Securing America’s Elections Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.4384 | Sponsor: Rep. Gosar, Paul A. (R-AZ)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Securing America's Elections Act of 2021
This bill requires voting systems for federal elections to produce paper ballots that the voter may inspect and verify before the vote is cast and counted. The bill also (1) requires the paper ballot to be suitable for manual audits, (2) prescribes approved methods for such audits, and (3) directs the Department of Homeland Security and the Election Assistance Commission to report on the desirability of using open-source software in voting systems.

To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require voting systems 
used in elections for Federal office to produce a voter-verified paper 
    ballot of each vote cast on the system, 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.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Securing America's Elections Act of 
2021''.

SEC. 2. PROMOTING ACCURACY, INTEGRITY, AND SECURITY THROUGH VOTER-
              VERIFIED PERMANENT PAPER BALLOT.

    (a) Ballot Verification and Audit Capacity.--
            (1) In general.--Section 301(a)(2) of the Help America Vote 
        Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(2)) is amended to read as 
        follows:
            ``(2) Ballot verification and audit capacity.--
                    ``(A) Voter-verified paper ballots.--
                            ``(i) Verification.--(I) The voting system 
                        shall require the production of a voter-
                        verified paper ballot of the voter's vote that 
                        shall be created by or made available for 
                        inspection and verification by the individual 
                        voter before the voter's vote is cast and 
                        counted. For purposes of this subclause, a 
                        voter-verified paper ballot includes (but is 
                        not limited to) a paper ballot marked by the 
                        voter for the purpose of being counted by hand 
                        or read by an optical scanner or other similar 
                        device, a paper ballot prepared by the voter to 
                        be mailed to an election official (whether from 
                        a domestic or overseas location), a paper 
                        ballot created through the use of a ballot 
                        marking device or system, or a paper ballot 
                        produced by a touch screen or other electronic 
                        voting machine, so long as in each case the 
                        voter is permitted to verify the ballot in a 
                        paper form in accordance with this 
                        subparagraph.
                            ``(II) The voting system shall provide the 
                        voter with an opportunity to correct any error 
                        made by the system in the voter-verified paper 
                        ballot before the permanent voter-verified 
                        paper ballot is preserved in accordance with 
                        clause (ii).
                            ``(III) The voting system shall not 
                        preserve the voter-verified paper ballots in 
                        any manner that makes it possible, at any time 
                        after the ballot has been cast, to associate a 
                        voter with the record of the voter's vote.
                            ``(ii) Preservation.--The voter-verified 
                        paper ballot produced in accordance with clause 
                        (i) shall be used as the official ballot for 
                        purposes of any recount or audit conducted with 
                        respect to any election for Federal office in 
                        which the voting system is used, and shall be 
                        preserved in accordance with regulations 
                        promulgated by the Commission to establish 
                        criteria for the proper preservation and 
                        retention of the official ballots in the 
                        election.
                            ``(iii) Manual audit capacity.--Each paper 
                        ballot produced pursuant to clause (i) shall be 
                        suitable for a manual audit equivalent to that 
                        of a paper ballot voting system, in accordance 
                        with the methods described in subparagraph (B).
                    ``(B) Approved methods for manual audits.--The 
                methods described in this subparagraph with respect to 
                the manual audit of voter-verified paper ballots are--
                            ``(i) audits conducted through the use of 
                        programmable electronic counting machines which 
                        are not capable of being connected to the 
                        Internet, as determined in accordance with 
                        regulations promulgated by the Commission; or
                            ``(ii) if no machine described in clause 
                        (i) is available, an audit conducted by a hand 
                        count.
                    ``(C) Resolution of disputes when paper ballots 
                have been shown to be compromised.--In the event that 
                the paper ballots produced pursuant to subparagraph (A) 
                with respect to an election for Federal office have 
                been compromised, the State shall resolve the dispute 
                over the results of the election in accordance with 
                dispute resolution processes established under 
                regulations promulgated by the Commission.
                    ``(D) Deadline for promulgation of regulations.--
                The Commission shall promulgate the regulations 
                described in this paragraph not later than 3 months 
                after the date of the enactment of the Securing 
                America's Elections Act of 2021.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment clarifying applicability of 
        alternative language accessibility.--Section 301(a)(4) of such 
        Act (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(4)) is amended by inserting 
        ``(including the paper ballots required to be produced under 
        paragraph (2))'' after ``voting system''.
            (3) Other conforming amendments.--Section 301(a)(1) of such 
        Act (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(1)) is amended--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking ``counted'' 
                and inserting ``counted, in accordance with paragraphs 
                (2) and (3)'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by striking 
                ``counted'' and inserting ``counted, in accordance with 
                paragraphs (2) and (3)'';
                    (C) in subparagraph (A)(iii), by striking 
                ``counted'' each place it appears and inserting 
                ``counted, in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3)''; 
                and
                    (D) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking 
                ``counted'' and inserting ``counted, in accordance with 
                paragraphs (2) and (3)''.
    (b) Availability of Additional Funding To Enable States To Meet 
Costs of Revised Requirement.--
            (1) Extension of requirements payments for meeting revised 
        requirement; amounts deemed to meet requirements for emergency 
        funding.--Section 257(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21007(a)) is 
        amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(5) For fiscal year 2021 and fiscal year 2022, such sums 
        as may be necessary to enable States to meet the requirements 
        of section 301(a)(2) which are first imposed on the State 
        pursuant to the amendments made by section 2(a) of the Securing 
        America's Elections Act of 2021. Any amount appropriated 
        pursuant to the authorization under this paragraph shall be 
        designated by the Congress as being for an emergency 
        requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced 
        Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.''.
            (2) Amount of payment based on costs incurred in meeting 
        revised requirements.--Section 252 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 
        21002) is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a), by striking ``subsection 
                (c)'' and inserting ``subsections (c) and (e)'';
                    (B) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection 
                (f); and
                    (C) by inserting after subsection (d) the following 
                new subsection:
    ``(e) Special Rule for Fiscal Year 2021 and Fiscal Year 2022.--
            ``(1) Coverage of costs of meeting revised ballot 
        verification and audit capacity requirements.--The amount of a 
        requirements payment made to a State from funds appropriated 
        for fiscal year 2021 and fiscal year 2022 shall be equal to the 
        State's estimate of the reasonable costs the State expects to 
        incur to meet the requirements referred to in paragraph (3), as 
        contained in the statement filed by the State with the 
        Commission under section 253(f)(1)(A)(ii).
            ``(2) Recoupment of overpayments.--If a State receives a 
        requirements payment from funds appropriated for fiscal year 
        2020, the State shall agree to repay to the Commission the 
        excess (if any) of--
                    ``(A) the amount of the payment; over
                    ``(B) the actual costs incurred by the State in 
                meeting the requirements referred to in paragraph (3), 
                as contained in the statement filed by the State with 
                the Commission under section 253(f)(1)(B).
            ``(3) Requirements described.--The requirements referred to 
        in this paragraph are the requirements of section 301(a)(2) 
        (relating to ballot verification and audit capacity) which are 
        first imposed on the State pursuant to the amendments made by 
        section 2(a) of the Securing America's Elections Act of 
        2021.''.
            (3) Revised conditions for receipt of funds.--Section 253 
        of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21003) is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a), by striking ``A State is 
                eligible'' and inserting ``Except as provided in 
                subsection (f), a State is eligible''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                subsection:
    ``(f) Special Rule for Fiscal Year 2021 and Fiscal Year 2022.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        this part, a State is eligible to receive a requirements 
        payment from funds appropriated for fiscal year 2021 and fiscal 
        year 2022 if, at any time after the funds are appropriated, the 
        chief executive officer of the State, or designee, in 
        consultation and coordination with the chief State election 
        official--
                    ``(A) files a statement with the Commission--
                            ``(i) describing how the State will use the 
                        payment to meet the requirements of section 
                        301(a)(2) (relating to ballot verification and 
                        audit capacity) which are first imposed on the 
                        State pursuant to the amendment made by section 
                        2(a) of the Securing America's Elections Act of 
                        2021, and
                            ``(ii) containing the State's estimate of 
                        the reasonable costs the State expects to incur 
                        to meet such requirements; and
                    ``(B) certifies to the Commission that, upon 
                completing the replacement or upgrading of its voting 
                systems to meet such requirements, the State will file 
                a statement with the Commission containing the actual 
                costs incurred by the State in meeting such 
                requirements.
            ``(2) Certifications by states that require changes to 
        state law.--In the case of a State that requires State 
        legislation to carry out any activity covered by any 
        certification submitted 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.''.
            (4) Permitting use of funds for reimbursement for costs 
        previously incurred.--Section 251(c)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 
        21001(c)(1)) is amended by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting the following: ``, or as a reimbursement for any 
        costs incurred in meeting the requirements of section 301(a)(2) 
        which are first imposed pursuant to the amendments made by 
        section 2(a) of the Securing America's Elections Act of 2021 or 
        in otherwise replacing or upgrading voting systems in response 
        to such amendments.''.
            (5) Rule of construction regarding use of funds to replace 
        or upgrade systems obtained with funds provided previously 
        under help america vote act of 2002.--Nothing in the amendments 
        made by this subsection or in any other provision of the Help 
        America Vote Act of 2002 may be construed to prohibit a State 
        from using any funds provided under such Act pursuant to the 
        amendments made by this subsection (or any funds provided under 
        such Act prior to the date of the enactment of this Act which 
        remain unexpended as of the date of the enactment of this Act) 
        to replace or upgrade a voting system purchased or otherwise 
        obtained in whole or in part using funds received under title I 
        or II of the Help America Vote Act at any time before the date 
        of the enactment of this Act.
            (6) Effective date.--The amendments made by this subsection 
        shall apply with respect to fiscal years beginning with fiscal 
        year 2021.
    (c) Study and Report on Use of Open-Source Software in Voting 
Systems.--
            (1) Study.--The Secretary of Homeland Security and the 
        Election Assistance Commission, acting jointly, shall conduct a 
        study of the feasibility and desirability of using open-source 
        software in voting systems, based on information obtained from 
        elections for Federal office held in 2020 through 2022.
            (2) Report.--Not later than July 1, 2025, the Secretary and 
        the Commission shall submit to Congress a report on the study 
        conducted under paragraph (1), and shall include in the report 
        such recommendations as the Secretary and Commission consider 
        appropriate regarding the possible use of open-source software 
        in the voting systems used to administer elections for Federal 
        office held in 2024.
            (3) Development and maintenance of software.--If the 
        Secretary and the Commission include in the report submitted 
        under paragraph (2) a recommendation that State election 
        officials use open-source software in the voting systems used 
        to administer elections for Federal office in the State--
                    (A) the Commission shall enter into a partnership 
                with appropriate private entities, including entities 
                engaged in the business of maintaining open-source 
                software, to develop, test, certify, and maintain open-
                source software for such purpose for elections held in 
                2028 or any succeeding year; and
                    (B) the Commission shall ensure that such certified 
                software is available without cost to State election 
                officials.
    (d) Effective Date for New Requirements.--Section 301(d) of such 
Act (52 U.S.C. 21081(d)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(d) Effective Date.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
        each State and jurisdiction shall be required to comply with 
        the requirements of this section on and after January 1, 2006.
            ``(2) Special rule for certain requirements.--The 
        requirements of subsection (a)(2) which are first imposed on a 
        State and jurisdiction pursuant to the amendments made by 
        section 2(a) of the Securing America's Elections Act of 2021 
        shall apply with respect to the regularly scheduled general 
        election for Federal office held in November 2022 and each 
        succeeding election for Federal office.''.
                                 <all>