HR 4990 RFS
SEC. 4. OTHER ACTIVITIES OF NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF 
STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY TO PROMOTE 
SECURITY AND MODERNIZATION OF VOTING 
SYSTEMS. 
(a) COMMON DATA FORMAT.—The National Insti-
tute of Standards and Technology shall establish and 
make publicly available common data format specifications 
for auditing, voter registration, and other elements of vot-
ing systems, and provide the specifications to the Tech-
nical Guidelines Development Committee of the Election 
Assistance Commission under section 221(e) of the Help 
America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20961(e)). 
(b) ELECTIONS
SYSTEMS
CERTIFICATIONS.—The 
National Institute of Standards and Technology shall 
work in collaboration with the Election Assistance Com-
mission to update the process under which voting systems 
are certified pursuant to the Help America Vote Act of 
2002 so that State and local election officials will be better 
able to carry out updates and otherwise modernize such 
systems. 
(c) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Director of the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology shall— 
(1) provide technical assistance to State and 
local election officials on the implementation of cy-
bersecurity standards, privacy standards, risk as-
sessments, risk-limiting audits, and technologies 
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which are incorporated in the voluntary voting sys-
tem guidelines issued under the Help America Vote 
Act of 2002; and 
(2) in collaboration with the Department of 
Homeland Security and the Election Assistance 
Commission, as appropriate, conduct outreach to 
State and local election officials in order to dissemi-
nate best practices for the implementation of such 
voluntary voting system guidelines. 
SEC. 5. GAO REPORT. 
Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit a report 
to Congress that— 
(1) addresses the extent to which efforts by the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology 
(NIST) to assist the Technical Guidelines Develop-
ment Committee of the Election Assistance Commis-
sion in the development of voluntary voting systems 
guidelines have resulted in market-ready standard-
ized voting equipment and software, and addresses 
the resources made available to NIST to carry out 
these activities; 
(2) addresses efforts by NIST to monitor and 
review the performance of laboratories accredited by 
the Elections Assistance Commission and to make 
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recommendations for continuing accreditation, in-
creased voting technology reliability, and the number 
of accredited private laboratories, and addresses re-
sources made available to NIST to carry out these 
activities; and 
(3) addresses the extent to which the annual 
list of suggestions required to be submitted by NIST 
to the Election Assistance Commission for research 
issues for grants and pilot programs under section 
271(d) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 
U.S.C. 21041) and the evaluation of grants and pro-
grams by NIST has improved voting technology and 
been successful in encouraging the implementation 
of new technologies in voting systems and equip-
ment. 
SEC. 6. AMENDMENTS TO THE HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT 
OF 2002. 
Section 301(b) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 
(52 U.S.C. 21081(b)) is amended— 
(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 
striking ‘‘this section’’ and inserting ‘‘this Act’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 
(1); 
(3) by redesignating paragraph (2) as para-
graph (6); and 
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(4) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol-
lowing new paragraphs: 
‘‘(2) any other paper or electronic technologies 
or processes for collecting, storing, or transmitting 
personal information of voters for use in the admin-
istration of elections for Federal office, including 
electronic poll books with respect to an election; 
‘‘(3) voter registration databases and systems, 
including online interfaces; 
‘‘(4) systems for carrying out post-election au-
diting; 
‘‘(5) chain-of-custody procedures; and’’. 
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act— 
(1) the term ‘‘voting system’’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 301(b) of the Help Amer-
ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081(b)), as 
amended by section 6; and 
(2) the term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 
of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United 
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States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands. 
Passed the House of Representatives September 16, 
2020. 
Attest: 
CHERYL L. JOHNSON, 
Clerk. 
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