No official summary available for this bill.
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7418 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7418
To convert the program of public financing of presidential election
campaigns to a program of providing grants to States for enhancing the
security of election systems, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 9, 2026
Mrs. Bice (for herself, Ms. Lee of Florida, Mr. McDowell, Mr. Smith of
New Jersey, and Mr. Mills) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to
the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To convert the program of public financing of presidential election
campaigns to a program of providing grants to States for enhancing the
security of election systems, 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 Tech and Election
Administration Defenses For All States and Territories Act'' or the
``STEADFAST Act''.
SEC. 2. CONVERSION OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN FUNDING PROGRAM TO
STATE GRANT PROGRAM FOR ELECTION SECURITY.
(a) Election Security Program.--
(1) Payments.--Subtitle H of the Internal Revenue Code of
1985 is amended by adding at the end the following new chapter:
``CHAPTER 97--ELECTION SECURITY PROGRAM AND FUND
``SEC. 9051. PAYMENTS TO STATES FOR ELECTION SECURITY.
``(a) Authorization of Payments.--The Election Assistance
Commission shall establish and operate a program under which the
Commission shall make payments to eligible States for activities to
promote the security of elections for Federal office by updating voting
systems to meet security standards.
``(b) Eligibility.--A State is eligible to receive a payment under
this chapter if the State submits to the Commission, at such time and
in such form as the Commission may require, an application containing
the following:
``(1) A plan for the use of the payment.
``(2) A certification that the State does not permit
noncitizens to vote in any election for public office held in
the State.
``(3) Assurances that the State will submit reports to the
Commission, at such frequency as the Commission may require, on
the use of the payment.
``(4) Such other information and assurances as the
Commission may require.
``(c) Use of Funds.--
``(1) Activities described.--An eligible State may use a
payment received under this chapter for the following:
``(A) Acquiring voting equipment.
``(B) Cybersecurity efforts to protect voting
systems.
``(C) Providing physical security for the storage
of voting equipment.
``(D) Modernizing and replacing the components of
voting systems.
``(E) Purchasing and printing paper ballots and
implementing security features for protecting paper
ballots.
``(F) Securing and protecting electronic poll
books.
``(2) Prohibition.--A State may not use the funds provided
under a payment received under this chapter to pay any of the
following:
``(A) Costs associated with training for election
administrators, other than training in the use of
election system equipment.
``(B) Costs associated with any litigation or for
the payment of any judgement.
``(d) Use of Qualified Vendors.--
``(1) Requirement.--An eligible State may use a payment
received under this chapter to carry out activities through a
vendor, but only if the vendor is certified as a qualified
vendor by the Commission under paragraph (2).
``(2) Certification.--
``(A) In general.--The Commission shall certify
vendors as qualified vendors for purposes of this
chapter in accordance with such criteria as the
Commission considers appropriate, except that the
Commission may not certify a vendor as a qualified
vendor if the vendor directly provided funds to a State
or unit of local government to support the
administration of an election for Federal office.
``(B) Deadline.--Not later than 90 days after the
date of the enactment of the Securing Tech and Election
Administration Defenses For All States and Territories
Act, the Commission shall publish the list of qualified
vendors for purposes of this chapter.
``(e) Priority for Certain States.--In determining the eligible
States which will receive payments under this chapter, the Commission
shall give priority to States which meet each of the following
conditions in carrying out elections for Federal office:
``(1) The State uses paper ballots which permit voters to
verify the vote cast on the ballot and which may serve as a
paper trail for purposes of post-election audits.
``(2) The State uses available resources to ensure that
noncitizens are not registered to vote and do not vote in such
elections, which may include the Systematic Alien Verification
for Entitlements Program administered by the Secretary of
Homeland Security and the Social Security Number Verification
Service of the Social Security Administration.
``(3) The State requires a voter to, in order to obtain a
ballot at a polling place, provide to an election official any
of the following forms of valid photo identification:
``(A) A valid State-issued motor vehicle driver's
license that includes a photo of the individual and an
expiration date.
``(B) A valid State-issued identification card that
includes a photo of the individual and an expiration
date.
``(C) A valid United States passport for the
individual.
``(D) A valid military identification for the
individual.
``(E) A valid identification document issued by a
Tribal government that includes a photo of the
individual and an expiration date.
``(F) Any other form of government-issued
identification specified by the State as valid photo
identification for purposes of this subsection,
excluding identification cards provided by an
educational institution.
``(f) Amount of Payment.--
``(1) Number of registered voters.--The amount of the
payment made to an eligible State under this chapter for a
fiscal year shall be equal to the product of--
``(A) the aggregate amount made available for
payments to eligible States under this chapter for the
fiscal year; and
``(B) the registered voter population proportion
for the State (as defined in paragraph (2)).
``(2) Registered voter population proportion.--The term
`registered voter population proportion' means, with respect to
an eligible State, the amount equal to the quotient of--
``(A) the number of individuals who are registered
to vote in elections for Federal office held in the
State, as determined by the State on the basis of the
most recent information available; and
``(B) the total number of individuals who are
registered to vote in elections for Federal office held
in all eligible States, as determined by the Commission
on the basis of the information determined by the
eligible States under subparagraph (A).
``(g) Report Required.--Each State that receives a payment under
this chapter shall provide to the Commission and make available on a
publicly accessible website of the State a report detailing--
``(1) how such payment was spent; and
``(2) the extent to which the State complied with or
deviated from the information submitted in the application
described in subsection (b).
``SEC. 9052. ELECTION SECURITY FUND.
``(a) Establishment; Purpose.--
``(1) In general.--There is hereby established on the books
of the Treasury of the United States a special fund to be known
as the `Election Security Fund', which shall be used to carry
out the program under this chapter.
``(2) Limit on administrative expenses.--The Commission may
use not more than 5 percent of the amount in the Fund during a
fiscal year for the administrative expenses of the Fund during
the fiscal year.
``(b) Funds Designated by Individual Taxpayers.--The Secretary of
the Treasury shall, from time to time, transfer to the fund an amount
not in excess of the sum of the amounts designated to the fund by
individuals under section 6096.
``(c) Appropriation.--There is appropriated to the Fund for each
fiscal year, out of amounts in the general fund of the Treasury not
otherwise appropriated, an amount equal to the amounts so designated
during each fiscal year, which shall remain available to the Fund
without fiscal year limitation.
``SEC. 9053. PUBLIC INFORMATION ON PROGRAM AND FUND.
``(a) Providing Information to Public.--The Commission shall
provide information to the public on the program established under this
chapter and the use of the designation of income tax payments under
section 6096 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to transfer amounts
to the Election Security Fund, including by establishing and operating
a hyperlink to such information on the Commission's official public
website.
``(b) Deadline.--The Commission shall meet the requirements of
subsection (a) not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment
of the Securing Tech and Election Administration Defenses For All
States and Territories Act.
``SEC. 9054. DEFINITIONS.
``In this chapter--
``(1) the term `Commission' means the Election Assistance
Commission;
``(2) the term `Fund' means the Election Security Fund
established under section 9052; and
``(3) 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.''.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections for subtitle
H of such Code is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Chapter 97--Election Security Program and Fund
``Sec. 9051. Payments to States for election security.
``Sec. 9052. Election Security Fund.
``Sec. 9053. Public information on Program and Fund.
``Sec. 9054. Definitions.''.
(b) Designation of Income Tax Payments to Election Security Fund.--
(1) Designation.--Section 6096(a) of such Code is amended
by striking ``the Presidential Election Campaign Fund'' and
inserting ``the Election Security Fund''.
(2) Reference to eac website with public information on
program and fund.--Section 6096(a) of such Code is amended by
adding at the end the following new sentence: ``The Secretary
shall ensure that the individual tax return form includes a
citation to the hyperlink on the official public website of the
Election Assistance Commission which is established and
operated under section 9053.''.
(3) Effective date.--The amendment made by subsection (a)
shall apply with respect to taxable years ending after December
31, 2025.
SEC. 3. TERMINATION OF TAXPAYER FINANCING OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
CAMPAIGNS.
(a) Termination of Presidential Election Campaign Fund.--
(1) Termination.--Chapter 95 of subtitle H of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the
following new section:
``SEC. 9014. TERMINATION.
``The provisions of this chapter shall not apply with respect to
any presidential election (or any presidential nominating convention)
after the date of the enactment of this section, or to any candidate in
such an election.''.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections for chapter
95 of subtitle H of such Code is amended by adding at the end
the following new item:
``Sec. 9014. Termination.''.
(b) Termination of Presidential Primary Matching Payment Account.--
(1) Termination.--Chapter 96 of subtitle H of such Code is
amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``SEC. 9043. TERMINATION.
``The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any candidate
with respect to any presidential election after the date of the
enactment of this section.''.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections for chapter
96 of subtitle H of such Code is amended by adding at the end
the following new item:
``Sec. 9043. Termination.''.
(c) Transfer of Remaining Funds to Election Security Fund.--Section
9006 of such Code is amended by adding at the end the following new
subsection:
``(d) Transfer of Funds Remaining After Termination.--The Secretary
shall transfer the amounts in the fund as of the date of the enactment
of this subsection to the Election Security Fund under section 9052, to
be available as described in such section.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Llama 3.2 · runs locally in your browser
Ask anything about this bill. The AI reads the full text to answer.
Enter to send · Shift+Enter for new line