II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4239 

To establish a democracy advancement and innovation program, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 18 (legislative day, MAY 17), 2022 

Ms. KLOBUCHAR (for herself, Ms. WARREN, Ms. SMITH, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. 

WYDEN, Mr. PADILLA, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, 

Mr. KING, and Mr. BOOKER) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration 

A BILL 

To establish a democracy advancement and innovation 

program, 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 ‘‘Sustaining Our Democracy Act’’. 

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

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—PAYMENTS AND ALLOCATIONS TO STATES 

Sec. 101. Democracy Advancement and Innovation Program. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 4239 IS

Sec. 102. State plan. 

Sec. 103. Prohibitions. 

Sec. 104. Amount of State allocation. 

Sec. 105. Procedures for disbursements of payments and allocations. 

Sec. 106. Office of Democracy Advancement and Innovation. 

TITLE II—STATE ELECTION ASSISTANCE AND INNOVATION 

TRUST FUND 

Sec. 201. State Election Assistance and Innovation Trust Fund. 

TITLE III—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

Sec. 301. Definitions. 

Sec. 302. Rule of construction regarding calculation of deadlines. 

Sec. 303. Severability. 

1 TITLE I—PAYMENTS AND 

2 ALLOCATIONS TO STATES 

3 SEC. 101. DEMOCRACY ADVANCEMENT AND INNOVATION 

4 PROGRAM. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a pro6 gram to be known as the ‘‘Democracy Advancement and 

7 Innovation Program’’ under which the Director of the Of8 fice of Democracy Advancement and Innovation shall 

9 make allocations to each State for each fiscal year to carry 

10 out democracy promotion activities described in subsection 

11 (b). 

12 (b) DEMOCRACY PROMOTION ACTIVITIES DE13 SCRIBED.—The democracy promotion activities described 

14 in this subsection are as follows: 

15 (1) Activities to promote innovation to improve 

16 efficiency and smooth functioning in the administra17 tion of elections for Federal office and to secure the 

18 infrastructure used in the administration of such 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 4239 IS

1 elections, including making upgrades to voting 

2 equipment and voter registration systems, voter reg3 istration and nonpartisan voter outreach activities, 

4 securing voting locations, expanding polling places 

5 and the availability of early and mail voting, and 

6 promoting cybersecurity. 

7 (2) Activities to recruit, train, and retain non8 partisan election officials and poll workers and to 

9 protect election officials (both nonpartisan and those 

10 elected or appointed to their position) from threats 

11 against them in the course of their work admin12 istering Federal elections. 

13 (3) Activities to increase access to voting in 

14 elections for Federal office by underserved commu15 nities, individuals with disabilities, racial and lan16 guage minority groups, individuals entitled to vote 

17 by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Over18 seas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and voters resid19 ing in Indian lands. 

20 (c) PERMITTING STATES TO RETAIN AND RESERVE

21 ALLOCATIONS FOR FUTURE USE.—A State may retain 

22 and reserve an allocation received for a fiscal year to carry 

23 out democracy promotion activities in any subsequent fis24 cal year. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 4239 IS

1 (d) REQUIRING SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL OF

2 STATE PLAN.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State shall receive an allo4 cation under the Program for a fiscal year if— 

5 (A) not later than 90 days before the first 

6 day of the fiscal year, the chief State election 

7 official of the State submits to the Director the 

8 State plan described in section 102; and 

9 (B) not later than 45 days before the first 

10 day of the fiscal year, the Director, in consulta11 tion with the Election Assistance Commission 

12 as described in paragraph (3), determines that 

13 the State plan will enable the State to carry out 

14 democracy promotion activities and approves 

15 the plan. 

16 (2) SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL OF REVISED

17 PLAN.—If the Director does not approve the State 

18 plan as submitted by the State under paragraph (1) 

19 with respect to a fiscal year, the State shall receive 

20 a payment under the Program for the fiscal year if, 

21 at any time prior to the end of the fiscal year— 

22 (A) the chief State election official of the 

23 State submits a revised version of the State 

24 plan; and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 4239 IS

1 (B) the Director, in consultation with the 

2 Election Assistance Commission as described in 

3 paragraph (3), determines that the revised 

4 version of the State plan will enable the State 

5 to carry out democracy promotion activities and 

6 approves the plan. 

7 (3) ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION CON8 SULTATION.—With respect to a State plan sub9 mitted under paragraph (1) or a revised plan sub10 mitted under paragraph (2)— 

11 (A) the Director shall, prior to making a 

12 determination on approval of the plan, consult 

13 with the Election Assistance Commission; and 

14 (B) the Election Assistance Commission 

15 shall submit to the Director a written assess16 ment with respect to whether the proposed ac17 tivities of the plan satisfy the requirements of 

18 this Act. 

19 (4) CONSULTATION WITH LEGISLATURE.—The 

20 chief State election official of the State shall develop 

21 the State plan submitted under paragraph (1) and 

22 any revised plan submitted under paragraph (2) in 

23 consultation with the majority party and minority 

24 party leaders of each house of the State legislature. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 4239 IS

1 (5) RULES FOR STATES THAT DO NOT SUBMIT

2 A STATE PLAN.—If a State fails to submit a State 

3 plan described in section 102 before the date re4 quired under paragraph (1)(A), under rules estab5 lished by the Director— 

6 (A) for purposes of this title (other than 

7 section 104)— 

8 (i) each political subdivision within 

9 the State shall be treated as a State for 

10 purposes of this title (other than section 

11 104); and 

12 (ii) in applying this title to such polit13 ical subdivision, any duties required of the 

14 chief State election official shall be under15 taken by the executive official of such po16 litical subdivision charged with the admin17 istration of elections; 

18 (B) in applying this subsection to any po19 litical subdivision of the State— 

20 (i) paragraph (1)(A) shall be applied 

21 by substituting ‘‘the first day of the fiscal 

22 year’’ for ‘‘90 days before the first day of 

23 the fiscal year’’; 

24 (ii) paragraph (1)(B) shall be applied 

25 by substituting ‘‘30 days after the first day 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 4239 IS

1 of the fiscal year’’ for ‘‘45 days before the 

2 first day of the fiscal year’’; and 

3 (iii) paragraph (4) shall not apply; 

4 and 

5 (C) the amount of the allocation made to 

6 each such political subdivision under the Pro7 gram shall be the sum of— 

8 (i) an amount which bears the same 

9 proportion to the amount determined 

10 under section 104 with respect to the State 

11 in which the political subdivision is located 

12 as— 

13 (I) the population of the political 

14 subdivision; bears to 

15 (II) the population of such State; 

16 plus 

17 (ii) an amount (not to exceed 100 per18 cent of the amount determined with re19 spect to the political subdivision under 

20 clause (i)) which bears the same proportion 

21 to the unsubscribed funds of the State 

22 as— 

23 (I) the population of the political 

24 subdivision; bears to 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 4239 IS

1 (II) the population of the number 

2 of political subdivisions within the 

3 State that submitted a plan under 

4 section 102 before the date required 

5 under paragraph (1)(A) (after appli6 cation of subparagraph (B)). 

7 For purposes of subparagraph (C)(ii), the 

8 unsubscribed funds of any State is the sum of the 

9 amounts described in subparagraph (C)(i) with re10 spect to political subdivisions in the State which did 

11 not submit a plan under this subsection before the 

12 date required under paragraph (1)(A) (after applica13 tion of subparagraph (B)). 

14 (e) STATE REPORT ON USE OF ALLOCATIONS.—Not 

15 later than 90 days after the last day of a fiscal year for 

16 which an allocation was made to the State under the Pro17 gram, the chief State election official of the State shall 

18 submit a report to the Director describing how the State 

19 used the allocation, including a description of the democ20 racy promotion activities the State carried out with the 

21 allocation. 

22 (f) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.— 

23 (1) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE WEBSITE.—The Di24 rector shall make available on a publicly accessible 

25 website the following: 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 4239 IS

1 (A) State plans submitted under para2 graph (1) of subsection (d) and revised plans 

3 submitted under paragraph (2) of subsection 

4 (d). 

5 (B) The Director’s notifications of deter6 minations with respect to such plans under sub7 section (d). 

8 (C) Reports submitted by States under 

9 subsection (e). 

10 (2) REDACTION.—The Director may redact in11 formation required to be made available under para12 graph (1) if the information would be properly with13 held from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, 

14 United States Code, or if the public disclosure of the 

15 information is otherwise prohibited by law. 

16 (g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with 

17 respect to fiscal year 2023 and each succeeding fiscal year. 

18 SEC. 102. STATE PLAN. 

19 (a) CONTENTS.—A State plan under this section with 

20 respect to a State is a plan containing each of the fol21 lowing: 

22 (1) A description of the democracy promotion 

23 activities the State will carry out with the payment 

24 made under the Program. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 4239 IS

1 (2) A statement of whether or not the State in2 tends to retain and reserve the payment for future 

3 democracy promotion activities. 

4 (3) A statement of how the State intends to 

5 distribute resources under the plan, including how 

6 the distribution of resources will address geographic 

7 and racial disparities within the State. 

8 (4) A description of how the State intends to 

9 allocate funds to carry out the proposed activities, 

10 which shall include the amount the State intends to 

11 allocate to each such activity, including (if applica12 ble) a specific allocation for— 

13 (A) activities described in subsection 

14 101(b)(1) (relating to election administration); 

15 (B) activities described in section 

16 101(b)(2) (relating to activities to recruit, train, 

17 retain, and protect election workers); and 

18 (C) activities described in section 

19 101(b)(3) (relating to activities to increase ac20 cess to voting in elections for Federal office by 

21 certain communities). 

22 (5) A description of how funds allocated under 

23 paragraph (4) will be allocated to political subdivi24 sions of the State. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 4239 IS

1 (6) A description of how the State will establish 

2 the fund described in subsection (b) for purposes of 

3 administering the democracy promotion activities 

4 which the State will carry out with the payment, in5 cluding information on fund management. 

6 (7) A description of the State-based administra7 tive complaint procedures established for purposes of 

8 section 103(a)(2). 

9 (8) A statement regarding whether the pro10 posed activities to be funded are permitted under 

11 State law, or whether the official intends to seek 

12 legal authorization for such activities. 

13 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR FUND.— 

14 (1) FUND DESCRIBED.—For purposes of sub15 section (a)(6), a fund described in this subsection 

16 with respect to a State is a fund which is established 

17 in the treasury of the State government, which is 

18 used in accordance with paragraph (2), and which 

19 consists of the following amounts: 

20 (A) Amounts appropriated or otherwise 

21 made available by the State for carrying out the 

22 democracy promotion activities for which the 

23 payment is made to the State under the Pro24 gram. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 4239 IS

1 (B) The payment made to the State under 

2 the Program. 

3 (C) Such other amounts as may be appro4 priated under law. 

5 (D) Interest earned on deposits of the 

6 fund. 

7 (2) USE OF FUND.—Amounts in the fund shall 

8 be used by the State exclusively to carry out democ9 racy promotion activities for which the payment is 

10 made to the State under the Program. 

11 (3) TREATMENT OF STATES THAT REQUIRE

12 CHANGES TO STATE LAW.—In the case of a State 

13 that requires State legislation to establish the fund 

14 described in this subsection, the Director shall defer 

15 disbursement of the payment to such State under 

16 the Program until such time as legislation estab17 lishing the fund is enacted. 

18 SEC. 103. PROHIBITIONS. 

19 (a) PROHIBITED USES OF PAYMENTS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State may not use a pay21 ment made under the Program to carry out— 

22 (A) any activity described in paragraph 

23 (2); or 

24 (B) any other activity which has the pur25 pose or effect of diminishing the ability of any 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 4239 IS

1 eligible voter to participate in the electoral proc2 ess. 

3 (2) PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES.—The following 

4 are activities described in this paragraph: 

5 (A) Activities that intimidate, threaten, or 

6 coerce voters, poll workers, or election adminis7 trators. 

8 (B) The restriction of the distribution of 

9 food or nonalcoholic beverages to voters while 

10 waiting at polling places (other than restrictions 

11 on distributions made on the basis of the elec12 toral participation or political preference of the 

13 recipient). 

14 (C) The removal of election administrators 

15 from their positions other than for negligence, 

16 neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office. 

17 (D) Defending against lawsuits alleging 

18 voter-suppression practices or proposed prac19 tices. 

20 (E) The investigation of claims of voter 

21 fraud based on the mere invocation of interests 

22 in voter confidence or prevention of fraud. 

23 (F) The performance of audits that— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 4239 IS

1 (i) fail to meet best practices estab2 lished by the Election Assistance Commis3 sion; 

4 (ii) fail to meet the requirements for 

5 record retention under title III of the Civil 

6 Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20701 et 

7 seq.); or 

8 (iii) otherwise jeopardize election 

9 records, voting equipment, electronic poll 

10 books, or election management systems (as 

11 defined under the voluntary guidance 

12 issued by the Election Assistance Commis13 sion under section 311 of the Help Amer14 ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21101)). 

15 (G) The removal of voters from voter rolls 

16 based on evidence that is not reliable. 

17 (H) Activities preventing individuals seek18 ing to have their right to vote or register to 

19 vote restored. 

20 (I) The purchase of voting machines that 

21 do not require the use of individual voter22 verifiable paper ballots marked through the use 

23 of a nontabulating ballot marking device or sys24 tem. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 4239 IS

1 (b) STATE-BASED ADMINISTRATIVE COMPLAINT

2 PROCEDURES.— 

3 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—A State receiving a pay4 ment under the Program shall establish uniform and 

5 nondiscriminatory State-based administrative com6 plaint procedures under which any person who be7 lieves that a violation of subsection (a) has occurred, 

8 is occurring, or is about to occur may file a com9 plaint. 

10 (2) NOTIFICATION TO DIRECTOR.—The State 

11 shall transmit to the Director a description of each 

12 complaint filed under the procedures, together 

13 with— 

14 (A) if the State provides a remedy with re15 spect to the complaint, a description of the rem16 edy; or 

17 (B) if the State dismisses the complaint, a 

18 statement of the reasons for the dismissal. 

19 (3) REVIEW BY DIRECTOR.— 

20 (A) REQUEST FOR REVIEW.—Any person 

21 who is dissatisfied with the final decision under 

22 a State-based administrative complaint proce23 dure under this subsection may, not later than 

24 60 days after the decision is made, file a re25 quest with the Director to review the decision. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 4239 IS

1 (B) ACTION BY DIRECTOR.—Upon receiv2 ing a request under subparagraph (A), the Di3 rector shall review the decision and, in accord4 ance with such procedures as the Director may 

5 establish, including procedures to provide notice 

6 and an opportunity for a hearing, may uphold 

7 the decision or reverse the decision and provide 

8 an appropriate remedy. 

9 (C) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF MATE10 RIAL.—The Director shall make available on a 

11 publicly accessible website all material relating 

12 to a request for review and determination by 

13 the Director under this paragraph, except that 

14 the Director may redact material required to be 

15 made available under this subparagraph if the 

16 material would be properly withheld from dis17 closure under section 552 of title 5, United 

18 States Code, or if the public disclosure of the 

19 material is otherwise prohibited by law. 

20 (4) RIGHT TO PETITION FOR REVIEW.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any person aggrieved 

22 by an action of the Director under subpara23 graph (B) of paragraph (3) may file a petition 

24 with the United States District Court for the 

25 District of Columbia. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 4239 IS

1 (B) DEADLINE TO FILE PETITION.—Any 

2 petition under this subparagraph shall be filed 

3 not later than 60 days after the date of the ac4 tion taken by the Director under subparagraph 

5 (B) of paragraph (3). 

6 (C) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—In any pro7 ceeding under this paragraph, the court shall 

8 determine whether the action of the Director 

9 was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discre10 tion, or otherwise not in accordance with law 

11 under section 706 of title 5, United States 

12 Code, and may direct the Office to conform 

13 with any such determination within 30 days. 

14 (c) ACTION BY ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR DECLARA15 TORY AND INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—The Attorney General 

16 may bring a civil action against any State in an appro17 priate United States District Court for such declaratory 

18 and injunctive relief (including a temporary restraining 

19 order, a permanent or temporary injunction, or other 

20 order) as may be necessary to enforce subsection (a). 

21 SEC. 104. AMOUNT OF STATE ALLOCATION. 

22 (a) STATE-SPECIFIC AMOUNT.—The amount of the 

23 allocation made to a State under the Program for a fiscal 

24 year shall be equal to the product of— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 4239 IS

1 (1) the Congressional district allocation amount 

2 (determined under subsection (b)); and 

3 (2) the number of Congressional districts in the 

4 State for the next regularly scheduled general elec5 tion for Federal office held in the State. 

6 (b) CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT ALLOCATION

7 AMOUNT.—For purposes of subsection (a), the ‘‘Congres8 sional district allocation amount’’ with respect to a fiscal 

9 year is equal to the quotient of— 

10 (1) the aggregate amount available for alloca11 tions to States under the Program for the fiscal 

12 year, as determined by the Director under sub13 section (c); divided by 

14 (2) the total number of Congressional districts 

15 in all States. 

16 (c) DETERMINATION OF AGGREGATE AMOUNT

17 AVAILABLE FOR ALLOCATIONS; NOTIFICATION TO

18 STATES.—Not later than 120 days before the first day 

19 of each fiscal year, the Director— 

20 (1) shall determine and establish the aggregate 

21 amount available for allocations to States under the 

22 Program for the fiscal year, taking into account the 

23 anticipated balances of the Trust Fund (including 

24 any amounts appropriated pursuant to section 

25 106(i)); and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 4239 IS

1 (2) shall notify each State of the amount of the 

2 State’s allocation under the Program for the fiscal 

3 year. 

4 In making the determination under paragraph (1), the Di5 rector shall consult with the Election Assistance Commis6 sion, but shall be solely responsible for making the final 

7 determinations under such paragraph. 

8 (d) SOURCE OF PAYMENTS.—The amounts used to 

9 make allocations and payments under the Program shall 

10 be derived solely from the Trust Fund. 

11 SEC. 105. PROCEDURES FOR DISBURSEMENTS OF PAY12 MENTS AND ALLOCATIONS. 

13 (a) ALLOCATION.—Upon approving the State plan 

14 under section 102, the Director shall direct the Secretary 

15 of the Treasury to allocate to the Election Assistance 

16 Commission the amount provided for activities under the 

17 plan. 

18 (b) PAYMENT TO STATE.—As soon as practicable 

19 after receiving an allocation under subsection (a) with re20 spect to a State, the Election Assistance Commission shall 

21 make payments to— 

22 (1) local election administrators in the State 

23 with respect to amounts related to activities in the 

24 State plan carried out directly by such local election 

25 administrators; and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 4239 IS

1 (2) the State with respect to any amount not 

2 described in paragraph (1). 

3 (c) CONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS AFTER

4 APPROPRIATION.—A payment made to a State by the 

5 Election Assistance Commission under this section shall 

6 be available without fiscal year limitation. 

7 SEC. 106. OFFICE OF DEMOCRACY ADVANCEMENT AND IN8 NOVATION. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established as an 

10 independent establishment in the executive branch the Of11 fice of Democracy Advancement and Innovation. 

12 (b) DIRECTOR.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall be headed 

14 by a Director, who shall be appointed by the Presi15 dent with the advice and consent of the Senate. 

16 (2) TERM OF SERVICE.—The Director shall 

17 serve for a term of 6 years and may be reappointed 

18 to an additional term, and may continue serving as 

19 Director until a replacement is appointed. A vacancy 

20 in the position of Director shall be filled in the same 

21 manner as the original appointment. 

22 (3) COMPENSATION.—The Director shall be 

23 paid at an annual rate of pay equal to the annual 

24 rate in effect for level II of the Executive Schedule. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 4239 IS

1 (4) REMOVAL.—The Director may be removed 

2 from office by the President. If the President re3 moves the Director, the President shall communicate 

4 in writing the reasons for the removal to both 

5 Houses of Congress not later than 30 days before6 hand. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed 

7 to prohibit a personnel action otherwise authorized 

8 by law. 

9 (c) GENERAL COUNSEL AND OTHER STAFF.— 

10 (1) GENERAL COUNSEL.—The Director shall 

11 appoint a general counsel who shall be paid at an 

12 annual rate of pay equal to the annual rate in effect 

13 for level III of the Executive Schedule. In the event 

14 of a vacancy in the position of the Director, the 

15 General Counsel shall exercise all the responsibilities 

16 of the Director until such vacancy is filled. 

17 (2) SENIOR STAFF.—The Director may appoint 

18 and fix the pay of staff designated as Senior staff, 

19 such as a Deputy Director, who may be paid at an 

20 annual rate of pay equal to the annual rate in effect 

21 for level IV of the Executive Schedule. 

22 (3) OTHER STAFF.—In addition to the General 

23 Counsel and Senior staff, the Director may appoint 

24 and fix the pay of such other staff as the Director 

25 considers necessary to carry out the duties of the 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 4239 IS

1 Office, except that no such staff may be com2 pensated at an annual rate exceeding the daily 

3 equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay in effect 

4 for grade GS–15 of the General Schedule. 

5 (d) DUTIES.—The duties of the Office are as follows: 

6 (1) ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM.—The Di7 rector shall administer the Program, in consultation 

8 with the Election Assistance Commission, including 

9 by holding quarterly meetings of representatives 

10 from such Commission. 

11 (2) OVERSIGHT OF TRUST FUND.—The Direc12 tor shall oversee the operation of the Trust Fund 

13 and monitor its balances, in consultation with the 

14 Election Assistance Commission and the Secretary 

15 of the Treasury. The Director may hold funds in re16 serve to cover the expenses of the Office and to pre17 serve the solvency of the Trust Fund. 

18 (3) REPORTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

19 the date of the regularly scheduled general election 

20 for Federal office held in 2024 and each succeeding 

21 regularly scheduled general election for Federal of22 fice thereafter, the Director, in consultation with the 

23 Election Assistance Commission, shall submit to the 

24 Committee on House Administration of the House of 

25 Representatives and the Committee on Rules and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 4239 IS

1 Administration of the Senate a report on the activi2 ties carried out under the Program and the amounts 

3 deposited into and paid from the Trust Fund during 

4 the two most recent fiscal years. 

5 (e) COVERAGE UNDER INSPECTOR GENERAL ACT OF

6 1978 FOR CONDUCTING AUDITS AND INVESTIGATIONS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 8G(a)(2) of the In8 spector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

9 amended by inserting ‘‘the Office of Democracy Ad10 vancement and Innovation,’’ after ‘‘Election Assist11 ance Commission,’’. 

12 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

13 by paragraph (1) shall take effect 180 days after the 

14 appointment of the Director. 

15 (f) COVERAGE UNDER HATCH ACT.—Clause (i) of 

16 section 7323(b)(2)(B) of title 5, United States Code, is 

17 amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subclause 

19 (XIII); and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub21 clause: 

22 ‘‘(XV) the Office of Democracy Advance23 ment and Innovation; or’’. 

24 (g) REGULATIONS.— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 4239 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), not later than 270 days after the date of 

3 enactment of this Act, the Director shall promulgate 

4 such rules and regulations as the Director considers 

5 necessary and appropriate to carry out the duties of 

6 the Office under this Act and the amendments made 

7 by this Act. 

8 (2) STATE PLAN SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL

9 AND DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—Not later than 90 

10 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

11 Director shall promulgate such rules and regulations 

12 as the Director considers necessary and appropriate 

13 to carry out the requirements of this title and the 

14 amendments made by this title. 

15 (3) COMMENTS BY THE ELECTION ASSISTANCE

16 COMMISSION.—The Election Assistance Commission 

17 shall timely submit comments with respect to any 

18 proposed regulations promulgated by the Director 

19 under this subsection. 

20 (h) INTERIM AUTHORITY PENDING APPOINTMENT

21 AND CONFIRMATION OF DIRECTOR.— 

22 (1) AUTHORITY OF DIRECTOR OF OFFICE OF

23 MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET.—Notwithstanding sub24 section (b), during the transition period, the Direc25 tor of the Office of Management and Budget is auVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:15 May 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4239.IS S4239

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 4239 IS

1 thorized to perform the functions of the Office under 

2 this Act, and shall act for all purposes as, and with 

3 the full powers of, the Director. 

4 (2) INTERIM ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES.— 

5 (A) AUTHORITY OF OFFICE OF MANAGE6 MENT AND BUDGET.—During the transition pe7 riod, the Director of the Office of Management 

8 and Budget may provide administrative services 

9 necessary to support the Office. 

10 (B) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY; PER11 MITTING EXTENSION.—The Director of the Of12 fice of Management and Budget shall cease pro13 viding interim administrative services under this 

14 paragraph upon the expiration of the transition 

15 period, except that the Director of the Office of 

16 Management and Budget may continue to pro17 vide such services after the expiration of the 

18 transition period if the Director and the Direc19 tor of the Office of Management and Budget 

20 jointly transmit to the Committee on House Ad21 ministration of the House of Representatives 

22 and the Committee on Rules and Administra23 tion of the Senate— 

24 (i) a written determination that an or25 derly implementation of this Act is not feaVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:15 May 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4239.IS S4239

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
26 

•S 4239 IS

1 sible by the expiration of the transition pe2 riod; 

3 (ii) an explanation of why an exten4 sion is necessary for the orderly implemen5 tation of this Act; 

6 (iii) a description of the period during 

7 which the Director of the Office of Man8 agement and Budget shall continue pro9 viding services under the authority of this 

10 subparagraph; and 

11 (iv) a description of the steps that will 

12 be taken to ensure an orderly and timely 

13 implementation of this Act during the pe14 riod described in clause (iii). 

15 (3) TRANSITION PERIOD DEFINED.—In this 

16 subsection, the ‘‘transition period’’ is the period 

17 which begins on the date of the enactment of this 

18 Act and ends on the date on which the first Director 

19 is appointed. 

20 (4) LIMIT ON LENGTH OF PERIOD OF INTERIM

21 AUTHORITIES.—Notwithstanding any other provision 

22 of this subsection, the Director of the Office of Man23 agement and Budget may not exercise any authority 

24 under this subsection after the expiration of the 24- 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
27 

•S 4239 IS

1 month period which begins on the date of the enact2 ment of this Act. 

3 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated from the Trust Fund 

5 such sums as may be necessary to carry out the activities 

6 of the Office for fiscal year 2023 and each succeeding fis7 cal year. 

8 TITLE II—STATE ELECTION AS9 SISTANCE AND INNOVATION 

10 TRUST FUND 

11 SEC. 201. STATE ELECTION ASSISTANCE AND INNOVATION 

12 TRUST FUND. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

14 Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘‘State Election As15 sistance and Innovation Trust Fund’’. 

16 (b) CONTENTS.—There is hereby appropriated to the 

17 Trust Fund $2,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 

18 through 2032. 

19 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Trust Fund 

20 shall be used to make payments and allocations under the 

21 Program and to carry out the activities of the Office. 

22 (d) ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS.—The Office may accept 

23 gifts or bequests for deposit into the Trust Fund. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
28 

•S 4239 IS

1 TITLE III—GENERAL 

2 PROVISIONS 

3 SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act, the following definitions apply: 

5 (1) The term ‘‘chief State election official’’ has 

6 the meaning given such term in section 253(e) of the 

7 Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 

8 21003(e)). 

9 (2) The term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 

10 the Office. 

11 (3) The term ‘‘Indian lands’’ includes— 

12 (A) Indian country, as defined under sec13 tion 1151 of title 18, United States Code; 

14 (B) any land in Alaska owned, pursuant to 

15 the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 

16 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), by an Indian Tribe that 

17 is a Native village (as defined in section 3 of 

18 that Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)) or by a Village Cor19 poration that is associated with an Indian Tribe 

20 (as defined in section 3 of that Act (43 U.S.C. 

21 1602)); 

22 (C) any land on which the seat of the Trib23 al government is located; and 

24 (D) any land that is part or all of a Tribal 

25 designated statistical area associated with an 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
29 

•S 4239 IS

1 Indian Tribe, or is part or all of an Alaska Na2 tive village statistical area associated with an 

3 Indian Tribe, as defined by the Census Bureau 

4 for the purposes of the most recent decennial 

5 census. 

6 (4) The term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of De7 mocracy Advancement and Innovation established 

8 under section 105. 

9 (5) The term ‘‘Program’’ means the Democracy 

10 Advancement and Innovation Program established 

11 under section 101. 

12 (6) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 

13 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 

14 of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United 

15 States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the 

16 Northern Mariana Islands. 

17 (7) The term ‘‘Trust Fund’’ means the State 

18 Election Assistance and Innovation Trust Fund es19 tablished under section 201. 

20 SEC. 302. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION REGARDING CALCULA21 TION OF DEADLINES. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—With respect to the calculation of 

23 any period of time for the purposes of a deadline in this 

24 Act, the last day of the period shall be included in such 

25 calculation, unless such day is a Saturday, a Sunday, or 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
30 

•S 4239 IS

1 a legal public holiday, in which case the period of such 

2 deadline shall be extended until the end of the next day 

3 which is not a Saturday, a Sunday, a legal public holiday. 

4 (b) LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAY DEFINED.—For the 

5 purposes of this section, the term ‘‘legal public holiday’’ 

6 means a day described in section 6103(a) of title 5, United 

7 States Code. 

8 SEC. 303. SEVERABILITY. 

9 If any provision of this Act or any amendment made 

10 by this Act, or the application of any such provision or 

11 amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to be 

12 unconstitutional, the remainder of such Act and amend13 ments made by such Act and the application of such provi14 sion or amendment to any other person or circumstance, 

15 shall not be affected by the holding. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS