I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5292 
To establish a democracy advancement and innovation program, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
AUGUST 25, 2023 
Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia (for herself, Ms. SEWELL, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. SCOTT 
of Virginia, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. BEYER, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. 
SWALWELL, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Ms. PORTER, Mr. VARGAS, 
Mr. EVANS, Mr. SCHIFF, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. JA-
COBS, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Ms. 
CLARKE of New York, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. KAMLAGER- 
DOVE, Mr. MULLIN, Ms. BROWN, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. CROCKETT, Ms. 
JACKSON LEE, Ms. NORTON, Ms. MCCLELLAN, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. 
SA´NCHEZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. NICKEL, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Mr. 
GREEN of Texas, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. BOWMAN, 
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mrs. 
WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. TITUS, Ms. KELLY 
of Illinois, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. SALINAS, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, 
Ms. BUDZINSKI, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, and Mrs. 
CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on House Administration 
A BILL 
To establish a democracy advancement and innovation 
program, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Sustaining Our Democracy Act’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
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. 
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. 
TITLE I—PAYMENTS AND 
ALLOCATIONS TO STATES 
SEC. 101. DEMOCRACY ADVANCEMENT AND INNOVATION 
PROGRAM. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a pro-
gram to be known as the ‘‘Democracy Advancement and 
Innovation Program’’ under which the Director of the Of-
fice of Democracy Advancement and Innovation shall 
make allocations to each State for each fiscal year to carry 
out democracy promotion activities described in subsection 
(b). 
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(b) 
DEMOCRACY
PROMOTION
ACTIVITIES
DE-
SCRIBED.—The democracy promotion activities described 
in this subsection are as follows: 
(1) Activities to promote innovation to improve 
efficiency and smooth functioning in the administra-
tion of elections for Federal office and to secure the 
infrastructure used in the administration of such 
elections, including making upgrades to voting 
equipment and voter registration systems, voter reg-
istration and nonpartisan voter outreach activities, 
securing voting locations, expanding polling places 
and the availability of early and mail voting, and 
promoting cybersecurity. 
(2) Activities to recruit, train, and retain non-
partisan election officials and poll workers and to 
protect election officials (both nonpartisan and those 
elected or appointed to their position) from threats 
against them in the course of their work admin-
istering Federal elections. 
(3) Activities to increase access to voting in 
elections for Federal office by underserved commu-
nities, individuals with disabilities, racial and lan-
guage minority groups, individuals entitled to vote 
by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Over-
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seas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and voters resid-
ing in Indian lands. 
(c) PERMITTING STATES TO RETAIN AND RESERVE 
ALLOCATIONS FOR FUTURE USE.—A State may retain 
and reserve an allocation received for a fiscal year to carry 
out democracy promotion activities in any subsequent fis-
cal year. 
(d) REQUIRING SUBMISSION
AND APPROVAL
OF 
STATE PLAN.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A State shall receive an allo-
cation under the Program for a fiscal year if— 
(A) not later than 90 days before the first 
day of the fiscal year, the chief State election 
official of the State submits to the Director the 
State plan described in section 102; and 
(B) not later than 45 days before the first 
day of the fiscal year, the Director, in consulta-
tion with the Election Assistance Commission 
as described in paragraph (3), determines that 
the State plan will enable the State to carry out 
democracy promotion activities and approves 
the plan. 
(2) SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL OF REVISED 
PLAN.—If the Director does not approve the State 
plan as submitted by the State under paragraph (1) 
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with respect to a fiscal year, the State shall receive 
a payment under the Program for the fiscal year if, 
at any time prior to the end of the fiscal year— 
(A) the chief State election official of the 
State submits a revised version of the State 
plan; and 
(B) the Director, in consultation with the 
Election Assistance Commission as described in 
paragraph (3), determines that the revised 
version of the State plan will enable the State 
to carry out democracy promotion activities and 
approves the plan. 
(3) ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION CON-
SULTATION.—With respect to a State plan sub-
mitted under paragraph (1) or a revised plan sub-
mitted under paragraph (2)— 
(A) the Director shall, prior to making a 
determination on approval of the plan, consult 
with the Election Assistance Commission; and 
(B) the Election Assistance Commission 
shall submit to the Director a written assess-
ment with respect to whether the proposed ac-
tivities of the plan satisfy the requirements of 
this Act. 
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(4) CONSULTATION WITH LEGISLATURE.—The 
chief State election official of the State shall develop 
the State plan submitted under paragraph (1) and 
any revised plan submitted under paragraph (2) in 
consultation with the majority party and minority 
party leaders of each house of the State legislature. 
(5) RULES FOR STATES THAT DO NOT SUBMIT 
A STATE PLAN.—If a State fails to submit a State 
plan described in section 102 before the date re-
quired under paragraph (1)(A), under rules estab-
lished by the Director— 
(A) for purposes of this title (other than 
section 104)— 
(i) each political subdivision within 
the State shall be treated as a State for 
purposes of this title (other than section 
104); and 
(ii) in applying this title to such polit-
ical subdivision, any duties required of the 
chief State election official shall be under-
taken by the executive official of such po-
litical subdivision charged with the admin-
istration of elections; 
(B) in applying this subsection to any po-
litical subdivision of the State— 
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(i) paragraph (1)(A) shall be applied 
by substituting ‘‘the first day of the fiscal 
year’’ for ‘‘90 days before the first day of 
the fiscal year’’; 
(ii) paragraph (1)(B) shall be applied 
by substituting ‘‘30 days after the first day 
of the fiscal year’’ for ‘‘45 days before the 
first day of the fiscal year’’; and 
(iii) paragraph (4) shall not apply; 
and 
(C) the amount of the allocation made to 
each such political subdivision under the Pro-
gram shall be the sum of— 
(i) an amount which bears the same 
proportion to the amount determined 
under section 104 with respect to the State 
in which the political subdivision is located 
as— 
(I) the population of the political 
subdivision; bears to 
(II) the population of such State; 
plus 
(ii) an amount (not to exceed 100 per-
cent of the amount determined with re-
spect to the political subdivision under 
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clause (i)) which bears the same proportion 
to the unsubscribed funds of the State 
as— 
(I) the population of the political 
subdivision; bears to 
(II) the population of the number 
of political subdivisions within the 
State that submitted a plan under 
section 102 before the date required 
under paragraph (1)(A) (after appli-
cation of subparagraph (B)). 
For 
purposes 
of 
subparagraph 
(C)(ii), 
the 
unsubscribed funds of any State is the sum of the 
amounts described in subparagraph (C)(i) with re-
spect to political subdivisions in the State which did 
not submit a plan under this subsection before the 
date required under paragraph (1)(A) (after applica-
tion of subparagraph (B)). 
(e) STATE REPORT ON USE OF ALLOCATIONS.—Not 
later than 90 days after the last day of a fiscal year for 
which an allocation was made to the State under the Pro-
gram, the chief State election official of the State shall 
submit a report to the Director describing how the State 
used the allocation, including a description of the democ-
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racy promotion activities the State carried out with the 
allocation. 
(f) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.— 
(1) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE WEBSITE.—The Di-
rector shall make available on a publicly accessible 
website the following: 
(A) State plans submitted under para-
graph (1) of subsection (d) and revised plans 
submitted under paragraph (2) of subsection 
(d). 
(B) The Director’s notifications of deter-
minations with respect to such plans under sub-
section (d). 
(C) Reports submitted by States under 
subsection (e). 
(2) REDACTION.—The Director may redact in-
formation required to be made available under para-
graph (1) if the information would be properly with-
held from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, 
United States Code, or if the public disclosure of the 
information is otherwise prohibited by law. 
(g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with 
respect to fiscal year 2024 and each succeeding fiscal year. 
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SEC. 102. STATE PLAN. 
(a) CONTENTS.—A State plan under this section with 
respect to a State is a plan containing each of the fol-
lowing: 
(1) A description of the democracy promotion 
activities the State will carry out with the payment 
made under the Program. 
(2) A statement of whether or not the State in-
tends to retain and reserve the payment for future 
democracy promotion activities. 
(3) A statement of how the State intends to 
distribute resources under the plan, including how 
the distribution of resources will address geographic 
and racial disparities within the State. 
(4) A description of how the State intends to 
allocate funds to carry out the proposed activities, 
which shall include the amount the State intends to 
allocate to each such activity, including (if applica-
ble) a specific allocation for— 
(A) activities described in subsection 
101(b)(1) (relating to election administration); 
(B) 
activities 
described 
in 
section 
101(b)(2) (relating to activities to recruit, train, 
retain, and protect election workers); and 
(C) 
activities 
described 
in 
section 
101(b)(3) (relating to activities to increase ac-
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cess to voting in elections for Federal office by 
certain communities). 
(5) A description of how funds allocated under 
paragraph (4) will be allocated to political subdivi-
sions of the State. 
(6) A description of how the State will establish 
the fund described in subsection (b) for purposes of 
administering the democracy promotion activities 
which the State will carry out with the payment, in-
cluding information on fund management. 
(7) A description of the State-based administra-
tive complaint procedures established for purposes of 
section 103(a)(2). 
(8) A statement regarding whether the pro-
posed activities to be funded are permitted under 
State law, or whether the official intends to seek 
legal authorization for such activities. 
(b) REQUIREMENTS FOR FUND.— 
(1) FUND DESCRIBED.—For purposes of sub-
section (a)(6), a fund described in this subsection 
with respect to a State is a fund which is established 
in the treasury of the State government, which is 
used in accordance with paragraph (2), and which 
consists of the following amounts: 
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(A) Amounts appropriated or otherwise 
made available by the State for carrying out the 
democracy promotion activities for which the 
payment is made to the State under the Pro-
gram. 
(B) The payment made to the State under 
the Program. 
(C) Such other amounts as may be appro-
priated under law. 
(D) Interest earned on deposits of the 
fund. 
(2) USE OF FUND.—Amounts in the fund shall 
be used by the State exclusively to carry out democ-
racy promotion activities for which the payment is 
made to the State under the Program. 
(3) TREATMENT
OF
STATES
THAT
REQUIRE 
CHANGES TO STATE LAW.—In the case of a State 
that requires State legislation to establish the fund 
described in this subsection, the Director shall defer 
disbursement of the payment to such State under 
the Program until such time as legislation estab-
lishing the fund is enacted. 
SEC. 103. PROHIBITIONS. 
(a) PROHIBITED USES OF PAYMENTS.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—A State may not use a pay-
ment made under the Program to carry out— 
(A) any activity described in paragraph 
(2); or 
(B) any other activity which has the pur-
pose or effect of diminishing the ability of any 
eligible voter to participate in the electoral proc-
ess. 
(2) PROHIBITED
ACTIVITIES.—The following 
are activities described in this paragraph: 
(A) Activities that intimidate, threaten, or 
coerce voters, poll workers, or election adminis-
trators. 
(B) The restriction of the distribution of 
food or nonalcoholic beverages to voters while 
waiting at polling places (other than restrictions 
on distributions made on the basis of the elec-
toral participation or political preference of the 
recipient). 
(C) The removal of election administrators 
from their positions other than for negligence, 
neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office. 
(D) Defending against lawsuits alleging 
voter-suppression practices or proposed prac-
tices. 
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(E) The investigation of claims of voter 
fraud based on the mere invocation of interests 
in voter confidence or prevention of fraud. 
(F) The performance of audits that— 
(i) fail to meet best practices estab-
lished by the Election Assistance Commis-
sion; 
(ii) fail to meet the requirements for 
record retention under title III of the Civil 
Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20701 et 
seq.); or 
(iii) 
otherwise 
jeopardize 
election 
records, voting equipment, electronic poll 
books, or election management systems (as 
defined under the voluntary guidance 
issued by the Election Assistance Commis-
sion under section 311 of the Help Amer-
ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21101)). 
(G) The removal of voters from voter rolls 
based on evidence that is not reliable. 
(H) Activities preventing individuals seek-
ing to have their right to vote or register to 
vote restored. 
(I) The purchase of voting machines that 
do not require the use of individual voter- 
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verifiable paper ballots marked through the use 
of a nontabulating ballot marking device or sys-
tem. 
(b) STATE-BASED
ADMINISTRATIVE
COMPLAINT 
PROCEDURES.— 
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—A State receiving a pay-
ment under the Program shall establish uniform and 
nondiscriminatory State-based administrative com-
plaint procedures under which any person who be-
lieves that a violation of subsection (a) has occurred, 
is occurring, or is about to occur may file a com-
plaint. 
(2) NOTIFICATION TO DIRECTOR.—The State 
shall transmit to the Director a description of each 
complaint filed under the procedures, together 
with— 
(A) if the State provides a remedy with re-
spect to the complaint, a description of the rem-
edy; or 
(B) if the State dismisses the complaint, a 
statement of the reasons for the dismissal. 
(3) REVIEW BY DIRECTOR.— 
(A) REQUEST FOR REVIEW.—Any person 
who is dissatisfied with the final decision under 
a State-based administrative complaint proce-
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dure under this subsection may, not later than 
60 days after the decision is made, file a re-
quest with the Director to review the decision. 
(B) ACTION BY DIRECTOR.—Upon receiv-
ing a request under subparagraph (A), the Di-
rector shall review the decision and, in accord-
ance with such procedures as the Director may 
establish, including procedures to provide notice 
and an opportunity for a hearing, may uphold 
the decision or reverse the decision and provide 
an appropriate remedy. 
(C) PUBLIC
AVAILABILITY
OF
MATE-
RIAL.—The Director shall make available on a 
publicly accessible website all material relating 
to a request for review and determination by 
the Director under this paragraph, except that 
the Director may redact material required to be 
made available under this subparagraph if the 
material would be properly withheld from dis-
closure under section 552 of title 5, United 
States Code, or if the public disclosure of the 
material is otherwise prohibited by law. 
(4) RIGHT TO PETITION FOR REVIEW.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person aggrieved 
by an action of the Director under subpara-
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graph (B) of paragraph (3) may file a petition 
with the United States District Court for the 
District of Columbia. 
(B) DEADLINE TO FILE PETITION.—Any 
petition under this subparagraph shall be filed 
not later than 60 days after the date of the ac-
tion taken by the Director under subparagraph 
(B) of paragraph (3). 
(C) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—In any pro-
ceeding under this paragraph, the court shall 
determine whether the action of the Director 
was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discre-
tion, or otherwise not in accordance with law 
under section 706 of title 5, United States 
Code, and may direct the Office to conform 
with any such determination within 30 days. 
(c) ACTION BY ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR DECLARA-
TORY AND INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—The Attorney General 
may bring a civil action against any State in an appro-
priate United States District Court for such declaratory 
and injunctive relief (including a temporary restraining 
order, a permanent or temporary injunction, or other 
order) as may be necessary to enforce subsection (a). 
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SEC. 104. AMOUNT OF STATE ALLOCATION. 
(a) STATE-SPECIFIC AMOUNT.—The amount of the 
allocation made to a State under the Program for a fiscal 
year shall be equal to the product of— 
(1) the Congressional district allocation amount 
(determined under subsection (b)); and 
(2) the number of Congressional districts in the 
State for the next regularly scheduled general elec-
tion for Federal office held in the State. 
(b) 
CONGRESSIONAL
DISTRICT
ALLOCATION 
AMOUNT.—For purposes of subsection (a), the ‘‘Congres-
sional district allocation amount’’ with respect to a fiscal 
year is equal to the quotient of— 
(1) the aggregate amount available for alloca-
tions to States under the Program for the fiscal 
year, as determined by the Director under sub-
section (c); divided by 
(2) the total number of Congressional districts 
in all States. 
(c) DETERMINATION
OF
AGGREGATE
AMOUNT 
AVAILABLE
FOR
ALLOCATIONS; 
NOTIFICATION
TO 
STATES.—Not later than 120 days before the first day 
of each fiscal year, the Director— 
(1) shall determine and establish the aggregate 
amount available for allocations to States under the 
Program for the fiscal year, taking into account the 
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anticipated balances of the Trust Fund (including 
any amounts appropriated pursuant to section 
106(i)); and 
(2) shall notify each State of the amount of the 
State’s allocation under the Program for the fiscal 
year. 
In making the determination under paragraph (1), the Di-
rector shall consult with the Election Assistance Commis-
sion, but shall be solely responsible for making the final 
determinations under such paragraph. 
(d) SOURCE OF PAYMENTS.—The amounts used to 
make allocations and payments under the Program shall 
be derived solely from the Trust Fund. 
SEC. 105. PROCEDURES FOR DISBURSEMENTS OF PAY-
MENTS AND ALLOCATIONS. 
(a) ALLOCATION.—Upon approving the State plan 
under section 102, the Director shall direct the Secretary 
of the Treasury to allocate to the Election Assistance 
Commission the amount provided for activities under the 
plan. 
(b) PAYMENT TO STATE.—As soon as practicable 
after receiving an allocation under subsection (a) with re-
spect to a State, the Election Assistance Commission shall 
make payments to— 
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(1) local election administrators in the State 
with respect to amounts related to activities in the 
State plan carried out directly by such local election 
administrators; and 
(2) the State with respect to any amount not 
described in paragraph (1). 
(c) CONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS AFTER 
APPROPRIATION.—A payment made to a State by the 
Election Assistance Commission under this section shall 
be available without fiscal year limitation. 
SEC. 106. OFFICE OF DEMOCRACY ADVANCEMENT AND IN-
NOVATION. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established as an 
independent establishment in the executive branch the Of-
fice of Democracy Advancement and Innovation. 
(b) DIRECTOR.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall be headed 
by a Director, who shall be appointed by the Presi-
dent with the advice and consent of the Senate. 
(2) TERM
OF
SERVICE.—The Director shall 
serve for a term of 6 years and may be reappointed 
to an additional term, and may continue serving as 
Director until a replacement is appointed. A vacancy 
in the position of Director shall be filled in the same 
manner as the original appointment. 
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(3) COMPENSATION.—The Director shall be 
paid at an annual rate of pay equal to the annual 
rate in effect for level II of the Executive Schedule. 
(4) REMOVAL.—The Director may be removed 
from office by the President. If the President re-
moves the Director, the President shall communicate 
in writing the reasons for the removal to both 
Houses of Congress not later than 30 days before-
hand. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed 
to prohibit a personnel action otherwise authorized 
by law. 
(c) GENERAL COUNSEL AND OTHER STAFF.— 
(1) GENERAL
COUNSEL.—The Director shall 
appoint a general counsel who shall be paid at an 
annual rate of pay equal to the annual rate in effect 
for level III of the Executive Schedule. In the event 
of a vacancy in the position of the Director, the 
General Counsel shall exercise all the responsibilities 
of the Director until such vacancy is filled. 
(2) SENIOR STAFF.—The Director may appoint 
and fix the pay of staff designated as Senior staff, 
such as a Deputy Director, who may be paid at an 
annual rate of pay equal to the annual rate in effect 
for level IV of the Executive Schedule. 
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(3) OTHER STAFF.—In addition to the General 
Counsel and Senior staff, the Director may appoint 
and fix the pay of such other staff as the Director 
considers necessary to carry out the duties of the 
Office, except that no such staff may be com-
pensated at an annual rate exceeding the daily 
equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay in effect 
for grade GS–15 of the General Schedule. 
(d) DUTIES.—The duties of the Office are as follows: 
(1) ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM.—The Di-
rector shall administer the Program, in consultation 
with the Election Assistance Commission, including 
by holding quarterly meetings of representatives 
from such Commission. 
(2) OVERSIGHT OF TRUST FUND.—The Direc-
tor shall oversee the operation of the Trust Fund 
and monitor its balances, in consultation with the 
Election Assistance Commission and the Secretary 
of the Treasury. The Director may hold funds in re-
serve to cover the expenses of the Office and to pre-
serve the solvency of the Trust Fund. 
(3) REPORTS.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the regularly scheduled general election 
for Federal office held in 2024 and each succeeding 
regularly scheduled general election for Federal of-
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fice thereafter, the Director, in consultation with the 
Election Assistance Commission, shall submit to the 
Committee on House Administration of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Rules and 
Administration of the Senate a report on the activi-
ties carried out under the Program and the amounts 
deposited into and paid from the Trust Fund during 
the two most recent fiscal years. 
(e) COVERAGE UNDER INSPECTOR GENERAL ACT OF 
1978 FOR CONDUCTING AUDITS AND INVESTIGATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 415(a)(1)(A) of title 
5, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘the 
Office of Democracy Advancement and Innovation,’’ 
after ‘‘Election Assistance Commission,’’. 
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 
by paragraph (1) shall take effect 180 days after the 
appointment of the Director. 
(f) COVERAGE UNDER HATCH ACT.—Clause (i) of 
section 7323(b)(2)(B) of title 5, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subclause 
(XIII); and 
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
clause: 
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‘‘(XV) the Office of Democracy Advance-
ment and Innovation; or’’. 
(g) REGULATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), not later than 270 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Director shall promulgate 
such rules and regulations as the Director considers 
necessary and appropriate to carry out the duties of 
the Office under this Act and the amendments made 
by this Act. 
(2) STATE PLAN SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL 
AND DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—Not later than 90 
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Director shall promulgate such rules and regulations 
as the Director considers necessary and appropriate 
to carry out the requirements of this title and the 
amendments made by this title. 
(3) COMMENTS BY THE ELECTION ASSISTANCE 
COMMISSION.—The Election Assistance Commission 
shall timely submit comments with respect to any 
proposed regulations promulgated by the Director 
under this subsection. 
(h) INTERIM AUTHORITY PENDING APPOINTMENT 
AND CONFIRMATION OF DIRECTOR.— 
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(1) AUTHORITY OF DIRECTOR OF OFFICE OF 
MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET.—Notwithstanding sub-
section (b), during the transition period, the Direc-
tor of the Office of Management and Budget is au-
thorized to perform the functions of the Office under 
this Act, and shall act for all purposes as, and with 
the full powers of, the Director. 
(2) INTERIM ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES.— 
(A) AUTHORITY OF OFFICE OF MANAGE-
MENT AND BUDGET.—During the transition pe-
riod, the Director of the Office of Management 
and Budget may provide administrative services 
necessary to support the Office. 
(B) TERMINATION
OF
AUTHORITY; PER-
MITTING EXTENSION.—The Director of the Of-
fice of Management and Budget shall cease pro-
viding interim administrative services under this 
paragraph upon the expiration of the transition 
period, except that the Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget may continue to pro-
vide such services after the expiration of the 
transition period if the Director and the Direc-
tor of the Office of Management and Budget 
jointly transmit to the Committee on House Ad-
ministration of the House of Representatives 
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and the Committee on Rules and Administra-
tion of the Senate— 
(i) a written determination that an or-
derly implementation of this Act is not fea-
sible by the expiration of the transition pe-
riod; 
(ii) an explanation of why an exten-
sion is necessary for the orderly implemen-
tation of this Act; 
(iii) a description of the period during 
which the Director of the Office of Man-
agement and Budget shall continue pro-
viding services under the authority of this 
subparagraph; and 
(iv) a description of the steps that will 
be taken to ensure an orderly and timely 
implementation of this Act during the pe-
riod described in clause (iii). 
(3) TRANSITION
PERIOD
DEFINED.—In this 
subsection, the ‘‘transition period’’ is the period 
which begins on the date of the enactment of this 
Act and ends on the date on which the first Director 
is appointed. 
(4) LIMIT ON LENGTH OF PERIOD OF INTERIM 
AUTHORITIES.—Notwithstanding any other provision 
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of this subsection, the Director of the Office of Man-
agement and Budget may not exercise any authority 
under this subsection after the expiration of the 24- 
month period which begins on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act. 
(i) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated from the Trust Fund 
such sums as may be necessary to carry out the activities 
of the Office for fiscal year 2024 and each succeeding fis-
cal year. 
TITLE II—STATE ELECTION AS-
SISTANCE AND INNOVATION 
TRUST FUND 
SEC. 201. STATE ELECTION ASSISTANCE AND INNOVATION 
TRUST FUND. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 
Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘‘State Election As-
sistance and Innovation Trust Fund’’. 
(b) CONTENTS.—There is hereby appropriated to the 
Trust Fund $2,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 
through 2033. 
(c) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Trust Fund 
shall be used to make payments and allocations under the 
Program and to carry out the activities of the Office. 
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(d) ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS.—The Office may accept 
gifts or bequests for deposit into the Trust Fund. 
TITLE III—GENERAL 
PROVISIONS 
SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act, the following definitions apply: 
(1) The term ‘‘chief State election official’’ has 
the meaning given such term in section 253(e) of the 
Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 
21003(e)). 
(2) The term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 
the Office. 
(3) The term ‘‘Indian lands’’ includes— 
(A) Indian country, as defined under sec-
tion 1151 of title 18, United States Code; 
(B) any land in Alaska owned, pursuant to 
the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 
U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), by an Indian Tribe that 
is a Native village (as defined in section 3 of 
that Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)) or by a Village Cor-
poration that is associated with an Indian Tribe 
(as defined in section 3 of that Act (43 U.S.C. 
1602)); 
(C) any land on which the seat of the Trib-
al government is located; and 
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(D) any land that is part or all of a Tribal 
designated statistical area associated with an 
Indian Tribe, or is part or all of an Alaska Na-
tive village statistical area associated with an 
Indian Tribe, as defined by the Census Bureau 
for the purposes of the most recent decennial 
census. 
(4) The term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of De-
mocracy Advancement and Innovation established 
under section 105. 
(5) The term ‘‘Program’’ means the Democracy 
Advancement and Innovation Program established 
under section 101. 
(6) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 
of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United 
States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands. 
(7) The term ‘‘Trust Fund’’ means the State 
Election Assistance and Innovation Trust Fund es-
tablished under section 201. 
SEC. 302. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION REGARDING CALCULA-
TION OF DEADLINES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—With respect to the calculation of 
any period of time for the purposes of a deadline in this 
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Act, the last day of the period shall be included in such 
calculation, unless such day is a Saturday, a Sunday, or 
a legal public holiday, in which case the period of such 
deadline shall be extended until the end of the next day 
which is not a Saturday, a Sunday, or a legal public holi-
day. 
(b) LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAY DEFINED.—For the 
purposes of this section, the term ‘‘legal public holiday’’ 
means a day described in section 6103(a) of title 5, United 
States Code. 
SEC. 303. SEVERABILITY. 
If any provision of this Act or any amendment made 
by this Act, or the application of any such provision or 
amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to be 
unconstitutional, the remainder of such Act and amend-
ments made by such Act and the application of such provi-
sion or amendment to any other person or circumstance, 
shall not be affected by the holding. 
Æ 
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