Protect American Voters Act

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4457 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4457

   To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to direct the Election 
   Assistance Commission to adopt voluntary guidelines for election 
officials on the use of nonvoting election technology in elections for 
                Federal office, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 3, 2023

Mr. Gimenez (for himself and Mr. Steil) 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 direct the Election 
   Assistance Commission to adopt voluntary guidelines for election 
officials on the use of nonvoting election technology in elections for 
                Federal office, 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 ``Protect American Voters Act''.

SEC. 2. VOLUNTARY GUIDELINES WITH RESPECT TO NONVOTING ELECTION 
              TECHNOLOGY.

    (a) Adoption of Voluntary Guidelines by Election Assistance 
Commission.--
            (1) Adoption of guidelines.--Title II of the Help America 
        Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20921 et seq.) is amended by adding 
        at the end the following new subtitle:

   ``Subtitle E--Voluntary Guidelines for Use of Nonvoting Election 
                               Technology

``SEC. 298. ADOPTION OF VOLUNTARY GUIDELINES BY COMMISSION.

    ``(a) Adoption.--The Commission shall adopt voluntary guidelines 
for election officials on the use of nonvoting election technology, 
taking into account the recommendations of the Standards Board under 
section 298A.
    ``(b) Review.--The Commission shall review the guidelines adopted 
under this subtitle not less frequently than once every 4 years, and 
may adopt revisions to the guidelines as it considers appropriate.
    ``(c) Process for Adoption.--The adoption of the voluntary 
guidelines under this subtitle shall be carried out by the Commission 
in a manner that provides for each of the following:
            ``(1) Publication of notice of the proposed guidelines in 
        the Federal Register.
            ``(2) An opportunity for public comment on the proposed 
        guidelines.
            ``(3) An opportunity for a public hearing on the record.
            ``(4) Publication of the final recommendations in the 
        Federal Register.
    ``(d) Deadline for Initial Set of Guidelines.--The Commission shall 
adopt the initial set of voluntary guidelines under this section not 
later than December 31, 2026.

``SEC. 298A. ROLE OF STANDARDS BOARD.

    ``(a) Duties.--The Standards Board shall assist the Commission in 
the adoption of voluntary guidelines under section 298, including by 
providing the Commission with recommendations on appropriate standards 
for the use of nonvoting election technology, including standards to 
ensure the security and accuracy, and promote the usability, of such 
technology, and by conducting a review of existing State programs with 
respect to the testing of nonvoting election technology.
    ``(b) Sources of Assistance.--
            ``(1) Certain members of technical guidelines development 
        committee.--The following members of the Technical Guidelines 
        Development Committee under section 221 shall assist the 
        Standards Board in carrying out its duties under this section:
                    ``(A) The Director of the National Institute of 
                Standards and Technology.
                    ``(B) The representative of the American National 
                Standards Institute.
                    ``(C) The representative of the Institute of 
                Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
                    ``(D) The 4 members of the Technical Guidelines 
                Development Committee appointed under subsection 
                (c)(1)(E) of such section as the other individuals with 
                technical and scientific expertise relating to voting 
                systems and voting equipment.
            ``(2) Detailee from cisa.--The Executive Board of the 
        Standards Board may request the Director of the Cybersecurity 
        and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of 
        Homeland Security to provide a detailee to assist the Standards 
        Board in carrying out its duties under this section, so long as 
        such detailee has no involvement in the drafting of any of the 
        voluntary guidelines.

``SEC. 298B. USE OF PAYMENTS TO OBTAIN OR UPGRADE TECHNOLOGY.

    ``A State may use funds provided under any law for activities to 
improve the administration of elections for Federal office, including 
to enhance election technology and make election security improvements, 
to obtain nonvoting election technology which is in compliance with the 
voluntary guidelines adopted under section 298 or to upgrade nonvoting 
election technology so that the technology is in compliance with such 
guidelines, and may, notwithstanding any other provision of law, use 
any unobligated grant funding provided to the State by the Election 
Assistance Commission from amounts appropriated under the heading 
`Independent Agencies--Election Assistance Commission--Election 
Security Grants' in title V of division C of the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law 116-93) for the purposes of 
enhancing election technology and making election security improvements 
until December 31, 2024.

``SEC. 298C. NONVOTING ELECTION TECHNOLOGY DEFINED.

    ``In this subtitle, the term `nonvoting election technology' means 
technology used in the administration of elections for Federal office 
which is not used directly in the casting, counting, tabulating, or 
collecting of ballots or votes, including each of the following:
            ``(1) Electronic pollbooks or other systems used to check 
        in voters at a polling place or verify a voter's 
        identification.
            ``(2) Election result reporting systems.
            ``(3) Electronic ballot delivery systems.
            ``(4) Online voter registration systems.
            ``(5) Polling place location search systems.
            ``(6) Sample ballot portals.
            ``(7) Signature systems.
            ``(8) Such other technology as may be recommended for 
        treatment as nonvoting election technology as the Standards 
        Board may recommend.''.
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents of such Act 
        is amended by adding at the end of the items relating to title 
        II the following:

   ``Subtitle E--Voluntary Guidelines for Use of Nonvoting Election 
                               Technology

``Sec. 298. Adoption of voluntary guidelines by Commission.
``Sec. 298A. Role of Standards Board.
``Sec. 298B. Use of payments to obtain or upgrade technology.
``Sec. 298C. Nonvoting election technology defined.''.
    (b) Treatment of Technology Used in Most Recent Election.--Any 
nonvoting election technology, as defined in section 298C of the Help 
America Vote Act of 2002 (as added by subsection (a)(1)), which a State 
used in the most recent election for Federal office held in the State 
prior to the date of the enactment of this Act shall be deemed to be in 
compliance with the voluntary guidelines on the use of such technology 
which are adopted by the Election Assistance Commission under section 
298 of such Act (as added by subsection (a)(1)).
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