H. R. 3295
One Hundred Seventh Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the twenty-third day of January, two thousand and two
An Act
To establish a program to provide funds to States to replace punch card voting
systems, to establish the Election Assistance Commission to assist in the adminis-
tration of Federal elections and to otherwise provide assistance with the adminis-
tration of certain Federal election laws and programs, to establish minimum
election administration standards for States and units of local government with
responsibility for the administration of Federal elections, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Help America
Vote Act of 2002’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I—PAYMENTS TO STATES FOR ELECTION ADMINISTRATION IM-
PROVEMENTS AND REPLACEMENT OF PUNCH CARD AND LEVER VOTING
MACHINES
Sec. 101. Payments to States for activities to improve administration of elections.
Sec. 102. Replacement of punch card or lever voting machines.
Sec. 103. Guaranteed minimum payment amount.
Sec. 104. Authorization of appropriations.
Sec. 105. Administration of programs.
Sec. 106. Effective date.
TITLE II—COMMISSION
Subtitle A—Establishment and General Organization
PART 1—ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION
Sec. 201. Establishment.
Sec. 202. Duties.
Sec. 203. Membership and appointment.
Sec. 204. Staff.
Sec. 205. Powers.
Sec. 206. Dissemination of information.
Sec. 207. Annual report.
Sec. 208. Requiring majority approval for actions.
Sec. 209. Limitation on rulemaking authority.
Sec. 210. Authorization of appropriations.
PART 2—ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION STANDARDS BOARD AND BOARD OF
ADVISORS
Sec. 211. Establishment.
Sec. 212. Duties.
Sec. 213. Membership of Standards Board.
Sec. 214. Membership of Board of Advisors.
Sec. 215. Powers of Boards; no compensation for service.
Sec. 216. Status of Boards and members for purposes of claims against Board.
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PART 3—TECHNICAL GUIDELINES DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
Sec. 221. Technical Guidelines Development Committee.
Sec. 222. Process for adoption.
Subtitle B—Testing, Certification, Decertification, and Recertification of Voting
System Hardware and Software
Sec. 231. Certification and testing of voting systems.
Subtitle C—Studies and Other Activities To Promote Effective Administration of
Federal Elections
Sec. 241. Periodic studies of election administration issues.
Sec. 242. Study, report, and recommendations on best practices for facilitating mili-
tary and overseas voting.
Sec. 243. Report on human factor research.
Sec. 244. Study and report on voters who register by mail and use of social security
information.
Sec. 245. Study and report on electronic voting and the electoral process.
Sec. 246. Study and report on free absentee ballot postage.
Sec. 247. Consultation with Standards Board and Board of Advisors.
Subtitle D—Election Assistance
PART 1—REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS
Sec. 251. Requirements payments.
Sec. 252. Allocation of funds.
Sec. 253. Condition for receipt of funds.
Sec. 254. State plan.
Sec. 255. Process for development and filing of plan; publication by Commission.
Sec. 256. Requirement for public notice and comment.
Sec. 257. Authorization of appropriations.
Sec. 258. Reports.
PART 2—PAYMENTS TO STATES AND UNITS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT TO ASSURE
ACCESS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES
Sec. 261. Payments to States and units of local government to assure access for in-
dividuals with disabilities.
Sec. 262. Amount of payment.
Sec. 263. Requirements for eligibility.
Sec. 264. Authorization of appropriations.
Sec. 265. Reports.
PART 3—GRANTS FOR RESEARCH ON VOTING TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS
Sec. 271. Grants for research on voting technology improvements.
Sec. 272. Report.
Sec. 273. Authorization of appropriations.
PART 4—PILOT PROGRAM FOR TESTING OF EQUIPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY
Sec. 281. Pilot program.
Sec. 282. Report.
Sec. 283. Authorization of appropriations.
PART 5—PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYSTEMS
Sec. 291. Payments for protection and advocacy systems.
Sec. 292. Authorization of appropriations.
PART 6—NATIONAL STUDENT AND PARENT MOCK ELECTION
Sec. 295. National Student and Parent Mock Election.
Sec. 296. Authorization of appropriations.
TITLE III—UNIFORM AND NONDISCRIMINATORY ELECTION TECHNOLOGY
AND ADMINISTRATION REQUIREMENTS
Subtitle A—Requirements
Sec. 301. Voting systems standards.
Sec. 302. Provisional voting and voting information requirements.
Sec. 303. Computerized statewide voter registration list requirements and require-
ments for voters who register by mail.
Sec. 304. Minimum requirements.
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Sec. 305. Methods of implementation left to discretion of State.
Subtitle B—Voluntary Guidance
Sec. 311. Adoption of voluntary guidance by Commission.
Sec. 312. Process for adoption.
TITLE IV—ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 401. Actions by the Attorney General for declaratory and injunctive relief.
Sec. 402. Establishment of State-based administrative complaint procedures to
remedy grievances.
TITLE V—HELP AMERICA VOTE COLLEGE PROGRAM
Sec. 501. Establishment of program.
Sec. 502. Activities under program.
Sec. 503. Authorization of appropriations.
TITLE VI—HELP AMERICA VOTE FOUNDATION
Sec. 601. Help America Vote Foundation.
TITLE VII—VOTING RIGHTS OF MILITARY MEMBERS AND OVERSEAS
CITIZENS
Sec. 701. Voting assistance programs.
Sec. 702. Designation of single State office to provide information on registration
and absentee ballots for all voters in State.
Sec. 703. Report on absentee ballots transmitted and received after general elec-
tions.
Sec. 704. Extension of period covered by single absentee ballot application.
Sec. 705. Additional duties of Presidential designee under Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voting Act.
Sec. 706. Prohibition of refusal of voter registration and absentee ballot applica-
tions on grounds of early submission.
Sec. 707. Other requirements to promote participation of overseas and absent uni-
formed services voters.
TITLE VIII—TRANSITION PROVISIONS
Subtitle A—Transfer to Commission of Functions Under Certain Laws
Sec. 801. Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.
Sec. 802. National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
Sec. 803. Transfer of property, records, and personnel.
Sec. 804. Effective date; transition.
Subtitle B—Coverage of Commission Under Certain Laws and Programs
Sec. 811. Treatment of Commission personnel under certain civil service laws.
Sec. 812. Coverage under Inspector General Act of 1978.
TITLE IX—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Sec. 901. State defined.
Sec. 902. Audits and repayment of funds.
Sec. 903. Clarification of ability of election officials to remove registrants from offi-
cial list of voters on grounds of change of residence.
Sec. 904. Review and report on adequacy of existing electoral fraud statutes and
penalties.
Sec. 905. Other criminal penalties.
Sec. 906. No effect on other laws.
TITLE I—PAYMENTS TO STATES FOR
ELECTION 
ADMINISTRATION 
IM-
PROVEMENTS AND REPLACEMENT OF
PUNCH CARD AND LEVER VOTING MA-
CHINES
SEC. 101. PAYMENTS TO STATES FOR ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE
ADMINISTRATION OF ELECTIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 45 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of General Services
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(in this title referred to as the ‘‘Administrator’’) shall establish
a program under which the Administrator shall make a payment
to each State in which the chief executive officer of the State,
or designee, in consultation and coordination with the chief State
election official, notifies the Administrator not later than 6 months
after the date of the enactment of this Act that the State intends
to use the payment in accordance with this section.
(b) USE OF PAYMENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A State shall use the funds provided
under a payment made under this section to carry out one
or more of the following activities:
(A) Complying with the requirements under title III.
(B) Improving the administration of elections for Fed-
eral office.
(C) Educating voters concerning voting procedures,
voting rights, and voting technology.
(D) Training election officials, poll workers, and elec-
tion volunteers.
(E) Developing the State plan for requirements pay-
ments to be submitted under part 1 of subtitle D of title
II.
(F) Improving, acquiring, leasing, modifying, or
replacing voting systems and technology and methods for
casting and counting votes.
(G) Improving the accessibility and quantity of polling
places, including providing physical access for individuals
with disabilities, providing nonvisual access for individuals
with visual impairments, and providing assistance to
Native Americans, Alaska Native citizens, and to individ-
uals with limited proficiency in the English language.
(H) Establishing toll-free telephone hotlines that voters
may use to report possible voting fraud and voting rights
violations, to obtain general election information, and to
access detailed automated information on their own voter
registration status, specific polling place locations, and
other relevant information.
(2) LIMITATION.—A State may not use the funds provided
under a payment made under this section—
(A) to pay costs associated with any litigation, except
to the extent that such costs otherwise constitute permitted
uses of a payment under this section; or
(B) for the payment of any judgment.
(c) USE OF FUNDS TO BE CONSISTENT WITH OTHER LAWS AND
REQUIREMENTS.—In order to receive a payment under the program
under this section, the State shall provide the Administrator with
certifications that—
(1) the State will use the funds provided under the payment
in a manner that is consistent with each of the laws described
in section 906, as such laws relate to the provisions of this
Act; and
(2) the proposed uses of the funds are not inconsistent
with the requirements of title III.
(d) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 103(b), the amount
of payment made to a State under this section shall be the
minimum payment amount described in paragraph (2) plus
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the voting age population proportion amount described in para-
graph (3).
(2) MINIMUM PAYMENT AMOUNT.—The minimum payment
amount described in this paragraph is—
(A) in the case of any of the several States or the
District of Columbia, one-half of 1 percent of the aggregate
amount made available for payments under this section;
and
(B) in the case of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico,
Guam, American Samoa, or the United States Virgin
Islands, one-tenth of 1 percent of such aggregate amount.
(3) VOTING
AGE
POPULATION
PROPORTION
AMOUNT.—The
voting age population proportion amount described in this para-
graph is the product of—
(A) the aggregate amount made available for payments
under this section minus the total of all of the minimum
payment amounts determined under paragraph (2); and
(B) the voting age population proportion for the State
(as defined in paragraph (4)).
(4) VOTING
AGE
POPULATION
PROPORTION
DEFINED.—The
term ‘‘voting age population proportion’’ means, with respect
to a State, the amount equal to the quotient of—
(A) the voting age population of the State (as reported
in the most recent decennial census); and
(B) the total voting age population of all States (as
reported in the most recent decennial census).
SEC. 102. REPLACEMENT OF PUNCH CARD OR LEVER VOTING
MACHINES.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 45 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish
a program under which the Administrator shall make a pay-
ment to each State eligible under subsection (b) in which a
precinct within that State used a punch card voting system
or a lever voting system to administer the regularly scheduled
general election for Federal office held in November 2000 (in
this section referred to as a ‘‘qualifying precinct’’).
(2) USE OF FUNDS.—A State shall use the funds provided
under a payment under this section (either directly or as
reimbursement, including as reimbursement for costs incurred
on or after January 1, 2001, under multiyear contracts) to
replace punch card voting systems or lever voting systems
(as the case may be) in qualifying precincts within that State
with a voting system (by purchase, lease, or such other arrange-
ment as may be appropriate) that—
(A) does not use punch cards or levers;
(B) is not inconsistent with the requirements of the
laws described in section 906; and
(C) meets the requirements of section 301.
(3) DEADLINE.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph
(B), a State receiving a payment under the program under
this section shall ensure that all of the punch card voting
systems or lever voting systems in the qualifying precincts
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within that State have been replaced in time for the regu-
larly scheduled general election for Federal office to be
held in November 2004.
(B) WAIVER.—If a State certifies to the Administrator
not later than January 1, 2004, that the State will not
meet the deadline described in subparagraph (A) for good
cause and includes in the certification the reasons for the
failure to meet such deadline, the State shall ensure that
all of the punch card voting systems or lever voting systems
in the qualifying precincts within that State will be
replaced in time for the first election for Federal office
held after January 1, 2006.
(b) ELIGIBILITY.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A State is eligible to receive a payment
under the program under this section if it submits to the
Administrator a notice not later than the date that is 6 months
after the date of the enactment of this Act (in such form
as the Administrator may require) that contains—
(A) certifications that the State will use the payment
(either 
directly 
or 
as 
reimbursement, 
including 
as
reimbursement for costs incurred on or after January 1,
2001, under multiyear contracts) to replace punch card
voting systems or lever voting systems (as the case may
be) in the qualifying precincts within the State by the
deadline described in subsection (a)(3);
(B) certifications that the State will continue to comply
with the laws described in section 906;
(C) certifications that the replacement voting systems
will meet the requirements of section 301; and
(D) such other information and certifications as the
Administrator may require which are necessary for the
administration of the program.
(2) COMPLIANCE
OF
STATES
THAT
REQUIRE
CHANGES
TO
STATE LAW.—In the case of a State that requires State legisla-
tion to carry out an activity covered by any certification sub-
mitted under this subsection, the State shall be permitted
to make the certification notwithstanding that the legislation
has not been enacted at the time the certification is submitted
and such State shall submit an additional certification once
such legislation is enacted.
(c) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2) and section
103(b), the amount of payment made to a State under the
program under this section shall be equal to the product of—
(A) the number of the qualifying precincts within the
State; and
(B) $4,000.
(2) REDUCTION.—If the amount of funds appropriated
pursuant to the authority of section 104(a)(2) is insufficient
to ensure that each State receives the amount of payment
calculated under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall reduce
the amount specified in paragraph (1)(B) to ensure that the
entire amount appropriated under such section is distributed
to the States.
(d) REPAYMENT OF FUNDS FOR FAILURE TO MEET DEADLINES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—If a State receiving funds under the pro-
gram under this section fails to meet the deadline applicable
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to the State under subsection (a)(3), the State shall pay to
the Administrator an amount equal to the noncompliant pre-
cinct percentage of the amount of the funds provided to the
State under the program.
(2) NONCOMPLIANT
PRECINCT
PERCENTAGE
DEFINED.—In
this subsection, the term ‘‘noncompliant precinct percentage’’
means, with respect to a State, the amount (expressed as a
percentage) equal to the quotient of—
(A) the number of qualifying precincts within the State
for which the State failed to meet the applicable deadline;
and
(B) the total number of qualifying precincts in the
State.
(e) PUNCH CARD VOTING SYSTEM DEFINED.—For purposes of
this section, a ‘‘punch card voting system’’ includes any of the
following voting systems:
(1) C.E.S.
(2) Datavote.
(3) PBC Counter.
(4) Pollstar.
(5) Punch Card.
(6) Vote Recorder.
(7) Votomatic.
SEC. 103. GUARANTEED MINIMUM PAYMENT AMOUNT.
(a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to any other payments made
under this title, the Administrator shall make a payment to each
State to which a payment is made under either section 101 or
102 and with respect to which the aggregate amount paid under
such sections is less than $5,000,000 in an amount equal to the
difference between the aggregate amount paid to the State under
sections 101 and 102 and $5,000,000. In the case of the Common-
wealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and the United
States Virgin Islands, the previous sentence shall be applied as
if each reference to ‘‘$5,000,000’’ were a reference to ‘‘$1,000,000’’.
(b) PRO RATA REDUCTIONS.—The Administrator shall make such
pro rata reductions to the amounts described in sections 101(d)
and 102(c) as are necessary to comply with the requirements of
subsection (a).
SEC. 104. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appropriated for
payments under this title $650,000,000, of which—
(1) 50 percent shall be for payments under section 101;
and
(2) 50 percent shall be for payments under section 102.
(b) CONTINUING AVAILABILITY
OF FUNDS AFTER APPROPRIA-
TION.—Any payment made to a State under this title shall be
available to the State without fiscal year limitation (subject to
subsection (c)(2)(B)).
(c) USE OF RETURNED FUNDS AND FUNDS REMAINING UNEX-
PENDED FOR REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The amounts described in paragraph (2)
shall be transferred to the Election Assistance Commission
(established under title II) and used by the Commission to
make requirements payments under part 1 of subtitle D of
title II.