II 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3212 

To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to provide for auditable, 

independent verification of ballots, to ensure the security of voting systems, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 26, 2008 

Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself and Mr. BENNETT) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration 

A BILL 

To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to provide 

for auditable, independent verification of ballots, to ensure the security of voting systems, 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 ‘‘Bipartisan Electronic Voting Reform Act of 2008’’. 

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

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 


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Sec. 2. Independent verification of ballots. 

Sec. 3. Audits. 

Sec. 4. Election security. 

Sec. 5. Testing and certification. 

Sec. 6. Research and development. 

Sec. 7. Reauthorization of requirements payments. 

Sec. 8. Technical guidelines development committee. 

Sec. 9. Prohibiting refusal to accept voter registration and absentee ballot applications and federal write-in absentee ballots for failure to 

meet nonessential requirements. 

Sec. 10. Ballot layout design. 

1 SEC. 2. INDEPENDENT VERIFICATION OF BALLOTS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Clause (i) of section 301(a)(1)(A) 

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

4 15481(a)(1)(A)(i)) is amended by inserting ‘‘and, in the 

5 case of any voting system other than a voting system 

6 which uses paper ballots that are personally marked by 

7 the voter, in the manner provided in paragraph (7),’’ after 

8 ‘‘(in a private and independent manner’’. 

9 (b) METHOD OF VERIFICATION FOR CERTAIN VOT10 ING SYSTEMS.—Section 301(a) of the Help America Vote 

11 Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481(a)) is amended by adding 

12 at the end the following new paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(7) METHOD OF INDEPENDENT

14 VERIFICATION.—In order to meet the requirements 

15 of paragraph (1)(A)(i) with respect to any voting 

16 system to which this paragraph applies: 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The voting system 

18 shall provide for verification of the votes se19 lected by the voter by a means that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) is independent of the device on 

2 which the vote is cast; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) permits verification through the 

4 use of— 

5 ‘‘(I) a paper record; 

6 ‘‘(II) an electronic record; 

7 ‘‘(III) an audio record; 

8 ‘‘(IV) a video record; 

9 ‘‘(V) a pictorial record; or 

10 ‘‘(VI) another independently pro11 duced record. 

12 ‘‘(B) AUDIT CAPACITY.—The final record 

13 used for independent verification under sub14 paragraph (A) for each voter shall be auditable. 

15 ‘‘(C) ACCESSIBILITY FOR INDIVIDUALS

16 WITH DISABILITIES AND LANGUAGE MINORI17 TIES.—Any method of independent verification 

18 under subparagraph (A) shall— 

19 ‘‘(i) be accessible for individuals with 

20 disabilities, including nonvisual accessi21 bility for the blind and visually impaired, 

22 in a manner that provides the same oppor23 tunity for access and participation (includ24 ing privacy and independence) as for other 

25 voters; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) provide alternative language ac2 cessibility pursuant to the requirements of 

3 section 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 

4 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973aa–1a). 

5 ‘‘(D) VOTING SYSTEMS TO WHICH THIS

6 PARAGRAPH APPLIES.—The requirements of 

7 this paragraph apply to any voting system other 

8 than— 

9 ‘‘(i) a voting system which uses paper 

10 ballots that are personally marked by the 

11 voter; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) a voting system purchased before 

13 January 1, 2009, in order to meet the re14 quirements of paragraph (3)(B).’’. 

15 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (d) of section 301 

16 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15481(d)) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘Each State’’ and inserting the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), each State’’; and 

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

22 paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(2) INDEPENDENT VERIFICATION PROVI24 SIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each State and juris2 diction shall be required to comply with the re3 quirements of paragraph (7) of subsection (a) 

4 on and after January 1, 2012. 

5 ‘‘(B) WAIVER.—In the case of a State or 

6 jurisdiction which is granted a waiver by the 

7 Election Assistance Commission pursuant to 

8 this subparagraph, subparagraph (A) shall be 

9 applied by substituting ‘2014’ for ‘2012’.’’. 

10 SEC. 3. AUDITS. 

11 (a) PURPOSE.—The purposes of this section are— 

12 (1) to ensure that each certificate of election 

13 awarded under State law is justified by the vote to14 tals; 

15 (2) to ensure that, even in elections where the 

16 results are not close, individual votes are counted 

17 correctly; and 

18 (3) to provide information to election officials 

19 for the improvement of election processes and tech20 nologies. 

21 (b) MANDATORY AUDITS.— 

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

23 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481 

24 et seq.) is amended by redesignating sections 304 

25 and 305 as sections 305 and 306, respectively, and 


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1 by inserting after section 303 the following new sec2 tion: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 304. ELECTION AUDITS. 

4 ‘‘(a) AUDITS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to each elec6 tion for Federal office, each State shall conduct an 

7 audit. 

8 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—Each audit 

9 under this section shall be conducted in a public and 

10 transparent manner. 

11 ‘‘(3) AUDIT REPORTS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) STATE SUBMISSION OF REPORT.— 

13 Each State shall submit to the Commission a 

14 report, in such form as provided by the Com15 mission, on the results of the audit conducted 

16 under this section. 

17 ‘‘(B) PUBLICATION.—The Commission 

18 shall publish each report submitted under sub19 paragraph (A) upon receipt. 

20 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Each State shall be re21 quired to comply with the requirements of this section on 

22 and after the date such State is required to comply with 

23 the requirements under section 301(a)(7).’’. 

24 (2) AVAILABILITY OF ENFORCEMENT UNDER

25 HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002.—Section 401 of 


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1 such Act (42 U.S.C. 15511) is amended by striking 

2 ‘‘and 303’’ and inserting ‘‘303, and 304’’. 

3 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con4 tents of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 is 

5 amended by striking the items relating to sections 

6 304 and 305 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 304. Election audits. 

‘‘Sec. 305. Minimum requirements. 

‘‘Sec. 306. Methods of implementation left to discretion of State.’’. 

7 (c) REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE PLANS.—Section 

8 254(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 

9 15404(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following 

10 new paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(14) A description of the audit procedures 

12 that will be used by the State for the purpose of 

13 conducting audits under section 304(a).’’. 

14 (d) MODEL AUDIT GUIDELINES.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title II of the 

16 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15321 

17 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol18 lowing new part: 

19 ‘‘PART 4—MODEL AUDIT GUIDELINES. 

20 ‘‘SEC. 223. AUDIT GUIDELINES DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE. 

21 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commission shall es22 tablish an Audit Guidelines Development Task Force 

23 (hereafter in this part referred to as the ‘Task Force’). 

24 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Task Force shall be 

2 composed of individuals who are experts in such 

3 fields as election audits, physical security of ballots, 

4 recounts, computer technology, and election manage5 ment. The composition of the Task Force shall (to 

6 the extent possible) reflect the demographic composi7 tion of the voting age population of the United 

8 States. 

9 ‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—The Commission shall 

10 consult with the Director of the National Institute of 

11 Standards and Technologies on— 

12 ‘‘(A) the composition of the Task Force; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(B) the appointment of members to the 

15 Task Force. 

16 ‘‘(c) DUTIES.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Task Force shall as18 sist the Commission in developing model audit 

19 guidelines for administrative and procedural prac20 tices to ensure efficient, transparent, and accurate 

21 audits of Federal elections. Such guidelines shall in22 clude best practices with respect to auditing Federal 

23 elections using the following independently verified 

24 records under section 301(a)(7): 

25 ‘‘(A) Paper records. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Electronic records. 

2 ‘‘(C) Audio records. 

3 ‘‘(D) Video records. 

4 ‘‘(E) Pictorial records. 

5 ‘‘(F) Other independently produced 

6 records. 

7 ‘‘(2) DEADLINE FOR INITIAL SET OF REC8 OMMENDATIONS.—The Task Force shall provide its 

9 first set of recommendations under this section to 

10 the Executive Director of the Commission not later 

11 than 1 year after the Task Force is established. 

12 ‘‘(d) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing the model 

13 audit guidelines under subsection (c), the Task Force shall 

14 consider— 

15 ‘‘(1) the time, place, and manner for conducting 

16 audits; 

17 ‘‘(2) processes for completing manual audits of 

18 independently verified records under section 

19 301(a)(7) comparing such records with vote tallies; 

20 ‘‘(3) the cost and burden on local election offi21 cials of conducting an audit; 

22 ‘‘(4) the personnel and management require23 ments of conducting audits; 

24 ‘‘(5) recommended protocols for auditing the se25 curity of elections, including chain of custody protoVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:56 Jul 01, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3212.IS S3212

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1 cols, the maintenance, security, and accuracy of 

2 voter registration lists, and other procedures; and 

3 ‘‘(6) the interaction of audits with State laws, 

4 including laws pertaining to recounts. 

5 ‘‘(e) PUBLICATION OF REPORT.—The Task Force 

6 shall make its recommendations to the Commission public 

7 upon delivering them to the Commission. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 224. PROCESS FOR ADOPTION. 

9 ‘‘The Commission shall provide for publication of the 

10 recommendations from the Task Force, an opportunity for 

11 public comment on the proposed model audit guidelines, 

12 and an opportunity for a public hearing on the record. 

13 Final model audit guidelines shall be adopted by the Com14 mission after a majority vote of the members of the Com15 mission.’’. 

16 (2) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 202 of 

17 such Act (42 U.S.C. 15322) is amended by striking 

18 ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph (5), by striking the 

19 period at the end of paragraph (6) and inserting ‘‘; 

20 and’’, and by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(7) carrying out the duties described in part 4 

23 (relating to the adoption of model audit guidelines), 

24 including the maintenance of a clearinghouse of in25 formation on the experiences of State and local govVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:56 Jul 01, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3212.IS S3212

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1 ernments in implementing the guidelines and in con2 ducting audits in general.’’. 

3 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con4 tents of such Act is amended by inserting after the 

5 item relating to section 222 the following: 

‘‘PART 4—MODEL AUDIT GUIDELINES

‘‘Sec. 223. Audit Guidelines Development Task Force. 

‘‘Sec. 224. Process for adoption.’’. 

6 SEC. 4. ELECTION SECURITY. 

7 (a) CHAIN OF CUSTODY PROTOCOLS AND DISCLO8 SURE.— 

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

10 America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481(a)), as 

11 amended by section 2(a), is amended by adding at 

12 the end the following new paragraphs: 

13 ‘‘(8) CHAIN OF CUSTODY PROTOCOLS.—No vot14 ing system may be used in an election for Federal 

15 office unless the chain of custody for the handling 

16 of all voting systems, technologies, and other innova17 tions used in connection with voting systems for 

18 independent verification and for other voting proc19 esses and purposes (including ballots and independ20 ently verified records under section 301(a)(7)) is 

21 documented by State election officials, under stand22 ards developed by the State, and made available to 

23 the Commission upon request. 


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1 ‘‘(9) DISCLOSURE.— 

2 ‘‘(A) DISCLOSURE OF ELECTION-DEDI3 CATED SOFTWARE.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—No voting system 

5 shall at any time contain or use any elec6 tion-dedicated software unless such soft7 ware has been disclosed as provided under 

8 clause (ii). 

9 ‘‘(ii) DISCLOSURE.—Software dis10 closed under this subparagraph shall be 

11 disclosed to the Commission and to any 

12 State using such voting system in elec13 tronic form and shall include such informa14 tion as is necessary to assess the integrity 

15 and efficacy of such software. 

16 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE OF OTHER SOFT17 WARE.—No voting system shall at any time 

18 contain or use any software other than election19 dedicated software unless the manufacturer of 

20 such software discloses in electronic form such 

21 information as the Commission determines ap22 propriate to the Commission, the National In23 stitute of Standards and Technology, and the 

24 Chief State election official of any State using 

25 such voting system. 


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1 ‘‘(C) TIMING OF DISCLOSURE.—Any dis2 closure required under subparagraph (A) or (B) 

3 shall be made before any voting system con4 taining such software is used in an election for 

5 Federal office, except that in the case of soft6 ware additions or patches which are necessary 

7 for the secure and proper functioning of the 

8 voting system and the disclosure of which can9 not be made in adequate time prior to the elec10 tion, such disclosure shall be made in a reason11 able period of time after the election. 

12 ‘‘(D) STORAGE OF SOFTWARE.—The Com13 mission shall transmit the information disclosed 

14 under subparagraphs (A) and (B) to an entity 

15 selected by the National Institute of Standards 

16 and Technology, in consultation with the Com17 mission. 

18 ‘‘(E) USE OF INFORMATION.— 

19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Information dis20 closed under this paragraph may not be 

21 provided to any person except as provided 

22 in this subparagraph. 

23 ‘‘(ii) DISCLOSURE TO GOVERNMENTAL

24 ENTITIES.—Information disclosed under 

25 this paragraph may be provided to the 


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1 Commission, the National Institute of 

2 Standards and Technology, the Chief State 

3 election official of any State using such 

4 electronic voting software in a voting sys5 tem, or any other Federal or State govern6 mental entity responsible for the adminis7 tration or enforcement of election laws, but 

8 only for the purposes of administering or 

9 enforcing election laws, or for review, anal10 ysis, and reporting as provided in subpara11 graphs (F) and (G). 

12 ‘‘(iii) DISCLOSURE TO PARTIES IN

13 LITIGATION.—Information disclosed under 

14 this paragraph may be provided to a party 

15 involved in litigation with respect to an 

16 election in which such electronic voting 

17 software is used, but only if such informa18 tion is disclosed— 

19 ‘‘(I) pursuant to the order of a 

20 judge after a showing— 

21 ‘‘(aa) of need; and 

22 ‘‘(bb) that such information 

23 is directly related to the litiga24 tion; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) to all parties involved in 

2 such litigation. 

3 Information disclosed under this clause 

4 may only be disclosed to the extent nec5 essary for the review and analysis of such 

6 information (as provided in subparagraphs 

7 (F) and (G)) for use in such litigation. 

8 ‘‘(iv) DISCLOSURE TO OTHER PER9 SONS.—Information disclosed under this 

10 paragraph may be provided to independent 

11 technical experts and other persons and 

12 entities consistent with standards estab13 lished by the Commission, but only for 

14 purposes of reviewing, analyzing, and re15 porting on the operation of such software 

16 as provided in subparagraphs (F) and (G). 

17 ‘‘(F) SCOPE OF REVIEW, ANALYSIS, AND

18 REPORTING.—The review, analysis, and report19 ing of software permitted under subparagraph 

20 (E) may only consist of the following: 

21 ‘‘(i) In the case of election-dedicated 

22 software, performing review and analysis 

23 of the software, disclosing reports and 

24 analysis that describe operational issues 

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1 rors, risks associated with use, failures as 

2 a result of use, and other operational 

3 issues), and describing or explaining why 

4 or how a voting system failed or otherwise 

5 did not perform as intended, but only if 

6 the information published does not com7 promise the integrity of the software or re8 sult in the disclosure of trade secrets or 

9 other confidential commercial information, 

10 or violate intellectual property rights in 

11 such software. 

12 ‘‘(ii) In the case of software other 

13 than election-dedicated software, per14 forming review and analysis of the soft15 ware, and issuing reports that describe 

16 operational issues, but only if the informa17 tion published does not compromise the in18 tegrity of the software or result in the dis19 closure of trade secrets or other confiden20 tial commercial information, or violate in21 tellectual property rights in such software. 

22 ‘‘(G) PROTECTION OF INFORMATION PRO23 VIDED THROUGH DISCLOSURE.—Any recipient 

24 of information disclosed under this paragraph— 


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1 ‘‘(i) shall not compromise the integrity 

2 of the software with respect to which such 

3 information relates; 

4 ‘‘(ii) shall not disclose any trade se5 crets or other confidential commercial in6 formation with respect to such software; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(iii) shall not violate any intellectual 

9 property rights in such software. 

10 The Commission shall develop a process with 

11 manufacturers and holders of intellectual prop12 erty to ensure compliance with the requirements 

13 of this subparagraph. 

14 ‘‘(H) ELECTION-DEDICATED SOFTWARE.— 

15 For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘elec16 tion-dedicated software’ means software that— 

17 ‘‘(i) is specifically designed for use 

18 primarily in a voting system; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) has been specifically modified for 

20 use primarily in a voting system, but only 

21 to the extent of such modification.’’. 

22 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 301(d)(2)(A) of 

23 such Act, as added by section 2(c), is amended by 

24 striking ‘‘paragraph (7)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraphs 

25 (7), (8), and (9)’’. 


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1 (b) MINIMUM STANDARDS TO ENSURE INTEGRITY

2 OF VOTING PROCESS AND EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF

3 POLL WORKERS.—Section 254(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

4 15404(a)), as amended by section 3(c), is amended by 

5 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(15) How the State will establish minimum 

7 standards with respect to— 

8 ‘‘(A) ensuring the integrity of the voting 

9 process at the polling place on Election Day 

10 (which may include standards with respect to 

11 chain of custody, parallel testing of voting sys12 tems, routine inspections of polling places for 

13 the use of appropriate polling procedures, and 

14 other processes); and 

15 ‘‘(B) the education and training of poll 

16 workers (which may include standards with re17 spect to Federal and State law requirements, 

18 voting systems, the provision of contact infor19 mation, and other processes).’’. 

20 (c) CONTINGENCY PLANS.—Section 254(a) of such 

21 Act (42 U.S.C. 15404(a)), as amended by subsection (b), 

22 is amended by adding at the end the following new para23 graph: 

24 ‘‘(16) How the State will provide for contin25 gency plans in the event of voting system failures 


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1 and other events, such as national or State emer2 gencies, that may impact the results of an election 

3 for Federal office, including— 

4 ‘‘(A) how the State will ensure the integ5 rity of the voting process on election day— 

6 ‘‘(i) at the polling place (which may 

7 include the use of emergency ballots by 

8 means of a paper record, an electronic 

9 record, an audio record, a video record, a 

10 pictorial record, or another independently 

11 produced record); and 

12 ‘‘(ii) at any place other than the poll13 ing place; 

14 ‘‘(B) if the State provides for the use of 

15 emergency paper ballots, how the State will 

16 comply with the accessibility requirements for 

17 individuals with disabilities under section 

18 301(a)(3)(A) and the alternative language ac19 cessibility requirements under section 

20 301(a)(4); and 

21 ‘‘(C) the selection of polling locations that 

22 are best able to manage voting system failures 

23 and other events that may impact the elec24 tion.’’. 


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1 (d) VOLUNTARY VOTING SYSTEM GUIDELINES.— 

2 Section 222 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15362) is amended 

3 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

4 ‘‘(f) 2007 GUIDELINES.—The 2007 Voluntary Voting 

5 System Guidelines shall be the voluntary voting system 

6 guidelines referred to in this part as of the date such 

7 guidelines are adopted by the Commission under sub8 section (d). Nothing in the preceding sentence shall be 

9 construed to limit the authority of the Development Com10 mittee or the Commission to modify such guidelines or to 

11 issue new guidelines or recommendations.’’. 

12 SEC. 5. TESTING AND CERTIFICATION. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 231(b) of the Help Amer14 ica Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15371(b)) is amended 

15 by adding at the end the following new paragraphs: 

16 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITING CONFLICTS OF INTEREST; 

17 ENSURING AVAILABILITY OF RESULTS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A laboratory may not 

19 be accredited by the Commission for purposes 

20 of this section unless— 

21 ‘‘(i) the laboratory certifies that the 

22 only compensation it receives for the test23 ing carried out in connection with the cer24 tification, decertification, and recertifi25 cation of the manufacturer’s voting system 


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1 hardware and software is the payment 

2 made from the Testing Escrow Account 

3 under paragraph (4); 

4 ‘‘(ii) the laboratory meets such stand5 ards as the Commission shall establish 

6 (after notice and opportunity for public 

7 comment) to prevent the existence or ap8 pearance of any conflict of interest in the 

9 testing carried out by the laboratory under 

10 this section, including standards to ensure 

11 that the laboratory does not have a finan12 cial interest in the manufacture, sale, and 

13 distribution of voting system hardware and 

14 software, and is sufficiently independent 

15 from other persons with such an interest; 

16 ‘‘(iii) the laboratory certifies that it 

17 will permit an expert designated by the 

18 Commission to observe any testing the lab19 oratory carries out under this section; and 

20 ‘‘(iv) the laboratory, upon completion 

21 of any testing carried out under this sec22 tion, discloses the test protocols, results, 

23 and all communication between the labora24 tory and the manufacturer to the Commis25 sion. 


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1 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY OF RESULTS.—Upon 

2 receipt of information under subparagraph (A), 

3 the Commission shall make the information 

4 available promptly to election officials and the 

5 public. The Commission shall ensure such dis6 closure does not include any trade secrets or 

7 confidential information and does not violate in8 tellectual property rights. 

9 ‘‘(4) PROCEDURES FOR CONDUCTING TESTING; 

10 PAYMENT OF USER FEES FOR COMPENSATION OF

11 ACCREDITED LABORATORIES.— 

12 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT OF ESCROW AC13 COUNT.—The Commission shall establish an es14 crow account (to be known as the ‘Testing Es15 crow Account’) for making payments to accred16 ited laboratories for the costs of testing carried 

17 out in connection with the certification, decerti18 fication, and recertification of voting system 

19 hardware and software. 

20 ‘‘(B) SCHEDULE OF FEES.—In consulta21 tion with the accredited laboratories, the Com22 mission shall establish and regularly update a 

23 schedule of fees for testing carried out in con24 nection with the certification, decertification, 

25 and recertification of voting system hardware 


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1 and software, based on the reasonable costs ex2 pected to be incurred by the accredited labora3 tories in carrying out such testing for various 

4 types of hardware and software. 

5 ‘‘(C) REQUESTS AND PAYMENTS BY MANU6 FACTURERS.—A manufacturer of voting system 

7 hardware and software may not have the hard8 ware or software tested by an accredited labora9 tory under this section unless— 

10 ‘‘(i) the manufacturer submits such 

11 system for testing to the Commission; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) the manufacturer pays to the 

13 Commission, for deposit into the Testing 

14 Escrow Account established under sub15 paragraph (A), the applicable fee under the 

16 schedule established and in effect under 

17 subparagraph (B). 

18 ‘‘(D) SELECTION OF LABORATORY.—Upon 

19 receiving a system submitted for testing and the 

20 payment from a manufacturer required under 

21 subparagraph (C), the Commission shall select 

22 at random, to the greatest extent possible, from 

23 all laboratories which are accredited under this 

24 section, a laboratory to carry out the testing. 


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1 ‘‘(E) PAYMENTS TO LABORATORIES.— 

2 Upon receiving a certification from a laboratory 

3 selected to carry out testing pursuant to sub4 paragraph (D) that testing is completed, along 

5 with a copy of the results of the test as re6 quired under paragraph (3)(A)(iv), the Com7 mission shall make a payment to the laboratory 

8 from the Testing Escrow Account established 

9 under subparagraph (A) in an amount equal to 

10 the applicable fee paid by the manufacturer 

11 under subparagraph (C)(ii). 

12 ‘‘(5) DISSEMINATION OF ADDITIONAL INFORMA13 TION ON ACCREDITED LABORATORIES.— 

14 ‘‘(A) INFORMATION ON TESTING.—The 

15 Commission shall disseminate to the public the 

16 identification of the laboratory which carried 

17 out the testing. 

18 ‘‘(B) LABORATORIES WITH ACCREDITA19 TION REVOKED OR SUSPENDED.—If the Com20 mission revokes, terminates, or suspends the ac21 creditation of a laboratory under this section, or 

22 if the Commission has credible evidence of sig23 nificant security failures at accredited labora24 tories, the Commission shall promptly notify 


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1 Congress, the chief State election official of 

2 each State, and the public.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 231 of 

4 such Act (42 U.S.C. 15371) is further amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘testing, 

6 certification,’’ and all that follows and inserting the 

7 following: ‘‘testing of voting system hardware and 

8 software by accredited laboratories in connection 

9 with the certification, decertification, and recertifi10 cation of the hardware and software for purposes of 

11 this Act.’’; 

12 (2) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ‘‘testing, 

13 certification,’’ and all that follows and inserting the 

14 following: ‘‘testing of its voting system hardware and 

15 software by the laboratories accredited by the Com16 mission under this section in connection with certi17 fying, decertifying, and recertifying such hardware.’’; 

18 (3) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘testing, 

19 certification, decertification, and recertification’’ and 

20 inserting ‘‘testing’’; and 

21 (4) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘testing, cer22 tification, decertification, and recertification’’ each 

23 place it appears and inserting ‘‘testing’’. 

24 (c) DEADLINE FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS

25 AND ESCROW ACCOUNT.—The Election Assistance ComVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:56 Jul 01, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3212.IS S3212

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1 mission shall establish the standards described in section 

2 231(b)(3) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 and the 

3 Testing Escrow Account described in section 231(b)(4) of 

4 such Act (as added by subparagraph (A)) not later than 

5 than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 6. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. 

7 (a) GRANTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING

8 OF NEW VOTING SYSTEMS, TECHNOLOGIES, AND INNOVA9 TIONS.— 

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

11 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15321 

12 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol13 lowing new section: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 248. GRANTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING 

15 OF NEW VOTING SYSTEMS, TECHNOLOGIES, 

16 AND INNOVATIONS. 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall, in con18 sultation with the National Institute of Standards and 

19 Technology, make grants to qualified academic and re20 search institutions for the development and testing of new 

21 voting systems, technologies, and innovations for purposes 

22 of meeting the independent verification requirements 

23 under section 301(a)(7). 

24 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—An academic and research insti25 tution is eligible to receive a grant under this section if 


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1 it submits an application to the Commission at such time, 

2 in such form, and containing such information and certifi3 cations as the Commission may require. 

4 ‘‘(c) PROVIDING FOR A PEER-REVIEW PROCESS.— 

5 Each academic and research institute which receives a 

6 grant under this section shall ensure that there is a proc7 ess for peer review of the activities carried out with the 

8 funds provided under the grant. 

9 ‘‘(d) APPLICABILITY OF REGULATIONS GOVERNING

10 PATENT RIGHTS IN INVENTIONS MADE WITH FEDERAL

11 ASSISTANCE.—Any invention made by the recipient of a 

12 grant under this section using funds provided under this 

13 section shall be subject to chapter 18 of title 35, United 

14 States Code (relating to patent rights in inventions made 

15 with Federal assistance). 

16 ‘‘(e) REPORT.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each academic and re18 search institution which receives a grant under this 

19 section shall submit to the Commission a report de20 scribing the activities carried out with the funds pro21 vided under the grant. 

22 ‘‘(2) DEADLINE.—An academic and research 

23 institution shall submit a report required under 

24 paragraph (1) not later than 6 months after the end 


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1 of the fiscal year for which the entity received the 

2 grant which is the subject of the report. 

3 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

5 appropriated for grants under this section 

6 $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2009 and such sums as 

7 may be necessary for succeeding fiscal years. 

8 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts ap9 propriated pursuant to the authorization under this 

10 subsection shall remain available, without fiscal year 

11 limitation, until expended.’’. 

12 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con13 tents of such Act is amended by inserting after the 

14 item relating to section 247 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 248. Grants for the development and testing of new voting systems, technologies, and innovations.’’. 

15 (b) PILOT PROGRAM FOR TESTING AND ANALYZING

16 THE PERFORMANCE OF NEW VOTING SYSTEMS, TECH17 NOLOGIES, AND INNOVATIONS.— 

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

19 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15321 

20 et seq.), as amended by subsection (a), is amended 

21 by adding at the end the following new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 249. PILOT PROGRAM FOR TESTING AND ANALYZING 

2 THE PERFORMANCE OF NEW VOTING SYS3 TEMS, TECHNOLOGIES, AND INNOVATIONS. 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall, in con5 sultation with the National Institute of Standards and 

6 Technology, make grants to carry out pilot programs 

7 under which new voting systems, technologies, and other 

8 innovations are tested and the performance of such sys9 tems, technologies, and innovations is evaluated with re10 spect to the independent verification requirements under 

11 section 301(a)(7). 

12 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—An entity is eligible to receive a 

13 grant under this part if it submits an application to the 

14 Commission at such time, in such form, and containing 

15 such information and certifications as the Commission 

16 may require. 

17 ‘‘(c) PROVIDING FOR A PEER-REVIEW PROCESS.— 

18 Each entity which receives a grant under this section shall 

19 ensure that there is a process for peer review of the activi20 ties carried out with the funds provided under the grant. 

21 ‘‘(d) APPLICABILITY OF REGULATIONS GOVERNING

22 PATENT RIGHTS IN INVENTIONS MADE WITH FEDERAL

23 ASSISTANCE.—Any invention made by the recipient of a 

24 grant under this section using funds provided under this 

25 section shall be subject to chapter 18 of title 35, United 


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1 States Code (relating to patent rights in inventions made 

2 with Federal assistance). 

3 ‘‘(e) REPORT.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each entity which receives 

5 a grant under this section shall submit to the Com6 mission a report describing the activities carried out 

7 with the funds provided under the grant. 

8 ‘‘(2) DEADLINE.—An entity shall submit a re9 port required under paragraph (1) not later than 6 

10 months after the end of the fiscal year for which the 

11 entity received the grant which is the subject of the 

12 report. 

13 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

15 appropriated for grants under this section 

16 $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2009 and such sums as 

17 may be necessary for succeeding fiscal years. 

18 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts ap19 propriated pursuant to the authorization under this 

20 subsection shall remain available, without fiscal year 

21 limitation, until expended.’’. 

22 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con23 tents for such Act, as amended by subsection (a), is 

24 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec25 tion 248 the following new item: 


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‘‘Sec. 249. Pilot program for testing and analyzing the performance of new voting systems, technologies, and innovations.’’. 

1 SEC. 7. REAUTHORIZATION OF REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS. 

2 (a) TASK FORCE ON REQUIREMENTS PAYMENT

3 AMOUNTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Part 1 of subtitle D of such 

5 Act (42 U.S.C. 15401 et seq.) is amended by adding 

6 at the end the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 259. TASK FORCE ON REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS. 

8 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commission shall es9 tablish a task force to study and develop recommendations 

10 regarding the appropriate level of funding for require11 ments payments under this part (hereafter in this part 

12 referred to as the ‘Task Force’). 

13 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Task Force shall be com14 posed of members selected by the Commission, in con15 sultation with the Technical Guidelines Development Com16 mittee, the Standards Board, and the Board of Advisors. 

17 ‘‘(c) REPORTS.—The Task Force shall submit, not 

18 less frequently than annually, to the Committee on Rules 

19 and Administration of the Senate and the Committee on 

20 House Administration of the House of Representatives re21 ports on the recommendations developed under subsection 

22 (a).’’. 


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1 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con2 tents for such Act is amended by inserting after the 

3 item relating to section 258 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 259. Task force on requirements payments.’’. 

4 (b) SENSE OF THE SENATE RELATING TO AMOUNTS

5 APPROPRIATED FOR REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS.—It is 

6 the sense of the Senate that in appropriating amounts to 

7 fund requirements payments under part 1 of subtitle D 

8 of title II of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 

9 U.S.C. 15401 et seq.), Congress should— 

10 (1) appropriate amounts sufficient to ensure 

11 that States and jurisdictions are able to meet the re12 quirements of title III of such Act (42 U.S.C. 15481 

13 et seq.); and 

14 (2) take into consideration the funding levels 

15 recommended by the task force on requirements pay16 ments under section 259 of such Act (as added by 

17 subsection (a)). 

18 (c) REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 257(a) of the Help 

19 America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15407(a)) is amend20 ed by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(4) For fiscal year 2010 and each year there22 after, such sums as may be necessary.’’. 

23 (d) REPORTS.—Section 258 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

24 15408) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘Not later’’ and inserting the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later’’; and 

4 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub5 sections: 

6 ‘‘(b) MODEL REPORTS.—The Commission shall de7 velop a model expenditure and receipts report for use by 

8 States in filing reports under this section. 

9 ‘‘(c) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Commission 

10 shall submit to the Committee on Rules of the Senate and 

11 the Committee on House Administration of the House of 

12 Representatives an annual report summarizing the ex13 penditures, receipts, and activities reported by each State 

14 under subsection (a).’’. 

15 SEC. 8. TECHNICAL GUIDELINES DEVELOPMENT COM16 MITTEE. 

17 Section 221(c)(1) of the Help America Vote Act of 

18 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15361(c)(1)) is amended— 

19 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

20 by striking ‘‘14’’ and inserting ‘‘16’’; 

21 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as sub22 paragraph (G); and 

23 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the fol24 lowing new subparagraphs: 


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1 ‘‘(E) A representative of the voting system 

2 manufacturing industry. 

3 ‘‘(F) A representative of the voting system 

4 accessibility and usability sector.’’. 

5 SEC. 9. PROHIBITING REFUSAL TO ACCEPT VOTER REG6 ISTRATION AND ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICA7 TIONS AND FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE 

8 BALLOTS FOR FAILURE TO MEET NON9 ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS. 

10 (a) VOTER REGISTRATION AND ABSENTEE BALLOT

11 APPLICATIONS.—Section 102 of the Uniformed and Over12 seas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff–1) 

13 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub14 section: 

15 ‘‘(e) PROHIBITING REFUSAL TO ACCEPT APPLICA16 TIONS FOR FAILURE TO MEET NONESSENTIAL REQUIRE17 MENTS.—A State shall accept and process any otherwise 

18 valid voter registration application or absentee ballot ap19 plication (including the official post card form prescribed 

20 under section 101) submitted in any manner by an absent 

21 uniformed services voter or overseas voter that contains 

22 the information required on the official post card form 

23 prescribed under section 101 (other than information 

24 which the Presidential designee, in consultation with the 

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1 lations promulgated by the Presidential designee, is not 

2 clearly necessary to prevent fraud in the conduct of elec3 tions).’’. 

4 (b) FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BALLOT.—Sec5 tion 103 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff–2) is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subsection (f) as sub7 section (g); and 

8 (2) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol9 lowing new subsection: 

10 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITING REFUSAL TO ACCEPT BALLOT

11 FOR FAILURE TO MEET NONESSENTIAL REQUIRE12 MENTS.—A State shall accept and process any otherwise 

13 valid Federal write-in absentee ballot submitted in any 

14 manner by an absent uniformed services voter or overseas 

15 voter that contains the information required to be sub16 mitted with such ballot by the Presidential designee (other 

17 than information which the Presidential designee, in con18 sultation with the Election Assistance Commission, deter19 mines, under regulations promulgated by the Presidential 

20 designee, is not clearly necessary to prevent fraud in the 

21 conduct of elections).’’. 

22 SEC. 10. BALLOT LAYOUT DESIGN. 

23 Section 254(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 

24 (42 U.S.C. 15404(a)), as amended by section 4, is amend25 ed by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(17) A description of the efforts the State will 

2 make to assist State and local election officials in 

3 improving ballot design, taking into consideration 

4 best practices, including best practices developed by 

5 the Commission.’’. 

Æ 


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