Reducing Barriers for Military Voters Act
Bill: H.R.3646 | Sponsor: Rep. Wilson, Joe (R-SC)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Reducing Barriers for Military Voters Act
This bill requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to develop a plan for providing end-to-end electronic voting services (e.g., services for registering to vote and returning a ballot) in participating states for absent uniformed service members who are deployed or mobilized in locations with limited or no postal service.
Specifically, DOD must develop the plan by consulting with state and local election officials. Further, the plan must include (1) methods to ensure that voters have the opportunity to verify that their ballots are received and tabulated, (2) methods to generate a verifiable and auditable vote trail, and (3) an assessment of whether commercially available technologies may be used to carry out the plan.
DOD must implement the plan for a trial group of voters in participating states for the 2024 federal elections. The plan must be implemented for all voters in participating states for the 2026 federal elections and subsequent years.

To direct the Presidential designee under the Uniformed and Overseas 
Citizens Absentee Voting Act to develop and implement a plan to provide 
  end-to-end electronic voting services for absent uniformed services 
 voters under such Act who are deployed or mobilized to locations with 
                  limited or immature postal service.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reducing Barriers for Military 
Voters Act''.

SEC. 2. PROVIDING END-TO-END ELECTRONIC VOTING SERVICES FOR ABSENT 
              UNIFORMED SERVICES VOTERS IN LOCATIONS WITH LIMITED OR 
              IMMATURE POSTAL SERVICE.

    (a) Plan.--
            (1) Development.--In consultation with the Chief 
        Information Officer of the Department of Defense, the 
        Presidential designee under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 
        Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.) shall develop a 
        plan for providing end-to-end electronic voting services 
        (including services for registering to vote, requesting an 
        electronic ballot, completing the ballot, and returning the 
        ballot) in participating States for absent uniformed services 
        voters under such Act who are deployed or mobilized to 
        locations with limited or immature postal service (as 
        determined by the Presidential designee).
            (2) Specifications.--The Presidential designee shall 
        include in the plan developed under paragraph (1)--
                    (A) methods to ensure that voters have the 
                opportunity to verify that their ballots are received 
                and tabulated correctly by the appropriate State and 
                local election officials;
                    (B) methods to generate a verifiable and auditable 
                vote trail for the purposes of any recount or audit 
                conducted with respect to an election; and
                    (C) an assessment of whether commercially available 
                technologies may be used to carry out any of the 
                elements of the plan.
            (3) Consultation with state and local election officials.--
        The Presidential designee shall develop the plan under 
        paragraph (1) in consultation with appropriate State and local 
        election officials to ensure that the plan may be implemented 
        successfully in any State which agrees to participate in the 
        plan.
            (4) Use of contractors.--To the extent the Presidential 
        designee determines to be appropriate, the Presidential 
        designee may include in the plan developed under paragraph (1) 
        provisions for the use of contractors to carry out any of the 
        elements of the plan.
            (5) Submission.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Presidential designee shall 
        submit the plan developed under paragraph (1) to the Committees 
        on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and Senate.
    (b) Implementation.--The Presidential designee shall implement the 
plan--
            (1) for a trial group of voters in participating States for 
        elections for Federal office held in 2024; and
            (2) for all such voters in participating States for 
        elections for Federal office held in 2026 and any succeeding 
        year.
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