I 

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112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 108 

To protect voting rights and to improve the administration of Federal 

elections, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 5, 2011 

Mr. CONYERS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight 

and Government Reform and House Administration, for a period to be 

subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 

of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To protect voting rights and to improve the administration 

of Federal elections, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Voting Opportunity and Technology Enhancement 

6 Rights Act of 2011’’. 

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

8 this Act is as follows: 

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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—IMPROVING ELECTION ADMINISTRATION 

Sec. 101. National Federal write-in absentee ballot. 

Sec. 102. Verified ballots; preservation. 

Sec. 103. Requirements for counting provisional ballots. 

Sec. 104. Minimum requirements for voting systems and poll workers in polling 

places. 

Sec. 105. Election day registration. 

Sec. 106. Integrity of voter registration list. 

Sec. 107. Early voting. 

Sec. 108. Improvements to voting systems. 

Sec. 109. Voter registration. 

Sec. 110. Establishing voter identification. 

Sec. 111. Impartial administration of elections. 

Sec. 112. Strengthening the Election Assistance Commission. 

Sec. 113. Additional protections to ensure fair administration of Federal elections. 

Sec. 114. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 115. Effective date. 

TITLE II—PROHIBITING DECEPTIVE PRACTICES 

Sec. 201. Prohibiting deceptive practices in Federal elections. 

Sec. 202. Corrective action. 

Sec. 203. Reports to Congress. 

Sec. 204. Severability. 

Sec. 205. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE III—PROHIBITING VOTER CAGING 

Sec. 301. Voter caging and other questionable challenges prohibited. 

Sec. 302. Severability. 

TITLE IV—RESTORING VOTING RIGHTS 

Sec. 401. Rights of citizens. 

Sec. 402. Enforcement. 

Sec. 403. Notification of restoration of voting rights. 

Sec. 404. Definitions. 

Sec. 405. Relation to other laws. 

Sec. 406. Federal prison funds. 

Sec. 407. Effective date. 

TITLE V—ELECTION DAY AS LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAY 

Sec. 501. Treatment of election day in same manner as legal public holiday for 

purposes of Federal employment. 

Sec. 502. Study by Comptroller General of impact on voter participation. 

Sec. 503. Sense of Congress regarding treatment of day by private employers. 

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1 TITLE I—IMPROVING ELECTION 

2 ADMINISTRATION 

3 SEC. 101. NATIONAL FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BAL4 LOT. 

5 (a) REQUIRING STATES TO ACCEPT BALLOT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help Amer7 ica Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481 et seq.) is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following new 

9 subtitle: 

10 ‘‘Subtitle C—Additional 

11 Requirements 

12 ‘‘SEC. 321. USE OF NATIONAL FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSEN13 TEE BALLOT. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Any person who is otherwise 

15 qualified to vote in a Federal election in a State shall be 

16 permitted to use the national Federal write-in absentee 

17 ballot prescribed by the Commission under section 297 to 

18 cast a vote in an election for Federal office. 

19 ‘‘(b) SUBMISSION AND PROCESSING.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro21 vided in this section, a national Federal write-in ab22 sentee ballot shall be submitted and processed in the 

23 manner provided under the standards prescribed by 

24 the Commission under section 297(b). 

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1 ‘‘(2) DEADLINE.—An otherwise eligible national 

2 Federal write-in absentee ballot shall be counted if 

3 postmarked or signed before the close of the polls on 

4 election day and received by the appropriate State 

5 election official on or before the date which is 10 

6 days after the date of the election or the date pro7 vided for receipt of absentee ballots under State law, 

8 whichever is later. 

9 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL RULES.—The following rules shall 

10 apply with respect to national Federal write-in absentee 

11 ballots: 

12 ‘‘(1) In completing the ballot, the voter may 

13 designate a candidate by writing in the name of the 

14 candidate or by writing in the name of a political 

15 party (in which case the ballot shall be counted for 

16 the candidate of that political party). 

17 ‘‘(2) In the case of the offices of President and 

18 Vice President, a vote for a named candidate or a 

19 vote by writing in the name of a political party shall 

20 be counted as a vote for the electors supporting the 

21 candidate involved. 

22 ‘‘(3) Any abbreviation, misspelling, or other 

23 minor variation in the form of the name of a can24 didate or a political party shall be disregarded in de25 termining the validity of the ballot. 

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1 ‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re2 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

3 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

4 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

5 ENFORCEMENT.—Section 401 of the Help America 

6 Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15511) is amended by 

7 striking ‘‘and 303’’ and inserting ‘‘303, and subtitle 

8 C’’. 

9 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con10 tents of title III of such Act is amended by adding 

11 at the end the following: 

‘‘Subtitle C—Additional Requirements 

‘‘Sec. 321. Use of national Federal write-in absentee ballot.’’. 

12 (b) GUIDANCE AND STANDARDS FOR NATIONAL

13 FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BALLOT.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Title II of the Help America 

15 Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15321 et seq.) is 

16 amended by adding at the end the following new 

17 subtitle: 

18 ‘‘Subtitle E—Guidance and 

19 Standards 

20 ‘‘SEC. 297. NATIONAL FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BAL21 LOT. 

22 ‘‘(a) FORM OF BALLOT.—The Commission shall pre23 scribe a national Federal write-in absentee ballot (includmstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with BILLS

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1 ing a secrecy envelope and mailing envelope for such bal2 lot) for use in elections for Federal office. 

3 ‘‘(b) STANDARDS.—The Commission shall prescribe 

4 standards for— 

5 ‘‘(1) distributing the national Federal write-in 

6 absentee ballot, including standards for distributing 

7 such ballot through the Internet; and 

8 ‘‘(2) processing and submission of the national 

9 Federal write-in absentee ballot.’’. 

10 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 202 

11 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 

12 15322) is amended— 

13 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and 

14 (6) as paragraphs (6) and (7); and 

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

16 following new paragraph: 

17 ‘‘(5) carrying out the duties described in sub18 title E;’’. 

19 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con20 tents for title II of such Act is amended by adding 

21 at the end the following: 

‘‘Subtitle E—Guidance and Standards 

‘‘Sec. 297. National Federal write-in absentee ballot.’’. 

22 (c) COORDINATION WITH UNIFORMED AND OVER23 SEAS CITIZENS ABSENTEE VOTING ACT.— 

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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Presidential designee 

2 under the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting 

3 Act, in consultation with the Election Assistance 

4 Commission, shall facilitate the use and return of 

5 the national Federal write-in ballot prescribed by the 

6 Commission under section 297 of the Help America 

7 Vote Act of 2002 (as added by subsection (b)(1)) for 

8 absent uniformed service voters and overseas voters 

9 so that such voters face no greater difficulties in the 

10 submission and processing of their ballots than those 

11 faced by absentee voters who reside in the United 

12 States. 

13 (2) DEFINITIONS.—The terms ‘‘absent uni14 formed service voter’’ and ‘‘overseas voter’’ shall 

15 have the meanings given such terms by section 107 

16 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee 

17 Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973gg–6). 

18 SEC. 102. VERIFIED BALLOTS; PRESERVATION. 

19 (a) VERIFICATION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 301(a) of the Help 

21 America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481(a)) is 

22 amended by adding at the end the following new 

23 paragraph: 

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1 ‘‘(7) VERIFIED BALLOTS.—In order to meet the 

2 requirements of paragraph (1)(A)(i), on and after 

3 January 1, 2011: 

4 ‘‘(A) The voting system shall provide an 

5 independent means of voter verification which 

6 meets the requirements of subparagraph (B) 

7 and which allows each voter to verify the accu8 racy of the ballot before it is cast and counted, 

9 and to correct any errors before the record of 

10 the ballot is produced and preserved under this 

11 paragraph and paragraph (2)(B)(iii). 

12 ‘‘(B) A means of voter verification meets 

13 the requirements of this subparagraph if the 

14 voting system allows the voter to choose from 

15 one of the following options to verify the voter’s 

16 vote selection: 

17 ‘‘(i) A paper record. 

18 ‘‘(ii) An audio record. 

19 ‘‘(iii) A pictorial record. 

20 ‘‘(iv) An electronic record or other 

21 means that provides for voter verification 

22 that is accessible for individuals with dis23 abilities, including nonvisual accessibility 

24 for the blind and visually impaired, in a 

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1 pendence equal to that provided for other 

2 voters. 

3 ‘‘(C) Any means of verification described 

4 in clause (ii), (iii), or (iv) of subparagraph (B) 

5 must provide verification which is equal or su6 perior to verification through the use of a paper 

7 record. 

8 ‘‘(D) None of the means of verification 

9 under this paragraph may employ cryptography 

10 in the record.’’. 

11 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Clause (i) of 

12 section 301(a)(1)(A) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

13 15481(a)(1)(A)(i)) is amended by inserting ‘‘and 

14 consistent with the requirements of paragraphs (2), 

15 (4), and (7)’’ after ‘‘independent manner’’. 

16 (b) PRESERVATION OF RECORDS.—Section 

17 301(a)(2)(B)(iii) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

18 15481(a)(2)(B)(iii)) is amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(iii) The record produced to meet the 

20 requirements of paragraph (1)(A)(i) and 

21 this paragraph shall be available as an offi22 cial record for any audit or recount con23 ducted with respect to any election in 

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1 served after the voter has verified its accu2 racy— 

3 ‘‘(I) in the case of a paper 

4 record, within the polling place on the 

5 date of the election in a manner that 

6 ensures the security of the votes as 

7 verified; and 

8 ‘‘(II) in the case of a record de9 scribed in clause (ii), (iii), or (iv) of 

10 paragraph (7)(B), through a method 

11 established by the Commission which 

12 provides protection of the record equal 

13 to or superior to the methods used to 

14 preserve paper records.’’. 

15 (c) GUIDANCE.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of title II of such 

17 Act, as added by section 101(b)(1), is amended by 

18 adding at the end the following new section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 298. VERIFIED BALLOTS. 

20 ‘‘(a) STANDARDS.—The Commission shall issue uni21 form and nondiscriminatory standards— 

22 ‘‘(1) for verified ballots required under section 

23 301(a)(7); and 

24 ‘‘(2) for meeting the audit requirements of sec25 tion 301(a)(2). 

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1 ‘‘(b) AUDITS.—The standards issued under sub2 section (a) shall provide for partial audits of the results 

3 of elections using the records produced pursuant to section 

4 301(a)(7), and shall provide that those records shall be 

5 used for the official count of votes in the event that the 

6 tallies derived from the records differ from the tallies oth7 erwise derived from the voting system used in the election 

8 involved.’’. 

9 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con10 tents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, as added 

11 by this Act, is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 298. Verified ballots.’’. 

13 (d) REPORTS.— 

14 (1) ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION.—Sec15 tion 207 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15327) is amend16 ed— 

17 (A) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 

18 paragraph (6); and 

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

20 following new paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(5) A description of the progress on imple22 menting the verified ballot requirements of section 

23 301(a)(7) and the impact of the use of such require24 ments on the accessibility, privacy, security, 

25 usability, and auditability of voting systems.’’. 

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1 (2) STATE REPORTS.—Section 258 of such Act 

2 (42 U.S.C. 15408) is amended— 

3 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para4 graph (2); 

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

6 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

8 paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(4) an analysis and description in the form 

10 and manner prescribed by the Commission of the 

11 progress on implementing the verified ballot require12 ments of section 301(a)(7).’’. 

13 SEC. 103. REQUIREMENTS FOR COUNTING PROVISIONAL 

14 BALLOTS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 302 of the Help America 

16 Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15482) is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub18 section (e); and 

19 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol20 lowing new subsection: 

21 ‘‘(d) STATEWIDE COUNTING OF PROVISIONAL BAL22 LOTS.—For purposes of subsection (a)(4), notwith23 standing at which polling place a provisional ballot is cast 

24 within the State, the State shall count such ballot if the 

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1 individual who cast such ballot is otherwise eligible to vote 

2 in the election.’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 302(e) of such Act 

4 (42 U.S.C. 15482(e)), as redesignated by subsection (a), 

5 is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(e) EFFECTIVE DATE FOR PROVISIONAL VOTING

7 AND VOTING INFORMATION.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2), each State and jurisdiction shall be re10 quired to comply with the requirements of this sec11 tion on and after January 1, 2004. 

12 ‘‘(2) STATEWIDE COUNTING OF PROVISIONAL

13 BALLOTS.—Each State shall be required to comply 

14 with the requirements of subsection (d) on and after 

15 January 1, 2013.’’. 

16 SEC. 104. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR VOTING SYSTEMS 

17 AND POLL WORKERS IN POLLING PLACES. 

18 (a) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of the 

20 Help America Vote Act of 2002, as added by section 

21 101(a)(1), is amended by adding at the end the fol22 lowing new section: 

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1 ‘‘SEC. 322. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR VOTING SYS2 TEMS AND POLL WORKERS. 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall provide for the 

4 minimum required number of functioning and accurate 

5 voting systems and poll workers required in each precinct 

6 on the day of any Federal election and on any days during 

7 which such State allows early voting for a Federal election 

8 in accordance with the standards determined under sec9 tion 299A. 

10 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re11 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

12 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

13 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con14 tents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, as added 

15 by section 101(a)(3), is amended by adding at the 

16 end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 322. Minimum required voting systems and poll workers.’’. 

17 (b) STANDARDS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of title II of such 

19 Act, as added and amended by this Act, is amended 

20 by adding at the end the following new section: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 299. STANDARDS FOR ESTABLISHING THE MINIMUM 

22 REQUIRED VOTING SYSTEMS AND POLL 

23 WORKERS. 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall issue 

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1 tems and poll workers required in each precinct on the 

2 day of any Federal election and on any days during which 

3 early voting is allowed for a Federal election. 

4 ‘‘(b) DISTRIBUTION.—The standards described in 

5 subsection (a) shall provide for a uniform and nondiscrim6 inatory geographic distribution of such systems and work7 ers, based on a ratio of the number of systems and work8 ers per voter, taking into account voter registration statis9 tics for the precinct, the most recent available census data 

10 regarding the number of individuals residing within the 

11 precinct who are eligible to register to vote, and the level 

12 of voter turnout during previous elections held in the pre13 cinct. 

14 ‘‘(c) DEVIATION.—The standards described in sub15 section (a) shall permit States, upon providing adequate 

16 public notice, to deviate from any allocation requirements 

17 in the case of unforeseen circumstances such as a natural 

18 disaster, terrorist attack, or a change in voter turnout.’’. 

19 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con20 tents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, as added 

21 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

22 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299. Standards for establishing the minimum required voting systems 

and poll workers.’’. 

23 SEC. 105. ELECTION DAY REGISTRATION. 

24 (a) REQUIREMENT.— 

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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of the 

2 Help America Vote Act of 2002, as added and 

3 amended by this Act, is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following new section: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 323. ELECTION DAY REGISTRATION. 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

7 ‘‘(1) REGISTRATION.—Notwithstanding section 

8 8(a)(1)(D) of the National Voter Registration Act of 

9 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg–6), each State shall permit 

10 any individual on the day of a Federal election— 

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

12 the polling place using the form established by 

13 the Commission pursuant to section 297; and 

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

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

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

17 under a State law in effect continuously on and after 

18 the date of the enactment of this Act, there is no 

19 voter registration requirement for individuals in the 

20 State with respect to elections for Federal office. 

21 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re22 quired to comply with the requirements of subsection (a) 

23 on and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

24 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con25 tents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, as added 

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1 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

2 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 323. Election Day registration.’’. 

3 (b) ELECTION DAY REGISTRATION FORM.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of title II of such 

5 Act, as added and amended by this Act, is amended 

6 by adding at the end the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 299A. ELECTION DAY REGISTRATION FORM. 

8 ‘‘The Commission shall develop an election day reg9 istration form for elections for Federal office.’’. 

10 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con11 tents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, as added 

12 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

13 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299A. Election Day registration form.’’. 

14 SEC. 106. INTEGRITY OF VOTER REGISTRATION LIST. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of the Help 

16 America Vote Act of 2002, as added and amended by this 

17 Act, is amended by adding at the end the following new 

18 section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 324. REMOVAL FROM VOTER REGISTRATION LIST. 

20 ‘‘(a) PUBLIC NOTICE.—Not later than 45 days before 

21 any Federal election, each State shall provide public notice 

22 of all names which have been removed from the voter reg23 istration list of such State under section 303 since the 

24 later of the most recent election for Federal office or the 

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1 day of the most recent previous public notice provided 

2 under this section. 

3 ‘‘(b) NOTICE TO INDIVIDUAL VOTERS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No individual shall be re5 moved from the voter registration list under section 

6 303 unless such individual is first provided with a 

7 notice which meets the requirements of paragraph 

8 (2). 

9 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS OF NOTICE.—The notice 

10 required under paragraph (1) shall be— 

11 ‘‘(A) provided to each voter in a uniform 

12 and nondiscriminatory manner; 

13 ‘‘(B) consistent with the requirements of 

14 the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 

15 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg et seq.); and 

16 ‘‘(C) in the form and manner prescribed by 

17 the Election Assistance Commission. 

18 ‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re19 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

20 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

21 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

22 for subtitle C of title III of such Act, as added and amend23 ed by this Act, is amended by adding at the end the fol24 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 324. Removal from voter registration list.’’. 

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1 SEC. 107. EARLY VOTING. 

2 (a) REQUIREMENTS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of the 

4 Help America Vote Act of 2002, as added and 

5 amended by this Act, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 325. EARLY VOTING. 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall allow individ9 uals to vote in an election for Federal office not less than 

10 15 days prior to the day scheduled for such election in 

11 the same manner as voting is allowed on such day. 

12 ‘‘(b) MINIMUM EARLY VOTING REQUIREMENTS.— 

13 Each polling place which allows voting prior to the day 

14 of a Federal election pursuant to subsection (a) shall— 

15 ‘‘(1) allow such voting for no less than 4 hours 

16 on each day (other than Sunday); and 

17 ‘‘(2) have uniform hours each day for which 

18 such voting occurs. 

19 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF ELECTION DAY REGISTRATION

20 TO EARLY VOTING.—A State shall permit individuals to 

21 register to vote at each polling place which allows voting 

22 prior to the day of a Federal election pursuant to sub23 section (a) in the same manner as the State is required 

24 to permit individuals to register to vote and vote on the 

25 day of the election under section 323. 

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1 ‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re2 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

3 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

4 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con5 tents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, as added 

6 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

7 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 325. Early voting.’’. 

8 (b) STANDARDS FOR EARLY VOTING.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of title II of the 

10 Help America Vote Act of 2002, as added and 

11 amended by this Act, is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following new section: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 299B. STANDARDS FOR EARLY VOTING. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall issue 

15 standards for the administration of voting prior to the day 

16 scheduled for a Federal election. Such standards shall in17 clude the nondiscriminatory geographic placement of poll18 ing places at which such voting occurs. 

19 ‘‘(b) DEVIATION.—The standards described in sub20 section (a) shall permit States, upon providing adequate 

21 public notice, to deviate from any requirement in the case 

22 of unforeseen circumstances such as a natural disaster, 

23 terrorist attack, or a change in voter turnout.’’. 

24 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con25 tents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, as added 

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1 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

2 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299B. Standards for early voting.’’. 

3 SEC. 108. IMPROVEMENTS TO VOTING SYSTEMS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 301(a)(1)(B) of the Help 

5 America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481(a)(1)(B)) is 

6 amended by striking ‘‘, a punch card voting system, or 

7 a central count voting system’’. 

8 (b) CLARIFICATION OF REQUIREMENTS FOR PUNCH

9 CARD SYSTEMS.—Section 301(a)(1)(A) of such Act (42 

10 U.S.C. 15481(a)(1)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘any 

11 lever’’ and inserting ‘‘any punch card voting system, 

12 lever’’. 

13 SEC. 109. VOTER REGISTRATION. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 303(b)(4) of the Help 

15 America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15483(b)(4)) is 

16 amended by adding at the end the following new subpara17 graphs: 

18 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.—On and after January 

19 1, 2013— 

20 ‘‘(i) in lieu of the questions and state21 ments required under subparagraph (A), 

22 such mail voter registration form shall in23 clude an affidavit to be signed by the reg24 istrant attesting both to citizenship and 

25 age; and 

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1 ‘‘(ii) subparagraph (B) shall not 

2 apply. 

3 ‘‘(D) APPLICATION TO FORMS DEVELOPED

4 BY STATES.—For purposes of section 6(a)(2) of 

5 the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 

6 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg–4(a)(2)), any form devel7 oped and used by a State for the registration 

8 of voters in elections for Federal office shall not 

9 be considered to meet all of the criteria stated 

10 in section 9(b) of such Act unless the form 

11 meets the requirements of subparagraph (C).’’. 

12 (b) INTERNET REGISTRATION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of 

14 such Act, as added and amended by this Act, is 

15 amended by adding at the end the following new sec16 tion: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 326. INTERNET REGISTRATION. 

18 ‘‘(a) INTERNET REGISTRATION.—Each State shall 

19 establish a program under which individuals may access 

20 and submit voter registration forms electronically through 

21 the Internet. 

22 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re23 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

24 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

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1 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con2 tents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, as added 

3 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

4 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 326. Internet registration.’’. 

5 (c) STANDARDS FOR INTERNET REGISTRATION.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of such Act, as 

7 added and amended by this Act, is amended by add8 ing at the end the following new section: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 299C. STANDARDS FOR INTERNET REGISTRATION 

10 PROGRAMS. 

11 ‘‘The Commission shall establish standards regarding 

12 the design and operation of programs which allow elec13 tronic voter registration through the Internet.’’. 

14 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con15 tents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, as added 

16 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

17 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299C. Standards for Internet registration programs.’’. 

18 SEC. 110. ESTABLISHING VOTER IDENTIFICATION. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

20 (1) IN PERSON VOTING.—Section 

21 303(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Help America Vote Act of 

22 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15483(b)(2)(A)(i)) is amended— 

23 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of sub24 clause (I); and 

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

2 subclause: 

3 ‘‘(III) executes a written affidavit 

4 attesting to such individual’s identity; 

5 or’’. 

6 (2) VOTING BY MAIL.—Section 303(b)(2)(A)(ii) 

7 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15483(b)(2)(A)(ii)) is 

8 amended— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of sub10 clause (I); 

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

12 subclause (II) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

13 (C) and by adding at the end the following 

14 new subclause: 

15 ‘‘(III) a written affidavit, exe16 cuted by such individual, attesting to 

17 such individual’s identity.’’. 

18 (b) STANDARDS FOR VERIFYING VOTER INFORMA19 TION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of such Act, as 

21 added and amended by this Act, is amended by add22 ing at the end the following new section: 

23 ‘‘SEC. 299D. VOTER IDENTIFICATION. 

24 ‘‘The Commission shall develop standards for 

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1 tion 303(a)(5) in connection with the registration of an 

2 individual to vote in a Federal election.’’. 

3 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con4 tents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, as added 

5 by this Act, is amended by adding at the end the fol6 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299D. Voter identification.’’. 

7 SEC. 111. IMPARTIAL ADMINISTRATION OF ELECTIONS. 

8 (a) ELECTION ADMINISTRATION REQUIREMENTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of the 

10 Help America Vote Act of 2002, as added and 

11 amended by this Act, is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following new section: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 327. ELECTION ADMINISTRATION REQUIREMENTS. 

14 ‘‘(a) NOTICE OF CHANGES IN STATE ELECTION

15 LAWS.—Not later than 15 days prior to any Federal elec16 tion, each State shall issue a public notice describing all 

17 changes in State law affecting the administration of Fed18 eral elections since the most recent prior election. 

19 ‘‘(b) OBSERVERS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall allow uni21 form and nondiscriminatory access to any polling 

22 place for purposes of observing a Federal election 

23 to— 

24 ‘‘(A) voting rights and civil rights organi25 zations; and 

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1 ‘‘(B) nonpartisan domestic observers and 

2 international observers. 

3 ‘‘(2) NOTICE OF DENIAL OF OBSERVATION RE4 QUEST.—Each State shall issue a public notice with 

5 respect to any denial of a request by any observer 

6 described in paragraph (1) for access to any polling 

7 place for purposes of observing a Federal election. 

8 Such notice shall be issued not later than 24 hours 

9 after such denial. 

10 ‘‘(3) NO INTERFERENCE WITH ELECTION PER11 MITTED.—Nothing in this subsection may be con12 strued to permit any individual observing a Federal 

13 election pursuant to this subsection to engage in 

14 campaign activity at a polling place or interfere in 

15 any way with the conduct of the election. 

16 ‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re17 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

18 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

19 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con20 tents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, as added 

21 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

22 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 327. Election administration requirements.’’. 

23 (b) STUDY OF ADMINISTRATION OF ELECTIONS BY

24 NONPARTISAN BOARDS.— 

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1 (1) STUDY.—The Election Assistance Commis2 sion shall conduct a study analyzing the feasibility 

3 and desirability of requiring States to carry out the 

4 administration of elections for Federal office 

5 through nonpartisan election boards. 

6 (2) REPORT.—Not later than January 1, 2013, 

7 the Commission shall submit a report to Congress 

8 and the relevant committees of Congress on the 

9 study conducted under paragraph (1). 

10 SEC. 112. STRENGTHENING THE ELECTION ASSISTANCE 

11 COMMISSION. 

12 (a) BUDGET REQUESTS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Part 1 of subtitle A of title 

14 II of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 

15 15321 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

16 209 the following new section: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 209A. SUBMISSION OF BUDGET REQUESTS. 

18 ‘‘Whenever the Commission submits any budget esti19 mate or request to the President or the Office of Manage20 ment and Budget, it shall concurrently transmit a copy 

21 of such estimate or request to the Congress and to all rel22 evant committees of the House and Senate.’’. 

23 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con24 tents for part 1 of subtitle A of title II of such Act 

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1 is amended by inserting after the item relating to 

2 section 209 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 209A. Submission of budget requests.’’. 

3 (b) EXEMPTION FROM PAPERWORK REDUCTION

4 ACT.—Section 3502(1) of title 44, United States Code, 

5 is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (B), (C), 

7 and (D) as subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E); and 

8 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol9 lowing new subparagraph: 

10 ‘‘(B) the Election Assistance Commis11 sion;’’. 

12 (c) RULEMAKING.—Section 209 of the Help America 

13 Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15239) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘The Commission’’ and insert15 ing the following: 

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

17 (b), the Commission’’; and 

18 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub19 section: 

20 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—On and after January 1, 2013, 

21 subsection (a) shall not apply to any authority granted 

22 under subtitle E of this title or subtitle C of title III.’’. 

23 (d) NIST AUTHORITY.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of title II of the 

25 Help America Vote Act of 2002, as added and 

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1 amended by this Act, is amended by adding at the 

2 end the following new section: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 299E. TECHNICAL SUPPORT. 

4 ‘‘At the request of the Commission, the Director of 

5 the National Institute of Standards and Technology shall 

6 provide the Commission with technical support necessary 

7 for the Commission to carry out its duties under this 

8 title.’’. 

9 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con10 tents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, as added 

11 by this Act, is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299E. Technical support.’’. 

13 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

14 210 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 

15 15330) is amended by striking ‘‘for each of the fiscal years 

16 2003 through 2005’’ and all that follows and inserting the 

17 following: ‘‘for the Commission to carry out this title the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(1) For each of fiscal years 2003 through 

20 2011, $10,000,000. 

21 ‘‘(2) For fiscal year 2012, $23,000,000, of 

22 which $3,000,000 is solely to carry out section 

23 299E. 

24 ‘‘(3) For fiscal year 2013 and each succeeding 

25 fiscal year, such sums as may be necessary.’’. 

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1 SEC. 113. ADDITIONAL PROTECTIONS TO ENSURE FAIR AD2 MINISTRATION OF FEDERAL ELECTIONS. 

3 (a) REQUIRING USE OF PUBLICLY AVAILABLE OPEN

4 SOURCE SOFTWARE IN VOTING MACHINES.— 

5 (1) REQUIRING USE OF OPEN SOURCE SOFT6 WARE.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of 

8 such Act, as added and amended by this Act, 

9 is amended by adding at the end the following 

10 new section: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 328. REQUIRING USE OF PUBLICLY AVAILABLE OPEN 

12 SOURCE SOFTWARE IN VOTING MACHINES. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall ensure that 

14 each voting machine used by the State for elections for 

15 Federal office uses open source software which may be ac16 cessible for inspection by the public, in accordance with 

17 standards established by the Commission under section 

18 299G. 

19 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re20 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

21 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

22 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

23 contents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, 

24 as added and amended by this Act, is amended 

25 by adding at the end the following new item: 

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‘‘Sec. 328. Requiring use of publicly available open source software in voting 

machines.’’. 

1 (2) ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of title II of 

3 such Act, as added and amended by this Act, 

4 is amended by adding at the end the following 

5 new section: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 299F. STANDARDS FOR PUBLICLY AVAILABLE OPEN 

7 SOURCE SOFTWARE IN VOTING MACHINES. 

8 ‘‘The Commission shall establish standards for the 

9 software used in voting machines for elections for Federal 

10 offices, including standards to ensure that all such soft11 ware is open source software which may be accessible for 

12 inspection by the public.’’. 

13 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

14 contents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, 

15 as added and amended by this Act, is amended 

16 by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299F. Standards for publicly available open source software in voting machines.’’. 

17 (b) STANDARDS FOR CONDUCTING RECOUNTS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of 

19 such Act, as added and amended by this Act, is 

20 amended by adding at the end the following new sec21 tion: 

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1 ‘‘SEC. 329. STANDARDS FOR CONDUCTING RECOUNTS. 

2 ‘‘In conducting any recount with respect to any elec3 tion for Federal office in the State, the State shall ensure 

4 that a vote in the election will be counted when the intent 

5 of the voter can reasonably be determined from the bal6 lot.’’. 

7 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con8 tents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, as added 

9 and amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

10 the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 329. Standards for conducting recounts.’’. 

11 (c) PROHIBITING CONFLICTS OF INTEREST OF ENTI12 TIES INVOLVED IN MANUFACTURE, DISTRIBUTION, OR

13 OTHER ACTIVITIES RELATING TO VOTING MACHINES.— 

14 (1) PROHIBITING AGREEMENTS BY STATES

15 WITH ENTITIES FAILING TO MEET ANTI-CONFLICT

16 OF INTEREST STANDARDS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title III of 

18 such Act, as added and amended by this Act, 

19 is amended by adding at the end the following 

20 new section: 

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1 ‘‘SEC. 329A. PROHIBITING AGREEMENTS WITH ENTITIES 

2 FAILING TO MEET ANTI-CONFLICT OF INTER3 EST STANDARDS FOR ENTITIES INVOLVED 

4 WITH VOTING MACHINES. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out an election for 

6 Federal office, a State may not enter into any agreement 

7 with an entity regarding the manufacture, distribution, in8 stallation, servicing, or other activity with respect to a vot9 ing machine to be used for the election if the entity is 

10 not in compliance with the standards established by the 

11 Commission under section 299G for prohibiting conflicts 

12 of interest of such entities. 

13 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re14 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

15 and after January 1, 2013.’’. 

16 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

17 contents for subtitle C of title III of such Act, 

18 as added and amended by this Act, is amended 

19 by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 329A. Prohibiting agreement with entities failing to meet anti-conflict of 

interest standards for entities involved with voting machines.’’. 

20 (2) ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle E of title II of 

22 such Act, as added and amended by this Act, 

23 is amended by adding at the end the following 

24 new section: 

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1 ‘‘SEC. 299G. STANDARDS FOR PROHIBITING CONFLICTS OF 

2 INTEREST OF ENTITIES INVOLVED IN MANU3 FACTURE, DISTRIBUTION, OR OTHER ACTIVI4 TIES RELATING TO VOTING MACHINES. 

5 ‘‘The Commission shall establish standards to pro6 hibit conflicts of interest of entities engaged in the manu7 facture, distribution, installation, servicing, or other activi8 ties with respect to voting machines, including standards 

9 to prohibit any such entity from directly or indirectly pro10 viding any funds or property (including in-kind funds and 

11 property) to any candidate for public office, any political 

12 party, any political committee under the Federal Election 

13 Campaign Act of 1971, any organization described in sec14 tion 527 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any 

15 other entity organized for any partisan political purpose.’’. 

16 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

17 contents for subtitle E of title II of such Act, 

18 as added and amended by this Act, is amended 

19 by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 299G. Standards for prohibiting conflicts of interest of entities involved 

in manufacture, distribution, or other activities relating to voting machines.’’. 

20 SEC. 114. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

21 Section 257(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

22 (42 U.S.C. 15408(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

23 the following new paragraphs: 

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1 ‘‘(5) For fiscal year 2012, in addition to the 

2 amount authorized under paragraph (4) for the pur3 poses described in such paragraph, $2,000,000,000. 

4 ‘‘(6) For each fiscal year after 2012, in addi5 tion to the amount authorized under paragraph (4) 

6 for the purposes described in such paragraph, such 

7 sums as are necessary.’’. 

8 SEC. 115. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

9 This title and the amendments made by this title 

10 shall take effect on January 1, 2012. 

11 TITLE II—PROHIBITING 

12 DECEPTIVE PRACTICES 

13 SEC. 201. PROHIBITING DECEPTIVE PRACTICES IN FED14 ERAL ELECTIONS. 

15 (a) CIVIL ACTIONS.—Section 2004(b) of the Revised 

16 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1971(b)) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘No person’’ and inserting ‘‘(1) 

18 PROHIBITION.—No person’’; 

19 (2) by striking ‘‘any candidate for the office’’ 

20 and all that follows and inserting ‘‘any candidate in 

21 any election for Federal office.’’; and 

22 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

23 paragraphs: 

24 ‘‘(2) FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERAL

25 ELECTIONS.— 

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1 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—No person, whether 

2 acting under color of law or otherwise, shall, 

3 during the 90-day period which ends on the 

4 date of an election for Federal office, by any 

5 means, including by means of written, elec6 tronic, or telephonic communications, commu7 nicate or cause to be communicated information 

8 described in subparagraph (B), or produce in9 formation described in subparagraph (B), with 

10 the intent that such information be commu11 nicated, if such information is materially false 

12 and if such person— 

13 ‘‘(i) knows such information to be 

14 false; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) has the intent to mislead voters, 

16 or the intent to impede, hinder, discourage, 

17 or prevent another person from exercising 

18 the right to vote in an election for Federal 

19 office. 

20 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—Infor21 mation described in this subparagraph is infor22 mation regarding— 

23 ‘‘(i) the time or place of holding any 

24 election for Federal office; or 

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1 ‘‘(ii) the qualifications for, or restric2 tions on eligibility of, a voter in an election 

3 for Federal office, including— 

4 ‘‘(I) any criminal penalties asso5 ciated with voting in any such elec6 tion; or 

7 ‘‘(II) information regarding a 

8 voter’s registration status or eligi9 bility. 

10 ‘‘(3) FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING PUBLIC

11 ENDORSEMENTS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—During the 90-day 

13 period which ends on the date of an election for 

14 Federal office, no person, whether acting under 

15 color of law or otherwise, shall, by any means, 

16 including by means of written, electronic, or tel17 ephonic communications, make to the public, or 

18 cause to be made to the public, a materially 

19 false statement about an endorsement of a spe20 cific candidate in such election if such person 

21 intends to mislead any voter and knows that 

22 the statement is false. 

23 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF MATERIALLY FALSE

24 STATEMENT.—For purposes of subparagraph 

25 (A), a statement about an endorsement of a 

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1 candidate in an election for Federal office is a 

2 ‘materially false statement’ if— 

3 ‘‘(i) the statement states that a spe4 cifically named person (including a political 

5 party or other organization) has endorsed 

6 the candidate in that election; 

7 ‘‘(ii) such person has not endorsed the 

8 candidate in that election; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) such person does not support 

10 any candidate in that election or such per11 son has publicly and explicitly stated that 

12 the person supports the election of a dif13 ferent candidate in that election. 

14 ‘‘(4) HINDERING, INTERFERING WITH, OR PRE15 VENTING VOTING OR REGISTERING TO VOTE.—No 

16 person, whether acting under color of law or other17 wise, shall corruptly hinder, interfere with, or pre18 vent another person from voting, registering to vote, 

19 or aiding another person in voting or registering to 

20 vote in any election for Federal office. 

21 ‘‘(5) ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE DE22 FINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘election for 

23 Federal office’ means a general, special, primary, or 

24 runoff election held to nominate or elect a candidate 

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1 dential elector, or of Senator or Representative in, or 

2 Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the Con3 gress.’’. 

4 (b) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2004(c) of the Re6 vised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1971(c)) is amended— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘Whenever any person’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘(1) Whenever any person’’; and 

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

10 paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(2) Any person aggrieved by a violation of 

12 subsection (b)(2), subsection (b)(3), or subsection 

13 (b)(4) may institute a civil action for preventive re14 lief, including an application in a United States dis15 trict court for a permanent or temporary injunction, 

16 restraining order, or other order.’’. 

17 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 2004 

18 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1971) is amend19 ed— 

20 (A) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘sub21 section (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)(1)’’; 

22 and 

23 (B) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘sub24 section (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)(1)’’. 

25 (c) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 

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1 (1) INCREASE IN PENALTY FOR INTIMIDATION

2 OF VOTERS.—Section 594 of title 18, United States 

3 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘any candidate for the 

4 office’’ and all that follows and inserting the fol5 lowing: ‘‘any candidate in any election for Federal 

6 office shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not 

7 more than 5 years, or both. For purposes of this 

8 section, the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 

9 a general, special, primary, or runoff election held to 

10 nominate or elect a candidate for the office of Presi11 dent or Vice President, presidential elector, or of 

12 Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or Resi13 dent Commissioner to, the Congress.’’. 

14 (2) FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERAL

15 ELECTIONS.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, 

17 United States Code, is amended by adding at 

18 the end the following new section: 

19 ‘‘§ 612. False statements regarding Federal elections 

20 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for any per21 son, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, during 

22 the 90-day period which ends on the date of an election 

23 for Federal office, by any means, including by means of 

24 written, electronic, or telephonic communications, to com25 municate or cause to be communicated materially false inmstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with BILLS

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1 formation described in subsection (b), or produce materi2 ally false information described in subsection (b) with the 

3 intent that such information be communicated, if such 

4 person— 

5 ‘‘(1) knows such information to be false; and 

6 ‘‘(2) has the intent to mislead voters, or the in7 tent to impede, hinder, discourage, or prevent an8 other person from exercising the right to vote, in the 

9 election. 

10 ‘‘(b) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—Information de11 scribed in this subsection is information regarding— 

12 ‘‘(1) the time or place of holding any election 

13 for Federal office; or 

14 ‘‘(2) the qualifications for, or restrictions on eli15 gibility of, a voter in an election for Federal office, 

16 including— 

17 ‘‘(A) any criminal penalties associated with 

18 voting in any such election; or 

19 ‘‘(B) information regarding a voter’s reg20 istration status or eligibility. 

21 ‘‘(c) ATTEMPT.—Any person who attempts to commit 

22 any offense described in subsection (a) shall be subject to 

23 the same penalties as those prescribed for the offense that 

24 the person attempted to commit. 

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1 ‘‘(d) PENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 

2 (a) shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 

3 than 5 years, or both. 

4 ‘‘(e) ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE DEFINED.— 

5 In this section, the term ‘election for Federal office’ has 

6 the meaning given such term in section 594.’’. 

7 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

8 sections for chapter 29 of title 18, United 

9 States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

10 the following new item: 

‘‘612. False statements regarding Federal elections.’’. 

11 (3) HINDERING, INTERFERING WITH, OR PRE12 VENTING VOTING OR REGISTERING TO VOTE.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, 

14 United States Code, as amended by paragraph 

15 (2)(A), is further amended by adding at the end 

16 the following new section: 

17 ‘‘§ 613. Hindering, interfering with, or preventing vot18 ing or registering to vote 

19 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for any per20 son, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, to 

21 corruptly hinder, interfere with, or prevent another person 

22 from voting, registering to vote, or aiding another person 

23 in voting or registering to vote in any election for Federal 

24 office. 

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1 ‘‘(b) ATTEMPT.—Any person who attempts to commit 

2 any offense described in subsection (a) shall be subject to 

3 the same penalties as those prescribed for the offense that 

4 the person attempted to commit. 

5 ‘‘(c) PENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 

6 (a) shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 

7 than 5 years, or both. 

8 ‘‘(d) ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE DEFINED.— 

9 In this section, the term ‘election for Federal office’ has 

10 the meaning given such term in section 594.’’. 

11 (B) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

12 sections for chapter 29 of title 18, United 

13 States Code, as amended by paragraph (2)(B), 

14 is amended by adding at the end the following 

15 new item: 

‘‘613. Hindering, interfering with, or preventing voting or registering to vote.’’. 

16 (4) SENTENCING GUIDELINES.— 

17 (A) REVIEW AND AMENDMENT.—Not later 

18 than 180 days after the date of enactment of 

19 this Act, the United States Sentencing Commis20 sion, pursuant to its authority under section 

21 994 of title 28, United States Code, and in ac22 cordance with this section, shall review and, if 

23 appropriate, amend the Federal sentencing 

24 guidelines and policy statements applicable to 

25 persons convicted of any offense under chapter 

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1 29 of title 18, United States Code, to take into 

2 account the amendments made by this sub3 section. 

4 (B) AUTHORIZATION.—The United States 

5 Sentencing Commission may, for the purposes 

6 of carrying out subparagraph (A), amend the 

7 Federal sentencing guidelines in accordance 

8 with the procedures set forth in section 21(a) of 

9 the Sentencing Act of 1987 (28 U.S.C. 994 

10 note) as though the authority under that sec11 tion had not expired. 

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

13 this section shall apply with respect to elections held on 

14 or after the date of the enactment of this Act, except that 

15 no person may be found to have violated subsections (b)(2) 

16 or (b)(3) of section 2004(b) of the Revised Statutes (as 

17 added by subsection (a)), section 612 of title 18, United 

18 States Code (as added by subsection (c)(2)), or section 

19 613 of title 18, United States Code (as added by sub20 section (c)(3)) on the basis of any act occurring prior to 

21 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

22 SEC. 202. CORRECTIVE ACTION. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the Attorney General receives 

24 a credible report that materially false information regard25 ing an election for Federal office has been or is being commstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with BILLS

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1 municated in violation of section 2004(b)(2) of the Revised 

2 Statutes (as added by section 201(a)), and if the Attorney 

3 General determines that State and local election officials 

4 have not taken adequate steps to promptly communicate 

5 accurate information to correct the materially false infor6 mation, the Attorney General may, in his discretion, com7 municate to the public, by any means, including by means 

8 of written, electronic, or telephonic communications, accu9 rate information designed to correct such materially false 

10 information. 

11 (b) CONTENTS OF CORRECTIVE INFORMATION.—The 

12 corrective information communicated by the Attorney 

13 General under subsection (a) shall be accurate and objec14 tive, shall not be designed to favor or disfavor any par15 ticular candidate, organization, or political party, and 

16 shall consist of only the information necessary to correct 

17 the false statement that has been or is being commu18 nicated. 

19 (c) METHOD OF DISSEMINATION OF CORRECTIVE IN20 FORMATION.—When reasonably possible, any communica21 tion of corrective information under this section shall be 

22 by means that the Attorney General determines will reach 

23 the persons to whom the false statement has been or is 

24 being communicated. 

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1 SEC. 203. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

3 each regularly scheduled general election for Federal of4 fice, the Attorney General shall submit to the appropriate 

5 committees of Congress a report compiling all allegations 

6 of violations of section 2004(b)(2) of the Revised Statutes 

7 (as added by section 201(a)), section 2004(b)(3) of the 

8 Revised Statutes (as added by section 201(a)), and section 

9 612 of title 18, United States Code (as added by section 

10 201(c)(2)) which were received by the Attorney General 

11 with respect to such election and all other previous elec12 tions for Federal office which were held after the date of 

13 the previous regularly scheduled general election for Fed14 eral office. 

15 (b) CONTENTS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para17 graph (2), each report submitted under subsection 

18 (a) shall include— 

19 (A) descriptions of each allegation of a vio20 lation, including the geographic location and the 

21 racial and ethnic composition, as well as lan22 guage minority-group membership (if any), of 

23 the persons toward whom the alleged violation 

24 was directed; 

25 (B) the status of the investigation of each 

26 such allegation; 

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1 (C) descriptions of each corrective action 

2 taken under section 202(a) in response to such 

3 allegations; 

4 (D) descriptions of each referral of such an 

5 allegation to other Federal, State, or local agen6 cies; 

7 (E) descriptions of any civil litigation insti8 tuted under subsection (b)(2) or subsection 

9 (b)(3) of section 2004(b) of the Revised Stat10 utes (as added by section 201(a)) in connection 

11 with such allegations; and 

12 (F) descriptions of any criminal prosecu13 tion instituted under section 612 of title 18, 

14 United States Code (as added by section 

15 201(c)(2)) in connection with the receipt of 

16 such allegations. 

17 (2) EXCEPTION.—The Attorney General shall 

18 withhold from the report submitted under subsection 

19 (a) any information protected from disclosure by 

20 Rule 6(e) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Proce21 dure or any Federal criminal statute, and also may 

22 withhold from the report any privileged information, 

23 any information concerning ongoing investigations, 

24 any information concerning a criminal or civil pro25 ceeding conducted under seal, and any other nonmstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with BILLS

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1 public information the disclosure of which as deter2 mined by the Attorney General could reasonably be 

3 expected to infringe on the rights of any individual 

4 or adversely affect the integrity of a pending or fu5 ture criminal investigation. 

6 (c) REPORT MADE PUBLIC.—On the date that the 

7 Attorney General submits the report required under sub8 section (a), the Attorney General shall also make the re9 port publicly available through the Internet and other ap10 propriate means. 

11 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with 

12 respect to the regularly scheduled general election for Fed13 eral office held in November 2012 and each succeeding 

14 regularly scheduled general election for Federal office. 

15 SEC. 204. SEVERABILITY. 

16 If any provision of this title or any amendment made 

17 by this title, or the application of a provision or amend18 ment to any person or circumstance, is held to be uncon19 stitutional, the remainder of this title and the amendments 

20 made by this title, and the application of the provisions 

21 and amendments to any person or circumstance, shall not 

22 be affected by the holding. 

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1 SEC. 205. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Attor3 ney General such sums as may be necessary to carry out 

4 this title and the amendments made by this title. 

5 TITLE III—PROHIBITING VOTER 

6 CAGING 

7 SEC. 301. VOTER CAGING AND OTHER QUESTIONABLE 

8 CHALLENGES PROHIBITED. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 

10 States Code, as amended by section 201(a), is amended 

11 by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘§ 614. Voter caging and other questionable chal13 lenges 

14 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

15 ‘‘(1) the term ‘voter caging document’ means— 

16 ‘‘(A) a nonforwardable document that is 

17 returned to the sender or a third party as unde18 livered or undeliverable despite an attempt to 

19 deliver such document to the address of a reg20 istered voter or applicant; or 

21 ‘‘(B) any document with instructions to an 

22 addressee that the document be returned to the 

23 sender or a third party but is not so returned, 

24 despite an attempt to deliver such document to 

25 the address of a registered voter or applicant, 

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1 unless at least two Federal election cycles have 

2 passed since the date of the attempted delivery; 

3 ‘‘(2) the term ‘voter caging list’ means a list of 

4 individuals compiled from voter caging documents; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(3) the term ‘unverified match list’ means a 

7 list produced by matching the information of reg8 istered voters or applicants for voter registration to 

9 a list of individuals who are ineligible to vote in the 

10 registrar’s jurisdiction, by virtue of death, convic11 tion, change of address, or otherwise; unless one of 

12 the pieces of information matched includes a signa13 ture, photograph, or unique identifying number en14 suring that the information from each source refers 

15 to the same individual. 

16 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION AGAINST VOTER CAGING.—No 

17 State or local election official shall prevent an individual 

18 from registering or voting in any election for Federal of19 fice, or permit in connection with any election for Federal 

20 office a formal challenge under State law to an individual’s 

21 registration status or eligibility to vote, if the basis for 

22 such decision is evidence consisting of— 

23 ‘‘(1) a voter caging document or voter caging 

24 list; 

25 ‘‘(2) an unverified match list; 

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1 ‘‘(3) an error or omission on any record or 

2 paper relating to any application, registration, or 

3 other act requisite to voting, if such error or omis4 sion is not material to an individual’s eligibility to 

5 vote under section 2004 of the Revised Statutes, as 

6 amended (42 U.S.C. 1971(a)(2)(B)); or 

7 ‘‘(4) any other evidence so designated for pur8 poses of this section by the Election Assistance Com9 mission, 

10 except that the election official may use such evidence if 

11 it is corroborated by independent evidence of the individ12 ual’s ineligibility to register or vote. 

13 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR CHALLENGES BY PERSONS

14 OTHER THAN ELECTION OFFICIALS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) ATTESTATION OF FIRST-HAND KNOWL16 EDGE OF INELIGIBILITY.—No person, other than a 

17 State or local election official, shall submit a formal 

18 challenge to an individual’s eligibility to register to 

19 vote in an election for Federal office or to vote in 

20 an election for Federal office unless that challenge 

21 is supported by personal, first-hand knowledge re22 garding the grounds for ineligibility which is— 

23 ‘‘(A) documented in writing; and 

24 ‘‘(B) subject to an oath or attestation 

25 under penalty of perjury that the individual 

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1 who is the subject of the challenge is ineligible 

2 to register to vote or vote in that election. 

3 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITING CHALLENGES BASED ON

4 CERTAIN EVIDENCE.—No person, other than a State 

5 or local election official, shall submit a formal chal6 lenge to an individual’s eligibility to register to vote 

7 in an election for Federal office or to vote in an elec8 tion for Federal office if the basis for such challenge 

9 is evidence consisting of— 

10 ‘‘(A) a voter caging document or voter cag11 ing list; 

12 ‘‘(B) an unverified match list; 

13 ‘‘(C) an error or omission on any record or 

14 paper relating to any application, registration, 

15 or other act requisite to voting, if such error or 

16 omission is not material to an individual’s eligi17 bility to vote under section 2004 of the Revised 

18 Statutes, as amended (42 U.S.C. 

19 1971(a)(2)(B)); or 

20 ‘‘(D) any other evidence so designated for 

21 purposes of this section by the Election Assist22 ance Commission. 

23 ‘‘(d) PENALTIES FOR KNOWING MISCONDUCT.— 

24 Whoever knowingly challenges the eligibility of one or 

25 more individuals to register or vote or knowingly causes 

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1 the eligibility of such individuals to be challenged in viola2 tion of this section with the intent that one or more eligi3 ble voters be disqualified, shall be fined under this title 

4 or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both, for each 

5 such violation. Each violation shall be a separate offense. 

6 ‘‘(e) NO EFFECT ON RELATED LAWS.—Nothing in 

7 this section is intended to override the protections of the 

8 National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 

9 1973gg et seq.) or to affect the Voting Rights Act of 1965 

10 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.).’’. 

11 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

12 for chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, as amended 

13 by section 201(b), is amended by adding at the end the 

14 following: 

‘‘614. Voter caging and other questionable challenges.’’. 

15 SEC. 302. SEVERABILITY. 

16 If any provision of this title or any amendment made 

17 by this title, or the application of a provision to any person 

18 or circumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the re19 mainder of this title and the amendments made by this 

20 title, and the application of the provisions to any person 

21 or circumstance, shall not be affected by the holding. 

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1 TITLE IV—RESTORING VOTING 

2 RIGHTS 

3 SEC. 401. RIGHTS OF CITIZENS. 

4 The right of an individual who is a citizen of the 

5 United States to vote in any election for Federal office 

6 shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has 

7 been convicted of a criminal offense unless such individual 

8 is serving a felony sentence in a correctional institution 

9 or facility at the time of the election. 

10 SEC. 402. ENFORCEMENT. 

11 (a) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The Attorney General 

12 may, in a civil action, obtain such declaratory or injunctive 

13 relief as is necessary to remedy a violation of this title. 

14 (b) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

15 (1) NOTICE TO ELECTION OFFICIAL.—A person 

16 who is aggrieved by a violation of this title may pro17 vide written notice of the violation to the chief elec18 tion official of the State involved. 

19 (2) ACTION PERMITTED.—Except as provided 

20 in paragraph (3), if the violation is not corrected 

21 within 90 days after receipt of a notice under para22 graph (1), or within 20 days after receipt of the no23 tice if the violation occurred within 120 days before 

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1 grieved person may, in a civil action obtain declara2 tory or injunctive relief with respect to the violation. 

3 (3) WAIVER OF NOTICE FOR VIOLATIONS OC4 CURRING NEAR DATE OF ELECTION.—If the viola5 tion occurred within 30 days before the date of an 

6 election for Federal office, the aggrieved person need 

7 not provide notice to the chief election official of the 

8 State under paragraph (1) before bringing a civil ac9 tion to obtain declaratory or injunctive relief with re10 spect to the violation. 

11 SEC. 403. NOTIFICATION OF RESTORATION OF VOTING 

12 RIGHTS. 

13 (a) STATE NOTIFICATION.— 

14 (1) NOTIFICATION.—On the date determined 

15 under paragraph (2), each State shall notify in writ16 ing any individual who has been convicted of a 

17 criminal offense under the law of that State that 

18 such individual has the right to vote in an election 

19 for Federal office pursuant to this title and may reg20 ister to vote in any such election. 

21 (2) DATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 

22 (A) FELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 

23 such an individual who has been convicted of a 

24 felony, the notification required under paramstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with BILLS

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1 graph (1) shall be given on the date on which 

2 the individual— 

3 (i) is sentenced to serve only a term 

4 of probation; or 

5 (ii) is released from the custody of 

6 that State (other than to the custody of 

7 another State or the Federal Government 

8 to serve a term of imprisonment for a fel9 ony conviction). 

10 (B) MISDEMEANOR CONVICTION.—In the 

11 case of such an individual who has been con12 victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re13 quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 

14 the date on which such individual is sentenced. 

15 (b) FEDERAL NOTIFICATION.— 

16 (1) NOTIFICATION.—On the date determined 

17 under paragraph (2), the Director of the Bureau of 

18 Prisons shall notify in writing any individual who 

19 has been convicted of a criminal offense under Fed20 eral law that such individual has the right to vote 

21 in an election for Federal office pursuant to this 

22 title and may register to vote in any such election. 

23 (2) DATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 

24 (A) FELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 

25 such an individual who has been convicted of a 

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1 felony, the notification required under para2 graph (1) shall be given on the date on which 

3 the individual— 

4 (i) is sentenced to serve only a term 

5 of probation by a court established by an 

6 Act of Congress; or 

7 (ii) is released from the custody of the 

8 Bureau of Prisons (other than to the cus9 tody of a State to serve a term of impris10 onment for a felony conviction). 

11 (B) MISDEMEANOR CONVICTION.—In the 

12 case of such an individual who has been con13 victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re14 quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 

15 the date on which such individual is sentenced. 

16 SEC. 404. DEFINITIONS. 

17 For purposes of this title: 

18 (1) CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION OR FACIL19 ITY.—The term ‘‘correctional institution or facility’’ 

20 means any prison, penitentiary, jail, or other institu21 tion or facility for the confinement of individuals 

22 convicted of criminal offenses, whether publicly or 

23 privately operated, except that such term does not 

24 include any residential community treatment center 

25 (or similar public or private facility). 

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1 (2) ELECTION.—The term ‘‘election’’ means— 

2 (A) a general, special, primary, or runoff 

3 election; 

4 (B) a convention or caucus of a political 

5 party held to nominate a candidate; 

6 (C) a primary election held for the selec7 tion of delegates to a national nominating con8 vention of a political party; or 

9 (D) a primary election held for the expres10 sion of a preference for the nomination of per11 sons for election to the office of President. 

12 (3) FEDERAL OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Federal of13 fice’’ means the office of President or Vice President 

14 of the United States, or of Senator or Representa15 tive in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, 

16 the Congress of the United States. 

17 (4) PROBATION.—The term ‘‘probation’’ means 

18 probation, imposed by a Federal, State, or local 

19 court, with or without a condition on the individual 

20 involved concerning— 

21 (A) the individual’s freedom of movement; 

22 (B) the payment of damages by the indi23 vidual; 

24 (C) periodic reporting by the individual to 

25 an officer of the court; or 

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1 (D) supervision of the individual by an of2 ficer of the court. 

3 SEC. 405. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS. 

4 (a) STATE LAWS RELATING TO VOTING RIGHTS.— 

5 Nothing in this title shall be construed to prohibit the 

6 States enacting any State law which affords the right to 

7 vote in any election for Federal office on terms less restric8 tive than those established by this title. 

9 (b) CERTAIN FEDERAL ACTS.—The rights and rem10 edies established by this title are in addition to all other 

11 rights and remedies provided by law, and neither rights 

12 and remedies established by this title shall supersede, re13 strict, or limit the application of the Voting Rights Act 

14 of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.) or the National Voter 

15 Registration Act (42 U.S.C. 1973–gg). 

16 SEC. 406. FEDERAL PRISON FUNDS. 

17 No State, unit of local government, or other person 

18 may receive or use, to construct or otherwise improve a 

19 prison, jail, or other place of incarceration, any Federal 

20 grant amounts unless that person has in effect a program 

21 under which each individual incarcerated in that person’s 

22 jurisdiction who is a citizen of the United States is noti23 fied, upon release from such incarceration, of that individ24 ual’s rights under section 401. 

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1 SEC. 407. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

2 This title shall apply to citizens of the United States 

3 voting in any election for Federal office held after the date 

4 of the enactment of this Act. 

5 TITLE V—ELECTION DAY AS 

6 LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAY 

7 SEC. 501. TREATMENT OF ELECTION DAY IN SAME MANNER 

8 AS LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAY FOR PURPOSES 

9 OF FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT. 

10 For purposes of any law relating to Federal employ11 ment, the Tuesday next after the first Monday in Novem12 ber in 2012 and each even-numbered year thereafter shall 

13 be treated in the same manner as a legal public holiday 

14 described in section 6103 of title 5, United States Code. 

15 SEC. 502. STUDY BY COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF IMPACT 

16 ON VOTER PARTICIPATION. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General shall 

18 conduct a study of the impact of section 501 on voter par19 ticipation. 

20 (b) REPORT.—Not later than May 1, 2017, the 

21 Comptroller General shall submit a report to Congress and 

22 the President on the results of the study conducted under 

23 subsection (a). 

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1 SEC. 503. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING TREATMENT 

2 OF DAY BY PRIVATE EMPLOYERS. 

3 It is the sense of Congress that private employers in 

4 the United States should give their employees a day off 

5 on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November 

6 in 2012 and each even-numbered year thereafter to enable 

7 the employees to cast votes in the elections held on that 

8 day. 

Æ 

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