Ifafter a period when all Commissioner positions are vacant, the President
appoints one or more Commissioners to fill a vacancy or vacancies on the
Commission, the new Chair of the Commission may replace the Executive
Director or staff member designee to a board with a Commissioner as the
official designee.

© Membership of the Boards and Committee should continue within the
parameters as defined by HAVA, 42 U.S.C. §15323 & 42 U.S.C. §15343.

Biannually, the Executive Director shall work with the Office of Personnel
Management in consultation with the Commission to do an assessment of the
agency's staffing needs to accomplish HAVA's requirements.

Should there be a change in the law that invalidates one provision of this
document, the rest of the document remains in effect unless or until the
Commission votes on a new document.


Nb hag] 15

Election Assistance Commission
Organizational Management Policy Statement

Purpose: The purpose of this statement is to define the Election Assistance Commission
(“EAC” or “Commission”) organizational management policy with regard to leadership
definition and statutory duties, policymaking and day-to-day operations, an order of
succession in case of vacancy, and a procedure for ongoing operation of the
Commission’s Boards and Technical Committee.

Effect on Other Documents: This document supersedes the Roles and Responsibilities
Statement dated September 15, 2008; the EAC Order of Leadership Succession
Memorandum dated January 3, 2012; the EAC FACA Board Activity Suspension
Memorandum of January 12, 2012, and replaces any existing EAC policy or document
that is inconsistent with its provisions.

Effective Date: February 24, 2015

Summary: Part I defines the Commission and its duties; Part II provides for the division
of duties with regard to policy making and day-to-day operations; Part III establishes an
order of succession in case of vacancy/ies in leadership and/or executive management,
Part IV provides a procedure for ongoing operation of the Commission’s Standards
Board, Board of Advisors and Technical Guidelines Development Committee.

I. The Election Assistance Commission

The U.S. Election Assistance Commission was established as an independent entity by
the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (“HAVA”) 42 U.S.C. § 15321. The Commission

consists of four members appointed by the President, by, and with the advice and
consent of the U.S. Senate. 42 U.S.C. §15323.

The duties of the Commission are to serve as a national clearinghouse and resource for
compiling information on and reviewing procedures with respect to the administration of
Federal elections. 42 U.S.C. §15322. The Commission has no regulatory or rulemaking
authority, nor is it authorized to impose any action or requirement on any State or unit of
local government, except to the extent permitted under the National Voter Registration
Act of 1993 (for the purpose of developing the mail voter registration application form
for elections for Federal office). 42 U.S.C. §1973gg-7(a).

Any action of the Commission authorized by HAVA requires approval of at least three
of its members. 42 U.S.C. §15328. As an agency defined by the Government in the
Sunshine Act, 5 U.S.C. §522(b), deliberations resulting in official agency business must
be properly noticed and conducted in public (with specific exceptions). 5 U.S.C.
§522(b)(a)(2), (€)(1)-(10).

HAVA provides the Commission with a staff, including an Executive Director, General
Counsel and other staff. 42 U.S.C. §15324. The Executive Director is appointed by the
Commissioners, following the procedures established by HAVA, including taking into

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consideration the recommendations of candidates nominated by the Standards Board and
by the Board of Advisors (each established by HAVA, 42 U.S.C. §15341). 42 U.S.C.
§15324. The General Counsel is appointed by the Commission and serves under the
Executive Director. Id. Other Staff may be appointed by the Executive Director as he or
she considers appropriate subject to rules prescribed by the Commission. Id.

IL. Division of authority regarding policymaking and day-to-day operations

1. The Commissioners shall make and take action in areas of policy. Policymaking
is a determination setting an overall agency mission, goals and objectives, or otherwise
setting rules, guidance or guidelines. Policymakers set organizational purpose and
structure, or the ends the agency seeks to achieve. The EAC makes policy through the
formal voting process.

2. The Executive Director in consultation with the Commissioners is expected to:
(1) prepare policy recommendations for commissioner approval, (2) implement policies
once made, and (3) take responsibility for administrative matters. The Executive
Director may carry out these responsibilities by delegating matters to staff.

Ill. Order of succession upon vacancy of all the Commissioners and the
Executive Director

Pursuant to National Security Presidential Directive-51/Homeland Security Presidential
Directive-20 (May 2007), and Department of Homeland Security Federal Continuity
Directive (FCD) 1 (February 2008), an agency “is responsible for establishing,
promulgating, and maintaining orders of succession to key positions .... As a
minimum, orders of succession must do the following: 1. Establish an order of
succession for the position of agency head. There should be a designated official
available to serve as acting head of the agency until that official is appointed by the

President or other appropriate authority, replaced by the permanently appointed official,
or otherwise relieved.” (FCD 1 p. E-1)

Under the present organizational structure, upon a vacancy of all Commissioners and the
Executive Director, the head of the agency shall assume the responsibilities of the
Executive Director and the order of succession shall be as follows:

General Counsel

Chief Operating Officer

Chief Financial Officer

Communications & Clearinghouse Director

Voting Systems Certifications Director

Election Administration Research & Programs Director
Grants Administrator

Nave NS

Should any position in the order of succession be held by an individual in an
“acting” capacity, that position is passed over in favor of the next in line. Once

2


position has been designated head of the agency in the order of succession, the
succession does not revert back up the line when a vacant position (or position
previously held by an individual in an acting capacity is replaced by a permanent
employee in that position) is filled. Filling vacant positions passed over in the line of
succession will only retroactively alter the exercise of the acting Executive Director
responsibilities if done so by a majority vote of a quorum of Commissioners in the
absence of a full time Executive Director.

IV. Procedure for ongoing operation of the Commission’s Boards and-Technical
Committee

HAVA created two advisory boards and a committee (“boards”) that serve to help
inform and comment on various aspects of the EAC’s policy development. 42 U.S.C.
§§15341-15362. These boards were created because Congress recognized the
importance of the Commission receiving feedback from the various stakeholder
groups represented on the boards throughout the policy development and
implementation processes.

The three boards are as follows:

1. Standards Board
2. Board of Advisors
3. Technical Guidelines Development Committee

Should the EAC again find itself in a position where a Commissioner departs the
agency or all Commissioner positions become vacant, it is imperative that the boards
remain constituted and functional. The following procedure shall be used to ensure
the continued operation of the boards:

© The Chair of the Commission shall assign Commissioners to serve as
Designated Federal Officers (“designee”) to each of the boards.

e Prior to the departure of the Commissioner assigned as the EAC designee to
a specific board, that Commissioner may designate another Commissioner to
be the EAC required designee to the board. If there are no Commissioners
remaining, then the departing Commissioner may designate the Executive

Director or an appropriate staff member to serve as the official EAC designee
to the board.

e Should a departing Commissioner assigned to a board fail to assign a
replacement EAC designee to the board then the duties shall be assigned by
the Chair to a remaining Commissioner. If all four Commissioner positions
become vacant, and a designee has not been assigned to a board or boards,
then the Executive Director may assign an appropriate designee to be the
official EAC designee to a board or boards.