Title: Count the Vote Act
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Count the Vote Act
This bill authorizes an individual to file a complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) for certain violations made by a state with respect to federal elections, such as for violations of required voting system standards or failure to provide provisional ballots. Currently, individuals may file such a complaint through a state-based administrative procedure.
Further, DOJ must immediately provide (1) a copy of the complaint to the entity responsible for administering the state-based administrative complaint procedure for the state involved in such complaint, and (2) a copy of the response to such entity.
The bill also permits such an individual, including an individual who seeks to enforce their right to a voter-verified ballot, to file a civil action for deprivation of rights.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1513 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1513

 To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to enhance enforcement of 
                    the Act, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 5, 2019

Ms. Davids of Kansas introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                to the Committee on House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to enhance enforcement of 
                    the Act, 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 ``Count the Vote Act''.

SEC. 2. ENHANCEMENT OF ENFORCEMENT OF HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002.

    (a) Complaints; Availability of Private Right of Action.--Section 
401 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``The Attorney General'' and inserting 
        ``(a) In General.--The Attorney General''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsections:
    ``(b) Filing of Complaints by Aggrieved Persons.--
            ``(1) In general.--A person who is aggrieved by a violation 
        of title III which has occurred, is occurring, or is about to 
        occur may file a written, signed, notarized complaint with the 
        Attorney General describing the violation and requesting the 
        Attorney General to take appropriate action under this section. 
        The Attorney General shall immediately provide a copy of a 
        complaint filed under the previous sentence to the entity 
        responsible for administering the State-based administrative 
        complaint procedures described in section 402(a) for the State 
        involved.
            ``(2) Response by attorney general.--The Attorney General 
        shall respond to each complaint filed under paragraph (1), in 
        accordance with procedures established by the Attorney General 
        that require responses and determinations to be made within the 
        same (or shorter) deadlines which apply to a State under the 
        State-based administrative complaint procedures described in 
        section 402(a)(2). The Attorney General shall immediately 
        provide a copy of the response made under the previous sentence 
        to the entity responsible for administering the State-based 
        administrative complaint procedures described in section 402(a) 
        for the State involved.
    ``(c) Availability of Private Right of Action.--Any person who is 
authorized to file a complaint under subsection (b)(1) (including any 
individual who seeks to enforce the individual's right to a voter-
verified paper ballot, the right to have the voter-verified paper 
ballot counted in accordance with this Act, or any other right under 
title III) may file an action under section 1979 of the Revised 
Statutes of the United States (42 U.S.C. 1983) to enforce the uniform 
and nondiscriminatory election technology and administration 
requirements under subtitle A of title III.
    ``(d) No Effect on State Procedures.--Nothing in this section may 
be construed to affect the availability of the State-based 
administrative complaint procedures required under section 402 to any 
person filing a complaint under this subsection.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this Act shall apply 
with respect to violations occurring with respect to elections for 
Federal office held in 2020 or any succeeding year.
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