U.S. ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION

FISCAL YEAR 2021

 CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET JUSTIFICATION

 February 10, 2020
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

2

 Page Intentionally Left Blank
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Vision and Mission..................................................................................................................................5

FY 2021 Priority Goals..............................................................................................................................5

Appropriations Language........................................................................................................................5

FY 2019 Accomplishment Highlights......................................................................................................6

Agency Background...........................................................................................................................9

Goals and Structure...............................................................................................................................10

Organization Chart................................................................................................................................11

Operating Plan Summary......................................................................................................................12

FY 2021 Budget Request Highlights.....................................................................................................12

Budgetary Changes................................................................................................................................14

Budget Requests and Performance Measures by Goal....................................................................15

Information Technology........................................................................................................................22

Status of Management Challenges......................................................................................................23

Improper Payments...............................................................................................................................23

Mandated Reports to Congress...........................................................................................................23

Attachment A – OIG Budget Request in Detail
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

4

Page Intentionally Left Blank
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

5

VISION AND MISSION

Vision

A trusted, proactive, and responsive federal agency that helps election officials administer and voters 

participate in elections.

Mission 

The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) helps election officials improve the administration of 

elections and helps voters participate in elections.

 

 

FY 2021 Priority Goals

1. Continue to contribute to the cyber-resilience of the American election administration system, 

including by distributing, administering, and auditing Help America Vote Act grants.

2. Implement the newest version of the EAC’s Voluntary Voting System Guidelines and educate 

EAC stakeholders on the contents and impact of the new version.

3. Administer the 2020 Election Administration and Voting Survey, the Election Assistance 

Commission (EAC) instrument used to collect state-by-state data on the administration of 

Federal elections

4. Actively engage with stakeholders and stakeholder groups that represent them.

Appropriations Language

For necessary expenses to carry out the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-252), 

[$15,171,000] $13,063,000, of which $1,500,000 shall be transferred to the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology for election reform administration activities authorized under the Help 

America Vote Act of 2002.

Salaries and Expenses Resources Available for Obligation

FY 2019

Enacted

FY 2020

Enacted 

FY 2021

President’s Budget

FTE Dollars FTE Dollars FTE Dollars

26 $9,200,000 30 $15,171,000 32 $13,063,000
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

6

Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Accomplishment Highlights

The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is a trusted, proactive, and responsive bipartisan federal 

commission that helps election officials administer and voters participate in elections. Established by 

the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), the EAC distributes, administers, and audits HAVA funds, 

serves as the nation’s clearinghouse for information on election administration, conducts the Election 

Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS) and other studies, develops the Voluntary Voting System 

Guidelines (VVSG), accredits testing laboratories and certifies voting systems, and administers the 

National Mail Voter Registration Form in accordance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. 

From coast-to-coast, EAC is providing services for state and local election officials and the voters they 

serve. Among EAC’s most notable accomplishments during Fiscal Year 2019 are the following:

Distributing HAVA Grants 

In 2018, Members of Congress provided $380 million in new HAVA grant funding to the states and 

territories through the EAC. Congress also factored the Commission’s up-front grant administration 

costs into the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018. Within three months of the appropriation, 

the EAC received disbursement requests for 100 percent of the funds from all 55 eligible states and 

territories, and approximately seven months prior to the 2018 Midterm Elections, the EAC made 

these funds available for draw down.

Throughout the disbursement process, approximately 60 percent of states reached out to the EAC for 

assistance with at least one issue related to the new appropriations, including allowable costs, policy 

questions, pre-approval requests, and the state appropriation process. The EAC’s Payments and 

Grants Division also proactively reached out to states to provide guidance. All states received preaward notices, budget and narrative guidance, access to EAC webinars, phone and email 

consultations, and an EAC review of budgets and plans.

As the HAVA grant funds were the first appropriations disbursed since FY 2010, many of the statelevel contacts were unfamiliar with the process and met a knowledge gap that the EAC’s Grants team 

ably addressed. States were provided the opportunity to seek clarification, ensuring their plans 

contained only expenses allowable under Title 1 Section 101 of HAVA. The EAC’s Grants team also 

responded to inquiries and reviewed proposals.

In April 2019, the EAC released its first expenditure report detailing the impact of the 2018 HAVA 

funds. State plans and expenditure report indicates that most states are spending these funds on 

items that directly improve election security. In fact, at least 90 percent of the funds have been 

devoted to technological and cybersecurity improvements, the purchase of new voting equipment, 

and improvements to voter registration systems. States have until March 2023 to spend the funds. 

The EAC’s grants office continues to work closely with states regarding these funds and have ongoing 

administrative responsibilities related to the funds through the conclusion of the five-year spending 

timeline.

Strengthening Election Security and Voter Confidence

The EAC understands that voter confidence can be enhanced when election officials and their federal 

partners adequately prepare for and respond to election security challenges. As demonstrated in the 

2016 elections, such challenges include election misinformation campaigns and malicious attempts to 
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

7

breach voter registration databases and other election systems, the use of ransomware, and other 

emerging and evolving threats to election infrastructure.

As the agency positioned to communicate directly with election officials across the country, the EAC 

played an early and leading role in establishing trust and open lines of communications between state 

and local leaders and the federal government entities that work on election security. The EAC drove 

the development of the election security working group that eventually became the election 

infrastructure subsector’s Government Coordinating Council (GCC). Led by the EAC chair on the GCC 

executive committee, GCC members include the EAC chairperson and vice chair, as well as three state 

election officials and three local election officials drawn from the EAC’s three federal advisory 

committees. The EAC’s remaining two commissioners serve on the GCC as ex officio members. In 

addition to the EAC’s work with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish the GCC, the

Commission supported establishing the Sector Coordinating Council (SCC) comprised of private

election equipment manufacturers and vendors.

Beyond the GCC and SCC, the Commission takes a multifaceted approach to helping state and local 

election officials strengthen election security. This work includes testing and Federally certifying 

voting systems, providing hands-on training and technical assistance on IT management and postelection audits, producing security-focused resources, disseminating security best practice 

information and checklists to state and local election officials, as well as hosting widely attended 

forums that feature security experts as speakers.

Election Technology, Advancing VVSG 2.0

As states seek to invest in the purchase of new voting equipment, election leaders are continuing to 

turn to the EAC’s Testing and Certification Program as a key resource in ensuring the nation’s voting 

systems are tested to confirm the secure and accurate tabulation of ballots. This includes seeking 

information about how best to develop Requests for Proposals, information on the systems currently 

certified, and implementation of the next iteration of the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines, which 

will be known as VVSG 2.0.

The EAC took a number of steps in FY 2019 to advance VVSG 2.0, a process that began in earnest

following the reestablishment of a quorum of EAC commissioners in December 2014 and the 

adoption of VVSG 1.1 in March 2015. These steps included: soliciting public comments on the

proposed VVSG 2.0 Principles and Guidelines from February to June 2019; hosting three public 

hearings on the record on the proposed Principles and Guidelines in Tennessee, Utah, and 

Maryland; facilitating the ongoing development of the VVSG 2.0 Technical Requirements by the 

Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC), supported by the National Institute of 

Standards (NIST), at the five meetings of the TGDC, including four conference calls and the 

committee’s annual meeting; and facilitating discussion on VVSG 2.0 Technical Requirements among 

the EAC Standards Board and Board of Advisors at their annual meetings. These and subsequent 

efforts in early FY 2020 led to a vote of the TGDC in February 2020 to recommend VVSG 2.0 

Technical Requirements for adoption.

Conducting Essential Research on Election Administration and Infrastructure

On June 27, 2019, the EAC released the 2018 Election Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS)

Comprehensive Report and dataset. The biennial EAVS is the agency’s flagship research initiative, 
U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

8

collecting nationwide data on election administration from nearly 6,500 local election jurisdictions 

across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. The EAVS collects state-by-state, 

jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction data on a wide variety of election administration topics, including voter 

registration, military and overseas voting, domestic civilian by-mail voting, polling operations, 

provisional ballots, voter participation, and election technology. EAVS data is utilized by countless 

stakeholders in the elections community, including Members of Congress, legislative staff, federal 

officials, journalists, academics, advocates, and election officials themselves. In today’s environment 

of heightened concerns regarding cybersecurity in elections, EAVS data is increasingly being used by 

intelligence analysts, members of the national security community, and other stakeholders who are 

working to secure U.S. election infrastructure. 

The EAC hosted an Election Data Summit on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., coinciding with the 

release of the 2018 EAVS report and its submission to Congress. The all-day event convened state and 

local election officials, their federal partners, and other key election stakeholders to discuss EAVS 

findings and leveraging data-driven practices to improve election administration. 

EAC initiatives to improve the EAVS have focused on three interrelated goals: to reduce response 

burden; to strengthen data quality and completeness; and to make the data more accessible and 

useful, particularly for election officials. For the first time in the history of the survey, respondents to 

the 2018 EAVS had the option of completing the EAVS online, along with the traditional EAVS data 

collection template. The EAC plans to transition to a fully online survey experience in the coming 

years. 

As part of the agency’s efforts to make EAVS data more accessible and useful, the EAC released 

individualized 2018 EAVS Data Briefs for each state and territory in September 2019. The briefs are 

one-page snapshots of key EAVS data points. Complementing these efforts, in December 2019 the 

EAC released the 2018 EAVS Data Interactive. The EAVS Data Interactive is an online tool that allows 

visitors to explore, visualize, and compare election jurisdictions’ EAVS responses.

Election Accessibility 

Language Accessibility

The EAC continues to support language accessibility in elections and has done so since its inception in 

2002. This includes creating glossaries and phrase books of common election terminology, providing 

Help America Vote Act funds to states to improve language accessibility, offering the National Mail 

Voter Registration Form in multiple languages. 

In FY 2019, the EAC released five new translations of the National Mail Voter Registration Form, 

reflecting the five most populous language communities in the U.S., among those with limited English 

proficiency and for whom the form was not previously translated. In addition to English, the form is 

now available in 14 languages: Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Hindi, Japanese, 

Korean, Khmer, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese. 

In addition, the EAC released an issue brief on language accessibility ahead of the next round of Voting 

Rights Act (VRA) Section 203 determinations expected in 2021, which mandate election offices to 

provide language assistance, the brief aims to help election officials and other election stakeholders 

understand the VRA’s language assistance requirements and better serve voters with language needs. 
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

9

Accessibility for Voters with Disabilities

As it works to fulfill HAVA’s promise to provide each voter with the opportunity to cast their ballot 

privately and independently, the EAC continues to actively engage voters with disabilities and advocacy 

groups focused on accessibility. This included sharing thousands of copies of the EAC’s disability voting 

rights pamphlet, which uses plain language to spell out federal voting rights for persons with disabilities 

in large print and Braille. EAC commissioners and staff also participated at key stakeholder events 

focused on voting for persons with disabilities, including a May 2019 convening of the National 

Federation of the Blind on ballot marking systems and the July 2019 National Council on Independent 

Living (NCIL) Conference.

Enhanced Website

In anticipation of the 2020 Presidential Election, the EAC updated its website to provide users with 

an enhanced experience. The new homepage approach allows visitors to self-select their 

perspective and area of interests to enrich their online experience and more readily access the 

EAC’s large online clearinghouse.

Clearinghouse Awards 

In February 2019, the EAC announced the winners of our 2018 Clearinghouse Awards for Best 

Practices in Election Administration. The awards, also known as the Clearies, provide election offices 

across America an opportunity to share their innovative efforts and election administration 

successes. The Clearies play an important role in furthering the EAC’s responsibilities under the Help 

America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) to serve as aclearinghouse for election administration

information.

The entries offer great insight and exemplify the can-do spirit of election officials. Following a very 

competitive vote, the EAC announced 10 award recipients. Clearie recipients were from a wide 

range of jurisdictions, from a city of 3,500 to a state with more than three million registered voters. 

The EAC shares Clearie recipients’ results so that other jurisdictions might replicate or build upon 

their efforts.

The winners in the outstanding innovations category addressed important election administration 

issues, such as cybersecurity training for local officials, overall efforts to effectively operate election 

offices, programs to extend accessible absentee ballots to underrepresented populations and ways to 

harness off-the-shelf technology in supporting Election Day operations. In the accessibility for voters 

with disabilities category, Clearie awardees showcased their efforts to train poll workers to better 

serve the needs of voters with disabilities, exhibited a coordinated effort for helping veterans and 

individuals with disabilities, and demonstrated video outreach to assist people who are hearing 

impaired.

Agency Background

Congress established the U.S. Election Assistance Commission with the passage of the Help America 

Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). The Commission was created to help election officials and administrators 

improve elections around the country. Statutorily, the EAC is headed by four bipartisan Commissioners 

appointed by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. There are currently four Commissioners, 

constituting a quorum. 
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

10

HAVA also created the Board of Advisors, the Standards Board, and the TGDC to advise the EAC. The 

three federal advisory committees advise the agency and help it achieve its mission, including but not 

limited to the process of developing the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines. 

HAVA dictates the membership of the three advisory committees. The Standards Board is a 110-

member board consisting of 55 state election officials (the 50 states, the District of Columbia, American 

Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands) selected by their respective chief state election 

official, and 55 local election officials selected through a process supervised by the chief state election 

officials. 

The Board of Advisors is comprised of representatives from groups representing governors; mayors; 

state legislatures; secretaries of state; state election directors; local election officials; voter advocacy 

groups; federal agencies; and professionals in the fields of science and technology. 

TGDC helps EAC develop its Voluntary Voting System Guidelines. It is composed of 14 members 

appointed jointly by EAC and the Director of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of 

Standards and Technology (NIST), who is the chairperson of TGDC.

Goals and Structure:

EAC’s offices are aligned to address the mandates of the Help America Vote Act to: serve as a 

clearinghouse of information on election administration; distribute and administer HAVA funds;

develop the voluntary voting system guidelines; test and certify voting systems; accredit voting system 

test laboratories,; administer and maintain the National Mail Voter Registration Form; and report to 

Congress on National Voter Registration Act and Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act 

voting activity.

The EAC’s FY18-22 strategic plan sets forth four strategic goals and thirteen strategic objectives. The 

four strategic goals are as follows:

1) Expand the nation’s comprehensive understanding of election administration;

2) Proactively and responsively create products that help election officials improve the 

administration of elections and help voters more easily participate in elections;

3) Help election officials improve the administration of American elections through the 

distribution of EAC assistance and products; and

4) Ensure continued effective operation of the EAC in order to achieve its goals while acting as 

good stewards of public funds.

The EAC uses a cost allocation model that distributes administrative costs to program goals, and this 

model is used to present the FY2021 agency budget request. The Commission’s financial models are

reviewed by EAC’s independent financial statement auditors.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

11

Organization Chart
U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

12

Operating Plan Summary

Salaries and Expenses FY 19 Enacted

FY 2020

Enacted Budget 

FY 21

President’s 

Budget Request

Full-Time Equivalent Staff (FTE) 26 30 32

Full-Time Staff 24 30 32

Other than Full-Time Staff 2 - -

Payroll Full-time Personnel 2,961,135 3,540,457 3,883,168

Payroll Other than Full-time Personnel 150,225

Subtotal Personnel Compensation 3,111,360 3,540,457 3,883,168

Personnel Benefits 1,081,840 1,108,649 1,295,751

Subtotal PC&B 4,193,201 4,649,106 5,178,919

Travel 425,440 960,430 853,673

Rent, Communications, Equipment Rentals 397,841 444,590 397,658

Printing, Reproduction 15,000 35,100 33,750

Other Services 2,612,580 4,448,894 4,503,466

NIST 1,250,000 1,500,000 1,500,000 

Supplies and Subscriptions 169,616 244,429 181,508

Equipment 136,322 485,980 410,250

Financial Transfers (OIG) 2,471 3,776

Agency’s Relocation Expenses - 2,400,000 -

Subtotal, Non-personnel 5,006,799 10,521,894 7,884,081

Total Salaries and Expenses $9,200,000 $ 15,171,000 $ 13,063,000

Note: FY 2021 assumes Cost of Living Adjustment of 1%

FY 2021 Budget Request Highlights

In early FY 2021, election officials will administer the 2020 general elections. In addition to preparing 

for potentially unprecedented turnout levels, election officials are also charged with defending their 

systems against pervasive and adaptive cybersecurity threats from foreign adversaries and other 

malicious actors. As election officials and their federal partners work to navigate this new environment

and protect election infrastructure against these threats during the 2020 general elections, the EAC’s 

mission of supporting election officials and voters has never been more important.

The EAC’s FY 2021 budget justification highlights its plans to continue to oversee and audit HAVA funds,

develop and share best practices, test and certify voting systems, and research and report election 

administration data, as well help voters participate and have confidence in our nation’s elections.

Highlights of the EAC’s plans include: [a) start with FY18 and FY20 grants a) expand training and 

technical assistance on election technology and cybersecurity; b) continue implementation of an 

updated testing and certification program under the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines 2.0 (currently 

expected to be adopted by the Commission as early as late FY 2020); c) gathering and distributing
U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

13

election administration best practices, including but not limited to, poll-worker recruitment and 

management, serving voters with disabilities, meeting the needs of voters with limited English 

proficiency, and protecting election infrastructure from cybersecurity threats; and e) administering the 

2020 EAVS and additional research on election administration practices.

Strengthening Election Infrastructure: Helping State and Local Election Officials Leverage Federal 

Resources and Best Practices

Since the designation of election infrastructure as critical infrastructure in January 2017, both the EAC 

and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have collaborated to share information and assist election 

officials to protect against evolving cybersecurity threats. Election officials are operators of complex IT 

systems that face modern, persistent, and adaptive threats from malicious actors. The role of the IT 

manager is not new to election officials, but the sophistication and volume of the threats they face are 

growing. As the only federal agency focused on the whole of election administration, the EAC is 

committed to providing more resources to state and local election officials to help them strengthen 

their cybersecurity practices and securely manage their election technology assets. 

As the nation’s clearinghouse for election administration information, the distributor of federal grants 

for the improvement of elections infrastructure, and the co-chair of the Government Coordinating 

Council Executive Committee, the EAC is uniquely positioned to play a guiding role in supporting state 

and local election officials, voters, and federal partners that assist with aspects of election 

administration, including DHS, the Department of Defense, the U.S. Postal Service, the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and others. This work is identified in the EAC’s FY18 

strategic plan in Objectives 3.1, 3.2, and 4.1.

As many election officials across the country work to replace aging voting machines, they regularly look 

to the EAC’s Testing & Certification Program for guidance and the most current standard for voting 

machine functionality, security, and accessibility. This standard, the EAC’s Voluntary Voting System 

Guidelines, and the EAC’s accompanying Testing and Certification Program provide the only national 

standard for voting system standard setting, testing, and certification. This standard is an essential 

contributing factor when it comes to the security of our nation’s elections, and the EAC is proud to 

continue this work in the lead up to and after the 2020 general elections. Election systems at all stages 

must be secured to safeguard the nation’s democratic process. The EAC plans to help election officials 

prepare, defend, and analyze these systems under its HAVA charge.

Administering Federal Grants for the Improvement of Election Administration

A core component of the EAC’s mission has long been distributing, assisting with the use of, and 

auditing of federal grant funds. In March 2018, Congress appropriated $380 million of new federal 

funds and charged the EAC with distributing these new funds under Section 101 of the Help America 

Vote Act. In December 2019, Congress appropriated an additional $425 million for these purposes. As 

states continue to use their 2018 funds and begin to spend their 2020 funds, the EAC’s mission and 

congressional mandate is monitor the use of these funds. The EAC is charged with helping states best 

use these funds through its role as the nation’s clearinghouse of election administration information 

and practices, as well as auditing their use. This work will help to ensure that the funds are being used 

both as intended by Congress and in a manner that improves election administration. The EAC expects 

this work to continue into and past FY 2021, and the Budget includes additional resources dedicated to 

grant management and oversight.
U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

14

Studying Election Administration: The Election Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS) and Other 

Research

Federal law mandates that the EAC collect, study, and distribute information on particular aspects of 

election administration and voting. The EAVS is the most comprehensive survey of election

administration practices in the country. State and local jurisdictions, federal entities, and academia rely 

on EAVS data and information. The EAC administers the EAVS every two years, but preparation for 

survey administration and evaluation of the results and methods is a continuous task. The EAC will 

distribute the 2020 EAVS in FY 2021. As the EAC continues to administer EAVS, the agency is seeking to 

make it easier for states and localities to respond to its questions and enhance the usefulness of this 

powerful resource. These objectives are further detailed in Objectives 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, and 3.2 of 

the EAC’s current strategic plan, and the EAC looks forward to working to ensure that it is a high 

quality, accurate, and useful resource for the nation.

In all, the EAC will help election officials administer secure and accessible elections and help voters 

participate in these elections by studying and promoting the effective administration of federal 

elections.

Agency’s Relocation Plans

In December 2019, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriation Act of 2020, which included $2.4 

million for the EAC to relocate its offices. The relocation expenses are available until September 30, 

2021. The relocation will help the agency better fulfill its congressionally mandated mission and

facilitate the EAC’s ability to work with other federal agencies to achieve inter-agency goals such as 

securing the nation’s election infrastructure. The EAC is currently working with GSA to find and secure 

a new office location. GSA will provide a timeline for moving into the new location when the EAC

secures the new space. 

Budgetary Changes FY 2020 Request to FY 2021 President’s Budget Request

(in whole dollars)

Personnel Compensation and Benefits.................................................................................+$529,813

Reflects an increase of full year staff from FY 2020 for mission-critical activities, as 

well as cost-of-living and benefits increases

Travel.........................................................................................................................................-$106,757

Recalibration of outreach efforts following the 2020 election

Other Services............................................................................................................................+$54,572

 Increase of contracts -- services to assist executing mission-critical activities, such as audits

Miscellaneous............................................................................................................................-$185,628

Telecommunications and equipment rentals (-$46,932), Printing (-$1,350), Supplies and 

subscriptions (-$62,921), Equipment (-$75,730), Financial transfers (+$1,305)

 Relocation Expenses..................................................................................................................-$2,400,000 

Budget Requests and Performance Measures by Strategic Plan Goal

EAC’s request is presented in terms of four goals: 1. Analyze, 2. Build, 3. Distribute, and 4. Operate: 
U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

15

ANALYZE

Strategic Goal 1: Expand the nation’s comprehensive understanding of American election 

administration. 

Goal 1 is led by the EAC Research and Clearinghouse Division, with input from the Communications and 

Public Affairs Division, and Testing and Certification Division. Objectives and success indicators for the 

goal are as follows: 

OBJECTIVES 

Objectives of the goal include expanding EAC’s in-depth understanding of the administration of 

American elections; helping others contribute to our nation’s understanding of American election 

administration; and leveraging EAC’s research to inform agency decision-making. 

SUCCESS INDICATORS 

The anticipated success indicators of the goal are analysis of Election Administration and Voting Survey 

(EAVS) data that produces insights into U.S. Election Administration; successful creation of tools to 

make both responding to EAVS and analyzing EAVS data easier; increases in the number of entities 

providing information, research, and data related to U.S. election administration; and the ability to 

better design EAC assistance products to better design EAC assistance to its stakeholders. 

The Election Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS) 

The EAC conducts congressionally mandated research on enumerated election administration topics biannually. The Commission conducts this research through its administration of the EAC’s Election 

Administration and Voting Survey (EAVS). Through the EAVS, the EAC surveys the 50 States, the District 

of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin 

Islands. EAVS is the only comprehensive collection and report of data on election administration and 

voting systems of its kind. The survey, performed in conjunction with the Department of Defense‘s 

Federal Voting Assistance Program, collects over one million data points of information about voter 

registration, number of ballots cast, military and overseas voting, absentee ballots, polling places, poll 

workers, and provisional ballots from state election officials. Election officials, academics, and others 

use this survey data to improve their methods, metrics, and tactics in serving voters and maintaining 

voter registration lists. The information helps inform decision making throughout the country to better 

election administration and enhance the voting experience for all voters, including military and 

overseas voters. 

The data points collected in EAVS provides a unique perspective in election administration that can 

drive program decision making within the agency. Collection of much of the data is congressionally 

mandated, and the EAC also uses the survey to help inform Congress on the impact of the National 

Voter Registration Act (NVRA), and on the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act 

(UOCAVA). The agency looks forward to using data to enhance program areas that can produce more 

resources for election officials and voters. 
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

16

EAC Elections Clearinghouse

Congress charged the EAC with building and maintaining a national clearinghouse of election 

administration information and best practices. Maintaining this clearinghouse requires the EAC to 

regularly research current election administration practices and needs as well as collect best practices 

from across the country. Congress mandates that the EAC study a number of particular election 

administration topics, and the EAC must study others to effectively carry its charge as the national 

clearinghouse. More information about the congressionally mandated topics is covered the following 

section titled, The Election Administration & Voting Survey (EAVS). The additional topics that the EAC 

chooses to study are selected based on current and expected future needs of election officials and 

voters. 

The clearinghouse is hosted on the EAC’s website, https://www.eac.gov, and it contains best practices, 

research, instructional videos, and white papers on a wide variety of topics such as voter registration, 

voter registration list management, poll worker recruiting and management, staff training, voting 

system information, election system procurement help, new topics such as risk limiting audits and 

critical infrastructure, and cyber security. These resources are essential to the nation as its election 

officials face the new and ever-evolving cyber-security threats. Election officials regularly look to the 

EAC as a starting place when understanding new issues and the EAC is dedicated to ensuring that when 

election officials look for help defending their cyber systems, they are provided with what they need.

In FY 2021, the EAC will continue to host its previously researched information and best practices on its 

public facing website, and it will continue to meet its congressional mandate by researching further 

topics. 

The FY 2021 Request

For FY 2021, the EAC requests funds to meet its congressional mandate to research and study election 

administration. The EAC also requests funds to meet its congressional mandates to conduct research 

that will allow the agency to serve as the national clearinghouse of election administration information 

by doing the following: 

 Produce and publish best practice resources such as videos, educational tools, issue briefs, and 

white papers on topics including developing and maintaining complex online registration 

databases, set up and use of accessible voting equipment, registering to vote, training and 

managing poll workers, and cybersecurity; 

 Provide regular staff-level contact with election officials to collect and share information; and

 Conducting public forums, webinars, and hearings to gather information about potential best 

practices and information pertinent to election administration by bringing together election 

officials, technology innovators, individuals with disabilities, accessibility equipment and voting 

system manufacturers, academia, computer programmers and security experts, voting system 

standards developers, website developers and designers, and other election stakeholders.

Build

Strategic Goal 2: Proactively and responsively create products that assist election officials to 

improve election administration and help voters more easily participate in elections.
U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

17

Goal 2 is led by the EAC’s Research and Clearinghouse Division and Testing and Certification Division, 

with input from the Communications and Public Affairs Division, and the Payments and Grants Division. 

Objectives and success indicators for the goal are as follows:

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the goal are to continually create resources that help election officials improve the 

administration of elections, help voters participate in election, and to responsively and predictably 

create resources that respond to newly arising needs of election officials.

SUCCESS INDICATORS

The anticipated success indicators of the goal are designed assistance products created to fulfill a 

specific need of EAC stakeholders; feedback from EAC stakeholders indicating ease of use and 

implementation of EAC assistance; and rates of use for products by the stakeholder group that the 

product was intended to serve.

Testing & Certification of Voting Systems 

Under HAVA, the EAC is responsible for assisting states with improvements of voting systems through 

the distribution of federal funds, by creating Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG), and by 

administering a voluntary voting system testing and certification program. The EAC works with its 110-

member Standards Board, 37-member Board of Advisors, and 15-member Technical Guidelines 

Development Committee (TGDC) to update and implement the VVSG.

The testing and certification program works with EAC-accredited voting system test labs to test vendorsubmitted voting systems against the VVSG, and certifies voting systems that successfully pass these 

tests. States’ use of the VVSG and the EAC’s accompanying testing and certification program are 

voluntary, but most states choose to use the VVSG or EAC certification documentation in whole or in 

part. The VVSG helps states and localities, which are charged with selecting their own voting systems, 

select high-quality, secure, and accessible voting systems with confidence.

In FY 2021, following expected adoption by the Commission as early as late FY 2020, the EAC plans to 

implement VVSG 2.0, which will be the most up-to-date national standard for voting systems. To 

support implementation, the EAC plans to reach out and work with states and localities, which select 

the standard that their voting systems must meet, and private sector vendors, which build and sell the 

voting systems that the states and localities use to administer their elections. Through its outreach, the 

EAC will help states understand the contents of VVSG 2.0 and its value as a potential standard for their 

use, and the EAC will help vendors understand how newly developed voting systems must perform to 

be certified to VVSG 2.0. In a time of unprecedented threats against the nation’s voting systems, VVSG 

2.0 will be a powerful national asset in ensuring the integrity of the nation’s elections.

The EAC also must ensure that the testing of voting systems is conducted in high-quality environments. 

To ensure this, the EAC works with NIST’s National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program 

(NVLAP) to inspect, monitor, and accredit testing laboratories for testing of voting systems. The EAC 

and NVLAP use the international quality standard ISO 17025 to review each voting system test lab’s 

technical, physical and personnel resources, as well as its testing, management, and quality assurance 

policies and protocols. EAC monitors VSTLs through a comprehensive compliance management 

program and on-site reviews to ensure that VSTLs meet all program requirements.
U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

18

The EAC’s Quality Monitoring Program ensures that EAC-certified voting systems continue to meet the 

VVSG as the voting systems are manufactured, delivered, and used in federal elections. The EAC

accomplishes this by conducting manufacturing site reviews, fielded voting system reviews, and by 

gathering information on voting system anomalies from election officials. 

Election Administration Educational Resources 

As the nation’s clearinghouse of election administration information, the EAC must provide resources 

on newly developed and currently pressing election administration issues. State and local election 

officials, Congress, other federal agencies, and voters regularly leverage these EAC resources. Recent 

EAC-produced resources have focused on election security, Critical Infrastructure, post-election 

auditing, including risk limiting audits, and language access. EAC stakeholders regularly use these 

resources to improve the administration of their elections, educate voters, and support voter 

confidence in the nation’s elections. 

The EAC has produced white papers, educational videos, presentations, and online-hosted as well as inperson delivered trainings and technical assistance. For FY 2021, the EAC plans to continue to produce 

more of these resources and the agency plans to continue building these resources in formats that help 

facilitate their use. 

Election Administration Best Practices 

The EAC is also charged with regularly collecting best practices in ongoing election administration 

practices as part of its clearinghouse mandate. As the only federal agency that focuses on the whole of 

elections, the EAC’s work in this area serves as a powerful central hub and single “go-to” location for 

election officials and voters as they work to improve the administration of and participate in their 

elections. In FY 2021, the EAC continues to add best practices resources that focus on cybersecurity to 

provide election officials with essential guidance on how to defend their election against cyber threats. 

The EAC collects these best practices through hearings, in-person and virtual meetings, leveraging its 

advisory boards’ extensive knowledge and experience, commissioner led hearings, and an innovative 

annual contest. Through each of these means, the EAC learns from the diversity of approaches taken by 

the nation’s thousands of election jurisdictions and helps the rest of the nation learn from their peers. 

These election administration best practice areas regularly include: 

 Poll worker recruitment, management, and training;

 Voter registration list management;

 Polling place management;

 Procurement of voting and voter registration systems;

 Data collection and management;

 Accessibility for voters with disabilities; and

 Access for voters with limited English proficiency.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

19

Annual Non-Expenditure Transfer to NIST

In 2021, EAC includes a request for the annual non-expenditure transfer to NIST at $1,500,000 for 

activities required under HAVA Sections 221 Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC), 231 

Certification and Testing of Voting Systems, and 245 Study and Report on Electronic Voting and the 

Electoral Process.

The EAC will work with NIST to set priorities for FY 2021. The focus in FY 2020 will be finalization of 

VVSG 2.0, and the development of test requirements and scripts that apply to VVSG 2.0. NIST will 

provide assistance with reviewing VVSG 2.0 comments received from the public and the EAC’s 

Standards Board and Board of Advisors. The EAC-NIST Public Working Group on Testing will provide 

guidance on how the VVSG 2.0 will be tested.

The FY 2021 Request

For FY 2021, the EAC request funds to meet its congressional mandates to create, manage, and 

administer a voluntary voting system standard and accompanying testing and certification program as 

well as provide resources that help election officials and voters administer and participate in elections.

DISTRIBUTE

Strategic Goal 3: Improve the administration of U.S. elections through the distribution of EAC 

assistance and products. 

Goal 3 is led by the Communications and Public Affairs Division with input from the Payments and 

Grants, Testing and Certification, and Clearinghouse and Research Divisions. Objectives and success 

indicators for the goal are as follows:

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the goal are to effectively, efficiently, and economically distribute federal resources 

to EAC stakeholders; serve as an expert on the administration of American elections in order to 

publically share the distribution of EAC assistance; regularly distribute EAC products on timelines that 

align with stakeholder needs; and distribute EAC assistance through methods designed to facilitate 

stakeholder use. 

SUCCESS INDICATORS

The anticipated success indicators for the goal are usage of EAC assistance, which is identifiable 

through feedback from EAC stakeholders; ability to design and distribute EAC products, which is

identifiable through feedback from EAC staff and self-surveying metrics; ability to provide front-end 

guidance regarding the design of EAC products in Strategic Goal 2 programs, which is identifiable 

through feedback and self-surveying metrics; and increased rates of reception of EAC products through 

designed distribution mediums.

Auditing and Providing Technical Assistance Related to Congressionally Appropriated Funds for the 

Improvement of Election Administration
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

20

Congress appropriated $380 million in 2018 and $425 million in 2020 for the improvement of election 

administration, and charged the EAC with the distribution of these funds to 55 states and territories, 

auditing the use of the funds, and providing technical assistance to the states and territories as they 

receive and use these funds to improve the administration of their elections. For the FY 2018 round of 

grants, the EAC established protocols for receiving these funds, educated the nation on these 

protocols, received requests for 100 percent of the funds, and disbursed them to eligible states. For the 

FY2020 round of grants, EAC anticipates receiving requests for the grants and disbursing the funds to 

the states by late March 2020. However, the EAC’s work related to these funds is just beginning. 

Once funds are distributed to the states, the EAC is mandated to audit and provide technical assistance. 

The EAC’s Inspector General audits the states’ use of the funds, and EAC staff members provide 

technical assistance to the states as they implement their plans to use the federal funds. Currently, the 

EAC, as well as the EAC’s Inspector General, is providing these services to the nation. This work will

continue into and through FY 2021.

In addition to the newly appropriated funds, the EAC is responsible for distributing, providing technical 

assistance related to, and auditing other federal funds, including previously congressionally 

appropriated federal funds. Prior to the new appropriation of funds in 2018 and 2020, the EAC had 

already distributed more than $3 billion in federal funds since its inception in 2002. These funds have 

been used to improve the nation’s voting systems, voter registration systems, and election 

administration practices. The EAC’s work to audit the use of and provide technical assistance related to 

these funds continues today, and the agency will continue to fulfill its congressional mandate related to 

these funds in FY 2021.

The Distribution of EAC Clearinghouse Resources for the Improvement of Election Administration

The EAC is the federal government’s clearinghouse of election administration information. In the 

agency’s work under Strategic Goals 1 and 2, the EAC researches election administration practices, 

information, and data and then builds clearinghouse resources that help states and election officials 

with this research. In this section of the agency’s efforts under Strategic Goal 3, the EAC brings these 

resources to the stakeholders the agency is charged with assisting: election officials and states. The EAC 

does this in person, through its website, through the media upon request, and through other digital 

mediums such as email distribution. 

The nation’s thousands of semi-autonomous elections jurisdictions have different needs and consume 

information in various ways. The EAC currently plans to continue reaching out to its stakeholders in FY 

2021 in person by attending state, regional, and national conferences in order to communicate with 

election officials that would not be reached otherwise. These in-person conferences are one of the 

most impactful continuing learning opportunities for local election officials, where the EAC shares how 

its resources can help election officials and voters, and distributes the resources in-person. These 

resources are often issue briefs, white papers, and videos. One particularly well received resource the 

EAC developed and distributed in FY 2018 was a video detailing how elections are secured. This video 

was created for election officials to use to educate their offices and voters in order to increase the 

nation’s confidence in the existing security measures that protect the nation’s elections. The EAC also 

brings its “Election Officials as IT Managers” in-person trainings to states and localities. The EAC 

Commissioners often take the lead on this in-person outreach effort, and EAC staff members also 

regularly contribute to this effort as well.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

21

The EAC’s website is a popular resource for voters and election officials as they seek help in either 

participating in or improving elections. On the EAC’s website, the agency hosts downloadable copies of 

all of its current and legacy resources. The most popular set of resources on the EAC’s website is the 

agency’s resources for voters, particularly voter registration. Every day, voters and potential voters 

come to the EAC’s website to learn how to register to vote. The EAC’s website provides an easy-to-use 

information that helps voters navigate to resources for their state. This request includes funds for 

continued maintenance of the EAC’s website and other similar digital outreach platforms.

The FY 2021 Request 

For FY 2021, the EAC requests funding to continue to distribute EAC’s clearinghouse resources, 

congressionally appropriated funds, provide technical assistance to the recipients of federal funds and 

audit the use of federal funds. This request includes funds for staff, travel to states for resource 

distribution and audit purposes, and a financial management support contract that includes pre- and 

post-audit technical assistance for the states.

OPERATE 

Strategic Goal 4: Ensure continued effective operation of EAC in order to achieve its goals 

while acting as good stewards of public funds.

Goal 4 is administered by the Executive Director with contributions from all EAC divisions. Objectives 

and success indicators for the goal are as follows:

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the goal are to contribute positively and effectively to the broader federal community 

through active contribution and compliance; continue to build a skilled, diverse, and effective 

workforce that ensures the EAC has the human capital needed to achieve its mission; develop and 

continue to manage internal structures, tools that produce a culture of innovation and a driven 

workforce where thought leaders thrive; and institutionalize an increased level of strategic and crossagency thinking.

SUCCESS INDICATORS

The anticipated success indicators of the goal are the existence of inter-agency programs that provide 

unique value or generate efficiencies; continuing compliance with federal regulations and mandates; 

and internal strategic planning capacity development at the division and programmatic levels.

Performance Management 

In accordance with Cap Goal 3 of the President’s Management Agenda, the EAC will actively manage its

professional staff to produce a strategic workforce. In May 2019, the Office of Personnel Management 

(OPM) completed its assessment of the agency’s workforce and structure, which provided 

recommendations to help ensure the agency is operating efficiently. The agency’s strategic plan serves 

as guidance for the implementation of these recommendations. As the EAC looks to FY 2021, it plans to 

advance its efforts on this front by continuing its workforce planning and development efforts, 

engaging in a comprehensive process to create an agency competency map, continuing its programs 

and initiatives that promote and require cross-divisional thinking within the agency, and working to 

ensure the agency’s compliance with all federal requirements. Through the Commission’s workforce 
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

22

planning and development efforts, the EAC will continue to evaluate its approaches to recruiting and 

retaining employees to best meet the mission of the EAC.

Contributing Positively and Effectively to the Federal Government through Cross-Agency Initiatives 

The EAC actively contributes to many of DHS’s national security efforts to secure the nation’s elections 

against foreign actors. In 2017, the EAC played a critical role in helping DHS to stand up its operational 

infrastructure for protecting elections infrastructure, and since then the EAC has been a leading 

member of the Government Coordinating Council (GCC) and its executive committee. These groups are 

DHS committees, but the EAC serves on them as a subject matter expert to help ensure that the 

country is getting the best resources it can to defend its elections. 

This cooperative national security effort extends past the EAC’s efforts with DHS. The EAC also works 

with the FBI, ODNI, NIST, and representatives from the Department of Defense. Often other agencies 

reach out to the EAC for elections expertise to inform their decision making and resource development.

National security is not the only area where the EAC works alongside other agencies. For example, the 

EAC works with the U.S. Postal Service to help serve voters who vote and receive information by mail;

with NIST to develop the EAC’s Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG); and with the Department 

of Defense to better serve military and overseas voters. As more agencies look to help provide resource 

for election administration, the EAC looks forward to acting as a key team player to inform the broader 

federal government’s decision-making in this crucial area.

The FY 2021 Request 

For FY 2021, the EAC request funds to work alongside other federal agencies to collectively secure the 

nation’s elections, serve voters domestically as well as abroad, serve military voters, strategically 

develop and manage its staff, and comply with congress’s mandatory reporting requirements.

Information Technology (IT) Infrastructure

The EAC Office of Information Technology continues to explore new innovations to update and improve 

network services for security, availability, efficiency and productivity. The EAC now operates its own 

infrastructure, after recently transitioning off GSA. The IT staff of four maintains personal computers, 

smart phones, and servers; provides software requested by EAC staff, remote access services, and an 

interactive voice response telephone system; and performs vulnerability scans and remediates and 

updates security patches so that staff are equipped to perform work both on- and off-site in a secure 

environment.

EAC’s cybersecurity management needs are covered by industry expert service providers that includes 

managing a firewall, external intrusion detection. Verizon Federal provides the T1 lines, routers, 

switches at approximately $100,000 for FY 2021. These services are in compliance of the Federal 

Information Security Management Act (FISMA). The agreement funds the tools that enable EAC to 

continuously monitor IT systems security as described in OMB M-10-15, FY 2010 Reporting Instructions 

for the FISMA and Agency Privacy Management dated April 21, 2010. In FY 2019, EAC received a clean 

opinion on its FISMA audit.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

23

Status of Management Challenges

EAC’s Inspector General reported on three categories of management challenges in October 2019: 

vacancies in key agency positions, elections systems as critical infrastructure and records management. 

The EAC is currently filling key vacancies including Executive Director and General Counsel. Also, the 

EAC continues to work with Congress and collaborate with other Federal agencies to provide resources 

on election security. Regarding records management, the EAC established an electronic filing system 

that allows the EAC to effectively manage and file records.

Improper Payments

The Improper Payments Act requires each Federal agency to assess all programs and identify which, if 

any, may be subject to high risk with respect to improper payments. The EAC does not believe it has 

any programs (except the 2018 and 2020 HAVA Election Security Grants) where the erroneous 

payments could exceed 2.5 percent of program payments or $10 million threshold (set in OMB 

Guidance) to trigger further agency action. The EAC continues to review spending plans, provide 

guidance to states, and conduct risk-based auditing to mitigate the risk of improper payments. 

Mandated Reports to Congress

EAC continues to provide an annual report of EAC activities to Congress by January 31 of each year for 

the preceding year ending September 30. The current report was released on January 31, 2020.

EAC provides recommendations to improve election data collection and data provided to Congress in 

the biennial report on the Election Administration and Voting (includes NVRA) released in the fall of the 

year subsequent to the Federal election. The current report was released on June 2019.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

24

Attachment A

Office of Inspector General

BACKGROUND

The United States Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is a bipartisan Commission created 

and authorized by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). The Office of Inspector 

General (OIG) was established by HAVA and the Inspector General Act of 1978 (IG Act), as 

amended, to provide independent and objective reporting to EAC and Congress through its audit 

and investigative activities. 

Charged with the identification and prevention of waste, fraud, and abuse of Federal resources, 

the OIG strives to promote economy, efficiency and effectiveness in EAC programs and 

operations. To accomplish this goal, OIG conducts regular audits of recipients of grant funds 

distributed by the EAC, annual audits of EAC’s operations, and periodic reviews and audits of 

EAC program operations and transactions. In addition, the OIG conducts investigations in 

response to allegations against EAC, its grant recipients, or other third parties involved in EAC 

programs.

THE BUDGET IN SUMMARY

OIG’s fiscal year (FY) 2021 request of $1,144,370, included in the overall EAC request of 

$13,063,000, includes $3,776 as a transfer to the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and 

Efficiency (CIGIE) in keeping with the provisions of the Inspector General Reform Act of 

2008. The request also includes $10,000 for costs associated with training and professional 

development for OIG’s full-time employees.

OIG ACTIVITIES AND PROJECTS

OIG primarily engages in three activities or projects: auditing grant programs, conducting 

investigations of grant recipients or other third parties related to EAC programs, and conducting 

audits and investigations of EAC programs and operations.

Auditing Grant Programs

Section 902 of HAVA gives EAC and other agencies making a grant or payment the authority 

to conduct audits of any recipients of funds. EAC is further authorized to conduct regular audits 

of funds distributed under HAVA. OIG conducts those audits on behalf of EAC. 

Over the past several years, OIG has focused on auditing the grants distributed to states under 

Title II of HAVA. These grants represented the vast majority of grant funds distributed by the 

EAC through fiscal year 2010. The objectives of the state audits were to determine whether the 

state: (1) expended HAVA payments in accordance with the HAVA and related administrative 

requirements; and (2) complied with the HAVA requirements for replacing punch card or lever 

voting machines, establishing an election fund, appropriating five percent matching funds, and 
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

25

maintaining state expenditures for elections at a level not less than expended in the state’s base 

fiscal year.

In fiscal years 2018 and 2020, EAC received appropriations in the amount of $380 million and 

$425 million in formula grants to states to improve the administration of elections for Federal 

office, including to enhance technology and make election security improvements. Beginning in 

fiscal year 2019 and continuing in fiscal years 2020 and beyond, the OIG intends to audit these 

HAVA Election Security Fund grants. States will be selected for audits of their election security 

grants based on an OIG risk assessment. That risk assessment includes evaluation of each 

state’s past performance as measured by prior audit outcomes, amount of funding each state 

received, and the amount of money each state has spent, among other factors.

OIG’s program to ensure economy, efficiency and integrity in the use of funds is not limited to 

audits. OIG has also worked with the EAC to help educate states on the requirements that are 

associated with federal funding. 

In the coming fiscal years, OIG will continue to work to protect the Federal investment in the 

administration of U.S. Federal elections; to promote economy, efficiency, and integrity in EAC 

grant programs through its audit programs; and to support the EAC as needed in educating 

States on what is expected when using HAVA funds and what to expect of an audit of HAVA 

funds.

Investigations

When allegations are made concerning the misappropriation of HAVA funds, the OIG is 

responsible for investigating those allegations. OIG has a number of methods to improve and 

increase information available to EAC employees and the general public about how and when to 

make complaints of fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement.

OIG does not currently employ an investigator. When issues arise that require investigation, 

OIG contracts with other government agencies for investigative services.

Internal Audits

OIG is also responsible for conducting reviews, audits, and investigations of EAC’s internal 

policies, procedures, and actions. Over the past several fiscal years, OIG has conducted a 

number of internal reviews. OIG has issued at total of 40 reports regarding EAC’s operations. 

These reports assess EAC’s financial statements and the efficiency of EAC’s operation and its 

compliance with governing statutes and regulations, including compliance with the Federal 

Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) and the Digital Accountability and 

Transparency (DATA) Act.

OIG GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

In FY 2021, OIG will continue to monitor spending by EAC grant recipients, conducting 

external investigations, and auditing and investigating EAC programs and operations as needed.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

26

OIG is currently staffed by two full-time employees, the Inspector General (IG) and the 

Assistant Inspector General for Audit (AIGA). The current budget request includes funding for 

a new Senior Auditor, who will assist the IG and AIGA in overseeing the work of contract 

auditors. Having a third OIG team member will also provide the EAC OIG the flexibility to 

perform some internal audits in-house, without the use of contractors. OIG will continue to use 

contract auditors in FY 2021 to conduct its large-scale audits. 

GOAL 1: Protect the Federal investment in the administration of U.S. Federal elections.

The Federal government has made a sizable investment in the American electoral system. 

Congress had appropriated $3.25 billion in grant funds to the states for improvement of election 

infrastructure and processes through 2010 and provided an additional $380 million and $425 

million to states for election security grants in 2018 and 2020, respectively.

OIG relies primarily on contract auditors to conduct audits of these grants to states. Budgetary 

restrictions will require that we continue to rely on contractors to conduct the majority of the 

audits of grant recipients. OIG will continue to focus efforts on monitoring spending of the 

approximately $4 billion in grants appropriated to the states, with a primary emphasis on the 

recent election security grants.

GOAL 2: Promote economy, efficiency and integrity in EAC programs and operations.

A critical portion of the OIG mission is to promote economy and efficiency in government 

programs and operations and to detect and prevent fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement in 

government programs and involving government resources. OIG fulfills this portion of its 

mission by conducting audits and evaluations of EAC operations, including contracting for an 

annual audit of financial statements and a review of compliance with the Federal Information 

Security Modernization Act (FISMA). While these two reviews cover a large portion of EAC’s 

operations on an annual basis, OIG also conducts audits and evaluations of programs or specific 

EAC transactions. 

OIG is also charged with identifying and investigating waste, fraud and abuse identified in EAC 

programs and operations. To meet this requirement, OIG operates a website that includes details 

for reporting complaints to the OIG via a hotline through which people can submit complaints 

via telephone, fax, email, mail, and on-line. Via its hotline web page, the OIG reaches out to 

those persons involved with EAC and its programs, as well as those impacted by those 

programs to ensure they know how and where to make complaints of fraud, waste, abuse, or 

mismanagement.

Complaints from the hotline as well as information from audits and evaluations can identify 

potential civil or criminal wrongdoing. When OIG identifies potential wrongdoing, it can 

institute an investigation. OIG will continue to rely upon interagency agreements with other 

offices of Inspector General to conduct investigations of fraud, waste, abuse and 

mismanagement.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

27

GOAL 3: Effectively communicate recommendations for improvement.

OIG uses various tools to communicate with the EAC, the Congress, and the general public 

concerning the status of EAC’s programs and operations as well as OIG’s activities in 

conducting audits, evaluations, inspections, and investigations. OIG issues reports following 

each formal engagement, regardless of type. Reports are disbursed to the entity that is the 

subject of the audit or evaluation, as well as the EAC and, when appropriate, oversight and 

appropriations committees of Congress. All Semiannual Reports to Congress, reports of Top 

Management Challenges, and reports that contain recommendations are posted to the EAC OIG 

website and to Oversight.gov.

OIG also produces two semi-annual reports to Congress in each fiscal year, which are posted on 

the OIG Congressional Reports web page and at Oversight.gov. Those reports summarize the 

audit, evaluation, inspection and investigation reports issued by OIG during the relevant six

months. The documents also report on OIG activities by including statistics such as 

recommendations outstanding, the amount of costs that were questioned, and how much in 

federal funding could be put to better use.

In FY 2021, OIG will continue its outreach efforts to keep EAC, Congress and the public 

informed of OIG’s activities as well as its reviews of EAC programs and operations.

GOAL 4: Ensure effective and efficient OIG operations.

As OIG evaluates the effectiveness and efficiency of EAC programs and operations, it is 

important for the OIG to ensure that its operations are effective and efficient, including having 

the needed policies, procedures and practices to underpin its operations. The current funding 

request includes salary and benefits for a Senior Auditor to assist the IG and AIGA in covering 

the increased workload created by the new election security grant funding and to provide 

continuity in the OIG activity in the event the IG position would become vacant.

OIG will focus on providing a supportive working environment including providing 

professional education and training for its employees. All OIG employees will be required to 

meet the continuing education requirements applicable under the Generally Accepted 

Government Auditing Standards.

The OIG also participates in the CIGIE peer review program by conducting peer reviews of 

other OIGs and by undergoing triennial peer reviews as well. These peer reviews provide 

additional assurance that the work of the EAC OIG meets or exceeds the highest professional 

standards.
 U. S. Election Assistance Commission

 Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request

28

OIG BUDGET REQUEST BY OBJECT CLASS

FY 2019 

Enacted

FY 2020 

Enacted

FY 2021

Request

Salaries and Benefits

11.1 Full-time permanent $ 153,200 $ 295,803 407,221

11.9 Total personal compensation 153,200 295,803 407,221

12.1 Civilian personnel benefits 55,730 111,641 150,627

Contractual Services and Supplies

21 Travel, training and oversight 10,000 15,000 15,000

24 Printing and reproduction 1,000 1,000 1,000

25.2 Other services 786,700 553,842 507,746

25.3 Other purchases of goods and 

services from Government accounts 35,000 55,000 55,000

26 Supplies and materials 3,600 2,000 2,000

Acquisition of Assets

31 Equipment 4,500 2,000 2,000

94 Financial Transfers 3,000 2,701 3,776

Total Program $ 1,052,730 $ 1,038,987 1,144,370

Note: OIG expenses are included in EAC's topline request and the EAC Object Class table 

on page 12.