section (a) available on a publicly accessible website. 

6 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 ‘‘(1) The terms ‘domestic violence’, ‘stalking’, 

8 ‘sexual assault’, and ‘dating violence’ have the mean9 ings given such terms in section 40002 of the Vio10 lence Against Women Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 

11 12291). 

12 ‘‘(2) The term ‘trafficking’ means an act or 

13 practice described in paragraph (11) or (12) of sec14 tion 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 

15 of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102). 

16 ‘‘(e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State and jurisdiction 

17 shall be required to comply with the requirements of this 

18 section on and after January 1, 2023.’’. 

19 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

20 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), is amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec22 tions 305 and 306 as relating to sections 306 and 

23 307, respectively; and 

24 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec25 tion 304 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 305. Voter privacy programs.’’. 


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1 SEC. 1057. INCLUSION OF VOTER REGISTRATION INFORMA2 TION WITH CERTAIN LEASES AND VOUCHERS 

3 FOR FEDERALLY ASSISTED RENTAL HOUSING 

4 AND MORTGAGE APPLICATIONS. 

5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

7 the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection. 

8 (2) FEDERAL PROJECT-BASED RENTAL ASSIST9 ANCE.—The term ‘‘Federal project-based rental as10 sistance’’ means project-based rental assistance pro11 vided under— 

12 (A) section 8 of the United States Housing 

13 Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f); 

14 (B) section 202 of the Housing Act of 

15 1959 (12 U.S.C. 1701q); 

16 (C) section 811 of the Cranston-Gonzalez 

17 National Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 

18 8013); 

19 (D) title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 

20 U.S.C. 1471 et seq.), including voucher assist21 ance under section 542 of such title (42 U.S.C. 

22 1490r); 

23 (E) subtitle D of title VIII of the Cran24 ston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act 

25 (42 U.S.C. 12901 et seq.); 


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1 (F) title II of the Cranston-Gonzalez Na2 tional Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 

3 12721 et seq.); 

4 (G) the Housing Trust Fund under section 

5 1338 of the Federal Housing Enterprises Fi6 nancial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 (12 

7 U.S.C. 4588); or 

8 (H) subtitle C of title IV of the McKinney9 Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 11381 et seq.). 

11 (3) OWNER.—The term ‘‘owner’’ has the mean12 ing given the term in section 8(f) of the United 

13 States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(f)). 

14 (4) PUBLIC HOUSING; PUBLIC HOUSING AGEN15 CY.—The terms ‘‘public housing’’ and ‘‘public hous16 ing agency’’ have the meanings given those terms in 

17 section 3(b) of the United States Housing Act of 

18 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)). 

19 (5) RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE LOAN.—The term 

20 ‘‘residential mortgage loan’’ includes any loan that is 

21 secured by a first or subordinate lien on residential 

22 real property, including individual units of con23 dominiums and cooperatives, designed principally for 

24 the occupancy of from 1- to 4- families. 


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1 (b) DEVELOPMENT OF UNIFORM STATEMENT.—The 

2 Director, in coordination with the Election Assistance 

3 Commission, shall develop a uniform statement designed 

4 to provide recipients of the statement pursuant to this sec5 tion of how the recipient can register to vote and the vot6 ing rights of the recipient under law. 

7 (c) LEASES AND VOUCHERS FOR FEDERALLY AS8 SISTED RENTAL HOUSING.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para10 graph (2), the Secretary of Housing and Urban De11 velopment shall require— 

12 (A) each public housing agency to provide 

13 a copy of the uniform statement developed pur14 suant to subsection (b) to each lessee of a 

15 dwelling unit in public housing administered by 

16 the agency— 

17 (i) together with the lease for the 

18 dwelling unit, at the same time the lease is 

19 provided to the lessee; and 

20 (ii) together with any income 

21 verification form, at the same time the 

22 form is provided to the lessee; 

23 (B) each public housing agency that ad24 ministers rental assistance under the Housing 

25 Choice Voucher program under section 8(o) of 


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1 the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 

2 U.S.C. 1437f(o)), including the program under 

3 paragraph (13) of such section 8(o), to provide 

4 a copy of the uniform statement developed pur5 suant to subsection (b) to each assisted family 

6 or individual— 

7 (i) together with the voucher for the 

8 assistance, at the time the voucher is 

9 issued for the family or individual; and 

10 (ii) together with any income 

11 verification form, at the same time the 

12 form is provided to the applicant or as13 sisted family or individual; and 

14 (C) each owner of a dwelling unit assisted 

15 with Federal project-based rental assistance to 

16 provide a copy of the uniform statement devel17 oped pursuant to subsection (b) to provide to 

18 the lessee of the dwelling unit— 

19 (i) together with the lease for the 

20 dwelling unit, at the same time the form is 

21 provided to the lessee; and 

22 (ii) together with any income 

23 verification form, at the same time the 

24 form is provided to the applicant or tenant. 


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1 (2) RURAL HOUSING.—The Secretary of Agri2 culture shall administer the requirement under para3 graph (1)(C) with respect to Federal project-based 

4 rental assistance described in subsection (a)(1)(D). 

5 (d) APPLICATIONS FOR RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE

6 LOANS.—The Director shall require each creditor that re7 ceives an application (within the meaning of such term as 

8 used in the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (15 U.S.C. 

9 1691 et seq.)) for a residential mortgage loan to provide 

10 a copy of the uniform statement developed pursuant to 

11 subsection (b) in written form to the applicant for the resi12 dential mortgage loan not later than 5 business days after 

13 the date of the application. 

14 (e) OPTIONAL COMPLETION OF APPLICATION.— 

15 Nothing in this section may be construed to require any 

16 individual to complete an application for voter registra17 tion. 

18 (f) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of Housing and 

19 Urban Development, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the 

20 Director may issue such regulations as may be necessary 

21 to carry out this section. 


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1 PART 6—AVAILABILITY OF HAVA REQUIREMENTS 

2 PAYMENTS 

3 SEC. 1061. AVAILABILITY OF REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS 

4 UNDER HAVA TO COVER COSTS OF COMPLI5 ANCE WITH NEW REQUIREMENTS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 251(b) of the Help Amer7 ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21001(b)) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘as provided 

9 in paragraphs (2) and (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘as other10 wise provided in this subsection’’; and 

11 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(4) CERTAIN VOTER REGISTRATION ACTIVI14 TIES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (3), a State may 

15 use a requirements payment to carry out any of the 

16 requirements of the Voter Registration Moderniza17 tion Act of 2021, including the requirements of the 

18 National Voter Registration Act of 1993 which are 

19 imposed pursuant to the amendments made to such 

20 Act by the Voter Registration Modernization Act of 

21 2021.’’. 

22 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 254(a)(1) 

23 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21004(a)(1)) is amended by strik24 ing ‘‘section 251(a)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

25 251(b)(2)’’. 


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1 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall apply with respect to fiscal year 2022 

3 and each succeeding fiscal year. 

4 PART 7—PROHIBITING INTERFERENCE WITH 

5 VOTER REGISTRATION 

6 SEC. 1071. PROHIBITING HINDERING, INTERFERING WITH, 

7 OR PREVENTING VOTER REGISTRATION. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 

9 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol10 lowing new section: 

11 ‘‘§ 612. Hindering, interfering with, or preventing 

12 registering to vote 

13 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for any per14 son, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, to 

15 corruptly hinder, interfere with, or prevent another person 

16 from registering to vote or to corruptly hinder, interfere 

17 with, or prevent another person from aiding another per18 son in registering to vote. 

19 ‘‘(b) ATTEMPT.—Any person who attempts to commit 

20 any offense described in subsection (a) shall be subject to 

21 the same penalties as those prescribed for the offense that 

22 the person attempted to commit. 

23 ‘‘(c) PENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 

24 (a) shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 

25 than 5 years, or both.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 for chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 

3 by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘612. Hindering, interfering with, or preventing registering to vote.’’. 

4 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall apply with respect to elections held on 

6 or after the date of the enactment of this Act, except that 

7 no person may be found to have violated section 612 of 

8 title 18, United States Code (as added by subsection (a)), 

9 on the basis of any act occurring prior to the date of the 

10 enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 1072. ESTABLISHMENT OF BEST PRACTICES. 

12 (a) BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than 180 days after 

13 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Election Assist14 ance Commission, in consultation with the Department of 

15 Justice, shall develop and publish recommendations for 

16 best practices for States to use to deter and prevent viola17 tions of section 612 of title 18, United States Code (as 

18 added by section 1071), and section 12 of the National 

19 Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20511) (relat20 ing to the unlawful interference with registering to vote, 

21 or voting, or attempting to register to vote or vote), includ22 ing practices to provide for the posting of relevant infor23 mation at polling places and voter registration agencies 

24 under such Act, the training of poll workers and election 

25 officials, and relevant educational materials. For purposes 


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1 of this subsection, the term ‘‘State’’ includes the District 

2 of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, 

3 American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, and 

4 the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

5 (b) INCLUSION IN VOTER INFORMATION REQUIRE6 MENTS.—Section 302(b)(2) of the Help America Vote Act 

7 of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082(b)(2)) is amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara9 graph (E); 

10 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub11 paragraph (F) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub13 paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(G) information relating to the prohibi15 tions of section 612 of title 18, United States 

16 Code, and section 12 of the National Voter 

17 Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20511) 

18 (relating to the unlawful interference with reg19 istering to vote, or voting, or attempting to reg20 ister to vote or vote), including information on 

21 how individuals may report allegations of viola22 tions of such prohibitions.’’. 


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1 PART 8—VOTER REGISTRATION EFFICIENCY ACT 

2 SEC. 1081. SHORT TITLE. 

3 This part may be cited as the ‘‘Voter Registration 

4 Efficiency Act’’. 

5 SEC. 1082. REQUIRING APPLICANTS FOR MOTOR VEHICLE 

6 DRIVER’S LICENSES IN NEW STATE TO INDI7 CATE WHETHER STATE SERVES AS RESI8 DENCE FOR VOTER REGISTRATION PUR9 POSES. 

10 (a) REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICANTS FOR LI11 CENSES.—Section 5(d) of the National Voter Registration 

12 Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20504(d)) is amended— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘Any change’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘(1) Any change’’; and 

15 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

16 paragraph: 

17 ‘‘(2)(A) A State motor vehicle authority shall 

18 require each individual applying for a motor vehicle 

19 driver’s license in the State— 

20 ‘‘(i) to indicate whether the individual 

21 resides in another State or resided in an22 other State prior to applying for the li23 cense, and, if so, to identify the State in24 volved; and 

25 ‘‘(ii) to indicate whether the individual 

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1 vidual’s residence for purposes of reg2 istering to vote in elections for Federal of3 fice. 

4 ‘‘(B) If pursuant to subparagraph (A)(ii) 

5 an individual indicates to the State motor vehi6 cle authority that the individual intends for the 

7 State to serve as the individual’s residence for 

8 purposes of registering to vote in elections for 

9 Federal office, the authority shall notify the 

10 motor vehicle authority of the State identified 

11 by the individual pursuant to subparagraph 

12 (A)(i), who shall notify the chief State election 

13 official of such State that the individual no 

14 longer intends for that State to serve as the in15 dividual’s residence for purposes of registering 

16 to vote in elections for Federal office.’’. 

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para19 graph (2), the amendments made by subsection (a) 

20 shall apply with respect to a State beginning Janu21 ary 1, 2023. 

22 (2) WAIVER.—If a State certifies to the Elec23 tion Assistance Commission not later than January 

24 1, 2023, that the State will not meet the deadline 

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1 practicable to do so and includes in the certification 

2 the reasons for the failure to meet such deadline, 

3 paragraph (1) shall apply to the State as if the ref4 erence in such paragraph to ‘‘January 1, 2023’’ 

5 were a reference to ‘‘January 1, 2025’’. 

6 PART 9—PROVIDING VOTER REGISTRATION IN7 FORMATION TO SECONDARY SCHOOL STU8 DENTS 

9 SEC. 1091. PILOT PROGRAM FOR PROVIDING VOTER REG10 ISTRATION INFORMATION TO SECONDARY 

11 SCHOOL STUDENTS PRIOR TO GRADUATION. 

12 (a) PILOT PROGRAM.—The Election Assistance Com13 mission (hereafter in this part referred to as the ‘‘Commis14 sion’’) shall carry out a pilot program under which the 

15 Commission shall provide funds during the one-year period 

16 beginning after the date of the enactment of this part to 

17 eligible local educational agencies for initiatives to provide 

18 information on registering to vote in elections for public 

19 office to secondary school students in grade 12. 

20 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—A local educational agency is eligi21 ble to receive funds under the pilot program under this 

22 part if the agency submits to the Commission, at such 

23 time and in such form as the Commission may require, 

24 an application containing— 


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1 (1) a description of the initiatives the agency 

2 intends to carry out with the funds; 

3 (2) a description of how the agency will 

4 prioritize access to such initiatives for schools that 

5 serve— 

6 (A) the highest numbers or percentages of 

7 students counted under section 1124(c) of the 

8 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

9 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6333(c)); and 

10 (B) the highest percentages of students 

11 who are eligible for a free or reduced price 

12 lunch under the Richard B. Russell National 

13 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) 

14 (which, in the case of a high school, may be cal15 culated using comparable data from the schools 

16 that feed into the high school), as compared to 

17 other public schools in the jurisdiction of the 

18 agency; 

19 (3) an estimate of the costs associated with 

20 such initiatives; and 

21 (4) such other information and assurances as 

22 the Commission may require. 

23 (c) PRIORITY FOR SCHOOLS RECEIVING TITLE I 

24 FUNDS.—In selecting eligible local educational agencies to 

25 receive funds under the pilot program under this part, the 


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1 Commission shall give priority to local educational agen2 cies that receive funds under part A of title I of the Ele3 mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

4 6311 et seq.). 

5 (d) CONSULTATION WITH ELECTION OFFICIALS.—A 

6 local educational agency receiving funds under the pilot 

7 program shall consult with the State and local election of8 ficials who are responsible for administering elections for 

9 public office in the area served by the agency in developing 

10 the initiatives the agency will carry out with the funds. 

11 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this part, the terms ‘‘local edu12 cational agency’’ and ‘‘secondary school’’ have the mean13 ings given such terms in section 8101 of the Elementary 

14 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

15 SEC. 1092. REPORTS. 

16 (a) REPORTS BY RECIPIENTS OF FUNDS.—Not later 

17 than the expiration of the 90-day period which begins on 

18 the date of the receipt of the funds, each local educational 

19 agency receiving funds under the pilot program under this 

20 part shall submit a report to the Commission describing 

21 the initiatives carried out with the funds and analyzing 

22 their effectiveness. 

23 (b) REPORT BY COMMISSION.—Not later than the ex24 piration of the 60-day period which begins on the date 

25 the Commission receives the final report submitted by a 


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1 local educational agency under subsection (a), the Com2 mission shall submit a report to Congress on the pilot pro3 gram under this part. 

4 SEC. 1093. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

6 as may be necessary to carry out this part. 

7 PART 10—VOTER REGISTRATION OF MINORS 

8 SEC. 1094. ACCEPTANCE OF VOTER REGISTRATION APPLI9 CATIONS FROM INDIVIDUALS UNDER 18 

10 YEARS OF AGE. 

11 (a) ACCEPTANCE OF APPLICATIONS.—Section 8 of 

12 the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

13 20507), as amended by section 1004, is amended— 

14 (1) by redesignating subsection (k) as sub15 section (l); and 

16 (2) by inserting after subsection (j) the fol17 lowing new subsection: 

18 ‘‘(k) ACCEPTANCE OF APPLICATIONS FROM INDIVID19 UALS UNDER 18 YEARS OF AGE.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State may not refuse to 

21 accept or process an individual’s application to reg22 ister to vote in elections for Federal office on the 

23 grounds that the individual is under 18 years of age 

24 at the time the individual submits the application, so 


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1 long as the individual is at least 16 years of age at 

2 such time. 

3 ‘‘(2) NO EFFECT ON STATE VOTING AGE RE4 QUIREMENTS.—Nothing in paragraph (1) may be 

5 construed to require a State to permit an individual 

6 who is under 18 years of age at the time of an elec7 tion for Federal office to vote in the election.’’. 

8 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

9 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections occur10 ring on or after January 1, 2022. 

11 Subtitle B—Access to Voting for 

12 Individuals With Disabilities 

13 SEC. 1101. REQUIREMENTS FOR STATES TO PROMOTE AC14 CESS TO VOTER REGISTRATION AND VOTING 

15 FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 

16 (a) REQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of the 

17 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 

18 as amended by section 1031(a) and section 1056(a), is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) by redesignating sections 306 and 307 as 

21 sections 307 and 308, respectively; and 

22 (2) by inserting after section 305 the following 

23 new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 306. ACCESS TO VOTER REGISTRATION AND VOTING 

2 FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 

3 ‘‘(a) TREATMENT OF APPLICATIONS AND BAL4 LOTS.—Each State shall— 

5 ‘‘(1) ensure that absentee registration forms, 

6 absentee ballot applications, and absentee ballots 

7 that are available electronically are accessible (as de8 fined in section 307); 

9 ‘‘(2) permit individuals with disabilities to use 

10 absentee registration procedures and to vote by ab11 sentee ballot in elections for Federal office; 

12 ‘‘(3) accept and process, with respect to any 

13 election for Federal office, any otherwise valid voter 

14 registration application and absentee ballot applica15 tion from an individual with a disability if the appli16 cation is received by the appropriate State election 

17 official within the deadline for the election which is 

18 applicable under Federal law; 

19 ‘‘(4) in addition to any other method of reg20 istering to vote or applying for an absentee ballot in 

21 the State, establish procedures— 

22 ‘‘(A) for individuals with disabilities to re23 quest by mail and electronically voter registra24 tion applications and absentee ballot applica25 tions with respect to elections for Federal office 

26 in accordance with subsection (c); 


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1 ‘‘(B) for States to send by mail and elec2 tronically (in accordance with the preferred 

3 method of transmission designated by the indi4 vidual under subparagraph (C)) voter registra5 tion applications and absentee ballot applica6 tions requested under subparagraph (A) in ac7 cordance with subsection (c)); and 

8 ‘‘(C) by which such an individual can des9 ignate whether the individual prefers that such 

10 voter registration application or absentee ballot 

11 application be transmitted by mail or electroni12 cally; 

13 ‘‘(5) in addition to any other method of trans14 mitting blank absentee ballots in the State, establish 

15 procedures for transmitting by mail and electroni16 cally blank absentee ballots to individuals with dis17 abilities with respect to elections for Federal office 

18 in accordance with subsection (d); and 

19 ‘‘(6) if the State declares or otherwise holds a 

20 runoff election for Federal office, establish a written 

21 plan that provides absentee ballots are made avail22 able to individuals with disabilities in a manner that 

23 gives them sufficient time to vote in the runoff elec24 tion. 


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1 ‘‘(b) DESIGNATION OF SINGLE STATE OFFICE TO

2 PROVIDE INFORMATION ON REGISTRATION AND ABSEN3 TEE BALLOT PROCEDURES FOR VOTERS WITH DISABIL4 ITIES IN STATE.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall designate 

6 a single office which shall be responsible for pro7 viding information regarding voter registration pro8 cedures, absentee ballot procedures, and in-person 

9 voting procedures to be used by individuals with dis10 abilities with respect to elections for Federal office 

11 to all individuals with disabilities who wish to reg12 ister to vote or vote in any jurisdiction in the State. 

13 ‘‘(2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each State shall, 

14 through the office designated in paragraph (1)— 

15 ‘‘(A) provide information to election offi16 cials— 

17 ‘‘(i) on how to set up and operate ac18 cessible voting systems; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) regarding the accessibility of vot20 ing procedures, including guidance on com21 patibility with assistive technologies such 

22 as screen readers and ballot marking de23 vices; 

24 ‘‘(B) integrate information on accessibility, 

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1 uals into regular training materials for poll 

2 workers and election administration officials; 

3 ‘‘(C) train poll workers on how to make 

4 polling places accessible for individuals with dis5 abilities and older individuals; 

6 ‘‘(D) promote the hiring of individuals with 

7 disabilities and older individuals as poll workers 

8 and election staff; and 

9 ‘‘(E) publicly post the results of any audits 

10 to determine the accessibility of polling places 

11 no later than 6 months after the completion of 

12 the audit. 

13 ‘‘(c) DESIGNATION OF MEANS OF ELECTRONIC COM14 MUNICATION FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES TO

15 REQUEST AND FOR STATES TO SEND VOTER REGISTRA16 TION APPLICATIONS AND ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICA17 TIONS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES RELATED TO VOTING

18 INFORMATION.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall, in addi20 tion to the designation of a single State office under 

21 subsection (b), designate not less than 1 means of 

22 accessible electronic communication— 

23 ‘‘(A) for use by individuals with disabilities 

24 who wish to register to vote or vote in any ju25 risdiction in the State to request voter registraVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00112 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 tion applications and absentee ballot applica2 tions under subsection (a)(4); 

3 ‘‘(B) for use by States to send voter reg4 istration applications and absentee ballot appli5 cations requested under such subsection; and 

6 ‘‘(C) for the purpose of providing related 

7 voting, balloting, and election information to in8 dividuals with disabilities. 

9 ‘‘(2) CLARIFICATION REGARDING PROVISION OF

10 MULTIPLE MEANS OF ELECTRONIC COMMUNICA11 TION.—A State may, in addition to the means of 

12 electronic communication so designated, provide 

13 multiple means of electronic communication to indi14 viduals with disabilities, including a means of elec15 tronic communication for the appropriate jurisdic16 tion of the State. 

17 ‘‘(3) INCLUSION OF DESIGNATED MEANS OF

18 ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION WITH INFORMA19 TIONAL AND INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS THAT AC20 COMPANY BALLOTING MATERIALS.—Each State shall 

21 include a means of electronic communication so des22 ignated with all informational and instructional ma23 terials that accompany balloting materials sent by 

24 the State to individuals with disabilities. 


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1 ‘‘(4) TRANSMISSION IF NO PREFERENCE INDI2 CATED.—In the case where an individual with a dis3 ability does not designate a preference under sub4 section (a)(4)(C), the State shall transmit the voter 

5 registration application or absentee ballot application 

6 by any delivery method allowable in accordance with 

7 applicable State law, or if there is no applicable 

8 State law, by mail. 

9 ‘‘(d) TRANSMISSION OF BLANK ABSENTEE BALLOTS

10 BY MAIL AND ELECTRONICALLY.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall establish 

12 procedures— 

13 ‘‘(A) to securely transmit blank absentee 

14 ballots by mail and electronically (in accordance 

15 with the preferred method of transmission des16 ignated by the individual with a disability under 

17 subparagraph (B)) to individuals with disabil18 ities for an election for Federal office; and 

19 ‘‘(B) by which the individual with a dis20 ability can designate whether the individual pre21 fers that such blank absentee ballot be trans22 mitted by mail or electronically. 

23 ‘‘(2) TRANSMISSION IF NO PREFERENCE INDI24 CATED.—In the case where an individual with a dis25 ability does not designate a preference under paraVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00114 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 graph (1)(B), the State shall transmit the ballot by 

2 any delivery method allowable in accordance with ap3 plicable State law, or if there is no applicable State 

4 law, by mail. 

5 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION OF METHODS TO TRACK DE6 LIVERY TO AND RETURN OF BALLOT BY INDIVIDUAL

7 REQUESTING BALLOT.—Under the procedures estab8 lished under paragraph (1), the State shall apply 

9 such methods as the State considers appropriate, 

10 such as assigning a unique identifier to the ballot 

11 envelope, to ensure that if an individual with a dis12 ability requests the State to transmit a blank absen13 tee ballot to the individual in accordance with this 

14 subsection, the voted absentee ballot which is re15 turned by the individual is the same blank absentee 

16 ballot which the State transmitted to the individual. 

17 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec18 tion may be construed to allow a voter’s ballot selections 

19 to be transmitted over the internet or to allow for the elec20 tronic submission of a marked ballot. 

21 ‘‘(f) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY DEFINED.—In 

22 this section, an ‘individual with a disability’ means an in23 dividual with an impairment that substantially limits any 

24 major life activities and who is otherwise qualified to vote 

25 in elections for Federal office. 


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1 ‘‘(g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

2 with respect to elections for Federal office held on or after 

3 January 1, 2022.’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

5 ISSUANCE OF VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE BY ELECTION AS6 SISTANCE COMMISSION.— 

7 (1) TIMING OF ISSUANCE.—Section 311(b) of 

8 such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)) is amended— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para10 graph (2); 

11 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

12 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

13 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

14 paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(4) in the case of the recommendations with 

16 respect to section 306, January 1, 2022.’’. 

17 (2) REDESIGNATION.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—Title III of such Act 

19 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended by redes20 ignating sections 311 and 312 as sections 321 

21 and 322, respectively. 

22 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

23 322(a) of such Act, as redesignated by subpara24 graph (A), is amended by striking ‘‘section 

25 312’’ and inserting ‘‘section 322’’. 


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1 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

2 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c) and section 

3 1056(b), is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec5 tions 306 and 307 as relating to sections 307 and 

6 308, respectively; and 

7 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec8 tion 305 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 306. Access to voter registration and voting for individuals with disabilities.’’. 

9 SEC. 1102. ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF STATE 

10 ACCESSIBLE ELECTION WEBSITES. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the Help 

12 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as 

13 amended by section 1031(a), section 1056(a), and section 

14 1101(a), is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating sections 307 and 308 as 

16 sections 308 and 309, respectively; and 

17 (2) by inserting after section 306 the following: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 307. ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF ACCES19 SIBLE ELECTION WEBSITES. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 2023, 

21 each State shall establish a single election website that is 

22 accessible and meets the following requirements: 


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1 ‘‘(1) LOCAL ELECTION OFFICIALS.—The 

2 website shall provide local election officials, poll 

3 workers, and volunteers with— 

4 ‘‘(A) guidance to ensure that polling places 

5 are accessible for individuals with disabilities 

6 and older individuals in a manner that provides 

7 the same opportunity for access and participa8 tion (including privacy and independence) as for 

9 other voters; and 

10 ‘‘(B) online training and resources on— 

11 ‘‘(i) how best to promote the access 

12 and participation of individuals with dis13 abilities and older individuals in elections 

14 for public office; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) the voting rights and protections 

16 for individuals with disabilities and older 

17 individuals under State and Federal law. 

18 ‘‘(2) VOTERS.—The website shall provide infor19 mation about voting, including— 

20 ‘‘(A) the accessibility of all polling places 

21 within the State, including outreach programs 

22 to inform individuals about the availability of 

23 accessible polling places; 

24 ‘‘(B) how to register to vote and confirm 

25 voter registration in the State; 


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1 ‘‘(C) the location and operating hours of 

2 all polling places in the State; 

3 ‘‘(D) the availability of aid or assistance 

4 for individuals with disabilities and older indi5 viduals to cast their vote in a manner that pro6 vides the same opportunity for access and par7 ticipation (including privacy and independence) 

8 as for other voters at polling places; 

9 ‘‘(E) the availability of transportation aid 

10 or assistance to the polling place for individuals 

11 with disabilities or older individuals; 

12 ‘‘(F) the rights and protections under 

13 State and Federal law for individuals with dis14 abilities and older individuals to participate in 

15 elections; and 

16 ‘‘(G) how to contact State, local, and Fed17 eral officials with complaints or grievances if in18 dividuals with disabilities, older individuals, Na19 tive Americans, Alaska Natives, and individuals 

20 with limited proficiency in the English language 

21 feel their ability to register to vote or vote has 

22 been blocked or delayed. 

23 ‘‘(b) PARTNERSHIP WITH OUTSIDE TECHNICAL OR24 GANIZATION.—The chief State election official of each 

25 State, through the committee of appropriate individuals 


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1 under subsection (c)(2), shall partner with an outside 

2 technical organization with demonstrated experience in es3 tablishing accessible and easy to use accessible election 

4 websites to— 

5 ‘‘(1) update an existing election website to 

6 make it fully accessible in accordance with this sec7 tion; or 

8 ‘‘(2) develop an election website that is fully ac9 cessible in accordance with this section. 

10 ‘‘(c) STATE PLAN.— 

11 ‘‘(1) DEVELOPMENT.—The chief State election 

12 official of each State shall, through a committee of 

13 appropriate individuals as described in paragraph 

14 (2), develop a State plan that describes how the 

15 State and local governments will meet the require16 ments under this section. 

17 ‘‘(2) COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP.—The com18 mittee shall comprise at least the following individ19 uals: 

20 ‘‘(A) The chief election officials of the four 

21 most populous jurisdictions within the State. 

22 ‘‘(B) The chief election officials of the four 

23 least populous jurisdictions within the State. 

24 ‘‘(C) Representatives from two disability 

25 advocacy groups, including at least one such 


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1 representative who is an individual with a dis2 ability. 

3 ‘‘(D) Representatives from two older indi4 vidual advocacy groups, including at least one 

5 such representative who is an older individual. 

6 ‘‘(E) Representatives from two inde7 pendent non-governmental organizations with 

8 expertise in establishing and maintaining acces9 sible websites. 

10 ‘‘(F) Representatives from two inde11 pendent non-governmental voting rights organi12 zations. 

13 ‘‘(G) Representatives from State protection 

14 and advocacy systems as defined in section 102 

15 of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance 

16 and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

17 15002). 

18 ‘‘(d) PARTNERSHIP TO MONITOR AND VERIFY AC19 CESSIBILITY.—The chief State election official of each eli20 gible State, through the committee of appropriate individ21 uals under subsection (c)(2), shall partner with at least 

22 two of the following organizations to monitor and verify 

23 the accessibility of the election website and the complete24 ness of the election information and the accuracy of the 

25 disability information provided on such website: 


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1 ‘‘(1) University Centers for Excellence in Devel2 opmental Disabilities Education, Research, and 

3 Services designated under section 151(a) of the De4 velopmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of 

5 Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15061(a)). 

6 ‘‘(2) Centers for Independent Living, as de7 scribed in part C of title VII of the Rehabilitation 

8 Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et seq.). 

9 ‘‘(3) A State Council on Developmental Disabil10 ities described in section 125 of the Developmental 

11 Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 

12 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15025). 

13 ‘‘(4) State protection and advocacy systems as 

14 defined in section 102 of the Developmental Disabil15 ities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 

16 U.S.C. 15002). 

17 ‘‘(5) Statewide Independent Living Councils es18 tablished under section 705 of the Rehabilitation Act 

19 of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796d). 

20 ‘‘(6) State Assistive Technology Act Programs. 

21 ‘‘(7) A visual access advocacy organization. 

22 ‘‘(8) An organization for the deaf. 

23 ‘‘(9) A mental health organization. 

24 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, 

25 section 305, and section 307: 


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1 ‘‘(1) ACCESSIBLE.—The term ‘accessible’ 

2 means— 

3 ‘‘(A) in the case of the election website 

4 under subsection (a) or an electronic commu5 nication under section 305— 

6 ‘‘(i) that the functions and content of 

7 the website or electronic communication, 

8 including all text, visual, and aural con9 tent, are as accessible to people with dis10 abilities as to those without disabilities; 

11 ‘‘(ii) that the functions and content of 

12 the website or electronic communication 

13 are accessible to individuals with limited 

14 proficiency in the English language; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) that the website or electronic 

16 communication meets, at a minimum, con17 formance to Level AA of the Web Content 

18 Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 of the Web Ac19 cessibility Initiative (or any successor 

20 guidelines); and 

21 ‘‘(B) in the case of a facility (including a 

22 polling place), that the facility is readily acces23 sible to and usable by individuals with disabil24 ities and older individuals, as determined under 

25 the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design 


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1 adopted by the Department of Justice (or any 

2 successor standards). 

3 ‘‘(2) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY.—The 

4 term ‘individual with a disability’ means an indi5 vidual with a disability, as defined in section 3 of the 

6 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

7 12102), and who is otherwise qualified to vote in 

8 elections for Federal office. 

9 ‘‘(3) OLDER INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘older in10 dividual’ means an individual who is 60 years of age 

11 or older and who is otherwise qualified to vote in 

12 elections for Federal office. 

13 ‘‘(4) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means a State 

14 of the United States, the District of Columbia, the 

15 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any territory or 

16 possession of the United States.’’. 

17 (b) VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) such 

18 Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redesignated by 

19 section 1101(b), is amended by striking ‘‘section 306’’ and 

20 inserting ‘‘sections 306 and 307’’. 

21 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

22 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 

23 1056(b), and section 1101(c), is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec2 tions 307 and 308 as relating to sections 308 and 

3 309, respectively; and 

4 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec5 tion 306 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 307. Establishment and maintenance of accessible election websites.’’. 

6 SEC. 1103. PROTECTIONS FOR IN-PERSON VOTING FOR IN7 DIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES AND OLDER 

8 INDIVIDUALS. 

9 (a) REQUIREMENT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the 

11 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 

12 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), section 

13 1056(a), section 1101(a), and section 1102(a), is 

14 amended— 

15 (A) by redesignating sections 308 and 309 

16 as sections 309 and 310, respectively; and 

17 (B) by inserting after section 307 the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 308. ACCESS TO VOTING FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DIS20 ABILITIES AND OLDER INDIVIDUALS. 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall— 

22 ‘‘(1) ensure all polling places within the State 

23 are accessible, as defined in section 306; 

24 ‘‘(2) consider procedures to address long wait 

25 times at polling places that allow individuals with 


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1 disabilities and older individuals alternate options to 

2 cast a ballot in person in an election for Federal of3 fice, such as the option to cast a ballot outside of 

4 the polling place or from a vehicle, or providing an 

5 expedited voting line; and 

6 ‘‘(3) consider options to establish ‘mobile poll7 ing sites’ to allow election officials or volunteers to 

8 travel to long-term care facilities and assist residents 

9 who request assistance in casting a ballot in order 

10 to maintain the privacy and independence of voters 

11 in these facilities. 

12 ‘‘(b) CLARIFICATION.—Nothing in this section may 

13 be construed to alter the requirements under Federal law 

14 that all polling places for Federal elections are accessible 

15 to individuals with disabilities and older individuals. 

16 ‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

17 with respect to elections for Federal office held on or after 

18 January 1, 2024.’’. 

19 (2) VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) 

20 such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redes21 ignated by section 1101(b) and as amended by sec22 tion 1102, is amended by striking ‘‘and 307’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘, 307, and 308’’. 

24 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of 

25 contents of such Act, as amended by section 


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1 1031(c), section 1056(b), section 1101(c), and sec2 tion 1102(c), is amended— 

3 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 

4 sections 308 and 309 as relating to sections 

5 309 and 310, respectively; and 

6 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

7 section 307 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 308. Access to voting for individuals with disabilities and older individuals.’’. 

8 (b) REVISIONS TO VOTING ACCESSIBILITY FOR THE

9 ELDERLY AND HANDICAPPED ACT.— 

10 (1) REPORTS TO ELECTION ASSISTANCE COM11 MISSION.—Section 3(c) of the Voting Accessibility 

12 for the Elderly and Handicapped Act (52 U.S.C. 

13 20102(c)) is amended— 

14 (A) in the subsection heading, by striking 

15 ‘‘FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION’’ and in16 serting ‘‘ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION’’; 

17 (B) in each of paragraphs (1) and (2), by 

18 striking ‘‘Federal Election Commission’’ and in19 serting ‘‘Election Assistance Commission’’; and 

20 (C) by striking paragraph (3). 

21 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

22 REFERENCES.—The Voting Accessibility for the El23 derly and Handicapped Act (52 U.S.C. 20101 et 

24 seq.), as amended by paragraph (1), is amended— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘handicapped and elderly 

2 individuals’’ each place it appears and inserting 

3 ‘‘individuals with disabilities and older individ4 uals’’; 

5 (B) by striking ‘‘handicapped and elderly 

6 voters’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘in7 dividuals with disabilities and older individ8 uals’’; 

9 (C) in section 3(b)(2)(B), by striking 

10 ‘‘handicapped or elderly voter’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘individual with a disability or older indi12 vidual’’; 

13 (D) in section 5(b), by striking ‘‘handi14 capped voter’’ and inserting ‘‘individual with a 

15 disability’’; and 

16 (E) in section 8— 

17 (i) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) 

18 and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) ‘accessible’ has the meaning given that 

20 term in section 307 of the Help America Vote Act 

21 of 2002, as added by section 1102(a) of the For the 

22 People Act of 2021; 

23 ‘‘(2) ‘older individual’ has the meaning given 

24 that term in such section 307;’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking paragraph (4), and in2 serting the following: 

3 ‘‘(4) ‘individual with a disability’ has the mean4 ing given that term in such section 306; and’’. 

5 (3) SHORT TITLE AMENDMENT.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 1 of the ‘‘Vot7 ing Accessibility for the Elderly and Handi8 capped Act’’ (Public Law 98–435; 42 U.S.C. 

9 1973ee note) is amended by striking ‘‘for the 

10 Elderly and Handicapped’’ and inserting ‘‘for 

11 Individuals with Disabilities and Older Individ12 uals’’. 

13 (B) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any 

14 other provision of law, regulation, document, 

15 paper, or other record of the United States to 

16 the ‘‘Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and 

17 Handicapped Act’’ shall be deemed to be a ref18 erence to the ‘‘Voting Accessibility for Individ19 uals with Disabilities and Older Individuals 

20 Act’’. 

21 (4) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

22 by this subsection shall take effect on January 1, 

23 2024, and apply to with respect to elections for Fed24 eral office held on or after that date. 


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1 SEC. 1104. PROTECTIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS SUBJECT TO 

2 GUARDIANSHIP. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the Help 

4 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as 

5 amended by section 1031(a), section 1056(a), section 

6 1101(a), section 1102(a), and section 1103(a)(1), is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating sections 309 and 310 as 

9 sections 310 and 311, respectively; and 

10 (2) by inserting after section 308 the following: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 309. PROTECTIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS SUBJECT TO 

12 GUARDIANSHIP. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State shall not determine that 

14 an individual lacks the capacity to vote in an election for 

15 Federal office on the ground that the individual is subject 

16 to guardianship, unless a court of competent jurisdiction 

17 issues a court order finding by clear and convincing evi18 dence that the individual cannot communicate, with or 

19 without accommodations, a desire to participate in the vot20 ing process. 

21 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

22 with respect to elections for Federal office held on or after 

23 January 1, 2022.’’. 

24 (b) VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) such 

25 Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redesignated by 

26 section 1101(b) and as amended by sections 1102 and 


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1 1103, is amended by striking ‘‘and 308’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘308, and 309’’. 

3 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

4 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 

5 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), and section 

6 1103(a)(3), is amended— 

7 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec8 tions 309 and 310 as relating to sections 310 and 

9 311, respectively; and 

10 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec11 tion 308 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 309. Access to voting for individuals with disabilities and older individuals.’’. 

12 SEC. 1105. EXPANSION AND REAUTHORIZATION OF GRANT 

13 PROGRAM TO ASSURE VOTING ACCESS FOR 

14 INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 

15 (a) PURPOSES OF PAYMENTS.—Section 261(b) of the 

16 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21021(b)) is 

17 amended by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) making absentee voting and voting at 

20 home accessible to individuals with the full range of 

21 disabilities (including impairments involving vision, 

22 hearing, mobility, or dexterity) through the imple23 mentation of accessible absentee voting systems that 

24 work in conjunction with assistive technologies for 


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1 which individuals have access at their homes, inde2 pendent living centers, or other facilities; 

3 ‘‘(2) making polling places, including the path 

4 of travel, entrances, exits, and voting areas of each 

5 polling facility, accessible to individuals with disabil6 ities, including the blind and visually impaired, in a 

7 manner that provides the same opportunity for ac8 cess and participation (including privacy and inde9 pendence) as for other voters; and 

10 ‘‘(3) providing solutions to problems of access 

11 to voting and elections for individuals with disabil12 ities that are universally designed and provide the 

13 same opportunities for individuals with and without 

14 disabilities.’’. 

15 (b) REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 264(a) of such Act 

16 (52 U.S.C. 21024(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

17 the following new paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(4) For fiscal year 2022 and each succeeding 

19 fiscal year, such sums as may be necessary to carry 

20 out this part.’’. 

21 (c) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Section 

22 264 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21024) is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘Any 

24 amounts’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in sub25 section (b), any amounts’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub2 section: 

3 ‘‘(c) RETURN AND TRANSFER OF CERTAIN FUNDS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) DEADLINE FOR OBLIGATION AND EXPEND5 ITURE.—In the case of any amounts appropriated 

6 pursuant to the authority of subsection (a) for a 

7 payment to a State or unit of local government for 

8 fiscal year 2022 or any succeeding fiscal year, any 

9 portion of such amounts which have not been obli10 gated or expended by the State or unit of local gov11 ernment prior to the expiration of the 4-year period 

12 which begins on the date the State or unit of local 

13 government first received the amounts shall be 

14 transferred to the Commission. 

15 ‘‘(2) REALLOCATION OF TRANSFERRED

16 AMOUNTS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 

18 use the amounts transferred under paragraph 

19 (1) to make payments on a pro rata basis to 

20 each covered payment recipient described in 

21 subparagraph (B), which may obligate and ex22 pend such payment for the purposes described 

23 in section 261(b) during the 1-year period 

24 which begins on the date of receipt. 


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1 ‘‘(B) COVERED PAYMENT RECIPIENTS DE2 SCRIBED.—In subparagraph (A), a ‘covered 

3 payment recipient’ is a State or unit of local 

4 government with respect to which— 

5 ‘‘(i) amounts were appropriated pur6 suant to the authority of subsection (a); 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(ii) no amounts were transferred to 

9 the Commission under paragraph (1).’’. 

10 SEC. 1106. APPOINTMENTS TO EAC BOARD OF ADVISORS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 214(a) of the Help Amer12 ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20944(a)) is amended— 

13 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 

14 striking ‘‘37’’ and inserting ‘‘61’’; and 

15 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

16 paragraphs: 

17 ‘‘(17) Two members appointed by the National 

18 Council on Disability. 

19 ‘‘(18) Two members appointed by the Assistant 

20 Secretary of Health and Human Services for Aging. 

21 ‘‘(19) Four members from organizations, whose 

22 executive leadership team consists of fifty-one per23 cent of individuals with disabilities, representing the 

24 interests of voters with disabilities, of whom— 


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1 ‘‘(A) two members shall be appointed by 

2 the Committee on House Administration of the 

3 House of Representatives, of whom one shall be 

4 appointed by the chair and one shall be ap5 pointed by the ranking minority member; and 

6 ‘‘(B) two members shall be appointed by 

7 the Committee on Rules and Administration of 

8 the Senate, of whom one shall be appointed by 

9 the chair and one shall be appointed by the 

10 ranking minority member. 

11 ‘‘(20) Four members from organizations rep12 resenting the interests of older voters, of whom— 

13 ‘‘(A) two members shall be appointed by 

14 the Committee on House Administration, of 

15 whom one shall be appointed by the chair and 

16 one shall be appointed by the ranking minority 

17 member; and 

18 ‘‘(B) two members shall be appointed by 

19 the Committee on Rules and Administration of 

20 the Senate, of whom one shall be appointed by 

21 the chair and one shall be appointed by the 

22 ranking minority member. 

23 ‘‘(21) Twelve members who are nationally rec24 ognized subject matter experts regarding election in25 tegrity, having specializations to include election cyVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00135 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 bersecurity, authentication, accessibility, trans2 parency, verification, and auditing, and who are not 

3 full-time election officials, of whom— 

4 ‘‘(A) two members shall be appointed by 

5 the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security 

6 Agency; 

7 ‘‘(B) two members shall be appointed by 

8 the National Science Foundation; 

9 ‘‘(C) two members shall be appointed by 

10 the Institute for Defense Analyses; 

11 ‘‘(D) two members shall be appointed by 

12 the Association for Computing Machinery; 

13 ‘‘(E) two members shall be appointed by 

14 the National Association of State Chief Infor15 mation Officers; 

16 ‘‘(F) one member shall be appointed by the 

17 Center for Internet Security; and 

18 ‘‘(G) one member shall be the Director of 

19 the Elections Infrastructure Information Shar20 ing and Analysis Center, or the Director’s des21 ignee.’’. 

22 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

23 subsection (a) shall take effect on January 1, 2022. 


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1 SEC. 1107. FUNDING FOR PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYS2 TEMS. 

3 (a) INCLUSION OF SYSTEM SERVING AMERICAN IN4 DIAN CONSORTIUM.—Section 291(a) of the Help America 

5 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21061(a)) is amended by 

6 striking ‘‘of each State’’ and inserting ‘‘of each State and 

7 the eligible system serving the American Indian consor8 tium (within the meaning of section 509(c)(1)(B) of the 

9 Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794e(c)(1)(B)))’’. 

10 (b) GRANT AMOUNT.—Section 291(b) of the Help 

11 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21061(b)) is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘as set forth in subsections 

14 (c)(3)’’ and inserting ‘‘as set forth in subsections 

15 (c)(1)(B) (regardless of the fiscal year), (c)(3)’’; and 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘except that’’ and all that fol17 lows and inserting ‘‘except that the amount of the 

18 grants to systems referred to in subsection (c)(3)(B) 

19 of that section shall not be less than $70,000 and 

20 the amount of the grants to systems referred to in 

21 subsections (c)(1)(B) and (c)(4)(B) of that section 

22 shall not be less than $35,000.’’. 

23 (c) DEFINITION.—Section 291 of the Help America 

24 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21061) is amended by adding 

25 at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(d) STATE.—In this section, the term ‘State’ 

2 means— 

3 ‘‘(1) a State as defined in section 901; and 

4 ‘‘(2) the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar5 iana Islands.’’. 

6 SEC. 1108. PILOT PROGRAMS FOR ENABLING INDIVIDUALS 

7 WITH DISABILITIES TO REGISTER TO VOTE 

8 PRIVATELY AND INDEPENDENTLY AT RESI9 DENCES. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAMS.—The 

11 Election Assistance Commission (hereafter referred to as 

12 the ‘‘Commission’’) shall, subject to the availability of ap13 propriations to carry out this section, make grants to eligi14 ble States to conduct pilot programs under which individ15 uals with disabilities may use electronic means (including 

16 the internet and telephones utilizing assistive devices) to 

17 register to vote and to request and receive absentee ballots 

18 in a manner which permits such individuals to do so pri19 vately and independently at their own residences. 

20 (b) REPORTS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State receiving a grant for 

22 a year under this section shall submit a report to the 

23 Commission on the pilot programs the State carried 

24 out with the grant with respect to elections for pub25 lic office held in the State during the year. 


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1 (2) DEADLINE.—A State shall submit a report 

2 under paragraph (1) not later than 90 days after 

3 the last election for public office held in the State 

4 during the year. 

5 (c) ELIGIBILITY.—A State is eligible to receive a 

6 grant under this section if the State submits to the Com7 mission, at such time and in such form as the Commission 

8 may require, an application containing such information 

9 and assurances as the Commission may require. 

10 (d) TIMING.—The Commission shall make the first 

11 grants under this section for pilot programs which will be 

12 in effect with respect to elections for Federal office held 

13 in 2022, or, at the option of a State, with respect to other 

14 elections for public office held in the State in 2022. 

15 (e) STATE DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

16 ‘‘State’’ includes the District of Columbia, the Common17 wealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the 

18 United States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of 

19 the Northern Mariana Islands. 

20 SEC. 1109. GAO ANALYSIS AND REPORT ON VOTING ACCESS 

21 FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 

22 (a) ANALYSIS.—The Comptroller General of the 

23 United States shall conduct an analysis after each regu24 larly scheduled general election for Federal office with re25 spect to the following: 


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1 (1) In relation to polling places located in 

2 houses of worship or other facilities that may be ex3 empt from accessibility requirements under the 

4 Americans with Disabilities Act— 

5 (A) efforts to overcome accessibility chal6 lenges posed by such facilities; and 

7 (B) the extent to which such facilities are 

8 used as polling places in elections for Federal 

9 office. 

10 (2) Assistance provided by the Election Assist11 ance Commission, Department of Justice, or other 

12 Federal agencies to help State and local officials im13 prove voting access for individuals with disabilities 

14 during elections for Federal office. 

15 (3) When accessible voting machines are avail16 able at a polling place, the extent to which such ma17 chines— 

18 (A) are located in places that are difficult 

19 to access; 

20 (B) malfunction; or 

21 (C) fail to provide sufficient privacy to en22 sure that the ballot of the individual cannot be 

23 seen by another individual. 

24 (4) The process by which Federal, State, and 

25 local governments track compliance with accessibility 


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1 requirements related to voting access, including 

2 methods to receive and address complaints. 

3 (5) The extent to which poll workers receive 

4 training on how to assist individuals with disabil5 ities, including the receipt by such poll workers of 

6 information on legal requirements related to voting 

7 rights for individuals with disabilities. 

8 (6) The extent and effectiveness of training pro9 vided to poll workers on the operation of accessible 

10 voting machines. 

11 (7) The extent to which individuals with a de12 velopmental or psychiatric disability experience 

13 greater barriers to voting, and whether poll worker 

14 training adequately addresses the needs of such indi15 viduals. 

16 (8) The extent to which State or local govern17 ments employ, or attempt to employ, individuals 

18 with disabilities to work at polling sites. 

19 (b) REPORT.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 9 months 

21 after the date of a regularly scheduled general elec22 tion for Federal office, the Comptroller General shall 

23 submit to the appropriate congressional committees 

24 a report with respect to the most recent regularly 


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1 scheduled general election for Federal office that 

2 contains the following: 

3 (A) The analysis required by subsection 

4 (a). 

5 (B) Recommendations, as appropriate, to 

6 promote the use of best practices used by State 

7 and local officials to address barriers to accessi8 bility and privacy concerns for individuals with 

9 disabilities in elections for Federal office. 

10 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT11 TEES.—For purposes of this subsection, the term 

12 ‘‘appropriate congressional committees’’ means— 

13 (A) the Committee on House Administra14 tion of the House of Representatives; 

15 (B) the Committee on Rules and Adminis16 tration of the Senate; 

17 (C) the Committee on Appropriations of 

18 the House of Representatives; and 

19 (D) the Committee on Appropriations of 

20 the Senate. 

21 Subtitle C—Prohibiting Voter 

22 Caging 

23 SEC. 1201. VOTER CAGING AND OTHER QUESTIONABLE 

24 CHALLENGES PROHIBITED. 

25 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 


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1 (1) the term ‘‘voter caging document’’ means— 

2 (A) a non-forwardable document that is re3 turned to the sender or a third party as unde4 livered or undeliverable despite an attempt to 

5 deliver such document to the address of a reg6 istered voter or applicant; or 

7 (B) any document with instructions to an 

8 addressee that the document be returned to the 

9 sender or a third party but is not so returned, 

10 despite an attempt to deliver such document to 

11 the address of a registered voter or applicant, 

12 unless at least two Federal election cycles have 

13 passed since the date of the attempted delivery; 

14 (2) the term ‘‘voter caging list’’ means a list of 

15 individuals compiled from voter caging documents; 

16 and 

17 (3) the term ‘‘unverified match list’’ means a 

18 list produced by matching the information of reg19 istered voters or applicants for voter registration to 

20 a list of individuals who are ineligible to vote in the 

21 registrar’s jurisdiction, by virtue of death, convic22 tion, change of address, or otherwise; unless one of 

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1 suring that the information from each source refers 

2 to the same individual. 

3 (b) PROHIBITION AGAINST VOTER CAGING.—No 

4 State or local election official shall prevent an individual 

5 from registering or voting in any election for Federal of6 fice, or permit in connection with any election for Federal 

7 office a formal challenge under State law to an individual’s 

8 registration status or eligibility to vote, if the basis for 

9 such decision is evidence consisting of— 

10 (1) a voter caging document or voter caging 

11 list; 

12 (2) an unverified match list; 

13 (3) an error or omission on any record or paper 

14 relating to any application, registration, or other act 

15 requisite to voting, if such error or omission is not 

16 material to an individual’s eligibility to vote under 

17 section 2004(a)(2)(B) of the Revised Statutes (52 

18 U.S.C. 10101(a)(2)(B)); or 

19 (4) any other evidence so designated for pur20 poses of this section by the Election Assistance Com21 mission, 

22 except that the election official may use such evidence if 

23 it is corroborated by independent evidence of the individ24 ual’s ineligibility to register or vote. 


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1 (c) REQUIREMENTS FOR CHALLENGES BY PERSONS

2 OTHER THAN ELECTION OFFICIALS.— 

3 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR CHALLENGES.—No 

4 person, other than a State or local election official, 

5 shall submit a formal challenge to an individual’s eli6 gibility to register to vote in an election for Federal 

7 office or to vote in an election for Federal office un8 less that challenge is supported by personal knowl9 edge with respect to each individual challenged re10 garding the grounds for ineligibility which is— 

11 (A) documented in writing; and 

12 (B) subject to an oath or attestation under 

13 penalty of perjury that the challenger has a 

14 good faith factual basis to believe that the indi15 vidual who is the subject of the challenge is in16 eligible to register to vote or vote in that elec17 tion, except a challenge which is based on the 

18 age, race, ethnicity, or national origin of the in19 dividual who is the subject of the challenge may 

20 not be considered to have a good faith factual 

21 basis for purposes of this paragraph. 

22 (2) PROHIBITION ON CHALLENGES ON OR NEAR

23 DATE OF ELECTION.—No person, other than a State 

24 or local election official, shall be permitted— 


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1 (A) to challenge an individual’s eligibility 

2 to vote in an election for Federal office on Elec3 tion Day on grounds that could have been made 

4 in advance of such day, or 

5 (B) to challenge an individual’s eligibility 

6 to register to vote in an election for Federal of7 fice or to vote in an election for Federal office 

8 less than 10 days before the election unless the 

9 individual registered to vote less than 20 days 

10 before the election. 

11 (d) ENFORCEMENT.— 

12 (1) CIVIL ENFORCEMENT.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General 

14 may bring a civil action in an appropriate dis15 trict court for such declaratory or injunctive re16 lief as is necessary to carry out this section. 

17 (B) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

18 (i) IN GENERAL.—A person who is ag19 grieved by a violation of this section may 

20 provide written notice of the violation to— 

21 (I) in the case of a violation of 

22 subsection (b), the chief election offi23 cial of the State involved; and 

24 (II) in the case of a violation of 

25 subsection (c), the Attorney General. 


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1 (ii) RELIEF.—Except as provided in 

2 paragraph (3), if the violation is not cor3 rected within 90 days after receipt of a no4 tice under paragraph (1), or within 20 

5 days after receipt of the notice if the viola6 tion occurred within 120 days before the 

7 date of an election for Federal office, the 

8 aggrieved person may, in a civil action, ob9 tain declaratory or injunctive relief with re10 spect to the violation. 

11 (iii) EXCEPTION.—If the violation oc12 curred within 30 days before the date of 

13 an election for Federal office, the ag14 grieved person need not provide notice 

15 under paragraph (1) before bringing a civil 

16 action to obtain declaratory or injunctive 

17 relief with respect to the violation. 

18 (2) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Whoever knowingly 

19 challenges the eligibility of one or more individuals 

20 to register or vote or knowingly causes the eligibility 

21 of such individuals to be challenged in violation of 

22 this section with the intent that one or more eligible 

23 voters be disqualified, shall be fined under title 18, 

24 United States Code, or imprisoned not more than 1 


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1 year, or both, for each such violation. Each violation 

2 shall be a separate offense. 

3 (e) NO EFFECT ON RELATED LAWS.—Nothing in 

4 this section is intended to override the protections of the 

5 National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

6 20501 et seq.) or to affect the Voting Rights Act of 1965 

7 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.). 

8 SEC. 1202. DEVELOPMENT AND ADOPTION OF BEST PRAC9 TICES FOR PREVENTING VOTER CAGING. 

10 (a) BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than 180 days after 

11 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Election Assist12 ance Commission, in consultation with the Department of 

13 Justice, shall develop and publish for the use of States 

14 recommendations for best practices to deter and prevent 

15 violations of section 1201, including practices to provide 

16 for the posting of relevant information at polling places 

17 and voter registration agencies, the training of poll work18 ers and election officials, and relevant educational meas19 ures. For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘‘State’’ 

20 includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 

21 Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States 

22 Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 

23 Mariana Islands. 

24 (b) INCLUSION IN VOTING INFORMATION REQUIRE25 MENTS.—Section 302(b)(2) of the Help America Vote Act 


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1 of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082(b)(2)), as amended by section 

2 1072(b), is amended— 

3 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara4 graph (F); 

5 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub6 paragraph (G) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

7 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub8 paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(H) information relating to the prohibi10 tion against voter caging and other questionable 

11 challenges (as set forth in section 1201 of the 

12 For the People Act of 2021), including informa13 tion on how individuals may report allegations 

14 of violations of such prohibition.’’. 

15 Subtitle D—Prohibiting Deceptive 

16 Practices and Preventing Voter 

17 Intimidation 

18 SEC. 1301. SHORT TITLE. 

19 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Deceptive Prac20 tices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2021’’. 

21 SEC. 1302. PROHIBITION ON DECEPTIVE PRACTICES IN 

22 FEDERAL ELECTIONS. 

23 (a) PROHIBITION.—Subsection (b) of section 2004 of 

24 the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(b)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘No person’’ and inserting the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No person’’; and 

4 (2) by inserting at the end the following new 

5 paragraphs: 

6 ‘‘(2) FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERAL

7 ELECTIONS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—No person, whether 

9 acting under color of law or otherwise, shall, 

10 within 60 days before an election described in 

11 paragraph (5), by any means, including by 

12 means of written, electronic, or telephonic com13 munications, communicate or cause to be com14 municated information described in subpara15 graph (B), or produce information described in 

16 subparagraph (B) with the intent that such in17 formation be communicated, if such person— 

18 ‘‘(i) knows such information to be ma19 terially false; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) has the intent to impede or pre21 vent another person from exercising the 

22 right to vote in an election described in 

23 paragraph (5). 


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1 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—Infor2 mation is described in this subparagraph if such 

3 information is regarding— 

4 ‘‘(i) the time, place, or manner of 

5 holding any election described in para6 graph (5); or 

7 ‘‘(ii) the qualifications for or restric8 tions on voter eligibility for any such elec9 tion, including— 

10 ‘‘(I) any criminal, civil, or other 

11 legal penalties associated with voting 

12 in any such election; or 

13 ‘‘(II) information regarding a 

14 voter’s registration status or eligi15 bility. 

16 ‘‘(3) FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING PUBLIC

17 ENDORSEMENTS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—No person, whether 

19 acting under color of law or otherwise, shall, 

20 within 60 days before an election described in 

21 paragraph (5), by any means, including by 

22 means of written, electronic, or telephonic com23 munications, communicate, or cause to be com24 municated, a materially false statement about 

25 an endorsement, if such person— 


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1 ‘‘(i) knows such statement to be false; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(ii) has the intent to impede or pre4 vent another person from exercising the 

5 right to vote in an election described in 

6 paragraph (5). 

7 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF ‘MATERIALLY

8 FALSE’.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), a 

9 statement about an endorsement is ‘materially 

10 false’ if, with respect to an upcoming election 

11 described in paragraph (5)— 

12 ‘‘(i) the statement states that a spe13 cifically named person, political party, or 

14 organization has endorsed the election of a 

15 specific candidate for a Federal office de16 scribed in such paragraph; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) such person, political party, or 

18 organization has not endorsed the election 

19 of such candidate. 

20 ‘‘(4) HINDERING, INTERFERING WITH, OR PRE21 VENTING VOTING OR REGISTERING TO VOTE.—No 

22 person, whether acting under color of law or other23 wise, shall intentionally hinder, interfere with, or 

24 prevent another person from voting, registering to 

25 vote, or aiding another person to vote or register to 


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1 vote in an election described in paragraph (5), in2 cluding by operating a polling place or ballot box 

3 that falsely purports to be an official location estab4 lished for such an election by a unit of government. 

5 ‘‘(5) ELECTION DESCRIBED.—An election de6 scribed in this paragraph is any general, primary, 

7 runoff, or special election held solely or in part for 

8 the purpose of nominating or electing a candidate 

9 for the office of President, Vice President, Presi10 dential elector, Member of the Senate, Member of 

11 the House of Representatives, or Delegate or Com12 missioner from a Territory or possession.’’. 

13 (b) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 

15 2004 of the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(c)) 

16 is amended— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘Whenever any person’’ 

18 and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whenever any person’’; and 

20 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(2) CIVIL ACTION.—Any person aggrieved by a 

23 violation of this section may institute a civil action 

24 for preventive relief, including an application in a 

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1 porary injunction, restraining order, or other order. 

2 In any such action, the court, in its discretion, may 

3 allow the prevailing party a reasonable attorney’s fee 

4 as part of the costs.’’. 

5 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 2004 

6 of the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101) is 

7 amended— 

8 (A) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘sub9 section (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)(1)’’; 

10 and 

11 (B) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘sub12 section (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)(1)’’. 

13 (c) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 

14 (1) DECEPTIVE ACTS.—Section 594 of title 18, 

15 United States Code, is amended— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘Whoever’’ and inserting 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(a) INTIMIDATION.—Whoever’’; 

19 (B) in subsection (a), as inserted by sub20 paragraph (A), by striking ‘‘at any election’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘at any general, primary, runoff, 

22 or special election’’; and 

23 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

24 subsections: 

25 ‘‘(b) DECEPTIVE ACTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERAL

2 ELECTIONS.— 

3 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful 

4 for any person, whether acting under color of 

5 law or otherwise, within 60 days before an elec6 tion described in subsection (e), by any means, 

7 including by means of written, electronic, or tel8 ephonic communications, to communicate or 

9 cause to be communicated information de10 scribed in subparagraph (B), or produce infor11 mation described in subparagraph (B) with the 

12 intent that such information be communicated, 

13 if such person— 

14 ‘‘(i) knows such information to be ma15 terially false; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) has the intent to impede or pre17 vent another person from exercising the 

18 right to vote in an election described in 

19 subsection (e). 

20 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—Infor21 mation is described in this subparagraph if such 

22 information is regarding— 

23 ‘‘(i) the time or place of holding any 

24 election described in subsection (e); or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the qualifications for or restric2 tions on voter eligibility for any such elec3 tion, including— 

4 ‘‘(I) any criminal, civil, or other 

5 legal penalties associated with voting 

6 in any such election; or 

7 ‘‘(II) information regarding a 

8 voter’s registration status or eligi9 bility. 

10 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.—Any person who violates para11 graph (1) shall be fined not more than $100,000, 

12 imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. 

13 ‘‘(c) HINDERING, INTERFERING WITH, OR PRE14 VENTING VOTING OR REGISTERING TO VOTE.— 

15 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for 

16 any person, whether acting under color of law or 

17 otherwise, to corruptly hinder, interfere with, or pre18 vent another person from voting, registering to vote, 

19 or aiding another person to vote or register to vote 

20 in an election described in subsection (e). 

21 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.—Any person who violates para22 graph (1) shall be fined not more than $100,000, 

23 imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. 

24 ‘‘(d) ATTEMPT.—Any person who attempts to commit 

25 any offense described in subsection (a), (b)(1), or (c)(1) 


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1 shall be subject to the same penalties as those prescribed 

2 for the offense that the person attempted to commit. 

3 ‘‘(e) ELECTION DESCRIBED.—An election described 

4 in this subsection is any general, primary, runoff, or spe5 cial election held solely or in part for the purpose of nomi6 nating or electing a candidate for the office of President, 

7 Vice President, Presidential elector, Senator, Member of 

8 the House of Representatives, or Delegate or Resident 

9 Commissioner to the Congress.’’. 

10 (2) MODIFICATION OF PENALTY FOR VOTER IN11 TIMIDATION.—Section 594(a) of title 18, United 

12 States Code, as amended by paragraph (1), is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘fined under this title or im14 prisoned not more than one year’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘fined not more than $100,000, imprisoned for not 

16 more than 5 years’’. 

17 (3) SENTENCING GUIDELINES.— 

18 (A) REVIEW AND AMENDMENT.—Not later 

19 than 180 days after the date of enactment of 

20 this Act, the United States Sentencing Commis21 sion, pursuant to its authority under section 

22 994 of title 28, United States Code, and in ac23 cordance with this section, shall review and, if 

24 appropriate, amend the Federal sentencing 

25 guidelines and policy statements applicable to 


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1 persons convicted of any offense under section 

2 594 of title 18, United States Code, as amend3 ed by this section. 

4 (B) AUTHORIZATION.—The United States 

5 Sentencing Commission may amend the Federal 

6 Sentencing Guidelines in accordance with the 

7 procedures set forth in section 21(a) of the Sen8 tencing Act of 1987 (28 U.S.C. 994 note) as 

9 though the authority under that section had not 

10 expired. 

11 (4) PAYMENTS FOR REFRAINING FROM VOT12 ING.—Subsection (c) of section 11 of the Voting 

13 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10307) is amended 

14 by striking ‘‘either for registration to vote or for vot15 ing’’ and inserting ‘‘for registration to vote, for vot16 ing, or for not voting’’. 

17 SEC. 1303. CORRECTIVE ACTION. 

18 (a) CORRECTIVE ACTION.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Attorney General re20 ceives a credible report that materially false informa21 tion has been or is being communicated in violation 

22 of paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 2004(b) of the 

23 Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(b)), as added by 

24 section 1302(a), and if the Attorney General deter25 mines that State and local election officials have not 


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1 taken adequate steps to promptly communicate accu2 rate information to correct the materially false infor3 mation, the Attorney General shall, pursuant to the 

4 written procedures and standards under subsection 

5 (b), communicate to the public, by any means, in6 cluding by means of written, electronic, or telephonic 

7 communications, accurate information designed to 

8 correct the materially false information. 

9 (2) COMMUNICATION OF CORRECTIVE INFORMA10 TION.—Any information communicated by the Attor11 ney General under paragraph (1)— 

12 (A) shall— 

13 (i) be accurate and objective; 

14 (ii) consist of only the information 

15 necessary to correct the materially false in16 formation that has been or is being com17 municated; and 

18 (iii) to the extent practicable, be by a 

19 means that the Attorney General deter20 mines will reach the persons to whom the 

21 materially false information has been or is 

22 being communicated; and 

23 (B) shall not be designed to favor or dis24 favor any particular candidate, organization, or 

25 political party. 


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1 (b) WRITTEN PROCEDURES AND STANDARDS FOR

2 TAKING CORRECTIVE ACTION.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney 

5 General shall publish written procedures and stand6 ards for determining when and how corrective action 

7 will be taken under this section. 

8 (2) INCLUSION OF APPROPRIATE DEADLINES.— 

9 The procedures and standards under paragraph (1) 

10 shall include appropriate deadlines, based in part on 

11 the number of days remaining before the upcoming 

12 election. 

13 (3) CONSULTATION.—In developing the proce14 dures and standards under paragraph (1), the Attor15 ney General shall consult with the Election Assist16 ance Commission, State and local election officials, 

17 civil rights organizations, voting rights groups, voter 

18 protection groups, and other interested community 

19 organizations. 

20 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

21 are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General 

22 such sums as may be necessary to carry out this subtitle. 

23 SEC. 1304. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

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1 eral shall submit to Congress a report compiling all allega2 tions received by the Attorney General of deceptive prac3 tices described in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) of section 

4 2004(b) of the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(b)), as 

5 added by section 1302(a), relating to the general election 

6 for Federal office and any primary, runoff, or a special 

7 election for Federal office held in the 2 years preceding 

8 the general election. 

9 (b) CONTENTS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each report submitted 

11 under subsection (a) shall include— 

12 (A) a description of each allegation of a 

13 deceptive practice described in subsection (a), 

14 including the geographic location, racial and 

15 ethnic composition, and language minority16 group membership of the persons toward whom 

17 the alleged deceptive practice was directed; 

18 (B) the status of the investigation of each 

19 allegation described in subparagraph (A); 

20 (C) a description of each corrective action 

21 taken by the Attorney General under section 

22 4(a) in response to an allegation described in 

23 subparagraph (A); 


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1 (D) a description of each referral of an al2 legation described in subparagraph (A) to other 

3 Federal, State, or local agencies; 

4 (E) to the extent information is available, 

5 a description of any civil action instituted under 

6 section 2004(c)(2) of the Revised Statutes (52 

7 U.S.C. 10101(c)(2)), as added by section 

8 1302(b), in connection with an allegation de9 scribed in subparagraph (A); and 

10 (F) a description of any criminal prosecu11 tion instituted under section 594 of title 18, 

12 United States Code, as amended by section 

13 1302(c), in connection with the receipt of an al14 legation described in subparagraph (A) by the 

15 Attorney General. 

16 (2) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General 

18 shall not include in a report submitted under 

19 subsection (a) any information protected from 

20 disclosure by rule 6(e) of the Federal Rules of 

21 Criminal Procedure or any Federal criminal 

22 statute. 

23 (B) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN OTHER IN24 FORMATION.—The Attorney General may deter25 mine that the following information shall not be 


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1 included in a report submitted under subsection 

2 (a): 

3 (i) Any information that is privileged. 

4 (ii) Any information concerning an 

5 ongoing investigation. 

6 (iii) Any information concerning a 

7 criminal or civil proceeding conducted 

8 under seal. 

9 (iv) Any other nonpublic information 

10 that the Attorney General determines the 

11 disclosure of which could reasonably be ex12 pected to infringe on the rights of any in13 dividual or adversely affect the integrity of 

14 a pending or future criminal investigation. 

15 (c) REPORT MADE PUBLIC.—On the date that the 

16 Attorney General submits the report under subsection (a), 

17 the Attorney General shall also make the report publicly 

18 available through the internet and other appropriate 

19 means. 

20 Subtitle E—Democracy Restoration 

21 SEC. 1401. SHORT TITLE. 

22 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Democracy Res23 toration Act of 2021’’. 

24 SEC. 1402. FINDINGS. 

25 Congress makes the following findings: 


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1 (1) The right to vote is the most basic constitu2 tive act of citizenship. Regaining the right to vote 

3 reintegrates individuals with criminal convictions 

4 into free society, helping to enhance public safety. 

5 (2) Article I, section 4, of the Constitution 

6 grants Congress ultimate supervisory power over 

7 Federal elections, an authority which has repeatedly 

8 been upheld by the United States Supreme Court. 

9 (3) Basic constitutional principles of fairness 

10 and equal protection require an equal opportunity 

11 for citizens of the United States to vote in Federal 

12 elections. The right to vote may not be abridged or 

13 denied by the United States or by any State on ac14 count of race, color, gender, or previous condition of 

15 servitude. The 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, 24th, and 

16 26th Amendments to the Constitution empower Con17 gress to enact measures to protect the right to vote 

18 in Federal elections. The 8th Amendment to the 

19 Constitution provides for no excessive bail to be re20 quired, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and 

21 unusual punishments inflicted. 

22 (4) There are 3 areas in which discrepancies in 

23 State laws regarding criminal convictions lead to un24 fairness in Federal elections— 


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1 (A) the lack of a uniform standard for vot2 ing in Federal elections leads to an unfair dis3 parity and unequal participation in Federal 

4 elections based solely on where a person lives; 

5 (B) laws governing the restoration of vot6 ing rights after a criminal conviction vary 

7 throughout the country and persons in some 

8 States can easily regain their voting rights 

9 while in other States persons effectively lose 

10 their right to vote permanently; and 

11 (C) State disenfranchisement laws dis12 proportionately impact racial and ethnic minori13 ties. 

14 (5) State disenfranchisement laws vary widely. 

15 Two States (Maine and Vermont) and the Common16 wealth of Puerto Rico do not disenfranchise individ17 uals with criminal convictions at all. In 2020, the 

18 District of Columbia re-enfranchised its citizens who 

19 are under the supervision of the Federal Bureau of 

20 Prisons. In 30 States, individuals with convictions 

21 may not vote while they are on parole and 28 of 

22 those States disenfranchise individuals on felony 

23 probation as well. In 11 States, a conviction can re24 sult in lifetime disenfranchisement. 


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1 (6) Several States deny the right to vote to in2 dividuals convicted of certain misdemeanors. 

3 (7) In 2020, an estimated 5,200,000 citizens of 

4 the United States, or about 1 in 44 adults in the 

5 United States, could not vote as a result of a felony 

6 conviction. Of the 5,200,000 citizens barred from 

7 voting then, only 24 percent were in prison. By con8 trast, 75 percent of persons disenfranchised then re9 sided in their communities while on probation or pa10 role or after having completed their sentences. Ap11 proximately 2,200,000 citizens who had completed 

12 their sentences were disenfranchised due to restric13 tive State laws. As of November 2018, the lifetime 

14 ban for persons with certain felony convictions was 

15 eliminated through a Florida ballot initiative. As a 

16 result, as many as 1,400,000 people are now eligible 

17 to have their voting rights restored. In 4 States— 

18 Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Tennessee—more 

19 than 7 percent of the total population is 

20 disenfranchised. 

21 (8) In those States that disenfranchise individ22 uals post-sentence, the right to vote can be regained 

23 in theory, but in practice this possibility is often 

24 granted in a non-uniform and potentially discrimina25 tory manner. Disenfranchised individuals sometimes 


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1 must either obtain a pardon or an order from the 

2 Governor or an action by the parole or pardon 

3 board, depending on the offense and State. Individ4 uals convicted of a Federal offense often have addi5 tional barriers to regaining voting rights. 

6 (9) Many felony disenfranchisement laws today 

7 derive directly from post-Civil War efforts to stifle 

8 the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. Between 

9 1865 and 1880, at least 14 states—Alabama, Ar10 kansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Mis11 sissippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Caro12 lina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas—en13 acted or expanded their felony disenfranchisement 

14 laws. One of the primary goals of these laws was to 

15 prevent African Americans from voting. Of the 

16 states that enacted or expanded their felony dis17 enfranchisement laws during this post-Civil War pe18 riod, at least 11 continue to preclude persons on fel19 ony probation or parole from voting. 

20 (10) Latino citizens are also disproportionately 

21 disenfranchised based upon their disproportionate 

22 representation in the criminal justice system. In re23 cent years, Latinos have been imprisoned at 2.5 

24 times the rate of Whites. More than 2 percent of the 

25 voting-age Latino population, or 560,000 Latinos, 


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1 are disenfranchised due to a felony conviction. In 34 

2 states Latinos are disenfranchised at a higher rate 

3 than the general population. In 11 states 4 percent 

4 or more of Latino adults are disenfranchised due to 

5 a felony conviction (Alabama, 4 percent; Arizona, 7 

6 percent; Arkansas, 4 percent; Idaho, 4 percent; 

7 Iowa, 4 percent; Kentucky, 6 percent; Minnesota, 4 

8 percent; Mississippi, 5 percent; Nebraska, 6 percent; 

9 Tennessee, 11 percent; Wyoming, 4 percent), twice 

10 the national average for Latinos. 

11 (11) Disenfranchising citizens who have been 

12 convicted of a criminal offense and who are living 

13 and working in the community serves no compelling 

14 State interest and hinders their rehabilitation and 

15 reintegration into society. 

16 (12) State disenfranchisement laws can sup17 press electoral participation among eligible voters by 

18 discouraging voting among family and community 

19 members of disenfranchised persons. Future elec20 toral participation by the children of disenfranchised 

21 parents may be impacted as well. Models of success22 ful re-entry for persons convicted of a crime empha23 size the importance of community ties, feeling vested 

24 and integrated, and prosocial attitudes. Individuals 

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1 cidivism are typically more likely to see themselves 

2 as law-abiding members of the community. Restora3 tion of voting rights builds those qualities and facili4 tates reintegration into the community. That is why 

5 allowing citizens with criminal convictions who are 

6 living in a community to vote is correlated with a 

7 lower likelihood of recidivism. Restoration of voting 

8 rights thus reduces violence and protects public safe9 ty. 

10 (13) The United States is one of the only West11 ern democracies that permits the permanent denial 

12 of voting rights for individuals with felony convic13 tions. 

14 (14) The Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on 

15 cruel and unusual punishments ‘‘guarantees individ16 uals the right not to be subjected to excessive sanc17 tions.’’ (Roper v. Simmons, 543 U.S. 551, 560 

18 (2005)). That right stems from the basic precept of 

19 justice ‘‘that punishment for crime should be grad20 uated and proportioned to [the] offense.’’ Id. 

21 (quoting Weems v. United States, 217 U.S. 349, 

22 367 (1910)). As the Supreme Court has long recog23 nized, ‘‘[t]he concept of proportionality is central to 

24 the Eighth Amendment.’’ (Graham v. Florida, 560 

25 U.S. 48, 59 (2010)). Many State disenfranchisement 


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1 laws are grossly disproportional to the offenses that 

2 lead to disenfranchisement and thus violate the bar 

3 on cruel and unusual punishments. For example, a 

4 number of states mandate lifetime disenfranchise5 ment for a single felony conviction or just two felony 

6 convictions, even where the convictions were for non7 violent offenses. In numerous other States, dis8 enfranchisement can last years or even decades while 

9 individuals remain on probation or parole, often only 

10 because a person cannot pay their legal financial ob11 ligations. These kinds of extreme voting bans run 

12 afoul of the Eighth Amendment. 

13 (15) The Twenty-Fourth Amendment provides 

14 that the right to vote ‘‘shall not be denied or 

15 abridged by the United States or any State by rea16 son of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.’’. Sec17 tion 2 of the Twenty-Fourth Amendment gives Con18 gress the power to enforce this article by appropriate 

19 legislation. Court fines and fees that individuals 

20 must pay to have their voting rights restored con21 stitute an ‘‘other tax’’ for purposes of the Twenty22 Fourth Amendment. At least five States explicitly 

23 require the payment of fines and fees before individ24 uals with felony convictions can have their voting 

25 rights restored. More than 20 other states effectively 


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1 tie the right to vote to the payment of fines and 

2 fees, by requiring that individuals complete their 

3 probation or parole before their rights are restored. 

4 In these States, the non-payment of fines and fees 

5 is a basis on which probation or parole can be ex6 tended. Moreover, these states sometimes do not 

7 record the basis on which an individual’s probation 

8 or parole was extended, making it impossible to de9 termine from the State’s records whether non-pay10 ment of fines and fees is the reason that an indi11 vidual remains on probation or parole. For these 

12 reasons, the only way to ensure that States do not 

13 deny the right to vote based solely on non-payment 

14 of fines and fees is to prevent States from condi15 tioning voting rights on the completion of probation 

16 or parole. 

17 SEC. 1403. RIGHTS OF CITIZENS. 

18 The right of an individual who is a citizen of the 

19 United States to vote in any election for Federal office 

20 shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has 

21 been convicted of a criminal offense unless such individual 

22 is serving a felony sentence in a correctional institution 

23 or facility at the time of the election. 


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1 SEC. 1404. ENFORCEMENT. 

2 (a) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The Attorney General 

3 may, in a civil action, obtain such declaratory or injunctive 

4 relief as is necessary to remedy a violation of this subtitle. 

5 (b) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person who is aggrieved 

7 by a violation of this subtitle may provide written 

8 notice of the violation to the chief election official of 

9 the State involved. 

10 (2) RELIEF.—Except as provided in paragraph 

11 (3), if the violation is not corrected within 90 days 

12 after receipt of a notice under paragraph (1), or 

13 within 20 days after receipt of the notice if the viola14 tion occurred within 120 days before the date of an 

15 election for Federal office, the aggrieved person 

16 may, in a civil action, obtain declaratory or injunc17 tive relief with respect to the violation. 

18 (3) EXCEPTION.—If the violation occurred 

19 within 30 days before the date of an election for 

20 Federal office, the aggrieved person need not provide 

21 notice to the chief election official of the State under 

22 paragraph (1) before bringing a civil action to obtain 

23 declaratory or injunctive relief with respect to the 

24 violation. 


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1 SEC. 1405. NOTIFICATION OF RESTORATION OF VOTING 

2 RIGHTS. 

3 (a) STATE NOTIFICATION.— 

4 (1) NOTIFICATION.—On the date determined 

5 under paragraph (2), each State shall— 

6 (A) notify in writing any individual who 

7 has been convicted of a criminal offense under 

8 the law of that State that such individual— 

9 (i) has the right to vote in an election 

10 for Federal office pursuant to the Democ11 racy Restoration Act of 2021; and 

12 (ii) may register to vote in any such 

13 election; and 

14 (B) provide such individual with any mate15 rials that are necessary to register to vote in 

16 any such election. 

17 (2) DATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 

18 (A) FELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 

19 such an individual who has been convicted of a 

20 felony, the notification required under para21 graph (1) shall be given on the date on which 

22 the individual— 

23 (i) is sentenced to serve only a term 

24 of probation; or 

25 (ii) is released from the custody of 

26 that State (other than to the custody of 


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1 another State or the Federal Government 

2 to serve a term of imprisonment for a fel3 ony conviction). 

4 (B) MISDEMEANOR CONVICTION.—In the 

5 case of such an individual who has been con6 victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re7 quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 

8 the date on which such individual is sentenced 

9 by a State court. 

10 (b) FEDERAL NOTIFICATION.— 

11 (1) NOTIFICATION.—Any individual who has 

12 been convicted of a criminal offense under Federal 

13 law— 

14 (A) shall be notified in accordance with 

15 paragraph (2) that such individual— 

16 (i) has the right to vote in an election 

17 for Federal office pursuant to the Democ18 racy Restoration Act of 2021; and 

19 (ii) may register to vote in any such 

20 election; and 

21 (B) shall be provided with any materials 

22 that are necessary to register to vote in any 

23 such election. 

24 (2) DATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 


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1 (A) FELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 

2 such an individual who has been convicted of a 

3 felony, the notification required under para4 graph (1) shall be given— 

5 (i) in the case of an individual who is 

6 sentenced to serve only a term of proba7 tion, by the Assistant Director for the Of8 fice of Probation and Pretrial Services of 

9 the Administrative Office of the United 

10 States Courts on the date on which the in11 dividual is sentenced; or 

12 (ii) in the case of any individual com13 mitted to the custody of the Bureau of 

14 Prisons, by the Director of the Bureau of 

15 Prisons, during the period beginning on 

16 the date that is 6 months before such indi17 vidual is released and ending on the date 

18 such individual is released from the cus19 tody of the Bureau of Prisons. 

20 (B) MISDEMEANOR CONVICTION.—In the 

21 case of such an individual who has been con22 victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re23 quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 

24 the date on which such individual is sentenced 

25 by a court established by an Act of Congress. 


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1 SEC. 1406. DEFINITIONS. 

2 For purposes of this subtitle: 

3 (1) CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION OR FACIL4 ITY.—The term ‘‘correctional institution or facility’’ 

5 means any prison, penitentiary, jail, or other institu6 tion or facility for the confinement of individuals 

7 convicted of criminal offenses, whether publicly or 

8 privately operated, except that such term does not 

9 include any residential community treatment center 

10 (or similar public or private facility). 

11 (2) ELECTION.—The term ‘‘election’’ means— 

12 (A) a general, special, primary, or runoff 

13 election; 

14 (B) a convention or caucus of a political 

15 party held to nominate a candidate; 

16 (C) a primary election held for the selec17 tion of delegates to a national nominating con18 vention of a political party; or 

19 (D) a primary election held for the expres20 sion of a preference for the nomination of per21 sons for election to the office of President. 

22 (3) FEDERAL OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Federal of23 fice’’ means the office of President or Vice President 

24 of the United States, or of Senator or Representa25 tive in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, 

26 the Congress of the United States. 


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1 (4) PROBATION.—The term ‘‘probation’’ means 

2 probation, imposed by a Federal, State, or local 

3 court, with or without a condition on the individual 

4 involved concerning— 

5 (A) the individual’s freedom of movement; 

6 (B) the payment of damages by the indi7 vidual; 

8 (C) periodic reporting by the individual to 

9 an officer of the court; or 

10 (D) supervision of the individual by an of11 ficer of the court. 

12 SEC. 1407. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS. 

13 (a) STATE LAWS RELATING TO VOTING RIGHTS.— 

14 Nothing in this subtitle may be construed to prohibit the 

15 States from enacting any State law which affords the right 

16 to vote in any election for Federal office on terms less 

17 restrictive than those established by this subtitle. 

18 (b) CERTAIN FEDERAL ACTS.—The rights and rem19 edies established by this subtitle— 

20 (1) are in addition to all other rights and rem21 edies provided by law, and 

22 (2) shall not supersede, restrict, or limit the ap23 plication of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

24 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) or the National Voter Reg25 istration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.). 


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1 SEC. 1408. FEDERAL PRISON FUNDS. 

2 No State, unit of local government, or other person 

3 may receive or use, to construct or otherwise improve a 

4 prison, jail, or other place of incarceration, any Federal 

5 funds unless that person has in effect a program under 

6 which each individual incarcerated in that person’s juris7 diction who is a citizen of the United States is notified, 

8 upon release from such incarceration, of that individual’s 

9 rights under section 1403. 

10 SEC. 1409. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

11 This subtitle shall apply to citizens of the United 

12 States voting in any election for Federal office held after 

13 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

14 Subtitle F—Promoting Accuracy, 

15 Integrity, and Security Through 

16 Voter-Verifiable Permanent 

17 Paper Ballot 

18 SEC. 1501. SHORT TITLE. 

19 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Voter Confidence 

20 and Increased Accessibility Act of 2021’’. 

21 SEC. 1502. PAPER BALLOT AND MANUAL COUNTING RE22 QUIREMENTS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 301(a)(2) of the Help 

24 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(2)) is 

25 amended to read as follows: 

26 ‘‘(2) PAPER BALLOT REQUIREMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) VOTER-VERIFIABLE PAPER BAL2 LOTS.— 

3 ‘‘(i) PAPER BALLOT REQUIREMENT.— 

4 (I) The voting system shall require the use 

5 of an individual, durable, voter-verifiable 

6 paper ballot of the voter’s vote selections 

7 that shall be marked by the voter and pre8 sented to the voter for physical verification 

9 before the voter’s ballot is preserved in ac10 cordance with clause (ii), and which shall 

11 be counted by hand or other counting de12 vice or read by a ballot tabulation device. 

13 For purposes of this subclause, the term 

14 ‘individual, durable, voter-verifiable paper 

15 ballot’ means a paper ballot marked by the 

16 voter by hand or a paper ballot marked 

17 through the use of a nontabulating ballot 

18 marking device or system, so long as the 

19 voter shall have the option at every in-per20 son voting location to mark by hand a 

21 printed ballot that includes all relevant 

22 contests and candidates. 

23 ‘‘(II) The voting system shall provide 

24 the voter with an opportunity to correct 

25 any error on the paper ballot before the 


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1 permanent voter-verifiable paper ballot is 

2 preserved in accordance with clause (ii). 

3 ‘‘(III) The voting system shall not 

4 preserve the voter-verifiable paper ballots 

5 in any manner that makes it possible, at 

6 any time after the ballot has been cast, to 

7 associate a voter with the record of the 

8 voter’s vote selections. 

9 ‘‘(IV) The voting system shall pre10 vent, through mechanical means or 

11 through independently verified protections, 

12 the modification or addition of vote selec13 tions on a printed or marked ballot at any 

14 time after the voter has been provided an 

15 opportunity to correct errors on the ballot 

16 pursuant to subclause (II). 

17 ‘‘(ii) PRESERVATION AS OFFICIAL

18 RECORD.—The individual, durable, voter19 verifiable paper ballot used in accordance 

20 with clause (i) shall constitute the official 

21 ballot and shall be preserved and used as 

22 the official ballot for purposes of any re23 count or audit conducted with respect to 

24 any election for Federal office in which the 

25 voting system is used. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) MANUAL COUNTING REQUIRE2 MENTS FOR RECOUNTS AND AUDITS.—(I) 

3 Each paper ballot used pursuant to clause 

4 (i) shall be suitable for a manual audit, 

5 and such ballots, or at least those ballots 

6 the machine could not count, shall be 

7 counted by hand in any recount or audit 

8 conducted with respect to any election for 

9 Federal office. 

10 ‘‘(II) In the event of any inconsist11 encies or irregularities between any elec12 tronic vote tallies and the vote tallies de13 termined by counting by hand the indi14 vidual, durable, voter-verifiable paper bal15 lots used pursuant to clause (i), and sub16 ject to subparagraph (B), the individual, 

17 durable, voter-verifiable paper ballots shall 

18 be the true and correct record of the votes 

19 cast. 

20 ‘‘(iv) APPLICATION TO ALL BAL21 LOTS.—The requirements of this subpara22 graph shall apply to all ballots cast in elec23 tions for Federal office, including ballots 

24 cast by absent uniformed services voters 

25 and overseas voters under the Uniformed 


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1 and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act 

2 and other absentee voters. 

3 ‘‘(v) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the 

4 sense of Congress that as innovation oc5 curs in the election infrastructure sector, 

6 Congress should ensure that this Act and 

7 other Federal requirements for voting sys8 tems are updated to keep pace with best 

9 practices and recommendations for security 

10 and accessibility. 

11 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR TREATMENT OF

12 DISPUTES WHEN PAPER BALLOTS HAVE BEEN

13 SHOWN TO BE COMPROMISED.— 

14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In the event 

15 that— 

16 ‘‘(I) there is any inconsistency 

17 between any electronic vote tallies and 

18 the vote tallies determined by count19 ing by hand the individual, durable, 

20 voter-verifiable paper ballots used pur21 suant to subparagraph (A)(i) with re22 spect to any election for Federal of23 fice; and 

24 ‘‘(II) it is demonstrated by clear 

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1 mined in accordance with the applica2 ble standards in the jurisdiction in3 volved) in any recount, audit, or con4 test of the result of the election that 

5 the paper ballots have been com6 promised (by damage or mischief or 

7 otherwise) and that a sufficient num8 ber of the ballots have been so com9 promised that the result of the elec10 tion could be changed, 

11 the determination of the appropriate rem12 edy with respect to the election shall be 

13 made in accordance with applicable State 

14 and Federal law, except that the electronic 

15 tally shall not be used as the exclusive 

16 basis for determining the official certified 

17 result. 

18 ‘‘(ii) RULE FOR CONSIDERATION OF

19 BALLOTS ASSOCIATED WITH EACH VOTING

20 MACHINE.—For purposes of clause (i), 

21 only the paper ballots deemed com22 promised, if any, shall be considered in the 

23 calculation of whether or not the result of 

24 the election could be changed due to the 

25 compromised paper ballots.’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT CLARIFYING APPLI2 CABILITY OF ALTERNATIVE LANGUAGE ACCESSIBILITY.— 

3 Section 301(a)(4) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(4)) 

4 is amended by inserting ‘‘(including the paper ballots re5 quired to be used under paragraph (2))’’ after ‘‘voting sys6 tem’’. 

7 (c) OTHER CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

8 301(a)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(1)) is amend9 ed— 

10 (1) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking ‘‘count11 ed’’ and inserting ‘‘counted, in accordance with 

12 paragraphs (2) and (3)’’; 

13 (2) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by striking ‘‘count14 ed’’ and inserting ‘‘counted, in accordance with 

15 paragraphs (2) and (3)’’; 

16 (3) in subparagraph (A)(iii), by striking ‘‘count17 ed’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘counted, in 

18 accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3)’’; and 

19 (4) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ‘‘count20 ed’’ and inserting ‘‘counted, in accordance with 

21 paragraphs (2) and (3)’’. 


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1 SEC. 1503. ACCESSIBILITY AND BALLOT VERIFICATION FOR 

2 INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (3) of section 301(a) 

4 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 

5 21081(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(3) ACCESSIBILITY FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH

7 DISABILITIES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The voting system 

9 shall— 

10 ‘‘(i) be accessible for individuals with 

11 disabilities, including nonvisual accessi12 bility for the blind and visually impaired, 

13 in a manner that provides the same oppor14 tunity for access and participation (includ15 ing privacy and independence) as for other 

16 voters; 

17 ‘‘(ii)(I) ensure that individuals with 

18 disabilities and others are given an equiva19 lent opportunity to vote, including with pri20 vacy and independence, in a manner that 

21 produces a voter-verifiable paper ballot; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(II) satisfy the requirement of clause 

24 (i) through the use at in-person polling lo25 cations of a sufficient number (not less 

26 than one) of voting systems equipped to 


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1 serve individuals with and without disabil2 ities, including nonvisual and enhanced vis3 ual accessibility for the blind and visually 

4 impaired, and nonmanual and enhanced 

5 manual accessibility for the mobility and 

6 dexterity impaired; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) if purchased with funds made 

8 available under title II on or after January 

9 1, 2007, meet the voting system standards 

10 for disability access (as outlined in this 

11 paragraph). 

12 ‘‘(B) MEANS OF MEETING REQUIRE13 MENTS.—A voting system may meet the re14 quirements of subparagraph (A)(i) and para15 graph (2)(A) by— 

16 ‘‘(i) allowing the voter to privately 

17 and independently verify the permanent 

18 paper ballot through the presentation, in 

19 accessible form, of the printed or marked 

20 vote selections from the same printed or 

21 marked information that would be used for 

22 any vote tabulation or auditing; 

23 ‘‘(ii) allowing the voter to privately 

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1 manent paper ballot without requiring the 

2 voter to manually handle the paper ballot; 

3 ‘‘(iii) marking ballots that are iden4 tical in size, ink, and paper stock to those 

5 ballots that would either be marked by 

6 hand or be marked by a ballot marking de7 vice made generally available to voters; and 

8 ‘‘(iv) combining ballots produced by 

9 any ballot marking devices reserved for in10 dividuals with disabilities with ballots that 

11 have either been marked by voters by hand 

12 or marked by ballot marking devices made 

13 generally available to voters, in a way that 

14 prevents identification of the ballots that 

15 were cast using any ballot marking device 

16 that was reserved for individuals with dis17 abilities. 

18 ‘‘(C) SUFFICIENT NUMBER.—For purposes 

19 of subparagraph (A)(ii)(II), the sufficient num20 ber of voting systems for any in-person polling 

21 location shall be determined based on guidance 

22 from the Attorney General, in consultation with 

23 the Architectural and Transportation Barriers 

24 Compliance Board established under section 

25 502(a)(1) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 


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1 U.S.C. 792(a)(1)) (commonly referred to as the 

2 United States Access Board) and the Commis3 sion.’’. 

4 (b) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENT OF STUDY, TESTING, 

5 AND DEVELOPMENT OF ACCESSIBLE VOTING OPTIONS.— 

6 (1) STUDY AND REPORTING.—Subtitle C of 

7 title II of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is 

8 amended— 

9 (A) by redesignating section 247 as section 

10 248; and 

11 (B) by inserting after section 246 the fol12 lowing new section: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 247. STUDY AND REPORT ON ACCESSIBLE VOTING 

14 OPTIONS. 

15 ‘‘(a) GRANTS TO STUDY AND REPORT.—The Com16 mission, in coordination with the Access Board and the 

17 Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, shall 

18 make grants to not fewer than 2 eligible entities to study, 

19 test, and develop— 

20 ‘‘(1) accessible and secure remote voting sys21 tems; 

22 ‘‘(2) voting, verification, and casting devices to 

23 enhance the accessibility of voting and verification 

24 for individuals with disabilities; or 


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1 ‘‘(3) both of the matters described in paragraph 

2 (1) and (2). 

3 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—An entity is eligible to receive a 

4 grant under this part if it submits to the Commission (at 

5 such time and in such form as the Commission may re6 quire) an application containing— 

7 ‘‘(1) a certification that the entity shall com8 plete the activities carried out with the grant not 

9 later than January 1, 2024; and 

10 ‘‘(2) such other information and certifications 

11 as the Commission may require. 

12 ‘‘(c) AVAILABILITY OF TECHNOLOGY.—Any tech13 nology developed with the grants made under this section 

14 shall be treated as non-proprietary and shall be made 

15 available to the public, including to manufacturers of vot16 ing systems. 

17 ‘‘(d) COORDINATION WITH GRANTS FOR TECH18 NOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS.—The Commission shall carry 

19 out this section so that the activities carried out with the 

20 grants made under subsection (a) are coordinated with the 

21 research conducted under the grant program carried out 

22 by the Commission under section 271, to the extent that 

23 the Commission determine necessary to provide for the ad24 vancement of accessible voting technology. 


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1 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out subsection 

3 (a) $10,000,000, to remain available until expended.’’. 

4 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con5 tents of such Act is amended— 

6 (A) by redesignating the item relating to 

7 section 247 as relating to section 248; and 

8 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

9 section 246 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 247. Study and report on accessible voting options.’’. 

10 (c) CLARIFICATION OF ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS

11 UNDER VOLUNTARY VOTING SYSTEM GUIDANCE.—In 

12 adopting any voluntary guidance under subtitle B of title 

13 III of the Help America Vote Act with respect to the ac14 cessibility of the paper ballot verification requirements for 

15 individuals with disabilities, the Election Assistance Com16 mission shall include and apply the same accessibility 

17 standards applicable under the voluntary guidance adopt18 ed for accessible voting systems under such subtitle. 

19 (d) PERMITTING USE OF FUNDS FOR PROTECTION

20 AND ADVOCACY SYSTEMS TO SUPPORT ACTIONS TO EN21 FORCE ELECTION-RELATED DISABILITY ACCESS.—Sec22 tion 292(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 

23 U.S.C. 21062(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘; except that’’ 

24 and all that follows and inserting a period. 


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1 SEC. 1504. DURABILITY AND READABILITY REQUIREMENTS 

2 FOR BALLOTS. 

3 Section 301(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

4 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

5 the following new paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(7) DURABILITY AND READABILITY REQUIRE7 MENTS FOR BALLOTS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) DURABILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR

9 PAPER BALLOTS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—All voter-verifiable 

11 paper ballots required to be used under 

12 this Act shall be marked or printed on du13 rable paper. 

14 ‘‘(ii) DEFINITION.—For purposes of 

15 this Act, paper is ‘durable’ if it is capable 

16 of withstanding multiple counts and re17 counts by hand without compromising the 

18 fundamental integrity of the ballots, and 

19 capable of retaining the information 

20 marked or printed on them for the full du21 ration of a retention and preservation pe22 riod of 22 months. 

23 ‘‘(B) READABILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR

24 PAPER BALLOTS MARKED BY BALLOT MARKING

25 DEVICE.—All voter-verifiable paper ballots com26 pleted by the voter through the use of a ballot 


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1 marking device shall be clearly readable by the 

2 voter without assistance (other than eyeglasses 

3 or other personal vision enhancing devices) and 

4 by a ballot tabulation device or other device 

5 equipped for individuals with disabilities.’’. 

6 SEC. 1505. STUDY AND REPORT ON OPTIMAL BALLOT DE7 SIGN. 

8 (a) STUDY.—The Election Assistance Commission 

9 shall conduct a study of the best ways to design ballots 

10 used in elections for public office, including paper ballots 

11 and electronic or digital ballots, to minimize confusion and 

12 user errors. 

13 (b) REPORT.—Not later than January 1, 2022, the 

14 Election Assistance Commission shall submit to Congress 

15 a report on the study conducted under subsection (a). 

16 SEC. 1506. PAPER BALLOT PRINTING REQUIREMENTS. 

17 Section 301(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

18 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)), as amended by section 1504, is fur19 ther amended by adding at the end the following new para20 graph: 

21 ‘‘(8) PRINTING REQUIREMENTS FOR BAL22 LOTS.—To the extent practical, all paper ballots 

23 used in an election for Federal office shall be printed 

24 in the United States on paper manufactured in the 

25 United States.’’. 


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1 SEC. 1507. BALLOT MARKING DEVICE CYBERSECURITY RE2 QUIREMENTS. 

3 Section 301(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

4 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)), as amended by sections 1504 and 

5 1506, is further amended by adding at the end the fol6 lowing new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(9) PROHIBITION OF USE OF WIRELESS COM8 MUNICATIONS DEVICES IN SYSTEMS OR DEVICES.— 

9 No system or device upon which ballot marking de10 vices or ballot tabulation devices are configured, 

11 upon which ballots are marked by voters (except as 

12 necessary for individuals with disabilities to use bal13 lot marking devices that meet the accessibility re14 quirements of paragraph (3)), or upon which votes 

15 are cast, tabulated, or aggregated shall contain, use, 

16 or be accessible by any wireless, power-line, or con17 cealed communication device. 

18 ‘‘(10) PROHIBITING CONNECTION OF SYSTEM

19 TO THE INTERNET.—No system or device upon 

20 which ballot marking devices or ballot tabulation de21 vices are configured, upon which ballots are marked 

22 by voters, or upon which votes are cast, tabulated, 

23 or aggregated shall be connected to the internet or 

24 any non-local computer system via telephone or 

25 other communication network at any time.’’. 


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1 SEC. 1508. EFFECTIVE DATE FOR NEW REQUIREMENTS. 

2 Section 301(d) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

3 (52 U.S.C. 21081(d)) is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para6 graph (2), each State and jurisdiction shall be re7 quired to comply with the requirements of this sec8 tion on and after January 1, 2006. 

9 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR CERTAIN REQUIRE10 MENTS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

12 subparagraphs (B) and (C), the requirements of 

13 this section which are first imposed on a State 

14 or jurisdiction pursuant to the amendments 

15 made by the Voter Confidence and Increased 

16 Accessibility Act of 2021 shall apply with re17 spect to voting systems used for any election for 

18 Federal office held in 2022 or any succeeding 

19 year. 

20 ‘‘(B) DELAY FOR JURISDICTIONS USING

21 CERTAIN PAPER RECORD PRINTERS OR CERTAIN

22 SYSTEMS USING OR PRODUCING VOTER23 VERIFIABLE PAPER RECORDS IN 2020.— 

24 ‘‘(i) DELAY.—In the case of a juris25 diction described in clause (ii), subpara26 graph (A) shall apply to a voting system in 


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1 the jurisdiction as if the reference in such 

2 subparagraph to ‘2022’ were a reference to 

3 ‘the applicable year’, but only with respect 

4 to the following requirements of this sec5 tion: 

6 ‘‘(I) Paragraph (2)(A)(i)(I) of 

7 subsection (a) (relating to the use of 

8 voter-verifiable paper ballots). 

9 ‘‘(II) Paragraph (7) of subsection 

10 (a) (relating to durability and read11 ability requirements for ballots). 

12 ‘‘(ii) JURISDICTIONS DESCRIBED.—A 

13 jurisdiction described in this clause is a ju14 risdiction— 

15 ‘‘(I) which used voter-verifiable 

16 paper record printers attached to di17 rect recording electronic voting ma18 chines, or which used other voting 

19 systems that used or produced paper 

20 records of the vote verifiable by voters 

21 but that are not in compliance with 

22 paragraphs (2)(A)(i)(I) and (7) of 

23 subsection (a) (as amended or added 

24 by the Voter Confidence and In25 creased Accessibility Act of 2021), for 


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1 the administration of the regularly 

2 scheduled general election for Federal 

3 office held in November 2020; and 

4 ‘‘(II) which will continue to use 

5 such printers or systems for the ad6 ministration of elections for Federal 

7 office held in years before the applica8 ble year. 

9 ‘‘(iii) APPLICABLE YEAR.— 

10 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Except as 

11 provided in subclause (II), the term 

12 ‘applicable year’ means 2026. 

13 ‘‘(II) EXTENSION.—If a State or 

14 jurisdiction certifies to the Commis15 sion not later than January 1, 2026, 

16 that the State or jurisdiction will not 

17 meet the requirements described in 

18 subclauses (I) and (II) of clause (i) by 

19 such date because it would be imprac20 tical to do so and includes in the cer21 tification the reasons for the failure to 

22 meet the deadline, the term ‘applica23 ble year’ means 2030. 

24 ‘‘(iv) MANDATORY AVAILABILITY OF

25 PAPER BALLOTS AT POLLING PLACES


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1 USING GRANDFATHERED PRINTERS AND

2 SYSTEMS.— 

3 ‘‘(I) REQUIRING BALLOTS TO BE

4 OFFERED AND PROVIDED.—The ap5 propriate election official at each poll6 ing place that uses a printer or sys7 tem described in clause (ii)(I) for the 

8 administration of elections for Federal 

9 office shall offer each individual who 

10 is eligible to cast a vote in the election 

11 at the polling place the opportunity to 

12 cast the vote using a blank printed 

13 paper ballot which the individual may 

14 mark by hand and which is not pro15 duced by the direct recording elec16 tronic voting machine or other such 

17 system. The official shall provide the 

18 individual with the ballot and the sup19 plies necessary to mark the ballot, and 

20 shall ensure (to the greatest extent 

21 practicable) that the waiting period 

22 for the individual to cast a vote is the 

23 lesser of 30 minutes or the average 

24 waiting period for an individual who 


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1 does not agree to cast the vote using 

2 such a paper ballot under this clause. 

3 ‘‘(II) TREATMENT OF BALLOT.— 

4 Any paper ballot which is cast by an 

5 individual under this clause shall be 

6 counted and otherwise treated as a 

7 regular ballot for all purposes (includ8 ing by incorporating it into the final 

9 unofficial vote count (as defined by 

10 the State) for the precinct) and not as 

11 a provisional ballot, unless the indi12 vidual casting the ballot would have 

13 otherwise been required to cast a pro14 visional ballot. 

15 ‘‘(III) POSTING OF NOTICE.— 

16 The appropriate election official shall 

17 ensure there is prominently displayed 

18 at each polling place a notice that de19 scribes the obligation of the official to 

20 offer individuals the opportunity to 

21 cast votes using a printed blank paper 

22 ballot. The notice shall take into con23 sideration factors including the lin24 guistic preferences of voters in the ju25 risdiction. 


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1 ‘‘(IV) TRAINING OF ELECTION

2 OFFICIALS.—The chief State election 

3 official shall ensure that election offi4 cials at polling places in the State are 

5 aware of the requirements of this 

6 clause, including the requirement to 

7 display a notice under subclause (III), 

8 and are aware that it is a violation of 

9 the requirements of this title for an 

10 election official to fail to offer an indi11 vidual the opportunity to cast a vote 

12 using a blank printed paper ballot. 

13 ‘‘(V) PERIOD OF APPLICA14 BILITY.—The requirements of this 

15 clause apply only during the period in 

16 which the delay is in effect under 

17 clause (i). 

18 ‘‘(C) DELAY FOR CERTAIN JURISDICTIONS

19 USING VOTING SYSTEMS WITH WIRELESS COM20 MUNICATION DEVICES OR INTERNET CONNEC21 TIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(i) DELAY.—In the case of a juris23 diction described in clause (ii), subpara24 graph (A) shall apply to a voting system in 

25 the jurisdiction as if the reference in such 


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1 subparagraph to ‘2022’ were a reference to 

2 ‘the applicable year’, but only with respect 

3 to the following requirements of this sec4 tion. 

5 ‘‘(I) Paragraph (9) of subsection 

6 (a) (relating to prohibition of wireless 

7 communication devices) 

8 ‘‘(II) Paragraph (10) of sub9 section (a) (relating to prohibition of 

10 connecting systems to the internet) 

11 ‘‘(ii) JURISDICTIONS DESCRIBED.—A 

12 jurisdiction described in this clause is a ju13 risdiction— 

14 ‘‘(I) which used a voting system 

15 which is not in compliance with para16 graphs (9) or (10) of subsection (a) 

17 (as amended or added by the Voter 

18 Confidence and Increased Accessibility 

19 Act of 2021) for the administration of 

20 the regularly scheduled general elec21 tion for Federal office held in Novem22 ber 2020; and 

23 ‘‘(II) which will continue to use 

24 such printers or systems for the ad25 ministration of elections for Federal 


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1 office held in years before the applica2 ble year. 

3 ‘‘(iii) APPLICABLE YEAR.— 

4 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Except as 

5 provided in subclause (II), the term 

6 ‘applicable year’ means 2026. 

7 ‘‘(II) EXTENSION.—If a State or 

8 jurisdiction certifies to the Commis9 sion not later than January 1, 2026, 

10 that the State or jurisdiction will not 

11 meet the requirements described in 

12 subclauses (I) and (II) of clause (i) by 

13 such date because it would be imprac14 tical to do so and includes in the cer15 tification the reasons for the failure to 

16 meet the deadline, the term ‘applica17 ble year’ means 2030.’’. 

18 Subtitle G—Provisional Ballots 

19 SEC. 1601. REQUIREMENTS FOR COUNTING PROVISIONAL 

20 BALLOTS; ESTABLISHMENT OF UNIFORM AND 

21 NONDISCRIMINATORY STANDARDS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 302 of the Help America 

23 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082) is amended— 

24 (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub25 section (f); and 


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1 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol2 lowing new subsections: 

3 ‘‘(d) COUNTING OF PROVISIONAL BALLOTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of subsection 

5 (a)(4), if a provisional ballot is cast within the same 

6 county in which the voter is registered or otherwise 

7 eligible to vote, then notwithstanding the precinct or 

8 polling place at which a provisional ballot is cast 

9 within the county, the appropriate election official of 

10 the jurisdiction in which the individual is registered 

11 or otherwise eligible to vote shall count each vote on 

12 such ballot for each election in which the individual 

13 who cast such ballot is eligible to vote. 

14 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

15 this subsection shall prohibit a State or jurisdiction 

16 from counting a provisional ballot which is cast in 

17 a different county within the State than the county 

18 in which the voter is registered or otherwise eligible 

19 to vote. 

20 ‘‘(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 

21 apply with respect to elections held on or after Janu22 ary 1, 2022. 

23 ‘‘(e) UNIFORM AND NONDISCRIMINATORY STAND24 ARDS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Consistent with the re2 quirements of this section, each State shall establish 

3 uniform and nondiscriminatory standards for the 

4 issuance, handling, and counting of provisional bal5 lots. 

6 ‘‘(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 

7 apply with respect to elections held on or after Janu8 ary 1, 2022.’’. 

9 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 302(f) of 

10 such Act (52 U.S.C. 21082(f)), as redesignated by sub11 section (a), is amended by striking ‘‘Each State’’ and in12 serting ‘‘Except as provided in subsections (d)(3) and 

13 (e)(2), each State’’. 

14 Subtitle H—Early Voting 

15 SEC. 1611. EARLY VOTING. 

16 (a) REQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of the 

17 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 

18 as amended by section 1031(a), section 1056(a), section 

19 1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), and section 

20 1104(a), is amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating sections 310 and 311 as 

22 sections 311 and 312, respectively; and 

23 (2) by inserting after section 309 the following 

24 new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 310. EARLY VOTING. 

2 ‘‘(a) REQUIRING VOTING PRIOR TO DATE OF ELEC3 TION.—Each State shall allow individuals to vote in an 

4 election for Federal office during an early voting period 

5 which occurs prior to the date of the election, in a manner 

6 that allows the individual to receive, complete, and cast 

7 their ballot in-person. 

8 ‘‘(b) MINIMUM EARLY VOTING REQUIREMENTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

10 ‘‘(A) LENGTH OF PERIOD.—The early vot11 ing period required under this subsection with 

12 respect to an election shall consist of a period 

13 of consecutive days (including weekends) which 

14 begins on the 15th day before the date of the 

15 election (or, at the option of the State, on a day 

16 prior to the 15th day before the date of the 

17 election) and ends no earlier than the second 

18 day before the date of the election. 

19 ‘‘(B) HOURS FOR EARLY VOTING.—Each 

20 polling place which allows voting during an 

21 early voting period under subparagraph (A) 

22 shall— 

23 ‘‘(i) allow such voting for no less than 

24 10 hours on each day during the period; 

25 ‘‘(ii) have uniform hours each day for 

26 which such voting occurs; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) allow such voting to be held for 

2 some period of time prior to 9:00 a.m 

3 (local time) and some period of time after 

4 5:00 p.m. (local time). 

5 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS FOR VOTE-BY-MAIL JURIS6 DICTIONS.—In the case of a jurisdiction that sends 

7 every registered voter a ballot by mail— 

8 ‘‘(A) paragraph (1) shall not apply; 

9 ‘‘(B) such jurisdiction shall allow eligible 

10 individuals to vote during an early voting period 

11 that ensures voters are provided the greatest 

12 opportunity to cast ballots ahead of election day 

13 and which includes at least one consecutive Sat14 urday and Sunday; and 

15 ‘‘(C) each polling place which allows voting 

16 during an early voting period under subpara17 graph (B) shall allow such voting— 

18 ‘‘(i) during the election office’s reg19 ular business hours; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) for a period of not less than 8 

21 hours on Saturdays and Sundays included 

22 in the early voting period. 

23 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS FOR SMALL JURISDIC24 TIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a juris2 diction described in subparagraph (B)— 

3 ‘‘(i) paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(ii) each polling place which allows 

6 voting during the early voting period de7 scribed in paragraph (1)(A) shall allow 

8 such voting— 

9 ‘‘(I) during the election office’s 

10 regular business hours; and 

11 ‘‘(II) for a period of not less than 

12 8 hours on Saturdays and Sundays 

13 included in the early voting period. 

14 ‘‘(B) JURISDICTION DESCRIBED.—A juris15 diction is described in this subparagraph if such 

16 jurisdiction— 

17 ‘‘(i) had less than 3,000 registered 

18 voters at the time of the most recent prior 

19 election for Federal office; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) consists of a geographic area 

21 that is smaller than the jurisdiction of the 

22 county in which such jurisdiction is lo23 cated. 

24 ‘‘(4) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

25 this subsection shall be construed— 


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1 ‘‘(A) to limit the availability of additional 

2 temporary voting sites which provide voters 

3 more opportunities to cast their ballots but 

4 which do not meet the requirements of this sub5 section; 

6 ‘‘(B) to limit a polling place from being 

7 open for additional hours outside of the uniform 

8 hours set for the polling location on any day of 

9 the early voting period; or 

10 ‘‘(C) to limit a State or jurisdiction from 

11 offering early voting on the Monday before elec12 tion day. 

13 ‘‘(c) LOCATION OF POLLING PLACES.— 

14 ‘‘(1) PROXIMITY TO PUBLIC TRANSPOR15 TATION.—To the greatest extent practicable, each 

16 State and jurisdiction shall ensure that each polling 

17 place which allows voting during an early voting pe18 riod under subsection (b) is located within walking 

19 distance of a stop on a public transportation route. 

20 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY IN RURAL AREAS.—In the 

21 case of a jurisdiction that includes a rural area, the 

22 State or jurisdiction shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) ensure that polling places which allow 

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1 section (b) will be located in such rural areas; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(B) ensure that such polling places are lo4 cated in communities which will provide the 

5 greatest opportunity for residents of rural areas 

6 to vote during the early voting period. 

7 ‘‘(3) COLLEGE CAMPUSES.—In the case of a ju8 risdiction that includes an institution of higher edu9 cation, the State or jurisdiction shall— 

10 ‘‘(A) ensure that an appropriate number of 

11 polling places which allow voting during the 

12 early voting period under subsection (b) will be 

13 located on the campus of the institution of 

14 higher education; and 

15 ‘‘(B) ensure that such polling places pro16 vide the greatest opportunity for residents of 

17 the jurisdiction to vote. 

18 ‘‘(d) STANDARDS.—Not later than June 30, 2022, 

19 the Commission shall issue voluntary standards for the ad20 ministration of voting during voting periods which occur 

21 prior to the date of a Federal election. Subject to sub22 section (c), such voluntary standards shall include the 

23 nondiscriminatory geographic placement of polling places 

24 at which such voting occurs. 


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1 ‘‘(e) BALLOT PROCESSING AND SCANNING REQUIRE2 MENTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State or jurisdiction 

4 shall begin processing and scanning ballots cast dur5 ing in-person early voting for tabulation not later 

6 than the date that is 14 days prior to the date of 

7 the election involved, except that a State may begin 

8 processing and scanning ballots cast during in-per9 son early voting for tabulation after such date if the 

10 date on which the State begins such processing and 

11 scanning ensures, to the greatest extent practical, 

12 that ballots cast before the date of the election are 

13 processed and scanned before the date of the elec14 tion. 

15 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this subsection 

16 shall be construed— 

17 ‘‘(A) to permit a State to tabulate ballots 

18 in an election before the closing of the polls on 

19 the date of the election unless such tabulation 

20 is a necessary component of preprocessing in 

21 the State and is performed in accordance with 

22 existing State law; or 

23 ‘‘(B) to permit an official to make public 

24 any results of tabulation and processing before 


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1 the closing of the polls on the date of the elec2 tion. 

3 ‘‘(f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

4 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

5 Federal office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

6 election for Federal office.’’. 

7 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

8 ISSUANCE OF VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE BY ELECTION AS9 SISTANCE COMMISSION.—Section 321(b) of such Act (52 

10 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as redesignated and amended by sec11 tion 1101(b), is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

13 (3); 

14 (2) by striking the period at the end of para15 graph (4) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

16 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

17 paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(5) except as provided in paragraph (4), in the 

19 case of the recommendations with respect to any sec20 tion added by the For the People Act of 2021, June 

21 30, 2022.’’. 

22 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

23 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 

24 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 

25 1103(a), and section 1104(c), is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec2 tions 310 and 311 as relating to sections 311 and 

3 312, respectively; and 

4 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec5 tion 309 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 310. Early voting.’’. 

6 Subtitle I—Voting by Mail 

7 SEC. 1621. VOTING BY MAIL. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

9 (1) REQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of 

10 the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 

11 21081 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), sec12 tion 1056(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), sec13 tion 1103(a), section 1104(a), and section 1611(a), 

14 is amended— 

15 (A) by redesignating sections 311 and 312 

16 as sections 312 and 313, respectively; and 

17 (B) by inserting after section 310 the fol18 lowing new section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 311. PROMOTING ABILITY OF VOTERS TO VOTE BY 

20 MAIL. 

21 ‘‘(a) UNIFORM AVAILABILITY OF ABSENTEE VOTING

22 TO ALL VOTERS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If an individual in a State 

24 is eligible to cast a vote in an election for Federal 

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1 ditions or requirements on the eligibility of the indi2 vidual to cast the vote in such election by absentee 

3 ballot by mail. 

4 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATION OF VOTING BY MAIL.— 

5 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITING IDENTIFICATION RE6 QUIREMENT AS CONDITION OF OBTAINING BAL7 LOT.—A State may not require an individual to 

8 provide any form of identification as a condition 

9 of obtaining an absentee ballot, except that 

10 nothing in this subparagraph may be construed 

11 to prevent a State from requiring— 

12 ‘‘(i) identifying information as part of 

13 a voter registration application (including 

14 the voter’s date of birth or the last four 

15 digits of the voter’s social security num16 ber); or 

17 ‘‘(ii) a signature of the individual or 

18 similar affirmation as a condition of ob19 taining an absentee ballot. 

20 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITING REQUIREMENT TO PRO21 VIDE NOTARIZATION OR WITNESS SIGNATURE

22 AS CONDITION OF OBTAINING OR CASTING BAL23 LOT.—A State may not require notarization or 

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1 tion of obtaining or casting an absentee ballot, 

2 except that nothing in this subparagraph may 

3 be construed to prohibit a State from enforcing 

4 a law which has a witness signature require5 ment for a ballot where a voter oath is attested 

6 to with a mark rather than a voter’s signature. 

7 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON IDENTIFICATION REQUIRE8 MENTS FOR FIRST-TIME VOTERS REGISTERING BY

9 MAIL.—Nothing in this subsection may be construed 

10 to exempt any individual described in paragraph (1) 

11 of section 303(b) from meeting the requirements of 

12 paragraph (2) of such section or to exempt an indi13 vidual described in paragraph (5)(A) of section 

14 303(b) from meeting the requirements of paragraph 

15 (5)(B). 

16 ‘‘(b) DUE PROCESS REQUIREMENTS FOR STATES

17 REQUIRING SIGNATURE VERIFICATION.— 

18 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State may not im20 pose a signature verification requirement as a 

21 condition of accepting and counting a mail-in 

22 ballot or absentee ballot submitted by any indi23 vidual with respect to an election for Federal 

24 office unless the State meets the due process re25 quirements described in paragraph (2). 


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1 ‘‘(B) SIGNATURE VERIFICATION REQUIRE2 MENT DESCRIBED.—In this subsection, a ‘sig3 nature verification requirement’ is a require4 ment that an election official verify the identi5 fication of an individual by comparing the indi6 vidual’s signature on the mail-in ballot or ab7 sentee ballot with the individual’s signature on 

8 the official list of registered voters in the State 

9 or another official record or other document 

10 used by the State to verify the signatures of 

11 voters. 

12 ‘‘(2) DUE PROCESS REQUIREMENTS.— 

13 ‘‘(A) NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO CURE

14 DISCREPANCY IN SIGNATURES.—If an indi15 vidual submits a mail-in ballot or an absentee 

16 ballot and the appropriate State or local elec17 tion official determines that a discrepancy ex18 ists between the signature on such ballot and 

19 the signature of such individual on the official 

20 list of registered voters in the State or other of21 ficial record or document used by the State to 

22 verify the signatures of voters, such election of23 ficial, prior to making a final determination as 

24 to the validity of such ballot, shall— 


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1 ‘‘(i) as soon as practical, but no later 

2 than the next business day after such de3 termination is made, make a good faith ef4 fort to notify the individual by mail, tele5 phone, and (if available) text message and 

6 electronic mail that— 

7 ‘‘(I) a discrepancy exists between 

8 the signature on such ballot and the 

9 signature of the individual on the offi10 cial list of registered voters in the 

11 State or other official record or docu12 ment used by the State to verify the 

13 signatures of voters; and 

14 ‘‘(II) if such discrepancy is not 

15 cured prior to the expiration of the 

16 third day following the State’s dead17 line for receiving mail-in ballots or ab18 sentee ballots, such ballot will not be 

19 counted; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) cure such discrepancy and count 

21 the ballot if, prior to the expiration of the 

22 third day following the State’s deadline for 

23 receiving mail-in ballots or absentee bal24 lots, the individual provides the official 

25 with information to cure such discrepancy, 


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1 either in person, by telephone, or by elec2 tronic methods. 

3 ‘‘(B) NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO CURE

4 MISSING SIGNATURE OR OTHER DEFECT.—If an 

5 individual submits a mail-in ballot or an absen6 tee ballot without a signature or submits a 

7 mail-in ballot or an absentee ballot with another 

8 defect which, if left uncured, would cause the 

9 ballot to not be counted, the appropriate State 

10 or local election official, prior to making a final 

11 determination as to the validity of the ballot, 

12 shall— 

13 ‘‘(i) as soon as practical, but no later 

14 than the next business day after such de15 termination is made, make a good faith ef16 fort to notify the individual by mail, tele17 phone, and (if available) text message and 

18 electronic mail that— 

19 ‘‘(I) the ballot did not include a 

20 signature or has some other defect; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(II) if the individual does not 

23 provide the missing signature or cure 

24 the other defect prior to the expira25 tion of the third day following the 


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1 State’s deadline for receiving mail-in 

2 ballots or absentee ballots, such ballot 

3 will not be counted; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) count the ballot if, prior to the 

5 expiration of the third day following the 

6 State’s deadline for receiving mail-in bal7 lots or absentee ballots, the individual pro8 vides the official with the missing signa9 ture on a form proscribed by the State or 

10 cures the other defect. 

11 This subparagraph does not apply with respect 

12 to a defect consisting of the failure of a ballot 

13 to meet the applicable deadline for the accept14 ance of the ballot, as described in subsection 

15 (e). 

16 ‘‘(C) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An election official 

18 may not make a determination that a dis19 crepancy exists between the signature on a 

20 mail-in ballot or an absentee ballot and the 

21 signature of the individual who submits the 

22 ballot on the official list of registered vot23 ers in the State or other official record or 

24 other document used by the State to verify 

25 the signatures of voters unless— 


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1 ‘‘(I) at least 2 election officials 

2 make the determination; 

3 ‘‘(II) each official who makes the 

4 determination has received training in 

5 procedures used to verify signatures; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(III) of the officials who make 

8 the determination, at least one is af9 filiated with the political party whose 

10 candidate received the most votes in 

11 the most recent statewide election for 

12 Federal office held in the State and at 

13 least one is affiliated with the political 

14 party whose candidate received the 

15 second most votes in the most recent 

16 statewide election for Federal office 

17 held in the State. 

18 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—Clause (i)(III) 

19 shall not apply to any State in which, 

20 under a law that is in effect continuously 

21 on and after the date of enactment of this 

22 section, determinations regarding signature 

23 discrepancies are made by election officials 

24 who are not affiliated with a political 

25 party. 


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1 ‘‘(3) REPORT.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 

3 days after the end of a Federal election cycle, 

4 each chief State election official shall submit to 

5 the Commission a report containing the fol6 lowing information for the applicable Federal 

7 election cycle in the State: 

8 ‘‘(i) The number of ballots invalidated 

9 due to a discrepancy under this subsection. 

10 ‘‘(ii) Description of attempts to con11 tact voters to provide notice as required by 

12 this subsection. 

13 ‘‘(iii) Description of the cure process 

14 developed by such State pursuant to this 

15 subsection, including the number of ballots 

16 determined valid as a result of such proc17 ess. 

18 ‘‘(B) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not 

19 later than 10 days after receiving a report 

20 under subparagraph (A), the Commission shall 

21 transmit such report to Congress. 

22 ‘‘(C) FEDERAL ELECTION CYCLE DE23 FINED.—For purposes of this subsection, the 

24 term ‘Federal election cycle’ means, with re25 spect to any regularly scheduled election for 


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1 Federal office, the period beginning on the day 

2 after the date of the preceding regularly sched3 uled general election for Federal office and end4 ing on the date of such regularly scheduled gen5 eral election. 

6 ‘‘(4) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

7 this subsection shall be construed— 

8 ‘‘(A) to prohibit a State from rejecting a 

9 ballot attempted to be cast in an election for 

10 Federal office by an individual who is not eligi11 ble to vote in the election; or 

12 ‘‘(B) to prohibit a State from providing an 

13 individual with more time and more methods 

14 for curing a discrepancy in the individual’s sig15 nature, providing a missing signature, or curing 

16 any other defect than the State is required to 

17 provide under this subsection. 

18 ‘‘(c) APPLICATIONS FOR ABSENTEE BALLOTS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to such other 

20 methods as the State may establish for an individual 

21 to apply for an absentee ballot, each State shall per22 mit an individual to submit an application for an ab23 sentee ballot online. 

24 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF WEBSITES.—A State shall 

25 be considered to meet the requirements of paragraph 


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1 (1) if the website of the appropriate State or local 

2 election official allows an application for an absentee 

3 ballot to be completed and submitted online and if 

4 the website permits the individual— 

5 ‘‘(A) to print the application so that the 

6 individual may complete the application and re7 turn it to the official; or 

8 ‘‘(B) to request that a paper copy of the 

9 application be transmitted to the individual by 

10 mail or electronic mail so that the individual 

11 may complete the application and return it to 

12 the official. 

13 ‘‘(3) ENSURING DELIVERY PRIOR TO ELEC14 TION.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If an individual who is 

16 eligible to vote in an election for Federal office 

17 submits an application for an absentee ballot in 

18 the election and such application is received by 

19 the appropriate State or local election official 

20 not later than the date that is 5 days before the 

21 applicable date, the election official shall ensure 

22 that the ballot and related voting materials are 

23 promptly mailed to the individual. 

24 ‘‘(B) APPLICATIONS RECEIVED CLOSE TO

25 ELECTION DAY.—If an individual who is eligible 


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1 to vote in an election for Federal office submits 

2 an application for an absentee ballot in the elec3 tion and such application is received by the ap4 propriate State or local election official after 

5 the date described in subparagraph (A) but not 

6 later than the applicable date, the election offi7 cial shall, to the greatest extent practical, en8 sure that the ballot and related voting materials 

9 are mailed to the individual within 1 business 

10 day of the receipt of the application. 

11 ‘‘(C) APPLICABLE DATE.—For purposes of 

12 this paragraph, the term ‘applicable date’ 

13 means, with respect to any election for Federal 

14 office, the date that is 7 days (excluding Satur15 days, Sundays, and legal public holidays) before 

16 the date of the election. 

17 ‘‘(D) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing 

18 in this paragraph shall preclude a State or local 

19 jurisdiction from allowing for the acceptance 

20 and processing of absentee ballot applications 

21 submitted or received after the applicable date. 

22 ‘‘(4) APPLICATION FOR ALL FUTURE ELEC23 TIONS.—At the option of an individual, a State shall 

24 treat the individual’s application to vote by absentee 

25 ballot by mail in an election for Federal office as an 


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1 application for an absentee ballot by mail in all sub2 sequent Federal elections held in the State. 

3 ‘‘(d) ACCESSIBILITY FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DIS4 ABILITIES.—Each State shall ensure that all absentee bal5 lot applications, absentee ballots, and related voting mate6 rials in elections for Federal office are accessible to indi7 viduals with disabilities in a manner that provides the 

8 same opportunity for access and participation (including 

9 with privacy and independence) as for other voters. 

10 ‘‘(e) UNIFORM DEADLINE FOR ACCEPTANCE OF

11 MAILED BALLOTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State or local election of13 ficial may not refuse to accept or process a ballot 

14 submitted by an individual by mail with respect to 

15 an election for Federal office in the State on the 

16 grounds that the individual did not meet a deadline 

17 for returning the ballot to the appropriate State or 

18 local election official if— 

19 ‘‘(A) the ballot is postmarked or otherwise 

20 indicated by the United States Postal Service to 

21 have been mailed on or before the date of the 

22 election, or has been signed by the voter on or 

23 before the date of the election; and 

24 ‘‘(B) the ballot is received by the appro25 priate election official prior to the expiration of 


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1 the 7-day period which begins on the date of 

2 the election. 

3 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

4 this subsection shall be construed to prohibit a State 

5 from having a law that allows for counting of ballots 

6 in an election for Federal office that are received 

7 through the mail after the date that is 7 days after 

8 the date of the election. 

9 ‘‘(f) ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF RETURNING BAL10 LOTS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to permitting 

12 an individual to whom a ballot in an election was 

13 provided under this section to return the ballot to an 

14 election official by mail, each State shall permit the 

15 individual to cast the ballot by delivering the ballot 

16 at such times and to such locations as the State may 

17 establish, including— 

18 ‘‘(A) permitting the individual to deliver 

19 the ballot to a polling place within the jurisdic20 tion in which the individual is registered or oth21 erwise eligible to vote on any date on which vot22 ing in the election is held at the polling place; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(B) permitting the individual to deliver 

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1 tion, a tribally designated building, or the office 

2 of a State or local election official. 

3 ‘‘(2) PERMITTING VOTERS TO DESIGNATE

4 OTHER PERSON TO RETURN BALLOT.—A State— 

5 ‘‘(A) shall permit a voter to designate any 

6 person to return a voted and sealed absentee 

7 ballot to the post office, a ballot drop-off loca8 tion, tribally designated building, or election of9 fice so long as the person designated to return 

10 the ballot does not receive any form of com11 pensation based on the number of ballots that 

12 the person has returned and no individual, 

13 group, or organization provides compensation 

14 on this basis; and 

15 ‘‘(B) may not put any limit on how many 

16 voted and sealed absentee ballots any des17 ignated person can return to the post office, a 

18 ballot drop-off location, tribally designated 

19 building, or election office. 

20 ‘‘(g) BALLOT PROCESSING AND SCANNING REQUIRE21 MENTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State or jurisdiction 

23 shall begin processing and scanning ballots cast by 

24 mail for tabulation not later than the date that is 14 

25 days prior to the date of the election involved, except 


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1 that a State may begin processing and scanning bal2 lots cast by mail for tabulation after such date if the 

3 date on which the State begins such processing and 

4 scanning ensures, to the greatest extent practical, 

5 that ballots cast before the date of the election are 

6 processed and scanned before the date of the elec7 tion. 

8 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this subsection 

9 shall be construed— 

10 ‘‘(A) to permit a State to tabulate ballots 

11 in an election before the closing of the polls on 

12 the date of the election unless such tabulation 

13 is a necessary component of preprocessing in 

14 the State and is performed in accordance with 

15 existing State law; or 

16 ‘‘(B) to permit an official to make public 

17 any results of tabulation and processing before 

18 the closing of the polls on the date of the elec19 tion. 

20 ‘‘(h) PROHIBITING CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS ON AC21 CESS TO VOTING MATERIALS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) DISTRIBUTION OF ABSENTEE BALLOT AP23 PLICATIONS BY THIRD PARTIES.—A State may not 

24 prohibit any person from providing an application 


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1 for an absentee ballot in the election to any indi2 vidual who is eligible to vote in the election. 

3 ‘‘(2) UNSOLICITED PROVISION OF VOTER REG4 ISTRATION APPLICATIONS BY ELECTION OFFI5 CIALS.—A State may not prohibit an election official 

6 from providing an unsolicited application to register 

7 to vote in an election for Federal office to any indi8 vidual who is eligible to register to vote in the elec9 tion. 

10 ‘‘(i) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec11 tion shall be construed to affect the authority of States 

12 to conduct elections for Federal office through the use of 

13 polling places at which individuals cast ballots. 

14 ‘‘(j) NO EFFECT ON BALLOTS SUBMITTED BY AB15 SENT MILITARY AND OVERSEAS VOTERS.—Nothing in 

16 this section may be construed to affect the treatment of 

17 any ballot submitted by an individual who is entitled to 

18 vote by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Overseas 

19 Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.). 

20 ‘‘(k) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

21 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

22 Federal office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

23 election for Federal office.’’. 

24 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of 

25 contents of such Act, as amended by section 


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1 1031(c), section 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 

2 1102(c), section 1103(a), section 1104(c), and sec3 tion 1611(c), is amended— 

4 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 

5 sections 311 and 312 as relating to sections 

6 312 and 313, respectively; and 

7 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

8 section 310 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 311. Promoting ability of voters to vote by mail.’’. 

9 (b) SAME-DAY PROCESSING OF ABSENTEE BAL10 LOTS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 34 of title 39, 

12 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

13 end the following: 

14 ‘‘§ 3407. Same-day processing of ballots 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Postal Service shall ensure, 

16 to the maximum extent practicable, that any ballot carried 

17 by the Postal Service is processed by and cleared from 

18 any postal facility or post office on the same day that the 

19 ballot is received by that facility or post office. 

20 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 

21 ‘‘(1) the term ‘ballot’ means any ballot trans22 mitted by a voter by mail in an election for Federal 

23 office, but does not include any ballot covered by 

24 section 3406; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 

2 a general, special, primary, or runoff election for the 

3 office of President or Vice President, or of Senator 

4 or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com5 missioner to, the Congress.’’. 

6 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND7 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 

8 39, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

9 the end the following: 

‘‘3407. Same-day processing of ballots.’’. 

10 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

11 by this subsection shall apply to absentee ballots re12 lating to an election for Federal office occurring on 

13 or after January 1, 2022. 

14 (c) DEVELOPMENT OF ALTERNATIVE VERIFICATION

15 METHODS.— 

16 (1) DEVELOPMENT OF STANDARDS.—The Na17 tional Institute of Standards, in consultation with 

18 the Election Assistance Commission, shall develop 

19 standards for the use of alternative methods which 

20 could be used in place of signature verification re21 quirements for purposes of verifying the identifica22 tion of an individual voting by mail-in or absentee 

23 ballot in elections for Federal office. 

24 (2) PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENT.—The Na25 tional Institute of Standards shall solicit comments 


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1 from the public in the development of standards 

2 under paragraph (1). 

3 (3) DEADLINE.—Not later than 2 years after 

4 the date of the enactment of this Act, the National 

5 Institute of Standards shall publish the standards 

6 developed under paragraph (1). 

7 SEC. 1622. BALLOTING MATERIALS TRACKING PROGRAM. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

9 (1) REQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of 

10 the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 

11 21081 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), sec12 tion 1056(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), sec13 tion 1103(a), section 1104(a), section 1611(a), and 

14 section 1621(a), is amended— 

15 (A) by redesignating sections 312 and 313 

16 as sections 313 and 314, respectively; and 

17 (B) by inserting after section 311 the fol18 lowing new section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 312. BALLOT MATERIALS TRACKING PROGRAM. 

20 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—Each State shall carry out a 

21 program to track and confirm the receipt of mail-in ballots 

22 and absentee ballots in an election for Federal office under 

23 which the State or local election official responsible for the 

24 receipt of such voted ballots in the election carries out pro25 cedures to track and confirm the receipt of such ballots, 


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1 and makes information on the receipt of such ballots avail2 able to the individual who cast the ballot. 

3 ‘‘(b) MEANS OF CARRYING OUT PROGRAM.—A State 

4 may meet the requirements of subsection (a)— 

5 ‘‘(1) through a program— 

6 ‘‘(A) which is established by the State; 

7 ‘‘(B) under which the State or local elec8 tion official responsible for the receipt of voted 

9 mail-in ballots and voted absentee ballots in the 

10 election— 

11 ‘‘(i) carries out procedures to track 

12 and confirm the receipt of such ballots; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(ii) makes information on the receipt 

15 of such ballots available to the individual 

16 who cast the ballot; and 

17 ‘‘(C) which meets the requirements of sub18 section (c); or 

19 ‘‘(2) through the ballot materials tracking serv20 ice established under section 1622(b) of the For the 

21 People Act of 2021. 

22 ‘‘(c) STATE PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—The re23 quirements of this subsection are as follows: 

24 ‘‘(1) INFORMATION ON WHETHER VOTE WAS

25 ACCEPTED.—The information referred to under subVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00231 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 section (b)(1)(B)(ii) with respect to the receipt of 

2 mail-in ballot or an absentee ballot shall include in3 formation regarding whether the vote cast on the 

4 ballot was accepted, and, in the case of a vote which 

5 was rejected, the reasons therefor. 

6 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.—Infor7 mation on whether a ballot was accepted or rejected 

8 shall be available within 1 business day of the State 

9 accepting or rejecting the ballot. 

10 ‘‘(3) ACCESSIBILITY OF INFORMATION.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

12 under subparagraph (B), the information pro13 vided under the program shall be available by 

14 means of online access using the internet site of 

15 the State or local election office. 

16 ‘‘(B) USE OF TOLL-FREE TELEPHONE

17 NUMBER BY OFFICIALS WITHOUT INTERNET

18 SITE.—In the case of a State or local election 

19 official whose office does not have an internet 

20 site, the program shall require the official to es21 tablish a toll-free telephone number that may be 

22 used by an individual who cast an absentee bal23 lot to obtain the information required under 

24 subsection (b)(1)(B). 


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1 ‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

2 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

3 Federal office held in November 2024 and each succeeding 

4 election for Federal office.’’. 

5 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 102 

6 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee 

7 Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302(a)) is amended by 

8 striking subsection (h) and redesignating subsection 

9 (i) as subsection (h). 

10 (b) BALLOTING MATERIALS TRACKING SERVICE.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 

12 2024, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in con13 sultation with the Chair of the Election Assistance 

14 Commission, the Postmaster General, the Director 

15 of the General Services Administration, the Presi16 dential designee, and State election officials, shall 

17 establish a balloting materials tracking service to be 

18 used by State and local jurisdictions to inform voters 

19 on the status of voter registration applications, ab20 sentee ballot applications, absentee ballots, and mail21 in ballots. 

22 (2) INFORMATION TRACKED.—The balloting 

23 materials tracking service established under para24 graph (1) shall provide to a voter the following infor25 mation with respect to that voter: 


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1 (A) In the case of balloting materials sent 

2 by mail, tracking information from the United 

3 States Postal Service and the Presidential des4 ignee on balloting materials sent to the voter 

5 and, to the extent feasible, returned by the 

6 voter. 

7 (B) The date on which any request by the 

8 voter for an application for voter registration or 

9 an absentee ballot was received. 

10 (C) The date on which any such requested 

11 application was sent to the voter. 

12 (D) The date on which any such completed 

13 application was received from the voter and the 

14 status of such application. 

15 (E) The date on which any mail-in ballot 

16 or absentee ballot was sent to the voter. 

17 (F) The date on which any mail-in ballot 

18 or absentee ballot was received by the voter. 

19 (G) The date on which the post office proc20 esses the ballot. 

21 (H) The date on which post office deliv22 ered the ballot to the election office. 

23 (I) Whether such ballot was accepted and 

24 counted, and in the case of any ballot not 


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1 counted, the reason why the ballot was not 

2 counted. 

3 The information described in subparagraph (I) shall 

4 be available not later than 1 day after a determina5 tion is made on whether or not to accept and count 

6 the ballot. 

7 (3) METHOD OF PROVIDING INFORMATION.— 

8 The balloting materials tracking service established 

9 under paragraph (1) shall allow voters the option to 

10 receive the information described in paragraph (2) 

11 through email (or other electronic means) or through 

12 the mail. 

13 (4) PROHIBITION ON FEES.—The Director may 

14 not charge any fee to a State or jurisdiction for use 

15 of the balloting materials tracking service in connec16 tion with any Federal, State, or local election. 

17 (5) PRESIDENTIAL DESIGNEE.—For purposes 

18 of this subsection, the term ‘‘Presidential designee’’ 

19 means the Presidential designee under section 

20 101(a) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab21 sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 30201). 

22 (6) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

23 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Di24 rector such sums as are necessary for purposes of 

25 carrying out this subsection. 


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1 (c) REIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTS INCURRED BY

2 STATES IN ESTABLISHING PROGRAM.—Subtitle D of title 

3 II of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 

4 15401 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing new part: 

6 ‘‘PART 7—PAYMENTS TO REIMBURSE STATES 

7 FOR COSTS INCURRED IN ESTABLISHING 

8 PROGRAM TO TRACK AND CONFIRM RE9 CEIPT OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS 

10 ‘‘SEC. 297. PAYMENTS TO STATES. 

11 ‘‘(a) PAYMENTS FOR COSTS OF PROGRAM.—In ac12 cordance with this section, the Commission shall make a 

13 payment to a State to reimburse the State for the costs 

14 incurred in establishing the absentee ballot tracking pro15 gram under section 312(b)(1) (including costs incurred 

16 prior to the date of the enactment of this part). 

17 ‘‘(b) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE AND COSTS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) CERTIFICATION REQUIRED.—In order to 

19 receive a payment under this section, a State shall 

20 submit to the Commission a statement containing— 

21 ‘‘(A) a certification that the State has es22 tablished an absentee ballot tracking program 

23 with respect to elections for Federal office held 

24 in the State; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) a statement of the costs incurred by 

2 the State in establishing the program. 

3 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—The amount of a 

4 payment made to a State under this section shall be 

5 equal to the costs incurred by the State in estab6 lishing the absentee ballot tracking program, as set 

7 forth in the statement submitted under paragraph 

8 (1), except that such amount may not exceed the 

9 product of— 

10 ‘‘(A) the number of jurisdictions in the 

11 State which are responsible for operating the 

12 program; and 

13 ‘‘(B) $3,000. 

14 ‘‘(3) LIMIT ON NUMBER OF PAYMENTS RE15 CEIVED.—A State may not receive more than one 

16 payment under this part. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 297A. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

18 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be 

19 appropriated to the Commission for fiscal year 2022 and 

20 each succeeding fiscal year such sums as may be necessary 

21 for payments under this part. 

22 ‘‘(b) CONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Any 

23 amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization under 

24 this section shall remain available until expended.’’. 


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1 (d) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

2 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), 1056(b), sec3 tion 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 1103(a), section 

4 1104(c), section 1611(c), and section 1621(a), is amend5 ed— 

6 (1) by adding at the end of the items relating 

7 to subtitle D of title II the following: 

‘‘PART 7—PAYMENTS TO REIMBURSE STATES FOR COSTS INCURRED IN ESTABLISHING PROGRAM TO TRACK AND CONFIRM RECEIPT OF ABSENTEE

BALLOTS

‘‘Sec. 297. Payments to states. 

‘‘Sec. 297A. Authorization of appropriations.’’; 

8 (2) by redesignating the items relating to sec9 tions 312 and 313 as relating to sections 313 and 

10 314, respectively; and 

11 (3) by inserting after the item relating to sec12 tion 311 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 312. Absentee ballot tracking program.’’. 

13 SEC. 1623. ELECTION MAIL AND DELIVERY IMPROVE14 MENTS. 

15 (a) POSTMARK REQUIRED FOR BALLOTS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 34 of title 39, 

17 United States Code, as amended by section 1621(b), 

18 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘§ 3408. Postmark required for ballots 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any absentee bal21 lot carried by the Postal Service, the Postal Service shall 


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1 indicate on the ballot envelope, using a postmark or other2 wise— 

3 ‘‘(1) the fact that the ballot was carried by the 

4 Postal Service; and 

5 ‘‘(2) the date on which the ballot was mailed. 

6 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 

7 ‘‘(1) the term ‘absentee ballot’ means any ballot 

8 transmitted by a voter by mail in an election for 

9 Federal office, but does not include any ballot cov10 ered by section 3406; and 

11 ‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 

12 a general, special, primary, or runoff election for the 

13 office of President or Vice President, or of Senator 

14 or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com15 missioner to, the Congress.’’. 

16 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND17 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 

18 39, United States Code, as amended by section 

19 1621(b), is amended by adding at the end the fol20 lowing: 

‘‘3408. Postmark required for ballots.’’. 

21 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

22 by this subsection shall apply to absentee ballots re23 lating to an election for Federal office occurring on 

24 or after January 1, 2022. 

25 (b) GREATER VISIBILITY FOR BALLOTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the 

2 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 

3 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), section 

4 1056(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), section 

5 1103(a), section 1104(a), section 1611(a), section 

6 1621(a), and section 1622(a), is amended— 

7 (A) by redesignating sections 313 and 314 

8 as sections 314 and 315, respectively; and 

9 (B) by inserting after section 312 the fol10 lowing new section: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 313. BALLOT VISIBILITY. 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State or local election offi13 cial shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) affix Tag 191, Domestic and International 

15 Mail-In Ballots (or any successor tag designated by 

16 the United States Postal Service), to any tray or 

17 sack of official ballots relating to an election for 

18 Federal office that is destined for a domestic or 

19 international address; 

20 ‘‘(2) use the Official Election Mail logo to des21 ignate official ballots relating to an election for Fed22 eral office that is destined for a domestic or inter23 national address; and 

24 ‘‘(3) if an intelligent mail barcode is utilized for 

25 any official ballot relating to an election for Federal 


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1 office that is destined for a domestic or international 

2 address, ensure the specific ballot service type identi3 fier for such mail is visible. 

4 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The requirements of this 

5 section shall apply to elections for Federal office occurring 

6 on and after January 1, 2022.’’. 

7 (2) VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) 

8 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and re9 designated by section 1101(b) and as amended by 

10 sections 1102, 1103 and 1104, is amended by strik11 ing ‘‘and 309’’ and inserting ‘‘309, and 313’’. 

12 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of 

13 contents of such Act, as amended by section 

14 1031(c), section 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 

15 1102(c), section 1103(a), section 1104(c), section 

16 1611(c), section 1621(a), and section 1622(a), is 

17 amended— 

18 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 

19 sections 313 and 314 as relating to sections 

20 314 and 315; and 

21 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

22 section 312 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 313. Ballot visibility.’’. 

23 SEC. 1624. CARRIAGE OF ELECTION MAIL. 

24 (a) TREATMENT OF ELECTION MAIL.— 


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1 (1) TREATMENT AS FIRST-CLASS MAIL; FREE

2 POSTAGE.—Chapter 34 of title 39, United States 

3 Code, as amended by section 1623(a), is amended by 

4 adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘§ 3409. Domestic election mail; restriction of oper6 ational changes prior to elections 

7 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘election 

8 mail’ means— 

9 ‘‘(1) a blank or completed voter registration ap10 plication form, voter registration card, or similar 

11 materials, relating to an election for Federal office; 

12 ‘‘(2) a blank or completed absentee and other 

13 mail-in ballot application form, and a blank or com14 pleted absentee or other mail-in ballot, relating to an 

15 election for Federal office, and 

16 ‘‘(3) other materials relating to an election for 

17 Federal office that are mailed by a State or local 

18 election official to an individual who is registered to 

19 vote. 

20 ‘‘(b) CARRIAGE OF ELECTION MAIL.—Election mail 

21 (other than balloting materials covered under section 3406 

22 (relating to the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting 

23 Act), individually or in bulk, shall be carried— 


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1 ‘‘(1) in accordance with the service standards 

2 established for first-class mail under section 3691; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(2) free of postage. 

5 ‘‘(c) RESTRICTION OF OPERATIONAL CHANGES.— 

6 During the 120-day period which ends on the date of an 

7 election for Federal office, the Postal Service may not 

8 carry out any new operational change that would restrict 

9 the prompt and reliable delivery of election mail. This sub10 section applies to operational changes which include— 

11 ‘‘(1) removing or eliminating any mail collection 

12 box without immediately replacing it; and 

13 ‘‘(2) removing, decommissioning, or any other 

14 form of stopping the operation of mail sorting ma15 chines, other than for routine maintenance. 

16 ‘‘(d) ELECTION MAIL COORDINATOR.—The Postal 

17 Service shall appoint an Election Mail Coordinator at each 

18 area office and district office to facilitate relevant informa19 tion sharing with State, territorial, local, and Tribal elec20 tion officials in regards to the mailing of election mail.’’. 

21 (2) REIMBURSEMENT OF POSTAL SERVICE FOR

22 REVENUE FORGONE.—Section 2401(c) of title 39, 

23 United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘sec24 tions 3217 and 3403 through 3406’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘sections 3217, 3403 through 3406, and 3409’’. 


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1 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

2 The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 39, United 

3 States Code, as amended by section 1623(a), is amended 

4 by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘3409. Domestic election mail; restriction of operational changes prior to elections.’’. 

5 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

6 this section shall apply to election mail relating to an elec7 tion for Federal office occurring on or after January 1, 

8 2022. 

9 Subtitle J—Absent Uniformed 

10 Services Voters and Overseas 

11 Voters 

12 SEC. 1701. PRE-ELECTION REPORTS ON AVAILABILITY AND 

13 TRANSMISSION OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS. 

14 Section 102(c) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citi15 zens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302(c)) is amend16 ed to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(c) REPORTS ON AVAILABILITY, TRANSMISSION, 

18 AND RECEIPT OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) PRE-ELECTION REPORT ON ABSENTEE

20 BALLOT AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 55 days be21 fore any regularly scheduled general election for 

22 Federal office, each State shall submit a report to 

23 the Attorney General certifying that absentee ballots 

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1 mission to absent uniformed services voters and 

2 overseas voters by not later than 46 days before the 

3 election. The report shall be in a form prescribed by 

4 the Attorney General and shall require the State to 

5 certify specific information about ballot availability 

6 from each unit of local government which will ad7 minister the election. 

8 ‘‘(2) PRE-ELECTION REPORT ON ABSENTEE

9 BALLOTS TRANSMITTED.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 43 

11 days before any election for Federal office held 

12 in a State, the chief State election official of 

13 such State shall submit a report containing the 

14 information in subparagraph (B) to the Attor15 ney General. 

16 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION REPORTED.—The re17 port under subparagraph (A) shall consist of 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(i) The total number of absentee bal20 lots validly requested by absent uniformed 

21 services voters and overseas voters whose 

22 requests were received by the 47th day be23 fore the election by each unit of local gov24 ernment within the State that will transmit 

25 absentee ballots. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) The total number of ballots 

2 transmitted to such voters by the 46th day 

3 before the election by each unit of local 

4 government within the State that will ad5 minister the election. 

6 ‘‘(iii) Specific information about any 

7 late transmitted ballots. 

8 ‘‘(C) REQUIREMENT TO SUPPLEMENT IN9 COMPLETE INFORMATION.—If the report under 

10 subparagraph (A) has incomplete information 

11 on any items required to be included in the re12 port, the chief State election official shall make 

13 all reasonable efforts to expeditiously supple14 ment the report with complete information. 

15 ‘‘(D) FORMAT.—The report under sub16 paragraph (A) shall be in a format prescribed 

17 by the Attorney General in consultation with 

18 the chief State election officials of each State. 

19 ‘‘(3) POST-ELECTION REPORT ON NUMBER OF

20 ABSENTEE BALLOTS TRANSMITTED AND RE21 CEIVED.—Not later than 90 days after the date of 

22 each regularly scheduled general election for Federal 

23 office, each State and unit of local government 

24 which administered the election shall (through the 

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1 mit a report to the Election Assistance Commission 

2 on the combined number of absentee ballots trans3 mitted to absent uniformed services voters and over4 seas voters for the election and the combined num5 ber of such ballots which were returned by such vot6 ers and cast in the election, and shall make such re7 port available to the general public that same day.’’. 

8 SEC. 1702. ENFORCEMENT. 

9 (a) AVAILABILITY OF CIVIL PENALTIES AND PRI10 VATE RIGHTS OF ACTION.—Section 105 of the Uniformed 

11 and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 

12 20307) is amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 105. ENFORCEMENT. 

14 ‘‘(a) ACTION BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General may 

16 bring civil action in an appropriate district court for 

17 such declaratory or injunctive relief as may be nec18 essary to carry out this title. 

19 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.—In a civil action brought under 

20 paragraph (1), if the court finds that the State, a 

21 local election official, or unit of local government vio22 lated any provision of this title, it may, to vindicate 

23 the public interest, assess a civil penalty against the 

24 State, local election official, or unit of local govern25 ment— 


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1 ‘‘(A) in an amount not to exceed $110,000 

2 for each such violation, in the case of a first 

3 violation; or 

4 ‘‘(B) in an amount not to exceed $220,000 

5 for each such violation, for any subsequent vio6 lation. 

7 ‘‘(3) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

8 December 31 of each year, the Attorney General 

9 shall submit to Congress an annual report on any 

10 civil action brought under paragraph (1) during the 

11 preceding year. 

12 ‘‘(b) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—A person who is 

13 aggrieved by a violation of this title by a State, a local 

14 election official, or unit of local government may bring a 

15 civil action in an appropriate district court for such declar16 atory or injunctive relief as may be necessary to carry out 

17 this title. 

18 ‘‘(c) STATE AS ONLY NECESSARY DEFENDANT.—In 

19 any action brought under this section, the only necessary 

20 party defendant is the State, and it shall not be a defense 

21 to any such action that a local election official or a unit 

22 of local government is not named as a defendant, notwith23 standing that a State has exercised the authority described 

24 in section 576 of the Military and Overseas Voter Em25 powerment Act to delegate to another jurisdiction in the 


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1 State any duty or responsibility which is the subject of 

2 an action brought under this section. 

3 ‘‘(d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec4 tion shall be construed to prohibit an election official or 

5 a unit of local government from being named as a defend6 ant.’’. 

7 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

8 this section shall apply with respect to violations alleged 

9 to have occurred on or after the date of the enactment 

10 of this Act. 

11 SEC. 1703. TRANSMISSION REQUIREMENTS; REPEAL OF 

12 WAIVER PROVISION. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (8) of section 102(a) 

14 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting 

15 Act (52 U.S.C. 20302(a)) is amended to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(8) transmit a validly requested absentee bal17 lot to an absent uniformed services voter or overseas 

18 voter by the date and in the manner determined 

19 under subsection (g);’’. 

20 (b) BALLOT TRANSMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND

21 REPEAL OF WAIVER PROVISION.—Subsection (g) of sec22 tion 102 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20302(g)) is amended 

23 to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(g) BALLOT TRANSMISSION REQUIREMENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of subsection 

2 (a)(8), in the case in which a valid request for an 

3 absentee ballot is received at least 47 days before an 

4 election for Federal office, the following rules shall 

5 apply: 

6 ‘‘(A) TRANSMISSION DEADLINE.—The 

7 State shall transmit the absentee ballot not 

8 later than 46 days before the election. 

9 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULES IN CASE OF FAILURE

10 TO TRANSMIT ON TIME.— 

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If the State fails 

12 to transmit any absentee ballot by the 46th 

13 day before the election as required by sub14 paragraph (A) and the absent uniformed 

15 services voter or overseas voter did not re16 quest electronic ballot transmission pursu17 ant to subsection (f), the State shall trans18 mit such ballot by express delivery. 

19 ‘‘(ii) EXTENDED FAILURE.—If the 

20 State fails to transmit any absentee ballot 

21 by the 41st day before the election, in ad22 dition to transmitting the ballot as pro23 vided in clause (i), the State shall— 

24 ‘‘(I) in the case of absentee bal25 lots requested by absent uniformed 


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1 services voters with respect to regu2 larly scheduled general elections, no3 tify such voters of the procedures es4 tablished under section 103A for the 

5 collection and delivery of marked ab6 sentee ballots; and 

7 ‘‘(II) in any other case, provide 

8 for the return of such ballot by ex9 press delivery. 

10 ‘‘(iii) COST OF EXPRESS DELIVERY.— 

11 In any case in which express delivery is re12 quired under this subparagraph, the cost 

13 of such express delivery— 

14 ‘‘(I) shall not be paid by the 

15 voter; and 

16 ‘‘(II) if determined appropriate 

17 by the chief State election official, 

18 may be required by the State to be 

19 paid by a local jurisdiction. 

20 ‘‘(iv) EXCEPTION.—Clause (ii)(II) 

21 shall not apply when an absent uniformed 

22 services voter or overseas voter indicates 

23 the preference to return the late sent ab24 sentee ballot by electronic transmission in 


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1 a State that permits return of an absentee 

2 ballot by electronic transmission. 

3 ‘‘(v) ENFORCEMENT.—A State’s com4 pliance with this subparagraph does not 

5 bar the Attorney General from seeking ad6 ditional remedies necessary to fully resolve 

7 or prevent ongoing, future, or systematic 

8 violations of this provision or to effectuate 

9 the purposes of this Act. 

10 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL PROCEDURE IN EVENT OF

11 DISASTER.—If a disaster (hurricane, tornado, 

12 earthquake, storm, volcanic eruption, landslide, 

13 fire, flood, or explosion), or an act of terrorism 

14 prevents the State from transmitting any ab15 sentee ballot by the 46th day before the election 

16 as required by subparagraph (A), the chief 

17 State election official shall notify the Attorney 

18 General as soon as practicable and take all ac19 tions necessary, including seeking any necessary 

20 judicial relief, to ensure that affected absent 

21 uniformed services voters and overseas voters 

22 are provided a reasonable opportunity to receive 

23 and return their absentee ballots in time to be 

24 counted. 


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1 ‘‘(2) REQUESTS RECEIVED AFTER 47TH DAY

2 BEFORE ELECTION.—For purposes of subsection 

3 (a)(8), in the case in which a valid request for an 

4 absentee ballot is received less than 47 days but not 

5 less than 30 days before an election for Federal of6 fice, the State shall transmit the absentee ballot 

7 within one business day of receipt of the request.’’. 

8 SEC. 1704. USE OF SINGLE ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICA9 TION FOR SUBSEQUENT ELECTIONS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 104 of the Uniformed and 

11 Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20306) 

12 is amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 104. TREATMENT OF BALLOT REQUESTS. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—If a State accepts and processes 

15 an official post card form (prescribed under section 101) 

16 submitted by an absent uniformed services voter or over17 seas voter for simultaneous voter registration and absen18 tee ballot application (in accordance with section 

19 102(a)(4)) and the voter requests that the application be 

20 considered an application for an absentee ballot for each 

21 subsequent election for Federal office held in the State 

22 through the end of the calendar year following the next 

23 regularly scheduled general election for Federal office, the 

24 State shall provide an absentee ballot to the voter for each 

25 such subsequent election. 


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1 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR VOTERS CHANGING REGISTRA2 TION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to a 

3 voter registered to vote in a State for any election held 

4 after the voter notifies the State that the voter no longer 

5 wishes to be registered to vote in the State or after the 

6 State determines that the voter has registered to vote in 

7 another State or is otherwise no longer eligible to vote in 

8 the State. 

9 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION OF REFUSAL OF APPLICATION ON

10 GROUNDS OF EARLY SUBMISSION.—A State may not 

11 refuse to accept or to process, with respect to any election 

12 for Federal office, any otherwise valid voter registration 

13 application or absentee ballot application (including the 

14 postcard form prescribed under section 101) submitted by 

15 an absent uniformed services voter or overseas voter on 

16 the grounds that the voter submitted the application be17 fore the first date on which the State otherwise accepts 

18 or processes such applications for that election which are 

19 submitted by absentee voters who are not members of the 

20 uniformed services or overseas citizens.’’. 

21 (b) REQUIREMENT FOR REVISION TO POSTCARD

22 FORM.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Presidential designee 

24 shall ensure that the official postcard form pre25 scribed under section 101(b)(2) of the Uniformed 


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1 and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 

2 U.S.C. 20301(b)(2)) enables a voter using the form 

3 to— 

4 (A) request an absentee ballot for each 

5 election for Federal office held in a State 

6 through the end of the calendar year following 

7 the next regularly scheduled general election for 

8 Federal office; or 

9 (B) request an absentee ballot for a spe10 cific election or elections for Federal office held 

11 in a State during the period described in sub12 paragraph (A). 

13 (2) PRESIDENTIAL DESIGNEE.—For purposes 

14 of this paragraph, the term ‘‘Presidential designee’’ 

15 means the individual designated under section 

16 101(a) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab17 sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301(a)). 

18 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

19 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to voter registration 

20 and absentee ballot applications which are submitted to 

21 a State or local election official on or after the date of 

22 the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 1705. EXTENDING GUARANTEE OF RESIDENCY FOR 

2 VOTING PURPOSES TO FAMILY MEMBERS OF 

3 ABSENT MILITARY PERSONNEL. 

4 Section 102 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 

5 Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302), as amended by 

6 section 1622, is amended by adding at the end the fol7 lowing new subsection: 

8 ‘‘(i) GUARANTEE OF RESIDENCY FOR SPOUSES AND

9 DEPENDENTS OF ABSENT MEMBERS OF UNIFORMED

10 SERVICE.—For the purposes of voting in any election for 

11 any Federal office or any State or local office, a spouse 

12 or dependent of an individual who is an absent uniformed 

13 services voter described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of sec14 tion 107(1) shall not, solely by reason of that individual’s 

15 absence and without regard to whether or not such spouse 

16 or dependent is accompanying that individual— 

17 ‘‘(1) be deemed to have lost a residence or 

18 domicile in that State, without regard to whether or 

19 not that individual intends to return to that State; 

20 ‘‘(2) be deemed to have acquired a residence or 

21 domicile in any other State; or 

22 ‘‘(3) be deemed to have become a resident in or 

23 a resident of any other State.’’. 


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1 SEC. 1706. TECHNICAL CLARIFICATIONS TO CONFORM TO 

2 2009 MOVE ACT AMENDMENTS RELATED TO 

3 THE FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BALLOT. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 102(a)(3) of the Uni5 formed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 

6 U.S.C. 20302(a)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘general elec7 tions’’ and inserting ‘‘general, special, primary, and runoff 

8 elections’’. 

9 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 103 of 

10 such Act (52 U.S.C. 20303) is amended— 

11 (1) in subsection (b)(2)(B), by striking ‘‘gen12 eral’’; and 

13 (2) in the heading thereof, by striking ‘‘GEN14 ERAL’’. 

15 SEC. 1707. TREATMENT OF POST CARD REGISTRATION RE16 QUESTS. 

17 Section 102 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 

18 Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302), as amended by 

19 sections 1622 and 1705, is amended by adding at the end 

20 the following new subsection: 

21 ‘‘(j) TREATMENT OF POST CARD REGISTRATIONS.— 

22 A State shall not remove any absent uniformed services 

23 voter or overseas voter who has registered to vote using 

24 the official post card form (prescribed under section 101) 

25 from the official list of registered voters except in accord26 ance with subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 8(a)(3) 


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1 of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

2 20507).’’. 

3 SEC. 1708. APPLICABILITY TO COMMONWEALTH OF THE 

4 NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS. 

5 Paragraphs (6) and (8) of section 107 of the Uni6 formed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 

7 U.S.C. 20310) are each amended by striking ‘‘and Amer8 ican Samoa’’ and inserting ‘‘American Samoa, and the 

9 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’’. 

10 SEC. 1709. ELIMINATION OF 14-DAY TIME PERIOD BETWEEN 

11 GENERAL ELECTION AND RUNOFF ELECTION 

12 FOR FEDERAL ELECTIONS IN THE VIRGIN IS13 LANDS AND GUAM. 

14 Section 2 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide that 

15 the unincorporated territories of Guam and the Virgin Is16 lands shall each be represented in Congress by a Delegate 

17 to the House of Representatives’’, approved April 10, 

18 1972 (48 U.S.C. 1712), is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘(a) The Delegate’’ and insert20 ing ‘‘The Delegate’’; 

21 (2) by striking ‘‘on the fourteenth day following 

22 such an election’’ in the fourth sentence of sub23 section (a); and 

24 (3) by striking subsection (b). 


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1 SEC. 1710. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE REPORT ON VOTER 

2 DISENFRANCHISEMENT. 

3 Not later than 1 year of enactment of this Act, the 

4 Attorney General shall submit to Congress a report on the 

5 impact of wide-spread mail-in voting on the ability of ac6 tive duty military servicemembers to vote, how quickly 

7 their votes are counted, and whether higher volumes of 

8 mail-in votes makes it harder for such individuals to vote 

9 in elections for Federal elections. 

10 SEC. 1711. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

11 Except as provided in section 1702(b) and section 

12 1704(b), the amendments made by this subtitle shall apply 

13 with respect to elections occurring on or after January 1, 

14 2022. 

15 Subtitle K—Poll Worker 

16 Recruitment and Training 

17 SEC. 1801. GRANTS TO STATES FOR POLL WORKER RE18 CRUITMENT AND TRAINING. 

19 (a) GRANTS BY ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMIS20 SION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Election Assistance 

22 Commission (hereafter referred to as the ‘‘Commis23 sion’’) shall, subject to the availability of appropria24 tions provided to carry out this section, make a 

25 grant to each eligible State for recruiting and trainVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00259 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 ing individuals to serve as poll workers on dates of 

2 elections for public office. 

3 (2) USE OF COMMISSION MATERIALS.—In car4 rying out activities with a grant provided under this 

5 section, the recipient of the grant shall use the man6 ual prepared by the Commission on successful prac7 tices for poll worker recruiting, training, and reten8 tion as an interactive training tool, and shall develop 

9 training programs with the participation and input 

10 of experts in adult learning. 

11 (3) ACCESS AND CULTURAL CONSIDER12 ATIONS.—The Commission shall ensure that the 

13 manual described in paragraph (2) provides training 

14 in methods that will enable poll workers to provide 

15 access and delivery of services in a culturally com16 petent manner to all voters who use their services, 

17 including those with limited English proficiency, di18 verse cultural and ethnic backgrounds, disabilities, 

19 and regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or gen20 der identity. These methods must ensure that each 

21 voter will have access to poll worker services that are 

22 delivered in a manner that meets the unique needs 

23 of the voter. 

24 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.— 


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1 (1) APPLICATION.—Each State that desires to 

2 receive a payment under this section shall submit an 

3 application for the payment to the Commission at 

4 such time and in such manner and containing such 

5 information as the Commission shall require. 

6 (2) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—Each appli7 cation submitted under paragraph (1) shall— 

8 (A) describe the activities for which assist9 ance under this section is sought; 

10 (B) provide assurances that the funds pro11 vided under this section will be used to supple12 ment and not supplant other funds used to 

13 carry out the activities; 

14 (C) provide assurances that the State will 

15 furnish the Commission with information on the 

16 number of individuals who served as poll work17 ers after recruitment and training with the 

18 funds provided under this section; 

19 (D) provide assurances that the State will 

20 dedicate poll worker recruitment efforts with re21 spect to— 

22 (i) youth and minors, including by re23 cruiting at institutions of higher education 

24 and secondary education; and 


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1 (ii) diversity, including with respect to 

2 race, ethnicity, and disability; and 

3 (E) provide such additional information 

4 and certifications as the Commission deter5 mines to be essential to ensure compliance with 

6 the requirements of this section. 

7 (c) AMOUNT OF GRANT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of a grant 

9 made to a State under this section shall be equal to 

10 the product of— 

11 (A) the aggregate amount made available 

12 for grants to States under this section; and 

13 (B) the voting age population percentage 

14 for the State. 

15 (2) VOTING AGE POPULATION PERCENTAGE DE16 FINED.—In paragraph (1), the ‘‘voting age popu17 lation percentage’’ for a State is the quotient of— 

18 (A) the voting age population of the State 

19 (as determined on the basis of the most recent 

20 information available from the Bureau of the 

21 Census); and 

22 (B) the total voting age population of all 

23 States (as determined on the basis of the most 

24 recent information available from the Bureau of 

25 the Census). 


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1 (d) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

2 (1) REPORTS BY RECIPIENTS OF GRANTS.—Not 

3 later than 6 months after the date on which the 

4 final grant is made under this section, each recipient 

5 of a grant shall submit a report to the Commission 

6 on the activities conducted with the funds provided 

7 by the grant. 

8 (2) REPORTS BY COMMISSION.—Not later than 

9 1 year after the date on which the final grant is 

10 made under this section, the Commission shall sub11 mit a report to Congress on the grants made under 

12 this section and the activities carried out by recipi13 ents with the grants, and shall include in the report 

14 such recommendations as the Commission considers 

15 appropriate. 

16 (e) FUNDING.— 

17 (1) CONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNT AP18 PROPRIATED.—Any amount appropriated to carry 

19 out this section shall remain available without fiscal 

20 year limitation until expended. 

21 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Of the 

22 amount appropriated for any fiscal year to carry out 

23 this section, not more than 3 percent shall be avail24 able for administrative expenses of the Commission. 


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1 SEC. 1802. STATE DEFINED. 

2 In this subtitle, the term ‘‘State’’ includes the Dis3 trict of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 

4 Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Is5 lands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

6 Islands. 

7 Subtitle L—Enhancement of 

8 Enforcement 

9 SEC. 1811. ENHANCEMENT OF ENFORCEMENT OF HELP 

10 AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002. 

11 (a) COMPLAINTS; AVAILABILITY OF PRIVATE RIGHT

12 OF ACTION.—Section 401 of the Help America Vote Act 

13 of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘The Attorney General’’ and in15 serting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General’’; 

16 and 

17 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub18 sections: 

19 ‘‘(b) FILING OF COMPLAINTS BY AGGRIEVED PER20 SONS.—A person who is aggrieved by a violation of title 

21 III which has occurred, is occurring, or is about to occur 

22 may file a written, signed, notarized complaint with the 

23 Attorney General describing the violation and requesting 

24 the Attorney General to take appropriate action under this 

25 section. The Attorney General shall immediately provide 

26 a copy of a complaint filed under the previous sentence 


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1 to the entity responsible for administering the State-based 

2 administrative complaint procedures described in section 

3 402(a) for the State involved. 

4 ‘‘(c) AVAILABILITY OF PRIVATE RIGHT OF AC5 TION.—Any person who is authorized to file a complaint 

6 under subsection (b) (including any individual who seeks 

7 to enforce the individual’s right to a voter-verifiable paper 

8 ballot, the right to have the voter-verifiable paper ballot 

9 counted in accordance with this Act, or any other right 

10 under title III) may file an action under section 1979 of 

11 the Revised Statutes of the United States (42 U.S.C. 

12 1983) to enforce the uniform and nondiscriminatory elec13 tion technology and administration requirements under 

14 subtitle A of title III. 

15 ‘‘(d) NO EFFECT ON STATE PROCEDURES.—Nothing 

16 in this section may be construed to affect the availability 

17 of the State-based administrative complaint procedures re18 quired under section 402 to any person filing a complaint 

19 under this subsection.’’. 

20 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

21 this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 

22 with respect to elections for Federal office held in 2022 

23 or any succeeding year. 


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1 Subtitle M—Federal Election 

2 Integrity 

3 SEC. 1821. PROHIBITION ON CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES BY 

4 CHIEF STATE ELECTION ADMINISTRATION 

5 OFFICIALS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election 

7 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is 

8 amended by inserting after section 319 the following new 

9 section: 

10 ‘‘CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES BY CHIEF STATE ELECTION

11 ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS

12 ‘‘SEC. 319A. (a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful 

13 for a chief State election administration official to take 

14 an active part in political management or in a political 

15 campaign with respect to any election for Federal office 

16 over which such official has supervisory authority. 

17 ‘‘(b) CHIEF STATE ELECTION ADMINISTRATION OF18 FICIAL.—The term ‘chief State election administration of19 ficial’ means the highest State official with responsibility 

20 for the administration of Federal elections under State 

21 law. 

22 ‘‘(c) ACTIVE PART IN POLITICAL MANAGEMENT OR

23 IN A POLITICAL CAMPAIGN.—The term ‘active part in po24 litical management or in a political campaign’ means— 


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1 ‘‘(1) holding any position (including any unpaid 

2 or honorary position) with an authorized committee 

3 of a candidate, or participating in any decision mak4 ing of an authorized committee of a candidate; 

5 ‘‘(2) the use of official authority or influence 

6 for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the 

7 result of an election for Federal office; 

8 ‘‘(3) the solicitation, acceptance, or receipt of a 

9 contribution from any person on behalf of a can10 didate for Federal office; and 

11 ‘‘(4) any other act which would be prohibited 

12 under paragraph (2) or (3) of section 7323(b) of 

13 title 5, United States Code, if taken by an individual 

14 to whom such paragraph applies (other than any 

15 prohibition on running for public office). 

16 ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION IN CASE OF RECUSAL FROM AD17 MINISTRATION OF ELECTIONS INVOLVING OFFICIAL OR

18 IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—This section does not apply 

20 to a chief State election administration official with 

21 respect to an election for Federal office in which the 

22 official or an immediate family member of the offi23 cial is a candidate, but only if— 


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1 ‘‘(A) such official recuses himself or herself 

2 from all of the official’s responsibilities for the 

3 administration of such election; and 

4 ‘‘(B) the official who assumes responsi5 bility for supervising the administration of the 

6 election does not report directly to such official. 

7 ‘‘(2) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER DEFINED.— 

8 In paragraph (1), the term ‘immediate family mem9 ber’ means, with respect to a candidate, a father, 

10 mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, husband, 

11 wife, father-in-law, or mother-in-law.’’. 

12 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

13 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections for 

14 Federal office held after December 2021. 

15 Subtitle N—Promoting Voter Ac16 cess Through Election Adminis17 tration Improvements 

18 PART 1—PROMOTING VOTER ACCESS 

19 SEC. 1901. TREATMENT OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDU20 CATION. 

21 (a) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN INSTITUTIONS AS

22 VOTER REGISTRATION AGENCIES UNDER NATIONAL

23 VOTER REGISTRATION ACT OF 1993.—Section 7(a) of the 

24 National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

25 20506(a)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

2 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub3 paragraph (A); 

4 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

5 subparagraph (B) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

6 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

7 subparagraph: 

8 ‘‘(C) each institution of higher education 

9 which has a program participation agreement in 

10 effect with the Secretary of Education under 

11 section 487 of the Higher Education Act of 

12 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094), other than an institu13 tion which is treated as a contributing agency 

14 under section 1013 of the For the People Act 

15 of 2021.’’; and 

16 (2) in paragraph (6)(A), by inserting ‘‘or, in 

17 the case of an institution of higher education, upon 

18 initial enrollment of a student,’’ after ‘‘assistance,’’. 

19 (b) RESPONSIBILITIES OF INSTITUTIONS UNDER

20 HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965.—Section 487(a)(23) 

21 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

22 1094(a)(23)) is amended to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘(23)(A) The institution will make every rea24 sonable effort to— 


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1 ‘‘(i) distribute voter registration applica2 tions for elections for Federal office using a 

3 form that meets the requirements of section 

4 9(b) of the National Voter Registration Act of 

5 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20508), which may include 

6 sharing a direct, guided link to such applica7 tion, to each student enrolled at the institution 

8 who has not been automatically registered to 

9 vote by the institution in accordance with sec10 tion 1013 of the For the People Act of 2021, 

11 including students who do not qualify as an in12 State student as defined in section 1013(f)(2) 

13 of the For the People Act of 2021; 

14 ‘‘(ii) provide clear guidance that each stu15 dent enrolled at the institution should— 

16 ‘‘(I) register in the State in which the 

17 student is eligible to vote in the next elec18 tion if registration is required, which may 

19 include informing students from another 

20 State of the ability to vote in the State of 

21 the institution in which the students are 

22 enrolled and physically in attendance, in 

23 accordance with applicable State law; and 

24 ‘‘(II) in the case of a student who has 

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1 scribed in subclause (I), update the stu2 dent’s existing voter registration if the stu3 dent’s address has changed recently or 

4 since the last election in which the student 

5 was eligible to vote; 

6 ‘‘(iii) periodically share credible, non7 partisan resources (to be identified in consulta8 tion with the Election Assistance Commission) 

9 to help students determine where and how they 

10 are eligible to vote, which may include resources 

11 from State and local election officials on voter 

12 registration and voting requirements, including 

13 voter registration deadlines, residency require14 ments, voter identification requirements, and 

15 absentee voting options, as applicable; and 

16 ‘‘(iv) in distributing voting materials (as 

17 defined in section 203(b)(3) of the Voting 

18 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10503(b)(3)) 

19 that are produced by a covered State or polit20 ical subdivision described in subsection 

21 203(b)(2) of such Act, ensure to the greatest 

22 extent practicable that— 

23 ‘‘(I) such voting materials are pro24 vided in accordance with section 203 of 

25 that Act (52 U.S.C. 10503); and 


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1 ‘‘(II) all materials and information 

2 made available electronically under this 

3 paragraph— 

4 ‘‘(aa) are accessible to individuals 

5 with disabilities; and 

6 ‘‘(bb) are compliant with the 

7 most recent Web Content Accessibility 

8 Guidelines, or successor guidelines. 

9 ‘‘(B) An institution shall be considered to 

10 have satisfied the requirements of clauses (i), 

11 (ii), and (iii) of subparagraph (A) if— 

12 ‘‘(i) with respect to each student en13 rolled in the institution who is not exclu14 sively enrolled in distance education at the 

15 institution and who has not already been 

16 registered to vote by the institution in ac17 cordance with section 1013 of the For the 

18 People Act of 2021, including students 

19 who do not qualify as an in-State student 

20 as defined in section 1013(f)(2) of such 

21 Act— 

22 ‘‘(I) the institution, not less than 

23 30 days in advance of the deadline for 

24 registering to vote within the State for 

25 the next scheduled statewide Federal 


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1 or State primary election and not less 

2 than 30 days in advance of the dead3 line for registering to vote within the 

4 State for the next scheduled statewide 

5 Federal or State general election— 

6 ‘‘(aa) distributes voter reg7 istration applications to such stu8 dents; or 

9 ‘‘(bb) electronically trans10 mits a message to each such stu11 dent that is devoted exclusively to 

12 voter registration and contains a 

13 voter registration application ac14 ceptable for use in the State in 

15 which the institution is located, 

16 or an internet address where 

17 such voter registration applica18 tion can be accessed or 

19 downloaded; 

20 ‘‘(II) during a period that an in21 stitution requires or encourages such 

22 students to remain off-campus due to 

23 a national, State, or local public 

24 health or other emergency for an ex25 tended period of time, resulting in a 


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1 significant disruption to such stu2 dents’ ability to vote in person, as ap3 plicable, the institution additionally— 

4 ‘‘(aa) requests that the 

5 State provide the institution with 

6 absentee ballot applications, as 

7 applicable, or that the State 

8 share the official State website or 

9 online portal through which eligi10 ble voters can directly request an 

11 absentee ballot; 

12 ‘‘(bb) distributes to each 

13 such student an absentee ballot 

14 application requested from the 

15 State under item (aa) or the offi16 cial State website or online portal 

17 through which eligible voters can 

18 directly request an absentee bal19 lot, with instructions that the 

20 form, website, or online portal 

21 should be used only by students 

22 eligible to vote in the State; 

23 ‘‘(cc) notifies such students 

24 of— 


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1 ‘‘(AA) applicable dead2 lines for requesting and sub3 mitting an absentee ballot; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(BB) additional op6 tions for early and in-person 

7 voting and voting on Elec8 tion Day, as applicable; and 

9 ‘‘(dd) shares credible, non10 partisan resources (to be identi11 fied in consultation with the 

12 Election Assistance Commission) 

13 to help students who are reg14 istered in another State to apply 

15 for absentee ballots in such 

16 State, which may include re17 sources from State and local elec18 tion officials; and 

19 ‘‘(III) the institution ensures 

20 that an appropriate staff person or of21 fice has been designated as a Campus 

22 Vote Coordinator, who shall— 

23 ‘‘(aa) ensure compliance in 

24 accordance with this paragraph 

25 at the institution; 


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1 ‘‘(bb) be publicly designated 

2 as the Campus Vote Coordinator, 

3 including the Campus Vote Coor4 dinator’s contact information, on 

5 the website of the institution; and 

6 ‘‘(cc) upon request, provide 

7 to students residency require8 ments for voting, including the 

9 ability of students from other 

10 States to vote in the State of the 

11 institution in which they are en12 rolled and physically in attend13 ance, in accordance with applica14 ble State law; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) with respect to each student en16 rolled exclusively in distance education or 

17 correspondence programs, the institution— 

18 ‘‘(I)(aa) transmits a message de19 voted exclusively to voter registration 

20 that refers such students to a central21 ized voter registration website or plat22 form by providing the Internet ad23 dress or other method to access such 

24 website or platform, that— 


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1 ‘‘(AA) provides applicable 

2 voter registration application and 

3 voting information for all States; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(BB) is hosted by a website 

6 operated by the Federal, State or 

7 local government; 

8 ‘‘(bb) transmits such message not 

9 less than twice in each calendar year; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(cc) maintains information on 

12 the institution’s website containing 

13 credible, nonpartisan resources to help 

14 students determine where and how 

15 they are eligible to vote, or a link to 

16 such resources, and boosts awareness 

17 of such information on the institu18 tion’s social media platforms; or 

19 ‘‘(II) provides information to 

20 such students in the same manner as 

21 the institution provides information to 

22 students not enrolled exclusively in 

23 distance education under clause (i)(I). 

24 ‘‘(C) The institution will substantially com25 ply with the requirements that apply to the inVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00277 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 stitution under section 7 of the National Voter 

2 Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20506) or 

3 section 1013 of the For the People Act of 2021, 

4 as the case may be. 

5 ‘‘(D) In this paragraph— 

6 ‘‘(i) the term ‘voter registration appli7 cation’ means the mail voter registration 

8 application form for elections for Federal 

9 office prescribed pursuant to section 9 of 

10 the National Voter Registration Act of 

11 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20508); 

12 ‘‘(ii) the term ‘absentee ballot’ means 

13 any ballot cast by any means other than in 

14 person and for which the State requires an 

15 application; 

16 ‘‘(iii) the term ‘distance education’ 

17 has the meaning given the term in section 

18 103, except such term shall not include 

19 distance education that is provided due to 

20 a decision of an institution to require or 

21 encourage students of the institution to re22 main off-campus due to a national, State, 

23 or local public health or other emergency; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) the term ‘Federal office’ has the 

2 meaning given in section 301(3) of the 

3 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

4 (52 U.S.C. 30101(3)).’’. 

5 (c) GRANTS TO INSTITUTIONS DEMONSTRATING EX6 CELLENCE IN STUDENT VOTER REGISTRATION.— 

7 (1) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of 

8 Education may award competitive grants to public 

9 and private nonprofit institutions of higher edu10 cation that are subject to the requirements of sec11 tion 487(a)(23) of the Higher Education Act of 

12 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)(23)), as amended by sub13 section (b), and that the Secretary determines have 

14 demonstrated excellence in registering students to 

15 vote in elections for public office beyond meeting the 

16 minimum requirements of such section. 

17 (2) ELIGIBILITY.—An institution of higher edu18 cation is eligible to receive a grant under this sub19 section if the institution submits to the Secretary of 

20 Education, at such time and in such form as the 

21 Secretary may require, an application containing 

22 such information and assurances as the Secretary 

23 may require to make the determination described in 

24 paragraph (1), including information and assurances 


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1 that the institution carried out activities to promote 

2 voter registration by students, such as the following: 

3 (A) Sponsoring large on-campus voter mo4 bilization and voter education efforts. 

5 (B) Engaging the surrounding community 

6 in nonpartisan voter registration and get out 

7 the vote efforts, including initiatives to facilitate 

8 the enfranchisement of groups of individuals 

9 that have historically faced barriers to voting. 

10 (C) Creating a website for students with 

11 centralized information about voter registration 

12 and election dates. 

13 (D) Inviting candidates to speak on cam14 pus. 

15 (E) Offering rides to students to the polls 

16 to increase voter mobilization. 

17 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; RES18 ERVATION.— 

19 (A) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA20 TIONS.—There are authorized to be appro21 priated for fiscal year 2022 and each suc22 ceeding fiscal year such sums as may be nec23 essary to award grants under this subsection. 

24 (B) RESERVATION.—Of the funds appro25 priated under subparagraph (A) for a fiscal 


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1 year, the Secretary of Education shall ensure 

2 that 25 percent is reserved for minority institu3 tions described in section 371(a) of the Higher 

4 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)). 

5 (d) SENSE OF CONGRESS RELATING TO OPTION OF

6 STUDENTS TO REGISTER IN JURISDICTION OF INSTITU7 TION OF HIGHER EDUCATION OR JURISDICTION OF DOMI8 CILE.—It is the sense of Congress that, as provided under 

9 existing law, students who attend an institution of higher 

10 education and reside in the jurisdiction of the institution 

11 while attending the institution should have the option of 

12 registering to vote, without being subjected to intimidation 

13 or deceptive practices, in elections for Federal office in 

14 that jurisdiction or in the jurisdiction of their own domi15 cile. 

16 SEC. 1902. MINIMUM NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR 

17 VOTERS AFFECTED BY POLLING PLACE 

18 CHANGES. 

19 (a) REQUIREMENTS.—Section 302 of the Help Amer20 ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082), as amended by 

21 section 1601(a), is amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating subsection (f) as sub23 section (g); and 

24 (2) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol25 lowing new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(f) MINIMUM NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR

2 VOTERS AFFECTED BY POLLING PLACE CHANGES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT FOR PRECINCT-BASED

4 POLLING.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If an applicable indi6 vidual has been assigned to a polling place that 

7 is different than the polling place that such in8 dividual was assigned with respect to the most 

9 recent past election for Federal office in which 

10 the individual was eligible to vote— 

11 ‘‘(i) the appropriate election official 

12 shall, not later than 2 days before the be13 ginning of an early voting period— 

14 ‘‘(I) notify the individual of the 

15 location of the polling place not later 

16 than 2 days before the beginning of 

17 an early voting period; and 

18 ‘‘(II) post a general notice on the 

19 website of the State or jurisdiction, on 

20 social media platforms (if available), 

21 and on signs a the prior polling place; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(ii) if such assignment is made after 

24 the date which is 2 days before the begin25 ning of an early voting period and the indiVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00282 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 vidual appears on the date of the election 

2 at the polling place to which the individual 

3 was previously assigned, the jurisdiction 

4 shall make every reasonable effort to en5 able the individual to vote a ballot on the 

6 date of the election without the use of a 

7 provisional ballot. 

8 ‘‘(B) APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL.—For pur9 poses of subparagraph (A), the term ‘applicable 

10 individual’ means, with respect to any election 

11 for Federal office, any individual— 

12 ‘‘(i) who is registered to vote in a ju13 risdiction for such election and was reg14 istered to vote in such jurisdiction for the 

15 most recent past election for Federal of16 fice; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) whose voter registration address 

18 has not changed since such most recent 

19 past election for Federal office. 

20 ‘‘(C) METHODS OF NOTIFICATION.—The 

21 appropriate election official shall notify an indi22 vidual under clause (i)(I) of subparagraph (A) 

23 by mail, telephone, and (if available) text mes24 sage and electronic mail, taking into considerVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00283 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 ation factors which include the linguistic pref2 erences of voters in the jurisdiction. 

3 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS FOR VOTE CENTERS.—In 

4 the case of a jurisdiction in which individual are not 

5 assigned to specific polling places, not later than 2 

6 days before the beginning of an early voting period, 

7 the appropriate election official shall notify each 

8 voter eligible to vote in such jurisdiction of the loca9 tion of all polling places at which the individual may 

10 vote. 

11 ‘‘(3) NOTICE WITH RESPECT TO CLOSED POLL12 ING PLACES.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a location which 

14 served as a polling place for an election for 

15 Federal office in a State does not serve as a 

16 polling place in the next election for Federal of17 fice held in the State, the State shall ensure 

18 that signs, taking into consideration factors 

19 which include the linguistic preferences of vot20 ers in the jurisdiction, are posted at such loca21 tion on the date of the election and during any 

22 early voting period for the election containing 

23 the following information: 


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1 ‘‘(i) A statement that the location is 

2 not serving as a polling place in the elec3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(ii) The locations serving as polling 

5 places in the election in the jurisdiction in6 volved. 

7 ‘‘(iii) The name and address of any 

8 substitute polling place serving the same 

9 precinct and directions from the former 

10 polling place to the new polling place. 

11 ‘‘(iv) Contact information, including a 

12 telephone number and website, for the ap13 propriate State or local election official 

14 through which an individual may find the 

15 polling place to which the individual is as16 signed for the election. 

17 ‘‘(B) INTERNET POSTING.—Each State 

18 which is required to post signs under subpara19 graph (A) shall also provide such information 

20 through a website and through social media (if 

21 available). 

22 ‘‘(4) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 

23 apply with respect to elections held on or after Janu24 ary 1, 2022.’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 302(g) of 

2 such Act (52 U.S.C. 21082(g)), as redesignated by sub3 section (a) and as amended by section 1601(b), is amend4 ed by striking ‘‘(d)(2) and (e)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘(d)(2), 

5 (e)(2), and (f)(4)’’. 

6 SEC. 1903. PERMITTING USE OF SWORN WRITTEN STATE7 MENT TO MEET IDENTIFICATION REQUIRE8 MENTS FOR VOTING. 

9 (a) PERMITTING USE OF STATEMENT.—Subtitle A of 

10 title III of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 

11 21081 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 303 

12 the following new section: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 303A. PERMITTING USE OF SWORN WRITTEN STATE14 MENT OR STUDENT IDENTIFICATION CARD 

15 TO MEET IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS. 

16 ‘‘(a) USE OF STATEMENT OR STUDENT IDENTIFICA17 TION CARD.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub19 section (c), if a State has in effect any requirement 

20 that an individual present identification as a condi21 tion of receiving and casting a ballot in an election 

22 for Federal office, the State shall permit the indi23 vidual to meet the requirement— 


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1 ‘‘(A) in the case of an individual who de2 sires to vote in person, by presenting the appro3 priate State or local election official with— 

4 ‘‘(i) a sworn written statement, signed 

5 by the individual under penalty of perjury, 

6 attesting to the individual’s identity and 

7 attesting that the individual is eligible to 

8 vote in the election; or 

9 ‘‘(ii) if such individual is a student en10 rolled at an institution of higher education 

11 (as defined under section 102 of the High12 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

13 1002)), a student identification card as14 signed to the individual from an institution 

15 of higher education; or 

16 ‘‘(B) in the case of an individual who de17 sires to vote by mail, by submitting with the 

18 ballot— 

19 ‘‘(i) the statement described in sub20 paragraph (A)(i); or 

21 ‘‘(ii) if such individual is a student en22 rolled at an institution of higher education 

23 (as so defined), a copy of the student iden24 tification card described in subparagraph 

25 (A)(ii). 


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1 ‘‘(2) DEVELOPMENT OF PRE-PRINTED VERSION

2 OF STATEMENT BY COMMISSION.—The Commission 

3 shall develop a pre-printed version of the statement 

4 described in paragraph (1)(A)(i) which includes a 

5 blank space for an individual to provide a name and 

6 signature for use by election officials in States which 

7 are subject to paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(3) PROVIDING PRE-PRINTED COPY OF STATE9 MENT.—A State which is subject to paragraph (1) 

10 shall— 

11 ‘‘(A) make copies of the pre-printed 

12 version of the statement described in paragraph 

13 (1)(A)(i) which is prepared by the Commission 

14 available at polling places for election officials 

15 to distribute to individuals who desire to vote in 

16 person; and 

17 ‘‘(B) include a copy of such pre-printed 

18 version of the statement with each blank absen19 tee or other ballot transmitted to an individual 

20 who desires to vote by mail. 

21 ‘‘(b) REQUIRING USE OF BALLOT IN SAME MANNER

22 AS INDIVIDUALS PRESENTING IDENTIFICATION.—An in23 dividual who presents or submits a sworn written state24 ment or presents a student identification card in accord25 ance with subsection (a)(1) shall be permitted to cast a 


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1 ballot in the election in the same manner as an individual 

2 who presents identification. 

3 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION FOR FIRST-TIME VOTERS REG4 ISTERING BY MAIL.—Subsections (a) and (b) do not apply 

5 to the requirements under paragraph (2) of section 303(b) 

6 with respect to any individual described in paragraph (1) 

7 of such section who is required to meet the requirements 

8 of paragraph (2) of such section or to an individual de9 scribed in paragraph (5)(A) of section 303(b) who is re10 quired to meet the requirements of paragraph (5)(B) of 

11 such section.’’. 

12 (b) REQUIRING STATES TO INCLUDE INFORMATION

13 ON USE OF SWORN WRITTEN STATEMENT AND STUDENT

14 IDENTIFICATION CARD IN VOTING INFORMATION MATE15 RIAL POSTED AT POLLING PLACES.—Section 302(b)(2) of 

16 such Act (52 U.S.C. 21082(b)(2)), as amended by section 

17 1072(b) and section 1202(b), is amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara19 graph (G); 

20 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub21 paragraph (H) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

22 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub23 paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(I) in the case of a State that has in ef25 fect any requirement that an individual present 


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1 identification as a condition of receiving and 

2 casting a ballot in an election for Federal office, 

3 information on how an individual may meet 

4 such requirement by presenting a sworn written 

5 statement or student identification card in ac6 cordance with section 303A.’’. 

7 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

8 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 

9 to section 303 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 303A. Permitting use of sworn written statement or student identification 

card to meet identification requirements.’’. 

10 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

11 this section shall apply with respect to elections occurring 

12 on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 SEC. 1904. ACCOMMODATIONS FOR VOTERS RESIDING IN 

14 INDIAN LANDS. 

15 (a) ACCOMMODATIONS DESCRIBED.— 

16 (1) DESIGNATION OF BALLOT PICKUP AND COL17 LECTION LOCATIONS.—Given the widespread lack of 

18 residential mail delivery in Indian Country, an In19 dian Tribe may designate buildings as ballot pickup 

20 and collection locations with respect to an election 

21 for Federal office at no cost to the Indian Tribe. An 

22 Indian Tribe may designate one building per pre23 cinct located within Indian lands. The applicable 

24 State or political subdivision shall collect ballots 


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1 from those locations. The applicable State or polit2 ical subdivision shall provide the Indian Tribe with 

3 accurate precinct maps for all precincts located with4 in Indian lands 60 days before the election. 

5 (2) PROVISION OF MAIL-IN AND ABSENTEE

6 BALLOTS.—The State or political subdivision shall 

7 provide mail-in and absentee ballots with respect to 

8 an election for Federal office to each individual who 

9 is registered to vote in the election who resides on 

10 Indian lands in the State or political subdivision in11 volved without requiring a residential address or a 

12 mail-in or absentee ballot request. 

13 (3) USE OF DESIGNATED BUILDING AS RESI14 DENTIAL AND MAILING ADDRESS.—The address of a 

15 designated building that is a ballot pickup and col16 lection location with respect to an election for Fed17 eral office may serve as the residential address and 

18 mailing address for voters living on Indian lands if 

19 the tribally designated building is in the same pre20 cinct as that voter. If there is no tribally designated 

21 building within a voter’s precinct, the voter may use 

22 another tribally designated building within the In23 dian lands where the voter is located. Voters using 

24 a tribally designated building outside of the voter’s 

25 precinct may use the tribally designated building as 


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1 a mailing address and may separately designate the 

2 voter’s appropriate precinct through a description of 

3 the voter’s address, as specified in section 

4 9428.4(a)(2) of title 11, Code of Federal Regula5 tions. 

6 (4) LANGUAGE ACCESSIBILITY.—In the case of 

7 a State or political subdivision that is a covered 

8 State or political subdivision under section 203 of 

9 the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10503), 

10 that State or political subdivision shall provide ab11 sentee or mail-in voting materials with respect to an 

12 election for Federal office in the language of the ap13 plicable minority group as well as in the English lan14 guage, bilingual election voting assistance, and writ15 ten translations of all voting materials in the lan16 guage of the applicable minority group, as required 

17 by section 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

18 U.S.C. 10503), as amended by subsection (b). 

19 (5) CLARIFICATION.—Nothing in this section 

20 alters the ability of an individual voter residing on 

21 Indian lands to request a ballot in a manner avail22 able to all other voters in the State. 

23 (6) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

24 (A) ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE.— 

25 The term ‘‘election for Federal office’’ means a 


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1 general, special, primary or runoff election for 

2 the office of President or Vice President, or of 

3 Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or 

4 Resident Commissioner to, the Congress. 

5 (B) INDIAN.—The term ‘‘Indian’’ has the 

6 meaning given the term in section 4 of the In7 dian Self-Determination and Education Assist8 ance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

9 (C) INDIAN LANDS.—The term ‘‘Indian 

10 lands’’ includes— 

11 (i) any Indian country of an Indian 

12 Tribe, as defined under section 1151 of 

13 title 18, United States Code; 

14 (ii) any land in Alaska owned, pursu15 ant to the Alaska Native Claims Settle16 ment Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), by an 

17 Indian Tribe that is a Native village (as 

18 defined in section 3 of that Act (43 U.S.C. 

19 1602)) or by a Village Corporation that is 

20 associated with an Indian Tribe (as de21 fined in section 3 of that Act (43 U.S.C. 

22 1602)); 

23 (iii) any land on which the seat of the 

24 Tribal Government is located; and 


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1 (iv) any land that is part or all of a 

2 Tribal designated statistical area associ3 ated with an Indian Tribe, or is part or all 

4 of an Alaska Native village statistical area 

5 associated with an Indian Tribe, as defined 

6 by the Census Bureau for the purposes of 

7 the most recent decennial census. 

8 (D) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian 

9 Tribe’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘Indian 

10 tribe’’ in section 4 of the Indian Self-Deter11 mination and Education Assistance Act (25 

12 U.S.C. 5304). 

13 (E) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term 

14 ‘‘Tribal Government’’ means the recognized 

15 governing body of an Indian Tribe. 

16 (7) ENFORCEMENT.— 

17 (A) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The Attorney 

18 General may bring a civil action in an appro19 priate district court for such declaratory or in20 junctive relief as is necessary to carry out this 

21 subsection. 

22 (B) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

23 (i) A person or Tribal Government 

24 who is aggrieved by a violation of this sub25 section may provide written notice of the 


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1 violation to the chief election official of the 

2 State involved. 

3 (ii) An aggrieved person or Tribal 

4 Government may bring a civil action in an 

5 appropriate district court for declaratory 

6 or injunctive relief with respect to a viola7 tion of this subsection, if— 

8 (I) that person or Tribal Govern9 ment provides the notice described in 

10 clause (i); and 

11 (II)(aa) in the case of a violation 

12 that occurs more than 120 days be13 fore the date of an election for Fed14 eral office, the violation remains and 

15 90 days or more have passed since the 

16 date on which the chief election offi17 cial of the State receives the notice 

18 under clause (i); or 

19 (bb) in the case of a violation 

20 that occurs 120 days or less before 

21 the date of an election for Federal of22 fice, the violation remains and 20 

23 days or more have passed since the 

24 date on which the chief election offiVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00295 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 cial of the State receives the notice 

2 under clause (i). 

3 (iii) In the case of a violation of this 

4 section that occurs 30 days or less before 

5 the date of an election for Federal office, 

6 an aggrieved person or Tribal Government 

7 may bring a civil action in an appropriate 

8 district court for declaratory or injunctive 

9 relief with respect to the violation without 

10 providing notice to the chief election offi11 cial of the State under clause (i). 

12 (b) BILINGUAL ELECTION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

13 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10503) 

14 is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (b)(3)(C), by striking ‘‘1990’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘2010’’; and 

17 (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(c) PROVISION OF VOTING MATERIALS IN THE LAN20 GUAGE OF A MINORITY GROUP.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whenever any State or po22 litical subdivision subject to the prohibition of sub23 section (b) of this section provides any registration 

24 or voting notices, forms, instructions, assistance, or 

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1 toral process, including ballots, it shall provide them 

2 in the language of the applicable minority group as 

3 well as in the English language. 

4 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) In the case of a minority group that 

6 is not American Indian or Alaska Native and 

7 the language of that minority group is oral or 

8 unwritten, the State or political subdivision 

9 shall be required only to furnish, in the covered 

10 language, oral instructions, assistance, trans11 lation of voting materials, or other information 

12 relating to registration and voting. 

13 ‘‘(B) In the case of a minority group that 

14 is American Indian or Alaska Native, the State 

15 or political subdivision shall be required only to 

16 furnish in the covered language oral instruc17 tions, assistance, or other information relating 

18 to registration and voting, including all voting 

19 materials, if the Tribal Government of that mi20 nority group has certified that the language of 

21 the applicable American Indian or Alaska Na22 tive language is presently unwritten or the 

23 Tribal Government does not want written trans24 lations in the minority language. 


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1 ‘‘(3) WRITTEN TRANSLATIONS FOR ELECTION

2 WORKERS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the 

3 State or political division may be required to provide 

4 written translations of voting materials, with the 

5 consent of any applicable Indian Tribe, to election 

6 workers to ensure that the translations from English 

7 to the language of a minority group are complete, 

8 accurate, and uniform.’’. 

9 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section and the amend10 ments made by this section shall apply with respect to the 

11 regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held 

12 in November 2022 and each succeeding election for Fed13 eral office. 

14 SEC. 1905. ENSURING EQUITABLE AND EFFICIENT OPER15 ATION OF POLLING PLACES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

17 (1) REQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of 

18 the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 

19 21081 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), sec20 tion 1056(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), sec21 tion 1103(a), section 1104(a), section 1611(a), sec22 tion 1621(a), section 1622(a), and section 1623(b), 

23 is amended— 

24 (A) by redesignating sections 314 and 315 

25 as sections 315 and 316, respectively; and 


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1 (B) by inserting after section 313 the fol2 lowing new section: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 314. ENSURING EQUITABLE AND EFFICIENT OPER4 ATION OF POLLING PLACES. 

5 ‘‘(a) PREVENTING UNREASONABLE WAITING TIMES

6 FOR VOTERS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State or jurisdiction 

8 shall take reasonable efforts to provide a sufficient 

9 number of voting systems, poll workers, and other 

10 election resources (including physical resources) at a 

11 polling place used in any election for Federal office, 

12 including a polling place at which individuals may 

13 cast ballots prior to the date of the election, to en14 sure— 

15 ‘‘(A) a fair and equitable waiting time for 

16 all voters in the State or jurisdiction; and 

17 ‘‘(B) that no individual will be required to 

18 wait longer than 30 minutes to cast a ballot at 

19 the polling place. 

20 ‘‘(2) CRITERIA.—In determining the number of 

21 voting systems, poll workers, and other election re22 sources provided at a polling place for purposes of 

23 paragraph (1), the State or jurisdiction shall take 

24 into account the following factors: 

25 ‘‘(A) The voting age population. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Voter turnout in past elections. 

2 ‘‘(C) The number of voters registered. 

3 ‘‘(D) The number of voters who have reg4 istered since the most recent Federal election. 

5 ‘‘(E) Census data for the population served 

6 by the polling place, such as the proportion of 

7 the voting-age population who are under 25 

8 years of age or who are naturalized citizens. 

9 ‘‘(F) The needs and numbers of voters 

10 with disabilities and voters with limited English 

11 proficiency. 

12 ‘‘(G) The type of voting systems used. 

13 ‘‘(H) The length and complexity of initia14 tives, referenda, and other questions on the bal15 lot. 

16 ‘‘(I) Such other factors, including relevant 

17 demographic factors relating to the population 

18 served by the polling place, as the State con19 siders appropriate. 

20 ‘‘(3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

21 this subsection may be construed— 

22 ‘‘(A) to authorize a State or jurisdiction to 

23 meet the requirements of this subsection by 

24 closing any polling place, prohibiting an indi25 vidual from entering a line at a polling place, 


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1 or refusing to permit an individual who has ar2 rived at a polling place prior to closing time 

3 from voting at the polling place; or 

4 ‘‘(B) to limit the use of mobile voting cen5 ters. 

6 ‘‘(b) LIMITING VARIATIONS ON NUMBER OF HOURS

7 OF OPERATION OF POLLING PLACES WITHIN A STATE.— 

8 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

10 subparagraph (B) and paragraph (2), each 

11 State shall establish hours of operation for all 

12 polling places in the State on the date of any 

13 election for Federal office held in the State 

14 such that the polling place with the greatest 

15 number of hours of operation on such date is 

16 not in operation for more than 2 hours longer 

17 than the polling place with the fewest number 

18 of hours of operation on such date. 

19 ‘‘(B) PERMITTING VARIANCE ON BASIS OF

20 POPULATION.—Subparagraph (A) does not 

21 apply to the extent that the State establishes 

22 variations in the hours of operation of polling 

23 places on the basis of the overall population or 

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1 lect) of the unit of local government in which 

2 such polling places are located. 

3 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS FOR POLLING PLACES WITH

4 HOURS ESTABLISHED BY UNITS OF LOCAL GOVERN5 MENT.—Paragraph (1) does not apply in the case of 

6 a polling place— 

7 ‘‘(A) whose hours of operation are estab8 lished, in accordance with State law, by the unit 

9 of local government in which the polling place 

10 is located; or 

11 ‘‘(B) which is required pursuant to an 

12 order by a court to extend its hours of oper13 ation beyond the hours otherwise established. 

14 ‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take ef15 fect upon the expiration of the 180-day period which be16 gins on the date of the enactment of this subsection.’’. 

17 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

18 ISSUANCE OF VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE BY ELECTION

19 ASSISTANCE COMMISSION.—Section 321(b) of such 

20 Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as redesignated and 

21 amended by section 1101(b) and as amended by sec22 tions, 1102, 1103, 1104, and 1611, is amended— 

23 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para24 graph (4); 


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1 (B) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 

2 paragraph (6); 

3 (C) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated, 

4 by striking ‘‘paragraph (4)’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘paragraph (4) or (5)’’; and 

6 (D) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 

7 following new paragraph: 

8 ‘‘(5) in the case of the recommendations with 

9 respect to section 314, 180 days after the date of 

10 the enactment of such section; and’’. 

11 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of 

12 contents of such Act, as amended by section 

13 1031(c), section 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 

14 1102(c), section 1103(a), section 1104(c), section 

15 1611(c), section 1621(a), section 1622(a), and sec16 tion 1623(b), is amended— 

17 (A) by redesignating the items relating to 

18 sections 314 and 315 as relating to sections 

19 315 and 316, respectively; and 

20 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

21 section 313 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 314. Ensuring equitable and efficient operation of polling places.’’. 

22 (b) STUDY OF METHODS TO ENFORCE FAIR AND EQ23 UITABLE WAITING TIMES.— 

24 (1) STUDY.—The Election Assistance Commis25 sion and the Comptroller General of the United 


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1 States shall conduct a joint study of the effective2 ness of various methods of enforcing the require3 ments of section 314(a) of the Help America Vote 

4 Act of 2002, as added by subsection (a), including 

5 methods of best allocating resources to jurisdictions 

6 which have had the most difficulty in providing a 

7 fair and equitable waiting time at polling places to 

8 all voters, and to communities of color in particular. 

9 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after 

10 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Election 

11 Assistance Commission and the Comptroller General 

12 of the United States shall publish and submit to 

13 Congress a report on the study conducted under 

14 paragraph (1). 

15 SEC. 1906. REQUIRING STATES TO PROVIDE SECURED 

16 DROP BOXES FOR VOTED BALLOTS IN ELEC17 TIONS FOR FEDERAL OFFICE. 

18 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of the 

19 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 

20 as amended by section 1031(a), section 1056(a), section 

21 1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), section 

22 1104(a), section 1611(a), section 1621(a), section 

23 1622(a), section 1623(b), and section 1905(a), is amend24 ed— 


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1 (1) by redesignating sections 315 and 316 as 

2 sections 316 and 317, respectively; and 

3 (2) by inserting after section 314 the following 

4 new section: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 315. USE OF SECURED DROP BOXES FOR VOTED BAL6 LOTS. 

7 ‘‘(a) REQUIRING USE OF DROP BOXES.—Each juris8 diction shall provide in-person, secured, and clearly labeled 

9 drop boxes at which individuals may, at any time during 

10 the period described in subsection (b), drop off voted bal11 lots in an election for Federal office. 

12 ‘‘(b) MINIMUM PERIOD FOR AVAILABILITY OF DROP

13 BOXES.—The period described in this subsection is, with 

14 respect to an election, the period which begins on the first 

15 day on which the jurisdiction sends mail-in ballots or ab16 sentee ballots (other than ballots for absent uniformed 

17 overseas voters (as defined in section 107(1) of the Uni18 formed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 

19 U.S.C. 20310(1))) or overseas voters (as defined in section 

20 107(5) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20310(5)))) to voters for 

21 such election and which ends at the time the polls close 

22 for the election in the jurisdiction involved. 

23 ‘‘(c) ACCESSIBILITY.— 

24 ‘‘(1) HOURS OF ACCESS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

2 subparagraph (B), each drop box provided 

3 under this section shall be accessible to voters 

4 for a reasonable number of hours each day. 

5 ‘‘(B) 24-HOUR DROP BOXES.— 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Of the number of 

7 drop boxes provided in any jurisdiction, 

8 not less the required number shall be ac9 cessible for 24-hours per day during the 

10 period described in subsection (b). 

11 ‘‘(ii) REQUIRED NUMBER.—The re12 quired number is the greater of— 

13 ‘‘(I) 25 percent of the drop boxes 

14 required under subsection (d); or 

15 ‘‘(II) 1 drop box. 

16 ‘‘(2) POPULATION.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Drop boxes provided 

18 under this section shall be accessible for use— 

19 ‘‘(i) by individuals with disabilities, as 

20 determined in consultation with the protec21 tion and advocacy systems (as defined in 

22 section 102 of the Developmental Disabil23 ities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 

24 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15002)) of the State; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) by individuals with limited pro2 ficiency in the English language; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) by homeless individuals (as de4 fined in section 103 of the McKinney– 

5 Vento Homeless Assistance Act(42 U.S.C. 

6 11302)) within the State. 

7 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATION OF ACCESSIBILITY

8 FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.—For 

9 purposes of this paragraph, drop boxes shall be 

10 considered to be accessible for use by individ11 uals with disabilities if the drop boxes meet 

12 such criteria as the Attorney General may es13 tablish for such purposes. 

14 ‘‘(C) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—If a drop 

15 box provided under this section is on the 

16 grounds of or inside a building or facility which 

17 serves as a polling place for an election during 

18 the period described in subsection (b), nothing 

19 in this subsection may be construed to waive 

20 any requirements regarding the accessibility of 

21 such polling place for the use of individuals 

22 with disabilities, individuals with limited pro23 ficiency in the English language, or homeless 

24 individuals. 


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1 ‘‘(d) NUMBER OF DROP BOXES.—Each jurisdiction 

2 shall have— 

3 ‘‘(1) in the case of any election for Federal of4 fice prior to the regularly scheduled general election 

5 for Federal office held in November 2024, not less 

6 than 1 drop box for every 45,000 registered voters 

7 located in the jurisdiction; and 

8 ‘‘(2) in the case of the regularly scheduled gen9 eral election for Federal office held in November 

10 2024 and each election for Federal office occurring 

11 thereafter, not less than the greater of— 

12 ‘‘(A) 1 drop box for every 45,000 reg13 istered voters located in the jurisdiction; or 

14 ‘‘(B) 1 drop box for every 15,000 votes 

15 that were cast by mail in the jurisdiction in the 

16 most recent general election that includes an 

17 election for the office of President. 

18 In no case shall a jurisdiction have less than 1 drop 

19 box for any election for Federal office. 

20 ‘‘(e) LOCATION OF DROP BOXES.—The State shall 

21 determine the location of drop boxes provided under this 

22 section in a jurisdiction on the basis of criteria which en23 sure that the drop boxes are— 

24 ‘‘(1) available to all voters on a non-discrimina25 tory basis; 


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1 ‘‘(2) accessible to voters with disabilities (in ac2 cordance with subsection (c)); 

3 ‘‘(3) accessible by public transportation to the 

4 greatest extent possible; 

5 ‘‘(4) available during all hours of the day; 

6 ‘‘(5) sufficiently available in all communities in 

7 the jurisdiction, including rural communities and on 

8 Tribal lands within the jurisdiction (subject to sub9 section (f)); and 

10 ‘‘(6) geographically distributed to provide a rea11 sonable opportunity for voters to submit their voted 

12 ballot in a timely manner. 

13 ‘‘(f) RULES FOR DROP BOXES ON TRIBAL LANDS.— 

14 In making a determination of the number and location of 

15 drop boxes provided under this section on Tribal lands in 

16 a jurisdiction, the appropriate State and local election offi17 cials shall— 

18 ‘‘(1) consult with Tribal leaders prior to making 

19 the determination; and 

20 ‘‘(2) take into account criteria such as the 

21 availability of direct-to-door residential mail delivery, 

22 the distance and time necessary to travel to the drop 

23 box locations (including in inclement weather), 

24 modes of transportation available, conditions of 


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1 roads, and the availability (if any) of public trans2 portation. 

3 ‘‘(g) TIMING OF SCANNING AND PROCESSING OF

4 BALLOTS.—For purposes of section 311(g) (relating to 

5 the timing of the processing and scanning of ballots for 

6 tabulation), a vote cast using a drop box provided under 

7 this section shall be treated in the same manner as a ballot 

8 cast by mail. 

9 ‘‘(h) POSTING OF INFORMATION.—On or adjacent to 

10 each drop box provided under this section, the State shall 

11 post information on the requirements that voted absentee 

12 ballots must meet in order to be counted and tabulated 

13 in the election. 

14 ‘‘(i) REMOTE SURVEILLANCE.—Nothing in this sec15 tion shall prohibit a State from providing for the security 

16 of drop boxes through remote or electronic surveillance. 

17 ‘‘(j) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

18 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

19 Federal office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

20 election for Federal office.’’. 

21 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

22 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 

23 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 

24 1103(a), section 1104(c), section 1611(c), section 


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1 1621(c), section 1622(a), section 1623(b), and section 

2 1905(a), is amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec4 tions 315 and 316 as relating to sections 316 and 

5 317, respectively; and 

6 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec7 tion 314 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 315. Use of secured drop boxes for voted absentee ballots.’’. 

8 SEC. 1907. PROHIBITING STATES FROM RESTRICTING 

9 CURBSIDE VOTING. 

10 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of the 

11 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 

12 as amended by section 1031(a), section 1056(a), section 

13 1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), section 

14 1104(a), section 1611(a), section 1621(a), section 

15 1622(a), section 1623(b), section 1905(a), and section 

16 1906(a), is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating sections 316 and 317 as 

18 sections 317 and 318, respectively; and 

19 (2) by inserting after section 315 the following 

20 new section: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 316. PROHIBITING STATES FROM RESTRICTING 

22 CURBSIDE VOTING. 

23 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—A State may not— 

24 ‘‘(1) prohibit any jurisdiction administering an 

25 election for Federal office in the State from utilizing 


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1 curbside voting as a method by which individuals 

2 may cast ballots in the election; or 

3 ‘‘(2) impose any restrictions which would ex4 clude any individual who is eligible to vote in such 

5 an election in a jurisdiction which utilizes curbside 

6 voting from casting a ballot in the election by the 

7 method of curbside voting. 

8 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

9 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

10 Federal office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

11 election for Federal office.’’. 

12 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

13 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 

14 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 

15 1103(a), section 1104(c), section 1611(c), section 

16 1621(a), section 1622(a), section 1623(b), section 

17 1905(a), and section 1906(b), is amended— 

18 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec19 tions 316 and 317 as relating to sections 317 and 

20 318, respectively; and 

21 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec22 tion 315 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 316. Prohibiting States from restricting curbside voting.’’. 


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1 SEC. 1908. PROHIBITING RESTRICTIONS ON DONATIONS OF 

2 FOOD AND BEVERAGES AT POLLING STA3 TIONS. 

4 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of the 

5 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 

6 as amended by section 1031(a), section 1056(a), section 

7 1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), section 

8 1104(a), section 1611(a), section 1621(a), section 

9 1622(a), section 1623(b), section 1905(a), section 

10 1906(a), and section 1907(a), is amended— 

11 (1) by redesignating sections 317 and 318 as 

12 sections 318 and 319, respectively; and 

13 (2) by inserting after section 316 the following 

14 new section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 317. PROHIBITING STATES FROM RESTRICTING DO16 NATIONS OF FOOD AND BEVERAGES AT 

17 POLLING STATIONS. 

18 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—A State may not impose any re19 striction on providing food and nonalcoholic beverages to 

20 persons at a polling location for a Federal election, pro21 vided that such food and nonalcoholic beverages are dis22 tributed without regard to the electoral participation or 

23 political preferences of the recipients. 

24 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

25 with respect to elections for Federal office occurring on 

26 and after January 1, 2022.’’. 


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1 (b) VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) of 

2 such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redesignated 

3 by section 1101(b) and as amended by sections 1102, 

4 1103, 1104, and 1623, is amended by striking ‘‘and 313’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘313, and 317’’. 

6 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

7 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 

8 1056(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 

9 1103(a), section 1104(c), section 1611(c), section 

10 1621(a), section 1622(a), section 1623(b), section 

11 1905(a), section 1906(b), and section 1907(b) is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec14 tions 317 and 318 as relating to sections 319 and 

15 320, respectively; and 

16 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec17 tion 316 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 317. Prohibiting States from restricting donations of food and beverages 

at polling stations.’’. 

18 SEC. 1909. GAO STUDY ON VOTER TURNOUT RATES. 

19 The Comptroller General of the United States shall 

20 conduct a study on voter turnout rates delineated by age 

21 in States and localities that permit voters to participate 

22 in elections before reaching the age of 18, with a focus 

23 on localities that permit voting upon reaching the age of 

24 16. 


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1 PART 2—DISASTER AND EMERGENCY 

2 CONTINGENCY PLANS 

3 SEC. 1911. REQUIREMENTS FOR FEDERAL ELECTION CON4 TINGENCY PLANS IN RESPONSE TO NATURAL 

5 DISASTERS AND EMERGENCIES. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

7 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days 

8 after the date of the enactment of this Act, each 

9 State and each jurisdiction in a State which is re10 sponsible for administering elections for Federal of11 fice shall establish a contingency plan to enable indi12 viduals to vote in elections for Federal office during 

13 a state of emergency, public health emergency, or 

14 national emergency which has been declared for rea15 sons including— 

16 (A) a natural disaster; or 

17 (B) an infectious disease. 

18 (2) PUBLICATION.—Each State and jurisdiction 

19 shall make the plan established under paragraph (1) 

20 publicly available, except that such State or jurisdic21 tion may redact provisions necessary to preserve na22 tional security or public safety. 

23 (3) UPDATING.—Each State and jurisdiction 

24 shall update the contingency plan established under 

25 this subsection not less frequently than every 5 

26 years. 


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1 (b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO SAFETY.—The 

2 contingency plan established under subsection (a) shall in3 clude initiatives to provide equipment and resources need4 ed to protect the health and safety of poll workers, election 

5 staff, and voters when voting in person. 

6 (c) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO RECRUITMENT OF

7 POLL WORKERS.—The contingency plan established 

8 under subsection (a) shall include initiatives by the chief 

9 State election official and local election officials to recruit 

10 poll workers from resilient or unaffected populations, 

11 which may include— 

12 (1) employees of other State and local govern13 ment offices; and 

14 (2) in the case in which an infectious disease 

15 poses significant increased health risks to elderly in16 dividuals, students of secondary schools and institu17 tions of higher education in the State. 

18 (d) ENFORCEMENT.— 

19 (1) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The Attorney Gen20 eral may bring a civil action against any State or ju21 risdiction in an appropriate United States district 

22 court for such declaratory and injunctive relief (in23 cluding a temporary restraining order, a permanent 

24 or temporary injunction, or other order) as may be 


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1 necessary to carry out the requirements of this sec2 tion. 

3 (2) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a viola5 tion of this section, any person who is aggrieved 

6 by such violation may provide written notice of 

7 the violation to the chief election official of the 

8 State involved. 

9 (B) RELIEF.—If the violation is not cor10 rected within 20 days after receipt of a notice 

11 under subparagraph (A), or within 5 days after 

12 receipt of the notice if the violation occurred 

13 within 120 days before the date of an election 

14 for Federal office, the aggrieved person may, in 

15 a civil action, obtain declaratory or injunctive 

16 relief with respect to the violation. 

17 (C) SPECIAL RULE.—If the violation oc18 curred within 5 days before the date of an elec19 tion for Federal office, the aggrieved person 

20 need not provide notice to the chief election of21 ficial of the State involved under subparagraph 

22 (A) before bringing a civil action under sub23 paragraph (B). 

24 (e) DEFINITIONS.— 


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1 (1) ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE.—For 

2 purposes of this section, the term ‘‘election for Fed3 eral office’’ means a general, special, primary, or 

4 runoff election for the office of President or Vice 

5 President, or of Senator or Representative in, or 

6 Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the Con7 gress. 

8 (2) STATE.—For purposes of this section, the 

9 term ‘‘State’’ includes the District of Columbia, the 

10 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American 

11 Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, and the 

12 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

13 (f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with 

14 respect to the regularly scheduled general election for Fed15 eral office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

16 election for Federal office. 

17 PART 3—IMPROVEMENTS IN OPERATION OF 

18 ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION 

19 SEC. 1921. REAUTHORIZATION OF ELECTION ASSISTANCE 

20 COMMISSION. 

21 Section 210 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

22 (52 U.S.C. 20930) is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘for each of the fiscal years 

24 2003 through 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘for fiscal year 

25 2021 and each succeeding fiscal year’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘(but not to exceed $10,000,000 

2 for each such year)’’. 

3 SEC. 1922. REQUIRING STATES TO PARTICIPATE IN POST4 GENERAL ELECTION SURVEYS. 

5 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Title III of the Help America 

6 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as amended 

7 by section 1903(a), is further amended by inserting after 

8 section 303A the following new section: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 303B. REQUIRING PARTICIPATION IN POST-GENERAL 

10 ELECTION SURVEYS. 

11 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—Each State shall furnish to the 

12 Commission such information as the Commission may re13 quest for purposes of conducting any post-election survey 

14 of the States with respect to the administration of a regu15 larly scheduled general election for Federal office. 

16 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 

17 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

18 Federal office held in November 2022 and any succeeding 

19 election.’’. 

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

21 of such Act, as amended by section 1903(c), is further 

22 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

23 303A the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 303B. Requiring participation in post-general election surveys.’’. 


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1 SEC. 1923. REPORTS BY NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STAND2 ARDS AND TECHNOLOGY ON USE OF FUNDS 

3 TRANSFERRED FROM ELECTION ASSISTANCE 

4 COMMISSION. 

5 (a) REQUIRING REPORTS ON USE OF FUNDS AS

6 CONDITION OF RECEIPT.—Section 231 of the Help Amer7 ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20971) is amended by 

8 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

9 ‘‘(e) REPORT ON USE OF FUNDS TRANSFERRED

10 FROM COMMISSION.—To the extent that funds are trans11 ferred from the Commission to the Director of the Na12 tional Institute of Standards and Technology for purposes 

13 of carrying out this section during any fiscal year, the Di14 rector may not use such funds unless the Director certifies 

15 at the time of transfer that the Director will submit a re16 port to the Commission not later than 90 days after the 

17 end of the fiscal year detailing how the Director used such 

18 funds during the year.’’. 

19 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

20 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to fiscal year 2022 

21 and each succeeding fiscal year. 

22 SEC. 1924. RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE OPERATIONS 

23 OF ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION. 

24 (a) ASSESSMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

25 AND CYBERSECURITY.—Not later than December 31, 

26 2021, the Election Assistance Commission shall carry out 


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1 an assessment of the security and effectiveness of the 

2 Commission’s information technology systems, including 

3 the cybersecurity of such systems. 

4 (b) IMPROVEMENTS TO ADMINISTRATIVE COMPLAINT

5 PROCEDURES.— 

6 (1) REVIEW OF PROCEDURES.—The Election 

7 Assistance Commission shall carry out a review of 

8 the effectiveness and efficiency of the State-based 

9 administrative complaint procedures established and 

10 maintained under section 402 of the Help America 

11 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21112) for the inves12 tigation and resolution of allegations of violations of 

13 title III of such Act. 

14 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS TO STREAMLINE PRO15 CEDURES.—Not later than December 31, 2021, the 

16 Commission shall submit to Congress a report on 

17 the review carried out under paragraph (1), and 

18 shall include in the report such recommendations as 

19 the Commission considers appropriate to streamline 

20 and improve the procedures which are the subject of 

21 the review. 


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1 SEC. 1925. REPEAL OF EXEMPTION OF ELECTION ASSIST2 ANCE COMMISSION FROM CERTAIN GOVERN3 MENT CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205 of the Help America 

5 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20925) is amended by strik6 ing subsection (e). 

7 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

8 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to contracts entered 

9 into by the Election Assistance Commission on or after 

10 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 PART 4—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 

12 SEC. 1931. APPLICATION OF LAWS TO COMMONWEALTH OF 

13 NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS. 

14 (a) NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION ACT OF

15 1993.—Section 3(4) of the National Voter Registration 

16 Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20502(4)) is amended by striking 

17 ‘‘States and the District of Columbia’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth 

19 of the Northern Mariana Islands’’. 

20 (b) HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002.— 

21 (1) COVERAGE OF COMMONWEALTH OF THE

22 NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS.—Section 901 of the 

23 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21141) 

24 is amended by striking ‘‘and the United States Vir25 gin Islands’’ and inserting ‘‘the United States Virgin 


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1 Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 

2 Mariana Islands’’. 

3 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO HELP

4 AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002.—Such Act is further 

5 amended as follows: 

6 (A) The second sentence of section 

7 213(a)(2) (52 U.S.C. 20943(a)(2)) is amended 

8 by striking ‘‘and American Samoa’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘American Samoa, and the Commonwealth 

10 of the Northern Mariana Islands’’. 

11 (B) Section 252(c)(2) (52 U.S.C. 

12 21002(c)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘or the 

13 United States Virgin Islands’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘the United States Virgin Islands, or the Com15 monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’’. 

16 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

17 CONSULTATION OF HELP AMERICA VOTE FOUNDA18 TION WITH LOCAL ELECTION OFFICIALS.—Section 

19 90102(c) of title 36, United States Code, is amend20 ed by striking ‘‘and the United States Virgin Is21 lands’’ and inserting ‘‘the United States Virgin Is22 lands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar23 iana Islands’’. 


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1 SEC. 1932. DEFINITION OF ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OF2 FICE. 

3 (a) DEFINITION.—Title IX of the Help America Vote 

4 Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21141 et seq.) is amended by add5 ing at the end the following new section: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 907. ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE DEFINED. 

7 ‘‘For purposes of titles I through III, the term ‘elec8 tion for Federal office’ means a general, special, primary, 

9 or runoff election for the office of President or Vice Presi10 dent, or of Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or 

11 Resident Commissioner to, the Congress.’’. 

12 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

13 of such Act is amended by adding at the end of the items 

14 relating to title IX the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 907. Election for Federal office defined.’’. 

15 SEC. 1933. CLARIFICATION OF EXEMPTION FOR STATES 

16 WHICH DO NOT COLLECT TELEPHONE INFOR17 MATION. 

18 (a) AMENDMENT TO HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT OF

19 2002.—Subtitle A of title III of the Help America Vote 

20 Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as amended by 

21 section 1031(a), section 1056(a) section 1101(a), section 

22 1102(a), section 1103(a), section 1104(a), section 

23 1611(a), section 1621(a), section 1622(a), section 

24 1623(b),section 1905(a), section 1906(a), section 1907(a), 

25 and section 1908(a), is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating section 319 as section 320; 

2 and 

3 (2) by inserting after section 318 the following 

4 new section: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 319. APPLICATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS TO 

6 STATES WHICH DO NOT COLLECT TELE7 PHONE INFORMATION. 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—To the extent that any provision 

9 of this title imposes a requirement on a State or jurisdic10 tion relating to contacting voters by telephone, such provi11 sion shall not apply in the case of any State in which con12 tinuously on and after the date of the enactment of this 

13 Act, does not collect telephone numbers for voters as part 

14 of voter registration in the State with respect to an elec15 tion for Federal office. 

16 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply in 

17 any case in which the voter has voluntarily provided tele18 phone information.’’. 

19 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 

20 of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 

21 1101(d), section 1102(c), section 1103(a)(3), section 

22 1104(c), section 1611(c), section 1621(c), section 1622(c), 

23 section 1623(b), section 1905(b), section 1906(a), section 

24 1907(b), and section 1908(b), is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating the items relating to sec2 tions 319 as relating to sections 320; and 

3 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec4 tion 318 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 319. Application of certain provisions to States which do not collect telephone information.’’. 

5 SEC. 1934. NO EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as specifically provided, 

7 nothing in this title may be construed to authorize or re8 quire conduct prohibited under any of the following laws, 

9 or to supersede, restrict, or limit the application of such 

10 laws: 

11 (1) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

12 10301 et seq.). 

13 (2) The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and 

14 Handicapped Act (52 U.S.C. 20101 et seq.). 

15 (3) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab16 sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.). 

17 (4) The National Voter Registration Act of 

18 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.). 

19 (5) The Americans with Disabilities Act of 

20 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 

21 (6) The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 

22 701 et seq.). 

23 (b) NO EFFECT ON PRECLEARANCE OR OTHER RE24 QUIREMENTS UNDER VOTING RIGHTS ACT.—The apVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00326 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 proval by any person of a payment or grant application 

2 under this title, or any other action taken by any person 

3 under this title, shall not be considered to have any effect 

4 on requirements for preclearance under section 5 of the 

5 Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10304) or any other 

6 requirements of such Act. 

7 (c) NO EFFECT ON AUTHORITY OF STATES TO PRO8 VIDE GREATER OPPORTUNITIES FOR VOTING.—Nothing 

9 in this title or the amendments made by this title may 

10 be construed to prohibit any State from enacting any law 

11 which provides greater opportunities for individuals to reg12 ister to vote and to vote in elections for Federal office than 

13 are provided by this title and the amendments made by 

14 this title. 

15 SEC. 1935. CLARIFICATION OF EXEMPTION FOR STATES 

16 WITHOUT VOTER REGISTRATION. 

17 To the extent that any provision of this title or any 

18 amendment made by this title imposes a requirement on 

19 a State relating to registering individuals to vote in elec20 tions for Federal office, such provision shall not apply in 

21 the case of any State in which, under law that is in effect 

22 continuously on and after the date of the enactment of 

23 this Act, there is no voter registration requirement for any 

24 voter in the State with respect to an election for Federal 

25 office. 


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1 Subtitle O—Increased Protections 

2 for Election Workers 

3 SEC. 1941. HARASSMENT OF ELECTION WORKERS PROHIB4 ITED. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 6 

6 States Code, as amended by section 1071(a), is amended 

7 by adding at the end the following new section: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 613. HARASSMENT OF ELECTION RELATED OFFI9 CIALS. 

10 ‘‘(a) HARASSMENT OF ELECTION WORKERS.—It 

11 shall be unlawful for any person, whether acting under 

12 color of law or otherwise, to intimidate, threaten, coerce, 

13 harass, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, coerce or har14 ass an election worker described in subsection (b) with in15 tent to impede, intimidate, or interfere with such official 

16 while engaged in the performance of official duties, or with 

17 intent to retaliate against such official on account of the 

18 performance of official duties. 

19 ‘‘(b) ELECTION WORKER DESCRIBED.—An election 

20 worker as described in this section is any individual who 

21 is an election official, poll worker, or an election volunteer 

22 in connection with an election for a Federal office. 

23 ‘‘(c) PENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 

24 (a) shall be fined not more than $100,000, imprisoned for 

25 not more than 5 years, or both.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 for chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, as amended 

3 by section 1071(b), is amended by adding at the end the 

4 following new item: 

‘‘613. Harassment of election related officials.’’. 

5 SEC. 1942. PROTECTION OF ELECTION WORKERS. 

6 Paragraph (2) of section 119(b) of title 18, United 

7 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of 

8 subparagraph (C), by inserting ‘‘or’’ at the end of sub9 paragraph (D), and by adding at the end the following 

10 new subparagraph: 

11 ‘‘(E) any individual who is an election offi12 cial, a poll worker, or an election volunteer in 

13 connection with an election for a Federal of14 fice;’’. 

15 Subtitle P—Severability 

16 SEC. 1951. SEVERABILITY. 

17 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

18 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

19 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu20 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

21 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

22 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

23 affected by the holding. 


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1 TITLE II—ELECTION INTEGRITY 

2 Subtitle A—Findings Reaffirming 

3 the Commitment of Congress to 

4 Restore the Voting Rights Act of 

5 1965 

6 SEC. 2001. FINDINGS REAFFIRMING COMMITMENT OF CON7 GRESS TO RESTORE THE VOTING RIGHTS 

8 ACT. 

9 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

10 (1) The right to vote for all Americans is a fun11 damental right guaranteed by the United States 

12 Constitution. 

13 (2) Federal, State, and local governments 

14 should protect the right to vote and promote voter 

15 participation across all demographics. 

16 (3) The Voting Rights Act has empowered the 

17 Department of Justice and Federal courts for nearly 

18 a half a century to block discriminatory voting prac19 tices before their implementation in States and local20 ities with the most troubling histories, ongoing 

21 records of racial discrimination, and demonstrations 

22 of lower participation rates for protected classes. 

23 (4) There continues to be an alarming move24 ment to erect barriers to make it more difficult for 

25 Americans to participate in our Nation’s democratic 


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1 process. The Nation has witnessed unprecedented ef2 forts to turn back the clock and enact suppressive 

3 laws that block access to the franchise for commu4 nities of color which have faced historic and con5 tinuing discrimination, as well as disabled, young, el6 derly, and low-income Americans. 

7 (5) The Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby 

8 County v. Holder (570 U.S. 529 (2013)), gutted 

9 decades-long Federal protections for communities of 

10 color and language-minority populations facing ongo11 ing discrimination, emboldening States and local ju12 risdictions to pass voter suppression laws and imple13 ment procedures, like those requiring photo identi14 fication, limiting early voting hours, eliminating 

15 same-day registration, purging voters from the rolls, 

16 and reducing the number of polling places. 

17 (6) Racial discrimination in voting is a clear 

18 and persistent problem. The actions of States and 

19 localities around the country post-Shelby County, in20 cluding at least 10 findings by Federal courts of in21 tentional discrimination, underscored the need for 

22 Congress to conduct investigatory and evidentiary 

23 hearings to determine the legislation necessary to re24 store the Voting Rights Act and combat continuing 

25 efforts in America that suppress the free exercise of 


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1 the franchise in Black and other communities of 

2 color. 

3 (7) Evidence of discriminatory voting practice 

4 spans from decades ago through to the past several 

5 election cycles. The 2018 midterm elections, for ex6 ample, demonstrated ongoing discrimination in vot7 ing. 

8 (8) During the 116th Congress, congressional 

9 committees in the House of Representatives held nu10 merous hearings, collecting substantial testimony 

11 and other evidence which underscored the need to 

12 pass a restoration of the Voting Rights Act. 

13 (9) On December 6, 2019, the House of Rep14 resentatives passed the John R. Lewis Voting Rights 

15 Advancement Act, which would restore and mod16 ernize the Voting Rights Act, in accordance with 

17 language from the Shelby County decision. Congress 

18 reaffirms that the barriers faced by too many voters 

19 across this Nation when trying to cast their ballot 

20 necessitate reintroduction of many of the protections 

21 once afforded by the Voting Rights Act. 

22 (10) The 2020 primary and general elections 

23 provide further evidence that systemic voter dis24 crimination and intimidation continues to occur in 

25 communities of color across the country, making it 


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1 clear that full access to the franchise will not be 

2 achieved until Congress restores key provisions of 

3 the Voting Rights Act. 

4 (11) As of late-February 2021, 43 States had 

5 introduced, prefiled, or carried over 253 bills to re6 strict voting access that, primarily, limit mail voting 

7 access, impose stricter voter ID requirements, slash 

8 voter registration opportunities, or enable more ag9 gressive voter roll purges. 

10 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol11 lows: 

12 (1) To improve access to the ballot for all citi13 zens. 

14 (2) To establish procedures by which States 

15 and localities, in accordance with past actions, sub16 mit voting practice changes for preclearance by the 

17 Federal Government. 

18 (3) To enhance the integrity and security of our 

19 voting systems. 

20 (4) To ensure greater accountability for the ad21 ministration of elections by States and localities. 

22 (5) To restore protections for voters against 

23 practices in States and localities plagued by the per24 sistence of voter disenfranchisement. 


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1 (6) To ensure that Federal civil rights laws pro2 tect the rights of voters against discriminatory and 

3 deceptive practices. 

4 Subtitle B—Findings Relating to 

5 Native American Voting Rights 

6 SEC. 2101. FINDINGS RELATING TO NATIVE AMERICAN VOT7 ING RIGHTS. 

8 Congress finds the following: 

9 (1) The right to vote for all Americans is sa10 cred. Congress must fulfill the Federal Government’s 

11 trust responsibility to protect and promote Native 

12 Americans’ exercise of their fundamental right to 

13 vote, including equal access to voter registration vot14 ing mechanisms and locations, and the ability to 

15 serve as election officials. 

16 (2) The Native American Voting Rights Coali17 tion’s four-State survey of voter discrimination 

18 (2016) and 9 field hearings in Indian Country (2017 

19 and 2018) revealed obstacles that Native Americans 

20 must overcome, including a lack of accessible and 

21 proximate registration and polling sites, nontradi22 tional addresses for residents on Indian reservations, 

23 inadequate language assistance for Tribal members, 

24 and voter identification laws that discriminate 

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1 tice and courts have recognized that some jurisdic2 tions have been unresponsive to reasonable requests 

3 from federally recognized Indian Tribes for more ac4 cessible and proximate voter registration sites and 

5 in-person voting locations. 

6 (3) The 2018 midterm and 2020 general elec7 tions provide further evidence that systemic voter 

8 discrimination and intimidation continues to occur in 

9 communities of color and Tribal lands across the 

10 country, making it clear that democracy reform can11 not be achieved until Congress restores key provi12 sions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and passes 

13 additional protections. 

14 (4) Congress has broad, plenary authority to 

15 enact legislation to safeguard the voting rights of 

16 Native American voters. 

17 (5) Congress must conduct investigatory and 

18 evidentiary hearings to determine the necessary leg19 islation to restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965 

20 and combat continuous efforts that suppress the 

21 voter franchise within Tribal lands, to include, but 

22 not to be limited to, the Native American Voting 

23 Rights Act and the Voting Rights Advancement Act. 


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1 Subtitle C—Findings Relating to 

2 District of Columbia Statehood 

3 SEC. 2201. FINDINGS RELATING TO DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 

4 STATEHOOD. 

5 Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) The 705,000 District of Columbia residents 

7 deserve voting representation in Congress and local 

8 self-government, which only statehood can provide. 

9 (2) The United States is the only democratic 

10 country that denies both voting representation in the 

11 national legislature and local self-government to the 

12 residents of its nation’s capital. 

13 (3) There are no constitutional, historical, fis14 cal, or economic reasons why the Americans who live 

15 in the District of Columbia should not be granted 

16 statehood. 

17 (4) Since the founding of the United States, the 

18 residents of the District of Columbia have always 

19 carried all of the obligations of citizenship, including 

20 serving in all of the Nation’s wars and paying Fed21 eral taxes, but have been denied voting representa22 tion in Congress and freedom from congressional in23 terference in purely local matters. 


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1 (5) The District of Columbia pays more Federal 

2 taxes per capita than any State and more Federal 

3 taxes than 22 States. 

4 (6) The District of Columbia has a larger popu5 lation than 2 States (Wyoming and Vermont), and 

6 6 States have a population under one million. 

7 (7) The District of Columbia has a larger budg8 et than 12 States. 

9 (8) The Constitution of the United States gives 

10 Congress the authority to admit new States (clause 

11 1, section 3, article IV) and reduce the size of the 

12 seat of the Government of the United States (clause 

13 17, section 8, article I). All 37 new States have been 

14 admitted by an act of Congress, and Congress has 

15 previously reduced the size of the seat of the Gov16 ernment of the United States. 

17 (9) On June 26, 2020, by a vote of 232–180, 

18 the House of Representatives passed H.R. 51, the 

19 Washington, D.C. Admission Act, which would have 

20 admitted the State of Washington, Douglass Com21 monwealth from the residential portions of the Dis22 trict of Columbia and reduced the size of the seat 

23 of the Government of the United States to the 

24 United States Capitol, the White House, the United 


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1 States Supreme Court, the National Mall, and the 

2 principal Federal monuments and buildings. 

3 Subtitle D—Territorial Voting 

4 Rights 

5 SEC. 2301. FINDINGS RELATING TO TERRITORIAL VOTING 

6 RIGHTS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The right to vote is one of the most power9 ful instruments residents of the territories of the 

10 United States have to ensure that their voices are 

11 heard. 

12 (2) These Americans have played an important 

13 part in the American democracy for more than 120 

14 years. 

15 (3) Political participation and the right to vote 

16 are among the highest concerns of territorial resi17 dents in part because they were not always afforded 

18 these rights. 

19 (4) Voter participation in the territories consist20 ently ranks higher than many communities on the 

21 mainland. 

22 (5) Territorial residents serve and die, on a per 

23 capita basis, at a higher rate in every United States 

24 war and conflict since World War I, as an expression 


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1 of their commitment to American democratic prin2 ciples and patriotism. 

3 SEC. 2302. CONGRESSIONAL TASK FORCE ON VOTING 

4 RIGHTS OF UNITED STATES CITIZEN RESI5 DENTS OF TERRITORIES OF THE UNITED 

6 STATES. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

8 the legislative branch a Congressional Task Force on Vot9 ing Rights of United States Citizen Residents of Terri10 tories of the United States (in this section referred to as 

11 the ‘‘Task Force’’). 

12 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Task Force shall be com13 posed of 12 members as follows: 

14 (1) One Member of the House of Representa15 tives, who shall be appointed by the Speaker of the 

16 House of Representatives, in coordination with the 

17 Chairman of the Committee on Natural Resources of 

18 the House of Representatives. 

19 (2) One Member of the House of Representa20 tives, who shall be appointed by the Speaker of the 

21 House of Representatives, in coordination with the 

22 Chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

23 House of Representatives. 

24 (3) One Member of the House of Representa25 tives, who shall be appointed by the Speaker of the 


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1 House of Representatives, in coordination with the 

2 Chairman of the Committee on House Administra3 tion of the House of Representatives. 

4 (4) One Member of the House of Representa5 tives, who shall be appointed by the minority leader 

6 of the House of Representatives, in coordination 

7 with the ranking minority member of the Committee 

8 on Natural Resources of the House of Representa9 tives. 

10 (5) One Member of the House of Representa11 tives, who shall be appointed by the minority leader 

12 of the House of Representatives, in coordination 

13 with the ranking minority member of the Committee 

14 on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives. 

15 (6) One Member of the House of Representa16 tives, who shall be appointed by the minority leader 

17 of the House of Representatives, in coordination 

18 with the ranking minority member of the Committee 

19 on House Administration of the House of Represent20 atives. 

21 (7) One Member of the Senate, who shall be ap22 pointed by the majority leader of the Senate, in co23 ordination with the Chairman of the Committee on 

24 Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate. 


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1 (8) One Member of the Senate, who shall be ap2 pointed by the majority leader of the Senate, in co3 ordination with the Chairman of the Committee on 

4 the Judiciary of the Senate. 

5 (9) One Member of the Senate, who shall be ap6 pointed by the majority leader of the Senate, in co7 ordination with the Chairman of the Committee on 

8 Rules and Administration of the Senate. 

9 (10) One Member of the Senate, who shall be 

10 appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, in 

11 coordination with the ranking minority member of 

12 the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 

13 the Senate. 

14 (11) One Member of the Senate, who shall be 

15 appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, in 

16 coordination with the ranking minority member of 

17 the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate. 

18 (12) One Member of the Senate, who shall be 

19 appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, in 

20 coordination with the ranking minority member of 

21 the Committee on Rules and Administration of the 

22 Senate. 

23 (c) DEADLINE FOR APPOINTMENT.—All appoint24 ments to the Task Force shall be made not later than 30 

25 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 (d) CHAIR.—The Speaker shall designate one Mem2 ber to serve as chair of the Task Force. 

3 (e) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the Task Force 

4 shall be filled in the same manner as the original appoint5 ment. 

6 (f) STATUS UPDATE.—After August 31, 2021, and 

7 before October 1, 2021, the Task Force shall provide a 

8 status update to the House of Representatives and the 

9 Senate that includes— 

10 (1) information the Task Force has collected; 

11 and 

12 (2) a discussion on matters that the chairman 

13 of the Task Force determines are urgent for consid14 eration by Congress. 

15 (g) REPORT.—Not later than December 31, 2021, 

16 the Task Force shall issue a report of its findings to the 

17 House of Representatives and the Senate regarding— 

18 (1) the economic and societal consequences 

19 (demonstrated through statistical data and other 

20 metrics) that come with political disenfranchisement 

21 of United States citizens in territories of the United 

22 States; 

23 (2) impediments to full and equal voting rights 

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1 cluding the election of the President and Vice Presi2 dent of the United States; 

3 (3) impediments to full and equal voting rep4 resentation in the House of Representatives for 

5 United States citizens who are residents of terri6 tories of the United States; 

7 (4) recommended changes that, if adopted, 

8 would allow for full and equal voting rights for 

9 United States citizens who are residents of terri10 tories of the United States in Federal elections, in11 cluding the election of the President and Vice Presi12 dent of the United States; 

13 (5) recommended changes that, if adopted, 

14 would allow for full and equal voting representation 

15 in the House of Representatives for United States 

16 citizens who are residents of territories of the United 

17 States; and 

18 (6) additional information the Task Force de19 termines is appropriate. 

20 (h) CONSENSUS VIEWS.—To the greatest extent 

21 practicable, the report issued under subsection (g) shall 

22 reflect the shared views of all 12 Members of the Task 

23 Force, except that the report may contain dissenting 

24 views. 


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1 (i) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Task Force may, 

2 for the purpose of carrying out this section, hold hearings, 

3 sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and re4 ceive evidence as the Task Force considers appropriate. 

5 (j) STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION.—In carrying out 

6 its duties, the Task Force shall consult with the govern7 ments of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of 

8 the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of 

9 Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. 

10 (k) RESOURCES.—The Task Force shall carry out its 

11 duties by utilizing existing facilities, services, and staff of 

12 the House of Representatives and the Senate. 

13 (l) TERMINATION.—The Task Force shall terminate 

14 upon issuing the report required under subsection (g). 

15 Subtitle E—Redistricting Reform 

16 SEC. 2400. SHORT TITLE; FINDING OF CONSTITUTIONAL AU17 THORITY. 

18 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This subtitle may be cited as the 

19 ‘‘Redistricting Reform Act of 2021’’. 

20 (b) FINDING OF CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY.— 

21 Congress finds that it has the authority to establish the 

22 terms and conditions States must follow in carrying out 

23 congressional redistricting after an apportionment of 

24 Members of the House of Representatives because— 


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1 (1) the authority granted to Congress under ar2 ticle I, section 4 of the Constitution of the United 

3 States gives Congress the power to enact laws gov4 erning the time, place, and manner of elections for 

5 Members of the House of Representatives; and 

6 (2) the authority granted to Congress under 

7 section 5 of the 14th amendment to the Constitution 

8 gives Congress the power to enact laws to enforce 

9 section 2 of such amendment, which requires Rep10 resentatives to be apportioned among the several 

11 States according to their number. 

12 PART 1—REQUIREMENTS FOR CONGRESSIONAL 

13 REDISTRICTING 

14 SEC. 2401. REQUIRING CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING 

15 TO BE CONDUCTED THROUGH PLAN OF INDE16 PENDENT STATE COMMISSION. 

17 (a) USE OF PLAN REQUIRED.—Notwithstanding any 

18 other provision of law, and except as provided in sub19 section (c), any congressional redistricting conducted by 

20 a State shall be conducted in accordance with— 

21 (1) the redistricting plan developed and enacted 

22 into law by the independent redistricting commission 

23 established in the State, in accordance with part 2; 

24 or 


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1 (2) if a plan developed by such commission is 

2 not enacted into law, the redistricting plan developed 

3 and enacted into law by a 3-judge court, in accord4 ance with section 2421. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 22(c) of 

6 the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the fifteenth and 

7 subsequent decennial censuses and to provide for appor8 tionment of Representatives in Congress’’, approved June 

9 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a(c)), is amended by striking ‘‘in the 

10 manner provided by the law thereof’’ and inserting ‘‘in the 

11 manner provided by the Redistricting Reform Act of 

12 2021’’. 

13 (c) SPECIAL RULE FOR EXISTING COMMISSIONS.— 

14 Subsection (a) does not apply to any State in which, under 

15 law in effect continuously on and after the date of the 

16 enactment of this Act, congressional redistricting is car17 ried out in accordance with a plan developed and approved 

18 by an independent redistricting commission that is in com19 pliance with each of the following requirements: 

20 (1) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE APPLICATION PROC21 ESS.—Membership on the commission is open to citi22 zens of the State through a publicly available appli23 cation process. 

24 (2) DISQUALIFICATIONS FOR GOVERNMENT

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1 uals who, for a covered period of time as established 

2 by the State, hold or have held public office, individ3 uals who are or have been candidates for elected 

4 public office, and individuals who serve or have 

5 served as an officer, employee, or paid consultant of 

6 a campaign committee of a candidate for public of7 fice are disqualified from serving on the commission. 

8 (3) SCREENING FOR CONFLICTS.—Individuals 

9 who apply to serve on the commission are screened 

10 through a process that excludes persons with con11 flicts of interest from the pool of potential commis12 sioners. 

13 (4) MULTI-PARTISAN COMPOSITION.—Member14 ship on the commission represents those who are af15 filiated with the 2 political parties whose candidates 

16 received the most votes in the most recent statewide 

17 election for Federal office held in the State, as well 

18 as those who are unaffiliated with any party or who 

19 are affiliated with political parties other than the 2 

20 political parties whose candidates received the most 

21 votes in the most recent statewide election for Fed22 eral office held in the State. 

23 (5) CRITERIA FOR REDISTRICTING.—Members 

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1 mizing the division of communities of interest and a 

2 ban on drawing maps to favor a political party. 

3 (6) PUBLIC INPUT.—Public hearings are held 

4 and comments from the public are accepted before 

5 a final map is approved. 

6 (7) BROAD-BASED SUPPORT FOR APPROVAL OF

7 FINAL PLAN.—The approval of the final redistricting 

8 plan requires a majority vote of the members of the 

9 commission, including the support of at least one 

10 member of each of the following: 

11 (A) Members who are affiliated with the 

12 political party whose candidate received the 

13 most votes in the most recent statewide election 

14 for Federal office held in the State. 

15 (B) Members who are affiliated with the 

16 political party whose candidate received the sec17 ond most votes in the most recent statewide 

18 election for Federal office held in the State. 

19 (C) Members who are not affiliated with 

20 any political party or who are affiliated with po21 litical parties other than the political parties de22 scribed in subparagraphs (A) and (B). 

23 (d) TREATMENT OF STATE OF IOWA.—Subsection (a) 

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1 ance with a plan developed by the Iowa Legislative Serv2 ices Agency with the assistance of a Temporary Redis3 tricting Advisory Commission, under law which was in ef4 fect for the most recent congressional redistricting carried 

5 out in the State prior to the date of the enactment of this 

6 Act and which remains in effect continuously on and after 

7 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

8 SEC. 2402. BAN ON MID-DECADE REDISTRICTING. 

9 A State that has been redistricted in accordance with 

10 this subtitle and a State described in section 2401(c) may 

11 not be redistricted again until after the next apportion12 ment of Representatives under section 22(a) of the Act 

13 entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the fifteenth and subse14 quent decennial censuses and to provide for an apportion15 ment of Representatives in Congress’’, approved June 18, 

16 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a), unless a court requires the State to 

17 conduct such subsequent redistricting to comply with the 

18 Constitution of the United States, the Voting Rights Act 

19 of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), the Constitution of 

20 the State, or the terms or conditions of this subtitle. 

21 SEC. 2403. CRITERIA FOR REDISTRICTING. 

22 (a) CRITERIA.—Under the redistricting plan of a 

23 State, there shall be established single-member congres24 sional districts using the following criteria as set forth in 

25 the following order of priority: 


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1 (1) Districts shall comply with the United 

2 States Constitution, including the requirement that 

3 they equalize total population. 

4 (2) Districts shall comply with the Voting 

5 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), in6 cluding by creating any districts where two or more 

7 politically cohesive groups protected by such Act are 

8 able to elect representatives of choice in coalition 

9 with one another, and all applicable Federal laws. 

10 (3) Districts shall be drawn, to the extent that 

11 the totality of the circumstances warrant, to ensure 

12 the practical ability of a group protected under the 

13 Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et 

14 seq.) to participate in the political process and to 

15 nominate candidates and to elect representatives of 

16 choice is not diluted or diminished, regardless of 

17 whether or not such protected group constitutes a 

18 majority of a district’s citizen voting age population. 

19 (4) Districts shall respect communities of inter20 est, neighborhoods, and political subdivisions to the 

21 extent practicable and after compliance with the re22 quirements of paragraphs (1) through (3). A com23 munity of interest is defined as an area with recog24 nized similarities of interests, including ethnic, ra25 cial, economic, tribal, social, cultural, geographic or 


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1 historic identities. The term communities of interest 

2 may, in certain circumstances, include political sub3 divisions such as counties, municipalities, tribal 

4 lands and reservations, or school districts, but shall 

5 not include common relationships with political par6 ties or political candidates. 

7 (b) NO FAVORING OR DISFAVORING OF POLITICAL

8 PARTIES.— 

9 (1) PROHIBITION.—The redistricting plan en10 acted by a State shall not, when considered on a 

11 Statewide basis, be drawn with the intent or the ef12 fect of unduly favoring or disfavoring any political 

13 party. 

14 (2) DETERMINATION OF EFFECT.— 

15 (A) TOTALITY OF CIRCUMSTANCES.—For 

16 purposes of paragraph (1), the determination of 

17 whether a redistricting plan has the effect of 

18 unduly favoring or disfavoring a political party 

19 shall be based on the totality of circumstances, 

20 including evidence regarding the durability and 

21 severity of a plan’s partisan bias. 

22 (B) PLANS DEEMED TO HAVE EFFECT OF

23 UNDULY FAVORING OR DISFAVORING A POLIT24 ICAL PARTY.—Without limiting other ways in 

25 which a redistricting plan may be determined to 


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1 have the effect of unduly favoring or disfavoring 

2 a political party under the totality of cir3 cumstances under subparagraph (A), a redis4 tricting plan shall be deemed to have the effect 

5 of unduly favoring or disfavoring a political 

6 party if— 

7 (i) modeling based on relevant histor8 ical voting patterns shows that the plan is 

9 statistically likely to result in a partisan 

10 bias of more than one seat in States with 

11 20 or fewer congressional districts or a 

12 partisan bias of more than 2 seats in 

13 States with more than 20 congressional 

14 districts, as determined using quantitative 

15 measures of partisan fairness, which may 

16 include, but are not limited to, the seats17 to-votes curve for an enacted plan, the effi18 ciency gap, the declination, partisan asym19 metry, and the mean-median difference; 

20 and 

21 (ii) alternative plans, which may in22 clude, but are not limited to, those gen23 erated by redistricting algorithms, exist 

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1 ments of law and not been in violation of 

2 paragraph (1). 

3 (3) DETERMINATION OF INTENT.—For pur4 poses of paragraph (1), a rebuttable presumption 

5 shall exist that a redistricting plan enacted by the 

6 legislature of a State was not enacted with the in7 tent of unduly favoring or disfavoring a political 

8 party if the plan was enacted with the support of at 

9 least a third of the members of the second largest 

10 political party in each house of the legislature. 

11 (4) NO VIOLATION BASED ON CERTAIN CRI12 TERIA.—No redistricting plan shall be found to be 

13 in violation of paragraph (1) because of partisan 

14 bias attributable to the application of the criteria set 

15 forth in paragraphs (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a), 

16 unless one or more alternative plans could have com17 plied with such paragraphs without having the effect 

18 of unduly favoring or disfavoring a political party. 

19 (c) FACTORS PROHIBITED FROM CONSIDERATION.— 

20 In developing the redistricting plan for the State, the inde21 pendent redistricting commission may not take into con22 sideration any of the following factors, except as necessary 

23 to comply with the criteria described in paragraphs (1) 

24 through (3) of subsection (a), to achieve partisan fairness 

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1 tricting plan to be measured against the external metrics 

2 described in section 2413(d): 

3 (1) The residence of any Member of the House 

4 of Representatives or candidate. 

5 (2) The political party affiliation or voting his6 tory of the population of a district. 

7 (d) APPLICABILITY.—This section applies to any au8 thority, whether appointed, elected, judicial, or otherwise, 

9 that designs or enacts a congressional redistricting plan 

10 of a State. 

11 (e) SEVERABILITY OF CRITERIA.—If any of the cri12 teria set forth in this section, or the application of such 

13 criteria to any person or circumstance, is held to be uncon14 stitutional, the remaining criteria set forth in this section, 

15 and the application of such criteria to any person or cir16 cumstance, shall not be affected by the holding. 

17 PART 2—INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING 

18 COMMISSIONS 

19 SEC. 2411. INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSION. 

20 (a) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The nonpartisan agency es22 tablished or designated by a State under section 

23 2414(a) shall establish an independent redistricting 

24 commission for the State, which shall consist of 15 

25 members appointed by the agency as follows: 


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1 (A) Not later than October 1 of a year 

2 ending in the numeral zero, the agency shall, at 

3 a public meeting held not earlier than 15 days 

4 after notice of the meeting has been given to 

5 the public, first appoint 6 members as follows: 

6 (i) The agency shall appoint 2 mem7 bers on a random basis from the majority 

8 category of the approved selection pool (as 

9 described in section 2412(b)(1)(A)). 

10 (ii) The agency shall appoint 2 mem11 bers on a random basis from the minority 

12 category of the approved selection pool (as 

13 described in section 2412(b)(1)(B)). 

14 (iii) The agency shall appoint 2 mem15 bers on a random basis from the inde16 pendent category of the approved selection 

17 pool (as described in section 

18 2412(b)(1)(C)). 

19 (B) Not later than November 15 of a year 

20 ending in the numeral zero, the members ap21 pointed by the agency under subparagraph (A) 

22 shall, at a public meeting held not earlier than 

23 15 days after notice of the meeting has been 

24 given to the public, then appoint 9 members as 

25 follows: 


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1 (i) The members shall appoint 3 mem2 bers from the majority category of the ap3 proved selection pool (as described in sec4 tion 2412(b)(1)(A)). 

5 (ii) The members shall appoint 3 

6 members from the minority category of the 

7 approved selection pool (as described in 

8 section 2412(b)(1)(B)). 

9 (iii) The members shall appoint 3 

10 members from the independent category of 

11 the approved selection pool (as described in 

12 section 2412(b)(1)(C)). 

13 (2) RULES FOR APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS

14 APPOINTED BY FIRST MEMBERS.— 

15 (A) AFFIRMATIVE VOTE OF AT LEAST 4

16 MEMBERS.—The appointment of any of the 9 

17 members of the independent redistricting com18 mission who are appointed by the first members 

19 of the commission pursuant to subparagraph 

20 (B) of paragraph (1), as well as the designation 

21 of alternates for such members pursuant to 

22 subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3) and the ap23 pointment of alternates to fill vacancies pursu24 ant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4), shall 

25 require the affirmative vote of at least 4 of the 


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1 members appointed by the nonpartisan agency 

2 under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1), in3 cluding at least one member from each of the 

4 categories referred to in such subparagraph. 

5 (B) ENSURING DIVERSITY.—In appointing 

6 the 9 members pursuant to subparagraph (B) 

7 of paragraph (1), as well as in designating al8 ternates pursuant to subparagraph (B) of para9 graph (3) and in appointing alternates to fill 

10 vacancies pursuant to subparagraph (B) of 

11 paragraph (4), the first members of the inde12 pendent redistricting commission shall ensure 

13 that the membership is representative of the de14 mographic groups (including racial, ethnic, eco15 nomic, and gender) and geographic regions of 

16 the State, and provides racial, ethnic, and lan17 guage minorities protected under the Voting 

18 Rights Act of 1965 with a meaningful oppor19 tunity to participate in the development of the 

20 State’s redistricting plan. 

21 (3) DESIGNATION OF ALTERNATES TO SERVE

22 IN CASE OF VACANCIES.— 

23 (A) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY AGENCY.— 

24 At the time the agency appoints the members 

25 of the independent redistricting commission 


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1 under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) from 

2 each of the categories referred to in such sub3 paragraph, the agency shall, on a random basis, 

4 designate 2 other individuals from such cat5 egory to serve as alternate members who may 

6 be appointed to fill vacancies in the commission 

7 in accordance with paragraph (4). 

8 (B) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY FIRST MEM9 BERS.—At the time the members appointed by 

10 the agency appoint the other members of the 

11 independent redistricting commission under 

12 subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) from each 

13 of the categories referred to in such subpara14 graph, the members shall, in accordance with 

15 the special rules described in paragraph (2), 

16 designate 2 other individuals from such cat17 egory to serve as alternate members who may 

18 be appointed to fill vacancies in the commission 

19 in accordance with paragraph (4). 

20 (4) APPOINTMENT OF ALTERNATES TO SERVE

21 IN CASE OF VACANCIES.— 

22 (A) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY AGENCY.—If 

23 a vacancy occurs in the commission with respect 

24 to a member who was appointed by the non25 partisan agency under subparagraph (A) of 


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1 paragraph (1) from one of the categories re2 ferred to in such subparagraph, the agency 

3 shall fill the vacancy by appointing, on a ran4 dom basis, one of the 2 alternates from such 

5 category who was designated under subpara6 graph (A) of paragraph (3). At the time the 

7 agency appoints an alternate to fill a vacancy 

8 under the previous sentence, the agency shall 

9 designate, on a random basis, another indi10 vidual from the same category to serve as an al11 ternate member, in accordance with subpara12 graph (A) of paragraph (3). 

13 (B) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY FIRST MEM14 BERS.—If a vacancy occurs in the commission 

15 with respect to a member who was appointed by 

16 the first members of the commission under sub17 paragraph (B) of paragraph (1) from one of the 

18 categories referred to in such subparagraph, the 

19 first members shall, in accordance with the spe20 cial rules described in paragraph (2), fill the va21 cancy by appointing one of the 2 alternates 

22 from such category who was designated under 

23 subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3). At the time 

24 the first members appoint an alternate to fill a 

25 vacancy under the previous sentence, the first 


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1 members shall, in accordance with the special 

2 rules described in paragraph (2), designate an3 other individual from the same category to 

4 serve as an alternate member, in accordance 

5 with subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3). 

6 (5) REMOVAL.—A member of the independent 

7 redistricting commission may be removed by a ma8 jority vote of the remaining members of the commis9 sion if it is shown by a preponderance of the evi10 dence that the member is not eligible to serve on the 

11 commission under section 2412(a). 

12 (b) PROCEDURES FOR CONDUCTING COMMISSION

13 BUSINESS.— 

14 (1) CHAIR.—Members of an independent redis15 tricting commission established under this section 

16 shall select by majority vote one member who was 

17 appointed from the independent category of the ap18 proved selection pool described in section 

19 2412(b)(1)(C) to serve as chair of the commission. 

20 The commission may not take any action to develop 

21 a redistricting plan for the State under section 2413 

22 until the appointment of the commission’s chair. 

23 (2) REQUIRING MAJORITY APPROVAL FOR AC24 TIONS.—The independent redistricting commission 

25 of a State may not publish and disseminate any 


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1 draft or final redistricting plan, or take any other 

2 action, without the approval of at least— 

3 (A) a majority of the whole membership of 

4 the commission; and 

5 (B) at least one member of the commission 

6 appointed from each of the categories of the ap7 proved selection pool described in section 

8 2412(b)(1). 

9 (3) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

10 the commission shall constitute a quorum. 

11 (c) STAFF; CONTRACTORS.— 

12 (1) STAFF.—Under a public application process 

13 in which all application materials are available for 

14 public inspection, the independent redistricting com15 mission of a State shall appoint and set the pay of 

16 technical experts, legal counsel, consultants, and 

17 such other staff as it considers appropriate, subject 

18 to State law. 

19 (2) CONTRACTORS.—The independent redis20 tricting commission of a State may enter into such 

21 contracts with vendors as it considers appropriate, 

22 subject to State law, except that any such contract 

23 shall be valid only if approved by the vote of a ma24 jority of the members of the commission, including 

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1 egories of the approved selection pool described in 

2 section 2412(b)(1). 

3 (3) REPORTS ON EXPENDITURES FOR POLIT4 ICAL ACTIVITY.— 

5 (A) REPORT BY APPLICANTS.—Each indi6 vidual who applies for a position as an employee 

7 of the independent redistricting commission and 

8 each vendor who applies for a contract with the 

9 commission shall, at the time of applying, file 

10 with the commission a report summarizing— 

11 (i) any expenditure for political activ12 ity made by such individual or vendor dur13 ing the 10 most recent calendar years; and 

14 (ii) any income received by such indi15 vidual or vendor during the 10 most recent 

16 calendar years which is attributable to an 

17 expenditure for political activity. 

18 (B) ANNUAL REPORTS BY EMPLOYEES

19 AND VENDORS.—Each person who is an em20 ployee or vendor of the independent redis21 tricting commission shall, not later than one 

22 year after the person is appointed as an em23 ployee or enters into a contract as a vendor (as 

24 the case may be) and annually thereafter for 

25 each year during which the person serves as an 


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1 employee or a vendor, file with the commission 

2 a report summarizing the expenditures and in3 come described in subparagraph (A) during the 

4 10 most recent calendar years. 

5 (C) EXPENDITURE FOR POLITICAL ACTIV6 ITY DEFINED.—In this paragraph, the term 

7 ‘‘expenditure for political activity’’ means a dis8 bursement for any of the following: 

9 (i) An independent expenditure, as de10 fined in section 301(17) of the Federal 

11 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

12 30101(17)). 

13 (ii) An electioneering communication, 

14 as defined in section 304(f)(3) of such Act 

15 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)) or any other pub16 lic communication, as defined in section 

17 301(22) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

18 30101(22)) that would be an electioneering 

19 communication if it were a broadcast, 

20 cable, or satellite communication. 

21 (iii) Any dues or other payments to 

22 trade associations or organizations de23 scribed in section 501(c) of the Internal 

24 Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from 

25 tax under section 501(a) of such Code that 


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1 are, or could reasonably be anticipated to 

2 be, used or transferred to another associa3 tion or organization for a use described in 

4 paragraph (1), (2), or (4) of section 501(c) 

5 of such Code. 

6 (4) GOAL OF IMPARTIALITY.—The commission 

7 shall take such steps as it considers appropriate to 

8 ensure that any staff appointed under this sub9 section, and any vendor with whom the commission 

10 enters into a contract under this subsection, will 

11 work in an impartial manner, and may require any 

12 person who applies for an appointment to a staff po13 sition or for a vendor’s contract with the commission 

14 to provide information on the person’s history of po15 litical activity beyond the information on the per16 son’s expenditures for political activity provided in 

17 the reports required under paragraph (3) (including 

18 donations to candidates, political committees, and 

19 political parties) as a condition of the appointment 

20 or the contract. 

21 (5) DISQUALIFICATION; WAIVER.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—The independent redis23 tricting commission may not appoint an indi24 vidual as an employee, and may not enter into 

25 a contract with a vendor, if the individual or 


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1 vendor meets any of the criteria for the dis2 qualification of an individual from serving as a 

3 member of the commission which are set forth 

4 in section 2412(a)(2). 

5 (B) WAIVER.—The commission may by 

6 unanimous vote of its members waive the appli7 cation of subparagraph (A) to an individual or 

8 a vendor after receiving and reviewing the re9 port filed by the individual or vendor under 

10 paragraph (3). 

11 (d) TERMINATION.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The independent redis13 tricting commission of a State shall terminate on the 

14 earlier of— 

15 (A) June 14 of the next year ending in the 

16 numeral zero; or 

17 (B) the day on which the nonpartisan 

18 agency established or designated by a State 

19 under section 2414(a) has, in accordance with 

20 section 2412(b)(1), submitted a selection pool 

21 to the Select Committee on Redistricting for the 

22 State established under section 2414(b). 

23 (2) PRESERVATION OF RECORDS.—The State 

24 shall ensure that the records of the independent re25 districting commission are retained in the approVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00365 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 priate State archive in such manner as may be nec2 essary to enable the State to respond to any civil ac3 tion brought with respect to congressional redis4 tricting in the State. 

5 SEC. 2412. ESTABLISHMENT OF SELECTION POOL OF INDI6 VIDUALS ELIGIBLE TO SERVE AS MEMBERS 

7 OF COMMISSION. 

8 (a) CRITERIA FOR ELIGIBILITY.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—An individual is eligible to 

10 serve as a member of an independent redistricting 

11 commission if the individual meets each of the fol12 lowing criteria: 

13 (A) As of the date of appointment, the in14 dividual is registered to vote in elections for 

15 Federal office held in the State. 

16 (B) During the 3-year period ending on 

17 the date of the individual’s appointment, the in18 dividual has been continuously registered to 

19 vote with the same political party, or has not 

20 been registered to vote with any political party. 

21 (C) The individual submits to the non22 partisan agency established or designated by a 

23 State under section 2414, at such time and in 

24 such form as the agency may require, an appli25 cation for inclusion in the selection pool under 


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1 this section, and includes with the application a 

2 written statement, with an attestation under 

3 penalty of perjury, containing the following in4 formation and assurances: 

5 (i) The full current name and any 

6 former names of, and the contact informa7 tion for, the individual, including an elec8 tronic mail address, the address of the in9 dividual’s residence, mailing address, and 

10 telephone numbers. 

11 (ii) The individual’s race, ethnicity, 

12 gender, age, date of birth, and household 

13 income for the most recent taxable year. 

14 (iii) The political party with which the 

15 individual is affiliated, if any. 

16 (iv) The reason or reasons the indi17 vidual desires to serve on the independent 

18 redistricting commission, the individual’s 

19 qualifications, and information relevant to 

20 the ability of the individual to be fair and 

21 impartial, including— 

22 (I) any involvement with, or fi23 nancial support of, professional, so24 cial, political, religious, or community 

25 organizations or causes; and 


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1 (II) the individual’s employment 

2 and educational history. 

3 (v) An assurance that the individual 

4 shall commit to carrying out the individ5 ual’s duties under this subtitle in an hon6 est, independent, and impartial fashion, 

7 and to upholding public confidence in the 

8 integrity of the redistricting process. 

9 (vi) An assurance that, during the 

10 covered periods described in paragraph (3), 

11 the individual has not taken and will not 

12 take any action which would disqualify the 

13 individual from serving as a member of the 

14 commission under paragraph (2). 

15 (2) DISQUALIFICATIONS.—An individual is not 

16 eligible to serve as a member of the commission if 

17 any of the following applies during any of the cov18 ered periods described in paragraph (3): 

19 (A) The individual or (in the case of the 

20 covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 

21 and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 

22 member of the individual holds public office or 

23 is a candidate for election for public office. 

24 (B) The individual or (in the case of the 

25 covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 


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1 and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 

2 member of the individual serves as an officer of 

3 a political party or as an officer, employee, or 

4 paid consultant of a campaign committee of a 

5 candidate for public office or of any political ac6 tion committee (as determined in accordance 

7 with the law of the State). 

8 (C) The individual or (in the case of the 

9 covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 

10 and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 

11 member of the individual holds a position as a 

12 registered lobbyist under the Lobbying Disclo13 sure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) or an 

14 equivalent State or local law. 

15 (D) The individual or (in the case of the 

16 covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 

17 and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 

18 member of the individual is an employee of an 

19 elected public official, a contractor with the gov20 ernment of the State, or a donor to the cam21 paign of any candidate for public office or to 

22 any political action committee (other than a 

23 donor who, during any of such covered periods, 

24 gives an aggregate amount of $1,000 or less to 


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1 the campaigns of all candidates for all public 

2 offices and to all political action committees). 

3 (E) The individual paid a civil money pen4 alty or criminal fine, or was sentenced to a 

5 term of imprisonment, for violating any provi6 sion of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

7 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.). 

8 (F) The individual or (in the case of the 

9 covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 

10 and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 

11 member of the individual is an agent of a for12 eign principal under the Foreign Agents Reg13 istration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 

14 611 et seq.). 

15 (3) COVERED PERIODS DESCRIBED.—In this 

16 subsection, the term ‘‘covered period’’ means, with 

17 respect to the appointment of an individual to the 

18 commission, any of the following: 

19 (A) The 10-year period ending on the date 

20 of the individual’s appointment. 

21 (B) The period beginning on the date of 

22 the individual’s appointment and ending on Au23 gust 14 of the next year ending in the numeral 

24 one. 


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1 (C) The 10-year period beginning on the 

2 day after the last day of the period described in 

3 subparagraph (B). 

4 (4) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER DEFINED.—In 

5 this subsection, the term ‘‘immediate family mem6 ber’’ means, with respect to an individual, a father, 

7 stepfather, mother, stepmother, son, stepson, daugh8 ter, stepdaughter, brother, stepbrother, sister, step9 sister, husband, wife, father-in-law, or mother-in10 law. 

11 (b) DEVELOPMENT AND SUBMISSION OF SELECTION

12 POOL.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than June 15 of 

14 each year ending in the numeral zero, the non15 partisan agency established or designated by a State 

16 under section 2414(a) shall develop and submit to 

17 the Select Committee on Redistricting for the State 

18 established under section 2414(b) a selection pool of 

19 36 individuals who are eligible to serve as members 

20 of the independent redistricting commission of the 

21 State under this subtitle, consisting of individuals in 

22 the following categories: 

23 (A) A majority category, consisting of 12 

24 individuals who are affiliated with the political 

25 party whose candidate received the most votes 


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1 in the most recent statewide election for Fed2 eral office held in the State. 

3 (B) A minority category, consisting of 12 

4 individuals who are affiliated with the political 

5 party whose candidate received the second most 

6 votes in the most recent statewide election for 

7 Federal office held in the State. 

8 (C) An independent category, consisting of 

9 12 individuals who are not affiliated with either 

10 of the political parties described in subpara11 graph (A) or subparagraph (B). 

12 (2) FACTORS TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN DEVEL13 OPING POOL.—In selecting individuals for the selec14 tion pool under this subsection, the nonpartisan 

15 agency shall— 

16 (A) ensure that the pool is representative 

17 of the demographic groups (including racial, 

18 ethnic, economic, and gender) and geographic 

19 regions of the State, and includes applicants 

20 who would allow racial, ethnic, and language 

21 minorities protected under the Voting Rights 

22 Act of 1965 a meaningful opportunity to par23 ticipate in the development of the State’s redis24 tricting plan; and 


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1 (B) take into consideration the analytical 

2 skills of the individuals selected in relevant 

3 fields (including mapping, data management, 

4 law, community outreach, demography, and the 

5 geography of the State) and their ability to 

6 work on an impartial basis. 

7 (3) INTERVIEWS OF APPLICANTS.—To assist 

8 the nonpartisan agency in developing the selection 

9 pool under this subsection, the nonpartisan agency 

10 shall conduct interviews of applicants under oath. If 

11 an individual is included in a selection pool devel12 oped under this section, all of the interviews of the 

13 individual shall be transcribed and the transcriptions 

14 made available on the nonpartisan agency’s website 

15 contemporaneously with release of the report under 

16 paragraph (6). 

17 (4) DETERMINATION OF POLITICAL PARTY AF18 FILIATION OF INDIVIDUALS IN SELECTION POOL.— 

19 For purposes of this section, an individual shall be 

20 considered to be affiliated with a political party only 

21 if the nonpartisan agency is able to verify (to the 

22 greatest extent possible) the information the indi23 vidual provides in the application submitted under 

24 subsection (a)(1)(C), including by considering addi25 tional information provided by other persons with 


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1 knowledge of the individual’s history of political ac2 tivity. 

3 (5) ENCOURAGING RESIDENTS TO APPLY FOR

4 INCLUSION IN POOL.—The nonpartisan agency shall 

5 take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that 

6 residents of the State across various geographic re7 gions and demographic groups are aware of the op8 portunity to serve on the independent redistricting 

9 commission, including publicizing the role of the 

10 panel and using newspapers, broadcast media, and 

11 online sources, including ethnic media, to encourage 

12 individuals to apply for inclusion in the selection 

13 pool developed under this subsection. 

14 (6) REPORT ON ESTABLISHMENT OF SELEC15 TION POOL.—At the time the nonpartisan agency 

16 submits the selection pool to the Select Committee 

17 on Redistricting under paragraph (1), it shall pub18 lish and post on the agency’s public website a report 

19 describing the process by which the pool was devel20 oped, and shall include in the report a description of 

21 how the individuals in the pool meet the eligibility 

22 criteria of subsection (a) and of how the pool reflects 

23 the factors the agency is required to take into con24 sideration under paragraph (2). 


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1 (7) PUBLIC COMMENT ON SELECTION POOL.— 

2 During the 14-day period which begins on the date 

3 the nonpartisan agency publishes the report under 

4 paragraph (6), the agency shall accept comments 

5 from the public on the individuals included in the se6 lection pool. The agency shall post all such com7 ments contemporaneously on the nonpartisan agen8 cy’s website and shall transmit them to the Select 

9 Committee on Redistricting immediately upon the 

10 expiration of such period. 

11 (8) ACTION BY SELECT COMMITTEE.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not earlier than 15 

13 days and not later than 21 days after receiving 

14 the selection pool from the nonpartisan agency 

15 under paragraph (1), the Select Committee on 

16 Redistricting shall, by majority vote— 

17 (i) approve the pool as submitted by 

18 the nonpartisan agency, in which case the 

19 pool shall be considered the approved selec20 tion pool for purposes of section 

21 2411(a)(1); or 

22 (ii) reject the pool, in which case the 

23 nonpartisan agency shall develop and sub24 mit a replacement selection pool in accord25 ance with subsection (c). 


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1 (B) INACTION DEEMED REJECTION.—If 

2 the Select Committee on Redistricting fails to 

3 approve or reject the pool within the deadline 

4 set forth in subparagraph (A), the Select Com5 mittee shall be deemed to have rejected the pool 

6 for purposes of such subparagraph. 

7 (c) DEVELOPMENT OF REPLACEMENT SELECTION

8 POOL.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Select Committee on 

10 Redistricting rejects the selection pool submitted by 

11 the nonpartisan agency under subsection (b), not 

12 later than 14 days after the rejection, the non13 partisan agency shall develop and submit to the Se14 lect Committee a replacement selection pool, under 

15 the same terms and conditions that applied to the 

16 development and submission of the selection pool 

17 under paragraphs (1) through (7) of subsection (b). 

18 The replacement pool submitted under this para19 graph may include individuals who were included in 

20 the rejected selection pool submitted under sub21 section (b), so long as at least one of the individuals 

22 in the replacement pool was not included in such re23 jected pool. 

24 (2) ACTION BY SELECT COMMITTEE.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 21 days 

2 after receiving the replacement selection pool 

3 from the nonpartisan agency under paragraph 

4 (1), the Select Committee on Redistricting 

5 shall, by majority vote— 

6 (i) approve the pool as submitted by 

7 the nonpartisan agency, in which case the 

8 pool shall be considered the approved selec9 tion pool for purposes of section 

10 2411(a)(1); or 

11 (ii) reject the pool, in which case the 

12 nonpartisan agency shall develop and sub13 mit a second replacement selection pool in 

14 accordance with subsection (d). 

15 (B) INACTION DEEMED REJECTION.—If 

16 the Select Committee on Redistricting fails to 

17 approve or reject the pool within the deadline 

18 set forth in subparagraph (A), the Select Com19 mittee shall be deemed to have rejected the pool 

20 for purposes of such subparagraph. 

21 (d) DEVELOPMENT OF SECOND REPLACEMENT SE22 LECTION POOL.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Select Committee on 

24 Redistricting rejects the replacement selection pool 

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1 section (c), not later than 14 days after the rejec2 tion, the nonpartisan agency shall develop and sub3 mit to the Select Committee a second replacement 

4 selection pool, under the same terms and conditions 

5 that applied to the development and submission of 

6 the selection pool under paragraphs (1) through (7) 

7 of subsection (b). The second replacement selection 

8 pool submitted under this paragraph may include in9 dividuals who were included in the rejected selection 

10 pool submitted under subsection (b) or the rejected 

11 replacement selection pool submitted under sub12 section (c), so long as at least one of the individuals 

13 in the replacement pool was not included in either 

14 such rejected pool. 

15 (2) ACTION BY SELECT COMMITTEE.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not earlier than 15 

17 days and not later than 14 days after receiving 

18 the second replacement selection pool from the 

19 nonpartisan agency under paragraph (1), the 

20 Select Committee on Redistricting shall, by ma21 jority vote— 

22 (i) approve the pool as submitted by 

23 the nonpartisan agency, in which case the 

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1 tion pool for purposes of section 

2 2411(a)(1); or 

3 (ii) reject the pool. 

4 (B) INACTION DEEMED REJECTION.—If 

5 the Select Committee on Redistricting fails to 

6 approve or reject the pool within the deadline 

7 set forth in subparagraph (A), the Select Com8 mittee shall be deemed to have rejected the pool 

9 for purposes of such subparagraph. 

10 (C) EFFECT OF REJECTION.—If the Select 

11 Committee on Redistricting rejects the second 

12 replacement pool from the nonpartisan agency 

13 under paragraph (1), the redistricting plan for 

14 the State shall be developed and enacted in ac15 cordance with part 3. 

16 SEC. 2413. PUBLIC NOTICE AND INPUT. 

17 (a) PUBLIC NOTICE AND INPUT.— 

18 (1) USE OF OPEN AND TRANSPARENT PROC19 ESS.—The independent redistricting commission of a 

20 State shall hold each of its meetings in public, shall 

21 solicit and take into consideration comments from 

22 the public, including proposed maps, throughout the 

23 process of developing the redistricting plan for the 

24 State, and shall carry out its duties in an open and 

25 transparent manner which provides for the widest 


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1 public dissemination reasonably possible of its pro2 posed and final redistricting plans. 

3 (2) WEBSITE.— 

4 (A) FEATURES.—The commission shall 

5 maintain a public internet site which is not af6 filiated with or maintained by the office of any 

7 elected official and which includes the following 

8 features: 

9 (i) General information on the com10 mission, its role in the redistricting proc11 ess, and its members, including contact in12 formation. 

13 (ii) An updated schedule of commis14 sion hearings and activities, including 

15 deadlines for the submission of comments. 

16 (iii) All draft redistricting plans devel17 oped by the commission under subsection 

18 (b) and the final redistricting plan devel19 oped under subsection (c), including the 

20 accompanying written evaluation under 

21 subsection (d). 

22 (iv) All comments received from the 

23 public on the commission’s activities, in24 cluding any proposed maps submitted 

25 under paragraph (1). 


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1 (v) Live streaming of commission 

2 hearings and an archive of previous meet3 ings, including any documents considered 

4 at any such meeting, which the commission 

5 shall post not later than 24 hours after the 

6 conclusion of the meeting. 

7 (vi) Access in an easily usable format 

8 to the demographic and other data used by 

9 the commission to develop and analyze the 

10 proposed redistricting plans, together with 

11 access to any software used to draw maps 

12 of proposed districts and to any reports 

13 analyzing and evaluating any such maps. 

14 (vii) A method by which members of 

15 the public may submit comments and pro16 posed maps directly to the commission. 

17 (viii) All records of the commission, 

18 including all communications to or from 

19 members, employees, and contractors re20 garding the work of the commission. 

21 (ix) A list of all contractors receiving 

22 payment from the commission, together 

23 with the annual disclosures submitted by 

24 the contractors under section 2411(c)(3). 


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1 (x) A list of the names of all individ2 uals who submitted applications to serve 

3 on the commission, together with the appli4 cations submitted by individuals included 

5 in any selection pool, except that the com6 mission may redact from such applications 

7 any financial or other personally sensitive 

8 information. 

9 (B) SEARCHABLE FORMAT.—The commis10 sion shall ensure that all information posted 

11 and maintained on the site under this para12 graph, including information and proposed 

13 maps submitted by the public, shall be main14 tained in an easily searchable format. 

15 (C) DEADLINE.—The commission shall en16 sure that the public internet site under this 

17 paragraph is operational (in at least a prelimi18 nary format) not later than January 1 of the 

19 year ending in the numeral one. 

20 (3) PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.—The commis21 sion shall solicit, accept, and consider comments 

22 from the public with respect to its duties, activities, 

23 and procedures at any time during the period— 

24 (A) which begins on January 1 of the year 

25 ending in the numeral one; and 


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1 (B) which ends 7 days before the date of 

2 the meeting at which the commission shall vote 

3 on approving the final redistricting plan for en4 actment into law under subsection (c)(2). 

5 (4) MEETINGS AND HEARINGS IN VARIOUS GEO6 GRAPHIC LOCATIONS.—To the greatest extent prac7 ticable, the commission shall hold its meetings and 

8 hearings in various geographic regions and locations 

9 throughout the State. 

10 (5) MULTIPLE LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS FOR

11 ALL NOTICES.—The commission shall make each no12 tice which is required to be posted and published 

13 under this section available in any language in which 

14 the State (or any jurisdiction in the State) is re15 quired to provide election materials under section 

16 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

17 10503). 

18 (b) DEVELOPMENT AND PUBLICATION OF PRELIMI19 NARY REDISTRICTING PLAN.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Prior to developing and pub21 lishing a final redistricting plan under subsection 

22 (c), the independent redistricting commission of a 

23 State shall develop and publish a preliminary redis24 tricting plan. 


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1 (2) MINIMUM PUBLIC HEARINGS AND OPPOR2 TUNITY FOR COMMENT PRIOR TO DEVELOPMENT.— 

3 (A) 3 HEARINGS REQUIRED.—Prior to de4 veloping a preliminary redistricting plan under 

5 this subsection, the commission shall hold not 

6 fewer than 3 public hearings at which members 

7 of the public may provide input and comments 

8 regarding the potential contents of redistricting 

9 plans for the State and the process by which 

10 the commission will develop the preliminary 

11 plan under this subsection. 

12 (B) MINIMUM PERIOD FOR NOTICE PRIOR

13 TO HEARINGS.—Not fewer than 14 days prior 

14 to the date of each hearing held under this 

15 paragraph, the commission shall post notices of 

16 the hearing on the website maintained under 

17 subsection (a)(2), and shall provide for the pub18 lication of such notices in newspapers of general 

19 circulation throughout the State. Each such no20 tice shall specify the date, time, and location of 

21 the hearing. 

22 (C) SUBMISSION OF PLANS AND MAPS BY

23 MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC.—Any member of 

24 the public may submit maps or portions of 

25 maps for consideration by the commission. As 


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1 provided under subsection (a)(2)(A), any such 

2 map shall be made publicly available on the 

3 commission’s website and open to comment. 

4 (3) PUBLICATION OF PRELIMINARY PLAN.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The commission shall 

6 post the preliminary redistricting plan devel7 oped under this subsection, together with a re8 port that includes the commission’s responses 

9 to any public comments received under sub10 section (a)(3), on the website maintained under 

11 subsection (a)(2), and shall provide for the pub12 lication of each such plan in newspapers of gen13 eral circulation throughout the State. 

14 (B) MINIMUM PERIOD FOR NOTICE PRIOR

15 TO PUBLICATION.—Not fewer than 14 days 

16 prior to the date on which the commission posts 

17 and publishes the preliminary plan under this 

18 paragraph, the commission shall notify the pub19 lic through the website maintained under sub20 section (a)(2), as well as through publication of 

21 notice in newspapers of general circulation 

22 throughout the State, of the pending publica23 tion of the plan. 

24 (4) MINIMUM POST-PUBLICATION PERIOD FOR

25 PUBLIC COMMENT.—The commission shall accept 


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1 and consider comments from the public (including 

2 through the website maintained under subsection 

3 (a)(2)) with respect to the preliminary redistricting 

4 plan published under paragraph (3), including pro5 posed revisions to maps, for not fewer than 30 days 

6 after the date on which the plan is published. 

7 (5) POST-PUBLICATION HEARINGS.— 

8 (A) 3 HEARINGS REQUIRED.—After post9 ing and publishing the preliminary redistricting 

10 plan under paragraph (3), the commission shall 

11 hold not fewer than 3 public hearings in dif12 ferent geographic areas of the State at which 

13 members of the public may provide input and 

14 comments regarding the preliminary plan. 

15 (B) MINIMUM PERIOD FOR NOTICE PRIOR

16 TO HEARINGS.—Not fewer than 14 days prior 

17 to the date of each hearing held under this 

18 paragraph, the commission shall post notices of 

19 the hearing on the website maintained under 

20 subsection (a)(2), and shall provide for the pub21 lication of such notices in newspapers of general 

22 circulation throughout the State. Each such no23 tice shall specify the date, time, and location of 

24 the hearing. 


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1 (6) PERMITTING MULTIPLE PRELIMINARY

2 PLANS.—At the option of the commission, after de3 veloping and publishing the preliminary redistricting 

4 plan under this subsection, the commission may de5 velop and publish subsequent preliminary redis6 tricting plans, so long as the process for the develop7 ment and publication of each such subsequent plan 

8 meets the requirements set forth in this subsection 

9 for the development and publication of the first pre10 liminary redistricting plan. 

11 (c) PROCESS FOR ENACTMENT OF FINAL REDIS12 TRICTING PLAN.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—After taking into consider14 ation comments from the public on any preliminary 

15 redistricting plan developed and published under 

16 subsection (b), the independent redistricting commis17 sion of a State shall develop and publish a final re18 districting plan for the State. 

19 (2) MEETING; FINAL VOTE.—Not later than the 

20 deadline specified in subsection (e), the commission 

21 shall hold a public hearing at which the members of 

22 the commission shall vote on approving the final 

23 plan for enactment into law. 

24 (3) PUBLICATION OF PLAN AND ACCOMPANYING

25 MATERIALS.—Not fewer than 14 days before the 


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1 date of the meeting under paragraph (2), the com2 mission shall provide the following information to 

3 the public through the website maintained under 

4 subsection (a)(2), as well as through newspapers of 

5 general circulation throughout the State: 

6 (A) The final redistricting plan, including 

7 all relevant maps. 

8 (B) A report by the commission to accom9 pany the plan which provides the background 

10 for the plan and the commission’s reasons for 

11 selecting the plan as the final redistricting plan, 

12 including responses to the public comments re13 ceived on any preliminary redistricting plan de14 veloped and published under subsection (b). 

15 (C) Any dissenting or additional views with 

16 respect to the plan of individual members of the 

17 commission. 

18 (4) ENACTMENT.—Subject to paragraph (5), 

19 the final redistricting plan developed and published 

20 under this subsection shall be deemed to be enacted 

21 into law upon the expiration of the 45-day period 

22 which begins on the date on which— 

23 (A) such final plan is approved by a major24 ity of the whole membership of the commission; 

25 and 


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1 (B) at least one member of the commission 

2 appointed from each of the categories of the ap3 proved selection pool described in section 

4 2412(b)(1) approves such final plan. 

5 (5) REVIEW BY DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.— 

6 (A) REQUIRING SUBMISSION OF PLAN FOR

7 REVIEW.—The final redistricting plan shall not 

8 be deemed to be enacted into law unless the 

9 State submits the plan to the Department of 

10 Justice for an administrative review to deter11 mine if the plan is in compliance with the cri12 teria described in paragraphs (2) and (3) of 

13 section 2403(a). 

14 (B) TERMINATION OF REVIEW.—The De15 partment of Justice shall terminate any admin16 istrative review under subparagraph (A) if, dur17 ing the 45-day period which begins on the date 

18 the plan is enacted into law, an action is filed 

19 in a United States district court alleging that 

20 the plan is not in compliance with the criteria 

21 described in paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 

22 2403(a). 

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1 oped and published under this section a written evaluation 

2 that measures each such plan against external metrics 

3 which cover the criteria set forth in section 2403(a), in4 cluding the impact of the plan on the ability of commu5 nities of color to elect candidates of choice, measures of 

6 partisan fairness using multiple accepted methodologies, 

7 and the degree to which the plan preserves or divides com8 munities of interest. 

9 (e) TIMING.—The independent redistricting commis10 sion of a State may begin its work on the redistricting 

11 plan of the State upon receipt of relevant population infor12 mation from the Bureau of the Census, and shall approve 

13 a final redistricting plan for the State in each year ending 

14 in the numeral one not later than 8 months after the date 

15 on which the State receives the State apportionment notice 

16 or October 1, whichever occurs later. 

17 SEC. 2414. ESTABLISHMENT OF RELATED ENTITIES. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OR DESIGNATION OF NON19 PARTISAN AGENCY OF STATE LEGISLATURE.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall establish a 

21 nonpartisan agency in the legislative branch of the 

22 State government to appoint the members of the 

23 independent redistricting commission for the State 

24 in accordance with section 2411. 


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1 (2) NONPARTISANSHIP DESCRIBED.—For pur2 poses of this subsection, an agency shall be consid3 ered to be nonpartisan if under law the agency— 

4 (A) is required to provide services on a 

5 nonpartisan basis; 

6 (B) is required to maintain impartiality; 

7 and 

8 (C) is prohibited from advocating for the 

9 adoption or rejection of any legislative proposal. 

10 (3) TRAINING OF MEMBERS APPOINTED TO

11 COMMISSION.—Not later than January 15 of a year 

12 ending in the numeral one, the nonpartisan agency 

13 established or designated under this subsection shall 

14 provide the members of the independent redistricting 

15 commission with initial training on their obligations 

16 as members of the commission, including obligations 

17 under the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

18 10301 et seq.) and other applicable laws. 

19 (4) REGULATIONS.—The nonpartisan agency 

20 established or designated under this subsection shall 

21 adopt and publish regulations, after notice and op22 portunity for comment, establishing the procedures 

23 that the agency will follow in fulfilling its duties 

24 under this subtitle, including the procedures to be 

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1 ation of applicants and in creating the selection 

2 pools, the randomized process to be used in selecting 

3 the initial members of the independent redistricting 

4 commission, and the rules that the agency will apply 

5 to ensure that the agency carries out its duties 

6 under this subtitle in a maximally transparent, pub7 licly accessible, and impartial manner. 

8 (5) DESIGNATION OF EXISTING AGENCY.—At 

9 its option, a State may designate an existing agency 

10 in the legislative branch of its government to appoint 

11 the members of the independent redistricting com12 mission plan for the State under this subtitle, so 

13 long as the agency meets the requirements for non14 partisanship under this subsection. 

15 (6) TERMINATION OF AGENCY SPECIFICALLY

16 ESTABLISHED FOR REDISTRICTING.—If a State does 

17 not designate an existing agency under paragraph 

18 (5) but instead establishes a new agency to serve as 

19 the nonpartisan agency under this section, the new 

20 agency shall terminate upon the enactment into law 

21 of the redistricting plan for the State. 

22 (7) PRESERVATION OF RECORDS.—The State 

23 shall ensure that the records of the nonpartisan 

24 agency are retained in the appropriate State archive 

25 in such manner as may be necessary to enable the 


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1 State to respond to any civil action brought with re2 spect to congressional redistricting in the State. 

3 (8) DEADLINE.—The State shall meet the re4 quirements of this subsection not later than each 

5 October 15 of a year ending in the numeral nine. 

6 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF SELECT COMMITTEE ON RE7 DISTRICTING.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall appoint a 

9 Select Committee on Redistricting to approve or dis10 approve a selection pool developed for the State by 

11 the nonpartisan agency pursuant to section 2412(b). 

12 (2) APPOINTMENT.—The Select Committee on 

13 Redistricting for a State under this subsection shall 

14 consist of the following members: 

15 (A) One member of the upper house of the 

16 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 

17 leader of the party with the greatest number of 

18 seats in the upper house. 

19 (B) One member of the upper house of the 

20 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 

21 leader of the party with the second greatest 

22 number of seats in the upper house. 

23 (C) One member of the lower house of the 

24 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 


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1 leader of the party with the greatest number of 

2 seats in the lower house. 

3 (D) One member of the lower house of the 

4 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 

5 leader of the party with the second greatest 

6 number of seats in the lower house. 

7 (3) SPECIAL RULE FOR STATES WITH UNICAM8 ERAL LEGISLATURE.—In the case of a State with a 

9 unicameral legislature, the Select Committee on Re10 districting for the State under this subsection shall 

11 consist of the following members: 

12 (A) Two members of the State legislature 

13 appointed by the chair of the political party of 

14 the State whose candidate received the highest 

15 percentage of votes in the most recent statewide 

16 election for Federal office held in the State. 

17 (B) Two members of the State legislature 

18 appointed by the chair of the political party 

19 whose candidate received the second highest 

20 percentage of votes in the most recent statewide 

21 election for Federal office held in the State. 

22 (4) DEADLINE.—The State shall meet the re23 quirements of this subsection not later than each 

24 January 15 of a year ending in the numeral zero. 


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1 (5) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

2 subsection may be construed to prohibit the leader 

3 of any political party in a legislature from appoint4 ment to the Select Committee on Redistricting. 

5 SEC. 2415. REPORT ON DIVERSITY OF MEMBERSHIPS OF 

6 INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMIS7 SIONS. 

8 Not later than May 15 of a year ending in the nu9 meral one, the Comptroller General of the United States 

10 shall submit to Congress a report on the extent to which 

11 the memberships of independent redistricting commissions 

12 for States established under this part with respect to the 

13 immediately preceding year ending in the numeral zero 

14 meet the diversity requirements as provided for in sections 

15 2411(a)(2)(B) and 2412(b)(2). 

16 PART 3—ROLE OF COURTS IN DEVELOPMENT OF 

17 REDISTRICTING PLANS 

18 SEC. 2421. ENACTMENT OF PLAN DEVELOPED BY 3-JUDGE 

19 COURT. 

20 (a) DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN.—If any of the trig21 gering events described in subsection (f) occur with re22 spect to a State— 

23 (1) not later than December 15 of the year in 

24 which the triggering event occurs, the United States 

25 district court for the applicable venue, acting 


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1 through a 3-judge court convened pursuant to sec2 tion 2284 of title 28, United States Code, shall de3 velop and publish the congressional redistricting 

4 plan for the State; and 

5 (2) the final plan developed and published by 

6 the court under this section shall be deemed to be 

7 enacted on the date on which the court publishes the 

8 final plan, as described in subsection (d). 

9 (b) APPLICABLE VENUE DESCRIBED.—For purposes 

10 of this section, the ‘‘applicable venue’’ with respect to a 

11 State is the District of Columbia or the judicial district 

12 in which the capital of the State is located, as selected 

13 by the first party to file with the court sufficient evidence 

14 of the occurrence of a triggering event described in sub15 section (f). 

16 (c) PROCEDURES FOR DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN.— 

17 (1) CRITERIA.—In developing a redistricting 

18 plan for a State under this section, the court shall 

19 adhere to the same terms and conditions that ap20 plied (or that would have applied, as the case may 

21 be) to the development of a plan by the independent 

22 redistricting commission of the State under section 

23 2403. 

24 (2) ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND RECORDS OF

25 COMMISSION.—The court shall have access to any 


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1 information, data, software, or other records and 

2 material that was used (or that would have been 

3 used, as the case may be) by the independent redis4 tricting commission of the State in carrying out its 

5 duties under this subtitle. 

6 (3) HEARING; PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—In de7 veloping a redistricting plan for a State, the court 

8 shall— 

9 (A) hold one or more evidentiary hearings 

10 at which interested members of the public may 

11 appear and be heard and present testimony, in12 cluding expert testimony, in accordance with 

13 the rules of the court; and 

14 (B) consider other submissions and com15 ments by the public, including proposals for re16 districting plans to cover the entire State or 

17 any portion of the State. 

18 (4) USE OF SPECIAL MASTER.—To assist in the 

19 development and publication of a redistricting plan 

20 for a State under this section, the court may appoint 

21 a special master to make recommendations to the 

22 court on possible plans for the State. 

23 (d) PUBLICATION OF PLAN.— 

24 (1) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF INITIAL PLAN.— 

25 Upon completing the development of one or more 


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1 initial redistricting plans, the court shall make the 

2 plans available to the public at no cost, and shall 

3 also make available the underlying data used by the 

4 court to develop the plans and a written evaluation 

5 of the plans against external metrics (as described in 

6 section 2413(d)). 

7 (2) PUBLICATION OF FINAL PLAN.—At any 

8 time after the expiration of the 14-day period which 

9 begins on the date the court makes the plans avail10 able to the public under paragraph (1), and taking 

11 into consideration any submissions and comments by 

12 the public which are received during such period, the 

13 court shall develop and publish the final redistricting 

14 plan for the State. 

15 (e) USE OF INTERIM PLAN.—In the event that the 

16 court is not able to develop and publish a final redis17 tricting plan for the State with sufficient time for an up18 coming election to proceed, the court may develop and 

19 publish an interim redistricting plan which shall serve as 

20 the redistricting plan for the State until the court develops 

21 and publishes a final plan in accordance with this section. 

22 Nothing in this subsection may be construed to limit or 

23 otherwise affect the authority or discretion of the court 

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1 ing the discretion to make any changes the court deems 

2 necessary to an interim redistricting plan. 

3 (f) TRIGGERING EVENTS DESCRIBED.—The ‘‘trig4 gering events’’ described in this subsection are as follows: 

5 (1) The failure of the State to establish or des6 ignate a nonpartisan agency of the State legislature 

7 under section 2414(a) prior to the expiration of the 

8 deadline set forth in section 2414(a)(8). 

9 (2) The failure of the State to appoint a Select 

10 Committee on Redistricting under section 2414(b) 

11 prior to the expiration of the deadline set forth in 

12 section 2414(b)(4). 

13 (3) The failure of the Select Committee on Re14 districting to approve any selection pool under sec15 tion 2412 prior to the expiration of the deadline set 

16 forth for the approval of the second replacement se17 lection pool in section 2412(d)(2). 

18 (4) The failure of the independent redistricting 

19 commission of the State to approve a final redis20 tricting plan for the State prior to the expiration of 

21 the deadline set forth in section 2413(e). 

22 SEC. 2422. SPECIAL RULE FOR REDISTRICTING CON23 DUCTED UNDER ORDER OF FEDERAL COURT. 

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1 tives in the State in order to comply with the Constitution 

2 or to enforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

3 10301 et seq.), section 2413 shall apply with respect to 

4 the redistricting, except that the court may revise any of 

5 the deadlines set forth in such section if the court deter6 mines that a revision is appropriate in order to provide 

7 for a timely enactment of a new redistricting plan for the 

8 State. 

9 PART 4—ADMINISTRATIVE AND MISCELLANEOUS 

10 PROVISIONS 

11 SEC. 2431. PAYMENTS TO STATES FOR CARRYING OUT RE12 DISTRICTING. 

13 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF PAYMENTS.—Subject to sub14 section (d), not later than 30 days after a State receives 

15 a State apportionment notice, the Election Assistance 

16 Commission shall, subject to the availability of appropria17 tions provided pursuant to subsection (e), make a payment 

18 to the State in an amount equal to the product of— 

19 (1) the number of Representatives to which the 

20 State is entitled, as provided under the notice; and 

21 (2) $150,000. 

22 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—A State shall use the payment 

23 made under this section to establish and operate the 

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1 ment the State redistricting plan, and to otherwise carry 

2 out congressional redistricting in the State. 

3 (c) NO PAYMENT TO STATES WITH SINGLE MEM4 BER.—The Election Assistance Commission shall not 

5 make a payment under this section to any State which 

6 is not entitled to more than one Representative under its 

7 State apportionment notice. 

8 (d) REQUIRING SUBMISSION OF SELECTION POOL AS

9 CONDITION OF PAYMENT.— 

10 (1) REQUIREMENT.—Except as provided in 

11 paragraph (2), the Election Assistance Commission 

12 may not make a payment to a State under this sec13 tion until the State certifies to the Commission that 

14 the nonpartisan agency established or designated by 

15 a State under section 2414(a) has, in accordance 

16 with section 2412(b)(1), submitted a selection pool 

17 to the Select Committee on Redistricting for the 

18 State established under section 2414(b). 

19 (2) EXCEPTION FOR STATES WITH EXISTING

20 COMMISSIONS.—In the case of a State which, pursu21 ant to section 2401(c), is exempt from the require22 ments of section 2401(a), the Commission may not 

23 make a payment to the State under this section until 

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1 tricting commission meets the requirements of sec2 tion 2401(c). 

3 (3) EXCEPTION FOR STATE OF IOWA.—In the 

4 case of the State of Iowa, the Commission may not 

5 make a payment to the State under this section until 

6 the State certifies to the Commission that it will 

7 carry out congressional redistricting pursuant to the 

8 State’s apportionment notice in accordance with a 

9 plan developed by the Iowa Legislative Services 

10 Agency with the assistance of a Temporary Redis11 tricting Advisory Commission, as provided under the 

12 law described in section 2401(d). 

13 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

15 necessary for payments under this section. 

16 SEC. 2432. CIVIL ENFORCEMENT. 

17 (a) CIVIL ENFORCEMENT.— 

18 (1) ACTIONS BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The At19 torney General may bring a civil action in an appro20 priate district court for such relief as may be appro21 priate to carry out this subtitle. 

22 (2) AVAILABILITY OF PRIVATE RIGHT OF AC23 TION.—Any citizen of a State who is aggrieved by 

24 the failure of the State to meet the requirements of 

25 this subtitle may bring a civil action in the United 


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1 States district court for the applicable venue for 

2 such relief as may be appropriate to remedy the fail3 ure. For purposes of this section, the ‘‘applicable 

4 venue’’ is the District of Columbia or the judicial 

5 district in which the capital of the State is located, 

6 as selected by the person who brings the civil action. 

7 (b) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION.—In any action 

8 brought forth under this section, the following rules shall 

9 apply: 

10 (1) The action shall be filed in the district court 

11 of the United States for the District of Columbia or 

12 for the judicial district in which the capital of the 

13 State is located, as selected by the person bringing 

14 the action. 

15 (2) The action shall be heard by a 3-judge 

16 court convened pursuant to section 2284 of title 28, 

17 United States Code. 

18 (3) The 3-judge court shall consolidate actions 

19 brought for relief under subsection (b)(1) with re20 spect to the same State redistricting plan. 

21 (4) A copy of the complaint shall be delivered 

22 promptly to the Clerk of the House of Representa23 tives and the Secretary of the Senate. 

24 (5) A final decision in the action shall be re25 viewable only by appeal directly to the Supreme 


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1 Court of the United States. Such appeal shall be 

2 taken by the filing of a notice of appeal within 10 

3 days, and the filing of a jurisdictional statement 

4 within 30 days, of the entry of the final decision. 

5 (6) It shall be the duty of the district court and 

6 the Supreme Court of the United States to advance 

7 on the docket and to expedite to the greatest pos8 sible extent the disposition of the action and appeal. 

9 (c) REMEDIES.— 

10 (1) ADOPTION OF REPLACEMENT PLAN.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the district court in 

12 an action under this section finds that the con13 gressional redistricting plan of a State violates, 

14 in whole or in part, the requirements of this 

15 subtitle— 

16 (i) the court shall adopt a replacement 

17 congressional redistricting plan for the 

18 State in accordance with the process set 

19 forth in section 2421; or 

20 (ii) if circumstances warrant and no 

21 delay to an upcoming regularly scheduled 

22 election for the House of Representatives 

23 in the State would result, the district court 

24 may allow a State to develop and propose 

25 a remedial congressional redistricting plan 


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1 for consideration by the court, and such 

2 remedial plan may be developed by the 

3 State by adopting such appropriate 

4 changes to the State’s enacted plan as may 

5 be ordered by the court. 

6 (B) SPECIAL RULE IN CASE FINAL ADJU7 DICATION NOT EXPECTED WITHIN 3 MONTHS

8 OF ELECTION.—If final adjudication of an ac9 tion under this section is not reasonably ex10 pected to be completed at least three months 

11 prior to the next regularly scheduled election 

12 for the House of Representatives in the State, 

13 the district court shall, as the balance of equi14 ties warrant,— 

15 (i) order development, adoption, and 

16 use of an interim congressional redis17 tricting plan in accordance with section 

18 2421(e) to address any claims under this 

19 title for which a party seeking relief has 

20 demonstrated a substantial likelihood of 

21 success; or 

22 (ii) order adjustments to the timing of 

23 primary elections for the House of Rep24 resentatives, as needed, to allow sufficient 

25 opportunity for adjudication of the matter 


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1 and adoption of a remedial or replacement 

2 plan for use in the next regularly sched3 uled general elections for the House of 

4 Representatives. 

5 (2) NO INJUNCTIVE RELIEF PERMITTED.—Any 

6 remedial or replacement congressional redistricting 

7 plan ordered under this subsection shall not be sub8 ject to temporary or preliminary injunctive relief 

9 from any court unless the record establishes that a 

10 writ of mandamus is warranted. 

11 (3) NO STAY PENDING APPEAL.—Notwith12 standing the appeal of an order finding that a con13 gressional redistricting plan of a State violates, in 

14 whole or in part, the requirements of this subtitle, 

15 no stay shall issue which shall bar the development 

16 or adoption of a replacement or remedial plan under 

17 this subsection, as may be directed by the district 

18 court, pending such appeal. 

19 (d) ATTORNEY’S FEES.—In a civil action under this 

20 section, the court may allow the prevailing party (other 

21 than the United States) reasonable attorney fees, includ22 ing litigation expenses, and costs. 

23 (e) RELATION TO OTHER LAWS.— 

24 (1) RIGHTS AND REMEDIES ADDITIONAL TO

25 OTHER RIGHTS AND REMEDIES.—The rights and 


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1 remedies established by this section are in addition 

2 to all other rights and remedies provided by law, and 

3 neither the rights and remedies established by this 

4 section nor any other provision of this subtitle shall 

5 supersede, restrict, or limit the application of the 

6 Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et 

7 seq.). 

8 (2) VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965.—Nothing in 

9 this subtitle authorizes or requires conduct that is 

10 prohibited by the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

11 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.). 

12 (f) LEGISLATIVE PRIVILEGE.—No person, legisla13 ture, or State may claim legislative privilege under either 

14 State or Federal law in a civil action brought under this 

15 section or in any other legal challenge, under either State 

16 or Federal law, to a redistricting plan enacted under this 

17 subtitle. 

18 SEC. 2433. STATE APPORTIONMENT NOTICE DEFINED. 

19 In this subtitle, the ‘‘State apportionment notice’’ 

20 means, with respect to a State, the notice sent to the State 

21 from the Clerk of the House of Representatives under sec22 tion 22(b) of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the 

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1 gress’’, approved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a), of the 

2 number of Representatives to which the State is entitled. 

3 SEC. 2434. NO EFFECT ON ELECTIONS FOR STATE AND 

4 LOCAL OFFICE. 

5 Nothing in this subtitle or in any amendment made 

6 by this subtitle may be construed to affect the manner 

7 in which a State carries out elections for State or local 

8 office, including the process by which a State establishes 

9 the districts used in such elections. 

10 SEC. 2435. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

11 This subtitle and the amendments made by this sub12 title shall apply with respect to redistricting carried out 

13 pursuant to the decennial census conducted during 2030 

14 or any succeeding decennial census. 

15 PART 5—REQUIREMENTS FOR REDISTRICTING 

16 CARRIED OUT PURSUANT TO 2020 CENSUS 

17 Subpart A—Application of Certain Requirements for 

18 Redistricting Carried Out Pursuant to 2020 Census 

19 SEC. 2441. APPLICATION OF CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS FOR 

20 REDISTRICTING CARRIED OUT PURSUANT TO 

21 2020 CENSUS. 

22 Notwithstanding section 2435, parts 1, 3, and 4 of 

23 this subtitle and the amendments made by such parts shall 

24 apply with respect to congressional redistricting carried 

25 out pursuant to the decennial census conducted during 


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1 2020 in the same manner as such parts and the amend2 ments made by such parts apply with respect to redis3 tricting carried out pursuant to the decennial census con4 ducted during 2030, except as follows: 

5 (1) Except as provided in subsection (c) and 

6 subsection (d) of section 2401, the redistricting shall 

7 be conducted in accordance with— 

8 (A) the redistricting plan developed and 

9 enacted into law by the independent redis10 tricting commission established in the State in 

11 accordance with subpart B; or 

12 (B) if a plan developed by such commission 

13 is not enacted into law, the redistricting plan 

14 developed and enacted into law by a 3-judge 

15 court in accordance with section 2421. 

16 (2) If any of the triggering events described in 

17 section 2442 occur with respect to the State, the 

18 United States district court for the applicable venue 

19 shall develop and publish the redistricting plan for 

20 the State, in accordance with section 2421, not later 

21 than December 15, 2021. 

22 (3) For purposes of section 2431(d)(1), the 

23 Election Assistance Commission may not make a 

24 payment to a State under such section until the 

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1 partisan agency established or designated by a State 

2 under section 2454(a) has, in accordance with sec3 tion 2452(b)(1), submitted a selection pool to the 

4 Select Committee on Redistricting for the State es5 tablished under section 2454(b). 

6 SEC. 2442. TRIGGERING EVENTS. 

7 For purposes of the redistricting carried out pursuant 

8 to the decennial census conducted during 2020, the trig9 gering events described in this section are as follows: 

10 (1) The failure of the State to establish or des11 ignate a nonpartisan agency under section 2454(a) 

12 prior to the expiration of the deadline under section 

13 2454(a)(6). 

14 (2) The failure of the State to appoint a Select 

15 Committee on Redistricting under section 2454(b) 

16 prior to the expiration of the deadline under section 

17 2454(b)(4). 

18 (3) The failure of the Select Committee on Re19 districting to approve a selection pool under section 

20 2452(b) prior to the expiration of the deadline under 

21 section 2452(b)(7). 

22 (4) The failure of the independent redistricting 

23 commission of the State to approve a final redis24 tricting plan for the State under section 2453 prior 


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1 to the expiration of the deadline under section 

2 2453(e). 

3 Subpart B—Independent Redistricting Commissions 

4 for Redistricting Carried Out Pursuant to 2020 

5 Census 

6 SEC. 2451. USE OF INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMIS7 SIONS FOR REDISTRICTING CARRIED OUT 

8 PURSUANT TO 2020 CENSUS. 

9 (a) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The nonpartisan agency es11 tablished or designated by a State under section 

12 2454(a) shall establish an independent redistricting 

13 commission under this part for the State, which 

14 shall consist of 15 members appointed by the agency 

15 as follows: 

16 (A) Not later than August 5, 2021, the 

17 agency shall, at a public meeting held not ear18 lier than 15 days after notice of the meeting 

19 has been given to the public, first appoint 6 

20 members as follows: 

21 (i) The agency shall appoint 2 mem22 bers on a random basis from the majority 

23 category of the approved selection pool (as 

24 described in section 2452(b)(1)(A)). 


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1 (ii) The agency shall appoint 2 mem2 bers on a random basis from the minority 

3 category of the approved selection pool (as 

4 described in section 2452(b)(1)(B)). 

5 (iii) The agency shall appoint 2 mem6 bers on a random basis from the inde7 pendent category of the approved selection 

8 pool (as described in section 

9 2452(b)(1)(C)). 

10 (B) Not later than August 15, 2021, the 

11 members appointed by the agency under sub12 paragraph (A) shall, at a public meeting held 

13 not earlier than 15 days after notice of the 

14 meeting has been given to the public, then ap15 point 9 members as follows: 

16 (i) The members shall appoint 3 mem17 bers from the majority category of the ap18 proved selection pool (as described in sec19 tion 2452(b)(1)(A)). 

20 (ii) The members shall appoint 3 

21 members from the minority category of the 

22 approved selection pool (as described in 

23 section 2452(b)(1)(B)). 

24 (iii) The members shall appoint 3 

25 members from the independent category of 


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1 the approved selection pool (as described in 

2 section 2452(b)(1)(C)). 

3 (2) RULES FOR APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS

4 APPOINTED BY FIRST MEMBERS.— 

5 (A) AFFIRMATIVE VOTE OF AT LEAST 4

6 MEMBERS.—The appointment of any of the 9 

7 members of the independent redistricting com8 mission who are appointed by the first members 

9 of the commission pursuant to subparagraph 

10 (B) of paragraph (1) shall require the affirma11 tive vote of at least 4 of the members appointed 

12 by the nonpartisan agency under subparagraph 

13 (A) of paragraph (1), including at least one 

14 member from each of the categories referred to 

15 in such subparagraph. 

16 (B) ENSURING DIVERSITY.—In appointing 

17 the 9 members pursuant to subparagraph (B) 

18 of paragraph (1), the first members of the inde19 pendent redistricting commission shall ensure 

20 that the membership is representative of the de21 mographic groups (including racial, ethnic, eco22 nomic, and gender) and geographic regions of 

23 the State, and provides racial, ethnic, and lan24 guage minorities protected under the Voting 

25 Rights Act of 1965 with a meaningful opporVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00413 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 tunity to participate in the development of the 

2 State’s redistricting plan. 

3 (3) REMOVAL.—A member of the independent 

4 redistricting commission may be removed by a ma5 jority vote of the remaining members of the commis6 sion if it is shown by a preponderance of the evi7 dence that the member is not eligible to serve on the 

8 commission under section 2452(a). 

9 (b) PROCEDURES FOR CONDUCTING COMMISSION

10 BUSINESS.— 

11 (1) REQUIRING MAJORITY APPROVAL FOR AC12 TIONS.—The independent redistricting commission 

13 of a State under this part may not publish and dis14 seminate any draft or final redistricting plan, or 

15 take any other action, without the approval of at 

16 least— 

17 (A) a majority of the whole membership of 

18 the commission; and 

19 (B) at least one member of the commission 

20 appointed from each of the categories of the ap21 proved selection pool described in section 

22 2452(b)(1). 

23 (2) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

24 the commission shall constitute a quorum. 

25 (c) STAFF; CONTRACTORS.— 


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1 (1) STAFF.—Under a public application process 

2 in which all application materials are available for 

3 public inspection, the independent redistricting com4 mission of a State under this part shall appoint and 

5 set the pay of technical experts, legal counsel, con6 sultants, and such other staff as it considers appro7 priate, subject to State law. 

8 (2) CONTRACTORS.—The independent redis9 tricting commission of a State may enter into such 

10 contracts with vendors as it considers appropriate, 

11 subject to State law, except that any such contract 

12 shall be valid only if approved by the vote of a ma13 jority of the members of the commission, including 

14 at least one member appointed from each of the cat15 egories of the approved selection pool described in 

16 section 2452(b)(1). 

17 (3) GOAL OF IMPARTIALITY.—The commission 

18 shall take such steps as it considers appropriate to 

19 ensure that any staff appointed under this sub20 section, and any vendor with whom the commission 

21 enters into a contract under this subsection, will 

22 work in an impartial manner. 

23 (d) PRESERVATION OF RECORDS.—The State shall 

24 ensure that the records of the independent redistricting 

25 commission are retained in the appropriate State archive 


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1 in such manner as may be necessary to enable the State 

2 to respond to any civil action brought with respect to con3 gressional redistricting in the State. 

4 SEC. 2452. ESTABLISHMENT OF SELECTION POOL OF INDI5 VIDUALS ELIGIBLE TO SERVE AS MEMBERS 

6 OF COMMISSION. 

7 (a) CRITERIA FOR ELIGIBILITY.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—An individual is eligible to 

9 serve as a member of an independent redistricting 

10 commission under this part if the individual meets 

11 each of the following criteria: 

12 (A) As of the date of appointment, the in13 dividual is registered to vote in elections for 

14 Federal office held in the State. 

15 (B) During the 3-year period ending on 

16 the date of the individual’s appointment, the in17 dividual has been continuously registered to 

18 vote with the same political party, or has not 

19 been registered to vote with any political party. 

20 (C) The individual submits to the non21 partisan agency established or designated by a 

22 State under section 2454, at such time and in 

23 such form as the agency may require, an appli24 cation for inclusion in the selection pool under 

25 this section, and includes with the application a 


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1 written statement, with an attestation under 

2 penalty of perjury, containing the following in3 formation and assurances: 

4 (i) The full current name and any 

5 former names of, and the contact informa6 tion for, the individual, including an elec7 tronic mail address, the address of the in8 dividual’s residence, mailing address, and 

9 telephone numbers. 

10 (ii) The individual’s race, ethnicity, 

11 gender, age, date of birth, and household 

12 income for the most recent taxable year. 

13 (iii) The political party with which the 

14 individual is affiliated, if any. 

15 (iv) The reason or reasons the indi16 vidual desires to serve on the independent 

17 redistricting commission, the individual’s 

18 qualifications, and information relevant to 

19 the ability of the individual to be fair and 

20 impartial, including— 

21 (I) any involvement with, or fi22 nancial support of, professional, so23 cial, political, religious, or community 

24 organizations or causes; and 


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1 (II) the individual’s employment 

2 and educational history. 

3 (v) An assurance that the individual 

4 shall commit to carrying out the individ5 ual’s duties under this subtitle in an hon6 est, independent, and impartial fashion, 

7 and to upholding public confidence in the 

8 integrity of the redistricting process. 

9 (vi) An assurance that, during such 

10 covered period as the State may establish 

11 with respect to any of the subparagraphs 

12 of paragraph (2), the individual has not 

13 taken and will not take any action which 

14 would disqualify the individual from serv15 ing as a member of the commission under 

16 such paragraph. 

17 (2) DISQUALIFICATIONS.—An individual is not 

18 eligible to serve as a member of the commission if 

19 any of the following applies with respect to such cov20 ered period as the State may establish: 

21 (A) The individual or an immediate family 

22 member of the individual holds public office or 

23 is a candidate for election for public office. 

24 (B) The individual or an immediate family 

25 member of the individual serves as an officer of 


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1 a political party or as an officer, employee, or 

2 paid consultant of a campaign committee of a 

3 candidate for public office or of any political ac4 tion committee (as determined in accordance 

5 with the law of the State). 

6 (C) The individual or an immediate family 

7 member of the individual holds a position as a 

8 registered lobbyist under the Lobbying Disclo9 sure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) or an 

10 equivalent State or local law. 

11 (D) The individual or an immediate family 

12 member of the individual is an employee of an 

13 elected public official, a contractor with the gov14 ernment of the State, or a donor to the cam15 paign of any candidate for public office or to 

16 any political action committee (other than a 

17 donor who, during any of such covered periods, 

18 gives an aggregate amount of $1,000 or less to 

19 the campaigns of all candidates for all public 

20 offices and to all political action committees). 

21 (E) The individual paid a civil money pen22 alty or criminal fine, or was sentenced to a 

23 term of imprisonment, for violating any provi24 sion of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

25 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.). 


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1 (F) The individual or an immediate family 

2 member of the individual is an agent of a for3 eign principal under the Foreign Agents Reg4 istration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 

5 611 et seq.). 

6 (3) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER DEFINED.—In 

7 this subsection, the term ‘‘immediate family mem8 ber’’ means, with respect to an individual, a father, 

9 stepfather, mother, stepmother, son, stepson, daugh10 ter, stepdaughter, brother, stepbrother, sister, step11 sister, husband, wife, father-in-law, or mother-in12 law. 

13 (b) DEVELOPMENT AND SUBMISSION OF SELECTION

14 POOL.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than July 15, 

16 2021, the nonpartisan agency established or des17 ignated by a State under section 2454(a) shall de18 velop and submit to the Select Committee on Redis19 tricting for the State established under section 

20 2454(b) a selection pool of 36 individuals who are 

21 eligible to serve as members of the independent re22 districting commission of the State under this part, 

23 consisting of individuals in the following categories: 

24 (A) A majority category, consisting of 12 

25 individuals who are affiliated with the political 


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1 party whose candidate received the most votes 

2 in the most recent Statewide election for Fed3 eral office held in the State. 

4 (B) A minority category, consisting of 12 

5 individuals who are affiliated with the political 

6 party whose candidate received the second most 

7 votes in the most recent Statewide election for 

8 Federal office held in the State. 

9 (C) An independent category, consisting of 

10 12 individuals who are not affiliated with either 

11 of the political parties described in subpara12 graph (A) or subparagraph (B). 

13 (2) FACTORS TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN DEVEL14 OPING POOL.—In selecting individuals for the selec15 tion pool under this subsection, the nonpartisan 

16 agency shall— 

17 (A) ensure that the pool is representative 

18 of the demographic groups (including racial, 

19 ethnic, economic, and gender) and geographic 

20 regions of the State, and includes applicants 

21 who would allow racial, ethnic, and language 

22 minorities protected under the Voting Rights 

23 Act of 1965 a meaningful opportunity to par24 ticipate in the development of the State’s redis25 tricting plan; and 


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1 (B) take into consideration the analytical 

2 skills of the individuals selected in relevant 

3 fields (including mapping, data management, 

4 law, community outreach, demography, and the 

5 geography of the State) and their ability to 

6 work on an impartial basis. 

7 (3) DETERMINATION OF POLITICAL PARTY AF8 FILIATION OF INDIVIDUALS IN SELECTION POOL.— 

9 For purposes of this section, an individual shall be 

10 considered to be affiliated with a political party only 

11 if the nonpartisan agency is able to verify (to the 

12 greatest extent possible) the information the indi13 vidual provides in the application submitted under 

14 subsection (a)(1)(C), including by considering addi15 tional information provided by other persons with 

16 knowledge of the individual’s history of political ac17 tivity. 

18 (4) ENCOURAGING RESIDENTS TO APPLY FOR

19 INCLUSION IN POOL.—The nonpartisan agency shall 

20 take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that 

21 residents of the State across various geographic re22 gions and demographic groups are aware of the op23 portunity to serve on the independent redistricting 

24 commission, including publicizing the role of the 

25 panel and using newspapers, broadcast media, and 


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1 online sources, including ethnic media, to encourage 

2 individuals to apply for inclusion in the selection 

3 pool developed under this subsection. 

4 (5) REPORT ON ESTABLISHMENT OF SELEC5 TION POOL.—At the time the nonpartisan agency 

6 submits the selection pool to the Select Committee 

7 on Redistricting under paragraph (1), it shall pub8 lish a report describing the process by which the 

9 pool was developed, and shall include in the report 

10 a description of how the individuals in the pool meet 

11 the eligibility criteria of subsection (a) and of how 

12 the pool reflects the factors the agency is required 

13 to take into consideration under paragraph (2). 

14 (6) PUBLIC COMMENT ON SELECTION POOL.— 

15 During the 14-day period which begins on the date 

16 the nonpartisan agency publishes the report under 

17 paragraph (5), the agency shall accept comments 

18 from the public on the individuals included in the se19 lection pool. The agency shall transmit all such com20 ments to the Select Committee on Redistricting im21 mediately upon the expiration of such period. 

22 (7) ACTION BY SELECT COMMITTEE.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than August 

24 1, 2021, the Select Committee on Redistricting 

25 shall— 


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1 (i) approve the pool as submitted by 

2 the nonpartisan agency, in which case the 

3 pool shall be considered the approved selec4 tion pool for purposes of section 

5 2451(a)(1); or 

6 (ii) reject the pool, in which case the 

7 redistricting plan for the State shall be de8 veloped and enacted in accordance with 

9 part 3. 

10 (B) INACTION DEEMED REJECTION.—If 

11 the Select Committee on Redistricting fails to 

12 approve or reject the pool within the deadline 

13 set forth in subparagraph (A), the Select Com14 mittee shall be deemed to have rejected the pool 

15 for purposes of such subparagraph. 

16 SEC. 2453. CRITERIA FOR REDISTRICTING PLAN; PUBLIC 

17 NOTICE AND INPUT. 

18 (a) PUBLIC NOTICE AND INPUT.— 

19 (1) USE OF OPEN AND TRANSPARENT PROC20 ESS.—The independent redistricting commission of a 

21 State under this part shall hold each of its meetings 

22 in public, shall solicit and take into consideration 

23 comments from the public, including proposed maps, 

24 throughout the process of developing the redis25 tricting plan for the State, and shall carry out its 


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1 duties in an open and transparent manner which 

2 provides for the widest public dissemination reason3 ably possible of its proposed and final redistricting 

4 plans. 

5 (2) PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.—The commis6 sion shall solicit, accept, and consider comments 

7 from the public with respect to its duties, activities, 

8 and procedures at any time until 7 days before the 

9 date of the meeting at which the commission shall 

10 vote on approving the final redistricting plan for en11 actment into law under subsection (c)(2). 

12 (3) MEETINGS AND HEARINGS IN VARIOUS GEO13 GRAPHIC LOCATIONS.—To the greatest extent prac14 ticable, the commission shall hold its meetings and 

15 hearings in various geographic regions and locations 

16 throughout the State. 

17 (4) MULTIPLE LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS FOR

18 ALL NOTICES.—The commission shall make each no19 tice which is required to be published under this sec20 tion available in any language in which the State (or 

21 any jurisdiction in the State) is required to provide 

22 election materials under section 203 of the Voting 

23 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10503). 

24 (b) DEVELOPMENT AND PUBLICATION OF PRELIMI25 NARY REDISTRICTING PLAN.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Prior to developing and pub2 lishing a final redistricting plan under subsection 

3 (c), the independent redistricting commission of a 

4 State under this part shall develop and publish a 

5 preliminary redistricting plan. 

6 (2) MINIMUM PUBLIC HEARINGS AND OPPOR7 TUNITY FOR COMMENT PRIOR TO DEVELOPMENT.— 

8 (A) 2 HEARINGS REQUIRED.—Prior to de9 veloping a preliminary redistricting plan under 

10 this subsection, the commission shall hold not 

11 fewer than 2 public hearings at which members 

12 of the public may provide input and comments 

13 regarding the potential contents of redistricting 

14 plans for the State and the process by which 

15 the commission will develop the preliminary 

16 plan under this subsection. 

17 (B) NOTICE PRIOR TO HEARINGS.—The 

18 commission shall provide for the publication of 

19 notices of each hearing held under this para20 graph, including in newspapers of general cir21 culation throughout the State. Each such notice 

22 shall specify the date, time, and location of the 

23 hearing. 

24 (C) SUBMISSION OF PLANS AND MAPS BY

25 MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC.—Any member of 


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1 the public may submit maps or portions of 

2 maps for consideration by the commission. 

3 (3) PUBLICATION OF PRELIMINARY PLAN.—The 

4 commission shall provide for the publication of the 

5 preliminary redistricting plan developed under this 

6 subsection, including in newspapers of general cir7 culation throughout the State, and shall make pub8 licly available a report that includes the commis9 sion’s responses to any public comments received 

10 under this subsection. 

11 (4) PUBLIC COMMENT AFTER PUBLICATION.— 

12 The commission shall accept and consider comments 

13 from the public with respect to the preliminary re14 districting plan published under paragraph (3), in15 cluding proposed revisions to maps, until 14 days 

16 before the date of the meeting under subsection 

17 (c)(2) at which the members of the commission shall 

18 vote on approving the final redistricting plan for en19 actment into law. 

20 (5) POST-PUBLICATION HEARINGS.— 

21 (A) 2 HEARINGS REQUIRED.—After pub22 lishing the preliminary redistricting plan under 

23 paragraph (3), and not later than 14 days be24 fore the date of the meeting under subsection 

25 (c)(2) at which the members of the commission 


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1 shall vote on approving the final redistricting 

2 plan for enactment into law, the commission 

3 shall hold not fewer than 2 public hearings in 

4 different geographic areas of the State at which 

5 members of the public may provide input and 

6 comments regarding the preliminary plan. 

7 (B) NOTICE PRIOR TO HEARINGS.—The 

8 commission shall provide for the publication of 

9 notices of each hearing held under this para10 graph, including in newspapers of general cir11 culation throughout the State. Each such notice 

12 shall specify the date, time, and location of the 

13 hearing. 

14 (6) PERMITTING MULTIPLE PRELIMINARY

15 PLANS.—At the option of the commission, after de16 veloping and publishing the preliminary redistricting 

17 plan under this subsection, the commission may de18 velop and publish subsequent preliminary redis19 tricting plans, so long as the process for the develop20 ment and publication of each such subsequent plan 

21 meets the requirements set forth in this subsection 

22 for the development and publication of the first pre23 liminary redistricting plan. 

24 (c) PROCESS FOR ENACTMENT OF FINAL REDIS25 TRICTING PLAN.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—After taking into consider2 ation comments from the public on any preliminary 

3 redistricting plan developed and published under 

4 subsection (b), the independent redistricting commis5 sion of a State under this part shall develop and 

6 publish a final redistricting plan for the State. 

7 (2) MEETING; FINAL VOTE.—Not later than the 

8 deadline specified in subsection (e), the commission 

9 shall hold a public hearing at which the members of 

10 the commission shall vote on approving the final 

11 plan for enactment into law. 

12 (3) PUBLICATION OF PLAN AND ACCOMPANYING

13 MATERIALS.—Not fewer than 14 days before the 

14 date of the meeting under paragraph (2), the com15 mission shall make the following information avail16 able to the public, including through newspapers of 

17 general circulation throughout the State: 

18 (A) The final redistricting plan, including 

19 all relevant maps. 

20 (B) A report by the commission to accom21 pany the plan which provides the background 

22 for the plan and the commission’s reasons for 

23 selecting the plan as the final redistricting plan, 

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1 ceived on any preliminary redistricting plan de2 veloped and published under subsection (b). 

3 (C) Any dissenting or additional views with 

4 respect to the plan of individual members of the 

5 commission. 

6 (4) ENACTMENT.—The final redistricting plan 

7 developed and published under this subsection shall 

8 be deemed to be enacted into law upon the expira9 tion of the 45-day period which begins on the date 

10 on which— 

11 (A) such final plan is approved by a major12 ity of the whole membership of the commission; 

13 and 

14 (B) at least one member of the commission 

15 appointed from each of the categories of the ap16 proved selection pool described in section 

17 2452(b)(1) approves such final plan. 

18 (d) WRITTEN EVALUATION OF PLAN AGAINST EX19 TERNAL METRICS.—The independent redistricting com20 mission of a State under this part shall include with each 

21 redistricting plan developed and published under this sec22 tion a written evaluation that measures each such plan 

23 against external metrics which cover the criteria set forth 

24 in section 2403(a), including the impact of the plan on 

25 the ability of communities of color to elect candidates of 


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1 choice, measures of partisan fairness using multiple ac2 cepted methodologies, and the degree to which the plan 

3 preserves or divides communities of interest. 

4 (e) DEADLINE.—The independent redistricting com5 mission of a State under this part shall approve a final 

6 redistricting plan for the State not later than November 

7 15, 2021. 

8 SEC. 2454. ESTABLISHMENT OF RELATED ENTITIES. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OR DESIGNATION OF NON10 PARTISAN AGENCY OF STATE LEGISLATURE.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall establish a 

12 nonpartisan agency in the legislative branch of the 

13 State government to appoint the members of the 

14 independent redistricting commission for the State 

15 under this part in accordance with section 2451. 

16 (2) NONPARTISANSHIP DESCRIBED.—For pur17 poses of this subsection, an agency shall be consid18 ered to be nonpartisan if under law the agency— 

19 (A) is required to provide services on a 

20 nonpartisan basis; 

21 (B) is required to maintain impartiality; 

22 and 

23 (C) is prohibited from advocating for the 

24 adoption or rejection of any legislative proposal. 


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1 (3) DESIGNATION OF EXISTING AGENCY.—At 

2 its option, a State may designate an existing agency 

3 in the legislative branch of its government to appoint 

4 the members of the independent redistricting com5 mission plan for the State under this subtitle, so 

6 long as the agency meets the requirements for non7 partisanship under this subsection. 

8 (4) TERMINATION OF AGENCY SPECIFICALLY

9 ESTABLISHED FOR REDISTRICTING.—If a State does 

10 not designate an existing agency under paragraph 

11 (3) but instead establishes a new agency to serve as 

12 the nonpartisan agency under this section, the new 

13 agency shall terminate upon the enactment into law 

14 of the redistricting plan for the State. 

15 (5) PRESERVATION OF RECORDS.—The State 

16 shall ensure that the records of the nonpartisan 

17 agency are retained in the appropriate State archive 

18 in such manner as may be necessary to enable the 

19 State to respond to any civil action brought with re20 spect to congressional redistricting in the State. 

21 (6) DEADLINE.—The State shall meet the re22 quirements of this subsection not later than June 1, 

23 2021. 

24 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF SELECT COMMITTEE ON RE25 DISTRICTING.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall appoint a 

2 Select Committee on Redistricting to approve or dis3 approve a selection pool developed by the inde4 pendent redistricting commission for the State under 

5 this part under section 2452. 

6 (2) APPOINTMENT.—The Select Committee on 

7 Redistricting for a State under this subsection shall 

8 consist of the following members: 

9 (A) One member of the upper house of the 

10 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 

11 leader of the party with the greatest number of 

12 seats in the upper house. 

13 (B) One member of the upper house of the 

14 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 

15 leader of the party with the second greatest 

16 number of seats in the upper house. 

17 (C) One member of the lower house of the 

18 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 

19 leader of the party with the greatest number of 

20 seats in the lower house. 

21 (D) One member of the lower house of the 

22 State legislature, who shall be appointed by the 

23 leader of the party with the second greatest 

24 number of seats in the lower house. 


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1 (3) SPECIAL RULE FOR STATES WITH UNICAM2 ERAL LEGISLATURE.—In the case of a State with a 

3 unicameral legislature, the Select Committee on Re4 districting for the State under this subsection shall 

5 consist of the following members: 

6 (A) Two members of the State legislature 

7 appointed by the chair of the political party of 

8 the State whose candidate received the highest 

9 percentage of votes in the most recent State10 wide election for Federal office held in the 

11 State. 

12 (B) Two members of the State legislature 

13 appointed by the chair of the political party 

14 whose candidate received the second highest 

15 percentage of votes in the most recent State16 wide election for Federal office held in the 

17 State. 

18 (4) DEADLINE.—The State shall meet the re19 quirements of this subsection not later than June 

20 15, 2021. 

21 (5) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

22 subsection may be construed to prohibit the leader 

23 of any political party in a legislature from appoint24 ment to the Select Committee on Redistricting. 


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1 SEC. 2455. REPORT ON DIVERSITY OF MEMBERSHIPS OF 

2 INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMIS3 SIONS. 

4 Not later than November 15, 2021, the Comptroller 

5 General of the United States shall submit to Congress a 

6 report on the extent to which the memberships of inde7 pendent redistricting commissions for States established 

8 under this part with respect to the immediately preceding 

9 year ending in the numeral zero meet the diversity require10 ments as provided for in sections 2451(a)(2)(B) and 

11 2452(b)(2). 

12 Subtitle F—Saving Eligible Voters 

13 From Voter Purging 

14 SEC. 2501. SHORT TITLE. 

15 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Automatically 

16 Voiding Eligible Voters Off Their Enlisted Rolls in States 

17 Act’’ or the ‘‘Save Voters Act’’. 

18 SEC. 2502. CONDITIONS FOR REMOVAL OF VOTERS FROM 

19 LIST OF REGISTERED VOTERS. 

20 (a) CONDITIONS DESCRIBED.—The National Voter 

21 Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.) is 

22 amended by inserting after section 8 the following new 

23 section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 8A. CONDITIONS FOR REMOVAL OF VOTERS FROM 

2 OFFICIAL LIST OF REGISTERED VOTERS. 

3 ‘‘(a) VERIFICATION ON BASIS OF OBJECTIVE AND

4 RELIABLE EVIDENCE OF INELIGIBILITY.— 

5 ‘‘(1) REQUIRING VERIFICATION.—Notwith6 standing any other provision of this Act, a State 

7 may not remove the name of any registrant from the 

8 official list of voters eligible to vote in elections for 

9 Federal office in the State unless the State verifies, 

10 on the basis of objective and reliable evidence, that 

11 the registrant is ineligible to vote in such elections. 

12 ‘‘(2) FACTORS NOT CONSIDERED AS OBJECTIVE

13 AND RELIABLE EVIDENCE OF INELIGIBILITY.—For 

14 purposes of paragraph (1), the following factors, or 

15 any combination thereof, shall not be treated as ob16 jective and reliable evidence of a registrant’s ineligi17 bility to vote: 

18 ‘‘(A) The failure of the registrant to vote 

19 in any election. 

20 ‘‘(B) The failure of the registrant to re21 spond to any election mail, unless the election 

22 mail has been returned as undeliverable. 

23 ‘‘(C) The failure of the registrant to take 

24 any other action with respect to voting in any 

25 election or with respect to the registrant’s sta26 tus as a registrant. 


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1 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—This subsection shall not 

2 prevent a State from considering the factors de3 scribed in paragraph (2) when removing a registrant 

4 from the official list of voters pursuant to section 

5 8(d)(1)(B), provided that the notice sent under sec6 tion 8(d)(2) was itself sent on the basis of objective 

7 and reliable evidence. 

8 ‘‘(b) NOTICE AFTER REMOVAL.— 

9 ‘‘(1) NOTICE TO INDIVIDUAL REMOVED.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 48 

11 hours after a State removes the name of a reg12 istrant from the official list of eligible voters, 

13 the State shall send notice of the removal to the 

14 former registrant, and shall include in the no15 tice the grounds for the removal and informa16 tion on how the former registrant may contest 

17 the removal or be reinstated, including a tele18 phone number for the appropriate election offi19 cial. 

20 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—Subparagraph (A) 

21 does not apply in the case of a registrant— 

22 ‘‘(i) who sends written confirmation to 

23 the State that the registrant is no longer 

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1 tion in which the registrant was registered; 

2 or 

3 ‘‘(ii) who is removed from the official 

4 list of eligible voters by reason of the death 

5 of the registrant. 

6 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC NOTICE.—Not later than 48 hours 

7 after conducting any general program to remove the 

8 names of ineligible voters from the official list of eli9 gible voters (as described in section 8(a)(4)), the 

10 State shall disseminate a public notice through such 

11 methods as may be reasonable to reach the general 

12 public (including by publishing the notice in a news13 paper of wide circulation and posting the notice on 

14 the websites of the appropriate election officials) 

15 that list maintenance is taking place and that reg16 istrants should check their registration status to en17 sure no errors or mistakes have been made. The 

18 State shall ensure that the public notice dissemi19 nated under this paragraph is in a format that is 

20 reasonably convenient and accessible to voters with 

21 disabilities, including voters who have low vision or 

22 are blind.’’. 

23 (b) CONDITIONS FOR TRANSMISSION OF NOTICES OF

24 REMOVAL.—Section 8(d) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 


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1 20507(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following 

2 new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(4) A State may not transmit a notice to a 

4 registrant under this subsection unless the State ob5 tains objective and reliable evidence (in accordance 

6 with the standards for such evidence which are de7 scribed in section 8A(a)(2)) that the registrant has 

8 changed residence to a place outside the registrar’s 

9 jurisdiction in which the registrant is registered.’’. 

10 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (1) NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION ACT OF

12 1993.—Section 8(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

13 20507(a)) is amended— 

14 (A) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘pro15 vide’’ and inserting ‘‘subject to section 8A, pro16 vide’’; and 

17 (B) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘con18 duct’’ and inserting ‘‘subject to section 8A, con19 duct’’. 

20 (2) HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002.—Section 

21 303(a)(4)(A) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

22 (52 U.S.C. 21083(a)(4)(A)) is amended by striking 

23 ‘‘registrants’’ the second place it appears and insert24 ing ‘‘and subject to section 8A of such Act, reg25 istrants’’. 


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1 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act. 

4 Subtitle G—No Effect on Authority 

5 of States to Provide Greater Op6 portunities for Voting 

7 SEC. 2601. NO EFFECT ON AUTHORITY OF STATES TO PRO8 VIDE GREATER OPPORTUNITIES FOR VOT9 ING. 

10 Nothing in this title or the amendments made by this 

11 title may be construed to prohibit any State from enacting 

12 any law which provides greater opportunities for individ13 uals to register to vote and to vote in elections for Federal 

14 office than are provided by this title and the amendments 

15 made by this title. 

16 Subtitle H—Residence of 

17 Incarcerated Individuals 

18 SEC. 2701. RESIDENCE OF INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS. 

19 Section 141 of title 13, United States Code, is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub22 section (h); and 

23 (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(g)(1) Effective beginning with the 2020 decennial 

2 census of population, in taking any tabulation of total pop3 ulation by States under subsection (a) for purposes of the 

4 apportionment of Representatives in Congress among the 

5 several States, the Secretary shall, with respect to an indi6 vidual incarcerated in a State, Federal, county, or munic7 ipal correctional center as of the date on which such cen8 sus is taken, attribute such individual to such individual’s 

9 last place of residence before incarceration. 

10 ‘‘(2) In carrying out this subsection, the Secretary 

11 shall consult with each State department of corrections to 

12 collect the information necessary to make the determina13 tion required under paragraph (1).’’. 

14 Subtitle I—Findings Relating to 

15 Youth Voting 

16 SEC. 2801. FINDINGS RELATING TO YOUTH VOTING. 

17 Congress finds the following: 

18 (1) The right to vote is a fundamental right of 

19 citizens of the United States. 

20 (2) The twenty-sixth amendment of the United 

21 States Constitution guarantees that ‘‘The right of 

22 citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years 

23 of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or 

24 abridged by the United States or by any State on 

25 account of age.’’. 


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1 (3) The twenty-sixth amendment of the United 

2 States Constitution grants Congress the power to 

3 enforce the amendment by appropriate legislation. 

4 (4) The language of the twenty-sixth amend5 ment closely mirrors that of the fifteenth amend6 ment and the nineteenth amendment. Like those 

7 amendments, the twenty-sixth amendment not only 

8 prohibits denial of the right to vote but also pro9 hibits any actions that abridge the right to vote. 

10 (5) Youth voter suppression undercuts partici11 pation in our democracy by introducing arduous ob12 stacles to new voters and discouraging a culture of 

13 democratic engagement. 

14 (6) Voting is habit forming, and allowing youth 

15 voters unobstructed access to voting ensures that 

16 more Americans will start a lifelong habit of voting 

17 as soon as possible. 

18 (7) Youth voter suppression is a clear, per19 sistent, and growing problem. The actions of States 

20 and political subdivisions resulting in at least four 

21 findings of twenty-sixth amendment violations as 

22 well as pending litigation demonstrate the need for 

23 Congress to take action to enforce the twenty-sixth 

24 amendment. 


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1 (8) In League of Women Voters of Florida, Inc. 

2 v. Detzner (2018), the United States District Court 

3 in the Northern District of Florida found that the 

4 Secretary of State’s actions that prevented in-person 

5 early voting sites from being located on university 

6 property revealed a stark pattern of discrimination 

7 that was unexplainable on grounds other than age 

8 and thus violated university students’ twenty-sixth 

9 Amendment rights. 

10 (9) In 2019, Michigan agreed to a settlement to 

11 enhance college-age voters’ access after a twenty12 sixth amendment challenge was filed in federal 

13 court. The challenge prompted the removal of a 

14 Michigan voting law which required first-time voters 

15 who registered by mail or through a third-party 

16 voter registration drive to vote in person for the first 

17 time, as well as the removal of another law which re18 quired the address listed on a voter’s driver license 

19 to match the address listed on their voter registra20 tion card. 

21 (10) Youth voter suppression tactics are often 

22 linked to other tactics aimed at minority voters. For 

23 example, students at Prairie View A&M University 

24 (PVAMU), a historically black university in Texas, 

25 have been the targets of voter suppression tactics for 


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1 decades. Before the 2018 election, PVAMU students 

2 sued Waller County on the basis of both racial and 

3 age discrimination over the county’s failure to en4 sure equal early voting opportunities for students, 

5 spurring the county to reverse course and expand 

6 early voting access for students. 

7 (11) The more than 25 million United States 

8 citizens ages 18-24 deserve equal opportunity to par9 ticipate in the electoral process as guaranteed by the 

10 twenty-sixth amendment. 

11 Subtitle J—Severability 

12 SEC. 2901. SEVERABILITY. 

13 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

14 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

15 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu16 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

17 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

18 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

19 affected by the holding. 

20 TITLE III—ELECTION SECURITY 

21 SEC. 3000. SHORT TITLE; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

22 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This title may be cited as the 

23 ‘‘Election Security Act’’. 

24 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS ON NEED TO IMPROVE

25 ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE SECURITY.—It is the sense 


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1 of Congress that, in light of the lessons learned from Rus2 sian interference in the 2016 Presidential election, the 

3 Federal Government should intensify its efforts to improve 

4 the security of election infrastructure in the United States, 

5 including through the use of individual, durable, paper 

6 ballots marked by the voter by hand. 

7 Subtitle A—Financial Support for 

8 Election Infrastructure 

9 PART 1—VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY 

10 IMPROVEMENT GRANTS 

11 SEC. 3001. GRANTS FOR OBTAINING COMPLIANT PAPER 

12 BALLOT VOTING SYSTEMS AND CARRYING 

13 OUT VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVE14 MENTS. 

15 (a) AVAILABILITY OF GRANTS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle D of title II of the 

17 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21001 

18 et seq.), as amended by section 1622(c), is amended 

19 by adding at the end the following new part: 


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1 ‘‘PART 8—GRANTS FOR OBTAINING COMPLIANT 

2 PAPER BALLOT VOTING SYSTEMS AND CAR3 RYING OUT VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IM4 PROVEMENTS 

5 ‘‘SEC. 298. GRANTS FOR OBTAINING COMPLIANT PAPER 

6 BALLOT VOTING SYSTEMS AND CARRYING 

7 OUT VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVE8 MENTS. 

9 ‘‘(a) AVAILABILITY AND USE OF GRANT.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 

11 make a grant to each eligible State— 

12 ‘‘(A) to replace a voting system— 

13 ‘‘(i) which does not meet the require14 ments which are first imposed on the State 

15 pursuant to the amendments made by the 

16 Voter Confidence and Increased Accessi17 bility Act of 2021 with a voting system 

18 which— 

19 ‘‘(I) does meet such require20 ments; and 

21 ‘‘(II) in the case of a grand22 fathered voting system (as defined in 

23 paragraph (2)), is in compliance with 

24 the most recent voluntary voting sys25 tem guidelines; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) which does meet such require2 ments but which is not in compliance with 

3 the most recent voluntary voting system 

4 guidelines with another system which does 

5 meet such requirements and is in compli6 ance with such guidelines; 

7 ‘‘(B) to carry out voting system security 

8 improvements described in section 298A with 

9 respect to the regularly scheduled general elec10 tion for Federal office held in November 2022 

11 and each succeeding election for Federal office; 

12 ‘‘(C) to implement and model best prac13 tices for ballot design, ballot instructions, and 

14 the testing of ballots; and 

15 ‘‘(D) to purchase or acquire accessible vot16 ing systems that meet the requirements of 

17 paragraph (2)(A) and paragraph (3)(A)(i) of 

18 section 301(a) by the means described in para19 graph (3)(B) of such section. 

20 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION OF GRANDFATHERED VOTING

21 SYSTEM.—In this subsection, the term ‘grand22 fathered voting system’ means a voting system that 

23 is used by a jurisdiction described in subparagraph 

24 (B)(ii) or (C)(ii) of section 301(d)(2). 

25 ‘‘(b) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of payment 

2 made to an eligible State under this section shall be 

3 the minimum payment amount described in para4 graph (2) plus the voting age population proportion 

5 amount described in paragraph (3). 

6 ‘‘(2) MINIMUM PAYMENT AMOUNT.—The min7 imum payment amount described in this paragraph 

8 is— 

9 ‘‘(A) in the case of any of the several 

10 States or the District of Columbia, one-half of 

11 1 percent of the aggregate amount made avail12 able for payments under this section; and 

13 ‘‘(B) in the case of the Commonwealth of 

14 Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, or the 

15 United States Virgin Islands, one-tenth of 1 

16 percent of such aggregate amount. 

17 ‘‘(3) VOTING AGE POPULATION PROPORTION

18 AMOUNT.—The voting age population proportion 

19 amount described in this paragraph is the product 

20 of— 

21 ‘‘(A) the aggregate amount made available 

22 for payments under this section minus the total 

23 of all of the minimum payment amounts deter24 mined under paragraph (2); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the voting age population proportion 

2 for the State (as defined in paragraph (4)). 

3 ‘‘(4) VOTING AGE POPULATION PROPORTION

4 DEFINED.—The term ‘voting age population propor5 tion’ means, with respect to a State, the amount 

6 equal to the quotient of— 

7 ‘‘(A) the voting age population of the State 

8 (as reported in the most recent decennial cen9 sus); and 

10 ‘‘(B) the total voting age population of all 

11 States (as reported in the most recent decennial 

12 census). 

13 ‘‘(5) REQUIREMENT RELATING TO PURCHASE

14 OF ACCESSIBLE VOTING SYSTEMS.—An eligible State 

15 shall use not less than 10 percent of funds received 

16 by the State under this section to purchase acces17 sible voting systems described in subsection 

18 (a)(1)(D). 

19 ‘‘(c) ABILITY OF REPLACEMENT SYSTEMS TO AD20 MINISTER RANKED CHOICE ELECTIONS.—To the greatest 

21 extent practicable, an eligible State which receives a grant 

22 to replace a voting system under this section shall ensure 

23 that the replacement system is capable of administering 

24 a system of ranked choice voting under which each voter 


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1 shall rank the candidates for the office in the order of 

2 the voter’s preference. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 298A. VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVEMENTS 

4 DESCRIBED. 

5 ‘‘(a) PERMITTED USES.—A voting system security 

6 improvement described in this section is any of the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(1) The acquisition of goods and services from 

9 qualified election infrastructure vendors by purchase, 

10 lease, or such other arrangements as may be appro11 priate. 

12 ‘‘(2) Cyber and risk mitigation training. 

13 ‘‘(3) A security risk and vulnerability assess14 ment of the State’s election infrastructure which is 

15 carried out by a provider of cybersecurity services 

16 under a contract entered into between the chief 

17 State election official and the provider. 

18 ‘‘(4) The maintenance of infrastructure used 

19 for elections, including addressing risks and 

20 vulnerabilities which are identified under either of 

21 the security risk and vulnerability assessments de22 scribed in paragraph (3), except that none of the 

23 funds provided under this part may be used to ren24 ovate or replace a building or facility which is not 

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1 ices for the administration of elections, and which is 

2 used primarily for purposes other than the adminis3 tration of elections for public office. 

4 ‘‘(5) Providing increased technical support for 

5 any information technology infrastructure that the 

6 chief State election official deems to be part of the 

7 State’s election infrastructure or designates as crit8 ical to the operation of the State’s election infra9 structure. 

10 ‘‘(6) Enhancing the cybersecurity and oper11 ations of the information technology infrastructure 

12 described in paragraph (4). 

13 ‘‘(7) Enhancing the cybersecurity of voter reg14 istration systems. 

15 ‘‘(b) QUALIFIED ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE VEN16 DORS DESCRIBED.—For purposes of this part, a ‘qualified 

17 election infrastructure vendor’ is any person who provides, 

18 supports, or maintains, or who seeks to provide, support, 

19 or maintain, election infrastructure on behalf of a State, 

20 unit of local government, or election agency (as defined 

21 in section 3601 of the Election Security Act) who meets 

22 the criteria described in section 3001(b) of the Election 

23 Security Act. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 298B. ELIGIBILITY OF STATES. 

2 ‘‘A State is eligible to receive a grant under this part 

3 if the State submits to the Commission, at such time and 

4 in such form as the Commission may require, an applica5 tion containing— 

6 ‘‘(1) a description of how the State will use the 

7 grant to carry out the activities authorized under 

8 this part; 

9 ‘‘(2) a certification and assurance that, not 

10 later than 5 years after receiving the grant, the 

11 State will carry out voting system security improve12 ments, as described in section 298A; and 

13 ‘‘(3) such other information and assurances as 

14 the Commission may require. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 298C. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 

16 ‘‘Not later than 90 days after the end of each fiscal 

17 year, the Commission shall submit a report to the appro18 priate congressional committees, including the Committees 

19 on Homeland Security, House Administration, and the Ju20 diciary of the House of Representatives and the Commit21 tees on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the 

22 Judiciary, and Rules and Administration of the Senate, 

23 on the activities carried out with the funds provided under 

24 this part. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 298D. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be 

3 appropriated for grants under this part— 

4 ‘‘(1) $1,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2021; and 

5 ‘‘(2) $175,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 

6 2022, 2024, 2026, and 2028. 

7 ‘‘(b) CONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Any 

8 amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization of 

9 this section shall remain available until expended.’’. 

10 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con11 tents of such Act, as amended by section 1622(c), 

12 is amended by adding at the end of the items relat13 ing to subtitle D of title II the following: 

‘‘PART 8—GRANTS FOR OBTAINING COMPLIANT PAPER BALLOT VOTING

SYSTEMS AND CARRYING OUT VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVEMENTS

‘‘Sec. 298. Grants for obtaining compliant paper ballot voting systems and 

carrying out voting system security improvements. 

‘‘Sec. 298A. Voting system security improvements described. 

‘‘Sec. 298B. Eligibility of States. 

‘‘Sec. 298C. Reports to Congress. 

‘‘Sec. 298D. Authorization of appropriations. 

14 (b) QUALIFIED ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE VEN15 DORS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta17 tion with the Chairman, shall establish and publish 

18 criteria for qualified election infrastructure vendors 

19 for purposes of section 298A of the Help America 

20 Vote Act of 2002 (as added by this Act). 


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1 (2) CRITERIA.—The criteria established under 

2 paragraph (1) shall include each of the following re3 quirements: 

4 (A) The vendor shall— 

5 (i) be owned and controlled by a cit6 izen or permanent resident of the United 

7 States or a member of the Five Eyes intel8 ligence-sharing alliance; and 

9 (ii) in the case of any election infra10 structure which is a voting machine, en11 sure that such voting machine is assembled 

12 in the United States. 

13 (B) The vendor shall disclose to the Sec14 retary and the Chairman, and to the chief State 

15 election official of any State to which the ven16 dor provides any goods and services with funds 

17 provided under part 8 of subtitle A of title II 

18 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (as 

19 added by this Act), of any sourcing outside the 

20 United States for parts of the election infra21 structure. 

22 (C) The vendor shall disclose to the Sec23 retary and the Chairman, and to the chief State 

24 election official of any State to which the ven25 dor provides any goods and services with funds 


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1 provided under such part 8, the identification of 

2 any entity or individual with a more than 5 per3 cent ownership interest in the vendor. 

4 (D) The vendor agrees to ensure that the 

5 election infrastructure will be developed and 

6 maintained in a manner that is consistent with 

7 the cybersecurity best practices issued by the 

8 Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security 

9 Agency of the Department of Homeland Secu10 rity. 

11 (E) The vendor agrees to maintain its in12 formation technology infrastructure in a man13 ner that is consistent with the cybersecurity 

14 best practices issued by the Cybersecurity and 

15 Infrastructure Security Agency of the Depart16 ment of Homeland Security. 

17 (F) The vendor agrees to ensure that the 

18 election infrastructure will be developed and 

19 maintained in a manner that is consistent with 

20 the supply chain best practices issued by the 

21 Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security 

22 Agency of the Department of Homeland Secu23 rity. 

24 (G) The vendor agrees to ensure that it 

25 has personnel policies and practices in place 


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1 that are consistent with personnel best prac2 tices, including cybersecurity training and back3 ground checks, issued by the Cybersecurity and 

4 Infrastructure Security Agency of the Depart5 ment of Homeland Security. 

6 (H) The vendor agrees to ensure that the 

7 election infrastructure will be developed and 

8 maintained in a manner that is consistent with 

9 data integrity best practices, including require10 ments for encrypted transfers and validation, 

11 testing and checking printed materials for accu12 racy, and disclosure of quality control incidents, 

13 issued by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure 

14 Security Agency of the Department of Home15 land Security. 

16 (I) The vendor agrees to meet the require17 ments of paragraph (3) with respect to any 

18 known or suspected cybersecurity incidents in19 volving any of the goods and services provided 

20 by the vendor pursuant to a grant under part 

21 8 of subtitle A of title II of the Help America 

22 Vote Act of 2002 (as added by this Act). 

23 (J) The vendor agrees to permit inde24 pendent security testing by the Commission (in 

25 accordance with section 231(a) of the Help 


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1 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20971)) 

2 and by the Secretary of the goods and services 

3 provided by the vendor pursuant to a grant 

4 under part 8 of subtitle A of title II of the Help 

5 America Vote Act of 2002 (as added by this 

6 Act). 

7 (3) CYBERSECURITY INCIDENT REPORTING RE8 QUIREMENTS.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—A vendor meets the re10 quirements of this paragraph if, upon becoming 

11 aware of the possibility that an election cyberse12 curity incident has occurred involving any of 

13 the goods and services provided by the vendor 

14 pursuant to a grant under part 8 of subtitle A 

15 of title II of the Help America Vote Act of 

16 2002 (as added by this Act)— 

17 (i) the vendor promptly assesses 

18 whether or not such an incident occurred, 

19 and submits a notification meeting the re20 quirements of subparagraph (B) to the 

21 Secretary and the Chairman of the assess22 ment as soon as practicable (but in no case 

23 later than 3 days after the vendor first be24 comes aware of the possibility that the in25 cident occurred); 


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1 (ii) if the incident involves goods or 

2 services provided to an election agency, the 

3 vendor submits a notification meeting the 

4 requirements of subparagraph (B) to the 

5 agency as soon as practicable (but in no 

6 case later than 3 days after the vendor 

7 first becomes aware of the possibility that 

8 the incident occurred), and cooperates with 

9 the agency in providing any other nec10 essary notifications relating to the inci11 dent; and 

12 (iii) the vendor provides all necessary 

13 updates to any notification submitted 

14 under clause (i) or clause (ii). 

15 (B) CONTENTS OF NOTIFICATIONS.—Each 

16 notification submitted under clause (i) or clause 

17 (ii) of subparagraph (A) shall contain the fol18 lowing information with respect to any election 

19 cybersecurity incident covered by the notifica20 tion: 

21 (i) The date, time, and time zone 

22 when the election cybersecurity incident 

23 began, if known. 


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1 (ii) The date, time, and time zone 

2 when the election cybersecurity incident 

3 was detected. 

4 (iii) The date, time, and duration of 

5 the election cybersecurity incident. 

6 (iv) The circumstances of the election 

7 cybersecurity incident, including the spe8 cific election infrastructure systems be9 lieved to have been accessed and informa10 tion acquired, if any. 

11 (v) Any planned and implemented 

12 technical measures to respond to and re13 cover from the incident. 

14 (vi) In the case of any notification 

15 which is an update to a prior notification, 

16 any additional material information relat17 ing to the incident, including technical 

18 data, as it becomes available. 

19 (C) DEVELOPMENT OF CRITERIA FOR RE20 PORTING.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

21 of enactment of this Act, the Director of the 

22 Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security 

23 Agency shall, in consultation with the Election 

24 Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Council, de25 velop criteria for incidents which are required to 


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1 be reported in accordance with subparagraph 

2 (A). 

3 SEC. 3002. COORDINATION OF VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY 

4 ACTIVITIES WITH USE OF REQUIREMENTS 

5 PAYMENTS AND ELECTION ADMINISTRATION 

6 REQUIREMENTS UNDER HELP AMERICA 

7 VOTE ACT OF 2002. 

8 (a) DUTIES OF ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMIS9 SION.—Section 202 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

10 (52 U.S.C. 20922) is amended in the matter preceding 

11 paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘by’’ and inserting ‘‘and the se12 curity of election infrastructure by’’. 

13 (b) MEMBERSHIP OF SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SE14 CURITY ON BOARD OF ADVISORS OF ELECTION ASSIST15 ANCE COMMISSION.—Section 214(a) of such Act (52 

16 U.S.C. 20944(a)), as amended by section 1106, is amend17 ed— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘49 members’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘50 members’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(21) The Secretary of Homeland Security or 

23 the Secretary’s designee.’’. 

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1 MENT COMMITTEE.—Section 221(c)(1) of such Act (52 

2 U.S.C. 20961(c)(1)) is amended— 

3 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

4 by striking ‘‘14’’ and inserting ‘‘15’’; 

5 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as sub6 paragraph (F); and 

7 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the fol8 lowing new subparagraph: 

9 ‘‘(E) A representative of the Department 

10 of Homeland Security.’’. 

11 (d) GOALS OF PERIODIC STUDIES OF ELECTION AD12 MINISTRATION ISSUES; CONSULTATION WITH SECRETARY

13 OF HOMELAND SECURITY.—Section 241(a) of such Act 

14 (52 U.S.C. 20981(a)) is amended— 

15 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 

16 striking ‘‘the Commission shall’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

17 Commission, in consultation with the Secretary of 

18 Homeland Security (as appropriate), shall’’; 

19 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

20 (3); 

21 (3) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para22 graph (5); and 

23 (4) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol24 lowing new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(4) will be secure against attempts to under2 mine the integrity of election systems by cyber or 

3 other means; and’’. 

4 (e) REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS.— 

5 (1) USE OF PAYMENTS FOR VOTING SYSTEM

6 SECURITY IMPROVEMENTS.—Section 251(b) of such 

7 Act (52 U.S.C. 21001(b)), as amended by section 

8 1061(a)(2), is further amended by adding at the end 

9 the following new paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(5) PERMITTING USE OF PAYMENTS FOR VOT11 ING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVEMENTS.—A State 

12 may use a requirements payment to carry out any 

13 of the following activities: 

14 ‘‘(A) Cyber and risk mitigation training. 

15 ‘‘(B) Providing increased technical support 

16 for any information technology infrastructure 

17 that the chief State election official deems to be 

18 part of the State’s election infrastructure or 

19 designates as critical to the operation of the 

20 State’s election infrastructure. 

21 ‘‘(C) Enhancing the cybersecurity and op22 erations of the information technology infra23 structure described in subparagraph (B). 

24 ‘‘(D) Enhancing the security of voter reg25 istration databases.’’. 


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1 (2) INCORPORATION OF ELECTION INFRA2 STRUCTURE PROTECTION IN STATE PLANS FOR USE

3 OF PAYMENTS.—Section 254(a)(1) of such Act (52 

4 U.S.C. 21004(a)(1)) is amended by striking the pe5 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘, including the protec6 tion of election infrastructure.’’. 

7 (3) COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE

8 FOR DEVELOPING STATE PLAN FOR USE OF PAY9 MENTS.—Section 255 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

10 21005) is amended— 

11 (A) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub12 section (c); and 

13 (B) by inserting after subsection (a) the 

14 following new subsection: 

15 ‘‘(b) GEOGRAPHIC REPRESENTATION.—The mem16 bers of the committee shall be a representative group of 

17 individuals from the State’s counties, cities, towns, and 

18 Indian tribes, and shall represent the needs of rural as 

19 well as urban areas of the State, as the case may be.’’. 

20 (f) ENSURING PROTECTION OF COMPUTERIZED

21 STATEWIDE VOTER REGISTRATION LIST.—Section 

22 303(a)(3) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(a)(3)) is amend23 ed by striking the period at the end and inserting ‘‘, as 

24 well as other measures to prevent and deter cybersecurity 

25 incidents, as identified by the Commission, the Secretary 


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1 of Homeland Security, and the Technical Guidelines De2 velopment Committee.’’. 

3 SEC. 3003. INCORPORATION OF DEFINITIONS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 901 of the Help America 

5 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21141), as amended by sec6 tion 1921(b)(1), is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 901. DEFINITIONS. 

8 ‘‘In this Act, the following definitions apply: 

9 ‘‘(1) The term ‘cybersecurity incident’ has the 

10 meaning given the term ‘incident’ in section 227 of 

11 the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 659). 

12 ‘‘(2) The term ‘election infrastructure’ has the 

13 meaning given such term in section 3601 of the 

14 Election Security Act. 

15 ‘‘(3) The term ‘State’ means each of the several 

16 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 

17 of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United 

18 States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the 

19 Northern Mariana Islands.’’. 

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

21 of such Act is amended by amending the item relating to 

22 section 901 to read as follows: 

‘‘Sec. 901. Definitions.’’. 


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1 PART 2—POST-ELECTION AUDIT REQUIREMENT 

2 SEC. 3011. POST-ELECTION AUDIT REQUIREMENT. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 

4 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as amended 

5 by section 1903(a) and section 1922, is amended by in6 serting after section 303B the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 303C. POST-ELECTION AUDITS. 

8 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

9 ‘‘(1) POST-ELECTION AUDIT.—Except as pro10 vided in subsection (c)(1)(B), the term ‘post-election 

11 audit’ means, with respect to any election contest, a 

12 post-election process that— 

13 ‘‘(A) has a probability of at least 95 per14 cent of correcting the reported outcome if the 

15 reported outcome is not the correct outcome; 

16 ‘‘(B) will not change the outcome if the re17 ported outcome is the correct outcome; and 

18 ‘‘(C) involves a manual adjudication of 

19 voter intent from some or all of the ballots val20 idly cast in the election contest. 

21 ‘‘(2) REPORTED OUTCOME; CORRECT OUTCOME; 

22 OUTCOME.— 

23 ‘‘(A) REPORTED OUTCOME.—The term ‘re24 ported outcome’ means the outcome of an elec25 tion contest which is determined according to 

26 the canvass and which will become the official, 


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1 certified outcome unless it is revised by an 

2 audit, recount, or other legal process. 

3 ‘‘(B) CORRECT OUTCOME.—The term ‘cor4 rect outcome’ means the outcome that would be 

5 determined by a manual adjudication of voter 

6 intent for all votes validly cast in the election 

7 contest. 

8 ‘‘(C) OUTCOME.—The term ‘outcome’ 

9 means the winner or set of winners of an elec10 tion contest. 

11 ‘‘(3) MANUAL ADJUDICATION OF VOTER IN12 TENT.—The term ‘manual adjudication of voter in13 tent’ means direct inspection and determination by 

14 humans, without assistance from electronic or me15 chanical tabulation devices, of the ballot choices 

16 marked by voters on each voter-verifiable paper 

17 record. 

18 ‘‘(4) BALLOT MANIFEST.—The term ‘ballot 

19 manifest’ means a record maintained by each juris20 diction that— 

21 ‘‘(A) is created without reliance on any 

22 part of the voting system used to tabulate 

23 votes; 

24 ‘‘(B) functions as a sampling frame for 

25 conducting a post-election audit; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) accounts for all ballots validly cast re2 gardless of how they were tabulated and in3 cludes a precise description of the manner in 

4 which the ballots are physically stored, includ5 ing the total number of physical groups of bal6 lots, the numbering system for each group, a 

7 unique label for each group, and the number of 

8 ballots in each such group. 

9 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

11 ‘‘(A) AUDITS.— 

12 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Each State and 

13 jurisdiction shall administer post-election 

14 audits of the results of all election contests 

15 for Federal office held in the State in ac16 cordance with the requirements of para17 graph (2). 

18 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—Clause (i) shall 

19 not apply to any election contest for which 

20 the State or jurisdiction conducts a full re21 count through a manual adjudication of 

22 voter intent. 

23 ‘‘(B) FULL MANUAL TABULATION.—If a 

24 post-election audit conducted under subpara25 graph (A) corrects the reported outcome of an 


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1 election contest, the State or jurisdiction shall 

2 use the results of the manual adjudication of 

3 voter intent conducted as part of the post-elec4 tion audit as the official results of the election 

5 contest. 

6 ‘‘(2) AUDIT REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 ‘‘(A) RULES AND PROCEDURES.— 

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 

9 years after the date of the enactment of 

10 this section, the chief State election official 

11 of the State shall establish rules and proce12 dures for conducting post-election audits. 

13 ‘‘(ii) MATTERS INCLUDED.—The rules 

14 and procedures established under clause (i) 

15 shall include the following: 

16 ‘‘(I) Rules and procedures for en17 suring the security of ballots and doc18 umenting that prescribed procedures 

19 were followed. 

20 ‘‘(II) Rules and procedures for 

21 ensuring the accuracy of ballot mani22 fests produced by jurisdictions. 

23 ‘‘(III) Rules and procedures for 

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1 fests and other data involved in post2 election audits. 

3 ‘‘(IV) Methods to ensure that 

4 any cast vote records used in a post5 election audit are those used by the 

6 voting system to tally the results of 

7 the election contest sent to the chief 

8 State election official of the State and 

9 made public. 

10 ‘‘(V) Rules and procedures for 

11 the random selection of ballots to be 

12 inspected manually during each audit. 

13 ‘‘(VI) Rules and procedures for 

14 the calculations and other methods to 

15 be used in the audit and to determine 

16 whether and when the audit of each 

17 election contest is complete. 

18 ‘‘(VII) Rules and procedures for 

19 testing any software used to conduct 

20 post-election audits. 

21 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC REPORT.— 

22 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—After the comple23 tion of the post-election audit and at least 

24 5 days before the election contest is cer25 tified by the State, the State shall make 


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1 public and submit to the Commission a re2 port on the results of the audit, together 

3 with such information as necessary to con4 firm that the audit was conducted prop5 erly. 

6 ‘‘(ii) FORMAT OF DATA.—All data 

7 published with the report under clause (i) 

8 shall be published in machine-readable, 

9 open data formats. 

10 ‘‘(iii) PROTECTION OF ANONYMITY OF

11 VOTES.—Information and data published 

12 by the State under this subparagraph shall 

13 not compromise the anonymity of votes. 

14 ‘‘(iv) REPORT MADE AVAILABLE BY

15 COMMISSION.—After receiving any report 

16 submitted under clause (i), the Commis17 sion shall make such report available on its 

18 website. 

19 ‘‘(3) EFFECTIVE DATE; WAIVER.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

21 subparagraphs (B) and (C), each State and ju22 risdiction shall be required to comply with the 

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1 curring in 2032 and for each subsequent elec2 tion for Federal office. 

3 ‘‘(B) WAIVER.—Except as provided in sub4 paragraph (C), if a State certifies to the Elec5 tion Assistance Commission not later than the 

6 first regularly scheduled election for Federal of7 fice occurring in 2032, that the State will not 

8 meet the deadline described in subparagraph 

9 (A) because it would be impracticable to do so 

10 and includes in the certification the reasons for 

11 the failure to meet such deadline, subparagraph 

12 (A) of this subsection and subsection (c)(2)(A) 

13 shall apply to the State as if the reference in 

14 such subsections to ‘2032’ were a reference to 

15 ‘2034’. 

16 ‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL WAIVER PERIOD.—If a 

17 State certifies to the Election Assistance Com18 mission not later than the first regularly sched19 uled election for Federal office occurring in 

20 2034, that the State will not meet the deadline 

21 described in subparagraph (B) because it would 

22 be impracticable to do so and includes in the 

23 certification the reasons for the failure to meet 

24 such deadline, subparagraph (B) of this sub25 section and subsection (c)(2)(A) shall apply to 


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1 the State as if the reference in such subsections 

2 to ‘2034’ were a reference to ‘2036’. 

3 ‘‘(c) PHASED IMPLEMENTATION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) POST-ELECTION AUDITS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For the regularly 

6 scheduled elections for Federal office occurring 

7 in 2024 and 2026, each State shall administer 

8 a post-election audit of the result of at least one 

9 statewide election contest for Federal office held 

10 in the State, or if no such statewide contest is 

11 on the ballot, one election contest for Federal 

12 office chosen at random. 

13 ‘‘(B) POST-ELECTION AUDIT DEFINED.— 

14 In this subsection, the term ‘post-election audit’ 

15 means a post-election process that involves a 

16 manual adjudication of voter intent from a 

17 sample of ballots validly cast in the election 

18 contest. 

19 ‘‘(2) POST-ELECTION AUDITS FOR SELECT CON20 TESTS.—Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C) of 

21 subsection (b)(3), for the regularly scheduled elec22 tions for Federal office occurring in 2028 and for 

23 each subsequent election for Federal office that oc24 curs prior to the first regularly scheduled election 

25 for Federal office occurring in 2032, each State 


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1 shall administer a post-election audit of the result of 

2 at least one statewide election contest for Federal of3 fice held in the State, or if no such statewide contest 

4 is on the ballot, one election contest for Federal of5 fice chosen at random. 

6 ‘‘(3) STATES THAT ADMINISTER POST-ELEC7 TION AUDITS FOR ALL CONTESTS.—A State shall be 

8 exempt from the requirements of this subsection for 

9 any regularly scheduled election for Federal office in 

10 which the State meets the requirements of sub11 section (b).’’. 

12 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

13 for such Act, as amended by section 1903(c) and section 

14 1922, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 

15 section 303B the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 303C . Post-election audits. ........................................................... ’’. 

16 (c) STUDY ON POST-ELECTION AUDIT BEST PRAC17 TICES.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the National 

19 Institute of Standards and Technology shall estab20 lish an advisory committee to study post-election au21 dits and establish best practices for post-election 

22 audit methodologies and procedures. 

23 (2) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The Director of 

24 the National Institute of Standards and Technology 


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1 shall appoint individuals to the advisory committee 

2 and secure the representation of— 

3 (A) State and local election officials; 

4 (B) individuals with experience and exper5 tise in election security; 

6 (C) individuals with experience and exper7 tise in post-election audit procedures; and 

8 (D) individuals with experience and exper9 tise in statistical methods. 

10 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

11 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

12 as are necessary to carry out the purposes of this 

13 subsection. 

14 SEC. 3012. GAO ANALYSIS OF EFFECTS OF AUDITS. 

15 (a) ANALYSIS.—Not later than 4 years after the reg16 ularly scheduled general election for Federal office occur17 ring in 2024, the Comptroller General of the United 

18 States shall conduct an analysis of the extent to which 

19 post-election audits under section 303C of the Help Amer20 ica Vote Act of 2002, as added by section 3011(a), have 

21 improved the administration of elections and the security 

22 of election infrastructure in the States receiving such 

23 grants. 

24 (b) REPORT.—The Comptroller General of the 

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1 ducted under subsection (a) to the appropriate congres2 sional committees. 

3 PART 3—ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE 

4 INNOVATION GRANT PROGRAM 

5 SEC. 3021. ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION 

6 GRANT PROGRAM. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Homeland Secu8 rity Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 181 et seq.) is amended by 

9 adding at the end the following new section: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 321. ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION 

11 GRANT PROGRAM. 

12 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, acting 

13 through the Under Secretary for Science and Technology, 

14 in coordination with the Chairman of the Election Assist15 ance Commission (established pursuant to the Help Amer16 ica Vote Act of 2002), and in consultation with the Direc17 tor of the National Science Foundation and the Director 

18 of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 

19 shall establish a competitive grant program to award 

20 grants to eligible entities, on a competitive basis, for pur21 poses of research and development that are determined to 

22 have the potential to significantly improve the security (in23 cluding cybersecurity), quality, reliability, accuracy, acces24 sibility, and affordability of election infrastructure, and in25 crease voter participation. 


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1 ‘‘(b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 90 days 

2 after the conclusion of each fiscal year for which grants 

3 are awarded under this section, the Secretary shall submit 

4 to the Committee on Homeland Security and the Com5 mittee on House Administration of the House of Rep6 resentatives and the Committee on Homeland Security 

7 and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on Rules 

8 and Administration of the Senate a report describing such 

9 grants and analyzing the impact, if any, of such grants 

10 on the security and operation of election infrastructure, 

11 and on voter participation. 

12 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

13 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 

14 $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2029 

15 for purposes of carrying out this section. 

16 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—In this section, 

17 the term ‘eligible entity’ means— 

18 ‘‘(1) an institution of higher education (as such 

19 term is defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Edu20 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)), including 

21 an institution of higher education that is a histori22 cally Black college or university (which has the 

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1 nority-serving institution listed in section 371(a) of 

2 such Act (20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)); 

3 ‘‘(2) an organization described in section 

4 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and 

5 exempt from tax under section 501(a) of such Code; 

6 or 

7 ‘‘(3) an organization, association, or a for-profit 

8 company, including a small business concern (as 

9 such term is described in section 3 of the Small 

10 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632)), including a small 

11 business concern owned and controlled by socially 

12 and economically disadvantaged individuals (as such 

13 term is defined in section 8(d)(3)(C) of the Small 

14 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)(3)(C)).’’. 

15 (b) DEFINITION.—Section 2 of the Homeland Secu16 rity Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101) is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through 

18 (20) as paragraphs (7) through (21), respectively; 

19 and 

20 (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol21 lowing new paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(6) ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE.—The term 

23 ‘election infrastructure’ means storage facilities, 

24 polling places, and centralized vote tabulation loca25 tions used to support the administration of elections 


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1 for public office, as well as related information and 

2 communications technology, including voter registra3 tion databases, voting machines, electronic mail and 

4 other communications systems (including electronic 

5 mail and other systems of vendors who have entered 

6 into contracts with election agencies to support the 

7 administration of elections, manage the election 

8 process, and report and display election results), and 

9 other systems used to manage the election process 

10 and to report and display election results on behalf 

11 of an election agency.’’. 

12 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

13 in section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is 

14 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

15 320 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 321. Election infrastructure innovation grant program.’’. 

16 Subtitle B—Security Measures 

17 SEC. 3101. ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE DESIGNATION. 

18 Subparagraph (J) of section 2001(3) of the Home19 land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 601(3)) is amended 

20 by inserting ‘‘, including election infrastructure’’ before 

21 the period at the end. 

22 SEC. 3102. TIMELY THREAT INFORMATION. 

23 Subsection (d) of section 201 of the Homeland Secu24 rity Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 121) is amended by adding 

25 at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(24) To provide timely threat information re2 garding election infrastructure to the chief State 

3 election official (as defined in section 3601 of the 

4 For the People Act of 2021) of the State with re5 spect to which such information pertains.’’. 

6 SEC. 3103. SECURITY CLEARANCE ASSISTANCE FOR ELEC7 TION OFFICIALS. 

8 In order to promote the timely sharing of information 

9 on threats to election infrastructure, the Secretary may— 

10 (1) help expedite a security clearance for the 

11 chief State election official and other appropriate 

12 State personnel involved in the administration of 

13 elections, as designated by the chief State election 

14 official; 

15 (2) sponsor a security clearance for the chief 

16 State election official and other appropriate State 

17 personnel involved in the administration of elections, 

18 as designated by the chief State election official; and 

19 (3) facilitate the issuance of a temporary clear20 ance to the chief State election official and other ap21 propriate State personnel involved in the administra22 tion of elections, as designated by the chief State 

23 election official, if the Secretary determines classi24 fied information to be timely and relevant to the 

25 election infrastructure of the State at issue. 


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1 SEC. 3104. SECURITY RISK AND VULNERABILITY ASSESS2 MENTS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (6) of section 2209(c) 

4 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 659(c)) 

5 is amended by inserting ‘‘(including by carrying out a se6 curity risk and vulnerability assessment)’’ after ‘‘risk 

7 management support’’. 

8 (b) PRIORITIZATION TO ENHANCE ELECTION SECU9 RITY.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

11 receiving a written request from a chief State elec12 tion official, the Secretary shall, to the extent prac13 ticable, commence a security risk and vulnerability 

14 assessment (pursuant to paragraph (6) of section 

15 2209(c) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as 

16 amended by subsection (a)) on election infrastruc17 ture in the State at issue. 

18 (2) NOTIFICATION.—If the Secretary, upon re19 ceipt of a request described in paragraph (1), deter20 mines that a security risk and vulnerability assess21 ment referred to in such paragraph cannot be com22 menced within 90 days, the Secretary shall expedi23 tiously notify the chief State election official who 

24 submitted such request. 


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1 SEC. 3105. ANNUAL REPORTS. 

2 (a) REPORTS ON ASSISTANCE AND ASSESSMENTS.— 

3 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this 

4 Act and annually thereafter through 2028, the Secretary 

5 shall submit to the appropriate congressional commit6 tees— 

7 (1) efforts to carry out section 3103 during the 

8 prior year, including specific information regarding 

9 which States were helped, how many officials have 

10 been helped in each State, how many security clear11 ances have been sponsored in each State, and how 

12 many temporary clearances have been issued in each 

13 State; and 

14 (2) efforts to carry out section 3104 during the 

15 prior year, including specific information regarding 

16 which States were helped, the dates on which the 

17 Secretary received a request for a security risk and 

18 vulnerability assessment referred to in such section, 

19 the dates on which the Secretary commenced each 

20 such request, and the dates on which the Secretary 

21 transmitted a notification in accordance with sub22 section (b)(2) of such section. 

23 (b) REPORTS ON FOREIGN THREATS.—Beginning 

24 with fiscal year 2021, not later than 90 days after the 

25 end of each fiscal year, the Secretary and the Director 

26 of National Intelligence, in coordination with the heads of 


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1 appropriate offices of the Federal Government, shall sub2 mit to the appropriate congressional committees a joint 

3 report on foreign threats, including physical and cyberse4 curity threats, to elections in the United States. 

5 (c) INFORMATION FROM STATES.—For purposes of 

6 preparing the reports required under this section, the Sec7 retary shall solicit and consider information and comments 

8 from States and election agencies, except that the provi9 sion of such information and comments by a State or elec10 tion agency shall be voluntary and at the discretion of the 

11 State or election agency. 

12 SEC. 3106. PRE-ELECTION THREAT ASSESSMENTS. 

13 (a) SUBMISSION OF ASSESSMENT BY DNI.—Not 

14 later than 180 days before the date of each regularly 

15 scheduled general election for Federal office, the Director 

16 of National Intelligence shall submit an assessment of the 

17 full scope of threats, including cybersecurity threats posed 

18 by state actors and terrorist groups, to election infrastruc19 ture and recommendations to address or mitigate such 

20 threats, as developed by the Secretary and Chairman, to— 

21 (1) the chief State election official of each 

22 State; 

23 (2) the appropriate congressional committees; 

24 and 


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1 (3) any other relevant congressional commit2 tees. 

3 (b) UPDATES TO INITIAL ASSESSMENTS.—If, at any 

4 time after submitting an assessment with respect to an 

5 election under subsection (a), the Director of National In6 telligence determines that the assessment should be up7 dated to reflect new information regarding the threats in8 volved, the Director shall submit a revised assessment 

9 under such subsection. 

10 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) CHAIRMAN.—The term ‘‘Chairman’’ means 

12 the chair of the Election Assistance Commission. 

13 (2) CHIEF STATE ELECTION OFFICIAL.—The 

14 term ‘‘chief State election official’’ means, with re15 spect to a State, the individual designated by the 

16 State under section 10 of the National Voter Reg17 istration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20509) to be re18 sponsible for coordination of the State’s responsibil19 ities under such Act. 

20 (3) ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE.—The term 

21 ‘‘election infrastructure’’ means storage facilities, 

22 polling places, and centralized vote tabulation loca23 tions used to support the administration of elections 

24 for public office, as well as related information and 

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1 tion databases, voting machines, electronic mail and 

2 other communications systems (including electronic 

3 mail and other systems of vendors who have entered 

4 into contracts with election agencies to support the 

5 administration of elections, manage the election 

6 process, and report and display election results), and 

7 other systems used to manage the election process 

8 and to report and display election results on behalf 

9 of an election agency. 

10 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

11 the Secretary of Homeland Security. 

12 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean13 ing given such term in section 901 of the Help 

14 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21141). 

15 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This subtitle shall apply with 

16 respect to the regularly scheduled general election for Fed17 eral office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

18 regularly scheduled general election for Federal office. 

19 Subtitle C—Enhancing Protections 

20 for United States Democratic In21 stitutions 

22 SEC. 3201. NATIONAL STRATEGY TO PROTECT UNITED 

23 STATES DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

25 date of enactment of this Act, the President, acting 


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1 through the Secretary, in consultation with the Chairman, 

2 the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State, the At3 torney General, the Secretary of Education, the Director 

4 of National Intelligence, the Chairman of the Federal 

5 Election Commission, and the heads of any other appro6 priate Federal agencies, shall issue a national strategy to 

7 protect against cyber attacks, influence operations, 

8 disinformation campaigns, and other activities that could 

9 undermine the security and integrity of United States 

10 democratic institutions. 

11 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—The national strategy re12 quired under subsection (a) shall include consideration of 

13 the following: 

14 (1) The threat of a foreign state actor, foreign 

15 terrorist organization (as designated pursuant to 

16 section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

17 (8 U.S.C. 1189)), or a domestic actor carrying out 

18 a cyber attack, influence operation, disinformation 

19 campaign, or other activity aimed at undermining 

20 the security and integrity of United States demo21 cratic institutions. 

22 (2) The extent to which United States demo23 cratic institutions are vulnerable to a cyber attack, 

24 influence operation, disinformation campaign, or 


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1 other activity aimed at undermining the security and 

2 integrity of such democratic institutions. 

3 (3) Potential consequences, such as an erosion 

4 of public trust or an undermining of the rule of law, 

5 that could result from a successful cyber attack, in6 fluence operation, disinformation campaign, or other 

7 activity aimed at undermining the security and in8 tegrity of United States democratic institutions. 

9 (4) Lessons learned from other governments the 

10 institutions of which were subject to a cyber attack, 

11 influence operation, disinformation campaign, or 

12 other activity aimed at undermining the security and 

13 integrity of such institutions, as well as actions that 

14 could be taken by the United States Government to 

15 bolster collaboration with foreign partners to detect, 

16 deter, prevent, and counter such activities. 

17 (5) Potential impacts, such as an erosion of 

18 public trust in democratic institutions, as could be 

19 associated with a successful cyber breach or other 

20 activity negatively-affecting election infrastructure. 

21 (6) Roles and responsibilities of the Secretary, 

22 the Chairman, and the heads of other Federal enti23 ties and non-Federal entities, including chief State 

24 election officials and representatives of multi-state 

25 information sharing and analysis centers. 


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1 (7) Any findings, conclusions, and recommenda2 tions to strengthen protections for United States 

3 democratic institutions that have been agreed to by 

4 a majority of Commission members on the National 

5 Commission to Protect United States Democratic 

6 Institutions, authorized pursuant to section 3202. 

7 (c) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—Not later than 90 

8 days after the date on which the national strategy required 

9 under subsection (a) is issued, the President, acting 

10 through the Secretary, in coordination with the Chairman, 

11 shall issue an implementation plan for Federal efforts to 

12 implement such strategy that includes the following: 

13 (1) Strategic objectives and corresponding 

14 tasks. 

15 (2) Projected timelines and costs for the tasks 

16 referred to in paragraph (1). 

17 (3) Metrics to evaluate performance of such 

18 tasks. 

19 (d) CLASSIFICATION.—The national strategy re20 quired under subsection (a) shall be in unclassified form. 

21 (e) CIVIL RIGHTS REVIEW.—Not later than 60 days 

22 after the date on which the national strategy required 

23 under subsection (a) is issued, and not later than 60 days 

24 after the date on which the implementation plan required 

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1 erties Oversight Board (established under section 1061 of 

2 the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 

3 2004 (42 U.S.C. 2000ee)) shall submit a report to Con4 gress on any potential privacy and civil liberties impacts 

5 of such strategy and implementation plan, respectively. 

6 SEC. 3202. NATIONAL COMMISSION TO PROTECT UNITED 

7 STATES DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

9 the legislative branch the National Commission to Protect 

10 United States Democratic Institutions (hereafter in this 

11 section referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 

12 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Commission is to 

13 counter efforts to undermine democratic institutions with14 in the United States. 

15 (c) COMPOSITION.— 

16 (1) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall be 

17 composed of 10 members appointed for the life of 

18 the Commission as follows: 

19 (A) One member shall be appointed by the 

20 Secretary. 

21 (B) One member shall be appointed by the 

22 Chairman. 

23 (C) Two members shall be appointed by 

24 the majority leader of the Senate, in consulta25 tion with the Chairman of the Committee on 


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1 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

2 of the Senate, the Chairman of the Committee 

3 on the Judiciary of the Senate, and the Chair4 man of the Committee on Rules and Adminis5 tration of the Senate. 

6 (D) Two members shall be appointed by 

7 the minority leader of the Senate, in consulta8 tion with the ranking minority member of the 

9 Committee on Homeland Security and Govern10 mental Affairs of the Senate, the ranking mi11 nority member of the Committee on the Judici12 ary of the Senate, and the ranking minority 

13 member of the Committee on Rules and Admin14 istration of the Senate. 

15 (E) Two members shall be appointed by 

16 the Speaker of the House of Representatives, in 

17 consultation with the Chairman of the Com18 mittee on Homeland Security of the House of 

19 Representatives, the Chairman of the Com20 mittee on House Administration of the House 

21 of Representatives, and the Chairman of the 

22 Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

23 Representatives. 

24 (F) Two members shall be appointed by 

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1 tives, in consultation with the ranking minority 

2 member of the Committee on Homeland Secu3 rity of the House of Representatives, the rank4 ing minority member of the Committee on the 

5 Judiciary of the House of Representatives, and 

6 the ranking minority member of the Committee 

7 on House Administration of the House of Rep8 resentatives. 

9 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Individuals shall be se10 lected for appointment to the Commission solely on 

11 the basis of their professional qualifications, achieve12 ments, public stature, experience, and expertise in 

13 relevant fields, including cybersecurity, national se14 curity, and the Constitution of the United States. 

15 (3) NO COMPENSATION FOR SERVICE.—Mem16 bers may not receive compensation for service on the 

17 Commission, but shall receive travel expenses, in18 cluding per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accord19 ance with chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code. 

20 (4) DEADLINE FOR APPOINTMENT.—All mem21 bers of the Commission shall be appointed not later 

22 than 60 days after the date of enactment of this 

23 Act. 

24 (5) VACANCIES.—A vacancy on the Commission 

25 shall not affect its powers and shall be filled in the 


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1 manner in which the original appointment was 

2 made. The appointment of the replacement member 

3 shall be made not later than 60 days after the date 

4 on which the vacancy occurs. 

5 (d) CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.—The Commission shall 

6 elect a Chair and Vice Chair from among its members. 

7 (e) QUORUM AND MEETINGS.— 

8 (1) QUORUM.—The Commission shall meet and 

9 begin the operations of the Commission not later 

10 than 30 days after the date on which all members 

11 have been appointed or, if such meeting cannot be 

12 mutually agreed upon, on a date designated by the 

13 Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 

14 President pro Tempore of the Senate. Each subse15 quent meeting shall occur upon the call of the Chair 

16 or a majority of its members. A majority of the 

17 members of the Commission shall constitute a 

18 quorum, but a lesser number may hold meetings. 

19 (2) AUTHORITY OF INDIVIDUALS TO ACT FOR

20 COMMISSION.—Any member of the Commission may, 

21 if authorized by the Commission, take any action 

22 that the Commission is authorized to take under this 

23 section. 

24 (f) POWERS.— 


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1 (1) HEARINGS AND EVIDENCE.—The Commis2 sion (or, on the authority of the Commission, any 

3 subcommittee or member thereof) may, for the pur4 pose of carrying out this section, hold hearings and 

5 sit and act at such times and places, take such testi6 mony, receive such evidence, and administer such 

7 oaths as the Commission considers advisable to 

8 carry out its duties. 

9 (2) CONTRACTING.—The Commission may, to 

10 such extent and in such amounts as are provided in 

11 appropriation Acts, enter into contracts to enable 

12 the Commission to discharge its duties under this 

13 section. 

14 (g) ASSISTANCE FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

15 (1) GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION.— 

16 The Administrator of General Services shall provide 

17 to the Commission on a reimbursable basis adminis18 trative support and other services for the perform19 ance of the Commission’s functions. 

20 (2) OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES.—In 

21 addition to the assistance provided under paragraph 

22 (1), the Department of Homeland Security, the 

23 Election Assistance Commission, and other appro24 priate departments and agencies of the United 

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1 ices, funds, facilities, and staff as they may deter2 mine advisable and as may be authorized by law. 

3 (h) PUBLIC MEETINGS.—Any public meetings of the 

4 Commission shall be conducted in a manner consistent 

5 with the protection of information provided to or developed 

6 for or by the Commission as required by any applicable 

7 statute, regulation, or Executive order. 

8 (i) SECURITY CLEARANCES.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The heads of appropriate 

10 departments and agencies of the executive branch 

11 shall cooperate with the Commission to expeditiously 

12 provide Commission members and staff with appro13 priate security clearances to the extent possible 

14 under applicable procedures and requirements. 

15 (2) PREFERENCES.—In appointing staff, ob16 taining detailees, and entering into contracts for the 

17 provision of services for the Commission, the Com18 mission shall give preference to individuals who have 

19 active security clearances. 

20 (j) REPORTS.— 

21 (1) INTERIM REPORTS.—At any time prior to 

22 the submission of the final report under paragraph 

23 (2), the Commission may submit interim reports to 

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1 en protections for democratic institutions in the 

2 United States as have been agreed to by a majority 

3 of the members of the Commission. 

4 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 18 months 

5 after the date of the first meeting of the Commis6 sion, the Commission shall submit to the President 

7 and Congress a final report containing such find8 ings, conclusions, and recommendations to strength9 en protections for democratic institutions in the 

10 United States as have been agreed to by a majority 

11 of the members of the Commission. 

12 (k) TERMINATION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall termi14 nate upon the expiration of the 60-day period which 

15 begins on the date on which the Commission submits 

16 the final report required under subsection (j)(2). 

17 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITIES PRIOR TO

18 TERMINATION.—During the 60-day period referred 

19 to in paragraph (1), the Commission may carry out 

20 such administrative activities as may be required to 

21 conclude its work, including providing testimony to 

22 committees of Congress concerning the final report 

23 and disseminating the final report. 


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1 Subtitle D—Promoting Cybersecu2 rity Through Improvements in 

3 Election Administration 

4 SEC. 3301. ELECTION CYBERSECURITY. 

5 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

6 of this subsection, the Director of the Cybersecurity and 

7 Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of 

8 Homeland Security, in consultation with the Commission, 

9 shall issue election cybersecurity guidelines, including 

10 standards and best practices for procuring, maintaining, 

11 testing, operating, and updating election systems to pre12 vent and deter cybersecurity incidents. 

13 SEC. 3302. GUIDELINES AND CERTIFICATION FOR ELEC14 TRONIC POLL BOOKS AND REMOTE BALLOT 

15 MARKING SYSTEMS. 

16 (a) INCLUSION UNDER VOLUNTARY VOTING SYSTEM

17 GUIDELINES.—Section 222 of the Help America Vote Act 

18 of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20962) is amended— 

19 (1) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), (c), 

20 (d), and (e) as subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f); 

21 (2) by inserting after the section heading the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(a) VOLUNTARY VOTING SYSTEM GUIDELINES.— 

24 The Commission shall adopt voluntary voting system 

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1 curity principles for the design, development, and oper2 ation of voting systems, electronic poll books, and remote 

3 ballot marking systems.’’; and 

4 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub5 sections: 

6 ‘‘(g) INITIAL GUIDELINES FOR ELECTRONIC POLL

7 BOOKS AND REMOTE BALLOT MARKING SYSTEMS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) ADOPTION DATE.—The Commission shall 

9 adopt initial voluntary voting system guidelines for 

10 electronic poll books and remote ballot marking sys11 tems by January 1, 2022. 

12 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR INITIAL GUIDE13 LINES.—The Commission may adopt initial vol14 untary voting system guidelines for electronic poll 

15 books and remote ballot marking systems without 

16 modifying the most recently adopted voluntary vot17 ing system guidelines for voting systems. 

18 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

19 ‘‘(1) VOTING SYSTEM DEFINED.—The term 

20 ‘voting system’ has the same meaning given that 

21 term in section 301. 

22 ‘‘(2) ELECTRONIC POLLBOOK DEFINED.—The 

23 term ‘electronic poll book’ means the total combina24 tion of mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic 

25 equipment (including the software, firmware, and 


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1 documentation required to program, control, and 

2 support the equipment) that is used— 

3 ‘‘(A) to retain the list of registered voters 

4 at a polling location, or vote center, or other lo5 cation at which voters cast votes in an election 

6 for Federal office; and 

7 ‘‘(B) to identify registered voters who are 

8 eligible to vote in an election.’’. 

9 ‘‘(3) REMOTE BALLOT MARKING SYSTEM DE10 FINED.—The term ‘remote ballot marking system’ 

11 means an election system that— 

12 ‘‘(A) is used by a voter to mark their bal13 lots outside of a voting center or polling place; 

14 ‘‘(B) allows a voter to receive a blank bal15 lot to mark electronically, print, and then cast 

16 by returning the printed ballot to the elections 

17 office or other designated location; and 

18 ‘‘(C) does not allow a voter to cast and re19 turn a ballot electronically.’’. 

20 (b) PROVIDING FOR CERTIFICATION OF ELECTRONIC

21 POLL BOOKS AND REMOTE BALLOT MARKING SYSTEM.— 

22 Section 231(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 

23 U.S.C. 20971(a)) is amended, in each of paragraphs (1) 

24 and (2), by inserting ‘‘, electronic poll books, and remote 

25 ballot marking systems’’ after ‘‘software’’. 


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1 SEC. 3303. PRE-ELECTION REPORTS ON VOTING SYSTEM 

2 USAGE. 

3 (a) REQUIRING STATES TO SUBMIT REPORTS.—Title 

4 III of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 

5 21081 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 301 

6 the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 301A. PRE-ELECTION REPORTS ON VOTING SYSTEM 

8 USAGE. 

9 ‘‘(a) REQUIRING STATES TO SUBMIT REPORTS.—Not 

10 later than 120 days before the date of each regularly 

11 scheduled general election for Federal office, the chief 

12 State election official of a State shall submit a report to 

13 the Commission containing a detailed voting system usage 

14 plan for each jurisdiction in the State which will admin15 ister the election, including a detailed plan for the usage 

16 of electronic poll books and other equipment and compo17 nents of such system. If a jurisdiction acquires and imple18 ments a new voting system within the 120 days before the 

19 date of the election, it shall notify the chief State election 

20 official of the State, who shall submit to the Commission 

21 in a timely manner an updated report under the preceding 

22 sentence. 

23 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (a) shall apply 

24 with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 

25 Federal office held in November 2022 and each succeeding 

26 regularly scheduled general election for Federal office.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

2 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 

3 to section 301 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 301A. Pre-election reports on voting system usage.’’. 

4 SEC. 3304. STREAMLINING COLLECTION OF ELECTION IN5 FORMATION. 

6 Section 202 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

7 (52 U.S.C. 20922) is amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘The Commission’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub11 section: 

12 ‘‘(b) WAIVER OF CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS.—Sub13 chapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, 

14 shall not apply to the collection of information for pur15 poses of maintaining the clearinghouse described in para16 graph (1) of subsection (a).’’. 

17 Subtitle E—Preventing Election 

18 Hacking 

19 SEC. 3401. SHORT TITLE. 

20 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Prevent Election 

21 Hacking Act of 2021’’. 

22 SEC. 3402. ELECTION SECURITY BUG BOUNTY PROGRAM. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after 

24 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall es25 tablish a program to be known as the ‘‘Election Security 


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1 Bug Bounty Program’’ (hereafter in this subtitle referred 

2 to as the ‘‘Program’’) to improve the cybersecurity of the 

3 systems used to administer elections for Federal office by 

4 facilitating and encouraging assessments by independent 

5 technical experts, in cooperation with State and local elec6 tion officials and election service providers, to identify and 

7 report election cybersecurity vulnerabilities. 

8 (b) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION BY ELECTION OFFI9 CIALS AND ELECTION SERVICE PROVIDERS.— 

10 (1) NO REQUIREMENT TO PARTICIPATE IN PRO11 GRAM.—Participation in the Program shall be en12 tirely voluntary for State and local election officials 

13 and election service providers. 

14 (2) ENCOURAGING PARTICIPATION AND INPUT

15 FROM ELECTION OFFICIALS.—In developing the Pro16 gram, the Secretary shall solicit input from, and en17 courage participation by, State and local election of18 ficials. 

19 (c) ACTIVITIES FUNDED.—In establishing and car20 rying out the Program, the Secretary shall— 

21 (1) establish a process for State and local elec22 tion officials and election service providers to volun23 tarily participate in the Program; 

24 (2) designate appropriate information systems 

25 to be included in the Program; 


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1 (3) provide compensation to eligible individuals, 

2 organizations, and companies for reports of pre3 viously unidentified security vulnerabilities within 

4 the information systems designated under paragraph 

5 (2) and establish criteria for individuals, organiza6 tions, and companies to be considered eligible for 

7 such compensation in compliance with Federal laws; 

8 (4) consult with the Attorney General on how 

9 to ensure that approved individuals, organizations, 

10 and companies that comply with the requirements of 

11 the Program are protected from prosecution under 

12 section 1030 of title 18, United States Code, and 

13 similar provisions of law; 

14 (5) consult with the Secretary of Defense and 

15 the heads of other departments and agencies that 

16 have implemented programs to provide compensation 

17 for reports of previously undisclosed vulnerabilities 

18 in information systems, regarding lessons that may 

19 be applied from such programs; 

20 (6) develop an expeditious process by which an 

21 individual, organization, or company can register 

22 with the Department, submit to a background check 

23 as determined by the Department, and receive a de24 termination regarding eligibility for participation in 

25 the Program; and 


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1 (7) engage qualified interested persons, includ2 ing representatives of private entities, about the 

3 structure of the Program and, to the extent prac4 ticable, establish a recurring competition for inde5 pendent technical experts to assess election systems 

6 for the purpose of identifying and reporting election 

7 cybersecurity vulnerabilities. 

8 (d) USE OF SERVICE PROVIDERS.—The Secretary 

9 may award competitive contracts as necessary to manage 

10 the Program. 

11 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

12 (1) The term ‘‘Department’’ means the Depart13 ment of Homeland Security. 

14 (2) The terms ‘‘election’’ and ‘‘Federal office’’ 

15 have the meanings given such terms in section 301 

16 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

17 U.S.C. 30101). 

18 (3) The term ‘‘election cybersecurity vulner19 ability’’ means any security vulnerability that affects 

20 an election system. 

21 (4) The term ‘‘election infrastructure’’ has the 

22 meaning given such term in paragraph (6) of section 

23 2 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 

24 101), as added by section 3021 of this title. 


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1 (5) The term ‘‘election service provider’’ means 

2 any person providing, supporting, or maintaining an 

3 election system on behalf of a State or local election 

4 official, such as a contractor or vendor. 

5 (6) The term ‘‘election system’’ means any in6 formation system which is part of an election infra7 structure. 

8 (7) The term ‘‘information system’’ has the 

9 meaning given such term in section 3502 of title 44, 

10 United States Code. 

11 (8) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

12 of Homeland Security, or, upon designation by the 

13 Secretary of Homeland Security, the Deputy Sec14 retary of Homeland Security, the Director of Cyber15 security and Infrastructure Security of the Cyberse16 curity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the De17 partment of Homeland Security, or a Senate-con18 firmed official who reports to the Director. 

19 (9) The term ‘‘security vulnerability’’ has the 

20 meaning given such term in section 102 of the Cy21 bersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 (6 

22 U.S.C. 1501). 

23 (10) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the sev24 eral States, the District of Columbia, the Common25 wealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the 


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1 Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and 

2 the United States Virgin Islands. 

3 (11) The term ‘‘voting system’’ has the mean4 ing given such term in section 301(b) of the Help 

5 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081(b)). 

6 Subtitle F—Election Security 

7 Grants Advisory Committee 

8 SEC. 3501. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title II of the Help 

10 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20921 et seq.) is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘PART 5—ELECTION SECURITY GRANTS 

13 ADVISORY COMMITTEE 

14 ‘‘SEC. 225. ELECTION SECURITY GRANTS ADVISORY COM15 MITTEE. 

16 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established 

17 an advisory committee (hereinafter in this part referred 

18 to as the ‘Committee’) to assist the Commission with re19 spect to the award of grants to States under this Act for 

20 the purpose of election security. 

21 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall, with 

23 respect to an application for a grant received by the 

24 Commission— 

25 ‘‘(A) review such application; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) recommend to the Commission 

2 whether to award the grant to the applicant. 

3 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In reviewing an appli4 cation pursuant to paragraph (1)(A), the Committee 

5 shall consider— 

6 ‘‘(A) the record of the applicant with re7 spect to— 

8 ‘‘(i) compliance of the applicant with 

9 the requirements under subtitle A of title 

10 III; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) adoption of voluntary guidelines 

12 issued by the Commission under subtitle B 

13 of title III; and 

14 ‘‘(B) the goals and requirements of elec15 tion security as described in title III of the For 

16 the People Act of 2021. 

17 ‘‘(c) MEMBERSHIP.—The Committee shall be com18 posed of 15 individuals appointed by the Executive Direc19 tor of the Commission with experience and expertise in 

20 election security. 

21 ‘‘(d) NO COMPENSATION FOR SERVICE.—Members of 

22 the Committee shall not receive any compensation for 

23 their service, but shall be paid travel expenses, including 

24 per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for em25 ployees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of 


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1 title 5, United States Code, while away from their homes 

2 or regular places of business in the performance of services 

3 for the Committee.’’. 

4 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

5 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 

6 to section 223 the following new items: 

‘‘PART 5—ELECTION SECURITY GRANTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE

‘‘Sec. 225. Election security grants advisory committee.’’. 

7 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

8 this section shall take effect 1 year after the date of enact9 ment of this Act. 

10 Subtitle G—Miscellaneous 

11 Provisions 

12 SEC. 3601. DEFINITIONS. 

13 Except as provided in sections 3106 and 3402, in this 

14 title, the following definitions apply: 

15 (1) CHAIRMAN.—The term ‘‘Chairman’’ means 

16 the chair of the Election Assistance Commission. 

17 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT18 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com19 mittees’’ means the Committees on Homeland Secu20 rity and House Administration of the House of Rep21 resentatives and the Committees on Homeland Secu22 rity and Governmental Affairs and Rules and Ad23 ministration of the Senate. 


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1 (3) CHIEF STATE ELECTION OFFICIAL.—The 

2 term ‘‘chief State election official’’ means, with re3 spect to a State, the individual designated by the 

4 State under section 10 of the National Voter Reg5 istration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20509) to be re6 sponsible for coordination of the State’s responsibil7 ities under such Act. 

8 (4) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

9 means the Election Assistance Commission. 

10 (5) DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS.—The term 

11 ‘‘democratic institutions’’ means the diverse range of 

12 institutions that are essential to ensuring an inde13 pendent judiciary, free and fair elections, and rule of 

14 law. 

15 (6) ELECTION AGENCY.—The term ‘‘election 

16 agency’’ means any component of a State, or any 

17 component of a unit of local government in a State, 

18 which is responsible for the administration of elec19 tions for Federal office in the State. 

20 (7) ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE.—The term 

21 ‘‘election infrastructure’’ means storage facilities, 

22 polling places, and centralized vote tabulation loca23 tions used to support the administration of elections 

24 for public office, as well as related information and 

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1 tion databases, voting machines, electronic mail and 

2 other communications systems (including electronic 

3 mail and other systems of vendors who have entered 

4 into contracts with election agencies to support the 

5 administration of elections, manage the election 

6 process, and report and display election results), and 

7 other systems used to manage the election process 

8 and to report and display election results on behalf 

9 of an election agency. 

10 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

11 the Secretary of Homeland Security. 

12 (9) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean13 ing given such term in section 901 of the Help 

14 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21141). 

15 SEC. 3602. INITIAL REPORT ON ADEQUACY OF RESOURCES 

16 AVAILABLE FOR IMPLEMENTATION. 

17 Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment 

18 of this Act, the Chairman and the Secretary shall submit 

19 a report to the appropriate committees of Congress, in20 cluding the Committees on Homeland Security and House 

21 Administration of the House of Representatives and the 

22 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Af23 fairs of the Senate, analyzing the adequacy of the funding, 

24 resources, and personnel available to carry out this title 

25 and the amendments made by this title. 


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1 Subtitle H—Use of Voting Machines 

2 Manufactured in the United States 

3 SEC. 3701. USE OF VOTING MACHINES MANUFACTURED IN 

4 THE UNITED STATES. 

5 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Section 301(a) of the Help 

6 America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)), as 

7 amended by section 1504, section 1506, and section 1507, 

8 is further amended by adding at the end the following new 

9 paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(11) VOTING MACHINE REQUIREMENTS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) MANUFACTURING REQUIREMENTS.— 

12 By not later than the date of the regularly 

13 scheduled general election for Federal office oc14 curring in November 2024, each State shall 

15 seek to ensure to the extent practicable that 

16 any voting machine used in such election and in 

17 any subsequent election for Federal office is 

18 manufactured in the United States. 

19 ‘‘(B) ASSEMBLY REQUIREMENTS.—By not 

20 later than the date of the regularly scheduled 

21 general election for Federal office occurring in 

22 November 2024, each State shall seek to ensure 

23 that any voting machine purchased or acquired 

24 for such election and in any subsequent election 


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1 for Federal office is assembled in the United 

2 States. 

3 ‘‘(C) SOFTWARE AND CODE REQUIRE4 MENTS.—By not later than the date of the reg5 ularly scheduled general election for Federal of6 fice occurring in November 2024, each State 

7 shall seek to ensure that any software or code 

8 developed for any voting system purchased or 

9 acquired for such election and in any subse10 quent election for Federal office is developed 

11 and stored in the United States.’’. 

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO EF13 FECTIVE DATE.—Section 301(d)(1) of such Act (52 

14 U.S.C. 21081(d)(1)), as amended by section 1508, is 

15 amended by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub16 section (a)(11) and paragraph (2)’’. 

17 Subtitle I—Severability 

18 SEC. 3801. SEVERABILITY. 

19 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

20 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

21 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu22 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

23 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

24 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

25 affected by the holding. 


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1 DIVISION B—CAMPAIGN 

2 FINANCE 

3 TITLE IV—CAMPAIGN FINANCE 

4 TRANSPARENCY 

5 Subtitle A—Establishing Duty to 

6 Report Foreign Election Inter7 ference 

8 SEC. 4001. FINDINGS RELATING TO ILLICIT MONEY UNDER9 MINING OUR DEMOCRACY. 

10 Congress finds the following: 

11 (1) Criminals, terrorists, and corrupt govern12 ment officials frequently abuse anonymously held 

13 Limited Liability Companies (LLCs), also known as 

14 ‘‘shell companies,’’ to hide, move, and launder the 

15 dirty money derived from illicit activities such as 

16 trafficking, bribery, exploitation, and embezzlement. 

17 Ownership and control of the finances that run 

18 through shell companies are obscured to regulators 

19 and law enforcement because little information is re20 quired and collected when establishing these entities. 

21 (2) The public release of the ‘‘Panama Papers’’ 

22 in 2016 and the ‘‘Paradise Papers’’ in 2017 revealed 

23 that these shell companies often purchase and sell 

24 United States real estate. United States anti-money 

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1 volving real estate effectively concealing the bene2 ficiaries and transactions from regulators and law 

3 enforcement. 

4 (3) Since the Supreme Court’s decisions in Citi5 zens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 

6 U.S. 310 (2010), millions of dollars have flowed into 

7 super PACs through LLCs whose funders are anon8 ymous or intentionally obscured. Criminal investiga9 tions have uncovered LLCs that were used to hide 

10 illegal campaign contributions from foreign criminal 

11 fugitives, to advance international influence-buying 

12 schemes, and to conceal contributions from donors 

13 who were already under investigation for bribery and 

14 racketeering. Voters have no way to know the true 

15 sources of the money being routed through these 

16 LLCs to influence elections, including whether any 

17 of the funds come from foreign or other illicit 

18 sources. 

19 (4) Congress should curb the use of anonymous 

20 shell companies for illicit purposes by requiring 

21 United States companies to disclose their beneficial 

22 owners, strengthening anti-money laundering and 

23 counter-terrorism finance laws. 

24 (5) Congress should examine the money laun25 dering and terrorist financing risks in the real estate 


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1 market, including the role of anonymous parties, and 

2 review legislation to address any vulnerabilities iden3 tified in this sector. 

4 (6) Congress should examine the methods by 

5 which corruption flourishes and the means to detect 

6 and deter the financial misconduct that fuels this 

7 driver of global instability. Congress should monitor 

8 government efforts to enforce United States anti9 corruption laws and regulations. 

10 SEC. 4002. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN REPORTING OF FOREIGN 

11 CONTACTS. 

12 (a) INITIAL NOTICE.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal 

14 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104) 

15 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

16 subsection: 

17 ‘‘(j) DISCLOSURE OF REPORTABLE FOREIGN CON18 TACTS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) COMMITTEE OBLIGATION TO NOTIFY.— 

20 Not later than 1 week after a reportable foreign con21 tact, each political committee shall notify the Fed22 eral Bureau of Investigation and the Commission of 

23 the reportable foreign contact and provide a sum24 mary of the circumstances with respect to such re25 portable foreign contact. The Federal Bureau of InVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00513 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 vestigation, not later than 1 week after receiving a 

2 notification from a political committee under this 

3 paragraph, shall submit to the political committee, 

4 the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of 

5 the House of Representatives, and the Select Com6 mittee on Intelligence of the Senate written or elec7 tronic confirmation of receipt of the notification. 

8 ‘‘(2) INDIVIDUAL OBLIGATION TO NOTIFY.— 

9 Not later than 3 days after a reportable foreign con10 tact— 

11 ‘‘(A) each candidate and each immediate 

12 family member of a candidate shall notify the 

13 treasurer or other designated official of the 

14 principal campaign committee of such candidate 

15 of the reportable foreign contact and provide a 

16 summary of the circumstances with respect to 

17 such reportable foreign contact; and 

18 ‘‘(B) each official, employee, or agent of a 

19 political committee shall notify the treasurer or 

20 other designated official of the committee of the 

21 reportable foreign contact and provide a sum22 mary of the circumstances with respect to such 

23 reportable foreign contact. 

24 ‘‘(3) REPORTABLE FOREIGN CONTACT.—In this 

25 subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘reportable 

2 foreign contact’ means any direct or indirect 

3 contact or communication that— 

4 ‘‘(i) is between— 

5 ‘‘(I) a candidate, an immediate 

6 family member of the candidate, a po7 litical committee, or any official, em8 ployee, or agent of such committee; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(II) an individual that the per11 son described in subclause (I) knows, 

12 has reason to know, or reasonably be13 lieves is a covered foreign national; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(ii) the person described in clause 

16 (i)(I) knows, has reason to know, or rea17 sonably believes involves— 

18 ‘‘(I) an offer or other proposal 

19 for a contribution, donation, expendi20 ture, disbursement, or solicitation de21 scribed in section 319; or 

22 ‘‘(II) coordination or collabora23 tion with, an offer or provision of in24 formation or services to or from, or 

25 persistent and repeated contact with, 


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1 a covered foreign national in connec2 tion with an election. 

3 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(i) CONTACTS IN OFFICIAL CAPACITY

5 AS ELECTED OFFICIAL.—The term ‘report6 able foreign contact’ shall not include any 

7 contact or communication with a covered 

8 foreign national by an elected official or an 

9 employee of an elected official solely in an 

10 official capacity as such an official or em11 ployee. 

12 ‘‘(ii) CONTACTS FOR PURPOSES OF

13 ENABLING OBSERVATION OF ELECTIONS

14 BY INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS.—The 

15 term ‘reportable foreign contact’ shall not 

16 include any contact or communication with 

17 a covered foreign national by any person 

18 which is made for purposes of enabling the 

19 observation of elections in the United 

20 States by a foreign national or the obser21 vation of elections outside of the United 

22 States by a candidate, political committee, 

23 or any official, employee, or agent of such 

24 committee. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) EXCEPTIONS NOT APPLICABLE

2 IF CONTACTS OR COMMUNICATIONS IN3 VOLVE PROHIBITED DISBURSEMENTS.—A 

4 contact or communication by an elected of5 ficial or an employee of an elected official 

6 shall not be considered to be made solely 

7 in an official capacity for purposes of 

8 clause (i), and a contact or communication 

9 shall not be considered to be made for pur10 poses of enabling the observation of elec11 tions for purposes of clause (ii), if the con12 tact or communication involves a contribu13 tion, donation, expenditure, disbursement, 

14 or solicitation described in section 319. 

15 ‘‘(C) COVERED FOREIGN NATIONAL DE16 FINED.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In this paragraph, 

18 the term ‘covered foreign national’ 

19 means— 

20 ‘‘(I) a foreign principal (as de21 fined in section 1(b) of the Foreign 

22 Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 

23 U.S.C. 611(b)) that is a government 

24 of a foreign country or a foreign polit25 ical party; 


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1 ‘‘(II) any person who acts as an 

2 agent, representative, employee, or 

3 servant, or any person who acts in 

4 any other capacity at the order, re5 quest, or under the direction or con6 trol, of a foreign principal described in 

7 subclause (I) or of a person any of 

8 whose activities are directly or indi9 rectly supervised, directed, controlled, 

10 financed, or subsidized in whole or in 

11 major part by a foreign principal de12 scribed in subclause (I); or 

13 ‘‘(III) any person included in the 

14 list of specially designated nationals 

15 and blocked persons maintained by 

16 the Office of Foreign Assets Control 

17 of the Department of the Treasury 

18 pursuant to authorities relating to the 

19 imposition of sanctions relating to the 

20 conduct of a foreign principal de21 scribed in subclause (I). 

22 ‘‘(ii) CLARIFICATION REGARDING AP23 PLICATION TO CITIZENS OF THE UNITED

24 STATES.—In the case of a citizen of the 

25 United States, subclause (II) of clause (i) 


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1 applies only to the extent that the person 

2 involved acts within the scope of that per3 son’s status as the agent of a foreign prin4 cipal described in subclause (I) of clause 

5 (i). 

6 ‘‘(4) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.—In this 

7 subsection, the term ‘immediate family member’ 

8 means, with respect to a candidate, a parent, parent9 in-law, spouse, adult child, or sibling.’’. 

10 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

11 by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to report12 able foreign contacts which occur on or after the 

13 date of the enactment of this Act. 

14 (b) INFORMATION INCLUDED ON REPORT.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304(b) of such Act 

16 (52 U.S.C. 30104(b)) is amended— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para18 graph (7); 

19 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

20 paragraph (8) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

21 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

22 paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(9) for any reportable foreign contact (as de24 fined in subsection (j)(3))— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the date, time, and location of the 

2 contact; 

3 ‘‘(B) the date and time of when a des4 ignated official of the committee was notified of 

5 the contact; 

6 ‘‘(C) the identity of individuals involved; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(D) a description of the contact, including 

9 the nature of any contribution, donation, ex10 penditure, disbursement, or solicitation involved 

11 and the nature of any activity described in sub12 section (j)(3)(A)(ii)(II) involved.’’. 

13 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

14 by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to reports 

15 filed on or after the expiration of the 60-day period 

16 which begins on the date of the enactment of this 

17 Act. 

18 SEC. 4003. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN FOREIGN CONTACT RE19 PORTING COMPLIANCE SYSTEM. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 302 of the Federal Elec21 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102) is amended 

22 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

23 ‘‘(j) REPORTABLE FOREIGN CONTACTS COMPLIANCE

24 POLICY.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) REPORTING.—Each political committee 

2 shall establish a policy that requires all officials, em3 ployees, and agents of such committee (and, in the 

4 case of an authorized committee, the candidate and 

5 each immediate family member of the candidate) to 

6 notify the treasurer or other appropriate designated 

7 official of the committee of any reportable foreign 

8 contact (as defined in section 304(j)) not later than 

9 3 days after such contact was made. 

10 ‘‘(2) RETENTION AND PRESERVATION OF

11 RECORDS.—Each political committee shall establish 

12 a policy that provides for the retention and preserva13 tion of records and information related to reportable 

14 foreign contacts (as so defined) for a period of not 

15 less than 3 years. 

16 ‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon filing its state18 ment of organization under section 303(a), and 

19 with each report filed under section 304(a), the 

20 treasurer of each political committee (other 

21 than an authorized committee) shall certify 

22 that— 

23 ‘‘(i) the committee has in place poli24 cies that meet the requirements of para25 graphs (1) and (2); 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the committee has designated an 

2 official to monitor compliance with such 

3 policies; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) not later than 1 week after the 

5 beginning of any formal or informal affili6 ation with the committee, all officials, em7 ployees, and agents of such committee 

8 will— 

9 ‘‘(I) receive notice of such poli10 cies; 

11 ‘‘(II) be informed of the prohibi12 tions under section 319; and 

13 ‘‘(III) sign a certification affirm14 ing their understanding of such poli15 cies and prohibitions. 

16 ‘‘(B) AUTHORIZED COMMITTEES.—With 

17 respect to an authorized committee, the can18 didate shall make the certification required 

19 under subparagraph (A).’’. 

20 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendment made by 

22 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to political 

23 committees which file a statement of organization 

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1 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30103(a)) on or after 

2 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

3 (2) TRANSITION RULE FOR EXISTING COMMIT4 TEES.—Not later than 30 days after the date of the 

5 enactment of this Act, each political committee 

6 under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

7 shall file a certification with the Federal Election 

8 Commission that the committee is in compliance 

9 with the requirements of section 302(j) of such Act 

10 (as added by subsection (a)). 

11 SEC. 4004. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 

12 Section 309(d)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign 

13 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(d)(1)) is amended by add14 ing at the end the following new subparagraphs: 

15 ‘‘(E) Any person who knowingly and willfully com16 mits a violation of subsection (j) or (b)(9) of section 304 

17 or section 302(j) shall be fined not more than $500,000, 

18 imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. 

19 ‘‘(F) Any person who knowingly and willfully conceals 

20 or destroys any materials relating to a reportable foreign 

21 contact (as defined in section 304(j)) shall be fined not 

22 more than $1,000,000, imprisoned not more than 5 years, 

23 or both.’’. 


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1 SEC. 4005. REPORT TO CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE 

2 COMMITTEES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 

5 the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall 

6 submit to the congressional intelligence committees a re7 port relating to notifications received by the Federal Bu8 reau of Investigation under section 304(j)(1) of the Fed9 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by section 

10 4002(a) of this Act). 

11 (b) ELEMENTS.—Each report under subsection (a) 

12 shall include, at a minimum, the following with respect 

13 to notifications described in subsection (a): 

14 (1) The number of such notifications received 

15 from political committees during the year covered by 

16 the report. 

17 (2) A description of protocols and procedures 

18 developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation re19 lating to receipt and maintenance of records relating 

20 to such notifications. 

21 (3) With respect to such notifications received 

22 during the year covered by the report, a description 

23 of any subsequent actions taken by the Director re24 sulting from the receipt of such notifications. 

25 (c) CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEES

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1 ligence committees’’ has the meaning given that term in 

2 section 3 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 

3 3003). 

4 SEC. 4006. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

5 Nothing in this subtitle or the amendments made by 

6 this subtitle shall be construed— 

7 (1) to impede legitimate journalistic activities; 

8 or 

9 (2) to impose any additional limitation on the 

10 right to express political views or to participate in 

11 public discourse of any individual who— 

12 (A) resides in the United States; 

13 (B) is not a citizen of the United States or 

14 a national of the United States, as defined in 

15 section 101(a)(22) of the Immigration and Na16 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(22)); and 

17 (C) is not lawfully admitted for permanent 

18 residence, as defined by section 101(a)(20) of 

19 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

20 1101(a)(20)). 

21 Subtitle B—DISCLOSE Act 

22 SEC. 4100. SHORT TITLE. 

23 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Democracy Is 

24 Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections 

25 Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘DISCLOSE Act of 2021’’. 


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1 PART 1—CLOSING LOOPHOLES ALLOWING 

2 SPENDING BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN ELEC3 TIONS 

4 SEC. 4101. CLARIFICATION OF PROHIBITION ON PARTICI5 PATION BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN ELEC6 TION-RELATED ACTIVITIES. 

7 (a) CLARIFICATION OF PROHIBITION.—Section 

8 319(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

9 U.S.C. 30121(a)) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 

11 (1); 

12 (2) by striking the period at the end of para13 graph (2) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

14 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

15 paragraph: 

16 ‘‘(3) a foreign national to direct, dictate, con17 trol, or directly or indirectly participate in the deci18 sion making process of any person (including a cor19 poration, labor organization, political committee, or 

20 political organization) with regard to such person’s 

21 Federal or non-Federal election-related activity, in22 cluding any decision concerning the making of con23 tributions, donations, expenditures, or disbursements 

24 in connection with an election for any Federal, 

25 State, or local office or any decision concerning the 

26 administration of a political committee.’’. 


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1 (b) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE.—Section 319 

2 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30121) is amended by adding at 

3 the end the following new subsection: 

4 ‘‘(c) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE REQUIRED

5 PRIOR TO CARRYING OUT ACTIVITY.—Prior to the mak6 ing in connection with an election for Federal office of any 

7 contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expendi8 ture, or disbursement for an electioneering communication 

9 by a corporation, labor organization (as defined in section 

10 316(b)), limited liability corporation, or partnership dur11 ing a year, the chief executive officer of the corporation, 

12 labor organization, limited liability corporation, or part13 nership (or, if the corporation, labor organization, limited 

14 liability corporation, or partnership does not have a chief 

15 executive officer, the highest ranking official of the cor16 poration, labor organization, limited liability corporation, 

17 or partnership), shall file a certification with the Commis18 sion, under penalty of perjury, that a foreign national did 

19 not direct, dictate, control, or directly or indirectly partici20 pate in the decision making process relating to such activ21 ity in violation of subsection (a)(3), unless the chief execu22 tive officer has previously filed such a certification during 

23 that calendar year.’’. 

24 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

25 this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the 


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1 180-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 

2 of this Act, and shall take effect without regard to whether 

3 or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 

4 regulations to carry out such amendments. 

5 SEC. 4102. CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN 

6 MONEY BAN TO CERTAIN DISBURSEMENTS 

7 AND ACTIVITIES. 

8 (a) APPLICATION TO DISBURSEMENTS TO SUPER

9 PACS AND OTHER PERSONS.—Section 319(b) of the Fed10 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(b)) 

11 is amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 

13 subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and by 

14 moving such subparagraphs 2 ems to the right; 

15 (2) by striking ‘‘As used in this section’’ and in16 serting the following: ‘‘DEFINITIONS.—For purposes 

17 of this section— 

18 ‘‘(1) FOREIGN NATIONAL.—The term’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

20 paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(2) CONTRIBUTION AND DONATION.—For pur22 poses of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a), 

23 the term ‘contribution or donation’ includes any dis24 bursement to a political committee which accepts do25 nations or contributions that do not comply with any 


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1 of the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting re2 quirements of this Act (or any disbursement to or on 

3 behalf of any account of a political committee which 

4 is established for the purpose of accepting such do5 nations or contributions), or to any other person for 

6 the purpose of funding an expenditure, independent 

7 expenditure, or electioneering communication (as de8 fined in section 304(f)(3)).’’. 

9 (b) CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH CORPORATE PACS

10 MAY MAKE CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES.—Sec11 tion 316(b) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30118(b)) is amended 

12 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(8) A separate segregated fund established by a cor14 poration may not make a contribution or expenditure dur15 ing a year unless the fund has certified to the Commission 

16 the following during the year: 

17 ‘‘(A) Each individual who manages the fund, 

18 and who is responsible for exercising decisionmaking 

19 authority for the fund, is a citizen of the United 

20 States or is lawfully admitted for permanent resi21 dence in the United States. 

22 ‘‘(B) No foreign national under section 319 

23 participates in any way in the decisionmaking proc24 esses of the fund with regard to contributions or ex25 penditures under this Act. 


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1 ‘‘(C) The fund does not solicit or accept rec2 ommendations from any foreign national under sec3 tion 319 with respect to the contributions or expend4 itures made by the fund. 

5 ‘‘(D) Any member of the board of directors of 

6 the corporation who is a foreign national under sec7 tion 319 abstains from voting on matters concerning 

8 the fund or its activities.’’. 

9 SEC. 4103. AUDIT AND REPORT ON ILLICIT FOREIGN 

10 MONEY IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election 

12 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), as 

13 amended by section 1821, is further amended by inserting 

14 after section 319A the following new section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 319B. AUDIT AND REPORT ON DISBURSEMENTS BY 

16 FOREIGN NATIONALS. 

17 ‘‘(a) AUDIT.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall con19 duct an audit after each Federal election cycle to de20 termine the incidence of illicit foreign money in such 

21 Federal election cycle. 

22 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES.—In carrying out paragraph 

23 (1), the Commission shall conduct random audits of 

24 any disbursements required to be reported under 


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1 this Act, in accordance with procedures established 

2 by the Commission. 

3 ‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the end 

4 of each Federal election cycle, the Commission shall sub5 mit to Congress a report containing— 

6 ‘‘(1) results of the audit required by subsection 

7 (a)(1); 

8 ‘‘(2) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 

9 foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 

10 and propaganda campaigns focused on depressing 

11 turnout among rural communities and the success or 

12 failure of these efforts, together with recommenda13 tions to address these efforts in future elections; 

14 ‘‘(3) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 

15 foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 

16 and propaganda campaigns focused on depressing 

17 turnout among African-American and other minority 

18 communities and the success or failure of these ef19 forts, together with recommendations to address 

20 these efforts in future elections; 

21 ‘‘(4) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 

22 foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 

23 and propaganda campaigns focused on influencing 

24 military and veteran communities and the success or 


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1 failure of these efforts, together with recommenda2 tions to address these efforts in future elections; and 

3 ‘‘(5) recommendations to address the presence 

4 of illicit foreign money in elections, as appropriate. 

5 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section: 

6 ‘‘(1) The term ‘Federal election cycle’ means 

7 the period which begins on the day after the date of 

8 a regularly scheduled general election for Federal of9 fice and which ends on the date of the first regularly 

10 scheduled general election for Federal office held 

11 after such date. 

12 ‘‘(2) The term ‘illicit foreign money’ means any 

13 disbursement by a foreign national (as defined in 

14 section 319(b)) prohibited under such section.’’. 

15 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

16 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to the Federal elec17 tion cycle that began during November 2020, and each 

18 succeeding Federal election cycle. 

19 SEC. 4104. PROHIBITION ON CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONA20 TIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN CONNEC21 TION WITH BALLOT INITIATIVES AND 

22 REFERENDA. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 319(b) of the Federal 

24 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(b)), as 


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1 amended by section 4102(a), is amended by adding at the 

2 end the following new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL, STATE, OR LOCAL ELECTION.— 

4 The term ‘Federal, State, or local election’ includes 

5 a State or local ballot initiative or referendum.’’. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

7 this section shall apply with respect to elections held in 

8 2022 or any succeeding year. 

9 SEC. 4105. DISBURSEMENTS AND ACTIVITIES SUBJECT TO 

10 FOREIGN MONEY BAN. 

11 (a) DISBURSEMENTS DESCRIBED.—Section 

12 319(a)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

13 (52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(1)), as amended by section 4101, is 

14 amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph 

16 (B); and 

17 (2) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(C) an expenditure; 

20 ‘‘(D) an independent expenditure; 

21 ‘‘(E) a disbursement for an electioneering 

22 communication (within the meaning of section 

23 304(f)(3)); 

24 ‘‘(F) a disbursement for a communication 

25 which is placed or promoted for a fee on a 


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1 website, web application, or digital application 

2 that refers to a clearly identified candidate for 

3 election for Federal office and is disseminated 

4 within 60 days before a general, special or run5 off election for the office sought by the can6 didate or 30 days before a primary or pref7 erence election, or a convention or caucus of a 

8 political party that has authority to nominate a 

9 candidate for the office sought by the can10 didate; 

11 ‘‘(G) a disbursement for a broadcast, cable 

12 or satellite communication, or for a communica13 tion which is placed or promoted for a fee on 

14 a website, web application, or digital applica15 tion, that promotes, supports, attacks or op16 poses the election of a clearly identified can17 didate for Federal, State, or local office (re18 gardless of whether the communication contains 

19 express advocacy or the functional equivalent of 

20 express advocacy); 

21 ‘‘(H) a disbursement for a broadcast, 

22 cable, or satellite communication, or for any 

23 communication which is placed or promoted for 

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1 lative issue of public importance in a year in 

2 which a regularly scheduled general election for 

3 Federal office is held, but only if the disburse4 ment is made by a covered foreign national de5 scribed in section 304(j)(3)(C); 

6 ‘‘(I) a disbursement by a covered foreign 

7 national described in section 304(j)(3)(C) to 

8 compensate any person for internet activity that 

9 promotes, supports, attacks or opposes the elec10 tion of a clearly identified candidate for Fed11 eral, State, or local office (regardless of whether 

12 the activity contains express advocacy or the 

13 functional equivalent of express advocacy); 

14 ‘‘(J) a disbursement for a Federal judicial 

15 nomination communication (as defined in sec16 tion 324(d)(3));’’. 

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this section shall apply with respect to disbursements 

19 made on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 4106. PROHIBITING ESTABLISHMENT OF CORPORA2 TION TO CONCEAL ELECTION CONTRIBU3 TIONS AND DONATIONS BY FOREIGN NATION4 ALS. 

5 (a) PROHIBITION.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 

6 States Code, as amended by section 1071(a) and section 

7 1941, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘§ 614. Establishment of corporation to conceal elec9 tion contributions and donations by for10 eign nationals 

11 ‘‘(a) OFFENSE.—It shall be unlawful for an owner, 

12 officer, attorney, or incorporation agent of a corporation, 

13 company, or other entity to establish or use the corpora14 tion, company, or other entity with the intent to conceal 

15 an activity of a foreign national (as defined in section 319 

16 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

17 30121)) prohibited under such section 319. 

18 ‘‘(b) PENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 

19 (a) shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years, fined 

20 under this title, or both.’’. 

21 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections for 

22 chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, as amended 

23 by section 1071(b) and section 1941, is amended by in24 serting after the item relating to section 612 the following: 

‘‘614. Establishment of corporation to conceal election contributions and donations by foreign nationals.’’. 


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1 PART 2—REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED 

2 DISBURSEMENTS 

3 SEC. 4111. REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE4 MENTS. 

5 (a) DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS FOR CORPORA6 TIONS, LABOR ORGANIZATIONS, AND CERTAIN OTHER

7 ENTITIES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 324 of the Federal 

9 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30126) 

10 is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 324. DISCLOSURE OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE12 MENTS BY COVERED ORGANIZATIONS. 

13 ‘‘(a) DISCLOSURE STATEMENT.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any covered organization 

15 that makes campaign-related disbursements aggre16 gating more than $10,000 in an election reporting 

17 cycle shall, not later than 24 hours after each disclo18 sure date, file a statement with the Commission 

19 made under penalty of perjury that contains the in20 formation described in paragraph (2)— 

21 ‘‘(A) in the case of the first statement filed 

22 under this subsection, for the period beginning 

23 on the first day of the election reporting cycle 

24 (or, if earlier, the period beginning one year be25 fore the first such disclosure date) and ending 

26 on the first such disclosure date; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) in the case of any subsequent state2 ment filed under this subsection, for the period 

3 beginning on the previous disclosure date and 

4 ending on such disclosure date. 

5 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—The informa6 tion described in this paragraph is as follows: 

7 ‘‘(A) The name of the covered organization 

8 and the principal place of business of such or9 ganization and, in the case of a covered organi10 zation that is a corporation (other than a busi11 ness concern that is an issuer of a class of secu12 rities registered under section 12 of the Securi13 ties Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78l) or 

14 that is required to file reports under section 

15 15(d) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 78o(d))) or an en16 tity described in subsection (e)(2), a list of the 

17 beneficial owners (as defined in paragraph 

18 (4)(A)) of the entity that— 

19 ‘‘(i) identifies each beneficial owner by 

20 name and current residential or business 

21 street address; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) if any beneficial owner exercises 

23 control over the entity through another 

24 legal entity, such as a corporation, partner25 ship, limited liability company, or trust, 


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1 identifies each such other legal entity and 

2 each such beneficial owner who will use 

3 that other entity to exercise control over 

4 the entity. 

5 ‘‘(B) The amount of each campaign-related 

6 disbursement made by such organization during 

7 the period covered by the statement of more 

8 than $1,000, and the name and address of the 

9 person to whom the disbursement was made. 

10 ‘‘(C) In the case of a campaign-related dis11 bursement that is not a covered transfer, the 

12 election to which the campaign-related disburse13 ment pertains and if the disbursement is made 

14 for a public communication, the name of any 

15 candidate identified in such communication and 

16 whether such communication is in support of or 

17 in opposition to a candidate. 

18 ‘‘(D) A certification by the chief executive 

19 officer or person who is the head of the covered 

20 organization that the campaign-related dis21 bursement is not made in cooperation, consulta22 tion, or concert with or at the request or sug23 gestion of a candidate, authorized committee, or 

24 agent of a candidate, political party, or agent of 

25 a political party. 


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1 ‘‘(E)(i) If the covered organization makes 

2 campaign-related disbursements using exclu3 sively funds in a segregated bank account con4 sisting of funds that were paid directly to such 

5 account by persons other than the covered orga6 nization that controls the account, for each 

7 such payment to the account— 

8 ‘‘(I) the name and address of each 

9 person who made such payment during the 

10 period covered by the statement; 

11 ‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 

12 payment; and 

13 ‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 

14 such payments made by the person during 

15 the period beginning on the first day of the 

16 election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 

17 period beginning one year before the dis18 closure date) and ending on the disclosure 

19 date, 

20 but only if such payment was made by a person 

21 who made payments to the account in an aggre22 gate amount of $10,000 or more during the pe23 riod beginning on the first day of the election 

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1 ning one year before the disclosure date) and 

2 ending on the disclosure date. 

3 ‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2022, sec4 tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de5 scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 

6 such section applies to the limitations estab7 lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 

8 (a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for 

9 purposes of applying such section to the 

10 amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 

11 period’ shall be calendar year 2022. 

12 ‘‘(F)(i) If the covered organization makes 

13 campaign-related disbursements using funds 

14 other than funds in a segregated bank account 

15 described in subparagraph (E), for each pay16 ment to the covered organization— 

17 ‘‘(I) the name and address of each 

18 person who made such payment during the 

19 period covered by the statement; 

20 ‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 

21 payment; and 

22 ‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 

23 such payments made by the person during 

24 the period beginning on the first day of the 

25 election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 


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1 period beginning one year before the dis2 closure date) and ending on the disclosure 

3 date, 

4 but only if such payment was made by a person 

5 who made payments to the covered organization 

6 in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more 

7 during the period beginning on the first day of 

8 the election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 

9 period beginning one year before the disclosure 

10 date) and ending on the disclosure date. 

11 ‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2022, sec12 tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de13 scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 

14 such section applies to the limitations estab15 lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 

16 (a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for 

17 purposes of applying such section to the 

18 amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 

19 period’ shall be calendar year 2022. 

20 ‘‘(G) Such other information as required in 

21 rules established by the Commission to promote 

22 the purposes of this section. 

23 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(A) AMOUNTS RECEIVED IN ORDINARY

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1 clude in a statement filed under paragraph (1) 

2 the information described in paragraph (2) 

3 shall not apply to amounts received by the cov4 ered organization in commercial transactions in 

5 the ordinary course of any trade or business 

6 conducted by the covered organization or in the 

7 form of investments (other than investments by 

8 the principal shareholder in a limited liability 

9 corporation) in the covered organization. For 

10 purposes of this subparagraph, amounts re11 ceived by a covered organization as remittances 

12 from an employee to the employee’s collective 

13 bargaining representative shall be treated as 

14 amounts received in commercial transactions in 

15 the ordinary course of the business conducted 

16 by the covered organization. 

17 ‘‘(B) DONOR RESTRICTION ON USE OF

18 FUNDS.—The requirement to include in a state19 ment submitted under paragraph (1) the infor20 mation described in subparagraph (F) of para21 graph (2) shall not apply if— 

22 ‘‘(i) the person described in such sub23 paragraph prohibited, in writing, the use of 

24 the payment made by such person for cam25 paign-related disbursements; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the covered organization agreed 

2 to follow the prohibition and deposited the 

3 payment in an account which is segregated 

4 from any account used to make campaign5 related disbursements. 

6 ‘‘(C) THREAT OF HARASSMENT OR RE7 PRISAL.—The requirement to include any infor8 mation relating to the name or address of any 

9 person (other than a candidate) in a statement 

10 submitted under paragraph (1) shall not apply 

11 if the inclusion of the information would subject 

12 the person to serious threats, harassment, or 

13 reprisals. 

14 ‘‘(4) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 

15 this section: 

16 ‘‘(A) BENEFICIAL OWNER DEFINED.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro18 vided in clause (ii), the term ‘beneficial 

19 owner’ means, with respect to any entity, 

20 a natural person who, directly or indi21 rectly— 

22 ‘‘(I) exercises substantial control 

23 over an entity through ownership, vot24 ing rights, agreement, or otherwise; or 


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1 ‘‘(II) has a substantial interest in 

2 or receives substantial economic bene3 fits from the assets of an entity. 

4 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTIONS.—The term ‘bene5 ficial owner’ shall not include— 

6 ‘‘(I) a minor child; 

7 ‘‘(II) a person acting as a nomi8 nee, intermediary, custodian, or agent 

9 on behalf of another person; 

10 ‘‘(III) a person acting solely as 

11 an employee of an entity and whose 

12 control over or economic benefits from 

13 the entity derives solely from the em14 ployment status of the person; 

15 ‘‘(IV) a person whose only inter16 est in an entity is through a right of 

17 inheritance, unless the person also 

18 meets the requirements of clause (i); 

19 or 

20 ‘‘(V) a creditor of an entity, un21 less the creditor also meets the re22 quirements of clause (i). 

23 ‘‘(iii) ANTI-ABUSE RULE.—The excep24 tions under clause (ii) shall not apply if 

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1 venting, or abusing the provisions of clause 

2 (i) or paragraph (2)(A). 

3 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE DATE.—The term ‘dis4 closure date’ means— 

5 ‘‘(i) the first date during any election 

6 reporting cycle by which a person has 

7 made campaign-related disbursements ag8 gregating more than $10,000; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) any other date during such elec10 tion reporting cycle by which a person has 

11 made campaign-related disbursements ag12 gregating more than $10,000 since the 

13 most recent disclosure date for such elec14 tion reporting cycle. 

15 ‘‘(C) ELECTION REPORTING CYCLE.—The 

16 term ‘election reporting cycle’ means the 2-year 

17 period beginning on the date of the most recent 

18 general election for Federal office, except that 

19 in the case of a campaign-related disbursement 

20 for a Federal judicial nomination communica21 tion, such term means any calendar year in 

22 which the campaign-related disbursement is 

23 made. 


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1 ‘‘(D) PAYMENT.—The term ‘payment’ in2 cludes any contribution, donation, transfer, pay3 ment of dues, or other payment. 

4 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROVISIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) OTHER REPORTS FILED WITH THE COM6 MISSION.—Information included in a statement filed 

7 under this section may be excluded from statements 

8 and reports filed under section 304. 

9 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT AS SEPARATE SEGREGATED

10 FUND.—A segregated bank account referred to in 

11 subsection (a)(2)(E) may be treated as a separate 

12 segregated fund for purposes of section 527(f)(3) of 

13 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

14 ‘‘(c) FILING.—Statements required to be filed under 

15 subsection (a) shall be subject to the requirements of sec16 tion 304(d) to the same extent and in the same manner 

17 as if such reports had been required under subsection (c) 

18 or (g) of section 304. 

19 ‘‘(d) CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSEMENT DE20 FINED.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 

22 ‘campaign-related disbursement’ means a disburse23 ment by a covered organization for any of the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(A) An independent expenditure which ex2 pressly advocates the election or defeat of a 

3 clearly identified candidate for election for Fed4 eral office, or is the functional equivalent of ex5 press advocacy because, when taken as a whole, 

6 it can be interpreted by a reasonable person 

7 only as advocating the election or defeat of a 

8 candidate for election for Federal office. 

9 ‘‘(B) An applicable public communication. 

10 ‘‘(C) An electioneering communication, as 

11 defined in section 304(f)(3). 

12 ‘‘(D) A Federal judicial nomination com13 munication. 

14 ‘‘(E) A covered transfer. 

15 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘applicable 

17 public communication’ means any public com18 munication that refers to a clearly identified 

19 candidate for election for Federal office and 

20 which promotes or supports the election of a 

21 candidate for that office, or attacks or opposes 

22 the election of a candidate for that office, with23 out regard to whether the communication ex24 pressly advocates a vote for or against a can25 didate for that office. 


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1 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Such term shall not in2 clude any news story, commentary, or editorial 

3 distributed through the facilities of any broad4 casting station or any print, online, or digital 

5 newspaper, magazine, publication, or periodical, 

6 unless such facilities are owned or controlled by 

7 any political party, political committee, or can8 didate. 

9 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL JUDICIAL NOMINATION COMMU10 NICATION.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Federal ju12 dicial nomination communication’ means any 

13 communication— 

14 ‘‘(i) that is by means of any broad15 cast, cable, or satellite, paid internet, or 

16 paid digital communication, paid pro17 motion, newspaper, magazine, outdoor ad18 vertising facility, mass mailing, telephone 

19 bank, telephone messaging effort of more 

20 than 500 substantially similar calls or elec21 tronic messages within a 30-day period, or 

22 any other form of general public political 

23 advertising; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) which promotes, supports, at25 tacks, or opposes the nomination or Senate 


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1 confirmation of an individual as a Federal 

2 judge or justice. 

3 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Such term shall not in4 clude any news story, commentary, or editorial 

5 distributed through the facilities of any broad6 casting station or any print, online, or digital 

7 newspaper, magazine, publication, or periodical, 

8 unless such facilities are owned or controlled by 

9 any political party, political committee, or can10 didate. 

11 ‘‘(4) INTENT NOT REQUIRED.—A disbursement 

12 for an item described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), 

13 (D), or (E) of paragraph (1) shall be treated as a 

14 campaign-related disbursement regardless of the in15 tent of the person making the disbursement. 

16 ‘‘(e) COVERED ORGANIZATION DEFINED.—In this 

17 section, the term ‘covered organization’ means any of the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(1) A corporation (other than an organization 

20 described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Rev21 enue Code of 1986). 

22 ‘‘(2) A limited liability corporation that is not 

23 otherwise treated as a corporation for purposes of 

24 this Act (other than an organization described in 


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1 section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

2 1986). 

3 ‘‘(3) An organization described in section 

4 501(c) of such Code and exempt from taxation 

5 under section 501(a) of such Code (other than an 

6 organization described in section 501(c)(3) of such 

7 Code). 

8 ‘‘(4) A labor organization (as defined in section 

9 316(b)). 

10 ‘‘(5) Any political organization under section 

11 527 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, other 

12 than a political committee under this Act (except as 

13 provided in paragraph (6)). 

14 ‘‘(6) A political committee with an account that 

15 accepts donations or contributions that do not com16 ply with the contribution limits or source prohibi17 tions under this Act, but only with respect to such 

18 accounts. 

19 ‘‘(f) COVERED TRANSFER DEFINED.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 

21 ‘covered transfer’ means any transfer or payment of 

22 funds by a covered organization to another person if 

23 the covered organization— 

24 ‘‘(A) designates, requests, or suggests that 

25 the amounts be used for— 


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1 ‘‘(i) campaign-related disbursements 

2 (other than covered transfers); or 

3 ‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 

4 person for the purpose of making or pay5 ing for such campaign-related disburse6 ments; 

7 ‘‘(B) made such transfer or payment in re8 sponse to a solicitation or other request for a 

9 donation or payment for— 

10 ‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam11 paign-related disbursements (other than 

12 covered transfers); or 

13 ‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 

14 person for the purpose of making or pay15 ing for such campaign-related disburse16 ments; 

17 ‘‘(C) engaged in discussions with the re18 cipient of the transfer or payment regarding— 

19 ‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam20 paign-related disbursements (other than 

21 covered transfers); or 

22 ‘‘(ii) donating or transferring any 

23 amount of such transfer or payment to an24 other person for the purpose of making or 


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1 paying for such campaign-related disburse2 ments; 

3 ‘‘(D) made campaign-related disburse4 ments (other than a covered transfer) in an ag5 gregate amount of $50,000 or more during the 

6 2-year period ending on the date of the transfer 

7 or payment, or knew or had reason to know 

8 that the person receiving the transfer or pay9 ment made such disbursements in such an ag10 gregate amount during that 2-year period; or 

11 ‘‘(E) knew or had reason to know that the 

12 person receiving the transfer or payment would 

13 make campaign-related disbursements in an ag14 gregate amount of $50,000 or more during the 

15 2-year period beginning on the date of the 

16 transfer or payment. 

17 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘covered transfer’ 

18 does not include any of the following: 

19 ‘‘(A) A disbursement made by a covered 

20 organization in a commercial transaction in the 

21 ordinary course of any trade or business con22 ducted by the covered organization or in the 

23 form of investments made by the covered orga24 nization. 


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1 ‘‘(B) A disbursement made by a covered 

2 organization if— 

3 ‘‘(i) the covered organization prohib4 ited, in writing, the use of such disburse5 ment for campaign-related disbursements; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(ii) the recipient of the disbursement 

8 agreed to follow the prohibition and depos9 ited the disbursement in an account which 

10 is segregated from any account used to 

11 make campaign-related disbursements. 

12 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE REGARDING TRANSFERS

13 AMONG AFFILIATES.— 

14 ‘‘(A) SPECIAL RULE.—A transfer of an 

15 amount by one covered organization to another 

16 covered organization which is treated as a 

17 transfer between affiliates under subparagraph 

18 (C) shall be considered a covered transfer by 

19 the covered organization which transfers the 

20 amount only if the aggregate amount trans21 ferred during the year by such covered organi22 zation to that same covered organization is 

23 equal to or greater than $50,000. 

24 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF

25 CERTAIN PAYMENTS AMONG AFFILIATES.—In 


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1 determining the amount of a transfer between 

2 affiliates for purposes of subparagraph (A), to 

3 the extent that the transfer consists of funds 

4 attributable to dues, fees, or assessments which 

5 are paid by individuals on a regular, periodic 

6 basis in accordance with a per-individual cal7 culation which is made on a regular basis, the 

8 transfer shall be attributed to the individuals 

9 paying the dues, fees, or assessments and shall 

10 not be attributed to the covered organization. 

11 ‘‘(C) DESCRIPTION OF TRANSFERS BE12 TWEEN AFFILIATES.—A transfer of amounts 

13 from one covered organization to another cov14 ered organization shall be treated as a transfer 

15 between affiliates if— 

16 ‘‘(i) one of the organizations is an af17 filiate of the other organization; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) each of the organizations is an 

19 affiliate of the same organization, 

20 except that the transfer shall not be treated as 

21 a transfer between affiliates if one of the orga22 nizations is established for the purpose of mak23 ing campaign-related disbursements. 

24 ‘‘(D) DETERMINATION OF AFFILIATE STA25 TUS.—For purposes of subparagraph (C), a 


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1 covered organization is an affiliate of another 

2 covered organization if— 

3 ‘‘(i) the governing instrument of the 

4 organization requires it to be bound by de5 cisions of the other organization; 

6 ‘‘(ii) the governing board of the orga7 nization includes persons who are specifi8 cally designated representatives of the 

9 other organization or are members of the 

10 governing board, officers, or paid executive 

11 staff members of the other organization, or 

12 whose service on the governing board is 

13 contingent upon the approval of the other 

14 organization; or 

15 ‘‘(iii) the organization is chartered by 

16 the other organization. 

17 ‘‘(E) COVERAGE OF TRANSFERS TO AF18 FILIATED SECTION 501(c)(3) ORGANIZA19 TIONS.—This paragraph shall apply with re20 spect to an amount transferred by a covered or21 ganization to an organization described in para22 graph (3) of section 501(c) of the Internal Rev23 enue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under 

24 section 501(a) of such Code in the same man25 ner as this paragraph applies to an amount 


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1 transferred by a covered organization to an2 other covered organization. 

3 ‘‘(g) NO EFFECT ON OTHER REPORTING REQUIRE4 MENTS.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to 

5 waive or otherwise affect any other requirement of this 

6 Act which relates to the reporting of campaign-related dis7 bursements.’’. 

8 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

9 304(f)(6) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104) is amended 

10 by striking ‘‘Any requirement’’ and inserting ‘‘Ex11 cept as provided in section 324(b), any require12 ment’’. 

13 (b) COORDINATION WITH FINCEN.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Finan15 cial Crimes Enforcement Network of the Depart16 ment of the Treasury shall provide the Federal Elec17 tion Commission with such information as necessary 

18 to assist in administering and enforcing section 324 

19 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 

20 amended by this section. 

21 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after 

22 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Chairman 

23 of the Federal Election Commission, in consultation 

24 with the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforce25 ment Network of the Department of the Treasury, 


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1 shall submit to Congress a report with recommenda2 tions for providing further legislative authority to as3 sist in the administration and enforcement of such 

4 section 324. 

5 SEC. 4112. APPLICATION OF FOREIGN MONEY BAN TO DIS6 BURSEMENTS FOR CAMPAIGN-RELATED DIS7 BURSEMENTS CONSISTING OF COVERED 

8 TRANSFERS. 

9 Section 319(b)(2) of the Federal Election Campaign 

10 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(1)(A)), as amended by 

11 section 4102, is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘includes any disbursement’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘includes— 

14 ‘‘(A) any disbursement’’; 

15 (2) by striking the period at the end and insert16 ing ‘‘; and’’, and 

17 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub18 paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(B) any disbursement, other than a dis20 bursement described in section 324(a)(3)(A), to 

21 another person who made a campaign-related 

22 disbursement consisting of a covered transfer 

23 (as described in section 324) during the 2-year 

24 period ending on the date of the disburse25 ment.’’. 


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1 SEC. 4113. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

2 The amendments made by this part shall apply with 

3 respect to disbursements made on or after January 1, 

4 2022, and shall take effect without regard to whether or 

5 not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 

6 regulations to carry out such amendments. 

7 PART 3—OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 

8 SEC. 4121. PETITION FOR CERTIORARI. 

9 Section 307(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 

10 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30107(a)(6)) is amended by in11 serting ‘‘(including a proceeding before the Supreme 

12 Court on certiorari)’’ after ‘‘appeal’’. 

13 SEC. 4122. JUDICIAL REVIEW OF ACTIONS RELATED TO 

14 CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title IV of the Federal Election 

16 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30141 et seq.) is 

17 amended by inserting after section 406 the following new 

18 section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 407. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—If any action is brought for de21 claratory or injunctive relief to challenge, whether facially 

22 or as-applied, the constitutionality or lawfulness of any 

23 provision of this Act or of chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal 

24 Revenue Code of 1986, or is brought to with respect to 

25 any action of the Commission under chapter 95 or 96 of 


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1 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, the following rules 

2 shall apply: 

3 ‘‘(1) The action shall be filed in the United 

4 States District Court for the District of Columbia 

5 and an appeal from the decision of the district court 

6 may be taken to the Court of Appeals for the Dis7 trict of Columbia Circuit. 

8 ‘‘(2) In the case of an action relating to declar9 atory or injunctive relief to challenge the constitu10 tionality of a provision, the party filing the action 

11 shall concurrently deliver a copy of the complaint to 

12 the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the 

13 Secretary of the Senate. 

14 ‘‘(3) It shall be the duty of the United States 

15 District Court for the District of Columbia and the 

16 Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir17 cuit to advance on the docket and to expedite to the 

18 greatest possible extent the disposition of the action 

19 and appeal. 

20 ‘‘(b) CLARIFYING SCOPE OF JURISDICTION.—If an 

21 action at the time of its commencement is not subject to 

22 subsection (a), but an amendment, counterclaim, cross23 claim, affirmative defense, or any other pleading or motion 

24 is filed challenging, whether facially or as-applied, the con25 stitutionality or lawfulness of this Act or of chapter 95 


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1 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or is brought 

2 to with respect to any action of the Commission under 

3 chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

4 the district court shall transfer the action to the District 

5 Court for the District of Columbia, and the action shall 

6 thereafter be conducted pursuant to subsection (a). 

7 ‘‘(c) INTERVENTION BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

8 In any action described in subsection (a) relating to de9 claratory or injunctive relief to challenge the constitu10 tionality of a provision, any Member of the House of Rep11 resentatives (including a Delegate or Resident Commis12 sioner to the Congress) or Senate shall have the right to 

13 intervene either in support of or opposition to the position 

14 of a party to the case regarding the constitutionality of 

15 the provision. To avoid duplication of efforts and reduce 

16 the burdens placed on the parties to the action, the court 

17 in any such action may make such orders as it considers 

18 necessary, including orders to require interveners taking 

19 similar positions to file joint papers or to be represented 

20 by a single attorney at oral argument. 

21 ‘‘(d) CHALLENGE BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.—Any 

22 Member of Congress may bring an action, subject to the 

23 special rules described in subsection (a), for declaratory 

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1 plied, the constitutionality of any provision of this Act or 

2 chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

4 (1) Section 9011 of the Internal Revenue Code 

5 of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 9011. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

7 ‘‘For provisions relating to judicial review of certifi8 cations, determinations, and actions by the Commission 

9 under this chapter, see section 407 of the Federal Election 

10 Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

11 (2) Section 9041 of the Internal Revenue Code 

12 of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 9041. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

14 ‘‘For provisions relating to judicial review of actions 

15 by the Commission under this chapter, see section 407 of 

16 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

17 (3) Section 310 of the Federal Election Cam18 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30110) is repealed. 

19 (4) Section 403 of the Bipartisan Campaign 

20 Reform Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 30110 note) is re21 pealed. 

22 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

23 this section shall apply to actions brought on or after Jan24 uary 1, 2021. 


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1 Subtitle C—Honest Ads 

2 SEC. 4201. SHORT TITLE. 

3 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Honest Ads Act’’. 

4 SEC. 4202. PURPOSE. 

5 The purpose of this subtitle is to enhance the integ6 rity of American democracy and national security by im7 proving disclosure requirements for online political adver8 tisements in order to uphold the Supreme Court’s well9 established standard that the electorate bears the right to 

10 be fully informed. 

11 SEC. 4203. FINDINGS. 

12 Congress makes the following findings: 

13 (1) In 2002, the Bipartisan Campaign Reform 

14 Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–155) became law, es15 tablishing disclosure requirements for political adver16 tisements distributed from a television or radio 

17 broadcast station or provider of cable or satellite tel18 evision. In 2003, the Supreme Court upheld regula19 tions on electioneering communications established 

20 under the Act, noting that such requirements ‘‘pro21 vide the electorate with information and insure that 

22 the voters are fully informed about the person or 

23 group who is speaking.’’ The Court reaffirmed this 

24 conclusion in 2010 by an 8-1 vote. 


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1 (2) In its 2006 rulemaking, the Federal Elec2 tion Commission, the independent Federal agency 

3 charged with protecting the integrity of the Federal 

4 campaign finance process, noted that 18 percent of 

5 all Americans cited the internet as their leading 

6 source of news about the 2004 Presidential election. 

7 By contrast, Gallup and the Knight Foundation 

8 found in 2020 that the majority of Americans, 58 

9 percent, got most of their news about elections on10 line. 

11 (3) According to a study from Borrell Associ12 ates, in 2016, $1,415,000,000 was spent on online 

13 advertising, more than quadruple the amount in 

14 2012. 

15 (4) The reach of a few large internet plat16 forms—larger than any broadcast, satellite, or cable 

17 provider—has greatly facilitated the scope and effec18 tiveness of disinformation campaigns. For instance, 

19 the largest platform has over 210,000,000 American 

20 users—over 160,000,000 of them on a daily basis. 

21 By contrast, the largest cable television provider has 

22 22,430,000 subscribers, while the largest satellite 

23 television provider has 21,000,000 subscribers. And 

24 the most-watched television broadcast in United 

25 States history had 118,000,000 viewers. 


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1 (5) The public nature of broadcast television, 

2 radio, and satellite ensures a level of publicity for 

3 any political advertisement. These communications 

4 are accessible to the press, fact-checkers, and polit5 ical opponents. This creates strong disincentives for 

6 a candidate to disseminate materially false, inflam7 matory, or contradictory messages to the public. So8 cial media platforms, in contrast, can target portions 

9 of the electorate with direct, ephemeral advertise10 ments often on the basis of private information the 

11 platform has on individuals, enabling political adver12 tisements that are contradictory, racially or socially 

13 inflammatory, or materially false. 

14 (6) According to comscore, 2 companies own 8 

15 of the 10 most popular smart phone applications as 

16 of June 2017, including the most popular social 

17 media and email services which deliver information 

18 and news to users without requiring proactivity by 

19 the user. Those same 2 companies accounted for 99 

20 percent of revenue growth from digital advertising in 

21 2016, including 77 percent of gross spending. 79 

22 percent of online Americans—representing 68 per23 cent of all Americans—use the single largest social 

24 network, while 66 percent of these users are most 

25 likely to get their news from that site. 


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1 (7) Large social media platforms are the only 

2 entities in possession of certain key data related to 

3 paid online ads, including the exact audience tar4 geted by those ads and their number of impressions. 

5 Such information, which cannot be reliably disclosed 

6 by the purchasers of ads, is extremely useful for in7 forming the electorate, guarding against corruption, 

8 and aiding in the enforcement of existing campaign 

9 finance regulations. 

10 (8) Paid advertisements on social media plat11 forms have served as critical tools for foreign online 

12 influence campaigns—even those that rely on large 

13 amounts of unpaid content—because such ads allow 

14 foreign actors to test the effectiveness of different 

15 messages, expose their messages to audiences who 

16 have not sought out such content, and recruit audi17 ences for future campaigns and posts. 

18 (9) In testimony before the Senate Select Com19 mittee on Intelligence titled, ‘‘Disinformation: A 

20 Primer in Russian Active Measures and Influence 

21 Campaigns’’, multiple expert witnesses testified that 

22 while the disinformation tactics of foreign adver23 saries have not necessarily changed, social media 

24 services now provide ‘‘platform[s] practically pur25 pose-built for active measures[.]’’ Similarly, as Gen. 


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1 Keith B. Alexander (RET.), the former Director of 

2 the National Security Agency, testified, during the 

3 Cold War ‘‘if the Soviet Union sought to manipulate 

4 information flow, it would have to do so principally 

5 through its own propaganda outlets or through ac6 tive measures that would generate specific news: 

7 planting of leaflets, inciting of violence, creation of 

8 other false materials and narratives. But the news 

9 itself was hard to manipulate because it would have 

10 required actual control of the organs of media, which 

11 took long-term efforts to penetrate. Today, however, 

12 because the clear majority of the information on so13 cial media sites is uncurated and there is a rapid 

14 proliferation of information sources and other sites 

15 that can reinforce information, there is an increasing 

16 likelihood that the information available to average 

17 consumers may be inaccurate (whether intentionally 

18 or otherwise) and may be more easily manipulable 

19 than in prior eras.’’. 

20 (10) On November 24, 2016, The Washington 

21 Post reported findings from 2 teams of independent 

22 researchers that concluded Russians ‘‘exploited 

23 American-made technology platforms to attack U.S. 

24 democracy at a particularly vulnerable moment *** 


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1 as part of a broadly effective strategy of sowing dis2 trust in U.S. democracy and its leaders.’’. 

3 (11) On January 6, 2017, the Office of the Di4 rector of National Intelligence published a report ti5 tled ‘‘Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in 

6 Recent U.S. Elections’’, noting that ‘‘Russian Presi7 dent Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign 

8 in 2016 aimed at the US presidential election * * 

9 *’’. Moscow’s influence campaign followed a Russian 

10 messaging strategy that blends covert intelligence 

11 operation—such as cyber activity—with overt efforts 

12 by Russian Government agencies, state-funded 

13 media, third-party intermediaries, and paid social 

14 media users or ‘‘trolls’’. 

15 (12) On September 6, 2017, the nation’s larg16 est social media platform disclosed that between 

17 June 2015 and May 2017, Russian entities pur18 chased $100,000 in political advertisements, pub19 lishing roughly 3,000 ads linked to fake accounts as20 sociated with the Internet Research Agency, a pro21 Kremlin organization. According to the company, 

22 the ads purchased focused ‘‘on amplifying divisive 

23 social and political messages ***’’. 

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1 ducted by the Computational Propaganda Research 

2 Project at the Oxford Internet Institute found that 

3 the Kremlin is using pro-Russian bots to manipulate 

4 public discourse to a highly targeted audience. With 

5 a sample of nearly 1,300,000 tweets, researchers 

6 found that in the 2016 election’s 3 decisive States, 

7 propaganda constituted 40 percent of the sampled 

8 election-related tweets that went to Pennsylvanians, 

9 34 percent to Michigan voters, and 30 percent to 

10 those in Wisconsin. In other swing States, the figure 

11 reached 42 percent in Missouri, 41 percent in Flor12 ida, 40 percent in North Carolina, 38 percent in 

13 Colorado, and 35 percent in Ohio. 

14 (14) 2018 reporting by the Washington Post 

15 estimated that paid Russian ads received more than 

16 37,000,000 impressions in 2016 and 2017. 

17 (15) A 2019 Senate Select Committee on 

18 Intelligence’s Report on Russian Active Measures 

19 Campaigns and Interference in the 2016 U.S. Elec20 tion Volume 2: Russia’s Use of Social Media with 

21 Additional Views, the Committee recommended 

22 ‘‘that Congress examine legislative approaches to en23 suring Americans know the sources of online polit24 ical advertisements. The Federal Election Campaign 

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1 vision, radio and satellite to disclose the sponsor of 

2 the advertisement. The same requirements should 

3 apply online. This will also help to ensure that the 

4 IRA or any similarly situated actors cannot use paid 

5 advertisements for purposes of foreign inter6 ference.’’. 

7 (16) A 2020 study by researchers at New York 

8 University found undisclosed political advertisement 

9 purchases on a large social media platform by a Chi10 nese state media company in violation of that plat11 form’s supposed prohibitions on foreign spending on 

12 ads of social, national, or electoral importance. 

13 (17) The same study also found that ‘‘there are 

14 persistent issues with advertisers failing to disclose 

15 political ads’’ and that in one social media plat16 form’s political ad archive, 68,879 pages (54.6 per17 cent of pages with political ads included in the ar18 chive) never provided a disclosure. Overall, there 

19 were 357,099 ads run on that platforms without a 

20 disclosure, accounting for at least $37,000,000 in 

21 spending on political ads. 

22 (18) A 2020 report by the bipartisan and bi23 cameral U.S. Cyberspace Solarium Commission 

24 found that ‘‘Although foreign nationals are banned 

25 from contributing to U.S. political campaigns, they 


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1 are still allowed to purchase U.S. political advertise2 ments online, making the internet a fertile environ3 ment for conducting a malign influence campaign to 

4 undermine American elections.’’ The Commission 

5 concluded that Russian interference in the 2016 

6 election was and still is possible, ‘‘because the 

7 FECA, which establishes rules for transparency in 

8 television, radio, and print media political adver9 tising, has not been amended to extend the same po10 litical advertising requirements to internet plat11 forms,’’ and that ‘‘[a]pplying these standards across 

12 all media of communication would, among other 

13 things, increase transparency of funding for political 

14 advertisements, which would in turn strengthen reg15 ulators’ ability to reduce improper foreign influence 

16 in our elections.’’ 

17 (19) On March 16, 2021, the Office of the Di18 rector of National Intelligence released the declas19 sified Intelligence Community assessment of foreign 

20 threats to the 2020 U.S. Federal elections. The de21 classified report found: ‘‘Throughout the election 

22 cycle, Russia’s online influence actors sought to af23 fect U.S. public perceptions of the candidates, as 

24 well as advance Moscow’s longstanding goals of un25 dermining confidence in US election processes and 


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1 increasing sociopolitical divisions among the Amer2 ican people.’’ The report also determined that Iran 

3 sought to influence the election by ‘‘creating and 

4 amplifying social media content that criticized [can5 didates].’’ 

6 (20) According to a Wall Street Journal report 

7 in April 2021, voluntary ad libraries operated by 

8 major platforms rely on foreign governments to self9 report political ad purchases. These ad-buys, includ10 ing those diminishing major human rights violations 

11 like the Uighur genocide, are under-reported by for12 eign government purchasers, with no substantial 

13 oversight or repercussions from the platforms. 

14 (21) Multiple reports have indicated that online 

15 ads have become a key vector for strategic influence 

16 by the People’s Republic of China. An April 2021 

17 Wall Street Journal report noted that the Chinese 

18 government and Chinese state-owned enterprises are 

19 major purchasers of ads on the U.S.’s largest social 

20 media platform, including to advance Chinese propa21 ganda. 

22 (22) Large online platforms have made changes 

23 to their policies intended to make it harder for for24 eign actors to purchase political ads. However, these 

25 private actions have not been taken by all platforms, 


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1 have not been reliably enforced, and are subject to 

2 immediate change at the discretion of the platforms. 

3 (23) The Federal Election Commission has 

4 failed to take action to address online political ad5 vertisements and current regulations on political ad6 vertisements do not provide sufficient transparency 

7 to uphold the public’s right to be fully informed 

8 about political advertisements made online. 

9 SEC. 4204. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

10 It is the sense of Congress that— 

11 (1) the dramatic increase in digital political ad12 vertisements, and the growing centrality of online 

13 platforms in the lives of Americans, requires the 

14 Congress and the Federal Election Commission to 

15 take meaningful action to ensure that laws and reg16 ulations provide the accountability and transparency 

17 that is fundamental to our democracy; 

18 (2) free and fair elections require both trans19 parency and accountability which give the public a 

20 right to know the true sources of funding for polit21 ical advertisements, be they foreign or domestic, in 

22 order to make informed political choices and hold 

23 elected officials accountable; and 

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1 nance laws, including the prohibition on campaign 

2 spending by foreign nationals. 

3 SEC. 4205. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF PUBLIC COMMU4 NICATION. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (22) of section 301 of 

6 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

7 30101(22)) is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite commu8 nication’’ and inserting ‘‘satellite, paid internet, or paid 

9 digital communication’’. 

10 (b) TREATMENT OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDI11 TURES.—Section 301 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30101) is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (8)(B)(v), by striking ‘‘on 

14 broadcasting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 

15 or similar types of general public political adver16 tising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public communica17 tion’’; and 

18 (2) in paragraph (9)(B)— 

19 (A) by amending clause (i) to read as fol20 lows: 

21 ‘‘(i) any news story, commentary, or 

22 editorial distributed through the facilities 

23 of any broadcasting station or any print, 

24 online, or digital newspaper, magazine, 

25 blog, publication, or periodical, unless such 


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1 broadcasting, print, online, or digital facili2 ties are owned or controlled by any polit3 ical party, political committee, or can4 didate;’’; and 

5 (B) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘on broad6 casting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 

7 or similar types of general public political ad8 vertising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public commu9 nication’’. 

10 (c) DISCLOSURE AND DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS.— 

11 Subsection (a) of section 318 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

12 30120) is amended— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘financing any communication 

14 through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga15 zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 

16 other type of general public political advertising’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘financing any public communication’’; 

18 and 

19 (2) by striking ‘‘solicits any contribution 

20 through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga21 zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 

22 other type of general public political advertising’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘solicits any contribution through any 

24 public communication’’. 


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1 (d) REGULATION.—Not later than 1 year after the 

2 date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 

3 Commission shall promulgate regulations on what con4 stitutes a paid internet or paid digital communication for 

5 purposes of paragraph (22) of section 301 of the Federal 

6 Election Campaign Act of 1971(52 U.S.C. 30101(22)), as 

7 amended by subsection (a), except that such regulation 

8 shall not define a paid internet or paid digital communica9 tion to include communications for which the only pay10 ment consists of internal resources, such as employee com11 pensation, of the entity paying for the communication. 

12 SEC. 4206. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF ELECTION13 EERING COMMUNICATION. 

14 (a) EXPANSION TO ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS.— 

15 (1) APPLICATION TO QUALIFIED INTERNET AND

16 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) of 

18 section 304(f)(3) of the Federal Election Cam19 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)(A)) 

20 is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite communica21 tion’’ each place it appears in clauses (i) and 

22 (ii) and inserting ‘‘satellite, or qualified internet 

23 or digital communication’’. 

24 (B) QUALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL

25 COMMUNICATION.—Paragraph (3) of section 


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1 304(f) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)) is 

2 amended by adding at the end the following 

3 new subparagraph: 

4 ‘‘(D) QUALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL

5 COMMUNICATION.—The term ‘qualified internet 

6 or digital communication’ means any commu7 nication which is placed or promoted for a fee 

8 on an online platform (as defined in subsection 

9 (k)(3)).’’. 

10 (2) NONAPPLICATION OF RELEVANT ELEC11 TORATE TO ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 

12 304(f)(3)(A)(i)(III) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

13 30104(f)(3)(A)(i)(III)) is amended by inserting ‘‘any 

14 broadcast, cable, or satellite’’ before ‘‘communica15 tion’’. 

16 (3) NEWS EXEMPTION.—Section 

17 304(f)(3)(B)(i) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

18 30104(f)(3)(B)(i)) is amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(i) a communication appearing in a 

20 news story, commentary, or editorial dis21 tributed through the facilities of any 

22 broadcasting station or any online or dig23 ital newspaper, magazine, blog, publica24 tion, or periodical, unless such broad25 casting, online, or digital facilities are 


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1 owned or controlled by any political party, 

2 political committee, or candidate;’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

4 this section shall apply with respect to communications 

5 made on or after January 1, 2022. 

6 SEC. 4207. APPLICATION OF DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS TO 

7 ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS. 

8 (a) CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER REQUIRE9 MENT.—Subsection (a) of section 318 of the Federal Elec10 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30120(a)) is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘shall clearly state’’ each place 

13 it appears in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and in14 serting ‘‘shall state in a clear and conspicuous man15 ner’’; and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following flush 

17 sentence: ‘‘For purposes of this section, a commu18 nication does not make a statement in a clear and 

19 conspicuous manner if it is difficult to read or hear 

20 or if the placement is easily overlooked.’’. 

21 (b) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR

22 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 318 of such Act (52 

24 U.S.C. 30120) is amended by adding at the end the 

25 following new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR

2 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) SPECIAL RULES WITH RESPECT TO STATE4 MENTS.—In the case of any qualified internet or 

5 digital communication (as defined in section 

6 304(f)(3)(D)) which is disseminated through a me7 dium in which the provision of all of the information 

8 specified in this section is not possible, the commu9 nication shall, in a clear and conspicuous manner— 

10 ‘‘(A) state the name of the person who 

11 paid for the communication; and 

12 ‘‘(B) provide a means for the recipient of 

13 the communication to obtain the remainder of 

14 the information required under this section with 

15 minimal effort and without receiving or viewing 

16 any additional material other than such re17 quired information. 

18 ‘‘(2) SAFE HARBOR FOR DETERMINING CLEAR

19 AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER.—A statement in quali20 fied internet or digital communication (as defined in 

21 section 304(f)(3)(D)) shall be considered to be made 

22 in a clear and conspicuous manner as provided in 

23 subsection (a) if the communication meets the fol24 lowing requirements: 


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1 ‘‘(A) TEXT OR GRAPHIC COMMUNICA2 TIONS.—In the case of a text or graphic com3 munication, the statement— 

4 ‘‘(i) appears in letters at least as large 

5 as the majority of the text in the commu6 nication; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) meets the requirements of para8 graphs (2) and (3) of subsection (c). 

9 ‘‘(B) AUDIO COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

10 case of an audio communication, the statement 

11 is spoken in a clearly audible and intelligible 

12 manner at the beginning or end of the commu13 nication and lasts at least 3 seconds. 

14 ‘‘(C) VIDEO COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

15 case of a video communication which also in16 cludes audio, the statement— 

17 ‘‘(i) is included at either the beginning 

18 or the end of the communication; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) is made both in— 

20 ‘‘(I) a written format that meets 

21 the requirements of subparagraph (A) 

22 and appears for at least 4 seconds; 

23 and 


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1 ‘‘(II) an audible format that 

2 meets the requirements of subpara3 graph (B). 

4 ‘‘(D) OTHER COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

5 case of any other type of communication, the 

6 statement is at least as clear and conspicuous 

7 as the statement specified in subparagraph (A), 

8 (B), or (C).’’. 

9 (2) NONAPPLICATION OF CERTAIN EXCEP10 TIONS.—The exceptions provided in section 

11 110.11(f)(1)(i) and (ii) of title 11, Code of Federal 

12 Regulations, or any successor to such rules, shall 

13 have no application to qualified internet or digital 

14 communications (as defined in section 304(f)(3)(D) 

15 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971). 

16 (c) MODIFICATION OF ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

17 FOR CERTAIN COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 318(d) of such 

18 Act (52 U.S.C. 30120(d)) is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 

20 (A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 

21 through radio’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in an 

22 audio format’’; and 

23 (B) by striking ‘‘BY RADIO’’ in the heading 

24 and inserting ‘‘AUDIO FORMAT’’; 

25 (2) in paragraph (1)(B)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 

2 through television’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in 

3 video format’’; and 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘BY TELEVISION’’ in the 

5 heading and inserting ‘‘VIDEO FORMAT’’; and 

6 (3) in paragraph (2)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘transmitted through radio 

8 or television’’ and inserting ‘‘made in audio or 

9 video format’’; and 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘through television’’ in the 

11 second sentence and inserting ‘‘in video for12 mat’’. 

13 SEC. 4208. POLITICAL RECORD REQUIREMENTS FOR ON14 LINE PLATFORMS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec16 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend17 ed by section 4002, is amended by adding at the end the 

18 following new subsection: 

19 ‘‘(k) DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN ONLINE ADVERTISE20 MENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

22 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENTS FOR ONLINE PLAT23 FORMS.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An online plat25 form shall maintain, and make available 


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1 for online public inspection in machine 

2 readable format, a complete record of any 

3 request to purchase on such online plat4 form a qualified political advertisement 

5 which is made by a person whose aggre6 gate requests to purchase qualified political 

7 advertisements on such online platform 

8 during the calendar year exceeds $500. 

9 ‘‘(ii) REQUIREMENT RELATING TO PO10 LITICAL ADS SOLD BY THIRD PARTY AD11 VERTISING VENDORS.—An online platform 

12 that displays a qualified political advertise13 ment sold by a third party advertising ven14 dor as defined in (3)(C), shall include on 

15 its own platform an easily accessible and 

16 identifiable link to the records maintained 

17 by the third-party advertising vendor under 

18 clause (i) regarding such qualified political 

19 advertisement. 

20 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS FOR ADVER21 TISERS.—Any person who requests to purchase 

22 a qualified political advertisement on an online 

23 platform shall provide the online platform with 

24 such information as is necessary for the online 


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1 platform to comply with the requirements of 

2 subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF RECORD.—A record main4 tained under paragraph (1)(A) shall contain— 

5 ‘‘(A) a digital copy of the qualified political 

6 advertisement; 

7 ‘‘(B) a description of the audience targeted 

8 by the advertisement, the number of views gen9 erated from the advertisement, and the date 

10 and time that the advertisement is first dis11 played and last displayed; and 

12 ‘‘(C) information regarding— 

13 ‘‘(i) the average rate charged for the 

14 advertisement; 

15 ‘‘(ii) the name of the candidate to 

16 which the advertisement refers and the of17 fice to which the candidate is seeking elec18 tion, the election to which the advertise19 ment refers, or the national legislative 

20 issue to which the advertisement refers (as 

21 applicable); 

22 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a request made 

23 by, or on behalf of, a candidate, the name 

24 of the candidate, the authorized committee 


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1 of the candidate, and the treasurer of such 

2 committee; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) in the case of any request not 

4 described in clause (iii), the name of the 

5 person purchasing the advertisement, the 

6 name and address of a contact person for 

7 such person, and a list of the chief execu8 tive officers or members of the executive 

9 committee or of the board of directors of 

10 such person. 

11 ‘‘(3) ONLINE PLATFORM.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

13 subsection, subject to subparagraph (B), the 

14 term ‘online platform’ means any public-facing 

15 website, web application, or digital application 

16 (including a social network, ad network, or 

17 search engine) which— 

18 ‘‘(i)(I) sells qualified political adver19 tisements; and 

20 ‘‘(II) has 50,000,000 or more unique 

21 monthly United States visitors or users for 

22 a majority of months during the preceding 

23 12 months; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) is a third-party advertising ven25 dor that has 50,000,000 or more unique 


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1 monthly United States visitors in the ag2 gregate on any advertisement space that it 

3 has sold or bought for a majority of 

4 months during the preceding 12 months, 

5 as measured by an independent digital rat6 ings service accredited by the Media Rat7 ings Council (or its successor). 

8 ‘‘(B) EXEMPTION.—Such term shall not 

9 include any online platform that is a distribu10 tion facility of any broadcasting station or 

11 newspaper, magazine, blog, publication, or peri12 odical. 

13 ‘‘(C) THIRD-PARTY ADVERTISING VENDOR

14 DEFINED.—For purposes of this subsection, the 

15 term ‘third-party advertising vendor’ includes, 

16 but is not limited to, any third-party adver17 tising vendor network, advertising agency, ad18 vertiser, or third-party advertisement serving 

19 company that buys and sells advertisement 

20 space on behalf of unaffiliated third-party 

21 websites, search engines, digital applications, or 

22 social media sites. 

23 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT.— 

24 For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualified 

25 political advertisement’ means any advertisement 


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1 (including search engine marketing, display adver2 tisements, video advertisements, native advertise3 ments, and sponsorships) that— 

4 ‘‘(A) is made by or on behalf of a can5 didate; or 

6 ‘‘(B) communicates a message relating to 

7 any political matter of national importance, in8 cluding— 

9 ‘‘(i) a candidate; 

10 ‘‘(ii) any election to Federal office; or 

11 ‘‘(iii) a national legislative issue of 

12 public importance. 

13 ‘‘(5) TIME TO MAINTAIN FILE.—The informa14 tion required under this subsection shall be made 

15 available as soon as possible and shall be retained by 

16 the online platform for a period of not less than 4 

17 years. 

18 ‘‘(6) SPECIAL RULE.—For purposes of this sub19 section, multiple versions of an advertisement that 

20 contain no material differences (such as versions 

21 that differ only because they contain a recipient’s 

22 name, or differ only in size, color, font, or layout) 

23 may be treated as a single qualified political adver24 tisement. 


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1 ‘‘(7) PENALTIES.—For penalties for failure by 

2 online platforms, and persons requesting to purchase 

3 a qualified political advertisement on online plat4 forms, to comply with the requirements of this sub5 section, see section 309.’’. 

6 (b) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 120 days after the 

7 date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 

8 Commission shall establish rules— 

9 (1) requiring common data formats for the 

10 record required to be maintained under section 

11 304(j) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

12 1971 (as added by subsection (a)) so that all online 

13 platforms submit and maintain data online in a com14 mon, machine-readable and publicly accessible for15 mat; and 

16 (2) establishing search interface requirements 

17 relating to such record, including searches by can18 didate name, issue, purchaser, and date. 

19 (c) REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after the 

20 date of the enactment of this Act, and biannually there21 after, the Chairman of the Federal Election Commission 

22 shall submit a report to Congress on— 

23 (1) matters relating to compliance with and the 

24 enforcement of the requirements of section 304(k) of 


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1 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 

2 added by subsection (a); 

3 (2) recommendations for any modifications to 

4 such section to assist in carrying out its purposes; 

5 and 

6 (3) identifying ways to bring transparency and 

7 accountability to political advertisements distributed 

8 online for free. 

9 SEC. 4209. PREVENTING CONTRIBUTIONS, EXPENDITURES, 

10 INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES, AND DIS11 BURSEMENTS FOR ELECTIONEERING COM12 MUNICATIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN 

13 THE FORM OF ONLINE ADVERTISING. 

14 Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

15 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121), as amended by section 

16 4101(b), is further amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing new subsection: 

18 ‘‘(d) RESPONSIBILITIES OF BROADCAST STATIONS, 

19 PROVIDERS OF CABLE AND SATELLITE TELEVISION, AND

20 ONLINE PLATFORMS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each television or radio 

22 broadcast station, provider of cable or satellite tele23 vision, or online platform (as defined in section 

24 304(k)(3)) shall make reasonable efforts to ensure 

25 that communications described in section 318(a) and 


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1 made available by such station, provider, or platform 

2 are not purchased by a foreign national, directly or 

3 indirectly. 

4 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.— Not later than 1 year 

5 after the date of the enactment of this subsection, 

6 the Commission shall promulgate regulations on 

7 what constitutes reasonable efforts under paragraph 

8 (1).’’. 

9 SEC. 4210. REQUIRING ONLINE PLATFORMS TO DISPLAY 

10 NOTICES IDENTIFYING SPONSORS OF POLIT11 ICAL ADVERTISEMENTS AND TO ENSURE NO12 TICES CONTINUE TO BE PRESENT WHEN AD13 VERTISEMENTS ARE SHARED. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec15 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend16 ed by section 4002 and section 4208(a), is amended by 

17 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

18 ‘‘(l) ENSURING DISPLAY AND SHARING OF SPONSOR

19 IDENTIFICATION IN ONLINE POLITICAL ADVERTISE20 MENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.—An online platform dis22 playing a qualified political advertisement shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) display with the advertisement a visi24 ble notice identifying the sponsor of the adver25 tisement (or, if it is not practical for the platVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00590 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 form to display such a notice, a notice that the 

2 advertisement is sponsored by a person other 

3 than the platform); and 

4 ‘‘(B) ensure that the notice will continue to 

5 be displayed if a viewer of the advertisement 

6 shares the advertisement with others on that 

7 platform. 

8 ‘‘(2) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

9 ‘‘(A) the term ‘online platform’ has the 

10 meaning given such term in subsection (k)(3); 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(B) the term ‘‘qualified political adver13 tisement’ has the meaning given such term in 

14 subsection (k)(4).’’. 

15 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

16 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to advertisements 

17 displayed on or after the 120–day period which begins on 

18 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

19 Subtitle D—Stand By Every Ad 

20 SEC. 4301. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Stand By Every 

22 Ad Act’’. 

23 SEC. 4302. STAND BY EVERY AD. 

24 (a) EXPANDED DISCLAIMER REQUIREMENTS FOR

25 CERTAIN COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 318 of the Federal 


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1 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30120), as 

2 amended by section 4207(b)(1), is further amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub4 section (f); and 

5 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol6 lowing new subsection: 

7 ‘‘(e) EXPANDED DISCLAIMER REQUIREMENTS FOR

8 COMMUNICATIONS NOT AUTHORIZED BY CANDIDATES OR

9 COMMITTEES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para11 graph (6), any communication described in para12 graph (3) of subsection (a) which is transmitted in 

13 an audio or video format (including an internet or 

14 digital communication), or which is an internet or 

15 digital communication transmitted in a text or 

16 graphic format, shall include, in addition to the re17 quirements of paragraph (3) of subsection (a), the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(A) The individual disclosure statement 

20 described in paragraph (2)(A) (if the person 

21 paying for the communication is an individual) 

22 or the organizational disclosure statement de23 scribed in paragraph (2)(B) (if the person pay24 ing for the communication is not an individual). 


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1 ‘‘(B) If the communication is transmitted 

2 in a video format, or is an internet or digital 

3 communication which is transmitted in a text or 

4 graphic format, and is paid for in whole or in 

5 part with a payment which is treated as a cam6 paign-related disbursement under section 324— 

7 ‘‘(i) the Top Five Funders list (if ap8 plicable); or 

9 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a communication 

10 which, as determined on the basis of cri11 teria established in regulations issued by 

12 the Commission, is of such short duration 

13 that including the Top Five Funders list in 

14 the communication would constitute a 

15 hardship to the person paying for the com16 munication by requiring a disproportionate 

17 amount of the content of the communica18 tion to consist of the Top Five Funders 

19 list, the name of a website which contains 

20 the Top Five Funders list (if applicable) 

21 or, in the case of an internet or digital 

22 communication, a hyperlink to such 

23 website. 

24 ‘‘(C) If the communication is transmitted 

25 in an audio format and is paid for in whole or 


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1 in part with a payment which is treated as a 

2 campaign-related disbursement under section 

3 324— 

4 ‘‘(i) the Top Two Funders list (if ap5 plicable); or 

6 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a communication 

7 which, as determined on the basis of cri8 teria established in regulations issued by 

9 the Commission, is of such short duration 

10 that including the Top Two Funders list in 

11 the communication would constitute a 

12 hardship to the person paying for the com13 munication by requiring a disproportionate 

14 amount of the content of the communica15 tion to consist of the Top Two Funders 

16 list, the name of a website which contains 

17 the Top Two Funders list (if applicable). 

18 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE STATEMENTS DESCRIBED.— 

19 ‘‘(A) INDIVIDUAL DISCLOSURE STATE20 MENTS.—The individual disclosure statement 

21 described in this subparagraph is the following: 

22 ‘I am llllllll, and I approve this 

23 message.’, with the blank filled in with the 

24 name of the applicable individual. 


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1 ‘‘(B) ORGANIZATIONAL DISCLOSURE

2 STATEMENTS.—The organizational disclosure 

3 statement described in this subparagraph is the 

4 following: ‘I am llllllll, the 

5 llllllll of llllllll, and 

6 llllllll approves this message.’, 

7 with— 

8 ‘‘(i) the first blank to be filled in with 

9 the name of the applicable individual; 

10 ‘‘(ii) the second blank to be filled in 

11 with the title of the applicable individual; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(iii) the third and fourth blank each 

14 to be filled in with the name of the organi15 zation or other person paying for the com16 munication. 

17 ‘‘(3) METHOD OF CONVEYANCE OF STATE18 MENT.— 

19 ‘‘(A) COMMUNICATIONS IN TEXT OR

20 GRAPHIC FORMAT.—In the case of a commu21 nication to which this subsection applies which 

22 is transmitted in a text or graphic format, the 

23 disclosure statements required under paragraph 

24 (1) shall appear in letters at least as large as 

25 the majority of the text in the communication. 


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1 ‘‘(B) COMMUNICATIONS TRANSMITTED IN

2 AUDIO FORMAT.—In the case of a communica3 tion to which this subsection applies which is 

4 transmitted in an audio format, the disclosure 

5 statements required under paragraph (1) shall 

6 be made by audio by the applicable individual 

7 in a clear and conspicuous manner. 

8 ‘‘(C) COMMUNICATIONS TRANSMITTED IN

9 VIDEO FORMAT.—In the case of a communica10 tion to which this subsection applies which is 

11 transmitted in a video format, the information 

12 required under paragraph (1)— 

13 ‘‘(i) shall appear in writing at the end 

14 of the communication or in a crawl along 

15 the bottom of the communication in a clear 

16 and conspicuous manner, with a reasonable 

17 degree of color contrast between the back18 ground and the printed statement, for a 

19 period of at least 6 seconds; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) shall also be conveyed by an 

21 unobscured, full-screen view of the applica22 ble individual or by the applicable indi23 vidual making the statement in voice-over 

24 accompanied by a clearly identifiable pho25 tograph or similar image of the individual, 


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1 except in the case of a Top Five Funders 

2 list. 

3 ‘‘(4) APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL DEFINED.—The 

4 term ‘applicable individual’ means, with respect to a 

5 communication to which this subsection applies— 

6 ‘‘(A) if the communication is paid for by 

7 an individual, the individual involved; 

8 ‘‘(B) if the communication is paid for by a 

9 corporation, the chief executive officer of the 

10 corporation (or, if the corporation does not have 

11 a chief executive officer, the highest ranking of12 ficial of the corporation); 

13 ‘‘(C) if the communication is paid for by a 

14 labor organization, the highest ranking officer 

15 of the labor organization; and 

16 ‘‘(D) if the communication is paid for by 

17 any other person, the highest ranking official of 

18 such person. 

19 ‘‘(5) TOP FIVE FUNDERS LIST AND TOP TWO

20 FUNDERS LIST DEFINED.— 

21 ‘‘(A) TOP FIVE FUNDERS LIST.—The term 

22 ‘Top Five Funders list’ means, with respect to 

23 a communication which is paid for in whole or 

24 in part with a campaign-related disbursement 

25 (as defined in section 324), a list of the five 


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1 persons who, during the 12-month period end2 ing on the date of the disbursement, provided 

3 the largest payments of any type in an aggre4 gate amount equal to or exceeding $10,000 to 

5 the person who is paying for the communication 

6 and the amount of the payments each such per7 son provided. If two or more people provided 

8 the fifth largest of such payments, the person 

9 paying for the communication shall select one of 

10 those persons to be included on the Top Five 

11 Funders list. 

12 ‘‘(B) TOP TWO FUNDERS LIST.—The term 

13 ‘Top Two Funders list’ means, with respect to 

14 a communication which is paid for in whole or 

15 in part with a campaign-related disbursement 

16 (as defined in section 324), a list of the persons 

17 who, during the 12-month period ending on the 

18 date of the disbursement, provided the largest 

19 and the second largest payments of any type in 

20 an aggregate amount equal to or exceeding 

21 $10,000 to the person who is paying for the 

22 communication and the amount of the pay23 ments each such person provided. If two or 

24 more persons provided the second largest of 

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1 munication shall select one of those persons to 

2 be included on the Top Two Funders list. 

3 ‘‘(C) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN PAY4 MENTS.—For purposes of subparagraphs (A) 

5 and (B), in determining the amount of pay6 ments made by a person to a person paying for 

7 a communication, there shall be excluded the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(i) Any amounts provided in the or10 dinary course of any trade or business con11 ducted by the person paying for the com12 munication or in the form of investments 

13 in the person paying for the communica14 tion. 

15 ‘‘(ii) Any payment which the person 

16 prohibited, in writing, from being used for 

17 campaign-related disbursements, but only 

18 if the person paying for the communication 

19 agreed to follow the prohibition and depos20 ited the payment in an account which is 

21 segregated from any account used to make 

22 campaign-related disbursements. 

23 ‘‘(6) SPECIAL RULES FOR CERTAIN COMMU24 NICATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) EXCEPTION FOR COMMUNICATIONS

2 PAID FOR BY POLITICAL PARTIES AND CERTAIN

3 POLITICAL COMMITTEES.—This subsection does 

4 not apply to any communication to which sub5 section (d)(2) applies. 

6 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF VIDEO COMMUNICA7 TIONS LASTING 10 SECONDS OR LESS.—In the 

8 case of a communication to which this sub9 section applies which is transmitted in a video 

10 format, or is an internet or digital communica11 tion which is transmitted in a text or graphic 

12 format, the communication shall meet the fol13 lowing requirements: 

14 ‘‘(i) The communication shall include 

15 the individual disclosure statement de16 scribed in paragraph (2)(A) (if the person 

17 paying for the communication is an indi18 vidual) or the organizational disclosure 

19 statement described in paragraph (2)(B) 

20 (if the person paying for the communica21 tion is not an individual). 

22 ‘‘(ii) The statement described in 

23 clause (i) shall appear in writing at the 

24 end of the communication, or in a crawl 

25 along the bottom of the communication, in 


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1 a clear and conspicuous manner, with a 

2 reasonable degree of color contrast between 

3 the background and the printed statement, 

4 for a period of at least 4 seconds. 

5 ‘‘(iii) The communication shall in6 clude, in a clear and conspicuous manner, 

7 a website address with a landing page 

8 which will provide all of the information 

9 described in paragraph (1) with respect to 

10 the communication. Such address shall ap11 pear for the full duration of the commu12 nication. 

13 ‘‘(iv) To the extent that the format in 

14 which the communication is made permits 

15 the use of a hyperlink, the communication 

16 shall include a hyperlink to the website ad17 dress described in clause (iii).’’. 

18 (b) APPLICATION OF EXPANDED REQUIREMENTS TO

19 PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS CONSISTING OF CAMPAIGN-RE20 LATED DISBURSEMENTS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 318(a) of such Act 

22 (52 U.S.C. 30120(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘for 

23 the purpose of financing communications expressly 

24 advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identi25 fied candidate’’ and inserting ‘‘for a campaign-reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00601 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 lated disbursement, as defined in section 324, con2 sisting of a public communication’’. 

3 (2) CLARIFICATION OF EXEMPTION FROM IN4 CLUSION OF CANDIDATE DISCLAIMER STATEMENT IN

5 FEDERAL JUDICIAL NOMINATION COMMUNICA6 TIONS.—Section 318(a)(3) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

7 30120(a)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘shall state’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘shall (except in the case of a Federal 

9 judicial nomination communication, as defined in 

10 section 324(d)(3)) state’’. 

11 (c) EXCEPTION FOR COMMUNICATIONS PAID FOR BY

12 POLITICAL PARTIES AND CERTAIN POLITICAL COMMIT13 TEES.—Section 318(d)(2) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

14 30120(d)(2)) is amended— 

15 (1) in the heading, by striking ‘‘OTHERS’’ and 

16 inserting ‘‘CERTAIN POLITICAL COMMITTEES’’; 

17 (2) by striking ‘‘Any communication’’ and in18 serting ‘‘(A) Any communication’’; 

19 (3) by inserting ‘‘which (except to the extent 

20 provided in subparagraph (B)) is paid for by a polit21 ical committee (including a political committee of a 

22 political party) and’’ after ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 

23 (4) by striking ‘‘or other person’’ each place it 

24 appears; and 


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1 (5) by adding at the end the following new sub2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(B)(i) This paragraph does not apply to a 

4 communication paid for in whole or in part during 

5 a calendar year with a campaign-related disburse6 ment, but only if the covered organization making 

7 the campaign-related disbursement made campaign8 related disbursements (as defined in section 324) ag9 gregating more than $10,000 during such calendar 

10 year. 

11 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of clause (i), in determining 

12 the amount of campaign-related disbursements made 

13 by a covered organization during a year, there shall 

14 be excluded the following: 

15 ‘‘(I) Any amounts received by the covered 

16 organization in the ordinary course of any trade 

17 or business conducted by the covered organiza18 tion or in the form of investments in the cov19 ered organization. 

20 ‘‘(II) Any amounts received by the covered 

21 organization from a person who prohibited, in 

22 writing, the organization from using such 

23 amounts for campaign-related disbursements, 

24 but only if the covered organization agreed to 

25 follow the prohibition and deposited the 


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1 amounts in an account which is segregated 

2 from any account used to make campaign-re3 lated disbursements.’’. 

4 SEC. 4303. DISCLAIMER REQUIREMENTS FOR COMMUNICA5 TIONS MADE THROUGH PRERECORDED TELE6 PHONE CALLS. 

7 (a) APPLICATION OF REQUIREMENTS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 318(a) of the Fed9 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

10 30120(a)), as amended by section 4205(c), is 

11 amended by striking ‘‘public communication’’ each 

12 place it appears and inserting the following: ‘‘public 

13 communication (including a telephone call consisting 

14 in substantial part of a prerecorded audio mes15 sage)’’. 

16 (2) APPLICATION TO COMMUNICATIONS SUB17 JECT TO EXPANDED DISCLAIMER REQUIREMENTS.— 

18 Section 318(e)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

19 30120(e)(1)), as added by section 4302(a), is 

20 amended in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) 

21 by striking ‘‘which is transmitted in an audio or 

22 video format’’ and inserting ‘‘which is transmitted in 

23 an audio or video format or which consists of a tele24 phone call consisting in substantial part of a 

25 prerecorded audio message’’. 


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1 (b) TREATMENT AS COMMUNICATION TRANSMITTED

2 IN AUDIO FORMAT.— 

3 (1) COMMUNICATIONS BY CANDIDATES OR AU4 THORIZED PERSONS.—Section 318(d) of such Act 

5 (52 U.S.C. 30120(d)) is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(3) PRERECORDED TELEPHONE CALLS.—Any 

8 communication described in paragraph (1), (2), or 

9 (3) of subsection (a) (other than a communication 

10 which is subject to subsection (e)) which is a tele11 phone call consisting in substantial part of a 

12 prerecorded audio message shall include, in addition 

13 to the requirements of such paragraph, the audio 

14 statement required under subparagraph (A) of para15 graph (1) or the audio statement required under 

16 paragraph (2) (whichever is applicable), except that 

17 the statement shall be made at the beginning of the 

18 telephone call.’’. 

19 (2) COMMUNICATIONS SUBJECT TO EXPANDED

20 DISCLAIMER REQUIREMENTS.—Section 318(e)(3) of 

21 such Act (52 U.S.C. 30120(e)(3)), as added by sec22 tion 4302(a), is amended by adding at the end the 

23 following new subparagraph: 

24 ‘‘(D) PRERECORDED TELEPHONE

25 CALLS.—In the case of a communication to 


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1 which this subsection applies which is a tele2 phone call consisting in substantial part of a 

3 prerecorded audio message, the communication 

4 shall be considered to be transmitted in an 

5 audio format.’’. 

6 SEC. 4304. NO EXPANSION OF PERSONS SUBJECT TO DIS7 CLAIMER REQUIREMENTS ON INTERNET 

8 COMMUNICATIONS. 

9 Nothing in this subtitle or the amendments made by 

10 this subtitle may be construed to require any person who 

11 is not required under section 318 of the Federal Election 

12 Campaign Act of 1971 to include a disclaimer on commu13 nications made by the person through the internet to in14 clude any disclaimer on any such communications. 

15 SEC. 4305. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

16 The amendments made by this subtitle shall apply 

17 with respect to communications made on or after January 

18 1, 2022, and shall take effect without regard to whether 

19 or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 

20 regulations to carry out such amendments. 


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1 Subtitle E—Deterring Foreign 

2 Interference in Elections 

3 PART 1—DETERRENCE UNDER FEDERAL 

4 ELECTION CAMPAIGN ACT OF 1971 

5 SEC. 4401. RESTRICTIONS ON EXCHANGE OF CAMPAIGN IN6 FORMATION BETWEEN CANDIDATES AND 

7 FOREIGN POWERS. 

8 Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

9 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121), as amended by section 

10 4101(b) and section 4209, is further amended by adding 

11 at the end the following new subsection: 

12 ‘‘(e) RESTRICTIONS ON EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION

13 BETWEEN CANDIDATES AND FOREIGN POWERS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) TREATMENT OF OFFER TO SHARE NON15 PUBLIC CAMPAIGN MATERIAL AS SOLICITATION OF

16 CONTRIBUTION FROM FOREIGN NATIONAL.—If a 

17 candidate or an individual affiliated with the cam18 paign of a candidate, or if a political committee or 

19 an individual affiliated with a political committee, 

20 provides or offers to provide nonpublic campaign 

21 material to a covered foreign national or to another 

22 person whom the candidate, committee, or individual 

23 knows or has reason to know will provide the mate24 rial to a covered foreign national, the candidate, 

25 committee, or individual (as the case may be) shall 


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1 be considered for purposes of this section to have so2 licited a contribution or donation described in sub3 section (a)(1)(A) from a foreign national. 

4 ‘‘(2) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the fol5 lowing definitions apply: 

6 ‘‘(A) The term ‘candidate’ means an indi7 vidual who seeks nomination for, or election to, 

8 any Federal, State, or local public office. 

9 ‘‘(B) The term ‘covered foreign national’ 

10 has the meaning given such term in section 

11 304(j)(3)(C). 

12 ‘‘(C) The term ‘individual affiliated with a 

13 campaign’ means, with respect to a candidate, 

14 an employee of any organization legally author15 ized under Federal, State, or local law to sup16 port the candidate’s campaign for nomination 

17 for, or election to, any Federal, State, or local 

18 public office, as well as any independent con19 tractor of such an organization and any indi20 vidual who performs services on behalf of the 

21 organization, whether paid or unpaid. 

22 ‘‘(D) The term ‘individual affiliated with a 

23 political committee’ means, with respect to a 

24 political committee, an employee of the com25 mittee as well as any independent contractor of 


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1 the committee and any individual who performs 

2 services on behalf of the committee, whether 

3 paid or unpaid. 

4 ‘‘(E) The term ‘nonpublic campaign mate5 rial’ means, with respect to a candidate or a po6 litical committee, campaign material that is 

7 produced by the candidate or the committee or 

8 produced at the candidate or committee’s ex9 pense or request which is not distributed or 

10 made available to the general public or other11 wise in the public domain, including polling and 

12 focus group data and opposition research, ex13 cept that such term does not include material 

14 produced for purposes of consultations relating 

15 solely to the candidate’s or committee’s position 

16 on a legislative or policy matter.’’. 

17 SEC. 4402. CLARIFICATION OF STANDARD FOR DETER18 MINING EXISTENCE OF COORDINATION BE19 TWEEN CAMPAIGNS AND OUTSIDE INTER20 ESTS. 

21 Section 315(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

22 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)) is amended by adding at 

23 the end the following new paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(10) For purposes of paragraph (7), an expenditure 

25 or disbursement may be considered to have been made in 


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1 cooperation, consultation, or concert with, or coordinated 

2 with, a person without regard to whether or not the co3 operation, consultation, or coordination is carried out pur4 suant to agreement or formal collaboration.’’. 

5 SEC. 4403. PROHIBITION ON PROVISION OF SUBSTANTIAL 

6 ASSISTANCE RELATING TO CONTRIBUTION 

7 OR DONATION BY FOREIGN NATIONALS. 

8 Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

9 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121), as amended by section 

10 4101(a), section 4101(b), section 4105, section 4209, and 

11 section 4401, is further amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of para14 graph (2); 

15 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

16 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

17 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(4) a person to knowingly provide substantial 

19 assistance to another person in carrying out an ac20 tivity described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3).’’; and 

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub22 sections: 

23 ‘‘(f) KNOWINGLY DESCRIBED.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of subsection 

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1 edge, constructive knowledge, awareness of pertinent 

2 facts that would lead a reasonable person to con3 clude there is a substantial probability, or awareness 

4 of pertinent facts that would lead a reasonable per5 son to conduct a reasonable inquiry to establish— 

6 ‘‘(A) with respect to an activity described 

7 in subsection (a)(1), that the contribution, do8 nation, expenditure, independent expenditure, 

9 or disbursement is from a foreign national; 

10 ‘‘(B) with respect to an activity described 

11 in subsection (a)(2), that the contribution or 

12 donation solicited, accepted, or received is from 

13 a foreign national; and 

14 ‘‘(C) with respect to an activity described 

15 in subsection (a)(3), that the person directing, 

16 dictating, controlling, or directly or indirectly 

17 participating in the decision-making process is 

18 a foreign national. 

19 ‘‘(2) PERTINENT FACTS.—For purposes of 

20 paragraph (1), pertinent facts include, but are not 

21 limited to, that the person making the contribution, 

22 donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or 

23 disbursement, or that the person from whom the 

24 contribution or donation is solicited, accepted, or re25 ceived, or that the person directing, dictating, conVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00611 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 trolling, or directly or indirectly participating in the 

2 decision-making process— 

3 ‘‘(A) uses a foreign passport or passport 

4 number for identification purposes; 

5 ‘‘(B) provides a foreign address; 

6 ‘‘(C) uses a check or other written instru7 ment drawn on a foreign bank, or by a wire 

8 transfer from a foreign bank, in carrying out 

9 the activity; or 

10 ‘‘(D) resides abroad. 

11 ‘‘(g) SUBSTANTIAL ASSISTANCE DEFINED.—As used 

12 in this section, the term ‘substantial assistance’ means, 

13 with respect to an activity prohibited by paragraph (1), 

14 (2), or (3) of subsection (a), involvement with an intent 

15 to facilitate successful completion of the activity.’’. 

16 SEC. 4404. CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN 

17 MONEY BAN. 

18 (a) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF PROVISION

19 OF CERTAIN INFORMATION AS CONTRIBUTION OR DONA20 TION OF A THING OF VALUE.—Section 319 of the Federal 

21 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121), as 

22 amended by section 4101(a), section 4101(b), section 

23 4209, section 4401, and section 4403, is amended by add24 ing at the end the following new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(h) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF PROVISION

2 OF CERTAIN INFORMATION AS CONTRIBUTION OR DONA3 TION OF A THING OF VALUE.—For purposes of this sec4 tion, a ‘contribution or donation of money or other thing 

5 of value’ includes the provision of opposition research, 

6 polling, or other non-public information relating to a can7 didate for election for a Federal, State, or local office for 

8 the purpose of influencing the election, regardless of 

9 whether such research, polling, or information has mone10 tary value, except that nothing in this subsection shall be 

11 construed to treat the mere provision of an opinion about 

12 a candidate as a thing of value for purposes of this sec13 tion.’’. 

14 (b) CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN

15 MONEY BAN TO ALL CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONATIONS

16 OF THINGS OF VALUE AND TO ALL SOLICITATIONS OF

17 CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONATIONS OF THINGS OF

18 VALUE.—Section 319(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

19 30121(a)), as amended by section 4105 and section 4403, 

20 is amended— 

21 (1) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘promise 

22 to make a contribution or donation’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘promise to make such a contribution or donation’’; 

24 (2) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘donation’’ 

25 and inserting ‘‘donation of money or other thing of 


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1 value, or to make an express or implied promise to 

2 make such a contribution or donation,’’; and 

3 (3) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol4 lows: 

5 ‘‘(2) a person to solicit, accept, or receive (di6 rectly or indirectly) a contribution, donation, or dis7 bursement described in paragraph (1), or to solicit, 

8 accept, or receive (directly or indirectly) an express 

9 or implied promise to make such a contribution or 

10 donation, from a foreign national;’’. 

11 PART 2—NOTIFYING STATES OF 

12 DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGNS BY FOREIGN 

13 NATIONALS 

14 SEC. 4411. NOTIFYING STATES OF DISINFORMATION CAM15 PAIGNS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS. 

16 (a) REQUIRING DISCLOSURE.—If the Federal Elec17 tion Commission makes a determination that a foreign na18 tional has initiated or has attempted to initiate a 

19 disinformation campaign targeted at an election for public 

20 office held in a State, the Commission shall notify the 

21 State involved of the determination not later than 30 days 

22 after making the determination. 

23 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section the term ‘‘foreign 

24 national’’ has the meaning given such term in section 


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1 319(b) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

2 U.S.C. 30121(b)). 

3 PART 3—PROHIBITING USE OF DEEPFAKES IN 

4 ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

5 SEC. 4421. PROHIBITION ON DISTRIBUTION OF MATERI6 ALLY DECEPTIVE AUDIO OR VISUAL MEDIA 

7 PRIOR TO ELECTION. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election 

9 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is 

10 amended by adding at the end the following new section: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 325. PROHIBITION ON DISTRIBUTION OF MATERI12 ALLY DECEPTIVE MEDIA PRIOR TO ELEC13 TION. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub15 sections (b) and (c), a person, political committee, or other 

16 entity shall not, within 60 days of an election for Federal 

17 office at which a candidate for elective office will appear 

18 on the ballot, distribute, with actual malice, materially de19 ceptive audio or visual media of the candidate with the 

20 intent to injure the candidate’s reputation or to deceive 

21 a voter into voting for or against the candidate. 

22 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED LANGUAGE.—The prohibition 

24 in subsection (a) does not apply if the audio or vis25 ual media includes— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a disclosure stating: ‘‘This 

2 lllll has been manipulated.’’; and 

3 ‘‘(B) filled in the blank in the disclosure 

4 under subparagraph (A), the term ‘image’, 

5 ‘video’, or ‘audio’, as most accurately describes 

6 the media. 

7 ‘‘(2) VISUAL MEDIA.—For visual media, the 

8 text of the disclosure shall appear in a size that is 

9 easily readable by the average viewer and no smaller 

10 than the largest font size of other text appearing in 

11 the visual media. If the visual media does not in12 clude any other text, the disclosure shall appear in 

13 a size that is easily readable by the average viewer. 

14 For visual media that is video, the disclosure shall 

15 appear for the duration of the video. 

16 ‘‘(3) AUDIO-ONLY MEDIA.—If the media con17 sists of audio only, the disclosure shall be read in a 

18 clearly spoken manner and in a pitch that can be 

19 easily heard by the average listener, at the beginning 

20 of the audio, at the end of the audio, and, if the 

21 audio is greater than 2 minutes in length, inter22 spersed within the audio at intervals of not greater 

23 than 2 minutes each. 

24 ‘‘(c) INAPPLICABILITY TO CERTAIN ENTITIES.—This 

25 section does not apply to the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) A radio or television broadcasting station, 

2 including a cable or satellite television operator, pro3 grammer, or producer, that broadcasts materially 

4 deceptive audio or visual media prohibited by this 

5 section as part of a bona fide newscast, news inter6 view, news documentary, or on-the-spot coverage of 

7 bona fide news events, if the broadcast clearly ac8 knowledges through content or a disclosure, in a 

9 manner that can be easily heard or read by the aver10 age listener or viewer, that there are questions about 

11 the authenticity of the materially deceptive audio or 

12 visual media. 

13 ‘‘(2) A radio or television broadcasting station, 

14 including a cable or satellite television operator, pro15 grammer, or producer, when it is paid to broadcast 

16 materially deceptive audio or visual media. 

17 ‘‘(3) An internet website, or a regularly pub18 lished newspaper, magazine, or other periodical of 

19 general circulation, including an internet or elec20 tronic publication, that routinely carries news and 

21 commentary of general interest, and that publishes 

22 materially deceptive audio or visual media prohibited 

23 by this section, if the publication clearly states that 

24 the materially deceptive audio or visual media does 


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1 not accurately represent the speech or conduct of the 

2 candidate. 

3 ‘‘(4) Materially deceptive audio or visual media 

4 that constitutes satire or parody. 

5 ‘‘(d) CIVIL ACTION.— 

6 ‘‘(1) INJUNCTIVE OR OTHER EQUITABLE RE7 LIEF.—A candidate for elective office whose voice or 

8 likeness appears in a materially deceptive audio or 

9 visual media distributed in violation of this section 

10 may seek injunctive or other equitable relief prohib11 iting the distribution of audio or visual media in vio12 lation of this section. An action under this para13 graph shall be entitled to precedence in accordance 

14 with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. 

15 ‘‘(2) DAMAGES.—A candidate for elective office 

16 whose voice or likeness appears in a materially de17 ceptive audio or visual media distributed in violation 

18 of this section may bring an action for general or 

19 special damages against the person, committee, or 

20 other entity that distributed the materially deceptive 

21 audio or visual media. The court may also award a 

22 prevailing party reasonable attorney’s fees and costs. 

23 This paragraph shall not be construed to limit or 

24 preclude a plaintiff from securing or recovering any 

25 other available remedy. 


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1 ‘‘(3) BURDEN OF PROOF.—In any civil action 

2 alleging a violation of this section, the plaintiff shall 

3 bear the burden of establishing the violation through 

4 clear and convincing evidence. 

5 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—This section shall 

6 not be construed to alter or negate any rights, obligations, 

7 or immunities of an interactive service provider under sec8 tion 230 of title 47, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(f) MATERIALLY DECEPTIVE AUDIO OR VISUAL

10 MEDIA DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘materially 

11 deceptive audio or visual media’ means an image or an 

12 audio or video recording of a candidate’s appearance, 

13 speech, or conduct that has been intentionally manipulated 

14 in a manner such that both of the following conditions 

15 are met: 

16 ‘‘(1) The image or audio or video recording 

17 would falsely appear to a reasonable person to be 

18 authentic. 

19 ‘‘(2) The image or audio or video recording 

20 would cause a reasonable person to have a fun21 damentally different understanding or impression of 

22 the expressive content of the image or audio or video 

23 recording than that person would have if the person 

24 were hearing or seeing the unaltered, original 

25 version of the image or audio or video recording.’’. 


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1 (b) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—Section 309(d)(1) of the 

2 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

3 30109(d)(1)), as amended by section 4004, is further 

4 amended by adding at the end the following new subpara5 graph: 

6 ‘‘(G) Any person who knowingly and will7 fully commits a violation of section 325 shall be 

8 fined not more than $100,000, imprisoned not 

9 more than 5 years, or both.’’. 

10 (c) EFFECT ON DEFAMATION ACTION.—For pur11 poses of an action for defamation, a violation of section 

12 325 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 

13 added by subsection (a), shall constitute defamation per 

14 se. 

15 PART 4—ASSESSMENT OF EXEMPTION OF REG16 ISTRATION REQUIREMENTS UNDER FARA 

17 FOR REGISTERED LOBBYISTS 

18 SEC. 4431. ASSESSMENT OF EXEMPTION OF REGISTRATION 

19 REQUIREMENTS UNDER FARA FOR REG20 ISTERED LOBBYISTS. 

21 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact22 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

23 States shall conduct and submit to Congress an assess24 ment of the implications of the exemption provided under 

25 the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended 


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1 (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.) for agents of foreign principals 

2 who are also registered lobbyists under the Lobbying Dis3 closure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and shall 

4 include in the assessment an analysis of the extent to 

5 which revisions in such Acts might mitigate the risk of 

6 foreign government money influencing elections or political 

7 processes in the United States. 

8 Subtitle F—Secret Money 

9 Transparency 

10 SEC. 4501. REPEAL OF RESTRICTION OF USE OF FUNDS BY 

11 INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE TO BRING 

12 TRANSPARENCY TO POLITICAL ACTIVITY OF 

13 CERTAIN NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. 

14 Section 122 of the Financial Services and General 

15 Government Appropriations Act, 2021 (division E of Pub16 lic Law 116–260) is hereby repealed. 


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1 Subtitle G—Shareholder Right-to2 Know 

3 SEC. 4601. REPEAL OF RESTRICTION ON USE OF FUNDS BY 

4 SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION TO 

5 ENSURE SHAREHOLDERS OF CORPORATIONS 

6 HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF CORPORATION POLIT7 ICAL ACTIVITY. 

8 Section 631 of the Financial Services and General 

9 Government Appropriations Act, 2021 (division E of Pub10 lic Law 116–260) is hereby repealed. 

11 SEC. 4602. SHAREHOLDER APPROVAL OF CORPORATE PO12 LITICAL ACTIVITY. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Securities Exchange Act of 

14 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78a et seq.) is amended by inserting after 

15 section 14B (15 U.S.C. 78n–2) the following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 14C. SHAREHOLDER APPROVAL OF CERTAIN POLIT17 ICAL EXPENDITURES AND DISCLOSURE OF 

18 VOTES OF INSTITUTIONAL INVESTORS. 

19 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

20 ‘‘(1) the term ‘expenditure for political activi21 ties’— 

22 ‘‘(A) means— 

23 ‘‘(i) an independent expenditure (as 

24 defined in section 301(17) of the Federal 


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1 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

2 30101(17))); 

3 ‘‘(ii) an electioneering communication 

4 (as defined in section 304(f)(3) of that Act 

5 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3))) and any other 

6 public communication (as defined in sec7 tion 301(22) of that Act (52 U.S.C. 

8 30101(22))) that would be an election9 eering communication if it were a broad10 cast, cable, or satellite communication; or 

11 ‘‘(iii) dues or other payments to trade 

12 associations or organizations described in 

13 section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 

14 Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under 

15 section 501(a) of that Code that are, or 

16 could reasonably be anticipated to be, used 

17 or transferred to another association or or18 ganization for the purposes described in 

19 clauses (i) or (ii); and 

20 ‘‘(B) does not include— 

21 ‘‘(i) direct lobbying efforts through 

22 registered lobbyists employed or hired by 

23 the issuer; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) communications by an issuer to 

2 its shareholders and executive or adminis3 trative personnel and their families; or 

4 ‘‘(iii) the establishment and adminis5 tration of contributions to a separate seg6 regated fund to be utilized for political 

7 purposes by a corporation; and 

8 ‘‘(2) the term ‘issuer’ does not include an in9 vestment company registered under section 8 of the 

10 Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a– 

11 8). 

12 ‘‘(b) SHAREHOLDER AUTHORIZATION FOR POLIT13 ICAL EXPENDITURES.—Each solicitation of proxy, con14 sent, or authorization by an issuer with a class of equity 

15 securities registered under section 12 shall— 

16 ‘‘(1) contain— 

17 ‘‘(A) a description of the specific nature of 

18 any expenditure for political activities proposed 

19 to be made by the issuer for the forthcoming 

20 fiscal year that has not been authorized by a 

21 vote of the shareholders of the issuer, to the ex22 tent the specific nature is known to the issuer; 

23 and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the total amount of expenditures for 

2 political activities proposed to be made by the 

3 issuer for the forthcoming fiscal year; and 

4 ‘‘(2) provide for a separate vote of the share5 holders of the issuer to authorize such expenditures 

6 for political activities in the total amount described 

7 in paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(c) VOTE REQUIRED TO MAKE EXPENDITURES.— 

9 No issuer shall make an expenditure for political activities 

10 in any fiscal year unless such expenditure— 

11 ‘‘(1) is of the nature of those proposed by the 

12 issuer in subsection (b)(1); and 

13 ‘‘(2) has been authorized by a vote of the ma14 jority of the outstanding shares of the issuer in ac15 cordance with subsection (b)(2). 

16 ‘‘(d) FIDUCIARY DUTY; LIABILITY.— 

17 ‘‘(1) FIDUCIARY DUTY.—A violation of sub18 section (c) shall be considered a breach of a fidu19 ciary duty of the officers and directors who author20 ized the expenditure for political activities. 

21 ‘‘(2) LIABILITY.—An officer or director of an 

22 issuer who authorizes an expenditure for political ac23 tivities in violation of subsection (c) shall be jointly 

24 and severally liable in any action brought in a court 

25 of competent jurisdiction to any person or class of 


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1 persons who held shares at the time the expenditure 

2 for political activities was made for an amount equal 

3 to 3 times the amount of the expenditure for polit4 ical activities. 

5 ‘‘(e) DISCLOSURE OF VOTES.— 

6 ‘‘(1) DISCLOSURE REQUIRED.—Each institu7 tional investment manager subject to section 13(f) 

8 shall disclose not less frequently than annually how 

9 the institutional investment manager voted on any 

10 shareholder vote under subsection (a), unless the 

11 vote is otherwise required by rule of the Commission 

12 to be reported publicly. 

13 ‘‘(2) RULES.—Not later than 6 months after 

14 the date of enactment of this section, the Commis15 sion shall issue rules to carry out this subsection 

16 that require that a disclosure required under para17 graph (1)— 

18 ‘‘(A) be made not later than 30 days after 

19 a vote described in paragraph (1); and 

20 ‘‘(B) be made available to the public 

21 through the EDGAR system as soon as prac22 ticable. 

23 ‘‘(f) SAFE HARBOR FOR CERTAIN DIVESTMENT DE24 CISIONS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of Federal 

25 or State law, if an institutional investment manager makes 


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1 the disclosures required under subsection (e), no person 

2 may bring any civil, criminal, or administrative action 

3 against the institutional investment manager, or any em4 ployee, officer, or director thereof, based solely upon a de5 cision of the investment manager to divest from, or not 

6 to invest in, securities of an issuer due to an expenditure 

7 for political activities made by the issuer.’’. 

8 (b) REQUIRED BOARD VOTE ON CORPORATE EX9 PENDITURES FOR POLITICAL ACTIVITIES.—The Securi10 ties Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78 et seq.) is 

11 amended by adding after section 16 (15 U.S.C. 78p) the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 16A. REQUIRED BOARD VOTE ON CORPORATE EX14 PENDITURES FOR POLITICAL ACTIVITIES. 

15 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘ex16 penditure for political activities’ and ‘issuer’ have the 

17 meanings given the terms in section 14C. 

18 ‘‘(b) LISTING ON EXCHANGES.—Not later than 180 

19 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Com20 mission shall, by rule, direct the national securities ex21 changes and national securities associations to prohibit the 

22 listing of any class of equity security of an issuer that 

23 is not in compliance with the requirements of any portion 

24 of subsection (c). 


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1 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENT FOR VOTE IN CORPORATE BY2 LAWS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) VOTE REQUIRED.—The bylaws of an 

4 issuer shall expressly provide for a vote of the board 

5 of directors of the issuer on— 

6 ‘‘(A) any expenditure for political activities 

7 in excess of $50,000; and 

8 ‘‘(B) any expenditure for political activities 

9 that would result in the total amount spent by 

10 the issuer for a particular election (as defined 

11 in section 301(1) of the Federal Election Cam12 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(1))) in ex13 cess of $50,000. 

14 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—An issuer shall 

15 make the votes of each member of the board of di16 rectors for a vote required under paragraph (1) pub17 licly available not later than 48 hours after the vote, 

18 including in a clear and conspicuous location on the 

19 internet web site of the issuer. 

20 ‘‘(d) NO EFFECT ON DETERMINATION OF COORDINA21 TION WITH CANDIDATES OR CAMPAIGNS.—For purposes 

22 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

23 30101 et seq.), an expenditure for political activities by 

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1 didate or committee solely because a member of the board 

2 of directors of the issuer voted on the expenditure as re3 quired under this section.’’. 

4 (c) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 13 of the 

5 Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m) is 

6 amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(s) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO CER8 TAIN POLITICAL EXPENDITURES.— 

9 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the 

10 terms ‘expenditure for political activities’ and 

11 ‘issuer’ have the meanings given the terms in section 

12 14C. 

13 ‘‘(2) QUARTERLY REPORTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) REPORTS REQUIRED.—Not later than 

15 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

16 subsection, the Commission shall amend the re17 porting rules under this section to require each 

18 issuer with a class of equity securities reg19 istered under section 12 of this title to submit 

20 to the Commission and the shareholders of the 

21 issuer a quarterly report containing— 

22 ‘‘(i) a description of any expenditure 

23 for political activities made during the pre24 ceding quarter; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the date of each expenditure for 

2 political activities; 

3 ‘‘(iii) the amount of each expenditure 

4 for political activities; 

5 ‘‘(iv) the votes of each member of the 

6 board of directors authorizing the expendi7 ture for political activity, as required under 

8 section 16A(c); 

9 ‘‘(v) if the expenditure for political ac10 tivities was made in support of or opposed 

11 to a candidate, the name of the candidate 

12 and the office sought by, and the political 

13 party affiliation of, the candidate; and 

14 ‘‘(vi) the name or identity of trade as15 sociations or organizations described in 

16 section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 

17 Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under 

18 section 501(a) of such Code which receive 

19 dues or other payments as described in 

20 section 14C(a)(1)(A)(iii). 

21 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The Com22 mission shall ensure that, to the greatest extent 

23 practicable, the quarterly reports required 

24 under this paragraph are publicly available 

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1 sion and through the EDGAR system in a man2 ner that is searchable, sortable, and download3 able, consistent with the requirements under 

4 section 24. 

5 ‘‘(3) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 180 

6 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, 

7 the Commission shall, by rule, require each issuer to 

8 include in the annual report of the issuer to share9 holders a summary of each expenditure for political 

10 activities made during the preceding year in excess 

11 of $10,000, and each expenditure for political activi12 ties for a particular election if the total amount of 

13 such expenditures for that election is in excess of 

14 $10,000.’’. 

15 (d) REPORTS.— 

16 (1) SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMIS17 SION.—The Securities and Exchange Commission 

18 shall— 

19 (A) conduct an annual assessment of the 

20 compliance of issuers and officers and members 

21 of the boards of directors of issuers with sec22 tions 13(s), 14C, and 16A of the Securities Ex23 change Act of 1934, as added by this section; 

24 and 


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1 (B) submit to Congress an annual report 

2 containing the results of the assessment under 

3 paragraph (1). 

4 (2) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE.— 

5 The Comptroller General of the United States shall 

6 periodically evaluate and report to Congress on the 

7 effectiveness of the oversight by the Securities and 

8 Exchange Commission of the reporting and disclo9 sure requirements under sections 13(s), 14C, and 

10 16A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as 

11 added by this section. 

12 Subtitle H—Disclosure of Political 

13 Spending by Government Con14 tractors 

15 SEC. 4701. REPEAL OF RESTRICTION ON USE OF FUNDS TO 

16 REQUIRE DISCLOSURE OF POLITICAL SPEND17 ING BY GOVERNMENT CONTRACTORS. 

18 Section 735 of the Financial Services and General 

19 Government Appropriations Act, 2021 (division E of Pub20 lic Law 116–260) is hereby repealed. 


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1 Subtitle I—Limitation and Disclo2 sure Requirements for Presi3 dential Inaugural Committees 

4 SEC. 4801. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Presidential Inau6 gural Committee Oversight Act’’. 

7 SEC. 4802. LIMITATIONS AND DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN DO8 NATIONS TO, AND DISBURSEMENTS BY, INAU9 GURAL COMMITTEES. 

10 (a) REQUIREMENTS FOR INAUGURAL COMMIT11 TEES.—Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

12 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), as amended by section 

13 4421, is amended by adding at the end the following new 

14 section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 326. INAUGURAL COMMITTEES. 

16 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITED DONATIONS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful— 

18 ‘‘(A) for an Inaugural Committee— 

19 ‘‘(i) to solicit, accept, or receive a do20 nation from a person that is not an indi21 vidual; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) to solicit, accept, or receive a do23 nation from a foreign national; 

24 ‘‘(B) for a person— 


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1 ‘‘(i) to make a donation to an Inau2 gural Committee in the name of another 

3 person, or to knowingly authorize his or 

4 her name to be used to effect such a dona5 tion; 

6 ‘‘(ii) to solicit or knowingly accept a 

7 donation to an Inaugural Committee made 

8 by a person in the name of another person; 

9 or 

10 ‘‘(iii) to convert a donation to an In11 augural Committee to personal use as de12 scribed in paragraph (2); and 

13 ‘‘(C) for a foreign national to, directly or 

14 indirectly, make a donation, or make an express 

15 or implied promise to make a donation, to an 

16 Inaugural Committee. 

17 ‘‘(2) CONVERSION OF DONATION TO PERSONAL

18 USE.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(B)(iii), a do19 nation shall be considered to be converted to per20 sonal use if any part of the donated amount is used 

21 to fulfill a commitment, obligation, or expense of a 

22 person that would exist irrespective of the respon23 sibilities of the Inaugural Committee under chapter 

24 5 of title 36, United States Code. 


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1 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON DISBURSEMENT OF UN2 USED FUNDS TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.— 

3 Nothing in this subsection may be construed to pro4 hibit an Inaugural Committee from disbursing un5 used funds to an organization which is described in 

6 section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

7 1986 and is exempt from taxation under section 

8 501(a) of such Code. 

9 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON DONATIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for an 

11 individual to make donations to an Inaugural Com12 mittee which, in the aggregate, exceed $50,000. 

13 ‘‘(2) INDEXING.—At the beginning of each 

14 Presidential election year (beginning with 2028), the 

15 amount described in paragraph (1) shall be in16 creased by the cumulative percent difference deter17 mined in section 315(c)(1)(A) since the previous 

18 Presidential election year. If any amount after such 

19 increase is not a multiple of $1,000, such amount 

20 shall be rounded to the nearest multiple of $1,000. 

21 ‘‘(c) DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN DONATIONS AND DIS22 BURSEMENTS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) DONATIONS OVER $1,000.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An Inaugural Com25 mittee shall file with the Commission a report 


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1 disclosing any donation by an individual to the 

2 committee in an amount of $1,000 or more not 

3 later than 24 hours after the receipt of such do4 nation. 

5 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—A report 

6 filed under subparagraph (A) shall contain— 

7 ‘‘(i) the amount of the donation; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the date the donation is received; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(iii) the name and address of the in11 dividual making the donation. 

12 ‘‘(2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than the date 

13 that is 90 days after the date of the Presidential in14 augural ceremony, the Inaugural Committee shall 

15 file with the Commission a report containing the fol16 lowing information: 

17 ‘‘(A) For each donation of money or any18 thing of value made to the committee in an ag19 gregate amount equal to or greater than 

20 $200— 

21 ‘‘(i) the amount of the donation; 

22 ‘‘(ii) the date the donation is received; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(iii) the name and address of the in25 dividual making the donation. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The total amount of all disburse2 ments, and all disbursements in the following 

3 categories: 

4 ‘‘(i) Disbursements made to meet 

5 committee operating expenses. 

6 ‘‘(ii) Repayment of all loans. 

7 ‘‘(iii) Donation refunds and other off8 sets to donations. 

9 ‘‘(iv) Any other disbursements. 

10 ‘‘(C) The name and address of each per11 son— 

12 ‘‘(i) to whom a disbursement in an ag13 gregate amount or value in excess of $200 

14 is made by the committee to meet a com15 mittee operating expense, together with 

16 date, amount, and purpose of such oper17 ating expense; 

18 ‘‘(ii) who receives a loan repayment 

19 from the committee, together with the date 

20 and amount of such loan repayment; 

21 ‘‘(iii) who receives a donation refund 

22 or other offset to donations from the com23 mittee, together with the date and amount 

24 of such disbursement; and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) to whom any other disbursement 

2 in an aggregate amount or value in excess 

3 of $200 is made by the committee, to4 gether with the date and amount of such 

5 disbursement. 

6 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 

7 ‘‘(1)(A) The term ‘donation’ includes— 

8 ‘‘(i) any gift, subscription, loan, ad9 vance, or deposit of money or anything of 

10 value made by any person to the com11 mittee; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) the payment by any person of 

13 compensation for the personal services of 

14 another person which are rendered to the 

15 committee without charge for any purpose. 

16 ‘‘(B) The term ‘donation’ does not include 

17 the value of services provided without com18 pensation by any individual who volunteers on 

19 behalf of the committee. 

20 ‘‘(2) The term ‘foreign national’ has the mean21 ing given that term by section 319(b). 

22 ‘‘(3) The term ‘Inaugural Committee’ has the 

23 meaning given that term by section 501 of title 36, 

24 United States Code.’’. 


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1 (b) CONFIRMING AMENDMENT RELATED TO RE2 PORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 304 of the Federal 

3 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104) is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) by striking subsection (h); and 

6 (2) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

7 (h). 

8 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATED TO STATUS

9 OF COMMITTEE.—Section 510 of title 36, United States 

10 Code, is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘§ 510. Disclosure of and prohibition on certain dona12 tions 

13 ‘‘A committee shall not be considered to be the Inau14 gural Committee for purposes of this chapter unless the 

15 committee agrees to, and meets, the requirements of sec16 tion 326 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

17 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this Act shall apply with respect to Inaugural Committees 

19 established under chapter 5 of title 36, United States 

20 Code, for inaugurations held in 2025 and any succeeding 

21 year. 


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1 Subtitle J—Miscellaneous 

2 Provisions 

3 SEC. 4901. EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROVISIONS. 

4 Each provision of this title and each amendment 

5 made by a provision of this title shall take effect on the 

6 effective date provided under this title for such provision 

7 or such amendment without regard to whether or not the 

8 Federal Election Commission, the Attorney General, or 

9 any other person has promulgated regulations to carry out 

10 such provision or such amendment. 

11 SEC. 4902. SEVERABILITY. 

12 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

13 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

14 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu15 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

16 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

17 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

18 affected by the holding. 

19 TITLE V—CAMPAIGN FINANCE 

20 EMPOWERMENT 

21 Subtitle A—Findings Relating to 

22 Citizens United Decision 

23 SEC. 5001. FINDINGS RELATING TO CITIZENS UNITED DECI24 SION. 

25 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) The American Republic was founded on the 

2 principle that all people are created equal, with 

3 rights and responsibilities as citizens to vote, be rep4 resented, speak, debate, and participate in self-gov5 ernment on equal terms regardless of wealth. To se6 cure these rights and responsibilities, our Constitu7 tion not only protects the equal rights of all Ameri8 cans but also provides checks and balances to pre9 vent corruption and prevent concentrated power and 

10 wealth from undermining effective self-government. 

11 (2) The Founders designed the First Amend12 ment to help prevent tyranny by ensuring that the 

13 people have the tools they need to ensure self-gov14 ernment and to keep their elected leaders responsive 

15 to the public. The Amendment thus guarantees the 

16 right of everyone to speak, to petition the govern17 ment for redress, to assemble together, and for a 

18 free press. If only the wealthiest individuals can par19 ticipate meaningfully in our democracy, then these 

20 First Amendment principles become an illusion. 

21 (3) Campaign finance laws promote these First 

22 Amendment interests. They increase robust debate 

23 from diverse voices, enhance the responsiveness of 

24 elected officeholders, and help prevent corruption. 

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1 sure that no one’s speech is drowned out. The Su2 preme Court has failed to recognize that these laws 

3 are essential, proactive rules that help guarantee 

4 true democratic self-government. 

5 (4) The Supreme Court’s decisions in Citizens 

6 United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 

7 310 (2010) and McCutcheon v. FEC, 572 U.S. 185 

8 (2014), as well as other court decisions, erroneously 

9 invalidated even-handed rules about the spending of 

10 money in local, State, and Federal elections. These 

11 rules do not prevent anyone from speaking their 

12 mind, much less pick winners and losers of political 

13 debates. Although the Court has upheld other con14 tent-neutral laws like these, it has failed to apply to 

15 same logic to campaign finance laws. These flawed 

16 decisions have empowered large corporations, ex17 tremely wealthy individuals, and special interests to 

18 dominate election spending, corrupt our politics, and 

19 degrade our democracy through tidal waves of un20 limited and anonymous spending. These decisions 

21 also stand in contrast to a long history of efforts by 

22 Congress and the States to regulate money in poli23 tics to protect democracy, and they illustrate a trou24 bling deregulatory trend in campaign finance-related 

25 court decisions. Additionally, an unknown amount of 


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1 foreign money continues to be spent in our political 

2 system as subsidiaries of foreign-based corporations 

3 and hostile foreign actors sometimes connected to 

4 nation-States work to influence our elections. 

5 (5) The Supreme Court’s misinterpretation of 

6 the Constitution to empower monied interests at the 

7 expense of the American people in elections has seri8 ously eroded over 100 years of congressional action 

9 to promote fairness and protect elections from the 

10 toxic influence of money. 

11 (6) In 1907, Congress passed the Tillman Act 

12 in response to the concentration of corporate power 

13 in the post-Civil War Gilded Age. The Act prohibited 

14 corporations from making contributions in connec15 tion with Federal elections, aiming ‘‘not merely to 

16 prevent the subversion of the integrity of the elec17 toral process [but] * * * to sustain the active, alert 

18 responsibility of the individual citizen in a democ19 racy for the wise conduct of government’’. 

20 (7) By 1910, Congress began passing disclosure 

21 requirements and campaign expenditure limits, and 

22 dozens of States passed corrupt practices Acts to 

23 prohibit corporate spending in elections. States also 

24 enacted campaign spending limits, and some States 


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1 limited the amount that people could contribute to 

2 campaigns. 

3 (8) In 1947, the Taft-Hartley Act prohibited 

4 corporations and unions from making campaign con5 tributions or other expenditures to influence elec6 tions. In 1962, a Presidential commission on election 

7 spending recommended spending limits and incen8 tives to increase small contributions from more peo9 ple. 

10 (9) The Federal Election Campaign Act of 

11 1971 (FECA), as amended in 1974, required disclo12 sure of contributions and expenditures, imposed con13 tribution and expenditure limits for individuals and 

14 groups, set spending limits for campaigns, can15 didates, and groups, implemented a public funding 

16 system for Presidential campaigns, and created the 

17 Federal Election Commission to oversee and enforce 

18 the new rules. 

19 (10) In the wake of Citizens United and other 

20 damaging Federal court decisions, Americans have 

21 witnessed an explosion of outside spending in elec22 tions. Outside spending increased more than 700 

23 percent between the 2008 and 2020 Presidential 

24 election years. Spending by outside groups nearly 

25 doubled again from 2016 to 2020 with super PACs, 


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1 tax-exempt groups, and others spending more than 

2 $3,000,000,000. And as political entities adapt to a 

3 post- Citizens United, post-McCutcheon landscape, 

4 these trends are getting worse, as evidenced by the 

5 record-setting 2020 elections which cost more than 

6 $14,000,000,000 in total. 

7 (11) Since the landmark Citizens United deci8 sion, 21 States and more than 800 municipalities, 

9 including large cities like New York, Los Angeles, 

10 Chicago, and Philadelphia, have gone on record sup11 porting a constitutional amendment. Transcending 

12 political leanings and geographic location, voters in 

13 States and municipalities across the country that 

14 have placed amendment questions on the ballot have 

15 routinely supported these initiatives by considerably 

16 large margins. 

17 (12) The Court has tied the hands of Congress 

18 and the States, severely restricting them from set19 ting reasonable limits on campaign spending. For 

20 example, the Court has held that only the Govern21 ment’s interest in preventing quid pro quo corrup22 tion, like bribery, or the appearance of such corrup23 tion, can justify limits on campaign contributions. 

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1 est and most powerful to skew our democracy in 

2 their favor by buying outsized influence in our elec3 tions. Because this distortion of the Constitution has 

4 prevented other critical regulation or reform of the 

5 way we finance elections in America, a constitutional 

6 amendment is needed to achieve a democracy for all 

7 the people. 

8 (13) The torrent of money flowing into our po9 litical system has a profound effect on the demo10 cratic process for everyday Americans, whose voices 

11 and policy preferences are increasingly being 

12 drowned out by those of wealthy special interests. 

13 The more campaign cash from wealthy special inter14 ests can flood our elections, the more policies that 

15 favor those interests are reflected in the national po16 litical agenda. When it comes to policy preferences, 

17 our Nation’s wealthiest tend to have fundamentally 

18 different views than do average Americans when it 

19 comes to issues ranging from unemployment benefits 

20 to the minimum wage to health care coverage. 

21 (14) At the same time millions of Americans 

22 have signed petitions, marched, called their Members 

23 of Congress, written letters to the editor, and other24 wise demonstrated their public support for a con25 stitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United 


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1 that will allow Congress to reign in the outsized in2 fluence of unchecked money in politics. Dozens of 

3 organizations, representing tens of millions of indi4 viduals, have come together in a shared strategy of 

5 supporting such an amendment. 

6 (15) In order to protect the integrity of democ7 racy and the electoral process and to ensure political 

8 equality for all, the Constitution should be amended 

9 so that Congress and the States may regulate and 

10 set limits on the raising and spending of money to 

11 influence elections and may distinguish between nat12 ural persons and artificial entities, like corporations, 

13 that are created by law, including by prohibiting 

14 such artificial entities from spending money to influ15 ence elections. 

16 Subtitle B—Senate Elections 

17 SEC. 5100. SHORT TITLE. 

18 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Fair Elections Now 

19 Act of 2021’’. 

20 PART 1—SMALL DONOR INCENTIVE PROGRAMS 

21 SEC. 5101. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING SMALL 

22 DONOR INCENTIVE PROGRAMS. 

23 It is the sense of the Senate that Congress should 

24 take steps to allow more Americans to fully participate 

25 in our democracy through authorizing publicly financed 


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1 small donor incentive programs, including small-dollar 

2 voucher programs that broaden and diversify the number 

3 of Americans who are able to have their voice heard in 

4 the marketplace of ideas. 

5 PART 2—SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING OF SENATE 

6 ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

7 SEC. 5111. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS AND BENEFITS OF 

8 FAIR ELECTIONS FINANCING OF SENATE 

9 ELECTION CAMPAIGNS. 

10 The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

11 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘TITLE V—FAIR ELECTIONS FI14 NANCING OF SENATE ELEC15 TION CAMPAIGNS 

16 ‘‘Subtitle A—General Provisions 

17 ‘‘SEC. 501. DEFINITIONS. 

18 ‘‘In this title: 

19 ‘‘(1) ALLOCATION FROM THE FUND.—The term 

20 ‘allocation from the Fund’ means an allocation of 

21 money from the Freedom From Influence Fund to 

22 a participating candidate pursuant to section 522. 

23 ‘‘(2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘Commission’ 

24 means the Federal Election Commission. 


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1 ‘‘(3) ENHANCED MATCHING CONTRIBUTION.— 

2 The term ‘enhanced matching contribution’ means 

3 an enhanced matching payment provided to a par4 ticipating candidate for qualified small dollar con5 tributions, as provided under section 524. 

6 ‘‘(4) ENHANCED SUPPORT QUALIFYING PE7 RIOD.—The term ‘enhanced support qualifying pe8 riod’ means, with respect to a general election, the 

9 period which begins 60 days before the date of the 

10 election and ends 14 days before the date of the 

11 election. 

12 ‘‘(5) FAIR ELECTIONS QUALIFYING PERIOD.— 

13 The term ‘Fair Elections qualifying period’ means, 

14 with respect to any candidate for Senator, the pe15 riod— 

16 ‘‘(A) beginning on the date on which the 

17 candidate files a statement of intent under sec18 tion 511(a)(1); and 

19 ‘‘(B) ending on the date that is 30 days 

20 before— 

21 ‘‘(i) the date of the primary election; 

22 or 

23 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a State that does 

24 not hold a primary election, the date pre25 scribed by State law as the last day to 


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1 qualify for a position on the general elec2 tion ballot. 

3 ‘‘(6) FAIR ELECTIONS START DATE.—The term 

4 ‘Fair Elections start date’ means, with respect to 

5 any candidate, the date that is 180 days before— 

6 ‘‘(A) the date of the primary election; or 

7 ‘‘(B) in the case of a State that does not 

8 hold a primary election, the date prescribed by 

9 State law as the last day to qualify for a posi10 tion on the general election ballot. 

11 ‘‘(7) FUND.—The term ‘Fund’ means the Free12 dom From Influence Fund established by section 

13 502. 

14 ‘‘(8) IMMEDIATE FAMILY.—The term ‘imme15 diate family’ means, with respect to any candidate— 

16 ‘‘(A) the candidate’s spouse; 

17 ‘‘(B) a child, stepchild, parent, grand18 parent, brother, half-brother, sister, or half-sis19 ter of the candidate or the candidate’s spouse; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(C) the spouse of any person described in 

22 subparagraph (B). 

23 ‘‘(9) MATCHING CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

24 ‘matching contribution’ means a matching payment 

25 provided to a participating candidate for qualified 


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1 small dollar contributions, as provided under section 

2 523. 

3 ‘‘(10) NONPARTICIPATING CANDIDATE.—The 

4 term ‘nonparticipating candidate’ means a candidate 

5 for Senator who is not a participating candidate. 

6 ‘‘(11) PARTICIPATING CANDIDATE.—The term 

7 ‘participating candidate’ means a candidate for Sen8 ator who is certified under section 514 as being eli9 gible to receive an allocation from the Fund. 

10 ‘‘(12) QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

11 ‘qualifying contribution’ means, with respect to a 

12 candidate, a contribution that— 

13 ‘‘(A) is in an amount that is— 

14 ‘‘(i) not less than $5; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) not more than $200; 

16 ‘‘(B) is made by an individual who is not 

17 otherwise prohibited from making a contribu18 tion under this Act; 

19 ‘‘(C) is made during the Fair Elections 

20 qualifying period; and 

21 ‘‘(D) meets the requirements of section 

22 512(b). 

23 ‘‘(13) QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CONTRIBU24 TION.—The term ‘qualified small dollar contribution’ 


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1 means, with respect to a candidate, any contribution 

2 (or series of contributions)— 

3 ‘‘(A) which is not a qualifying contribution 

4 (or does not include a qualifying contribution); 

5 ‘‘(B) which is made by an individual who 

6 is not prohibited from making a contribution 

7 under this Act; and 

8 ‘‘(C) the aggregate amount of which does 

9 not exceed $200 per election. 

10 ‘‘(14) QUALIFYING MULTICANDIDATE POLIT11 ICAL COMMITTEE CONTRIBUTION.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘qualifying 

13 multicandidate political committee contribution’ 

14 means any contribution to a candidate that is 

15 made from a qualified account of a multi16 candidate political committee (within the mean17 ing of section 315(a)(2)). 

18 ‘‘(B) QUALIFIED ACCOUNT.—For purposes 

19 of subparagraph (A), the term ‘qualified ac20 count’ means, with respect to a multicandidate 

21 political committee, a separate, segregated ac22 count of the committee that consists solely of 

23 contributions which meet the following require24 ments: 


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1 ‘‘(i) All contributions to such account 

2 are made by individuals who are not pro3 hibited from making contributions under 

4 this Act. 

5 ‘‘(ii) The aggregate amount of con6 tributions from each individual to such ac7 count and all other accounts of the polit8 ical committee do not exceed the amount 

9 described in paragraph (13)(C). 

10 ‘‘SEC. 502. FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND. 

11 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

12 Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Freedom From Influ13 ence Fund’. 

14 ‘‘(b) AMOUNTS HELD BY FUND.—The Fund shall 

15 consist of the following amounts: 

16 ‘‘(1) ASSESSMENTS AGAINST FINES, SETTLE17 MENTS, AND PENALTIES.—Amounts transferred 

18 under section 3015 of title 18, United States Code, 

19 section 9707 of title 31, United States Code, and 

20 section 6761 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

21 ‘‘(2) DEPOSITS.—Amounts deposited into the 

22 Fund under— 

23 ‘‘(A) section 513(c) (relating to exceptions 

24 to contribution requirements); 


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1 ‘‘(B) section 521(c) (relating to remittance 

2 of unused payments from the Fund); and 

3 ‘‘(C) section 532 (relating to violations). 

4 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUND TO MAKE PAYMENTS TO PAR5 TICIPATING CANDIDATES.— 

6 ‘‘(1) PAYMENTS TO PARTICIPATING CAN7 DIDATES.—Amounts in the Fund shall be available 

8 without further appropriation or fiscal year limita9 tion to make payments to participating candidates 

10 as provided in this title. 

11 ‘‘(2) MANDATORY REDUCTION OF PAYMENTS IN

12 CASE OF INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS IN FUND.— 

13 ‘‘(A) ADVANCE AUDITS BY COMMISSION.— 

14 Not later than 90 days before the first day of 

15 each election cycle (beginning with the first 

16 election cycle that begins after the date of the 

17 enactment of this title), the Commission shall— 

18 ‘‘(i) audit the Fund to determine 

19 whether the amounts in the Fund will be 

20 sufficient to make payments to partici21 pating candidates in the amounts provided 

22 in this title during such election cycle; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) submit a report to Congress de24 scribing the results of the audit. 


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1 ‘‘(B) REDUCTIONS IN AMOUNT OF PAY2 MENTS.— 

3 ‘‘(i) AUTOMATIC REDUCTION ON PRO

4 RATA BASIS.—If, on the basis of the audit 

5 described in subparagraph (A), the Com6 mission determines that the amount antici7 pated to be available in the Fund with re8 spect to the election cycle involved is not, 

9 or may not be, sufficient to satisfy the full 

10 entitlements of participating candidates to 

11 payments under this title for such election 

12 cycle, the Commission shall reduce each 

13 amount which would otherwise be paid to 

14 a participating candidate under this title 

15 by such pro rata amount as may be nec16 essary to ensure that the aggregate 

17 amount of payments anticipated to be 

18 made with respect to the election cycle will 

19 not exceed the amount anticipated to be 

20 available for such payments in the Fund 

21 with respect to such election cycle. 

22 ‘‘(ii) RESTORATION OF REDUCTIONS

23 IN CASE OF AVAILABILITY OF SUFFICIENT

24 FUNDS DURING ELECTION CYCLE.—If, 

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1 pating candidates with respect to an elec2 tion cycle under clause (i), the Commission 

3 determines that there are sufficient 

4 amounts in the Fund to restore the 

5 amount by which such payments were re6 duced (or any portion thereof), to the ex7 tent that such amounts are available, the 

8 Commission may make a payment on a pro 

9 rata basis to each such participating can10 didate with respect to the election cycle in 

11 the amount by which such candidate’s pay12 ments were reduced under clause (i) (or 

13 any portion thereof, as the case may be). 

14 ‘‘(iii) NO USE OF AMOUNTS FROM

15 OTHER SOURCES.—In any case in which 

16 the Commission determines that there are 

17 insufficient moneys in the Fund to make 

18 payments to participating candidates under 

19 this title, moneys shall not be made avail20 able from any other source for the purpose 

21 of making such payments. 

22 ‘‘(d) NO TAXPAYER FUNDS PERMITTED.—No tax23 payer funds may be deposited into the Fund. 

24 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUND TO MAKE OTHER PAYMENTS.— 

25 In addition to the use described in subsection (d), amounts 


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1 in the Fund shall be available without further appropria2 tion or fiscal year limitation— 

3 ‘‘(1) to make payments to candidates under 

4 chapter 95 of subtitle H of the Internal Revenue 

5 Code of 1986, subject to reductions under section 

6 9013(b) of such Code; and 

7 ‘‘(2) to make payments to candidates under 

8 chapter 96 of subtitle H of the Internal Revenue 

9 Code of 1986, subject to reductions under section 

10 9043(b) of such Code. 

11 ‘‘(f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take ef12 fect on the date of the enactment of this title. 

13 ‘‘Subtitle B—Eligibility and 

14 Certification 

15 ‘‘SEC. 511. ELIGIBILITY. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A candidate for Senator is eligi17 ble to receive an allocation from the Fund for any election 

18 if the candidate meets the following requirements: 

19 ‘‘(1) The candidate files with the Commission a 

20 statement of intent to seek certification as a partici21 pating candidate under this title during the period 

22 beginning on the Fair Elections start date and end23 ing on the last day of the Fair Elections qualifying 

24 period. 


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1 ‘‘(2) The candidate meets the qualifying con2 tribution requirements of section 512. 

3 ‘‘(3) The candidate files with the Commission a 

4 statement certifying that the authorized committees 

5 of the candidate meet the requirements of section 

6 513(d)(2). 

7 ‘‘(4) Not later than the last day of the Fair 

8 Elections qualifying period, the candidate files with 

9 the Commission an affidavit signed by the candidate 

10 and the treasurer of the candidate’s principal cam11 paign committee declaring that the candidate— 

12 ‘‘(A) has complied and, if certified, will 

13 comply with the contribution and expenditure 

14 requirements of section 513; 

15 ‘‘(B) if certified, will not run as a non16 participating candidate during such year in any 

17 election for the office that such candidate is 

18 seeking; and 

19 ‘‘(C) has either qualified or will take steps 

20 to qualify under State law to be on the ballot. 

21 ‘‘(b) GENERAL ELECTION.—Notwithstanding sub22 section (a), a candidate shall not be eligible to receive an 

23 allocation from the Fund for a general election or a gen24 eral runoff election unless the candidate’s party nominated 

25 the candidate to be placed on the ballot for the general 


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1 election or the candidate otherwise qualified to be on the 

2 ballot under State law. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 512. QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTION REQUIREMENT. 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A candidate for Senator meets 

5 the requirement of this section if, during the Fair Elec6 tions qualifying period, the candidate obtains— 

7 ‘‘(1) a number of qualifying contributions equal 

8 to the sum of— 

9 ‘‘(A) 2,000; plus 

10 ‘‘(B) 500 for each congressional district in 

11 the State with respect to which the candidate is 

12 seeking election; and 

13 ‘‘(2) a total dollar amount of qualifying con14 tributions equal to 10 percent of the amount of the 

15 allocation such candidate would be entitled to receive 

16 for the primary election under section 522(c)(1) (de17 termined without regard to paragraph (5) thereof) if 

18 such candidate were a participating candidate. 

19 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO RECEIPT OF

20 QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTION.—Each qualifying contribu21 tion— 

22 ‘‘(1) may be made by means of a personal 

23 check, money order, debit card, credit card, or elec24 tronic payment account; 


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1 ‘‘(2) shall be accompanied by a signed state2 ment containing the contributor’s name and the con3 tributor’s address in the State in which the contrib4 utor is registered to vote; and 

5 ‘‘(3) shall be acknowledged by a receipt that is 

6 sent to the contributor with a copy kept by the can7 didate for the Commission and a copy kept by the 

8 candidate for the election authorities in the State 

9 with respect to which the candidate is seeking elec10 tion. 

11 ‘‘(c) VERIFICATION OF QUALIFYING CONTRIBU12 TIONS.—The Commission shall establish procedures for 

13 the auditing and verification of qualifying contributions to 

14 ensure that such contributions meet the requirements of 

15 this section. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 513. CONTRIBUTION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIRE17 MENTS. 

18 ‘‘(a) GENERAL RULE.—A candidate for Senator 

19 meets the requirements of this section if, during the elec20 tion cycle of the candidate, the candidate— 

21 ‘‘(1) except as provided in subsection (b), ac22 cepts no contributions other than— 

23 ‘‘(A) qualifying contributions; 

24 ‘‘(B) qualified small dollar contributions; 


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1 ‘‘(C) qualifying multicandidate political 

2 committee contributions; 

3 ‘‘(D) allocations from the Fund under sec4 tion 522; 

5 ‘‘(E) matching contributions under section 

6 523; 

7 ‘‘(F) enhanced matching contributions 

8 under section 524; 

9 ‘‘(G) subject to subsection (c), personal 

10 funds of the candidate or of any immediate 

11 family member of the candidate (other than 

12 funds received through qualified small dollar 

13 contributions); and 

14 ‘‘(H) subject to subsection (d), contribu15 tions from individuals who are otherwise per16 mitted to make contributions under this Act, 

17 subject to the applicable limitations of section 

18 315, except that the aggregate amount of con19 tributions a participating candidate may accept 

20 from any individual with respect to any election 

21 during the election cycle may not exceed 

22 $1,000; and 

23 ‘‘(2) makes no expenditures from any amounts 

24 other than from— 

25 ‘‘(A) qualifying contributions; 


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1 ‘‘(B) qualified small dollar contributions; 

2 ‘‘(C) qualifying multicandidate political 

3 committee contributions; 

4 ‘‘(D) allocations from the Fund under sec5 tion 522; 

6 ‘‘(E) matching contributions under section 

7 523; 

8 ‘‘(F) enhanced matching contributions 

9 under section 524; 

10 ‘‘(G) subject to subsection (c), personal 

11 funds of the candidate or of any immediate 

12 family member of the candidate (other than 

13 funds received through qualified small dollar 

14 contributions); and 

15 ‘‘(H) subject to subsection (d), contribu16 tions from individuals who are otherwise per17 mitted to make contributions under this Act, 

18 subject to the applicable limitations of section 

19 315, except that the aggregate amount of con20 tributions a participating candidate may accept 

21 from any individual with respect to any election 

22 during the election cycle may not exceed 

23 $1,000. 

24 For purposes of this subsection, a payment made by a po25 litical party in coordination with a participating candidate 


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1 shall not be treated as a contribution to or as an expendi2 ture made by the participating candidate. 

3 ‘‘(b) CONTRIBUTIONS FOR LEADERSHIP PACS, 

4 ETC.—A political committee of a participating candidate 

5 which is not an authorized committee of such candidate 

6 may accept contributions other than contributions de7 scribed in subsection (a)(1) from any person if— 

8 ‘‘(1) the aggregate contributions from such per9 son for any calendar year do not exceed $200; and 

10 ‘‘(2) no portion of such contributions is dis11 bursed in connection with the campaign of the par12 ticipating candidate. 

13 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL RULES FOR PERSONAL FUNDS.—A 

14 candidate who is certified as a participating candidate may 

15 use personal funds (including personal funds of any imme16 diate family member of the candidate) so long as— 

17 ‘‘(1) the aggregate amount used with respect to 

18 the election cycle (including any period of the cycle 

19 occurring prior to the candidate’s certification as a 

20 participating candidate) does not exceed $50,000; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(2) the funds are used only for making direct 

23 payments for the receipt of goods and services which 

24 constitute authorized expenditures in connection 

25 with the election cycle involved. 


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1 ‘‘(d) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO SUBSEQUENT

2 CONTRIBUTIONS AND NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) RESTRICTION ON SUBSEQUENT CONTRIBU4 TIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITING DONOR FROM MAKING

6 SUBSEQUENT NONQUALIFIED CONTRIBUTIONS

7 DURING ELECTION CYCLE.—An individual who 

8 makes a qualified small dollar contribution to a 

9 candidate with respect to an election may not 

10 make any subsequent contribution to such can11 didate with respect to the election cycle which 

12 is not a qualified small dollar contribution. 

13 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF SUBSEQUENT NON14 QUALIFIED CONTRIBUTIONS.—If, notwith15 standing the prohibition described in subpara16 graph (A), an individual who makes a qualified 

17 small dollar contribution to a candidate with re18 spect to an election makes a subsequent con19 tribution to such candidate with respect to the 

20 election which is prohibited under subparagraph 

21 (A) because it is not a qualified small dollar 

22 contribution, the candidate may take one of the 

23 following actions: 

24 ‘‘(i) Not later than 2 weeks after re25 ceiving the contribution, the candidate may 


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1 return the subsequent contribution to the 

2 individual. In the case of a subsequent con3 tribution which is not a qualified small dol4 lar contribution because the contribution 

5 fails to meet the requirements of para6 graph (13)(C) of section 501 (relating to 

7 the aggregate amount of qualified small 

8 dollar contributions that may be made by 

9 an individual to a candidate), the can10 didate may return an amount equal to the 

11 difference between the amount of the sub12 sequent contribution and the amount de13 scribed in such paragraph. 

14 ‘‘(ii) The candidate may retain the 

15 subsequent contribution, so long as not 

16 later than 2 weeks after receiving the sub17 sequent contribution, the candidate remits 

18 to the Commission for deposit in the Free19 dom from Influence Fund established by 

20 section 502 an amount equal to any pay21 ments received by the candidate under this 

22 title which are attributable to the qualified 

23 small dollar contribution made by the indi24 vidual involved. 


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1 ‘‘(C) NO EFFECT ON ABILITY TO MAKE

2 MULTIPLE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Nothing in this 

3 subsection may be construed to prohibit an in4 dividual from making multiple qualified small 

5 dollar contributions to any candidate or any 

6 number of candidates, so long as each contribu7 tion meets the definition of a qualified small 

8 dollar contribution under section 501(13). 

9 ‘‘(2) NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR CAN10 DIDATES.— 

11 ‘‘(A) NOTIFICATION.—Each authorized 

12 committee of a candidate who seeks to be a par13 ticipating candidate under this title shall pro14 vide the following information in any materials 

15 for the solicitation of contributions, including 

16 any internet site through which individuals may 

17 make contributions to the committee: 

18 ‘‘(i) A statement that if the candidate 

19 is certified as a participating candidate 

20 under this title, the candidate will receive 

21 matching payments in an amount which is 

22 based on the total amount of qualified 

23 small dollar contributions received. 

24 ‘‘(ii) A statement that a contribution 

25 which meets the definition of a qualified 


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1 small dollar contribution under section 

2 501(13) shall be treated as a qualified 

3 small dollar contribution under this title. 

4 ‘‘(iii) A statement that if a contribu5 tion is treated as qualified small dollar 

6 contribution under this title, the individual 

7 who makes the contribution may not make 

8 any contribution to the candidate or the 

9 authorized committees of the candidate 

10 during the election cycle which is not a 

11 qualified small dollar contribution. 

12 ‘‘(B) ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF MEETING

13 REQUIREMENTS.—An authorized committee 

14 may meet the requirements of subparagraph 

15 (A)— 

16 ‘‘(i) by including the information de17 scribed in paragraph (1) in the receipt pro18 vided under section 512(b)(3) to a person 

19 making a qualified small dollar contribu20 tion; or 

21 ‘‘(ii) by modifying the information it 

22 provides to persons making contributions 

23 which is otherwise required under title III 

24 (including information it provides through 

25 the internet). 


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1 ‘‘(e) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), a 

2 candidate shall not be treated as having failed to meet 

3 the requirements of this section if any contributions that 

4 are not qualified small dollar contributions, qualifying con5 tributions, qualifying multicandidate political committee 

6 contributions, or contributions that meet the requirements 

7 of subsection (b) and that are accepted before the date 

8 the candidate files a statement of intent under section 

9 511(a)(1) are— 

10 ‘‘(1) returned to the contributor; or 

11 ‘‘(2) submitted to the Commission for deposit in 

12 the Fund. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 514. CERTIFICATION. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 days after a 

15 candidate for Senator files an affidavit under section 

16 511(a)(4), the Commission shall— 

17 ‘‘(1) certify whether or not the candidate is a 

18 participating candidate; and 

19 ‘‘(2) notify the candidate of the Commission’s 

20 determination. 

21 ‘‘(b) REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATION.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may re23 voke a certification under subsection (a) if— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a candidate fails to qualify to appear 

2 on the ballot at any time after the date of cer3 tification; or 

4 ‘‘(B) a candidate otherwise fails to comply 

5 with the requirements of this title, including 

6 any regulatory requirements prescribed by the 

7 Commission. 

8 ‘‘(2) REPAYMENT OF BENEFITS.—If certifi9 cation is revoked under paragraph (1), the candidate 

10 shall repay to the Fund an amount equal to the 

11 value of benefits received under this title plus inter12 est (at a rate determined by the Commission) on any 

13 such amount received. 

14 ‘‘Subtitle C—Benefits 

15 ‘‘SEC. 521. BENEFITS FOR PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For each election with respect 

17 to which a candidate is certified as a participating can18 didate under section 514, such candidate shall be entitled 

19 to— 

20 ‘‘(1) an allocation from the Fund to make or 

21 obligate to make expenditures with respect to such 

22 election, as provided in section 522; 

23 ‘‘(2) matching contributions, as provided in sec24 tion 523; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) enhanced matching contributions, as pro2 vided in section 524. 

3 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTION ON USES OF ALLOCATIONS FROM

4 THE FUND.—Allocations from the Fund received by a par5 ticipating candidate under section 522, matching contribu6 tions under section 523, and enhanced matching contribu7 tions under section 524 may only be used for campaign8 related costs. 

9 ‘‘(c) REMITTING ALLOCATIONS FROM THE FUND.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the date 

11 that is 180 days after an election in which the par12 ticipating candidate appeared on the ballot, such 

13 participating candidate shall remit to the Commis14 sion for deposit in the Fund an amount equal to the 

15 lesser of— 

16 ‘‘(A) the amount of money in the can17 didate’s campaign account; or 

18 ‘‘(B) the sum of the allocations from the 

19 Fund received by the candidate under section 

20 522, the matching contributions received by the 

21 candidate under section 523, and the enhanced 

22 matching contributions under section 524. 

23 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(A) SUBSEQUENT ELECTION.—In the 

25 case of a candidate who qualifies to be on the 


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1 ballot for a primary runoff election, a general 

2 election, or a general runoff election, the 

3 amounts described in paragraph (1) may be re4 tained by the candidate and used in such subse5 quent election. 

6 ‘‘(B) CANDIDATE SEEKING CERTIFICATION

7 FOR NEXT ELECTION CYCLE.—Notwithstanding 

8 paragraph (1), a participating candidate may 

9 withhold not more than $100,000 from the 

10 amount required to be remitted under para11 graph (1) if the candidate files a signed affi12 davit with the Commission that the candidate 

13 will seek certification as a participating can14 didate with respect to the next election cycle, 

15 except that the candidate may not use any por16 tion of the amount withheld until the candidate 

17 is certified as a participating candidate with re18 spect to that next election cycle. If the can19 didate fails to seek certification as a partici20 pating candidate prior to the last day of the 

21 qualifying period for the next election cycle (as 

22 described in section 511), or if the Commission 

23 notifies the candidate of the Commission’s de24 termination that the candidate does not meet 

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1 pating candidate with respect to such cycle, the 

2 candidate shall immediately remit to the Com3 mission the amount withheld. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 522. ALLOCATIONS FROM THE FUND. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall make allo6 cations from the Fund under section 521(a)(1) to a par7 ticipating candidate— 

8 ‘‘(1) in the case of amounts provided under 

9 subsection (d)(1), after the date on which such can10 didate is certified as a participating candidate under 

11 section 514; 

12 ‘‘(2) in the case of a general election after— 

13 ‘‘(A) the date of the certification of the re14 sults of the primary election or the primary 

15 runoff election; or 

16 ‘‘(B) in any case in which there is no pri17 mary election, the date the candidate qualifies 

18 to be placed on the ballot; and 

19 ‘‘(3) in the case of a primary runoff election or 

20 a general runoff election, after the certification of 

21 the results of the primary election or the general 

22 election, as the case may be. 

23 ‘‘(b) METHOD OF PAYMENT.—The Commission shall 

24 distribute funds available to participating candidates 


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1 under this section through the use of an electronic funds 

2 exchange or a debit card. 

3 ‘‘(c) TIMING OF PAYMENT.—The Commission shall, 

4 in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, take 

5 such steps as may be necessary to ensure that the Sec6 retary is able to make payments under this section from 

7 the Treasury not later than 2 business days after date 

8 of the applicable certification as described in subsection 

9 (a). 

10 ‘‘(d) AMOUNTS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) PRIMARY ELECTION ALLOCATION; INITIAL

12 ALLOCATION.—Except as provided in paragraph (5), 

13 the Commission shall make an allocation from the 

14 Fund for a primary election to a participating can15 didate in an amount equal to 67 percent of the base 

16 amount with respect to such participating candidate. 

17 ‘‘(2) PRIMARY RUNOFF ELECTION ALLOCA18 TION.—The Commission shall make an allocation 

19 from the Fund for a primary runoff election to a 

20 participating candidate in an amount equal to 25 

21 percent of the amount the participating candidate 

22 was eligible to receive under this section for the pri23 mary election. 

24 ‘‘(3) GENERAL ELECTION ALLOCATION.—Ex25 cept as provided in paragraph (5), the Commission 


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1 shall make an allocation from the Fund for a gen2 eral election to a participating candidate in an 

3 amount equal to the base amount with respect to 

4 such candidate. 

5 ‘‘(4) GENERAL RUNOFF ELECTION ALLOCA6 TION.—The Commission shall make an allocation 

7 from the Fund for a general runoff election to a par8 ticipating candidate in an amount equal to 25 per9 cent of the base amount with respect to such can10 didate. 

11 ‘‘(5) UNCONTESTED ELECTIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a pri13 mary or general election that is an uncontested 

14 election, the Commission shall make an alloca15 tion from the Fund to a participating candidate 

16 for such election in an amount equal to 25 per17 cent of the allocation which such candidate 

18 would be entitled to under this section for such 

19 election if this paragraph did not apply. 

20 ‘‘(B) UNCONTESTED ELECTION DE21 FINED.—For purposes of this subparagraph, an 

22 election is uncontested if not more than 1 can23 didate has campaign funds (including payments 

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1 pating candidate would be entitled to receive 

2 under this section for such election if this para3 graph did not apply. 

4 ‘‘(e) BASE AMOUNT.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro6 vided in this subsection, the base amount for any 

7 candidate is an amount equal to the sum of— 

8 ‘‘(A) $750,000; plus 

9 ‘‘(B) $150,000 for each congressional dis10 trict in the State with respect to which the can11 didate is seeking election. 

12 ‘‘(2) INDEXING.—In each even-numbered year 

13 after 2027— 

14 ‘‘(A) each dollar amount under paragraph 

15 (1) shall be increased by the percent difference 

16 between the price index (as defined in section 

17 315(c)(2)(A)) for the 12 months preceding the 

18 beginning of such calendar year and the price 

19 index for calendar year 2022; 

20 ‘‘(B) each dollar amount so increased shall 

21 remain in effect for the 2-year period beginning 

22 on the first day following the date of the last 

23 general election in the year preceding the year 

24 in which the amount is increased and ending on 

25 the date of the next general election; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) if any amount after adjustment under 

2 subparagraph (A) is not a multiple of $100, 

3 such amount shall be rounded to the nearest 

4 multiple of $100. 

5 ‘‘SEC. 523. MATCHING PAYMENTS FOR QUALIFIED SMALL 

6 DOLLAR CONTRIBUTIONS. 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall pay to 

8 each participating candidate an amount equal to 600 per9 cent of the amount of qualified small dollar contributions 

10 received by the candidate from individuals after the date 

11 on which such candidate is certified under section 514. 

12 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The aggregate payments under 

13 subsection (a) with respect to any candidate shall not ex14 ceed 400 percent of the allocation such candidate is enti15 tled to receive for such election under section 522 (deter16 mined without regard to subsection (d)(5) thereof). 

17 ‘‘(c) TIME OF PAYMENT.—The Commission shall 

18 make payments under this section not later than 2 busi19 ness days after the receipt of a report made under sub20 section (d). 

21 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each participating can23 didate shall file reports of receipts of qualified small 

24 dollar contributions at such times and in such man25 ner as the Commission may by regulations prescribe. 


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1 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF REPORTS.—Each report 

2 under this subsection shall disclose— 

3 ‘‘(A) the amount of each qualified small 

4 dollar contribution received by the candidate; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(B) the name, address, and occupation of 

7 each individual who made a qualified small dol8 lar contribution to the candidate. 

9 ‘‘(3) FREQUENCY OF REPORTS.—Reports under 

10 this subsection shall be made no more frequently 

11 than— 

12 ‘‘(A) once every month until the date that 

13 is 90 days before the date of the election; and 

14 ‘‘(B) once every week after the period de15 scribed in subparagraph (A) and until the date 

16 of the election. 

17 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION ON REGULATIONS.—The 

18 Commission may not prescribe any regulations with 

19 respect to reporting under this subsection with re20 spect to any election after the date that is 180 days 

21 before the date of such election. 

22 ‘‘(e) APPEALS.—The Commission shall provide a 

23 written explanation with respect to any denial of any pay24 ment under this section and shall provide the opportunity 


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1 for review and reconsideration within 5 business days of 

2 such denial. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 524. ENHANCED MATCHING SUPPORT. 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the payments 

5 made under section 523, the Commission shall make an 

6 additional payment to an eligible candidate under this sec7 tion. 

8 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—A candidate is eligible to receive 

9 an additional payment under this section if the candidate 

10 meets each of the following requirements: 

11 ‘‘(1) The candidate is on the ballot for the gen12 eral election for the office the candidate seeks. 

13 ‘‘(2) The candidate is certified as a partici14 pating candidate under this title with respect to the 

15 election. 

16 ‘‘(3) During the enhanced support qualifying 

17 period, the candidate receives qualified small dollar 

18 contributions in a total amount of not less than the 

19 sum of $15,000 for each congressional district in the 

20 State with respect to which the candidate is seeking 

21 election. 

22 ‘‘(4) During the enhanced support qualifying 

23 period, the candidate submits to the Commission a 

24 request for the payment which includes— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a statement of the number and 

2 amount of qualified small dollar contributions 

3 received by the candidate during the enhanced 

4 support qualifying period; 

5 ‘‘(B) a statement of the amount of the 

6 payment the candidate anticipates receiving 

7 with respect to the request; and 

8 ‘‘(C) such other information and assur9 ances as the Commission may require. 

10 ‘‘(5) After submitting a request for the addi11 tional payment under paragraph (4), the candidate 

12 does not submit any other application for an addi13 tional payment under this title. 

14 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

16 the amount of the additional payment made to an el17 igible candidate under this subtitle shall be an 

18 amount equal to 50 percent of— 

19 ‘‘(A) the amount of the payment made to 

20 the candidate under section 523 with respect to 

21 the qualified small dollar contributions which 

22 are received by the candidate during the en23 hanced support qualifying period (as included in 

24 the request submitted by the candidate under 

25 (b)(4)(A)); or 


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1 ‘‘(B) in the case of a candidate who is not 

2 eligible to receive a payment under section 523 

3 with respect to such qualified small dollar con4 tributions because the candidate has reached 

5 the limit on the aggregate amount of payments 

6 under section 523, the amount of the payment 

7 which would have been made to the candidate 

8 under section 523 with respect to such qualified 

9 small dollar contributions if the candidate had 

10 not reached such limit. 

11 ‘‘(2) LIMIT.—The amount of the additional 

12 payment determined under paragraph (1) with re13 spect to a candidate may not exceed the sum of 

14 $150,000 for each congressional district in the State 

15 with respect to which the candidate is seeking elec16 tion. 

17 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON AGGREGATE LIMIT.—The 

18 amount of the additional payment made to a can19 didate under this section shall not be included in de20 termining the aggregate amount of payments made 

21 to a participating candidate with respect to an elec22 tion cycle under section 523. 


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1 ‘‘Subtitle D—Administrative 

2 Provisions 

3 ‘‘SEC. 531. DUTIES OF THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMIS4 SION. 

5 ‘‘(a) DUTIES AND POWERS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATION.—The Commission shall 

7 have the power to administer the provisions of this 

8 title and shall prescribe regulations to carry out the 

9 purposes of this title, including regulations— 

10 ‘‘(A) to establish procedures for— 

11 ‘‘(i) verifying the amount of valid 

12 qualifying contributions with respect to a 

13 candidate; 

14 ‘‘(ii) effectively and efficiently moni15 toring and enforcing the limits on the rais16 ing of qualified small dollar contributions; 

17 ‘‘(iii) monitoring the raising of quali18 fying multicandidate political committee 

19 contributions through effectively and effi20 ciently monitoring and enforcing the limits 

21 on individual contributions to qualified ac22 counts of multicandidate political commit23 tees; 

24 ‘‘(iv) effectively and efficiently moni25 toring and enforcing the limits on the use 


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1 of personal funds by participating can2 didates; and 

3 ‘‘(v) monitoring the use of allocations 

4 from the Fund and matching contributions 

5 under this title through audits or other 

6 mechanisms; and 

7 ‘‘(B) regarding the conduct of debates in a 

8 manner consistent with the best practices of 

9 States that provide public financing for elec10 tions. 

11 ‘‘(2) REVIEW OF FAIR ELECTIONS FINANC12 ING.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After each general 

14 election for Federal office, the Commission shall 

15 conduct a comprehensive review of the Fair 

16 Elections financing program under this title, in17 cluding— 

18 ‘‘(i) the maximum dollar amount of 

19 qualified small dollar contributions under 

20 section 501(13); 

21 ‘‘(ii) the maximum and minimum dol22 lar amounts for qualifying contributions 

23 under section 501(12); 

24 ‘‘(iii) the number and value of quali25 fying contributions a candidate is required 


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1 to obtain under section 512 to qualify for 

2 allocations from the Fund; 

3 ‘‘(iv) the amount of allocations from 

4 the Fund that candidates may receive 

5 under section 522; 

6 ‘‘(v) the maximum amount of match7 ing contributions a candidate may receive 

8 under section 523; 

9 ‘‘(vi) the maximum amount of en10 hanced matching contributions a candidate 

11 may receive under section 524; 

12 ‘‘(vii) the overall satisfaction of par13 ticipating candidates and the American 

14 public with the program; and 

15 ‘‘(viii) such other matters relating to 

16 financing of Senate campaigns as the Com17 mission determines are appropriate. 

18 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA FOR REVIEW.—In con19 ducting the review under subparagraph (A), the 

20 Commission shall consider the following: 

21 ‘‘(i) QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTIONS

22 AND QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CON23 TRIBUTIONS.—The Commission shall con24 sider whether the number and dollar 

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1 quired and maximum dollar amount for 

2 such qualifying contributions and qualified 

3 small dollar contributions strikes a balance 

4 regarding the importance of voter involve5 ment, the need to assure adequate incen6 tives for participating, and fiscal responsi7 bility, taking into consideration the num8 ber of primary and general election partici9 pating candidates, the electoral perform10 ance of those candidates, program cost, 

11 and any other information the Commission 

12 determines is appropriate. 

13 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW OF PROGRAM BENE14 FITS.—The Commission shall consider 

15 whether the totality of the amount of 

16 funds allowed to be raised by participating 

17 candidates (including through qualifying 

18 contributions and small dollar contribu19 tions), allocations from the Fund under 

20 section 522, matching contributions under 

21 section 523, and enhanced matching con22 tributions under section 524 are sufficient 

23 for voters in each State to learn about the 

24 candidates to cast an informed vote, taking 

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1 ing by winning candidates, media costs, 

2 primary election dates, and any other in3 formation the Commission determines is 

4 appropriate. 

5 ‘‘(C) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ADJUST6 MENT OF AMOUNTS.—Based on the review con7 ducted under subparagraph (A), the Commis8 sion shall make recommendations to Congress 

9 for any adjustment of the following amounts: 

10 ‘‘(i) The maximum dollar amount of 

11 qualified small dollar contributions under 

12 section 501(13)(C). 

13 ‘‘(ii) The maximum and minimum dol14 lar amounts for qualifying contributions 

15 under section 501(12)(A). 

16 ‘‘(iii) The number and value of quali17 fying contributions a candidate is required 

18 to obtain under section 512(a)(1). 

19 ‘‘(iv) The base amount for candidates 

20 under section 522(d). 

21 ‘‘(v) The maximum amount of match22 ing contributions a candidate may receive 

23 under section 523(b). 


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1 ‘‘(vi) The maximum amount of en2 hanced matching contributions a candidate 

3 may receive under section 524(c). 

4 ‘‘(D) REPORT.—Not later than March 30 

5 following any general election for Federal office, 

6 the Commission shall submit a report to Con7 gress on the review conducted under subpara8 graph (A) and any recommendations developed 

9 under subparagraph (C). Such report shall con10 tain a detailed statement of the findings, con11 clusions, and recommendations of the Commis12 sion based on such review. 

13 ‘‘(b) REPORTS.—Not later than March 30, 2026, and 

14 every 2 years thereafter, the Commission shall submit to 

15 the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration a re16 port documenting, evaluating, and making recommenda17 tions relating to the administrative implementation and 

18 enforcement of the provisions of this title. 

19 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

20 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec21 essary to carry out the purposes of this subtitle. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 532. VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES. 

23 ‘‘(a) CIVIL PENALTY FOR VIOLATION OF CONTRIBU24 TION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIREMENTS.—If a can25 didate who has been certified as a participating candidate 


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1 under section 514 accepts a contribution or makes an ex2 penditure that is prohibited under section 513, the Com3 mission shall assess a civil penalty against the candidate 

4 in an amount that is not more than 3 times the amount 

5 of the contribution or expenditure. Any amounts collected 

6 under this subsection shall be deposited into the Fund. 

7 ‘‘(b) REPAYMENT FOR IMPROPER USE OF FREEDOM

8 FROM INFLUENCE FUND.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Commission deter10 mines that any benefit made available to a partici11 pating candidate under this title was not used as 

12 provided for in this title or that a participating can13 didate has violated any of the dates for remission of 

14 funds contained in this title, the Commission shall 

15 so notify the candidate and the candidate shall pay 

16 to the Fund an amount equal to— 

17 ‘‘(A) the amount of benefits so used or not 

18 remitted, as appropriate; and 

19 ‘‘(B) interest on any such amounts (at a 

20 rate determined by the Commission). 

21 ‘‘(2) OTHER ACTION NOT PRECLUDED.—Any 

22 action by the Commission in accordance with this 

23 subsection shall not preclude enforcement pro24 ceedings by the Commission in accordance with sec25 tion 309(a), including a referral by the Commission 


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1 to the Attorney General in the case of an apparent 

2 knowing and willful violation of this title.’’. 

3 SEC. 5112. PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT4 TEES. 

5 Section 302(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

6 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102(e)) is amended by adding at 

7 the end the following new paragraph: 

8 ‘‘(6) No authorized committee of a participating 

9 candidate (as defined in section 501) may establish 

10 a joint fundraising committee with a political com11 mittee other than an authorized committee of a can12 didate.’’. 

13 SEC. 5113. EXCEPTION TO LIMITATION ON COORDINATED 

14 EXPENDITURES BY POLITICAL PARTY COM15 MITTEES WITH PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES. 

16 Section 315(d) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

17 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(d)) is amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ‘‘in the 

19 case of’’ and inserting ‘‘except as provided in para20 graph (6), in the case of’’; and 

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

22 paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(6)(A) The limitation under paragraph (3)(A) 

24 shall not apply with respect to any expenditure from 


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1 a qualified political party-participating candidate co2 ordinated expenditure fund. 

3 ‘‘(B) In this paragraph, the term ‘qualified po4 litical party-participating candidate coordinated ex5 penditure fund’ means a fund established by the na6 tional committee of a political party, or a State com7 mittee of a political party, including any subordinate 

8 committee of a State committee, for purposes of 

9 making expenditures in connection with the general 

10 election campaign of a candidate for election to the 

11 office of Senator who is a participating candidate (as 

12 defined in section 501), that only accepts qualified 

13 coordinated expenditure contributions. 

14 ‘‘(C) In this paragraph, the term ‘qualified co15 ordinated expenditure contribution’ means, with re16 spect to the general election campaign of a candidate 

17 for election to the office of Senator who is a partici18 pating candidate (as defined in section 501), any 

19 contribution (or series of contributions)— 

20 ‘‘(i) which is made by an individual who is 

21 not prohibited from making a contribution 

22 under this Act; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the aggregate amount of which does 

24 not exceed $500 per election.’’. 


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1 SEC. 5114. ASSESSMENTS AGAINST FINES AND PENALTIES. 

2 (a) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CRIMINAL OF3 FENSES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 201 of title 18, 

5 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following new section: 

7 ‘‘§ 3015. Special assessments for Freedom from Influ8 ence Fund 

9 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) CONVICTIONS OF CRIMES.—In addition to 

11 any assessment imposed under this chapter, the 

12 court shall assess on any organizational defendant or 

13 any defendant who is a corporate officer or person 

14 with equivalent authority in any other organization 

15 who is convicted of a criminal offense under Federal 

16 law an amount equal to 4.75 percent of any fine im17 posed on that defendant in the sentence imposed for 

18 that conviction. 

19 ‘‘(2) SETTLEMENTS.—The court shall assess on 

20 any organizational defendant or defendant who is a 

21 corporate officer or person with equivalent authority 

22 in any other organization who has entered into a 

23 settlement agreement or consent decree with the 

24 United States in satisfaction of any allegation that 

25 the defendant committed a criminal offense under 


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1 Federal law an amount equal to 4.75 percent of the 

2 amount of the settlement. 

3 ‘‘(b) MANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as4 sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected in the man5 ner in which fines are collected in criminal cases. 

6 ‘‘(c) TRANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec7 tion 3302(b) of title 31, there shall be transferred from 

8 the General Fund of the Treasury to the Freedom From 

9 Influence Fund under section 502 of the Federal Election 

10 Campaign Act of 1971 an amount equal to the amount 

11 of the assessments collected under this section.’’. 

12 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec13 tions of chapter 201 of title 18, United States Code, 

14 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘3015. Special assessments for Freedom From Influence Fund.’’. 

15 (b) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CIVIL PEN16 ALTIES.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 97 of title 31, 

18 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

19 end the following new section: 

20 ‘‘§ 9707. Special assessments for Freedom from Influ21 ence fund 

22 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENTS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Any entity of the Fed24 eral Government which is authorized under any law, 

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1 sess on each person, other than a natural person 

2 who is not a corporate officer or person with equiva3 lent authority in any other organization, on whom 

4 such a penalty is imposed an amount equal to 4.75 

5 percent of the amount of the penalty. 

6 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES.—Any entity 

7 of the Federal Government which is authorized 

8 under any law, rule, or regulation to impose an ad9 ministrative penalty shall assess on each person, 

10 other than a natural person who is not a corporate 

11 officer or person with equivalent authority in any 

12 other organization, on whom such a penalty is im13 posed an amount equal to 4.75 percent of the 

14 amount of the penalty. 

15 ‘‘(3) SETTLEMENTS.—Any entity of the Federal 

16 Government which is authorized under any law, rule, 

17 or regulation to enter into a settlement agreement or 

18 consent decree with any person, other than a natural 

19 person who is not a corporate officer or person with 

20 equivalent authority in any other organization, in 

21 satisfaction of any allegation of an action or omis22 sion by the person which would be subject to a civil 

23 penalty or administrative penalty shall assess on 

24 such person an amount equal to 4.75 percent of the 

25 amount of the settlement. 


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1 ‘‘(b) MANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as2 sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected— 

3 ‘‘(1) in the case of an amount assessed under 

4 paragraph (1) of such subsection, in the manner in 

5 which civil penalties are collected by the entity of the 

6 Federal Government involved; 

7 ‘‘(2) in the case of an amount assessed under 

8 paragraph (2) of such subsection, in the manner in 

9 which administrative penalties are collected by the 

10 entity of the Federal Government involved; and 

11 ‘‘(3) in the case of an amount assessed under 

12 paragraph (3) of such subsection, in the manner in 

13 which amounts are collected pursuant to settlement 

14 agreements or consent decrees entered into by the 

15 entity of the Federal Government involved. 

16 ‘‘(c) TRANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec17 tion 3302(b) of this title, there shall be transferred from 

18 the General Fund of the Treasury to the Freedom From 

19 Influence Fund under section 502 of the Federal Election 

20 Campaign Act of 1971 an amount equal to the amount 

21 of the assessments collected under this section. 

22 ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION FOR PENALTIES AND SETTLE23 MENTS UNDER AUTHORITY OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE

24 CODE OF 1986.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No assessment shall be 

2 made under subsection (a) with respect to any civil 

3 or administrative penalty imposed, or any settlement 

4 agreement or consent decree entered into, under the 

5 authority of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

6 ‘‘(2) CROSS REFERENCE.—For application of 

7 special assessments for the Freedom From Influence 

8 Fund with respect to certain penalties under the In9 ternal Revenue Code of 1986, see section 6761 of 

10 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 

11 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec12 tions of chapter 97 of title 31, United States Code, 

13 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘9706. Special assessments for Freedom From Influence Fund.’’. 

14 (c) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN PEN15 ALTIES UNDER THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF

16 1986.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 68 of the Internal 

18 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 

19 end the following new subchapter: 


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1 ‘‘Subchapter D—Special Assessments for 

2 Freedom From Influence Fund 

3 ‘‘SEC. 6761. SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR FREEDOM FROM 

4 INFLUENCE FUND. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each person required to pay a 

6 covered penalty shall pay an additional amount equal to 

7 4.75 percent of the amount of such penalty. 

8 ‘‘(b) COVERED PENALTY.—For purposes of this sec9 tion, the term ‘covered penalty’ means any addition to tax, 

10 additional amount, penalty, or other liability provided 

11 under subchapter A or B. 

12 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a taxpayer 

14 who is an individual, subsection (a) shall not apply 

15 to any covered penalty if such taxpayer is an exempt 

16 taxpayer for the taxable year for which such covered 

17 penalty is assessed. 

18 ‘‘(2) EXEMPT TAXPAYER.—For purposes of this 

19 subsection, a taxpayer is an exempt taxpayer for any 

20 taxable year if the taxable income of such taxpayer 

21 for such taxable year does not exceed the dollar 

22 amount at which begins the highest rate bracket in 

23 effect under section 1 with respect to such taxpayer 

24 for such taxable year. 


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1 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION OF CERTAIN RULES.—Except as 

2 provided in subsection (e), the additional amount deter3 mined under subsection (a) shall be treated for purposes 

4 of this title in the same manner as the covered penalty 

5 to which such additional amount relates. 

6 ‘‘(e) TRANSFER TO FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE

7 FUND.—The Secretary shall deposit any additional 

8 amount under subsection (a) in the General Fund of the 

9 Treasury and shall transfer from such General Fund to 

10 the Freedom From Influence Fund established under sec11 tion 502 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

12 an amount equal to the amounts so deposited (and, not13 withstanding subsection (d), such additional amount shall 

14 not be the basis for any deposit, transfer, credit, appro15 priation, or any other payment, to any other trust fund 

16 or account). Rules similar to the rules of section 9601 

17 shall apply for purposes of this subsection.’’. 

18 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sub19 chapters for chapter 68 of such Code is amended by 

20 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER D—SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE

FUND

‘‘Sec. 6761. Special assessments for freedom from influence fund.’’. 

21 (d) EFFECTIVE DATES.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para23 graph (2), the amendments made by this section 


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1 shall apply with respect to convictions, agreements, 

2 and penalties which occur on or after the date of the 

3 enactment of this Act. 

4 (2) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN PEN5 ALTIES UNDER THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF

6 1986.—The amendments made by subsection (c) 

7 shall apply to covered penalties assessed after the 

8 date of the enactment of this Act . 

9 SEC. 5115. STUDY AND REPORT ON SMALL DOLLAR FINANC10 ING PROGRAM. 

11 (a) STUDY AND REPORT.—Not later than 2 years 

12 after the completion of the first election cycle in which 

13 the program established under title V of the Federal Elec14 tion Campaign Act of 1971, as added by section 5111, 

15 is in effect, the Federal Election Commission shall— 

16 (1) assess— 

17 (A) the amount of payment referred to in 

18 section 523 of such Act; and 

19 (B) the amount of a qualified small dollar 

20 contribution referred to in section 501(13) of 

21 such Act; and 

22 (2) submit to Congress a report that discusses 

23 whether such amounts are sufficient to meet the 

24 goals of the program. 


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1 (b) UPDATE.—The Commission shall update and re2 vise the study and report required by subsection (a) on 

3 a biennial basis. 

4 (c) TERMINATION.—The requirements of this section 

5 shall terminate 10 years after the date on which the first 

6 study and report required by subsection (a) is submitted 

7 to Congress. 

8 SEC. 5116. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as may otherwise be pro10 vided in this part and in the amendments made by this 

11 part, this part and the amendments made by this part 

12 shall apply with respect to elections occurring during 2028 

13 or any succeeding year, without regard to whether or not 

14 the Federal Election Commission has promulgated the 

15 final regulations necessary to carry out this part and the 

16 amendments made by this part by the deadline set forth 

17 in subsection (b). 

18 (b) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—Not later than 

19 June 30, 2026, the Federal Election Commission shall 

20 promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to carry 

21 out this part and the amendments made by this part. 


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1 PART 3—RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE FEDERAL 

2 ELECTION COMMISSION 

3 SEC. 5121. PETITION FOR CERTIORARI. 

4 Section 307(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 

5 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30107(a)(6)) is amended by in6 serting ‘‘(including a proceeding before the Supreme 

7 Court on certiorari)’’ after ‘‘appeal’’. 

8 SEC. 5122. ELECTRONIC FILING OF FEC REPORTS. 

9 Section 304(a)(11) of the Federal Election Campaign 

10 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(a)(11)) is amended— 

11 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘under 

12 this Act—’’ and all that follows and inserting 

13 ‘‘under this Act shall be required to maintain and 

14 file such designation, statement, or report in elec15 tronic form accessible by computers.’’; 

16 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘48 

17 hours’’ and all that follows through ‘‘filed electroni18 cally)’’ and inserting ‘‘24 hours’’; and 

19 (3) by striking subparagraph (D). 

20 PART 4—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 

21 SEC. 5131. SEVERABILITY. 

22 If any provision of this subtitle or amendment made 

23 by this subtitle, or the application of a provision or amend24 ment to any person or circumstance, is held to be uncon25 stitutional, the remainder of this subtitle and amendments 

26 made by this subtitle, and the application of the provisions 


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1 and amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not 

2 be affected by the holding. 

3 Subtitle C—Presidential Elections 

4 SEC. 5200. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Empower Act of 

6 2021’’. 

7 PART 1—PRIMARY ELECTIONS 

8 SEC. 5201. INCREASE IN AND MODIFICATIONS TO MATCH9 ING PAYMENTS. 

10 (a) INCREASE AND MODIFICATION.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The first sentence of section 

12 9034(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

13 amended— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘an amount equal to the 

15 amount of each contribution’’ and inserting ‘‘an 

16 amount equal to 600 percent of the amount of 

17 each matchable contribution (disregarding any 

18 amount of contributions from any person to the 

19 extent that the total of the amounts contributed 

20 by such person for the election exceeds $200)’’; 

21 and 

22 (B) by striking ‘‘authorized committees’’ 

23 and all that follows through ‘‘$250’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘authorized committees’’. 


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1 (2) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 

2 9034 of such Code is amended— 

3 (A) by striking the last sentence of sub4 section (a); and 

5 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

6 subsection: 

7 ‘‘(c) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION DEFINED.—For 

8 purposes of this section and section 9033(b)— 

9 ‘‘(1) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

10 ‘matchable contribution’ means, with respect to the 

11 nomination for election to the office of President of 

12 the United States, a contribution by an individual to 

13 a candidate or an authorized committee of a can14 didate with respect to which the candidate has cer15 tified in writing that— 

16 ‘‘(A) the individual making such contribu17 tion has not made aggregate contributions (in18 cluding such matchable contribution) to such 

19 candidate and the authorized committees of 

20 such candidate in excess of $1,000 for the elec21 tion, 

22 ‘‘(B) such candidate and the authorized 

23 committees of such candidate will not accept 

24 contributions from such individual (including 

25 such matchable contribution) aggregating more 


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1 than the amount described in subparagraph 

2 (A), and 

3 ‘‘(C) such contribution was a direct con4 tribution. 

5 ‘‘(2) CONTRIBUTION.—For purposes of this 

6 subsection, the term ‘contribution’ means a gift of 

7 money made by a written instrument which identi8 fies the individual making the contribution by full 

9 name and mailing address, but does not include a 

10 subscription, loan, advance, or deposit of money, or 

11 anything of value or anything described in subpara12 graph (B), (C), or (D) of section 9032(4). 

13 ‘‘(3) DIRECT CONTRIBUTION.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

15 subsection, the term ‘direct contribution’ 

16 means, with respect to a candidate, a contribu17 tion which is made directly by an individual to 

18 the candidate or an authorized committee of the 

19 candidate and is not— 

20 ‘‘(i) forwarded from the individual 

21 making the contribution to the candidate 

22 or committee by another person, or 

23 ‘‘(ii) received by the candidate or com24 mittee with the knowledge that the conVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00702 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 tribution was made at the request, sugges2 tion, or recommendation of another person. 

3 ‘‘(B) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—In subpara4 graph (A)— 

5 ‘‘(i) the term ‘person’ does not include 

6 an individual (other than an individual de7 scribed in section 304(i)(7) of the Federal 

8 Election Campaign Act of 1971), a polit9 ical committee of a political party, or any 

10 political committee which is not a separate 

11 segregated fund described in section 

12 316(b) of the Federal Election Campaign 

13 Act of 1971 and which does not make con14 tributions or independent expenditures, 

15 does not engage in lobbying activity under 

16 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

17 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and is not estab18 lished by, controlled by, or affiliated with 

19 a registered lobbyist under such Act, an 

20 agent of a registered lobbyist under such 

21 Act, or an organization which retains or 

22 employs a registered lobbyist under such 

23 Act, and 

24 ‘‘(ii) a contribution is not ‘made at 

25 the request, suggestion, or recommendation 


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1 of another person’ solely on the grounds 

2 that the contribution is made in response 

3 to information provided to the individual 

4 making the contribution by any person, so 

5 long as the candidate or authorized com6 mittee does not know the identity of the 

7 person who provided the information to 

8 such individual.’’. 

9 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

10 (A) Section 9032(4) of such Code is 

11 amended by striking ‘‘section 9034(a)’’ and in12 serting ‘‘section 9034’’. 

13 (B) Section 9033(b)(3) of such Code is 

14 amended by striking ‘‘matching contributions’’ 

15 and inserting ‘‘matchable contributions’’. 

16 (b) MODIFICATION OF PAYMENT LIMITATION.—Sec17 tion 9034(b) of such Code is amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘The total’’ and inserting the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The total’’; 

21 (2) by striking ‘‘shall not exceed’’ and all that 

22 follows and inserting ‘‘shall not exceed 

23 $250,000,000.’’; and 

24 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

25 paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(2) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any ap3 plicable period beginning after 2029, the dollar 

4 amount in paragraph (1) shall be increased by 

5 an amount equal to— 

6 ‘‘(i) such dollar amount, multiplied by 

7 ‘‘(ii) the cost-of-living adjustment de8 termined under section 1(f)(3) for the cal9 endar year following the year which such 

10 applicable period begins, determined by 

11 substituting ‘calendar year 2027’ for ‘cal12 endar year 1992’ in subparagraph (B) 

13 thereof. 

14 ‘‘(B) APPLICABLE PERIOD.—For purposes 

15 of this paragraph, the term ‘applicable period’ 

16 means the 4-year period beginning with the 

17 first day following the date of the general elec18 tion for the office of President and ending on 

19 the date of the next such general election. 

20 ‘‘(C) ROUNDING.—If any amount as ad21 justed under subparagraph (A) is not a multiple 

22 of $10,000, such amount shall be rounded to 

23 the nearest multiple of $10,000.’’. 


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1 SEC. 5202. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR MATCHING 

2 PAYMENTS. 

3 (a) AMOUNT OF AGGREGATE CONTRIBUTIONS PER

4 STATE; DISREGARDING OF AMOUNTS CONTRIBUTED IN

5 EXCESS OF $200.—Section 9033(b)(3) of the Internal 

6 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘$25,000’’; and 

9 (2) by striking ‘‘20 States’’ and inserting the 

10 following: ‘‘20 States (disregarding any amount of 

11 contributions from any such resident to the extent 

12 that the total of the amounts contributed by such 

13 resident for the election exceeds $200)’’. 

14 (b) CONTRIBUTION LIMIT.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (4) of section 

16 9033(b) of such Code is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(4) the candidate and the authorized commit18 tees of the candidate will not accept aggregate con19 tributions from any person with respect to the nomi20 nation for election to the office of President of the 

21 United States in excess of $1,000 for the election.’’. 

22 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

23 (A) Section 9033(b) of such Code is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following 

25 new flush sentence: 


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1 ‘‘For purposes of paragraph (4), the term ‘contribution’ 

2 has the meaning given such term in section 301(8) of the 

3 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

4 (B) Section 9032(4) of such Code, as 

5 amended by section 5201(a)(3)(A), is amended 

6 by inserting ‘‘or 9033(b)’’ after ‘‘9034’’. 

7 (c) PARTICIPATION IN SYSTEM FOR PAYMENTS FOR

8 GENERAL ELECTION.—Section 9033(b) of such Code is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

11 (3); 

12 (2) by striking the period at the end of para13 graph (4) and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and 

14 (3) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol15 lowing new paragraph: 

16 ‘‘(5) if the candidate is nominated by a political 

17 party for election to the office of President, the can18 didate will apply for and accept payments with re19 spect to the general election for such office in ac20 cordance with chapter 95.’’. 

21 (d) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT22 TEES.—Section 9033(b) of such Code, as amended by sub23 section (c), is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

25 (4); 


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1 (2) by striking the period at the end of para2 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (3) by inserting after paragraph (5) adding at 

4 the end the following new paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(6) the candidate will not establish a joint 

6 fundraising committee with a political committee 

7 other than another authorized committee of the can8 didate, except that candidate established a joint 

9 fundraising committee with respect to a prior elec10 tion for which the candidate was not eligible to re11 ceive payments under section 9037 and the can12 didate does not terminate the committee, the can13 didate shall not be considered to be in violation of 

14 this paragraph so long as that joint fundraising 

15 committee does not receive any contributions or 

16 make any disbursements during the election cycle for 

17 which the candidate is eligible to receive payments 

18 under such section.’’. 

19 SEC. 5203. REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITATIONS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 9035 of 

21 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read 

22 as follows: 

23 ‘‘(a) PERSONAL EXPENDITURE LIMITATION.—No 

24 candidate shall knowingly make expenditures from his per25 sonal funds, or the personal funds of his immediate family, 


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1 in connection with his campaign for nomination for elec2 tion to the office of President in excess of, in the aggre3 gate, $50,000.’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (1) of 

5 section 9033(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

6 amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(1) the candidate will comply with the per8 sonal expenditure limitation under section 9035,’’. 

9 SEC. 5204. PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY OF MATCHING PAY10 MENTS. 

11 Section 9032(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

12 1986 is amended by striking ‘‘the beginning of the cal13 endar year in which a general election for the office of 

14 President of the United States will be held’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘the date that is 6 months prior to the date of the earliest 

16 State primary election’’. 

17 SEC. 5205. EXAMINATION AND AUDITS OF MATCHABLE CON18 TRIBUTIONS. 

19 Section 9038(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

20 1986 is amended by inserting ‘‘and matchable contribu21 tions accepted by’’ after ‘‘qualified campaign expenses of’’. 


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1 SEC. 5206. MODIFICATION TO LIMITATION ON CONTRIBU2 TIONS FOR PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY CAN3 DIDATES. 

4 Section 315(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 

5 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(6)) is amended by strik6 ing ‘‘calendar year’’ and inserting ‘‘four-year election 

7 cycle’’. 

8 PART 2—GENERAL ELECTIONS 

9 SEC. 5211. MODIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS 

10 FOR PUBLIC FINANCING. 

11 Subsection (a) of section 9003 of the Internal Rev12 enue Code of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible to receive 

14 any payments under section 9006, the candidates of a po15 litical party in a Presidential election shall meet the fol16 lowing requirements: 

17 ‘‘(1) PARTICIPATION IN PRIMARY PAYMENT

18 SYSTEM.—The candidate for President received pay19 ments under chapter 96 for the campaign for nomi20 nation for election to be President. 

21 ‘‘(2) AGREEMENTS WITH COMMISSION.—The 

22 candidates, in writing— 

23 ‘‘(A) agree to obtain and furnish to the 

24 Commission such evidence as it may request of 

25 the qualified campaign expenses of such can26 didates, 


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1 ‘‘(B) agree to keep and furnish to the 

2 Commission such records, books, and other in3 formation as it may request, and 

4 ‘‘(C) agree to an audit and examination by 

5 the Commission under section 9007 and to pay 

6 any amounts required to be paid under such 

7 section. 

8 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING

9 COMMITTEES.— 

10 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—The candidates cer11 tify in writing that the candidates will not es12 tablish a joint fundraising committee with a po13 litical committee other than another authorized 

14 committee of the candidate. 

15 ‘‘(B) STATUS OF EXISTING COMMITTEES

16 FOR PRIOR ELECTIONS.—If a candidate estab17 lished a joint fundraising committee described 

18 in subparagraph (A) with respect to a prior 

19 election for which the candidate was not eligible 

20 to receive payments under section 9006 and the 

21 candidate does not terminate the committee, 

22 the candidate shall not be considered to be in 

23 violation of subparagraph (A) so long as that 

24 joint fundraising committee does not receive 

25 any contributions or make any disbursements 


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1 with respect to the election for which the can2 didate is eligible to receive payments under sec3 tion 9006.’’. 

4 SEC. 5212. REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITATIONS AND 

5 USE OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBU6 TIONS. 

7 (a) USE OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS

8 WITHOUT EXPENDITURE LIMITS; APPLICATION OF SAME

9 REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJOR, MINOR, AND NEW PAR10 TIES.—Section 9003 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

11 1986 is amended by striking subsections (b) and (c) and 

12 inserting the following: 

13 ‘‘(b) USE OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS

14 TO DEFRAY EXPENSES.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible to 

16 receive any payments under section 9006, the can17 didates of a party in a Presidential election shall 

18 certify to the Commission, under penalty of perjury, 

19 that— 

20 ‘‘(A) such candidates and their authorized 

21 committees have not and will not accept any 

22 contributions to defray qualified campaign ex23 penses other than— 

24 ‘‘(i) qualified campaign contributions, 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) contributions to the extent nec2 essary to make up any deficiency payments 

3 received out of the fund on account of the 

4 application of section 9006(c), and 

5 ‘‘(B) such candidates and their authorized 

6 committees have not and will not accept any 

7 contribution to defray expenses which would be 

8 qualified campaign expenses but for subpara9 graph (C) of section 9002(11). 

10 ‘‘(2) TIMING OF CERTIFICATION.—The can11 didate shall make the certification required under 

12 this subsection at the same time the candidate 

13 makes the certification required under subsection 

14 (a)(3).’’. 

15 (b) DEFINITION OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CON16 TRIBUTION.—Section 9002 of such Code is amended by 

17 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(13) QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION.— 

19 The term ‘qualified campaign contribution’ means, 

20 with respect to any election for the office of Presi21 dent of the United States, a contribution from an in22 dividual to a candidate or an authorized committee 

23 of a candidate which— 

24 ‘‘(A) does not exceed $1,000 for the elec25 tion, and 


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1 ‘‘(B) with respect to which the candidate 

2 has certified in writing that— 

3 ‘‘(i) the individual making such con4 tribution has not made aggregate contribu5 tions (including such qualified contribu6 tion) to such candidate and the authorized 

7 committees of such candidate in excess of 

8 the amount described in subparagraph (A), 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(ii) such candidate and the author11 ized committees of such candidate will not 

12 accept contributions from such individual 

13 (including such qualified contribution) ag14 gregating more than the amount described 

15 in subparagraph (A) with respect to such 

16 election.’’. 

17 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (1) REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITS.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 315 of the Fed20 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

21 30116) is amended by striking subsection (b). 

22 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

23 315(c) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)) is 

24 amended— 


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1 (i) in paragraph (1)(B)(i), by striking 

2 ‘‘, (b)’’; and 

3 (ii) in paragraph (2)(B)(i), by striking 

4 ‘‘subsections (b) and (d)’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘subsection (d)’’. 

6 (2) REPEAL OF REPAYMENT REQUIREMENT.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 9007(b) of the 

8 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 

9 striking paragraph (2) and redesignating para10 graphs (3), (4), and (5) as paragraphs (2), (3), 

11 and (4), respectively. 

12 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Para13 graph (2) of section 9007(b) of such Code, as 

14 redesignated by subparagraph (A), is amend15 ed— 

16 (i) by striking ‘‘a major party’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘a party’’; 

18 (ii) by striking ‘‘contributions (other 

19 than’’ and inserting ‘‘contributions (other 

20 than qualified contributions’’; and 

21 (iii) by striking ‘‘(other than qualified 

22 campaign expenses with respect to which 

23 payment is required under paragraph 

24 (2))’’. 

25 (3) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 


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1 (A) REPEAL OF PENALTY FOR EXCESS EX2 PENSES.—Section 9012 of the Internal Revenue 

3 Code of 1986 is amended by striking subsection 

4 (a). 

5 (B) PENALTY FOR ACCEPTANCE OF DIS6 ALLOWED CONTRIBUTIONS; APPLICATION OF

7 SAME PENALTY FOR CANDIDATES OF MAJOR, 

8 MINOR, AND NEW PARTIES.—Subsection (b) of 

9 section 9012 of such Code is amended to read 

10 as follows: 

11 ‘‘(b) CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) ACCEPTANCE OF DISALLOWED CONTRIBU13 TIONS.—It shall be unlawful for an eligible can14 didate of a party in a Presidential election or any of 

15 his authorized committees knowingly and willfully to 

16 accept— 

17 ‘‘(A) any contribution other than a quali18 fied campaign contribution to defray qualified 

19 campaign expenses, except to the extent nec20 essary to make up any deficiency in payments 

21 received out of the fund on account of the ap22 plication of section 9006(c), or 

23 ‘‘(B) any contribution to defray expenses 

24 which would be qualified campaign expenses but 

25 for subparagraph (C) of section 9002(11). 


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1 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.—Any person who violates para2 graph (1) shall be fined not more than $5,000, or 

3 imprisoned not more than one year, or both. In the 

4 case of a violation by an authorized committee, any 

5 officer or member of such committee who knowingly 

6 and willfully consents to such violation shall be fined 

7 not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than 

8 one year, or both.’’. 

9 SEC. 5213. MATCHING PAYMENTS AND OTHER MODIFICA10 TIONS TO PAYMENT AMOUNTS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

12 (1) AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS; APPLICATION OF

13 SAME AMOUNT FOR CANDIDATES OF MAJOR, MINOR, 

14 AND NEW PARTIES.—Subsection (a) of section 9004 

15 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to 

16 read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of this 

18 chapter, the eligible candidates of a party in a Presidential 

19 election shall be entitled to equal payment under section 

20 9006 in an amount equal to 600 percent of the amount 

21 of each matchable contribution received by such candidate 

22 or by the candidate’s authorized committees (disregarding 

23 any amount of contributions from any person to the extent 

24 that the total of the amounts contributed by such person 

25 for the election exceeds $200), except that total amount 


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1 to which a candidate is entitled under this paragraph shall 

2 not exceed $250,000,000.’’. 

3 (2) REPEAL OF SEPARATE LIMITATIONS FOR

4 CANDIDATES OF MINOR AND NEW PARTIES; INFLA5 TION ADJUSTMENT.—Subsection (b) of section 9004 

6 of such Code is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(b) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any applica9 ble period beginning after 2029, the $250,000,000 

10 dollar amount in subsection (a) shall be increased by 

11 an amount equal to— 

12 ‘‘(A) such dollar amount, multiplied by 

13 ‘‘(B) the cost-of-living adjustment deter14 mined under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar 

15 year following the year which such applicable 

16 period begins, determined by substituting ‘cal17 endar year 2028’ for ‘calendar year 1992’ in 

18 subparagraph (B) thereof. 

19 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE PERIOD.—For purposes of 

20 this subsection, the term ‘applicable period’ means 

21 the 4-year period beginning with the first day fol22 lowing the date of the general election for the office 

23 of President and ending on the date of the next such 

24 general election. 


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1 ‘‘(3) ROUNDING.—If any amount as adjusted 

2 under paragraph (1) is not a multiple of $10,000, 

3 such amount shall be rounded to the nearest mul4 tiple of $10,000.’’. 

5 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

6 9005(a) of such Code is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following new sentence: ‘‘The Commission 

8 shall make such additional certifications as may be 

9 necessary to receive payments under section 9004.’’. 

10 (b) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—Section 9002 of 

11 such Code, as amended by section 5212(b), is amended 

12 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(14) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

14 ‘matchable contribution’ means, with respect to the 

15 election to the office of President of the United 

16 States, a contribution by an individual to a can17 didate or an authorized committee of a candidate 

18 with respect to which the candidate has certified in 

19 writing that— 

20 ‘‘(A) the individual making such contribu21 tion has not made aggregate contributions (in22 cluding such matchable contribution) to such 

23 candidate and the authorized committees of 

24 such candidate in excess of $1,000 for the elec25 tion, 


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1 ‘‘(B) such candidate and the authorized 

2 committees of such candidate will not accept 

3 contributions from such individual (including 

4 such matchable contribution) aggregating more 

5 than the amount described in subparagraph (A) 

6 with respect to such election, and 

7 ‘‘(C) such contribution was a direct con8 tribution (as defined in section 9034(c)(3)).’’. 

9 SEC. 5214. INCREASE IN LIMIT ON COORDINATED PARTY 

10 EXPENDITURES. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(d)(2) of the Federal 

12 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(d)(2)) 

13 is amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘(2)(A) The national committee of a political party 

15 may not make any expenditure in connection with the gen16 eral election campaign of any candidate for President of 

17 the United States who is affiliated with such party which 

18 exceeds $100,000,000. 

19 ‘‘(B) For purposes of this paragraph— 

20 ‘‘(i) any expenditure made by or on behalf of a 

21 national committee of a political party and in con22 nection with a Presidential election shall be consid23 ered to be made in connection with the general elec24 tion campaign of a candidate for President of the 

25 United States who is affiliated with such party; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) any communication made by or on behalf 

2 of such party shall be considered to be made in con3 nection with the general election campaign of a can4 didate for President of the United States who is af5 filiated with such party if any portion of the commu6 nication is in connection with such election. 

7 ‘‘(C) Any expenditure under this paragraph shall be 

8 in addition to any expenditure by a national committee 

9 of a political party serving as the principal campaign com10 mittee of a candidate for the office of President of the 

11 United States.’’. 

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO TIM13 ING OF COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENT.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(c)(1) of such 

15 Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)(1)) is amended— 

16 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘(d)’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘(d)(2)’’; and 

18 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

19 subparagraph: 

20 ‘‘(D) In any calendar year after 2028— 

21 ‘‘(i) the dollar amount in subsection (d)(2) shall 

22 be increased by the percent difference determined 

23 under subparagraph (A); 

24 ‘‘(ii) the amount so increased shall remain in 

25 effect for the calendar year; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) if the amount after adjustment under 

2 clause (i) is not a multiple of $100, such amount 

3 shall be rounded to the nearest multiple of $100.’’. 

4 (2) BASE YEAR.—Section 315(c)(2)(B) of such 

5 Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)(2)(B)) is amended— 

6 (A) in clause (i)— 

7 (i) by striking ‘‘(d)’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘(d)(3)’’; and 

9 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

10 (B) in clause (ii), by striking the period at 

11 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

12 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

13 clause: 

14 ‘‘(iii) for purposes of subsection (d)(2), cal15 endar year 2027.’’. 

16 SEC. 5215. USE OF GENERAL ELECTION PAYMENTS FOR 

17 GENERAL ELECTION LEGAL AND ACCOUNT18 ING COMPLIANCE. 

19 Section 9002(11) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

20 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

21 sentence: ‘‘For purposes of subparagraph (A), an expense 

22 incurred by a candidate or authorized committee for gen23 eral election legal and accounting compliance purposes 

24 shall be considered to be an expense to further the election 

25 of such candidate.’’. 


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1 PART 3—EFFECTIVE DATE 

2 SEC. 5221. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, this 

4 subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle shall 

5 apply with respect to the Presidential election held in 2028 

6 and each succeeding Presidential election, without regard 

7 to whether or not the Federal Election Commission has 

8 promulgated the final regulations necessary to carry out 

9 this subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle 

10 by the deadline set forth in subsection (b). 

11 (b) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—Not later than 

12 June 30, 2026, the Federal Election Commission shall 

13 promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to carry 

14 out this subtitle and the amendments made by this sub15 title. 

16 Subtitle D—Personal Use Services 

17 as Authorized Campaign Ex18 penditures 

19 SEC. 5301. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 

20 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This subtitle may be cited as the 

21 ‘‘Help America Run Act’’. 

22 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

23 (1) Everyday Americans experience barriers to 

24 entry before they can consider running for office to 

25 serve their communities. 


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1 (2) Current law states that campaign funds 

2 cannot be spent on everyday expenses that would 

3 exist whether or not a candidate were running for 

4 office, like childcare and food. While the law seems 

5 neutral, its actual effect is to privilege the independ6 ently wealthy who want to run, because given the de7 mands of running for office, candidates who must 

8 work to pay for childcare or to afford health insur9 ance are effectively being left out of the process, 

10 even if they have sufficient support to mount a via11 ble campaign. 

12 (3) Thus current practice favors those prospec13 tive candidates who do not need to rely on a regular 

14 paycheck to make ends meet. The consequence is 

15 that everyday Americans who have firsthand knowl16 edge of the importance of stable childcare, a safety 

17 net, or great public schools are less likely to get a 

18 seat at the table. This governance by the few is anti19 thetical to the democratic experiment, but most im20 portantly, when lawmakers do not share the con21 cerns of everyday Americans, their policies reflect 

22 that. 

23 (4) These circumstances have contributed to a 

24 Congress that does not always reflect everyday 

25 Americans. The New York Times reported in 2019 


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1 that fewer than 5 percent of representatives cite 

2 blue-collar or service jobs in their biographies. A 

3 2015 survey by the Center for Responsive Politics 

4 showed that the median net worth of lawmakers was 

5 just over $1 million in 2013, or 18 times the wealth 

6 of the typical American household. 

7 (5) These circumstances have also contributed 

8 to a governing body that does not reflect the nation 

9 it serves. For instance, women are 51 percent of the 

10 American population. Yet even with a record number 

11 of women serving in the One Hundred Sixteenth 

12 Congress, the Pew Research Center notes that more 

13 than three out of four Members of this Congress are 

14 male. The Center for American Women And Politics 

15 found that one third of women legislators surveyed 

16 had been actively discouraged from running for of17 fice, often by political professionals. This type of dis18 couragement, combined with the prohibitions on 

19 using campaign funds for domestic needs like 

20 childcare, burdens that still fall disproportionately 

21 on American women, particularly disadvantages 

22 working mothers. These barriers may explain why 

23 only 10 women in history have given birth while 

24 serving in Congress, in spite of the prevalence of 

25 working parents in other professions. Yet working 


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1 mothers and fathers are best positioned to create 

2 policy that reflects the lived experience of most 

3 Americans. 

4 (6) Working mothers, those caring for their el5 derly parents, and young professionals who rely on 

6 their jobs for health insurance should have the free7 dom to run to serve the people of the United States. 

8 Their networks and net worth are simply not the 

9 best indicators of their strength as prospective pub10 lic servants. In fact, helping ordinary Americans to 

11 run may create better policy for all Americans. 

12 (c) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this subtitle to 

13 ensure that all Americans who are otherwise qualified to 

14 serve this Nation are able to run for office, regardless of 

15 their economic status. By expanding permissible uses of 

16 campaign funds and providing modest assurance that test17 ing a run for office will not cost one’s livelihood, the Help 

18 America Run Act will facilitate the candidacy of represent19 atives who more accurately reflect the experiences, chal20 lenges, and ideals of everyday Americans. 

21 SEC. 5302. TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS FOR CHILD CARE 

22 AND OTHER PERSONAL USE SERVICES AS AU23 THORIZED CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE. 

24 (a) PERSONAL USE SERVICES AS AUTHORIZED CAM25 PAIGN EXPENDITURE.—Section 313 of the Federal ElecVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00726 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114) is amended 

2 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

3 ‘‘(d) TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS FOR CHILD CARE

4 AND OTHER PERSONAL USE SERVICES AS AUTHORIZED

5 CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE.— 

6 ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZED EXPENDITURES.—For pur7 poses of subsection (a), the payment by an author8 ized committee of a candidate for any of the per9 sonal use services described in paragraph (3) shall 

10 be treated as an authorized expenditure if the serv11 ices are necessary to enable the participation of the 

12 candidate in campaign-connected activities. 

13 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) LIMIT ON TOTAL AMOUNT OF PAY15 MENTS.—The total amount of payments made 

16 by an authorized committee of a candidate for 

17 personal use services described in paragraph (3) 

18 may not exceed the limit which is applicable 

19 under any law, rule, or regulation on the 

20 amount of payments which may be made by the 

21 committee for the salary of the candidate (with22 out regard to whether or not the committee 

23 makes payments to the candidate for that pur24 pose). 


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1 ‘‘(B) CORRESPONDING REDUCTION IN

2 AMOUNT OF SALARY PAID TO CANDIDATE.—To 

3 the extent that an authorized committee of a 

4 candidate makes payments for the salary of the 

5 candidate, any limit on the amount of such pay6 ments which is applicable under any law, rule, 

7 or regulation shall be reduced by the amount of 

8 any payments made to or on behalf of the can9 didate for personal use services described in 

10 paragraph (3), other than personal use services 

11 described in subparagraph (D) of such para12 graph. 

13 ‘‘(C) EXCLUSION OF CANDIDATES WHO

14 ARE OFFICEHOLDERS.—Paragraph (1) does not 

15 apply with respect to an authorized committee 

16 of a candidate who is a holder of Federal office. 

17 ‘‘(3) PERSONAL USE SERVICES DESCRIBED.— 

18 The personal use services described in this para19 graph are as follows: 

20 ‘‘(A) Child care services. 

21 ‘‘(B) Elder care services. 

22 ‘‘(C) Services similar to the services de23 scribed in subparagraph (A) or subparagraph 

24 (B) which are provided on behalf of any deVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00728 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 pendent who is a qualifying relative under sec2 tion 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

3 ‘‘(D) Health insurance premiums.’’. 

4 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

6 of this Act. 

7 Subtitle E—Empowering Small 

8 Dollar Donations 

9 SEC. 5401. PERMITTING POLITICAL PARTY COMMITTEES TO 

10 PROVIDE ENHANCED SUPPORT FOR CAN11 DIDATES THROUGH USE OF SEPARATE 

12 SMALL DOLLAR ACCOUNTS. 

13 (a) INCREASE IN LIMIT ON CONTRIBUTIONS TO CAN14 DIDATES.—Section 315(a)(2)(A) of the Federal Election 

15 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(2)(A)) is 

16 amended by striking ‘‘exceed $5,000’’ and inserting ‘‘ex17 ceed $5,000 or, in the case of a contribution made by a 

18 national committee of a political party from an account 

19 described in paragraph (11), exceed $10,000’’. 

20 (b) ELIMINATION OF LIMIT ON COORDINATED EX21 PENDITURES.—Section 315(d)(5) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

22 30116(d)(5)) is amended by striking ‘‘subsection (a)(9)’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)(9) or subsection (a)(11)’’. 

24 (c) ACCOUNTS DESCRIBED.—Section 315(a) of such 

25 Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)), as amended by section 4402(a), 


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1 is amended by adding at the end the following new para2 graph: 

3 ‘‘(11) An account described in this paragraph is a 

4 separate, segregated account of a national committee of 

5 a political party (including a national congressional cam6 paign committee of a political party) consisting exclusively 

7 of contributions made during a calendar year by individ8 uals whose aggregate contributions to the committee dur9 ing the year do not exceed $200.’’. 

10 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

11 this section shall apply with respect to elections held on 

12 or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 Subtitle F—Severability 

14 SEC. 5501. SEVERABILITY. 

15 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

16 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

17 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu18 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

19 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

20 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

21 affected by the holding. 


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1 TITLE VI—CAMPAIGN FINANCE 

2 OVERSIGHT 

3 Subtitle A—Restoring Integrity to 

4 America’s Elections 

5 SEC. 6001. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Restoring Integrity 

7 to America’s Elections Act’’. 

8 SEC. 6002. MEMBERSHIP OF FEDERAL ELECTION COMMIS9 SION. 

10 (a) REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF MEMBERS; REMOVAL

11 OF SECRETARY OF SENATE AND CLERK OF HOUSE AS

12 EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL; QUORUM.—Section 306(a)(1) 

14 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

15 U.S.C. 30106(a)(1)) is amended— 

16 (A) by striking the second and third sen17 tences and inserting the following: ‘‘The Com18 mission is composed of 5 members appointed by 

19 the President by and with the advice and con20 sent of the Senate, of whom no more than 2 

21 may be affiliated with the same political party. 

22 A member shall be treated as affiliated with a 

23 political party if the member was affiliated, in24 cluding as a registered voter, employee, consult25 ant, donor, officer, or attorney, with such politVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00731 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 ical party or any of its candidates or elected 

2 public officials at any time during the 5-year 

3 period ending on the date on which such indi4 vidual is nominated to be a member of the 

5 Commission. 3 members of the Commission 

6 shall constitute a quorum.’’; 

7 (B) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(1)’’; and 

8 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

9 subparagraph: 

10 ‘‘(B) An individual shall not be treated as affiliated 

11 with a political party under subparagraph (A) solely on 

12 the basis that the individual has made contributions or 

13 donations to a candidate or political committee affiliated 

14 with such political party unless such individual has, within 

15 the 5-year period ending on the date on which such indi16 vidual is nominated to be a member of the Commission— 

17 ‘‘(i) made one or more contributions in an 

18 amount equal to the maximum permitted by law at 

19 the time of the contribution to any individual can20 didate, political action committee, or party com21 mittee that is affiliated with such political party; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) made 5 or more contributions in excess of 

23 $100 to any candidate, political action committee, or 

24 party committee that is affiliated with such political 

25 party.’’. 


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1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

2 REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF MEMBERS.—(A) Section 

3 306(c) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(c)) is amended 

4 by striking the period at the end of the first sen5 tence and all that follows and inserting the fol6 lowing: ‘‘, except that an affirmative vote of a major7 ity of the members of the Commission who are serv8 ing at the time shall be required in order for the 

9 Commission to take any action in accordance with 

10 paragraph (6), (7), (8), or (9) of section 307(a) or 

11 with chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal Rev12 enue Code of 1986. A member of the Commission 

13 may not delegate to any person his or her vote or 

14 any decisionmaking authority or duty vested in the 

15 Commission by the provisions of this Act’’. 

16 (B) Such Act is further amended by striking 

17 ‘‘affirmative vote of 4 of its members’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘affirmative vote of a majority of the members of 

19 the Commission who are serving at the time, pro20 vided a quorum is present’’ in the following sections: 

21 (i) Section 309(a)(2) (52 U.S.C. 

22 30109(a)(2)). 

23 (ii) Section 309(a)(4)(A)(i) (52 U.S.C. 

24 30109(a)(4)(A)(i)). 


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1 (iii) Section 309(a)(5)(C) (52 U.S.C. 

2 30109(a)(5)(C)). 

3 (iv) Section 309(a)(6)(A) (52 U.S.C. 

4 30109(a)(6)(A)). 

5 (v) Section 311(b) (52 U.S.C. 30111(b)). 

6 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

7 REMOVAL OF EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—Section 

8 306(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(a)) is amend9 ed by striking ‘‘(other than the Secretary of the Sen10 ate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives)’’ 

11 each place it appears in paragraphs (4) and (5). 

12 (b) TERMS OF SERVICE.—Section 306(a)(2) of such 

13 Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(a)(2)) is amended to read as fol14 lows: 

15 ‘‘(2) TERMS OF SERVICE.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the 

17 Commission shall serve for a single term of 6 

18 years. 

19 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR INITIAL APPOINT20 MENTS.—Of the members first appointed to 

21 serve terms that begin in January 2022, the 

22 President shall designate 2 to serve for a 3-year 

23 term. 

24 ‘‘(C) NO REAPPOINTMENT PERMITTED.— 

25 An individual who served a term as a member 


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1 of the Commission may not serve for an addi2 tional term, except that— 

3 ‘‘(i) an individual who served a 3-year 

4 term under subparagraph (B) may also be 

5 appointed to serve a 6-year term under 

6 subparagraph (A); and 

7 ‘‘(ii) for purposes of this subpara8 graph, an individual who is appointed to 

9 fill a vacancy under subparagraph (D) 

10 shall not be considered to have served a 

11 term if the portion of the unexpired term 

12 the individual fills is less than 50 percent 

13 of the period of the term. 

14 ‘‘(D) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy occurring 

15 in the membership of the Commission shall be 

16 filled in the same manner as in the case of the 

17 original appointment. Except as provided in 

18 subparagraph (C), an individual appointed to 

19 fill a vacancy occurring other than by the expi20 ration of a term of office shall be appointed 

21 only for the unexpired term of the member he 

22 or she succeeds. 

23 ‘‘(E) LIMITATION ON SERVICE AFTER EX24 PIRATION OF TERM.—A member of the Com25 mission may continue to serve on the CommisVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00735 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 sion after the expiration of the member’s term 

2 for an additional period, but only until the ear3 lier of— 

4 ‘‘(i) the date on which the member’s 

5 successor has taken office as a member of 

6 the Commission; or 

7 ‘‘(ii) the expiration of the 1-year pe8 riod that begins on the last day of the 

9 member’s term.’’. 

10 (c) QUALIFICATIONS.—Section 306(a)(3) of such Act 

11 (52 U.S.C. 30106(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(3) QUALIFICATIONS.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The President may 

14 select an individual for service as a member of 

15 the Commission if the individual has experience 

16 in election law and has a demonstrated record 

17 of integrity, impartiality, and good judgment. 

18 ‘‘(B) ASSISTANCE OF BLUE RIBBON ADVI19 SORY PANEL.— 

20 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Prior to the regu21 larly scheduled expiration of the term of a 

22 member of the Commission and upon the 

23 occurrence of a vacancy in the membership 

24 of the Commission prior to the expiration 

25 of a term, the President shall convene a 


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1 Blue Ribbon Advisory Panel that includes 

2 individuals representing each major polit3 ical party and individuals who are inde4 pendent of a political party and that con5 sists of an odd number of individuals se6 lected by the President from retired Fed7 eral judges, former law enforcement offi8 cials, or individuals with experience in elec9 tion law, except that the President may not 

10 select any individual to serve on the panel 

11 who holds any public office at the time of 

12 selection. The President shall also make 

13 reasonable efforts to encourage racial, eth14 nic, and gender diversity on the panel. 

15 ‘‘(ii) RECOMMENDATIONS.—With re16 spect to each member of the Commission 

17 whose term is expiring or each vacancy in 

18 the membership of the Commission (as the 

19 case may be), the Blue Ribbon Advisory 

20 Panel shall recommend to the President at 

21 least one but not more than 3 individuals 

22 for nomination for appointment as a mem23 ber of the Commission. 

24 ‘‘(iii) PUBLICATION.—At the time the 

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1 nations for individuals to be appointed as 

2 members of the Commission, the President 

3 shall publish the Blue Ribbon Advisory 

4 Panel’s recommendations for such nomina5 tions. 

6 ‘‘(iv) EXEMPTION FROM FEDERAL AD7 VISORY COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal 

8 Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) 

9 does not apply to a Blue Ribbon Advisory 

10 Panel convened under this subparagraph. 

11 ‘‘(C) PROHIBITING ENGAGEMENT WITH

12 OTHER BUSINESS OR EMPLOYMENT DURING

13 SERVICE.—A member of the Commission shall 

14 not engage in any other business, vocation, or 

15 employment. Any individual who is engaging in 

16 any other business, vocation, or employment at 

17 the time of his or her appointment to the Com18 mission shall terminate or liquidate such activ19 ity no later than 90 days after such appoint20 ment.’’. 

21 SEC. 6003. ASSIGNMENT OF POWERS TO CHAIR OF FED22 ERAL ELECTION COMMISSION. 

23 (a) APPOINTMENT OF CHAIR BY PRESIDENT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 306(a)(5) of the 

2 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

3 30106(a)(5)) is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(5) CHAIR.— 

5 ‘‘(A) INITIAL APPOINTMENT.—Of the 

6 members first appointed to serve terms that 

7 begin in January 2022, one such member (as 

8 designated by the President at the time the 

9 President submits nominations to the Senate) 

10 shall serve as Chair of the Commission. 

11 ‘‘(B) SUBSEQUENT APPOINTMENTS.—Any 

12 individual who is appointed to succeed the 

13 member who serves as Chair of the Commission 

14 for the term beginning in January 2022 (as 

15 well as any individual who is appointed to fill 

16 a vacancy if such member does not serve a full 

17 term as Chair) shall serve as Chair of the Com18 mission. 

19 ‘‘(C) VICE CHAIR.—The Commission shall 

20 select, by majority vote of its members, one of 

21 its members to serve as Vice Chair, who shall 

22 act as Chair in the absence or disability of the 

23 Chair or in the event of a vacancy in the posi24 tion of Chair.’’. 


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1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

2 309(a)(2) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(2)) is 

3 amended by striking ‘‘through its chairman or vice 

4 chairman’’ and inserting ‘‘through the Chair’’. 

5 (b) POWERS.— 

6 (1) ASSIGNMENT OF CERTAIN POWERS TO

7 CHAIR.—Section 307(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

8 30107(a)) is amended to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘(a) DISTRIBUTION OF POWERS BETWEEN CHAIR

10 AND COMMISSION.— 

11 ‘‘(1) POWERS ASSIGNED TO CHAIR.— 

12 ‘‘(A) ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS.—The 

13 Chair of the Commission shall be the chief ad14 ministrative officer of the Commission and shall 

15 have the authority to administer the Commis16 sion and its staff, and (in consultation with the 

17 other members of the Commission) shall have 

18 the power— 

19 ‘‘(i) to appoint and remove the staff 

20 director of the Commission; 

21 ‘‘(ii) to request the assistance (includ22 ing personnel and facilities) of other agen23 cies and departments of the United States, 

24 whose heads may make such assistance 


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1 available to the Commission with or with2 out reimbursement; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) to prepare and establish the 

4 budget of the Commission and to make 

5 budget requests to the President, the Di6 rector of the Office of Management and 

7 Budget, and Congress. 

8 ‘‘(B) OTHER POWERS.—The Chair of the 

9 Commission shall have the power— 

10 ‘‘(i) to appoint and remove the gen11 eral counsel of the Commission with the 

12 concurrence of at least 2 other members of 

13 the Commission; 

14 ‘‘(ii) to require by special or general 

15 orders, any person to submit, under oath, 

16 such written reports and answers to ques17 tions as the Chair may prescribe; 

18 ‘‘(iii) to administer oaths or affirma19 tions; 

20 ‘‘(iv) to require by subpoena, signed 

21 by the Chair, the attendance and testimony 

22 of witnesses and the production of all doc23 umentary evidence relating to the execu24 tion of its duties; 


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1 ‘‘(v) in any proceeding or investiga2 tion, to order testimony to be taken by 

3 deposition before any person who is des4 ignated by the Chair, and shall have the 

5 power to administer oaths and, in such in6 stances, to compel testimony and the pro7 duction of evidence in the same manner as 

8 authorized under clause (iv); and 

9 ‘‘(vi) to pay witnesses the same fees 

10 and mileage as are paid in like cir11 cumstances in the courts of the United 

12 States. 

13 ‘‘(2) POWERS ASSIGNED TO COMMISSION.—The 

14 Commission shall have the power— 

15 ‘‘(A) to initiate (through civil actions for 

16 injunctive, declaratory, or other appropriate re17 lief), defend (in the case of any civil action 

18 brought under section 309(a)(8) of this Act) or 

19 appeal (including a proceeding before the Su20 preme Court on certiorari) any civil action in 

21 the name of the Commission to enforce the pro22 visions of this Act and chapter 95 and chapter 

23 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

24 through its general counsel; 


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1 ‘‘(B) to render advisory opinions under 

2 section 308 of this Act; 

3 ‘‘(C) to develop such prescribed forms and 

4 to make, amend, and repeal such rules, pursu5 ant to the provisions of chapter 5 of title 5, 

6 United States Code, as are necessary to carry 

7 out the provisions of this Act and chapter 95 

8 and chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

9 1986; 

10 ‘‘(D) to conduct investigations and hear11 ings expeditiously, to encourage voluntary com12 pliance, and to report apparent violations to the 

13 appropriate law enforcement authorities; and 

14 ‘‘(E) to transmit to the President and Con15 gress not later than June 1 of each year a re16 port which states in detail the activities of the 

17 Commission in carrying out its duties under 

18 this Act, and which includes any recommenda19 tions for any legislative or other action the 

20 Commission considers appropriate. 

21 ‘‘(3) PERMITTING COMMISSION TO EXERCISE

22 OTHER POWERS OF CHAIR.—With respect to any in23 vestigation, action, or proceeding, the Commission, 

24 by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members 


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1 who are serving at the time, may exercise any of the 

2 powers of the Chair described in paragraph (1)(B).’’. 

3 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

4 PERSONNEL AUTHORITY.—Section 306(f) of such 

5 Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(f)) is amended— 

6 (A) by striking the first sentence of para7 graph (1) and inserting the following: ‘‘The 

8 Commission shall have a staff director who 

9 shall be appointed by the Chair of the Commis10 sion in consultation with the other members 

11 and a general counsel who shall be appointed by 

12 the Chair with the concurrence of at least two 

13 other members.’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘With 

15 the approval of the Commission’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘With the approval of the Chair of the Commis17 sion’’; and 

18 (C) by striking paragraph (3). 

19 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

20 BUDGET SUBMISSION.—Section 307(d)(1) of such 

21 Act (52 U.S.C. 30107(d)(1)) is amended by striking 

22 ‘‘the Commission submits any budget’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘the Chair (or, pursuant to subsection (a)(3), the 

24 Commission) submits any budget’’. 


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1 (4) OTHER CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sec2 tion 306(c) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(c)) is 

3 amended by striking ‘‘All decisions’’ and inserting 

4 ‘‘Subject to section 307(a), all decisions’’. 

5 (5) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—The heading of 

6 section 307 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30107) is 

7 amended by striking ‘‘THE COMMISSION’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘THE CHAIR AND THE COMMISSION’’. 

9 SEC. 6004. REVISION TO ENFORCEMENT PROCESS. 

10 (a) STANDARD FOR INITIATING INVESTIGATIONS AND

11 DETERMINING WHETHER VIOLATIONS HAVE OC12 CURRED.— 

13 (1) REVISION OF STANDARDS.—Section 309(a) 

14 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

15 U.S.C. 30109(a)) is amended by striking paragraphs 

16 (2) and (3) and inserting the following: 

17 ‘‘(2)(A) The general counsel, upon receiving a com18 plaint filed with the Commission under paragraph (1) or 

19 upon the basis of information ascertained by the Commis20 sion in the normal course of carrying out its supervisory 

21 responsibilities, shall make a determination as to whether 

22 or not there is reason to believe that a person has com23 mitted, or is about to commit, a violation of this Act or 

24 chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code 

25 of 1986, and as to whether or not the Commission should 


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1 either initiate an investigation of the matter or that the 

2 complaint should be dismissed. The general counsel shall 

3 promptly provide notification to the Commission of such 

4 determination and the reasons therefore, together with 

5 any written response submitted under paragraph (1) by 

6 the person alleged to have committed the violation. Upon 

7 the expiration of the 30-day period which begins on the 

8 date the general counsel provides such notification, the 

9 general counsel’s determination shall take effect, unless 

10 during such 30-day period the Commission, by vote of a 

11 majority of the members of the Commission who are serv12 ing at the time, overrules the general counsel’s determina13 tion. If the determination by the general counsel that the 

14 Commission should investigate the matter takes effect, or 

15 if the determination by the general counsel that the com16 plaint should be dismissed is overruled as provided under 

17 the previous sentence, the general counsel shall initiate an 

18 investigation of the matter on behalf of the Commission. 

19 ‘‘(B) If the Commission initiates an investigation 

20 pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Commission, through 

21 the Chair, shall notify the subject of the investigation of 

22 the alleged violation. Such notification shall set forth the 

23 factual basis for such alleged violation. The Commission 

24 shall make an investigation of such alleged violation, which 

25 may include a field investigation or audit, in accordance 


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1 with the provisions of this section. The general counsel 

2 shall provide notification to the Commission of any intent 

3 to issue a subpoena or conduct any other form of discovery 

4 pursuant to the investigation. Upon the expiration of the 

5 15-day period which begins on the date the general counsel 

6 provides such notification, the general counsel may issue 

7 the subpoena or conduct the discovery, unless during such 

8 15-day period the Commission, by vote of a majority of 

9 the members of the Commission who are serving at the 

10 time, prohibits the general counsel from issuing the sub11 poena or conducting the discovery. 

12 ‘‘(3)(A) Upon completion of an investigation under 

13 paragraph (2), the general counsel shall promptly submit 

14 to the Commission the general counsel’s recommendation 

15 that the Commission find either that there is probable 

16 cause or that there is not probable cause to believe that 

17 a person has committed, or is about to commit, a violation 

18 of this Act or chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal 

19 Revenue Code of 1986, and shall include with the rec20 ommendation a brief stating the position of the general 

21 counsel on the legal and factual issues of the case. 

22 ‘‘(B) At the time the general counsel submits to the 

23 Commission the recommendation under subparagraph (A), 

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1 fore, shall provide the respondent with an opportunity to 

2 submit a brief within 30 days stating the position of the 

3 respondent on the legal and factual issues of the case and 

4 replying to the brief of the general counsel. The general 

5 counsel shall promptly submit such brief to the Commis6 sion upon receipt. 

7 ‘‘(C) Not later than 30 days after the general counsel 

8 submits the recommendation to the Commission under 

9 subparagraph (A) (or, if the respondent submits a brief 

10 under subparagraph (B), not later than 30 days after the 

11 general counsel submits the respondent’s brief to the Com12 mission under such subparagraph), the Commission shall 

13 approve or disapprove the recommendation by vote of a 

14 majority of the members of the Commission who are serv15 ing at the time.’’. 

16 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

17 INITIAL RESPONSE TO FILING OF COMPLAINT.—Sec18 tion 309(a)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(1)) 

19 is amended— 

20 (A) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘the 

21 Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘the general coun22 sel’’; and 

23 (B) by amending the fourth sentence to 

24 read as follows: ‘‘Not later than 15 days after 

25 receiving notice from the general counsel under 


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1 the previous sentence, the person may provide 

2 the general counsel with a written response that 

3 no action should be taken against such person 

4 on the basis of the complaint.’’. 

5 (b) REVISION OF STANDARD FOR REVIEW OF DIS6 MISSAL OF COMPLAINTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 309(a)(8) of such 

8 Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(8)) is amended to read as 

9 follows: 

10 ‘‘(8)(A)(i) Any party aggrieved by an order of the 

11 Commission dismissing a complaint filed by such party 

12 may file a petition with the United States District Court 

13 for the District of Columbia. Any petition under this sub14 paragraph shall be filed within 60 days after the date on 

15 which the party received notice of the dismissal of the 

16 complaint. 

17 ‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 

18 court shall determine by de novo review whether the agen19 cy’s dismissal of the complaint is contrary to law. In any 

20 matter in which the penalty for the alleged violation is 

21 greater than $50,000, the court should disregard any 

22 claim or defense by the Commission of prosecutorial dis23 cretion as a basis for dismissing the complaint. 

24 ‘‘(B)(i) Any party who has filed a complaint with the 

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1 mission, within one year after the filing of the complaint, 

2 to act on such complaint, may file a petition with the 

3 United States District Court for the District of Columbia. 

4 ‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 

5 court shall determine by de novo review whether the agen6 cy’s failure to act on the complaint is contrary to law. 

7 ‘‘(C) In any proceeding under this paragraph the 

8 court may declare that the dismissal of the complaint or 

9 the failure to act is contrary to law, and may direct the 

10 Commission to conform with such declaration within 30 

11 days, failing which the complainant may bring, in the 

12 name of such complainant, a civil action to remedy the 

13 violation involved in the original complaint.’’. 

14 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

15 by paragraph (1) shall apply— 

16 (A) in the case of complaints which are 

17 dismissed by the Federal Election Commission, 

18 with respect to complaints which are dismissed 

19 on or after the date of the enactment of this 

20 Act; and 

21 (B) in the case of complaints upon which 

22 the Federal Election Commission failed to act, 

23 with respect to complaints which were filed on 

24 or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 6005. PERMITTING APPEARANCE AT HEARINGS ON RE2 QUESTS FOR ADVISORY OPINIONS BY PER3 SONS OPPOSING THE REQUESTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 308 of such Act (52 

5 U.S.C. 30108) is amended by adding at the end the fol6 lowing new subsection: 

7 ‘‘(e) To the extent that the Commission provides an 

8 opportunity for a person requesting an advisory opinion 

9 under this section (or counsel for such person) to appear 

10 before the Commission to present testimony in support of 

11 the request, and the person (or counsel) accepts such op12 portunity, the Commission shall provide a reasonable op13 portunity for an interested party who submitted written 

14 comments under subsection (d) in response to the request 

15 (or counsel for such interested party) to appear before the 

16 Commission to present testimony in response to the re17 quest.’’. 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

19 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to requests for advi20 sory opinions under section 308 of the Federal Election 

21 Campaign Act of 1971 which are made on or after the 

22 date of the enactment of this Act. 

23 SEC. 6006. PERMANENT EXTENSION OF ADMINISTRATIVE 

24 PENALTY AUTHORITY. 

25 (a) EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY.—Section 

26 309(a)(4)(C)(v) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 


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1 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(4)(C)(v)) is amended by strik2 ing ‘‘, and that end on or before December 31, 2023’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

4 subsection (a) shall take effect on December 31, 2021. 

5 SEC. 6007. RESTRICTIONS ON EX PARTE COMMUNICATIONS. 

6 Section 306(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

7 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30106(e)) is amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘(e) The Commission’’ and in9 serting ‘‘(e)(1) The Commission’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

11 paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(2) Members and employees of the Commission shall 

13 be subject to limitations on ex parte communications, as 

14 provided in the regulations promulgated by the Commis15 sion regarding such communications which are in effect 

16 on the date of the enactment of this paragraph.’’. 

17 SEC. 6008. CLARIFYING AUTHORITY OF FEC ATTORNEYS TO 

18 REPRESENT FEC IN SUPREME COURT. 

19 (a) CLARIFYING AUTHORITY.—Section 306(f)(4) of 

20 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

21 30106(f)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘any action instituted 

22 under this Act, either (A) by attorneys’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘any action instituted under this Act, including an action 

24 before the Supreme Court of the United States, either (A) 


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1 by the General Counsel of the Commission and other at2 torneys’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

4 paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to actions insti5 tuted before, on, or after the date of the enactment of 

6 this Act. 

7 SEC. 6009. REQUIRING FORMS TO PERMIT USE OF ACCENT 

8 MARKS. 

9 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Section 311(a)(1) of the Fed10 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

11 30111(a)(1)) is amended by striking the semicolon at the 

12 end and inserting the following: ‘‘, and shall ensure that 

13 all such forms (including forms in an electronic format) 

14 permit the person using the form to include an accent 

15 mark as part of the person’s identification;’’. 

16 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

17 subsection (a) shall take effect upon the expiration of the 

18 90-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 

19 of this Act. 

20 SEC. 6010. EXTENSION OF THE STATUTES OF LIMITATIONS 

21 FOR OFFENSES UNDER THE FEDERAL ELEC22 TION CAMPAIGN ACT OF 1971. 

23 (a) CIVIL OFFENSES.—Section 309(a) of the Federal 

24 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)) is 


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1 amended by inserting after paragraph (9) the following 

2 new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(10) No person shall be subject to a civil penalty 

4 under this subsection with respect to a violation of this 

5 Act unless a complaint is filed with the Commission with 

6 respect to the violation under paragraph (1), or the Com7 mission responds to information with respect to the viola8 tion which is ascertained in the normal course of carrying 

9 out its supervisory responsibilities under paragraph (2), 

10 not later than 10 years after the date on which the viola11 tion occurred.’’. 

12 (b) CRIMINAL OFFENSES.—Section 406(a) of such 

13 Act (52 U.S.C. 30145(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘5 

14 years’’ and inserting ‘‘10 years’’. 

15 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

16 this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 

17 on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 

18 SEC. 6011. EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, the 

20 amendments made by this subtitle shall apply beginning 

21 January 1, 2022. 

22 (b) TRANSITION.— 

23 (1) TERMINATION OF SERVICE OF CURRENT

24 MEMBERS.—Notwithstanding any provision of the 

25 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, the term of 


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1 any individual serving as a member of the Federal 

2 Election Commission as of December 31, 2021, shall 

3 expire on that date. 

4 (2) NO EFFECT ON EXISTING CASES OR PRO5 CEEDINGS.—Nothing in this subtitle or in any 

6 amendment made by this subtitle shall affect any of 

7 the powers exercised by the Federal Election Com8 mission prior to December 31, 2021, including any 

9 investigation initiated by the Commission prior to 

10 such date or any proceeding (including any enforce11 ment action) pending as of such date. 

12 Subtitle B—Stopping Super PAC– 

13 Candidate Coordination 

14 SEC. 6101. SHORT TITLE. 

15 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Super PAC– 

16 Candidate Coordination Act’’. 

17 SEC. 6102. CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF COORDI18 NATED EXPENDITURES AS CONTRIBUTIONS 

19 TO CANDIDATES. 

20 (a) TREATMENT AS CONTRIBUTION TO CAN21 DIDATE.—Section 301(8)(A) of the Federal Election Cam22 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(8)(A)) is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of clause (i); 

24 (2) by striking the period at the end of clause 

25 (ii) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 


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1 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

2 clause: 

3 ‘‘(iii) any payment made by any person 

4 (other than a candidate, an authorized com5 mittee of a candidate, or a political committee 

6 of a political party) for a coordinated expendi7 ture (as such term is defined in section 326) 

8 which is not otherwise treated as a contribution 

9 under clause (i) or clause (ii).’’. 

10 (b) DEFINITIONS.—Title III of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

11 30101 et seq.), as amended by section 4421 and section 

12 4802(a), is amended by adding at the end the following 

13 new section: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 327. PAYMENTS FOR COORDINATED EXPENDITURES. 

15 ‘‘(a) COORDINATED EXPENDITURES.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 

17 301(8)(A)(iii), the term ‘coordinated expenditure’ 

18 means— 

19 ‘‘(A) any expenditure, or any payment for 

20 a covered communication described in sub21 section (d), which is made in cooperation, con22 sultation, or concert with, or at the request or 

23 suggestion of, a candidate, an authorized com24 mittee of a candidate, a political committee of 


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1 a political party, or agents of the candidate or 

2 committee, as defined in subsection (b); or 

3 ‘‘(B) any payment for any communication 

4 which republishes, disseminates, or distributes, 

5 in whole or in part, any video or broadcast or 

6 any written, graphic, or other form of campaign 

7 material prepared by the candidate or com8 mittee or by agents of the candidate or com9 mittee (including any excerpt or use of any 

10 video from any such broadcast or written, 

11 graphic, or other form of campaign material). 

12 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR PAYMENTS FOR CERTAIN

13 COMMUNICATIONS.—A payment for a communication 

14 (including a covered communication described in 

15 subsection (d)) shall not be treated as a coordinated 

16 expenditure under this subsection if— 

17 ‘‘(A) the communication appears in a news 

18 story, commentary, or editorial distributed 

19 through the facilities of any broadcasting sta20 tion, newspaper, magazine, or other periodical 

21 publication, unless such facilities are owned or 

22 controlled by any political party, political com23 mittee, or candidate; or 

24 ‘‘(B) the communication constitutes a can25 didate debate or forum conducted pursuant to 


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1 regulations adopted by the Commission pursu2 ant to section 304(f)(3)(B)(iii), or which solely 

3 promotes such a debate or forum and is made 

4 by or on behalf of the person sponsoring the de5 bate or forum. 

6 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION DESCRIBED.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec8 tion, a payment is made ‘in cooperation, consulta9 tion, or concert with, or at the request or suggestion 

10 of,’ a candidate, an authorized committee of a can11 didate, a political committee of a political party, or 

12 agents of the candidate or committee, if the pay13 ment, or any communication for which the payment 

14 is made, is not made entirely independently of the 

15 candidate, committee, or agents. For purposes of the 

16 previous sentence, a payment or communication not 

17 made entirely independently of the candidate or 

18 committee includes any payment or communication 

19 made pursuant to any general or particular under20 standing with, or pursuant to any communication 

21 with, the candidate, committee, or agents about the 

22 payment or communication. 

23 ‘‘(2) NO FINDING OF COORDINATION BASED

24 SOLELY ON SHARING OF INFORMATION REGARDING

25 LEGISLATIVE OR POLICY POSITION.—For purposes 


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1 of this section, a payment shall not be considered to 

2 be made by a person in cooperation, consultation, or 

3 concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a 

4 candidate or committee, solely on the grounds that 

5 the person or the person’s agent engaged in discus6 sions with the candidate or committee, or with any 

7 agent of the candidate or committee, regarding that 

8 person’s position on a legislative or policy matter 

9 (including urging the candidate or committee to 

10 adopt that person’s position), so long as there is no 

11 communication between the person and the can12 didate or committee, or any agent of the candidate 

13 or committee, regarding the candidate’s or commit14 tee’s campaign advertising, message, strategy, pol15 icy, polling, allocation of resources, fundraising, or 

16 other campaign activities. 

17 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON PARTY COORDINATION

18 STANDARD.—Nothing in this section shall be con19 strued to affect the determination of coordination 

20 between a candidate and a political committee of a 

21 political party for purposes of section 315(d). 

22 ‘‘(4) NO SAFE HARBOR FOR USE OF FIRE23 WALL.—A person shall be determined to have made 

24 a payment in cooperation, consultation, or concert 

25 with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate 


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1 or committee, in accordance with this section with2 out regard to whether or not the person established 

3 and used a firewall or similar procedures to restrict 

4 the sharing of information between individuals who 

5 are employed by or who are serving as agents for the 

6 person making the payment. 

7 ‘‘(c) PAYMENTS BY COORDINATED SPENDERS FOR

8 COVERED COMMUNICATIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) PAYMENTS MADE IN COOPERATION, CON10 SULTATION, OR CONCERT WITH CANDIDATES.—For 

11 purposes of subsection (a)(1)(A), if the person who 

12 makes a payment for a covered communication, as 

13 defined in subsection (d), is a coordinated spender 

14 under paragraph (2) with respect to the candidate 

15 as described in subsection (d)(1), the payment for 

16 the covered communication is made in cooperation, 

17 consultation, or concert with the candidate. 

18 ‘‘(2) COORDINATED SPENDER DEFINED.—For 

19 purposes of this subsection, the term ‘coordinated 

20 spender’ means, with respect to a candidate or an 

21 authorized committee of a candidate, a person (other 

22 than a political committee of a political party) for 

23 which any of the following applies: 

24 ‘‘(A) During the 4-year period ending on 

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1 ment, the person was directly or indirectly 

2 formed or established by or at the request or 

3 suggestion of, or with the encouragement of, 

4 the candidate (including an individual who later 

5 becomes a candidate) or committee or agents of 

6 the candidate or committee, including with the 

7 approval of the candidate or committee or 

8 agents of the candidate or committee. 

9 ‘‘(B) The candidate or committee or any 

10 agent of the candidate or committee solicits 

11 funds, appears at a fundraising event, or en12 gages in other fundraising activity on the per13 son’s behalf during the election cycle involved, 

14 including by providing the person with names of 

15 potential donors or other lists to be used by the 

16 person in engaging in fundraising activity, re17 gardless of whether the person pays fair market 

18 value for the names or lists provided. For pur19 poses of this subparagraph, the term ‘election 

20 cycle’ means, with respect to an election for 

21 Federal office, the period beginning on the day 

22 after the date of the most recent general elec23 tion for that office (or, if the general election 

24 resulted in a runoff election, the date of the 

25 runoff election) and ending on the date of the 


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1 next general election for that office (or, if the 

2 general election resulted in a runoff election, 

3 the date of the runoff election). 

4 ‘‘(C) The person is established, directed, or 

5 managed by the candidate or committee or by 

6 any person who, during the 4-year period end7 ing on the date on which the person makes the 

8 payment, has been employed or retained as a 

9 political, campaign media, or fundraising ad10 viser or consultant for the candidate or com11 mittee or for any other entity directly or indi12 rectly controlled by the candidate or committee, 

13 or has held a formal position with the candidate 

14 or committee (including a position as an em15 ployee of the office of the candidate at any time 

16 the candidate held any Federal, State, or local 

17 public office during the 4-year period). 

18 ‘‘(D) The person has retained the profes19 sional services of any person who, during the 2- 

20 year period ending on the date on which the 

21 person makes the payment, has provided or is 

22 providing professional services relating to the 

23 campaign to the candidate or committee, with24 out regard to whether the person providing the 

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1 poses of this subparagraph, the term ‘profes2 sional services’ includes any services in support 

3 of the candidate’s or committee’s campaign ac4 tivities, including advertising, message, strat5 egy, policy, polling, allocation of resources, 

6 fundraising, and campaign operations, but does 

7 not include accounting or legal services. 

8 ‘‘(E) The person is established, directed, or 

9 managed by a member of the immediate family 

10 of the candidate, or the person or any officer or 

11 agent of the person has had more than inci12 dental discussions about the candidate’s cam13 paign with a member of the immediate family 

14 of the candidate. For purposes of this subpara15 graph, the term ‘immediate family’ has the 

16 meaning given such term in section 9004(e) of 

17 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

18 ‘‘(d) COVERED COMMUNICATION DEFINED.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec20 tion, the term ‘covered communication’ means, with 

21 respect to a candidate or an authorized committee of 

22 a candidate, a public communication (as defined in 

23 section 301(22)) which— 

24 ‘‘(A) expressly advocates the election of the 

25 candidate or the defeat of an opponent of the 


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1 candidate (or contains the functional equivalent 

2 of express advocacy); 

3 ‘‘(B) promotes or supports the election of 

4 the candidate, or attacks or opposes the election 

5 of an opponent of the candidate (regardless of 

6 whether the communication expressly advocates 

7 the election or defeat of a candidate or contains 

8 the functional equivalent of express advocacy); 

9 or 

10 ‘‘(C) refers to the candidate or an oppo11 nent of the candidate but is not described in 

12 subparagraph (A) or subparagraph (B), but 

13 only if the communication is disseminated dur14 ing the applicable election period. 

15 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE ELECTION PERIOD.—In para16 graph (1)(C), the ‘applicable election period’ with re17 spect to a communication means— 

18 ‘‘(A) in the case of a communication which 

19 refers to a candidate in a general, special, or 

20 runoff election, the 120-day period which ends 

21 on the date of the election; or 

22 ‘‘(B) in the case of a communication which 

23 refers to a candidate in a primary or preference 

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1 didate, the 60-day period which ends on the 

2 date of the election or convention or caucus. 

3 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULES FOR COMMUNICATIONS IN4 VOLVING CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES.—For pur5 poses of this subsection, a public communication 

6 shall not be considered to be a covered communica7 tion with respect to a candidate for election for an 

8 office other than the office of President or Vice 

9 President unless it is publicly disseminated or dis10 tributed in the jurisdiction of the office the can11 didate is seeking. 

12 ‘‘(e) PENALTY.— 

13 ‘‘(1) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT.—Any per14 son who knowingly and willfully commits a violation 

15 of this Act by making a contribution which consists 

16 of a payment for a coordinated expenditure shall be 

17 fined an amount equal to the greater of— 

18 ‘‘(A) in the case of a person who makes a 

19 contribution which consists of a payment for a 

20 coordinated expenditure in an amount exceeding 

21 the applicable contribution limit under this Act, 

22 300 percent of the amount by which the 

23 amount of the payment made by the person ex24 ceeds such applicable contribution limit; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) in the case of a person who is prohib2 ited under this Act from making a contribution 

3 in any amount, 300 percent of the amount of 

4 the payment made by the person for the coordi5 nated expenditure. 

6 ‘‘(2) JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY.—Any di7 rector, manager, or officer of a person who is subject 

8 to a penalty under paragraph (1) shall be jointly and 

9 severally liable for any amount of such penalty that 

10 is not paid by the person prior to the expiration of 

11 the 1-year period which begins on the date the Com12 mission imposes the penalty or the 1-year period 

13 which begins on the date of the final judgment fol14 lowing any judicial review of the Commission’s ac15 tion, whichever is later.’’. 

16 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

17 (1) REPEAL OF EXISTING REGULATIONS ON CO18 ORDINATION.—Effective upon the expiration of the 

19 90-day period which begins on the date of the enact20 ment of this Act— 

21 (A) the regulations on coordinated commu22 nications adopted by the Federal Election Com23 mission which are in effect on the date of the 

24 enactment of this Act (as set forth under the 

25 heading ‘‘Coordination’’ in subpart C of part 


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1 109 of title 11, Code of Federal Regulations) 

2 are repealed; and 

3 (B) the Federal Election Commission shall 

4 promulgate new regulations on coordinated 

5 communications which reflect the amendments 

6 made by this Act. 

7 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

8 by this section shall apply with respect to payments 

9 made on or after the expiration of the 120-day pe10 riod which begins on the date of the enactment of 

11 this Act, without regard to whether or not the Fed12 eral Election Commission has promulgated regula13 tions in accordance with paragraph (1)(B) as of the 

14 expiration of such period. 

15 SEC. 6103. CLARIFICATION OF BAN ON FUNDRAISING FOR 

16 SUPER PACS BY FEDERAL CANDIDATES AND 

17 OFFICEHOLDERS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 323(e)(1) of the Federal 

19 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30125(e)(1)) 

20 is amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph 

22 (A); 

23 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub24 paragraph (B) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 


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1 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(C) solicit, receive, direct, or transfer 

4 funds to or on behalf of any political committee 

5 which accepts donations or contributions that 

6 do not comply with the limitations, prohibitions, 

7 and reporting requirements of this Act (or to or 

8 on behalf of any account of a political com9 mittee which is established for the purpose of 

10 accepting such donations or contributions), or 

11 to or on behalf of any political organization 

12 under section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code 

13 of 1986 which accepts such donations or con14 tributions (other than a committee of a State or 

15 local political party or a candidate for election 

16 for State or local office).’’. 

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

18 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections occur19 ring after January 1, 2022. 


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1 Subtitle C—Disposal of 

2 Contributions or Donations 

3 SEC. 6201. TIMEFRAME FOR AND PRIORITIZATION OF DIS4 POSAL OF CONTRIBUTIONS OR DONATIONS. 

5 Section 313 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

6 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114), as amended by section 5113 

7 and section 5302, is amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), and 

9 (e) as subsections (d), (e), and (f), respectively; and 

10 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol11 lowing new subsection: 

12 ‘‘(c) DISPOSAL.— 

13 ‘‘(1) TIMEFRAME.—Contributions or donations 

14 described in subsection (a) may only be used— 

15 ‘‘(A) in the case of an individual who is 

16 not a candidate with respect to an election for 

17 any Federal office for a 6-year period beginning 

18 on the day after the date of the most recent 

19 such election in which the individual was a can20 didate for any such office, during such 6-year 

21 period; 

22 ‘‘(B) in the case of an individual who be23 comes a registered lobbyist under the Lobbying 

24 Disclosure Act of 1995, before the date on 


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1 which such individual becomes such a registered 

2 lobbyist; or 

3 ‘‘(C) in the case of an individual who be4 comes an agent of a foreign principal that 

5 would require registration under section 2 of 

6 the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, 

7 as amended (22 U.S.C. 612), before the date on 

8 which such individual becomes such an agent of 

9 a foreign principal. 

10 ‘‘(2) MEANS OF DISPOSAL; PRIORITIZATION.— 

11 Beginning on the date the 6-year period described in 

12 subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) ends (or, in the 

13 case of an individual described in subparagraph (B) 

14 of such paragraph, the date on which the individual 

15 becomes a registered lobbyist under the Lobbying 

16 Disclosure Act of 1995, or, in the case of an indi17 vidual described in subparagraph (C) of such para18 graph, the date on which the individual becomes a 

19 registered agent of a foreign principal under the 

20 Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amend21 ed), contributions or donations that remain available 

22 to an individual described in such paragraph shall be 

23 disposed of, not later than 30 days after such date, 

24 as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(A) First, to pay any debts or obligations 

2 owed in connection with the campaign for elec3 tion for Federal office of the individual. 

4 ‘‘(B) Second, to the extent such contribu5 tion or donations remain available after the ap6 plication of subparagraph (A), through any of 

7 the following means of disposal (or a combina8 tion thereof), in any order the individual con9 siders appropriate: 

10 ‘‘(i) Returning such contributions or 

11 donations to the individuals, entities, or 

12 both, who made such contributions or do13 nations. 

14 ‘‘(ii) Making contributions to an orga15 nization described in section 170(c) of the 

16 Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

17 ‘‘(iii) Making transfers to a national, 

18 State, or local committee of a political 

19 party.’’. 

20 SEC. 6202. 1-YEAR TRANSITION PERIOD FOR CERTAIN INDI21 VIDUALS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an individual de23 scribed in subsection (b), any contributions or donations 

24 remaining available to the individual shall be disposed of— 


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1 (1) not later than one year after the date of the 

2 enactment of this section; and 

3 (2) in accordance with the prioritization speci4 fied in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of subsection 

5 (c)(2) of section 313 of the Federal Election Cam6 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114), as amended 

7 by section 6201. 

8 (b) INDIVIDUALS DESCRIBED.—An individual de9 scribed in this subsection is an individual who, as of the 

10 date of the enactment of this section— 

11 (1)(A) is not a candidate with respect to an 

12 election for any Federal office for a period of not 

13 less than 6 years beginning on the day after the date 

14 of the most recent such election in which the indi15 vidual was a candidate for any such office; or 

16 (B) is an individual who becomes a registered 

17 lobbyist under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995; 

18 and 

19 (2) would be in violation of subsection (c) of 

20 section 313 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

21 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114), as amended by section 

22 6201. 


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1 Subtitle D—Recommendations to 

2 Ensure Filing of Reports Before 

3 Date of Election 

4 SEC. 6301. RECOMMENDATIONS TO ENSURE FILING OF RE5 PORTS BEFORE DATE OF ELECTION. 

6 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact7 ment of this Act, the Federal Election Commission shall 

8 submit a report to Congress providing recommendations, 

9 including recommendations for changes to existing law, on 

10 how to ensure that each political committee under the 

11 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, including a com12 mittee which accepts donations or contributions that do 

13 not comply with the limitations, prohibitions, and report14 ing requirements of such Act, will file a report under sec15 tion 304 of such Act prior to the date of the election for 

16 which the committee receives contributions or makes dis17 bursements, without regard to the date on which the com18 mittee first registered under such Act, and shall include 

19 specific recommendations to ensure that such committees 

20 will not delay until after the date of the election the re21 porting of the identification of persons making contribu22 tions that will be used to repay debt incurred by the com23 mittee. 


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1 Subtitle E—Severability 

2 SEC. 6401. SEVERABILITY. 

3 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

4 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

5 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu6 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

7 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

8 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

9 affected by the holding. 

10 DIVISION C—ETHICS 

11 TITLE VII—ETHICAL STANDARDS 

12 Subtitle A—Supreme Court Ethics 

13 SEC. 7001. CODE OF CONDUCT FOR FEDERAL JUDGES. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 57 of title 28, United 

15 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘§ 964. Code of conduct 

18 ‘‘Not later than 1 year after the date of the enact19 ment of this section, the Judicial Conference shall issue 

20 a code of conduct, which applies to each justice and judge 

21 of the United States, except that the code of conduct may 

22 include provisions that are applicable only to certain cat23 egories of judges or justices.’’. 

24 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

25 for chapter 57 of title 28, United States Code, is amended 


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1 by adding after the item related to section 963 the fol2 lowing: 

‘‘964. Code of conduct.’’. 

3 Subtitle B—Foreign Agents 

4 Registration 

5 SEC. 7101. ESTABLISHMENT OF FARA INVESTIGATION AND 

6 ENFORCEMENT UNIT WITHIN DEPARTMENT 

7 OF JUSTICE. 

8 Section 8 of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 

9 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 618) is amended by adding 

10 at the end the following new subsection: 

11 ‘‘(i) DEDICATED ENFORCEMENT UNIT.— 

12 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 

13 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, 

14 the Attorney General shall establish a unit within 

15 the counterespionage section of the National Secu16 rity Division of the Department of Justice with re17 sponsibility for the enforcement of this Act. 

18 ‘‘(2) POWERS.—The unit established under this 

19 subsection is authorized to— 

20 ‘‘(A) take appropriate legal action against 

21 individuals suspected of violating this Act; and 

22 ‘‘(B) coordinate any such legal action with 

23 the United States Attorney for the relevant ju24 risdiction. 


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1 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION.—In operating the unit es2 tablished under this subsection, the Attorney Gen3 eral shall, as appropriate, consult with the Director 

4 of National Intelligence, the Secretary of Homeland 

5 Security, and the Secretary of State. 

6 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

7 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

8 the activities of the unit established under this sub9 section $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2021 and each 

10 succeeding fiscal year.’’. 

11 SEC. 7102. AUTHORITY TO IMPOSE CIVIL MONEY PEN12 ALTIES. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHING AUTHORITY.—Section 8 of the 

14 Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 

15 U.S.C. 618), is amended by inserting after subsection (c) 

16 the following: 

17 ‘‘(d) CIVIL MONEY PENALTIES.— 

18 ‘‘(1) REGISTRATION STATEMENTS.—A person 

19 who fails to file timely, or to complete, a registration 

20 statement in accordance with section 2(a) shall be 

21 subject to a civil money penalty of not more than 

22 $10,000 per violation. 

23 ‘‘(2) SUPPLEMENTS.—A person who fails to file 

24 timely, or to complete, any supplement in accordance 


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1 with section 2(b) shall be subject to a civil money 

2 penalty of not more than $1,000 per violation. 

3 ‘‘(3) OTHER VIOLATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(A) DEFINITION OF COVERED PERSON.— 

5 In this paragraph, the term ‘covered person’ 

6 means a person that knowingly fails— 

7 ‘‘(i) to remedy a defective filing by the 

8 date that is 60 days after the date of re9 ceipt of a notice from the Attorney General 

10 describing the defect; or 

11 ‘‘(ii) to comply with any other applica12 ble provision of this Act. 

13 ‘‘(B) PENALTY.—On proof, by a prepon14 derance of the evidence, of a knowing failure 

15 described in subparagraph (A), the applicable 

16 covered person shall be subject to a civil money 

17 penalty of not more than $200,000, as deter18 mined based on the extent and gravity of the 

19 failure. 

20 ‘‘(4) NO FINES PAID BY FOREIGN PRIN21 CIPALS.—A civil money penalty under paragraph 

22 (1), (2), or (3) may not be paid, directly or indi23 rectly, by a foreign principal. 

24 ‘‘(5) USE OF FINES.—All civil money penalties 

25 collected under this subsection shall be used to pay 


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1 the costs of the enforcement unit established under 

2 subsection (i)(1).’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

4 subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of enactment 

5 of this Act. 

6 SEC. 7103. DISCLOSURE OF TRANSACTIONS INVOLVING 

7 THINGS OF FINANCIAL VALUE CONFERRED 

8 ON OFFICEHOLDERS. 

9 (a) REQUIRING AGENTS TO DISCLOSE KNOWN

10 TRANSACTIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2(a) of the Foreign 

12 Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 

13 U.S.C. 612(a)) is amended— 

14 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (10) and 

15 (11) as paragraphs (11) and (12); and 

16 (B) by inserting after paragraph (9) the 

17 following new paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(10) To the extent that the registrant has 

19 knowledge of any transaction which occurred in the 

20 preceding 60 days and in which the foreign principal 

21 for whom the registrant is acting as an agent con22 ferred on a Federal or State officeholder any thing 

23 of financial value, including a gift, profit, salary, fa24 vorable regulatory treatment, or any other direct or 


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1 indirect economic or financial benefit, a detailed 

2 statement describing each such transaction.’’. 

3 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

4 by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to state5 ments filed on or after the expiration of the 90-day 

6 period which begins on the date of the enactment of 

7 this Act. 

8 (b) SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURE FOR CURRENT

9 REGISTRANTS.—Not later than the expiration of the 90- 

10 day period which begins on the date of the enactment of 

11 this Act, each registrant who (prior to the expiration of 

12 such period) filed a registration statement with the Attor13 ney General under section 2(a) of the Foreign Agents Reg14 istration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 612(a)) and 

15 who has knowledge of any transaction described in para16 graph (10) of section 2(a) of such Act (as added by sub17 section (a)(1)) which occurred at any time during which 

18 the registrant was an agent of the foreign principal in19 volved, shall file with the Attorney General a supplement 

20 to such statement under oath, on a form prescribed by 

21 the Attorney General, containing a detailed statement de22 scribing each such transaction. 


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1 SEC. 7104. ENSURING ONLINE ACCESS TO REGISTRATION 

2 STATEMENTS. 

3 (a) DIGITIZED FORMAT REQUIRED.—Section 2(g) of 

4 the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended 

5 (22 U.S.C. 612(g)), is amended by striking ‘‘in electronic 

6 form’’ and inserting ‘‘in a digitized format in order to en7 able the Attorney General to meet the requirements of sec8 tion 6(d)(1)’’. 

9 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELECTRONIC DATABASE OF

10 REGISTRATION STATEMENTS AND UPDATES.—Section 

11 6(d)(1) of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, 

12 as amended (22 U.S.C. 616(d)(1)), is amended— 

13 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

14 by striking ‘‘to the extent technically practicable,’’; 

15 and 

16 (2) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘, in a 

17 digitized format,’’ after ‘‘includes’’. 

18 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

19 this section shall apply with respect to statements, supple20 ments, and amendments filed under section 2 of the For21 eign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 

22 U.S.C. 612), on or after the date that is 180 days after 

23 the date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 Subtitle C—Lobbying Disclosure 

2 Reform 

3 SEC. 7201. EXPANDING SCOPE OF INDIVIDUALS AND AC4 TIVITIES SUBJECT TO REQUIREMENTS OF 

5 LOBBYING DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1995. 

6 (a) TREATMENT OF COUNSELING SERVICES IN SUP7 PORT OF LOBBYING CONTACTS AS LOBBYING ACTIV8 ITY.—Section 3(7) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

9 (2 U.S.C. 1602(7)) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘efforts’’ and inserting ‘‘any ef11 forts’’; and 

12 (2) by striking ‘‘research and other background 

13 work’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘counseling in 

14 support of such preparation and planning activities, 

15 research, and other background work’’. 

16 (b) TREATMENT OF LOBBYING CONTACT MADE

17 WITH SUPPORT OF COUNSELING SERVICES AS LOBBYING

18 CONTACT MADE BY INDIVIDUAL PROVIDING SERVICES.— 

19 Section 3(8) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 1602(8)) is amended 

20 by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: 

21 ‘‘(C) TREATMENT OF PROVIDERS OF

22 COUNSELING SERVICES.—Any individual, with 

23 authority to direct or substantially influence a 

24 lobbying contact or contacts made by another 

25 individual, and for financial or other compensaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00781 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 tion provides counseling services in support of 

2 preparation and planning activities which are 

3 treated as lobbying activities under paragraph 

4 (7) for that other individual’s lobbying contact 

5 or contacts and who has knowledge that the 

6 specific lobbying contact or contacts were made, 

7 shall be considered to have made the same lob8 bying contact at the same time and in the same 

9 manner to the covered executive branch official 

10 or covered legislative branch official involved.’’. 

11 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

12 this section shall apply with respect to lobbying contacts 

13 made on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

14 SEC. 7202. REQUIRING LOBBYISTS TO DISCLOSE STATUS AS 

15 LOBBYISTS UPON MAKING ANY LOBBYING 

16 CONTACTS. 

17 (a) MANDATORY DISCLOSURE AT TIME OF CON18 TACT.—Section 14 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

19 (2 U.S.C. 1609) is amended— 

20 (1) by striking subsections (a) and (b) and in21 serting the following: 

22 ‘‘(a) REQUIRING IDENTIFICATION AT TIME OF LOB23 BYING CONTACT.—Any person or entity that makes a lob24 bying contact with a covered legislative branch official or 


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1 a covered executive branch official shall, at the time of 

2 the lobbying contact— 

3 ‘‘(1) indicate whether the person or entity is 

4 registered under this chapter and identify the client 

5 on whose behalf the lobbying contact is made; and 

6 ‘‘(2) indicate whether such client is a foreign 

7 entity and identify any foreign entity required to be 

8 disclosed under section 4(b)(4) that has a direct in9 terest in the outcome of the lobbying activity.’’; and 

10 (2) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub11 section (b). 

12 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

13 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to lobbying contacts 

14 made on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

15 Subtitle D—Recusal of Presidential 

16 Appointees 

17 SEC. 7301. RECUSAL OF APPOINTEES. 

18 Section 208 of title 18, United States Code, is 

19 amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(e)(1) Any officer or employee appointed by the 

21 President, other than an officer or employee who serves 

22 in the Executive Office of the President, shall recuse him23 self or herself from any particular matter involving specific 

24 parties in which a party to that matter is— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the President who appointed the officer or 

2 employee, which— 

3 ‘‘(i) shall include a party that is an entity 

4 in which the President has a substantial inter5 est; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) shall not include a particular matter 

7 in which— 

8 ‘‘(I) the President is a party to litiga9 tion in his or her official capacity; or 

10 ‘‘(II) the outcome of the particular 

11 matter would have a direct bearing on the 

12 President’s ability to carry out his or her 

13 constitutional duties; or 

14 ‘‘(B) the spouse of the President who appointed 

15 the officer or employee, which shall include a party 

16 that is an entity in which the spouse of the Presi17 dent has a substantial interest. 

18 ‘‘(2)(A)(i) Subject to subparagraph (B), if an officer 

19 or employee is recused under paragraph (1), a career ap20 pointee in the agency of the officer or employee shall per21 form the functions and duties of the officer or employee 

22 with respect to the matter. 

23 ‘‘(ii) The most senior career appointee in the agency, 

24 or component of the agency if applicable, of an officer or 

25 employee recused under paragraph (1) (or the designee 


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1 of such career appointee) shall perform the functions and 

2 duties of the recused officer or employee, and such career 

3 appointee shall perform those functions and duties until 

4 the particular matter concludes, unless the head of the 

5 agency determines in writing that good cause exists to re6 assign those functions and duties to a different career ap7 pointee. 

8 ‘‘(B)(i) In this subparagraph, the term ‘Commission’ 

9 means a board, commission, or other agency for which the 

10 authority of the agency is vested in more than 1 member. 

11 ‘‘(ii) If the recusal of a member of a Commission 

12 from a matter under paragraph (1) would result in there 

13 not being a statutorily required quorum of members of the 

14 Commission available to participate in the matter, not15 withstanding such statute or any other provision of law, 

16 the members of the Commission not recused under para17 graph (1) may— 

18 ‘‘(I) consider the matter without regard to the 

19 quorum requirement under such statute; 

20 ‘‘(II) delegate the authorities and responsibil21 ities of the Commission with respect to the matter 

22 to a subcommittee of the Commission; or 

23 ‘‘(III) designate an officer or employee of the 

24 Commission who was not appointed by the President 

25 who appointed the member of the Commission 


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1 recused from the matter to exercise the authorities 

2 and duties of the recused member with respect to 

3 the matter. 

4 ‘‘(3) Any officer or employee who violates paragraph 

5 (1) shall be subject to the penalties set forth in section 

6 216. 

7 ‘‘(f) For purposes of this section, the term ‘particular 

8 matter’ shall have the meaning given the term in section 

9 207(i).’’. 

10 Subtitle E—Clearinghouse on 

11 Lobbying Information 

12 SEC. 7401. ESTABLISHMENT OF CLEARINGHOUSE. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Attorney General shall 

14 establish and operate within the Department of Justice 

15 a clearinghouse through which members of the public may 

16 obtain copies (including in electronic form) of registration 

17 statements filed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

18 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) and the Foreign Agents Reg19 istration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.). 

20 (b) FORMAT.—The Attorney General shall ensure 

21 that the information in the clearinghouse established 

22 under this section is maintained in a searchable and sort23 able format. 

24 (c) AGREEMENTS WITH CLERK OF HOUSE AND SEC25 RETARY OF THE SENATE.—The Attorney General shall 


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1 enter into such agreements with the Clerk of the House 

2 of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate as may 

3 be necessary for the Attorney General to obtain registra4 tion statements filed with the Clerk and the Secretary 

5 under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 for inclusion 

6 in the clearinghouse. 

7 Subtitle F—Foreign Lobbying 

8 SEC. 7501. PROHIBITION ON FOREIGN LOBBYING. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

10 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) is amended— 

11 (1) by redesignating section 26 (2 U.S.C. 1614) 

12 as section 27; and 

13 (2) by inserting after section 25 (2 U.S.C. 

14 1613) the following: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 26. PROHIBITION ON FOREIGN LOBBYING. 

16 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this section— 

17 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered lobbyist’ means— 

18 ‘‘(A) a lobbyist that is registered or is re19 quired to register under section 4(a)(1); 

20 ‘‘(B) an organization that employs 1 or 

21 more lobbyists and is registered, or is required 

22 to register, under section 4(a)(2); and 

23 ‘‘(C) an employee listed or required to be 

24 listed as a lobbyist by a registrant under section 

25 4(b)(6) or 5(b)(2)(C); and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the terms ‘information-service employee’, 

2 ‘public-relations counsel’, and ‘publicity agent’ have 

3 the meanings given those terms in section 1 of the 

4 Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amend5 ed (22 U.S.C. 611). 

6 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION.—Except as provided in sub7 section (c), a covered lobbyist may not accept financial or 

8 other compensation for services that include lobbying ac9 tivities on behalf of a foreign entity. 

10 ‘‘(c) EXEMPTIONS.—The prohibition under sub11 section (b) shall not apply the following covered lobbyists: 

12 ‘‘(1) DIPLOMATIC OR CONSULAR OFFICERS.—A 

13 duly accredited diplomatic or consular officer of a 

14 foreign government who is so recognized by the De15 partment of State, while the officer is engaged exclu16 sively in activities that are recognized by the Depart17 ment of State as being within the scope of the func18 tions of the officer. 

19 ‘‘(2) OFFICIALS OF FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS.— 

20 An official of a foreign government, if that govern21 ment is recognized by the United States, who is not 

22 a public-relations counsel, a publicity agent, or an 

23 information-service employee, or a citizen of the 

24 United States, whose name and status and the char25 acter of whose duties as an official are of public 


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1 record in the Department of State, while said official 

2 is engaged exclusively in activities that are recog3 nized by the Department of State as being within 

4 the scope of the functions of the official. 

5 ‘‘(3) STAFF MEMBERS OF DIPLOMATIC OR CON6 SULAR OFFICERS.—A member of the staff of, or any 

7 person employed by, a duly accredited diplomatic or 

8 consular officer of a foreign government who is so 

9 recognized by the Department of State, other than 

10 a public-relations counsel, a publicity agent, or an 

11 information-service employee, whose name and sta12 tus and the character of whose duties as such mem13 ber or employee are of public record in the Depart14 ment of State, while the member or employee is en15 gaged exclusively in the performance of activities 

16 that are recognized by the Department of State as 

17 being within the scope of the functions of the mem18 ber or employee. 

19 ‘‘(4) PERSONS ENGAGING OR AGREEING TO EN20 GAGE IN THE SOLICITING OR COLLECTING OF FUNDS

21 FOR HUMANITARIAN RELIEF.—A person engaging or 

22 agreeing to engage only in the soliciting or collecting 

23 of funds and contributions within the United States 

24 to be used only for medical aid and assistance, or for 

25 food and clothing to relieve human suffering, if the 


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1 solicitation or collection of funds and contributions 

2 is in accordance with, and subject to, the provisions 

3 of the Neutrality Act of 1939 (22 U.S.C. 441 et 

4 seq.), and such rules and regulations as may be pre5 scribed thereunder. 

6 ‘‘(5) CERTAIN PERSONS QUALIFIED TO PRAC7 TICE LAW.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A person qualified to 

9 practice law, insofar as the person engages, or 

10 agrees to engage in, the legal representation of 

11 a disclosed foreign entity before any court of 

12 law or any agency of the Government of the 

13 United States. 

14 ‘‘(B) LEGAL REPRESENTATION.—For the 

15 purpose of this paragraph, legal representation 

16 does not include any attempt to influence or 

17 persuade agency personnel or officials other 

18 than in the course of— 

19 ‘‘(i) a judicial proceeding; 

20 ‘‘(ii) a criminal or civil law enforce21 ment inquiry, investigation, or proceeding; 

22 or 

23 ‘‘(iii) an agency proceeding required 

24 by statute or regulation to be conducted on 

25 the record. 


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1 ‘‘(d) PENALTIES.—Any person who knowingly vio2 lates this section shall be fined not more than $200,000, 

3 imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, and any 

4 compensation received for engaging in the unlawful activ5 ity shall be subject to disgorgement.’’. 

6 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 7 of the 

7 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1606) is 

8 amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

10 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Whoever’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘Except as otherwise provided in this Act, whoever’’; 

12 and 

13 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘Whoever’’ 

14 and inserting ‘‘Except as otherwise provided in this 

15 Act, whoever’’. 

16 Subtitle G—Severability 

17 SEC. 7601. SEVERABILITY. 

18 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

19 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

20 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu21 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

22 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

23 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

24 affected by the holding. 


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1 TITLE VIII—ETHICS REFORMS 

2 FOR THE PRESIDENT, VICE 

3 PRESIDENT, AND FEDERAL 

4 OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES 

5 Subtitle A—Executive Branch 

6 Conflict of Interest 

7 SEC. 8001. SHORT TITLE. 

8 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Executive Branch 

9 Conflict of Interest Act’’. 

10 SEC. 8002. RESTRICTIONS ON PRIVATE SECTOR PAYMENT 

11 FOR GOVERNMENT SERVICE. 

12 Section 209 of title 18, United States Code, is 

13 amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a), 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘any salary’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘any salary (including a bonus)’’; and 

17 (B) by striking ‘‘as compensation for his 

18 services’’ and inserting ‘‘at any time, as com19 pensation for serving’’; and 

20 (2) in subsection (b)— 

21 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(b)’’; and 

22 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), a pension, retire24 ment, group life, health or accident insurance, profit-shar25 ing, stock bonus, or other employee welfare or benefit plan 


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1 that makes payment of any portion of compensation con2 tingent on accepting a position in the United States Gov3 ernment shall not be considered bona fide.’’. 

4 SEC. 8003. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO SLOWING RE5 VOLVING DOOR. 

6 The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

7 App.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘TITLE VI—ENHANCED RE9 QUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN 

10 EMPLOYEES 

11 ‘‘SEC. 601. DEFINITIONS. 

12 ‘‘In this title: 

13 ‘‘(1) COVERED AGENCY.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘covered 

15 agency’ means— 

16 ‘‘(i) an Executive agency (as defined 

17 in section 105 of title 5, United States 

18 Code); 

19 ‘‘(ii) the Postal Service; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) the Postal Rate Commission. 

21 ‘‘(B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘covered 

22 agency’ includes the Executive Office of the 

23 President. 

24 ‘‘(C) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘covered 

25 agency’ does not include— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the Government Accountability 

2 Office; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) the government of the District of 

4 Columbia. 

5 ‘‘(2) COVERED EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘covered 

6 employee’ means an officer or employee referred to 

7 in subsection (c)(2) or (d)(1) of section 207 of title 

8 18, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Director’ means 

10 the Director of the Office of Government Ethics. 

11 ‘‘(4) EXECUTIVE BRANCH.—The term ‘execu12 tive branch’ has the meaning given the term in sec13 tion 109. 

14 ‘‘(5) FORMER CLIENT.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘former cli16 ent’, with respect to a covered employee, means 

17 a person for whom the covered employee served 

18 personally as an agent, attorney, or consultant 

19 during the 2-year period ending on the day be20 fore the date on which the covered employee be21 gins service in the Federal Government. 

22 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘former cli23 ent’ does not include— 


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1 ‘‘(i) an entity in the Federal Govern2 ment, including an executive branch agen3 cy; 

4 ‘‘(ii) a State or local government; 

5 ‘‘(iii) the District of Columbia; 

6 ‘‘(iv) an Indian Tribe included on the 

7 list published under section 104 of the 

8 Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List 

9 Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131); or 

10 ‘‘(v) the government of a territory or 

11 possession of the United States. 

12 ‘‘(6) FORMER EMPLOYER.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘former em14 ployer’, with respect to a covered employee, 

15 means a person for whom the covered employee 

16 served as an employee, officer, director, trustee, 

17 agent, attorney, consultant, or contractor dur18 ing the 2-year period ending on the day before 

19 the date on which the covered employee begins 

20 service in the Federal Government. 

21 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘former em22 ployer’ does not include— 

23 ‘‘(i) an entity in the Federal Govern24 ment, including an executive branch agen25 cy; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a State or local government; 

2 ‘‘(iii) the District of Columbia; 

3 ‘‘(iv) an Indian Tribe (as defined in 

4 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination 

5 and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

6 5304)); or 

7 ‘‘(v) the government of a territory or 

8 possession of the United States. 

9 ‘‘(7) PARTICULAR MATTER.—The term ‘par10 ticular matter’ has the meaning given the term in 

11 section 207(i) of title 18, United States Code. 

12 ‘‘SEC. 602. CONFLICT OF INTEREST AND ELIGIBILITY 

13 STANDARDS. 

14 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A covered employee may 

16 not participate personally and substantially in any 

17 particular matter involving specific parties by which 

18 the covered employee knows that a material financial 

19 interest of a former employer or former client will be 

20 directly and predictably affected. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXEMPTIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) REGULATIONS.—The Director shall 

23 publish in the Federal Register regulations ap24 plicable to all or a portion of covered employees 


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1 providing exemptions to the prohibition under 

2 paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(B) INCLUSION.—The regulations under 

4 subparagraph (A) shall include an exemption 

5 for any covered employee in a case in which a 

6 particular matter involves a financial interest 

7 described in paragraph (1) that is too remote or 

8 too inconsequential to affect the integrity of the 

9 services provided by the covered employee. 

10 ‘‘(b) WAIVERS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

12 ‘‘(A) COVERED AGENCY HEADS.—With re13 spect to a head of a covered agency who is a 

14 covered employee, the designated agency ethics 

15 official for the Executive Office of the Presi16 dent, in consultation with the Director, may 

17 grant a written waiver of the prohibition under 

18 subsection (a) before the covered agency head 

19 engages in an action otherwise prohibited by 

20 that subsection, if the designated agency ethics 

21 official determines and certifies in writing that, 

22 in consideration of all relevant circumstances, 

23 the interest of the Federal Government in the 

24 participation of the covered agency head out25 weighs the concern that a reasonable person 


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1 may question the integrity of the programs or 

2 operations of the covered agency. 

3 ‘‘(B) OTHER COVERED EMPLOYEES.—With 

4 respect to any covered employee not described 

5 in subparagraph (A), the head of the covered 

6 agency employing the covered employee, in con7 sultation with the Director, may grant a written 

8 waiver of the prohibition under subsection (a) 

9 before the covered employee engages in an ac10 tion otherwise prohibited by that subsection, if 

11 the head of the covered agency determines and 

12 certifies in writing that, in consideration of all 

13 relevant circumstances, the interest of the Fed14 eral Government in the participation of the cov15 ered employee outweighs the concern that a rea16 sonable person may question the integrity of the 

17 programs or operations of the covered agency. 

18 ‘‘(2) NOTICE AND PUBLICATION.—For any 

19 waiver granted under paragraph (1), the individual 

20 who granted the waiver shall— 

21 ‘‘(A) not later than 48 hours after the 

22 waiver is granted, submit to the Director a copy 

23 of the waiver; and 

24 ‘‘(B) not later than 30 calendar days after 

25 the date on which the waiver is granted, publish 


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1 the waiver on the website of the applicable cov2 ered agency. 

3 ‘‘(3) DIRECTORIAL REVIEW.—On receipt of a 

4 written waiver under paragraph (2)(A), the Director 

5 shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) review the waiver to determine wheth7 er the Director has any objection to the 

8 issuance of the waiver; and 

9 ‘‘(B) if the Director has an objection de10 scribed in subparagraph (A)— 

11 ‘‘(i) provide reasons for the objection, 

12 in writing, to the head of the covered agen13 cy who granted the waiver by not later 

14 than 15 calendar days after the date on 

15 which the waiver was granted; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) publish the objection on the 

17 website of the Office of Government Ethics 

18 by not later than 30 calendar days after 

19 the date on which the waiver was granted. 

20 ‘‘SEC. 603. ENFORCEMENT. 

21 ‘‘(a) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any person who violates 

23 section 602 shall be fined under title 18, United 

24 States Code, imprisoned for not more than 1 year, 

25 or both. 


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1 ‘‘(2) WILLFUL VIOLATIONS.—Any person who 

2 willfully violates section 602 shall be fined under 

3 title 18, United States Code, imprisoned for not 

4 more than 5 years, or both. 

5 ‘‘(b) CIVIL ENFORCEMENT.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General may 

7 bring a civil action in an appropriate district court 

8 of the United States against any person who vio9 lates, or whom the Attorney General has reason to 

10 believe is engaging in conduct that violates, section 

11 602. 

12 ‘‘(2) CIVIL PENALTY.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the court finds, by 

14 a preponderance of the evidence, that a person 

15 violated section 602, the court shall impose 

16 against the person a civil penalty of not more 

17 than the greater of— 

18 ‘‘(i) $100,000 for each violation; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) the amount of compensation the 

20 person received or was offered for the con21 duct constituting the violation. 

22 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT.—A civil penalty under 

23 this subsection may be in addition to any other 

24 criminal or civil statutory, common law, or ad25 ministrative remedy available to— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the United States; or 

2 ‘‘(ii) any other person. 

3 ‘‘(3) INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In a civil action 

5 brought against a person under paragraph (1), 

6 the Attorney General may petition the court for 

7 an order prohibiting the person from engaging 

8 in conduct that violates section 602. 

9 ‘‘(B) STANDARD.—The court may issue an 

10 order under subparagraph (A) if the court 

11 finds, by a preponderance of the evidence, that 

12 the conduct of the person violates section 602. 

13 ‘‘(C) TREATMENT.—The filing of a peti14 tion seeking injunctive relief under this para15 graph shall not preclude any other remedy 

16 available by law to— 

17 ‘‘(i) the United States; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) any other person.’’. 

19 SEC. 8004. PROHIBITION OF PROCUREMENT OFFICERS AC20 CEPTING EMPLOYMENT FROM GOVERNMENT 

21 CONTRACTORS. 

22 (a) EXPANSION OF PROHIBITION ON ACCEPTANCE

23 BY FORMER OFFICIALS OF COMPENSATION FROM CON24 TRACTORS.—Section 2104 of title 41, United States Code, 

25 is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)— 

2 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph 

3 (1)— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘or consultant’’ and in5 serting ‘‘attorney, consultant, subcon6 tractor, or lobbyist’’; and 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘one year’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘2 years’’; and 

9 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘person10 ally made for the Federal agency’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘participated personally and substantially in’’; 

12 and 

13 (2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION ON COMPENSATION FROM AFFILI16 ATES AND SUBCONTRACTORS.—A former official respon17 sible for a Government contract referred to in paragraph 

18 (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a) may not accept compensa19 tion for 2 years after awarding the contract from any divi20 sion, affiliate, or subcontractor of the contractor.’’. 

21 (b) REQUIREMENT FOR PROCUREMENT OFFICERS

22 TO DISCLOSE JOB OFFERS MADE TO RELATIVES.—Sec23 tion 2103(a) of title 41, United States Code, is amended 

24 in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by inserting after 


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1 ‘‘that official’’ the following: ‘‘, or for a relative (as defined 

2 in section 3110 of title 5) of that official,’’. 

3 (c) REQUIREMENT ON AWARD OF GOVERNMENT

4 CONTRACTS TO FORMER EMPLOYERS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 21 of division B of 

6 subtitle I of title 41, United States Code, is amend7 ed by adding at the end the following new section: 

8 ‘‘§ 2108. Prohibition on involvement by certain 

9 former contractor employees in procure10 ments 

11 ‘‘An employee of the Federal Government may not 

12 participate personally and substantially in any award of 

13 a contract to, or the administration of a contract awarded 

14 to, a contractor that is a former employer of the employee 

15 during the 2-year period beginning on the date on which 

16 the employee leaves the employment of the contractor.’’. 

17 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND18 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 21 of title 

19 41, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

20 the end the following new item: 

‘‘2108. Prohibition on involvement by certain former contractor employees 

in procurements.’’. 

21 (d) REGULATIONS.—The Director of the Office of 

22 Government Ethics, in consultation with the Adminis23 trator of General Services, shall promulgate regulations to 


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1 carry out and ensure the enforcement of chapter 21 of 

2 title 41, United States Code, as amended by this section. 

3 (e) MONITORING AND COMPLIANCE.—The Adminis4 trator of General Services, in consultation with designated 

5 agency ethics officials (as that term is defined in section 

6 109(3) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

7 App.)), shall monitor compliance with chapter 21 of title 

8 41, United States Code, as amended by this section, by 

9 individuals and agencies. 

10 SEC. 8005. REVOLVING DOOR RESTRICTIONS ON EMPLOY11 EES MOVING INTO THE PRIVATE SECTOR. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 207 of 

13 title 18, United States Code, is amended— 

14 (1) in the subsection heading, by striking 

15 ‘‘ONE-YEAR’’ and inserting ‘‘TWO-YEAR’’; 

16 (2) in paragraph (1)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘1 year’’ in each instance 

18 and inserting ‘‘2 years’’; and 

19 (B) by inserting ‘‘, or conducts any lob20 bying activity to facilitate any communication 

21 to or appearance before,’’ after ‘‘any commu22 nication to or appearance before’’; and 

23 (3) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘1-year’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘2-year’’. 


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1 (b) APPLICATION.—The amendments made by sub2 section (a) shall apply to any individual covered by sub3 section (c) of section 207 of title 18, United States Code, 

4 separating from the civil service on or after the date of 

5 enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 8006. GUIDANCE ON UNPAID EMPLOYEES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office 

9 of Government Ethics shall issue guidance on ethical 

10 standards applicable to unpaid employees of an agency. 

11 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

12 (1) the term ‘‘agency’’ includes the Executive 

13 Office of the President and the White House; and 

14 (2) the term ‘‘unpaid employee’’ includes any 

15 individual occupying a position at an agency and 

16 who is unpaid by operation of section 3110 of title 

17 5, United States Code, or any other provision of law, 

18 but does not include any employee who is unpaid 

19 due to a lapse in appropriations. 

20 SEC. 8007. LIMITATION ON USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS AND 

21 CONTRACTING AT BUSINESSES OWNED BY 

22 CERTAIN GOVERNMENT OFFICERS AND EM23 PLOYEES. 

24 (a) LIMITATION ON FEDERAL FUNDS.—Beginning in 

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1 eral funds may be obligated or expended for purposes of 

2 procuring goods or services at any business owned or con3 trolled by a covered individual or any family member of 

4 such an individual, unless such obligation or expenditure 

5 of funds is authorized under the Presidential Protection 

6 Assistance Act of 1976 (18 U.S.C. 3056 note). 

7 (b) PROHIBITION ON CONTRACTS.—No Executive 

8 agency may enter into or hold a contract with a business 

9 owned or controlled by a covered individual or any family 

10 member of such an individual. 

11 (c) DETERMINATION OF OWNERSHIP.—For purposes 

12 of this section, a business shall be deemed to be owned 

13 or controlled by a covered individual or any family member 

14 of such an individual if the covered individual or member 

15 of family (as the case may be)— 

16 (1) is a member of the board of directors or 

17 similar governing body of the business; 

18 (2) directly or indirectly owns or controls more 

19 than 50 percent of the voting shares of the business; 

20 or 

21 (3) is the beneficiary of a trust which owns or 

22 controls more than 50 percent of the business and 

23 can direct distributions under the terms of the trust. 

24 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) COVERED INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘covered 

2 individual’’ means— 

3 (A) the President; 

4 (B) the Vice President; 

5 (C) the head of any Executive department 

6 (as that term is defined in section 101 of title 

7 5, United States Code); and 

8 (D) any individual occupying a position 

9 designated by the President as a Cabinet-level 

10 position. 

11 (2) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Executive 

12 agency’’ has the meaning given that term in section 

13 105 of title 5, United States Code. 

14 (3) FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘‘family mem15 ber’’ means an individual with any of the following 

16 relationships to a covered individual: 

17 (A) Spouse, and parents thereof. 

18 (B) Sons and daughters, and spouses 

19 thereof. 

20 (C) Parents, and spouses thereof. 

21 (D) Brothers and sisters, and spouses 

22 thereof. 

23 (E) Grandparents and grandchildren, and 

24 spouses thereof. 


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1 (F) Domestic partner and parents thereof, 

2 including domestic partners of any individual in 

3 subparagraphs (A) through (E). 

4 Subtitle B—Presidential Conflicts 

5 of Interest 

6 SEC. 8011. SHORT TITLE. 

7 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Presidential Con8 flicts of Interest Act of 2021’’. 

9 SEC. 8012. DIVESTITURE OF PERSONAL FINANCIAL INTER10 ESTS OF THE PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESI11 DENT THAT POSE A POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF 

12 INTEREST. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Ethics in Government Act of 

14 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by adding after title 

15 VI (as added by section 8003) the following: 

16 ‘‘TITLE VII—DIVESTITURE OF FI17 NANCIAL CONFLICTS OF IN18 TERESTS OF THE PRESIDENT 

19 AND VICE PRESIDENT 

20 ‘‘SEC. 701. DIVESTITURE OF FINANCIAL INTERESTS POSING 

21 A CONFLICT OF INTEREST. 

22 ‘‘(a) APPLICABILITY TO THE PRESIDENT AND VICE

23 PRESIDENT.—The President and Vice President shall, 

24 within 30 days of assuming office, divest of all financial 

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1 dent or Vice President, the spouse, dependent child, or 

2 general partner of the President or Vice President, or any 

3 person or organization with whom the President or Vice 

4 President is negotiating or has any arrangement con5 cerning prospective employment, has a financial interest, 

6 by— 

7 ‘‘(1) converting each such interest to cash or 

8 other investment that meets the criteria established 

9 by the Director of the Office of Government Ethics 

10 through regulation as being an interest so remote or 

11 inconsequential as not to pose a conflict; or 

12 ‘‘(2) placing each such interest in a qualified 

13 blind trust as defined in section 102(f)(3) or a diver14 sified trust under section 102(f)(4)(B). 

15 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE EXEMPTION.—Subsection (a) shall 

16 not apply if the President or Vice President complies with 

17 section 102.’’. 

18 (b) ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURES.—Section 102(a) of 

19 the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) 

20 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(9) With respect to any such report filed by 

22 the President or Vice President, for any corporation, 

23 company, firm, partnership, or other business enter24 prise in which the President, Vice President, or the 


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1 spouse or dependent child of the President or Vice 

2 President, has a significant financial interest— 

3 ‘‘(A) the name of each other person who 

4 holds a significant financial interest in the firm, 

5 partnership, association, corporation, or other 

6 entity; 

7 ‘‘(B) the value, identity, and category of 

8 each liability in excess of $10,000; and 

9 ‘‘(C) a description of the nature and value 

10 of any assets with a value of $10,000 or 

11 more.’’. 

12 (c) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 120 days after 

13 the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Of14 fice of Government Ethics shall promulgate regulations to 

15 define the criteria required by section 701(a)(1) of the 

16 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (as added by subsection 

17 (a)) and the term ‘‘significant financial interest’’ for pur18 poses of section 102(a)(9) of the Ethics in Government 

19 Act (as added by subsection (b)). 

20 SEC. 8013. INITIAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE. 

21 Subsection (a) of section 101 of the Ethics in Govern22 ment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by striking 

23 ‘‘position’’ and adding at the end the following: ‘‘position, 

24 with the exception of the President and Vice President, 

25 who must file a new report.’’. 


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1 SEC. 8014. CONTRACTS BY THE PRESIDENT OR VICE PRESI2 DENT. 

3 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 431 of title 18, United 

4 States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘the 

6 President, Vice President, Cabinet Mem7 ber, or a’’ after ‘‘Contracts by’’; and 

8 (2) in the first undesignated paragraph, by in9 serting ‘‘the President, Vice President, or any Cabi10 net member’’ after ‘‘Whoever, being’’. 

11 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

12 sections for chapter 23 of title 18, United States Code, 

13 is amended by striking the item relating to section 431 

14 and inserting the following: 

‘‘431. Contracts by the President, Vice President, Cabinet Member, or a Member of Congress.’’. 

15 SEC. 8015. LEGAL DEFENSE FUNDS. 

16 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

17 (1) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 

18 the Office of Government Ethics; 

19 (2) the term ‘‘legal defense fund’’ means a 

20 trust— 

21 (A) that has only one beneficiary; 

22 (B) that is subject to a trust agreement 

23 creating an enforceable fiduciary duty on the 

24 part of the trustee to the beneficiary, pursuant 


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1 to the applicable law of the jurisdiction in which 

2 the trust is established; 

3 (C) that is subject to a trust agreement 

4 that provides for the mandatory public disclo5 sure of all donations and disbursements; 

6 (D) that is subject to a trust agreement 

7 that prohibits the use of its resources for any 

8 purpose other than— 

9 (i) the administration of the trust; 

10 (ii) the payment or reimbursement of 

11 legal fees or expenses incurred in investiga12 tive, civil, criminal, or other legal pro13 ceedings relating to or arising by virtue of 

14 service by the trust’s beneficiary as an offi15 cer or employee, as defined in this section, 

16 or as an employee, contractor, consultant 

17 or volunteer of the campaign of the Presi18 dent or Vice President; or 

19 (iii) the distribution of unused re20 sources to a charity selected by the trustee 

21 that has not been selected or recommended 

22 by the beneficiary of the trust; 

23 (E) that is subject to a trust agreement 

24 that prohibits the use of its resources for any 

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1 ing tax planning, personal injury litigation, pro2 tection of property rights, divorces, or estate 

3 probate; and 

4 (F) that is subject to a trust agreement 

5 that prohibits the acceptance of donations, ex6 cept in accordance with this section and the 

7 regulations of the Office of Government Ethics; 

8 (3) the term ‘‘officer or employee’’ means— 

9 (A) an officer (as that term is defined in 

10 section 2104 of title 5, United States Code) or 

11 employee (as that term is defined in section 

12 2105 of such title) of the executive branch of 

13 the Government; 

14 (B) the Vice President; and 

15 (C) the President; and 

16 (4) the term ‘‘relative’’ has the meaning given 

17 that term in section 3110 of title 5, United States 

18 Code. 

19 (b) LEGAL DEFENSE FUNDS.—An officer or em20 ployee may not accept or use any gift or donation for the 

21 payment or reimbursement of legal fees or expenses in22 curred in investigative, civil, criminal, or other legal pro23 ceedings relating to or arising by virtue of the officer or 

24 employee’s service as an officer or employee, as defined 

25 in this section, or as an employee, contractor, consultant 


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1 or volunteer of the campaign of the President or Vice 

2 President except through a legal defense fund that is cer3 tified by the Director of the Office of Government Ethics. 

4 (c) LIMITS ON GIFTS AND DONATIONS.—Not later 

5 than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

6 the Director shall promulgate regulations establishing lim7 its with respect to gifts and donations described in sub8 section (b), which shall, at a minimum— 

9 (1) prohibit the receipt of any gift or donation 

10 described in subsection (b)— 

11 (A) from a single contributor (other than 

12 a relative of the officer or employee) in a total 

13 amount of more than $5,000 during any cal14 endar year; 

15 (B) from a registered lobbyist; 

16 (C) from a foreign government or an agent 

17 of a foreign principal; 

18 (D) from a State government or an agent 

19 of a State government; 

20 (E) from any person seeking official action 

21 from, or seeking to do or doing business with, 

22 the agency employing the officer or employee; 

23 (F) from any person conducting activities 

24 regulated by the agency employing the officer 

25 or employee; 


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1 (G) from any person whose interests may 

2 be substantially affected by the performance or 

3 nonperformance of the official duties of the offi4 cer or employee; 

5 (H) from an officer or employee of the ex6 ecutive branch; or 

7 (I) from any organization a majority of 

8 whose members are described in subparagraphs 

9 (A) through (H); and 

10 (2) require that a legal defense fund, in order 

11 to be certified by the Director, only permit distribu12 tions to the applicable officer or employee. 

13 (d) WRITTEN NOTICE.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—An officer or employee who 

15 wishes to accept funds or have a representative ac16 cept funds from a legal defense fund shall first en17 sure that the proposed trustee of the legal defense 

18 fund submits to the Director the following informa19 tion: 

20 (A) The name and contact information for 

21 any proposed trustee of the legal defense fund. 

22 (B) A copy of any proposed trust docu23 ment for the legal defense fund. 

24 (C) The nature of the legal proceeding (or 

25 proceedings), investigation, or other matter 


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1 which gives rise to the establishment of the 

2 legal defense fund. 

3 (D) An acknowledgment signed by the offi4 cer or employee and the trustee indicating that 

5 they will be bound by the regulations and limi6 tations under this section. 

7 (2) APPROVAL.—An officer or employee may 

8 not accept any gift or donation to pay, or to reim9 burse any person for, fees or expenses described in 

10 subsection (b) of this section except through a legal 

11 defense fund that has been certified in writing by 

12 the Director following that office’s receipt and ap13 proval of the information submitted under para14 graph (1) and approval of the structure of the fund. 

15 (e) REPORTING.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—An officer or employee who 

17 establishes a legal defense fund may not directly or 

18 indirectly accept distributions from a legal defense 

19 fund unless the fund has provided the Director a 

20 quarterly report for each quarter of every calendar 

21 year since the establishment of the legal defense 

22 fund that discloses, with respect to the quarter cov23 ered by the report— 

24 (A) the source and amount of each con25 tribution to the legal defense fund; and 


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1 (B) the amount, recipient, and purpose of 

2 each expenditure from the legal defense fund, 

3 including all distributions from the trust for 

4 any purpose. 

5 (2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The Director shall 

6 make publicly available online— 

7 (A) each report submitted under para8 graph (1) in a searchable, sortable, and 

9 downloadable form; 

10 (B) each trust agreement and any amend11 ment thereto; 

12 (C) the written notice and acknowledgment 

13 required by subsection (d); and 

14 (D) the Director’s written certification of 

15 the legal defense fund. 

16 (f) RECUSAL.—An officer or employee, other than the 

17 President and the Vice President, who is the beneficiary 

18 of a legal defense fund may not participate personally and 

19 substantially in any particular matter in which the officer 

20 or employee knows a donor of any source of a gift or dona21 tion to the legal defense fund established for the officer 

22 or employee has a financial interest, for a period of two 

23 years from the date of the most recent gift or donation 

24 to the legal defense fund. 


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1 Subtitle C—White House Ethics 

2 Transparency 

3 SEC. 8021. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘White House Eth5 ics Transparency Act of 2021’’. 

6 SEC. 8022. PROCEDURE FOR WAIVERS AND AUTHORIZA7 TIONS RELATING TO ETHICS REQUIREMENTS. 

8 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

9 (1) COVERED EMPLOYEE.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘covered em11 ployee’’ means— 

12 (i) a noncareer Presidential or Vice 

13 Presidential appointee; 

14 (ii) a noncareer appointee in the Sen15 ior Executive Service (or any other SES16 type system); and 

17 (iii) an appointee to a position that 

18 has been excepted from the competitive 

19 service by reason of being of a confidential 

20 or policy-determining character (such as a 

21 position under Schedule C of subpart C of 

22 part 213 of title 5, Code of Federal Regu23 lations (as in effect on the date of enact24 ment of this Act), and any other position 


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1 excepted under comparable criteria) in an 

2 Executive agency. 

3 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘covered em4 ployee’’ does not include any individual ap5 pointed— 

6 (i) as a member of the Senior Foreign 

7 Service; or 

8 (ii) solely as a uniformed service com9 missioned officer. 

10 (2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

11 the Director of the Office of Government Ethics. 

12 (b) PROCEDURE.—Notwithstanding any other provi13 sion of law, not later than 30 days after the date on which 

14 an officer or employee issues or approves a waiver or au15 thorization for a covered employee pursuant to section 3 

16 of Executive Order 13770 (82 Fed. Reg. 9335) (or any 

17 subsequent similar order), the issuing officer or employee 

18 shall— 

19 (1) submit to the Director a written copy of the 

20 waiver or authorization; and 

21 (2) make a written copy of the waiver or au22 thorization available to the public on the website of 

23 the employing agency of the covered employee. 

24 (c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 30 days 

25 after the date of receipt of a written copy of a waiver or 


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1 authorization under subsection (b)(1), the Director shall 

2 make the waiver or authorization available to the public 

3 on the website of the Office of Government Ethics. 

4 (d) RETROACTIVE APPLICATION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a waiver or 

6 authorization described in subsection (b) that is 

7 issued during the period beginning on January 20, 

8 2017, and ending on the date of enactment of this 

9 Act, the issuing officer or employee shall comply 

10 with the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (2) of 

11 subsection (b) by not later than 30 days after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act. 

13 (2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 45 

14 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Di15 rector shall submit to Congress a report that de16 scribes the impact of the application of paragraph 

17 (1), including the name of— 

18 (A) each covered employee who received a 

19 waiver or authorization described in subsection 

20 (b); and 

21 (B) each individual who, by operation of 

22 paragraph (1), submitted the information re23 quired under that subsection. 


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1 Subtitle D—Executive Branch 

2 Ethics Enforcement 

3 SEC. 8031. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Executive Branch 

5 Comprehensive Ethics Enforcement Act of 2021’’. 

6 SEC. 8032. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE OFFICE OF GOVERN7 MENT ETHICS. 

8 Section 405 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

9 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal year 2007’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2021 through 2025.’’. 

11 SEC. 8033. TENURE OF THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF 

12 GOVERNMENT ETHICS. 

13 Section 401(b) of the Ethics in Government Act of 

14 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by striking the period 

15 at the end and inserting ‘‘, subject to removal only for 

16 inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office. The 

17 Director may continue to serve beyond the expiration of 

18 the term until a successor is appointed and has qualified, 

19 except that the Director may not continue to serve for 

20 more than one year after the date on which the term would 

21 otherwise expire under this subsection.’’. 

22 SEC. 8034. DUTIES OF DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF GOV23 ERNMENT ETHICS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 402(a) of the Ethics in 

25 Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by 


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1 striking ‘‘, in consultation with the Office of Personnel 

2 Management,’’. 

3 (b) RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE DIRECTOR.—Section 

4 402(b) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

5 App.) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘developing, in consultation 

8 with the Attorney General and the Office of 

9 Personnel Management, rules and regulations 

10 to be promulgated by the President or the Di11 rector’’ and inserting ‘‘developing and promul12 gating rules and regulations’’; and 

13 (B) by striking ‘‘title II’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘title I’’; 

15 (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(2) providing mandatory education and train18 ing programs for designated agency ethics officials, 

19 which may be delegated to each agency or the White 

20 House Counsel as determined appropriate by the Di21 rector;’’; 

22 (3) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘title II’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘title I’’; 

24 (4) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘problems’’ 

25 and inserting ‘‘issues’’; 


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1 (5) in paragraph (6)— 

2 (A) by striking ‘‘issued by the President or 

3 the Director’’; and 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘problems’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘issues’’; 

6 (6) in paragraph (7)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘, when requested,’’; and 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘conflict of interest prob9 lems’’ and inserting ‘‘conflicts of interest, as 

10 well as other ethics issues’’; 

11 (7) in paragraph (9)— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘ordering’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘receiving allegations of violations of this Act or 

14 regulations of the Office of Government Ethics 

15 and, when necessary, investigating an allegation 

16 to determine whether a violation occurred, and 

17 ordering’’; and 

18 (B) by inserting before the semicolon the 

19 following: ‘‘, and recommending appropriate 

20 disciplinary action’’; 

21 (8) in paragraph (12)— 

22 (A) by striking ‘‘evaluating, with the as23 sistance of’’ and inserting ‘‘promulgating, with 

24 input from’’; 

25 (B) by striking ‘‘the need for’’; and 


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1 (C) by striking ‘‘conflict of interest and 

2 ethical problems’’ and inserting ‘‘conflict of in3 terest and ethics issues’’; 

4 (9) in paragraph (13)— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘with the Attorney Gen6 eral’’ and inserting ‘‘with the Inspectors Gen7 eral and the Attorney General’’; 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘violations of the conflict 

9 of interest laws’’ and inserting ‘‘conflict of in10 terest issues and allegations of violations of eth11 ics laws and regulations and this Act’’; and 

12 (C) by striking ‘‘, as required by section 

13 535 of title 28, United States Code’’; 

14 (10) in paragraph (14), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

15 the end; 

16 (11) in paragraph (15)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘, in consultation with the 

18 Office of Personnel Management,’’; 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘title II’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘title I’’; and 

21 (C) by striking the period at the end and 

22 inserting a semicolon; and 

23 (12) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(16) directing and providing final approval, 

25 when determined appropriate by the Director, for 


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1 designated agency ethics officials regarding the reso2 lution of conflicts of interest as well as any other 

3 ethics issues under the purview of this Act in indi4 vidual cases; and 

5 ‘‘(17) reviewing and approving, when deter6 mined appropriate by the Director, any recusals, ex7 emptions, or waivers from the conflicts of interest 

8 and ethics laws, rules, and regulations and making 

9 approved recusals, exemptions, and waivers made 

10 publicly available by the relevant agency available in 

11 a central location on the official website of the Office 

12 of Government Ethics.’’. 

13 (c) WRITTEN PROCEDURES.—Paragraph (1) of sec14 tion 402(d) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

15 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

16 (1) by striking ‘‘, by the exercise of any author17 ity otherwise available to the Director under this 

18 title,’’; 

19 (2) by striking ‘‘the agency is’’; 

20 (3) by striking ‘‘collect, review, evaluate, and if 

21 applicable, make’’ and insert ‘‘collects, reviews, eval22 uates, and, if applicable, makes’’; and 

23 (4) by inserting after ‘‘filed by’’ the following: 

24 ‘‘, or written documentation of recusals, waivers, or 

25 ethics authorizations relating to,’’. 


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1 (d) CORRECTIVE ACTIONS.—Section 402(f) of the 

2 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

5 (A) in clause (i) of subparagraph (A), by 

6 striking ‘‘of such agency’’; and 

7 (B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting be8 fore the period at the end ‘‘and determine that 

9 a violation of this Act has occurred and issue 

10 appropriate administrative or legal remedies as 

11 prescribed in paragraph (2)’’; 

12 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

13 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

14 (i) in clause (ii)— 

15 (I) in subclause (I), by inserting 

16 ‘‘to the President or the President’s 

17 designee if the matter involves em18 ployees of the Executive Office of the 

19 President or’’ after ‘‘may rec20 ommend’’; and 

21 (II) in subclause (II)— 

22 (aa) by inserting ‘‘President 

23 or’’ after ‘‘determines that the’’; 

24 and 


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1 (bb) by adding ‘‘and’’ at the 

2 end; 

3 (ii) in subclause (II) of clause (iii)— 

4 (I) by striking ‘‘notify, in writ5 ing,’’ and inserting ‘‘advise the Presi6 dent or order’’; 

7 (II) by inserting ‘‘to take appro8 priate disciplinary action including 

9 reprimand, suspension, demotion, or 

10 dismissal against the officer or em11 ployee (provided, however, that any 

12 order issued by the Director shall not 

13 affect an employee’s right to appeal a 

14 disciplinary action under applicable 

15 law, regulation, collective bargaining 

16 agreement, or contractual provision).’’ 

17 after ‘‘employee’s agency’’; and 

18 (III) by striking ‘‘of the officer’s 

19 or employee’s noncompliance, except 

20 that, if the officer or employee in21 volved is the agency head, the notifi22 cation shall instead be submitted to 

23 the President; and’’; and 

24 (iii) by striking clause (iv); 

25 (B) in subparagraph (B)(i)— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘subparagraph (A)(iii) 

2 or (iv)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’; 

3 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(I)’’ before ‘‘In 

4 order to’’; and 

5 (iii) by adding at the end the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(II)(aa) The Director may secure directly 

8 from any agency information necessary to en9 able the Director to carry out this Act. Upon 

10 request of the Director, the head of such agency 

11 shall furnish that information to the Director. 

12 ‘‘(bb) The Director may require by sub13 poena the production of all information, docu14 ments, reports, answers, records, accounts, pa15 pers, and other data in any medium and docu16 mentary evidence necessary in the performance 

17 of the functions assigned by this Act, which 

18 subpoena, in the case of refusal to obey, shall 

19 be enforceable by order of any appropriate 

20 United States district court.’’; 

21 (C) in subparagraph (B)(ii)(I)— 

22 (i) by striking ‘‘Subject to clause (iv) 

23 of this subparagraph, before’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘Before’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘subparagraphs (A) 

2 (iii) or (iv)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph 

3 (A)(iii)’’; 

4 (D) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by striking 

5 ‘‘Subject to clause (iv) of this subparagraph, 

6 before’’ and inserting ‘‘Before’’; and 

7 (E) in subparagraph (B)(iv)— 

8 (i) by striking ‘‘title 2’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘title I’’; and 

10 (ii) by striking ‘‘section 206’’ and in11 serting ‘‘section 106’’; and 

12 (3) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘(iv),’’. 

13 (e) DEFINITIONS.—Section 402 of the Ethics in Gov14 ernment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by add15 ing at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(g) For purposes of this title— 

17 ‘‘(1) the term ‘agency’ shall include the Execu18 tive Office of the President; and 

19 ‘‘(2) the term ‘officer or employee’ shall include 

20 any individual occupying a position, providing any 

21 official services, or acting in an advisory capacity, in 

22 the White House or the Executive Office of the 

23 President. 

24 ‘‘(h) In this title, a reference to the head of an agency 

25 shall include the President or the President’s designee. 


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1 ‘‘(i) The Director shall not be required to obtain the 

2 prior approval, comment, or review of any officer or agen3 cy of the United States, including the Office of Manage4 ment and Budget, before submitting to Congress, or any 

5 committee or subcommittee thereof, any information, re6 ports, recommendations, testimony, or comments, if such 

7 submissions include a statement indicating that the views 

8 expressed therein are those of the Director and do not nec9 essarily represent the views of the President.’’. 

10 SEC. 8035. AGENCY ETHICS OFFICIALS TRAINING AND DU11 TIES. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 403 of the Ethics in Gov13 ernment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a), by adding a period at the 

15 end of the matter following paragraph (2); and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(c)(1) All designated agency ethics officials and al18 ternate designated agency ethics officials shall register 

19 with the Director as well as with the appointing authority 

20 of the official. 

21 ‘‘(2) The Director shall provide ethics education and 

22 training to all designated and alternate designated agency 

23 ethics officials in a time and manner determined appro24 priate by the Director. 


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1 ‘‘(3) Each designated agency ethics official and each 

2 alternate designated agency ethics official shall biannually 

3 attend ethics education and training, as provided by the 

4 Director under paragraph (2). 

5 ‘‘(d) Each Designated Agency Ethics Official, includ6 ing the Designated Agency Ethics Official for the Execu7 tive Office of the President— 

8 ‘‘(1) shall provide to the Director, in writing, in 

9 a searchable, sortable, and downloadable format, all 

10 approvals, authorizations, certifications, compliance 

11 reviews, determinations, directed divestitures, public 

12 financial disclosure reports, notices of deficiency in 

13 compliance, records related to the approval or ac14 ceptance of gifts, recusals, regulatory or statutory 

15 advisory opinions, waivers, including waivers under 

16 section 207 or 208 of title 18, United States Code, 

17 and any other records designated by the Director, 

18 unless disclosure is prohibited by law; 

19 ‘‘(2) shall, for all information described in para20 graph (1) that is permitted to be disclosed to the 

21 public under law, make the information available to 

22 the public by publishing the information on the 

23 website of the Office of Government Ethics, pro24 viding a link to download an electronic copy of the 


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1 information, or providing printed paper copies of 

2 such information to the public; and 

3 ‘‘(3) may charge a reasonable fee for the cost 

4 of providing paper copies of the information pursu5 ant to paragraph (2). 

6 ‘‘(e)(1) For all information that is provided by an 

7 agency to the Director under paragraph (1) of subsection 

8 (d), the Director shall make the information available to 

9 the public in a searchable, sortable, downloadable format 

10 by publishing the information on the website of the Office 

11 of Government Ethics or providing a link to download an 

12 electronic copy of the information. 

13 ‘‘(2) The Director may, upon request, provide printed 

14 paper copies of the information published under para15 graph (1) and charge a reasonable fee for the cost of print16 ing such copies.’’. 

17 (b) REPEAL.—The Ethics in Government Act of 

18 1978 (5 U.S.C. App) is amended by striking section 408. 

19 SEC. 8036. PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR CERTAIN 

20 FEDERAL EMPLOYEE TRAVEL IN CON21 TRAVENTION OF CERTAIN REGULATIONS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on the date of enact23 ment of this Act, no Federal funds appropriated or other24 wise made available in any fiscal year may be used for 

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1 travention of sections 301–10.260 through 301–10.266 of 

2 title 41, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor 

3 regulation. 

4 (b) QUARTERLY REPORT ON TRAVEL.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

6 the date of enactment of this Act and every 90 days 

7 thereafter, the head of each Federal agency shall 

8 submit a report to the Committee on Oversight and 

9 Reform of the House of Representatives and the 

10 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

11 Affairs of the Senate detailing travel on Government 

12 aircraft by any senior Federal official employed at 

13 the applicable agency. 

14 (2) APPLICATION.—Any report required under 

15 paragraph (1) shall not include any classified travel, 

16 and nothing in this Act shall be construed to super17 sede, alter, or otherwise affect the application of sec18 tion 101–37.408 of title 41, Code of Federal Regula19 tions, or any successor regulation. 

20 (c) TRAVEL REGULATION REPORT.—Not later than 

21 one year after enactment of this Act, the Director of the 

22 Office of Government Ethics shall submit a report to Con23 gress detailing suggestions on strengthening Federal trav24 el regulations. On the date such report is so submitted, 


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1 the Director shall publish such report on the Office’s pub2 lic website. 

3 (d) SENIOR FEDERAL OFFICIAL DEFINED.—In this 

4 section, the term ‘‘senior Federal official’’ has the mean5 ing given that term in section 101–37.100 of title 41, Code 

6 of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of enact7 ment of this Act, and includes any senior executive branch 

8 official (as that term is defined in such section). 

9 SEC. 8037. REPORTS ON COST OF PRESIDENTIAL TRAVEL. 

10 (a) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 90 days 

11 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 90 

12 days thereafter, the Secretary of Defense, in consultation 

13 with the Secretary of the Air Force, shall submit to the 

14 Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on 

15 Armed Services of the House of Representatives a report 

16 detailing the direct and indirect costs to the Department 

17 of Defense in support of presidential travel. Each such re18 port shall include costs incurred for travel to a property 

19 owned or operated by the individual serving as President 

20 or an immediate family member of such individual. 

21 (b) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER DEFINED.—In this 

22 section, the term ‘‘immediate family member’’ means the 

23 spouse of such individual, the adult or minor child of such 

24 individual, or the spouse of an adult child of such indi25 vidual. 


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1 SEC. 8038. REPORTS ON COST OF SENIOR FEDERAL OFFI2 CIAL TRAVEL. 

3 (a) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 90 days 

4 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 90 

5 days thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to 

6 the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on 

7 Armed Services of the House of Representatives a report 

8 detailing the direct and indirect costs to the Department 

9 of Defense in support of travel by senior Federal officials 

10 on military aircraft. Each such report shall include wheth11 er spousal travel furnished by the Department was reim12 bursed to the Federal Government. 

13 (b) EXCEPTION.—Required use travel, as outlined in 

14 Department of Defense Directive 4500.56, shall not be in15 cluded in reports under subsection (a). 

16 (c) SENIOR FEDERAL OFFICIAL DEFINED.—In this 

17 section, the term ‘‘senior Federal official’’ has the mean18 ing given that term in section 8036(d). 

19 Subtitle E—Conflicts From 

20 Political Fundraising 

21 SEC. 8041. SHORT TITLE. 

22 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Conflicts from Po23 litical Fundraising Act of 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 8042. DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN TYPES OF CONTRIBU2 TIONS. 

3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 109 of the Ethics in Gov4 ernment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through 

6 (19) as paragraphs (5) through (22), respectively; 

7 and 

8 (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(2) ‘covered contribution’ means a payment, 

11 advance, forbearance, rendering, or deposit of 

12 money, or any thing of value— 

13 ‘‘(A)(i) that— 

14 ‘‘(I) is— 

15 ‘‘(aa) made by or on behalf of a 

16 covered individual; or 

17 ‘‘(bb) solicited in writing by or at 

18 the request of a covered individual; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(II) is made— 

21 ‘‘(aa) to a political organization, 

22 as defined in section 527 of the Inter23 nal Revenue Code of 1986; or 

24 ‘‘(bb) to an organization— 

25 ‘‘(AA) that is described in 

26 paragraph (4) or (6) of section 


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1 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 

2 Code of 1986 and exempt from 

3 tax under section 501(a) of such 

4 Code; and 

5 ‘‘(BB) that promotes or op6 poses changes in Federal laws or 

7 regulations that are (or would 

8 be) administered by the agency in 

9 which the covered individual has 

10 been nominated for appointment 

11 to a covered position or is serving 

12 in a covered position; or 

13 ‘‘(ii) that is— 

14 ‘‘(I) solicited in writing by or on be15 half of a covered individual; and 

16 ‘‘(II) made— 

17 ‘‘(aa) by an individual or entity 

18 the activities of which are subject to 

19 Federal laws or regulations that are 

20 (or would be) administered by the 

21 agency in which the covered individual 

22 has been nominated for appointment 

23 to a covered position or is serving in 

24 a covered position; and 

25 ‘‘(bb) to— 


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1 ‘‘(AA) a political organiza2 tion, as defined in section 527 of 

3 the Internal Revenue Code of 

4 1986; or 

5 ‘‘(BB) an organization that 

6 is described in paragraph (4) or 

7 (6) of section 501(c) of the Inter8 nal Revenue Code of 1986 and 

9 exempt from tax under section 

10 501(a) of such Code; and 

11 ‘‘(B) that is made to an organization de12 scribed in item (aa) or (bb) of clause (i)(II) or 

13 clause (ii)(II)(bb) of subparagraph (A) for 

14 which the total amount of such payments, ad15 vances, forbearances, renderings, or deposits of 

16 money, or any thing of value, during the cal17 endar year in which it is made is not less than 

18 the contribution limitation in effect under sec19 tion 315(a)(1)(A) of the Federal Election Cam20 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(1)(A)) 

21 for elections occurring during such calendar 

22 year; 

23 ‘‘(3) ‘covered individual’ means an individual 

24 who has been nominated or appointed to a covered 

25 position; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) ‘covered position’— 

2 ‘‘(A) means— 

3 ‘‘(i) a position described under sec4 tions 5312 through 5316 of title 5, United 

5 States Code; 

6 ‘‘(ii) a position placed in level IV or V 

7 of the Executive Schedule under section 

8 5317 of title 5, United States Code; 

9 ‘‘(iii) a position as a limited term ap10 pointee, limited emergency appointee, or 

11 noncareer appointee in the Senior Execu12 tive Service, as defined under paragraphs 

13 (5), (6), and (7), respectively, of section 

14 3132(a) of title 5, United States Code; and 

15 ‘‘(iv) a position in the executive 

16 branch of the Government of a confidential 

17 or policy-determining character under 

18 schedule C of subpart C of part 213 of 

19 title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(B) does not include a position if the in22 dividual serving in the position has been ex23 cluded from the application of section 

24 101(f)(5);’’. 


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1 (b) DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS.—The Ethics in 

2 Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

3 (1) in section 101— 

4 (A) in subsection (a)— 

5 (i) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘With6 in’’; 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘unless’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘and, if the individual is assuming a cov9 ered position, the information described in 

10 section 102(j), except that, subject to para11 graph (2), the individual shall not be re12 quired to file a report if’’; and 

13 (iii) by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(2) If an individual has left a position described in 

16 subsection (f) that is not a covered position and, within 

17 30 days, assumes a position that is a covered position, the 

18 individual shall, within 30 days of assuming the covered 

19 position, file a report containing the information described 

20 in section 102(j)(2)(A).’’; 

21 (B) in subsection (b)(1), in the first sen22 tence, by inserting ‘‘and the information re23 quired by section 102(j)’’ after ‘‘described in 

24 section 102(b)’’; 


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1 (C) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘‘and, if 

2 the individual is serving in a covered position, 

3 the information required by section 

4 102(j)(2)(A)’’ after ‘‘described in section 

5 102(a)’’; and 

6 (D) in subsection (e), by inserting ‘‘and, if 

7 the individual was serving in a covered position, 

8 the information required by section 

9 102(j)(2)(A)’’ after ‘‘described in section 

10 102(a)’’; and 

11 (2) in section 102— 

12 (A) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘Political 

13 campaign funds’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as pro14 vided in subsection (j), political campaign 

15 funds’’; and 

16 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(j)(1) In this subsection— 

18 ‘‘(A) the term ‘applicable period’ means— 

19 ‘‘(i) with respect to a report filed pursuant 

20 to subsection (a) or (b) of section 101, the year 

21 of filing and the 4 calendar years preceding the 

22 year of the filing; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) with respect to a report filed pursuant 

24 to subsection (d) or (e) of section 101, the pre25 ceding calendar year; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the term ‘covered gift’ means a gift that— 

2 ‘‘(i) is made to a covered individual, the 

3 spouse of a covered individual, or the dependent 

4 child of a covered individual; 

5 ‘‘(ii) is made by an entity described in item 

6 (aa) or (bb) of section 109(2)(A)(i)(II); and 

7 ‘‘(iii) would have been required to be re8 ported under subsection (a)(2) if the covered in9 dividual had been required to file a report 

10 under section 101(d) with respect to the cal11 endar year during which the gift was made. 

12 ‘‘(2)(A) A report filed pursuant to subsection (a), (b), 

13 (d), or (e) of section 101 by a covered individual shall in14 clude, for each covered contribution during the applicable 

15 period— 

16 ‘‘(i) the date on which the covered contribution 

17 was made; 

18 ‘‘(ii) if applicable, the date or dates on which 

19 the covered contribution was solicited; 

20 ‘‘(iii) the value of the covered contribution; 

21 ‘‘(iv) the name of the person making the cov22 ered contribution; and 

23 ‘‘(v) the name of the person receiving the cov24 ered contribution. 


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1 ‘‘(B)(i) Subject to clause (ii), a covered contribution 

2 made by or on behalf of, or that was solicited in writing 

3 by or on behalf of, a covered individual shall constitute 

4 a conflict of interest, or an appearance thereof, with re5 spect to the official duties of the covered individual. 

6 ‘‘(ii) The Director of the Office of Government Ethics 

7 may exempt a covered contribution from the application 

8 of clause (i) if the Director determines the circumstances 

9 of the solicitation and making of the covered contribution 

10 do not present a risk of a conflict of interest and the ex11 emption of the covered contribution would not affect ad12 versely the integrity of the Government or the public’s con13 fidence in the integrity of the Government. 

14 ‘‘(3) A report filed pursuant to subsection (a) or (b) 

15 of section 101 by a covered individual shall include the 

16 information described in subsection (a)(2) with respect to 

17 each covered gift received during the applicable period.’’. 

18 (c) PROVISION OF REPORTS AND ETHICS AGREE19 MENTS TO CONGRESS.—Section 105 of the Ethics in Gov20 ernment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by add21 ing at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(e) Not later than 30 days after receiving a written 

23 request from the Chairman or Ranking Member of a com24 mittee or subcommittee of either House of Congress, the 

25 Director of the Office of Government Ethics shall provide 


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1 to the Chairman and Ranking Member each report filed 

2 under this title by the covered individual and any ethics 

3 agreement entered into between the agency and the cov4 ered individual.’’. 

5 (d) RULES ON ETHICS AGREEMENTS.—The Director 

6 of the Office of Government Ethics shall promptly issue 

7 rules regarding how an agency in the executive branch 

8 shall address information required to be disclosed under 

9 the amendments made by this subtitle in drafting ethics 

10 agreements between the agency and individuals appointed 

11 to positions in the agency. 

12 (e) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

13 (1) The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

14 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

15 (A) in section 101(f)— 

16 (i) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘sec17 tion 109(12)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

18 109(15)’’; 

19 (ii) in paragraph (10), by striking 

20 ‘‘section 109(13)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

21 109(16)’’; 

22 (iii) in paragraph (11), by striking 

23 ‘‘section 109(10)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

24 109(13)’’; and 


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1 (iv) in paragraph (12), by striking 

2 ‘‘section 109(8)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

3 109(11)’’; 

4 (B) in section 103(l)— 

5 (i) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘sec6 tion 109(12)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

7 109(15)’’; and 

8 (ii) in paragraph (10), by striking 

9 ‘‘section 109(13)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

10 109(16)’’; and 

11 (C) in section 105(b)(3)(A), by striking 

12 ‘‘section 109(8) or 109(10)’’ and inserting ‘‘sec13 tion 109(11) or 109(13)’’. 

14 (2) Section 3(4)(D) of the Lobbying Disclosure 

15 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602(4)(D)) is amended by 

16 striking ‘‘section 109(13)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

17 109(16)’’. 

18 (3) Section 21A of the Securities Exchange Act 

19 of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78u–1) is amended— 

20 (A) in subsection (g)(2)(B)(ii), by striking 

21 ‘‘section 109(11) of the Ethics in Government 

22 Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 109(11)))’’ and in23 serting ‘‘section 109 of the Ethics in Govern24 ment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.))’’; and 

25 (B) in subsection (h)(2)— 


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1 (i) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

2 ‘‘section 109(8) of the Ethics in Govern3 ment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 109(8))’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘section 109 of the Ethics in 

5 Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.)’’; 

6 and 

7 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

8 ‘‘section 109(10) of the Ethics in Govern9 ment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 

10 109(10))’’ and inserting ‘‘section 109 of 

11 the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

12 U.S.C. App.)’’. 

13 (4) Section 499(j)(2) of the Public Health Serv14 ice Act (42 U.S.C. 290b(j)(2)) is amended by strik15 ing ‘‘section 109(16) of the Ethics in Government 

16 Act of 1978’’ and inserting ‘‘section 109 of the Eth17 ics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.)’’. 

18 Subtitle F—Transition Team Ethics 

19 SEC. 8051. SHORT TITLE. 

20 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Transition Team 

21 Ethics Improvement Act’’. 

22 SEC. 8052. PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION ETHICS PROGRAMS. 

23 The Presidential Transition Act of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 

24 102 note) is amended— 


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1 (1) in section 3(f), by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(3) Each eligible candidate (as defined in subsection 

4 (h)(4)(A)) or the President-elect (as the case may be) shall 

5 submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and Gov6 ernmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

7 Oversight and Reform of the House of Representatives a 

8 report containing the names of the candidates for high 

9 level security positions submitted under paragraph (1)— 

10 ‘‘(A) not later than 10 days after the date of 

11 the submission to the Federal Bureau of Investiga12 tion or other appropriate agency under paragraph 

13 (1); and 

14 ‘‘(B) not later than 10 days after any such can15 didate is granted a security clearance (including an 

16 interim clearance) under paragraph (2).’’; and 

17 (2) in section 6(b)— 

18 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

19 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

20 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

21 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

22 the period at the end and inserting a semi23 colon; and 

24 (iii) by adding at the end the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(C) a list of every position each transition 

2 team member has held outside of the Federal Gov3 ernment during the previous 12-month period, in4 cluding paid and unpaid positions; 

5 ‘‘(D) sources of compensation received by each 

6 transition team member exceeding $5,000 during the 

7 previous 12-month period; 

8 ‘‘(E) a description of the role of each transition 

9 team member, including— 

10 ‘‘(i) a list of any policy issues that the 

11 transition team member expects to work on; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(ii) a list of agencies with which the tran14 sition team member expects to interact while 

15 serving on the transition team; 

16 ‘‘(F) a list of any issues from which each tran17 sition team member will be recused while serving as 

18 a member of the transition team pursuant to the 

19 ethics plan described in section 4(g)(3); and 

20 ‘‘(G) an affirmation that no transition team 

21 member has a financial conflict of interest that pre22 cludes the transition team member from working on 

23 the matters of the member described in subpara24 graph (E).’’; 


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1 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘not 

2 later than 2 business days’’ after ‘‘public’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(3) If the President-elect and Vice-President elect 

5 do not make information required under paragraph (1) 

6 publicly available with respect to a particular transition 

7 team member, the head of a Federal department or agency 

8 may not permit the transition team member to access the 

9 Federal department or agency or any employee of the Fed10 eral department or agency in a manner that would not 

11 be permitted to a member of the public.’’. 

12 Subtitle G—Ethics Pledge for Sen13 ior Executive Branch Employees 

14 SEC. 8061. SHORT TITLE. 

15 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Ethics in Public 

16 Service Act’’. 

17 SEC. 8062. ETHICS PLEDGE REQUIREMENT FOR SENIOR EX18 ECUTIVE BRANCH EMPLOYEES. 

19 The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

20 App. 101 et seq.) is amended by inserting after title I the 

21 following new title: 

22 ‘‘TITLE II—ETHICS PLEDGE 

23 ‘‘SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS. 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of this title, 

25 the following definitions apply: 


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1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘Administration’ means all terms 

2 of office of the incumbent President serving at the 

3 time of the appointment of an appointee covered by 

4 this title. 

5 ‘‘(2) The term ‘appointee’ means any noncareer 

6 Presidential or Vice Presidential appointee, non7 career appointee in the Senior Executive Service (or 

8 other SES-type system), or appointee to a position 

9 that has been excepted from the competitive service 

10 by reason of being of a confidential or policymaking 

11 character (Schedule C and other positions excepted 

12 under comparable criteria) in an executive agency, 

13 but does not include any individual appointed as a 

14 member of the Senior Foreign Service or solely as 

15 a uniformed service commissioned officer. 

16 ‘‘(3) The term ‘covered executive branch offi17 cial’ and ‘lobbyist’ have the meanings given those 

18 terms in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

19 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602). 

20 ‘‘(4) The term ‘directly and substantially re21 lated to my former employer or former clients’ 

22 means matters in which the appointee’s former em23 ployer or a former client is a party or represents a 

24 party. 


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1 ‘‘(5) The term ‘executive agency’ has the mean2 ing given that term in section 105 of title 5, United 

3 States Code, and includes the Executive Office of 

4 the President, the United States Postal Service, and 

5 Postal Regulatory Commission, but does not include 

6 the Government Accountability Office. 

7 ‘‘(6) The term ‘former client’ means a person 

8 or entity for whom an appointee served personally as 

9 agent, attorney, or consultant during the 2-year pe10 riod ending on the date before the date on which the 

11 appointee begins service in the Federal Government, 

12 but does not include an agency or instrumentality of 

13 the Federal Government. 

14 ‘‘(7) The term ‘former employer’— 

15 ‘‘(A) means a person or entity for whom 

16 an appointee served as an employee, officer, di17 rector, trustee, partner, agent, attorney, con18 sultant, or contractor during the 2-year period 

19 ending on the date before the date on which the 

20 appointee begins service in the Federal Govern21 ment; and 

22 ‘‘(B) does not include— 

23 ‘‘(i) an agency or instrumentality of 

24 the Federal Government; 

25 ‘‘(ii) a State or local government; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the District of Columbia; 

2 ‘‘(iv) an Indian Tribe, as defined in 

3 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination 

4 and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

5 5304); or 

6 ‘‘(v) the government of a territory or 

7 possession of the United States. 

8 ‘‘(8) The term ‘gift’— 

9 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given that term in 

10 section 2635.203(b) of title 5, Code of Federal 

11 Regulations (or any successor regulation); and 

12 ‘‘(B) does not include those items excluded 

13 by sections 2635.204(b), (c), (e)(1), (e)(3), (j), 

14 (k), and (l) of such title 5. 

15 ‘‘(9) The term ‘Government official’ means any 

16 employee of the executive branch. 

17 ‘‘(10) The term ‘lobby’ and ‘lobbied’ mean to 

18 act or have acted as a registered lobbyist. 

19 ‘‘(11) The term ‘participate’ means to partici20 pate personally and substantially. 

21 ‘‘(12) The term ‘pledge’ means the ethics 

22 pledge set forth in section 202 of this title. 

23 ‘‘(13) The term ‘post-employment restrictions’ 

24 includes the provisions and exceptions in section 


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1 207(c) of title 18, United States Code, and the im2 plementing regulations. 

3 ‘‘(14) The term ‘registered lobbyist or lobbying 

4 organization’ means a lobbyist or an organization fil5 ing a registration pursuant to section 4(a) of the 

6 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

7 1603(a)), and in the case of an organization filing 

8 such a registration, ‘registered lobbyist’ includes 

9 each of the lobbyists identified therein. 

10 ‘‘(b) REFERENCES.—All references to provisions of 

11 law and regulations under subsection (a) shall refer to 

12 such provisions as in effect on the date of enactment of 

13 this title. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 202. ETHICS PLEDGE. 

15 ‘‘Each appointee in every executive agency appointed 

16 on or after the date of enactment of this section shall be 

17 required to sign an ethics pledge upon appointment. The 

18 pledge shall be signed and dated within 30 days of taking 

19 office and shall include, at a minimum, the following ele20 ments: 

21 ‘‘ ‘As a condition, and in consideration, of my employ22 ment in the United States Government in a position in23 vested with the public trust, I commit myself to the fol24 lowing obligations, which I understand are binding on me 

25 and are enforceable under law: 


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1 ‘‘ ‘(1) Lobbyist Gift Ban.—I will not accept 

2 gifts from registered lobbyists or lobbying organiza3 tions for the duration of my service as an appointee. 

4 ‘‘ ‘(2) Revolving Door Ban; Entering Govern5 ment.— 

6 ‘‘ ‘(A) All Appointees Entering Govern7 ment.—I will not, for a period of 2 years from 

8 the date of my appointment, participate in any 

9 particular matter involving specific party or 

10 parties that is directly and substantially related 

11 to my former employer or former clients, in12 cluding regulations and contracts. 

13 ‘‘ ‘(B) Lobbyists Entering Government.—If 

14 I was a registered lobbyist within the 2 years 

15 before the date of my appointment, in addition 

16 to abiding by the limitations of subparagraph 

17 (A), I will not for a period of 2 years after the 

18 date of my appointment— 

19 ‘‘ ‘(i) participate in any particular 

20 matter on which I lobbied within the 2 

21 years before the date of my appointment; 

22 ‘‘ ‘(ii) participate in the specific issue 

23 area in which that particular matter falls; 

24 or 


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1 ‘‘ ‘(iii) seek or accept employment with 

2 any executive agency that I lobbied within 

3 the 2 years before the date of my appoint4 ment. 

5 ‘‘ ‘(3) Revolving Door Ban; Appointees Leaving 

6 Government.— 

7 ‘‘ ‘(A) All Appointees Leaving Govern8 ment.—If, upon my departure from the Govern9 ment, I am covered by the post-employment re10 strictions on communicating with employees of 

11 my former executive agency set forth in section 

12 207(c) of title 18, United States Code, I agree 

13 that I will abide by those restrictions for a pe14 riod of 2 years following the end of my appoint15 ment. 

16 ‘‘ ‘(B) Appointees Leaving Government to 

17 Lobby.—In addition to abiding by the limita18 tions of subparagraph (A), I also agree, upon 

19 leaving Government service, not to lobby any 

20 covered executive branch official or noncareer 

21 Senior Executive Service appointee for the re22 mainder of the Administration. 

23 ‘‘ ‘(4) Employment Qualification Commit24 ment.—I agree that any hiring or other employment 


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1 decisions I make will be based on the candidate’s 

2 qualifications, competence, and experience. 

3 ‘‘ ‘(5) Assent to Enforcement.—I acknowledge 

4 that title II of the Ethics in Government Act of 

5 1978, which I have read before signing this docu6 ment, defines certain of the terms applicable to the 

7 foregoing obligations and sets forth the methods for 

8 enforcing them. I expressly accept the provisions of 

9 that title as a part of this agreement and as binding 

10 on me. I understand that the terms of this pledge 

11 are in addition to any statutory or other legal re12 strictions applicable to me by virtue of Federal Gov13 ernment service.’ ’’. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 203. WAIVER. 

15 ‘‘(a) The President or the President’s designee may 

16 grant to any current or former appointee a written waiver 

17 of any restrictions contained in the pledge signed by such 

18 appointee if, and to the extent that, the President or the 

19 President’s designee certifies (in writing) that, in light of 

20 all the relevant circumstances, the interest of the Federal 

21 Government in the employee’s participation outweighs the 

22 concern that a reasonable person may question the integ23 rity of the agency’s programs or operations. 


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1 ‘‘(b) Any waiver under this section shall take effect 

2 when the certification is signed by the President or the 

3 President’s designee. 

4 ‘‘(c) For purposes of subsection (a), the interest of 

5 the Federal Government shall include exigent cir6 cumstances relating to national security or to the econ7 omy. De minimis contact with an executive agency shall 

8 be cause for a waiver of the restrictions contained in para9 graph (2)(B) of the pledge. 

10 ‘‘(d) For any waiver granted under this section, the 

11 individual who granted the waiver shall— 

12 ‘‘(1) provide a copy of the waiver to the Direc13 tor not more than 48 hours after the waiver is 

14 granted; and 

15 ‘‘(2) publish the waiver on the website of the 

16 applicable agency not later than 30 calendar days 

17 after granting such waiver. 

18 ‘‘(e) Upon receiving a written waiver under sub19 section (d), the Director shall— 

20 ‘‘(1) review the waiver to determine whether the 

21 Director has any objection to the issuance of the 

22 waiver; and 

23 ‘‘(2) if the Director so objects— 

24 ‘‘(A) provide reasons for the objection in 

25 writing to the President or the President’s desVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Jun 18, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00857 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2093.PCS S2093

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1 ignee who granted the waiver not more than 15 

2 calendar days after the waiver was granted; and 

3 ‘‘(B) publish the written objection on the 

4 website of the Office of Government Ethics not 

5 more than 30 calendar days after the waiver 

6 was granted. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 204. ADMINISTRATION. 

8 ‘‘(a) The head of each executive agency shall, in con9 sultation with the Director of the Office of Government 

10 Ethics, establish such rules or procedures (conforming as 

11 nearly as practicable to the agency’s general ethics rules 

12 and procedures, including those relating to designated 

13 agency ethics officers) as are necessary or appropriate to 

14 ensure— 

15 ‘‘(1) that every appointee in the agency signs 

16 the pledge upon assuming the appointed office or 

17 otherwise becoming an appointee; 

18 ‘‘(2) that compliance with paragraph (2)(B) of 

19 the pledge is addressed in a written ethics agree20 ment with each appointee to whom it applies; 

21 ‘‘(3) that spousal employment issues and other 

22 conflicts not expressly addressed by the pledge are 

23 addressed in ethics agreements with appointees or, 

24 where no such agreements are required, through eth25 ics counseling; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) compliance with this title within the agen2 cy. 

3 ‘‘(b) With respect to the Executive Office of the 

4 President, the duties set forth in subsection (a) shall be 

5 the responsibility of the Counsel to the President. 

6 ‘‘(c) The Director of the Office of Government Ethics 

7 shall— 

8 ‘‘(1) ensure that the pledge and a copy of this 

9 title are made available for use by agencies in ful10 filling their duties under subsection (a); 

11 ‘‘(2) in consultation with the Attorney General 

12 or the Counsel to the President, when appropriate, 

13 assist designated agency ethics officers in providing 

14 advice to current or former appointees regarding the 

15 application of the pledge; 

16 ‘‘(3) adopt such rules or procedures as are nec17 essary or appropriate— 

18 ‘‘(A) to carry out the responsibilities as19 signed by this subsection; 

20 ‘‘(B) to apply the lobbyist gift ban set 

21 forth in paragraph 1 of the pledge to all execu22 tive branch employees; 

23 ‘‘(C) to authorize limited exceptions to the 

24 lobbyist gift ban for circumstances that do not 

25 implicate the purposes of the ban; 


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1 ‘‘(D) to make clear that no person shall 

2 have violated the lobbyist gift ban if the person 

3 properly disposes of a gift; 

4 ‘‘(E) to ensure that existing rules and pro5 cedures for Government employees engaged in 

6 negotiations for future employment with private 

7 businesses that are affected by their official ac8 tions do not affect the integrity of the Govern9 ment’s programs and operations; and 

10 ‘‘(F) to ensure, in consultation with the 

11 Director of the Office of Personnel Manage12 ment, that the requirement set forth in para13 graph (4) of the pledge is honored by every em14 ployee of the executive branch; 

15 ‘‘(4) in consultation with the Director of the 

16 Office of Management and Budget, report to the 

17 President, the Committee on Oversight and Reform 

18 of the House of Representatives, and the Committee 

19 on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of 

20 the Senate on whether full compliance is being 

21 achieved with existing laws and regulations gov22 erning executive branch procurement lobbying disclo23 sure and on steps the executive branch can take to 

24 expand to the fullest extent practicable disclosure of 

25 such executive branch procurement lobbying and of 


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1 lobbying for presidential pardons, and to include in 

2 the report both immediate action the executive 

3 branch can take and, if necessary, recommendations 

4 for legislation; and 

5 ‘‘(5) provide an annual public report on the ad6 ministration of the pledge and this title. 

7 ‘‘(d) All pledges signed by appointees, and all waiver 

8 certifications with respect thereto, shall be filed with the 

9 head of the appointee’s agency for permanent retention 

10 in the appointee’s official personnel folder or equivalent 

11 folder.’’. 

12 Subtitle H—Travel on Private Air13 craft by Senior Political Ap14 pointees 

15 SEC. 8071. SHORT TITLE. 

16 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Waste And 

17 Misuse by Presidential Flyers Landing Yet Evading Rules 

18 and Standards Act’’ or the ‘‘SWAMP FLYERS Act’’. 

19 SEC. 8072. PROHIBITION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR TRAVEL 

20 ON PRIVATE AIRCRAFT. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on the date of enact22 ment of this subtitle, no Federal funds appropriated or 

23 otherwise made available in any fiscal year may be used 

24 to pay the travel expenses of any senior political appointee 


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1 for travel on official business on a non-commercial, pri2 vate, or chartered flight. 

3 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—The limitation in subsection (a) 

4 shall not apply— 

5 (1) if no commercial flight is available for the 

6 travel in question, consistent with subsection (c); or 

7 (2) to any travel on aircraft owned or leased by 

8 the Government. 

9 (c) CERTIFICATION.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any senior political ap11 pointee who travels on a non-commercial, private, or 

12 chartered flight under the exception provided in sub13 section (b)(1) shall, not later than 30 days after the 

14 date of such travel, submit a written statement to 

15 Congress certifying that no commercial flight was 

16 available. 

17 (2) PENALTY.—Any statement submitted under 

18 paragraph (1) shall be considered a statement for 

19 purposes of applying section 1001 of title 18, United 

20 States Code. 

21 (d) DEFINITION OF SENIOR POLITICAL AP22 POINTEE.—In this subtitle, the term ‘‘senior political ap23 pointee’’ means any individual occupying— 


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1 (1) a position listed under the Executive Sched2 ule (subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 5, United 

3 States Code); 

4 (2) a Senior Executive Service position that is 

5 not a career appointee, as defined under section 

6 3132(a)(4) of title 5, United States Code; or 

7 (3) a position of a confidential or policy-deter8 mining character under schedule C of subpart C of 

9 part 213 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations. 

10 Subtitle I—Severability 

11 SEC. 8081. SEVERABILITY. 

12 If any provision of this title or any amendment made 

13 by this title, or any application of such provision or 

14 amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to be 

15 unconstitutional, the remainder of the provisions of this 

16 title and the amendments made by this title, and the appli17 cation of the provision or amendment to any other person 

18 or circumstance, shall not be affected. 


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1 TITLE IX—CONGRESSIONAL 

2 ETHICS REFORM 

3 Subtitle A—Requiring Members of 

4 Congress To Reimburse Treas5 ury for Amounts Paid as Settle6 ments and Awards Under Con7 gressional Accountability Act of 

8 1995 

9 SEC. 9001. REQUIRING MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO REIM10 BURSE TREASURY FOR AMOUNTS PAID AS 

11 SETTLEMENTS AND AWARDS UNDER CON12 GRESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1995 

13 IN ALL CASES OF EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINA14 TION ACTS BY MEMBERS. 

15 (a) REQUIRING REIMBURSEMENT.—Clause (i) of sec16 tion 415(d)(1)(C) of the Congressional Accountability Act 

17 of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1415(d)(1)(C)) is amended to read as 

18 follows: 

19 ‘‘(i) a violation of section 201(a) or 

20 section 206(a); or’’. 

21 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO NOTI22 FICATION OF POSSIBILITY OF REIMBURSEMENT.—Clause 

23 (i) of section 402(b)(2)(B) of the Congressional Account24 ability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1402(b)(2)(B)) is amended 

25 to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(i) a violation of section 201(a) or 

2 section 206(a); or’’. 

3 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

4 this section shall take effect as if included in the enact5 ment of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 Re6 form Act. 

7 Subtitle B—Conflicts of Interests 

8 SEC. 9101. PROHIBITING MEMBERS OF HOUSE OF REP9 RESENTATIVES FROM SERVING ON BOARDS 

10 OF FOR-PROFIT ENTITIES. 

11 Rule XXIII of the Rules of the House of Representa12 tives is amended— 

13 (1) by redesignating clause 20 as clause 21; 

14 and 

15 (2) by inserting after clause 19 the following 

16 new clause: 

17 ‘‘20. A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner 

18 may not serve on the board of directors of any for-profit 

19 entity.’’. 

20 SEC. 9102. CONFLICT OF INTEREST RULES FOR MEMBERS 

21 OF CONGRESS AND CONGRESSIONAL STAFF. 

22 No Member, officer, or employee of a committee or 

23 Member of either House of Congress may knowingly use 

24 his or her official position to introduce or aid the progress 

25 or passage of legislation, a principal purpose of which is 


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1 to further only his or her pecuniary interest, only the pecu2 niary interest of his or her immediate family, or only the 

3 pecuniary interest of a limited class of persons or enter4 prises, when he or she, or his or her immediate family, 

5 or enterprises controlled by them, are members of the af6 fected class. 

7 SEC. 9103. EXERCISE OF RULEMAKING POWERS. 

8 The provisions of this subtitle are enacted by the 

9 Congress— 

10 (1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

11 the House of Representatives and the Senate, re12 spectively, and as such they shall be considered as 

13 part of the rules of each House, respectively, or of 

14 that House to which they specifically apply, and 

15 such rules shall supersede other rules only to the ex16 tent that they are inconsistent therewith; and 

17 (2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

18 right of either House to change such rules (so far 

19 as relating to such House) at any time, in the same 

20 manner, and to the same extent as in the case of 

21 any other rule of such House. 


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1 Subtitle C—Campaign Finance and 

2 Lobbying Disclosure 

3 SEC. 9201. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Connecting Lobby5 ists and Electeds for Accountability and Reform Act’’ or 

6 the ‘‘CLEAR Act’’. 

7 SEC. 9202. REQUIRING DISCLOSURE IN CERTAIN REPORTS 

8 FILED WITH FEDERAL ELECTION COMMIS9 SION OF PERSONS WHO ARE REGISTERED 

10 LOBBYISTS. 

11 (a) REPORTS FILED BY POLITICAL COMMITTEES.— 

12 Section 304(b) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

13 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(b)) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

15 (7); 

16 (2) by striking the period at the end of para17 graph (8) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

19 paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(9) if any person identified in subparagraph 

21 (A), (E), (F), or (G) of paragraph (3) is a registered 

22 lobbyist under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

23 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), a separate statement that 

24 such person is a registered lobbyist under such 

25 Act.’’. 


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1 (b) REPORTS FILED BY PERSONS MAKING INDE2 PENDENT EXPENDITURES.—Section 304(c)(2) of the 

3 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

4 30104(c)(2)) is amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara6 graph (B); 

7 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub8 paragraph (C) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

9 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub10 paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(D) if the person filing the statement, or a 

12 person whose identification is required to be dis13 closed under subparagraph (C), is a registered lob14 byist under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), a separate statement that such 

16 person is a registered lobbyist under such Act.’’. 

17 (c) REPORTS FILED BY PERSONS MAKING DIS18 BURSEMENTS FOR ELECTIONEERING COMMUNICA19 TIONS.—Section 304(f)(2) of the Federal Election Cam20 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(2)) is amended 

21 by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: 

22 ‘‘(G) If the person making the disburse23 ment, or a contributor described in subpara24 graph (E) or (F), is a registered lobbyist under 

25 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 


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1 1601 et seq.), a separate statement that such 

2 person or contributor is a registered lobbyist 

3 under such Act.’’. 

4 (d) REQUIRING COMMISSION TO ESTABLISH LINK TO

5 WEBSITES OF CLERK OF HOUSE AND SECRETARY OF

6 SENATE.—Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign 

7 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amended by section 

8 4002(a), section 4208(a), and section 4210(a), is amended 

9 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

10 ‘‘(m) REQUIRING INFORMATION ON REGISTERED

11 LOBBYISTS TO BE LINKED TO WEBSITES OF CLERK OF

12 HOUSE AND SECRETARY OF SENATE.— 

13 ‘‘(1) LINKS TO WEBSITES.—The Commission 

14 shall ensure that the Commission’s public database 

15 containing information described in paragraph (2) is 

16 linked electronically to the websites maintained by 

17 the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the 

18 House of Representatives containing information 

19 filed pursuant to the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

20 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.). 

21 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—The informa22 tion described in this paragraph is each of the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(A) Information disclosed under para25 graph (9) of subsection (b). 


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1 ‘‘(B) Information disclosed under subpara2 graph (D) of subsection (c)(2). 

3 ‘‘(C) Information disclosed under subpara4 graph (G) of subsection (f)(2).’’. 

5 SEC. 9203. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

6 The amendments made by this subtitle shall apply 

7 with respect to reports required to be filed under the Fed8 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 

9 et seq.) on or after the expiration of the 90-day period 

10 which begins on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 Subtitle D—Access to 

12 Congressionally Mandated Reports 

13 SEC. 9301. SHORT TITLE. 

14 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Access to Congres15 sionally Mandated Reports Act’’. 

16 SEC. 9302. DEFINITIONS. 

17 In this subtitle: 

18 (1) CONGRESSIONALLY MANDATED REPORT.— 

19 The term ‘‘congressionally mandated report’’— 

20 (A) means a report that is required to be 

21 submitted to either House of Congress or any 

22 committee of Congress, or subcommittee there23 of, by a statute, resolution, or conference report 

24 that accompanies legislation enacted into law; 

25 and 


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1 (B) does not include a report required 

2 under part B of subtitle II of title 36, United 

3 States Code. 

4 (2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

5 the Director of the Government Publishing Office. 

6 (3) FEDERAL AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Federal 

7 agency’’ has the meaning given that term under sec8 tion 102 of title 40, United States Code, but does 

9 not include the Government Accountability Office. 

10 (4) OPEN FORMAT.—The term ‘‘open format’’ 

11 means a file format for storing digital data based on 

12 an underlying open standard that— 

13 (A) is not encumbered by any restrictions 

14 that would impede reuse; and 

15 (B) is based on an underlying open data 

16 standard that is maintained by a standards or17 ganization. 

18 (5) REPORTS ONLINE PORTAL.—The term ‘‘re19 ports online portal’’ means the online portal estab20 lished under section 9303(a). 

21 SEC. 9303. ESTABLISHMENT OF ONLINE PORTAL FOR CON22 GRESSIONALLY MANDATED REPORTS. 

23 (a) REQUIREMENT TO ESTABLISH ONLINE POR24 TAL.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall 

3 establish and maintain an online portal accessible by 

4 the public that allows the public to obtain electronic 

5 copies of all congressionally mandated reports in one 

6 place. The Director may publish other reports on the 

7 online portal. 

8 (2) EXISTING FUNCTIONALITY.—To the extent 

9 possible, the Director shall meet the requirements 

10 under paragraph (1) by using existing online portals 

11 and functionality under the authority of the Direc12 tor. 

13 (3) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out this sub14 title, the Director shall consult with the Clerk of the 

15 House of Representatives, the Secretary of the Sen16 ate, and the Librarian of Congress regarding the re17 quirements for and maintenance of congressionally 

18 mandated reports on the reports online portal. 

19 (b) CONTENT AND FUNCTION.—The Director shall 

20 ensure that the reports online portal includes the fol21 lowing: 

22 (1) Subject to subsection (c), with respect to 

23 each congressionally mandated report, each of the 

24 following: 


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1 (A) A citation to the statute, conference 

2 report, or resolution requiring the report. 

3 (B) An electronic copy of the report, in4 cluding any transmittal letter associated with 

5 the report, in an open format that is platform 

6 independent and that is available to the public 

7 without restrictions, including restrictions that 

8 would impede the re-use of the information in 

9 the report. 

10 (C) The ability to retrieve a report, to the 

11 extent practicable, through searches based on 

12 each, and any combination, of the following: 

13 (i) The title of the report. 

14 (ii) The reporting Federal agency. 

15 (iii) The date of publication. 

16 (iv) Each congressional committee re17 ceiving the report, if applicable. 

18 (v) The statute, resolution, or con19 ference report requiring the report. 

20 (vi) Subject tags. 

21 (vii) A unique alphanumeric identifier 

22 for the report that is consistent across re23 port editions. 

24 (viii) The serial number, Super25 intendent of Documents number, or other 


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1 identification number for the report, if ap2 plicable. 

3 (ix) Key words. 

4 (x) Full text search. 

5 (xi) Any other relevant information 

6 specified by the Director. 

7 (D) The date on which the report was re8 quired to be submitted, and on which the report 

9 was submitted, to the reports online portal. 

10 (E) Access to the report not later than 30 

11 calendar days after its submission to Congress. 

12 (F) To the extent practicable, a permanent 

13 means of accessing the report electronically. 

14 (2) A means for bulk download of all congres15 sionally mandated reports. 

16 (3) A means for downloading individual reports 

17 as the result of a search. 

18 (4) An electronic means for the head of each 

19 Federal agency to submit to the reports online por20 tal each congressionally mandated report of the 

21 agency, as required by section 9304. 

22 (5) In tabular form, a list of all congressionally 

23 mandated reports that can be searched, sorted, and 

24 downloaded by— 


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1 (A) reports submitted within the required 

2 time; 

3 (B) reports submitted after the date on 

4 which such reports were required to be sub5 mitted; and 

6 (C) to the extent practicable, reports not 

7 submitted. 

8 (c) NONCOMPLIANCE BY FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

9 (1) REPORTS NOT SUBMITTED.—If a Federal 

10 agency does not submit a congressionally mandated 

11 report to the Director, the Director shall to the ex12 tent practicable— 

13 (A) include on the reports online portal— 

14 (i) the information required under 

15 clauses (i), (ii), (iv), and (v) of subsection 

16 (b)(1)(C); and 

17 (ii) the date on which the report was 

18 required to be submitted; and 

19 (B) include the congressionally mandated 

20 report on the list described in subsection 

21 (b)(5)(C). 

22 (2) REPORTS NOT IN OPEN FORMAT.—If a Fed23 eral agency submits a congressionally mandated re24 port that is not in an open format, the Director shall 


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1 include the congressionally mandated report in an2 other format on the reports online portal. 

3 (d) FREE ACCESS.—The Director may not charge a 

4 fee, require registration, or impose any other limitation 

5 in exchange for access to the reports online portal. 

6 (e) UPGRADE CAPABILITY.—The reports online por7 tal shall be enhanced and updated as necessary to carry 

8 out the purposes of this subtitle. 

9 SEC. 9304. FEDERAL AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES. 

10 (a) SUBMISSION OF ELECTRONIC COPIES OF RE11 PORTS.—Concurrently with the submission to Congress of 

12 each congressionally mandated report, the head of the 

13 Federal agency submitting the congressionally mandated 

14 report shall submit to the Director the information re15 quired under subparagraphs (A) through (D) of section 

16 9303(b)(1) with respect to the congressionally mandated 

17 report. Nothing in this subtitle shall relieve a Federal 

18 agency of any other requirement to publish the congres19 sionally mandated report on the online portal of the Fed20 eral agency or otherwise submit the congressionally man21 dated report to Congress or specific committees of Con22 gress, or subcommittees thereof. 

23 (b) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 240 days after the 

24 date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office 

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1 rector, shall issue guidance to agencies on the implementa2 tion of this subtitle. 

3 (c) STRUCTURE OF SUBMITTED REPORT DATA.— 

4 The head of each Federal agency shall ensure that each 

5 congressionally mandated report submitted to the Director 

6 complies with the open format criteria established by the 

7 Director in the guidance issued under subsection (b). 

8 (d) POINT OF CONTACT.—The head of each Federal 

9 agency shall designate a point of contact for a congres10 sionally mandated report. 

11 (e) LIST OF REPORTS.—As soon as practicable each 

12 calendar year (but not later than April 1), and on a rolling 

13 basis during the year if feasible, the Librarian of Congress 

14 shall submit to the Director a list of congressionally man15 dated reports from the previous calendar year, in consulta16 tion with the Clerk of the House of Representatives, which 

17 shall— 

18 (1) be provided in an open format; 

19 (2) include the information required under 

20 clauses (i), (ii), (iv), (v) of section 9303(b)(1)(C) for 

21 each report; 

22 (3) include the frequency of the report; 

23 (4) include a unique alphanumeric identifier for 

24 the report that is consistent across report editions; 


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1 (5) include the date on which each report is re2 quired to be submitted; and 

3 (6) be updated and provided to the Director, as 

4 necessary. 

5 SEC. 9305. REMOVING AND ALTERING REPORTS. 

6 A report submitted to be published to the reports on7 line portal may only be changed or removed, with the ex8 ception of technical changes, by the head of the Federal 

9 agency concerned if— 

10 (1) the head of the Federal agency consults 

11 with each congressional committee to which the re12 port is submitted; and 

13 (2) Congress enacts a joint resolution author14 izing the changing or removal of the report. 

15 SEC. 9306. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION; INSPECTORS GEN16 ERAL. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this subtitle shall be 

18 construed to— 

19 (1) require the disclosure of information, 

20 records, or reports that are exempt from public dis21 closure under section 552 of title 5, United States 

22 Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Freedom of Infor23 mation Act’’), or that may be withheld under section 

24 552a of title 5, United States Code (commonly 

25 known as the ‘‘Privacy Act of 1974’’); or 


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1 (2) impose any affirmative duty on the Director 

2 to review congressionally mandated reports sub3 mitted for publication to the reports online portal 

4 for the purpose of identifying and redacting such in5 formation or records. 

6 (b) WITHHOLDING OF INFORMATION.—Nothing in 

7 this subtitle shall be construed to require the publication, 

8 on the online portal or otherwise, of any report containing 

9 information— 

10 (1) that is exempt from disclosure under section 

11 552 of title 5, United States Code, or that may be 

12 withheld under section 552a of title 5, United States 

13 Code; 

14 (2) that is classified; 

15 (3) that is law enforcement sensitive; or 

16 (4) the public release of which could have a 

17 harmful effect on national security. 

18 (c) RELATIONSHIP TO OFFICES OF INSPECTORS

19 GENERAL.—The inspector general of each Federal agency, 

20 except for an inspector general belonging to an element 

21 of the intelligence community, as defined in section 3 of 

22 the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003), shall 

23 be responsible for the submission of their reports to the 

24 Director. 


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1 SEC. 9307. IMPLEMENTATION. 

2 Except as provided in section 9304(b), this subtitle 

3 shall be implemented not later than 1 year after the date 

4 of enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect to 

5 congressionally mandated reports submitted to Congress 

6 on or after the date that is 1 year after such date of enact7 ment. 

8 Subtitle E—Reports on Outside 

9 Compensation Earned by Con10 gressional Employees 

11 SEC. 9401. REPORTS ON OUTSIDE COMPENSATION EARNED 

12 BY CONGRESSIONAL EMPLOYEES. 

13 (a) REPORTS.—The supervisor of an individual who 

14 performs services for any Member, committee, or other of15 fice of the Senate or House of Representatives for a period 

16 in excess of four weeks and who receives compensation 

17 therefor from any source other than the Federal Govern18 ment shall submit a report identifying the identity of the 

19 source, amount, and rate of such compensation to— 

20 (1) the Select Committee on Ethics of the Sen21 ate, in the case of an individual who performs serv22 ices for a Member, committee, or other office of the 

23 Senate; or 

24 (2) the Committee on Ethics of the House of 

25 Representatives, in the case of an individual who 

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1 gate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress), 

2 committee, or other office of the House. 

3 (b) TIMING.—The supervisor shall submit the report 

4 required under subsection (a) with respect to an indi5 vidual— 

6 (1) when such individual first begins per7 forming services described in such subparagraph; 

8 (2) at the close of each calendar quarter during 

9 which such individual is performing such services; 

10 and 

11 (3) when such individual ceases to perform such 

12 services. 

13 Subtitle F—Severability 

14 SEC. 9501. SEVERABILITY. 

15 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

16 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

17 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu18 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

19 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

20 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

21 affected by the holding. 


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1 TITLE X—PRESIDENTIAL AND 

2 VICE PRESIDENTIAL TAX 

3 TRANSPARENCY 

4 SEC. 10001. PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE PRESIDENTIAL TAX 

5 TRANSPARENCY. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

7 (1) The term ‘‘covered candidate’’ means a can8 didate of a major party in a general election for the 

9 office of President or Vice President. 

10 (2) The term ‘‘income tax return’’ means, with 

11 respect to an individual, any return (as such term is 

12 defined in section 6103(b)(1) of the Internal Rev13 enue Code of 1986, except that such term shall not 

14 include declarations of estimated tax) of— 

15 (A) such individual, other than information 

16 returns issued to persons other than such indi17 vidual; or 

18 (B) of any corporation, partnership, or 

19 trust in which such individual holds, directly or 

20 indirectly, a significant interest as the sole or 

21 principal owner or the sole or principal bene22 ficial owner (as such terms are defined in regu23 lations prescribed by the Secretary). 


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1 (3) The term ‘‘major party’’ has the meaning 

2 given the term in section 9002 of the Internal Rev3 enue Code of 1986. 

4 (4) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

5 of the Treasury or the delegate of the Secretary. 

6 (b) DISCLOSURE.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

8 (A) CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT AND

9 VICE PRESIDENT.—Not later than the date that 

10 is 15 days after the date on which an individual 

11 becomes a covered candidate, the individual 

12 shall submit to the Federal Election Commis13 sion a copy of the individual’s income tax re14 turns for the 10 most recent taxable years for 

15 which a return has been filed with the Internal 

16 Revenue Service. 

17 (B) PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT.— 

18 With respect to an individual who is the Presi19 dent or Vice President, not later than the due 

20 date for the return of tax for each taxable year, 

21 such individual shall submit to the Federal 

22 Election Commission a copy of the individual’s 

23 income tax returns for the taxable year and for 

24 the 9 preceding taxable years. 


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1 (C) TRANSITION RULE FOR SITTING PRESI2 DENTS AND VICE PRESIDENTS.—Not later than 

3 the date that is 30 days after the date of enact4 ment of this section, an individual who is the 

5 President or Vice President on such date of en6 actment shall submit to the Federal Election 

7 Commission a copy of the income tax returns 

8 for the 10 most recent taxable years for which 

9 a return has been filed with the Internal Rev10 enue Service. 

11 (2) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—If any require12 ment under paragraph (1) to submit an income tax 

13 return is not met, the chairman of the Federal Elec14 tion Commission shall submit to the Secretary a 

15 written request that the Secretary provide the Fed16 eral Election Commission with the income tax re17 turn. 

18 (3) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—The chairman of 

19 the Federal Election Commission shall make publicly 

20 available each income tax return submitted under 

21 paragraph (1) in the same manner as a return pro22 vided under section 6103(l)(23) of the Internal Rev23 enue Code of 1986 (as added by this section). 

24 (4) TREATMENT AS A REPORT UNDER THE

25 FEDERAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN ACT OF 1971.—For 


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1 purposes of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

2 1971 (32 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), any income tax re3 turn submitted under paragraph (1) or provided 

4 under section 6103(l)(23) of the Internal Revenue 

5 Code of 1986 (as added by this section) shall, after 

6 redaction under paragraph (3) or subparagraph 

7 (B)(ii) of such section, be treated as a report filed 

8 under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

9 (32 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.). 

10 (c) DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS OF PRESIDENTS AND

11 VICE PRESIDENTS AND CERTAIN CANDIDATES FOR

12 PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6103(l) of the Inter14 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

15 the end the following new paragraph: 

16 ‘‘(23) DISCLOSURE OF RETURN INFORMATION

17 OF PRESIDENTS AND VICE PRESIDENTS AND CER18 TAIN CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESI19 DENT.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon written request 

21 by the chairman of the Federal Election Com22 mission under section 10001(b)(2) of the For 

23 the People Act of 2021, not later than the date 

24 that is 15 days after the date of such request, 

25 the Secretary shall provide copies of any return 


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1 which is so requested to officers and employees 

2 of the Federal Election Commission whose offi3 cial duties include disclosure or redaction of 

4 such return under this paragraph. 

5 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE TO THE PUBLIC.— 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The chairman of 

7 the Federal Election Commission shall 

8 make publicly available any return which is 

9 provided under subparagraph (A). 

10 ‘‘(ii) REDACTION OF CERTAIN INFOR11 MATION.—Before making publicly available 

12 under clause (i) any return, the chairman 

13 of the Federal Election Commission shall 

14 redact such information as the Federal 

15 Election Commission and the Secretary 

16 jointly determine is necessary for pro17 tecting against identity theft, such as so18 cial security numbers.’’. 

19 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

20 6103(p)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

21 amended— 

22 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

23 (A) by striking ‘‘or (22)’’ and inserting ‘‘(22), 

24 or (23)’’; and 


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1 (B) in subparagraph (F)(ii) by striking ‘‘or 

2 (22)’’ and inserting ‘‘(22), or (23)’’. 

3 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

4 by this subsection shall apply to disclosures made on 

5 or after the date of enactment of this Act. 


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Calendar No. 77 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2093 

A BILL 

To expand Americans’ access to the ballot box, reother purposes. purpose of fortifying our democracy, and for implement other anti-corruption measures for the strengthen ethics rules for public servants, and duce the influence of big money in politics, 

JUNE 17, 2021 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 


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