Us Congress 2023-2024 Regular Session

Us Congress House Bill HB11 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	I
2	2	118THCONGRESS
3	3	1
4	4	STSESSION H. R. 11
5	5	To expand Americans’ access to the ballot box and reduce the influence
6	6	of big money in politics, and for other purposes.
7	7	IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
8	8	JULY18, 2023
9	9	Mr. S
10	10	ARBANES(for himself, Mr. JEFFRIES, Mr. MORELLE, and Ms. SEWELL)
11	11	introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
12	12	House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on the Judici-
13	13	ary, Science, Space, and Technology, Oversight and Accountability, Fi-
14	14	nancial Services, Ways and Means, Natural Resources, and Homeland Se-
15	15	curity, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each
16	16	case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of
17	17	the committee concerned
18	18	A BILL
19	19	To expand Americans’ access to the ballot box and reduce
20	20	the influence of big money in politics, and for other purposes.
21	21	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1
22	22	tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2
23	23	SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3
24	24	This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Freedom to Vote Act’’. 4
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27	27	•HR 11 IH
28	28	SEC. 2. ORGANIZATION OF ACT INTO DIVISIONS; TABLE OF 1
29	29	CONTENTS. 2
30	30	(a) D
31	31	IVISIONS.—This Act is organized into divisions 3
32	32	as follows: 4
33	33	(1) Division A—Voter Access. 5
34	34	(2) Division B—Election Integrity. 6
35	35	(3) Division C—Civic Participation and Em-7
36	36	powerment. 8
37	37	(b) T
38	38	ABLE OFCONTENTS.—The table of contents of 9
39	39	this Act is as follows: 10
40	40	Sec. 1. Short title.
41	41	Sec. 2. Organization of Act into divisions; table of contents.
42	42	Sec. 3. Findings of general constitutional authority.
43	43	Sec. 4. Standards for judicial review.
44	44	Sec. 5. Severability.
45	45	DIVISION A—VOTER ACCESS
46	46	TITLE I—ELECTION MODERNIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION
47	47	Sec. 1000. Short title; statement of policy.
48	48	Subtitle A—Voter Registration Modernization
49	49	Sec. 1000A. Short title.
50	50	P
51	51	ART1—AUTOMATICVOTERREGISTRATION
52	52	Sec. 1001. Short title; findings and purpose.
53	53	Sec. 1002. Automatic registration of eligible individuals.
54	54	Sec. 1003. Voter protection and security in automatic registration.
55	55	Sec. 1004. Payments and grants.
56	56	Sec. 1005. Miscellaneous provisions.
57	57	Sec. 1006. Definitions.
58	58	Sec. 1007. Effective date.
59	59	P
60	60	ART2—ELECTIONDAY ASLEGALPUBLICHOLIDAY
61	61	Sec. 1011. Election day as legal public holiday.
62	62	P
63	63	ART3—PROMOTINGINTERNETREGISTRATION
64	64	Sec. 1021. Requiring availability of internet for voter registration.
65	65	Sec. 1022. Use of internet to update registration information.
66	66	Sec. 1023. Provision of election information by electronic mail to individuals
67	67	registered to vote.
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70	70	•HR 11 IH
71	71	Sec. 1024. Clarification of requirement regarding necessary information to
72	72	show eligibility to vote.
73	73	Sec. 1025. Prohibiting State from requiring applicants to provide more than
74	74	last 4 digits of social security number.
75	75	Sec. 1026. Application of rules to certain exempt States.
76	76	Sec. 1027. Report on data collection relating to online voter registration sys-
77	77	tems.
78	78	Sec. 1028. Permitting voter registration application form to serve as application
79	79	for absentee ballot.
80	80	Sec. 1029. Effective date.
81	81	P
82	82	ART4—SAME-DAYVOTERREGISTRATION
83	83	Sec. 1031. Same-day registration.
84	84	Sec. 1032. Ensuring pre-election registration deadlines are consistent with tim-
85	85	ing of legal public holidays.
86	86	P
87	87	ART5—STREAMLINEVOTERREGISTRATIONINFORMATION, ACCESS, AND
88	88	P
89	89	RIVACY
90	90	Sec. 1041. Authorizing the dissemination of voter registration information dis-
91	91	plays following naturalization ceremonies.
92	92	Sec. 1042. Inclusion of voter registration information with certain leases and
93	93	vouchers for federally assisted rental housing and mortgage ap-
94	94	plications.
95	95	Sec. 1043. Acceptance of voter registration applications from individuals under
96	96	18 years of age.
97	97	Sec. 1044. Requiring States to establish and operate voter privacy programs.
98	98	P
99	99	ART6—FUNDINGSUPPORT TOSTATES FORCOMPLIANCE
100	100	Sec. 1051. Availability of requirements payments under HAVA to cover costs
101	101	of compliance with new requirements.
102	102	Subtitle B—Access to Voting for Individuals With Disabilities
103	103	Sec. 1101. Requirements for States to promote access to voter registration and
104	104	voting for individuals with disabilities.
105	105	Sec. 1102. Establishment and maintenance of State accessible election websites.
106	106	Sec. 1103. Protections for in-person voting for individuals with disabilities and
107	107	older individuals.
108	108	Sec. 1104. Protections for individuals subject to guardianship.
109	109	Sec. 1105. Expansion and reauthorization of grant program to assure voting
110	110	access for individuals with disabilities.
111	111	Sec. 1106. Pilot programs for enabling individuals with disabilities to register
112	112	to vote privately and independently at residences.
113	113	Sec. 1107. GAO analysis and report on voting access for individuals with dis-
114	114	abilities.
115	115	Subtitle C—Early Voting
116	116	Sec. 1201. Early voting.
117	117	Subtitle D—Voting by Mail
118	118	Sec. 1301. Voting by mail.
119	119	Sec. 1302. Balloting materials tracking program.
120	120	Sec. 1303. Election mail and delivery improvements.
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123	123	•HR 11 IH
124	124	Sec. 1304. Carriage of election mail.
125	125	Sec. 1305. Requiring States to provide secured drop boxes for voted ballots in
126	126	elections for Federal office.
127	127	Subtitle E—Absent Uniformed Services Voters and Overseas Voters
128	128	Sec. 1401. Pre-election reports on availability and transmission of absentee bal-
129	129	lots.
130	130	Sec. 1402. Enforcement.
131	131	Sec. 1403. Transmission requirements; repeal of waiver provision.
132	132	Sec. 1404. Use of single absentee ballot application for subsequent elections.
133	133	Sec. 1405. Extending guarantee of residency for voting purposes to family
134	134	members of absent military personnel.
135	135	Sec. 1406. Technical clarifications to conform to Military and Overseas Voter
136	136	Empowerment Act amendments related to the Federal write-in
137	137	absentee ballot.
138	138	Sec. 1407. Treatment of postcard registration requests.
139	139	Sec. 1408. Presidential designee report on voter disenfranchisement.
140	140	Sec. 1409. Effective date.
141	141	Subtitle F—Enhancement of Enforcement
142	142	Sec. 1501. Enhancement of enforcement of Help America Vote Act of 2002.
143	143	Subtitle G—Promoting Voter Access Through Election Administration
144	144	Modernization Improvements
145	145	P
146	146	ART1—PROMOTINGVOTERACCESS
147	147	Sec. 1601. Minimum notification requirements for voters affected by polling
148	148	place changes.
149	149	Sec. 1602. Applicability to Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
150	150	Sec. 1603. Elimination of 14-day time period between general election and run-
151	151	off election for Federal elections in the Virgin Islands and
152	152	Guam.
153	153	Sec. 1604. Application of Federal election administration laws to territories of
154	154	the United States.
155	155	Sec. 1605. Application of Federal voter protection laws to territories of the
156	156	United States.
157	157	Sec. 1606. Ensuring equitable and efficient operation of polling places.
158	158	Sec. 1607. Prohibiting States from restricting curbside voting.
159	159	P
160	160	ART2—IMPROVEMENTS IN OPERATION OFELECTIONASSISTANCE
161	161	C
162	162	OMMISSION
163	163	Sec. 1611. Reauthorization of Election Assistance Commission.
164	164	Sec. 1612. Recommendations to improve operations of Election Assistance
165	165	Commission.
166	166	Sec. 1613. Repeal of exemption of Election Assistance Commission from certain
167	167	government contracting requirements.
168	168	P
169	169	ART3—MISCELLANEOUSPROVISIONS
170	170	Sec. 1621. Definition of election for Federal office.
171	171	Sec. 1622. No effect on other laws.
172	172	Sec. 1623. Clarification of exemption for States without voter registration.
173	173	Sec. 1624. Clarification of exemption for States which do not collect telephone
174	174	information.
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177	177	•HR 11 IH
178	178	Subtitle H—Democracy Restoration
179	179	Sec. 1701. Short title.
180	180	Sec. 1702. Findings.
181	181	Sec. 1703. Rights of citizens.
182	182	Sec. 1704. Enforcement.
183	183	Sec. 1705. Notification of restoration of voting rights.
184	184	Sec. 1706. Definitions.
185	185	Sec. 1707. Relation to other laws.
186	186	Sec. 1708. Federal prison funds.
187	187	Sec. 1709. Effective date.
188	188	Subtitle I—Voter Identification and Allowable Alternatives
189	189	Sec. 1801. Requirements for voter identification.
190	190	Subtitle J—Voter List Maintenance Procedures
191	191	P
192	192	ART1—VOTERCAGINGPROHIBITED
193	193	Sec. 1901. Voter caging prohibited.
194	194	P
195	195	ART2—SAVINGELIGIBLEVOTERSFROMVOTERPURGING
196	196	Sec. 1911. Conditions for removal of voters from list of registered voters.
197	197	Subtitle K—Severability
198	198	Sec. 1921. Severability.
199	199	DIVISION B—ELECTION INTEGRITY
200	200	TITLE II—PROHIBITING INTERFERENCE WITH VOTER
201	201	REGISTRATION
202	202	Sec. 2001. Prohibiting hindering, interfering with, or preventing voter registra-
203	203	tion.
204	204	Sec. 2002. Establishment of best practices.
205	205	TITLE III—PREVENTING ELECTION SUBVERSION
206	206	Subtitle A—Restrictions on Removal of Election Administrators
207	207	Sec. 3001. Restrictions on removal of local election administrators in adminis-
208	208	tration of elections for Federal office.
209	209	Subtitle B—Increased Protections for Election Workers
210	210	Sec. 3101. Harassment of election workers prohibited.
211	211	Sec. 3102. Protection of election workers.
212	212	Subtitle C—Prohibiting Deceptive Practices and Preventing Voter
213	213	Intimidation
214	214	Sec. 3201. Short title.
215	215	Sec. 3202. Prohibition on deceptive practices in Federal elections.
216	216	Sec. 3203. Corrective action.
217	217	Sec. 3204. Reports to Congress.
218	218	Sec. 3205. Private rights of action by election officials.
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221	221	•HR 11 IH
222	222	Sec. 3206. Making intimidation of tabulation, canvass, and certification efforts
223	223	a crime.
224	224	Subtitle D—Protection of Election Records and Election Infrastructure
225	225	Sec. 3301. Strengthen protections for Federal election records.
226	226	Sec. 3302. Penalties; inspection; nondisclosure; jurisdiction.
227	227	Sec. 3303. Judicial review to ensure compliance.
228	228	Subtitle E—Judicial Protection of the Right To Vote and Non-Partisan Vote
229	229	Tabulation
230	230	P
231	231	ART1—RIGHTTOVOTEACT
232	232	Sec. 3401. Short title.
233	233	Sec. 3402. Undue burdens on the ability to vote in elections for Federal office
234	234	prohibited.
235	235	Sec. 3403. Judicial review.
236	236	Sec. 3404. Definitions.
237	237	Sec. 3405. Rules of construction.
238	238	Sec. 3406. Severability.
239	239	Sec. 3407. Effective date.
240	240	P
241	241	ART2—CLARIFYINGJURISDICTIONOVERELECTIONDISPUTES
242	242	Sec. 3411. Findings.
243	243	Sec. 3412. Clarifying authority of United States district courts to hear cases.
244	244	Sec. 3413. Effective date.
245	245	Subtitle F—Poll Worker Recruitment and Training
246	246	Sec. 3501. Grants to States for poll worker recruitment and training.
247	247	Sec. 3502. State defined.
248	248	Subtitle G—Preventing Poll Observer Interference
249	249	Sec. 3601. Protections for voters on Election Day.
250	250	Subtitle H—Preventing Restrictions on Food and Beverages
251	251	Sec. 3701. Short title; findings.
252	252	Sec. 3702. Prohibiting restrictions on donations of food and beverages at poll-
253	253	ing stations.
254	254	Subtitle I—Establishing Duty To Report Foreign Election Interference
255	255	Sec. 3801. Findings relating to illicit money undermining our democracy.
256	256	Sec. 3802. Federal campaign reporting of foreign contacts.
257	257	Sec. 3803. Federal campaign foreign contact reporting compliance system.
258	258	Sec. 3804. Criminal penalties.
259	259	Sec. 3805. Report to congressional intelligence committees.
260	260	Sec. 3806. Rule of construction.
261	261	Subtitle J—Promoting Accuracy, Integrity, and Security Through Voter-
262	262	Verifiable Permanent Paper Ballot
263	263	Sec. 3901. Short title.
264	264	Sec. 3902. Paper ballot and manual counting requirements.
265	265	Sec. 3903. Accessibility and ballot verification for individuals with disabilities.
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268	268	•HR 11 IH
269	269	Sec. 3904. Durability and readability requirements for ballots.
270	270	Sec. 3905. Study and report on optimal ballot design.
271	271	Sec. 3906. Ballot marking device cybersecurity requirements.
272	272	Sec. 3907. Effective date for new requirements.
273	273	Sec. 3908. Grants for obtaining compliant paper ballot voting systems and car-
274	274	rying out voting system security improvements.
275	275	‘‘P
276	276	ART8—GRANTS FOROBTAININGCOMPLIANTPAPERBALLOTVOTING
277	277	S
278	278	YSTEMS ANDCARRYINGOUTVOTINGSYSTEMSECURITYIMPROVEMENTS
279	279	‘‘Sec. 298. Grants for obtaining compliant paper ballot voting systems and
280	280	carrying out voting system security improvements.
281	281	‘‘Sec. 298A. Voting system security improvements described.
282	282	‘‘Sec. 298B. Eligibility of States.
283	283	‘‘Sec. 298C. Reports to Congress.
284	284	‘‘Sec. 298D. Authorization of appropriations.
285	285	Subtitle K—Provisional Ballots
286	286	Sec. 3911. Requirements for counting provisional ballots; establishment of uni-
287	287	form and nondiscriminatory standards.
288	288	TITLE IV—VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY
289	289	Sec. 4001. Post-election audit requirement.
290	290	Sec. 4002. Election infrastructure designation.
291	291	Sec. 4003. Guidelines and certification for electronic poll books and remote bal-
292	292	lot marking systems.
293	293	Sec. 4004. Pre-election reports on voting system usage.
294	294	Sec. 4005. Use of voting machines manufactured in the United States.
295	295	Sec. 4006. Use of political party headquarters building fund for technology or
296	296	cybersecurity-related purposes.
297	297	Sec. 4007. Severability.
298	298	DIVISION C—CIVIC PARTICIPATION AND EMPOWERMENT
299	299	TITLE V—NONPARTISAN REDISTRICTING REFORM
300	300	Sec. 5001. Finding of constitutional authority.
301	301	Sec. 5002. Ban on mid-decade redistricting.
302	302	Sec. 5003. Criteria for redistricting.
303	303	Sec. 5004. Development of plan.
304	304	Sec. 5005. Failure by State to enact plan.
305	305	Sec. 5006. Civil enforcement.
306	306	Sec. 5007. No effect on elections for State and local office.
307	307	Sec. 5008. Effective date.
308	308	TITLE VI—CAMPAIGN FINANCE TRANSPARENCY
309	309	Subtitle A—DISCLOSE Act
310	310	Sec. 6001. Short title.
311	311	Sec. 6002. Findings.
312	312	P
313	313	ART1—CLOSINGLOOPHOLESALLOWINGSPENDING BYFOREIGN
314	314	N
315	315	ATIONALS INELECTIONS
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318	318	•HR 11 IH
319	319	Sec. 6003. Clarification of application of foreign money ban to certain disburse-
320	320	ments and activities.
321	321	Sec. 6004. Study and report on illicit foreign money in Federal elections.
322	322	Sec. 6005. Prohibition on contributions and donations by foreign nationals in
323	323	connection with ballot initiatives and referenda.
324	324	Sec. 6006. Disbursements and activities subject to foreign money ban.
325	325	Sec. 6007. Prohibiting establishment of corporation to conceal election con-
326	326	tributions and donations by foreign nationals.
327	327	P
328	328	ART2—REPORTING OFCAMPAIGN-RELATEDDISBURSEMENTS
329	329	Sec. 6011. Reporting of campaign-related disbursements.
330	330	Sec. 6012. Reporting of Federal judicial nomination disbursements.
331	331	Sec. 6013. Coordination with FinCEN.
332	332	Sec. 6014. Application of foreign money ban to disbursements for campaign-re-
333	333	lated disbursements consisting of covered transfers.
334	334	Sec. 6015. Sense of Congress regarding implementation.
335	335	Sec. 6016. Effective date.
336	336	P
337	337	ART3—OTHERADMINISTRATIVEREFORMS
338	338	Sec. 6021. Petition for certiorari.
339	339	Sec. 6022. Judicial review of actions related to campaign finance laws.
340	340	Sec. 6023. Effective date.
341	341	Subtitle B—Honest Ads
342	342	Sec. 6101. Short title.
343	343	Sec. 6102. Purpose.
344	344	Sec. 6103. Findings.
345	345	Sec. 6104. Sense of Congress.
346	346	Sec. 6105. Expansion of definition of public communication.
347	347	Sec. 6106. Expansion of definition of electioneering communication.
348	348	Sec. 6107. Application of disclaimer statements to online communications.
349	349	Sec. 6108. Political record requirements for online platforms.
350	350	Sec. 6109. Preventing contributions, expenditures, independent expenditures,
351	351	and disbursements for electioneering communications by for-
352	352	eign nationals in the form of online advertising.
353	353	Sec. 6110. Requiring online platforms to display notices identifying sponsors of
354	354	political advertisements and to ensure notices continue to be
355	355	present when advertisements are shared.
356	356	Subtitle C—Spotlight Act
357	357	Sec. 6201. Short title.
358	358	Sec. 6202. Inclusion of contributor information on annual returns of certain or-
359	359	ganizations.
360	360	TITLE VII—CAMPAIGN FINANCE OVERSIGHT
361	361	Subtitle A—Stopping Super PAC–Candidate Coordination
362	362	Sec. 7001. Short title.
363	363	Sec. 7002. Clarification of treatment of coordinated expenditures as contribu-
364	364	tions to candidates.
365	365	Subtitle B—Restoring Integrity to America’s Elections
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368	368	•HR 11 IH
369	369	Sec. 7101. Short title.
370	370	Sec. 7102. Revision to enforcement process.
371	371	Sec. 7103. Official exercising the responsibilities of the general counsel.
372	372	Sec. 7104. Permitting appearance at hearings on requests for advisory opinions
373	373	by persons opposing the requests.
374	374	Sec. 7105. Permanent extension of administrative penalty authority.
375	375	Sec. 7106. Restrictions on ex parte communications.
376	376	Sec. 7107. Clarifying authority of FEC attorneys to represent FEC in Supreme
377	377	Court.
378	378	Sec. 7108. Requiring forms to permit use of accent marks.
379	379	Sec. 7109. Extension of the statutes of limitations for offenses under the Fed-
380	380	eral Election Campaign Act of 1971.
381	381	Sec. 7110. Effective date; transition.
382	382	Subtitle C—Imposition of Fee for Reports Filed by Paper
383	383	Sec. 7201. Imposition of fee for reports filed by paper.
384	384	TITLE VIII—CITIZEN EMPOWERMENT
385	385	Subtitle A—Funding To Promote Democracy
386	386	P
387	387	ART1—PAYMENTS AND ALLOCATIONS TOSTATES
388	388	Sec. 8001. Democracy Advancement and Innovation Program.
389	389	Sec. 8002. State plan.
390	390	Sec. 8003. Prohibiting reduction in access to participation in elections.
391	391	Sec. 8004. Amount of State allocation.
392	392	Sec. 8005. Procedures for disbursements of payments and allocations.
393	393	Sec. 8006. Office of Democracy Advancement and Innovation.
394	394	P
395	395	ART2—STATEELECTIONASSISTANCE ANDINNOVATIONTRUSTFUND
396	396	Sec. 8011. State Election Assistance and Innovation Trust Fund.
397	397	Sec. 8012. Uses of Fund.
398	398	Sec. 8013. Assessments against fines and penalties.
399	399	P
400	400	ART3—GENERALPROVISIONS
401	401	Sec. 8021. Definitions.
402	402	Sec. 8022. Rule of construction regarding calculation of deadlines.
403	403	Subtitle B—Elections for House of Representatives
404	404	Sec. 8101. Short title.
405	405	P
406	406	ART1—OPTIONALDEMOCRACYCREDITPROGRAM
407	407	Sec. 8102. Establishment of program.
408	408	Sec. 8103. Credit program described.
409	409	Sec. 8104. Reports.
410	410	Sec. 8105. Election cycle defined.
411	411	P
412	412	ART2—OPTIONALSMALLDOLLARFINANCING OFELECTIONS FORHOUSE
413	413	OFREPRESENTATIVES
414	414	Sec. 8111. Benefits and eligibility requirements for candidates.
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417	417	•HR 11 IH
418	418	‘‘TITLE V—SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING OF ELECTIONS FOR
419	419	HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
420	420	‘‘Subtitle A—Benefits
421	421	‘‘Sec. 501. Benefits for participating candidates.
422	422	‘‘Sec. 502. Procedures for making payments.
423	423	‘‘Sec. 503. Use of funds.
424	424	‘‘Sec. 504. Qualified small dollar contributions described.
425	425	‘‘Subtitle B—Eligibility and Certification
426	426	‘‘Sec. 511. Eligibility.
427	427	‘‘Sec. 512. Qualifying requirements.
428	428	‘‘Sec. 513. Certification.
429	429	‘‘Subtitle C—Requirements for Candidates Certified as Participating
430	430	Candidates
431	431	‘‘Sec. 521. Contribution and expenditure requirements.
432	432	‘‘Sec. 522. Administration of campaign.
433	433	‘‘Sec. 523. Preventing unnecessary spending of matching funds.
434	434	‘‘Sec. 524. Remitting unspent funds after election.
435	435	‘‘Subtitle D—Enhanced Match Support
436	436	‘‘Sec. 531. Enhanced support for general election.
437	437	‘‘Sec. 532. Eligibility.
438	438	‘‘Sec. 533. Amount.
439	439	‘‘Sec. 534. Waiver of authority to retain portion of unspent funds after
440	440	election.
441	441	‘‘Subtitle E—Administrative Provisions
442	442	‘‘Sec. 541. Source of payments.
443	443	‘‘Sec. 542. Administration through dedicated division within Commission.
444	444	‘‘Sec. 543. Violations and penalties.
445	445	‘‘Sec. 544. Indexing of amounts.
446	446	‘‘Sec. 545. Election cycle defined.
447	447	‘‘Sec. 546. Division Director defined.
448	448	Sec. 8112. Contributions and expenditures by multicandidate and political
449	449	party committees on behalf of participating candidates.
450	450	Sec. 8113. Prohibiting use of contributions by participating candidates for pur-
451	451	poses other than campaign for election.
452	452	Sec. 8114. Deadline for regulations; effective date.
453	453	Subtitle C—Personal Use Services as Authorized Campaign Expenditures
454	454	Sec. 8201. Short title; findings; purpose.
455	455	Sec. 8202. Treatment of payments for childcare and other personal use services
456	456	as authorized campaign expenditure.
457	457	Subtitle D—Empowering Small Dollar Donations
458	458	Sec. 8301. Permitting political party committees to provide enhanced support
459	459	for House candidates through use of separate small dollar ac-
460	460	counts.
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463	463	•HR 11 IH
464	464	Subtitle E—Severability
465	465	Sec. 8401. Severability.
466	466	SEC. 3. FINDINGS OF GENERAL CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHOR-
467	467	1
468	468	ITY. 2
469	469	Congress finds that the Constitution of the United 3
470	470	States grants explicit and broad authority to protect the 4
471	471	right to vote, to regulate elections for Federal office, to 5
472	472	prevent and remedy discrimination in voting, and to de-6
473	473	fend the Nation’s democratic process. Congress enacts the 7
474	474	Freedom to Vote Act pursuant to this broad authority, 8
475	475	including but not limited to the following: 9
476	476	(1) Congress finds that it has broad authority 10
477	477	to regulate the time, place, and manner of congres-11
478	478	sional elections under the Elections Clause of the 12
479	479	Constitution, article I, section 4, clause 1. The Su-13
480	480	preme Court has affirmed that the ‘‘substantive 14
481	481	scope’’ of the Elections Clause is ‘‘broad’’; that 15
482	482	‘‘Times, Places, and Manner’’ are ‘‘comprehensive 16
483	483	words which embrace authority to provide for a com-17
484	484	plete code for congressional elections’’; and ‘‘[t]he 18
485	485	power of Congress over the Times, Places and Man-19
486	486	ner of congressional elections is paramount, and may 20
487	487	be exercised at any time, and to any extent which 21
488	488	it deems expedient; and so far as it is exercised, and 22
489	489	no farther, the regulations effected supersede those 23
490	490	of the State which are inconsistent therewith’’. Ari-24
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493	493	•HR 11 IH
494	494	zona v. Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, 570 U.S. 1, 1
495	495	8–9 (2013) (internal quotation marks and citations 2
496	496	omitted). Indeed, ‘‘Congress has plenary and para-3
497	497	mount jurisdiction over the whole subject’’ of con-4
498	498	gressional elections, Ex parte Siebold, 100 U.S. (10 5
499	499	Otto) 371, 388 (1879), and this power ‘‘may be ex-6
500	500	ercised as and when Congress sees fit’’, and ‘‘so far 7
501	501	as it extends and conflicts with the regulations of 8
502	502	the State, necessarily supersedes them’’. Id. at 384. 9
503	503	Among other things, Congress finds that the Elec-10
504	504	tions Clause was intended to ‘‘vindicate the people’s 11
505	505	right to equality of representation in the House’’. 12
506	506	Wesberry v. Sanders, 376 U.S. 1, 16 (1964), and to 13
507	507	address partisan gerrymandering, Rucho v. Common 14
508	508	Cause, 139 S. Ct. 2484 (2019). 15
509	509	(2) Congress also finds that it has both the au-16
510	510	thority and responsibility, as the legislative body for 17
511	511	the United States, to fulfill the promise of article IV, 18
512	512	section 4, of the Constitution, which states: ‘‘The 19
513	513	United States shall guarantee to every State in this 20
514	514	Union a Republican Form of Government[.]’’. Con-21
515	515	gress finds that its authority and responsibility to 22
516	516	enforce the Guarantee Clause is clear given that 23
517	517	Federal courts have not enforced this clause because 24
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520	520	•HR 11 IH
521	521	they understood that its enforcement is committed 1
522	522	to Congress by the Constitution. 2
523	523	(3)(A) Congress also finds that it has broad au-3
524	524	thority pursuant to section 5 of the Fourteenth 4
525	525	Amendment to legislate to enforce the provisions of 5
526	526	the Fourteenth Amendment, including its protec-6
527	527	tions of the right to vote and the democratic process. 7
528	528	(B) Section 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment 8
529	529	protects the fundamental right to vote, which is ‘‘of 9
530	530	the most fundamental significance under our con-10
531	531	stitutional structure’’. Ill. Bd. of Election v. Socialist 11
532	532	Workers Party, 440 U.S. 173, 184 (1979); see 12
533	533	United States v. Classic, 313 U.S. 299 (1941) (‘‘Ob-13
534	534	viously included within the right to choose, secured 14
535	535	by the Constitution, is the right of qualified voters 15
536	536	within a State to cast their ballots and have them 16
537	537	counted . . .’’). As the Supreme Court has repeatedly 17
538	538	affirmed, the right to vote is ‘‘preservative of all 18
539	539	rights’’, Yick Wo v. Hopkins, 118 U.S. 356, 370 19
540	540	(1886). Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment 20
541	541	also protects the right to vote, granting Congress 21
542	542	additional authority to reduce a State’s representa-22
543	543	tion in Congress when the right to vote is abridged 23
544	544	or denied. 24
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547	547	•HR 11 IH
548	548	(C) As a result, Congress finds that it has the 1
549	549	authority pursuant to section 5 of the Fourteenth 2
550	550	Amendment to protect the right to vote. Congress 3
551	551	also finds that States and localities have eroded ac-4
552	552	cess to the right to vote through restrictions on the 5
553	553	right to vote including excessively onerous voter 6
554	554	identification requirements, burdensome voter reg-7
555	555	istration procedures, voter purges, limited and un-8
556	556	equal access to voting by mail, polling place closures, 9
557	557	unequal distribution of election resources, and other 10
558	558	impediments. 11
559	559	(D) Congress also finds that ‘‘the right of suf-12
560	560	frage can be denied by a debasement or dilution of 13
561	561	the weight of a citizen’s vote just as effectively as by 14
562	562	wholly prohibiting the free exercise of the franchise’’. 15
563	563	Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533, 555 (1964). Con-16
564	564	gress finds that the right of suffrage has been so di-17
565	565	luted and debased by means of gerrymandering of 18
566	566	districts. Congress finds that it has authority pursu-19
567	567	ant to section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to 20
568	568	remedy this debasement. 21
569	569	(4)(A) Congress also finds that it has authority 22
570	570	to legislate to eliminate racial discrimination in vot-23
571	571	ing and the democratic process pursuant to both sec-24
572	572	tion 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment, which grants 25
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575	575	•HR 11 IH
576	576	equal protection of the laws, and section 2 of the 1
577	577	Fifteenth Amendment, which explicitly bars denial 2
578	578	or abridgment of the right to vote on account of 3
579	579	race, color, or previous condition of servitude. 4
580	580	(B) Congress finds that racial discrimination in 5
581	581	access to voting and the political process persists. 6
582	582	Voting restrictions, redistricting, and other electoral 7
583	583	practices and processes continue to disproportion-8
584	584	ately impact communities of color in the United 9
585	585	States and do so as a result of both intentional ra-10
586	586	cial discrimination, structural racism, and the ongo-11
587	587	ing structural socioeconomic effects of historical ra-12
588	588	cial discrimination. 13
589	589	(C) Recent elections and studies have shown 14
590	590	that minority communities wait longer in lines to 15
591	591	vote, are more likely to have their mail ballots re-16
592	592	jected, continue to face intimidation at the polls, are 17
593	593	more likely to be disenfranchised by voter purges, 18
594	594	and are disproportionately burdened by excessively 19
595	595	onerous voter identification and other voter restric-20
596	596	tions. Research shows that communities of color are 21
597	597	more likely to face nearly every barrier to voting 22
598	598	than their white counterparts. 23
599	599	(D) Congress finds that racial disparities in dis-24
600	600	enfranchisement due to past felony convictions is 25
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603	603	•HR 11 IH
604	604	particularly stark. In 2022, according to the Sen-1
605	605	tencing Project, an estimated 4,600,000 Americans 2
606	606	could not vote due to a felony conviction. One in 19 3
607	607	African Americans of voting age is disenfranchised, 4
608	608	a rate 3.5 times greater than that of non-African 5
609	609	Americans. In eight States—Alabama, Arizona, 6
610	610	Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Dakota, Ten-7
611	611	nessee, and Virginia—more than one in ten African 8
612	612	Americans is disenfranchised, nearly twice the na-9
613	613	tional average for African Americans. Congress finds 10
614	614	that felony disenfranchisement was one of the tools 11
615	615	of intentional racial discrimination during the Jim 12
616	616	Crow era. Congress further finds that current racial 13
617	617	disparities in felony disenfranchisement are linked to 14
618	618	this history of voter suppression, structural racism 15
619	619	in the criminal justice system, and ongoing effects of 16
620	620	historical discrimination. 17
621	621	(5)(A) Congress finds that it further has the 18
622	622	power to protect the right to vote from denial or 19
623	623	abridgment on account of sex, age, or ability to pay 20
624	624	a poll tax or other tax pursuant to the Nineteenth, 21
625	625	Twenty-Fourth, and Twenty-Sixth Amendments. 22
626	626	(B) Congress finds that electoral practices in-23
627	627	cluding voting rights restoration conditions for peo-24
628	628	ple with convictions and other restrictions to the 25
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631	631	•HR 11 IH
632	632	franchise burden voters on account of their ability to 1
633	633	pay. 2
634	634	(C) Congress further finds that electoral prac-3
635	635	tices including voting restrictions related to college 4
636	636	campuses, age restrictions on mail voting, and simi-5
637	637	lar practices burden the right to vote on account of 6
638	638	age. 7
639	639	SEC. 4. STANDARDS FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW. 8
640	640	(a) I
641	641	NGENERAL.—For any action brought for declar-9
642	642	atory or injunctive relief to challenge, whether facially or 10
643	643	as-applied, the constitutionality or lawfulness of any provi-11
644	644	sion of this Act or any amendment made by this Act or 12
645	645	any rule or regulation promulgated under this Act, the fol-13
646	646	lowing rules shall apply: 14
647	647	(1) The action shall be filed in the United 15
648	648	States District Court for the District of Columbia 16
649	649	and an appeal from the decision of the district court 17
650	650	may be taken to the Court of Appeals for the Dis-18
651	651	trict of Columbia Circuit. These courts, and the Su-19
652	652	preme Court of the United States on a writ of cer-20
653	653	tiorari (if such writ is issued), shall have exclusive 21
654	654	jurisdiction to hear such actions. 22
655	655	(2) The party filing the action shall concur-23
656	656	rently deliver a copy the complaint to the Clerk of 24
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659	659	•HR 11 IH
660	660	the House of Representatives and the Secretary of 1
661	661	the Senate. 2
662	662	(3) It shall be the duty of the United States 3
663	663	District Court for the District of Columbia and the 4
664	664	Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir-5
665	665	cuit to advance on the docket and to expedite to the 6
666	666	greatest possible extent the disposition of the action 7
667	667	and appeal. 8
668	668	(b) C
669	669	LARIFYINGSCOPE OFJURISDICTION.—If an ac-9
670	670	tion at the time of its commencement is not subject to 10
671	671	subsection (a), but an amendment, counterclaim, cross- 11
672	672	claim, affirmative defense, or any other pleading or motion 12
673	673	is filed challenging, whether facially or as-applied, the con-13
674	674	stitutionality or lawfulness of this Act or any amendment 14
675	675	made by this Act or any rule or regulation promulgated 15
676	676	under this Act, the district court shall transfer the action 16
677	677	to the District Court for the District of Columbia, and 17
678	678	the action shall thereafter be conducted pursuant to sub-18
679	679	section (a). 19
680	680	(c) I
681	681	NTERVENTION BY MEMBERS OFCONGRESS.—In 20
682	682	any action described in subsection (a), any Member of the 21
683	683	House of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resi-22
684	684	dent Commissioner to the Congress) or Senate shall have 23
685	685	the right to intervene either in support of or opposition 24
686	686	to the position of a party to the case regarding the con-25
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689	689	•HR 11 IH
690	690	stitutionality of the provision. To avoid duplication of ef-1
691	691	forts and reduce the burdens placed on the parties to the 2
692	692	action, the court in any such action may make such orders 3
693	693	as it considers necessary, including orders to require 4
694	694	interveners taking similar positions to file joint papers or 5
695	695	to be represented by a single attorney at oral argument. 6
696	696	SEC. 5. SEVERABILITY. 7
697	697	If any provision of this Act or any amendment made 8
698	698	by this Act, or the application of any such provision or 9
699	699	amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to be 10
700	700	unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act, and the appli-11
701	701	cation of such provision or amendment to any other person 12
702	702	or circumstance, shall not be affected by the holding. 13
703	703	DIVISION A—VOTER ACCESS 14
704	704	TITLE I—ELECTION MODERNIZA-15
705	705	TION AND ADMINISTRATION 16
706	706	SEC. 1000. SHORT TITLE; STATEMENT OF POLICY. 17
707	707	(a) S
708	708	HORTTITLE.—This title may be cited as the 18
709	709	‘‘Voter Empowerment Act of 2023’’. 19
710	710	(b) S
711	711	TATEMENT OFPOLICY.—It is the policy of the 20
712	712	United States that— 21
713	713	(1) the ability of all eligible citizens of the 22
714	714	United States to access and exercise their constitu-23
715	715	tional right to vote in a free, fair, and timely manner 24
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718	718	•HR 11 IH
719	719	must be vigilantly enhanced, protected, and main-1
720	720	tained; and 2
721	721	(2) the integrity, security, and accountability of 3
722	722	the voting process must be vigilantly protected, 4
723	723	maintained, and enhanced in order to protect and 5
724	724	preserve electoral and participatory democracy in the 6
725	725	United States. 7
726	726	Subtitle A—Voter Registration 8
727	727	Modernization 9
728	728	SEC. 1000A. SHORT TITLE. 10
729	729	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Voter Registration 11
730	730	Modernization Act of 2023’’. 12
731	731	PART 1—AUTOMATIC VOTER REGISTRATION 13
732	732	SEC. 1001. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 14
733	733	(a) S
734	734	HORTTITLE.—This part may be cited as the 15
735	735	‘‘Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2023’’. 16
736	736	(b) F
737	737	INDINGS ANDPURPOSE.— 17
738	738	(1) F
739	739	INDINGS.—Congress finds that— 18
740	740	(A) the right to vote is a fundamental 19
741	741	right of citizens of the United States; 20
742	742	(B) it is the responsibility of the State and 21
743	743	Federal governments to ensure that every eligi-22
744	744	ble citizen is registered to vote; 23
745	745	(C) existing voter registration systems can 24
746	746	be inaccurate, costly, inaccessible and con-25
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749	749	•HR 11 IH
750	750	fusing, with damaging effects on voter partici-1
751	751	pation in elections for Federal office and dis-2
752	752	proportionate impacts on young people, persons 3
753	753	with disabilities, and racial and ethnic minori-4
754	754	ties; and 5
755	755	(D) voter registration systems must be up-6
756	756	dated with 21st century technologies and proce-7
757	757	dures to maintain their security. 8
758	758	(2) P
759	759	URPOSE.—It is the purpose of this part— 9
760	760	(A) to establish that it is the responsibility 10
761	761	of government to ensure that all eligible citizens 11
762	762	are registered to vote in elections for Federal 12
763	763	office; 13
764	764	(B) to enable the State governments to 14
765	765	register all eligible citizens to vote with accu-15
766	766	rate, cost-efficient, and up-to-date procedures; 16
767	767	(C) to modernize voter registration and list 17
768	768	maintenance procedures with electronic and 18
769	769	internet capabilities; and 19
770	770	(D) to protect and enhance the integrity, 20
771	771	accuracy, efficiency, and accessibility of the 21
772	772	electoral process for all eligible citizens. 22
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775	775	•HR 11 IH
776	776	SEC. 1002. AUTOMATIC REGISTRATION OF ELIGIBLE INDI-1
777	777	VIDUALS. 2
778	778	(a) I
779	779	NGENERAL.—The National Voter Registration 3
780	780	Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20504) is amended by inserting 4
781	781	after section 5 the following new section: 5
782	782	‘‘SEC. 5A. AUTOMATIC REGISTRATION BY STATE MOTOR VE-6
783	783	HICLE AUTHORITY. 7
784	784	‘‘(a) D
785	785	EFINITIONS.—In this section— 8
786	786	‘‘(1) A
787	787	PPLICABLE AGENCY.—The term ‘applica-9
788	788	ble agency’ means, with respect to a State, the State 10
789	789	motor vehicle authority responsible for motor vehicle 11
790	790	driver’s licenses under State law. 12
791	791	‘‘(2) A
792	792	PPLICABLE TRANSACTION .—The term 13
793	793	‘applicable transaction’ means— 14
794	794	‘‘(A) an application to an applicable agency 15
795	795	for a motor vehicle driver’s license; and 16
796	796	‘‘(B) any other service or assistance (in-17
797	797	cluding for a change of address) provided by an 18
798	798	applicable agency. 19
799	799	‘‘(3) A
800	800	UTOMATIC REGISTRATION .—The term 20
801	801	‘automatic registration’ means a system that reg-21
802	802	isters an individual to vote and updates existing reg-22
803	803	istrations, in elections for Federal office in a State, 23
804	804	if eligible, by electronically transferring the informa-24
805	805	tion necessary for registration from the applicable 25
806	806	agency to election officials of the State so that, un-26
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809	809	•HR 11 IH
810	810	less the individual affirmatively declines to be reg-1
811	811	istered or to update any voter registration, the indi-2
812	812	vidual will be registered to vote in such elections. 3
813	813	‘‘(4) E
814	814	LIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘eligible 4
815	815	individual’ means, with respect to an election for 5
816	816	Federal office, an individual who is otherwise quali-6
817	817	fied to vote in that election. 7
818	818	‘‘(5) R
819	819	EGISTER TO VOTE.—The term ‘register 8
820	820	to vote’ includes updating an individual’s existing 9
821	821	voter registration. 10
822	822	‘‘(b) E
823	823	STABLISHMENT.— 11
824	824	‘‘(1) I
825	825	N GENERAL.—The chief State election of-12
826	826	ficial of each State shall establish and operate a sys-13
827	827	tem of automatic registration for the registration of 14
828	828	eligible individuals to vote for elections for Federal 15
829	829	office in the State, in accordance with the provisions 16
830	830	of this section. 17
831	831	‘‘(2) R
832	832	EGISTRATION OF VOTERS BASED ON NEW 18
833	833	AGENCY RECORDS.— 19
834	834	‘‘(A) I
835	835	N GENERAL.—The chief State elec-20
836	836	tion official shall— 21
837	837	‘‘(i) subject to subparagraph (B), en-22
838	838	sure that each eligible individual who com-23
839	839	pletes an applicable transaction and does 24
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842	842	•HR 11 IH
843	843	not decline to register to vote is registered 1
844	844	to vote— 2
845	845	‘‘(I) in the next upcoming elec-3
846	846	tion for Federal office (and subse-4
847	847	quent elections for Federal office), if 5
848	848	an applicable agency transmits infor-6
849	849	mation under subsection (c)(1)(E) 7
850	850	with respect to the individual not later 8
851	851	than the applicable date; and 9
852	852	‘‘(II) in subsequent elections for 10
853	853	Federal office, if an applicable agency 11
854	854	transmits such information with re-12
855	855	spect to such individual after the ap-13
856	856	plicable date; and 14
857	857	‘‘(ii) not later than 60 days after the 15
858	858	receipt of such information with respect to 16
859	859	an individual, send written notice to the in-17
860	860	dividual, in addition to other means of no-18
861	861	tice established by this section, of the indi-19
862	862	vidual’s voter registration status. 20
863	863	‘‘(B) A
864	864	PPLICABLE DATE.—For purposes of 21
865	865	this subsection, the term ‘applicable date’ 22
866	866	means, with respect to any election for Federal 23
867	867	office, the later of— 24
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870	870	•HR 11 IH
871	871	‘‘(i) the date that is 28 days before 1
872	872	the date of the election; or 2
873	873	‘‘(ii) the last day of the period pro-3
874	874	vided by State law for registration with re-4
875	875	spect to such election. 5
876	876	‘‘(C) C
877	877	LARIFICATION.—Nothing in this 6
878	878	subsection shall prevent the chief State election 7
879	879	official from registering an eligible individual to 8
880	880	vote for the next upcoming election for Federal 9
881	881	office in the State even if an applicable agency 10
882	882	transmits information under subsection 11
883	883	(c)(1)(E) with respect to the individual after 12
884	884	the applicable date. 13
885	885	‘‘(3) T
886	886	REATMENT OF INDIVIDUALS UNDER 18 14
887	887	YEARS OF AGE.—A State may not refuse to treat an 15
888	888	individual as an eligible individual for purposes of 16
889	889	this section on the grounds that the individual is less 17
890	890	than 18 years of age at the time an applicable agen-18
891	891	cy receives information with respect to the indi-19
892	892	vidual, so long as the individual is at least 16 years 20
893	893	of age at such time. Nothing in the previous sen-21
894	894	tence may be construed to require a State to permit 22
895	895	an individual who is under 18 years of age at the 23
896	896	time of an election for Federal office to vote in the 24
897	897	election. 25
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900	900	•HR 11 IH
901	901	‘‘(c) APPLICABLEAGENCYRESPONSIBILITIES.— 1
902	902	‘‘(1) I
903	903	NSTRUCTIONS ON AUTOMATIC REGISTRA -2
904	904	TION FOR AGENCIES COLLECTING CITIZENSHIP IN -3
905	905	FORMATION.— 4
906	906	‘‘(A) I
907	907	N GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 5
908	908	provided in this section, in the case of any ap-6
909	909	plicable transaction for which an applicable 7
910	910	agency (in the normal course of its operations) 8
911	911	requests individuals to affirm United States 9
912	912	citizenship (either directly or as part of the 10
913	913	overall application for service or assistance or 11
914	914	enrollment), the applicable agency shall inform 12
915	915	each such individual who is a citizen of the 13
916	916	United States of the following: 14
917	917	‘‘(i) Unless that individual declines to 15
918	918	register to vote, or is found ineligible to 16
919	919	vote, the individual will be registered to 17
920	920	vote or, if applicable, the individual’s reg-18
921	921	istration will be updated. 19
922	922	‘‘(ii) The substantive qualifications of 20
923	923	an elector in the State as listed in the mail 21
924	924	voter registration application form for elec-22
925	925	tions for Federal office prescribed pursu-23
926	926	ant to section 9, the consequences of false 24
927	927	registration, and how the individual should 25
928	928	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
929	929	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 27
930	930	•HR 11 IH
931	931	decline to register if the individual does 1
932	932	not meet all those qualifications. 2
933	933	‘‘(iii) In the case of a State in which 3
934	934	affiliation or enrollment with a political 4
935	935	party is required in order to participate in 5
936	936	an election to select the party’s candidate 6
937	937	in an election for Federal office, the re-7
938	938	quirement that the individual must affiliate 8
939	939	or enroll with a political party in order to 9
940	940	participate in such an election. 10
941	941	‘‘(iv) Voter registration is voluntary, 11
942	942	and neither registering nor declining to 12
943	943	register to vote will in any way affect the 13
944	944	availability of services or benefits, nor be 14
945	945	used for other purposes. 15
946	946	‘‘(B) I
947	947	NDIVIDUALS WITH LIMITED 16
948	948	ENGLISH PROFICIENCY .—In the case in which 17
949	949	the individual is a member of a group that con-18
950	950	stitutes 3 percent or more of the overall popu-19
951	951	lation within the State served by the applicable 20
952	952	agency as measured by the United States Cen-21
953	953	sus and are limited English proficient, the in-22
954	954	formation described in clauses (i) through (iv) 23
955	955	of subparagraph (A) shall be provided in a lan-24
956	956	guage understood by the individual. 25
957	957	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
958	958	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 28
959	959	•HR 11 IH
960	960	‘‘(C) CLARIFICATION ON PROCEDURES FOR 1
961	961	INELIGIBLE VOTERS .—An applicable agency 2
962	962	shall not provide an individual who did not af-3
963	963	firm United States citizenship, or for whom the 4
964	964	agency has conclusive documentary evidence ob-5
965	965	tained through its normal course of operations 6
966	966	that the individual is not a United States cit-7
967	967	izen, the opportunity to register to vote under 8
968	968	subparagraph (A). 9
969	969	‘‘(D) O
970	970	PPORTUNITY TO DECLINE REG -10
971	971	ISTRATION REQUIRED .—Except as otherwise 11
972	972	provided in this section, each applicable agency 12
973	973	shall ensure that each applicable transaction de-13
974	974	scribed in subparagraph (A) with an eligible in-14
975	975	dividual cannot be completed until the indi-15
976	976	vidual is given the opportunity to decline to be 16
977	977	registered to vote. In the case where the indi-17
978	978	vidual is a member of a group that constitutes 18
979	979	3 percent or more of the overall population 19
980	980	within the State served by the applicable agency 20
981	981	as measured by the United States Census and 21
982	982	are limited English proficient, such opportunity 22
983	983	shall be given in a language understood by the 23
984	984	individual. 24
985	985	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
986	986	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 29
987	987	•HR 11 IH
988	988	‘‘(E) INFORMATION TRANSMITTAL .—Not 1
989	989	later than 10 days after an applicable trans-2
990	990	action with an eligible individual, if the indi-3
991	991	vidual did not decline to be registered to vote, 4
992	992	the applicable agency shall electronically trans-5
993	993	mit to the appropriate State election official the 6
994	994	following information with respect to the indi-7
995	995	vidual: 8
996	996	‘‘(i) The individual’s given name(s) 9
997	997	and surname(s). 10
998	998	‘‘(ii) The individual’s date of birth. 11
999	999	‘‘(iii) The individual’s residential ad-12
1000	1000	dress. 13
1001	1001	‘‘(iv) Information showing that the in-14
1002	1002	dividual is a citizen of the United States. 15
1003	1003	‘‘(v) The date on which information 16
1004	1004	pertaining to that individual was collected 17
1005	1005	or last updated. 18
1006	1006	‘‘(vi) If available, the individual’s sig-19
1007	1007	nature in electronic form. 20
1008	1008	‘‘(vii) In the case of a State in which 21
1009	1009	affiliation or enrollment with a political 22
1010	1010	party is required in order to participate in 23
1011	1011	an election to select the party’s candidate 24
1012	1012	in an election for Federal office, informa-25
1013	1013	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1014	1014	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 30
1015	1015	•HR 11 IH
1016	1016	tion regarding the individual’s affiliation or 1
1017	1017	enrollment with a political party, but only 2
1018	1018	if the individual provides such information. 3
1019	1019	‘‘(viii) Any additional information list-4
1020	1020	ed in the mail voter registration applica-5
1021	1021	tion form for elections for Federal office 6
1022	1022	prescribed pursuant to section 9, including 7
1023	1023	any valid driver’s license number or the 8
1024	1024	last 4 digits of the individual’s social secu-9
1025	1025	rity number, if the individual provided 10
1026	1026	such information. 11
1027	1027	‘‘(F) P
1028	1028	ROVISION OF INFORMATION RE -12
1029	1029	GARDING PARTICIPATION IN PRIMARY ELEC -13
1030	1030	TIONS.—In the case of a State in which affili-14
1031	1031	ation or enrollment with a political party is re-15
1032	1032	quired in order to participate in an election to 16
1033	1033	select the party’s candidate in an election for 17
1034	1034	Federal office, if the information transmitted 18
1035	1035	under subparagraph (E) with respect to an in-19
1036	1036	dividual does not include information regarding 20
1037	1037	the individual’s affiliation or enrollment with a 21
1038	1038	political party, the chief State election official 22
1039	1039	shall— 23
1040	1040	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1041	1041	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 31
1042	1042	•HR 11 IH
1043	1043	‘‘(i) notify the individual that such af-1
1044	1044	filiation or enrollment is required to par-2
1045	1045	ticipate in primary elections; and 3
1046	1046	‘‘(ii) provide an opportunity for the 4
1047	1047	individual to update their registration with 5
1048	1048	a party affiliation or enrollment. 6
1049	1049	‘‘(G) C
1050	1050	LARIFICATION.—Nothing in this 7
1051	1051	section shall be read to require an applicable 8
1052	1052	agency to transmit to an election official the in-9
1053	1053	formation described in subparagraph (E) for an 10
1054	1054	individual who is ineligible to vote in elections 11
1055	1055	for Federal office in the State, except to the ex-12
1056	1056	tent required to pre-register citizens between 16 13
1057	1057	and 18 years of age. 14
1058	1058	‘‘(2) A
1059	1059	LTERNATE PROCEDURE FOR CERTAIN 15
1060	1060	OTHER APPLICABLE AGENCIES .—With each applica-16
1061	1061	ble transaction for which an applicable agency in the 17
1062	1062	normal course of its operations does not request in-18
1063	1063	dividuals to affirm United States citizenship (either 19
1064	1064	directly or as part of the overall application for serv-20
1065	1065	ice or assistance), the applicable agency shall— 21
1066	1066	‘‘(A) complete the requirements of section 22
1067	1067	5; 23
1068	1068	‘‘(B) ensure that each applicant’s trans-24
1069	1069	action with the applicable agency cannot be 25
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1071	1071	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 32
1072	1072	•HR 11 IH
1073	1073	completed until the applicant has indicated 1
1074	1074	whether the applicant wishes to register to vote 2
1075	1075	or declines to register to vote in elections for 3
1076	1076	Federal office held in the State; and 4
1077	1077	‘‘(C) for each individual who wishes to reg-5
1078	1078	ister to vote, transmit that individual’s informa-6
1079	1079	tion in accordance with subsection (c)(1)(E), 7
1080	1080	unless the applicable agency has conclusive doc-8
1081	1081	umentary evidence obtained through its normal 9
1082	1082	course of operations that the individual is not 10
1083	1083	a United States citizen. 11
1084	1084	‘‘(3) R
1085	1085	EQUIRED AVAILABILITY OF AUTOMATIC 12
1086	1086	REGISTRATION OPPORTUNITY WITH EACH APPLICA -13
1087	1087	TION FOR SERVICE OR ASSISTANCE .—Each applica-14
1088	1088	ble agency shall offer each eligible individual, with 15
1089	1089	each applicable transaction, the opportunity to reg-16
1090	1090	ister to vote as prescribed by this section without re-17
1091	1091	gard to whether the individual previously declined a 18
1092	1092	registration opportunity. 19
1093	1093	‘‘(d) V
1094	1094	OTERPROTECTION.— 20
1095	1095	‘‘(1) A
1096	1096	PPLICABLE AGENCIES ’ PROTECTION OF 21
1097	1097	INFORMATION.—Nothing in this section authorizes 22
1098	1098	an applicable agency to collect, retain, transmit, or 23
1099	1099	publicly disclose any of the following, except as nec-24
1100	1100	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1101	1101	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 33
1102	1102	•HR 11 IH
1103	1103	essary to comply with title III of the Civil Rights 1
1104	1104	Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20701 et seq.): 2
1105	1105	‘‘(A) An individual’s decision to decline to 3
1106	1106	register to vote or not to register to vote. 4
1107	1107	‘‘(B) An individual’s decision not to affirm 5
1108	1108	his or her citizenship. 6
1109	1109	‘‘(C) Any information that an applicable 7
1110	1110	agency transmits pursuant to subsection 8
1111	1111	(c)(1)(E), except in pursuing the agency’s ordi-9
1112	1112	nary course of business. 10
1113	1113	‘‘(2) E
1114	1114	LECTION OFFICIALS’ PROTECTION OF IN-11
1115	1115	FORMATION.— 12
1116	1116	‘‘(A) P
1117	1117	UBLIC DISCLOSURE PROHIBITED .— 13
1118	1118	‘‘(i) I
1119	1119	N GENERAL.—Subject to clause 14
1120	1120	(ii), with respect to any individual for 15
1121	1121	whom any State election official receives 16
1122	1122	information from an applicable agency, the 17
1123	1123	State election official shall not publicly dis-18
1124	1124	close any of the following: 19
1125	1125	‘‘(I) Any information not nec-20
1126	1126	essary to voter registration. 21
1127	1127	‘‘(II) Any voter information oth-22
1128	1128	erwise shielded from disclosure under 23
1129	1129	State law or section 8(a). 24
1130	1130	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1131	1131	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 34
1132	1132	•HR 11 IH
1133	1133	‘‘(III) Any portion of the individ-1
1134	1134	ual’s social security number. 2
1135	1135	‘‘(IV) Any portion of the individ-3
1136	1136	ual’s motor vehicle driver’s license 4
1137	1137	number. 5
1138	1138	‘‘(V) The individual’s signature. 6
1139	1139	‘‘(VI) The individual’s telephone 7
1140	1140	number. 8
1141	1141	‘‘(VII) The individual’s email ad-9
1142	1142	dress. 10
1143	1143	‘‘(ii) S
1144	1144	PECIAL RULE FOR INDIVIDUALS 11
1145	1145	REGISTERED TO VOTE .—The prohibition 12
1146	1146	on public disclosure under clause (i) shall 13
1147	1147	not apply with respect to the telephone 14
1148	1148	number or email address of any individual 15
1149	1149	for whom any State election official re-16
1150	1150	ceives information from the applicable 17
1151	1151	agency and who, on the basis of such infor-18
1152	1152	mation, is registered to vote in the State 19
1153	1153	under this section. 20
1154	1154	‘‘(e) M
1155	1155	ISCELLANEOUSPROVISIONS.— 21
1156	1156	‘‘(1) A
1157	1157	CCESSIBILITY OF REGISTRATION SERV -22
1158	1158	ICES.—Each applicable agency shall ensure that the 23
1159	1159	services it provides under this section are made 24
1160	1160	available to individuals with disabilities to the same 25
1161	1161	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1162	1162	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 35
1163	1163	•HR 11 IH
1164	1164	extent as services are made available to all other in-1
1165	1165	dividuals. 2
1166	1166	‘‘(2) T
1167	1167	RANSMISSION THROUGH SECURE THIRD 3
1168	1168	PARTY PERMITTED.—Nothing in this section or in 4
1169	1169	the Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2023 shall 5
1170	1170	be construed to prevent an applicable agency from 6
1171	1171	contracting with a third party to assist the agency 7
1172	1172	in meeting the information transmittal requirements 8
1173	1173	of this section, so long as the data transmittal com-9
1174	1174	plies with the applicable requirements of this section 10
1175	1175	and such Act, including provisions relating to pri-11
1176	1176	vacy and security. 12
1177	1177	‘‘(3) N
1178	1178	ONPARTISAN, NONDISCRIMINATORY PRO -13
1179	1179	VISION OF SERVICES.—The services made available 14
1180	1180	by applicable agencies under this section shall be 15
1181	1181	made in a manner consistent with paragraphs (4), 16
1182	1182	(5), and (6)(C) of section 7(a). 17
1183	1183	‘‘(4) N
1184	1184	OTICES.—Each State may send notices 18
1185	1185	under this section via electronic mail if the indi-19
1186	1186	vidual has provided an electronic mail address and 20
1187	1187	consented to electronic mail communications for 21
1188	1188	election-related materials. All notices sent pursuant 22
1189	1189	to this section that require a response must offer the 23
1190	1190	individual notified the opportunity to respond at no 24
1191	1191	cost to the individual. 25
1192	1192	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1193	1193	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 36
1194	1194	•HR 11 IH
1195	1195	‘‘(5) REGISTRATION AT OTHER STATE OFFICES 1
1196	1196	PERMITTED.—Nothing in this section may be con-2
1197	1197	strued to prohibit a State from offering voter reg-3
1198	1198	istration services described in this section at offices 4
1199	1199	of the State other than the State motor vehicle au-5
1200	1200	thority. 6
1201	1201	‘‘(f) A
1202	1202	PPLICABILITY.— 7
1203	1203	‘‘(1) I
1204	1204	N GENERAL.—This section shall not apply 8
1205	1205	to an exempt State. 9
1206	1206	‘‘(2) E
1207	1207	XEMPT STATE DEFINED .—The term ‘ex-10
1208	1208	empt State’ means a State that, under law that is 11
1209	1209	in effect continuously on and after the date of enact-12
1210	1210	ment of this section, either— 13
1211	1211	‘‘(A) has no voter registration requirement 14
1212	1212	for any voter in the State with respect to a 15
1213	1213	Federal election; or 16
1214	1214	‘‘(B) operates a system of automatic reg-17
1215	1215	istration at the motor vehicle authority of the 18
1216	1216	State or a Permanent Dividend Fund of the 19
1217	1217	State under which an individual is provided the 20
1218	1218	opportunity to decline registration during the 21
1219	1219	transaction or by way of a notice sent by mail 22
1220	1220	or electronically after the transaction.’’. 23
1221	1221	(b) C
1222	1222	ONFORMINGAMENDMENTS.— 24
1223	1223	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1224	1224	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 37
1225	1225	•HR 11 IH
1226	1226	(1) Section 4(a) of the National Voter Registra-1
1227	1227	tion Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20503(a)) is amended 2
1228	1228	by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as para-3
1229	1229	graphs (3) and (4), respectively, and by inserting 4
1230	1230	after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph: 5
1231	1231	‘‘(2) by application made simultaneously with 6
1232	1232	an application for a motor vehicle driver’s license 7
1233	1233	pursuant to section 5A;’’. 8
1234	1234	(2) Section 4(b) of the National Voter Registra-9
1235	1235	tion Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20503(b)) is amend-10
1236	1236	ed— 11
1237	1237	(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 12
1238	1238	(2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, 13
1239	1239	and indenting appropriately; 14
1240	1240	(B) by striking ‘‘S
1241	1241	TATES.—This Act’’ and 15
1242	1242	inserting ‘‘S
1243	1243	TATES.— 16
1244	1244	‘‘(1) I
1245	1245	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-17
1246	1246	graph (2), this Act’’; and 18
1247	1247	(C) by adding at the end the following new 19
1248	1248	paragraph: 20
1249	1249	‘‘(2) A
1250	1250	PPLICATION OF AUTOMATIC REGISTRA -21
1251	1251	TION REQUIREMENTS .—Section 5A shall apply to a 22
1252	1252	State described in paragraph (1), unless the State is 23
1253	1253	an exempt State as defined in subsection (f)(2) of 24
1254	1254	such section.’’. 25
1255	1255	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1256	1256	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 38
1257	1257	•HR 11 IH
1258	1258	(3) Section 8(a)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 1
1259	1259	20507(a)(1)) is amended by redesignating subpara-2
1260	1260	graphs (B), (C), and (D) as subparagraphs (C), (D), 3
1261	1261	and (E), respectively, and by inserting after sub-4
1262	1262	paragraph (A) the following new subparagraph: 5
1263	1263	‘‘(B) in the case of registration under sec-6
1264	1264	tion 5A, within the period provided in section 7
1265	1265	5A(b)(2);’’. 8
1266	1266	SEC. 1003. VOTER PROTECTION AND SECURITY IN AUTO-9
1267	1267	MATIC REGISTRATION. 10
1268	1268	(a) P
1269	1269	ROTECTIONS FORERRORS INREGISTRATION.— 11
1270	1270	An individual shall not be prosecuted under any Federal 12
1271	1271	or State law, adversely affected in any civil adjudication 13
1272	1272	concerning immigration status or naturalization, or sub-14
1273	1273	ject to an allegation in any legal proceeding that the indi-15
1274	1274	vidual is not a citizen of the United States on any of the 16
1275	1275	following grounds: 17
1276	1276	(1) The individual notified an election office of 18
1277	1277	the individual’s automatic registration to vote. 19
1278	1278	(2) The individual is not eligible to vote in elec-20
1279	1279	tions for Federal office but was registered to vote 21
1280	1280	due to individual or agency error. 22
1281	1281	(3) The individual was automatically registered 23
1282	1282	to vote at an incorrect address. 24
1283	1283	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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1285	1285	•HR 11 IH
1286	1286	(4) The individual declined the opportunity to 1
1287	1287	register to vote or did not make an affirmation of 2
1288	1288	citizenship, including through automatic registration. 3
1289	1289	(b) L
1290	1290	IMITS ONUSE OFAUTOMATICREGISTRA-4
1291	1291	TION.—The automatic registration (within the meaning of 5
1292	1292	section 5A of the National Voter Registration Act of 6
1293	1293	1993) of any individual or the fact that an individual de-7
1294	1294	clined the opportunity to register to vote or did not make 8
1295	1295	an affirmation of citizenship (including through automatic 9
1296	1296	registration) may not be used as evidence against that in-10
1297	1297	dividual in any State or Federal law enforcement pro-11
1298	1298	ceeding or any civil adjudication concerning immigration 12
1299	1299	status or naturalization, and an individual’s lack of knowl-13
1300	1300	edge or willfulness of such registration may be dem-14
1301	1301	onstrated by the individual’s testimony alone. 15
1302	1302	(c) P
1303	1303	ROTECTION OFELECTIONINTEGRITY.—Noth-16
1304	1304	ing in subsection (a) or (b) may be construed to prohibit 17
1305	1305	or restrict any action under color of law against an indi-18
1306	1306	vidual who— 19
1307	1307	(1) knowingly and willfully makes a false state-20
1308	1308	ment to effectuate or perpetuate automatic voter 21
1309	1309	registration (within the meaning of section 5A of the 22
1310	1310	National Voter Registration Act of 1993) by any in-23
1311	1311	dividual; or 24
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1313	1313	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 40
1314	1314	•HR 11 IH
1315	1315	(2) casts a ballot knowingly and willfully in vio-1
1316	1316	lation of State law or the laws of the United States. 2
1317	1317	(d) E
1318	1318	LECTIONOFFICIALS’ PROTECTION OFINFOR-3
1319	1319	MATION.— 4
1320	1320	(1) V
1321	1321	OTER RECORD CHANGES .—Each State 5
1322	1322	shall maintain for not less than 2 years and shall 6
1323	1323	make available for public inspection (and, where 7
1324	1324	available, photocopying at a reasonable cost), includ-8
1325	1325	ing in electronic form and through electronic meth-9
1326	1326	ods, all records of changes to voter records, includ-10
1327	1327	ing removals, the reasons for removals, and updates. 11
1328	1328	(2) D
1329	1329	ATABASE MANAGEMENT STANDARDS .— 12
1330	1330	Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 13
1331	1331	of this Act, the Director of the National Institute of 14
1332	1332	Standards and Technology, in consultation with 15
1333	1333	State and local election officials and the Commis-16
1334	1334	sion, shall, after providing the public with notice and 17
1335	1335	the opportunity to comment— 18
1336	1336	(A) establish standards governing the com-19
1337	1337	parison of data for voter registration list main-20
1338	1338	tenance purposes, identifying as part of such 21
1339	1339	standards the specific data elements, the 22
1340	1340	matching rules used, and how a State may use 23
1341	1341	the data to determine and deem that an indi-24
1342	1342	vidual is ineligible under State law to vote in an 25
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1345	1345	•HR 11 IH
1346	1346	election, or to deem a record to be a duplicate 1
1347	1347	or outdated; 2
1348	1348	(B) ensure that the standards developed 3
1349	1349	pursuant to this paragraph are uniform and 4
1350	1350	nondiscriminatory and are applied in a uniform 5
1351	1351	and nondiscriminatory manner; 6
1352	1352	(C) not later than 45 days after the dead-7
1353	1353	line for public notice and comment, publish the 8
1354	1354	standards developed pursuant to this paragraph 9
1355	1355	on the Director’s website and make those 10
1356	1356	standards available in written form upon re-11
1357	1357	quest; and 12
1358	1358	(D) ensure that the standards developed 13
1359	1359	pursuant to this paragraph are maintained and 14
1360	1360	updated in a manner that reflects innovations 15
1361	1361	and best practices in the security of database 16
1362	1362	management. 17
1363	1363	(3) S
1364	1364	ECURITY POLICY.— 18
1365	1365	(A) I
1366	1366	N GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 19
1367	1367	after the date of enactment of this Act, the Di-20
1368	1368	rector of the National Institute of Standards 21
1369	1369	and Technology shall, after providing the public 22
1370	1370	with notice and the opportunity to comment, 23
1371	1371	publish privacy and security standards for voter 24
1372	1372	registration information not later than 45 days 25
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1375	1375	•HR 11 IH
1376	1376	after the deadline for public notice and com-1
1377	1377	ment. The standards shall require the chief 2
1378	1378	State election official of each State to adopt a 3
1379	1379	policy that shall specify— 4
1380	1380	(i) each class of users who shall have 5
1381	1381	authorized access to the computerized 6
1382	1382	statewide voter registration list, specifying 7
1383	1383	for each class the permission and levels of 8
1384	1384	access to be granted, and setting forth 9
1385	1385	other safeguards to protect the privacy, se-10
1386	1386	curity, and accuracy of the information on 11
1387	1387	the list; and 12
1388	1388	(ii) security safeguards to protect per-13
1389	1389	sonal information transmitted through the 14
1390	1390	information transmittal processes of sec-15
1391	1391	tion 5A(b) of the National Voter Registra-16
1392	1392	tion Act of 1993, any telephone interface, 17
1393	1393	the maintenance of the voter registration 18
1394	1394	database, and any audit procedure to track 19
1395	1395	access to the system. 20
1396	1396	(B) M
1397	1397	AINTENANCE AND UPDATING .—The 21
1398	1398	Director of the National Institute of Standards 22
1399	1399	and Technology shall ensure that the standards 23
1400	1400	developed pursuant to this paragraph are main-24
1401	1401	tained and updated in a manner that reflects 25
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1404	1404	•HR 11 IH
1405	1405	innovations and best practices in the privacy 1
1406	1406	and security of voter registration information. 2
1407	1407	(4) S
1408	1408	TATE COMPLIANCE WITH NATIONAL 3
1409	1409	STANDARDS.— 4
1410	1410	(A) C
1411	1411	ERTIFICATION.—The chief State elec-5
1412	1412	tion official of the State shall annually file with 6
1413	1413	the Commission a statement certifying to the 7
1414	1414	Director of the National Institute of Standards 8
1415	1415	and Technology that the State is in compliance 9
1416	1416	with the standards referred to in paragraphs 10
1417	1417	(2) and (3). A State may meet the requirement 11
1418	1418	of the previous sentence by filing with the Com-12
1419	1419	mission a statement that reads as follows: 13
1420	1420	‘‘lllll hereby certifies that it is in 14
1421	1421	compliance with the standards referred to in 15
1422	1422	paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 1003(d) of 16
1423	1423	the Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2023.’’ 17
1424	1424	(with the blank to be filled in with the name of 18
1425	1425	the State involved). 19
1426	1426	(B) P
1427	1427	UBLICATION OF POLICIES AND PRO -20
1428	1428	CEDURES.—The chief State election official of a 21
1429	1429	State shall publish on the official’s website the 22
1430	1430	policies and procedures established under this 23
1431	1431	section, and shall make those policies and pro-24
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1433	1433	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 44
1434	1434	•HR 11 IH
1435	1435	cedures available in written form upon public 1
1436	1436	request. 2
1437	1437	(C) F
1438	1438	UNDING DEPENDENT ON CERTIFI -3
1439	1439	CATION.—If a State does not timely file the cer-4
1440	1440	tification required under this paragraph, it shall 5
1441	1441	not receive any payment under this part for the 6
1442	1442	upcoming fiscal year. 7
1443	1443	(D) C
1444	1444	OMPLIANCE OF STATES THAT RE -8
1445	1445	QUIRE CHANGES TO STATE LAW .—In the case 9
1446	1446	of a State that requires State legislation to 10
1447	1447	carry out an activity covered by any certifi-11
1448	1448	cation submitted under this paragraph, for a 12
1449	1449	period of not more than 2 years, the State shall 13
1450	1450	be permitted to make the certification notwith-14
1451	1451	standing that the legislation has not been en-15
1452	1452	acted at the time the certification is submitted, 16
1453	1453	and such State shall submit an additional cer-17
1454	1454	tification once such legislation is enacted. 18
1455	1455	(e) R
1456	1456	ESTRICTIONS ONUSE OFINFORMATION.—No 19
1457	1457	person acting under color of law may discriminate against 20
1458	1458	any individual based on, or use for any purpose other than 21
1459	1459	voter registration, election administration, juror selection, 22
1460	1460	or enforcement relating to election crimes, any of the fol-23
1461	1461	lowing: 24
1462	1462	(1) Voter registration records. 25
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1465	1465	•HR 11 IH
1466	1466	(2) An individual’s declination to register to 1
1467	1467	vote or complete an affirmation of citizenship under 2
1468	1468	section 5A of the National Voter Registration Act of 3
1469	1469	1993. 4
1470	1470	(3) An individual’s voter registration status. 5
1471	1471	(f) P
1472	1472	ROHIBITION ON THEUSE OFVOTERREGISTRA-6
1473	1473	TIONINFORMATION FOR COMMERCIALPURPOSES.—In-7
1474	1474	formation collected under this part or the amendments 8
1475	1475	made by this part shall not be used for commercial pur-9
1476	1476	poses. Nothing in this subsection may be construed to pro-10
1477	1477	hibit the transmission, exchange, or dissemination of in-11
1478	1478	formation for political purposes, including the support of 12
1479	1479	campaigns for election for Federal, State, or local public 13
1480	1480	office or the activities of political committees (including 14
1481	1481	committees of political parties) under the Federal Election 15
1482	1482	Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.). 16
1483	1483	SEC. 1004. PAYMENTS AND GRANTS. 17
1484	1484	(a) I
1485	1485	NGENERAL.—The Commission shall make 18
1486	1486	grants to each eligible State to assist the State in imple-19
1487	1487	menting the requirements of this part and the amend-20
1488	1488	ments made by this part (or, in the case of an exempt 21
1489	1489	State, in implementing its existing automatic voter reg-22
1490	1490	istration program or expanding its automatic voter reg-23
1491	1491	istration program in a manner consistent with the require-24
1492	1492	ments of this part) with respect to the offices of the State 25
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1495	1495	•HR 11 IH
1496	1496	motor vehicle authority and any other offices of the State 1
1497	1497	at which the State offers voter registration services as de-2
1498	1498	scribed in this part and the amendments made by this 3
1499	1499	part. 4
1500	1500	(b) E
1501	1501	LIGIBILITY; APPLICATION.—A State is eligible 5
1502	1502	to receive a grant under this section if the State submits 6
1503	1503	to the Commission, at such time and in such form as the 7
1504	1504	Commission may require, an application containing— 8
1505	1505	(1) a description of the activities the State will 9
1506	1506	carry out with the grant; 10
1507	1507	(2) an assurance that the State shall carry out 11
1508	1508	such activities without partisan bias and without 12
1509	1509	promoting any particular point of view regarding 13
1510	1510	any issue; and 14
1511	1511	(3) such other information and assurances as 15
1512	1512	the Commission may require. 16
1513	1513	(c) A
1514	1514	MOUNT OFGRANT; PRIORITIES.—The Commis-17
1515	1515	sion shall determine the amount of a grant made to an 18
1516	1516	eligible State under this section. In determining the 19
1517	1517	amounts of the grants, the Commission shall give priority 20
1518	1518	to providing funds for those activities that are most likely 21
1519	1519	to accelerate compliance with the requirements of this part 22
1520	1520	(or, in the case of an exempt State, which are most likely 23
1521	1521	to enhance the ability of the State to automatically reg-24
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1524	1524	•HR 11 IH
1525	1525	ister individuals to vote through its existing automatic 1
1526	1526	voter registration program), including— 2
1527	1527	(1) investments supporting electronic informa-3
1528	1528	tion transfer, including electronic collection and 4
1529	1529	transfer of signatures, between applicable agencies 5
1530	1530	(as defined in section 5A of the National Voter Reg-6
1531	1531	istration Act of 1993) and the appropriate State 7
1532	1532	election officials; 8
1533	1533	(2) updates to online or electronic voter reg-9
1534	1534	istration systems already operating as of the date of 10
1535	1535	enactment of this Act; 11
1536	1536	(3) introduction of online voter registration sys-12
1537	1537	tems in jurisdictions in which those systems did not 13
1538	1538	previously exist; and 14
1539	1539	(4) public education on the availability of new 15
1540	1540	methods of registering to vote, updating registration, 16
1541	1541	and correcting registration. 17
1542	1542	(d) E
1543	1543	XEMPTSTATE.—For purposes of this section, 18
1544	1544	the term ‘‘exempt State’’ has the meaning given that term 19
1545	1545	in section 5A of the National Voter Registration Act of 20
1546	1546	1993, and also includes a State in which, under law that 21
1547	1547	is in effect continuously on and after the date of enact-22
1548	1548	ment of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, 23
1549	1549	there is no voter registration requirement for any voter 24
1550	1550	in the State with respect to an election for Federal office. 25
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1553	1553	•HR 11 IH
1554	1554	(e) AUTHORIZATION OFAPPROPRIATIONS.— 1
1555	1555	(1) A
1556	1556	UTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to 2
1557	1557	be appropriated to carry out this section— 3
1558	1558	(A) $3,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2024; 4
1559	1559	and 5
1560	1560	(B) such sums as may be necessary for 6
1561	1561	each succeeding fiscal year. 7
1562	1562	(2) C
1563	1563	ONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS .— 8
1564	1564	Any amounts appropriated pursuant to the authority 9
1565	1565	of this subsection shall remain available without fis-10
1566	1566	cal year limitation until expended. 11
1567	1567	SEC. 1005. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. 12
1568	1568	(a) E
1569	1569	NFORCEMENT.—Section 11 of the National 13
1570	1570	Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20510), relat-14
1571	1571	ing to civil enforcement and the availability of private 15
1572	1572	rights of action, shall apply with respect to this part in 16
1573	1573	the same manner as such section applies to such Act. 17
1574	1574	(b) R
1575	1575	ELATION TOOTHERLAWS.—Except as pro-18
1576	1576	vided, nothing in this part or the amendments made by 19
1577	1577	this part may be construed to authorize or require conduct 20
1578	1578	prohibited under, or to supersede, restrict, or limit the ap-21
1579	1579	plication of any of the following: 22
1580	1580	(1) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 23
1581	1581	10301 et seq.). 24
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1584	1584	•HR 11 IH
1585	1585	(2) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab-1
1586	1586	sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.). 2
1587	1587	(3) The National Voter Registration Act of 3
1588	1588	1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.) (other than section 4
1589	1589	5A thereof). 5
1590	1590	(4) The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 6
1591	1591	U.S.C. 20901 et seq.). 7
1592	1592	(5) The Americans with Disabilities Act of 8
1593	1593	1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 9
1594	1594	SEC. 1006. DEFINITIONS. 10
1595	1595	In this part, the following definitions apply: 11
1596	1596	(1) The term ‘‘chief State election official’’ 12
1597	1597	means, with respect to a State, the individual des-13
1598	1598	ignated by the State under section 10 of the Na-14
1599	1599	tional Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 15
1600	1600	20509) to be responsible for coordination of the 16
1601	1601	State’s responsibilities under such Act. 17
1602	1602	(2) The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Election 18
1603	1603	Assistance Commission. 19
1604	1604	(3) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 20
1605	1605	States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 21
1606	1606	of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, 22
1607	1607	Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of 23
1608	1608	the Northern Mariana Islands. 24
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1611	1611	•HR 11 IH
1612	1612	SEC. 1007. EFFECTIVE DATE. 1
1613	1613	(a) I
1614	1614	NGENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 2
1615	1615	(b), this part and the amendments made by this part shall 3
1616	1616	apply on and after January 1, 2025. 4
1617	1617	(b) W
1618	1618	AIVER.—If a State certifies to the Commission 5
1619	1619	not later than January 1, 2025, that the State will not 6
1620	1620	meet the deadline described in subsection (a) because it 7
1621	1621	would be impracticable to do so and includes in the certifi-8
1622	1622	cation the reasons for the failure to meet such deadline, 9
1623	1623	subsection (a) shall apply to the State as if the reference 10
1624	1624	in such subsection to ‘‘January 1, 2025’’ were a reference 11
1625	1625	to ‘‘January 1, 2027’’. 12
1626	1626	PART 2—ELECTION DAY AS LEGAL PUBLIC 13
1627	1627	HOLIDAY 14
1628	1628	SEC. 1011. ELECTION DAY AS LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAY. 15
1629	1629	(a) I
1630	1630	NGENERAL.—Section 6103(a) of title 5, United 16
1631	1631	States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relat-17
1632	1632	ing to Columbus Day, the following: 18
1633	1633	‘‘Election Day, the Tuesday next after the first Mon-19
1634	1634	day in November in each even-numbered year.’’. 20
1635	1635	(b) C
1636	1636	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT.—Section 241(b) of 21
1637	1637	the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20981(b)) 22
1638	1638	is amended— 23
1639	1639	(1) by striking paragraph (10); and 24
1640	1640	(2) by redesignating paragraphs (11) through 25
1641	1641	(19) as paragraphs (10) through (18), respectively. 26
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1644	1644	•HR 11 IH
1645	1645	(c) EFFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 1
1646	1646	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to the regularly 2
1647	1647	scheduled general elections for Federal office held in No-3
1648	1648	vember 2024 or any succeeding year. 4
1649	1649	PART 3—PROMOTING INTERNET REGISTRATION 5
1650	1650	SEC. 1021. REQUIRING AVAILABILITY OF INTERNET FOR 6
1651	1651	VOTER REGISTRATION. 7
1652	1652	(a) R
1653	1653	EQUIRINGAVAILABILITY OFINTERNET FOR 8
1654	1654	R
1655	1655	EGISTRATION.—The National Voter Registration Act of 9
1656	1656	1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.) is amended by inserting 10
1657	1657	after section 6 the following new section: 11
1658	1658	‘‘SEC. 6A. INTERNET REGISTRATION. 12
1659	1659	‘‘(a) R
1660	1660	EQUIRINGAVAILABILITY OFINTERNET FOR 13
1661	1661	O
1662	1662	NLINEREGISTRATION.—Each State, acting through the 14
1663	1663	chief State election official, shall ensure that the following 15
1664	1664	services are available to the public at any time on the offi-16
1665	1665	cial public websites of the appropriate State and local elec-17
1666	1666	tion officials in the State, in the same manner and subject 18
1667	1667	to the same terms and conditions as the services provided 19
1668	1668	by voter registration agencies under section 7(a): 20
1669	1669	‘‘(1) Online application for voter registration. 21
1670	1670	‘‘(2) Online assistance to applicants in applying 22
1671	1671	to register to vote. 23
1672	1672	‘‘(3) Online completion and submission by ap-24
1673	1673	plicants of the mail voter registration application 25
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1676	1676	•HR 11 IH
1677	1677	form prescribed by the Election Assistance Commis-1
1678	1678	sion pursuant to section 9(a)(2), including assist-2
1679	1679	ance with providing a signature as required under 3
1680	1680	subsection (c). 4
1681	1681	‘‘(4) Online receipt of completed voter registra-5
1682	1682	tion applications. 6
1683	1683	‘‘(b) A
1684	1684	CCEPTANCE OFCOMPLETEDAPPLICATIONS.— 7
1685	1685	A State shall accept an online voter registration applica-8
1686	1686	tion provided by an individual under this section, and en-9
1687	1687	sure that the individual is registered to vote in the State, 10
1688	1688	if— 11
1689	1689	‘‘(1) the individual meets the same voter reg-12
1690	1690	istration requirements applicable to individuals who 13
1691	1691	register to vote by mail in accordance with section 14
1692	1692	6(a)(1) using the mail voter registration application 15
1693	1693	form prescribed by the Election Assistance Commis-16
1694	1694	sion pursuant to section 9(a)(2); and 17
1695	1695	‘‘(2) the individual meets the requirements of 18
1696	1696	subsection (c) to provide a signature in electronic 19
1697	1697	form (but only in the case of applications submitted 20
1698	1698	during or after the second year in which this section 21
1699	1699	is in effect in the State). 22
1700	1700	‘‘(c) S
1701	1701	IGNATUREREQUIREMENTS.— 23
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1704	1704	•HR 11 IH
1705	1705	‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec-1
1706	1706	tion, an individual meets the requirements of this 2
1707	1707	subsection as follows: 3
1708	1708	‘‘(A) In the case of an individual who has 4
1709	1709	a signature on file with a State agency, includ-5
1710	1710	ing the State motor vehicle authority, that is 6
1711	1711	required to provide voter registration services 7
1712	1712	under this Act or any other law, the individual 8
1713	1713	consents to the transfer of that electronic signa-9
1714	1714	ture. 10
1715	1715	‘‘(B) If subparagraph (A) does not apply, 11
1716	1716	the individual submits with the application an 12
1717	1717	electronic copy of the individual’s handwritten 13
1718	1718	signature through electronic means. 14
1719	1719	‘‘(C) If subparagraph (A) and subpara-15
1720	1720	graph (B) do not apply, the individual executes 16
1721	1721	a computerized mark in the signature field on 17
1722	1722	an online voter registration application, in ac-18
1723	1723	cordance with reasonable security measures es-19
1724	1724	tablished by the State, but only if the State ac-20
1725	1725	cepts such mark from the individual. 21
1726	1726	‘‘(2) T
1727	1727	REATMENT OF INDIVIDUALS UNABLE TO 22
1728	1728	MEET REQUIREMENT .—If an individual is unable to 23
1729	1729	meet the requirements under paragraph (1), the 24
1730	1730	State shall— 25
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1733	1733	•HR 11 IH
1734	1734	‘‘(A) permit the individual to complete all 1
1735	1735	other elements of the online voter registration 2
1736	1736	application; 3
1737	1737	‘‘(B) permit the individual to provide a sig-4
1738	1738	nature at the time the individual requests a bal-5
1739	1739	lot in an election (whether the individual re-6
1740	1740	quests the ballot at a polling place or requests 7
1741	1741	the ballot by mail); and 8
1742	1742	‘‘(C) if the individual carries out the steps 9
1743	1743	described in subparagraphs (A) and (B), ensure 10
1744	1744	that the individual is registered to vote in the 11
1745	1745	State. 12
1746	1746	‘‘(3) N
1747	1747	OTICE.—The State shall ensure that in-13
1748	1748	dividuals applying to register to vote online are noti-14
1749	1749	fied of the requirements under paragraph (1) and of 15
1750	1750	the treatment of individuals unable to meet such re-16
1751	1751	quirements, as described in paragraph (2). 17
1752	1752	‘‘(d) C
1753	1753	ONFIRMATION AND DISPOSITION.— 18
1754	1754	‘‘(1) C
1755	1755	ONFIRMATION OF RECEIPT .— 19
1756	1756	‘‘(A) I
1757	1757	N GENERAL.—Upon the online sub-20
1758	1758	mission of a completed voter registration appli-21
1759	1759	cation by an individual under this section, the 22
1760	1760	appropriate State or local election official shall 23
1761	1761	provide the individual a notice confirming the 24
1762	1762	State’s receipt of the application and providing 25
1763	1763	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00054 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1764	1764	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 55
1765	1765	•HR 11 IH
1766	1766	instructions on how the individual may check 1
1767	1767	the status of the application. 2
1768	1768	‘‘(B) M
1769	1769	ETHOD OF NOTIFICATION .—The 3
1770	1770	appropriate State or local election official shall 4
1771	1771	provide the notice required under subparagraph 5
1772	1772	(A) though the online submission process and— 6
1773	1773	‘‘(i) in the case of an individual who 7
1774	1774	has provided the official with an electronic 8
1775	1775	mail address, by electronic mail; and 9
1776	1776	‘‘(ii) at the option of the individual, 10
1777	1777	by text message. 11
1778	1778	‘‘(2) N
1779	1779	OTICE OF DISPOSITION.— 12
1780	1780	‘‘(A) I
1781	1781	N GENERAL.—Not later than 7 days 13
1782	1782	after the date on which the appropriate State or 14
1783	1783	local election official approves or rejects an ap-15
1784	1784	plication submitted by an individual under this 16
1785	1785	section, the official shall provide the individual 17
1786	1786	a notice of the disposition of the application. 18
1787	1787	‘‘(B) M
1788	1788	ETHOD OF NOTIFICATION .—The 19
1789	1789	appropriate State or local election official shall 20
1790	1790	provide the notice required under subparagraph 21
1791	1791	(A) by regular mail and— 22
1792	1792	‘‘(i) in the case of an individual who 23
1793	1793	has provided the official with an electronic 24
1794	1794	mail address, by electronic mail; and 25
1795	1795	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00055 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1796	1796	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 56
1797	1797	•HR 11 IH
1798	1798	‘‘(ii) at the option of the individual, 1
1799	1799	by text message. 2
1800	1800	‘‘(e) P
1801	1801	ROVISION OF SERVICES INNONPARTISAN 3
1802	1802	M
1803	1803	ANNER.—The services made available under subsection 4
1804	1804	(a) shall be provided in a manner that ensures that— 5
1805	1805	‘‘(1) the online application does not seek to in-6
1806	1806	fluence an applicant’s political preference or party 7
1807	1807	registration; and 8
1808	1808	‘‘(2) there is no display on the website pro-9
1809	1809	moting any political preference or party allegiance, 10
1810	1810	except that nothing in this paragraph may be con-11
1811	1811	strued to prohibit an applicant from registering to 12
1812	1812	vote as a member of a political party. 13
1813	1813	‘‘(f) P
1814	1814	ROTECTION OFSECURITY OFINFORMATION.— 14
1815	1815	In meeting the requirements of this section, the State shall 15
1816	1816	establish appropriate technological security measures to 16
1817	1817	prevent to the greatest extent practicable any unauthor-17
1818	1818	ized access to information provided by individuals using 18
1819	1819	the services made available under subsection (a). 19
1820	1820	‘‘(g) A
1821	1821	CCESSIBILITY OFSERVICES.—A State shall en-20
1822	1822	sure that the services made available under this section 21
1823	1823	are made available to individuals with disabilities to the 22
1824	1824	same extent as services are made available to all other in-23
1825	1825	dividuals. 24
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1827	1827	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 57
1828	1828	•HR 11 IH
1829	1829	‘‘(h) NONDISCRIMINATION AMONGREGISTERED 1
1830	1830	V
1831	1831	OTERSUSINGMAIL ANDONLINEREGISTRATION.—In 2
1832	1832	carrying out this Act, the Help America Vote Act of 2002 3
1833	1833	(52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.), or any other Federal, State, 4
1834	1834	or local law governing the treatment of registered voters 5
1835	1835	in the State or the administration of elections for public 6
1836	1836	office in the State, a State shall treat a registered voter 7
1837	1837	who registered to vote online in accordance with this sec-8
1838	1838	tion in the same manner as the State treats a registered 9
1839	1839	voter who registered to vote by mail.’’. 10
1840	1840	(b) S
1841	1841	PECIALREQUIREMENTS FOR INDIVIDUALS 11
1842	1842	U
1843	1843	SINGONLINEREGISTRATION.— 12
1844	1844	(1) T
1845	1845	REATMENT AS INDIVIDUALS REGISTERING 13
1846	1846	TO VOTE BY MAIL FOR PURPOSES OF FIRST -TIME 14
1847	1847	VOTER IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS .—Section 15
1848	1848	303(b)(1)(A) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 16
1849	1849	(52 U.S.C. 21083(b)(1)(A)) is amended by striking 17
1850	1850	‘‘by mail’’ and inserting ‘‘by mail or online under 18
1851	1851	section 6A of the National Voter Registration Act of 19
1852	1852	1993’’. 20
1853	1853	(2) R
1854	1854	EQUIRING SIGNATURE FOR FIRST -TIME 21
1855	1855	VOTERS IN JURISDICTION .—Section 303(b) of such 22
1856	1856	Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(b)) is amended— 23
1857	1857	(A) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 24
1858	1858	paragraph (6); and 25
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1861	1861	•HR 11 IH
1862	1862	(B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 1
1863	1863	following new paragraph: 2
1864	1864	‘‘(5) S
1865	1865	IGNATURE REQUIREMENTS FOR FIRST - 3
1866	1866	TIME VOTERS USING ONLINE REGISTRATION .— 4
1867	1867	‘‘(A) I
1868	1868	N GENERAL.—A State shall, in a 5
1869	1869	uniform and nondiscriminatory manner, require 6
1870	1870	an individual to meet the requirements of sub-7
1871	1871	paragraph (B) if— 8
1872	1872	‘‘(i) the individual registered to vote 9
1873	1873	in the State online under section 6A of the 10
1874	1874	National Voter Registration Act of 1993; 11
1875	1875	and 12
1876	1876	‘‘(ii) the individual has not previously 13
1877	1877	voted in an election for Federal office in 14
1878	1878	the State. 15
1879	1879	‘‘(B) R
1880	1880	EQUIREMENTS.—An individual 16
1881	1881	meets the requirements of this subparagraph 17
1882	1882	if— 18
1883	1883	‘‘(i) in the case of an individual who 19
1884	1884	votes in person, the individual provides the 20
1885	1885	appropriate State or local election official 21
1886	1886	with a handwritten signature; or 22
1887	1887	‘‘(ii) in the case of an individual who 23
1888	1888	votes by mail, the individual submits with 24
1889	1889	the ballot a handwritten signature. 25
1890	1890	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00058 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1891	1891	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 59
1892	1892	•HR 11 IH
1893	1893	‘‘(C) INAPPLICABILITY.—Subparagraph 1
1894	1894	(A) does not apply in the case of an individual 2
1895	1895	who is— 3
1896	1896	‘‘(i) entitled to vote by absentee ballot 4
1897	1897	under the Uniformed and Overseas Citi-5
1898	1898	zens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 6
1899	1899	20302 et seq.); 7
1900	1900	‘‘(ii) provided the right to vote other-8
1901	1901	wise than in person under section 9
1902	1902	3(b)(2)(B)(ii) of the Voting Accessibility 10
1903	1903	for the Elderly and Handicapped Act (52 11
1904	1904	U.S.C. 20102(b)(2)(B)(ii)); or 12
1905	1905	‘‘(iii) entitled to vote otherwise than 13
1906	1906	in person under any other Federal law.’’. 14
1907	1907	(3) C
1908	1908	ONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO 15
1909	1909	EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 303(d)(2)(A) of such 16
1910	1910	Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(d)(2)(A)) is amended by 17
1911	1911	striking ‘‘Each State’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as pro-18
1912	1912	vided in subsection (b)(5), each State’’. 19
1913	1913	(c) C
1914	1914	ONFORMINGAMENDMENTS.— 20
1915	1915	(1) T
1916	1916	IMING OF REGISTRATION.—Section 8(a)(1) 21
1917	1917	of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 22
1918	1918	U.S.C. 20507(a)(1)), as amended by section 23
1919	1919	1002(b)(3), is amended— 24
1920	1920	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00059 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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1922	1922	•HR 11 IH
1923	1923	(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub-1
1924	1924	paragraph (D); 2
1925	1925	(B) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as 3
1926	1926	subparagraph (F); and 4
1927	1927	(C) by inserting after subparagraph (D) 5
1928	1928	the following new subparagraph: 6
1929	1929	‘‘(E) in the case of online registration 7
1930	1930	through the official public website of an election 8
1931	1931	official under section 6A, if the valid voter reg-9
1932	1932	istration application is submitted online not 10
1933	1933	later than the lesser of 28 days, or the period 11
1934	1934	provided by State law, before the date of the 12
1935	1935	election (as determined by treating the date on 13
1936	1936	which the application is sent electronically as 14
1937	1937	the date on which it is submitted); and’’. 15
1938	1938	(2) I
1939	1939	NFORMING APPLICANTS OF ELIGIBILITY 16
1940	1940	REQUIREMENTS AND PENALTIES .—Section 8(a)(5) 17
1941	1941	of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20507(a)(5)) is amended by 18
1942	1942	striking ‘‘and 7’’ and inserting ‘‘6A, and 7’’. 19
1943	1943	SEC. 1022. USE OF INTERNET TO UPDATE REGISTRATION 20
1944	1944	INFORMATION. 21
1945	1945	(a) I
1946	1946	NGENERAL.— 22
1947	1947	(1) U
1948	1948	PDATES TO INFORMATION CONTAINED ON 23
1949	1949	COMPUTERIZED STATEWIDE VOTER REGISTRATION 24
1950	1950	LIST.—Section 303(a) of the Help America Vote Act 25
1951	1951	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1952	1952	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 61
1953	1953	•HR 11 IH
1954	1954	of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21083(a)) is amended by adding 1
1955	1955	at the end the following new paragraph: 2
1956	1956	‘‘(6) U
1957	1957	SE OF INTERNET BY REGISTERED VOT -3
1958	1958	ERS TO UPDATE INFORMATION .— 4
1959	1959	‘‘(A) I
1960	1960	N GENERAL.—The appropriate State 5
1961	1961	or local election official shall ensure that any 6
1962	1962	registered voter on the computerized list may at 7
1963	1963	any time update the voter’s registration infor-8
1964	1964	mation, including the voter’s address and elec-9
1965	1965	tronic mail address, online through the official 10
1966	1966	public website of the election official responsible 11
1967	1967	for the maintenance of the list, so long as the 12
1968	1968	voter attests to the contents of the update by 13
1969	1969	providing a signature in electronic form in the 14
1970	1970	same manner required under section 6A(c) of 15
1971	1971	the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. 16
1972	1972	‘‘(B) P
1973	1973	ROCESSING OF UPDATED INFORMA -17
1974	1974	TION BY ELECTION OFFICIALS .—If a registered 18
1975	1975	voter updates registration information under 19
1976	1976	subparagraph (A), the appropriate State or 20
1977	1977	local election official shall— 21
1978	1978	‘‘(i) revise any information on the 22
1979	1979	computerized list to reflect the update 23
1980	1980	made by the voter; and 24
1981	1981	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00061 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
1982	1982	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 62
1983	1983	•HR 11 IH
1984	1984	‘‘(ii) if the updated registration infor-1
1985	1985	mation affects the voter’s eligibility to vote 2
1986	1986	in an election for Federal office, ensure 3
1987	1987	that the information is processed with re-4
1988	1988	spect to the election if the voter updates 5
1989	1989	the information not later than the lesser of 6
1990	1990	7 days, or the period provided by State 7
1991	1991	law, before the date of the election. 8
1992	1992	‘‘(C) C
1993	1993	ONFIRMATION AND DISPOSITION .— 9
1994	1994	‘‘(i) C
1995	1995	ONFIRMATION OF RECEIPT .— 10
1996	1996	Upon the online submission of updated 11
1997	1997	registration information by an individual 12
1998	1998	under this paragraph, the appropriate 13
1999	1999	State or local election official shall send 14
2000	2000	the individual a notice confirming the 15
2001	2001	State’s receipt of the updated information 16
2002	2002	and providing instructions on how the indi-17
2003	2003	vidual may check the status of the update. 18
2004	2004	‘‘(ii) N
2005	2005	OTICE OF DISPOSITION .—Not 19
2006	2006	later than 7 days after the appropriate 20
2007	2007	State or local election official has accepted 21
2008	2008	or rejected updated information submitted 22
2009	2009	by an individual under this paragraph, the 23
2010	2010	official shall send the individual a notice of 24
2011	2011	the disposition of the update. 25
2012	2012	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2013	2013	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 63
2014	2014	•HR 11 IH
2015	2015	‘‘(iii) METHOD OF NOTIFICATION .— 1
2016	2016	The appropriate State or local election offi-2
2017	2017	cial shall send the notices required under 3
2018	2018	this subparagraph by regular mail and— 4
2019	2019	‘‘(I) in the case of an individual 5
2020	2020	who has requested that the State pro-6
2021	2021	vide voter registration and voting in-7
2022	2022	formation through electronic mail, by 8
2023	2023	electronic mail; and 9
2024	2024	‘‘(II) at the option of the indi-10
2025	2025	vidual, by text message.’’. 11
2026	2026	(2) C
2027	2027	ONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO 12
2028	2028	EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 303(d)(1)(A) of such 13
2029	2029	Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(d)(1)(A)) is amended by 14
2030	2030	striking ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub-15
2031	2031	paragraph (B) and subsection (a)(6)’’. 16
2032	2032	(b) A
2033	2033	BILITY OFREGISTRANTTOUSEONLINEUP-17
2034	2034	DATETOPROVIDEINFORMATION ON RESIDENCE.—Sec-18
2035	2035	tion 8(d)(2)(A) of the National Voter Registration Act of 19
2036	2036	1993 (52 U.S.C. 20507(d)(2)(A)) is amended— 20
2037	2037	(1) in the first sentence, by inserting after ‘‘re-21
2038	2038	turn the card’’ the following: ‘‘or update the reg-22
2039	2039	istrant’s information on the computerized statewide 23
2040	2040	voter registration list using the online method pro-24
2041	2041	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00063 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2042	2042	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 64
2043	2043	•HR 11 IH
2044	2044	vided under section 303(a)(6) of the Help America 1
2045	2045	Vote Act of 2002’’; and 2
2046	2046	(2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘re-3
2047	2047	turned,’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘returned or if 4
2048	2048	the registrant does not update the registrant’s infor-5
2049	2049	mation on the computerized statewide voter registra-6
2050	2050	tion list using such online method,’’. 7
2051	2051	SEC. 1023. PROVISION OF ELECTION INFORMATION BY 8
2052	2052	ELECTRONIC MAIL TO INDIVIDUALS REG-9
2053	2053	ISTERED TO VOTE. 10
2054	2054	(a) I
2055	2055	NCLUDINGOPTION ONVOTERREGISTRATION 11
2056	2056	A
2057	2057	PPLICATIONTOPROVIDEEMAILADDRESS AND RE-12
2058	2058	CEIVEINFORMATION.— 13
2059	2059	(1) I
2060	2060	N GENERAL.—Section 9(b) of the National 14
2061	2061	Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 15
2062	2062	20508(b)) is amended— 16
2063	2063	(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para-17
2064	2064	graph (3); 18
2065	2065	(B) in paragraph (4)— 19
2066	2066	(i) by redesignating clauses (i), (ii), 20
2067	2067	and (iii) as subparagraphs (A), (B), and 21
2068	2068	(C), respectively; and 22
2069	2069	(ii) in subparagraph (C), as so redes-23
2070	2070	ignated, by striking the period at the end 24
2071	2071	and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 25
2072	2072	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00064 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2073	2073	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 65
2074	2074	•HR 11 IH
2075	2075	(C) by adding at the end the following new 1
2076	2076	paragraph: 2
2077	2077	‘‘(5) shall include a space for the applicant to 3
2078	2078	provide (at the applicant’s option) an electronic mail 4
2079	2079	address, together with a statement that, if the appli-5
2080	2080	cant so requests, instead of using regular mail the 6
2081	2081	appropriate State and local election officials shall 7
2082	2082	provide to the applicant, through electronic mail sent 8
2083	2083	to that address, the same voting information (as de-9
2084	2084	fined in section 302(b)(2) of the Help America Vote 10
2085	2085	Act of 2002) that the officials would provide to the 11
2086	2086	applicant through regular mail.’’. 12
2087	2087	(2) P
2088	2088	ROHIBITING USE FOR PURPOSES UNRE -13
2089	2089	LATED TO OFFICIAL DUTIES OF ELECTION OFFI -14
2090	2090	CIALS.—Section 9 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20508) is 15
2091	2091	amended by adding at the end the following new 16
2092	2092	subsection: 17
2093	2093	‘‘(c) P
2094	2094	ROHIBITINGUSE OFELECTRONICMAILAD-18
2095	2095	DRESSES FOROTHERTHANOFFICIALPURPOSES.—The 19
2096	2096	chief State election official shall ensure that any electronic 20
2097	2097	mail address provided by an applicant under subsection 21
2098	2098	(b)(5) is used only for purposes of carrying out official 22
2099	2099	duties of election officials and is not transmitted by any 23
2100	2100	State or local election official (or any agent of such an 24
2101	2101	official, including a contractor) to any person who does 25
2102	2102	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00065 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2103	2103	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 66
2104	2104	•HR 11 IH
2105	2105	not require the address to carry out such official duties 1
2106	2106	and who is not under the direct supervision and control 2
2107	2107	of a State or local election official.’’. 3
2108	2108	(b) R
2109	2109	EQUIRINGPROVISION OFINFORMATION BY 4
2110	2110	E
2111	2111	LECTIONOFFICIALS.—Section 302(b) of the Help Amer-5
2112	2112	ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082(b)) is amended 6
2113	2113	by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 7
2114	2114	‘‘(3) P
2115	2115	ROVISION OF OTHER INFORMATION BY 8
2116	2116	ELECTRONIC MAIL.—If an individual who is a reg-9
2117	2117	istered voter has provided the State or local election 10
2118	2118	official with an electronic mail address for the pur-11
2119	2119	pose of receiving voting information (as described in 12
2120	2120	section 9(b)(5) of the National Voter Registration 13
2121	2121	Act of 1993), the appropriate State or local election 14
2122	2122	official, through electronic mail transmitted not later 15
2123	2123	than 7 days before the date of the election for Fed-16
2124	2124	eral office involved, shall provide the individual with 17
2125	2125	information on how to obtain the following informa-18
2126	2126	tion by electronic means: 19
2127	2127	‘‘(A)(i) If the individual is assigned to vote 20
2128	2128	in the election at a specific polling place— 21
2129	2129	‘‘(I) the name and address of the poll-22
2130	2130	ing place; and 23
2131	2131	‘‘(II) the hours of operation for the 24
2132	2132	polling place. 25
2133	2133	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00066 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2134	2134	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 67
2135	2135	•HR 11 IH
2136	2136	‘‘(ii) If the individual is not assigned to 1
2137	2137	vote in the election at a specific polling place— 2
2138	2138	‘‘(I) the name and address of loca-3
2139	2139	tions at which the individual is eligible to 4
2140	2140	vote; and 5
2141	2141	‘‘(II) the hours of operation for those 6
2142	2142	locations. 7
2143	2143	‘‘(B) A description of any identification or 8
2144	2144	other information the individual may be re-9
2145	2145	quired to present at the polling place or a loca-10
2146	2146	tion described in subparagraph (A)(ii)(I) to vote 11
2147	2147	in the election.’’. 12
2148	2148	SEC. 1024. CLARIFICATION OF REQUIREMENT REGARDING 13
2149	2149	NECESSARY INFORMATION TO SHOW ELIGI-14
2150	2150	BILITY TO VOTE. 15
2151	2151	Section 8 of the National Voter Registration Act of 16
2152	2152	1993 (52 U.S.C. 20507) is amended— 17
2153	2153	(1) by redesignating subsection (j) as sub-18
2154	2154	section (k); and 19
2155	2155	(2) by inserting after subsection (i) the fol-20
2156	2156	lowing new subsection: 21
2157	2157	‘‘(j) R
2158	2158	EQUIREMENT FOR STATETOREGISTERAPPLI-22
2159	2159	CANTSPROVIDINGNECESSARYINFORMATIONTOSHOW 23
2160	2160	E
2161	2161	LIGIBILITYTOVOTE.—For purposes meeting the re-24
2162	2162	quirement of subsection (a)(1) that an eligible applicant 25
2163	2163	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00067 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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2165	2165	•HR 11 IH
2166	2166	is registered to vote in an election for Federal office within 1
2167	2167	the deadlines required under such subsection, the State 2
2168	2168	shall consider an applicant to have provided a ‘valid voter 3
2169	2169	registration form’ if— 4
2170	2170	‘‘(1) the applicant has substantially completed 5
2171	2171	the application form and attested to the statement 6
2172	2172	required by section 9(b)(2); and 7
2173	2173	‘‘(2) in the case of an applicant who registers 8
2174	2174	to vote online in accordance with section 6A, the ap-9
2175	2175	plicant provides a signature in accordance with sub-10
2176	2176	section (c) of such section.’’. 11
2177	2177	SEC. 1025. PROHIBITING STATE FROM REQUIRING APPLI-12
2178	2178	CANTS TO PROVIDE MORE THAN LAST 4 DIG-13
2179	2179	ITS OF SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER. 14
2180	2180	(a) F
2181	2181	ORMINCLUDED WITHAPPLICATION FOR 15
2182	2182	M
2183	2183	OTOR VEHICLE DRIVER’SLICENSE.—Section 16
2184	2184	5(c)(2)(B)(ii) of the National Voter Registration Act of 17
2185	2185	1993 (52 U.S.C. 20504(c)(2)(B)(ii)) is amended by strik-18
2186	2186	ing the semicolon at the end and inserting the following: 19
2187	2187	‘‘, and to the extent that the application requires the appli-20
2188	2188	cant to provide a social security number, may not require 21
2189	2189	the applicant to provide more than the last 4 digits of such 22
2190	2190	number;’’. 23
2191	2191	(b) N
2192	2192	ATIONALMAILVOTERREGISTRATIONFORM.— 24
2193	2193	Section 9(b)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20508(b)(1)) is 25
2194	2194	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2195	2195	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 69
2196	2196	•HR 11 IH
2197	2197	amended by striking the semicolon at the end and insert-1
2198	2198	ing the following: ‘‘, and to the extent that the form re-2
2199	2199	quires the applicant to provide a social security number, 3
2200	2200	the form may not require the applicant to provide more 4
2201	2201	than the last 4 digits of such number;’’. 5
2202	2202	SEC. 1026. APPLICATION OF RULES TO CERTAIN EXEMPT 6
2203	2203	STATES. 7
2204	2204	Section 4 of the National Voter Registration Act of 8
2205	2205	1993 (52 U.S.C. 20503) is amended by adding at the end 9
2206	2206	the following new subsection: 10
2207	2207	‘‘(c) A
2208	2208	PPLICATION OFINTERNETVOTERREGISTRA-11
2209	2209	TIONRULES.—Notwithstanding subsection (b), the fol-12
2210	2210	lowing provisions shall apply to a State described in para-13
2211	2211	graph (2) thereof: 14
2212	2212	‘‘(1) Section 6A (as added by section 1021(a) 15
2213	2213	of the Voter Registration Modernization Act of 16
2214	2214	2023). 17
2215	2215	‘‘(2) Section 8(a)(1)(E) (as added by section 18
2216	2216	1021(c)(1) of the Voter Registration Modernization 19
2217	2217	Act of 2023). 20
2218	2218	‘‘(3) Section 8(a)(5) (as amended by section 21
2219	2219	1021(c)(2) of Voter Registration Modernization Act 22
2220	2220	of 2023), but only to the extent such provision re-23
2221	2221	lates to section 6A. 24
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2224	2224	•HR 11 IH
2225	2225	‘‘(4) Section 8(j) (as added by section 1024 of 1
2226	2226	the Voter Registration Modernization Act of 2023), 2
2227	2227	but only to the extent such provision relates to sec-3
2228	2228	tion 6A.’’. 4
2229	2229	SEC. 1027. REPORT ON DATA COLLECTION RELATING TO 5
2230	2230	ONLINE VOTER REGISTRATION SYSTEMS. 6
2231	2231	Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 7
2232	2232	of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit to Congress 8
2233	2233	a report on local, State, and Federal personally identifi-9
2234	2234	able information data collections efforts related to online 10
2235	2235	voter registration systems, the cybersecurity resources 11
2236	2236	necessary to defend such efforts from online attacks, and 12
2237	2237	the impact of a potential data breach of local, State, or 13
2238	2238	Federal online voter registration systems. 14
2239	2239	SEC. 1028. PERMITTING VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICA-15
2240	2240	TION FORM TO SERVE AS APPLICATION FOR 16
2241	2241	ABSENTEE BALLOT. 17
2242	2242	Section 5(c) of the National Voter Registration Act 18
2243	2243	of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20504(c)) is amended— 19
2244	2244	(1) in paragraph (2)— 20
2245	2245	(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub-21
2246	2246	paragraph (D); 22
2247	2247	(B) by striking the period at the end of 23
2248	2248	subparagraph (E) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 24
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2251	2251	•HR 11 IH
2252	2252	(C) by adding at the end the following new 1
2253	2253	subparagraph: 2
2254	2254	‘‘(F) at the option of the applicant, shall serve 3
2255	2255	as an application to vote by absentee ballot in the 4
2256	2256	next election for Federal office held in the State and 5
2257	2257	in each subsequent election for Federal office held in 6
2258	2258	the State.’’; and 7
2259	2259	(2) by adding at the end the following new 8
2260	2260	paragraph: 9
2261	2261	‘‘(3)(A) In the case of an individual who is treated 10
2262	2262	as having applied for an absentee ballot in the next elec-11
2263	2263	tion for Federal office held in the State and in each subse-12
2264	2264	quent election for Federal office held in the State under 13
2265	2265	paragraph (2)(F), such treatment shall remain effective 14
2266	2266	until the earlier of such time as— 15
2267	2267	‘‘(i) the individual is no longer registered to 16
2268	2268	vote in the State; or 17
2269	2269	‘‘(ii) the individual provides an affirmative writ-18
2270	2270	ten notice revoking such treatment. 19
2271	2271	‘‘(B) The treatment of an individual as having ap-20
2272	2272	plied for an absentee ballot in the next election for Federal 21
2273	2273	office held in the State and in each subsequent election 22
2274	2274	for Federal office held in the State under paragraph 23
2275	2275	(2)(F) shall not be revoked on the basis that the individual 24
2276	2276	has not voted in an election’’. 25
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2279	2279	•HR 11 IH
2280	2280	SEC. 1029. EFFECTIVE DATE. 1
2281	2281	(a) I
2282	2282	NGENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 2
2283	2283	(b), the amendments made by this part (other than the 3
2284	2284	amendments made by section 1024) shall apply with re-4
2285	2285	spect to the regularly scheduled general election for Fed-5
2286	2286	eral office held in November 2024 and each succeeding 6
2287	2287	election for Federal office. 7
2288	2288	(b) W
2289	2289	AIVER.—If a State certifies to the Election As-8
2290	2290	sistance Commission not later than 180 days after the 9
2291	2291	date of enactment of this Act that the State will not meet 10
2292	2292	the deadline described in subsection (a) because it would 11
2293	2293	be impracticable to do so and includes in the certification 12
2294	2294	the reasons for the failure to meet such deadline, sub-13
2295	2295	section (a) shall apply to the State as if the reference in 14
2296	2296	such subsection to ‘‘the regularly scheduled general elec-15
2297	2297	tion for Federal office held in November 2024’’ were a 16
2298	2298	reference to ‘‘January 1, 2026’’. 17
2299	2299	PART 4—SAME-DAY VOTER REGISTRATION 18
2300	2300	SEC. 1031. SAME-DAY REGISTRATION. 19
2301	2301	(a) I
2302	2302	NGENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 20
2303	2303	Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended— 21
2304	2304	(1) by redesignating sections 304 and 305 as 22
2305	2305	sections 305 and 306, respectively; and 23
2306	2306	(2) by inserting after section 303 the following 24
2307	2307	new section: 25
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2310	2310	•HR 11 IH
2311	2311	‘‘SEC. 304. SAME-DAY REGISTRATION. 1
2312	2312	‘‘(a) I
2313	2313	NGENERAL.— 2
2314	2314	‘‘(1) R
2315	2315	EGISTRATION.—Each State shall permit 3
2316	2316	any eligible individual on the day of a Federal elec-4
2317	2317	tion and on any day when voting, including early 5
2318	2318	voting, is permitted for a Federal election— 6
2319	2319	‘‘(A) to register to vote in such election at 7
2320	2320	the polling place using a form that meets the 8
2321	2321	requirements under section 9(b) of the National 9
2322	2322	Voter Registration Act of 1993 (or, if the indi-10
2323	2323	vidual is already registered to vote, to revise 11
2324	2324	any of the individual’s voter registration infor-12
2325	2325	mation); and 13
2326	2326	‘‘(B) to cast a vote in such election. 14
2327	2327	‘‘(2) E
2328	2328	XCEPTION.—The requirements under 15
2329	2329	paragraph (1) shall not apply to a State in which, 16
2330	2330	under a State law in effect continuously on and after 17
2331	2331	the date of enactment of this section, there is no 18
2332	2332	voter registration requirement for individuals in the 19
2333	2333	State with respect to elections for Federal office. 20
2334	2334	‘‘(b) E
2335	2335	LIGIBLEINDIVIDUAL.—For purposes of this 21
2336	2336	section, the term ‘eligible individual’ means, with respect 22
2337	2337	to any election for Federal office, an individual who is oth-23
2338	2338	erwise qualified to vote in that election. 24
2339	2339	‘‘(c) E
2340	2340	NSURINGAVAILABILITY OF FORMS.—The 25
2341	2341	State shall ensure that each polling place has copies of 26
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2344	2344	•HR 11 IH
2345	2345	any forms an individual may be required to complete in 1
2346	2346	order to register to vote or revise the individual’s voter 2
2347	2347	registration information under this section. 3
2348	2348	‘‘(d) E
2349	2349	FFECTIVEDATE.— 4
2350	2350	‘‘(1) I
2351	2351	N GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 5
2352	2352	each State shall be required to comply with the re-6
2353	2353	quirements of this section for the regularly sched-7
2354	2354	uled general election for Federal office occurring in 8
2355	2355	November 2024 and for any subsequent election for 9
2356	2356	Federal office. 10
2357	2357	‘‘(2) S
2358	2358	PECIAL RULES FOR ELECTIONS BEFORE 11
2359	2359	NOVEMBER 2026.— 12
2360	2360	‘‘(A) E
2361	2361	LECTIONS PRIOR TO NOVEMBER 13
2362	2362	2026 GENERAL ELECTION .—A State shall be 14
2363	2363	deemed to be in compliance with the require-15
2364	2364	ments of this section for the regularly scheduled 16
2365	2365	general election for Federal office occurring in 17
2366	2366	November 2024 and subsequent elections for 18
2367	2367	Federal office occurring before the regularly 19
2368	2368	scheduled general election for Federal office in 20
2369	2369	November 2026 if at least 1 location for each 21
2370	2370	15,000 registered voters in each jurisdiction in 22
2371	2371	the State meets such requirements, and such lo-23
2372	2372	cation is reasonably located to serve voting pop-24
2373	2373	ulations equitably across the jurisdiction. 25
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2376	2376	•HR 11 IH
2377	2377	‘‘(B) NOVEMBER 2026 GENERAL ELEC -1
2378	2378	TION.—If a State certifies to the Election As-2
2379	2379	sistance Commission not later than November 3
2380	2380	3, 2026, that the State will not be in compli-4
2381	2381	ance with the requirements of this section for 5
2382	2382	the regularly scheduled general election for 6
2383	2383	Federal office occurring in November 2026 be-7
2384	2384	cause it would be impracticable to do so and in-8
2385	2385	cludes in the certification the reasons for the 9
2386	2386	failure to meet such requirements, the State 10
2387	2387	shall be deemed to be in compliance with the re-11
2388	2388	quirements of this section for such election if at 12
2389	2389	least one location for each 15,000 registered 13
2390	2390	voters in each jurisdiction in the State meets 14
2391	2391	such requirements, and such location is reason-15
2392	2392	ably located to serve voting populations equi-16
2393	2393	tably across the jurisdiction.’’. 17
2394	2394	(b) C
2395	2395	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT RELATING TOEN-18
2396	2396	FORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) 19
2397	2397	is amended by striking ‘‘sections 301, 302, and 303’’ and 20
2398	2398	inserting ‘‘subtitle A of title III’’. 21
2399	2399	(c) C
2400	2400	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 22
2401	2401	of such Act is amended— 23
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2404	2404	•HR 11 IH
2405	2405	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-1
2406	2406	tions 304 and 305 as relating to sections 305 and 2
2407	2407	306, respectively; and 3
2408	2408	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-4
2409	2409	tion 303 the following new item: 5
2410	2410	‘‘Sec. 304. Same-day registration.’’.
2411	2411	SEC. 1032. ENSURING PRE-ELECTION REGISTRATION DEAD-
2412	2412	6
2413	2413	LINES ARE CONSISTENT WITH TIMING OF 7
2414	2414	LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAYS. 8
2415	2415	(a) I
2416	2416	NGENERAL.—Section 8(a)(1) of the National 9
2417	2417	Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20507(a)(1)) 10
2418	2418	is amended by striking ‘‘30 days’’ each place it appears 11
2419	2419	and inserting ‘‘28 days’’. 12
2420	2420	(b) E
2421	2421	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 13
2422	2422	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections held 14
2423	2423	in 2024 or any succeeding year. 15
2424	2424	PART 5—STREAMLINE VOTER REGISTRATION 16
2425	2425	INFORMATION, ACCESS, AND PRIVACY 17
2426	2426	SEC. 1041. AUTHORIZING THE DISSEMINATION OF VOTER 18
2427	2427	REGISTRATION INFORMATION DISPLAYS 19
2428	2428	FOLLOWING NATURALIZATION CEREMONIES. 20
2429	2429	(a) A
2430	2430	UTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of Homeland 21
2431	2431	Security shall establish a process for authorizing the chief 22
2432	2432	State election official of a State to disseminate voter reg-23
2433	2433	istration information at the conclusion of any naturaliza-24
2434	2434	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2435	2435	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 77
2436	2436	•HR 11 IH
2437	2437	tion ceremony conducted by the Department of Homeland 1
2438	2438	Security, its constituent agencies, or the Federal judiciary. 2
2439	2439	(b) N
2440	2440	OEFFECT ONOTHERAUTHORITY.—Nothing in 3
2441	2441	this section shall be construed to imply that a Federal 4
2442	2442	agency cannot provide voter registration services beyond 5
2443	2443	those minimally required herein, or to imply that agencies 6
2444	2444	not named may not distribute voter registration informa-7
2445	2445	tion or provide voter registration services up to the limits 8
2446	2446	of their statutory and funding authority. 9
2447	2447	(c) D
2448	2448	ESIGNATED VOTERREGISTRATION AGEN-10
2449	2449	CIES.—In any State or other location in which a Federal 11
2450	2450	agency is designated as a voter registration agency under 12
2451	2451	section 7(a)(3)(B)(ii) of the National Voter Registration 13
2452	2452	Act, the voter registration responsibilities incurred 14
2453	2453	through such designation shall supersede the requirements 15
2454	2454	described in this section. 16
2455	2455	SEC. 1042. INCLUSION OF VOTER REGISTRATION INFORMA-17
2456	2456	TION WITH CERTAIN LEASES AND VOUCHERS 18
2457	2457	FOR FEDERALLY ASSISTED RENTAL HOUSING 19
2458	2458	AND MORTGAGE APPLICATIONS. 20
2459	2459	(a) D
2460	2460	EFINITIONS.—In this section: 21
2461	2461	(1) B
2462	2462	UREAU.—The term ‘‘Bureau’’ means the 22
2463	2463	Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. 23
2464	2464	(2) D
2465	2465	IRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 24
2466	2466	the Director of the Bureau. 25
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2468	2468	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 78
2469	2469	•HR 11 IH
2470	2470	(3) FEDERAL RENTAL ASSISTANCE .—The term 1
2471	2471	‘‘Federal rental assistance’’ means rental assistance 2
2472	2472	provided under— 3
2473	2473	(A) any covered housing program, as de-4
2474	2474	fined in section 41411(a) of the Violence 5
2475	2475	Against Women Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 6
2476	2476	12491(a)); 7
2477	2477	(B) title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 8
2478	2478	U.S.C. 1471 et seq.), including voucher assist-9
2479	2479	ance under section 542 of such title (42 U.S.C. 10
2480	2480	1490r); 11
2481	2481	(C) the Housing Trust Fund program 12
2482	2482	under section 1338 of the Federal Housing En-13
2483	2483	terprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act 14
2484	2484	of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 4588); or 15
2485	2485	(D) subtitle C of title IV of the McKinney- 16
2486	2486	Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 17
2487	2487	11381 et seq.). 18
2488	2488	(4) F
2489	2489	EDERALLY BACKED MULTIFAMILY MORT -19
2490	2490	GAGE LOAN.—The term ‘‘federally backed multi-20
2491	2491	family mortgage loan’’ includes any loan (other than 21
2492	2492	temporary financing such as a construction loan) 22
2493	2493	that— 23
2494	2494	(A) is secured by a first or subordinate lien 24
2495	2495	on residential multifamily real property de-25
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2497	2497	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 79
2498	2498	•HR 11 IH
2499	2499	signed principally for the occupancy of 5 or 1
2500	2500	more families, including any such secured loan, 2
2501	2501	the proceeds of which are used to prepay or pay 3
2502	2502	off an existing loan secured by the same prop-4
2503	2503	erty; and 5
2504	2504	(B) is made in whole or in part, or in-6
2505	2505	sured, guaranteed, supplemented, or assisted in 7
2506	2506	any way, by any officer or agency of the Fed-8
2507	2507	eral Government or under or in connection with 9
2508	2508	a housing or urban development program ad-10
2509	2509	ministered by the Secretary of Housing and 11
2510	2510	Urban Development or a housing or related 12
2511	2511	program administered by any other such officer 13
2512	2512	or agency, or is purchased or securitized by the 14
2513	2513	Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation or 15
2514	2514	the Federal National Mortgage Association. 16
2515	2515	(5) O
2516	2516	WNER.—The term ‘‘owner’’ has the mean-17
2517	2517	ing given the term in section 8(f) of the United 18
2518	2518	States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(f)). 19
2519	2519	(6) P
2520	2520	UBLIC HOUSING; PUBLIC HOUSING AGEN -20
2521	2521	CY.—The terms ‘‘public housing’’ and ‘‘public hous-21
2522	2522	ing agency’’ have the meanings given those terms in 22
2523	2523	section 3(b) of the United States Housing Act of 23
2524	2524	1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)). 24
2525	2525	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00079 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2526	2526	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 80
2527	2527	•HR 11 IH
2528	2528	(7) RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE LOAN .—The term 1
2529	2529	‘‘residential mortgage loan’’ includes any loan that is 2
2530	2530	secured by a first or subordinate lien on residential 3
2531	2531	real property, including individual units of con-4
2532	2532	dominiums and cooperatives, designed principally for 5
2533	2533	the occupancy of from 1 to 4 families. 6
2534	2534	(b) U
2535	2535	NIFORMSTATEMENT.— 7
2536	2536	(1) D
2537	2537	EVELOPMENT.—The Director, after con-8
2538	2538	sultation with the Election Assistance Commission, 9
2539	2539	shall develop a uniform statement designed to pro-10
2540	2540	vide recipients of the statement pursuant to this sec-11
2541	2541	tion with information on how the recipient can reg-12
2542	2542	ister to vote and the voting rights of the recipient 13
2543	2543	under law. 14
2544	2544	(2) R
2545	2545	ESPONSIBILITIES.—In developing the uni-15
2546	2546	form statement, the Director shall be responsible 16
2547	2547	for— 17
2548	2548	(A) establishing the format of the state-18
2549	2549	ment; 19
2550	2550	(B) consumer research and testing of the 20
2551	2551	statement; and 21
2552	2552	(C) consulting with and obtaining from the 22
2553	2553	Election Assistance Commission the content re-23
2554	2554	garding voter rights and registration issues 24
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2556	2556	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 81
2557	2557	•HR 11 IH
2558	2558	needed to ensure the statement complies with 1
2559	2559	the requirements of paragraph (1). 2
2560	2560	(3) L
2561	2561	ANGUAGES.— 3
2562	2562	(A) I
2563	2563	N GENERAL.—The uniform statement 4
2564	2564	required under paragraph (1) shall be developed 5
2565	2565	and made available in English and in each of 6
2566	2566	the 10 languages most commonly spoken by in-7
2567	2567	dividuals with limited English proficiency, as 8
2568	2568	determined by the Director using information 9
2569	2569	published by the Director of the Bureau of the 10
2570	2570	Census. 11
2571	2571	(B) P
2572	2572	UBLICATION.—The Director shall 12
2573	2573	make all translated versions of the uniform 13
2574	2574	statement required under paragraph (1) pub-14
2575	2575	licly available in a centralized location on the 15
2576	2576	website of the Bureau. 16
2577	2577	(c) L
2578	2578	EASES ANDVOUCHERS FOR FEDERALLYAS-17
2579	2579	SISTEDRENTALHOUSING.—Each Federal agency admin-18
2580	2580	istering a Federal rental assistance program shall re-19
2581	2581	quire— 20
2582	2582	(1) each public housing agency to provide a 21
2583	2583	copy of the uniform statement developed pursuant to 22
2584	2584	subsection (b) to each lessee of a dwelling unit in 23
2585	2585	public housing administered by the agency— 24
2586	2586	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2587	2587	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 82
2588	2588	•HR 11 IH
2589	2589	(A) together with the lease for the dwelling 1
2590	2590	unit, at the same time the lease is signed by the 2
2591	2591	lessee; and 3
2592	2592	(B) together with any income verification 4
2593	2593	form, at the same time the form is provided to 5
2594	2594	the lessee; 6
2595	2595	(2) each public housing agency that administers 7
2596	2596	rental assistance under the Housing Choice Voucher 8
2597	2597	program under section 8(o) of the United States 9
2598	2598	Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)), includ-10
2599	2599	ing the program under paragraph (13) of such sec-11
2600	2600	tion 8(o), to provide a copy of the uniform statement 12
2601	2601	developed pursuant to subsection (b) to each assisted 13
2602	2602	family or individual— 14
2603	2603	(A) together with the voucher for the as-15
2604	2604	sistance, at the time the voucher is issued for 16
2605	2605	the family or individual; and 17
2606	2606	(B) together with any income verification 18
2607	2607	form, at the time the voucher is provided to the 19
2608	2608	applicant or assisted family or individual; and 20
2609	2609	(3) each owner of a dwelling unit assisted with 21
2610	2610	Federal rental assistance to provide a copy of the 22
2611	2611	uniform statement developed pursuant to subsection 23
2612	2612	(b) to the lessee of the dwelling unit— 24
2613	2613	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00082 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2614	2614	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 83
2615	2615	•HR 11 IH
2616	2616	(A) together with the lease for such dwell-1
2617	2617	ing unit, at the same time the lease is signed 2
2618	2618	by the lessee; and 3
2619	2619	(B) together with any income verification 4
2620	2620	form, at the same time the form is provided to 5
2621	2621	the applicant or tenant. 6
2622	2622	(d) A
2623	2623	PPLICATIONS FOR RESIDENTIALMORTGAGE 7
2624	2624	L
2625	2625	OANS.—The Director shall require each creditor (within 8
2626	2626	the meaning of such term as used in section 1026.2(a)(17) 9
2627	2627	of title 12, Code of Federal Regulations) that receives an 10
2628	2628	application (within the meaning of such term as used in 11
2629	2629	section 1026.2(a)(3)(ii) of title 12, Code of Federal Regu-12
2630	2630	lations) to provide a copy of the uniform statement devel-13
2631	2631	oped pursuant to subsection (b) in written form to the 14
2632	2632	applicant for the residential mortgage loan not later than 15
2633	2633	5 business days after the date of the application. 16
2634	2634	(e) F
2635	2635	EDERALLYBACKEDMULTIFAMILYMORTGAGE 17
2636	2636	L
2637	2637	OANS.—The head of the Federal agency insuring, guar-18
2638	2638	anteeing, supplementing, or assisting a federally backed 19
2639	2639	multifamily mortgage loan, or the Director of the Federal 20
2640	2640	Housing Finance Agency in the case of a federally backed 21
2641	2641	multifamily mortgage loan that is purchased or securitized 22
2642	2642	by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation or the 23
2643	2643	Federal National Mortgage Association, shall require the 24
2644	2644	owner of the property secured by the federally backed mul-25
2645	2645	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00083 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2646	2646	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 84
2647	2647	•HR 11 IH
2648	2648	tifamily mortgage loan to provide a copy of the uniform 1
2649	2649	statement developed pursuant to subsection (b) in written 2
2650	2650	form to each lessee of a dwelling unit assisted by that loan 3
2651	2651	at the time the lease is signed by the lessee. 4
2652	2652	(f) O
2653	2653	PTIONALCOMPLETION OF VOTERREGISTRA-5
2654	2654	TION.—Nothing in this section may be construed to re-6
2655	2655	quire any individual to complete a voter registration form. 7
2656	2656	(g) R
2657	2657	EGULATIONS.—The head of a Federal agency 8
2658	2658	administering a Federal rental assistance program, the 9
2659	2659	head of the Federal agency insuring, guaranteeing, 10
2660	2660	supplementing, or assisting a federally backed multifamily 11
2661	2661	mortgage loan, the Director of the Federal Housing Fi-12
2662	2662	nance Agency, and the Director may issue such regula-13
2663	2663	tions as may be necessary to carry out this section. 14
2664	2664	(h) N
2665	2665	OEFFECT ONOTHERAUTHORITY.—Nothing in 15
2666	2666	this section shall be construed to imply that a Federal 16
2667	2667	agency cannot provide voter registration services beyond 17
2668	2668	those minimally required herein, or to imply that agencies 18
2669	2669	not named may not distribute voter registration informa-19
2670	2670	tion or provide voter registration services up to the limits 20
2671	2671	of their statutory and funding authority. 21
2672	2672	(i) D
2673	2673	ESIGNATEDVOTERREGISTRATIONAGENCIES.— 22
2674	2674	In any State or other location in which a Federal agency 23
2675	2675	is designated as a voter registration agency under section 24
2676	2676	7(a)(3)(B)(ii) of the National Voter Registration Act, the 25
2677	2677	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00084 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2678	2678	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 85
2679	2679	•HR 11 IH
2680	2680	voter registration responsibilities incurred through such 1
2681	2681	designation shall supersede the requirements described in 2
2682	2682	this section. 3
2683	2683	SEC. 1043. ACCEPTANCE OF VOTER REGISTRATION APPLI-4
2684	2684	CATIONS FROM INDIVIDUALS UNDER 18 5
2685	2685	YEARS OF AGE. 6
2686	2686	(a) A
2687	2687	CCEPTANCE OF APPLICATIONS.—Section 8 of 7
2688	2688	the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 8
2689	2689	20507), as amended by section 1024, is amended— 9
2690	2690	(1) by redesignating subsection (k) as sub-10
2691	2691	section (l); and 11
2692	2692	(2) by inserting after subsection (j) the fol-12
2693	2693	lowing new subsection: 13
2694	2694	‘‘(k) A
2695	2695	CCEPTANCE OFAPPLICATIONSFROMINDIVID-14
2696	2696	UALSUNDER18 YEARS OFAGE.— 15
2697	2697	‘‘(1) I
2698	2698	N GENERAL.—A State may not refuse to 16
2699	2699	accept or process an individual’s application to reg-17
2700	2700	ister to vote in elections for Federal office on the 18
2701	2701	grounds that the individual is under 18 years of age 19
2702	2702	at the time the individual submits the application, so 20
2703	2703	long as the individual is at least 16 years of age at 21
2704	2704	such time. 22
2705	2705	‘‘(2) N
2706	2706	O EFFECT ON STATE VOTING AGE RE -23
2707	2707	QUIREMENTS.—Nothing in paragraph (1) may be 24
2708	2708	construed to require a State to permit an individual 25
2709	2709	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00085 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2710	2710	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 86
2711	2711	•HR 11 IH
2712	2712	who is under 18 years of age at the time of an elec-1
2713	2713	tion for Federal office to vote in the election.’’. 2
2714	2714	(b) E
2715	2715	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 3
2716	2716	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections occur-4
2717	2717	ring on or after January 1, 2024. 5
2718	2718	SEC. 1044. REQUIRING STATES TO ESTABLISH AND OPER-6
2719	2719	ATE VOTER PRIVACY PROGRAMS. 7
2720	2720	(a) I
2721	2721	NGENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 8
2722	2722	Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as amended 9
2723	2723	by section 1031(a), is amended— 10
2724	2724	(1) by redesignating sections 305 and 306 as 11
2725	2725	sections 306 and 307, respectively; and 12
2726	2726	(2) by inserting after section 304 the following 13
2727	2727	new section: 14
2728	2728	‘‘SEC. 305. VOTER PRIVACY PROGRAMS. 15
2729	2729	‘‘(a) I
2730	2730	NGENERAL.—Each State shall establish and 16
2731	2731	operate a privacy program to enable victims of domestic 17
2732	2732	violence, dating violence, stalking, sexual assault, and traf-18
2733	2733	ficking to have personally identifiable information that 19
2734	2734	State or local election officials maintain with respect to 20
2735	2735	an individual voter registration status for purposes of elec-21
2736	2736	tions for Federal office in the State, including addresses, 22
2737	2737	be kept confidential. 23
2738	2738	‘‘(b) N
2739	2739	OTICE.—Each State shall notify residents of 24
2740	2740	that State of the information that State and local election 25
2741	2741	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00086 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2742	2742	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 87
2743	2743	•HR 11 IH
2744	2744	officials maintain with respect to an individual voter reg-1
2745	2745	istration status for purposes of elections for Federal office 2
2746	2746	in the State, how that information is shared or sold and 3
2747	2747	with whom, what information is automatically kept con-4
2748	2748	fidential, what information is needed to access voter infor-5
2749	2749	mation online, and the privacy programs that are avail-6
2750	2750	able. 7
2751	2751	‘‘(c) P
2752	2752	UBLICAVAILABILITY.—Each State shall make 8
2753	2753	information about the program established under sub-9
2754	2754	section (a) available on a publicly accessible website. 10
2755	2755	‘‘(d) D
2756	2756	EFINITIONS.—In this section: 11
2757	2757	‘‘(1) The terms ‘dating violence’, ‘domestic vio-12
2758	2758	lence’, ‘sexual assault’, and ‘stalking’ have the mean-13
2759	2759	ings given those terms in section 40002 of the Vio-14
2760	2760	lence Against Women Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 15
2761	2761	12291). 16
2762	2762	‘‘(2) The term ‘trafficking’ means an act or 17
2763	2763	practice described in paragraph (11) or (12) of sec-18
2764	2764	tion 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 19
2765	2765	of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102). 20
2766	2766	‘‘(e) E
2767	2767	FFECTIVEDATE.—Each State and jurisdiction 21
2768	2768	shall be required to comply with the requirements of this 22
2769	2769	section on and after January 1, 2025.’’. 23
2770	2770	(b) C
2771	2771	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 24
2772	2772	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), is amended— 25
2773	2773	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00087 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2774	2774	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 88
2775	2775	•HR 11 IH
2776	2776	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-1
2777	2777	tions 305 and 306 as relating to sections 306 and 2
2778	2778	307, respectively; and 3
2779	2779	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-4
2780	2780	tion 304 the following new item: 5
2781	2781	‘‘Sec. 305. Voter privacy programs.’’.
2782	2782	PART 6—FUNDING SUPPORT TO STATES FOR 6
2783	2783	COMPLIANCE 7
2784	2784	SEC. 1051. AVAILABILITY OF REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS 8
2785	2785	UNDER HAVA TO COVER COSTS OF COMPLI-9
2786	2786	ANCE WITH NEW REQUIREMENTS. 10
2787	2787	(a) I
2788	2788	NGENERAL.—Section 251(b) of the Help Amer-11
2789	2789	ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21001(b)) is amended— 12
2790	2790	(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘as provided 13
2791	2791	in paragraphs (2) and (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘as other-14
2792	2792	wise provided in this subsection’’; and 15
2793	2793	(2) by adding at the end the following new 16
2794	2794	paragraph: 17
2795	2795	‘‘(4) C
2796	2796	ERTAIN VOTER REGISTRATION ACTIVI -18
2797	2797	TIES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (3), a State may 19
2798	2798	use a requirements payment to carry out any of the 20
2799	2799	requirements of the Voter Registration Moderniza-21
2800	2800	tion Act of 2023, including the requirements of the 22
2801	2801	National Voter Registration Act of 1993 that are 23
2802	2802	imposed pursuant to the amendments made to such 24
2803	2803	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00088 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2804	2804	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 89
2805	2805	•HR 11 IH
2806	2806	Act by the Voter Registration Modernization Act of 1
2807	2807	2023.’’. 2
2808	2808	(b) C
2809	2809	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT.—Section 254(a)(1) 3
2810	2810	of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21004(a)(1)) is amended by strik-4
2811	2811	ing ‘‘section 251(a)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 5
2812	2812	251(b)(2)’’. 6
2813	2813	(c) E
2814	2814	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 7
2815	2815	this section shall apply with respect to fiscal year 2024 8
2816	2816	and each succeeding fiscal year. 9
2817	2817	Subtitle B—Access to Voting for 10
2818	2818	Individuals With Disabilities 11
2819	2819	SEC. 1101. REQUIREMENTS FOR STATES TO PROMOTE AC-12
2820	2820	CESS TO VOTER REGISTRATION AND VOTING 13
2821	2821	FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 14
2822	2822	(a) R
2823	2823	EQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of the 15
2824	2824	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 16
2825	2825	as amended by section 1031(a) and section 1044(a), is 17
2826	2826	amended— 18
2827	2827	(1) by redesignating sections 306 and 307 as 19
2828	2828	sections 307 and 308, respectively; and 20
2829	2829	(2) by inserting after section 305 the following 21
2830	2830	new section: 22
2831	2831	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00089 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2832	2832	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 90
2833	2833	•HR 11 IH
2834	2834	‘‘SEC. 306. ACCESS TO VOTER REGISTRATION AND VOTING 1
2835	2835	FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 2
2836	2836	‘‘(a) T
2837	2837	REATMENT OF APPLICATIONS AND BAL-3
2838	2838	LOTS.—Each State shall— 4
2839	2839	‘‘(1) ensure that absentee registration forms, 5
2840	2840	absentee ballot applications, and absentee ballots 6
2841	2841	that are available electronically are accessible (as de-7
2842	2842	fined in section 307); 8
2843	2843	‘‘(2) permit individuals with disabilities to use 9
2844	2844	absentee registration procedures and to vote by ab-10
2845	2845	sentee ballot in elections for Federal office; 11
2846	2846	‘‘(3) accept and process, with respect to any 12
2847	2847	election for Federal office, any otherwise valid voter 13
2848	2848	registration application and absentee ballot applica-14
2849	2849	tion from an individual with a disability if the appli-15
2850	2850	cation is received by the appropriate State election 16
2851	2851	official within the deadline for the election which is 17
2852	2852	applicable under Federal law; 18
2853	2853	‘‘(4) in addition to any other method of reg-19
2854	2854	istering to vote or applying for an absentee ballot in 20
2855	2855	the State, establish procedures— 21
2856	2856	‘‘(A) for individuals with disabilities to re-22
2857	2857	quest by mail and electronically voter registra-23
2858	2858	tion applications and absentee ballot applica-24
2859	2859	tions with respect to elections for Federal office 25
2860	2860	in accordance with subsection (c); 26
2861	2861	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00090 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2862	2862	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 91
2863	2863	•HR 11 IH
2864	2864	‘‘(B) for States to send by mail and elec-1
2865	2865	tronically (in accordance with the preferred 2
2866	2866	method of transmission designated by the indi-3
2867	2867	vidual under subparagraph (C)) voter registra-4
2868	2868	tion applications and absentee ballot applica-5
2869	2869	tions requested under subparagraph (A) in ac-6
2870	2870	cordance with subsection (c); and 7
2871	2871	‘‘(C) by which such an individual can des-8
2872	2872	ignate whether the individual prefers that such 9
2873	2873	voter registration application or absentee ballot 10
2874	2874	application be transmitted by mail or electroni-11
2875	2875	cally; 12
2876	2876	‘‘(5) in addition to any other method of trans-13
2877	2877	mitting blank absentee ballots in the State, establish 14
2878	2878	procedures for transmitting by mail and electroni-15
2879	2879	cally blank absentee ballots to individuals with dis-16
2880	2880	abilities with respect to elections for Federal office 17
2881	2881	in accordance with subsection (d); and 18
2882	2882	‘‘(6) if the State declares or otherwise holds a 19
2883	2883	runoff election for Federal office, establish a written 20
2884	2884	plan that provides absentee ballots are made avail-21
2885	2885	able to individuals with disabilities in a manner that 22
2886	2886	gives them sufficient time to vote in the runoff elec-23
2887	2887	tion. 24
2888	2888	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00091 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2889	2889	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 92
2890	2890	•HR 11 IH
2891	2891	‘‘(b) DESIGNATION OFSINGLESTATEOFFICETO 1
2892	2892	P
2893	2893	ROVIDEINFORMATION ON REGISTRATION AND ABSEN-2
2894	2894	TEEBALLOTPROCEDURES FOR VOTERSWITHDISABIL-3
2895	2895	ITIES INSTATE.— 4
2896	2896	‘‘(1) I
2897	2897	N GENERAL.—Each State shall designate 5
2898	2898	a single office that shall be responsible for providing 6
2899	2899	information regarding voter registration procedures, 7
2900	2900	absentee ballot procedures, and in-person voting pro-8
2901	2901	cedures to be used by individuals with disabilities 9
2902	2902	with respect to elections for Federal office to all in-10
2903	2903	dividuals with disabilities who wish to register to 11
2904	2904	vote or vote in any jurisdiction in the State. 12
2905	2905	‘‘(2) R
2906	2906	ESPONSIBILITIES.—Each State shall, 13
2907	2907	through the office designated under paragraph (1)— 14
2908	2908	‘‘(A) provide information to election offi-15
2909	2909	cials— 16
2910	2910	‘‘(i) on how to set up and operate ac-17
2911	2911	cessible voting systems; and 18
2912	2912	‘‘(ii) regarding the accessibility of vot-19
2913	2913	ing procedures, including guidance on com-20
2914	2914	patibility with assistive technologies such 21
2915	2915	as screen readers and ballot marking de-22
2916	2916	vices; 23
2917	2917	‘‘(B) integrate information on accessibility, 24
2918	2918	accommodations, disability, and older individ-25
2919	2919	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00092 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2920	2920	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 93
2921	2921	•HR 11 IH
2922	2922	uals into regular training materials for poll 1
2923	2923	workers and election administration officials; 2
2924	2924	‘‘(C) train poll workers on how to make 3
2925	2925	polling places accessible for individuals with dis-4
2926	2926	abilities and older individuals; 5
2927	2927	‘‘(D) promote the hiring of individuals with 6
2928	2928	disabilities and older individuals as poll workers 7
2929	2929	and election staff; and 8
2930	2930	‘‘(E) publicly post the results of any audits 9
2931	2931	to determine the accessibility of polling places 10
2932	2932	not later than 6 months after the completion of 11
2933	2933	the audit. 12
2934	2934	‘‘(c) D
2935	2935	ESIGNATION OFMEANS OFELECTRONICCOM-13
2936	2936	MUNICATION FOR INDIVIDUALSWITHDISABILITIESTO 14
2937	2937	R
2938	2938	EQUEST AND FOR STATESTOSENDVOTERREGISTRA-15
2939	2939	TIONAPPLICATIONS AND ABSENTEEBALLOTAPPLICA-16
2940	2940	TIONS, AND FOROTHERPURPOSESRELATED TOVOTING 17
2941	2941	I
2942	2942	NFORMATION.— 18
2943	2943	‘‘(1) I
2944	2944	N GENERAL.—Each State shall, in addi-19
2945	2945	tion to the designation of a single State office under 20
2946	2946	subsection (b), designate not less than 1 means of 21
2947	2947	accessible electronic communication— 22
2948	2948	‘‘(A) for use by individuals with disabilities 23
2949	2949	who wish to register to vote or vote in any ju-24
2950	2950	risdiction in the State to request voter registra-25
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2952	2952	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 94
2953	2953	•HR 11 IH
2954	2954	tion applications and absentee ballot applica-1
2955	2955	tions under subsection (a)(4); 2
2956	2956	‘‘(B) for use by States to send voter reg-3
2957	2957	istration applications and absentee ballot appli-4
2958	2958	cations requested under such subsection; and 5
2959	2959	‘‘(C) for the purpose of providing related 6
2960	2960	voting, balloting, and election information to in-7
2961	2961	dividuals with disabilities. 8
2962	2962	‘‘(2) C
2963	2963	LARIFICATION REGARDING PROVISION OF 9
2964	2964	MULTIPLE MEANS OF ELECTRONIC COMMUNICA -10
2965	2965	TION.—A State may, in addition to the means of 11
2966	2966	electronic communication so designated, provide 12
2967	2967	multiple means of electronic communication to indi-13
2968	2968	viduals with disabilities, including a means of elec-14
2969	2969	tronic communication for the appropriate jurisdic-15
2970	2970	tion of the State. 16
2971	2971	‘‘(3) I
2972	2972	NCLUSION OF DESIGNATED MEANS OF 17
2973	2973	ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION WITH INFORMA -18
2974	2974	TIONAL AND INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS THAT AC -19
2975	2975	COMPANY BALLOTING MATERIALS .—Each State shall 20
2976	2976	include a means of electronic communication so des-21
2977	2977	ignated with all informational and instructional ma-22
2978	2978	terials that accompany balloting materials sent by 23
2979	2979	the State to individuals with disabilities. 24
2980	2980	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00094 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
2981	2981	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 95
2982	2982	•HR 11 IH
2983	2983	‘‘(4) TRANSMISSION IF NO PREFERENCE INDI -1
2984	2984	CATED.—In the case in which an individual with a 2
2985	2985	disability does not designate a preference under sub-3
2986	2986	section (a)(4)(C), the State shall transmit the voter 4
2987	2987	registration application or absentee ballot application 5
2988	2988	by any delivery method allowable in accordance with 6
2989	2989	applicable State law, or if there is no applicable 7
2990	2990	State law, by mail. 8
2991	2991	‘‘(d) T
2992	2992	RANSMISSION OFBLANKABSENTEEBALLOTS 9
2993	2993	BYMAIL ANDELECTRONICALLY.— 10
2994	2994	‘‘(1) I
2995	2995	N GENERAL.—Each State shall establish 11
2996	2996	procedures— 12
2997	2997	‘‘(A) to securely transmit blank absentee 13
2998	2998	ballots by mail and electronically (in accordance 14
2999	2999	with the preferred method of transmission des-15
3000	3000	ignated by the individual with a disability under 16
3001	3001	subparagraph (B)) to individuals with disabil-17
3002	3002	ities for an election for Federal office; and 18
3003	3003	‘‘(B) by which the individual with a dis-19
3004	3004	ability can designate whether the individual pre-20
3005	3005	fers that such blank absentee ballot be trans-21
3006	3006	mitted by mail or electronically. 22
3007	3007	‘‘(2) T
3008	3008	RANSMISSION IF NO PREFERENCE INDI -23
3009	3009	CATED.—In the case where an individual with a dis-24
3010	3010	ability does not designate a preference under para-25
3011	3011	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00095 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3012	3012	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 96
3013	3013	•HR 11 IH
3014	3014	graph (1)(B), the State shall transmit the ballot by 1
3015	3015	any delivery method allowable in accordance with ap-2
3016	3016	plicable State law, or if there is no applicable State 3
3017	3017	law, by mail. 4
3018	3018	‘‘(3) A
3019	3019	PPLICATION OF METHODS TO TRACK DE -5
3020	3020	LIVERY TO AND RETURN OF BALLOT BY INDIVIDUAL 6
3021	3021	REQUESTING BALLOT .—Under the procedures estab-7
3022	3022	lished under paragraph (1), the State shall apply 8
3023	3023	such methods as the State considers appropriate, 9
3024	3024	such as assigning a unique identifier to the ballot 10
3025	3025	envelope, to ensure that if an individual with a dis-11
3026	3026	ability requests the State to transmit a blank absen-12
3027	3027	tee ballot to the individual in accordance with this 13
3028	3028	subsection, the voted absentee ballot that is returned 14
3029	3029	by the individual is the same blank absentee ballot 15
3030	3030	that the State transmitted to the individual. 16
3031	3031	‘‘(e) I
3032	3032	NDIVIDUALWITH ADISABILITYDEFINED.—In 17
3033	3033	this section, an ‘individual with a disability’ means an in-18
3034	3034	dividual with an impairment that substantially limits any 19
3035	3035	major life activities and who is otherwise qualified to vote 20
3036	3036	in elections for Federal office. 21
3037	3037	‘‘(f) E
3038	3038	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 22
3039	3039	with respect to elections for Federal office held on or after 23
3040	3040	January 1, 2024.’’. 24
3041	3041	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00096 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3042	3042	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 97
3043	3043	•HR 11 IH
3044	3044	(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO 1
3045	3045	I
3046	3046	SSUANCE OFVOLUNTARYGUIDANCE BYELECTIONAS-2
3047	3047	SISTANCECOMMISSION.— 3
3048	3048	(1) T
3049	3049	IMING OF ISSUANCE.—Section 311(b) of 4
3050	3050	such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)) is amended— 5
3051	3051	(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para-6
3052	3052	graph (2); 7
3053	3053	(B) by striking the period at the end of 8
3054	3054	paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 9
3055	3055	(C) by adding at the end the following new 10
3056	3056	paragraph: 11
3057	3057	‘‘(4) in the case of the recommendations with 12
3058	3058	respect to section 306, January 1, 2024.’’. 13
3059	3059	(2) R
3060	3060	EDESIGNATION.— 14
3061	3061	(A) I
3062	3062	N GENERAL.—Title III of such Act 15
3063	3063	(52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended by redes-16
3064	3064	ignating sections 311 and 312 as sections 321 17
3065	3065	and 322, respectively. 18
3066	3066	(B) C
3067	3067	ONFORMING AMENDMENT .—Section 19
3068	3068	321(a) of such Act, as redesignated by subpara-20
3069	3069	graph (A), is amended by striking ‘‘section 21
3070	3070	312’’ and inserting ‘‘section 322’’. 22
3071	3071	(c) C
3072	3072	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 23
3073	3073	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c) and section 24
3074	3074	1044(b), is amended— 25
3075	3075	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00097 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3076	3076	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 98
3077	3077	•HR 11 IH
3078	3078	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-1
3079	3079	tions 306 and 307 as relating to sections 307 and 2
3080	3080	308, respectively; and 3
3081	3081	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-4
3082	3082	tion 305 the following new item: 5
3083	3083	‘‘Sec. 306. Access to voter registration and voting for individuals with disabil-
3084	3084	ities.’’.
3085	3085	SEC. 1102. ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF STATE
3086	3086	6
3087	3087	ACCESSIBLE ELECTION WEBSITES. 7
3088	3088	(a) I
3089	3089	NGENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the Help 8
3090	3090	America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as 9
3091	3091	amended by section 1031(a), section 1044(a), and section 10
3092	3092	1101(a), is amended— 11
3093	3093	(1) by redesignating sections 307 and 308 as 12
3094	3094	sections 308 and 309, respectively; and 13
3095	3095	(2) by inserting after section 306 the following: 14
3096	3096	‘‘SEC. 307. ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF ACCES-15
3097	3097	SIBLE ELECTION WEBSITES. 16
3098	3098	‘‘(a) I
3099	3099	NGENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 2025, 17
3100	3100	each State shall establish a single election website that is 18
3101	3101	accessible and meets the following requirements: 19
3102	3102	‘‘(1) L
3103	3103	OCAL ELECTION OFFICIALS .—The 20
3104	3104	website shall provide local election officials, poll 21
3105	3105	workers, and volunteers with— 22
3106	3106	‘‘(A) guidance to ensure that polling places 23
3107	3107	are accessible for individuals with disabilities 24
3108	3108	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00098 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3109	3109	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 99
3110	3110	•HR 11 IH
3111	3111	and older individuals in a manner that provides 1
3112	3112	the same opportunity for access and participa-2
3113	3113	tion (including privacy and independence) as for 3
3114	3114	other voters; and 4
3115	3115	‘‘(B) online training and resources on— 5
3116	3116	‘‘(i) how best to promote the access 6
3117	3117	and participation of individuals with dis-7
3118	3118	abilities and older individuals in elections 8
3119	3119	for public office; and 9
3120	3120	‘‘(ii) the voting rights and protections 10
3121	3121	for individuals with disabilities and older 11
3122	3122	individuals under State and Federal law. 12
3123	3123	‘‘(2) V
3124	3124	OTERS.—The website shall provide infor-13
3125	3125	mation about voting, including— 14
3126	3126	‘‘(A) the accessibility of all polling places 15
3127	3127	within the State, including outreach programs 16
3128	3128	to inform individuals about the availability of 17
3129	3129	accessible polling places; 18
3130	3130	‘‘(B) how to register to vote and confirm 19
3131	3131	voter registration in the State; 20
3132	3132	‘‘(C) the location and operating hours of 21
3133	3133	all polling places in the State; 22
3134	3134	‘‘(D) the availability of aid or assistance 23
3135	3135	for individuals with disabilities and older indi-24
3136	3136	viduals to cast their vote in a manner that pro-25
3137	3137	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00099 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3138	3138	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 100
3139	3139	•HR 11 IH
3140	3140	vides the same opportunity for access and par-1
3141	3141	ticipation (including privacy and independence) 2
3142	3142	as for other voters at polling places; 3
3143	3143	‘‘(E) the availability of transportation aid 4
3144	3144	or assistance to the polling place for individuals 5
3145	3145	with disabilities or older individuals; 6
3146	3146	‘‘(F) the rights and protections under 7
3147	3147	State and Federal law for individuals with dis-8
3148	3148	abilities and older individuals to participate in 9
3149	3149	elections; and 10
3150	3150	‘‘(G) how to contact State, local, and Fed-11
3151	3151	eral officials with complaints or grievances if in-12
3152	3152	dividuals with disabilities, older individuals, Na-13
3153	3153	tive Americans, Alaska Natives, and individuals 14
3154	3154	with limited proficiency in the English language 15
3155	3155	feel their ability to register to vote or vote has 16
3156	3156	been blocked or delayed. 17
3157	3157	‘‘(b) P
3158	3158	ARTNERSHIPWITHOUTSIDETECHNICALOR-18
3159	3159	GANIZATION.—The chief State election official of each 19
3160	3160	State, through the committee of appropriate individuals 20
3161	3161	under subsection (c)(2), shall partner with an outside 21
3162	3162	technical organization with demonstrated experience in es-22
3163	3163	tablishing accessible and easy to use accessible election 23
3164	3164	websites to— 24
3165	3165	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00100 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3166	3166	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 101
3167	3167	•HR 11 IH
3168	3168	‘‘(1) update an existing election website of the 1
3169	3169	State to make the website fully accessible in accord-2
3170	3170	ance with this section; or 3
3171	3171	‘‘(2) develop an election website of the State 4
3172	3172	that is fully accessible in accordance with this sec-5
3173	3173	tion. 6
3174	3174	‘‘(c) S
3175	3175	TATEPLAN.— 7
3176	3176	‘‘(1) D
3177	3177	EVELOPMENT.—The chief State election 8
3178	3178	official of each State shall, through a committee of 9
3179	3179	appropriate individuals as described in paragraph 10
3180	3180	(2), develop a State plan that describes how the 11
3181	3181	State and local governments will meet the require-12
3182	3182	ments under this section. 13
3183	3183	‘‘(2) C
3184	3184	OMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP .—The com-14
3185	3185	mittee shall comprise at least the following individ-15
3186	3186	uals: 16
3187	3187	‘‘(A) The chief election officials of the 4 17
3188	3188	most populous jurisdictions within the State. 18
3189	3189	‘‘(B) The chief election officials of the 4 19
3190	3190	least populous jurisdictions within the State. 20
3191	3191	‘‘(C) Representatives from 2 disability ad-21
3192	3192	vocacy groups, including not fewer than 1 such 22
3193	3193	representative who is an individual with a dis-23
3194	3194	ability. 24
3195	3195	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00101 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3196	3196	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 102
3197	3197	•HR 11 IH
3198	3198	‘‘(D) Representatives from 2 older indi-1
3199	3199	vidual advocacy groups, including not fewer 2
3200	3200	than 1 such representative who is an older indi-3
3201	3201	vidual. 4
3202	3202	‘‘(E) Representatives from 2 independent 5
3203	3203	non-governmental organizations with expertise 6
3204	3204	in establishing and maintaining accessible 7
3205	3205	websites. 8
3206	3206	‘‘(F) Representatives from 2 independent 9
3207	3207	non-governmental voting rights organizations. 10
3208	3208	‘‘(G) Representatives from State protection 11
3209	3209	and advocacy systems, as defined in section 102 12
3210	3210	of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance 13
3211	3211	and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14
3212	3212	15002). 15
3213	3213	‘‘(d) P
3214	3214	ARTNERSHIPTOMONITOR ANDVERIFYAC-16
3215	3215	CESSIBILITY.—The chief State election official of each eli-17
3216	3216	gible State, through the committee of appropriate individ-18
3217	3217	uals established under subsection (c)(2), shall partner with 19
3218	3218	not fewer than 2 of the following organizations to monitor 20
3219	3219	and verify the accessibility of the election website of the 21
3220	3220	State and the completeness of the election information and 22
3221	3221	the accuracy of the disability information provided on such 23
3222	3222	website: 24
3223	3223	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00102 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3224	3224	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 103
3225	3225	•HR 11 IH
3226	3226	‘‘(1) University Centers for Excellence in Devel-1
3227	3227	opmental Disabilities Education, Research, and 2
3228	3228	Services established under subtitle D of title I of the 3
3229	3229	Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of 4
3230	3230	Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15061 et seq.). 5
3231	3231	‘‘(2) Centers for independent living, as de-6
3232	3232	scribed in part C of title VII of the Rehabilitation 7
3233	3233	Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et seq.). 8
3234	3234	‘‘(3) The State Council on Developmental Dis-9
3235	3235	abilities established under section 125 of the Devel-10
3236	3236	opmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights 11
3237	3237	Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15025). 12
3238	3238	‘‘(4) State protection and advocacy systems, as 13
3239	3239	defined in section 102 of the Developmental Disabil-14
3240	3240	ities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 15
3241	3241	U.S.C. 15002). 16
3242	3242	‘‘(5) Statewide Independent Living Councils es-17
3243	3243	tablished under section 705 of the Rehabilitation Act 18
3244	3244	of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796d). 19
3245	3245	‘‘(6) State programs established under the As-20
3246	3246	sistive Technology Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 3001 et 21
3247	3247	seq.). 22
3248	3248	‘‘(7) A visual access advocacy organization. 23
3249	3249	‘‘(8) An organization for the deaf. 24
3250	3250	‘‘(9) A mental health organization. 25
3251	3251	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00103 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3252	3252	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 104
3253	3253	•HR 11 IH
3254	3254	‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, 1
3255	3255	section 305, and section 307: 2
3256	3256	‘‘(1) A
3257	3257	CCESSIBLE.—The term ‘accessible’ 3
3258	3258	means— 4
3259	3259	‘‘(A) in the case of the election website 5
3260	3260	under subsection (a) or an electronic commu-6
3261	3261	nication under section 305— 7
3262	3262	‘‘(i) that the functions and content of 8
3263	3263	the website or electronic communication, 9
3264	3264	including all text, visual, and aural con-10
3265	3265	tent, are as accessible to people with dis-11
3266	3266	abilities as to those without disabilities; 12
3267	3267	‘‘(ii) that the functions and content of 13
3268	3268	the website or electronic communication 14
3269	3269	are accessible to individuals with limited 15
3270	3270	proficiency in the English language; and 16
3271	3271	‘‘(iii) that the website or electronic 17
3272	3272	communication meets, at a minimum, con-18
3273	3273	formance to Level AA of the Web Content 19
3274	3274	Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 of the Web Ac-20
3275	3275	cessibility Initiative (or any successor 21
3276	3276	guidelines); and 22
3277	3277	‘‘(B) in the case of a facility (including a 23
3278	3278	polling place), that the facility is readily acces-24
3279	3279	sible to and usable by individuals with disabil-25
3280	3280	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00104 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3281	3281	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 105
3282	3282	•HR 11 IH
3283	3283	ities and older individuals, as determined under 1
3284	3284	the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design 2
3285	3285	of the Department of Justice, published on Sep-3
3286	3286	tember 15, 2010 (or any successor standards). 4
3287	3287	‘‘(2) I
3288	3288	NDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY .—The 5
3289	3289	term ‘individual with a disability’ means an indi-6
3290	3290	vidual with a disability, as defined in section 3 of the 7
3291	3291	Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 8
3292	3292	12102), and who is otherwise qualified to vote in 9
3293	3293	elections for Federal office. 10
3294	3294	‘‘(3) O
3295	3295	LDER INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘older in-11
3296	3296	dividual’ means an individual who is 60 years of age 12
3297	3297	or older and who is otherwise qualified to vote in 13
3298	3298	elections for Federal office.’’. 14
3299	3299	(b) V
3300	3300	OLUNTARYGUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) of 15
3301	3301	such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redesignated 16
3302	3302	by section 1101(b), is amended by striking ‘‘section 306’’ 17
3303	3303	and inserting ‘‘sections 306 and 307’’. 18
3304	3304	(c) C
3305	3305	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 19
3306	3306	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 20
3307	3307	1044(b), and section 1101(c), is amended— 21
3308	3308	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-22
3309	3309	tions 307 and 308 as relating to sections 308 and 23
3310	3310	309, respectively; and 24
3311	3311	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00105 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3312	3312	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 106
3313	3313	•HR 11 IH
3314	3314	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-1
3315	3315	tion 306 the following new item: 2
3316	3316	‘‘Sec. 307. Establishment and maintenance of accessible election websites.’’.
3317	3317	SEC. 1103. PROTECTIONS FOR IN-PERSON VOTING FOR IN-
3318	3318	3
3319	3319	DIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES AND OLDER 4
3320	3320	INDIVIDUALS. 5
3321	3321	(a) R
3322	3322	EQUIREMENT.— 6
3323	3323	(1) I
3324	3324	N GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the 7
3325	3325	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 8
3326	3326	et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), section 9
3327	3327	1044(a), section 1101(a), and section 1102(a), is 10
3328	3328	amended— 11
3329	3329	(A) by redesignating sections 308 and 309 12
3330	3330	as sections 309 and 310, respectively; and 13
3331	3331	(B) by inserting after section 307 the fol-14
3332	3332	lowing: 15
3333	3333	‘‘SEC. 308. ACCESS TO VOTING FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DIS-16
3334	3334	ABILITIES AND OLDER INDIVIDUALS. 17
3335	3335	‘‘(a) I
3336	3336	NGENERAL.—Each State shall— 18
3337	3337	‘‘(1) ensure all polling places within the State 19
3338	3338	are accessible, as defined in section 306; 20
3339	3339	‘‘(2) consider procedures to address long wait 21
3340	3340	times at polling places that allow individuals with 22
3341	3341	disabilities and older individuals alternate options to 23
3342	3342	cast a ballot in person in an election for Federal of-24
3343	3343	fice, such as the option to cast a ballot outside of 25
3344	3344	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00106 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3345	3345	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 107
3346	3346	•HR 11 IH
3347	3347	the polling place or from a vehicle, or providing an 1
3348	3348	expedited voting line; and 2
3349	3349	‘‘(3) consider options to establish mobile polling 3
3350	3350	sites to allow election officials or volunteers to travel 4
3351	3351	to long-term care facilities and assist residents who 5
3352	3352	request assistance in casting a ballot in order to 6
3353	3353	maintain the privacy and independence of voters in 7
3354	3354	those facilities. 8
3355	3355	‘‘(b) C
3356	3356	LARIFICATION.—Nothing in this section shall 9
3357	3357	be construed to alter the requirements under Federal law 10
3358	3358	that all polling places for Federal elections are accessible 11
3359	3359	to individuals with disabilities and older individuals. 12
3360	3360	‘‘(c) E
3361	3361	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 13
3362	3362	with respect to elections for Federal office held on or after 14
3363	3363	January 1, 2026.’’. 15
3364	3364	(2) V
3365	3365	OLUNTARY GUIDANCE .—Section 321(b)(4) 16
3366	3366	of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and re-17
3367	3367	designated by section 1101(b) and as amended by 18
3368	3368	section 1102(b), is amended by striking ‘‘and 307’’ 19
3369	3369	and inserting ‘‘, 307, and 308’’. 20
3370	3370	(3) C
3371	3371	LERICAL AMENDMENTS .—The table of 21
3372	3372	contents of such Act, as amended by section 22
3373	3373	1031(c), section 1044(b), section 1101(c), and sec-23
3374	3374	tion 1102(c), is amended— 24
3375	3375	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00107 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3376	3376	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 108
3377	3377	•HR 11 IH
3378	3378	(A) by redesignating the items relating to 1
3379	3379	sections 308 and 309 as relating to sections 2
3380	3380	309 and 310, respectively; and 3
3381	3381	(B) by inserting after the item relating to 4
3382	3382	section 307 the following new item: 5
3383	3383	‘‘Sec. 308. Access to voting for individuals with disabilities and older individ-
3384	3384	uals.’’.
3385	3385	(b) REVISIONS TOVOTINGACCESSIBILITY FOR THE 6
3386	3386	E
3387	3387	LDERLY ANDHANDICAPPEDACT.— 7
3388	3388	(1) R
3389	3389	EPORTS TO ELECTION ASSISTANCE COM -8
3390	3390	MISSION.—Section 3(c) of the Voting Accessibility 9
3391	3391	for the Elderly and Handicapped Act (52 U.S.C. 10
3392	3392	20102(c)) is amended— 11
3393	3393	(A) in the subsection heading, by striking 12
3394	3394	‘‘F
3395	3395	EDERALELECTIONCOMMISSION’’ and in-13
3396	3396	serting ‘‘E
3397	3397	LECTIONASSISTANCECOMMISSION’’; 14
3398	3398	(B) in each of paragraphs (1) and (2), by 15
3399	3399	striking ‘‘Federal Election Commission’’ and in-16
3400	3400	serting ‘‘Election Assistance Commission’’; and 17
3401	3401	(C) by striking paragraph (3). 18
3402	3402	(2) C
3403	3403	ONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO 19
3404	3404	REFERENCES.—The Voting Accessibility for the El-20
3405	3405	derly and Handicapped Act (52 U.S.C. 20101 et 21
3406	3406	seq.), as amended by paragraph (1), is amended— 22
3407	3407	(A) by striking ‘‘handicapped and elderly 23
3408	3408	individuals’’ each place it appears and inserting 24
3409	3409	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00108 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3410	3410	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 109
3411	3411	•HR 11 IH
3412	3412	‘‘individuals with disabilities and older individ-1
3413	3413	uals’’; 2
3414	3414	(B) by striking ‘‘handicapped and elderly 3
3415	3415	voters’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘in-4
3416	3416	dividuals with disabilities and older individ-5
3417	3417	uals’’; 6
3418	3418	(C) in section 3(b)(2)(B), by striking 7
3419	3419	‘‘handicapped or elderly voter’’ and inserting 8
3420	3420	‘‘individual with a disability or older indi-9
3421	3421	vidual’’; 10
3422	3422	(D) in section 5(b), by striking ‘‘handi-11
3423	3423	capped voter’’ and inserting ‘‘individual with a 12
3424	3424	disability’’; and 13
3425	3425	(E) in section 8— 14
3426	3426	(i) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) 15
3427	3427	and inserting the following: 16
3428	3428	‘‘(1) ‘accessible’ has the meaning given that 17
3429	3429	term in section 307 of the Help America Vote Act 18
3430	3430	of 2002, as added by section 1102(a) of the Free-19
3431	3431	dom to Vote Act; 20
3432	3432	‘‘(2) ‘older individual’ has the meaning given 21
3433	3433	that term in such section 307;’’; and 22
3434	3434	(ii) by striking paragraph (4), and in-23
3435	3435	serting the following: 24
3436	3436	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00109 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3437	3437	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 110
3438	3438	•HR 11 IH
3439	3439	‘‘(4) ‘individual with a disability’ has the mean-1
3440	3440	ing given that term in such section 306; and’’. 2
3441	3441	(3) S
3442	3442	HORT TITLE AMENDMENT .— 3
3443	3443	(A) I
3444	3444	N GENERAL.—Section 1 of the Voting 4
3445	3445	Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped 5
3446	3446	Act (Public Law 98–435; 42 U.S.C. 1973ee 6
3447	3447	note) is amended by striking ‘‘for the Elderly 7
3448	3448	and Handicapped’’ and inserting ‘‘for Individ-8
3449	3449	uals with Disabilities and Older Individuals’’. 9
3450	3450	(B) R
3451	3451	EFERENCES.—Any reference in any 10
3452	3452	other provision of law, regulation, document, 11
3453	3453	paper, or other record of the United States to 12
3454	3454	the ‘‘Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and 13
3455	3455	Handicapped Act’’ shall be deemed to be a ref-14
3456	3456	erence to the ‘‘Voting Accessibility for Individ-15
3457	3457	uals with Disabilities and Older Individuals 16
3458	3458	Act’’. 17
3459	3459	(4) E
3460	3460	FFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 18
3461	3461	by this subsection shall take effect on January 1, 19
3462	3462	2026, and shall apply with respect to elections for 20
3463	3463	Federal office held on or after that date. 21
3464	3464	SEC. 1104. PROTECTIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS SUBJECT TO 22
3465	3465	GUARDIANSHIP. 23
3466	3466	(a) I
3467	3467	NGENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the Help 24
3468	3468	America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as 25
3469	3469	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00110 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3470	3470	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 111
3471	3471	•HR 11 IH
3472	3472	amended by section 1031(a), section 1044(a), section 1
3473	3473	1101(a), section 1102(a), and section 1103(a)(1), is 2
3474	3474	amended— 3
3475	3475	(1) by redesignating sections 309 and 310 as 4
3476	3476	sections 310 and 311, respectively; and 5
3477	3477	(2) by inserting after section 308 the following: 6
3478	3478	‘‘SEC. 309. PROTECTIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS SUBJECT TO 7
3479	3479	GUARDIANSHIP. 8
3480	3480	‘‘(a) I
3481	3481	NGENERAL.—A State shall not determine that 9
3482	3482	an individual lacks the capacity to vote in an election for 10
3483	3483	Federal office on the ground that the individual is subject 11
3484	3484	to guardianship, unless a court of competent jurisdiction 12
3485	3485	issues a court order finding by clear and convincing evi-13
3486	3486	dence that the individual cannot communicate, with or 14
3487	3487	without accommodations, a desire to participate in the vot-15
3488	3488	ing process. 16
3489	3489	‘‘(b) E
3490	3490	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 17
3491	3491	with respect to elections for Federal office held on or after 18
3492	3492	January 1, 2024.’’. 19
3493	3493	(b) V
3494	3494	OLUNTARYGUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) of 20
3495	3495	such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redesignated 21
3496	3496	by section 1101(b) and as amended by sections 1102 and 22
3497	3497	1103, is amended by striking ‘‘and 308’’ and inserting 23
3498	3498	‘‘308, and 309’’. 24
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3500	3500	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 112
3501	3501	•HR 11 IH
3502	3502	(c) CLERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 1
3503	3503	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 2
3504	3504	1044(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), and section 3
3505	3505	1103(a)(3), is amended— 4
3506	3506	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-5
3507	3507	tions 309 and 310 as relating to sections 310 and 6
3508	3508	311, respectively; and 7
3509	3509	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-8
3510	3510	tion 308 the following new item: 9
3511	3511	‘‘Sec. 309. Protections for individuals subject to guardianship.’’.
3512	3512	SEC. 1105. EXPANSION AND REAUTHORIZATION OF GRANT
3513	3513	10
3514	3514	PROGRAM TO ASSURE VOTING ACCESS FOR 11
3515	3515	INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 12
3516	3516	(a) P
3517	3517	URPOSES OFPAYMENTS.—Section 261(b) of the 13
3518	3518	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21021(b)) is 14
3519	3519	amended by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting 15
3520	3520	the following: 16
3521	3521	‘‘(1) making absentee voting and voting at 17
3522	3522	home accessible to individuals with the full range of 18
3523	3523	disabilities (including impairments involving vision, 19
3524	3524	hearing, mobility, or dexterity) through the imple-20
3525	3525	mentation of accessible absentee voting systems that 21
3526	3526	work in conjunction with assistive technologies for 22
3527	3527	which individuals have access at their homes, inde-23
3528	3528	pendent living centers, or other facilities; 24
3529	3529	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00112 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3530	3530	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 113
3531	3531	•HR 11 IH
3532	3532	‘‘(2) making polling places, including the path 1
3533	3533	of travel, entrances, exits, and voting areas of each 2
3534	3534	polling facility, accessible to individuals with disabil-3
3535	3535	ities, including the blind and visually impaired, in a 4
3536	3536	manner that provides the same opportunity for ac-5
3537	3537	cess and participation (including privacy and inde-6
3538	3538	pendence) as for other voters; and 7
3539	3539	‘‘(3) providing solutions to problems of access 8
3540	3540	to voting and elections for individuals with disabil-9
3541	3541	ities that are universally designed and provide the 10
3542	3542	same opportunities for individuals with and without 11
3543	3543	disabilities.’’. 12
3544	3544	(b) R
3545	3545	EAUTHORIZATION.—Section 264(a) of such Act 13
3546	3546	(52 U.S.C. 21024(a)) is amended by adding at the end 14
3547	3547	the following new paragraph: 15
3548	3548	‘‘(4) For fiscal year 2024 and each succeeding 16
3549	3549	fiscal year, such sums as may be necessary to carry 17
3550	3550	out this part.’’. 18
3551	3551	(c) P
3552	3552	ERIOD OFAVAILABILITY OFFUNDS.—Section 19
3553	3553	264 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21024) is amended— 20
3554	3554	(1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘Any 21
3555	3555	amounts’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in sub-22
3556	3556	section (c), any amounts’’; and 23
3557	3557	(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-24
3558	3558	section: 25
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3560	3560	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 114
3561	3561	•HR 11 IH
3562	3562	‘‘(c) RETURN ANDTRANSFER OFCERTAINFUNDS.— 1
3563	3563	‘‘(1) D
3564	3564	EADLINE FOR OBLIGATION AND EXPEND -2
3565	3565	ITURE.—In the case of any amounts appropriated 3
3566	3566	pursuant to the authority of subsection (a) for a 4
3567	3567	payment to a State or unit of local government for 5
3568	3568	fiscal year 2024 or any succeeding fiscal year, any 6
3569	3569	portion of such amounts which have not been obli-7
3570	3570	gated or expended by the State or unit of local gov-8
3571	3571	ernment prior to the expiration of the 4-year period 9
3572	3572	that begins on the date the State or unit of local 10
3573	3573	government first received the amounts shall be 11
3574	3574	transferred to the Commission. 12
3575	3575	‘‘(2) R
3576	3576	EALLOCATION OF TRANSFERRED 13
3577	3577	AMOUNTS.— 14
3578	3578	‘‘(A) I
3579	3579	N GENERAL.—The Commission shall 15
3580	3580	use the amounts transferred under paragraph 16
3581	3581	(1) to make payments on a pro rata basis to 17
3582	3582	each covered payment recipient described in 18
3583	3583	subparagraph (B), which may obligate and ex-19
3584	3584	pend such payment for the purposes described 20
3585	3585	in section 261(b) during the 1-year period 21
3586	3586	which begins on the date of receipt. 22
3587	3587	‘‘(B) C
3588	3588	OVERED PAYMENT RECIPIENTS DE -23
3589	3589	SCRIBED.—In subparagraph (A), a ‘covered 24
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3591	3591	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 115
3592	3592	•HR 11 IH
3593	3593	payment recipient’ is a State or unit of local 1
3594	3594	government with respect to which— 2
3595	3595	‘‘(i) amounts were appropriated pur-3
3596	3596	suant to the authority of subsection (a); 4
3597	3597	and 5
3598	3598	‘‘(ii) no amounts were transferred to 6
3599	3599	the Commission under paragraph (1).’’. 7
3600	3600	SEC. 1106. PILOT PROGRAMS FOR ENABLING INDIVIDUALS 8
3601	3601	WITH DISABILITIES TO REGISTER TO VOTE 9
3602	3602	PRIVATELY AND INDEPENDENTLY AT RESI-10
3603	3603	DENCES. 11
3604	3604	(a) E
3605	3605	STABLISHMENT OF PILOTPROGRAMS.—The 12
3606	3606	Election Assistance Commission (hereafter referred to as 13
3607	3607	the ‘‘Commission’’) shall, subject to the availability of ap-14
3608	3608	propriations to carry out this section, make grants to eligi-15
3609	3609	ble States to conduct pilot programs under which individ-16
3610	3610	uals with disabilities may use electronic means (including 17
3611	3611	the internet and telephones utilizing assistive devices) to 18
3612	3612	register to vote and to request and receive absentee ballots 19
3613	3613	in a manner which permits such individuals to do so pri-20
3614	3614	vately and independently at their own residences. 21
3615	3615	(b) R
3616	3616	EPORTS.— 22
3617	3617	(1) I
3618	3618	N GENERAL.—A State receiving a grant for 23
3619	3619	a year under this section shall submit a report to the 24
3620	3620	Commission on the pilot programs the State carried 25
3621	3621	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00115 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3622	3622	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 116
3623	3623	•HR 11 IH
3624	3624	out with the grant with respect to elections for pub-1
3625	3625	lic office held in the State during the year. 2
3626	3626	(2) D
3627	3627	EADLINE.—A State shall submit a report 3
3628	3628	under paragraph (1) not later than 90 days after 4
3629	3629	the last election for public office held in the State 5
3630	3630	during the year. 6
3631	3631	(c) E
3632	3632	LIGIBILITY.—A State is eligible to receive a 7
3633	3633	grant under this section if the State submits to the Com-8
3634	3634	mission, at such time and in such form as the Commission 9
3635	3635	may require, an application containing such information 10
3636	3636	and assurances as the Commission may require. 11
3637	3637	(d) T
3638	3638	IMING.—The Commission shall make the first 12
3639	3639	grants under this section for pilot programs which will be 13
3640	3640	in effect with respect to elections for Federal office held 14
3641	3641	in 2024, or, at the option of a State, with respect to other 15
3642	3642	elections for public office held in the State in 2024. 16
3643	3643	(e) S
3644	3644	TATEDEFINED.—In this section, the term 17
3645	3645	‘‘State’’ includes the District of Columbia, the Common-18
3646	3646	wealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the 19
3647	3647	United States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of 20
3648	3648	the Northern Mariana Islands. 21
3649	3649	SEC. 1107. GAO ANALYSIS AND REPORT ON VOTING ACCESS 22
3650	3650	FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 23
3651	3651	(a) A
3652	3652	NALYSIS.—The Comptroller General of the 24
3653	3653	United States shall conduct an analysis after each regu-25
3654	3654	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00116 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3655	3655	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 117
3656	3656	•HR 11 IH
3657	3657	larly scheduled general election for Federal office with re-1
3658	3658	spect to the following: 2
3659	3659	(1) In relation to polling places located in 3
3660	3660	houses of worship or other facilities that may be ex-4
3661	3661	empt from accessibility requirements under the 5
3662	3662	Americans with Disabilities Act— 6
3663	3663	(A) efforts to overcome accessibility chal-7
3664	3664	lenges posed by such facilities; and 8
3665	3665	(B) the extent to which such facilities are 9
3666	3666	used as polling places in elections for Federal 10
3667	3667	office. 11
3668	3668	(2) Assistance provided by the Election Assist-12
3669	3669	ance Commission, Department of Justice, or other 13
3670	3670	Federal agencies to help State and local officials im-14
3671	3671	prove voting access for individuals with disabilities 15
3672	3672	during elections for Federal office. 16
3673	3673	(3) When accessible voting machines are avail-17
3674	3674	able at a polling place, the extent to which such ma-18
3675	3675	chines— 19
3676	3676	(A) are located in places that are difficult 20
3677	3677	to access; 21
3678	3678	(B) malfunction; or 22
3679	3679	(C) fail to provide sufficient privacy to en-23
3680	3680	sure that the ballot of the individual cannot be 24
3681	3681	seen by another individual. 25
3682	3682	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00117 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3683	3683	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 118
3684	3684	•HR 11 IH
3685	3685	(4) The process by which Federal, State, and 1
3686	3686	local governments track compliance with accessibility 2
3687	3687	requirements related to voting access, including 3
3688	3688	methods to receive and address complaints. 4
3689	3689	(5) The extent to which poll workers receive 5
3690	3690	training on how to assist individuals with disabil-6
3691	3691	ities, including the receipt by such poll workers of 7
3692	3692	information on legal requirements related to voting 8
3693	3693	rights for individuals with disabilities. 9
3694	3694	(6) The extent and effectiveness of training pro-10
3695	3695	vided to poll workers on the operation of accessible 11
3696	3696	voting machines. 12
3697	3697	(7) The extent to which individuals with a de-13
3698	3698	velopmental or psychiatric disability experience 14
3699	3699	greater barriers to voting, and whether poll worker 15
3700	3700	training adequately addresses the needs of such indi-16
3701	3701	viduals. 17
3702	3702	(8) The extent to which State or local govern-18
3703	3703	ments employ, or attempt to employ, individuals 19
3704	3704	with disabilities to work at polling sites. 20
3705	3705	(b) R
3706	3706	EPORT.— 21
3707	3707	(1) I
3708	3708	N GENERAL.—Not later than 9 months 22
3709	3709	after the date of a regularly scheduled general elec-23
3710	3710	tion for Federal office, the Comptroller General shall 24
3711	3711	submit to the appropriate congressional committees 25
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3713	3713	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 119
3714	3714	•HR 11 IH
3715	3715	a report with respect to the most recent regularly 1
3716	3716	scheduled general election for Federal office that 2
3717	3717	contains the following: 3
3718	3718	(A) The analysis required by subsection 4
3719	3719	(a). 5
3720	3720	(B) Recommendations, as appropriate, to 6
3721	3721	promote the use of best practices used by State 7
3722	3722	and local officials to address barriers to accessi-8
3723	3723	bility and privacy concerns for individuals with 9
3724	3724	disabilities in elections for Federal office. 10
3725	3725	(2) A
3726	3726	PPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT -11
3727	3727	TEES.—For purposes of this subsection, the term 12
3728	3728	‘‘appropriate congressional committees’’ means— 13
3729	3729	(A) the Committee on House Administra-14
3730	3730	tion of the House of Representatives; 15
3731	3731	(B) the Committee on Rules and Adminis-16
3732	3732	tration of the Senate; 17
3733	3733	(C) the Committee on Appropriations of 18
3734	3734	the House of Representatives; and 19
3735	3735	(D) the Committee on Appropriations of 20
3736	3736	the Senate. 21
3737	3737	Subtitle C—Early Voting 22
3738	3738	SEC. 1201. EARLY VOTING. 23
3739	3739	(a) R
3740	3740	EQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of the 24
3741	3741	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 25
3742	3742	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00119 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3743	3743	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 120
3744	3744	•HR 11 IH
3745	3745	as amended by section 1031(a), section 1044(a), section 1
3746	3746	1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), and section 2
3747	3747	1104(a), is amended— 3
3748	3748	(1) by redesignating sections 310 and 311 as 4
3749	3749	sections 311 and 312, respectively; and 5
3750	3750	(2) by inserting after section 309 the following 6
3751	3751	new section: 7
3752	3752	‘‘SEC. 310. EARLY VOTING. 8
3753	3753	‘‘(a) R
3754	3754	EQUIRINGVOTINGPRIOR TODATE OFELEC-9
3755	3755	TION.—Each election jurisdiction shall allow individuals to 10
3756	3756	vote in an election for Federal office during an early voting 11
3757	3757	period which occurs prior to the date of the election, in 12
3758	3758	a manner that allows the individual to receive, complete, 13
3759	3759	and cast their ballot in person. 14
3760	3760	‘‘(b) M
3761	3761	INIMUMEARLYVOTINGREQUIREMENTS.— 15
3762	3762	‘‘(1) I
3763	3763	N GENERAL.— 16
3764	3764	‘‘(A) L
3765	3765	ENGTH OF PERIOD.—The early vot-17
3766	3766	ing period required under this subsection with 18
3767	3767	respect to an election shall consist of a period 19
3768	3768	of consecutive days (including weekends) which 20
3769	3769	begins on the 15th day before the date of the 21
3770	3770	election (or, at the option of the State, on a day 22
3771	3771	prior to the 15th day before the date of the 23
3772	3772	election) and ends no earlier than the second 24
3773	3773	day before the date of the election. 25
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3775	3775	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 121
3776	3776	•HR 11 IH
3777	3777	‘‘(B) HOURS FOR EARLY VOTING .—Each 1
3778	3778	polling place which allows voting during an 2
3779	3779	early voting period under subparagraph (A) 3
3780	3780	shall— 4
3781	3781	‘‘(i) allow such voting for no less than 5
3782	3782	10 hours on each day during the period; 6
3783	3783	‘‘(ii) have uniform hours each day for 7
3784	3784	which such voting occurs; and 8
3785	3785	‘‘(iii) allow such voting to be held for 9
3786	3786	some period of time prior to 9:00 a.m. 10
3787	3787	(local time) and some period of time after 11
3788	3788	5:00 p.m. (local time). 12
3789	3789	‘‘(2) R
3790	3790	EQUIREMENTS FOR VOTE -BY-MAIL JURIS-13
3791	3791	DICTIONS.—In the case of a jurisdiction that sends 14
3792	3792	every registered voter a ballot by mail— 15
3793	3793	‘‘(A) paragraph (1) shall not apply; 16
3794	3794	‘‘(B) such jurisdiction shall allow eligible 17
3795	3795	individuals to vote during an early voting period 18
3796	3796	that ensures voters are provided the greatest 19
3797	3797	opportunity to cast ballots ahead of Election 20
3798	3798	Day and which includes at least one consecutive 21
3799	3799	Saturday and Sunday; and 22
3800	3800	‘‘(C) each polling place which allows voting 23
3801	3801	during an early voting period under subpara-24
3802	3802	graph (B) shall allow such voting— 25
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3804	3804	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 122
3805	3805	•HR 11 IH
3806	3806	‘‘(i) during the election office’s reg-1
3807	3807	ular business hours; and 2
3808	3808	‘‘(ii) for a period of not less than 8 3
3809	3809	hours on Saturdays and Sundays included 4
3810	3810	in the early voting period. 5
3811	3811	‘‘(3) R
3812	3812	EQUIREMENTS FOR SMALL JURISDIC -6
3813	3813	TIONS.— 7
3814	3814	‘‘(A) I
3815	3815	N GENERAL.—In the case of a juris-8
3816	3816	diction described in subparagraph (B), para-9
3817	3817	graph (1)(B) shall not apply so long as all eligi-10
3818	3818	ble individuals in the jurisdiction have the op-11
3819	3819	portunity to vote— 12
3820	3820	‘‘(i) at each polling place which allows 13
3821	3821	voting during the early voting period de-14
3822	3822	scribed in paragraph (1)(A)— 15
3823	3823	‘‘(I) during the election office’s 16
3824	3824	regular business hours; and 17
3825	3825	‘‘(II) for a period of not less than 18
3826	3826	8 hours on at least one Saturday and 19
3827	3827	at least one Sunday included in the 20
3828	3828	early voting period; or 21
3829	3829	‘‘(ii) at 1 or more polling places in the 22
3830	3830	county in which such jurisdiction is located 23
3831	3831	that allows voting during the early voting 24
3832	3832	period described in paragraph (1)(A) in ac-25
3833	3833	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00122 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3834	3834	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 123
3835	3835	•HR 11 IH
3836	3836	cordance with the requirements under 1
3837	3837	paragraph (1)(B). 2
3838	3838	‘‘(B) J
3839	3839	URISDICTION DESCRIBED .—A juris-3
3840	3840	diction is described in this subparagraph if such 4
3841	3841	jurisdiction— 5
3842	3842	‘‘(i) had less than 3,000 registered 6
3843	3843	voters at the time of the most recent prior 7
3844	3844	election for Federal office; and 8
3845	3845	‘‘(ii) consists of a geographic area 9
3846	3846	that is smaller than the jurisdiction of the 10
3847	3847	county in which such jurisdiction is lo-11
3848	3848	cated. 12
3849	3849	‘‘(4) R
3850	3850	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 13
3851	3851	this subsection shall be construed— 14
3852	3852	‘‘(A) to limit the availability of additional 15
3853	3853	temporary voting sites which provide voters 16
3854	3854	more opportunities to cast their ballots but 17
3855	3855	which do not meet the requirements of this sub-18
3856	3856	section; 19
3857	3857	‘‘(B) to limit a polling place from being 20
3858	3858	open for additional hours outside of the uniform 21
3859	3859	hours set for the polling location on any day of 22
3860	3860	the early voting period; or 23
3861	3861	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00123 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3862	3862	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 124
3863	3863	•HR 11 IH
3864	3864	‘‘(C) to limit a State or jurisdiction from 1
3865	3865	offering early voting on the Monday before 2
3866	3866	Election Day. 3
3867	3867	‘‘(c) A
3868	3868	VAILABILITY OFPOLLINGPLACES.—To the 4
3869	3869	greatest extent practicable, each State and jurisdiction 5
3870	3870	shall— 6
3871	3871	‘‘(1) ensure that there are an appropriate num-7
3872	3872	ber of polling places which allow voting during an 8
3873	3873	early voting period; and 9
3874	3874	‘‘(2) ensure that such polling places provide the 10
3875	3875	greatest opportunity for residents of the jurisdiction 11
3876	3876	to vote. 12
3877	3877	‘‘(d) L
3878	3878	OCATION OFPOLLINGPLACES.— 13
3879	3879	‘‘(1) P
3880	3880	ROXIMITY TO PUBLIC TRANSPOR -14
3881	3881	TATION.—To the greatest extent practicable, each 15
3882	3882	State and jurisdiction shall ensure that each polling 16
3883	3883	place which allows voting during an early voting pe-17
3884	3884	riod under subsection (b) is located within walking 18
3885	3885	distance of a stop on a public transportation route. 19
3886	3886	‘‘(2) A
3887	3887	VAILABILITY IN RURAL AREAS .—In the 20
3888	3888	case of a jurisdiction that includes a rural area, the 21
3889	3889	State or jurisdiction shall— 22
3890	3890	‘‘(A) ensure that an appropriate number of 23
3891	3891	polling places, but not less than 1, that allow 24
3892	3892	voting during an early voting period under sub-25
3893	3893	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00124 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3894	3894	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 125
3895	3895	•HR 11 IH
3896	3896	section (b) will be located in such rural areas; 1
3897	3897	and 2
3898	3898	‘‘(B) ensure that such polling places are lo-3
3899	3899	cated in communities which will provide the 4
3900	3900	greatest opportunity for residents of rural areas 5
3901	3901	to vote during the early voting period. 6
3902	3902	‘‘(3) C
3903	3903	AMPUSES OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER 7
3904	3904	EDUCATION.—In the case of a jurisdiction that is 8
3905	3905	not considered a vote by mail jurisdiction described 9
3906	3906	in subsection (b)(2) or a small jurisdiction described 10
3907	3907	in subsection (b)(3) and that includes an institution 11
3908	3908	of higher education (as defined under section 102 of 12
3909	3909	the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 13
3910	3910	1002)), including a branch campus of such an insti-14
3911	3911	tution, the State or jurisdiction shall— 15
3912	3912	‘‘(A) ensure that an appropriate number of 16
3913	3913	polling places, but not less than 1, that allow 17
3914	3914	voting during the early voting period under sub-18
3915	3915	section (b) will be located on the physical cam-19
3916	3916	pus of each such institution, including each 20
3917	3917	such branch campus; and 21
3918	3918	‘‘(B) ensure that such polling places pro-22
3919	3919	vide the greatest opportunity for residents of 23
3920	3920	the jurisdiction to vote. 24
3921	3921	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00125 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3922	3922	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 126
3923	3923	•HR 11 IH
3924	3924	‘‘(e) STANDARDS.—Not later than June 30, 2024, 1
3925	3925	the Commission shall issue voluntary standards for the ad-2
3926	3926	ministration of voting during voting periods which occur 3
3927	3927	prior to the date of a Federal election. Subject to sub-4
3928	3928	section (d), such voluntary standards shall include the 5
3929	3929	nondiscriminatory geographic placement of polling places 6
3930	3930	at which such voting occurs. 7
3931	3931	‘‘(f) B
3932	3932	ALLOTPROCESSING ANDSCANNINGREQUIRE-8
3933	3933	MENTS.— 9
3934	3934	‘‘(1) I
3935	3935	N GENERAL.—Each State or jurisdiction 10
3936	3936	shall begin processing and scanning ballots cast dur-11
3937	3937	ing in-person early voting for tabulation not later 12
3938	3938	than the date that is 14 days prior to the date of 13
3939	3939	the election involved, except that a State or jurisdic-14
3940	3940	tion may begin processing and scanning ballots cast 15
3941	3941	during in-person early voting for tabulation after 16
3942	3942	such date if the date on which the State or jurisdic-17
3943	3943	tion begins such processing and scanning ensures, to 18
3944	3944	the greatest extent practical, that ballots cast before 19
3945	3945	the date of the election are processed and scanned 20
3946	3946	before the date of the election. 21
3947	3947	‘‘(2) L
3948	3948	IMITATION.—Nothing in this subsection 22
3949	3949	shall be construed— 23
3950	3950	‘‘(A) to permit a State or jurisdiction to 24
3951	3951	tabulate ballots in an election before the closing 25
3952	3952	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00126 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3953	3953	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 127
3954	3954	•HR 11 IH
3955	3955	of the polls on the date of the election unless 1
3956	3956	such tabulation is a necessary component of 2
3957	3957	preprocessing in the State or jurisdiction and is 3
3958	3958	performed in accordance with existing State 4
3959	3959	law; or 5
3960	3960	‘‘(B) to permit an official to make public 6
3961	3961	any results of tabulation and processing before 7
3962	3962	the closing of the polls on the date of the elec-8
3963	3963	tion. 9
3964	3964	‘‘(g) E
3965	3965	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 10
3966	3966	with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 11
3967	3967	Federal office held in November 2024 and each succeeding 12
3968	3968	election for Federal office.’’. 13
3969	3969	(b) C
3970	3970	ONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO 14
3971	3971	I
3972	3972	SSUANCE OFVOLUNTARYGUIDANCE BYELECTIONAS-15
3973	3973	SISTANCECOMMISSION.—Section 321(b) of such Act (52 16
3974	3974	U.S.C. 21101(b)), as redesignated and amended by sec-17
3975	3975	tion 1101(b), is amended— 18
3976	3976	(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 19
3977	3977	(3); 20
3978	3978	(2) by striking the period at the end of para-21
3979	3979	graph (4) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 22
3980	3980	(3) by adding at the end the following new 23
3981	3981	paragraph: 24
3982	3982	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00127 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
3983	3983	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 128
3984	3984	•HR 11 IH
3985	3985	‘‘(5) except as provided in paragraph (4), in the 1
3986	3986	case of the recommendations with respect to any sec-2
3987	3987	tion added by the Freedom to Vote Act, June 30, 3
3988	3988	2024.’’. 4
3989	3989	(c) C
3990	3990	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 5
3991	3991	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 6
3992	3992	1044(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 7
3993	3993	1103(a), and section 1104(c), is amended— 8
3994	3994	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-9
3995	3995	tions 310 and 311 as relating to sections 311 and 10
3996	3996	312, respectively; and 11
3997	3997	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-12
3998	3998	tion 309 the following new item: 13
3999	3999	‘‘Sec. 310. Early voting.’’.
4000	4000	Subtitle D—Voting by Mail 14
4001	4001	SEC. 1301. VOTING BY MAIL. 15
4002	4002	(a) I
4003	4003	NGENERAL.— 16
4004	4004	(1) R
4005	4005	EQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of 17
4006	4006	the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 18
4007	4007	21081 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), sec-19
4008	4008	tion 1044(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), sec-20
4009	4009	tion 1103(a), section 1104(a), and section 1201(a), 21
4010	4010	is amended— 22
4011	4011	(A) by redesignating sections 311 and 312 23
4012	4012	as sections 312 and 313, respectively; and 24
4013	4013	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00128 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4014	4014	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 129
4015	4015	•HR 11 IH
4016	4016	(B) by inserting after section 310 the fol-1
4017	4017	lowing new section: 2
4018	4018	‘‘SEC. 311. PROMOTING ABILITY OF VOTERS TO VOTE BY 3
4019	4019	MAIL. 4
4020	4020	‘‘(a) U
4021	4021	NIFORMAVAILABILITY OFABSENTEEVOTING 5
4022	4022	TOALLVOTERS.— 6
4023	4023	‘‘(1) I
4024	4024	N GENERAL.—If an individual in a State 7
4025	4025	is eligible to cast a vote in an election for Federal 8
4026	4026	office, the State may not impose any additional con-9
4027	4027	ditions or requirements on the eligibility of the indi-10
4028	4028	vidual to cast the vote in such election by absentee 11
4029	4029	ballot by mail. 12
4030	4030	‘‘(2) A
4031	4031	DMINISTRATION OF VOTING BY MAIL .— 13
4032	4032	‘‘(A) P
4033	4033	ROHIBITING IDENTIFICATION RE -14
4034	4034	QUIREMENT AS CONDITION OF OBTAINING OR 15
4035	4035	CASTING BALLOT.—A State may not require an 16
4036	4036	individual to submit any form of identifying 17
4037	4037	document as a condition of obtaining or casting 18
4038	4038	an absentee ballot, except that nothing in this 19
4039	4039	subparagraph may be construed to prevent a 20
4040	4040	State from requiring— 21
4041	4041	‘‘(i) the information required to com-22
4042	4042	plete an application for voter registration 23
4043	4043	for an election for Federal office under sec-24
4044	4044	tion 303(a)(5)(A), provided that a State 25
4045	4045	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00129 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4046	4046	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 130
4047	4047	•HR 11 IH
4048	4048	may not deny a voter a ballot or the oppor-1
4049	4049	tunity to cast it on the grounds that the 2
4050	4050	voter does not possess a current and valid 3
4051	4051	driver’s license number or a social security 4
4052	4052	number; or 5
4053	4053	‘‘(ii) a signature of the individual or 6
4054	4054	similar affirmation as a condition of ob-7
4055	4055	taining or casting an absentee ballot. 8
4056	4056	‘‘(B) P
4057	4057	ROHIBITING FAULTY MATCHING RE -9
4058	4058	QUIREMENTS FOR IDENTIFYING INFORMA -10
4059	4059	TION.—A State may not deny a voter an absen-11
4060	4060	tee ballot or reject an absentee ballot cast by a 12
4061	4061	voter— 13
4062	4062	‘‘(i) on the grounds that the voter 14
4063	4063	provided a different form of identifying in-15
4064	4064	formation under subparagraph (A) than 16
4065	4065	the voter originally provided when reg-17
4066	4066	istering to vote or when requesting an ab-18
4067	4067	sentee ballot; or 19
4068	4068	‘‘(ii) due to an error in, or omission 20
4069	4069	of, identifying information required by a 21
4070	4070	State under subparagraph (A), if such 22
4071	4071	error or omission is not material to an in-23
4072	4072	dividual’s eligibility to vote under section 24
4073	4073	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00130 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4074	4074	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 131
4075	4075	•HR 11 IH
4076	4076	2004(a)(2)(B) of the Revised Statutes (52 1
4077	4077	U.S.C. 10101(a)(2)(B)). 2
4078	4078	‘‘(C) P
4079	4079	ROHIBITING REQUIREMENT TO PRO -3
4080	4080	VIDE NOTARIZATION OR WITNESS SIGNATURE 4
4081	4081	AS CONDITION OF OBTAINING OR CASTING BAL -5
4082	4082	LOT.—A State may not require notarization or 6
4083	4083	witness signature or other formal authentica-7
4084	4084	tion (other than voter attestation) as a condi-8
4085	4085	tion of obtaining or casting an absentee ballot, 9
4086	4086	except that nothing in this subparagraph may 10
4087	4087	be construed to prohibit a State from enforcing 11
4088	4088	a law which has a witness signature require-12
4089	4089	ment for a ballot where a voter oath is attested 13
4090	4090	to with a mark rather than a voter’s signature. 14
4091	4091	‘‘(3) N
4092	4092	O EFFECT ON IDENTIFICATION REQUIRE -15
4093	4093	MENTS FOR FIRST -TIME VOTERS REGISTERING BY 16
4094	4094	MAIL.—Nothing in this subsection may be construed 17
4095	4095	to exempt any individual described in paragraph (1) 18
4096	4096	of section 303(b) from meeting the requirements of 19
4097	4097	paragraph (2) of such section or to exempt an indi-20
4098	4098	vidual described in paragraph (5)(A) of section 21
4099	4099	303(b) from meeting the requirements of paragraph 22
4100	4100	(5)(B). 23
4101	4101	‘‘(b) D
4102	4102	UEPROCESSREQUIREMENTS FOR STATES 24
4103	4103	R
4104	4104	EQUIRINGSIGNATUREVERIFICATION.— 25
4105	4105	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00131 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4106	4106	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 132
4107	4107	•HR 11 IH
4108	4108	‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.— 1
4109	4109	‘‘(A) I
4110	4110	N GENERAL.—A State may not im-2
4111	4111	pose a signature verification requirement as a 3
4112	4112	condition of accepting and counting a mail-in 4
4113	4113	ballot or absentee ballot submitted by any indi-5
4114	4114	vidual with respect to an election for Federal 6
4115	4115	office unless the State meets the due process re-7
4116	4116	quirements described in paragraph (2). 8
4117	4117	‘‘(B) S
4118	4118	IGNATURE VERIFICATION REQUIRE -9
4119	4119	MENT DESCRIBED.—In this subsection, a ‘sig-10
4120	4120	nature verification requirement’ is a require-11
4121	4121	ment that an election official verify the identi-12
4122	4122	fication of an individual by comparing the sig-13
4123	4123	nature of the individual on the mail-in ballot or 14
4124	4124	absentee ballot with the individual’s signature 15
4125	4125	on the official list of registered voters in the 16
4126	4126	State or another official record or other docu-17
4127	4127	ment used by the State to verify the signatures 18
4128	4128	of voters. 19
4129	4129	‘‘(2) D
4130	4130	UE PROCESS REQUIREMENTS .— 20
4131	4131	‘‘(A) N
4132	4132	OTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO CURE 21
4133	4133	DISCREPANCY IN SIGNATURES .—If an indi-22
4134	4134	vidual submits a mail-in ballot or an absentee 23
4135	4135	ballot and the appropriate State or local elec-24
4136	4136	tion official determines that a discrepancy ex-25
4137	4137	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00132 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4138	4138	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 133
4139	4139	•HR 11 IH
4140	4140	ists between the signature on such ballot and 1
4141	4141	the signature of such individual on the official 2
4142	4142	list of registered voters in the State or other of-3
4143	4143	ficial record or document used by the State to 4
4144	4144	verify the signatures of voters, such election of-5
4145	4145	ficial, prior to making a final determination as 6
4146	4146	to the validity of such ballot, shall— 7
4147	4147	‘‘(i) as soon as practical, but not later 8
4148	4148	than the next business day after such de-9
4149	4149	termination is made, make a good faith ef-10
4150	4150	fort to notify the individual by mail, tele-11
4151	4151	phone, and (if available) text message and 12
4152	4152	electronic mail that— 13
4153	4153	‘‘(I) a discrepancy exists between 14
4154	4154	the signature on such ballot and the 15
4155	4155	signature of the individual on the offi-16
4156	4156	cial list of registered voters in the 17
4157	4157	State or other official record or docu-18
4158	4158	ment used by the State to verify the 19
4159	4159	signatures of voters; and 20
4160	4160	‘‘(II) if such discrepancy is not 21
4161	4161	cured prior to the expiration of the 22
4162	4162	third day following the State’s dead-23
4163	4163	line for receiving mail-in ballots or ab-24
4164	4164	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00133 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4165	4165	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 134
4166	4166	•HR 11 IH
4167	4167	sentee ballots, such ballot will not be 1
4168	4168	counted; and 2
4169	4169	‘‘(ii) cure such discrepancy and count 3
4170	4170	the ballot if, prior to the expiration of the 4
4171	4171	third day following the State’s deadline for 5
4172	4172	receiving mail-in ballots or absentee bal-6
4173	4173	lots, the individual provides the official 7
4174	4174	with information to cure such discrepancy, 8
4175	4175	either in person, by telephone, or by elec-9
4176	4176	tronic methods. 10
4177	4177	‘‘(B) N
4178	4178	OTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO CURE 11
4179	4179	MISSING SIGNATURE OR OTHER DEFECT .—If an 12
4180	4180	individual submits a mail-in ballot or an absen-13
4181	4181	tee ballot without a signature or submits a 14
4182	4182	mail-in ballot or an absentee ballot with another 15
4183	4183	defect which, if left uncured, would cause the 16
4184	4184	ballot to not be counted, the appropriate State 17
4185	4185	or local election official, prior to making a final 18
4186	4186	determination as to the validity of the ballot, 19
4187	4187	shall— 20
4188	4188	‘‘(i) as soon as practical, but not later 21
4189	4189	than the next business day after such de-22
4190	4190	termination is made, make a good faith ef-23
4191	4191	fort to notify the individual by mail, tele-24
4192	4192	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00134 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4193	4193	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 135
4194	4194	•HR 11 IH
4195	4195	phone, and (if available) text message and 1
4196	4196	electronic mail that— 2
4197	4197	‘‘(I) the ballot did not include a 3
4198	4198	signature or has some other defect; 4
4199	4199	and 5
4200	4200	‘‘(II) if the individual does not 6
4201	4201	provide the missing signature or cure 7
4202	4202	the other defect prior to the expira-8
4203	4203	tion of the third day following the 9
4204	4204	State’s deadline for receiving mail-in 10
4205	4205	ballots or absentee ballots, such ballot 11
4206	4206	will not be counted; and 12
4207	4207	‘‘(ii) count the ballot if, prior to the 13
4208	4208	expiration of the third day following the 14
4209	4209	State’s deadline for receiving mail-in bal-15
4210	4210	lots or absentee ballots, the individual pro-16
4211	4211	vides the official with the missing signa-17
4212	4212	ture on a form proscribed by the State or 18
4213	4213	cures the other defect. 19
4214	4214	This subparagraph does not apply with respect 20
4215	4215	to a defect consisting of the failure of a ballot 21
4216	4216	to meet the applicable deadline for the accept-22
4217	4217	ance of the ballot, as described in subsection 23
4218	4218	(e). 24
4219	4219	‘‘(C) O
4220	4220	THER REQUIREMENTS .— 25
4221	4221	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00135 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4222	4222	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 136
4223	4223	•HR 11 IH
4224	4224	‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An election official 1
4225	4225	may not make a determination that a dis-2
4226	4226	crepancy exists between the signature on a 3
4227	4227	mail-in ballot or an absentee ballot and the 4
4228	4228	signature of the individual on the official 5
4229	4229	list of registered voters in the State or 6
4230	4230	other official record or other document 7
4231	4231	used by the State to verify the signatures 8
4232	4232	of voters unless— 9
4233	4233	‘‘(I) not fewer than 2 election of-10
4234	4234	ficials make the determination; 11
4235	4235	‘‘(II) each official who makes the 12
4236	4236	determination has received training in 13
4237	4237	procedures used to verify signatures; 14
4238	4238	and 15
4239	4239	‘‘(III) of the officials who make 16
4240	4240	the determination, not fewer than 1 is 17
4241	4241	affiliated with the political party 18
4242	4242	whose candidate received the most 19
4243	4243	votes in the most recent statewide 20
4244	4244	election for Federal office held in the 21
4245	4245	State and not fewer than 1 is affili-22
4246	4246	ated with the political party whose 23
4247	4247	candidate received the second most 24
4248	4248	votes in the most recent statewide 25
4249	4249	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00136 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4250	4250	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 137
4251	4251	•HR 11 IH
4252	4252	election for Federal office held in the 1
4253	4253	State. 2
4254	4254	‘‘(ii) E
4255	4255	XCEPTION.—Clause (i)(III) 3
4256	4256	shall not apply to any State in which, 4
4257	4257	under a law that is in effect continuously 5
4258	4258	on and after the date of enactment of this 6
4259	4259	section, determinations regarding signature 7
4260	4260	discrepancies are made by election officials 8
4261	4261	who are not affiliated with a political 9
4262	4262	party. 10
4263	4263	‘‘(3) R
4264	4264	EPORT.— 11
4265	4265	‘‘(A) I
4266	4266	N GENERAL.—Not later than 120 12
4267	4267	days after the end of a Federal election cycle, 13
4268	4268	each chief State election official shall submit to 14
4269	4269	the Commission a report containing the fol-15
4270	4270	lowing information for the applicable Federal 16
4271	4271	election cycle in the State: 17
4272	4272	‘‘(i) The number of ballots invalidated 18
4273	4273	due to a discrepancy under this subsection. 19
4274	4274	‘‘(ii) Description of attempts to con-20
4275	4275	tact voters to provide notice as required by 21
4276	4276	this subsection. 22
4277	4277	‘‘(iii) Description of the cure process 23
4278	4278	developed by such State pursuant to this 24
4279	4279	subsection, including the number of ballots 25
4280	4280	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00137 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4281	4281	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 138
4282	4282	•HR 11 IH
4283	4283	determined valid as a result of such proc-1
4284	4284	ess. 2
4285	4285	‘‘(B) S
4286	4286	UBMISSION TO CONGRESS .—Not 3
4287	4287	later than 10 days after receiving a report 4
4288	4288	under subparagraph (A), the Commission shall 5
4289	4289	transmit such report to Congress. 6
4290	4290	‘‘(C) F
4291	4291	EDERAL ELECTION CYCLE DE -7
4292	4292	FINED.—For purposes of this subsection, the 8
4293	4293	term ‘Federal election cycle’ means, with re-9
4294	4294	spect to any regularly scheduled election for 10
4295	4295	Federal office, the period beginning on the day 11
4296	4296	after the date of the preceding regularly sched-12
4297	4297	uled general election for Federal office and end-13
4298	4298	ing on the date of such regularly scheduled gen-14
4299	4299	eral election. 15
4300	4300	‘‘(4) R
4301	4301	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 16
4302	4302	this subsection shall be construed— 17
4303	4303	‘‘(A) to prohibit a State from rejecting a 18
4304	4304	ballot attempted to be cast in an election for 19
4305	4305	Federal office by an individual who is not eligi-20
4306	4306	ble to vote in the election; or 21
4307	4307	‘‘(B) to prohibit a State from providing an 22
4308	4308	individual with more time and more methods 23
4309	4309	for curing a discrepancy in the individual’s sig-24
4310	4310	nature, providing a missing signature, or curing 25
4311	4311	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00138 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4312	4312	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 139
4313	4313	•HR 11 IH
4314	4314	any other defect than the State is required to 1
4315	4315	provide under this subsection. 2
4316	4316	‘‘(c) A
4317	4317	PPLICATIONS FORABSENTEEBALLOTS.— 3
4318	4318	‘‘(1) I
4319	4319	N GENERAL.—In addition to such other 4
4320	4320	methods as the State may establish for an individual 5
4321	4321	to apply for an absentee ballot, each State shall per-6
4322	4322	mit an individual to submit an application for an ab-7
4323	4323	sentee ballot online. 8
4324	4324	‘‘(2) T
4325	4325	REATMENT OF WEBSITES .—A State shall 9
4326	4326	be considered to meet the requirements of paragraph 10
4327	4327	(1) if the website of the appropriate State or local 11
4328	4328	election official allows an application for an absentee 12
4329	4329	ballot to be completed and submitted online and if 13
4330	4330	the website permits the individual— 14
4331	4331	‘‘(A) to print the application so that the 15
4332	4332	individual may complete the application and re-16
4333	4333	turn it to the official; or 17
4334	4334	‘‘(B) to request that a paper copy of the 18
4335	4335	application be transmitted to the individual by 19
4336	4336	mail or electronic mail so that the individual 20
4337	4337	may complete the application and return it to 21
4338	4338	the official. 22
4339	4339	‘‘(3) E
4340	4340	NSURING DELIVERY PRIOR TO ELEC -23
4341	4341	TION.— 24
4342	4342	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00139 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4343	4343	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 140
4344	4344	•HR 11 IH
4345	4345	‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If an individual who is 1
4346	4346	eligible to vote in an election for Federal office 2
4347	4347	submits an application for an absentee ballot in 3
4348	4348	the election and such application is received by 4
4349	4349	the appropriate State or local election official 5
4350	4350	not later than 13 days (excluding Saturdays, 6
4351	4351	Sundays, and legal public holidays) before the 7
4352	4352	date of the election, the election official shall 8
4353	4353	ensure that the ballot and related voting mate-9
4354	4354	rials are promptly mailed to the individual. 10
4355	4355	‘‘(B) A
4356	4356	PPLICATIONS RECEIVED CLOSE TO 11
4357	4357	ELECTION DAY.—If an individual who is eligible 12
4358	4358	to vote in an election for Federal office submits 13
4359	4359	an application for an absentee ballot in the elec-14
4360	4360	tion and such application is received by the ap-15
4361	4361	propriate State or local election official after 16
4362	4362	the date described in subparagraph (A) but not 17
4363	4363	later than 7 days (excluding Saturdays, Sun-18
4364	4364	days, and legal public holidays) before the date 19
4365	4365	of the election, the election official shall, to the 20
4366	4366	greatest extent practical, ensure that the ballot 21
4367	4367	and related voting materials are mailed to the 22
4368	4368	individual within 1 business day of the receipt 23
4369	4369	of the application. 24
4370	4370	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00140 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4371	4371	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 141
4372	4372	•HR 11 IH
4373	4373	‘‘(C) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing 1
4374	4374	in this paragraph shall preclude a State or local 2
4375	4375	jurisdiction from allowing for the acceptance 3
4376	4376	and processing of absentee ballot applications 4
4377	4377	submitted or received after the date described 5
4378	4378	in subparagraph (B). 6
4379	4379	‘‘(4) A
4380	4380	PPLICATION FOR ALL FUTURE ELEC -7
4381	4381	TIONS.— 8
4382	4382	‘‘(A) I
4383	4383	N GENERAL.—At the option of an 9
4384	4384	individual, the individual’s application to vote 10
4385	4385	by absentee ballot by mail in an election for 11
4386	4386	Federal office shall be treated as an application 12
4387	4387	for an absentee ballot by mail in all subsequent 13
4388	4388	elections for Federal office held in the State. 14
4389	4389	‘‘(B) D
4390	4390	URATION OF TREATMENT .— 15
4391	4391	‘‘(i) I
4392	4392	N GENERAL.—In the case of an 16
4393	4393	individual who is treated as having applied 17
4394	4394	for an absentee ballot for all subsequent 18
4395	4395	elections for Federal office held in the 19
4396	4396	State under subparagraph (A), such treat-20
4397	4397	ment shall remain effective until the earlier 21
4398	4398	of such time as— 22
4399	4399	‘‘(I) the individual is no longer 23
4400	4400	registered to vote in the State; or 24
4401	4401	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00141 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4402	4402	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 142
4403	4403	•HR 11 IH
4404	4404	‘‘(II) the individual provides an 1
4405	4405	affirmative written notice revoking 2
4406	4406	such treatment. 3
4407	4407	‘‘(ii) P
4408	4408	ROHIBITION ON REVOCATION 4
4409	4409	BASED ON FAILURE TO VOTE .—The treat-5
4410	4410	ment of an individual as having applied for 6
4411	4411	an absentee ballot for all subsequent elec-7
4412	4412	tions held in the State under subparagraph 8
4413	4413	(A) shall not be revoked on the basis that 9
4414	4414	the individual has not voted in an election. 10
4415	4415	‘‘(d) A
4416	4416	CCESSIBILITY FORINDIVIDUALSWITHDIS-11
4417	4417	ABILITIES.—Each State shall ensure that all absentee bal-12
4418	4418	lot applications, absentee ballots, and related voting mate-13
4419	4419	rials in elections for Federal office are accessible to indi-14
4420	4420	viduals with disabilities in a manner that provides the 15
4421	4421	same opportunity for access and participation (including 16
4422	4422	with privacy and independence) as for other voters. 17
4423	4423	‘‘(e) U
4424	4424	NIFORMDEADLINE FOR ACCEPTANCE OF 18
4425	4425	M
4426	4426	AILEDBALLOTS.— 19
4427	4427	‘‘(1) I
4428	4428	N GENERAL.—A State or local election of-20
4429	4429	ficial may not refuse to accept or process a ballot 21
4430	4430	submitted by an individual by mail with respect to 22
4431	4431	an election for Federal office in the State on the 23
4432	4432	grounds that the individual did not meet a deadline 24
4433	4433	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00142 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4434	4434	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 143
4435	4435	•HR 11 IH
4436	4436	for returning the ballot to the appropriate State or 1
4437	4437	local election official if— 2
4438	4438	‘‘(A) the ballot is postmarked or otherwise 3
4439	4439	indicated by the United States Postal Service to 4
4440	4440	have been mailed on or before the date of the 5
4441	4441	election; and 6
4442	4442	‘‘(B) the ballot is received by the appro-7
4443	4443	priate election official prior to the expiration of 8
4444	4444	the 7-day period which begins on the date of 9
4445	4445	the election. 10
4446	4446	‘‘(2) R
4447	4447	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 11
4448	4448	this subsection shall be construed to prohibit a State 12
4449	4449	from having a law that allows for counting of ballots 13
4450	4450	in an election for Federal office that are received 14
4451	4451	through the mail after the date that is 7 days after 15
4452	4452	the date of the election. 16
4453	4453	‘‘(f) A
4454	4454	LTERNATIVEMETHODS OFRETURNINGBAL-17
4455	4455	LOTS.—In addition to permitting an individual to whom 18
4456	4456	a ballot in an election was provided under this section to 19
4457	4457	return the ballot to an election official by mail, each State 20
4458	4458	shall permit the individual to cast the ballot by delivering 21
4459	4459	the ballot at such times and to such locations as the State 22
4460	4460	may establish, including— 23
4461	4461	‘‘(1) permitting the individual to deliver the bal-24
4462	4462	lot to a polling place within the jurisdiction in which 25
4463	4463	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00143 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4464	4464	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 144
4465	4465	•HR 11 IH
4466	4466	the individual is registered or otherwise eligible to 1
4467	4467	vote on any date on which voting in the election is 2
4468	4468	held at the polling place; and 3
4469	4469	‘‘(2) permitting the individual to deliver the bal-4
4470	4470	lot to a designated ballot drop-off location, a tribally 5
4471	4471	designated building, or the office of a State or local 6
4472	4472	election official. 7
4473	4473	‘‘(g) B
4474	4474	ALLOTPROCESSING ANDSCANNINGREQUIRE-8
4475	4475	MENTS.— 9
4476	4476	‘‘(1) I
4477	4477	N GENERAL.—Each State or jurisdiction 10
4478	4478	shall begin processing and scanning ballots cast by 11
4479	4479	mail for tabulation not later than the date that is 14 12
4480	4480	days prior to the date of the election involved, except 13
4481	4481	that a State may begin processing and scanning bal-14
4482	4482	lots cast by mail for tabulation after such date if the 15
4483	4483	date on which the State begins such processing and 16
4484	4484	scanning ensures, to the greatest extent practical, 17
4485	4485	that ballots cast before the date of the election are 18
4486	4486	processed and scanned before the date of the elec-19
4487	4487	tion. 20
4488	4488	‘‘(2) L
4489	4489	IMITATION.—Nothing in this subsection 21
4490	4490	shall be construed— 22
4491	4491	‘‘(A) to permit a State to tabulate ballots 23
4492	4492	in an election before the closing of the polls on 24
4493	4493	the date of the election unless such tabulation 25
4494	4494	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00144 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4495	4495	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 145
4496	4496	•HR 11 IH
4497	4497	is a necessary component of preprocessing in 1
4498	4498	the State and is performed in accordance with 2
4499	4499	existing State law; or 3
4500	4500	‘‘(B) to permit an official to make public 4
4501	4501	any results of tabulation and processing before 5
4502	4502	the closing of the polls on the date of the elec-6
4503	4503	tion. 7
4504	4504	‘‘(h) P
4505	4505	ROHIBITINGRESTRICTIONS ONDISTRIBUTION 8
4506	4506	OFABSENTEEBALLOTAPPLICATIONS BYTHIRDPAR-9
4507	4507	TIES.—A State may not prohibit any person from pro-10
4508	4508	viding an application for an absentee ballot in the election 11
4509	4509	to any individual who is eligible to vote in the election. 12
4510	4510	‘‘(i) R
4511	4511	ULE OFCONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-13
4512	4512	tion shall be construed to affect the authority of States 14
4513	4513	to conduct elections for Federal office through the use of 15
4514	4514	polling places at which individuals cast ballots. 16
4515	4515	‘‘(j) N
4516	4516	OEFFECT ONBALLOTSSUBMITTED BYAB-17
4517	4517	SENTMILITARY ANDOVERSEASVOTERS.—Nothing in 18
4518	4518	this section may be construed to affect the treatment of 19
4519	4519	any ballot submitted by an individual who is entitled to 20
4520	4520	vote by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Overseas 21
4521	4521	Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.). 22
4522	4522	‘‘(k) E
4523	4523	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 23
4524	4524	with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 24
4525	4525	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00145 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4526	4526	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 146
4527	4527	•HR 11 IH
4528	4528	Federal office held in November 2024 and each succeeding 1
4529	4529	election for Federal office.’’. 2
4530	4530	(2) C
4531	4531	LERICAL AMENDMENTS .—The table of 3
4532	4532	contents of such Act, as amended by section 4
4533	4533	1031(c), section 1044(b), section 1101(c), section 5
4534	4534	1102(c), section 1103(a), section 1104(c), and sec-6
4535	4535	tion 1201(c), is amended— 7
4536	4536	(A) by redesignating the items relating to 8
4537	4537	sections 311 and 312 as relating to sections 9
4538	4538	312 and 313, respectively; and 10
4539	4539	(B) by inserting after the item relating to 11
4540	4540	section 310 the following new item: 12
4541	4541	‘‘Sec. 311. Promoting ability of voters to vote by mail.’’.
4542	4542	(b) SAME-DAYPROCESSING OF ABSENTEEBAL-13
4543	4543	LOTS.— 14
4544	4544	(1) I
4545	4545	N GENERAL.—Chapter 34 of title 39, 15
4546	4546	United States Code, is amended by adding at the 16
4547	4547	end the following: 17
4548	4548	‘‘§ 3407. Same-day processing of ballots 18
4549	4549	‘‘(a) I
4550	4550	NGENERAL.—The Postal Service shall ensure, 19
4551	4551	to the maximum extent practicable, that any ballot carried 20
4552	4552	by the Postal Service is processed by and cleared from 21
4553	4553	any postal facility or post office on the same day that the 22
4554	4554	ballot is received by that facility or post office. 23
4555	4555	‘‘(b) D
4556	4556	EFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 24
4557	4557	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00146 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4558	4558	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 147
4559	4559	•HR 11 IH
4560	4560	‘‘(1) the term ‘ballot’ means any ballot trans-1
4561	4561	mitted by a voter by mail in an election for Federal 2
4562	4562	office, but does not include any ballot covered by 3
4563	4563	section 3406; and 4
4564	4564	‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 5
4565	4565	a general, special, primary, or runoff election for the 6
4566	4566	office of President or Vice President, or of Senator 7
4567	4567	or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com-8
4568	4568	missioner to, the Congress.’’. 9
4569	4569	(2) T
4570	4570	ECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND -10
4571	4571	MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 11
4572	4572	39, United States Code, is amended by adding at 12
4573	4573	the end the following: 13
4574	4574	‘‘3407. Same-day processing of ballots.’’.
4575	4575	(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 14
4576	4576	by this subsection shall apply to absentee ballots re-15
4577	4577	lating to an election for Federal office occurring on 16
4578	4578	or after January 1, 2024. 17
4579	4579	(c) D
4580	4580	EVELOPMENT OF ALTERNATIVEVERIFICATION 18
4581	4581	M
4582	4582	ETHODS.— 19
4583	4583	(1) D
4584	4584	EVELOPMENT OF STANDARDS .—The Di-20
4585	4585	rector of the National Institute of Standards, in con-21
4586	4586	sultation with the Election Assistance Commission, 22
4587	4587	shall develop standards for the use of alternative 23
4588	4588	methods which could be used in place of signature 24
4589	4589	verification requirements for purposes of verifying 25
4590	4590	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00147 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4591	4591	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 148
4592	4592	•HR 11 IH
4593	4593	the identification of an individual voting by mail-in 1
4594	4594	or absentee ballot in elections for Federal office. 2
4595	4595	(2) P
4596	4596	UBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENT .—The Di-3
4597	4597	rector of the National Institute of Standards shall 4
4598	4598	solicit comments from the public in the development 5
4599	4599	of standards under paragraph (1). 6
4600	4600	(3) D
4601	4601	EADLINE.—Not later than 2 years after 7
4602	4602	the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of 8
4603	4603	the National Institute of Standards shall publish the 9
4604	4604	standards developed under paragraph (1). 10
4605	4605	SEC. 1302. BALLOTING MATERIALS TRACKING PROGRAM. 11
4606	4606	(a) I
4607	4607	NGENERAL.— 12
4608	4608	(1) R
4609	4609	EQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of 13
4610	4610	the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 14
4611	4611	21081 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), sec-15
4612	4612	tion 1044(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), sec-16
4613	4613	tion 1103(a), section 1104(a), section 1201(a), and 17
4614	4614	section 1301(a), is amended— 18
4615	4615	(A) by redesignating sections 312 and 313 19
4616	4616	as sections 313 and 314, respectively; and 20
4617	4617	(B) by inserting after section 311 the fol-21
4618	4618	lowing new section: 22
4619	4619	‘‘SEC. 312. BALLOT MATERIALS TRACKING PROGRAM. 23
4620	4620	‘‘(a) R
4621	4621	EQUIREMENT.—Each State shall carry out a 24
4622	4622	program to track and confirm the receipt of mail-in ballots 25
4623	4623	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00148 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4624	4624	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 149
4625	4625	•HR 11 IH
4626	4626	and absentee ballots in an election for Federal office under 1
4627	4627	which the State or local election official responsible for the 2
4628	4628	receipt of such voted ballots in the election carries out pro-3
4629	4629	cedures to track and confirm the receipt of such ballots, 4
4630	4630	and makes information on the receipt of such ballots avail-5
4631	4631	able to the individual who cast the ballot. 6
4632	4632	‘‘(b) M
4633	4633	EANS OFCARRYINGOUTPROGRAM.—A State 7
4634	4634	may meet the requirements of subsection (a)— 8
4635	4635	‘‘(1) through a program— 9
4636	4636	‘‘(A) which is established by the State; 10
4637	4637	‘‘(B) under which the State or local elec-11
4638	4638	tion official responsible for the receipt of voted 12
4639	4639	mail-in ballots and voted absentee ballots in the 13
4640	4640	election— 14
4641	4641	‘‘(i) carries out procedures to track 15
4642	4642	and confirm the receipt of such ballots; 16
4643	4643	and 17
4644	4644	‘‘(ii) makes information on the receipt 18
4645	4645	of such ballots available to the individual 19
4646	4646	who cast the ballot; and 20
4647	4647	‘‘(C) which meets the requirements of sub-21
4648	4648	section (c); or 22
4649	4649	‘‘(2) through the ballot materials tracking serv-23
4650	4650	ice established under section 1302(b) of the Free-24
4651	4651	dom to Vote Act. 25
4652	4652	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00149 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4653	4653	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 150
4654	4654	•HR 11 IH
4655	4655	‘‘(c) STATEPROGRAMREQUIREMENTS.—The re-1
4656	4656	quirements of this subsection are as follows: 2
4657	4657	‘‘(1) I
4658	4658	NFORMATION ON WHETHER VOTE WAS 3
4659	4659	ACCEPTED.—The information referred to under sub-4
4660	4660	section (b)(1)(B)(ii) with respect to the receipt of 5
4661	4661	mail-in ballot or an absentee ballot shall include in-6
4662	4662	formation regarding whether the vote cast on the 7
4663	4663	ballot was accepted, and, in the case of a vote which 8
4664	4664	was rejected, the reasons therefor. 9
4665	4665	‘‘(2) A
4666	4666	VAILABILITY OF INFORMATION .—Infor-10
4667	4667	mation on whether a ballot was accepted or rejected 11
4668	4668	shall be available within 1 business day of the State 12
4669	4669	accepting or rejecting the ballot. 13
4670	4670	‘‘(3) A
4671	4671	CCESSIBILITY OF INFORMATION .— 14
4672	4672	‘‘(A) I
4673	4673	N GENERAL.—Except as provided 15
4674	4674	under subparagraph (B), the information pro-16
4675	4675	vided under the program shall be available by 17
4676	4676	means of online access using the internet site of 18
4677	4677	the State or local election office. 19
4678	4678	‘‘(B) U
4679	4679	SE OF TOLL -FREE TELEPHONE 20
4680	4680	NUMBER BY OFFICIALS WITHOUT INTERNET 21
4681	4681	SITE.—In the case of a State or local election 22
4682	4682	official whose office does not have an internet 23
4683	4683	site, the program shall require the official to es-24
4684	4684	tablish a toll-free telephone number that may be 25
4685	4685	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00150 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4686	4686	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 151
4687	4687	•HR 11 IH
4688	4688	used by an individual who cast an absentee bal-1
4689	4689	lot to obtain the information required under 2
4690	4690	subsection (b)(1)(B). 3
4691	4691	‘‘(d) E
4692	4692	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 4
4693	4693	with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 5
4694	4694	Federal office held in November 2026 and each succeeding 6
4695	4695	election for Federal office.’’. 7
4696	4696	(2) C
4697	4697	ONFORMING AMENDMENTS .—Section 102 8
4698	4698	of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee 9
4699	4699	Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302) is amended by strik-10
4700	4700	ing subsection (h) and redesignating subsection (i) 11
4701	4701	as subsection (h). 12
4702	4702	(b) B
4703	4703	ALLOTINGMATERIALSTRACKINGSERVICE.— 13
4704	4704	(1) I
4705	4705	N GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 14
4706	4706	2026, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in con-15
4707	4707	sultation with the Chair of the Election Assistance 16
4708	4708	Commission, the Postmaster General, the Director 17
4709	4709	of the General Services Administration, the Presi-18
4710	4710	dential designee, and State election officials, shall 19
4711	4711	establish a balloting materials tracking service to be 20
4712	4712	used by State and local jurisdictions to inform voters 21
4713	4713	on the status of voter registration applications, ab-22
4714	4714	sentee ballot applications, absentee ballots, and mail- 23
4715	4715	in ballots. 24
4716	4716	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00151 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4717	4717	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 152
4718	4718	•HR 11 IH
4719	4719	(2) INFORMATION TRACKED .—The balloting 1
4720	4720	materials tracking service established under para-2
4721	4721	graph (1) shall provide to a voter the following infor-3
4722	4722	mation with respect to that voter: 4
4723	4723	(A) In the case of balloting materials sent 5
4724	4724	by mail, tracking information from the United 6
4725	4725	States Postal Service and the Presidential des-7
4726	4726	ignee on balloting materials sent to the voter 8
4727	4727	and, to the extent feasible, returned by the 9
4728	4728	voter. 10
4729	4729	(B) The date on which any request by the 11
4730	4730	voter for an application for voter registration or 12
4731	4731	an absentee ballot was received. 13
4732	4732	(C) The date on which any such requested 14
4733	4733	application was sent to the voter. 15
4734	4734	(D) The date on which any such completed 16
4735	4735	application was received from the voter and the 17
4736	4736	status of such application. 18
4737	4737	(E) The date on which any mail-in ballot 19
4738	4738	or absentee ballot was sent to the voter. 20
4739	4739	(F) The date on which any mail-in ballot 21
4740	4740	or absentee ballot was out for delivery to the 22
4741	4741	voter. 23
4742	4742	(G) The date on which the post office proc-24
4743	4743	esses the ballot. 25
4744	4744	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00152 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4745	4745	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 153
4746	4746	•HR 11 IH
4747	4747	(H) The date on which the returned ballot 1
4748	4748	was out for delivery to the election office. 2
4749	4749	(I) Whether such ballot was accepted and 3
4750	4750	counted, and in the case of any ballot not 4
4751	4751	counted, the reason why the ballot was not 5
4752	4752	counted. 6
4753	4753	The information described in subparagraph (I) shall 7
4754	4754	be available not later than 1 day after a determina-8
4755	4755	tion is made on whether or not to accept and count 9
4756	4756	the ballot. 10
4757	4757	(3) M
4758	4758	ETHOD OF PROVIDING INFORMATION .— 11
4759	4759	The balloting materials tracking service established 12
4760	4760	under paragraph (1) shall allow voters the option to 13
4761	4761	receive the information described in paragraph (2) 14
4762	4762	through email (or other electronic means) or through 15
4763	4763	the mail. 16
4764	4764	(4) P
4765	4765	UBLIC AVAILABILITY OF LIMITED INFOR -17
4766	4766	MATION.—Information described in subparagraphs 18
4767	4767	(E), (G), and (I) of paragraph (2) shall be made 19
4768	4768	available to political parties and voter registration 20
4769	4769	organizations, at cost to cover the expense of pro-21
4770	4770	viding such information, for use, in accordance with 22
4771	4771	State guidelines and procedures, in helping to return 23
4772	4772	or cure mail-in ballots during any period in which 24
4773	4773	mail-in ballots may be returned. 25
4774	4774	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00153 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4775	4775	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 154
4776	4776	•HR 11 IH
4777	4777	(5) PROHIBITION ON FEES.—The Director may 1
4778	4778	not charge any fee to a State or jurisdiction for use 2
4779	4779	of the balloting materials tracking service in connec-3
4780	4780	tion with any Federal, State, or local election. 4
4781	4781	(6) P
4782	4782	RESIDENTIAL DESIGNEE .—For purposes 5
4783	4783	of this subsection, the term ‘‘Presidential designee’’ 6
4784	4784	means the Presidential designee under section 7
4785	4785	101(a) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab-8
4786	4786	sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301(a)). 9
4787	4787	(7) A
4788	4788	UTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS .— 10
4789	4789	There are authorized to be appropriated to the Di-11
4790	4790	rector such sums as are necessary for purposes of 12
4791	4791	carrying out this subsection. 13
4792	4792	(c) R
4793	4793	EIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTSINCURRED BY 14
4794	4794	S
4795	4795	TATES INESTABLISHINGPROGRAM.—Subtitle D of title 15
4796	4796	II of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 16
4797	4797	21001 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol-17
4798	4798	lowing new part: 18
4799	4799	‘‘PART 7—PAYMENTS TO REIMBURSE STATES 19
4800	4800	FOR COSTS INCURRED IN ESTABLISHING 20
4801	4801	PROGRAM TO TRACK AND CONFIRM RE-21
4802	4802	CEIPT OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS 22
4803	4803	‘‘SEC. 297. PAYMENTS TO STATES. 23
4804	4804	‘‘(a) P
4805	4805	AYMENTS FOR COSTS OFPROGRAM.—In ac-24
4806	4806	cordance with this section, the Commission shall make a 25
4807	4807	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00154 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4808	4808	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 155
4809	4809	•HR 11 IH
4810	4810	payment to a State to reimburse the State for the costs 1
4811	4811	incurred in establishing the absentee ballot tracking pro-2
4812	4812	gram under section 322(b)(1) (including costs incurred 3
4813	4813	prior to the date of enactment of this part). 4
4814	4814	‘‘(b) C
4815	4815	ERTIFICATION OFCOMPLIANCE ANDCOSTS.— 5
4816	4816	‘‘(1) C
4817	4817	ERTIFICATION REQUIRED .—In order to 6
4818	4818	receive a payment under this section, a State shall 7
4819	4819	submit to the Commission a statement containing— 8
4820	4820	‘‘(A) a certification that the State has es-9
4821	4821	tablished an absentee ballot tracking program 10
4822	4822	with respect to elections for Federal office held 11
4823	4823	in the State; and 12
4824	4824	‘‘(B) a statement of the costs incurred by 13
4825	4825	the State in establishing the program. 14
4826	4826	‘‘(2) A
4827	4827	MOUNT OF PAYMENT .—The amount of a 15
4828	4828	payment made to a State under this section shall be 16
4829	4829	equal to the costs incurred by the State in estab-17
4830	4830	lishing the absentee ballot tracking program, as set 18
4831	4831	forth in the statement submitted under paragraph 19
4832	4832	(1), except that such amount may not exceed the 20
4833	4833	product of— 21
4834	4834	‘‘(A) the number of jurisdictions in the 22
4835	4835	State which are responsible for operating the 23
4836	4836	program; and 24
4837	4837	‘‘(B) $3,000. 25
4838	4838	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00155 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4839	4839	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 156
4840	4840	•HR 11 IH
4841	4841	‘‘(3) LIMIT ON NUMBER OF PAYMENTS RE -1
4842	4842	CEIVED.—A State may not receive more than one 2
4843	4843	payment under this part. 3
4844	4844	‘‘SEC. 297A. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 4
4845	4845	‘‘(a) A
4846	4846	UTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be 5
4847	4847	appropriated to the Commission for fiscal year 2024 and 6
4848	4848	each succeeding fiscal year such sums as may be necessary 7
4849	4849	for payments under this part. 8
4850	4850	‘‘(b) C
4851	4851	ONTINUINGAVAILABILITY OFFUNDS.—Any 9
4852	4852	amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization under 10
4853	4853	this section shall remain available until expended.’’. 11
4854	4854	(d) C
4855	4855	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 12
4856	4856	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), 1044(b), sec-13
4857	4857	tion 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 1103(a), section 14
4858	4858	1104(c), section 1201(c), and section 1301(a), is amend-15
4859	4859	ed— 16
4860	4860	(1) by adding at the end of the items relating 17
4861	4861	to subtitle D of title II the following: 18
4862	4862	‘‘PART7—PAYMENTSTOREIMBURSESTATES FORCOSTSINCURRED INES-
4863	4863	TABLISHINGPROGRAMTOTRACK ANDCONFIRMRECEIPT OFABSENTEE
4864	4864	B
4865	4865	ALLOTS
4866	4866	‘‘Sec. 297. Payments to States.
4867	4867	‘‘Sec. 297A. Authorization of appropriations.’’;
4868	4868	(2) by redesignating the items relating to sec-19
4869	4869	tions 312 and 313 as relating to sections 313 and 20
4870	4870	314, respectively; and 21
4871	4871	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00156 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4872	4872	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 157
4873	4873	•HR 11 IH
4874	4874	(3) by inserting after the item relating to sec-1
4875	4875	tion 311 the following new item: 2
4876	4876	‘‘Sec. 312. Ballot materials tracking program.’’.
4877	4877	SEC. 1303. ELECTION MAIL AND DELIVERY IMPROVE-
4878	4878	3
4879	4879	MENTS. 4
4880	4880	(a) P
4881	4881	OSTMARKREQUIRED FORBALLOTS.— 5
4882	4882	(1) I
4883	4883	N GENERAL.—Chapter 34 of title 39, 6
4884	4884	United States Code, as amended by section 1301(b), 7
4885	4885	is amended by adding at the end the following: 8
4886	4886	‘‘§ 3408. Postmark required for ballots 9
4887	4887	‘‘(a) I
4888	4888	NGENERAL.—In the case of any absentee bal-10
4889	4889	lot carried by the Postal Service, the Postal Service shall 11
4890	4890	indicate on the ballot envelope, using a postmark or other-12
4891	4891	wise— 13
4892	4892	‘‘(1) the fact that the ballot was carried by the 14
4893	4893	Postal Service; and 15
4894	4894	‘‘(2) the date on which the ballot was mailed. 16
4895	4895	‘‘(b) D
4896	4896	EFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 17
4897	4897	‘‘(1) the term ‘absentee ballot’ means any ballot 18
4898	4898	transmitted by a voter by mail in an election for 19
4899	4899	Federal office, but does not include any ballot cov-20
4900	4900	ered by section 3406; and 21
4901	4901	‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 22
4902	4902	a general, special, primary, or runoff election for the 23
4903	4903	office of President or Vice President, or of Senator 24
4904	4904	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00157 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4905	4905	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 158
4906	4906	•HR 11 IH
4907	4907	or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com-1
4908	4908	missioner to, the Congress.’’. 2
4909	4909	(2) T
4910	4910	ECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND -3
4911	4911	MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 4
4912	4912	39, United States Code, as amended by section 5
4913	4913	1301(b), is amended by adding at the end the fol-6
4914	4914	lowing: 7
4915	4915	‘‘3408. Postmark required for ballots.’’.
4916	4916	(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 8
4917	4917	by this subsection shall apply to absentee ballots re-9
4918	4918	lating to an election for Federal office occurring on 10
4919	4919	or after January 1, 2024. 11
4920	4920	(b) G
4921	4921	REATERVISIBILITY FORBALLOTS.— 12
4922	4922	(1) I
4923	4923	N GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title III of the 13
4924	4924	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 14
4925	4925	et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), section 15
4926	4926	1044(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), section 16
4927	4927	1103(a), section 1104(a), section 1201(a), section 17
4928	4928	1301(a), and section 1302(a), is amended— 18
4929	4929	(A) by redesignating sections 313 and 314 19
4930	4930	as sections 314 and 315, respectively; and 20
4931	4931	(B) by inserting after section 312 the fol-21
4932	4932	lowing new section: 22
4933	4933	‘‘SEC. 313. BALLOT VISIBILITY. 23
4934	4934	‘‘(a) I
4935	4935	NGENERAL.—Each State or local election offi-24
4936	4936	cial shall— 25
4937	4937	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00158 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4938	4938	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 159
4939	4939	•HR 11 IH
4940	4940	‘‘(1) affix Tag 191, Domestic and International 1
4941	4941	Mail-In Ballots (or any successor tag designated by 2
4942	4942	the United States Postal Service), to any tray or 3
4943	4943	sack of official ballots relating to an election for 4
4944	4944	Federal office that is destined for a domestic or 5
4945	4945	international address; 6
4946	4946	‘‘(2) use the Official Election Mail logo to des-7
4947	4947	ignate official ballots relating to an election for Fed-8
4948	4948	eral office that is destined for a domestic or inter-9
4949	4949	national address; and 10
4950	4950	‘‘(3) if an intelligent mail barcode is utilized for 11
4951	4951	any official ballot relating to an election for Federal 12
4952	4952	office that is destined for a domestic or international 13
4953	4953	address, ensure the specific ballot service type identi-14
4954	4954	fier for such mail is visible. 15
4955	4955	‘‘(b) E
4956	4956	FFECTIVEDATE.—The requirements of this 16
4957	4957	section shall apply to elections for Federal office occurring 17
4958	4958	on and after January 1, 2024.’’. 18
4959	4959	(2) V
4960	4960	OLUNTARY GUIDANCE .—Section 321(b)(4) 19
4961	4961	of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and re-20
4962	4962	designated by section 1101(b) and as amended by 21
4963	4963	sections 1102, 1103 and 1104, is amended by strik-22
4964	4964	ing ‘‘and 309’’ and inserting ‘‘309, and 313’’. 23
4965	4965	(3) C
4966	4966	LERICAL AMENDMENTS .—The table of 24
4967	4967	contents of such Act, as amended by section 25
4968	4968	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00159 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
4969	4969	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 160
4970	4970	•HR 11 IH
4971	4971	1031(c), section 1044(b), section 1101(c), section 1
4972	4972	1102(c), section 1103(a), section 1104(c), section 2
4973	4973	1201(c), section 1301(a), and section 1302(a), is 3
4974	4974	amended— 4
4975	4975	(A) by redesignating the items relating to 5
4976	4976	sections 313 and 314 as relating to sections 6
4977	4977	314 and 315; and 7
4978	4978	(B) by inserting after the item relating to 8
4979	4979	section 312 the following new item: 9
4980	4980	‘‘Sec. 313. Ballot visibility.’’.
4981	4981	SEC. 1304. CARRIAGE OF ELECTION MAIL.
4982	4982	10
4983	4983	(a) T
4984	4984	REATMENT OFELECTIONMAIL.— 11
4985	4985	(1) T
4986	4986	REATMENT AS FIRST -CLASS MAIL; FREE 12
4987	4987	POSTAGE.—Chapter 34 of title 39, United States 13
4988	4988	Code, as amended by section 1301(b) and section 14
4989	4989	1303(a), is amended by adding at the end the fol-15
4990	4990	lowing: 16
4991	4991	‘‘§ 3409. Domestic election mail; restriction of oper-17
4992	4992	ational changes prior to elections 18
4993	4993	‘‘(a) D
4994	4994	EFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘election 19
4995	4995	mail’ means— 20
4996	4996	‘‘(1) a blank or completed voter registration ap-21
4997	4997	plication form, voter registration card, or similar 22
4998	4998	materials, relating to an election for Federal office; 23
4999	4999	‘‘(2) a blank or completed absentee and other 24
5000	5000	mail-in ballot application form, and a blank or com-25
5001	5001	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00160 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5002	5002	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 161
5003	5003	•HR 11 IH
5004	5004	pleted absentee or other mail-in ballot, relating to an 1
5005	5005	election for Federal office, and 2
5006	5006	‘‘(3) other materials relating to an election for 3
5007	5007	Federal office that are mailed by a State or local 4
5008	5008	election official to an individual who is registered to 5
5009	5009	vote. 6
5010	5010	‘‘(b) C
5011	5011	ARRIAGE OFELECTIONMAIL.—Election mail 7
5012	5012	(other than balloting materials covered under section 3406 8
5013	5013	(relating to the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting 9
5014	5014	Act)), individually or in bulk, shall be carried in accord-10
5015	5015	ance with the service standards established for first-class 11
5016	5016	mail under section 3691. 12
5017	5017	‘‘(c) N
5018	5018	OPOSTAGEREQUIRED FORCOMPLETEDBAL-13
5019	5019	LOTS.—Completed absentee or other mail-in ballots (other 14
5020	5020	than balloting materials covered under section 3406 (relat-15
5021	5021	ing to the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting Act)) 16
5022	5022	shall be carried free of postage. 17
5023	5023	‘‘(d) R
5024	5024	ESTRICTION OF OPERATIONALCHANGES.— 18
5025	5025	During the 120-day period that ends on the date of an 19
5026	5026	election for Federal office, the Postal Service may not 20
5027	5027	carry out any new operational change that would restrict 21
5028	5028	the prompt and reliable delivery of election mail. This sub-22
5029	5029	section applies to operational changes which include— 23
5030	5030	‘‘(1) removing or eliminating any mail collection 24
5031	5031	box without immediately replacing it; and 25
5032	5032	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00161 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5033	5033	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 162
5034	5034	•HR 11 IH
5035	5035	‘‘(2) removing, decommissioning, or any other 1
5036	5036	form of stopping the operation of mail sorting ma-2
5037	5037	chines, other than for routine maintenance. 3
5038	5038	‘‘(e) E
5039	5039	LECTIONMAILCOORDINATOR.—The Postal 4
5040	5040	Service shall appoint an Election Mail Coordinator at each 5
5041	5041	area office and district office to facilitate relevant informa-6
5042	5042	tion sharing with State, territorial, local, and Tribal elec-7
5043	5043	tion officials in regards to the mailing of election mail.’’. 8
5044	5044	(2) R
5045	5045	EIMBURSEMENT OF POSTAL SERVICE FOR 9
5046	5046	REVENUE FORGONE .—Section 2401(c) of title 39, 10
5047	5047	United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘sec-11
5048	5048	tions 3217 and 3403 through 3406’’ and inserting 12
5049	5049	‘‘sections 3217, 3403 through 3406, and 3409’’. 13
5050	5050	(b) T
5051	5051	ECHNICAL AND CONFORMINGAMENDMENT.— 14
5052	5052	The table of sections for chapter 34 of title 39, United 15
5053	5053	States Code, as amended by section 1301(b) and section 16
5054	5054	1303(a), is amended by adding at the end the following: 17
5055	5055	‘‘3409. Domestic election mail; restriction of operational changes prior to elec-
5056	5056	tions.’’.
5057	5057	(c) EFFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 18
5058	5058	this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the 19
5059	5059	180-day period that begins on the date of enactment of 20
5060	5060	this section. 21
5061	5061	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00162 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5062	5062	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 163
5063	5063	•HR 11 IH
5064	5064	SEC. 1305. REQUIRING STATES TO PROVIDE SECURED 1
5065	5065	DROP BOXES FOR VOTED BALLOTS IN ELEC-2
5066	5066	TIONS FOR FEDERAL OFFICE. 3
5067	5067	(a) R
5068	5068	EQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of the 4
5069	5069	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 5
5070	5070	as amended by section 1031(a), section 1044(a), section 6
5071	5071	1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), section 7
5072	5072	1104(a), section 1201(a), section 1301(a), section 8
5073	5073	1302(a), and section 1303(b) is amended— 9
5074	5074	(1) by redesignating sections 314 and 315 as 10
5075	5075	sections 315 and 316, respectively; and 11
5076	5076	(2) by inserting after section 313 the following 12
5077	5077	new section: 13
5078	5078	‘‘SEC. 314. USE OF SECURED DROP BOXES FOR VOTED BAL-14
5079	5079	LOTS. 15
5080	5080	‘‘(a) R
5081	5081	EQUIRINGUSE OFDROPBOXES.—Each juris-16
5082	5082	diction shall provide in-person, secured, and clearly labeled 17
5083	5083	drop boxes at which individuals may, at any time during 18
5084	5084	the period described in subsection (b), drop off voted bal-19
5085	5085	lots in an election for Federal office. 20
5086	5086	‘‘(b) M
5087	5087	INIMUMPERIOD FORAVAILABILITY OFDROP 21
5088	5088	B
5089	5089	OXES.—The period described in this subsection is, with 22
5090	5090	respect to an election, the period that begins on the first 23
5091	5091	day on which the jurisdiction sends mail-in ballots or ab-24
5092	5092	sentee ballots (other than ballots for absent uniformed 25
5093	5093	overseas voters (as defined in section 107(1) of the Uni-26
5094	5094	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00163 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5095	5095	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 164
5096	5096	•HR 11 IH
5097	5097	formed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 1
5098	5098	U.S.C. 20310(1))) or overseas voters (as defined in section 2
5099	5099	107(5) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20310(5)))) to voters for 3
5100	5100	such election and which ends at the time the polls close 4
5101	5101	for the election in the jurisdiction involved. 5
5102	5102	‘‘(c) A
5103	5103	CCESSIBILITY.— 6
5104	5104	‘‘(1) H
5105	5105	OURS OF ACCESS.— 7
5106	5106	‘‘(A) I
5107	5107	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in 8
5108	5108	subparagraph (B), each drop box provided 9
5109	5109	under this section shall be accessible to voters 10
5110	5110	for a reasonable number of hours each day. 11
5111	5111	‘‘(B) 24-
5112	5112	HOUR DROP BOXES.— 12
5113	5113	‘‘(i) I
5114	5114	N GENERAL.—Of the number of 13
5115	5115	drop boxes provided in any jurisdiction, 14
5116	5116	not less than the required number shall be 15
5117	5117	accessible for 24 hours per day during the 16
5118	5118	period described in subsection (b). 17
5119	5119	‘‘(ii) R
5120	5120	EQUIRED NUMBER .—The re-18
5121	5121	quired number is the greater of— 19
5122	5122	‘‘(I) 25 percent of the drop boxes 20
5123	5123	required under subsection (d); or 21
5124	5124	‘‘(II) 1 drop box. 22
5125	5125	‘‘(2) P
5126	5126	OPULATION.— 23
5127	5127	‘‘(A) I
5128	5128	N GENERAL.—Drop boxes provided 24
5129	5129	under this section shall be accessible for use— 25
5130	5130	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00164 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5131	5131	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 165
5132	5132	•HR 11 IH
5133	5133	‘‘(i) by individuals with disabilities, as 1
5134	5134	determined in consultation with the protec-2
5135	5135	tion and advocacy systems (as defined in 3
5136	5136	section 102 of the Developmental Disabil-4
5137	5137	ities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 5
5138	5138	2000 (42 U.S.C. 15002)) of the State; 6
5139	5139	‘‘(ii) by individuals with limited pro-7
5140	5140	ficiency in the English language; and 8
5141	5141	‘‘(iii) by homeless individuals (as de-9
5142	5142	fined in section 103 of the McKinney– 10
5143	5143	Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11
5144	5144	11302)) within the State. 12
5145	5145	‘‘(B) D
5146	5146	ETERMINATION OF ACCESSIBILITY 13
5147	5147	FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES .—For 14
5148	5148	purposes of this paragraph, drop boxes shall be 15
5149	5149	considered to be accessible for use by individ-16
5150	5150	uals with disabilities if the drop boxes meet 17
5151	5151	such criteria as the Attorney General may es-18
5152	5152	tablish for such purposes. 19
5153	5153	‘‘(C) R
5154	5154	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—If a drop 20
5155	5155	box provided under this section is on the 21
5156	5156	grounds of or inside a building or facility which 22
5157	5157	serves as a polling place for an election during 23
5158	5158	the period described in subsection (b), nothing 24
5159	5159	in this subsection may be construed to waive 25
5160	5160	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00165 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5161	5161	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 166
5162	5162	•HR 11 IH
5163	5163	any requirements regarding the accessibility of 1
5164	5164	such polling place for the use of individuals 2
5165	5165	with disabilities, individuals with limited pro-3
5166	5166	ficiency in the English language, or homeless 4
5167	5167	individuals. 5
5168	5168	‘‘(d) N
5169	5169	UMBER OFDROPBOXES.—Each jurisdiction 6
5170	5170	shall have— 7
5171	5171	‘‘(1) in the case of any election for Federal of-8
5172	5172	fice prior to the regularly scheduled general election 9
5173	5173	for Federal office held in November 2026, not less 10
5174	5174	than 1 drop box for every 45,000 registered voters 11
5175	5175	located in the jurisdiction; and 12
5176	5176	‘‘(2) in the case of the regularly scheduled gen-13
5177	5177	eral election for Federal office held in November 14
5178	5178	2026 and each election for Federal office occurring 15
5179	5179	thereafter, not less than the greater of— 16
5180	5180	‘‘(A) 1 drop box for every 45,000 reg-17
5181	5181	istered voters located in the jurisdiction; or 18
5182	5182	‘‘(B) 1 drop box for every 15,000 votes 19
5183	5183	that were cast by mail in the jurisdiction in the 20
5184	5184	most recent general election that includes an 21
5185	5185	election for the office of President. 22
5186	5186	In no case shall a jurisdiction have fewer than 1 23
5187	5187	drop box for any election for Federal office. 24
5188	5188	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00166 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5189	5189	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 167
5190	5190	•HR 11 IH
5191	5191	‘‘(e) LOCATION OFDROPBOXES.—The State shall 1
5192	5192	determine the location of drop boxes provided under this 2
5193	5193	section in a jurisdiction on the basis of criteria which en-3
5194	5194	sure that the drop boxes are— 4
5195	5195	‘‘(1) available to all voters on a non-discrimina-5
5196	5196	tory basis; 6
5197	5197	‘‘(2) accessible to voters with disabilities (in ac-7
5198	5198	cordance with subsection (c)); 8
5199	5199	‘‘(3) accessible by public transportation to the 9
5200	5200	greatest extent possible; 10
5201	5201	‘‘(4) available during all hours of the day; 11
5202	5202	‘‘(5) sufficiently available in all communities in 12
5203	5203	the jurisdiction, including rural communities and on 13
5204	5204	Tribal lands within the jurisdiction (subject to sub-14
5205	5205	section (f)); and 15
5206	5206	‘‘(6) geographically distributed to provide a rea-16
5207	5207	sonable opportunity for voters to submit their voted 17
5208	5208	ballot in a timely manner. 18
5209	5209	‘‘(f) T
5210	5210	IMING OFSCANNING AND PROCESSING OF 19
5211	5211	B
5212	5212	ALLOTS.—For purposes of section 311(g) (relating to 20
5213	5213	the timing of the processing and scanning of ballots for 21
5214	5214	tabulation), a vote cast using a drop box provided under 22
5215	5215	this section shall be treated in the same manner as a ballot 23
5216	5216	cast by mail. 24
5217	5217	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00167 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5218	5218	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 168
5219	5219	•HR 11 IH
5220	5220	‘‘(g) POSTING OFINFORMATION.—On or adjacent to 1
5221	5221	each drop box provided under this section, the State shall 2
5222	5222	post information on the requirements that voted absentee 3
5223	5223	ballots must meet in order to be counted and tabulated 4
5224	5224	in the election. 5
5225	5225	‘‘(h) R
5226	5226	EMOTESURVEILLANCE.—Nothing in this sec-6
5227	5227	tion shall prohibit a State from providing for the security 7
5228	5228	of drop boxes through remote or electronic surveillance. 8
5229	5229	‘‘(i) E
5230	5230	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 9
5231	5231	with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 10
5232	5232	Federal office held in November 2024 and each succeeding 11
5233	5233	election for Federal office.’’. 12
5234	5234	(b) C
5235	5235	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 13
5236	5236	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 14
5237	5237	1044(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 15
5238	5238	1103(a), section 1104(c), section 1201(c), section 16
5239	5239	1301(c), section 1302(a), and section 1303(b), is amend-17
5240	5240	ed— 18
5241	5241	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-19
5242	5242	tions 314 and 315 as relating to sections 315 and 20
5243	5243	316, respectively; and 21
5244	5244	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-22
5245	5245	tion 313 the following new item: 23
5246	5246	‘‘Sec. 314. Use of secured drop boxes for voted ballots.’’.
5247	5247	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00168 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5248	5248	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 169
5249	5249	•HR 11 IH
5250	5250	Subtitle E—Absent Uniformed 1
5251	5251	Services Voters and Overseas 2
5252	5252	Voters 3
5253	5253	SEC. 1401. PRE-ELECTION REPORTS ON AVAILABILITY AND 4
5254	5254	TRANSMISSION OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS. 5
5255	5255	Section 102(c) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citi-6
5256	5256	zens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302(c)) is amend-7
5257	5257	ed to read as follows: 8
5258	5258	‘‘(c) R
5259	5259	EPORTS ON AVAILABILITY, TRANSMISSION, 9
5260	5260	ANDRECEIPT OFABSENTEEBALLOTS.— 10
5261	5261	‘‘(1) P
5262	5262	RE-ELECTION REPORT ON ABSENTEE 11
5263	5263	BALLOT AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 55 days be-12
5264	5264	fore any regularly scheduled general election for 13
5265	5265	Federal office, each State shall submit a report to 14
5266	5266	the Attorney General certifying that absentee ballots 15
5267	5267	for the election are or will be available for trans-16
5268	5268	mission to absent uniformed services voters and 17
5269	5269	overseas voters by not later than 46 days before the 18
5270	5270	election. The report shall be in a form prescribed by 19
5271	5271	the Attorney General and shall require the State to 20
5272	5272	certify specific information about ballot availability 21
5273	5273	from each unit of local government which will ad-22
5274	5274	minister the election. 23
5275	5275	‘‘(2) P
5276	5276	RE-ELECTION REPORT ON ABSENTEE 24
5277	5277	BALLOTS TRANSMITTED .— 25
5278	5278	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00169 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5279	5279	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 170
5280	5280	•HR 11 IH
5281	5281	‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 43 1
5282	5282	days before any election for Federal office held 2
5283	5283	in a State, the chief State election official of 3
5284	5284	such State shall submit a report containing the 4
5285	5285	information in subparagraph (B) to the Attor-5
5286	5286	ney General. 6
5287	5287	‘‘(B) I
5288	5288	NFORMATION REPORTED .—The re-7
5289	5289	port under subparagraph (A) shall consist of 8
5290	5290	the following: 9
5291	5291	‘‘(i) The total number of absentee bal-10
5292	5292	lots validly requested by absent uniformed 11
5293	5293	services voters and overseas voters whose 12
5294	5294	requests were received by the 47th day be-13
5295	5295	fore the election by each unit of local gov-14
5296	5296	ernment within the State that will transmit 15
5297	5297	absentee ballots. 16
5298	5298	‘‘(ii) The total number of ballots 17
5299	5299	transmitted to such voters by the 46th day 18
5300	5300	before the election by each unit of local 19
5301	5301	government within the State that will ad-20
5302	5302	minister the election. 21
5303	5303	‘‘(iii) Specific information about any 22
5304	5304	late transmitted ballots. 23
5305	5305	‘‘(C) R
5306	5306	EQUIREMENT TO SUPPLEMENT IN -24
5307	5307	COMPLETE INFORMATION .—If the report under 25
5308	5308	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00170 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5309	5309	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 171
5310	5310	•HR 11 IH
5311	5311	subparagraph (A) has incomplete information 1
5312	5312	on any items required to be included in the re-2
5313	5313	port, the chief State election official shall make 3
5314	5314	all reasonable efforts to expeditiously supple-4
5315	5315	ment the report with complete information. 5
5316	5316	‘‘(D) F
5317	5317	ORMAT.—The report under sub-6
5318	5318	paragraph (A) shall be in a format prescribed 7
5319	5319	by the Attorney General in consultation with 8
5320	5320	the chief State election officials of each State. 9
5321	5321	‘‘(3) P
5322	5322	OST-ELECTION REPORT ON NUMBER OF 10
5323	5323	ABSENTEE BALLOTS TRANSMITTED AND RE -11
5324	5324	CEIVED.—Not later than 90 days after the date of 12
5325	5325	each regularly scheduled general election for Federal 13
5326	5326	office, each State and unit of local government 14
5327	5327	which administered the election shall (through the 15
5328	5328	State, in the case of a unit of local government) sub-16
5329	5329	mit a report to the Election Assistance Commission 17
5330	5330	on the combined number of absentee ballots trans-18
5331	5331	mitted to absent uniformed services voters and over-19
5332	5332	seas voters for the election and the combined num-20
5333	5333	ber of such ballots which were returned by such vot-21
5334	5334	ers and cast in the election, and shall make such re-22
5335	5335	port available to the general public that same day.’’. 23
5336	5336	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00171 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5337	5337	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 172
5338	5338	•HR 11 IH
5339	5339	SEC. 1402. ENFORCEMENT. 1
5340	5340	(a) A
5341	5341	VAILABILITY OFCIVILPENALTIES AND PRI-2
5342	5342	VATERIGHTS OFACTION.—Section 105 of the Uniformed 3
5343	5343	and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 4
5344	5344	20307) is amended to read as follows: 5
5345	5345	‘‘SEC. 105. ENFORCEMENT. 6
5346	5346	‘‘(a) A
5347	5347	CTION BYATTORNEYGENERAL.—The Attor-7
5348	5348	ney General may bring civil action in an appropriate dis-8
5349	5349	trict court for such declaratory or injunctive relief as may 9
5350	5350	be necessary to carry out this title. 10
5351	5351	‘‘(b) P
5352	5352	RIVATERIGHT OFACTION.—A person who is 11
5353	5353	aggrieved by a violation of this title may bring a civil ac-12
5354	5354	tion in an appropriate district court for such declaratory 13
5355	5355	or injunctive relief as may be necessary to carry out this 14
5356	5356	title. 15
5357	5357	‘‘(c) S
5358	5358	TATE ASONLYNECESSARYDEFENDANT.—In 16
5359	5359	any action brought under this section, the only necessary 17
5360	5360	party defendant is the State, and it shall not be a defense 18
5361	5361	to any such action that a local election official or a unit 19
5362	5362	of local government is not named as a defendant, notwith-20
5363	5363	standing that a State has exercised the authority described 21
5364	5364	in section 576 of the Military and Overseas Voter Em-22
5365	5365	powerment Act to delegate to another jurisdiction in the 23
5366	5366	State any duty or responsibility which is the subject of 24
5367	5367	an action brought under this section.’’. 25
5368	5368	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00172 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5369	5369	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 173
5370	5370	•HR 11 IH
5371	5371	(b) EFFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 1
5372	5372	this section shall apply with respect to violations alleged 2
5373	5373	to have occurred on or after the date of enactment of this 3
5374	5374	Act. 4
5375	5375	SEC. 1403. TRANSMISSION REQUIREMENTS; REPEAL OF 5
5376	5376	WAIVER PROVISION. 6
5377	5377	(a) I
5378	5378	NGENERAL.—Paragraph (8) of section 102(a) 7
5379	5379	of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting 8
5380	5380	Act (52 U.S.C. 20302(a)) is amended to read as follows: 9
5381	5381	‘‘(8) transmit a validly requested absentee bal-10
5382	5382	lot to an absent uniformed services voter or overseas 11
5383	5383	voter by the date and in the manner determined 12
5384	5384	under subsection (g);’’. 13
5385	5385	(b) B
5386	5386	ALLOTTRANSMISSIONREQUIREMENTS AND 14
5387	5387	R
5388	5388	EPEAL OFWAIVERPROVISION.—Subsection (g) of sec-15
5389	5389	tion 102 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20302(g)) is amended 16
5390	5390	to read as follows: 17
5391	5391	‘‘(g) B
5392	5392	ALLOTTRANSMISSIONREQUIREMENTS.— 18
5393	5393	‘‘(1) I
5394	5394	N GENERAL.—For purposes of subsection 19
5395	5395	(a)(8), in the case in which a valid request for an 20
5396	5396	absentee ballot is received at least 47 days before an 21
5397	5397	election for Federal office, the following rules shall 22
5398	5398	apply: 23
5399	5399	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00173 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5400	5400	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 174
5401	5401	•HR 11 IH
5402	5402	‘‘(A) TRANSMISSION DEADLINE .—The 1
5403	5403	State shall transmit the absentee ballot not 2
5404	5404	later than 46 days before the election. 3
5405	5405	‘‘(B) S
5406	5406	PECIAL RULES IN CASE OF FAILURE 4
5407	5407	TO TRANSMIT ON TIME.— 5
5408	5408	‘‘(i) I
5409	5409	N GENERAL.—If the State fails 6
5410	5410	to transmit any absentee ballot by the 46th 7
5411	5411	day before the election as required by sub-8
5412	5412	paragraph (A) and the absent uniformed 9
5413	5413	services voter or overseas voter did not re-10
5414	5414	quest electronic ballot transmission pursu-11
5415	5415	ant to subsection (f), the State shall trans-12
5416	5416	mit such ballot by express delivery. 13
5417	5417	‘‘(ii) E
5418	5418	XTENDED FAILURE .—If the 14
5419	5419	State fails to transmit any absentee ballot 15
5420	5420	by the 41st day before the election, in ad-16
5421	5421	dition to transmitting the ballot as pro-17
5422	5422	vided in clause (i), the State shall— 18
5423	5423	‘‘(I) in the case of absentee bal-19
5424	5424	lots requested by absent uniformed 20
5425	5425	services voters with respect to regu-21
5426	5426	larly scheduled general elections, no-22
5427	5427	tify such voters of the procedures es-23
5428	5428	tablished under section 103A for the 24
5429	5429	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00174 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5430	5430	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 175
5431	5431	•HR 11 IH
5432	5432	collection and delivery of marked ab-1
5433	5433	sentee ballots; and 2
5434	5434	‘‘(II) in any other case, provide 3
5435	5435	for the return of such ballot by ex-4
5436	5436	press delivery. 5
5437	5437	‘‘(iii) C
5438	5438	OST OF EXPRESS DELIVERY .— 6
5439	5439	In any case in which express delivery is re-7
5440	5440	quired under this subparagraph, the cost 8
5441	5441	of such express delivery— 9
5442	5442	‘‘(I) shall not be paid by the 10
5443	5443	voter; and 11
5444	5444	‘‘(II) if determined appropriate 12
5445	5445	by the chief State election official, 13
5446	5446	may be required by the State to be 14
5447	5447	paid by a local jurisdiction. 15
5448	5448	‘‘(iv) E
5449	5449	XCEPTION.—Clause (ii)(II) 16
5450	5450	shall not apply when an absent uniformed 17
5451	5451	services voter or overseas voter indicates 18
5452	5452	the preference to return the late sent ab-19
5453	5453	sentee ballot by electronic transmission in 20
5454	5454	a State that permits return of an absentee 21
5455	5455	ballot by electronic transmission. 22
5456	5456	‘‘(v) E
5457	5457	NFORCEMENT.—A State’s com-23
5458	5458	pliance with this subparagraph does not 24
5459	5459	bar the Attorney General from seeking ad-25
5460	5460	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00175 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5461	5461	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 176
5462	5462	•HR 11 IH
5463	5463	ditional remedies necessary to fully resolve 1
5464	5464	or prevent ongoing, future, or systematic 2
5465	5465	violations of this provision or to effectuate 3
5466	5466	the purposes of this Act. 4
5467	5467	‘‘(C) S
5468	5468	PECIAL PROCEDURE IN EVENT OF 5
5469	5469	DISASTER.—If a disaster (hurricane, tornado, 6
5470	5470	earthquake, storm, volcanic eruption, landslide, 7
5471	5471	fire, flood, or explosion), or an act of terrorism 8
5472	5472	prevents the State from transmitting any ab-9
5473	5473	sentee ballot by the 46th day before the election 10
5474	5474	as required by subparagraph (A), the chief 11
5475	5475	State election official shall notify the Attorney 12
5476	5476	General as soon as practicable and take all ac-13
5477	5477	tions necessary, including seeking any necessary 14
5478	5478	judicial relief, to ensure that affected absent 15
5479	5479	uniformed services voters and overseas voters 16
5480	5480	are provided a reasonable opportunity to receive 17
5481	5481	and return their absentee ballots in time to be 18
5482	5482	counted. 19
5483	5483	‘‘(2) R
5484	5484	EQUESTS RECEIVED AFTER 47TH DAY 20
5485	5485	BEFORE ELECTION .—For purposes of subsection 21
5486	5486	(a)(8), in the case in which a valid request for an 22
5487	5487	absentee ballot is received less than 47 days but not 23
5488	5488	less than 30 days before an election for Federal of-24
5489	5489	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00176 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5490	5490	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 177
5491	5491	•HR 11 IH
5492	5492	fice, the State shall transmit the absentee ballot 1
5493	5493	within one business day of receipt of the request.’’. 2
5494	5494	SEC. 1404. USE OF SINGLE ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICA-3
5495	5495	TION FOR SUBSEQUENT ELECTIONS. 4
5496	5496	(a) I
5497	5497	NGENERAL.—Section 104 of the Uniformed and 5
5498	5498	Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20306) 6
5499	5499	is amended to read as follows: 7
5500	5500	‘‘SEC. 104. TREATMENT OF BALLOT REQUESTS. 8
5501	5501	‘‘(a) I
5502	5502	NGENERAL.—If a State accepts and processes 9
5503	5503	an official postcard form (prescribed under section 101) 10
5504	5504	submitted by an absent uniformed services voter or over-11
5505	5505	seas voter for simultaneous voter registration and absen-12
5506	5506	tee ballot application (in accordance with section 13
5507	5507	102(a)(4)) and the voter requests that the application be 14
5508	5508	considered an application for an absentee ballot for each 15
5509	5509	subsequent election for Federal office held in the State 16
5510	5510	through the end of the calendar year following the next 17
5511	5511	regularly scheduled general election for Federal office, the 18
5512	5512	State shall provide an absentee ballot to the voter for each 19
5513	5513	such subsequent election. 20
5514	5514	‘‘(b) E
5515	5515	XCEPTION FORVOTERSCHANGINGREGISTRA-21
5516	5516	TION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to a 22
5517	5517	voter registered to vote in a State for any election held 23
5518	5518	after the voter notifies the State that the voter no longer 24
5519	5519	wishes to be registered to vote in the State or after the 25
5520	5520	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00177 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5521	5521	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 178
5522	5522	•HR 11 IH
5523	5523	State determines that the voter has registered to vote in 1
5524	5524	another State or is otherwise no longer eligible to vote in 2
5525	5525	the State. 3
5526	5526	‘‘(c) P
5527	5527	ROHIBITION OFREFUSAL OFAPPLICATION ON 4
5528	5528	G
5529	5529	ROUNDS OF EARLYSUBMISSION.—A State may not 5
5530	5530	refuse to accept or to process, with respect to any election 6
5531	5531	for Federal office, any otherwise valid voter registration 7
5532	5532	application or absentee ballot application (including the 8
5533	5533	postcard form prescribed under section 101) submitted by 9
5534	5534	an absent uniformed services voter or overseas voter on 10
5535	5535	the grounds that the voter submitted the application be-11
5536	5536	fore the first date on which the State otherwise accepts 12
5537	5537	or processes such applications for that election which are 13
5538	5538	submitted by absentee voters who are not members of the 14
5539	5539	uniformed services or overseas citizens.’’. 15
5540	5540	(b) R
5541	5541	EQUIREMENT FOR REVISION TOPOSTCARD 16
5542	5542	F
5543	5543	ORM.— 17
5544	5544	(1) I
5545	5545	N GENERAL.—The Presidential designee 18
5546	5546	shall ensure that the official postcard form pre-19
5547	5547	scribed under section 101(b)(2) of the Uniformed 20
5548	5548	and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 21
5549	5549	U.S.C. 20301(b)(2)) enables a voter using the form 22
5550	5550	to— 23
5551	5551	(A) request an absentee ballot for each 24
5552	5552	election for Federal office held in a State 25
5553	5553	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00178 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5554	5554	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 179
5555	5555	•HR 11 IH
5556	5556	through the end of the calendar year following 1
5557	5557	the next regularly scheduled general election for 2
5558	5558	Federal office; or 3
5559	5559	(B) request an absentee ballot for a spe-4
5560	5560	cific election or elections for Federal office held 5
5561	5561	in a State during the period described in sub-6
5562	5562	paragraph (A). 7
5563	5563	(2) P
5564	5564	RESIDENTIAL DESIGNEE .—For purposes 8
5565	5565	of this paragraph, the term ‘‘Presidential designee’’ 9
5566	5566	means the individual designated under section 10
5567	5567	101(a) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab-11
5568	5568	sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301(a)). 12
5569	5569	(c) E
5570	5570	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 13
5571	5571	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to voter registration 14
5572	5572	and absentee ballot applications which are submitted to 15
5573	5573	a State or local election official on or after the date of 16
5574	5574	enactment of this Act. 17
5575	5575	SEC. 1405. EXTENDING GUARANTEE OF RESIDENCY FOR 18
5576	5576	VOTING PURPOSES TO FAMILY MEMBERS OF 19
5577	5577	ABSENT MILITARY PERSONNEL. 20
5578	5578	Section 102 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 21
5579	5579	Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302), as amended by 22
5580	5580	section 1302, is amended by adding at the end the fol-23
5581	5581	lowing new subsection: 24
5582	5582	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00179 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5583	5583	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 180
5584	5584	•HR 11 IH
5585	5585	‘‘(i) GUARANTEE OFRESIDENCY FORSPOUSES AND 1
5586	5586	D
5587	5587	EPENDENTS OF ABSENTMEMBERS OF UNIFORMED 2
5588	5588	S
5589	5589	ERVICE.—For the purposes of voting in any election for 3
5590	5590	any Federal office or any State or local office, a spouse 4
5591	5591	or dependent of an individual who is an absent uniformed 5
5592	5592	services voter described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of sec-6
5593	5593	tion 107(1) shall not, solely by reason of that individual’s 7
5594	5594	absence and without regard to whether or not such spouse 8
5595	5595	or dependent is accompanying that individual— 9
5596	5596	‘‘(1) be deemed to have lost a residence or 10
5597	5597	domicile in that State, without regard to whether or 11
5598	5598	not that individual intends to return to that State; 12
5599	5599	‘‘(2) be deemed to have acquired a residence or 13
5600	5600	domicile in any other State; or 14
5601	5601	‘‘(3) be deemed to have become a resident in or 15
5602	5602	a resident of any other State.’’. 16
5603	5603	SEC. 1406. TECHNICAL CLARIFICATIONS TO CONFORM TO 17
5604	5604	MILITARY AND OVERSEAS VOTER EMPOWER-18
5605	5605	MENT ACT AMENDMENTS RELATED TO THE 19
5606	5606	FEDERAL WRITE-IN ABSENTEE BALLOT. 20
5607	5607	(a) I
5608	5608	NGENERAL.—Section 102(a)(3) of the Uni-21
5609	5609	formed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 22
5610	5610	U.S.C. 20302(a)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘general elec-23
5611	5611	tions’’ and inserting ‘‘general, special, primary, and runoff 24
5612	5612	elections’’. 25
5613	5613	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00180 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5614	5614	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 181
5615	5615	•HR 11 IH
5616	5616	(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 103 of 1
5617	5617	such Act (52 U.S.C. 20303) is amended— 2
5618	5618	(1) in subsection (b)(2)(B), by striking ‘‘gen-3
5619	5619	eral’’; and 4
5620	5620	(2) in the heading thereof, by striking ‘‘
5621	5621	GEN-5
5622	5622	ERAL’’. 6
5623	5623	SEC. 1407. TREATMENT OF POSTCARD REGISTRATION RE-7
5624	5624	QUESTS. 8
5625	5625	Section 102 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 9
5626	5626	Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20302), as amended by 10
5627	5627	sections 1302 and 1405, is amended by adding at the end 11
5628	5628	the following new subsection: 12
5629	5629	‘‘(j) T
5630	5630	REATMENT OF POSTCARDREGISTRATIONS.— 13
5631	5631	A State shall not remove any absent uniformed services 14
5632	5632	voter or overseas voter who has registered to vote using 15
5633	5633	the official postcard form (prescribed under section 101) 16
5634	5634	from the official list of registered voters except in accord-17
5635	5635	ance with subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 8(a)(3) 18
5636	5636	of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 19
5637	5637	20507).’’. 20
5638	5638	SEC. 1408. PRESIDENTIAL DESIGNEE REPORT ON VOTER 21
5639	5639	DISENFRANCHISEMENT. 22
5640	5640	(a) I
5641	5641	NGENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 23
5642	5642	date of enactment of this Act, the Presidential designee 24
5643	5643	shall submit to Congress a report on the impact of wide-25
5644	5644	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00181 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5645	5645	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 182
5646	5646	•HR 11 IH
5647	5647	spread mail-in voting on the ability of active duty military 1
5648	5648	service members to vote, how quickly the votes of those 2
5649	5649	individuals are counted, and whether higher volumes of 3
5650	5650	mail-in votes makes it harder for such individuals to vote 4
5651	5651	in elections for Federal elections. 5
5652	5652	(b) P
5653	5653	RESIDENTIALDESIGNEE.—For purposes of this 6
5654	5654	section, the term ‘‘Presidential designee’’ means the indi-7
5655	5655	vidual designated under section 101(a) of the Uniformed 8
5656	5656	and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 9
5657	5657	20301(a)). 10
5658	5658	SEC. 1409. EFFECTIVE DATE. 11
5659	5659	Except as provided in section 1402(b) and section 12
5660	5660	1404(c), the amendments made by this subtitle shall apply 13
5661	5661	with respect to elections occurring on or after January 1, 14
5662	5662	2024. 15
5663	5663	Subtitle F—Enhancement of 16
5664	5664	Enforcement 17
5665	5665	SEC. 1501. ENHANCEMENT OF ENFORCEMENT OF HELP 18
5666	5666	AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002. 19
5667	5667	(a) C
5668	5668	OMPLAINTS; AVAILABILITY OFPRIVATERIGHT 20
5669	5669	OFACTION.—Section 401 of the Help America Vote Act 21
5670	5670	of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended— 22
5671	5671	(1) by striking ‘‘The Attorney General’’ and in-23
5672	5672	serting ‘‘(a) I
5673	5673	NGENERAL.—The Attorney General’’; 24
5674	5674	and 25
5675	5675	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00182 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5676	5676	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 183
5677	5677	•HR 11 IH
5678	5678	(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-1
5679	5679	sections: 2
5680	5680	‘‘(b) F
5681	5681	ILING OFCOMPLAINTS BYAGGRIEVEDPER-3
5682	5682	SONS.—A person who is aggrieved by a violation of title 4
5683	5683	III that impairs their ability to cast a ballot or a provi-5
5684	5684	sional ballot, to register or maintain one’s registration to 6
5685	5685	vote, or to vote on a voting system meeting the require-7
5686	5686	ments of such title, which has occurred, is occurring, or 8
5687	5687	is about to occur may file a written, signed, and notarized 9
5688	5688	complaint with the Attorney General describing the viola-10
5689	5689	tion and requesting the Attorney General to take appro-11
5690	5690	priate action under this section. The Attorney General 12
5691	5691	shall immediately provide a copy of a complaint filed under 13
5692	5692	the previous sentence to the entity responsible for admin-14
5693	5693	istering the State-based administrative complaint proce-15
5694	5694	dures described in section 402(a) for the State involved. 16
5695	5695	‘‘(c) A
5696	5696	VAILABILITY OF PRIVATERIGHT OFAC-17
5697	5697	TION.—Any person who is authorized to file a complaint 18
5698	5698	under subsection (b) (including any individual who seeks 19
5699	5699	to enforce the individual’s right to a voter-verifiable paper 20
5700	5700	ballot, the right to have the voter-verifiable paper ballot 21
5701	5701	counted in accordance with this Act, or any other right 22
5702	5702	under title III) may file an action under section 1979 of 23
5703	5703	the Revised Statutes of the United States (42 U.S.C. 24
5704	5704	1983) to enforce the uniform and nondiscriminatory elec-25
5705	5705	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00183 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5706	5706	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 184
5707	5707	•HR 11 IH
5708	5708	tion technology and administration requirements under 1
5709	5709	subtitle A of title III. 2
5710	5710	‘‘(d) N
5711	5711	OEFFECT ONSTATEPROCEDURES.—Nothing 3
5712	5712	in this section may be construed to affect the availability 4
5713	5713	of the State-based administrative complaint procedures re-5
5714	5714	quired under section 402 to any person filing a complaint 6
5715	5715	under this subsection.’’. 7
5716	5716	(b) E
5717	5717	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 8
5718	5718	this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 9
5719	5719	with respect to elections for Federal office held in 2024 10
5720	5720	or any succeeding year. 11
5721	5721	Subtitle G—Promoting Voter Ac-12
5722	5722	cess Through Election Adminis-13
5723	5723	tration Modernization Improve-14
5724	5724	ments 15
5725	5725	PART 1—PROMOTING VOTER ACCESS 16
5726	5726	SEC. 1601. MINIMUM NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR 17
5727	5727	VOTERS AFFECTED BY POLLING PLACE 18
5728	5728	CHANGES. 19
5729	5729	(a) R
5730	5730	EQUIREMENTS.—Section 302 of the Help Amer-20
5731	5731	ica Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082) is amended— 21
5732	5732	(1) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub-22
5733	5733	section (e); and 23
5734	5734	(2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol-24
5735	5735	lowing new subsection: 25
5736	5736	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00184 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5737	5737	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 185
5738	5738	•HR 11 IH
5739	5739	‘‘(d) MINIMUMNOTIFICATIONREQUIREMENTS FOR 1
5740	5740	V
5741	5741	OTERSAFFECTED BYPOLLINGPLACECHANGES.— 2
5742	5742	‘‘(1) R
5743	5743	EQUIREMENT FOR PRECINCT -BASED 3
5744	5744	POLLING.— 4
5745	5745	‘‘(A) I
5746	5746	N GENERAL.—If an applicable indi-5
5747	5747	vidual has been assigned to a polling place that 6
5748	5748	is different than the polling place that such in-7
5749	5749	dividual was assigned with respect to the most 8
5750	5750	recent past election for Federal office in which 9
5751	5751	the individual was eligible to vote— 10
5752	5752	‘‘(i) the appropriate election official 11
5753	5753	shall, not later than 2 days before the be-12
5754	5754	ginning of an early voting period— 13
5755	5755	‘‘(I) notify the individual of the 14
5756	5756	location of the polling place; and 15
5757	5757	‘‘(II) post a general notice on the 16
5758	5758	website of the State or jurisdiction, on 17
5759	5759	social media platforms (if available), 18
5760	5760	and on signs at the prior polling 19
5761	5761	place; and 20
5762	5762	‘‘(ii) if such assignment is made after 21
5763	5763	the date that is 2 days before the begin-22
5764	5764	ning of an early voting period and the indi-23
5765	5765	vidual appears on the date of the election 24
5766	5766	at the polling place to which the individual 25
5767	5767	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00185 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5768	5768	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 186
5769	5769	•HR 11 IH
5770	5770	was previously assigned, the jurisdiction 1
5771	5771	shall make every reasonable effort to en-2
5772	5772	able the individual to vote a ballot on the 3
5773	5773	date of the election without the use of a 4
5774	5774	provisional ballot. 5
5775	5775	‘‘(B) A
5776	5776	PPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL.—For pur-6
5777	5777	poses of subparagraph (A), the term ‘applicable 7
5778	5778	individual’ means, with respect to any election 8
5779	5779	for Federal office, any individual— 9
5780	5780	‘‘(i) who is registered to vote in a ju-10
5781	5781	risdiction for such election and was reg-11
5782	5782	istered to vote in such jurisdiction for the 12
5783	5783	most recent past election for Federal of-13
5784	5784	fice; and 14
5785	5785	‘‘(ii) whose voter registration address 15
5786	5786	has not changed since such most recent 16
5787	5787	past election for Federal office. 17
5788	5788	‘‘(C) M
5789	5789	ETHODS OF NOTIFICATION .—The 18
5790	5790	appropriate election official shall notify an indi-19
5791	5791	vidual under clause (i)(I) of subparagraph (A) 20
5792	5792	by mail, telephone, and (if available) text mes-21
5793	5793	sage and electronic mail. 22
5794	5794	‘‘(2) R
5795	5795	EQUIREMENTS FOR VOTE CENTERS .—In 23
5796	5796	the case of a jurisdiction in which individuals are 24
5797	5797	not assigned to specific polling places, not later than 25
5798	5798	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00186 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5799	5799	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 187
5800	5800	•HR 11 IH
5801	5801	2 days before the beginning of an early voting pe-1
5802	5802	riod, the appropriate election official shall notify 2
5803	5803	each individual eligible to vote in such jurisdiction of 3
5804	5804	the location of all polling places at which the indi-4
5805	5805	vidual may vote. 5
5806	5806	‘‘(3) N
5807	5807	OTICE WITH RESPECT TO CLOSED POLL -6
5808	5808	ING PLACES.— 7
5809	5809	‘‘(A) I
5810	5810	N GENERAL.—If a location which 8
5811	5811	served as a polling place for an election for 9
5812	5812	Federal office in a State does not serve as a 10
5813	5813	polling place in the next election for Federal of-11
5814	5814	fice held in the State, the State shall ensure 12
5815	5815	that signs are posted at such location on the 13
5816	5816	date of the election and during any early voting 14
5817	5817	period for the election containing the following 15
5818	5818	information: 16
5819	5819	‘‘(i) A statement that the location is 17
5820	5820	not serving as a polling place in the elec-18
5821	5821	tion. 19
5822	5822	‘‘(ii) The locations serving as polling 20
5823	5823	places in the election in the jurisdiction in-21
5824	5824	volved. 22
5825	5825	‘‘(iii) The name and address of any 23
5826	5826	substitute polling place serving the same 24
5827	5827	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00187 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5828	5828	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 188
5829	5829	•HR 11 IH
5830	5830	precinct and directions from the former 1
5831	5831	polling place to the new polling place. 2
5832	5832	‘‘(iv) Contact information, including a 3
5833	5833	telephone number and website, for the ap-4
5834	5834	propriate State or local election official 5
5835	5835	through which an individual may find the 6
5836	5836	polling place to which the individual is as-7
5837	5837	signed for the election. 8
5838	5838	‘‘(B) I
5839	5839	NTERNET POSTING .—Each State 9
5840	5840	which is required to post signs under subpara-10
5841	5841	graph (A) shall also provide such information 11
5842	5842	through a website and through social media (if 12
5843	5843	available). 13
5844	5844	‘‘(4) L
5845	5845	INGUISTIC PREFERENCE .—The notices 14
5846	5846	required under this subsection shall comply with the 15
5847	5847	requirements of section 203 of the Voting Rights 16
5848	5848	Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10503). 17
5849	5849	‘‘(5) E
5850	5850	FFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 18
5851	5851	apply with respect to elections held on or after Janu-19
5852	5852	ary 1, 2024.’’. 20
5853	5853	(b) C
5854	5854	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT.—Section 302(e) of 21
5855	5855	such Act (52 U.S.C. 21082(e)), as redesignated by sub-22
5856	5856	section (a), is amended by striking ‘‘Each State’’ and in-23
5857	5857	serting ‘‘Except as provided in subsection (d)(4), each 24
5858	5858	State’’. 25
5859	5859	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00188 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5860	5860	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 189
5861	5861	•HR 11 IH
5862	5862	SEC. 1602. APPLICABILITY TO COMMONWEALTH OF THE 1
5863	5863	NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS. 2
5864	5864	Paragraphs (6) and (8) of section 107 of the Uni-3
5865	5865	formed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 4
5866	5866	U.S.C. 20310) are each amended by striking ‘‘and Amer-5
5867	5867	ican Samoa’’ and inserting ‘‘American Samoa, and the 6
5868	5868	Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’’. 7
5869	5869	SEC. 1603. ELIMINATION OF 14-DAY TIME PERIOD BETWEEN 8
5870	5870	GENERAL ELECTION AND RUNOFF ELECTION 9
5871	5871	FOR FEDERAL ELECTIONS IN THE VIRGIN IS-10
5872	5872	LANDS AND GUAM. 11
5873	5873	Section 2 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide that 12
5874	5874	the unincorporated territories of Guam and the Virgin Is-13
5875	5875	lands shall each be represented in Congress by a Delegate 14
5876	5876	to the House of Representatives’’, approved April 10, 15
5877	5877	1972 (48 U.S.C. 1712), is amended— 16
5878	5878	(1) by striking ‘‘(a) The Delegate’’ and insert-17
5879	5879	ing ‘‘The Delegate’’; 18
5880	5880	(2) by striking ‘‘on the fourteenth day following 19
5881	5881	such an election’’ in the fourth sentence of sub-20
5882	5882	section (a); and 21
5883	5883	(3) by striking subsection (b). 22
5884	5884	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00189 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5885	5885	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 190
5886	5886	•HR 11 IH
5887	5887	SEC. 1604. APPLICATION OF FEDERAL ELECTION ADMINIS-1
5888	5888	TRATION LAWS TO TERRITORIES OF THE 2
5889	5889	UNITED STATES. 3
5890	5890	(a) N
5891	5891	ATIONALVOTERREGISTRATION ACT OF 4
5892	5892	1993.—Section 3(4) of the National Voter Registration 5
5893	5893	Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20502(4)) is amended by striking 6
5894	5894	‘‘States and the District of Columbia’’ and inserting 7
5895	5895	‘‘States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 8
5896	5896	Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States 9
5897	5897	Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 10
5898	5898	Mariana Islands’’. 11
5899	5899	(b) H
5900	5900	ELPAMERICAVOTEACT OF2002.— 12
5901	5901	(1) C
5902	5902	OVERAGE OF COMMONWEALTH OF THE 13
5903	5903	NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS .—Section 901 of the 14
5904	5904	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21141) 15
5905	5905	is amended by striking ‘‘and the United States Vir-16
5906	5906	gin Islands’’ and inserting ‘‘the United States Virgin 17
5907	5907	Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 18
5908	5908	Mariana Islands’’. 19
5909	5909	(2) C
5910	5910	ONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO HELP 20
5911	5911	AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002 .—Such Act is further 21
5912	5912	amended as follows: 22
5913	5913	(A) The second sentence of section 23
5914	5914	213(a)(2) (52 U.S.C. 20943(a)(2)) is amended 24
5915	5915	by striking ‘‘and American Samoa’’ and insert-25
5916	5916	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00190 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5917	5917	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 191
5918	5918	•HR 11 IH
5919	5919	ing ‘‘American Samoa, and the Commonwealth 1
5920	5920	of the Northern Mariana Islands’’. 2
5921	5921	(B) Section 252(c)(2) (52 U.S.C. 3
5922	5922	21002(c)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘or the 4
5923	5923	United States Virgin Islands’’ and inserting 5
5924	5924	‘‘the United States Virgin Islands, or the Com-6
5925	5925	monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’’. 7
5926	5926	(3) C
5927	5927	ONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO 8
5928	5928	CONSULTATION OF HELP AMERICA VOTE FOUNDA -9
5929	5929	TION WITH LOCAL ELECTION OFFICIALS .—Section 10
5930	5930	90102(c) of title 36, United States Code, is amend-11
5931	5931	ed by striking ‘‘and the United States Virgin Is-12
5932	5932	lands’’ and inserting ‘‘the United States Virgin Is-13
5933	5933	lands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar-14
5934	5934	iana Islands’’. 15
5935	5935	SEC. 1605. APPLICATION OF FEDERAL VOTER PROTECTION 16
5936	5936	LAWS TO TERRITORIES OF THE UNITED 17
5937	5937	STATES. 18
5938	5938	(a) I
5939	5939	NTIMIDATION OFVOTERS.—Section 594 of title 19
5940	5940	18, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Delegate 20
5941	5941	from the District of Columbia, or Resident Commis-21
5942	5942	sioner,’’ and inserting ‘‘or Delegate or Resident Commis-22
5943	5943	sioner to the Congress’’. 23
5944	5944	(b) I
5945	5945	NTERFERENCE BY GOVERNMENT EMPLOY-24
5946	5946	EES.—Section 595 of title 18, United States Code, is 25
5947	5947	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00191 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5948	5948	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 192
5949	5949	•HR 11 IH
5950	5950	amended by striking ‘‘Delegate from the District of Co-1
5951	5951	lumbia, or Resident Commissioner,’’ and inserting ‘‘or 2
5952	5952	Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress’’. 3
5953	5953	(c) V
5954	5954	OTING BYNONCITIZENS.—Section 611(a) of 4
5955	5955	title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Del-5
5956	5956	egate from the District of Columbia, or Resident Commis-6
5957	5957	sioner,’’ and inserting ‘‘or Delegate or Resident Commis-7
5958	5958	sioner to the Congress’’. 8
5959	5959	SEC. 1606. ENSURING EQUITABLE AND EFFICIENT OPER-9
5960	5960	ATION OF POLLING PLACES. 10
5961	5961	(a) I
5962	5962	NGENERAL.— 11
5963	5963	(1) R
5964	5964	EQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of 12
5965	5965	the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 13
5966	5966	21081 et seq.), as amended by section 1031(a), sec-14
5967	5967	tion 1044(a), section 1101(a), section 1102(a), sec-15
5968	5968	tion 1103(a), section 1104(a), section 1201(a), sec-16
5969	5969	tion 1301(a), section 1302(a), section 1303(b), and 17
5970	5970	section 1305(a), is amended— 18
5971	5971	(A) by redesignating sections 315 and 316 19
5972	5972	as sections 316 and 317, respectively; and 20
5973	5973	(B) by inserting after section 314 the fol-21
5974	5974	lowing new section: 22
5975	5975	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00192 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
5976	5976	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 193
5977	5977	•HR 11 IH
5978	5978	‘‘SEC. 315. ENSURING EQUITABLE AND EFFICIENT OPER-1
5979	5979	ATION OF POLLING PLACES. 2
5980	5980	‘‘(a) P
5981	5981	REVENTINGUNREASONABLE WAITINGTIMES 3
5982	5982	FORVOTERS.— 4
5983	5983	‘‘(1) I
5984	5984	N GENERAL.—Each State or jurisdiction 5
5985	5985	shall take reasonable efforts to provide a sufficient 6
5986	5986	number of voting systems, poll workers, and other 7
5987	5987	election resources (including physical resources) at a 8
5988	5988	polling place used in any election for Federal office, 9
5989	5989	including a polling place at which individuals may 10
5990	5990	cast ballots prior to the date of the election, to en-11
5991	5991	sure— 12
5992	5992	‘‘(A) a fair and equitable waiting time for 13
5993	5993	all voters in the State or jurisdiction; and 14
5994	5994	‘‘(B) that no individual will be required to 15
5995	5995	wait longer than 30 minutes to cast a ballot at 16
5996	5996	the polling place. 17
5997	5997	‘‘(2) C
5998	5998	RITERIA.—In determining the number of 18
5999	5999	voting systems, poll workers, and other election re-19
6000	6000	sources provided at a polling place for purposes of 20
6001	6001	paragraph (1), the State or jurisdiction shall take 21
6002	6002	into account the following factors: 22
6003	6003	‘‘(A) The voting age population. 23
6004	6004	‘‘(B) Voter turnout in past elections. 24
6005	6005	‘‘(C) The number of voters registered. 25
6006	6006	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00193 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6007	6007	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 194
6008	6008	•HR 11 IH
6009	6009	‘‘(D) The number of voters who have reg-1
6010	6010	istered since the most recent Federal election. 2
6011	6011	‘‘(E) Census data for the population served 3
6012	6012	by the polling place, such as the proportion of 4
6013	6013	the voting-age population who are under 25 5
6014	6014	years of age or who are naturalized citizens. 6
6015	6015	‘‘(F) The needs and numbers of voters 7
6016	6016	with disabilities and voters with limited English 8
6017	6017	proficiency. 9
6018	6018	‘‘(G) The type of voting systems used. 10
6019	6019	‘‘(H) The length and complexity of initia-11
6020	6020	tives, referenda, and other questions on the bal-12
6021	6021	lot. 13
6022	6022	‘‘(I) Such other factors, including relevant 14
6023	6023	demographic factors relating to the population 15
6024	6024	served by the polling place, as the State con-16
6025	6025	siders appropriate. 17
6026	6026	‘‘(3) R
6027	6027	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 18
6028	6028	this subsection may be construed— 19
6029	6029	‘‘(A) to authorize a State or jurisdiction to 20
6030	6030	meet the requirements of this subsection by 21
6031	6031	closing any polling place, prohibiting an indi-22
6032	6032	vidual from entering a line at a polling place, 23
6033	6033	or refusing to permit an individual who has ar-24
6034	6034	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00194 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6035	6035	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 195
6036	6036	•HR 11 IH
6037	6037	rived at a polling place prior to closing time 1
6038	6038	from voting at the polling place; or 2
6039	6039	‘‘(B) to limit the use of mobile voting cen-3
6040	6040	ters. 4
6041	6041	‘‘(b) L
6042	6042	IMITINGVARIATIONS ONNUMBER OFHOURS 5
6043	6043	OFOPERATION OFPOLLINGPLACESWITHIN ASTATE.— 6
6044	6044	‘‘(1) L
6045	6045	IMITATION.— 7
6046	6046	‘‘(A) I
6047	6047	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in 8
6048	6048	subparagraph (B) and paragraph (2), each 9
6049	6049	State shall establish hours of operation for all 10
6050	6050	polling places in the State on the date of any 11
6051	6051	election for Federal office held in the State 12
6052	6052	such that the polling place with the greatest 13
6053	6053	number of hours of operation on such date is 14
6054	6054	not in operation for more than 2 hours longer 15
6055	6055	than the polling place with the fewest number 16
6056	6056	of hours of operation on such date. 17
6057	6057	‘‘(B) P
6058	6058	ERMITTING VARIANCE ON BASIS OF 18
6059	6059	POPULATION.—Subparagraph (A) does not 19
6060	6060	apply to the extent that the State establishes 20
6061	6061	variations in the hours of operation of polling 21
6062	6062	places on the basis of the overall population or 22
6063	6063	the voting age population (as the State may se-23
6064	6064	lect) of the unit of local government in which 24
6065	6065	such polling places are located. 25
6066	6066	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00195 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6067	6067	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 196
6068	6068	•HR 11 IH
6069	6069	‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS FOR POLLING PLACES WITH 1
6070	6070	HOURS ESTABLISHED BY UNITS OF LOCAL GOVERN -2
6071	6071	MENT.—Paragraph (1) does not apply in the case of 3
6072	6072	a polling place— 4
6073	6073	‘‘(A) whose hours of operation are estab-5
6074	6074	lished, in accordance with State law, by the unit 6
6075	6075	of local government in which the polling place 7
6076	6076	is located; or 8
6077	6077	‘‘(B) which is required pursuant to an 9
6078	6078	order by a court to extend its hours of oper-10
6079	6079	ation beyond the hours otherwise established. 11
6080	6080	‘‘(c) E
6081	6081	NSURINGACCESS TOPOLLINGPLACES FOR 12
6082	6082	V
6083	6083	OTERS.— 13
6084	6084	‘‘(1) P
6085	6085	ROXIMITY TO PUBLIC TRANSPOR -14
6086	6086	TATION.—To the greatest extent practicable, each 15
6087	6087	State and jurisdiction shall ensure that each polling 16
6088	6088	place used on the date of the election is located with-17
6089	6089	in walking distance of a stop on a public transpor-18
6090	6090	tation route. 19
6091	6091	‘‘(2) A
6092	6092	VAILABILITY IN RURAL AREAS .—In the 20
6093	6093	case of a jurisdiction that includes a rural area, the 21
6094	6094	State or jurisdiction shall— 22
6095	6095	‘‘(A) ensure that an appropriate number of 23
6096	6096	polling places (not less than one) used on the 24
6097	6097	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00196 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6098	6098	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 197
6099	6099	•HR 11 IH
6100	6100	date of the election will be located in such rural 1
6101	6101	areas; and 2
6102	6102	‘‘(B) ensure that such polling places are lo-3
6103	6103	cated in communities which will provide the 4
6104	6104	greatest opportunity for residents of rural areas 5
6105	6105	to vote on the date of the election. 6
6106	6106	‘‘(3) C
6107	6107	AMPUSES OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER 7
6108	6108	EDUCATION.—In the case of a jurisdiction that is 8
6109	6109	not considered a vote by mail jurisdiction described 9
6110	6110	in section 310(b)(2) or a small jurisdiction described 10
6111	6111	in section 310(b)(3) and that includes an institution 11
6112	6112	of higher education (as defined under section 102 of 12
6113	6113	the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 13
6114	6114	1002)), including a branch campus of such an insti-14
6115	6115	tution, the State or jurisdiction shall— 15
6116	6116	‘‘(A) ensure that an appropriate number of 16
6117	6117	polling places (not less than one) used on the 17
6118	6118	date of the election will be located on the phys-18
6119	6119	ical campus of each such institution, including 19
6120	6120	each such branch campus; and 20
6121	6121	‘‘(B) ensure that such polling places pro-21
6122	6122	vide the greatest opportunity for residents of 22
6123	6123	the jurisdiction to vote. 23
6124	6124	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00197 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6125	6125	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 198
6126	6126	•HR 11 IH
6127	6127	‘‘(d) EFFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall take ef-1
6128	6128	fect upon the expiration of the 180-day period which be-2
6129	6129	gins on the date of enactment of this subsection.’’. 3
6130	6130	(2) C
6131	6131	ONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO 4
6132	6132	ISSUANCE OF VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE BY ELECTION 5
6133	6133	ASSISTANCE COMMISSION .—Section 321(b) of such 6
6134	6134	Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as redesignated and 7
6135	6135	amended by section 1101(b) and as amended by sec-8
6136	6136	tions, 1102, 1103, 1104, and 1201, is amended— 9
6137	6137	(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para-10
6138	6138	graph (4); 11
6139	6139	(B) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 12
6140	6140	paragraph (6); 13
6141	6141	(C) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated, 14
6142	6142	by striking ‘‘paragraph (4)’’ and inserting 15
6143	6143	‘‘paragraph (4) or (5)’’; and 16
6144	6144	(D) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 17
6145	6145	following new paragraph: 18
6146	6146	‘‘(5) in the case of the recommendations with 19
6147	6147	respect to section 315, 180 days after the date of 20
6148	6148	enactment of such section; and’’. 21
6149	6149	(3) C
6150	6150	LERICAL AMENDMENTS .—The table of 22
6151	6151	contents of such Act, as amended by section 23
6152	6152	1031(c), section 1044(b), section 1101(c), section 24
6153	6153	1102(c), section 1103(a), section 1104(c), section 25
6154	6154	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00198 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6155	6155	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 199
6156	6156	•HR 11 IH
6157	6157	1201(c), section 1301(a), section 1302(a), section 1
6158	6158	1303(b), and section 1305(b), is amended— 2
6159	6159	(A) by redesignating the items relating to 3
6160	6160	sections 315 and 316 as relating to sections 4
6161	6161	316 and 317, respectively; and 5
6162	6162	(B) by inserting after the item relating to 6
6163	6163	section 314 the following new item: 7
6164	6164	‘‘Sec. 315. Ensuring equitable and efficient operation of polling places.’’.
6165	6165	(b) STUDY OFMETHODSTOENFORCEFAIR AND 8
6166	6166	E
6167	6167	QUITABLEWAITINGTIMES.— 9
6168	6168	(1) S
6169	6169	TUDY.—The Election Assistance Commis-10
6170	6170	sion and the Comptroller General of the United 11
6171	6171	States shall conduct a joint study of the effective-12
6172	6172	ness of various methods of enforcing the require-13
6173	6173	ments of section 315(a) of the Help America Vote 14
6174	6174	Act of 2002, as added by subsection (a), including 15
6175	6175	methods of best allocating resources to jurisdictions 16
6176	6176	which have had the most difficulty in providing a 17
6177	6177	fair and equitable waiting time at polling places to 18
6178	6178	all voters, and to communities of color in particular. 19
6179	6179	(2) R
6180	6180	EPORT.—Not later than 18 months after 20
6181	6181	the date of enactment of this Act, the Election As-21
6182	6182	sistance Commission and the Comptroller General of 22
6183	6183	the United States shall publish and submit to Con-23
6184	6184	gress a report on the study conducted under para-24
6185	6185	graph (1). 25
6186	6186	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00199 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6187	6187	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 200
6188	6188	•HR 11 IH
6189	6189	SEC. 1607. PROHIBITING STATES FROM RESTRICTING 1
6190	6190	CURBSIDE VOTING. 2
6191	6191	(a) R
6192	6192	EQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of the 3
6193	6193	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 4
6194	6194	as amended by section 1031(a), section 1044(a), section 5
6195	6195	1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), section 6
6196	6196	1104(a), section 1201(a), section 1301(a), section 7
6197	6197	1302(a), section 1303(b), section 1305(a), and section 8
6198	6198	1606(a)(1), is amended— 9
6199	6199	(1) by redesignating sections 316 and 317 as 10
6200	6200	sections 317 and 318, respectively; and 11
6201	6201	(2) by inserting after section 315 the following 12
6202	6202	new section: 13
6203	6203	‘‘SEC. 316. PROHIBITING STATES FROM RESTRICTING 14
6204	6204	CURBSIDE VOTING. 15
6205	6205	‘‘(a) P
6206	6206	ROHIBITION.—A State may not— 16
6207	6207	‘‘(1) prohibit any jurisdiction administering an 17
6208	6208	election for Federal office in the State from utilizing 18
6209	6209	curbside voting as a method by which individuals 19
6210	6210	may cast ballots in the election; or 20
6211	6211	‘‘(2) impose any restrictions which would ex-21
6212	6212	clude any individual who is eligible to vote in such 22
6213	6213	an election in a jurisdiction which utilizes curbside 23
6214	6214	voting from casting a ballot in the election by such 24
6215	6215	method. 25
6216	6216	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00200 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6217	6217	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 201
6218	6218	•HR 11 IH
6219	6219	‘‘(b) EFFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 1
6220	6220	with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 2
6221	6221	Federal office held in November 2024 and each succeeding 3
6222	6222	election for Federal office.’’. 4
6223	6223	(b) C
6224	6224	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 5
6225	6225	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 6
6226	6226	1044(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 7
6227	6227	1103(a), section 1104(c), section 1201(c), section 8
6228	6228	1301(a), section 1302(a), section 1303(b), section 9
6229	6229	1305(a), and section 1606(a)(3), is amended— 10
6230	6230	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-11
6231	6231	tions 316 and 317 as relating to sections 317 and 12
6232	6232	318, respectively; and 13
6233	6233	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-14
6234	6234	tion 315 the following new item: 15
6235	6235	‘‘Sec. 316. Prohibiting States from restricting curbside voting.’’.
6236	6236	PART 2—IMPROVEMENTS IN OPERATION OF 16
6237	6237	ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION 17
6238	6238	SEC. 1611. REAUTHORIZATION OF ELECTION ASSISTANCE 18
6239	6239	COMMISSION. 19
6240	6240	Section 210 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 20
6241	6241	(52 U.S.C. 20930) is amended— 21
6242	6242	(1) by striking ‘‘for each of the fiscal years 22
6243	6243	2003 through 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘for fiscal year 23
6244	6244	2024 and each succeeding fiscal year’’; and 24
6245	6245	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00201 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6246	6246	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 202
6247	6247	•HR 11 IH
6248	6248	(2) by striking ‘‘(but not to exceed $10,000,000 1
6249	6249	for each such year)’’. 2
6250	6250	SEC. 1612. RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE OPERATIONS 3
6251	6251	OF ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION. 4
6252	6252	(a) A
6253	6253	SSESSMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 5
6254	6254	ANDCYBERSECURITY.—Not later than June 30, 2024, 6
6255	6255	the Election Assistance Commission shall carry out an as-7
6256	6256	sessment of the security and effectiveness of the Commis-8
6257	6257	sion’s information technology systems, including the cy-9
6258	6258	bersecurity of such systems. 10
6259	6259	(b) I
6260	6260	MPROVEMENTS TO ADMINISTRATIVECOMPLAINT 11
6261	6261	P
6262	6262	ROCEDURES.— 12
6263	6263	(1) R
6264	6264	EVIEW OF PROCEDURES .—The Election 13
6265	6265	Assistance Commission shall carry out a review of 14
6266	6266	the effectiveness and efficiency of the State-based 15
6267	6267	administrative complaint procedures established and 16
6268	6268	maintained under section 402 of the Help America 17
6269	6269	Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21112) for the inves-18
6270	6270	tigation and resolution of allegations of violations of 19
6271	6271	title III of such Act. 20
6272	6272	(2) R
6273	6273	ECOMMENDATIONS TO STREAMLINE PRO -21
6274	6274	CEDURES.—Not later than June 30, 2024, the Com-22
6275	6275	mission shall submit to Congress a report on the re-23
6276	6276	view carried out under paragraph (1), and shall in-24
6277	6277	clude in the report such recommendations as the 25
6278	6278	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00202 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6279	6279	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 203
6280	6280	•HR 11 IH
6281	6281	Commission considers appropriate to streamline and 1
6282	6282	improve the procedures which are the subject of the 2
6283	6283	review. 3
6284	6284	SEC. 1613. REPEAL OF EXEMPTION OF ELECTION ASSIST-4
6285	6285	ANCE COMMISSION FROM CERTAIN GOVERN-5
6286	6286	MENT CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS. 6
6287	6287	(a) I
6288	6288	NGENERAL.—Section 205 of the Help America 7
6289	6289	Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20925) is amended by strik-8
6290	6290	ing subsection (e). 9
6291	6291	(b) E
6292	6292	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 10
6293	6293	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to contracts entered 11
6294	6294	into by the Election Assistance Commission on or after 12
6295	6295	the date of enactment of this Act. 13
6296	6296	PART 3—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 14
6297	6297	SEC. 1621. DEFINITION OF ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OF-15
6298	6298	FICE. 16
6299	6299	(a) D
6300	6300	EFINITION.—Title IX of the Help America Vote 17
6301	6301	Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21141 et seq.) is amended by add-18
6302	6302	ing at the end the following new section: 19
6303	6303	‘‘SEC. 907. ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OFFICE DEFINED. 20
6304	6304	‘‘For purposes of titles I through III, the term ‘elec-21
6305	6305	tion for Federal office’ means a general, special, primary, 22
6306	6306	or runoff election for the office of President or Vice Presi-23
6307	6307	dent, or of Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or 24
6308	6308	Resident Commissioner to, the Congress.’’. 25
6309	6309	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00203 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6310	6310	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 204
6311	6311	•HR 11 IH
6312	6312	(b) CLERICALAMENDMENT.—The table of contents 1
6313	6313	of such Act is amended by adding at the end of the items 2
6314	6314	relating to title IX the following new item: 3
6315	6315	‘‘Sec. 907. Election for Federal office defined.’’.
6316	6316	SEC. 1622. NO EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.
6317	6317	4
6318	6318	(a) I
6319	6319	NGENERAL.—Except as specifically provided, 5
6320	6320	nothing in this title may be construed to authorize or re-6
6321	6321	quire conduct prohibited under any of the following laws, 7
6322	6322	or to supersede, restrict, or limit the application of such 8
6323	6323	laws: 9
6324	6324	(1) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10
6325	6325	10301 et seq.). 11
6326	6326	(2) The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and 12
6327	6327	Handicapped Act (52 U.S.C. 20101 et seq.). 13
6328	6328	(3) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Ab-14
6329	6329	sentee Voting Act (52 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.). 15
6330	6330	(4) The National Voter Registration Act of 16
6331	6331	1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.). 17
6332	6332	(5) The Americans with Disabilities Act of 18
6333	6333	1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 19
6334	6334	(6) The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 20
6335	6335	701 et seq.). 21
6336	6336	(b) N
6337	6337	OEFFECT ONPRECLEARANCE OR OTHERRE-22
6338	6338	QUIREMENTS UNDERVOTINGRIGHTSACT.—The ap-23
6339	6339	proval by any person of a payment or grant application 24
6340	6340	under this title, or any other action taken by any person 25
6341	6341	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00204 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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6343	6343	•HR 11 IH
6344	6344	under this title, shall not be considered to have any effect 1
6345	6345	on requirements for preclearance under section 5 of the 2
6346	6346	Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10304) or any other 3
6347	6347	requirements of such Act. 4
6348	6348	(c) N
6349	6349	OEFFECT ONAUTHORITY OFSTATESTOPRO-5
6350	6350	VIDEGREATEROPPORTUNITIES FOR VOTING.—Nothing 6
6351	6351	in this title or the amendments made by this title may 7
6352	6352	be construed to prohibit any State from enacting any law 8
6353	6353	which provides greater opportunities for individuals to reg-9
6354	6354	ister to vote and to vote in elections for Federal office than 10
6355	6355	are provided by this title and the amendments made by 11
6356	6356	this title. 12
6357	6357	SEC. 1623. CLARIFICATION OF EXEMPTION FOR STATES 13
6358	6358	WITHOUT VOTER REGISTRATION. 14
6359	6359	To the extent that any provision of this title or any 15
6360	6360	amendment made by this title imposes a requirement on 16
6361	6361	a State relating to registering individuals to vote in elec-17
6362	6362	tions for Federal office, such provision shall not apply in 18
6363	6363	the case of any State in which, under law that is in effect 19
6364	6364	continuously on and after the date of enactment of this 20
6365	6365	Act, there is no voter registration requirement for any 21
6366	6366	voter in the State with respect to an election for Federal 22
6367	6367	office. 23
6368	6368	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00205 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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6370	6370	•HR 11 IH
6371	6371	SEC. 1624. CLARIFICATION OF EXEMPTION FOR STATES 1
6372	6372	WHICH DO NOT COLLECT TELEPHONE INFOR-2
6373	6373	MATION. 3
6374	6374	(a) A
6375	6375	MENDMENT TO HELPAMERICAVOTEACT OF 4
6376	6376	2002.—Subtitle A of title III of the Help America Vote 5
6377	6377	Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as amended by 6
6378	6378	section 1031(a), section 1044(a), section 1101(a), section 7
6379	6379	1102(a), section 1103(a), section 1104(a), section 8
6380	6380	1201(a), section 1301(a), section 1302(a), section 9
6381	6381	1303(b), section 1305(a), section 1606(a)(1), and section 10
6382	6382	1607(a), is amended— 11
6383	6383	(1) by redesignating sections 317 and 318 as 12
6384	6384	sections 318 and 319, respectively; and 13
6385	6385	(2) by inserting after section 316 the following 14
6386	6386	new section: 15
6387	6387	‘‘SEC. 317. APPLICATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS TO 16
6388	6388	STATES WHICH DO NOT COLLECT TELE-17
6389	6389	PHONE INFORMATION. 18
6390	6390	‘‘(a) I
6391	6391	NGENERAL.—To the extent that any provision 19
6392	6392	of this title imposes a requirement on a State or jurisdic-20
6393	6393	tion relating to contacting voters by telephone, such provi-21
6394	6394	sion shall not apply in the case of any State which continu-22
6395	6395	ously on and after the date of enactment of this Act, does 23
6396	6396	not collect telephone numbers for voters as part of voter 24
6397	6397	registration in the State with respect to an election for 25
6398	6398	Federal office. 26
6399	6399	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00206 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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6401	6401	•HR 11 IH
6402	6402	‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply in 1
6403	6403	any case in which the voter has voluntarily provided tele-2
6404	6404	phone information.’’. 3
6405	6405	(b) C
6406	6406	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 4
6407	6407	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 5
6408	6408	1044(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 6
6409	6409	1103(a), section 1104(c), section 1201(c), section 7
6410	6410	1301(a), section 1302(a), section 1303(b), section 8
6411	6411	1305(a), section 1606(a)(3), and section 1607(b), is 9
6412	6412	amended— 10
6413	6413	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-11
6414	6414	tions 317 and 318 as relating to sections 318 and 12
6415	6415	319, respectively; and 13
6416	6416	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-14
6417	6417	tion 316 the following new item: 15
6418	6418	‘‘Sec. 317. Application of certain provisions to States which do not collect tele-
6419	6419	phone information.’’.
6420	6420	Subtitle H—Democracy Restoration 16
6421	6421	SEC. 1701. SHORT TITLE. 17
6422	6422	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Democracy Res-18
6423	6423	toration Act of 2023’’. 19
6424	6424	SEC. 1702. FINDINGS. 20
6425	6425	Congress makes the following findings: 21
6426	6426	(1) The right to vote is the most basic constitu-22
6427	6427	tive act of citizenship. Regaining the right to vote 23
6428	6428	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00207 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6429	6429	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 208
6430	6430	•HR 11 IH
6431	6431	reintegrates individuals with criminal convictions 1
6432	6432	into free society, helping to enhance public safety. 2
6433	6433	(2) Article I, section 4, of the Constitution 3
6434	6434	grants Congress ultimate supervisory power over 4
6435	6435	Federal elections, an authority which has repeatedly 5
6436	6436	been upheld by the United States Supreme Court. 6
6437	6437	(3) Basic constitutional principles of fairness 7
6438	6438	and equal protection require an equal opportunity 8
6439	6439	for citizens of the United States to vote in Federal 9
6440	6440	elections. The right to vote may not be abridged or 10
6441	6441	denied by the United States or by any State on ac-11
6442	6442	count of race, color, gender, or previous condition of 12
6443	6443	servitude. The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth, 13
6444	6444	Nineteenth, Twenty-fourth, and Twenty-sixth 14
6445	6445	Amendments to the Constitution empower Congress 15
6446	6446	to enact measures to protect the right to vote in 16
6447	6447	Federal elections. The Eighth Amendment to the 17
6448	6448	Constitution provides for no excessive bail to be re-18
6449	6449	quired, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and 19
6450	6450	unusual punishments inflicted. 20
6451	6451	(4) There are 3 areas in which discrepancies in 21
6452	6452	State laws regarding criminal convictions lead to un-22
6453	6453	fairness in Federal elections— 23
6454	6454	(A) the lack of a uniform standard for vot-24
6455	6455	ing in Federal elections leads to an unfair dis-25
6456	6456	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00208 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6457	6457	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 209
6458	6458	•HR 11 IH
6459	6459	parity and unequal participation in Federal 1
6460	6460	elections based solely on where a person lives; 2
6461	6461	(B) laws governing the restoration of vot-3
6462	6462	ing rights after a criminal conviction vary 4
6463	6463	throughout the country and persons in some 5
6464	6464	States can easily regain their voting rights 6
6465	6465	while in other States persons effectively lose 7
6466	6466	their right to vote permanently; and 8
6467	6467	(C) State disenfranchisement laws dis-9
6468	6468	proportionately impact racial and ethnic minori-10
6469	6469	ties. 11
6470	6470	(5) State disenfranchisement laws vary widely. 12
6471	6471	Two States (Maine and Vermont) and the Common-13
6472	6472	wealth of Puerto Rico do not disenfranchise individ-14
6473	6473	uals with criminal convictions at all. In 2020, the 15
6474	6474	District of Columbia re-enfranchised its citizens who 16
6475	6475	are under the supervision of the Federal Bureau of 17
6476	6476	Prisons. Twenty-five States disenfranchise certain 18
6477	6477	individuals on felony probation or parole. During 19
6478	6478	2023, lawmakers in Minnesota and New Mexico ex-20
6479	6479	panded voting rights to citizens on felony probation 21
6480	6480	and parole. In 11 States, a conviction for certain of-22
6481	6481	fenses can result in lifetime disenfranchisement. 23
6482	6482	(6) Several States deny the right to vote to in-24
6483	6483	dividuals convicted of certain misdemeanors. 25
6484	6484	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00209 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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6486	6486	•HR 11 IH
6487	6487	(7) In 2022, over 4,600,000 citizens of the 1
6488	6488	United States, or about 1 in 50 adults in the United 2
6489	6489	States, could not vote as a result of a felony convic-3
6490	6490	tion. Of the 4,600,000 citizens barred from voting 4
6491	6491	then, only 23 percent were in prison or jail. By con-5
6492	6492	trast, 75 percent of persons disenfranchised then re-6
6493	6493	sided in their communities while on probation or pa-7
6494	6494	role or after having completed their sentences. Ap-8
6495	6495	proximately 2,200,000 citizens who had completed 9
6496	6496	their sentences were disenfranchised due to restric-10
6497	6497	tive State laws. Over 930,000 Floridians who com-11
6498	6498	pleted their sentence remain disenfranchised because 12
6499	6499	of a pay-to-vote requirement that was enacted by 13
6500	6500	Florida lawmakers in 2019 to undermine the impact 14
6501	6501	of a 2018 ballot initiative that eliminated the life-15
6502	6502	time ban for persons with certain felony convictions. 16
6503	6503	In 3 States—Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee— 17
6504	6504	more than 8 percent of the total population is 18
6505	6505	disenfranchised. 19
6506	6506	(8) In those States that disenfranchise individ-20
6507	6507	uals post-sentence, the right to vote can be regained 21
6508	6508	in theory, but in practice this possibility is often 22
6509	6509	granted in a non-uniform and potentially discrimina-23
6510	6510	tory manner. Disenfranchised individuals sometimes 24
6511	6511	must either obtain a pardon or an order from the 25
6512	6512	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00210 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6513	6513	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 211
6514	6514	•HR 11 IH
6515	6515	Governor or an action by the parole or pardon 1
6516	6516	board, depending on the offense and State. Financial 2
6517	6517	restrictions may also inhibit individuals who have 3
6518	6518	completed their sentences from re-enfranchisement. 4
6519	6519	Individuals convicted of a Federal offense often have 5
6520	6520	additional barriers to regaining voting rights. 6
6521	6521	(9) Many felony disenfranchisement laws today 7
6522	6522	derive directly from post-Civil War efforts to stifle 8
6523	6523	the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. Between 9
6524	6524	1865 and 1880, at least 14 States—Alabama, Ar-10
6525	6525	kansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Mis-11
6526	6526	sissippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Caro-12
6527	6527	lina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas—en-13
6528	6528	acted or expanded their felony disenfranchisement 14
6529	6529	laws. One of the primary goals of these laws was to 15
6530	6530	prevent African Americans from voting. Of the 16
6531	6531	States that enacted or expanded their felony dis-17
6532	6532	enfranchisement laws during this post-Civil War pe-18
6533	6533	riod, at least 11 continue to preclude persons on fel-19
6534	6534	ony probation or parole from voting. 20
6535	6535	(10) State disenfranchisement laws dispropor-21
6536	6536	tionately impact racial and ethnic minorities. In re-22
6537	6537	cent years, African Americans have been imprisoned 23
6538	6538	at over 5 times the rate of Whites. More than 6 per-24
6539	6539	cent of the voting-age African-American population, 25
6540	6540	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00211 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6541	6541	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 212
6542	6542	•HR 11 IH
6543	6543	or 1,800,000 African Americans, are disenfranchised 1
6544	6544	due to a felony conviction. In 9 States—Alabama 2
6545	6545	(16 percent), Arizona (13 percent), Florida (15 per-3
6546	6546	cent), Kentucky (15 percent), Mississippi (16 per-4
6547	6547	cent), South Dakota (14 percent), Tennessee (21 5
6548	6548	percent), Virginia (16 percent), and Wyoming (36 6
6549	6549	percent)—more than 1 in 8 African Americans are 7
6550	6550	unable to vote because of a felony conviction, twice 8
6551	6551	the national average for African Americans. 9
6552	6552	(11) Latino citizens are also disproportionately 10
6553	6553	disenfranchised based upon their disproportionate 11
6554	6554	representation in the criminal justice system. Al-12
6555	6555	though data on ethnicity in correctional populations 13
6556	6556	are unevenly reported and undercounted in some 14
6557	6557	States, a conservative estimate is that at least 15
6558	6558	506,000 Latino Americans or 1.7 percent of the vot-16
6559	6559	ing-age population are disenfranchised. In 31 States 17
6560	6560	Latinos are disenfranchised at a higher rate than 18
6561	6561	the general population. In Arizona and Tennessee 19
6562	6562	over 6 percent of Latino voters are disenfranchised 20
6563	6563	due to a felony conviction. 21
6564	6564	(12) Women have been significantly impacted 22
6565	6565	by mass incarceration since the early 1980s. Ap-23
6566	6566	proximately 1,000,000 women were disenfranchised 24
6567	6567	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00212 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6568	6568	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 213
6569	6569	•HR 11 IH
6570	6570	in 2022, comprising over 20 percent of the total 1
6571	6571	disenfranchised population. 2
6572	6572	(13) Disenfranchising citizens who have been 3
6573	6573	convicted of a criminal offense and who are living 4
6574	6574	and working in the community serves no compelling 5
6575	6575	State interest and hinders their rehabilitation and 6
6576	6576	reintegration into society. Models of successful re- 7
6577	6577	entry for persons convicted of a crime emphasize the 8
6578	6578	importance of community ties, feeling vested and in-9
6579	6579	tegrated, and prosocial attitudes. Individuals with 10
6580	6580	criminal convictions who succeed in avoiding recidi-11
6581	6581	vism are typically more likely to see themselves as 12
6582	6582	law-abiding members of the community. Restoration 13
6583	6583	of voting rights builds those qualities and facilitates 14
6584	6584	reintegration into the community. That is why allow-15
6585	6585	ing citizens with criminal convictions who are living 16
6586	6586	in a community to vote is correlated with a lower 17
6587	6587	likelihood of recidivism. Restoration of voting rights 18
6588	6588	thus reduces violence and protects public safety. 19
6589	6589	(14) State disenfranchisement laws can sup-20
6590	6590	press electoral participation among eligible voters by 21
6591	6591	discouraging voting among family and community 22
6592	6592	members of disenfranchised persons. Future elec-23
6593	6593	toral participation by the children of disenfranchised 24
6594	6594	parents may be impacted as well. 25
6595	6595	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00213 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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6597	6597	•HR 11 IH
6598	6598	(15) The United States is one of the only West-1
6599	6599	ern democracies that permits the permanent denial 2
6600	6600	of voting rights for individuals with felony convic-3
6601	6601	tions. 4
6602	6602	(16) The Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on 5
6603	6603	cruel and unusual punishments ‘‘guarantees individ-6
6604	6604	uals the right not to be subjected to excessive sanc-7
6605	6605	tions’’. (Roper v. Simmons, 543 U.S. 551, 560 8
6606	6606	(2005)). That right stems from the basic precept of 9
6607	6607	justice ‘‘that punishment for crime should be grad-10
6608	6608	uated and proportioned to [the] offense’’. Id. 11
6609	6609	(quoting Weems v. United States, 217 U.S. 349, 12
6610	6610	367 (1910)). As the Supreme Court has long recog-13
6611	6611	nized, ‘‘[t]he concept of proportionality is central to 14
6612	6612	the Eighth Amendment’’. (Graham v. Florida, 560 15
6613	6613	U.S. 48, 59 (2010)). Many State disenfranchisement 16
6614	6614	laws are grossly disproportional to the offenses that 17
6615	6615	lead to disenfranchisement and thus violate the bar 18
6616	6616	on cruel and unusual punishments. For example, a 19
6617	6617	number of States mandate lifetime disenfranchise-20
6618	6618	ment for a single felony conviction or just two felony 21
6619	6619	convictions, even where the convictions were for non- 22
6620	6620	violent offenses. In numerous other States, dis-23
6621	6621	enfranchisement can last years or even decades while 24
6622	6622	individuals remain on probation or parole, often only 25
6623	6623	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00214 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6624	6624	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 215
6625	6625	•HR 11 IH
6626	6626	because a person cannot pay their legal financial ob-1
6627	6627	ligations. These kinds of extreme voting bans run 2
6628	6628	afoul of the Eighth Amendment. 3
6629	6629	(17) The Twenty-Fourth Amendment provides 4
6630	6630	that the right to vote ‘‘shall not be denied or 5
6631	6631	abridged by the United States or any State by rea-6
6632	6632	son of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax’’. Sec-7
6633	6633	tion 2 of the Twenty-Fourth Amendment gives Con-8
6634	6634	gress the power to enforce this article by appropriate 9
6635	6635	legislation. Court fines and fees that individuals 10
6636	6636	must pay to have their voting rights restored con-11
6637	6637	stitute an ‘‘other tax’’ for purposes of the Twenty- 12
6638	6638	Fourth Amendment. At least five States explicitly 13
6639	6639	require the payment of fines and fees before individ-14
6640	6640	uals with felony convictions can have their voting 15
6641	6641	rights restored. More than 20 other States effec-16
6642	6642	tively tie the right to vote to the payment of fines 17
6643	6643	and fees, by requiring that individuals complete their 18
6644	6644	probation or parole before their rights are restored. 19
6645	6645	In these States, the non-payment of fines and fees 20
6646	6646	is a basis on which probation or parole can be ex-21
6647	6647	tended. Moreover, these States sometimes do not 22
6648	6648	record the basis on which an individual’s probation 23
6649	6649	or parole was extended, making it impossible to de-24
6650	6650	termine from the State’s records whether non-pay-25
6651	6651	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00215 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6652	6652	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 216
6653	6653	•HR 11 IH
6654	6654	ment of fines and fees is the reason that an indi-1
6655	6655	vidual remains on probation or parole. For these 2
6656	6656	reasons, the only way to ensure that States do not 3
6657	6657	deny the right to vote based solely on non-payment 4
6658	6658	of fines and fees is to prevent States from condi-5
6659	6659	tioning voting rights on the completion of probation 6
6660	6660	or parole. 7
6661	6661	SEC. 1703. RIGHTS OF CITIZENS. 8
6662	6662	The right of an individual who is a citizen of the 9
6663	6663	United States to vote in any election for Federal office 10
6664	6664	shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has 11
6665	6665	been convicted of a criminal offense unless such individual 12
6666	6666	is serving a felony sentence in a correctional institution 13
6667	6667	or facility at the time of the election. 14
6668	6668	SEC. 1704. ENFORCEMENT. 15
6669	6669	(a) A
6670	6670	TTORNEYGENERAL.—The Attorney General 16
6671	6671	may, in a civil action, obtain such declaratory or injunctive 17
6672	6672	relief as is necessary to remedy a violation of this subtitle. 18
6673	6673	(b) P
6674	6674	RIVATERIGHT OFACTION.— 19
6675	6675	(1) I
6676	6676	N GENERAL.—A person who is aggrieved 20
6677	6677	by a violation of this subtitle may provide written 21
6678	6678	notice of the violation to the chief election official of 22
6679	6679	the State involved. 23
6680	6680	(2) R
6681	6681	ELIEF.—Except as provided in paragraph 24
6682	6682	(3), if the violation is not corrected within 90 days 25
6683	6683	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00216 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6684	6684	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 217
6685	6685	•HR 11 IH
6686	6686	after receipt of a notice under paragraph (1), or 1
6687	6687	within 20 days after receipt of the notice if the viola-2
6688	6688	tion occurred within 120 days before the date of an 3
6689	6689	election for Federal office, the aggrieved person 4
6690	6690	may, in a civil action, obtain declaratory or injunc-5
6691	6691	tive relief with respect to the violation. 6
6692	6692	(3) E
6693	6693	XCEPTION.—If the violation occurred 7
6694	6694	within 30 days before the date of an election for 8
6695	6695	Federal office, the aggrieved person need not provide 9
6696	6696	notice to the chief election official of the State under 10
6697	6697	paragraph (1) before bringing a civil action to obtain 11
6698	6698	declaratory or injunctive relief with respect to the 12
6699	6699	violation. 13
6700	6700	SEC. 1705. NOTIFICATION OF RESTORATION OF VOTING 14
6701	6701	RIGHTS. 15
6702	6702	(a) S
6703	6703	TATENOTIFICATION.— 16
6704	6704	(1) N
6705	6705	OTIFICATION.—On the date determined 17
6706	6706	under paragraph (2), each State shall notify in writ-18
6707	6707	ing any individual who has been convicted of a 19
6708	6708	criminal offense under the law of that State that 20
6709	6709	such individual has the right to vote in an election 21
6710	6710	for Federal office pursuant to the Democracy Res-22
6711	6711	toration Act of 2023 and may register to vote in any 23
6712	6712	such election and provide such individuals with any 24
6713	6713	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00217 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6714	6714	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 218
6715	6715	•HR 11 IH
6716	6716	materials that are necessary to register to vote in 1
6717	6717	any such election. 2
6718	6718	(2) D
6719	6719	ATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 3
6720	6720	(A) F
6721	6721	ELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 4
6722	6722	such an individual who has been convicted of a 5
6723	6723	felony, the notification required under para-6
6724	6724	graph (1) shall be given on the date on which 7
6725	6725	the individual— 8
6726	6726	(i) is sentenced to serve only a term 9
6727	6727	of probation; or 10
6728	6728	(ii) is released from the custody of 11
6729	6729	that State (other than to the custody of 12
6730	6730	another State or the Federal Government 13
6731	6731	to serve a term of imprisonment for a fel-14
6732	6732	ony conviction). 15
6733	6733	(B) M
6734	6734	ISDEMEANOR CONVICTION .—In the 16
6735	6735	case of such an individual who has been con-17
6736	6736	victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re-18
6737	6737	quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 19
6738	6738	the date on which such individual is sentenced 20
6739	6739	by a State court. 21
6740	6740	(b) F
6741	6741	EDERALNOTIFICATION.— 22
6742	6742	(1) N
6743	6743	OTIFICATION.—Any individual who has 23
6744	6744	been convicted of a criminal offense under Federal 24
6745	6745	law shall be notified in accordance with paragraph 25
6746	6746	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00218 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6747	6747	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 219
6748	6748	•HR 11 IH
6749	6749	(2) that such individual has the right to vote in an 1
6750	6750	election for Federal office pursuant to the Democ-2
6751	6751	racy Restoration Act of 2023 and may register to 3
6752	6752	vote in any such election. 4
6753	6753	(2) D
6754	6754	ATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 5
6755	6755	(A) F
6756	6756	ELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 6
6757	6757	such an individual who has been convicted of a 7
6758	6758	felony, the notification required under para-8
6759	6759	graph (1) shall be given— 9
6760	6760	(i) in the case of an individual who is 10
6761	6761	sentenced to serve only a term of proba-11
6762	6762	tion, by the Assistant Director for the Of-12
6763	6763	fice of Probation and Pretrial Services of 13
6764	6764	the Administrative Office of the United 14
6765	6765	States Courts on the date on which the in-15
6766	6766	dividual is sentenced; or 16
6767	6767	(ii) in the case of any individual com-17
6768	6768	mitted to the custody of the Bureau of 18
6769	6769	Prisons, by the Director of the Bureau of 19
6770	6770	Prisons, during the period beginning on 20
6771	6771	the date that is 6 months before such indi-21
6772	6772	vidual is released and ending on the date 22
6773	6773	such individual is released from the cus-23
6774	6774	tody of the Bureau of Prisons. 24
6775	6775	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00219 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6776	6776	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 220
6777	6777	•HR 11 IH
6778	6778	(B) MISDEMEANOR CONVICTION .—In the 1
6779	6779	case of such an individual who has been con-2
6780	6780	victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re-3
6781	6781	quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 4
6782	6782	the date on which such individual is sentenced 5
6783	6783	by a court established by an Act of Congress. 6
6784	6784	SEC. 1706. DEFINITIONS. 7
6785	6785	For purposes of this subtitle: 8
6786	6786	(1) C
6787	6787	ORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION OR FACIL -9
6788	6788	ITY.—The term ‘‘correctional institution or facility’’ 10
6789	6789	means any prison, penitentiary, jail, or other institu-11
6790	6790	tion or facility for the confinement of individuals 12
6791	6791	convicted of criminal offenses, whether publicly or 13
6792	6792	privately operated, except that such term does not 14
6793	6793	include any residential community treatment center 15
6794	6794	(or similar public or private facility). 16
6795	6795	(2) E
6796	6796	LECTION.—The term ‘‘election’’ means— 17
6797	6797	(A) a general, special, primary, or runoff 18
6798	6798	election; 19
6799	6799	(B) a convention or caucus of a political 20
6800	6800	party held to nominate a candidate; 21
6801	6801	(C) a primary election held for the selec-22
6802	6802	tion of delegates to a national nominating con-23
6803	6803	vention of a political party; or 24
6804	6804	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00220 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6805	6805	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 221
6806	6806	•HR 11 IH
6807	6807	(D) a primary election held for the expres-1
6808	6808	sion of a preference for the nomination of per-2
6809	6809	sons for election to the office of President. 3
6810	6810	(3) F
6811	6811	EDERAL OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Federal of-4
6812	6812	fice’’ means the office of President or Vice President 5
6813	6813	of the United States, or of Senator or Representa-6
6814	6814	tive in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, 7
6815	6815	the Congress of the United States. 8
6816	6816	(4) P
6817	6817	ROBATION.—The term ‘‘probation’’ means 9
6818	6818	probation, imposed by a Federal, State, or local 10
6819	6819	court, with or without a condition on the individual 11
6820	6820	involved concerning— 12
6821	6821	(A) the individual’s freedom of movement; 13
6822	6822	(B) the payment of damages by the indi-14
6823	6823	vidual; 15
6824	6824	(C) periodic reporting by the individual to 16
6825	6825	an officer of the court; or 17
6826	6826	(D) supervision of the individual by an of-18
6827	6827	ficer of the court. 19
6828	6828	SEC. 1707. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS. 20
6829	6829	(a) S
6830	6830	TATELAWSRELATING TOVOTINGRIGHTS.— 21
6831	6831	Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit any 22
6832	6832	State from enacting any State law which affords the right 23
6833	6833	to vote in any election for Federal office on terms less 24
6834	6834	restrictive than those established by this Act. 25
6835	6835	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00221 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6836	6836	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 222
6837	6837	•HR 11 IH
6838	6838	(b) CERTAINFEDERALACTS.—The rights and rem-1
6839	6839	edies established by this subtitle are in addition to all 2
6840	6840	other rights and remedies provided by law, and neither 3
6841	6841	rights and remedies established by this subtitle shall su-4
6842	6842	persede, restrict, or limit the application of the Voting 5
6843	6843	Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), the Na-6
6844	6844	tional Voter Registration Act (52 U.S.C. 20501), or the 7
6845	6845	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.). 8
6846	6846	SEC. 1708. FEDERAL PRISON FUNDS. 9
6847	6847	No State, unit of local government, or other person 10
6848	6848	may receive or use, to construct or otherwise improve a 11
6849	6849	prison, jail, or other place of incarceration, any Federal 12
6850	6850	funds unless that State, unit of local government, or per-13
6851	6851	son— 14
6852	6852	(1) is in compliance with section 1703; and 15
6853	6853	(2) has in effect a program under which each 16
6854	6854	individual incarcerated in that person’s jurisdiction 17
6855	6855	who is a citizen of the United States is notified, 18
6856	6856	upon release from such incarceration, of that indi-19
6857	6857	vidual’s rights under section 1703. 20
6858	6858	SEC. 1709. EFFECTIVE DATE. 21
6859	6859	This subtitle shall apply to citizens of the United 22
6860	6860	States voting in any election for Federal office held on 23
6861	6861	or after the date of enactment of this Act. 24
6862	6862	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00222 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6863	6863	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 223
6864	6864	•HR 11 IH
6865	6865	Subtitle I—Voter Identification and 1
6866	6866	Allowable Alternatives 2
6867	6867	SEC. 1801. REQUIREMENTS FOR VOTER IDENTIFICATION. 3
6868	6868	(a) R
6869	6869	EQUIREMENTTOPROVIDEIDENTIFICATION AS 4
6870	6870	C
6871	6871	ONDITION OFRECEIVINGBALLOT.—Section 303 of the 5
6872	6872	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21083) is 6
6873	6873	amended by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as sub-7
6874	6874	sections (d) and (e), respectively, and by inserting after 8
6875	6875	subsection (b) the following new subsection: 9
6876	6876	‘‘(c) V
6877	6877	OTERIDENTIFICATIONREQUIREMENTS.— 10
6878	6878	‘‘(1) V
6879	6879	OTER IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENT 11
6880	6880	DEFINED.—For purposes of this subsection: 12
6881	6881	‘‘(A) I
6882	6882	N GENERAL.—The term ‘voter iden-13
6883	6883	tification requirement’ means any requirement 14
6884	6884	that an individual desiring to vote in person in 15
6885	6885	an election for Federal office present identifica-16
6886	6886	tion as a requirement to receive or cast a ballot 17
6887	6887	in person in such election. 18
6888	6888	‘‘(B) E
6889	6889	XCEPTION.—Such term does not in-19
6890	6890	clude any requirement described in subsection 20
6891	6891	(b)(2)(A) as applied with respect to an indi-21
6892	6892	vidual described in subsection (b)(1). 22
6893	6893	‘‘(2) I
6894	6894	N GENERAL.—If a State or local jurisdic-23
6895	6895	tion has a voter identification requirement, the State 24
6896	6896	or local jurisdiction— 25
6897	6897	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00223 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6898	6898	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 224
6899	6899	•HR 11 IH
6900	6900	‘‘(A) shall treat any applicable identifying 1
6901	6901	document as meeting such voter identification 2
6902	6902	requirement; 3
6903	6903	‘‘(B) notwithstanding the failure to present 4
6904	6904	an applicable identifying document, shall treat 5
6905	6905	an individual desiring to vote in person in an 6
6906	6906	election for Federal office as meeting such voter 7
6907	6907	identification requirement if— 8
6908	6908	‘‘(i) the individual presents the appro-9
6909	6909	priate State or local election official with a 10
6910	6910	sworn written statement, signed in the 11
6911	6911	presence of the official by an adult who 12
6912	6912	has known the individual for not less than 13
6913	6913	6 months under penalty of perjury, attest-14
6914	6914	ing to the individual’s identity; 15
6915	6915	‘‘(ii) the official has known the indi-16
6916	6916	vidual for at least six months; or 17
6917	6917	‘‘(iii) in the case of a resident of a 18
6918	6918	State-licensed care facility, an employee of 19
6919	6919	the facility confirms the individual’s iden-20
6920	6920	tity; and 21
6921	6921	‘‘(C) shall permit any individual desiring to 22
6922	6922	vote in an election for Federal office who does 23
6923	6923	not present an applicable identifying document 24
6924	6924	required under subparagraph (A) or qualify for 25
6925	6925	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00224 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6926	6926	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 225
6927	6927	•HR 11 IH
6928	6928	an exception under subparagraph (B) to cast a 1
6929	6929	provisional ballot with respect to the election 2
6930	6930	under section 302(a) in accordance with para-3
6931	6931	graph (3). 4
6932	6932	‘‘(3) R
6933	6933	ULES FOR PROVISIONAL BALLOT .— 5
6934	6934	‘‘(A) I
6935	6935	N GENERAL.—An individual may 6
6936	6936	cast a provisional ballot pursuant to paragraph 7
6937	6937	(2)(C) so long as the individual presents the ap-8
6938	6938	propriate State or local election official with a 9
6939	6939	sworn written statement, signed by the indi-10
6940	6940	vidual under penalty of perjury, attesting to the 11
6941	6941	individual’s identity. 12
6942	6942	‘‘(B) P
6943	6943	ROHIBITION ON OTHER REQUIRE -13
6944	6944	MENTS.—Except as otherwise provided this 14
6945	6945	paragraph, a State or local jurisdiction may not 15
6946	6946	impose any other additional requirement or con-16
6947	6947	dition with respect to the casting of a provi-17
6948	6948	sional ballot by an individual described in para-18
6949	6949	graph (2)(C). 19
6950	6950	‘‘(C) C
6951	6951	OUNTING OF PROVISIONAL BAL -20
6952	6952	LOT.—In the case of a provisional ballot cast 21
6953	6953	pursuant to paragraph (2)(C), the appropriate 22
6954	6954	State or local election official shall not make a 23
6955	6955	determination under section 302(a)(4) that the 24
6956	6956	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00225 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6957	6957	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 226
6958	6958	•HR 11 IH
6959	6959	individual is eligible under State law to vote in 1
6960	6960	the election unless— 2
6961	6961	‘‘(i) the official determines that the 3
6962	6962	signature on such statement matches the 4
6963	6963	signature of such individual on the official 5
6964	6964	list of registered voters in the State or 6
6965	6965	other official record or document used by 7
6966	6966	the State to verify the signatures of voters; 8
6967	6967	or 9
6968	6968	‘‘(ii) not later than 10 days after cast-10
6969	6969	ing the provisional ballot, the individual 11
6970	6970	presents an applicable identifying docu-12
6971	6971	ment, either in person or by electronic 13
6972	6972	methods, to the official and the official 14
6973	6973	confirms the individual is the person iden-15
6974	6974	tified on the applicable identifying docu-16
6975	6975	ment. 17
6976	6976	‘‘(D) N
6977	6977	OTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO CURE 18
6978	6978	DISCREPANCY IN SIGNATURES OR OTHER DE -19
6979	6979	FECTS ON PROVISIONAL BALLOTS .— 20
6980	6980	‘‘(i) N
6981	6981	OTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO 21
6982	6982	CURE DISCREPANCY IN SIGNATURES .—If 22
6983	6983	an individual casts a provisional ballot 23
6984	6984	under this paragraph and the appropriate 24
6985	6985	State or local election official determines 25
6986	6986	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00226 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
6987	6987	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 227
6988	6988	•HR 11 IH
6989	6989	that a discrepancy exists between the sig-1
6990	6990	nature on such ballot and the signature of 2
6991	6991	such individual on the official list of reg-3
6992	6992	istered voters in the State or other official 4
6993	6993	record or document used by the State to 5
6994	6994	verify the signatures of voters, such elec-6
6995	6995	tion official, prior to making a final deter-7
6996	6996	mination as to the validity of such ballot, 8
6997	6997	shall— 9
6998	6998	‘‘(I) as soon as practical, but not 10
6999	6999	later than the next business day after 11
7000	7000	such determination is made, make a 12
7001	7001	good faith effort to notify the indi-13
7002	7002	vidual by mail, telephone, and (if 14
7003	7003	available) text message and electronic 15
7004	7004	mail that— 16
7005	7005	‘‘(aa) a discrepancy exists 17
7006	7006	between the signature on such 18
7007	7007	ballot and the signature of the 19
7008	7008	individual on the official list of 20
7009	7009	registered voters in the State or 21
7010	7010	other official record or document 22
7011	7011	used by the State to verify the 23
7012	7012	signatures of voters; and 24
7013	7013	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00227 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7014	7014	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 228
7015	7015	•HR 11 IH
7016	7016	‘‘(bb) if such discrepancy is 1
7017	7017	not cured prior to the expiration 2
7018	7018	of the third day following the 3
7019	7019	State’s deadline for receiving 4
7020	7020	mail-in ballots or absentee bal-5
7021	7021	lots, such ballot will not be 6
7022	7022	counted; and 7
7023	7023	‘‘(II) cure such discrepancy and 8
7024	7024	count the ballot if, prior to the expira-9
7025	7025	tion of the third day following the 10
7026	7026	State’s deadline for receiving mail-in 11
7027	7027	ballots or absentee ballots, the indi-12
7028	7028	vidual provides the official with infor-13
7029	7029	mation to cure such discrepancy, ei-14
7030	7030	ther in person, by telephone, or by 15
7031	7031	electronic methods. 16
7032	7032	‘‘(ii) N
7033	7033	OTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO 17
7034	7034	CURE OTHER DEFECTS .—If an individual 18
7035	7035	casts a provisional ballot under this para-19
7036	7036	graph with a defect which, if left uncured, 20
7037	7037	would cause the ballot to not be counted, 21
7038	7038	the appropriate State or local election offi-22
7039	7039	cial, prior to making a final determination 23
7040	7040	as to the validity of the ballot, shall— 24
7041	7041	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00228 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7042	7042	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 229
7043	7043	•HR 11 IH
7044	7044	‘‘(I) as soon as practical, but not 1
7045	7045	later than the next business day after 2
7046	7046	such determination is made, make a 3
7047	7047	good faith effort to notify the indi-4
7048	7048	vidual by mail, telephone, and (if 5
7049	7049	available) text message and electronic 6
7050	7050	mail that— 7
7051	7051	‘‘(aa) the ballot has some 8
7052	7052	defect; and 9
7053	7053	‘‘(bb) if the individual does 10
7054	7054	not cure the other defect prior to 11
7055	7055	the expiration of the third day 12
7056	7056	following the State’s deadline for 13
7057	7057	receiving mail-in ballots or absen-14
7058	7058	tee ballots, such ballot will not be 15
7059	7059	counted; and 16
7060	7060	‘‘(II) count the ballot if, prior to 17
7061	7061	the expiration of the third day fol-18
7062	7062	lowing the State’s deadline for receiv-19
7063	7063	ing mail-in ballots or absentee ballots, 20
7064	7064	the individual cures the defect. 21
7065	7065	‘‘(E) N
7066	7066	O EXEMPTION.—Notwithstanding 22
7067	7067	section 302(a), States described in section 4(b) 23
7068	7068	of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 24
7069	7069	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00229 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7070	7070	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 230
7071	7071	•HR 11 IH
7072	7072	shall be required to meet the requirements of 1
7073	7073	paragraph (2)(C). 2
7074	7074	‘‘(F) R
7075	7075	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .— 3
7076	7076	‘‘(i) I
7077	7077	N GENERAL.—Nothing in para-4
7078	7078	graph (2)(C) or this paragraph shall be 5
7079	7079	construed to prevent a State from permit-6
7080	7080	ting an individual who provides a sworn 7
7081	7081	statement described in subparagraph (A) 8
7082	7082	to cast a regular ballot in lieu of a provi-9
7083	7083	sional ballot. 10
7084	7084	‘‘(ii) R
7085	7085	EGULAR BALLOT.—For purpose 11
7086	7086	of this subparagraph, the term ‘regular 12
7087	7087	ballot’ means a ballot which is cast and 13
7088	7088	counted in the same manner as ballots cast 14
7089	7089	by individuals meeting the voter identifica-15
7090	7090	tion requirement (and all other applicable 16
7091	7091	requirements with respect to voting in the 17
7092	7092	election). 18
7093	7093	‘‘(4) D
7094	7094	EVELOPMENT AND USE OF PRE -PRINTED 19
7095	7095	VERSION OF STATEMENT BY COMMISSION .— 20
7096	7096	‘‘(A) I
7097	7097	N GENERAL.—The Commission shall 21
7098	7098	develop pre-printed versions of the statements 22
7099	7099	described in paragraphs (2)(B)(i) and (3)(A) 23
7100	7100	which include appropriate blank spaces for the 24
7101	7101	provision of names and signatures. 25
7102	7102	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00230 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7103	7103	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 231
7104	7104	•HR 11 IH
7105	7105	‘‘(B) PROVIDING PRE-PRINTED COPY OF 1
7106	7106	STATEMENT.—Each State and jurisdiction that 2
7107	7107	has a voter identification requirement shall 3
7108	7108	make copies of the pre-printed version of the 4
7109	7109	statement developed under subparagraph (A) 5
7110	7110	available at polling places for use by individuals 6
7111	7111	voting in person. 7
7112	7112	‘‘(5) R
7113	7113	EQUIRED PROVISION OF IDENTIFYING 8
7114	7114	DOCUMENTS.— 9
7115	7115	‘‘(A) I
7116	7116	N GENERAL.—Each State and juris-10
7117	7117	diction that has a voter identification require-11
7118	7118	ment shall— 12
7119	7119	‘‘(i) for each individual who, on or 13
7120	7120	after the applicable date, is registered to 14
7121	7121	vote in such State or jurisdiction in elec-15
7122	7122	tions for Federal office, provide the indi-16
7123	7123	vidual with a government-issued identifica-17
7124	7124	tion that meets the requirements of this 18
7125	7125	subsection without charge; 19
7126	7126	‘‘(ii) for each individual who, before 20
7127	7127	the applicable date, was registered to vote 21
7128	7128	in such State or jurisdiction in elections 22
7129	7129	for Federal office but does not otherwise 23
7130	7130	possess an identifying document, provide 24
7131	7131	the individual with a government-issued 25
7132	7132	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00231 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7133	7133	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 232
7134	7134	•HR 11 IH
7135	7135	identification that meets the requirements 1
7136	7136	of this subsection without charge, so long 2
7137	7137	as the State provides the individual with 3
7138	7138	reasonable opportunities to obtain such 4
7139	7139	identification prior to the date of the elec-5
7140	7140	tion; and 6
7141	7141	‘‘(iii) for each individual who is pro-7
7142	7142	vided with an identification under clause 8
7143	7143	(i) or clause (ii), provide the individual 9
7144	7144	with such assistance without charge upon 10
7145	7145	request as may be necessary to enable the 11
7146	7146	individual to obtain and process any docu-12
7147	7147	mentation necessary to obtain the identi-13
7148	7148	fication. 14
7149	7149	‘‘(B) A
7150	7150	PPLICABLE DATE.—For purposes of 15
7151	7151	this paragraph, the term ‘applicable date’ 16
7152	7152	means the later of— 17
7153	7153	‘‘(i) January 1, 2024, or 18
7154	7154	‘‘(ii) the first date after the date of 19
7155	7155	enactment of this subsection for which the 20
7156	7156	State or local jurisdiction has in effect a 21
7157	7157	voter identification requirement. 22
7158	7158	‘‘(6) A
7159	7159	PPLICABLE IDENTIFYING DOCUMENT .— 23
7160	7160	For purposes of this subsection— 24
7161	7161	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00232 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7162	7162	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 233
7163	7163	•HR 11 IH
7164	7164	‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘applicable 1
7165	7165	identifying document’ means, with respect to 2
7166	7166	any individual, any document issued to such in-3
7167	7167	dividual containing the individual’s name. 4
7168	7168	‘‘(B) I
7169	7169	NCLUDED DOCUMENTS .—The term 5
7170	7170	‘applicable identifying document’ shall include 6
7171	7171	any of the following (so long as such document 7
7172	7172	is not expired, as indicated by an expiration 8
7173	7173	date included on the document): 9
7174	7174	‘‘(i) A valid driver’s license or an 10
7175	7175	identification card issued by a State, the 11
7176	7176	Federal Government, or a State or feder-12
7177	7177	ally recognized Tribal government. 13
7178	7178	‘‘(ii) A State-issued identification de-14
7179	7179	scribed in paragraph (4). 15
7180	7180	‘‘(iii) A valid United States passport 16
7181	7181	or passport card. 17
7182	7182	‘‘(iv) A valid employee identification 18
7183	7183	card issued by— 19
7184	7184	‘‘(I) any branch, department, 20
7185	7185	agency, or entity of the United States 21
7186	7186	Government or of any State, 22
7187	7187	‘‘(II) any State or federally rec-23
7188	7188	ognized Tribal government, or 24
7189	7189	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00233 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7190	7190	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 234
7191	7191	•HR 11 IH
7192	7192	‘‘(III) any county, municipality, 1
7193	7193	board, authority, or other political 2
7194	7194	subdivision of a State. 3
7195	7195	‘‘(v) A valid student identification 4
7196	7196	card issued by an institution of higher edu-5
7197	7197	cation, or a valid high school identification 6
7198	7198	card issued by a State-accredited high 7
7199	7199	school. 8
7200	7200	‘‘(vi) A valid military identification 9
7201	7201	card issued by the United States. 10
7202	7202	‘‘(vii) A valid gun license or concealed 11
7203	7203	carry permit. 12
7204	7204	‘‘(viii) A valid Medicare card or Social 13
7205	7205	Security card. 14
7206	7206	‘‘(ix) A valid birth certificate. 15
7207	7207	‘‘(x) A valid voter registration card. 16
7208	7208	‘‘(xi) A valid hunting or fishing li-17
7209	7209	cense issued by a State. 18
7210	7210	‘‘(xii) A valid identification card 19
7211	7211	issued to the individual by the Supple-20
7212	7212	mental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP) pro-21
7213	7213	gram. 22
7214	7214	‘‘(xiii) A valid identification card 23
7215	7215	issued to the individual by the Temporary 24
7216	7216	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00234 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7217	7217	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 235
7218	7218	•HR 11 IH
7219	7219	Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) 1
7220	7220	program. 2
7221	7221	‘‘(xiv) A valid identification card 3
7222	7222	issued to the individual by Medicaid. 4
7223	7223	‘‘(xv) A valid bank card or valid debit 5
7224	7224	card. 6
7225	7225	‘‘(xvi) A valid utility bill issued within 7
7226	7226	six months of the date of the election. 8
7227	7227	‘‘(xvii) A valid lease or mortgage doc-9
7228	7228	ument issued within six months of the date 10
7229	7229	of the election. 11
7230	7230	‘‘(xviii) A valid bank statement issued 12
7231	7231	within six months of the date of the elec-13
7232	7232	tion. 14
7233	7233	‘‘(xix) A valid health insurance card 15
7234	7234	issued to the voter. 16
7235	7235	‘‘(xx) Any other document containing 17
7236	7236	the individual’s name issued by— 18
7237	7237	‘‘(I) any branch, department, 19
7238	7238	agency, or entity of the United States 20
7239	7239	Government or of any State; 21
7240	7240	‘‘(II) any State or federally rec-22
7241	7241	ognized tribal government; or 23
7242	7242	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00235 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7243	7243	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 236
7244	7244	•HR 11 IH
7245	7245	‘‘(III) any county, municipality, 1
7246	7246	board, authority, or other political 2
7247	7247	subdivision of a State. 3
7248	7248	‘‘(C) C
7249	7249	OPIES AND ELECTRONIC DOCU -4
7250	7250	MENTS ACCEPTED.—The term ‘applicable iden-5
7251	7251	tifying document’ includes— 6
7252	7252	‘‘(i) any copy of a document described 7
7253	7253	in subparagraph (A) or (B); and 8
7254	7254	‘‘(ii) any document described in sub-9
7255	7255	paragraph (A) or (B) which is presented in 10
7256	7256	electronic format.’’. 11
7257	7257	(b) P
7258	7258	AYMENTS TOSTATESTOCOVERCOSTS OFRE-12
7259	7259	QUIREDIDENTIFICATIONDOCUMENTS.— 13
7260	7260	(1) I
7261	7261	N GENERAL.—The Election Assistance 14
7262	7262	Commission shall make payments to States to cover 15
7263	7263	the costs incurred in providing identifications under 16
7264	7264	section 303(c)(5) of the Help America Vote Act of 17
7265	7265	2002, as amended by this section. 18
7266	7266	(2) A
7267	7267	MOUNT OF PAYMENT .—The amount of the 19
7268	7268	payment made to a State under this subsection for 20
7269	7269	any year shall be equal to the amount of fees which 21
7270	7270	would have been collected by the State during the 22
7271	7271	year in providing the identifications required under 23
7272	7272	section 303(c)(5) of such Act if the State had 24
7273	7273	charged the usual and customary rates for such 25
7274	7274	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00236 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7275	7275	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 237
7276	7276	•HR 11 IH
7277	7277	identifications, as determined on the basis of infor-1
7278	7278	mation furnished to the Commission by the State at 2
7279	7279	such time and in such form as the Commission may 3
7280	7280	require. 4
7281	7281	(3) A
7282	7282	UTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS .— 5
7283	7283	There are authorized to be appropriated for pay-6
7284	7284	ments under this subsection an aggregate amount of 7
7285	7285	$5,000,000 for fiscal year 2024 and each of the 4 8
7286	7286	succeeding fiscal years. 9
7287	7287	(c) C
7288	7288	ONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 10
7289	7289	303(b)(2)(A) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 11
7290	7290	U.S.C. 21083(b)(2)(A)) is amended— 12
7291	7291	(1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘in person’’ and all 13
7292	7292	that follows and inserting ‘‘in person, presents to the 14
7293	7293	appropriate State or local election official an applica-15
7294	7294	ble identifying document (as defined in subsection 16
7295	7295	(c)(6)); or’’; and 17
7296	7296	(2) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘by mail’’ and all 18
7297	7297	that follows and inserting ‘‘by mail, submits with the 19
7298	7298	ballot an applicable identifying document (as so de-20
7299	7299	fined).’’. 21
7300	7300	(d) D
7301	7301	EFINITION.—For the purposes of this section, 22
7302	7302	the term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several States, the 23
7303	7303	District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 24
7304	7304	Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Is-25
7305	7305	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00237 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7306	7306	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 238
7307	7307	•HR 11 IH
7308	7308	lands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 1
7309	7309	Islands. 2
7310	7310	(e) E
7311	7311	FFECTIVEDATE.—Section 303(e) of such Act 3
7312	7312	(52 U.S.C. 21083(d)(2)), as redesignated by subsection 4
7313	7313	(a), is amended by adding at the end the following new 5
7314	7314	paragraph: 6
7315	7315	‘‘(3) V
7316	7316	OTER IDENTIFICATION REQUIRE -7
7317	7317	MENTS.—Each State and jurisdiction shall be re-8
7318	7318	quired to comply with the requirements of subsection 9
7319	7319	(c) with respect to elections for Federal office held 10
7320	7320	on or after January 1, 2024.’’. 11
7321	7321	Subtitle J—Voter List Maintenance 12
7322	7322	Procedures 13
7323	7323	PART 1—VOTER CAGING PROHIBITED 14
7324	7324	SEC. 1901. VOTER CAGING PROHIBITED. 15
7325	7325	(a) D
7326	7326	EFINITIONS.—In this section— 16
7327	7327	(1) the term ‘‘voter caging document’’ means— 17
7328	7328	(A) a non-forwardable document sent by 18
7329	7329	any person other than a State or local election 19
7330	7330	official that is returned to the sender or a third 20
7331	7331	party as undelivered or undeliverable despite an 21
7332	7332	attempt to deliver such document to the address 22
7333	7333	of a registered voter or applicant; or 23
7334	7334	(B) any document sent by any person 24
7335	7335	other than a State or local election official with 25
7336	7336	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00238 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7337	7337	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 239
7338	7338	•HR 11 IH
7339	7339	instructions to an addressee that the document 1
7340	7340	be returned to the sender or a third party but 2
7341	7341	is not so returned, despite an attempt to deliver 3
7342	7342	such document to the address of a registered 4
7343	7343	voter or applicant; 5
7344	7344	(2) the term ‘‘voter caging list’’ means a list of 6
7345	7345	individuals compiled from voter caging documents; 7
7346	7346	and 8
7347	7347	(3) the term ‘‘unverified match list’’ means any 9
7348	7348	list produced by matching the information of reg-10
7349	7349	istered voters or applicants for voter registration to 11
7350	7350	a list of individuals who are ineligible to vote in the 12
7351	7351	registrar’s jurisdiction, by virtue of death, convic-13
7352	7352	tion, change of address, or otherwise, unless one of 14
7353	7353	the pieces of information matched includes a signa-15
7354	7354	ture, photograph, or unique identifying number en-16
7355	7355	suring that the information from each source refers 17
7356	7356	to the same individual. 18
7357	7357	(b) P
7358	7358	ROHIBITIONAGAINSTVOTERCAGING.—No 19
7359	7359	State or local election official shall prevent an individual 20
7360	7360	from registering or voting in any election for Federal of-21
7361	7361	fice, or permit in connection with any election for Federal 22
7362	7362	office a formal challenge under State law to an individual’s 23
7363	7363	registration status or eligibility to vote, if the basis for 24
7364	7364	such decision is evidence consisting of— 25
7365	7365	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00239 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7366	7366	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 240
7367	7367	•HR 11 IH
7368	7368	(1) a voter caging document or voter caging 1
7369	7369	list; 2
7370	7370	(2) an unverified match list; 3
7371	7371	(3) an error or omission on any record or paper 4
7372	7372	relating to any application, registration, or other act 5
7373	7373	requisite to voting, if such error or omission is not 6
7374	7374	material to an individual’s eligibility to vote under 7
7375	7375	section 2004(a)(2)(B) of the Revised Statutes (52 8
7376	7376	U.S.C. 10101(a)(2)(B)); or 9
7377	7377	(4) any other evidence so designated for pur-10
7378	7378	poses of this section by the Election Assistance Com-11
7379	7379	mission, 12
7380	7380	except that the election official may use such evidence if 13
7381	7381	it is corroborated by independent evidence of the individ-14
7382	7382	ual’s ineligibility to register or vote. 15
7383	7383	(c) E
7384	7384	NFORCEMENT.— 16
7385	7385	(1) C
7386	7386	IVIL ENFORCEMENT.— 17
7387	7387	(A) I
7388	7388	N GENERAL.—The Attorney General 18
7389	7389	may bring a civil action in an appropriate dis-19
7390	7390	trict court for such declaratory or injunctive re-20
7391	7391	lief as is necessary to carry out this section. 21
7392	7392	(B) P
7393	7393	RIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 22
7394	7394	(i) I
7395	7395	N GENERAL.—A person who is ag-23
7396	7396	grieved by a violation of this section may 24
7397	7397	provide written notice of the violation to 25
7398	7398	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00240 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7399	7399	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 241
7400	7400	•HR 11 IH
7401	7401	the chief election official of the State in-1
7402	7402	volved. 2
7403	7403	(ii) R
7404	7404	ELIEF.—Except as provided in 3
7405	7405	clause (iii), if the violation is not corrected 4
7406	7406	within 90 days after receipt of a notice 5
7407	7407	under clause (i), or within 20 days after 6
7408	7408	receipt of the notice if the violation oc-7
7409	7409	curred within 120 days before the date of 8
7410	7410	an election for Federal office, the ag-9
7411	7411	grieved person may, in a civil action, ob-10
7412	7412	tain declaratory or injunctive relief with re-11
7413	7413	spect to the violation. 12
7414	7414	(iii) E
7415	7415	XCEPTION.—If the violation oc-13
7416	7416	curred within 30 days before the date of 14
7417	7417	an election for Federal office, on the date 15
7418	7418	of the election, or after the date of the 16
7419	7419	election but prior to the completion of the 17
7420	7420	canvass, the aggrieved person need not 18
7421	7421	provide notice under clause (i) before 19
7422	7422	bringing a civil action to obtain declaratory 20
7423	7423	or injunctive relief with respect to the vio-21
7424	7424	lation. 22
7425	7425	(2) C
7426	7426	RIMINAL PENALTY.—Whoever knowingly 23
7427	7427	challenges the eligibility of one or more individuals 24
7428	7428	to register or vote or knowingly causes the eligibility 25
7429	7429	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00241 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7430	7430	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 242
7431	7431	•HR 11 IH
7432	7432	of such individuals to be challenged in violation of 1
7433	7433	this section with the intent that one or more eligible 2
7434	7434	voters be disqualified, shall be fined under title 18, 3
7435	7435	United States Code, or imprisoned not more than 1 4
7436	7436	year, or both, for each such violation. Each violation 5
7437	7437	shall be a separate offense. 6
7438	7438	(d) N
7439	7439	OEFFECT ONRELATEDLAWS.—Nothing in 7
7440	7440	this section is intended to override the protections of the 8
7441	7441	National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 9
7442	7442	20501 et seq.) or to affect the Voting Rights Act of 1965 10
7443	7443	(52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.). 11
7444	7444	PART 2—SAVING ELIGIBLE VOTERS FROM VOTER 12
7445	7445	PURGING 13
7446	7446	SEC. 1911. CONDITIONS FOR REMOVAL OF VOTERS FROM 14
7447	7447	LIST OF REGISTERED VOTERS. 15
7448	7448	(a) C
7449	7449	ONDITIONSDESCRIBED.—The National Voter 16
7450	7450	Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.) is 17
7451	7451	amended by inserting after section 8 the following new 18
7452	7452	section: 19
7453	7453	‘‘SEC. 8A. CONDITIONS FOR REMOVAL OF VOTERS FROM 20
7454	7454	OFFICIAL LIST OF REGISTERED VOTERS. 21
7455	7455	‘‘(a) V
7456	7456	ERIFICATION ONBASIS OFOBJECTIVE AND 22
7457	7457	R
7458	7458	ELIABLEEVIDENCE OFINELIGIBILITY.— 23
7459	7459	‘‘(1) R
7460	7460	EQUIRING VERIFICATION .—Notwith-24
7461	7461	standing any other provision of this Act, a State 25
7462	7462	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00242 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7463	7463	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 243
7464	7464	•HR 11 IH
7465	7465	may not remove the name of any registrant from the 1
7466	7466	official list of voters eligible to vote in elections for 2
7467	7467	Federal office in the State unless the State verifies, 3
7468	7468	on the basis of objective and reliable evidence, that 4
7469	7469	the registrant is ineligible to vote in such elections. 5
7470	7470	‘‘(2) F
7471	7471	ACTORS NOT CONSIDERED AS OBJECTIVE 6
7472	7472	AND RELIABLE EVIDENCE OF INELIGIBILITY .—For 7
7473	7473	purposes of paragraph (1), except as permitted 8
7474	7474	under section 8(d) after a notice described in para-9
7475	7475	graph (2) of such section has been sent, the fol-10
7476	7476	lowing factors, or any combination thereof, shall not 11
7477	7477	be treated as objective and reliable evidence of a reg-12
7478	7478	istrant’s ineligibility to vote: 13
7479	7479	‘‘(A) The failure of the registrant to vote 14
7480	7480	in any election. 15
7481	7481	‘‘(B) The failure of the registrant to re-16
7482	7482	spond to any election mail, unless the election 17
7483	7483	mail has been returned as undeliverable. 18
7484	7484	‘‘(C) The failure of the registrant to take 19
7485	7485	any other action with respect to voting in any 20
7486	7486	election or with respect to the registrant’s sta-21
7487	7487	tus as a registrant. 22
7488	7488	‘‘(3) R
7489	7489	EMOVAL BASED ON OFFICIAL 23
7490	7490	RECORDS.— 24
7491	7491	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00243 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7492	7492	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 244
7493	7493	•HR 11 IH
7494	7494	‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this sec-1
7495	7495	tion shall prohibit a State from removing a reg-2
7496	7496	istrant from the official list of eligible voters in 3
7497	7497	elections for Federal office if, on the basis of of-4
7498	7498	ficial records maintained by the State, a State 5
7499	7499	or local election official knows, on the basis of 6
7500	7500	objective and reliable evidence, that the reg-7
7501	7501	istrant has— 8
7502	7502	‘‘(i) died; or 9
7503	7503	‘‘(ii) permanently moved out of the 10
7504	7504	State and is no longer eligible to vote in 11
7505	7505	the State. 12
7506	7506	‘‘(B) O
7507	7507	PPORTUNITY TO DEMONSTRATE 13
7508	7508	ELIGIBILITY.—The State shall provide a voter 14
7509	7509	removed from the official list of eligible voters 15
7510	7510	in elections for Federal office under this para-16
7511	7511	graph an opportunity to demonstrate that the 17
7512	7512	registrant is eligible to vote and be reinstated 18
7513	7513	on the official list of eligible voters in elections 19
7514	7514	for Federal office in the State. 20
7515	7515	‘‘(b) N
7516	7516	OTICEAFTERREMOVAL.— 21
7517	7517	‘‘(1) N
7518	7518	OTICE TO INDIVIDUAL REMOVED .— 22
7519	7519	‘‘(A) I
7520	7520	N GENERAL.—Not later than 48 23
7521	7521	hours after a State removes the name of a reg-24
7522	7522	istrant from the official list of eligible voters, 25
7523	7523	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00244 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7524	7524	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 245
7525	7525	•HR 11 IH
7526	7526	the State shall send notice of the removal to the 1
7527	7527	former registrant, and shall include in the no-2
7528	7528	tice the grounds for the removal and informa-3
7529	7529	tion on how the former registrant may contest 4
7530	7530	the removal or be reinstated, including a tele-5
7531	7531	phone number for the appropriate election offi-6
7532	7532	cial. 7
7533	7533	‘‘(B) E
7534	7534	XCEPTIONS.—Subparagraph (A) 8
7535	7535	does not apply in the case of a registrant— 9
7536	7536	‘‘(i) who sends written confirmation to 10
7537	7537	the State that the registrant is no longer 11
7538	7538	eligible to vote in the registrar’s jurisdic-12
7539	7539	tion in which the registrant was registered; 13
7540	7540	or 14
7541	7541	‘‘(ii) who is removed from the official 15
7542	7542	list of eligible voters by reason of the death 16
7543	7543	of the registrant. 17
7544	7544	‘‘(2) P
7545	7545	UBLIC NOTICE.—Not later than 48 hours 18
7546	7546	after conducting any general program to remove the 19
7547	7547	names of ineligible voters from the official list of eli-20
7548	7548	gible voters (as described in section 8(a)(4)), the 21
7549	7549	State shall disseminate a public notice through such 22
7550	7550	methods as may be reasonable to reach the general 23
7551	7551	public (including by publishing the notice in a news-24
7552	7552	paper of wide circulation and posting the notice on 25
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7555	7555	•HR 11 IH
7556	7556	the websites of the appropriate election officials) 1
7557	7557	that list maintenance is taking place and that reg-2
7558	7558	istrants should check their registration status to en-3
7559	7559	sure no errors or mistakes have been made. The 4
7560	7560	State shall ensure that the public notice dissemi-5
7561	7561	nated under this paragraph is in a format that is 6
7562	7562	reasonably convenient and accessible to voters with 7
7563	7563	disabilities, including voters who have low vision or 8
7564	7564	are blind.’’. 9
7565	7565	(b) C
7566	7566	ONDITIONS FORTRANSMISSION OFNOTICES OF 10
7567	7567	R
7568	7568	EMOVAL.—Section 8(d) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 11
7569	7569	20507(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following 12
7570	7570	new paragraph: 13
7571	7571	‘‘(4) A State may not transmit a notice to a 14
7572	7572	registrant under this subsection unless the State ob-15
7573	7573	tains objective and reliable evidence (in accordance 16
7574	7574	with the standards for such evidence which are de-17
7575	7575	scribed in section 8A(a)(2)) that the registrant has 18
7576	7576	changed residence to a place outside the registrar’s 19
7577	7577	jurisdiction in which the registrant is registered.’’. 20
7578	7578	(c) C
7579	7579	ONFORMINGAMENDMENTS.— 21
7580	7580	(1) N
7581	7581	ATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION ACT OF 22
7582	7582	1993.—Section 8(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 23
7583	7583	20507(a)) is amended— 24
7584	7584	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00246 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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7586	7586	•HR 11 IH
7587	7587	(A) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘pro-1
7588	7588	vide’’ and inserting ‘‘subject to section 8A, pro-2
7589	7589	vide’’; and 3
7590	7590	(B) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘con-4
7591	7591	duct’’ and inserting ‘‘subject to section 8A, con-5
7592	7592	duct’’. 6
7593	7593	(2) H
7594	7594	ELP AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002 .—Section 7
7595	7595	303(a)(4)(A) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 8
7596	7596	(52 U.S.C. 21083(a)(4)(A)) is amended by striking 9
7597	7597	‘‘registrants’’ the second place it appears and insert-10
7598	7598	ing ‘‘and subject to section 8A of such Act, reg-11
7599	7599	istrants’’. 12
7600	7600	(d) E
7601	7601	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 13
7602	7602	this section shall take effect on the date of enactment of 14
7603	7603	this Act. 15
7604	7604	Subtitle K—Severability 16
7605	7605	SEC. 1921. SEVERABILITY. 17
7606	7606	If any provision of this title or any amendment made 18
7607	7607	by this title, or the application of any such provision or 19
7608	7608	amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to be 20
7609	7609	unconstitutional, the remainder of this title, and the appli-21
7610	7610	cation of such provision or amendment to any other person 22
7611	7611	or circumstance, shall not be affected by the holding. 23
7612	7612	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00247 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7613	7613	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 248
7614	7614	•HR 11 IH
7615	7615	DIVISION B—ELECTION 1
7616	7616	INTEGRITY 2
7617	7617	TITLE II—PROHIBITING INTER-3
7618	7618	FERENCE WITH VOTER REG-4
7619	7619	ISTRATION 5
7620	7620	SEC. 2001. PROHIBITING HINDERING, INTERFERING WITH, 6
7621	7621	OR PREVENTING VOTER REGISTRATION. 7
7622	7622	(a) I
7623	7623	NGENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 8
7624	7624	States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-9
7625	7625	lowing new section: 10
7626	7626	‘‘§ 612. Hindering, interfering with, or preventing 11
7627	7627	registering to vote 12
7628	7628	‘‘(a) P
7629	7629	ROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for any per-13
7630	7630	son, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, to 14
7631	7631	corruptly hinder, interfere with, or prevent another person 15
7632	7632	from registering to vote or to corruptly hinder, interfere 16
7633	7633	with, or prevent another person from aiding another per-17
7634	7634	son in registering to vote. 18
7635	7635	‘‘(b) A
7636	7636	TTEMPT.—Any person who attempts to commit 19
7637	7637	any offense described in subsection (a) shall be subject to 20
7638	7638	the same penalties as those prescribed for the offense that 21
7639	7639	the person attempted to commit. 22
7640	7640	‘‘(c) P
7641	7641	ENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 23
7642	7642	(a) shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 24
7643	7643	than 5 years, or both.’’. 25
7644	7644	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00248 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7645	7645	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 249
7646	7646	•HR 11 IH
7647	7647	(b) CLERICALAMENDMENT.—The table of sections 1
7648	7648	for chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 2
7649	7649	by adding at the end the following new item: 3
7650	7650	‘‘612. Hindering, interfering with, or preventing registering to vote.’’.
7651	7651	(c) EFFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 4
7652	7652	this section shall apply with respect to elections held on 5
7653	7653	or after the date of the enactment of this Act, except that 6
7654	7654	no person may be found to have violated section 612 of 7
7655	7655	title 18, United States Code (as added by subsection (a)), 8
7656	7656	on the basis of any act occurring prior to the date of the 9
7657	7657	enactment of this Act. 10
7658	7658	SEC. 2002. ESTABLISHMENT OF BEST PRACTICES. 11
7659	7659	(a) B
7660	7660	ESTPRACTICES.—Not later than 180 days after 12
7661	7661	the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney Gen-13
7662	7662	eral shall develop and publish recommendations for best 14
7663	7663	practices for States to use to deter and prevent violations 15
7664	7664	of section 612 of title 18, United States Code (as added 16
7665	7665	by section 2001), and section 12 of the National Voter 17
7666	7666	Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20511) (relating to 18
7667	7667	the unlawful interference with registering to vote, or vot-19
7668	7668	ing, or attempting to register to vote or vote), including 20
7669	7669	practices to provide for the posting of relevant information 21
7670	7670	at polling places and voter registration agencies under 22
7671	7671	such Act, the training of poll workers and election offi-23
7672	7672	cials, and relevant educational materials. For purposes of 24
7673	7673	this subsection, the term ‘‘State’’ includes the District of 25
7674	7674	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00249 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7675	7675	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 250
7676	7676	•HR 11 IH
7677	7677	Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, 1
7678	7678	American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, and 2
7679	7679	the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 3
7680	7680	(b) I
7681	7681	NCLUSION INVOTERINFORMATIONREQUIRE-4
7682	7682	MENTS.—Section 302(b)(2) of the Help America Vote Act 5
7683	7683	of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082(b)(2)) is amended— 6
7684	7684	(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara-7
7685	7685	graph (E); 8
7686	7686	(2) by striking the period at the end of sub-9
7687	7687	paragraph (F) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 10
7688	7688	(3) by adding at the end the following new sub-11
7689	7689	paragraph: 12
7690	7690	‘‘(G) information relating to the prohibi-13
7691	7691	tions of section 612 of title 18, United States 14
7692	7692	Code, and section 12 of the National Voter 15
7693	7693	Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20511) 16
7694	7694	(relating to the unlawful interference with reg-17
7695	7695	istering to vote, or voting, or attempting to reg-18
7696	7696	ister to vote or vote), including information on 19
7697	7697	how individuals may report allegations of viola-20
7698	7698	tions of such prohibitions.’’. 21
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7701	7701	•HR 11 IH
7702	7702	TITLE III—PREVENTING 1
7703	7703	ELECTION SUBVERSION 2
7704	7704	Subtitle A—Restrictions on Re-3
7705	7705	moval of Election Administra-4
7706	7706	tors 5
7707	7707	SEC. 3001. RESTRICTIONS ON REMOVAL OF LOCAL ELEC-6
7708	7708	TION ADMINISTRATORS IN ADMINISTRATION 7
7709	7709	OF ELECTIONS FOR FEDERAL OFFICE. 8
7710	7710	(a) F
7711	7711	INDINGS.—Congress makes the following find-9
7712	7712	ings: 10
7713	7713	(1) Congress has explicit and broad authority to 11
7714	7714	regulate the time, place, and manner of Federal elec-12
7715	7715	tions under the Elections Clause under article I, sec-13
7716	7716	tion 4, clause 1 of the Constitution, including by es-14
7717	7717	tablishing standards for the fair, impartial, and uni-15
7718	7718	form administration of Federal elections by State 16
7719	7719	and local officials. 17
7720	7720	(2) The Elections Clause was understood from 18
7721	7721	the framing of the Constitution to contain ‘‘words of 19
7722	7722	great latitude’’, granting Congress broad power over 20
7723	7723	Federal elections and a plenary right to preempt 21
7724	7724	State regulation in this area. As made clear at the 22
7725	7725	Constitutional Convention and the State ratification 23
7726	7726	debates that followed, this grant of congressional au-24
7727	7727	thority was meant to ‘‘insure free and fair elec-25
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7730	7730	•HR 11 IH
7731	7731	tions’’, promote the uniform administration of Fed-1
7732	7732	eral elections, and ‘‘preserve and restore to the peo-2
7733	7733	ple their equal and sacred rights of election’’. 3
7734	7734	(3) In the founding debates on the Elections 4
7735	7735	Clause, many delegates also argued that a broad 5
7736	7736	grant of authority to Congress over Federal elections 6
7737	7737	was necessary to check any ‘‘abuses that might be 7
7738	7738	made of the discretionary power’’ to regulate the 8
7739	7739	time, place, and manner of elections granted the 9
7740	7740	States, including attempts at partisan entrenchment, 10
7741	7741	malapportionment, and the exclusion of political mi-11
7742	7742	norities. As the Supreme Court has recognized, the 12
7743	7743	Elections Clause empowers Congress to ‘‘protect the 13
7744	7744	elections on which its existence depends’’, Ex parte 14
7745	7745	Yarbrough, 110 U.S. 651, 658 (1884), and ‘‘protect 15
7746	7746	the citizen in the exercise of rights conferred by the 16
7747	7747	Constitution of the United States essential to the 17
7748	7748	healthy organization of the government itself’’, id. at 18
7749	7749	666. 19
7750	7750	(4) The Elections Clause grants Congress ‘‘ple-20
7751	7751	nary and paramount jurisdiction over the whole sub-21
7752	7752	ject’’ of Federal elections, Ex parte Siebold, 100 22
7753	7753	U.S. 371, 388 (1879), allowing Congress to imple-23
7754	7754	ment ‘‘a complete code for congressional elections’’. 24
7755	7755	Smiley v. Holm, 285 U.S. 355, 366 (1932). The 25
7756	7756	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00252 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7757	7757	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 253
7758	7758	•HR 11 IH
7759	7759	Elections Clause, unlike, for example, the Commerce 1
7760	7760	Clause, has been found to grant Congress the au-2
7761	7761	thority to compel States to alter their regulations as 3
7762	7762	to Federal elections, id. at 366–67, even if these al-4
7763	7763	terations would impose additional costs on the 5
7764	7764	States to execute or enforce. Association of Commu-6
7765	7765	nity Organizations for Reform Now v. Miller, 129 7
7766	7766	F.3d 833 (6th Cir. 1997). 8
7767	7767	(5) The phrase ‘‘manner of holding elections’’ 9
7768	7768	in the Elections Clause has been interpreted by the 10
7769	7769	Supreme Court to authorize Congress to regulate all 11
7770	7770	aspects of the Federal election process, including 12
7771	7771	‘‘notices, registration, supervision of voting, protec-13
7772	7772	tion of voters, prevention of fraud and corrupt prac-14
7773	7773	tices, counting of votes, duties of inspectors and can-15
7774	7774	vassers, and the making and publication of election 16
7775	7775	returns’’. Smiley v. Holm, 285 U.S. 355, 366 17
7776	7776	(1932). 18
7777	7777	(6) The Supreme Court has recognized the 19
7778	7778	broad ‘‘substantive scope’’ of the Elections Clause 20
7779	7779	and upheld Federal laws promulgated thereunder 21
7780	7780	regulating redistricting, voter registration, campaign 22
7781	7781	finance, primary elections, recounts, party affiliation 23
7782	7782	rules, and balloting. 24
7783	7783	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00253 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7784	7784	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 254
7785	7785	•HR 11 IH
7786	7786	(7) The authority of Congress under the Elec-1
7787	7787	tions Clause also entails the power to ensure en-2
7788	7788	forcement of its laws regulating Federal elections. 3
7789	7789	‘‘[I]f Congress has the power to make regulations, it 4
7790	7790	must have the power to enforce them.’’. Ex parte 5
7791	7791	Siebold, 100 U.S. 371, 387 (1879). The Supreme 6
7792	7792	Court has noted that there can be no question that 7
7793	7793	Congress may impose additional penalties for of-8
7794	7794	fenses committed by State officers in connection 9
7795	7795	with Federal elections even if they differ from the 10
7796	7796	penalties prescribed by State law for the same acts. 11
7797	7797	Id. at 387–88. 12
7798	7798	(8) The fair and impartial administration of 13
7799	7799	Federal elections by State and local officials is cen-14
7800	7800	tral to ‘‘the successful working of this government’’, 15
7801	7801	Ex parte Yarbrough, 110 U.S. 651, 666 (1884), and 16
7802	7802	to ‘‘protect the act of voting . . . and the election 17
7803	7803	itself from corruption or fraud’’, id. at 661–62. 18
7804	7804	(9) The Elections Clause thus grants Congress 19
7805	7805	the authority to ensure that the administration of 20
7806	7806	Federal elections is free of political bias or discrimi-21
7807	7807	nation and that election officials are insulated from 22
7808	7808	political influence or other forms of coercion in dis-23
7809	7809	charging their duties in connection with Federal 24
7810	7810	elections. 25
7811	7811	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00254 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7812	7812	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 255
7813	7813	•HR 11 IH
7814	7814	(10) In some States, oversight of local election 1
7815	7815	administrators has been allocated to State Election 2
7816	7816	Boards, or special commissions formed by those 3
7817	7817	boards, that are appointed by the prevailing political 4
7818	7818	party in a State, as opposed to nonpartisan or elect-5
7819	7819	ed office holders. 6
7820	7820	(11) In certain newly enacted State policies, 7
7821	7821	these appointed statewide election administrators 8
7822	7822	have been granted wide latitude to suspend or re-9
7823	7823	move local election administrators in cases where the 10
7824	7824	statewide election administrators identify whatever 11
7825	7825	the State deems to be a violation. There is no re-12
7826	7826	quirement that there be a finding of intent by the 13
7827	7827	local election administrator to commit the violation. 14
7828	7828	(12) Local election administrators across the 15
7829	7829	country can be suspended or removed according to 16
7830	7830	different standards, potentially exposing them to dif-17
7831	7831	ferent political pressures or biases that could result 18
7832	7832	in uneven administration of Federal elections. 19
7833	7833	(13) The Elections Clause grants Congress the 20
7834	7834	ultimate authority to ensure that oversight of State 21
7835	7835	and local election administrators is fair and impar-22
7836	7836	tial in order to ensure equitable and uniform admin-23
7837	7837	istration of Federal elections. 24
7838	7838	(b) R
7839	7839	ESTRICTION.— 25
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7842	7842	•HR 11 IH
7843	7843	(1) STANDARD FOR REMOVAL OF A LOCAL 1
7844	7844	ELECTION ADMINISTRATOR .—A statewide election 2
7845	7845	administrator may only suspend, remove, or relieve 3
7846	7846	the duties of a local election administrator in the 4
7847	7847	State with respect to the administration of an elec-5
7848	7848	tion for Federal office for inefficiency, neglect of 6
7849	7849	duty, or malfeasance in office. 7
7850	7850	(2) P
7851	7851	RIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 8
7852	7852	(A) I
7853	7853	N GENERAL.—Any local election ad-9
7854	7854	ministrator suspended, removed, or otherwise 10
7855	7855	relieved of duties in violation of paragraph (1) 11
7856	7856	with respect to the administration of an election 12
7857	7857	for Federal office or against whom any pro-13
7858	7858	ceeding for suspension, removal, or relief from 14
7859	7859	duty in violation of paragraph (1) with respect 15
7860	7860	to the administration of an election for Federal 16
7861	7861	office may be pending, may bring an action in 17
7862	7862	an appropriate district court of the United 18
7863	7863	States for declaratory or injunctive relief with 19
7864	7864	respect to the violation. Any such action shall 20
7865	7865	name as the defendant the statewide election 21
7866	7866	administrator responsible for the adverse ac-22
7867	7867	tion. The district court shall, to the extent prac-23
7868	7868	ticable, expedite any such proceeding. 24
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7871	7871	•HR 11 IH
7872	7872	(B) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS .—Any ac-1
7873	7873	tion brought under this subsection must be 2
7874	7874	commenced not later than one year after the 3
7875	7875	date of the suspension, removal, relief from du-4
7876	7876	ties, or commencement of the proceeding to re-5
7877	7877	move, suspend, or relieve the duties of a local 6
7878	7878	election administrator with respect to the ad-7
7879	7879	ministration of an election for Federal office. 8
7880	7880	(3) A
7881	7881	TTORNEY’S FEES.—In any action or pro-9
7882	7882	ceeding under this subsection, the court may allow 10
7883	7883	a prevailing plaintiff, other than the United States, 11
7884	7884	reasonable attorney’s fees as part of the costs, and 12
7885	7885	may include expert fees as part of the attorney’s fee. 13
7886	7886	The term ‘‘prevailing plaintiff’’ means a plaintiff 14
7887	7887	that substantially prevails pursuant to a judicial or 15
7888	7888	administrative judgment or order, or an enforceable 16
7889	7889	written agreement. 17
7890	7890	(4) R
7891	7891	EMOVAL OF STATE PROCEEDINGS TO FED -18
7892	7892	ERAL COURT.—A local election administrator who is 19
7893	7893	subject to an administrative or judicial proceeding 20
7894	7894	for suspension, removal, or relief from duty by a 21
7895	7895	statewide election administrator with respect to the 22
7896	7896	administration of an election for Federal office may 23
7897	7897	remove the proceeding to an appropriate district 24
7898	7898	court of the United States. Any order remanding a 25
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7901	7901	•HR 11 IH
7902	7902	case to the State court or agency from which it was 1
7903	7903	removed under this subsection shall be reviewable by 2
7904	7904	appeal or otherwise. 3
7905	7905	(5) R
7906	7906	IGHT OF UNITED STATES TO INTER -4
7907	7907	VENE.— 5
7908	7908	(A) N
7909	7909	OTICE TO ATTORNEY GENERAL .— 6
7910	7910	Whenever any administrative or judicial pro-7
7911	7911	ceeding is brought to suspend, remove, or re-8
7912	7912	lieve the duties of any local election adminis-9
7913	7913	trator by a statewide election administrator 10
7914	7914	with respect to the administration of an election 11
7915	7915	for Federal office, the statewide election admin-12
7916	7916	istrator who initiated such proceeding shall de-13
7917	7917	liver a copy of the pleadings instituting the pro-14
7918	7918	ceeding to the Assistant Attorney General for 15
7919	7919	the Civil Rights Division of the Department of 16
7920	7920	Justice. The local election administrator against 17
7921	7921	whom such proceeding is brought may also de-18
7922	7922	liver such pleadings to the Assistant Attorney 19
7923	7923	General. 20
7924	7924	(B) R
7925	7925	IGHT TO INTERVENE .—The United 21
7926	7926	States may intervene in any administrative or 22
7927	7927	judicial proceeding brought to suspend, remove, 23
7928	7928	or relieve the duties of any local election admin-24
7929	7929	istrator by a statewide election administrator 25
7930	7930	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00258 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7931	7931	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 259
7932	7932	•HR 11 IH
7933	7933	with respect to the administration of an election 1
7934	7934	for Federal office and in any action initiated 2
7935	7935	pursuant to paragraph (2) or in any removal 3
7936	7936	pursuant to paragraph (4). 4
7937	7937	(6) R
7938	7938	EVIEW.—In reviewing any action brought 5
7939	7939	under this section, a court of the United States shall 6
7940	7940	not afford any deference to any State official, ad-7
7941	7941	ministrator, or tribunal that initiated, approved, ad-8
7942	7942	judicated, or reviewed any administrative or judicial 9
7943	7943	proceeding to suspend, remove, or otherwise relieve 10
7944	7944	the duties of a local election administrator. 11
7945	7945	(c) R
7946	7946	EPORTS TO THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.— 12
7947	7947	(1) I
7948	7948	N GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 13
7949	7949	the suspension, removal, or relief of the duties of a 14
7950	7950	local election administrator by a statewide election 15
7951	7951	administrator, the statewide election administrator 16
7952	7952	shall submit to the Assistant Attorney General for 17
7953	7953	the Civil Rights Divisions of the Department of Jus-18
7954	7954	tice a report that includes the following information: 19
7955	7955	(A) A statement that a local election ad-20
7956	7956	ministrator was suspended, removed, or relieved 21
7957	7957	of their duties. 22
7958	7958	(B) Information on whether the local elec-23
7959	7959	tion administrator was determined to be ineffi-24
7960	7960	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00259 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7961	7961	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 260
7962	7962	•HR 11 IH
7963	7963	cient or to have engaged in neglect of duty or 1
7964	7964	malfeasance in office. 2
7965	7965	(C) A description of the effect that the 3
7966	7966	suspension, removal, or relief of the duties of 4
7967	7967	the local election administrator will have on— 5
7968	7968	(i) the administration of elections and 6
7969	7969	voters in the election jurisdictions for 7
7970	7970	which the local election official provided 8
7971	7971	such duties; and 9
7972	7972	(ii) the administration of elections and 10
7973	7973	voters in the State at large. 11
7974	7974	(D) Demographic information about the 12
7975	7975	local election official suspended, removed, or re-13
7976	7976	lieved and the jurisdictions for which such elec-14
7977	7977	tion official was providing the duties suspended, 15
7978	7978	removed, or relieved. 16
7979	7979	(E) Such other information as requested 17
7980	7980	by the Assistant Attorney General for the pur-18
7981	7981	poses of determining— 19
7982	7982	(i) whether such suspension, removal, 20
7983	7983	or relief of duties was based on unlawful 21
7984	7984	discrimination; and 22
7985	7985	(ii) whether such suspension, removal, 23
7986	7986	or relief of duties was due to inefficiency, 24
7987	7987	neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office. 25
7988	7988	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00260 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
7989	7989	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 261
7990	7990	•HR 11 IH
7991	7991	(2) EXPEDITED REPORTING FOR ACTIONS 1
7992	7992	WITHIN 30 DAYS OF AN ELECTION .— 2
7993	7993	(A) I
7994	7994	N GENERAL.—If a suspension, re-3
7995	7995	moval, or relief of duties of a local adminis-4
7996	7996	trator described in paragraph (1) occurs during 5
7997	7997	the period described in subparagraph (B), the 6
7998	7998	report required under paragraph (1) shall be 7
7999	7999	submitted not later than 48 hours after such 8
8000	8000	suspension, removal, or relief of duties. 9
8001	8001	(B) P
8002	8002	ERIOD DESCRIBED.—The period de-10
8003	8003	scribed in this subparagraph is any period 11
8004	8004	which begins 60 days before the date of an elec-12
8005	8005	tion for Federal office and which ends 60 days 13
8006	8006	after such election. 14
8007	8007	(d) D
8008	8008	EFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi-15
8009	8009	nitions apply: 16
8010	8010	(1) E
8011	8011	LECTION.—The term ‘‘election’’ has the 17
8012	8012	meaning given the term in section 301(1) of the 18
8013	8013	Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 19
8014	8014	30101(1)). 20
8015	8015	(2) F
8016	8016	EDERAL OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Federal of-21
8017	8017	fice’’ has the meaning given the term in section 22
8018	8018	301(3) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 23
8019	8019	1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(3)). 24
8020	8020	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00261 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8021	8021	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 262
8022	8022	•HR 11 IH
8023	8023	(3) LOCAL ELECTION ADMINISTRATOR .—The 1
8024	8024	term ‘‘local election administrator’’ means, with re-2
8025	8025	spect to a local jurisdiction in a State, the individual 3
8026	8026	or entity responsible for the administration of elec-4
8027	8027	tions for Federal office in the local jurisdiction. 5
8028	8028	(4) S
8029	8029	TATEWIDE ELECTION ADMINISTRATOR .— 6
8030	8030	The term ‘‘statewide election administrator’’ means, 7
8031	8031	with respect to a State— 8
8032	8032	(A) the individual or entity, including a 9
8033	8033	State elections board, responsible for the ad-10
8034	8034	ministration of elections for Federal office in 11
8035	8035	the State on a statewide basis; or 12
8036	8036	(B) a statewide legislative or executive en-13
8037	8037	tity with the authority to suspend, remove, or 14
8038	8038	relieve a local election administrator. 15
8039	8039	(e) R
8040	8040	ULE OFCONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-16
8041	8041	tion shall be construed to grant any additional authority 17
8042	8042	to remove a local elections administrator beyond any au-18
8043	8043	thority provided under the law of the State. 19
8044	8044	Subtitle B—Increased Protections 20
8045	8045	for Election Workers 21
8046	8046	SEC. 3101. HARASSMENT OF ELECTION WORKERS PROHIB-22
8047	8047	ITED. 23
8048	8048	(a) I
8049	8049	NGENERAL.—Section 594 of title 18, United 6 24
8050	8050	States Code, is amended— 25
8051	8051	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00262 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8052	8052	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 263
8053	8053	•HR 11 IH
8054	8054	(1) by striking ‘‘Whoever intimidates’’ and in-1
8055	8055	serting the following: 2
8056	8056	‘‘(a) I
8057	8057	NGENERAL.—Whoever intimidates’’; and 3
8058	8058	(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-4
8059	8059	section: 5
8060	8060	‘‘(b) I
8061	8061	NTIMIDATION OFELECTIONWORKERS.— 6
8062	8062	‘‘(1) I
8063	8063	N GENERAL .—Whoever intimidates, 7
8064	8064	threatens, coerces, or attempts to intimidate, threat-8
8065	8065	en, or coerce, any election worker with intent to im-9
8066	8066	pede, intimidate, or interfere with such election 10
8067	8067	worker while engaged in the performance of official 11
8068	8068	duties, or with intent to retaliate against such elec-12
8069	8069	tion worker on account of the performance of official 13
8070	8070	duties shall be fined under this title or imprisoned 14
8071	8071	not more than one year, or both. 15
8072	8072	‘‘(2) E
8073	8073	LECTION WORKER .—For purposes of 16
8074	8074	paragraph (1), the term ‘election worker’ means any 17
8075	8075	individual who is an election official, poll worker, or 18
8076	8076	an election volunteer in connection with an election 19
8077	8077	for a Federal office.’’. 20
8078	8078	(b) C
8079	8079	ONFORMINGAMENDMENTS.— 21
8080	8080	(1) The heading of section 594 of title 18, 22
8081	8081	United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘and 23
8082	8082	election workers’’ after ‘‘voters’’. 24
8083	8083	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00263 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8084	8084	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 264
8085	8085	•HR 11 IH
8086	8086	(2) The item relating to section 594 in the table 1
8087	8087	of sections for chapter 29 of title 18, United States 2
8088	8088	Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘and election work-3
8089	8089	ers’’ after ‘‘voters’’. 4
8090	8090	SEC. 3102. PROTECTION OF ELECTION WORKERS. 5
8091	8091	(a) I
8092	8092	NGENERAL.—Section 594(b) of title 18, United 6
8093	8093	States Code, as amended by section 3101, is amended— 7
8094	8094	(1) by redesignating paragraph (2) as para-8
8095	8095	graph (3); and 9
8096	8096	(2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol-10
8097	8097	lowing new paragraph: 11
8098	8098	‘‘(2) P
8099	8099	ROHIBITION ON PUBLICATION OF PER -12
8100	8100	SONAL INFORMATION .—Whoever knowingly makes 13
8101	8101	restricted personal information about an election 14
8102	8102	worker, or a member of the immediate family of that 15
8103	8103	election worker, publicly available in connection with 16
8104	8104	such election worker’s official duties— 17
8105	8105	‘‘(A) with the intent to threaten, intimi-18
8106	8106	date, or incite the commission of a crime of vio-19
8107	8107	lence against that election worker, or a member 20
8108	8108	of the immediate family of that election worker; 21
8109	8109	or 22
8110	8110	‘‘(B) with the intent and knowledge that 23
8111	8111	the restricted personal information will be used 24
8112	8112	to threaten, intimidate, or facilitate the com-25
8113	8113	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00264 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8114	8114	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 265
8115	8115	•HR 11 IH
8116	8116	mission of a crime of violence against that elec-1
8117	8117	tion worker, or a member of the immediate 2
8118	8118	family of that election worker, 3
8119	8119	shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 4
8120	8120	than 1 year, or both.’’. 5
8121	8121	(b) D
8122	8122	EFINITIONS.—Paragraph (3) of section 594(b) 6
8123	8123	of title 18, United States Code, as amended by section 7
8124	8124	3101 and redesignated by subsection (a), is amended— 8
8125	8125	(1) by striking all that precedes ‘‘term’’ and in-9
8126	8126	serting the following: 10
8127	8127	‘‘(3) D
8128	8128	EFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub-11
8129	8129	section— 12
8130	8130	‘‘(A) E
8131	8131	LECTION WORKER.—The’’; and 13
8132	8132	(2) by adding at the end the following: 14
8133	8133	‘‘(B) O
8134	8134	THER TERMS.—The terms ‘re-15
8135	8135	stricted personal information’, ‘crime of vio-16
8136	8136	lence’, and ‘immediate family’ have the respec-17
8137	8137	tive meanings given such terms under section 18
8138	8138	119.’’. 19
8139	8139	Subtitle C—Prohibiting Deceptive 20
8140	8140	Practices and Preventing Voter 21
8141	8141	Intimidation 22
8142	8142	SEC. 3201. SHORT TITLE. 23
8143	8143	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Deceptive Prac-24
8144	8144	tices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2023’’. 25
8145	8145	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00265 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8146	8146	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 266
8147	8147	•HR 11 IH
8148	8148	SEC. 3202. PROHIBITION ON DECEPTIVE PRACTICES IN 1
8149	8149	FEDERAL ELECTIONS. 2
8150	8150	(a) P
8151	8151	ROHIBITION.—Subsection (b) of section 2004 of 3
8152	8152	the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(b)) is amended— 4
8153	8153	(1) by striking ‘‘No person’’ and inserting the 5
8154	8154	following: 6
8155	8155	‘‘(1) I
8156	8156	N GENERAL.—No person’’; and 7
8157	8157	(2) by inserting at the end the following new 8
8158	8158	paragraphs: 9
8159	8159	‘‘(2) F
8160	8160	ALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERAL 10
8161	8161	ELECTIONS.— 11
8162	8162	‘‘(A) P
8163	8163	ROHIBITION.—No person, whether 12
8164	8164	acting under color of law or otherwise, shall, 13
8165	8165	within 60 days before an election described in 14
8166	8166	paragraph (5), by any means, including by 15
8167	8167	means of written, electronic, or telephonic com-16
8168	8168	munications, communicate or cause to be com-17
8169	8169	municated information described in subpara-18
8170	8170	graph (B), or produce information described in 19
8171	8171	subparagraph (B) with the intent that such in-20
8172	8172	formation be communicated, if such person— 21
8173	8173	‘‘(i) knows such information to be ma-22
8174	8174	terially false; and 23
8175	8175	‘‘(ii) has the intent to impede or pre-24
8176	8176	vent another person from exercising the 25
8177	8177	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00266 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8178	8178	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 267
8179	8179	•HR 11 IH
8180	8180	right to vote in an election described in 1
8181	8181	paragraph (5). 2
8182	8182	‘‘(B) I
8183	8183	NFORMATION DESCRIBED .—Infor-3
8184	8184	mation is described in this subparagraph if such 4
8185	8185	information is regarding— 5
8186	8186	‘‘(i) the time, place, or manner of 6
8187	8187	holding any election described in para-7
8188	8188	graph (5); or 8
8189	8189	‘‘(ii) the qualifications for or restric-9
8190	8190	tions on voter eligibility for any such elec-10
8191	8191	tion, including— 11
8192	8192	‘‘(I) any criminal, civil, or other 12
8193	8193	legal penalties associated with voting 13
8194	8194	in any such election; or 14
8195	8195	‘‘(II) information regarding a 15
8196	8196	voter’s registration status or eligi-16
8197	8197	bility. 17
8198	8198	‘‘(3) F
8199	8199	ALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING PUBLIC 18
8200	8200	ENDORSEMENTS.— 19
8201	8201	‘‘(A) P
8202	8202	ROHIBITION.—No person, whether 20
8203	8203	acting under color of law or otherwise, shall, 21
8204	8204	within 60 days before an election described in 22
8205	8205	paragraph (5), by any means, including by 23
8206	8206	means of written, electronic, or telephonic com-24
8207	8207	munications, communicate, or cause to be com-25
8208	8208	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00267 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8209	8209	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 268
8210	8210	•HR 11 IH
8211	8211	municated, a materially false statement about 1
8212	8212	an endorsement, if such person— 2
8213	8213	‘‘(i) knows such statement to be false; 3
8214	8214	and 4
8215	8215	‘‘(ii) has the intent to impede or pre-5
8216	8216	vent another person from exercising the 6
8217	8217	right to vote in an election described in 7
8218	8218	paragraph (5). 8
8219	8219	‘‘(B) D
8220	8220	EFINITION OF ‘MATERIALLY 9
8221	8221	FALSE’.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), a 10
8222	8222	statement about an endorsement is ‘materially 11
8223	8223	false’ if, with respect to an upcoming election 12
8224	8224	described in paragraph (5)— 13
8225	8225	‘‘(i) the statement states that a spe-14
8226	8226	cifically named person, political party, or 15
8227	8227	organization has endorsed the election of a 16
8228	8228	specific candidate for a Federal office de-17
8229	8229	scribed in such paragraph; and 18
8230	8230	‘‘(ii) such person, political party, or 19
8231	8231	organization has not endorsed the election 20
8232	8232	of such candidate. 21
8233	8233	‘‘(4) H
8234	8234	INDERING, INTERFERING WITH, OR PRE-22
8235	8235	VENTING VOTING OR REGISTERING TO VOTE .—No 23
8236	8236	person, whether acting under color of law or other-24
8237	8237	wise, shall intentionally hinder, interfere with, or 25
8238	8238	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00268 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8239	8239	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 269
8240	8240	•HR 11 IH
8241	8241	prevent another person from voting, registering to 1
8242	8242	vote, or aiding another person to vote or register to 2
8243	8243	vote in an election described in paragraph (5), in-3
8244	8244	cluding by operating a polling place or ballot box 4
8245	8245	that falsely purports to be an official location estab-5
8246	8246	lished for such an election by a unit of government. 6
8247	8247	‘‘(5) E
8248	8248	LECTION DESCRIBED .—An election de-7
8249	8249	scribed in this paragraph is any general, primary, 8
8250	8250	runoff, or special election held solely or in part for 9
8251	8251	the purpose of nominating or electing a candidate 10
8252	8252	for the office of President, Vice President, Presi-11
8253	8253	dential elector, Member of the Senate, Member of 12
8254	8254	the House of Representatives, or Delegate or Com-13
8255	8255	missioner from a Territory or possession.’’. 14
8256	8256	(b) P
8257	8257	RIVATERIGHT OFACTION.— 15
8258	8258	(1) I
8259	8259	N GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 16
8260	8260	2004 of the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(c)) 17
8261	8261	is amended— 18
8262	8262	(A) by striking ‘‘Whenever any person’’ 19
8263	8263	and inserting the following: 20
8264	8264	‘‘(1) I
8265	8265	N GENERAL.—Whenever any person’’; and 21
8266	8266	(B) by adding at the end the following new 22
8267	8267	paragraph: 23
8268	8268	‘‘(2) C
8269	8269	IVIL ACTION.—Any person aggrieved by a 24
8270	8270	violation of this section may institute a civil action 25
8271	8271	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00269 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8272	8272	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 270
8273	8273	•HR 11 IH
8274	8274	for preventive relief, including an application in a 1
8275	8275	United States district court for a permanent or tem-2
8276	8276	porary injunction, restraining order, or other order. 3
8277	8277	In any such action, the court, in its discretion, may 4
8278	8278	allow the prevailing party a reasonable attorney’s fee 5
8279	8279	as part of the costs.’’. 6
8280	8280	(2) C
8281	8281	ONFORMING AMENDMENTS .—Section 2004 7
8282	8282	of the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101) is 8
8283	8283	amended— 9
8284	8284	(A) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘sub-10
8285	8285	section (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)(1)’’; 11
8286	8286	and 12
8287	8287	(B) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘sub-13
8288	8288	section (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)(1)’’. 14
8289	8289	(c) C
8290	8290	RIMINALPENALTIES.— 15
8291	8291	(1) D
8292	8292	ECEPTIVE ACTS.—Section 594 of title 18, 16
8293	8293	United States Code, as amended by sections 3101 17
8294	8294	and 3102, is amended— 18
8295	8295	(A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘at any 19
8296	8296	election’’ and inserting ‘‘at any general, pri-20
8297	8297	mary, runoff, or special election’’; and 21
8298	8298	(B) by adding at the end the following new 22
8299	8299	subsections: 23
8300	8300	‘‘(c) D
8301	8301	ECEPTIVEACTS.— 24
8302	8302	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00270 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8303	8303	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 271
8304	8304	•HR 11 IH
8305	8305	‘‘(1) FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERAL 1
8306	8306	ELECTIONS.— 2
8307	8307	‘‘(A) P
8308	8308	ROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful 3
8309	8309	for any person, whether acting under color of 4
8310	8310	law or otherwise, within 60 days before an elec-5
8311	8311	tion described in subsection (f), by any means, 6
8312	8312	including by means of written, electronic, or tel-7
8313	8313	ephonic communications, to communicate or 8
8314	8314	cause to be communicated information de-9
8315	8315	scribed in subparagraph (B), or produce infor-10
8316	8316	mation described in subparagraph (B) with the 11
8317	8317	intent that such information be communicated, 12
8318	8318	if such person— 13
8319	8319	‘‘(i) knows such information to be ma-14
8320	8320	terially false; and 15
8321	8321	‘‘(ii) has the intent to impede or pre-16
8322	8322	vent another person from exercising the 17
8323	8323	right to vote in an election described in 18
8324	8324	subsection (f). 19
8325	8325	‘‘(B) I
8326	8326	NFORMATION DESCRIBED .—Infor-20
8327	8327	mation is described in this subparagraph if such 21
8328	8328	information is regarding— 22
8329	8329	‘‘(i) the time or place of holding any 23
8330	8330	election described in subsection (e); or 24
8331	8331	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00271 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8332	8332	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 272
8333	8333	•HR 11 IH
8334	8334	‘‘(ii) the qualifications for or restric-1
8335	8335	tions on voter eligibility for any such elec-2
8336	8336	tion, including— 3
8337	8337	‘‘(I) any criminal, civil, or other 4
8338	8338	legal penalties associated with voting 5
8339	8339	in any such election; or 6
8340	8340	‘‘(II) information regarding a 7
8341	8341	voter’s registration status or eligi-8
8342	8342	bility. 9
8343	8343	‘‘(2) P
8344	8344	ENALTY.—Any person who violates para-10
8345	8345	graph (1) shall be fined not more than $100,000, 11
8346	8346	imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. 12
8347	8347	‘‘(d) H
8348	8348	INDERING, INTERFERING WITH, ORPRE-13
8349	8349	VENTINGVOTING ORREGISTERINGTOVOTE.— 14
8350	8350	‘‘(1) P
8351	8351	ROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for 15
8352	8352	any person, whether acting under color of law or 16
8353	8353	otherwise, to corruptly hinder, interfere with, or pre-17
8354	8354	vent another person from voting, registering to vote, 18
8355	8355	or aiding another person to vote or register to vote 19
8356	8356	in an election described in subsection (f). 20
8357	8357	‘‘(2) P
8358	8358	ENALTY.—Any person who violates para-21
8359	8359	graph (1) shall be fined not more than $100,000, 22
8360	8360	imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. 23
8361	8361	‘‘(e) A
8362	8362	TTEMPT.—Any person who attempts to commit 24
8363	8363	any offense described in subsection (c)(1) or (d)(1) shall 25
8364	8364	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00272 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8365	8365	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 273
8366	8366	•HR 11 IH
8367	8367	be subject to the same penalties as those prescribed for 1
8368	8368	the offense that the person attempted to commit. 2
8369	8369	‘‘(f) E
8370	8370	LECTIONDESCRIBED.—An election described 3
8371	8371	in this subsection is any general, primary, runoff, or spe-4
8372	8372	cial election held solely or in part for the purpose of nomi-5
8373	8373	nating or electing a candidate for the office of President, 6
8374	8374	Vice President, Presidential elector, Senator, Member of 7
8375	8375	the House of Representatives, or Delegate or Resident 8
8376	8376	Commissioner to the Congress.’’. 9
8377	8377	(2) M
8378	8378	ODIFICATIONS TO PENALTY FOR VOTER 10
8379	8379	AND ELECTION WORKER INTIMIDATION .—Section 11
8380	8380	594(a) of title 18, United States Code, as amended 12
8381	8381	by this Act, is amended by striking ‘‘fined under this 13
8382	8382	title or imprisoned not more than one year’’ and in-14
8383	8383	serting ‘‘fined not more than $100,000, imprisoned 15
8384	8384	for not more than 5 years’’. 16
8385	8385	(3) S
8386	8386	ENTENCING GUIDELINES .— 17
8387	8387	(A) R
8388	8388	EVIEW AND AMENDMENT .—Not later 18
8389	8389	than 180 days after the date of enactment of 19
8390	8390	this Act, the United States Sentencing Commis-20
8391	8391	sion, pursuant to its authority under section 21
8392	8392	994 of title 28, United States Code, and in ac-22
8393	8393	cordance with this section, shall review and, if 23
8394	8394	appropriate, amend the Federal sentencing 24
8395	8395	guidelines and policy statements applicable to 25
8396	8396	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00273 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8397	8397	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 274
8398	8398	•HR 11 IH
8399	8399	persons convicted of any offense under section 1
8400	8400	594 of title 18, United States Code, as amend-2
8401	8401	ed by this section. 3
8402	8402	(B) A
8403	8403	UTHORIZATION.—The United States 4
8404	8404	Sentencing Commission may amend the Federal 5
8405	8405	Sentencing Guidelines in accordance with the 6
8406	8406	procedures set forth in section 21(a) of the Sen-7
8407	8407	tencing Act of 1987 (28 U.S.C. 994 note) as 8
8408	8408	though the authority under that section had not 9
8409	8409	expired. 10
8410	8410	(4) P
8411	8411	AYMENTS FOR REFRAINING FROM VOT -11
8412	8412	ING.—Subsection (c) of section 11 of the Voting 12
8413	8413	Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10307) is amended 13
8414	8414	by striking ‘‘either for registration to vote or for vot-14
8415	8415	ing’’ and inserting ‘‘for registration to vote, for vot-15
8416	8416	ing, or for not voting’’. 16
8417	8417	SEC. 3203. CORRECTIVE ACTION. 17
8418	8418	(a) C
8419	8419	ORRECTIVEACTION.— 18
8420	8420	(1) I
8421	8421	N GENERAL.—If the Attorney General re-19
8422	8422	ceives a credible report that materially false informa-20
8423	8423	tion has been or is being communicated in violation 21
8424	8424	of paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 2004(b) of the 22
8425	8425	Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(b)), as added by 23
8426	8426	section 3202(a), and if the Attorney General deter-24
8427	8427	mines that State and local election officials have not 25
8428	8428	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00274 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8429	8429	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 275
8430	8430	•HR 11 IH
8431	8431	taken adequate steps to promptly communicate accu-1
8432	8432	rate information to correct the materially false infor-2
8433	8433	mation, the Attorney General shall, pursuant to the 3
8434	8434	written procedures and standards under subsection 4
8435	8435	(b), communicate to the public, by any means, in-5
8436	8436	cluding by means of written, electronic, or telephonic 6
8437	8437	communications, accurate information designed to 7
8438	8438	correct the materially false information. 8
8439	8439	(2) C
8440	8440	OMMUNICATION OF CORRECTIVE INFORMA -9
8441	8441	TION.—Any information communicated by the Attor-10
8442	8442	ney General under paragraph (1)— 11
8443	8443	(A) shall— 12
8444	8444	(i) be accurate and objective; 13
8445	8445	(ii) consist of only the information 14
8446	8446	necessary to correct the materially false in-15
8447	8447	formation that has been or is being com-16
8448	8448	municated; and 17
8449	8449	(iii) to the extent practicable, be by a 18
8450	8450	means that the Attorney General deter-19
8451	8451	mines will reach the persons to whom the 20
8452	8452	materially false information has been or is 21
8453	8453	being communicated; and 22
8454	8454	(B) shall not be designed to favor or dis-23
8455	8455	favor any particular candidate, organization, or 24
8456	8456	political party. 25
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8459	8459	•HR 11 IH
8460	8460	(b) WRITTENPROCEDURES AND STANDARDS FOR 1
8461	8461	T
8462	8462	AKINGCORRECTIVEACTION.— 2
8463	8463	(1) I
8464	8464	N GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 3
8465	8465	after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney 4
8466	8466	General shall publish written procedures and stand-5
8467	8467	ards for determining when and how corrective action 6
8468	8468	will be taken under this section. 7
8469	8469	(2) I
8470	8470	NCLUSION OF APPROPRIATE DEADLINES .— 8
8471	8471	The procedures and standards under paragraph (1) 9
8472	8472	shall include appropriate deadlines, based in part on 10
8473	8473	the number of days remaining before the upcoming 11
8474	8474	election. 12
8475	8475	(3) C
8476	8476	ONSULTATION.—In developing the proce-13
8477	8477	dures and standards under paragraph (1), the Attor-14
8478	8478	ney General shall consult with the Election Assist-15
8479	8479	ance Commission, State and local election officials, 16
8480	8480	civil rights organizations, voting rights groups, voter 17
8481	8481	protection groups, and other interested community 18
8482	8482	organizations. 19
8483	8483	(c) A
8484	8484	UTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 20
8485	8485	are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General 21
8486	8486	such sums as may be necessary to carry out this subtitle. 22
8487	8487	SEC. 3204. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 23
8488	8488	(a) I
8489	8489	NGENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 24
8490	8490	each general election for Federal office, the Attorney Gen-25
8491	8491	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00276 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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8493	8493	•HR 11 IH
8494	8494	eral shall submit to Congress a report compiling all allega-1
8495	8495	tions received by the Attorney General of deceptive prac-2
8496	8496	tices described in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) of section 3
8497	8497	2004(b) of the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10101(b)), as 4
8498	8498	added by section 3202(a), relating to the general election 5
8499	8499	for Federal office and any primary, runoff, or a special 6
8500	8500	election for Federal office held in the 2 years preceding 7
8501	8501	the general election. 8
8502	8502	(b) C
8503	8503	ONTENTS.— 9
8504	8504	(1) I
8505	8505	N GENERAL.—Each report submitted 10
8506	8506	under subsection (a) shall include— 11
8507	8507	(A) a description of each allegation of a 12
8508	8508	deceptive practice described in subsection (a), 13
8509	8509	including the geographic location, racial and 14
8510	8510	ethnic composition, and language minority- 15
8511	8511	group membership of the persons toward whom 16
8512	8512	the alleged deceptive practice was directed; 17
8513	8513	(B) the status of the investigation of each 18
8514	8514	allegation described in subparagraph (A); 19
8515	8515	(C) a description of each corrective action 20
8516	8516	taken by the Attorney General under section 21
8517	8517	3203(a) in response to an allegation described 22
8518	8518	in subparagraph (A); 23
8519	8519	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00277 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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8521	8521	•HR 11 IH
8522	8522	(D) a description of each referral of an al-1
8523	8523	legation described in subparagraph (A) to other 2
8524	8524	Federal, State, or local agencies; 3
8525	8525	(E) to the extent information is available, 4
8526	8526	a description of any civil action instituted under 5
8527	8527	section 2004(c)(2) of the Revised Statutes (52 6
8528	8528	U.S.C. 10101(c)(2)), as added by section 7
8529	8529	3202(b), in connection with an allegation de-8
8530	8530	scribed in subparagraph (A); and 9
8531	8531	(F) a description of any criminal prosecu-10
8532	8532	tion instituted under subsection (c) or (d) of 11
8533	8533	section 594 of title 18, United States Code, as 12
8534	8534	amended by section 3202(c), in connection with 13
8535	8535	the receipt of an allegation described in sub-14
8536	8536	paragraph (A) by the Attorney General. 15
8537	8537	(2) E
8538	8538	XCLUSION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION .— 16
8539	8539	(A) I
8540	8540	N GENERAL.—The Attorney General 17
8541	8541	shall not include in a report submitted under 18
8542	8542	subsection (a) any information protected from 19
8543	8543	disclosure by rule 6(e) of the Federal Rules of 20
8544	8544	Criminal Procedure or any Federal criminal 21
8545	8545	statute. 22
8546	8546	(B) E
8547	8547	XCLUSION OF CERTAIN OTHER IN -23
8548	8548	FORMATION.—The Attorney General may deter-24
8549	8549	mine that the following information shall not be 25
8550	8550	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00278 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8551	8551	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 279
8552	8552	•HR 11 IH
8553	8553	included in a report submitted under subsection 1
8554	8554	(a): 2
8555	8555	(i) Any information that is privileged. 3
8556	8556	(ii) Any information concerning an 4
8557	8557	ongoing investigation. 5
8558	8558	(iii) Any information concerning a 6
8559	8559	criminal or civil proceeding conducted 7
8560	8560	under seal. 8
8561	8561	(iv) Any other nonpublic information 9
8562	8562	that the Attorney General determines the 10
8563	8563	disclosure of which could reasonably be ex-11
8564	8564	pected to infringe on the rights of any in-12
8565	8565	dividual or adversely affect the integrity of 13
8566	8566	a pending or future criminal investigation. 14
8567	8567	(c) R
8568	8568	EPORTMADEPUBLIC.—On the date that the 15
8569	8569	Attorney General submits the report under subsection (a), 16
8570	8570	the Attorney General shall also make the report publicly 17
8571	8571	available through the internet and other appropriate 18
8572	8572	means. 19
8573	8573	SEC. 3205. PRIVATE RIGHTS OF ACTION BY ELECTION OFFI-20
8574	8574	CIALS. 21
8575	8575	Subsection (c)(2) of section 2004 of the Revised Stat-22
8576	8576	utes (52 U.S.C. 10101(b)), as added by section 3202(b), 23
8577	8577	is amended— 24
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8579	8579	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 280
8580	8580	•HR 11 IH
8581	8581	(1) by striking ‘‘Any person’’ and inserting the 1
8582	8582	following: 2
8583	8583	‘‘(A) I
8584	8584	N GENERAL.—Any person’’; and 3
8585	8585	(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-4
8586	8586	paragraph: 5
8587	8587	‘‘(B) I
8588	8588	NTIMIDATION, ETC.— 6
8589	8589	‘‘(i) I
8590	8590	N GENERAL.—A person ag-7
8591	8591	grieved by a violation of subsection (b)(1) 8
8592	8592	shall include, without limitation, an officer 9
8593	8593	responsible for maintaining order and pre-10
8594	8594	venting intimidation, threats, or coercion 11
8595	8595	in or around a location at which voters 12
8596	8596	may cast their votes. 13
8597	8597	‘‘(ii) C
8598	8598	ORRECTIVE ACTION.—If the At-14
8599	8599	torney General receives a credible report 15
8600	8600	that conduct that violates or would be rea-16
8601	8601	sonably likely to violate subsection (b)(1) 17
8602	8602	has occurred or is likely to occur, and if 18
8603	8603	the Attorney General determines that 19
8604	8604	State and local officials have not taken 20
8605	8605	adequate steps to promptly communicate 21
8606	8606	that such conduct would violate subsection 22
8607	8607	(b)(1) or applicable State or local laws, the 23
8608	8608	Attorney General shall communicate to the 24
8609	8609	public, by any means, including by means 25
8610	8610	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00280 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8611	8611	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 281
8612	8612	•HR 11 IH
8613	8613	of written, electronic, or telephonic commu-1
8614	8614	nications, accurate information designed to 2
8615	8615	convey the unlawfulness of proscribed con-3
8616	8616	duct under subsection (b)(1) and the re-4
8617	8617	sponsibilities of and resources available to 5
8618	8618	State and local officials to prevent or cor-6
8619	8619	rect such violations.’’. 7
8620	8620	SEC. 3206. MAKING INTIMIDATION OF TABULATION, CAN-8
8621	8621	VASS, AND CERTIFICATION EFFORTS A 9
8622	8622	CRIME. 10
8623	8623	Section 12(1) of the National Voter Registration Act 11
8624	8624	(52 U.S.C. 20511) is amended— 12
8625	8625	(1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 13
8626	8626	the end; and 14
8627	8627	(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-15
8628	8628	paragraph: 16
8629	8629	‘‘(D) processing or scanning ballots, or 17
8630	8630	tabulating, canvassing, or certifying voting re-18
8631	8631	sults; or’’. 19
8632	8632	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00281 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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8634	8634	•HR 11 IH
8635	8635	Subtitle D—Protection of Election 1
8636	8636	Records and Election Infra-2
8637	8637	structure 3
8638	8638	SEC. 3301. STRENGTHEN PROTECTIONS FOR FEDERAL 4
8639	8639	ELECTION RECORDS. 5
8640	8640	(a) F
8641	8641	INDING OFCONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY.— 6
8642	8642	Congress finds as follows: 7
8643	8643	(1) Congress has explicit and broad authority to 8
8644	8644	regulate the time, place, and manner of Federal elec-9
8645	8645	tions under the Elections Clause under article I, sec-10
8646	8646	tion 4, clause 1 of the Constitution, including by es-11
8647	8647	tablishing standards for the fair, impartial, and uni-12
8648	8648	form administration of Federal elections by State 13
8649	8649	and local officials. 14
8650	8650	(2) The Elections Clause grants Congress ‘‘ple-15
8651	8651	nary and paramount jurisdiction over the whole sub-16
8652	8652	ject’’ of Federal elections, Ex parte Siebold, 100 17
8653	8653	U.S. 371, 388 (1879), allowing Congress to imple-18
8654	8654	ment ‘‘a complete code for congressional elections’’. 19
8655	8655	Smiley v. Holm, 285 U.S. 355, 366 (1932). 20
8656	8656	(3) The fair and impartial administration of 21
8657	8657	Federal elections by State and local officials is cen-22
8658	8658	tral to ‘‘the successful working of this government’’, 23
8659	8659	Ex parte Yarbrough, 110 U.S. 651, 666 (1884), and 24
8660	8660	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00282 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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8662	8662	•HR 11 IH
8663	8663	to ‘‘protect the act of voting . . . and the election 1
8664	8664	itself from corruption or fraud’’, id. at 661–62. 2
8665	8665	(4) The Elections Clause thus grants Congress 3
8666	8666	the authority to strengthen the protections for Fed-4
8667	8667	eral election records. 5
8668	8668	(5) Congress has intervened in the electoral 6
8669	8669	process to protect the health and legitimacy of fed-7
8670	8670	eral elections, including for example, Congress’ en-8
8671	8671	actment of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 as 9
8672	8672	a response to several issues that occurred during the 10
8673	8673	2000 Presidential election. See ‘‘The Elections 11
8674	8674	Clause: Constitutional Interpretation and Congres-12
8675	8675	sional Exercise’’, Hearing Before Comm. on House 13
8676	8676	Administration, 117th Cong. (2021), written testi-14
8677	8677	mony of Vice Dean Franita Tolson at 3. 15
8678	8678	(b) S
8679	8679	TRENGTHENING OF PROTECTIONS.—Section 16
8680	8680	301 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20701) 17
8681	8681	is amended— 18
8682	8682	(1) by striking ‘‘Every officer’’ and inserting 19
8683	8683	the following: 20
8684	8684	‘‘(a) I
8685	8685	NGENERAL.—Every officer’’; 21
8686	8686	(2) by striking ‘‘records and papers’’ and in-22
8687	8687	serting ‘‘records (including electronic records), pa-23
8688	8688	pers, and election equipment’’ each place the term 24
8689	8689	appears; 25
8690	8690	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00283 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
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8692	8692	•HR 11 IH
8693	8693	(3) by striking ‘‘record or paper’’ and inserting 1
8694	8694	‘‘record (including electronic record), paper, or elec-2
8695	8695	tion equipment’’; 3
8696	8696	(4) by inserting ‘‘(but only under the direct ad-4
8697	8697	ministrative supervision of an election officer). Not-5
8698	8698	withstanding any other provision of this section, the 6
8699	8699	paper record of a voter’s cast ballot shall remain the 7
8700	8700	official record of the cast ballot for purposes of this 8
8701	8701	title’’ after ‘‘upon such custodian’’; 9
8702	8702	(5) by inserting ‘‘, or acts in reckless disregard 10
8703	8703	of,’’ after ‘‘fails to comply with’’; and 11
8704	8704	(6) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol-12
8705	8705	lowing: 13
8706	8706	‘‘(b) E
8707	8707	LECTIONEQUIPMENT.—The requirement in 14
8708	8708	subsection (a) to preserve election equipment shall not be 15
8709	8709	construed to prevent the reuse of such equipment in any 16
8710	8710	election that takes place within twenty-two months of a 17
8711	8711	Federal election described in subsection (a), provided that 18
8712	8712	all electronic records, files, and data from such equipment 19
8713	8713	related to such Federal election are retained and pre-20
8714	8714	served. 21
8715	8715	‘‘(c) G
8716	8716	UIDANCE.—Not later than 1 year after the 22
8717	8717	date of enactment of this subsection, the Director of the 23
8718	8718	Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the 24
8719	8719	Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with 25
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8722	8722	•HR 11 IH
8723	8723	the Election Assistance Commission and the Attorney 1
8724	8724	General, shall issue guidance regarding compliance with 2
8725	8725	subsections (a) and (b), including minimum standards and 3
8726	8726	best practices for retaining and preserving records and pa-4
8727	8727	pers in compliance with subsection (a). Such guidance 5
8728	8728	shall also include protocols for enabling the observation 6
8729	8729	of the preservation, security, and transfer of records and 7
8730	8730	papers described in subsection (a) by the Attorney General 8
8731	8731	and by a representative of each party, as defined by the 9
8732	8732	Attorney General.’’. 10
8733	8733	(c) P
8734	8734	ROTECTING THE INTEGRITY OFPAPERBAL-11
8735	8735	LOTS INFEDERALELECTIONS.— 12
8736	8736	(1) P
8737	8737	ROTOCOLS AND CONDITIONS FOR INSPEC -13
8738	8738	TION OF BALLOTS.—Not later than 60 days after 14
8739	8739	the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney 15
8740	8740	General, in consultation with the Director of the Cy-16
8741	8741	bersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of 17
8742	8742	the Department of Homeland Security and the Elec-18
8743	8743	tion Assistance Commission, shall promulgate regu-19
8744	8744	lations establishing the election security protocols 20
8745	8745	and conditions, including appropriate chain of cus-21
8746	8746	tody and proper preservation practices, which will 22
8747	8747	apply to the inspection of the paper ballots which 23
8748	8748	are required to be retained and preserved under sec-24
8749	8749	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00285 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8750	8750	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 286
8751	8751	•HR 11 IH
8752	8752	tion 301 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 1
8753	8753	20701). 2
8754	8754	(2) C
8755	8755	AUSE OF ACTION FOR INJUNCTIVE AND 3
8756	8756	DECLARATORY RELIEF .—The Attorney General may 4
8757	8757	bring an action in an appropriate district court of 5
8758	8758	the United States for such declaratory or injunctive 6
8759	8759	relief as may be necessary to ensure compliance with 7
8760	8760	the regulations promulgated under subsection (a). 8
8761	8761	SEC. 3302. PENALTIES; INSPECTION; NONDISCLOSURE; JU-9
8762	8762	RISDICTION. 10
8763	8763	(a) E
8764	8764	XPANSION OFSCOPE OFPENALTIES FORIN-11
8765	8765	TERFERENCE.—Section 302 of the Civil Rights Act of 12
8766	8766	1960 (52 U.S.C. 20702) is amended— 13
8767	8767	(1) by inserting ‘‘, or whose reckless disregard 14
8768	8768	of section 301 results in the theft, destruction, con-15
8769	8769	cealment, mutilation, or alteration of,’’ after ‘‘or al-16
8770	8770	ters’’; and 17
8771	8771	(2) by striking ‘‘record or paper’’ and inserting 18
8772	8772	‘‘record (including electronic record), paper, or elec-19
8773	8773	tion equipment’’. 20
8774	8774	(b) I
8775	8775	NSPECTION, REPRODUCTION, ANDCOPYING.— 21
8776	8776	Section 303 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20703) is amended 22
8777	8777	by striking ‘‘record or paper’’ each place it appears and 23
8778	8778	inserting ‘‘record (including electronic record), paper, or 24
8779	8779	election equipment’’. 25
8780	8780	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00286 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8781	8781	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 287
8782	8782	•HR 11 IH
8783	8783	(c) NONDISCLOSURE.—Section 304 of such Act (52 1
8784	8784	U.S.C. 20704) is amended by striking ‘‘record or paper’’ 2
8785	8785	and inserting ‘‘record (including electronic record), paper, 3
8786	8786	or election equipment’’. 4
8787	8787	(d) J
8788	8788	URISDICTIONTOCOMPELPRODUCTION.—Sec-5
8789	8789	tion 305 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 20705) is amended by 6
8790	8790	striking ‘‘record or paper’’ each place it appears and in-7
8791	8791	serting ‘‘record (including electronic record), paper, or 8
8792	8792	election equipment’’. 9
8793	8793	SEC. 3303. JUDICIAL REVIEW TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE. 10
8794	8794	Title III of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 11
8795	8795	20701 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol-12
8796	8796	lowing: 13
8797	8797	‘‘SEC. 307. JUDICIAL REVIEW TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE. 14
8798	8798	‘‘(a) C
8799	8799	AUSE OFACTION.—The Attorney General, a 15
8800	8800	representative of the Attorney General, or a candidate in 16
8801	8801	a Federal election described in section 301 may bring an 17
8802	8802	action in the district court of the United States for the 18
8803	8803	judicial district in which a record or paper is located, or 19
8804	8804	in the United States District Court for the District of Co-20
8805	8805	lumbia, to compel compliance with the requirements of 21
8806	8806	section 301. 22
8807	8807	‘‘(b) D
8808	8808	UTYTOEXPEDITE.—It shall be the duty of 23
8809	8809	the court to advance on the docket, and to expedite to 24
8810	8810	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00287 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8811	8811	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 288
8812	8812	•HR 11 IH
8813	8813	the greatest possible extent the disposition of, the action 1
8814	8814	and any appeal under this section.’’. 2
8815	8815	Subtitle E—Judicial Protection of 3
8816	8816	the Right To Vote and Non-Par-4
8817	8817	tisan Vote Tabulation 5
8818	8818	PART 1—RIGHT TO VOTE ACT 6
8819	8819	SEC. 3401. SHORT TITLE. 7
8820	8820	This part may be cited as the ‘‘Right to Vote Act’’. 8
8821	8821	SEC. 3402. UNDUE BURDENS ON THE ABILITY TO VOTE IN 9
8822	8822	ELECTIONS FOR FEDERAL OFFICE PROHIB-10
8823	8823	ITED. 11
8824	8824	(a) I
8825	8825	NGENERAL.—Every citizen of legal voting age 12
8826	8826	shall have the right to vote and have one’s vote counted 13
8827	8827	in elections for Federal office free from any burden on 14
8828	8828	the time, place, or manner of voting, as set forth in sub-15
8829	8829	sections (b) and (c). 16
8830	8830	(b) R
8831	8831	ETROGRESSION.—A government may not dimin-17
8832	8832	ish the ability to vote or to have one’s vote counted in 18
8833	8833	an election for Federal office unless the law, rule, stand-19
8834	8834	ard, practice, procedure, or other governmental action 20
8835	8835	causing the diminishment is the least restrictive means of 21
8836	8836	significantly furthering an important, particularized gov-22
8837	8837	ernment interest. 23
8838	8838	(c) S
8839	8839	UBSTANTIALIMPAIRMENT.— 24
8840	8840	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00288 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8841	8841	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 289
8842	8842	•HR 11 IH
8843	8843	(1) IN GENERAL.—A government may not sub-1
8844	8844	stantially impair the ability of an individual to vote 2
8845	8845	or to have one’s vote counted in an election for Fed-3
8846	8846	eral office unless the law, rule, standard, practice, 4
8847	8847	procedure, or other governmental action causing the 5
8848	8848	impairment significantly furthers an important, par-6
8849	8849	ticularized governmental interest. 7
8850	8850	(2) S
8851	8851	UBSTANTIAL IMPAIRMENT .—For purposes 8
8852	8852	of this section, a substantial impairment is a non- 9
8853	8853	trivial impairment that makes it more difficult to 10
8854	8854	vote or to have one’s vote counted than if the law, 11
8855	8855	rule, standard, practice, procedure, or other govern-12
8856	8856	mental action had not been adopted or implemented. 13
8857	8857	An impairment may be substantial even if the voter 14
8858	8858	or other similarly situated voters are able to vote or 15
8859	8859	to have one’s vote counted notwithstanding the im-16
8860	8860	pairment. 17
8861	8861	SEC. 3403. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 18
8862	8862	(a) C
8863	8863	IVILACTION.—An action challenging a violation 19
8864	8864	of this part may be brought by any aggrieved person or 20
8865	8865	the Attorney General in the district court for the District 21
8866	8866	of Columbia, or the district court for the district in which 22
8867	8867	the violation took place or where any defendant resides 23
8868	8868	or does business, at the selection of the plaintiff, to obtain 24
8869	8869	all appropriate relief, whether declaratory or injunctive, or 25
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8871	8871	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 290
8872	8872	•HR 11 IH
8873	8873	facial or as-applied. Process may be served in any district 1
8874	8874	where a defendant resides, does business, or may be found. 2
8875	8875	(b) S
8876	8876	TANDARDSTOBEAPPLIED.—A court adjudi-3
8877	8877	cating an action brought under this part shall apply the 4
8878	8878	following standards: 5
8879	8879	(1) R
8880	8880	ETROGRESSION.— 6
8881	8881	(A) A plaintiff establishes a prima facie 7
8882	8882	case of retrogression by demonstrating by a 8
8883	8883	preponderance of the evidence that a rule, 9
8884	8884	standard, practice, procedure, or other govern-10
8885	8885	mental action diminishes the ability, or other-11
8886	8886	wise makes it more difficult, to vote, or have 12
8887	8887	one’s vote counted. 13
8888	8888	(B) If a plaintiff establishes a prima facie 14
8889	8889	case as described in subparagraph (A), the gov-15
8890	8890	ernment shall be provided an opportunity to 16
8891	8891	demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence 17
8892	8892	that the diminishment is necessary to signifi-18
8893	8893	cantly further an important, particularized gov-19
8894	8894	ernmental interest. 20
8895	8895	(C) If the government meets its burden 21
8896	8896	under subparagraph (B), the challenged rule, 22
8897	8897	standard, practice, procedure, or other govern-23
8898	8898	mental action shall nonetheless be deemed in-24
8899	8899	valid if the plaintiff demonstrates by a prepon-25
8900	8900	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00290 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8901	8901	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 291
8902	8902	•HR 11 IH
8903	8903	derance of the evidence that the government 1
8904	8904	could adopt or implement a less-restrictive 2
8905	8905	means of furthering the particularized impor-3
8906	8906	tant governmental interest. 4
8907	8907	(2) S
8908	8908	UBSTANTIAL IMPAIRMENT .— 5
8909	8909	(A) A plaintiff establishes a prima facie 6
8910	8910	case of substantial impairment by dem-7
8911	8911	onstrating by a preponderance of the evidence 8
8912	8912	that a rule, standard, practice, procedure, or 9
8913	8913	other governmental action is a non-trivial im-10
8914	8914	pairment of the ability to vote or to have one’s 11
8915	8915	vote counted. 12
8916	8916	(B) If a plaintiff establishes a prima facie 13
8917	8917	case as described in subparagraph (A), the gov-14
8918	8918	ernment shall be provided an opportunity to 15
8919	8919	demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence 16
8920	8920	that the impairment significantly furthers an 17
8921	8921	important, particularized governmental interest. 18
8922	8922	(c) D
8923	8923	UTYTOEXPEDITE.—It shall be the duty of the 19
8924	8924	court to advance on the docket and to expedite to the 20
8925	8925	greatest reasonable extent the disposition of the action 21
8926	8926	and appeal under this section. 22
8927	8927	(d) A
8928	8928	TTORNEY’SFEES.—Section 722(b) of the Re-23
8929	8929	vised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1988(b)) is amended— 24
8930	8930	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00291 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8931	8931	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 292
8932	8932	•HR 11 IH
8933	8933	(1) by striking ‘‘or section 40302’’ and insert-1
8934	8934	ing ‘‘section 40302’’; and 2
8935	8935	(2) by striking ‘‘, the court’’ and inserting ‘‘, or 3
8936	8936	section 3402(a) of the Freedom to Vote Act, the 4
8937	8937	court’’. 5
8938	8938	SEC. 3404. DEFINITIONS. 6
8939	8939	In this part— 7
8940	8940	(1) the term ‘‘covered entity’’ means the Dis-8
8941	8941	trict of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 9
8942	8942	Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States 10
8943	8943	Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the North-11
8944	8944	ern Mariana Islands; 12
8945	8945	(2) the terms ‘‘election’’ and ‘‘Federal office’’ 13
8946	8946	have the meanings given such terms in section 301 14
8947	8947	of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 15
8948	8948	U.S.C. 30101); 16
8949	8949	(3) the term ‘‘have one’s vote counted’’ means 17
8950	8950	all actions necessary to have a vote included in the 18
8951	8951	appropriate totals of votes cast with respect to can-19
8952	8952	didates for public office for which votes are received 20
8953	8953	in an election and reflected in the certified vote to-21
8954	8954	tals by any government responsible for tallying or 22
8955	8955	certifying the results of elections for Federal office; 23
8956	8956	(4) the term ‘‘government’’ includes a branch, 24
8957	8957	department, agency, instrumentality, and official (or 25
8958	8958	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00292 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8959	8959	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 293
8960	8960	•HR 11 IH
8961	8961	other person acting under color of law) of the 1
8962	8962	United States, of any State, of any covered entity, 2
8963	8963	or of any political subdivision of any State or cov-3
8964	8964	ered entity; and 4
8965	8965	(5) the term ‘‘vote’’ means all actions necessary 5
8966	8966	to make a vote effective, including registration or 6
8967	8967	other action required by law as a prerequisite to vot-7
8968	8968	ing, casting a ballot. 8
8969	8969	SEC. 3405. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION. 9
8970	8970	(a) B
8971	8971	URDENSNOTAUTHORIZED.—Nothing in this 10
8972	8972	part may be construed to authorize a government to bur-11
8973	8973	den the right to vote in elections for Federal office. 12
8974	8974	(b) O
8975	8975	THERRIGHTS ANDREMEDIES.—Nothing in 13
8976	8976	this part shall be construed to alter any rights existing 14
8977	8977	under a State constitution or the Constitution of the 15
8978	8978	United States, or to limit any remedies for any other viola-16
8979	8979	tions of Federal, State, or local law. 17
8980	8980	(c) O
8981	8981	THERPROVISIONS OFTHISACT.—Nothing in 18
8982	8982	this subtitle shall be construed as affecting section 1703 19
8983	8983	of this Act (relating to rights of citizens). 20
8984	8984	(d) O
8985	8985	THERDEFINITIONS.—The definitions set forth 21
8986	8986	in section 3404 shall apply only to this part and shall not 22
8987	8987	be construed to amend or interpret any other provision 23
8988	8988	of law. 24
8989	8989	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00293 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
8990	8990	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 294
8991	8991	•HR 11 IH
8992	8992	SEC. 3406. SEVERABILITY. 1
8993	8993	If any provision of this part or the application of such 2
8994	8994	provision to any citizen or circumstance is held to be un-3
8995	8995	constitutional, the remainder of this part and the applica-4
8996	8996	tion of the provisions of such to any citizen or cir-5
8997	8997	cumstance shall not be affected thereby. 6
8998	8998	SEC. 3407. EFFECTIVE DATE. 7
8999	8999	(a) A
9000	9000	CTIONSBROUGHT FORRETROGRESSION.—Sub-8
9001	9001	section (b) of section 3402 shall apply to any law, rule, 9
9002	9002	standard, practice, procedure, or other governmental ac-10
9003	9003	tion that was not in effect during the November 2022 gen-11
9004	9004	eral election for Federal office but that will be in effect 12
9005	9005	with respect to elections for Federal office occurring on 13
9006	9006	or after January 1, 2024, even if such law, rule, standard, 14
9007	9007	practice, procedure, or other governmental action is al-15
9008	9008	ready in effect as of the date of the enactment of this 16
9009	9009	Act. 17
9010	9010	(b) A
9011	9011	CTIONSBROUGHT FOR SUBSTANTIALIMPAIR-18
9012	9012	MENT.—Subsection (c) of section 3402 shall apply to any 19
9013	9013	law, rule, standard, practice, procedure, or other govern-20
9014	9014	mental action in effect with respect to elections for Fed-21
9015	9015	eral office occurring on or after January 1, 2024. 22
9016	9016	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00294 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9017	9017	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 295
9018	9018	•HR 11 IH
9019	9019	PART 2—CLARIFYING JURISDICTION OVER 1
9020	9020	ELECTION DISPUTES 2
9021	9021	SEC. 3411. FINDINGS. 3
9022	9022	In addition to providing for the statutory rights de-4
9023	9023	scribed in part 1, including judicial review under section 5
9024	9024	3403, Congress makes the following findings regarding en-6
9025	9025	forcement of constitutional provisions protecting the right 7
9026	9026	to vote: 8
9027	9027	(1) It is a priority of Congress to ensure that 9
9028	9028	pending and future disputes arising under the Fif-10
9029	9029	teenth Amendment or any other constitutional provi-11
9030	9030	sions protecting the right to vote may be heard in 12
9031	9031	Federal court. 13
9032	9032	(2) The Fifth Circuit has misconstrued section 14
9033	9033	1344 of title 28, United States Code, to deprive 15
9034	9034	Federal courts of subject matter jurisdiction in cer-16
9035	9035	tain classes of cases that implicate voters’ constitu-17
9036	9036	tional rights, see, e.g., Keyes v. Gunn, 890 F.3d 232 18
9037	9037	(5th Cir. 2018), cert. denied, 139 S. Ct. 434 (2018); 19
9038	9038	Johnson v. Stevenson, 170 F.2d 108 (5th Cir. 20
9039	9039	1948). 21
9040	9040	(3) Section 1344 of such title is also super-22
9041	9041	fluous in light of other broad grants of Federal ju-23
9042	9042	risdiction. See, e.g., section 1331, section 24
9043	9043	1343(a)(3), and section 1343(a)(4) of title 28, 25
9044	9044	United States Code. 26
9045	9045	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00295 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9046	9046	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 296
9047	9047	•HR 11 IH
9048	9048	(4) Congress therefore finds that a repeal of 1
9049	9049	section 1344 is appropriate and that such repeal will 2
9050	9050	ensure that Federal courts nationwide are empow-3
9051	9051	ered to enforce voters’ constitutional rights in Fed-4
9052	9052	eral elections and State legislative elections. 5
9053	9053	SEC. 3412. CLARIFYING AUTHORITY OF UNITED STATES 6
9054	9054	DISTRICT COURTS TO HEAR CASES. 7
9055	9055	(a) I
9056	9056	NGENERAL.—Section 1344 of title 28, United 8
9057	9057	States Code, is repealed. 9
9058	9058	(b) C
9059	9059	ONTINUINGAUTHORITY OFCOURTSTOHEAR 10
9060	9060	C
9061	9061	ASESUNDEROTHEREXISTINGAUTHORITY.—Nothing 11
9062	9062	in this part may be construed to affect the authority of 12
9063	9063	district courts of the United States to exercise jurisdiction 13
9064	9064	pursuant to existing provisions of law, including sections 14
9065	9065	1331, 1343(a)(3), and 1343(a)(4) of title 28, United 15
9066	9066	States Code, in any cases arising under the Constitution, 16
9067	9067	laws, or treaties of the United States concerning the ad-17
9068	9068	ministration, conduct, or results of an election for Federal 18
9069	9069	office or state legislative office. 19
9070	9070	(c) C
9071	9071	LERICALAMENDMENT.—The table of sections 20
9072	9072	for chapter 85 of title 28, United States Code, is amended 21
9073	9073	by striking the item relating to section 1344. 22
9074	9074	SEC. 3413. EFFECTIVE DATE. 23
9075	9075	This part and the amendments made by this part 24
9076	9076	shall apply to actions brought on or after the date of the 25
9077	9077	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00296 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9078	9078	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 297
9079	9079	•HR 11 IH
9080	9080	enactment of this Act and to actions brought before the 1
9081	9081	date of enactment of this Act which are pending as of such 2
9082	9082	date. 3
9083	9083	Subtitle F—Poll Worker 4
9084	9084	Recruitment and Training 5
9085	9085	SEC. 3501. GRANTS TO STATES FOR POLL WORKER RE-6
9086	9086	CRUITMENT AND TRAINING. 7
9087	9087	(a) G
9088	9088	RANTS BYELECTIONASSISTANCECOMMIS-8
9089	9089	SION.— 9
9090	9090	(1) I
9091	9091	N GENERAL.—The Election Assistance 10
9092	9092	Commission (hereafter referred to as the ‘‘Commis-11
9093	9093	sion’’) shall, subject to the availability of appropria-12
9094	9094	tions provided to carry out this section, make a 13
9095	9095	grant to each eligible State for recruiting and train-14
9096	9096	ing individuals to serve as poll workers on dates of 15
9097	9097	elections for public office. 16
9098	9098	(2) U
9099	9099	SE OF COMMISSION MATERIALS .—In car-17
9100	9100	rying out activities with a grant provided under this 18
9101	9101	section, the recipient of the grant shall use the man-19
9102	9102	ual prepared by the Commission on successful prac-20
9103	9103	tices for poll worker recruiting, training, and reten-21
9104	9104	tion as an interactive training tool, and shall develop 22
9105	9105	training programs with the participation and input 23
9106	9106	of experts in adult learning. 24
9107	9107	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00297 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9108	9108	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 298
9109	9109	•HR 11 IH
9110	9110	(3) ACCESS AND CULTURAL CONSIDER -1
9111	9111	ATIONS.—The Commission shall ensure that the 2
9112	9112	manual described in paragraph (2) provides training 3
9113	9113	in methods that will enable poll workers to provide 4
9114	9114	access and delivery of services in a culturally com-5
9115	9115	petent manner to all voters who use their services, 6
9116	9116	including those with limited English proficiency, di-7
9117	9117	verse cultural and ethnic backgrounds, disabilities, 8
9118	9118	and regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or gen-9
9119	9119	der identity. These methods must ensure that each 10
9120	9120	voter will have access to poll worker services that are 11
9121	9121	delivered in a manner that meets the unique needs 12
9122	9122	of the voter. 13
9123	9123	(b) R
9124	9124	EQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.— 14
9125	9125	(1) A
9126	9126	PPLICATION.—Each State that desires to 15
9127	9127	receive a payment under this section shall submit an 16
9128	9128	application for the payment to the Commission at 17
9129	9129	such time and in such manner and containing such 18
9130	9130	information as the Commission shall require. 19
9131	9131	(2) C
9132	9132	ONTENTS OF APPLICATION .—Each appli-20
9133	9133	cation submitted under paragraph (1) shall— 21
9134	9134	(A) describe the activities for which assist-22
9135	9135	ance under this section is sought; 23
9136	9136	(B) provide assurances that the funds pro-24
9137	9137	vided under this section will be used to supple-25
9138	9138	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00298 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9139	9139	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 299
9140	9140	•HR 11 IH
9141	9141	ment and not supplant other funds used to 1
9142	9142	carry out the activities; 2
9143	9143	(C) provide assurances that the State will 3
9144	9144	furnish the Commission with information on the 4
9145	9145	number of individuals who served as poll work-5
9146	9146	ers after recruitment and training with the 6
9147	9147	funds provided under this section; 7
9148	9148	(D) provide assurances that the State will 8
9149	9149	dedicate poll worker recruitment efforts with re-9
9150	9150	spect to— 10
9151	9151	(i) youth and minors, including by re-11
9152	9152	cruiting at institutions of higher education 12
9153	9153	and secondary education; and 13
9154	9154	(ii) diversity, including with respect to 14
9155	9155	race, ethnicity, and disability; and 15
9156	9156	(E) provide such additional information 16
9157	9157	and certifications as the Commission deter-17
9158	9158	mines to be essential to ensure compliance with 18
9159	9159	the requirements of this section. 19
9160	9160	(c) A
9161	9161	MOUNT OFGRANT.— 20
9162	9162	(1) I
9163	9163	N GENERAL.—The amount of a grant 21
9164	9164	made to a State under this section shall be equal to 22
9165	9165	the product of— 23
9166	9166	(A) the aggregate amount made available 24
9167	9167	for grants to States under this section; and 25
9168	9168	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00299 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9169	9169	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 300
9170	9170	•HR 11 IH
9171	9171	(B) the voting age population percentage 1
9172	9172	for the State. 2
9173	9173	(2) V
9174	9174	OTING AGE POPULATION PERCENTAGE DE -3
9175	9175	FINED.—In paragraph (1), the ‘‘voting age popu-4
9176	9176	lation percentage’’ for a State is the quotient of— 5
9177	9177	(A) the voting age population of the State 6
9178	9178	(as determined on the basis of the most recent 7
9179	9179	information available from the Bureau of the 8
9180	9180	Census); and 9
9181	9181	(B) the total voting age population of all 10
9182	9182	States (as determined on the basis of the most 11
9183	9183	recent information available from the Bureau of 12
9184	9184	the Census). 13
9185	9185	(d) R
9186	9186	EPORTS TOCONGRESS.— 14
9187	9187	(1) R
9188	9188	EPORTS BY RECIPIENTS OF GRANTS .—Not 15
9189	9189	later than 6 months after the date on which the 16
9190	9190	final grant is made under this section, each recipient 17
9191	9191	of a grant shall submit a report to the Commission 18
9192	9192	on the activities conducted with the funds provided 19
9193	9193	by the grant. 20
9194	9194	(2) R
9195	9195	EPORTS BY COMMISSION .—Not later than 21
9196	9196	1 year after the date on which the final grant is 22
9197	9197	made under this section, the Commission shall sub-23
9198	9198	mit a report to Congress on the grants made under 24
9199	9199	this section and the activities carried out by recipi-25
9200	9200	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00300 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9201	9201	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 301
9202	9202	•HR 11 IH
9203	9203	ents with the grants, and shall include in the report 1
9204	9204	such recommendations as the Commission considers 2
9205	9205	appropriate. 3
9206	9206	(e) F
9207	9207	UNDING.— 4
9208	9208	(1) C
9209	9209	ONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNT AP -5
9210	9210	PROPRIATED.—Any amount appropriated to carry 6
9211	9211	out this section shall remain available without fiscal 7
9212	9212	year limitation until expended. 8
9213	9213	(2) A
9214	9214	DMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES .—Of the 9
9215	9215	amount appropriated for any fiscal year to carry out 10
9216	9216	this section, not more than 3 percent shall be avail-11
9217	9217	able for administrative expenses of the Commission. 12
9218	9218	SEC. 3502. STATE DEFINED. 13
9219	9219	In this subtitle, the term ‘‘State’’ includes the Dis-14
9220	9220	trict of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 15
9221	9221	Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Is-16
9222	9222	lands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 17
9223	9223	Islands. 18
9224	9224	Subtitle G—Preventing Poll 19
9225	9225	Observer Interference 20
9226	9226	SEC. 3601. PROTECTIONS FOR VOTERS ON ELECTION DAY. 21
9227	9227	(a) R
9228	9228	EQUIREMENTS.—Subtitle A of title III of the 22
9229	9229	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) 23
9230	9230	is amended by inserting after section 303 the following 24
9231	9231	new section: 25
9232	9232	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00301 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9233	9233	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 302
9234	9234	•HR 11 IH
9235	9235	‘‘SEC. 303A. VOTER PROTECTION REQUIREMENTS. 1
9236	9236	‘‘(a) R
9237	9237	EQUIREMENTS FOR CHALLENGES BYPERSONS 2
9238	9238	O
9239	9239	THERTHANELECTIONOFFICIALS.— 3
9240	9240	‘‘(1) R
9241	9241	EQUIREMENTS FOR CHALLENGES .—No 4
9242	9242	person, other than a State or local election official, 5
9243	9243	shall submit a formal challenge to an individual’s eli-6
9244	9244	gibility to register to vote in an election for Federal 7
9245	9245	office or to vote in an election for Federal office un-8
9246	9246	less that challenge is supported by personal knowl-9
9247	9247	edge with respect to each individual challenged re-10
9248	9248	garding the grounds for ineligibility which is— 11
9249	9249	‘‘(A) documented in writing; and 12
9250	9250	‘‘(B) subject to an oath or attestation 13
9251	9251	under penalty of perjury that the challenger has 14
9252	9252	a good faith factual basis to believe that the in-15
9253	9253	dividual who is the subject of the challenge is 16
9254	9254	ineligible to register to vote or vote in that elec-17
9255	9255	tion, except a challenge which is based on the 18
9256	9256	race, ethnicity, or national origin of the indi-19
9257	9257	vidual who is the subject of the challenge may 20
9258	9258	not be considered to have a good faith factual 21
9259	9259	basis for purposes of this paragraph. 22
9260	9260	‘‘(2) P
9261	9261	ROHIBITION ON CHALLENGES ON OR 23
9262	9262	NEAR DATE OF ELECTION .—No person, other than 24
9263	9263	a State or local election official, shall be permitted— 25
9264	9264	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00302 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9265	9265	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 303
9266	9266	•HR 11 IH
9267	9267	‘‘(A) to challenge an individual’s eligibility 1
9268	9268	to vote in an election for Federal office on the 2
9269	9269	date of the election on grounds that could have 3
9270	9270	been made in advance of such date; or 4
9271	9271	‘‘(B) to challenge an individual’s eligibility 5
9272	9272	to register to vote in an election for Federal of-6
9273	9273	fice or to vote in an election for Federal office 7
9274	9274	less than 10 days before the election unless the 8
9275	9275	individual registered to vote less than 20 days 9
9276	9276	before the election. 10
9277	9277	‘‘(b) B
9278	9278	UFFERRULE.— 11
9279	9279	‘‘(1) I
9280	9280	N GENERAL.—A person who is serving as 12
9281	9281	a poll observer with respect to an election for Fed-13
9282	9282	eral office may not come within 8 feet of— 14
9283	9283	‘‘(A) a voter or ballot at a polling location 15
9284	9284	during any period of voting (including any pe-16
9285	9285	riod of early voting) in such election; or 17
9286	9286	‘‘(B) a ballot at any time during which the 18
9287	9287	processing, scanning, tabulating, canvassing, or 19
9288	9288	certifying voting results is occurring. 20
9289	9289	‘‘(2) R
9290	9290	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 21
9291	9291	paragraph (1) may be construed to limit the ability 22
9292	9292	of a State or local election official to require poll ob-23
9293	9293	servers to maintain a distance greater than 8 feet. 24
9294	9294	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00303 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9295	9295	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 304
9296	9296	•HR 11 IH
9297	9297	‘‘(c) EFFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 1
9298	9298	with respect to elections for Federal office occurring on 2
9299	9299	and after January 1, 2024.’’. 3
9300	9300	(b) C
9301	9301	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT RELATING TOVOL-4
9302	9302	UNTARYGUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) of such Act (52 5
9303	9303	U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redesignated by section 6
9304	9304	1101(b) and as amended by sections 1102, 1103, 1104, 7
9305	9305	and 1303, is amended by striking ‘‘and 313’’ and inserting 8
9306	9306	‘‘313, and 303A’’. 9
9307	9307	(c) C
9308	9308	LERICALAMENDMENT.—The table of contents 10
9309	9309	of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 11
9310	9310	to section 303 the following: 12
9311	9311	‘‘Sec. 303A. Voter protection requirements.’’.
9312	9312	Subtitle H—Preventing Restric-13
9313	9313	tions on Food and Beverages 14
9314	9314	SEC. 3701. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS. 15
9315	9315	(a) S
9316	9316	HORTTITLE.—This subtitle may be cited as the 16
9317	9317	‘‘Voters’ Access to Water Act’’. 17
9318	9318	(b) F
9319	9319	INDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 18
9320	9320	(1) States have a legitimate interest in prohib-19
9321	9321	iting electioneering at or near polling places, and 20
9322	9322	each State has some form of restriction on political 21
9323	9323	activities near polling places when voting is taking 22
9324	9324	place. 23
9325	9325	(2) In recent elections, voters have waited in 24
9326	9326	unacceptably long lines to cast their ballot. During 25
9327	9327	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00304 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9328	9328	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 305
9329	9329	•HR 11 IH
9330	9330	the 2018 midterm election, more than 3,000,000 1
9331	9331	voters were made to wait longer than the acceptable 2
9332	9332	threshold for wait times set by the Presidential 3
9333	9333	Commission on Election Administration, including 4
9334	9334	many well-documented cases where voters were made 5
9335	9335	to wait for several hours. A disproportionate number 6
9336	9336	of those who had to wait long periods were Black or 7
9337	9337	Latino voters, who were more likely than White vot-8
9338	9338	ers to wait in the longest lines on Election Day. 9
9339	9339	(3) Allowing volunteers to donate food and 10
9340	9340	water to all people waiting in line at a polling place, 11
9341	9341	regardless of the voters’ political preference and 12
9342	9342	without engaging in electioneering activities or par-13
9343	9343	tisan advocacy, helps ensure Americans who face 14
9344	9344	long lines at their polling place can still exercise 15
9345	9345	their constitutional right to vote, without risk of de-16
9346	9346	hydration, inadequate food, discomfort, and risks to 17
9347	9347	health. 18
9348	9348	SEC. 3702. PROHIBITING RESTRICTIONS ON DONATIONS OF 19
9349	9349	FOOD AND BEVERAGES AT POLLING STA-20
9350	9350	TIONS. 21
9351	9351	(a) R
9352	9352	EQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of the 22
9353	9353	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), 23
9354	9354	as amended by section 1031(a), section 1044(a), section 24
9355	9355	1101(a), section 1102(a), section 1103(a), section 25
9356	9356	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00305 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9357	9357	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 306
9358	9358	•HR 11 IH
9359	9359	1104(a), section 1201(a), section 1301(a), section 1
9360	9360	1302(a), section 1303(b), section 1305(a), section 2
9361	9361	1606(a)(1), section 1607(a), and section 1624(a) is 3
9362	9362	amended— 4
9363	9363	(1) by redesignating sections 318 and 319 as 5
9364	9364	sections 319 and 320, respectively; and 6
9365	9365	(2) by inserting after section 317 the following 7
9366	9366	new section: 8
9367	9367	‘‘SEC. 318. PROHIBITING STATES FROM RESTRICTING DO-9
9368	9368	NATIONS OF FOOD AND BEVERAGES AT 10
9369	9369	POLLING STATIONS. 11
9370	9370	‘‘(a) P
9371	9371	ROHIBITION.—Subject to the exception in sub-12
9372	9372	section (b), a State may not impose any restriction on the 13
9373	9373	donation of food and nonalcoholic beverages to persons 14
9374	9374	outside of the entrance to the building where a polling 15
9375	9375	place for a Federal election is located, provided that such 16
9376	9376	food and nonalcoholic beverages are distributed without 17
9377	9377	regard to the electoral participation or political pref-18
9378	9378	erences of the recipients. 19
9379	9379	‘‘(b) E
9380	9380	XCEPTION.—A State may require persons dis-20
9381	9381	tributing food and nonalcoholic beverages outside the en-21
9382	9382	trance to the building where a polling place for a Federal 22
9383	9383	election is located to refrain from political or election-23
9384	9384	eering activity. 24
9385	9385	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00306 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9386	9386	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 307
9387	9387	•HR 11 IH
9388	9388	‘‘(c) EFFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply 1
9389	9389	with respect to elections for Federal office occurring on 2
9390	9390	and after January 1, 2024.’’. 3
9391	9391	(b) V
9392	9392	OLUNTARYGUIDANCE.—Section 321(b)(4) of 4
9393	9393	such Act (52 U.S.C. 21101(b)), as added and redesignated 5
9394	9394	by section 1101(b) and as amended by sections 1102, 6
9395	9395	1103, 1104, 1303, and 3601(b), is amended by striking 7
9396	9396	‘‘and 303A’’ and inserting ‘‘303A, and 317’’. 8
9397	9397	(c) C
9398	9398	LERICALAMENDMENTS.—The table of contents 9
9399	9399	of such Act, as amended by section 1031(c), section 10
9400	9400	1044(b), section 1101(c), section 1102(c), section 11
9401	9401	1103(a), section 1104(c), section 1201(c), section 12
9402	9402	1301(a), section 1302(a), section 1303(b), section 13
9403	9403	1305(a), section 1606(a)(3), section 1607(b), and section 14
9404	9404	1624(b) is amended— 15
9405	9405	(1) by redesignating the items relating to sec-16
9406	9406	tions 318 and 319 as relating to sections 319 and 17
9407	9407	320, respectively; and 18
9408	9408	(2) by inserting after the item relating to sec-19
9409	9409	tion 317 the following new item: 20
9410	9410	‘‘Sec. 318. Prohibiting States from restricting donations of food and beverages
9411	9411	at polling stations.’’.
9412	9412	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00307 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9413	9413	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 308
9414	9414	•HR 11 IH
9415	9415	Subtitle I—Establishing Duty To 1
9416	9416	Report Foreign Election Inter-2
9417	9417	ference 3
9418	9418	SEC. 3801. FINDINGS RELATING TO ILLICIT MONEY UNDER-4
9419	9419	MINING OUR DEMOCRACY. 5
9420	9420	Congress finds the following: 6
9421	9421	(1) Criminals, terrorists, and corrupt govern-7
9422	9422	ment officials frequently abuse anonymously held 8
9423	9423	Limited Liability Companies (LLCs), also known as 9
9424	9424	‘‘shell companies’’, to hide, move, and launder the 10
9425	9425	dirty money derived from illicit activities such as 11
9426	9426	trafficking, bribery, exploitation, and embezzlement. 12
9427	9427	Ownership and control of the finances that run 13
9428	9428	through shell companies are obscured to regulators 14
9429	9429	and law enforcement because little information is re-15
9430	9430	quired and collected when establishing these entities. 16
9431	9431	(2) The public release of the ‘‘Panama Papers’’ 17
9432	9432	in 2016 and the ‘‘Paradise Papers’’ in 2017 revealed 18
9433	9433	that these shell companies often purchase and sell 19
9434	9434	United States real estate. United States anti-money 20
9435	9435	laundering laws do not apply to cash transactions in-21
9436	9436	volving real estate, effectively concealing the bene-22
9437	9437	ficiaries and transactions from regulators and law 23
9438	9438	enforcement. 24
9439	9439	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00308 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9440	9440	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 309
9441	9441	•HR 11 IH
9442	9442	(3) Since the Supreme Court’s decisions in Citi-1
9443	9443	zens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 2
9444	9444	U.S. 310 (2010), billions of dollars have flowed into 3
9445	9445	super PACs through LLCs whose funders are anon-4
9446	9446	ymous or intentionally obscured. Criminal investiga-5
9447	9447	tions have uncovered LLCs that were used to hide 6
9448	9448	illegal campaign contributions from foreign criminal 7
9449	9449	fugitives, to advance international influence-buying 8
9450	9450	schemes, and to conceal contributions from donors 9
9451	9451	who were already under investigation for bribery and 10
9452	9452	racketeering. Voters have no way to know the true 11
9453	9453	sources of the money being routed through these 12
9454	9454	LLCs to influence elections, including whether any 13
9455	9455	of the funds come from foreign or other illicit 14
9456	9456	sources. 15
9457	9457	(4) Congress should curb the use of anonymous 16
9458	9458	shell companies for illicit purposes by requiring 17
9459	9459	United States companies to disclose their beneficial 18
9460	9460	owners, strengthening anti-money laundering and 19
9461	9461	counter-terrorism finance laws. 20
9462	9462	(5) Congress should examine the money laun-21
9463	9463	dering and terrorist financing risks in the real estate 22
9464	9464	market, including the role of anonymous parties, and 23
9465	9465	review legislation to address any vulnerabilities iden-24
9466	9466	tified in this sector. 25
9467	9467	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00309 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9468	9468	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 310
9469	9469	•HR 11 IH
9470	9470	(6) Congress should examine the methods by 1
9471	9471	which corruption flourishes and the means to detect 2
9472	9472	and deter the financial misconduct that fuels this 3
9473	9473	driver of global instability. Congress should monitor 4
9474	9474	government efforts to enforce United States 5
9475	9475	anticorruption laws and regulations. 6
9476	9476	SEC. 3802. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN REPORTING OF FOREIGN 7
9477	9477	CONTACTS. 8
9478	9478	(a) I
9479	9479	NITIALNOTICE.— 9
9480	9480	(1) I
9481	9481	N GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal 10
9482	9482	Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104) 11
9483	9483	is amended by adding at the end the following new 12
9484	9484	subsection: 13
9485	9485	‘‘(j) D
9486	9486	ISCLOSURE OFREPORTABLEFOREIGNCON-14
9487	9487	TACTS.— 15
9488	9488	‘‘(1) C
9489	9489	OMMITTEE OBLIGATION TO NOTIFY .— 16
9490	9490	Not later than 1 week after a reportable foreign con-17
9491	9491	tact, each political committee shall notify the Fed-18
9492	9492	eral Bureau of Investigation and the Commission of 19
9493	9493	the reportable foreign contact and provide a sum-20
9494	9494	mary of the circumstances with respect to such re-21
9495	9495	portable foreign contact. The Federal Bureau of In-22
9496	9496	vestigation, not later than 1 week after receiving a 23
9497	9497	notification from a political committee under this 24
9498	9498	paragraph, shall submit to the political committee, 25
9499	9499	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00310 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9500	9500	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 311
9501	9501	•HR 11 IH
9502	9502	the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of 1
9503	9503	the House of Representatives, and the Select Com-2
9504	9504	mittee on Intelligence of the Senate written or elec-3
9505	9505	tronic confirmation of receipt of the notification. 4
9506	9506	‘‘(2) I
9507	9507	NDIVIDUAL OBLIGATION TO NOTIFY .— 5
9508	9508	Not later than 3 days after a reportable foreign con-6
9509	9509	tact— 7
9510	9510	‘‘(A) each candidate and each immediate 8
9511	9511	family member of a candidate shall notify the 9
9512	9512	treasurer or other designated official of the 10
9513	9513	principal campaign committee of such candidate 11
9514	9514	of the reportable foreign contact and provide a 12
9515	9515	summary of the circumstances with respect to 13
9516	9516	such reportable foreign contact; and 14
9517	9517	‘‘(B) each official, employee, or agent of a 15
9518	9518	political committee shall notify the treasurer or 16
9519	9519	other designated official of the committee of the 17
9520	9520	reportable foreign contact and provide a sum-18
9521	9521	mary of the circumstances with respect to such 19
9522	9522	reportable foreign contact. 20
9523	9523	‘‘(3) R
9524	9524	EPORTABLE FOREIGN CONTACT .—In this 21
9525	9525	subsection: 22
9526	9526	‘‘(A) I
9527	9527	N GENERAL.—The term ‘reportable 23
9528	9528	foreign contact’ means any direct or indirect 24
9529	9529	contact or communication that— 25
9530	9530	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00311 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9531	9531	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 312
9532	9532	•HR 11 IH
9533	9533	‘‘(i) is between— 1
9534	9534	‘‘(I) a candidate, an immediate 2
9535	9535	family member of the candidate, a po-3
9536	9536	litical committee, or any official, em-4
9537	9537	ployee, or agent of such committee; 5
9538	9538	and 6
9539	9539	‘‘(II) an individual that the per-7
9540	9540	son described in subclause (I) knows, 8
9541	9541	has reason to know, or reasonably be-9
9542	9542	lieves is a covered foreign national; 10
9543	9543	and 11
9544	9544	‘‘(ii) the person described in clause 12
9545	9545	(i)(I) knows, has reason to know, or rea-13
9546	9546	sonably believes involves— 14
9547	9547	‘‘(I) an offer or other proposal 15
9548	9548	for a contribution, donation, expendi-16
9549	9549	ture, disbursement, or solicitation de-17
9550	9550	scribed in section 319; or 18
9551	9551	‘‘(II) direct or indirect coordina-19
9552	9552	tion or collaboration with, or a direct 20
9553	9553	or indirect offer or provision of infor-21
9554	9554	mation or services to or from, a cov-22
9555	9555	ered foreign national in connection 23
9556	9556	with an election. 24
9557	9557	‘‘(B) E
9558	9558	XCEPTIONS.— 25
9559	9559	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00312 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9560	9560	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 313
9561	9561	•HR 11 IH
9562	9562	‘‘(i) CONTACTS IN OFFICIAL CAPACITY 1
9563	9563	AS ELECTED OFFICIAL.—The term ‘report-2
9564	9564	able foreign contact’ shall not include any 3
9565	9565	contact or communication with a covered 4
9566	9566	foreign national by an elected official or an 5
9567	9567	employee of an elected official solely in an 6
9568	9568	official capacity as such an official or em-7
9569	9569	ployee. 8
9570	9570	‘‘(ii) C
9571	9571	ONTACTS FOR PURPOSES OF 9
9572	9572	ENABLING OBSERVATION OF ELECTIONS 10
9573	9573	BY INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS .—The 11
9574	9574	term ‘reportable foreign contact’ shall not 12
9575	9575	include any contact or communication with 13
9576	9576	a covered foreign national by any person 14
9577	9577	which is made for purposes of enabling the 15
9578	9578	observation of elections in the United 16
9579	9579	States by a foreign national or the obser-17
9580	9580	vation of elections outside of the United 18
9581	9581	States by a candidate, political committee, 19
9582	9582	or any official, employee, or agent of such 20
9583	9583	committee. 21
9584	9584	‘‘(iii) E
9585	9585	XCEPTIONS NOT APPLICABLE 22
9586	9586	IF CONTACTS OR COMMUNICATIONS IN -23
9587	9587	VOLVE PROHIBITED DISBURSEMENTS .—A 24
9588	9588	contact or communication by an elected of-25
9589	9589	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00313 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9590	9590	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 314
9591	9591	•HR 11 IH
9592	9592	ficial or an employee of an elected official 1
9593	9593	shall not be considered to be made solely 2
9594	9594	in an official capacity for purposes of 3
9595	9595	clause (i), and a contact or communication 4
9596	9596	shall not be considered to be made for pur-5
9597	9597	poses of enabling the observation of elec-6
9598	9598	tions for purposes of clause (ii), if the con-7
9599	9599	tact or communication involves a contribu-8
9600	9600	tion, donation, expenditure, disbursement, 9
9601	9601	or solicitation described in section 319. 10
9602	9602	‘‘(C) C
9603	9603	OVERED FOREIGN NATIONAL DE -11
9604	9604	FINED.— 12
9605	9605	‘‘(i) I
9606	9606	N GENERAL.—In this paragraph, 13
9607	9607	the term ‘covered foreign national’ 14
9608	9608	means— 15
9609	9609	‘‘(I) a foreign principal (as de-16
9610	9610	fined in section 1(b) of the Foreign 17
9611	9611	Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 18
9612	9612	U.S.C. 611(b)) that is a government 19
9613	9613	of a foreign country or a foreign polit-20
9614	9614	ical party; 21
9615	9615	‘‘(II) any person who acts as an 22
9616	9616	agent, representative, employee, or 23
9617	9617	servant, or any person who acts in 24
9618	9618	any other capacity at the order, re-25
9619	9619	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00314 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9620	9620	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 315
9621	9621	•HR 11 IH
9622	9622	quest, or under the direction or con-1
9623	9623	trol, of a foreign principal described in 2
9624	9624	subclause (I) or of a person any of 3
9625	9625	whose activities are directly or indi-4
9626	9626	rectly supervised, directed, controlled, 5
9627	9627	financed, or subsidized in whole or in 6
9628	9628	major part by a foreign principal de-7
9629	9629	scribed in subclause (I); or 8
9630	9630	‘‘(III) any person included in the 9
9631	9631	list of specially designated nationals 10
9632	9632	and blocked persons maintained by 11
9633	9633	the Office of Foreign Assets Control 12
9634	9634	of the Department of the Treasury 13
9635	9635	pursuant to authorities relating to the 14
9636	9636	imposition of sanctions relating to the 15
9637	9637	conduct of a foreign principal de-16
9638	9638	scribed in subclause (I). 17
9639	9639	‘‘(ii) C
9640	9640	LARIFICATION REGARDING AP -18
9641	9641	PLICATION TO CITIZENS OF THE UNITED 19
9642	9642	STATES.—In the case of a citizen of the 20
9643	9643	United States, subclause (II) of clause (i) 21
9644	9644	applies only to the extent that the person 22
9645	9645	involved acts within the scope of that per-23
9646	9646	son’s status as the agent of a foreign prin-24
9647	9647	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00315 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9648	9648	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 316
9649	9649	•HR 11 IH
9650	9650	cipal described in subclause (I) of clause 1
9651	9651	(i). 2
9652	9652	‘‘(4) I
9653	9653	MMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER .—In this 3
9654	9654	subsection, the term ‘immediate family member’ 4
9655	9655	means, with respect to a candidate, a parent, parent- 5
9656	9656	in-law, spouse, adult child, or sibling.’’. 6
9657	9657	(2) E
9658	9658	FFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 7
9659	9659	by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to report-8
9660	9660	able foreign contacts which occur on or after the 9
9661	9661	date of the enactment of this Act. 10
9662	9662	(b) I
9663	9663	NFORMATIONINCLUDED ONREPORT.— 11
9664	9664	(1) I
9665	9665	N GENERAL.—Section 304(b) of such Act 12
9666	9666	(52 U.S.C. 30104(b)) is amended— 13
9667	9667	(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para-14
9668	9668	graph (7); 15
9669	9669	(B) by striking the period at the end of 16
9670	9670	paragraph (8) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 17
9671	9671	(C) by adding at the end the following new 18
9672	9672	paragraph: 19
9673	9673	‘‘(9) for any reportable foreign contact (as de-20
9674	9674	fined in subsection (j)(3))— 21
9675	9675	‘‘(A) the date, time, and location of the 22
9676	9676	contact; 23
9677	9677	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00316 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9678	9678	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 317
9679	9679	•HR 11 IH
9680	9680	‘‘(B) the date and time of when a des-1
9681	9681	ignated official of the committee was notified of 2
9682	9682	the contact; 3
9683	9683	‘‘(C) the identity of individuals involved; 4
9684	9684	and 5
9685	9685	‘‘(D) a description of the contact, including 6
9686	9686	the nature of any contribution, donation, ex-7
9687	9687	penditure, disbursement, or solicitation involved 8
9688	9688	and the nature of any activity described in sub-9
9689	9689	section (j)(3)(A)(ii)(II) involved.’’. 10
9690	9690	(2) E
9691	9691	FFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 11
9692	9692	by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to reports 12
9693	9693	filed on or after the expiration of the 60-day period 13
9694	9694	which begins on the date of the enactment of this 14
9695	9695	Act. 15
9696	9696	SEC. 3803. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN FOREIGN CONTACT RE-16
9697	9697	PORTING COMPLIANCE SYSTEM. 17
9698	9698	(a) I
9699	9699	NGENERAL.—Section 302 of the Federal Elec-18
9700	9700	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102) is amended 19
9701	9701	by adding at the end the following new subsection: 20
9702	9702	‘‘(j) R
9703	9703	EPORTABLEFOREIGNCONTACTSCOMPLIANCE 21
9704	9704	P
9705	9705	OLICY.— 22
9706	9706	‘‘(1) R
9707	9707	EPORTING.—Each political committee 23
9708	9708	shall establish a policy that requires all officials, em-24
9709	9709	ployees, and agents of such committee (and, in the 25
9710	9710	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00317 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9711	9711	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 318
9712	9712	•HR 11 IH
9713	9713	case of an authorized committee, the candidate and 1
9714	9714	each immediate family member of the candidate) to 2
9715	9715	notify the treasurer or other appropriate designated 3
9716	9716	official of the committee of any reportable foreign 4
9717	9717	contact (as defined in section 304(j)) not later than 5
9718	9718	3 days after such contact was made. 6
9719	9719	‘‘(2) R
9720	9720	ETENTION AND PRESERVATION OF 7
9721	9721	RECORDS.—Each political committee shall establish 8
9722	9722	a policy that provides for the retention and preserva-9
9723	9723	tion of records and information related to reportable 10
9724	9724	foreign contacts (as so defined) for a period of not 11
9725	9725	less than 3 years. 12
9726	9726	‘‘(3) C
9727	9727	ERTIFICATION.— 13
9728	9728	‘‘(A) I
9729	9729	N GENERAL.—Upon filing its state-14
9730	9730	ment of organization under section 303(a), and 15
9731	9731	with each report filed under section 304(a), the 16
9732	9732	treasurer of each political committee (other 17
9733	9733	than an authorized committee) shall certify 18
9734	9734	that— 19
9735	9735	‘‘(i) the committee has in place poli-20
9736	9736	cies that meet the requirements of para-21
9737	9737	graphs (1) and (2); 22
9738	9738	‘‘(ii) the committee has designated an 23
9739	9739	official to monitor compliance with such 24
9740	9740	policies; and 25
9741	9741	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00318 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9742	9742	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 319
9743	9743	•HR 11 IH
9744	9744	‘‘(iii) not later than 1 week after the 1
9745	9745	beginning of any formal or informal affili-2
9746	9746	ation with the committee, all officials, em-3
9747	9747	ployees, and agents of such committee 4
9748	9748	will— 5
9749	9749	‘‘(I) receive notice of such poli-6
9750	9750	cies; 7
9751	9751	‘‘(II) be informed of the prohibi-8
9752	9752	tions under section 319; and 9
9753	9753	‘‘(III) sign a certification affirm-10
9754	9754	ing their understanding of such poli-11
9755	9755	cies and prohibitions. 12
9756	9756	‘‘(B) A
9757	9757	UTHORIZED COMMITTEES .—With 13
9758	9758	respect to an authorized committee, the can-14
9759	9759	didate shall make the certification required 15
9760	9760	under subparagraph (A).’’. 16
9761	9761	(b) E
9762	9762	FFECTIVEDATE.— 17
9763	9763	(1) I
9764	9764	N GENERAL.—The amendment made by 18
9765	9765	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to political 19
9766	9766	committees which file a statement of organization 20
9767	9767	under section 303(a) of the Federal Election Cam-21
9768	9768	paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30103(a)) on or after 22
9769	9769	the date of the enactment of this Act. 23
9770	9770	(2) T
9771	9771	RANSITION RULE FOR EXISTING COMMIT -24
9772	9772	TEES.—Not later than 30 days after the date of the 25
9773	9773	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00319 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9774	9774	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 320
9775	9775	•HR 11 IH
9776	9776	enactment of this Act, each political committee 1
9777	9777	under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 2
9778	9778	shall file a certification with the Federal Election 3
9779	9779	Commission that the committee is in compliance 4
9780	9780	with the requirements of section 302(j) of such Act 5
9781	9781	(as added by subsection (a)). 6
9782	9782	SEC. 3804. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 7
9783	9783	Section 309(d)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign 8
9784	9784	Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(d)(1)) is amended by add-9
9785	9785	ing at the end the following new subparagraphs: 10
9786	9786	‘‘(E) Any person who knowingly and willfully com-11
9787	9787	mits a violation of subsection (j) or (b)(9) of section 304 12
9788	9788	or section 302(j) shall be fined not more than $500,000, 13
9789	9789	imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. 14
9790	9790	‘‘(F) Any person who knowingly and willfully conceals 15
9791	9791	or destroys any materials relating to a reportable foreign 16
9792	9792	contact (as defined in section 304(j)) shall be fined not 17
9793	9793	more than $1,000,000, imprisoned not more than 5 years, 18
9794	9794	or both.’’. 19
9795	9795	SEC. 3805. REPORT TO CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE 20
9796	9796	COMMITTEES. 21
9797	9797	(a) I
9798	9798	NGENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 22
9799	9799	date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 23
9800	9800	the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall 24
9801	9801	submit to the congressional intelligence committees a re-25
9802	9802	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00320 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9803	9803	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 321
9804	9804	•HR 11 IH
9805	9805	port relating to notifications received by the Federal Bu-1
9806	9806	reau of Investigation under section 304(j)(1) of the Fed-2
9807	9807	eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by section 3
9808	9808	4902(a) of this Act). 4
9809	9809	(b) E
9810	9810	LEMENTS.—Each report under subsection (a) 5
9811	9811	shall include, at a minimum, the following with respect 6
9812	9812	to notifications described in subsection (a): 7
9813	9813	(1) The number of such notifications received 8
9814	9814	from political committees during the year covered by 9
9815	9815	the report. 10
9816	9816	(2) A description of protocols and procedures 11
9817	9817	developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation re-12
9818	9818	lating to receipt and maintenance of records relating 13
9819	9819	to such notifications. 14
9820	9820	(3) With respect to such notifications received 15
9821	9821	during the year covered by the report, a description 16
9822	9822	of any subsequent actions taken by the Director re-17
9823	9823	sulting from the receipt of such notifications. 18
9824	9824	(c) C
9825	9825	ONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEES 19
9826	9826	D
9827	9827	EFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘congressional intel-20
9828	9828	ligence committees’’ has the meaning given that term in 21
9829	9829	section 3 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 22
9830	9830	3003). 23
9831	9831	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00321 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9832	9832	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 322
9833	9833	•HR 11 IH
9834	9834	SEC. 3806. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 1
9835	9835	Nothing in this subtitle or the amendments made by 2
9836	9836	this subtitle shall be construed— 3
9837	9837	(1) to impede legitimate journalistic activities; 4
9838	9838	or 5
9839	9839	(2) to impose any additional limitation on the 6
9840	9840	right to express political views or to participate in 7
9841	9841	public discourse of any individual who— 8
9842	9842	(A) resides in the United States; 9
9843	9843	(B) is not a citizen of the United States or 10
9844	9844	a national of the United States, as defined in 11
9845	9845	section 101(a)(22) of the Immigration and Na-12
9846	9846	tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(22)); and 13
9847	9847	(C) is not lawfully admitted for permanent 14
9848	9848	residence, as defined by section 101(a)(20) of 15
9849	9849	the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 16
9850	9850	1101(a)(20)). 17
9851	9851	Subtitle J—Promoting Accuracy, 18
9852	9852	Integrity, and Security Through 19
9853	9853	Voter-Verifiable Permanent 20
9854	9854	Paper Ballot 21
9855	9855	SEC. 3901. SHORT TITLE. 22
9856	9856	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Voter Confidence 23
9857	9857	and Increased Accessibility Act of 2023’’. 24
9858	9858	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00322 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9859	9859	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 323
9860	9860	•HR 11 IH
9861	9861	SEC. 3902. PAPER BALLOT AND MANUAL COUNTING RE-1
9862	9862	QUIREMENTS. 2
9863	9863	(a) I
9864	9864	NGENERAL.—Section 301(a)(2) of the Help 3
9865	9865	America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(2)) is 4
9866	9866	amended to read as follows: 5
9867	9867	‘‘(2) P
9868	9868	APER BALLOT REQUIREMENT .— 6
9869	9869	‘‘(A) V
9870	9870	OTER-VERIFIABLE PAPER BAL -7
9871	9871	LOTS.— 8
9872	9872	‘‘(i) The voting system shall require 9
9873	9873	the use of an individual, durable, voter- 10
9874	9874	verifiable paper ballot of the voter’s vote 11
9875	9875	selections that shall be marked by the 12
9876	9876	voter and presented to the voter for 13
9877	9877	verification before the voter’s ballot is pre-14
9878	9878	served in accordance with subparagraph 15
9879	9879	(B), and which shall be counted by hand or 16
9880	9880	other counting device or read by a ballot 17
9881	9881	tabulation device. For purposes of this sub-18
9882	9882	clause, the term ‘individual, durable, voter- 19
9883	9883	verifiable paper ballot’ means a paper bal-20
9884	9884	lot marked by the voter by hand or a paper 21
9885	9885	ballot marked through the use of a nontab-22
9886	9886	ulating ballot marking device or system, so 23
9887	9887	long as the voter shall have the option at 24
9888	9888	every in-person voting location to mark by 25
9889	9889	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00323 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9890	9890	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 324
9891	9891	•HR 11 IH
9892	9892	hand a printed ballot that includes all rel-1
9893	9893	evant contests and candidates. 2
9894	9894	‘‘(ii) The voting system shall provide 3
9895	9895	the voter with an opportunity to correct 4
9896	9896	any error on the paper ballot before the 5
9897	9897	permanent voter-verifiable paper ballot is 6
9898	9898	preserved in accordance with subparagraph 7
9899	9899	(B). 8
9900	9900	‘‘(iii) The voting system shall not pre-9
9901	9901	serve the voter-verifiable paper ballots in 10
9902	9902	any manner that makes it possible, at any 11
9903	9903	time after the ballot has been cast, to asso-12
9904	9904	ciate a voter with the record of the voter’s 13
9905	9905	vote selections. 14
9906	9906	‘‘(iv) The voting system shall prevent, 15
9907	9907	through mechanical means or through 16
9908	9908	independently verified protections, the 17
9909	9909	modification or addition of vote selections 18
9910	9910	on a printed or marked ballot at any time 19
9911	9911	after the voter has been provided an oppor-20
9912	9912	tunity to correct errors on the ballot pur-21
9913	9913	suant to clause (ii). 22
9914	9914	‘‘(B) P
9915	9915	RESERVATION AS OFFICIAL 23
9916	9916	RECORD.—The individual, durable, voter- 24
9917	9917	verifiable paper ballot used in accordance with 25
9918	9918	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00324 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9919	9919	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 325
9920	9920	•HR 11 IH
9921	9921	subparagraph (A) shall constitute the official 1
9922	9922	ballot and shall be preserved and used as the 2
9923	9923	official ballot for purposes of any recount or 3
9924	9924	audit conducted with respect to any election for 4
9925	9925	Federal office in which the voting system is 5
9926	9926	used. 6
9927	9927	‘‘(C) M
9928	9928	ANUAL COUNTING REQUIREMENTS 7
9929	9929	FOR RECOUNTS AND AUDITS .— 8
9930	9930	‘‘(i) Each paper ballot used pursuant 9
9931	9931	to subparagraph (A) shall be suitable for a 10
9932	9932	manual audit, and such ballots, or at least 11
9933	9933	those ballots the machine could not count, 12
9934	9934	shall be counted by hand in any recount or 13
9935	9935	audit conducted with respect to any elec-14
9936	9936	tion for Federal office. 15
9937	9937	‘‘(ii) In the event of any inconsist-16
9938	9938	encies or irregularities between any elec-17
9939	9939	tronic vote tallies and the vote tallies de-18
9940	9940	termined by counting by hand the indi-19
9941	9941	vidual, durable, voter-verifiable paper bal-20
9942	9942	lots used pursuant to subparagraph (A), 21
9943	9943	the individual, durable, voter-verifiable 22
9944	9944	paper ballots shall be the true and correct 23
9945	9945	record of the votes cast. 24
9946	9946	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00325 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9947	9947	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 326
9948	9948	•HR 11 IH
9949	9949	‘‘(D) SENSE OF CONGRESS .—It is the 1
9950	9950	sense of Congress that as innovation occurs in 2
9951	9951	the election infrastructure sector, Congress 3
9952	9952	should ensure that this Act and other Federal 4
9953	9953	requirements for voting systems are updated to 5
9954	9954	keep pace with best practices and recommenda-6
9955	9955	tions for security and accessibility.’’. 7
9956	9956	(b) C
9957	9957	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT CLARIFYINGAPPLI-8
9958	9958	CABILITY OFALTERNATIVELANGUAGEACCESSIBILITY.— 9
9959	9959	Section 301(a)(4) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(4)) 10
9960	9960	is amended by inserting ‘‘(including the paper ballots re-11
9961	9961	quired to be used under paragraph (2))’’ after ‘‘voting sys-12
9962	9962	tem’’. 13
9963	9963	(c) O
9964	9964	THERCONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 14
9965	9965	301(a)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)(1)) is amend-15
9966	9966	ed— 16
9967	9967	(1) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking ‘‘count-17
9968	9968	ed’’ and inserting ‘‘counted, in accordance with 18
9969	9969	paragraphs (2) and (3)’’; 19
9970	9970	(2) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by striking ‘‘count-20
9971	9971	ed’’ and inserting ‘‘counted, in accordance with 21
9972	9972	paragraphs (2) and (3)’’; 22
9973	9973	(3) in subparagraph (A)(iii), by striking ‘‘count-23
9974	9974	ed’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘counted, in 24
9975	9975	accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3)’’; and 25
9976	9976	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00326 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
9977	9977	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 327
9978	9978	•HR 11 IH
9979	9979	(4) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ‘‘count-1
9980	9980	ed’’ and inserting ‘‘counted, in accordance with 2
9981	9981	paragraphs (2) and (3)’’. 3
9982	9982	SEC. 3903. ACCESSIBILITY AND BALLOT VERIFICATION FOR 4
9983	9983	INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 5
9984	9984	(a) I
9985	9985	NGENERAL.—Paragraph (3) of section 301(a) 6
9986	9986	of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 7
9987	9987	21081(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 8
9988	9988	‘‘(3) A
9989	9989	CCESSIBILITY FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH 9
9990	9990	DISABILITIES.— 10
9991	9991	‘‘(A) I
9992	9992	N GENERAL.—The voting system 11
9993	9993	shall— 12
9994	9994	‘‘(i) be accessible for individuals with 13
9995	9995	disabilities, including nonvisual accessi-14
9996	9996	bility for the blind and visually impaired, 15
9997	9997	in a manner that provides the same oppor-16
9998	9998	tunity for access and participation (includ-17
9999	9999	ing privacy and independence) as for other 18
10000	10000	voters; 19
10001	10001	‘‘(ii)(I) ensure that individuals with 20
10002	10002	disabilities and others are given an equiva-21
10003	10003	lent opportunity to vote, including with pri-22
10004	10004	vacy and independence, in a manner that 23
10005	10005	produces a voter-verifiable paper ballot; 24
10006	10006	and 25
10007	10007	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00327 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10008	10008	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 328
10009	10009	•HR 11 IH
10010	10010	‘‘(II) satisfy the requirement of clause 1
10011	10011	(i) through the use at in-person polling lo-2
10012	10012	cations of a sufficient number (not less 3
10013	10013	than one) of voting systems equipped to 4
10014	10014	serve individuals with and without disabil-5
10015	10015	ities, including nonvisual and enhanced vis-6
10016	10016	ual accessibility for the blind and visually 7
10017	10017	impaired, and nonmanual and enhanced 8
10018	10018	manual accessibility for the mobility and 9
10019	10019	dexterity impaired; and 10
10020	10020	‘‘(iii) if purchased with funds made 11
10021	10021	available under title II on or after January 12
10022	10022	1, 2007, meet the voting system standards 13
10023	10023	for disability access (as outlined in this 14
10024	10024	paragraph). 15
10025	10025	‘‘(B) M
10026	10026	EANS OF MEETING REQUIRE -16
10027	10027	MENTS.—A voting system may meet the re-17
10028	10028	quirements of subparagraph (A)(i) and para-18
10029	10029	graph (2) by— 19
10030	10030	‘‘(i) allowing the voter to privately 20
10031	10031	and independently verify the permanent 21
10032	10032	paper ballot through the presentation, in 22
10033	10033	accessible form, of the printed or marked 23
10034	10034	vote selections from the same printed or 24
10035	10035	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00328 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10036	10036	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 329
10037	10037	•HR 11 IH
10038	10038	marked information that would be used for 1
10039	10039	any vote tabulation or auditing; 2
10040	10040	‘‘(ii) allowing the voter to privately 3
10041	10041	and independently verify and cast the per-4
10042	10042	manent paper ballot without requiring the 5
10043	10043	voter to manually handle the paper ballot; 6
10044	10044	‘‘(iii) marking ballots that are iden-7
10045	10045	tical in size, ink, and paper stock to those 8
10046	10046	ballots that would either be marked by 9
10047	10047	hand or be marked by a ballot marking de-10
10048	10048	vice made generally available to voters; or 11
10049	10049	‘‘(iv) combining ballots produced by 12
10050	10050	any ballot marking devices reserved for in-13
10051	10051	dividuals with disabilities with ballots that 14
10052	10052	have either been marked by voters by hand 15
10053	10053	or marked by ballot marking devices made 16
10054	10054	generally available to voters, in a way that 17
10055	10055	prevents identification of the ballots that 18
10056	10056	were cast using any ballot marking device 19
10057	10057	that was reserved for individuals with dis-20
10058	10058	abilities. 21
10059	10059	‘‘(C) S
10060	10060	UFFICIENT NUMBER .—For purposes 22
10061	10061	of subparagraph (A)(ii)(II), the sufficient num-23
10062	10062	ber of voting systems for any in-person polling 24
10063	10063	location shall be determined based on guidance 25
10064	10064	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00329 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10065	10065	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 330
10066	10066	•HR 11 IH
10067	10067	from the Attorney General, in consultation with 1
10068	10068	the Architectural and Transportation Barriers 2
10069	10069	Compliance Board established under section 3
10070	10070	502(a)(1) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 4
10071	10071	U.S.C. 792(a)(1)) (commonly referred to as the 5
10072	10072	United States Access Board) and the Commis-6
10073	10073	sion.’’. 7
10074	10074	(b) S
10075	10075	PECIFICREQUIREMENT OF STUDY, TESTING, 8
10076	10076	ANDDEVELOPMENT OF ACCESSIBLEVOTINGOPTIONS.— 9
10077	10077	(1) S
10078	10078	TUDY AND REPORTING .—Subtitle C of 10
10079	10079	title II of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is 11
10080	10080	amended— 12
10081	10081	(A) by redesignating section 247 as section 13
10082	10082	248; and 14
10083	10083	(B) by inserting after section 246 the fol-15
10084	10084	lowing new section: 16
10085	10085	‘‘SEC. 247. STUDY AND REPORT ON ACCESSIBLE VOTING 17
10086	10086	OPTIONS. 18
10087	10087	‘‘(a) G
10088	10088	RANTSTOSTUDY ANDREPORT.—The Com-19
10089	10089	mission, in coordination with the Access Board and the 20
10090	10090	Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, shall 21
10091	10091	make grants to not fewer than 2 eligible entities to study, 22
10092	10092	test, and develop— 23
10093	10093	‘‘(1) accessible and secure remote voting sys-24
10094	10094	tems; 25
10095	10095	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00330 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10096	10096	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 331
10097	10097	•HR 11 IH
10098	10098	‘‘(2) voting, verification, and casting devices to 1
10099	10099	enhance the accessibility of voting and verification 2
10100	10100	for individuals with disabilities; or 3
10101	10101	‘‘(3) both of the matters described in paragraph 4
10102	10102	(1) and (2). 5
10103	10103	‘‘(b) E
10104	10104	LIGIBILITY.—An entity is eligible to receive a 6
10105	10105	grant under this part if it submits to the Commission (at 7
10106	10106	such time and in such form as the Commission may re-8
10107	10107	quire) an application containing— 9
10108	10108	‘‘(1) a certification that the entity shall com-10
10109	10109	plete the activities carried out with the grant not 11
10110	10110	later than January 1, 2026; and 12
10111	10111	‘‘(2) such other information and certifications 13
10112	10112	as the Commission may require. 14
10113	10113	‘‘(c) A
10114	10114	VAILABILITY OF TECHNOLOGY.—Any tech-15
10115	10115	nology developed with the grants made under this section 16
10116	10116	shall be treated as non-proprietary and shall be made 17
10117	10117	available to the public, including to manufacturers of vot-18
10118	10118	ing systems. 19
10119	10119	‘‘(d) C
10120	10120	OORDINATION WITHGRANTS FOR TECH-20
10121	10121	NOLOGYIMPROVEMENTS.—The Commission shall carry 21
10122	10122	out this section so that the activities carried out with the 22
10123	10123	grants made under subsection (a) are coordinated with the 23
10124	10124	research conducted under the grant program carried out 24
10125	10125	by the Commission under section 271, to the extent that 25
10126	10126	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00331 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10127	10127	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 332
10128	10128	•HR 11 IH
10129	10129	the Commission determine necessary to provide for the ad-1
10130	10130	vancement of accessible voting technology. 2
10131	10131	‘‘(e) A
10132	10132	UTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 3
10133	10133	is authorized to be appropriated to carry out subsection 4
10134	10134	(a) $10,000,000, to remain available until expended.’’. 5
10135	10135	(2) C
10136	10136	LERICAL AMENDMENT .—The table of con-6
10137	10137	tents of such Act is amended— 7
10138	10138	(A) by redesignating the item relating to 8
10139	10139	section 247 as relating to section 248; and 9
10140	10140	(B) by inserting after the item relating to 10
10141	10141	section 246 the following new item: 11
10142	10142	‘‘Sec. 247. Study and report on accessible voting options.’’.
10143	10143	(c) CLARIFICATION OFACCESSIBILITYSTANDARDS 12
10144	10144	U
10145	10145	NDERVOLUNTARYVOTINGSYSTEMGUIDANCE.—In 13
10146	10146	adopting any voluntary guidance under subtitle B of title 14
10147	10147	III of the Help America Vote Act with respect to the ac-15
10148	10148	cessibility of the paper ballot verification requirements for 16
10149	10149	individuals with disabilities, the Election Assistance Com-17
10150	10150	mission shall include and apply the same accessibility 18
10151	10151	standards applicable under the voluntary guidance adopt-19
10152	10152	ed for accessible voting systems under such subtitle. 20
10153	10153	(d) P
10154	10154	ERMITTINGUSE OFFUNDS FORPROTECTION 21
10155	10155	ANDADVOCACYSYSTEMSTOSUPPORTACTIONSTOEN-22
10156	10156	FORCEELECTION-RELATEDDISABILITYACCESS.—Sec-23
10157	10157	tion 292(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 24
10158	10158	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00332 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10159	10159	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 333
10160	10160	•HR 11 IH
10161	10161	U.S.C. 21062(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘; except that’’ 1
10162	10162	and all that follows and inserting a period. 2
10163	10163	SEC. 3904. DURABILITY AND READABILITY REQUIREMENTS 3
10164	10164	FOR BALLOTS. 4
10165	10165	Section 301(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 5
10166	10166	(52 U.S.C. 21081(a)) is amended by adding at the end 6
10167	10167	the following new paragraph: 7
10168	10168	‘‘(7) D
10169	10169	URABILITY AND READABILITY REQUIRE -8
10170	10170	MENTS FOR BALLOTS .— 9
10171	10171	‘‘(A) D
10172	10172	URABILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR 10
10173	10173	PAPER BALLOTS.— 11
10174	10174	‘‘(i) I
10175	10175	N GENERAL.—All voter-verifiable 12
10176	10176	paper ballots required to be used under 13
10177	10177	this Act shall be marked or printed on du-14
10178	10178	rable paper. 15
10179	10179	‘‘(ii) D
10180	10180	EFINITION.—For purposes of 16
10181	10181	this Act, paper is ‘durable’ if it is capable 17
10182	10182	of withstanding multiple counts and re-18
10183	10183	counts by hand without compromising the 19
10184	10184	fundamental integrity of the ballots, and 20
10185	10185	capable of retaining the information 21
10186	10186	marked or printed on them for the full du-22
10187	10187	ration of a retention and preservation pe-23
10188	10188	riod of 22 months. 24
10189	10189	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00333 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10190	10190	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 334
10191	10191	•HR 11 IH
10192	10192	‘‘(B) READABILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR 1
10193	10193	PAPER BALLOTS MARKED BY BALLOT MARKING 2
10194	10194	DEVICE.—All voter-verifiable paper ballots com-3
10195	10195	pleted by the voter through the use of a ballot 4
10196	10196	marking device shall be clearly readable by the 5
10197	10197	voter without assistance (other than eyeglasses 6
10198	10198	or other personal vision-enhancing devices) and 7
10199	10199	by a ballot tabulation device or other device 8
10200	10200	equipped for individuals with disabilities.’’. 9
10201	10201	SEC. 3905. STUDY AND REPORT ON OPTIMAL BALLOT DE-10
10202	10202	SIGN. 11
10203	10203	(a) S
10204	10204	TUDY.—The Election Assistance Commission 12
10205	10205	shall conduct a study of the best ways to design ballots 13
10206	10206	used in elections for public office, including paper ballots 14
10207	10207	and electronic or digital ballots, to minimize confusion and 15
10208	10208	user errors. 16
10209	10209	(b) R
10210	10210	EPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 17
10211	10211	of the enactment of this Act, the Election Assistance Com-18
10212	10212	mission shall submit to Congress a report on the study 19
10213	10213	conducted under subsection (a). 20
10214	10214	SEC. 3906. BALLOT MARKING DEVICE CYBERSECURITY RE-21
10215	10215	QUIREMENTS. 22
10216	10216	Section 301(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 23
10217	10217	(52 U.S.C. 21081(a)), as amended by section 3904, is fur-24
10218	10218	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00334 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10219	10219	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 335
10220	10220	•HR 11 IH
10221	10221	ther amended by adding at the end the following new para-1
10222	10222	graphs: 2
10223	10223	‘‘(8) P
10224	10224	ROHIBITION OF USE OF WIRELESS COM -3
10225	10225	MUNICATIONS DEVICES IN SYSTEMS OR DEVICES .— 4
10226	10226	No system or device upon which ballot marking de-5
10227	10227	vices or ballot tabulation devices are configured, 6
10228	10228	upon which ballots are marked by voters at a polling 7
10229	10229	place (except as necessary for individuals with dis-8
10230	10230	abilities to use ballot marking devices that meet the 9
10231	10231	accessibility requirements of paragraph (3)), or upon 10
10232	10232	which votes are cast, tabulated, or aggregated shall 11
10233	10233	contain, use, or be accessible by any wireless, power- 12
10234	10234	line, or concealed communication device. 13
10235	10235	‘‘(9) P
10236	10236	ROHIBITING CONNECTION OF SYSTEM TO 14
10237	10237	THE INTERNET.—No system or device upon which 15
10238	10238	ballot marking devices or ballot tabulation devices 16
10239	10239	are configured, upon which ballots are marked by 17
10240	10240	voters at a voting place, or upon which votes are 18
10241	10241	cast, tabulated, or aggregated shall be connected to 19
10242	10242	the internet or any non-local computer system via 20
10243	10243	telephone or other communication network at any 21
10244	10244	time.’’. 22
10245	10245	SEC. 3907. EFFECTIVE DATE FOR NEW REQUIREMENTS. 23
10246	10246	Section 301(d) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 24
10247	10247	(52 U.S.C. 21081(d)) is amended to read as follows: 25
10248	10248	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00335 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10249	10249	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 336
10250	10250	•HR 11 IH
10251	10251	‘‘(d) EFFECTIVEDATE.— 1
10252	10252	‘‘(1) I
10253	10253	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-2
10254	10254	graph (2), each State and jurisdiction shall be re-3
10255	10255	quired to comply with the requirements of this sec-4
10256	10256	tion on and after January 1, 2006. 5
10257	10257	‘‘(2) S
10258	10258	PECIAL RULE FOR CERTAIN REQUIRE -6
10259	10259	MENTS.— 7
10260	10260	‘‘(A) I
10261	10261	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in 8
10262	10262	subparagraphs (B) and (C), the requirements of 9
10263	10263	this section which are first imposed on a State 10
10264	10264	or jurisdiction pursuant to the amendments 11
10265	10265	made by the Voter Confidence and Increased 12
10266	10266	Accessibility Act of 2023 shall apply with re-13
10267	10267	spect to voting systems used for any election for 14
10268	10268	Federal office held in 2024 or any succeeding 15
10269	10269	year. 16
10270	10270	‘‘(B) S
10271	10271	PECIAL RULE FOR JURISDICTIONS 17
10272	10272	USING CERTAIN PAPER RECORD PRINTERS OR 18
10273	10273	CERTAIN SYSTEMS USING OR PRODUCING 19
10274	10274	VOTER-VERIFIABLE PAPER RECORDS IN 2022 .— 20
10275	10275	‘‘(i) I
10276	10276	N GENERAL.—In the case of a 21
10277	10277	jurisdiction described in clause (ii), the re-22
10278	10278	quirements of paragraphs (2)(A)(i) and (7) 23
10279	10279	of subsection (a) (as amended or added by 24
10280	10280	the Voter Confidence and Increased Acces-25
10281	10281	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00336 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10282	10282	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 337
10283	10283	•HR 11 IH
10284	10284	sibility Act of 2023) shall not apply before 1
10285	10285	the date on which the jurisdiction replaces 2
10286	10286	the printers or systems described in clause 3
10287	10287	(ii)(I) for use in the administration of elec-4
10288	10288	tions for Federal office. 5
10289	10289	‘‘(ii) J
10290	10290	URISDICTIONS DESCRIBED .—A 6
10291	10291	jurisdiction described in this clause is a ju-7
10292	10292	risdiction— 8
10293	10293	‘‘(I) which used voter-verifiable 9
10294	10294	paper record printers attached to di-10
10295	10295	rect recording electronic voting ma-11
10296	10296	chines, or which used other voting 12
10297	10297	systems that used or produced paper 13
10298	10298	records of the vote verifiable by voters 14
10299	10299	but that are not in compliance with 15
10300	10300	paragraphs (2)(A)(i) and (7) of sub-16
10301	10301	section (a) (as amended or added by 17
10302	10302	the Voter Confidence and Increased 18
10303	10303	Accessibility Act of 2023), for the ad-19
10304	10304	ministration of the regularly sched-20
10305	10305	uled general election for Federal office 21
10306	10306	held in November 2022; and 22
10307	10307	‘‘(II) which will continue to use 23
10308	10308	such printers or systems for the ad-24
10309	10309	ministration of elections for Federal 25
10310	10310	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00337 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10311	10311	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 338
10312	10312	•HR 11 IH
10313	10313	office held in years before the applica-1
10314	10314	ble year. 2
10315	10315	‘‘(iii) M
10316	10316	ANDATORY AVAILABILITY OF 3
10317	10317	PAPER BALLOTS AT POLLING PLACES 4
10318	10318	USING GRANDFATHERED PRINTERS AND 5
10319	10319	SYSTEMS.— 6
10320	10320	‘‘(I) R
10321	10321	EQUIRING BALLOTS TO BE 7
10322	10322	OFFERED AND PROVIDED .—The ap-8
10323	10323	propriate election official at each poll-9
10324	10324	ing place that uses a printer or sys-10
10325	10325	tem described in clause (ii)(I) for the 11
10326	10326	administration of elections for Federal 12
10327	10327	office shall offer each individual who 13
10328	10328	is eligible to cast a vote in the election 14
10329	10329	at the polling place the opportunity to 15
10330	10330	cast the vote using a blank printed 16
10331	10331	paper ballot which the individual may 17
10332	10332	mark by hand and which is not pro-18
10333	10333	duced by the direct recording elec-19
10334	10334	tronic voting machine or other such 20
10335	10335	system. The official shall provide the 21
10336	10336	individual with the ballot and the sup-22
10337	10337	plies necessary to mark the ballot, and 23
10338	10338	shall ensure (to the greatest extent 24
10339	10339	practicable) that the waiting period 25
10340	10340	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00338 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10341	10341	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 339
10342	10342	•HR 11 IH
10343	10343	for the individual to cast a vote is the 1
10344	10344	lesser of 30 minutes or the average 2
10345	10345	waiting period for an individual who 3
10346	10346	does not agree to cast the vote using 4
10347	10347	such a paper ballot under this clause. 5
10348	10348	‘‘(II) T
10349	10349	REATMENT OF BALLOT .— 6
10350	10350	Any paper ballot which is cast by an 7
10351	10351	individual under this clause shall be 8
10352	10352	counted and otherwise treated as a 9
10353	10353	regular ballot for all purposes (includ-10
10354	10354	ing by incorporating it into the final 11
10355	10355	unofficial vote count (as defined by 12
10356	10356	the State) for the precinct) and not as 13
10357	10357	a provisional ballot, unless the indi-14
10358	10358	vidual casting the ballot would have 15
10359	10359	otherwise been required to cast a pro-16
10360	10360	visional ballot. 17
10361	10361	‘‘(III) P
10362	10362	OSTING OF NOTICE .— 18
10363	10363	The appropriate election official shall 19
10364	10364	ensure there is prominently displayed 20
10365	10365	at each polling place a notice that de-21
10366	10366	scribes the obligation of the official to 22
10367	10367	offer individuals the opportunity to 23
10368	10368	cast votes using a printed blank paper 24
10369	10369	ballot. The notice shall comply with 25
10370	10370	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00339 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10371	10371	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 340
10372	10372	•HR 11 IH
10373	10373	the requirements of section 203 of the 1
10374	10374	Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 2
10375	10375	10503). 3
10376	10376	‘‘(IV) T
10377	10377	RAINING OF ELECTION 4
10378	10378	OFFICIALS.—The chief State election 5
10379	10379	official shall ensure that election offi-6
10380	10380	cials at polling places in the State are 7
10381	10381	aware of the requirements of this 8
10382	10382	clause, including the requirement to 9
10383	10383	display a notice under subclause (III), 10
10384	10384	and are aware that it is a violation of 11
10385	10385	the requirements of this title for an 12
10386	10386	election official to fail to offer an indi-13
10387	10387	vidual the opportunity to cast a vote 14
10388	10388	using a blank printed paper ballot. 15
10389	10389	‘‘(V) P
10390	10390	ERIOD OF APPLICA -16
10391	10391	BILITY.—The requirements of this 17
10392	10392	clause apply only during the period 18
10393	10393	beginning on January 1, 2024, and 19
10394	10394	ending on the date on which the juris-20
10395	10395	diction replaces the printers or sys-21
10396	10396	tems described in clause (ii)(I) for use 22
10397	10397	in the administration of elections for 23
10398	10398	Federal office. 24
10399	10399	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00340 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10400	10400	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 341
10401	10401	•HR 11 IH
10402	10402	‘‘(C) DELAY FOR CERTAIN JURISDICTIONS 1
10403	10403	USING VOTING SYSTEMS WITH WIRELESS COM -2
10404	10404	MUNICATION DEVICES OR INTERNET CONNEC -3
10405	10405	TIONS.— 4
10406	10406	‘‘(i) D
10407	10407	ELAY.—In the case of a juris-5
10408	10408	diction described in clause (ii), subpara-6
10409	10409	graph (A) shall apply to a voting system in 7
10410	10410	the jurisdiction as if the reference in such 8
10411	10411	subparagraph to ‘2024’ were a reference to 9
10412	10412	‘the applicable year’, but only with respect 10
10413	10413	to the following requirements of this sec-11
10414	10414	tion: 12
10415	10415	‘‘(I) Paragraph (8) of subsection 13
10416	10416	(a) (relating to prohibition of wireless 14
10417	10417	communication devices). 15
10418	10418	‘‘(II) Paragraph (9) of subsection 16
10419	10419	(a) (relating to prohibition of con-17
10420	10420	necting systems to the internet). 18
10421	10421	‘‘(ii) J
10422	10422	URISDICTIONS DESCRIBED .—A 19
10423	10423	jurisdiction described in this clause is a ju-20
10424	10424	risdiction— 21
10425	10425	‘‘(I) which used a voting system 22
10426	10426	which is not in compliance with para-23
10427	10427	graphs (8) or (9) of subsection (a) (as 24
10428	10428	amended or added by the Voter Con-25
10429	10429	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00341 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10430	10430	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 342
10431	10431	•HR 11 IH
10432	10432	fidence and Increased Accessibility 1
10433	10433	Act of 2023) for the administration of 2
10434	10434	the regularly scheduled general elec-3
10435	10435	tion for Federal office held in Novem-4
10436	10436	ber 2022; 5
10437	10437	‘‘(II) which was not able, to all 6
10438	10438	extent practicable, to comply with 7
10439	10439	paragraph (8) and (9) of subsection 8
10440	10440	(a) before January 1, 2024; and 9
10441	10441	‘‘(III) which will continue to use 10
10442	10442	such printers or systems for the ad-11
10443	10443	ministration of elections for Federal 12
10444	10444	office held in years before the applica-13
10445	10445	ble year. 14
10446	10446	‘‘(iii) A
10447	10447	PPLICABLE YEAR.— 15
10448	10448	‘‘(I) I
10449	10449	N GENERAL.—Except as 16
10450	10450	provided in subclause (II), the term 17
10451	10451	‘applicable year’ means 2028. 18
10452	10452	‘‘(II) E
10453	10453	XTENSION.—If a State or 19
10454	10454	jurisdiction certifies to the Commis-20
10455	10455	sion not later than January 1, 2028, 21
10456	10456	that the State or jurisdiction will not 22
10457	10457	meet the requirements described in 23
10458	10458	subclauses (I) and (II) of clause (i) by 24
10459	10459	such date because it would be imprac-25
10460	10460	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00342 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10461	10461	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 343
10462	10462	•HR 11 IH
10463	10463	tical to do so and includes in the cer-1
10464	10464	tification the reasons for the failure to 2
10465	10465	meet the deadline, the term ‘applica-3
10466	10466	ble year’ means 2032.’’. 4
10467	10467	SEC. 3908. GRANTS FOR OBTAINING COMPLIANT PAPER 5
10468	10468	BALLOT VOTING SYSTEMS AND CARRYING 6
10469	10469	OUT VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVE-7
10470	10470	MENTS. 8
10471	10471	(a) A
10472	10472	VAILABILITY OFGRANTS.— 9
10473	10473	(1) I
10474	10474	N GENERAL.—Subtitle D of title II of the 10
10475	10475	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21001 11
10476	10476	et seq.), as amended by section 1302(c), is amended 12
10477	10477	by adding at the end the following new part: 13
10478	10478	‘‘PART 8—GRANTS FOR OBTAINING COMPLIANT 14
10479	10479	PAPER BALLOT VOTING SYSTEMS AND CAR-15
10480	10480	RYING OUT VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IM-16
10481	10481	PROVEMENTS 17
10482	10482	‘‘SEC. 298. GRANTS FOR OBTAINING COMPLIANT PAPER 18
10483	10483	BALLOT VOTING SYSTEMS AND CARRYING 19
10484	10484	OUT VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVE-20
10485	10485	MENTS. 21
10486	10486	‘‘(a) A
10487	10487	VAILABILITY ANDUSE OFGRANT.— 22
10488	10488	‘‘(1) I
10489	10489	N GENERAL.—The Commission shall 23
10490	10490	make a grant to each eligible State— 24
10491	10491	‘‘(A) to replace a voting system— 25
10492	10492	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00343 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10493	10493	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 344
10494	10494	•HR 11 IH
10495	10495	‘‘(i) which does not meet the require-1
10496	10496	ments which are first imposed on the State 2
10497	10497	pursuant to the amendments made by the 3
10498	10498	Voter Confidence and Increased Accessi-4
10499	10499	bility Act of 2023 with a voting system 5
10500	10500	which— 6
10501	10501	‘‘(I) does meet such require-7
10502	10502	ments; and 8
10503	10503	‘‘(II) in the case of a grand-9
10504	10504	fathered voting system (as defined in 10
10505	10505	paragraph (2)), is in compliance with 11
10506	10506	the most recent voluntary voting sys-12
10507	10507	tem guidelines; or 13
10508	10508	‘‘(ii) which does meet such require-14
10509	10509	ments but which is not in compliance with 15
10510	10510	the most recent voluntary voting system 16
10511	10511	guidelines with another system which does 17
10512	10512	meet such requirements and is in compli-18
10513	10513	ance with such guidelines; 19
10514	10514	‘‘(B) to carry out voting system security 20
10515	10515	improvements described in section 298A with 21
10516	10516	respect to the regularly scheduled general elec-22
10517	10517	tion for Federal office held in November 2024 23
10518	10518	and each succeeding election for Federal office; 24
10519	10519	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00344 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10520	10520	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 345
10521	10521	•HR 11 IH
10522	10522	‘‘(C) to implement and model best prac-1
10523	10523	tices for ballot design, ballot instructions, and 2
10524	10524	the testing of ballots; and 3
10525	10525	‘‘(D) to purchase or acquire accessible vot-4
10526	10526	ing systems that meet the requirements of 5
10527	10527	paragraph (2) and paragraph (3)(A)(i) of sec-6
10528	10528	tion 301(a) by the means described in para-7
10529	10529	graph (3)(B) of such section. 8
10530	10530	‘‘(2) D
10531	10531	EFINITION OF GRANDFATHERED VOTING 9
10532	10532	SYSTEM.—In this subsection, the term ‘grand-10
10533	10533	fathered voting system’ means a voting system that 11
10534	10534	is used by a jurisdiction described in subparagraph 12
10535	10535	(B)(ii) or (C)(ii) of section 301(d)(2). 13
10536	10536	‘‘(b) A
10537	10537	MOUNT OFPAYMENT.— 14
10538	10538	‘‘(1) I
10539	10539	N GENERAL.—The amount of payment 15
10540	10540	made to an eligible State under this section shall be 16
10541	10541	the minimum payment amount described in para-17
10542	10542	graph (2) plus the voting age population proportion 18
10543	10543	amount described in paragraph (3). 19
10544	10544	‘‘(2) M
10545	10545	INIMUM PAYMENT AMOUNT .—The min-20
10546	10546	imum payment amount described in this paragraph 21
10547	10547	is— 22
10548	10548	‘‘(A) in the case of any of the several 23
10549	10549	States or the District of Columbia, one-half of 24
10550	10550	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00345 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10551	10551	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 346
10552	10552	•HR 11 IH
10553	10553	1 percent of the aggregate amount made avail-1
10554	10554	able for payments under this section; and 2
10555	10555	‘‘(B) in the case of the Commonwealth of 3
10556	10556	Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the 4
10557	10557	United States Virgin Islands, or the Common-5
10558	10558	wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, one- 6
10559	10559	tenth of 1 percent of such aggregate amount. 7
10560	10560	‘‘(3) V
10561	10561	OTING AGE POPULATION PROPORTION 8
10562	10562	AMOUNT.—The voting age population proportion 9
10563	10563	amount described in this paragraph is the product 10
10564	10564	of— 11
10565	10565	‘‘(A) the aggregate amount made available 12
10566	10566	for payments under this section minus the total 13
10567	10567	of all of the minimum payment amounts deter-14
10568	10568	mined under paragraph (2); and 15
10569	10569	‘‘(B) the voting age population proportion 16
10570	10570	for the State (as defined in paragraph (4)). 17
10571	10571	‘‘(4) V
10572	10572	OTING AGE POPULATION PROPORTION 18
10573	10573	DEFINED.—The term ‘voting age population propor-19
10574	10574	tion’ means, with respect to a State, the amount 20
10575	10575	equal to the quotient of— 21
10576	10576	‘‘(A) the voting age population of the State 22
10577	10577	(as reported in the most recent decennial cen-23
10578	10578	sus); and 24
10579	10579	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00346 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10580	10580	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 347
10581	10581	•HR 11 IH
10582	10582	‘‘(B) the total voting age population of all 1
10583	10583	States (as reported in the most recent decennial 2
10584	10584	census). 3
10585	10585	‘‘(5) R
10586	10586	EQUIREMENT RELATING TO PURCHASE 4
10587	10587	OF ACCESSIBLE VOTING SYSTEMS .—An eligible State 5
10588	10588	shall use not less than 10 percent of funds received 6
10589	10589	by the State under this section to purchase acces-7
10590	10590	sible voting systems described in subsection 8
10591	10591	(a)(1)(D). 9
10592	10592	‘‘SEC. 298A. VOTING SYSTEM SECURITY IMPROVEMENTS 10
10593	10593	DESCRIBED. 11
10594	10594	‘‘(a) P
10595	10595	ERMITTEDUSES.—A voting system security 12
10596	10596	improvement described in this section is any of the fol-13
10597	10597	lowing: 14
10598	10598	‘‘(1) The acquisition of goods and services from 15
10599	10599	qualified election infrastructure vendors by purchase, 16
10600	10600	lease, or such other arrangements as may be appro-17
10601	10601	priate. 18
10602	10602	‘‘(2) Cyber and risk mitigation training. 19
10603	10603	‘‘(3) A security risk and vulnerability assess-20
10604	10604	ment of the State’s election infrastructure (as de-21
10605	10605	fined in section 3908(b) of the Voter Confidence and 22
10606	10606	Increased Accessibility Act of 2023) which is carried 23
10607	10607	out by a provider of cybersecurity services under a 24
10608	10608	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00347 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10609	10609	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 348
10610	10610	•HR 11 IH
10611	10611	contract entered into between the chief State elec-1
10612	10612	tion official and the provider. 2
10613	10613	‘‘(4) The maintenance of infrastructure used 3
10614	10614	for elections, including addressing risks and 4
10615	10615	vulnerabilities which are identified under either of 5
10616	10616	the security risk and vulnerability assessments de-6
10617	10617	scribed in paragraph (3), except that none of the 7
10618	10618	funds provided under this part may be used to ren-8
10619	10619	ovate or replace a building or facility which is not 9
10620	10620	a primary provider of information technology serv-10
10621	10621	ices for the administration of elections, and which is 11
10622	10622	used primarily for purposes other than the adminis-12
10623	10623	tration of elections for public office. 13
10624	10624	‘‘(5) Providing increased technical support for 14
10625	10625	any information technology infrastructure that the 15
10626	10626	chief State election official deems to be part of the 16
10627	10627	State’s election infrastructure (as so defined) or des-17
10628	10628	ignates as critical to the operation of the State’s 18
10629	10629	election infrastructure (as so defined). 19
10630	10630	‘‘(6) Enhancing the cybersecurity and oper-20
10631	10631	ations of the information technology infrastructure 21
10632	10632	described in paragraph (4). 22
10633	10633	‘‘(7) Enhancing the cybersecurity of voter reg-23
10634	10634	istration systems. 24
10635	10635	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00348 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10636	10636	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 349
10637	10637	•HR 11 IH
10638	10638	‘‘(b) QUALIFIEDELECTIONINFRASTRUCTURE VEN-1
10639	10639	DORSDESCRIBED.—For purposes of this part, a ‘qualified 2
10640	10640	election infrastructure vendor’ is any person who provides, 3
10641	10641	supports, or maintains, or who seeks to provide, support, 4
10642	10642	or maintain, election infrastructure (as defined in section 5
10643	10643	3908(b) of the Voter Confidence and Increased Accessi-6
10644	10644	bility Act of 2023) on behalf of a State, unit of local gov-7
10645	10645	ernment, or election agency (as defined in section 3908(b) 8
10646	10646	of such Act) who meets the criteria described in section 9
10647	10647	3908(b) of such Act. 10
10648	10648	‘‘SEC. 298B. ELIGIBILITY OF STATES. 11
10649	10649	‘‘A State is eligible to receive a grant under this part 12
10650	10650	if the State submits to the Commission, at such time and 13
10651	10651	in such form as the Commission may require, an applica-14
10652	10652	tion containing— 15
10653	10653	‘‘(1) a description of how the State will use the 16
10654	10654	grant to carry out the activities authorized under 17
10655	10655	this part; 18
10656	10656	‘‘(2) a certification and assurance that, not 19
10657	10657	later than 5 years after receiving the grant, the 20
10658	10658	State will carry out voting system security improve-21
10659	10659	ments, as described in section 298A; and 22
10660	10660	‘‘(3) such other information and assurances as 23
10661	10661	the Commission may require. 24
10662	10662	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00349 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10663	10663	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 350
10664	10664	•HR 11 IH
10665	10665	‘‘SEC. 298C. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 1
10666	10666	‘‘Not later than 90 days after the end of each fiscal 2
10667	10667	year, the Commission shall submit a report to the Com-3
10668	10668	mittees on Homeland Security, House Administration, and 4
10669	10669	the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the 5
10670	10670	Committees on Homeland Security and Governmental Af-6
10671	10671	fairs, the Judiciary, and Rules and Administration of the 7
10672	10672	Senate, on the activities carried out with the funds pro-8
10673	10673	vided under this part. 9
10674	10674	‘‘SEC. 298D. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 10
10675	10675	‘‘(a) A
10676	10676	UTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be 11
10677	10677	appropriated for grants under this part— 12
10678	10678	‘‘(1) $2,400,000,000 for fiscal year 2024; and 13
10679	10679	‘‘(2) $175,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 14
10680	10680	2026, 2028, 2030, and 2032. 15
10681	10681	‘‘(b) C
10682	10682	ONTINUINGAVAILABILITY OFAMOUNTS.—Any 16
10683	10683	amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization of 17
10684	10684	this section shall remain available until expended.’’. 18
10685	10685	(2) C
10686	10686	LERICAL AMENDMENT .—The table of con-19
10687	10687	tents of such Act, as amended by section 1402(c), 20
10688	10688	is amended by adding at the end of the items relat-21
10689	10689	ing to subtitle D of title II the following: 22
10690	10690	‘‘PART8—GRANTS FOROBTAININGCOMPLIANTPAPERBALLOTVOTING
10691	10691	S
10692	10692	YSTEMS ANDCARRYINGOUTVOTINGSYSTEMSECURITYIMPROVEMENTS
10693	10693	‘‘Sec. 298. Grants for obtaining compliant paper ballot voting systems and
10694	10694	carrying out voting system security improvements.
10695	10695	‘‘Sec. 298A. Voting system security improvements described.
10696	10696	‘‘Sec. 298B. Eligibility of States.
10697	10697	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00350 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10698	10698	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 351
10699	10699	•HR 11 IH
10700	10700	‘‘Sec. 298C. Reports to Congress.
10701	10701	‘‘Sec. 298D. Authorization of appropriations.
10702	10702	(b) QUALIFIEDELECTIONINFRASTRUCTURE VEN-1
10703	10703	DORS.— 2
10704	10704	(1) I
10705	10705	N GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta-3
10706	10706	tion with the Chair, shall establish and publish cri-4
10707	10707	teria for qualified election infrastructure vendors for 5
10708	10708	purposes of section 298A of the Help America Vote 6
10709	10709	Act of 2002 (as added by this Act). 7
10710	10710	(2) C
10711	10711	RITERIA.—The criteria established under 8
10712	10712	paragraph (1) shall include each of the following re-9
10713	10713	quirements: 10
10714	10714	(A) The vendor shall— 11
10715	10715	(i) be owned and controlled by a cit-12
10716	10716	izen or permanent resident of the United 13
10717	10717	States or a member of the Five Eyes intel-14
10718	10718	ligence-sharing alliance; and 15
10719	10719	(ii) in the case of any election infra-16
10720	10720	structure which is a voting machine, en-17
10721	10721	sure that such voting machine is assembled 18
10722	10722	in the United States. 19
10723	10723	(B) The vendor shall disclose to the Sec-20
10724	10724	retary and the Chair, and to the chief State 21
10725	10725	election official of any State to which the ven-22
10726	10726	dor provides any goods and services with funds 23
10727	10727	provided under part 8 of subtitle D of title II 24
10728	10728	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00351 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10729	10729	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 352
10730	10730	•HR 11 IH
10731	10731	of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (as 1
10732	10732	added by this Act), of any sourcing outside the 2
10733	10733	United States for parts of the election infra-3
10734	10734	structure. 4
10735	10735	(C) The vendor shall disclose to the Sec-5
10736	10736	retary and the Chair, and to the chief State 6
10737	10737	election official of any State to which the ven-7
10738	10738	dor provides any goods and services with funds 8
10739	10739	provided under such part 8, the identification of 9
10740	10740	any entity or individual with a more than 5 per-10
10741	10741	cent ownership interest in the vendor. 11
10742	10742	(D) The vendor agrees to ensure that the 12
10743	10743	election infrastructure will be developed and 13
10744	10744	maintained in a manner that is consistent with 14
10745	10745	the cybersecurity best practices issued by the 15
10746	10746	Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security 16
10747	10747	Agency of the Department of Homeland Secu-17
10748	10748	rity. 18
10749	10749	(E) The vendor agrees to maintain its in-19
10750	10750	formation technology infrastructure in a man-20
10751	10751	ner that is consistent with the cybersecurity 21
10752	10752	best practices issued by the Cybersecurity and 22
10753	10753	Infrastructure Security Agency of the Depart-23
10754	10754	ment of Homeland Security. 24
10755	10755	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00352 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10756	10756	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 353
10757	10757	•HR 11 IH
10758	10758	(F) The vendor agrees to ensure that the 1
10759	10759	election infrastructure will be developed and 2
10760	10760	maintained in a manner that is consistent with 3
10761	10761	the supply chain best practices issued by the 4
10762	10762	Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security 5
10763	10763	Agency of the Department of Homeland Secu-6
10764	10764	rity. 7
10765	10765	(G) The vendor agrees to ensure that it 8
10766	10766	has personnel policies and practices in place 9
10767	10767	that are consistent with personnel best prac-10
10768	10768	tices, including cybersecurity training and back-11
10769	10769	ground checks, issued by the Cybersecurity and 12
10770	10770	Infrastructure Security Agency of the Depart-13
10771	10771	ment of Homeland Security. 14
10772	10772	(H) The vendor agrees to ensure that the 15
10773	10773	election infrastructure will be developed and 16
10774	10774	maintained in a manner that is consistent with 17
10775	10775	data integrity best practices, including require-18
10776	10776	ments for encrypted transfers and validation, 19
10777	10777	testing and checking printed materials for accu-20
10778	10778	racy, and disclosure of quality control incidents, 21
10779	10779	issued by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure 22
10780	10780	Security Agency of the Department of Home-23
10781	10781	land Security. 24
10782	10782	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00353 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10783	10783	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 354
10784	10784	•HR 11 IH
10785	10785	(I) The vendor agrees to meet the require-1
10786	10786	ments of paragraph (3) with respect to any 2
10787	10787	known or suspected cybersecurity incidents in-3
10788	10788	volving any of the goods and services provided 4
10789	10789	by the vendor pursuant to a grant under part 5
10790	10790	8 of subtitle D of title II of the Help America 6
10791	10791	Vote Act of 2002 (as added by this Act). 7
10792	10792	(J) The vendor agrees to permit inde-8
10793	10793	pendent security testing by the Election Assist-9
10794	10794	ance Commission (in accordance with section 10
10795	10795	231(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 11
10796	10796	(52 U.S.C. 20971)) and by the Secretary of the 12
10797	10797	goods and services provided by the vendor pur-13
10798	10798	suant to a grant under part 8 of subtitle D of 14
10799	10799	title II of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 15
10800	10800	(as added by this Act). 16
10801	10801	(3) C
10802	10802	YBERSECURITY INCIDENT REPORTING RE -17
10803	10803	QUIREMENTS.— 18
10804	10804	(A) I
10805	10805	N GENERAL.—A vendor meets the re-19
10806	10806	quirements of this paragraph if, upon becoming 20
10807	10807	aware of the possibility that an election cyberse-21
10808	10808	curity incident has occurred involving any of 22
10809	10809	the goods and services provided by the vendor 23
10810	10810	pursuant to a grant under part 8 of subtitle D 24
10811	10811	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00354 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10812	10812	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 355
10813	10813	•HR 11 IH
10814	10814	of title II of the Help America Vote Act of 1
10815	10815	2002 (as added by this Act)— 2
10816	10816	(i) the vendor promptly assesses 3
10817	10817	whether or not such an incident occurred, 4
10818	10818	and submits a notification meeting the re-5
10819	10819	quirements of subparagraph (B) to the 6
10820	10820	Secretary and the Chair of the assessment 7
10821	10821	as soon as practicable (but in no case later 8
10822	10822	than 3 days after the vendor first becomes 9
10823	10823	aware of the possibility that the incident 10
10824	10824	occurred); 11
10825	10825	(ii) if the incident involves goods or 12
10826	10826	services provided to an election agency, the 13
10827	10827	vendor submits a notification meeting the 14
10828	10828	requirements of subparagraph (B) to the 15
10829	10829	agency as soon as practicable (but in no 16
10830	10830	case later than 3 days after the vendor 17
10831	10831	first becomes aware of the possibility that 18
10832	10832	the incident occurred), and cooperates with 19
10833	10833	the agency in providing any other nec-20
10834	10834	essary notifications relating to the inci-21
10835	10835	dent; and 22
10836	10836	(iii) the vendor provides all necessary 23
10837	10837	updates to any notification submitted 24
10838	10838	under clause (i) or clause (ii). 25
10839	10839	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00355 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10840	10840	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 356
10841	10841	•HR 11 IH
10842	10842	(B) CONTENTS OF NOTIFICATIONS .—Each 1
10843	10843	notification submitted under clause (i) or clause 2
10844	10844	(ii) of subparagraph (A) shall contain the fol-3
10845	10845	lowing information with respect to any election 4
10846	10846	cybersecurity incident covered by the notifica-5
10847	10847	tion: 6
10848	10848	(i) The date, time, and time zone 7
10849	10849	when the election cybersecurity incident 8
10850	10850	began, if known. 9
10851	10851	(ii) The date, time, and time zone 10
10852	10852	when the election cybersecurity incident 11
10853	10853	was detected. 12
10854	10854	(iii) The date, time, and duration of 13
10855	10855	the election cybersecurity incident. 14
10856	10856	(iv) The circumstances of the election 15
10857	10857	cybersecurity incident, including the spe-16
10858	10858	cific election infrastructure systems be-17
10859	10859	lieved to have been accessed and informa-18
10860	10860	tion acquired, if any. 19
10861	10861	(v) Any planned and implemented 20
10862	10862	technical measures to respond to and re-21
10863	10863	cover from the incident. 22
10864	10864	(vi) In the case of any notification 23
10865	10865	which is an update to a prior notification, 24
10866	10866	any additional material information relat-25
10867	10867	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00356 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10868	10868	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 357
10869	10869	•HR 11 IH
10870	10870	ing to the incident, including technical 1
10871	10871	data, as it becomes available. 2
10872	10872	(C) D
10873	10873	EVELOPMENT OF CRITERIA FOR RE -3
10874	10874	PORTING.—Not later than 1 year after the date 4
10875	10875	of enactment of this Act, the Director of the 5
10876	10876	Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security 6
10877	10877	Agency shall, in consultation with the Election 7
10878	10878	Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Council, de-8
10879	10879	velop criteria for incidents which are required to 9
10880	10880	be reported in accordance with subparagraph 10
10881	10881	(A). 11
10882	10882	(4) D
10883	10883	EFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 12
10884	10884	(A) C
10885	10885	HAIR.—The term ‘‘Chair’’ means the 13
10886	10886	Chair of the Election Assistance Commission. 14
10887	10887	(B) C
10888	10888	HIEF STATE ELECTION OFFICIAL .— 15
10889	10889	The term ‘‘chief State election official’’ means, 16
10890	10890	with respect to a State, the individual des-17
10891	10891	ignated by the State under section 10 of the 18
10892	10892	National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 19
10893	10893	U.S.C. 20509) to be responsible for coordina-20
10894	10894	tion of the State’s responsibilities under such 21
10895	10895	Act. 22
10896	10896	(C) E
10897	10897	LECTION AGENCY.—The term ‘‘elec-23
10898	10898	tion agency’’ means any component of a State, 24
10899	10899	or any component of a unit of local government 25
10900	10900	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00357 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10901	10901	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 358
10902	10902	•HR 11 IH
10903	10903	in a State, which is responsible for the adminis-1
10904	10904	tration of elections for Federal office in the 2
10905	10905	State. 3
10906	10906	(D) E
10907	10907	LECTION INFRASTRUCTURE .—The 4
10908	10908	term ‘‘election infrastructure’’ means storage 5
10909	10909	facilities, polling places, and centralized vote 6
10910	10910	tabulation locations used to support the admin-7
10911	10911	istration of elections for public office, as well as 8
10912	10912	related information and communications tech-9
10913	10913	nology, including voter registration databases, 10
10914	10914	voting machines, electronic mail and other com-11
10915	10915	munications systems (including electronic mail 12
10916	10916	and other systems of vendors who have entered 13
10917	10917	into contracts with election agencies to support 14
10918	10918	the administration of elections, manage the 15
10919	10919	election process, and report and display election 16
10920	10920	results), and other systems used to manage the 17
10921	10921	election process and to report and display elec-18
10922	10922	tion results on behalf of an election agency. 19
10923	10923	(E) S
10924	10924	ECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 20
10925	10925	means the Secretary of Homeland Security. 21
10926	10926	(F) S
10927	10927	TATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the 22
10928	10928	meaning given such term in section 901 of the 23
10929	10929	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 24
10930	10930	21141). 25
10931	10931	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00358 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10932	10932	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 359
10933	10933	•HR 11 IH
10934	10934	Subtitle K—Provisional Ballots 1
10935	10935	SEC. 3911. REQUIREMENTS FOR COUNTING PROVISIONAL 2
10936	10936	BALLOTS; ESTABLISHMENT OF UNIFORM AND 3
10937	10937	NONDISCRIMINATORY STANDARDS. 4
10938	10938	(a) I
10939	10939	NGENERAL.—Section 302 of the Help America 5
10940	10940	Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21082), as amended by sec-6
10941	10941	tion 1601(a), is amended— 7
10942	10942	(1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub-8
10943	10943	section (h); and 9
10944	10944	(2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol-10
10945	10945	lowing new subsections: 11
10946	10946	‘‘(e) C
10947	10947	OUNTING OFPROVISIONALBALLOTS.— 12
10948	10948	‘‘(1) I
10949	10949	N GENERAL.— 13
10950	10950	‘‘(A) For purposes of subsection (a)(4), if 14
10951	10951	a provisional ballot is cast within the same 15
10952	10952	county in which the voter is registered or other-16
10953	10953	wise eligible to vote, then notwithstanding the 17
10954	10954	precinct or polling place at which a provisional 18
10955	10955	ballot is cast within the county, the appropriate 19
10956	10956	election official of the jurisdiction in which the 20
10957	10957	individual is registered or otherwise eligible to 21
10958	10958	vote shall count each vote on such ballot for 22
10959	10959	each election in which the individual who cast 23
10960	10960	such ballot is eligible to vote. 24
10961	10961	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00359 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10962	10962	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 360
10963	10963	•HR 11 IH
10964	10964	‘‘(B) In addition to the requirements under 1
10965	10965	subsection (a), for each State or political sub-2
10966	10966	division that provides voters provisional ballots, 3
10967	10967	challenge ballots, or affidavit ballots under the 4
10968	10968	State’s applicable law governing the voting 5
10969	10969	processes for those voters whose eligibility to 6
10970	10970	vote is determined to be uncertain by election 7
10971	10971	officials, election officials shall— 8
10972	10972	‘‘(i) provide clear written instructions 9
10973	10973	indicating the reason the voter was given a 10
10974	10974	provisional ballot, the information or docu-11
10975	10975	ments the voter needs to prove eligibility, 12
10976	10976	the location at which the voter must ap-13
10977	10977	pear to submit these materials or alter-14
10978	10978	native methods, including email or fac-15
10979	10979	simile, that the voter may use to submit 16
10980	10980	these materials, and the deadline for sub-17
10981	10981	mitting these materials; 18
10982	10982	‘‘(ii) provide a verbal translation of 19
10983	10983	any written instructions to the voter if nec-20
10984	10984	essary; 21
10985	10985	‘‘(iii) permit any voter who votes pro-22
10986	10986	visionally at any polling place on Indian 23
10987	10987	lands to appear at any polling place or at 24
10988	10988	a central location for the election board to 25
10989	10989	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00360 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
10990	10990	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 361
10991	10991	•HR 11 IH
10992	10992	submit the documentation or information 1
10993	10993	to prove eligibility; and 2
10994	10994	‘‘(iv) notify the voter as to whether 3
10995	10995	the voter’s provisional ballot was counted 4
10996	10996	or rejected and provide the reason for re-5
10997	10997	jection if the voter’s provisional ballot was 6
10998	10998	rejected after the voter provided the re-7
10999	10999	quired information or documentation on 8
11000	11000	eligibility. 9
11001	11001	‘‘(2) R
11002	11002	ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 10
11003	11003	this subsection shall prohibit a State or jurisdiction 11
11004	11004	from counting a provisional ballot which is cast in 12
11005	11005	a different county within the State than the county 13
11006	11006	in which the voter is registered or otherwise eligible 14
11007	11007	to vote. 15
11008	11008	‘‘(f) D
11009	11009	UEPROCESSREQUIREMENTS FOR STATESRE-16
11010	11010	QUIRINGSIGNATUREVERIFICATION.— 17
11011	11011	‘‘(1) R
11012	11012	EQUIREMENT.— 18
11013	11013	‘‘(A) I
11014	11014	N GENERAL.—A State may not im-19
11015	11015	pose a signature verification requirement as a 20
11016	11016	condition of accepting and counting a provi-21
11017	11017	sional ballot submitted by any individual with 22
11018	11018	respect to an election for Federal office unless 23
11019	11019	the State meets the due process requirements 24
11020	11020	described in paragraph (2). 25
11021	11021	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00361 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11022	11022	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 362
11023	11023	•HR 11 IH
11024	11024	‘‘(B) SIGNATURE VERIFICATION REQUIRE -1
11025	11025	MENT DESCRIBED.—In this subsection, a ‘sig-2
11026	11026	nature verification requirement’ is a require-3
11027	11027	ment that an election official verify the identi-4
11028	11028	fication of an individual by comparing the indi-5
11029	11029	vidual’s signature on the provisional ballot with 6
11030	11030	the individual’s signature on the official list of 7
11031	11031	registered voters in the State or another official 8
11032	11032	record or other document used by the State to 9
11033	11033	verify the signatures of voters. 10
11034	11034	‘‘(2) D
11035	11035	UE PROCESS REQUIREMENTS .— 11
11036	11036	‘‘(A) N
11037	11037	OTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO CURE 12
11038	11038	DISCREPANCY IN SIGNATURES .—If an indi-13
11039	11039	vidual submits a provisional ballot and the ap-14
11040	11040	propriate State or local election official deter-15
11041	11041	mines that a discrepancy exists between the sig-16
11042	11042	nature on such ballot and the signature of such 17
11043	11043	individual on the official list of registered voters 18
11044	11044	in the State or other official record or document 19
11045	11045	used by the State to verify the signatures of 20
11046	11046	voters, such election official, prior to making a 21
11047	11047	final determination as to the validity of such 22
11048	11048	ballot, shall— 23
11049	11049	‘‘(i) as soon as practical, but no later 24
11050	11050	than the next business day after such de-25
11051	11051	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00362 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11052	11052	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 363
11053	11053	•HR 11 IH
11054	11054	termination is made, make a good faith ef-1
11055	11055	fort to notify the individual by mail, tele-2
11056	11056	phone, and (if available) text message and 3
11057	11057	electronic mail that— 4
11058	11058	‘‘(I) a discrepancy exists between 5
11059	11059	the signature on such ballot and the 6
11060	11060	signature of the individual on the offi-7
11061	11061	cial list of registered voters in the 8
11062	11062	State or other official record or docu-9
11063	11063	ment used by the State to verify the 10
11064	11064	signatures of voters; and 11
11065	11065	‘‘(II) if such discrepancy is not 12
11066	11066	cured prior to the expiration of the 13
11067	11067	third day following the State’s dead-14
11068	11068	line for receiving mail-in ballots or ab-15
11069	11069	sentee ballots, such ballot will not be 16
11070	11070	counted; and 17
11071	11071	‘‘(ii) cure such discrepancy and count 18
11072	11072	the ballot if, prior to the expiration of the 19
11073	11073	third day following the State’s deadline for 20
11074	11074	receiving mail-in ballots or absentee bal-21
11075	11075	lots, the individual provides the official 22
11076	11076	with information to cure such discrepancy, 23
11077	11077	either in person, by telephone, or by elec-24
11078	11078	tronic methods. 25
11079	11079	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00363 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11080	11080	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 364
11081	11081	•HR 11 IH
11082	11082	‘‘(B) NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO CURE 1
11083	11083	MISSING SIGNATURE OR OTHER DEFECT .—If an 2
11084	11084	individual submits a provisional ballot without a 3
11085	11085	signature or submits a provisional ballot with 4
11086	11086	another defect which, if left uncured, would 5
11087	11087	cause the ballot to not be counted, the appro-6
11088	11088	priate State or local election official, prior to 7
11089	11089	making a final determination as to the validity 8
11090	11090	of the ballot, shall— 9
11091	11091	‘‘(i) as soon as practical, but no later 10
11092	11092	than the next business day after such de-11
11093	11093	termination is made, make a good faith ef-12
11094	11094	fort to notify the individual by mail, tele-13
11095	11095	phone, and (if available) text message and 14
11096	11096	electronic mail that— 15
11097	11097	‘‘(I) the ballot did not include a 16
11098	11098	signature or has some other defect; 17
11099	11099	and 18
11100	11100	‘‘(II) if the individual does not 19
11101	11101	provide the missing signature or cure 20
11102	11102	the other defect prior to the expira-21
11103	11103	tion of the third day following the 22
11104	11104	State’s deadline for receiving mail-in 23
11105	11105	ballots or absentee ballots, such ballot 24
11106	11106	will not be counted; and 25
11107	11107	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00364 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11108	11108	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 365
11109	11109	•HR 11 IH
11110	11110	‘‘(ii) count the ballot if, prior to the 1
11111	11111	expiration of the third day following the 2
11112	11112	State’s deadline for receiving mail-in bal-3
11113	11113	lots or absentee ballots, the individual pro-4
11114	11114	vides the official with the missing signa-5
11115	11115	ture on a form proscribed by the State or 6
11116	11116	cures the other defect. 7
11117	11117	‘‘(C) O
11118	11118	THER REQUIREMENTS .— 8
11119	11119	‘‘(i) I
11120	11120	N GENERAL.—An election official 9
11121	11121	may not make a determination that a dis-10
11122	11122	crepancy exists between the signature on a 11
11123	11123	provisional ballot and the signature of the 12
11124	11124	individual on the official list of registered 13
11125	11125	voters in the State or other official record 14
11126	11126	or other document used by the State to 15
11127	11127	verify the signatures of voters unless— 16
11128	11128	‘‘(I) at least 2 election officials 17
11129	11129	make the determination; 18
11130	11130	‘‘(II) each official who makes the 19
11131	11131	determination has received training in 20
11132	11132	procedures used to verify signatures; 21
11133	11133	and 22
11134	11134	‘‘(III) of the officials who make 23
11135	11135	the determination, at least one is af-24
11136	11136	filiated with the political party whose 25
11137	11137	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00365 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11138	11138	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 366
11139	11139	•HR 11 IH
11140	11140	candidate received the most votes in 1
11141	11141	the most recent statewide election for 2
11142	11142	Federal office held in the State and at 3
11143	11143	least one is affiliated with the political 4
11144	11144	party whose candidate received the 5
11145	11145	second most votes in the most recent 6
11146	11146	statewide election for Federal office 7
11147	11147	held in the State. 8
11148	11148	‘‘(ii) E
11149	11149	XCEPTION.—Clause (i)(III) 9
11150	11150	shall not apply to any State in which, 10
11151	11151	under a law that is in effect continuously 11
11152	11152	on and after the date of enactment of this 12
11153	11153	section, determinations regarding signature 13
11154	11154	discrepancies are made by election officials 14
11155	11155	who are not affiliated with a political 15
11156	11156	party. 16
11157	11157	‘‘(3) R
11158	11158	EPORT.— 17
11159	11159	‘‘(A) I
11160	11160	N GENERAL.—Not later than 120 18
11161	11161	days after the end of a Federal election cycle, 19
11162	11162	each chief State election official shall submit to 20
11163	11163	the Commission a report containing the fol-21
11164	11164	lowing information for the applicable Federal 22
11165	11165	election cycle in the State: 23
11166	11166	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00366 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11167	11167	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 367
11168	11168	•HR 11 IH
11169	11169	‘‘(i) The number of provisional ballots 1
11170	11170	invalidated due to a discrepancy under this 2
11171	11171	subsection. 3
11172	11172	‘‘(ii) Description of attempts to con-4
11173	11173	tact voters to provide notice as required by 5
11174	11174	this subsection. 6
11175	11175	‘‘(iii) Description of the cure process 7
11176	11176	developed by such State pursuant to this 8
11177	11177	subsection, including the number of provi-9
11178	11178	sional ballots determined valid as a result 10
11179	11179	of such process. 11
11180	11180	‘‘(B) S
11181	11181	UBMISSION TO CONGRESS .—Not 12
11182	11182	later than 10 days after receiving a report 13
11183	11183	under subparagraph (A), the Commission shall 14
11184	11184	transmit such report to Congress. 15
11185	11185	‘‘(C) F
11186	11186	EDERAL ELECTION CYCLE DE -16
11187	11187	FINED.—For purposes of this subsection, the 17
11188	11188	term ‘Federal election cycle’ means, with re-18
11189	11189	spect to any regularly scheduled election for 19
11190	11190	Federal office, the period beginning on the day 20
11191	11191	after the date of the preceding regularly sched-21
11192	11192	uled general election for Federal office and end-22
11193	11193	ing on the date of such regularly scheduled gen-23
11194	11194	eral election. 24
11195	11195	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00367 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11196	11196	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 368
11197	11197	•HR 11 IH
11198	11198	‘‘(4) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 1
11199	11199	this subsection shall be construed— 2
11200	11200	‘‘(A) to prohibit a State from rejecting a 3
11201	11201	ballot attempted to be cast in an election for 4
11202	11202	Federal office by an individual who is not eligi-5
11203	11203	ble to vote in the election; or 6
11204	11204	‘‘(B) to prohibit a State from providing an 7
11205	11205	individual with more time and more methods 8
11206	11206	for curing a discrepancy in the individual’s sig-9
11207	11207	nature, providing a missing signature, or curing 10
11208	11208	any other defect than the State is required to 11
11209	11209	provide under this subsection. 12
11210	11210	‘‘(5) E
11211	11211	FFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 13
11212	11212	apply with respect to elections held on or after Janu-14
11213	11213	ary 1, 2024. 15
11214	11214	‘‘(g) U
11215	11215	NIFORM AND NONDISCRIMINATORY STAND-16
11216	11216	ARDS.— 17
11217	11217	‘‘(1) I
11218	11218	N GENERAL.—Consistent with the re-18
11219	11219	quirements of this section, each State shall establish 19
11220	11220	uniform and nondiscriminatory standards for the 20
11221	11221	issuance, handling, and counting of provisional bal-21
11222	11222	lots. 22
11223	11223	‘‘(2) E
11224	11224	FFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 23
11225	11225	apply with respect to elections held on or after Janu-24
11226	11226	ary 1, 2024. 25
11227	11227	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00368 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11228	11228	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 369
11229	11229	•HR 11 IH
11230	11230	‘‘(h) ADDITIONALCONDITIONSPROHIBITED.—If an 1
11231	11231	individual in a State is eligible to cast a provisional ballot 2
11232	11232	as provided under this section, the State may not impose 3
11233	11233	any additional conditions or requirements (including con-4
11234	11234	ditions or requirements regarding the timeframe in which 5
11235	11235	a provisional ballot may be cast) on the eligibility of the 6
11236	11236	individual to cast such provisional ballot.’’. 7
11237	11237	(b) C
11238	11238	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT.—Section 302(h) of 8
11239	11239	such Act (52 U.S.C. 21082(g)), as amended by section 9
11240	11240	1601(a) and redesignated by subsection (a), is amended 10
11241	11241	by striking ‘‘subsection (d)(4)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsections 11
11242	11242	(d)(4), (e)(3), and (f)(2)’’. 12
11243	11243	TITLE IV—VOTING SYSTEM 13
11244	11244	SECURITY 14
11245	11245	SEC. 4001. POST-ELECTION AUDIT REQUIREMENT. 15
11246	11246	(a) I
11247	11247	NGENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 16
11248	11248	Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.), as amended 17
11249	11249	by section 3601, is amended by inserting after section 18
11250	11250	303A the following new section: 19
11251	11251	‘‘SEC. 303B. POST-ELECTION AUDITS. 20
11252	11252	‘‘(a) D
11253	11253	EFINITIONS.—In this section: 21
11254	11254	‘‘(1) P
11255	11255	OST-ELECTION AUDIT.—Except as pro-22
11256	11256	vided in subsection (c)(1)(B), the term ‘post-election 23
11257	11257	audit’ means, with respect to any election contest, a 24
11258	11258	post-election process that— 25
11259	11259	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00369 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11260	11260	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 370
11261	11261	•HR 11 IH
11262	11262	‘‘(A) has a probability of at least 95 per-1
11263	11263	cent of correcting the reported outcome if the 2
11264	11264	reported outcome is not the correct outcome; 3
11265	11265	‘‘(B) will not change the outcome if the re-4
11266	11266	ported outcome is the correct outcome; and 5
11267	11267	‘‘(C) involves a manual adjudication of 6
11268	11268	voter intent from some or all of the ballots val-7
11269	11269	idly cast in the election contest. 8
11270	11270	‘‘(2) R
11271	11271	EPORTED OUTCOME ; CORRECT OUTCOME ; 9
11272	11272	OUTCOME.— 10
11273	11273	‘‘(A) R
11274	11274	EPORTED OUTCOME .—The term ‘re-11
11275	11275	ported outcome’ means the outcome of an elec-12
11276	11276	tion contest which is determined according to 13
11277	11277	the canvass and which will become the official, 14
11278	11278	certified outcome unless it is revised by an 15
11279	11279	audit, recount, or other legal process. 16
11280	11280	‘‘(B) C
11281	11281	ORRECT OUTCOME .—The term ‘cor-17
11282	11282	rect outcome’ means the outcome that would be 18
11283	11283	determined by a manual adjudication of voter 19
11284	11284	intent for all votes validly cast in the election 20
11285	11285	contest. 21
11286	11286	‘‘(C) O
11287	11287	UTCOME.—The term ‘outcome’ 22
11288	11288	means the winner or set of winners of an elec-23
11289	11289	tion contest. 24
11290	11290	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00370 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11291	11291	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 371
11292	11292	•HR 11 IH
11293	11293	‘‘(3) MANUAL ADJUDICATION OF VOTER IN -1
11294	11294	TENT.—The term ‘manual adjudication of voter in-2
11295	11295	tent’ means direct inspection and determination by 3
11296	11296	humans, without assistance from electronic or me-4
11297	11297	chanical tabulation devices, of the ballot choices 5
11298	11298	marked by voters on each voter-verifiable paper 6
11299	11299	record. 7
11300	11300	‘‘(4) B
11301	11301	ALLOT MANIFEST .—The term ‘ballot 8
11302	11302	manifest’ means a record maintained by each juris-9
11303	11303	diction that— 10
11304	11304	‘‘(A) is created without reliance on any 11
11305	11305	part of the voting system used to tabulate 12
11306	11306	votes; 13
11307	11307	‘‘(B) functions as a sampling frame for 14
11308	11308	conducting a post-election audit; and 15
11309	11309	‘‘(C) accounts for all ballots validly cast re-16
11310	11310	gardless of how they were tabulated and in-17
11311	11311	cludes a precise description of the manner in 18
11312	11312	which the ballots are physically stored, includ-19
11313	11313	ing the total number of physical groups of bal-20
11314	11314	lots, the numbering system for each group, a 21
11315	11315	unique label for each group, and the number of 22
11316	11316	ballots in each such group. 23
11317	11317	‘‘(b) R
11318	11318	EQUIREMENTS.— 24
11319	11319	‘‘(1) I
11320	11320	N GENERAL.— 25
11321	11321	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00371 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11322	11322	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 372
11323	11323	•HR 11 IH
11324	11324	‘‘(A) AUDITS.— 1
11325	11325	‘‘(i) I
11326	11326	N GENERAL.—Each State and 2
11327	11327	jurisdiction shall administer post-election 3
11328	11328	audits of the results of all election contests 4
11329	11329	for Federal office held in the State in ac-5
11330	11330	cordance with the requirements of para-6
11331	11331	graph (2). 7
11332	11332	‘‘(ii) E
11333	11333	XCEPTION.—Clause (i) shall 8
11334	11334	not apply to any election contest for which 9
11335	11335	the State or jurisdiction conducts a full re-10
11336	11336	count through a manual adjudication of 11
11337	11337	voter intent. 12
11338	11338	‘‘(B) F
11339	11339	ULL MANUAL TABULATION .—If a 13
11340	11340	post-election audit conducted under subpara-14
11341	11341	graph (A) corrects the reported outcome of an 15
11342	11342	election contest, the State or jurisdiction shall 16
11343	11343	use the results of the manual adjudication of 17
11344	11344	voter intent conducted as part of the post-elec-18
11345	11345	tion audit as the official results of the election 19
11346	11346	contest. 20
11347	11347	‘‘(2) A
11348	11348	UDIT REQUIREMENTS .— 21
11349	11349	‘‘(A) R
11350	11350	ULES AND PROCEDURES .— 22
11351	11351	‘‘(i) I
11352	11352	N GENERAL.—Not later than 6 23
11353	11353	years after the date of the enactment of 24
11354	11354	this section, the chief State election official 25
11355	11355	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00372 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11356	11356	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 373
11357	11357	•HR 11 IH
11358	11358	of the State shall establish rules and proce-1
11359	11359	dures for conducting post-election audits. 2
11360	11360	‘‘(ii) M
11361	11361	ATTERS INCLUDED.—The rules 3
11362	11362	and procedures established under clause (i) 4
11363	11363	shall include the following: 5
11364	11364	‘‘(I) Rules and procedures for en-6
11365	11365	suring the security of ballots and doc-7
11366	11366	umenting that prescribed procedures 8
11367	11367	were followed. 9
11368	11368	‘‘(II) Rules and procedures for 10
11369	11369	ensuring the accuracy of ballot mani-11
11370	11370	fests produced by jurisdictions. 12
11371	11371	‘‘(III) Rules and procedures for 13
11372	11372	governing the format of ballot mani-14
11373	11373	fests and other data involved in post- 15
11374	11374	election audits. 16
11375	11375	‘‘(IV) Methods to ensure that 17
11376	11376	any cast vote records used in a post- 18
11377	11377	election audit are those used by the 19
11378	11378	voting system to tally the results of 20
11379	11379	the election contest sent to the chief 21
11380	11380	State election official of the State and 22
11381	11381	made public. 23
11382	11382	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00373 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11383	11383	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 374
11384	11384	•HR 11 IH
11385	11385	‘‘(V) Rules and procedures for 1
11386	11386	the random selection of ballots to be 2
11387	11387	inspected manually during each audit. 3
11388	11388	‘‘(VI) Rules and procedures for 4
11389	11389	the calculations and other methods to 5
11390	11390	be used in the audit and to determine 6
11391	11391	whether and when the audit of each 7
11392	11392	election contest is complete. 8
11393	11393	‘‘(VII) Rules and procedures for 9
11394	11394	testing any software used to conduct 10
11395	11395	post-election audits. 11
11396	11396	‘‘(B) P
11397	11397	UBLIC REPORT.— 12
11398	11398	‘‘(i) I
11399	11399	N GENERAL.—After the comple-13
11400	11400	tion of the post-election audit and at least 14
11401	11401	5 days before the election contest is cer-15
11402	11402	tified by the State, the State shall make 16
11403	11403	public and submit to the Commission a re-17
11404	11404	port on the results of the audit, together 18
11405	11405	with such information as necessary to con-19
11406	11406	firm that the audit was conducted prop-20
11407	11407	erly. 21
11408	11408	‘‘(ii) F
11409	11409	ORMAT OF DATA .—All data 22
11410	11410	published with the report under clause (i) 23
11411	11411	shall be published in machine-readable, 24
11412	11412	open data formats. 25
11413	11413	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00374 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11414	11414	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 375
11415	11415	•HR 11 IH
11416	11416	‘‘(iii) PROTECTION OF ANONYMITY OF 1
11417	11417	VOTES.—Information and data published 2
11418	11418	by the State under this subparagraph shall 3
11419	11419	not compromise the anonymity of votes. 4
11420	11420	‘‘(iv) R
11421	11421	EPORT MADE AVAILABLE BY 5
11422	11422	COMMISSION.—After receiving any report 6
11423	11423	submitted under clause (i), the Commis-7
11424	11424	sion shall make such report available on its 8
11425	11425	website. 9
11426	11426	‘‘(3) E
11427	11427	FFECTIVE DATE; WAIVER.— 10
11428	11428	‘‘(A) I
11429	11429	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in 11
11430	11430	subparagraphs (B) and (C), each State and ju-12
11431	11431	risdiction shall be required to comply with the 13
11432	11432	requirements of this subsection for the first reg-14
11433	11433	ularly scheduled election for Federal office oc-15
11434	11434	curring in 2034 and for each subsequent elec-16
11435	11435	tion for Federal office. 17
11436	11436	‘‘(B) W
11437	11437	AIVER.—Except as provided in sub-18
11438	11438	paragraph (C), if a State certifies to the Elec-19
11439	11439	tion Assistance Commission not later than the 20
11440	11440	first regularly scheduled election for Federal of-21
11441	11441	fice occurring in 2034, that the State will not 22
11442	11442	meet the deadline described in subparagraph 23
11443	11443	(A) because it would be impracticable to do so 24
11444	11444	and includes in the certification the reasons for 25
11445	11445	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00375 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11446	11446	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 376
11447	11447	•HR 11 IH
11448	11448	the failure to meet such deadline, subparagraph 1
11449	11449	(A) and subsection (c)(2) shall be applied to the 2
11450	11450	State by substituting ‘2036’ for ‘2034’. 3
11451	11451	‘‘(C) A
11452	11452	DDITIONAL WAIVER PERIOD .—If a 4
11453	11453	State certifies to the Election Assistance Com-5
11454	11454	mission not later than the first regularly sched-6
11455	11455	uled election for Federal office occurring in 7
11456	11456	2036, that the State will not meet the deadline 8
11457	11457	described in subparagraph (A) (after applica-9
11458	11458	tion of subparagraph (B)) because it would be 10
11459	11459	impracticable to do so and includes in the cer-11
11460	11460	tification the reasons for the failure to meet 12
11461	11461	such deadline, subparagraph (A) and subsection 13
11462	11462	(c)(2) shall be applied to the State by sub-14
11463	11463	stituting ‘2038’ for ‘2034’. 15
11464	11464	‘‘(c) P
11465	11465	HASEDIMPLEMENTATION.— 16
11466	11466	‘‘(1) P
11467	11467	OST-ELECTION AUDITS.— 17
11468	11468	‘‘(A) I
11469	11469	N GENERAL.—For the regularly 18
11470	11470	scheduled elections for Federal office occurring 19
11471	11471	in 2026 and 2028, each State shall administer 20
11472	11472	a post-election audit of the result of at least one 21
11473	11473	statewide election contest for Federal office held 22
11474	11474	in the State, or if no such statewide contest is 23
11475	11475	on the ballot, one election contest for Federal 24
11476	11476	office chosen at random. 25
11477	11477	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00376 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11478	11478	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 377
11479	11479	•HR 11 IH
11480	11480	‘‘(B) POST-ELECTION AUDIT DEFINED .— 1
11481	11481	In this subsection, the term ‘post-election audit’ 2
11482	11482	means a post-election process that involves a 3
11483	11483	manual adjudication of voter intent from a 4
11484	11484	sample of ballots validly cast in the election 5
11485	11485	contest. 6
11486	11486	‘‘(2) P
11487	11487	OST-ELECTION AUDITS FOR SELECT CON -7
11488	11488	TESTS.—Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C) of 8
11489	11489	subsection (b)(3), for the regularly scheduled elec-9
11490	11490	tions for Federal office occurring in 2030 and for 10
11491	11491	each subsequent election for Federal office that oc-11
11492	11492	curs prior to the first regularly scheduled election 12
11493	11493	for Federal office occurring in 2034, each State 13
11494	11494	shall administer a post-election audit of the result of 14
11495	11495	at least one statewide election contest for Federal of-15
11496	11496	fice held in the State, or if no such statewide contest 16
11497	11497	is on the ballot, one election contest for Federal of-17
11498	11498	fice chosen at random. 18
11499	11499	‘‘(3) S
11500	11500	TATES THAT ADMINISTER POST -ELEC-19
11501	11501	TION AUDITS FOR ALL CONTESTS .—A State shall be 20
11502	11502	exempt from the requirements of this subsection for 21
11503	11503	any regularly scheduled election for Federal office in 22
11504	11504	which the State meets the requirements of sub-23
11505	11505	section (b).’’. 24
11506	11506	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00377 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11507	11507	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 378
11508	11508	•HR 11 IH
11509	11509	(b) CLERICALAMENDMENT.—The table of contents 1
11510	11510	for such Act, as amended by section 3601, is amended 2
11511	11511	by inserting after the item relating to section 303A the 3
11512	11512	following new item: 4
11513	11513	‘‘Sec. 303B. Post-election audits.’’.
11514	11514	(c) STUDY ONPOST-ELECTIONAUDITBESTPRAC-5
11515	11515	TICES.— 6
11516	11516	(1) I
11517	11517	N GENERAL.—The Director of the National 7
11518	11518	Institute of Standards and Technology shall estab-8
11519	11519	lish an advisory committee to study post-election au-9
11520	11520	dits and establish best practices for post-election 10
11521	11521	audit methodologies and procedures. 11
11522	11522	(2) A
11523	11523	DVISORY COMMITTEE .—The Director of 12
11524	11524	the National Institute of Standards and Technology 13
11525	11525	shall appoint individuals to the advisory committee 14
11526	11526	and secure the representation of— 15
11527	11527	(A) State and local election officials; 16
11528	11528	(B) individuals with experience and exper-17
11529	11529	tise in election security; 18
11530	11530	(C) individuals with experience and exper-19
11531	11531	tise in post-election audit procedures; and 20
11532	11532	(D) individuals with experience and exper-21
11533	11533	tise in statistical methods. 22
11534	11534	(3) A
11535	11535	UTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS .— 23
11536	11536	There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 24
11537	11537	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00378 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11538	11538	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 379
11539	11539	•HR 11 IH
11540	11540	as are necessary to carry out the purposes of this 1
11541	11541	subsection. 2
11542	11542	SEC. 4002. ELECTION INFRASTRUCTURE DESIGNATION. 3
11543	11543	Subparagraph (J) of section 2001(3) of the Home-4
11544	11544	land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 601(3)) is amended 5
11545	11545	by inserting ‘‘, including election infrastructure’’ before 6
11546	11546	the period at the end. 7
11547	11547	SEC. 4003. GUIDELINES AND CERTIFICATION FOR ELEC-8
11548	11548	TRONIC POLL BOOKS AND REMOTE BALLOT 9
11549	11549	MARKING SYSTEMS. 10
11550	11550	(a) I
11551	11551	NCLUSIONUNDERVOLUNTARYVOTINGSYSTEM 11
11552	11552	G
11553	11553	UIDELINES.—Section 222 of the Help America Vote Act 12
11554	11554	of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20962) is amended— 13
11555	11555	(1) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), (c), 14
11556	11556	(d), and (e) as subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f); 15
11557	11557	(2) by inserting after the section heading the 16
11558	11558	following: 17
11559	11559	‘‘(a) V
11560	11560	OLUNTARYVOTINGSYSTEMGUIDELINES.— 18
11561	11561	The Commission shall adopt voluntary voting system 19
11562	11562	guidelines that describe functionality, accessibility, and se-20
11563	11563	curity principles for the design, development, and oper-21
11564	11564	ation of voting systems, electronic poll books, and remote 22
11565	11565	ballot marking systems.’’; and 23
11566	11566	(3) by adding at the end the following new sub-24
11567	11567	sections: 25
11568	11568	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00379 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11569	11569	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 380
11570	11570	•HR 11 IH
11571	11571	‘‘(g) INITIALGUIDELINES FOR ELECTRONICPOLL 1
11572	11572	B
11573	11573	OOKS ANDREMOTEBALLOTMARKINGSYSTEMS.— 2
11574	11574	‘‘(1) A
11575	11575	DOPTION DATE.—The Commission shall 3
11576	11576	adopt initial voluntary voting system guidelines for 4
11577	11577	electronic poll books and remote ballot marking sys-5
11578	11578	tems not later than 1 year after the date of the en-6
11579	11579	actment of the Freedom to Vote Act. 7
11580	11580	‘‘(2) S
11581	11581	PECIAL RULE FOR INITIAL GUIDE -8
11582	11582	LINES.—The Commission may adopt initial vol-9
11583	11583	untary voting system guidelines for electronic poll 10
11584	11584	books and remote ballot marking systems without 11
11585	11585	modifying the most recently adopted voluntary vot-12
11586	11586	ing system guidelines for voting systems. 13
11587	11587	‘‘(h) D
11588	11588	EFINITIONS.—In this section: 14
11589	11589	‘‘(1) E
11590	11590	LECTRONIC POLL BOOK .—The term ‘elec-15
11591	11591	tronic poll book’ means the total combination of me-16
11592	11592	chanical, electromechanical, or electronic equipment 17
11593	11593	(including the software, firmware, and documenta-18
11594	11594	tion required to program, control, and support the 19
11595	11595	equipment) that is used— 20
11596	11596	‘‘(A) to retain the list of registered voters 21
11597	11597	at a polling location, or vote center, or other lo-22
11598	11598	cation at which voters cast votes in an election 23
11599	11599	for Federal office; and 24
11600	11600	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00380 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11601	11601	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 381
11602	11602	•HR 11 IH
11603	11603	‘‘(B) to identify registered voters who are 1
11604	11604	eligible to vote in an election. 2
11605	11605	‘‘(2) R
11606	11606	EMOTE BALLOT MARKING SYSTEM .—The 3
11607	11607	term ‘remote ballot marking system’ means an elec-4
11608	11608	tion system that— 5
11609	11609	‘‘(A) is used by a voter to mark their bal-6
11610	11610	lots outside of a voting center or polling place; 7
11611	11611	and 8
11612	11612	‘‘(B) allows a voter to receive a blank bal-9
11613	11613	lot to mark electronically, print, and then cast 10
11614	11614	by returning the printed ballot to the elections 11
11615	11615	office or other designated location.’’. 12
11616	11616	(b) P
11617	11617	ROVIDING FORCERTIFICATION OFELECTRONIC 13
11618	11618	P
11619	11619	OLLBOOKS ANDREMOTEBALLOTMARKINGSYSTEM.— 14
11620	11620	Section 231(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 15
11621	11621	U.S.C. 20971(a)) is amended, in each of paragraphs (1) 16
11622	11622	and (2), by inserting ‘‘, electronic poll books, and remote 17
11623	11623	ballot marking systems’’ after ‘‘software’’. 18
11624	11624	SEC. 4004. PRE-ELECTION REPORTS ON VOTING SYSTEM 19
11625	11625	USAGE. 20
11626	11626	(a) R
11627	11627	EQUIRINGSTATESTOSUBMITREPORTS.—Title 21
11628	11628	III of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 22
11629	11629	21081 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 301 23
11630	11630	the following new section: 24
11631	11631	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00381 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11632	11632	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 382
11633	11633	•HR 11 IH
11634	11634	‘‘SEC. 301A. PRE-ELECTION REPORTS ON VOTING SYSTEM 1
11635	11635	USAGE. 2
11636	11636	‘‘(a) R
11637	11637	EQUIRINGSTATESTOSUBMITREPORTS.— 3
11638	11638	Not later than 120 days before the date of each regularly 4
11639	11639	scheduled general election for Federal office, the chief 5
11640	11640	State election official of a State shall submit a report to 6
11641	11641	the Commission containing a detailed voting system usage 7
11642	11642	plan for each jurisdiction in the State which will admin-8
11643	11643	ister the election, including a detailed plan for the usage 9
11644	11644	of electronic poll books and other equipment and compo-10
11645	11645	nents of such system. If a jurisdiction acquires and imple-11
11646	11646	ments a new voting system within the 120 days before the 12
11647	11647	date of the election, it shall notify the chief State election 13
11648	11648	official of the State, who shall submit to the Commission 14
11649	11649	in a timely manner an updated report under the preceding 15
11650	11650	sentence. 16
11651	11651	‘‘(b) E
11652	11652	FFECTIVEDATE.—Subsection (a) shall apply 17
11653	11653	with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for 18
11654	11654	Federal office held in November 2024 and each succeeding 19
11655	11655	regularly scheduled general election for Federal office’’. 20
11656	11656	(b) C
11657	11657	LERICALAMENDMENT.—The table of contents 21
11658	11658	of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 22
11659	11659	to section 301 the following new item: 23
11660	11660	‘‘Sec. 301A. Pre-election reports on voting system usage.’’.
11661	11661	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00382 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11662	11662	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 383
11663	11663	•HR 11 IH
11664	11664	SEC. 4005. USE OF VOTING MACHINES MANUFACTURED IN 1
11665	11665	THE UNITED STATES. 2
11666	11666	(a) R
11667	11667	EQUIREMENT.—Section 301(a) of the Help 3
11668	11668	America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081(a)), as 4
11669	11669	amended by section 3904 and section 3906, is further 5
11670	11670	amended by adding at the end the following new para-6
11671	11671	graph: 7
11672	11672	‘‘(10) V
11673	11673	OTING MACHINE REQUIREMENTS .— 8
11674	11674	‘‘(A) M
11675	11675	ANUFACTURING REQUIREMENTS .— 9
11676	11676	By not later than the date of the regularly 10
11677	11677	scheduled general election for Federal office oc-11
11678	11678	curring in November 2026, each State shall 12
11679	11679	seek to ensure to the extent practicable that 13
11680	11680	any voting machine used in such election and in 14
11681	11681	any subsequent election for Federal office is 15
11682	11682	manufactured in the United States. 16
11683	11683	‘‘(B) A
11684	11684	SSEMBLY REQUIREMENTS .—By not 17
11685	11685	later than the date of the regularly scheduled 18
11686	11686	general election for Federal office occurring in 19
11687	11687	November 2026, each State shall seek to ensure 20
11688	11688	that any voting machine purchased or acquired 21
11689	11689	for such election and in any subsequent election 22
11690	11690	for Federal office is assembled in the United 23
11691	11691	States. 24
11692	11692	‘‘(C) S
11693	11693	OFTWARE AND CODE REQUIRE -25
11694	11694	MENTS.—By not later than the date of the reg-26
11695	11695	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00383 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11696	11696	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 384
11697	11697	•HR 11 IH
11698	11698	ularly scheduled general election for Federal of-1
11699	11699	fice occurring in November 2026, each State 2
11700	11700	shall seek to ensure that any software or code 3
11701	11701	developed for any voting system purchased or 4
11702	11702	acquired for such election and in any subse-5
11703	11703	quent election for Federal office is developed 6
11704	11704	and stored in the United States.’’. 7
11705	11705	(b) C
11706	11706	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT RELATING TOEF-8
11707	11707	FECTIVEDATE.—Section 301(d)(1) of such Act (52 9
11708	11708	U.S.C. 21081(d)(1)), as amended by section 3907, is 10
11709	11709	amended by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub-11
11710	11710	section (a)(10) and paragraph (2)’’. 12
11711	11711	SEC. 4006. USE OF POLITICAL PARTY HEADQUARTERS 13
11712	11712	BUILDING FUND FOR TECHNOLOGY OR CY-14
11713	11713	BERSECURITY-RELATED PURPOSES. 15
11714	11714	(a) P
11715	11715	ERMITTING USE OF FUND.—Section 16
11716	11716	315(a)(9)(B) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 17
11717	11717	1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(9)(B)) is amended by striking 18
11718	11718	the period at the end and inserting the following: ‘‘, and 19
11719	11719	to defray technology or cybersecurity-related expenses.’’. 20
11720	11720	(b) E
11721	11721	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 21
11722	11722	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to calendar year 22
11723	11723	2024 and each succeeding calendar year. 23
11724	11724	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00384 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11725	11725	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 385
11726	11726	•HR 11 IH
11727	11727	SEC. 4007. SEVERABILITY. 1
11728	11728	If any provision of this title or any amendment made 2
11729	11729	by this title, or the application of any such provision or 3
11730	11730	amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to be 4
11731	11731	unconstitutional, the remainder of this title, and the appli-5
11732	11732	cation of such provision or amendment to any other person 6
11733	11733	or circumstance, shall not be affected by the holding. 7
11734	11734	DIVISION C—CIVIC PARTICIPA-8
11735	11735	TION AND EMPOWERMENT 9
11736	11736	TITLE V—NONPARTISAN 10
11737	11737	REDISTRICTING REFORM 11
11738	11738	SEC. 5001. FINDING OF CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY. 12
11739	11739	Congress finds that it has the authority to establish 13
11740	11740	the terms and conditions States must follow in carrying 14
11741	11741	out congressional redistricting after an apportionment of 15
11742	11742	Members of the House of Representatives because— 16
11743	11743	(1) the authority granted to Congress under ar-17
11744	11744	ticle I, section 4 of the Constitution of the United 18
11745	11745	States gives Congress the power to enact laws gov-19
11746	11746	erning the time, place, and manner of elections for 20
11747	11747	Members of the House of Representatives; 21
11748	11748	(2) the authority granted to Congress under 22
11749	11749	section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Con-23
11750	11750	stitution gives Congress the power to enact laws to 24
11751	11751	enforce section 2 of such amendment, which requires 25
11752	11752	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00385 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11753	11753	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 386
11754	11754	•HR 11 IH
11755	11755	Representatives to be apportioned among the several 1
11756	11756	States according to their number; 2
11757	11757	(3) the authority granted to Congress under 3
11758	11758	section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Con-4
11759	11759	stitution gives Congress the power to enact laws to 5
11760	11760	enforce section 1 of such amendment, including pro-6
11761	11761	tections against excessive partisan gerrymandering 7
11762	11762	that Federal courts have not enforced because they 8
11763	11763	understand such enforcement to be committed to 9
11764	11764	Congress by the Constitution; 10
11765	11765	(4) of the authority granted to Congress to en-11
11766	11766	force article IV, section 4, of the Constitution, and 12
11767	11767	the guarantee of a Republican Form of Government 13
11768	11768	to every State, which Federal courts have not en-14
11769	11769	forced because they understand such enforcement to 15
11770	11770	be committed to Congress by the Constitution; 16
11771	11771	(5) requiring States to use uniform redistricting 17
11772	11772	criteria is an appropriate and important exercise of 18
11773	11773	such authority; and 19
11774	11774	(6) partisan gerrymandering dilutes citizens’ 20
11775	11775	votes because partisan gerrymandering injures vot-21
11776	11776	ers and political parties by infringing on their First 22
11777	11777	Amendment right to associate freely and their Four-23
11778	11778	teenth Amendment right to equal protection of the 24
11779	11779	laws. 25
11780	11780	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00386 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11781	11781	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 387
11782	11782	•HR 11 IH
11783	11783	SEC. 5002. BAN ON MID-DECADE REDISTRICTING. 1
11784	11784	A State that has been redistricted in accordance with 2
11785	11785	this title may not be redistricted again until after the next 3
11786	11786	apportionment of Representatives under section 22(a) of 4
11787	11787	the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the fifteenth and 5
11788	11788	subsequent decennial censuses and to provide for an ap-6
11789	11789	portionment of Representatives in Congress’’, approved 7
11790	11790	June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a), unless a court requires the 8
11791	11791	State to conduct such subsequent redistricting to comply 9
11792	11792	with the Constitution of the United States, the Voting 10
11793	11793	Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), the terms 11
11794	11794	or conditions of this title, or applicable State law. 12
11795	11795	SEC. 5003. CRITERIA FOR REDISTRICTING. 13
11796	11796	(a) R
11797	11797	EQUIRINGPLANSTOMEETCRITERIA.—A 14
11798	11798	State may not use a congressional redistricting plan en-15
11799	11799	acted following the notice of apportionment transmitted 16
11800	11800	to the President on April 26, 2021, or any subsequent no-17
11801	11801	tice of apportionment, if such plan is not in compliance 18
11802	11802	with this section, without regard to whether or not the 19
11803	11803	plan was enacted by the State before, on, or after the ef-20
11804	11804	fective date of this title. 21
11805	11805	(b) R
11806	11806	ANKEDCRITERIA.—Under the redistricting plan 22
11807	11807	of a State, there shall be established single-member con-23
11808	11808	gressional districts using the following criteria as set forth 24
11809	11809	in the following order of priority: 25
11810	11810	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00387 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11811	11811	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 388
11812	11812	•HR 11 IH
11813	11813	(1) Districts shall comply with the United 1
11814	11814	States Constitution, including the requirement that 2
11815	11815	they substantially equalize total population, without 3
11816	11816	regard to age, citizenship status, or immigration sta-4
11817	11817	tus. 5
11818	11818	(2) Districts shall comply with the Voting 6
11819	11819	Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), in-7
11820	11820	cluding by creating any districts where, if based 8
11821	11821	upon the totality of the circumstances, 2 or more po-9
11822	11822	litically cohesive groups protected by such Act are 10
11823	11823	able to elect representatives of choice in coalition 11
11824	11824	with one another, and all applicable Federal laws. 12
11825	11825	(3)(A) Districts shall be drawn, to the extent 13
11826	11826	that the totality of the circumstances warrant, to en-14
11827	11827	sure the practical ability of a group protected under 15
11828	11828	the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et 16
11829	11829	seq.) to participate in the political process and to 17
11830	11830	nominate candidates and to elect representatives of 18
11831	11831	choice is not diluted or diminished, regardless of 19
11832	11832	whether or not such protected group constitutes a 20
11833	11833	majority of a district’s population, voting age popu-21
11834	11834	lation, or citizen voting age population. 22
11835	11835	(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the as-23
11836	11836	sessment of whether a protected group has the prac-24
11837	11837	tical ability to nominate candidates and to elect rep-25
11838	11838	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00388 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11839	11839	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 389
11840	11840	•HR 11 IH
11841	11841	resentatives of choice shall require the consideration 1
11842	11842	of the following factors: 2
11843	11843	(i) Whether the group is politically cohe-3
11844	11844	sive. 4
11845	11845	(ii) Whether there is racially polarized vot-5
11846	11846	ing in the relevant geographic region. 6
11847	11847	(iii) If there is racially polarized voting in 7
11848	11848	the relevant geographic region, whether the pre-8
11849	11849	ferred candidates of the group nevertheless re-9
11850	11850	ceive a sufficient amount of consistent crossover 10
11851	11851	support from other voters such that the group 11
11852	11852	is a functional majority with the ability to both 12
11853	11853	nominate candidates and elect representatives 13
11854	11854	of choice. 14
11855	11855	(4)(A) Districts shall be drawn to represent 15
11856	11856	communities of interest and neighborhoods to the 16
11857	11857	extent practicable after compliance with the require-17
11858	11858	ments of paragraphs (1) through (3). A community 18
11859	11859	of interest is defined as an area for which the record 19
11860	11860	before the entity responsible for developing and 20
11861	11861	adopting the redistricting plan demonstrates the ex-21
11862	11862	istence of broadly shared interests and representa-22
11863	11863	tional needs, including shared interests and rep-23
11864	11864	resentational needs rooted in common ethnic, racial, 24
11865	11865	economic, Indian, social, cultural, geographic, or his-25
11866	11866	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00389 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11867	11867	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 390
11868	11868	•HR 11 IH
11869	11869	toric identities, or arising from similar socioeconomic 1
11870	11870	conditions. The term communities of interest may, if 2
11871	11871	the record warrants, include political subdivisions 3
11872	11872	such as counties, municipalities, Indian lands, or 4
11873	11873	school districts, but shall not include common rela-5
11874	11874	tionships with political parties or political can-6
11875	11875	didates. 7
11876	11876	(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), in con-8
11877	11877	sidering the needs of multiple, overlapping commu-9
11878	11878	nities of interest, the entity responsible for devel-10
11879	11879	oping and adopting the redistricting plan shall give 11
11880	11880	greater weight to those communities of interest 12
11881	11881	whose representational needs would most benefit 13
11882	11882	from the community’s inclusion in a single congres-14
11883	11883	sional district. 15
11884	11884	(c) N
11885	11885	OFAVORING ORDISFAVORING OFPOLITICAL 16
11886	11886	P
11887	11887	ARTIES.— 17
11888	11888	(1) P
11889	11889	ROHIBITION.—A State may not use a re-18
11890	11890	districting plan to conduct an election if the plan’s 19
11891	11891	congressional districts, when considered cumulatively 20
11892	11892	on a statewide basis, have been drawn with the in-21
11893	11893	tent or have the effect of materially favoring or 22
11894	11894	disfavoring any political party. 23
11895	11895	(2) D
11896	11896	ETERMINATION OF EFFECT .—The deter-24
11897	11897	mination of whether a redistricting plan has the ef-25
11898	11898	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00390 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11899	11899	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 391
11900	11900	•HR 11 IH
11901	11901	fect of materially favoring or disfavoring a political 1
11902	11902	party shall be based on an evaluation of the totality 2
11903	11903	of circumstances which, at a minimum, shall involve 3
11904	11904	consideration of each of the following factors: 4
11905	11905	(A) Computer modeling based on relevant 5
11906	11906	statewide general elections for Federal office 6
11907	11907	held over the 8 years preceding the adoption of 7
11908	11908	the redistricting plan setting forth the probable 8
11909	11909	electoral outcomes for the plan under a range 9
11910	11910	of reasonably foreseeable conditions. 10
11911	11911	(B) An analysis of whether the redis-11
11912	11912	tricting plan is statistically likely to result in 12
11913	11913	partisan advantage or disadvantage on a state-13
11914	11914	wide basis, the degree of any such advantage or 14
11915	11915	disadvantage, and whether such advantage or 15
11916	11916	disadvantage is likely to be present under a 16
11917	11917	range of reasonably foreseeable electoral condi-17
11918	11918	tions. 18
11919	11919	(C) A comparison of the modeled electoral 19
11920	11920	outcomes for the redistricting plan to the mod-20
11921	11921	eled electoral outcomes for alternative plans 21
11922	11922	that demonstrably comply with the require-22
11923	11923	ments of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of sub-23
11924	11924	section (b) in order to determine whether rea-24
11925	11925	sonable alternatives exist that would result in 25
11926	11926	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00391 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11927	11927	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 392
11928	11928	•HR 11 IH
11929	11929	materially lower levels of partisan advantage or 1
11930	11930	disadvantage on a statewide basis. For purposes 2
11931	11931	of this subparagraph, alternative plans consid-3
11932	11932	ered may include both actual plans proposed 4
11933	11933	during the redistricting process and other plans 5
11934	11934	prepared for purposes of comparison. 6
11935	11935	(D) Any other relevant information, includ-7
11936	11936	ing how broad support for the redistricting plan 8
11937	11937	was among members of the entity responsible 9
11938	11938	for developing and adopting the plan and 10
11939	11939	whether the processes leading to the develop-11
11940	11940	ment and adoption of the plan were transparent 12
11941	11941	and equally open to all members of the entity 13
11942	11942	and to the public. 14
11943	11943	(3) R
11944	11944	EBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION .— 15
11945	11945	(A) T
11946	11946	RIGGER.—In any civil action brought 16
11947	11947	under section 5006 in which a party asserts a 17
11948	11948	claim that a State has enacted a redistricting 18
11949	11949	plan which is in violation of this subsection, a 19
11950	11950	party may file a motion not later than 30 days 20
11951	11951	after the enactment of the plan (or, in the case 21
11952	11952	of a plan enacted before the effective date of 22
11953	11953	this Act, not later than 30 days after the effec-23
11954	11954	tive date of this Act) requesting that the court 24
11955	11955	determine whether a presumption of such a vio-25
11956	11956	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00392 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11957	11957	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 393
11958	11958	•HR 11 IH
11959	11959	lation exists. If such a motion is timely filed, 1
11960	11960	the court shall hold a hearing not later than 15 2
11961	11961	days after the date the motion is filed to assess 3
11962	11962	whether a presumption of such a violation ex-4
11963	11963	ists. 5
11964	11964	(B) A
11965	11965	SSESSMENT.—To conduct the assess-6
11966	11966	ment required under subparagraph (A), the 7
11967	11967	court shall do the following: 8
11968	11968	(i) Determine the number of congres-9
11969	11969	sional districts under the plan that would 10
11970	11970	have been carried by each political party’s 11
11971	11971	candidates for the office of President and 12
11972	11972	the office of Senator in the 2 most recent 13
11973	11973	general elections for the office of President 14
11974	11974	and the 2 most recent general elections for 15
11975	11975	the office of Senator (other than special 16
11976	11976	general elections) immediately preceding 17
11977	11977	the enactment of the plan, except that if a 18
11978	11978	State conducts a primary election for the 19
11979	11979	office of Senator which is open to can-20
11980	11980	didates of all political parties, the primary 21
11981	11981	election shall be used instead of the gen-22
11982	11982	eral election and the number of districts 23
11983	11983	carried by a party’s candidates for the of-24
11984	11984	fice of Senator shall be determined on the 25
11985	11985	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00393 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
11986	11986	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 394
11987	11987	•HR 11 IH
11988	11988	basis of the combined vote share of all can-1
11989	11989	didates in the election who are affiliated 2
11990	11990	with such party. 3
11991	11991	(ii) Determine, for each of the 4 elec-4
11992	11992	tions assessed under clause (i), whether 5
11993	11993	the number of districts that would have 6
11994	11994	been carried by any party’s candidate as 7
11995	11995	determined under clause (i) results in par-8
11996	11996	tisan advantage or disadvantage in excess 9
11997	11997	of the applicable threshold described in 10
11998	11998	subparagraph (C). The degree of partisan 11
11999	11999	advantage or disadvantage shall be deter-12
12000	12000	mined by one or more standard quan-13
12001	12001	titative measures of partisan fairness 14
12002	12002	that— 15
12003	12003	(I) use a party’s share of the 16
12004	12004	statewide vote to calculate a cor-17
12005	12005	responding benchmark share of seats; 18
12006	12006	and 19
12007	12007	(II) measure the amount by 20
12008	12008	which the share of seats the party’s 21
12009	12009	candidate would have won in the elec-22
12010	12010	tion involved exceeds the benchmark 23
12011	12011	share of seats. 24
12012	12012	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00394 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12013	12013	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 395
12014	12014	•HR 11 IH
12015	12015	(C) APPLICABLE THRESHOLD DE -1
12016	12016	SCRIBED.—The applicable threshold described 2
12017	12017	in this subparagraph is, with respect to a State 3
12018	12018	and a number of seats, the greater of— 4
12019	12019	(i) an amount equal to 7 percent of 5
12020	12020	the number of congressional districts in 6
12021	12021	the State; or 7
12022	12022	(ii) one congressional district. 8
12023	12023	(D) D
12024	12024	ESCRIPTION OF QUANTITATIVE 9
12025	12025	MEASURES; PROHIBITING ROUNDING .—In car-10
12026	12026	rying out this subsection— 11
12027	12027	(i) the standard quantitative measures 12
12028	12028	of partisan fairness used by the court may 13
12029	12029	include the simplified efficiency gap but 14
12030	12030	may not include strict proportionality; and 15
12031	12031	(ii) the court may not round any num-16
12032	12032	ber. 17
12033	12033	(E) P
12034	12034	RESUMPTION OF VIOLATION .—A plan 18
12035	12035	is presumed to violate paragraph (1) if, on the 19
12036	12036	basis of at least one standard quantitative 20
12037	12037	measure of partisan fairness, it exceeds the ap-21
12038	12038	plicable threshold described in subparagraph 22
12039	12039	(C) with respect to 2 or more of the 4 elections 23
12040	12040	assessed under subparagraph (B). 24
12041	12041	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00395 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12042	12042	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 396
12043	12043	•HR 11 IH
12044	12044	(F) STAY OF USE OF PLAN .—Notwith-1
12045	12045	standing any other provision of this title, in any 2
12046	12046	action under this paragraph, the following rules 3
12047	12047	shall apply: 4
12048	12048	(i) Upon filing of a motion under sub-5
12049	12049	paragraph (A), a State’s use of the plan 6
12050	12050	which is the subject of the motion shall be 7
12051	12051	automatically stayed pending resolution of 8
12052	12052	such motion. 9
12053	12053	(ii) If after considering the motion, 10
12054	12054	the court rules that the plan is presumed 11
12055	12055	under subparagraph (E) to violate para-12
12056	12056	graph (1), a State may not use such plan 13
12057	12057	until and unless the court which is car-14
12058	12058	rying out the determination of the effect of 15
12059	12059	the plan under paragraph (2) determines 16
12060	12060	that, notwithstanding the presumptive vio-17
12061	12061	lation, the plan does not violate paragraph 18
12062	12062	(1). 19
12063	12063	(G) N
12064	12064	O EFFECT ON OTHER ASSESS -20
12065	12065	MENTS.—The absence of a presumption of a 21
12066	12066	violation with respect to a redistricting plan as 22
12067	12067	determined under this paragraph shall not af-23
12068	12068	fect the determination of the effect or intent of 24
12069	12069	the plan under this section. 25
12070	12070	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00396 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12071	12071	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 397
12072	12072	•HR 11 IH
12073	12073	(4) DETERMINATION OF INTENT .—A court may 1
12074	12074	rely on all available evidence when determining 2
12075	12075	whether a redistricting plan was drawn with the in-3
12076	12076	tent to materially favor or disfavor a political party, 4
12077	12077	including evidence of the partisan effects of a plan, 5
12078	12078	the degree of support the plan received from mem-6
12079	12079	bers of the entity responsible for developing and 7
12080	12080	adopting the plan, and whether the processes leading 8
12081	12081	to development and adoption of the plan were trans-9
12082	12082	parent and equally open to all members of the entity 10
12083	12083	and to the public. 11
12084	12084	(5) N
12085	12085	O VIOLATION BASED ON CERTAIN CRI -12
12086	12086	TERIA.—No redistricting plan shall be found to be 13
12087	12087	in violation of paragraph (1) because of the proper 14
12088	12088	application of the criteria set forth in paragraphs 15
12089	12089	(1), (2), or (3) of subsection (b), unless one or more 16
12090	12090	alternative plans could have complied with such 17
12091	12091	paragraphs without having the effect of materially 18
12092	12092	favoring or disfavoring a political party. 19
12093	12093	(d) F
12094	12094	ACTORSPROHIBITEDFROMCONSIDERATION.— 20
12095	12095	In developing the redistricting plan for the State, the 21
12096	12096	State may not take into consideration any of the following 22
12097	12097	factors, except as necessary to comply with the criteria 23
12098	12098	described in paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (b), 24
12099	12099	to achieve partisan fairness and comply with subsection 25
12100	12100	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00397 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12101	12101	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 398
12102	12102	•HR 11 IH
12103	12103	(b), and to enable the redistricting plan to be measured 1
12104	12104	against the external metrics described in section 5004(c): 2
12105	12105	(1) The residence of any Member of the House 3
12106	12106	of Representatives or candidate. 4
12107	12107	(2) The political party affiliation or voting his-5
12108	12108	tory of the population of a district. 6
12109	12109	(e) A
12110	12110	DDITIONALCRITERIA.—A State may not rely 7
12111	12111	upon criteria, districting principles, or other policies of the 8
12112	12112	State which are not set forth in this section to justify non- 9
12113	12113	compliance with the requirements of this section. 10
12114	12114	(f) A
12115	12115	PPLICABILITY.— 11
12116	12116	(1) I
12117	12117	N GENERAL.—This section applies to any 12
12118	12118	authority, whether appointed, elected, judicial, or 13
12119	12119	otherwise, responsible for enacting the congressional 14
12120	12120	redistricting plan of a State. 15
12121	12121	(2) D
12122	12122	ATE OF ENACTMENT .—This section ap-16
12123	12123	plies to any congressional redistricting plan enacted 17
12124	12124	following the notice of apportionment transmitted to 18
12125	12125	the President on April 26, 2021, regardless of the 19
12126	12126	date of enactment by the State of the congressional 20
12127	12127	redistricting plan. 21
12128	12128	(g) S
12129	12129	EVERABILITY OFCRITERIA.—If any provision of 22
12130	12130	this section, or the application of any such provision to 23
12131	12131	any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, 24
12132	12132	the remainder of this section, and the application of such 25
12133	12133	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00398 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12134	12134	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 399
12135	12135	•HR 11 IH
12136	12136	provision to any other person or circumstance, shall not 1
12137	12137	be affected by the holding. 2
12138	12138	SEC. 5004. DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN. 3
12139	12139	(a) P
12140	12140	UBLICNOTICE ANDINPUT.— 4
12141	12141	(1) U
12142	12142	SE OF OPEN AND TRANSPARENT PROC -5
12143	12143	ESS.—The entity responsible for developing and 6
12144	12144	adopting the congressional redistricting plan of a 7
12145	12145	State shall solicit and take into consideration com-8
12146	12146	ments from the public throughout the process of de-9
12147	12147	veloping the plan, and shall carry out its duties in 10
12148	12148	an open and transparent manner which provides for 11
12149	12149	the widest public dissemination reasonably possible 12
12150	12150	of its proposed and final redistricting plans. 13
12151	12151	(2) W
12152	12152	EBSITE.— 14
12153	12153	(A) F
12154	12154	EATURES.—The entity shall maintain 15
12155	12155	a public internet site which is not affiliated with 16
12156	12156	or maintained by the office of any elected offi-17
12157	12157	cial and which includes the following features: 18
12158	12158	(i) All proposed redistricting plans 19
12159	12159	and the final redistricting plan, including 20
12160	12160	the accompanying written evaluation under 21
12161	12161	subsection (c). 22
12162	12162	(ii) All comments received from the 23
12163	12163	public submitted under paragraph (1). 24
12164	12164	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00399 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12165	12165	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 400
12166	12166	•HR 11 IH
12167	12167	(iii) Access in an easily usable format 1
12168	12168	to the demographic and other data used by 2
12169	12169	the entity to develop and analyze the pro-3
12170	12170	posed redistricting plans, together with any 4
12171	12171	reports analyzing and evaluating such 5
12172	12172	plans and access to software that members 6
12173	12173	of the public may use to draw maps of pro-7
12174	12174	posed districts. 8
12175	12175	(iv) A method by which members of 9
12176	12176	the public may submit comments directly 10
12177	12177	to the entity. 11
12178	12178	(B) S
12179	12179	EARCHABLE FORMAT .—The entity 12
12180	12180	shall ensure that all information posted and 13
12181	12181	maintained on the site under this paragraph, 14
12182	12182	including information and proposed maps sub-15
12183	12183	mitted by the public, shall be maintained in an 16
12184	12184	easily searchable format. 17
12185	12185	(3) M
12186	12186	ULTIPLE LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS FOR 18
12187	12187	ALL NOTICES.—The entity responsible for developing 19
12188	12188	and adopting the plan shall make each notice which 20
12189	12189	is required to be posted and published under this 21
12190	12190	section available in any language in which the State 22
12191	12191	(or any jurisdiction in the State) is required to pro-23
12192	12192	vide election materials under section 203 of the Vot-24
12193	12193	ing Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10503). 25
12194	12194	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00400 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12195	12195	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 401
12196	12196	•HR 11 IH
12197	12197	(b) DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN.— 1
12198	12198	(1) H
12199	12199	EARINGS.—The entity responsible for de-2
12200	12200	veloping and adopting the congressional redistricting 3
12201	12201	plan shall hold hearings both before and after releas-4
12202	12202	ing proposed plans in order to solicit public input on 5
12203	12203	the content of such plans. These hearings shall— 6
12204	12204	(A) be held in different regions of the 7
12205	12205	State and streamed live on the public internet 8
12206	12206	site maintained under subsection (a)(2); 9
12207	12207	(B) be sufficient in number, scheduled at 10
12208	12208	times and places, and noticed and conducted in 11
12209	12209	a manner to ensure that all members of the 12
12210	12210	public, including members of racial, ethnic, and 13
12211	12211	language minorities protected under the Voting 14
12212	12212	Rights Act of 1965, have a meaningful oppor-15
12213	12213	tunity to attend and provide input both before 16
12214	12214	and after the entity releases proposed plans. 17
12215	12215	(2) P
12216	12216	OSTING OF MAPS.—The entity responsible 18
12217	12217	for developing and adopting the congressional redis-19
12218	12218	tricting plan shall make proposed plans, amend-20
12219	12219	ments to proposed plans, and the data needed to 21
12220	12220	analyze such plans for compliance with the criteria 22
12221	12221	of this title available for public review, including on 23
12222	12222	the public internet site required under subsection 24
12223	12223	(a)(2), for a period of not less than 5 days before 25
12224	12224	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00401 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12225	12225	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 402
12226	12226	•HR 11 IH
12227	12227	any vote or hearing is held on any such plan or any 1
12228	12228	amendment to such a plan. 2
12229	12229	(c) R
12230	12230	ELEASE OFWRITTENEVALUATION OF PLAN 3
12231	12231	A
12232	12232	GAINSTEXTERNALMETRICSREQUIREDPRIOR TO 4
12233	12233	V
12234	12234	OTE.—The entity responsible for developing and adopt-5
12235	12235	ing the congressional redistricting plan for a State may 6
12236	12236	not hold a vote on a proposed redistricting plan, including 7
12237	12237	a vote in a committee, unless at least 48 hours prior to 8
12238	12238	holding the vote the State has released a written evalua-9
12239	12239	tion that measures each such plan against external metrics 10
12240	12240	which cover the criteria set forth in section 5003(b), in-11
12241	12241	cluding the impact of the plan on the ability of members 12
12242	12242	of a class of citizens protected by the Voting Rights Act 13
12243	12243	of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) to elect candidates of 14
12244	12244	choice, the degree to which the plan preserves or divides 15
12245	12245	communities of interest, and any analysis used by the 16
12246	12246	State to assess compliance with the requirements of sec-17
12247	12247	tion 5003(b) and (c). 18
12248	12248	(d) P
12249	12249	UBLICINPUT ANDCOMMENTS.—The entity re-19
12250	12250	sponsible for developing and adopting the congressional 20
12251	12251	redistricting plan for a State shall make all public com-21
12252	12252	ments received about potential plans, including alternative 22
12253	12253	plans, available to the public on the internet site required 23
12254	12254	under subsection (a)(2), at no cost, not later than 24 24
12255	12255	hours prior to holding a vote on final adoption of a plan. 25
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12257	12257	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 403
12258	12258	•HR 11 IH
12259	12259	SEC. 5005. FAILURE BY STATE TO ENACT PLAN. 1
12260	12260	(a) D
12261	12261	EADLINE FORENACTMENT OFPLAN.— 2
12262	12262	(1) I
12263	12263	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-3
12264	12264	graph (2), each State shall enact a final congres-4
12265	12265	sional redistricting plan following transmission of a 5
12266	12266	notice of apportionment to the President by the ear-6
12267	12267	liest of— 7
12268	12268	(A) the deadline set forth in State law, in-8
12269	12269	cluding any extension to the deadline provided 9
12270	12270	in accordance with State law; 10
12271	12271	(B) February 15 of the year in which reg-11
12272	12272	ularly scheduled general elections for Federal 12
12273	12273	office are held in the State; or 13
12274	12274	(C) 90 days before the date of the next 14
12275	12275	regularly scheduled primary election for Federal 15
12276	12276	office held in the State. 16
12277	12277	(2) S
12278	12278	PECIAL RULE FOR PLANS ENACTED PRIOR 17
12279	12279	TO EFFECTIVE DATE OF TITLE .—If a State enacted 18
12280	12280	a final congressional redistricting plan prior to the 19
12281	12281	effective date of this title and the plan is not in com-20
12282	12282	pliance with the requirements of this title, the State 21
12283	12283	shall enact a final redistricting plan which is in com-22
12284	12284	pliance with the requirements of this title not later 23
12285	12285	than 45 days after the effective date of this title. 24
12286	12286	(b) D
12287	12287	EVELOPMENT OF PLAN BYCOURT INCASE OF 25
12288	12288	M
12289	12289	ISSEDDEADLINE.—If a State has not enacted a final 26
12290	12290	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00403 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12291	12291	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 404
12292	12292	•HR 11 IH
12293	12293	congressional redistricting plan by the applicable deadline 1
12294	12294	under subsection (a), or it appears reasonably likely that 2
12295	12295	a State will fail to enact a final congressional redistricting 3
12296	12296	plan by such deadline— 4
12297	12297	(1) any citizen of the State may file an action 5
12298	12298	in the United States district court for the applicable 6
12299	12299	venue asking the district court to assume jurisdic-7
12300	12300	tion; 8
12301	12301	(2) the United States district court for the ap-9
12302	12302	plicable venue, acting through a 3-judge court con-10
12303	12303	vened pursuant to section 2284 of title 28, United 11
12304	12304	States Code, shall have the exclusive authority to de-12
12305	12305	velop and publish the congressional redistricting 13
12306	12306	plan for the State; and 14
12307	12307	(3) the final congressional redistricting plan de-15
12308	12308	veloped and published by the court under this sec-16
12309	12309	tion shall be deemed to be enacted on the date on 17
12310	12310	which the court publishes the final congressional re-18
12311	12311	districting plan, as described in subsection (e). 19
12312	12312	(c) A
12313	12313	PPLICABLEVENUE.—For purposes of this sec-20
12314	12314	tion, the ‘‘applicable venue’’ with respect to a State is the 21
12315	12315	District of Columbia or the judicial district in which the 22
12316	12316	capital of the State is located, as selected by the first party 23
12317	12317	to file with the court sufficient evidence that a State has 24
12318	12318	failed to, or is reasonably likely to fail to, enact a final 25
12319	12319	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00404 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12320	12320	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 405
12321	12321	•HR 11 IH
12322	12322	redistricting plan for the State prior to the expiration of 1
12323	12323	the applicable deadline set forth in subsection (a). 2
12324	12324	(d) P
12325	12325	ROCEDURES FORDEVELOPMENT OF PLAN.— 3
12326	12326	(1) C
12327	12327	RITERIA.—In developing a redistricting 4
12328	12328	plan for a State under this section, the court shall 5
12329	12329	adhere to the same terms and conditions that ap-6
12330	12330	plied (or that would have applied, as the case may 7
12331	12331	be) to the development of a plan by the State under 8
12332	12332	section 5003. 9
12333	12333	(2) A
12334	12334	CCESS TO INFORMATION AND RECORDS .— 10
12335	12335	The court shall have access to any information, 11
12336	12336	data, software, or other records and material that 12
12337	12337	was used (or that would have been used, as the case 13
12338	12338	may be) by the State in carrying out its duties 14
12339	12339	under this title. 15
12340	12340	(3) H
12341	12341	EARING; PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—In de-16
12342	12342	veloping a redistricting plan for a State, the court 17
12343	12343	shall— 18
12344	12344	(A) hold one or more evidentiary hearings 19
12345	12345	at which interested members of the public may 20
12346	12346	appear and be heard and present testimony, in-21
12347	12347	cluding expert testimony, in accordance with 22
12348	12348	the rules of the court; and 23
12349	12349	(B) consider other submissions and com-24
12350	12350	ments by the public, including proposals for re-25
12351	12351	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00405 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12352	12352	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 406
12353	12353	•HR 11 IH
12354	12354	districting plans to cover the entire State or 1
12355	12355	any portion of the State. 2
12356	12356	(4) U
12357	12357	SE OF SPECIAL MASTER.—To assist in the 3
12358	12358	development and publication of a redistricting plan 4
12359	12359	for a State under this section, the court may appoint 5
12360	12360	a special master to make recommendations to the 6
12361	12361	court on possible plans for the State. 7
12362	12362	(e) P
12363	12363	UBLICATION OFPLAN.— 8
12364	12364	(1) P
12365	12365	UBLIC AVAILABILITY OF INITIAL PLAN .— 9
12366	12366	Upon completing the development of one or more 10
12367	12367	initial redistricting plans, the court shall make the 11
12368	12368	plans available to the public at no cost, and shall 12
12369	12369	also make available the underlying data used to de-13
12370	12370	velop the plans and a written evaluation of the plans 14
12371	12371	against external metrics (as described in section 15
12372	12372	5004(c)). 16
12373	12373	(2) P
12374	12374	UBLICATION OF FINAL PLAN .—At any 17
12375	12375	time after the expiration of the 14-day period which 18
12376	12376	begins on the date the court makes the plans avail-19
12377	12377	able to the public under paragraph (1), and taking 20
12378	12378	into consideration any submissions and comments by 21
12379	12379	the public which are received during such period, the 22
12380	12380	court shall develop and publish the final redistricting 23
12381	12381	plan for the State. 24
12382	12382	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00406 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12383	12383	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 407
12384	12384	•HR 11 IH
12385	12385	(f) USE OFINTERIMPLAN.—In the event that the 1
12386	12386	court is not able to develop and publish a final redis-2
12387	12387	tricting plan for the State with sufficient time for an up-3
12388	12388	coming election to proceed, the court may develop and 4
12389	12389	publish an interim redistricting plan which shall serve as 5
12390	12390	the redistricting plan for the State until the court develops 6
12391	12391	and publishes a final plan in accordance with this section. 7
12392	12392	Nothing in this subsection may be construed to limit or 8
12393	12393	otherwise affect the authority or discretion of the court 9
12394	12394	to develop and publish the final redistricting plan, includ-10
12395	12395	ing the discretion to make any changes the court deems 11
12396	12396	necessary to an interim redistricting plan. 12
12397	12397	(g) A
12398	12398	PPEALS.—Review on appeal of any final or in-13
12399	12399	terim plan adopted by the court in accordance with this 14
12400	12400	section shall be governed by the appellate process in sec-15
12401	12401	tion 5006. 16
12402	12402	(h) S
12403	12403	TAY OFSTATEPROCEEDINGS.—The filing of an 17
12404	12404	action under this section shall act as a stay of any pro-18
12405	12405	ceedings in State court with respect to the State’s congres-19
12406	12406	sional redistricting plan unless otherwise ordered by the 20
12407	12407	court. 21
12408	12408	SEC. 5006. CIVIL ENFORCEMENT. 22
12409	12409	(a) C
12410	12410	IVILENFORCEMENT.— 23
12411	12411	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00407 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12412	12412	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 408
12413	12413	•HR 11 IH
12414	12414	(1) ACTIONS BY ATTORNEY GENERAL .—The At-1
12415	12415	torney General may bring a civil action for such re-2
12416	12416	lief as may be appropriate to carry out this title. 3
12417	12417	(2) A
12418	12418	VAILABILITY OF PRIVATE RIGHT OF AC -4
12419	12419	TION.— 5
12420	12420	(A) I
12421	12421	N GENERAL.—Any person residing or 6
12422	12422	domiciled in a State who is aggrieved by the 7
12423	12423	failure of the State to meet the requirements of 8
12424	12424	the Constitution or Federal law, including this 9
12425	12425	title, with respect to the State’s congressional 10
12426	12426	redistricting, may bring a civil action in the 11
12427	12427	United States district court for the applicable 12
12428	12428	venue for such relief as may be appropriate to 13
12429	12429	remedy the failure. 14
12430	12430	(B) S
12431	12431	PECIAL RULE FOR CLAIMS RELATING 15
12432	12432	TO PARTISAN ADVANTAGE .—For purposes of 16
12433	12433	subparagraph (A), a person who is aggrieved by 17
12434	12434	the failure of a State to meet the requirements 18
12435	12435	of section 5003(c) may include— 19
12436	12436	(i) any political party or committee in 20
12437	12437	the State; and 21
12438	12438	(ii) any registered voter in the State 22
12439	12439	who resides in a congressional district that 23
12440	12440	the voter alleges was drawn in a manner 24
12441	12441	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00408 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12442	12442	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 409
12443	12443	•HR 11 IH
12444	12444	that contributes to a violation of such sec-1
12445	12445	tion. 2
12446	12446	(C) N
12447	12447	O AWARDING OF DAMAGES TO PRE -3
12448	12448	VAILING PARTY.—Except for an award of attor-4
12449	12449	ney’s fees under subsection (d), a court in a 5
12450	12450	civil action under this section shall not award 6
12451	12451	the prevailing party any monetary damages, 7
12452	12452	compensatory, punitive, or otherwise. 8
12453	12453	(3) D
12454	12454	ELIVERY OF COMPLAINT TO HOUSE AND 9
12455	12455	SENATE.—In any action brought under this section, 10
12456	12456	a copy of the complaint shall be delivered promptly 11
12457	12457	to the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the 12
12458	12458	Secretary of the Senate. 13
12459	12459	(4) E
12460	12460	XCLUSIVE JURISDICTION AND APPLICABLE 14
12461	12461	VENUE.—The district courts of the United States 15
12462	12462	shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear and deter-16
12463	12463	mine claims asserting that a congressional redis-17
12464	12464	tricting plan violates the requirements of the Con-18
12465	12465	stitution or Federal law, including this title. The ap-19
12466	12466	plicable venue for such an action shall be the United 20
12467	12467	States District Court for the District of Columbia or 21
12468	12468	for the judicial district in which the capital of the 22
12469	12469	State is located, as selected by the person bringing 23
12470	12470	the action. In a civil action that includes a claim 24
12471	12471	that a redistricting plan is in violation of subsection 25
12472	12472	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00409 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12473	12473	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 410
12474	12474	•HR 11 IH
12475	12475	(b) or (c) of section 5003, the United States District 1
12476	12476	Court for the District of Columbia shall have juris-2
12477	12477	diction over any defendant who has been served in 3
12478	12478	any United States judicial district in which the de-4
12479	12479	fendant resides, is found, or has an agent, or in the 5
12480	12480	United States judicial district in which the capital of 6
12481	12481	the State is located. Process may be served in any 7
12482	12482	United States judicial district where a defendant re-8
12483	12483	sides, is found, or has an agent, or in the United 9
12484	12484	States judicial district in which the capital of the 10
12485	12485	State is located. 11
12486	12486	(5) U
12487	12487	SE OF 3-JUDGE COURT.—If an action 12
12488	12488	under this section raises statewide claims under the 13
12489	12489	Constitution or this title, the action shall be heard 14
12490	12490	by a 3-judge court convened pursuant to section 15
12491	12491	2284 of title 28, United States Code. 16
12492	12492	(6) R
12493	12493	EVIEW OF FINAL DECISION .—A final deci-17
12494	12494	sion in an action brought under this section shall be 18
12495	12495	reviewable on appeal by the United States Court of 19
12496	12496	Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which 20
12497	12497	shall hear the matter sitting en banc. There shall be 21
12498	12498	no right of appeal in such proceedings to any other 22
12499	12499	court of appeals. Such appeal shall be taken by the 23
12500	12500	filing of a notice of appeal within 10 days of the 24
12501	12501	entry of the final decision. A final decision by the 25
12502	12502	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00410 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12503	12503	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 411
12504	12504	•HR 11 IH
12505	12505	Court of Appeals may be reviewed by the Supreme 1
12506	12506	Court of the United States by writ of certiorari. 2
12507	12507	(b) E
12508	12508	XPEDITEDCONSIDERATION.—In any action 3
12509	12509	brought under this section, it shall be the duty of the dis-4
12510	12510	trict court, the United States Court of Appeals for the 5
12511	12511	District of Columbia Circuit, and the Supreme Court of 6
12512	12512	the United States (if it chooses to hear the action) to ad-7
12513	12513	vance on the docket and to expedite to the greatest pos-8
12514	12514	sible extent the disposition of the action and appeal. 9
12515	12515	(c) R
12516	12516	EMEDIES.— 10
12517	12517	(1) A
12518	12518	DOPTION OF REPLACEMENT PLAN .— 11
12519	12519	(A) I
12520	12520	N GENERAL.—If the district court in 12
12521	12521	an action under this section finds that the con-13
12522	12522	gressional redistricting plan of a State violates, 14
12523	12523	in whole or in part, the requirements of this 15
12524	12524	title— 16
12525	12525	(i) the court shall adopt a replacement 17
12526	12526	congressional redistricting plan for the 18
12527	12527	State in accordance with the process set 19
12528	12528	forth in section 5005; or 20
12529	12529	(ii) if circumstances warrant and no 21
12530	12530	delay to an upcoming regularly scheduled 22
12531	12531	election for the House of Representatives 23
12532	12532	in the State would result, the district 24
12533	12533	court, in its discretion, may allow a State 25
12534	12534	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00411 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12535	12535	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 412
12536	12536	•HR 11 IH
12537	12537	to develop and propose a remedial congres-1
12538	12538	sional redistricting plan for review by the 2
12539	12539	court to determine whether the plan is in 3
12540	12540	compliance with this title, except that— 4
12541	12541	(I) the State may not develop 5
12542	12542	and propose a remedial plan under 6
12543	12543	this clause if the court determines 7
12544	12544	that the congressional redistricting 8
12545	12545	plan of the State was enacted with 9
12546	12546	discriminatory intent in violation of 10
12547	12547	the Constitution or section 5003(b); 11
12548	12548	and 12
12549	12549	(II) nothing in this clause may be 13
12550	12550	construed to permit a State to use 14
12551	12551	such a remedial plan which has not 15
12552	12552	been approved by the court. 16
12553	12553	(B) P
12554	12554	ROHIBITING USE OF PLANS IN VIOLA -17
12555	12555	TION OF REQUIREMENTS .—No court shall order 18
12556	12556	a State to use a congressional redistricting plan 19
12557	12557	which violates, in whole or in part, the require-20
12558	12558	ments of this title, or to conduct an election 21
12559	12559	under terms and conditions which violate, in 22
12560	12560	whole or in part, the requirements of this title. 23
12561	12561	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00412 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12562	12562	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 413
12563	12563	•HR 11 IH
12564	12564	(C) SPECIAL RULE IN CASE FINAL ADJU -1
12565	12565	DICATION NOT EXPECTED WITHIN 3 MONTHS 2
12566	12566	OF ELECTION.— 3
12567	12567	(i) D
12568	12568	UTY OF COURT.—If final adju-4
12569	12569	dication of an action under this section is 5
12570	12570	not reasonably expected to be completed at 6
12571	12571	least 3 months prior to the next regularly 7
12572	12572	scheduled primary election for the House 8
12573	12573	of Representatives in the State, the district 9
12574	12574	court shall— 10
12575	12575	(I) develop, adopt, and order the 11
12576	12576	use of an interim congressional redis-12
12577	12577	tricting plan in accordance with sec-13
12578	12578	tion 5005(f) to address any claims 14
12579	12579	under this title for which a party 15
12580	12580	seeking relief has demonstrated a sub-16
12581	12581	stantial likelihood of success; or 17
12582	12582	(II) order adjustments to the 18
12583	12583	timing of primary elections for the 19
12584	12584	House of Representatives and other 20
12585	12585	related deadlines, as needed, to allow 21
12586	12586	sufficient opportunity for adjudication 22
12587	12587	of the matter and adoption of a reme-23
12588	12588	dial or replacement plan for use in the 24
12589	12589	next regularly scheduled general elec-25
12590	12590	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00413 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12591	12591	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 414
12592	12592	•HR 11 IH
12593	12593	tions for the House of Representa-1
12594	12594	tives. 2
12595	12595	(ii) P
12596	12596	ROHIBITING FAILURE TO ACT ON 3
12597	12597	GROUNDS OF PENDENCY OF ELECTION .— 4
12598	12598	The court may not refuse to take any ac-5
12599	12599	tion described in clause (i) on the grounds 6
12600	12600	of the pendency of the next election held in 7
12601	12601	the State or the potential for disruption, 8
12602	12602	confusion, or additional burdens with re-9
12603	12603	spect to the administration of the election 10
12604	12604	in the State. 11
12605	12605	(2) N
12606	12606	O STAY PENDING APPEAL .—Notwith-12
12607	12607	standing the appeal of an order finding that a con-13
12608	12608	gressional redistricting plan of a State violates, in 14
12609	12609	whole or in part, the requirements of this title, no 15
12610	12610	stay shall issue which shall bar the development or 16
12611	12611	adoption of a replacement or remedial plan under 17
12612	12612	this subsection, as may be directed by the district 18
12613	12613	court, pending such appeal. If such a replacement or 19
12614	12614	remedial plan has been adopted, no appellate court 20
12615	12615	may stay or otherwise enjoin the use of such plan 21
12616	12616	during the pendency of an appeal, except upon an 22
12617	12617	order holding, based on the record, that adoption of 23
12618	12618	such plan was an abuse of discretion. 24
12619	12619	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00414 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12620	12620	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 415
12621	12621	•HR 11 IH
12622	12622	(3) SPECIAL AUTHORITY OF COURT OF AP -1
12623	12623	PEALS.— 2
12624	12624	(A) O
12625	12625	RDERING OF NEW REMEDIAL 3
12626	12626	PLAN.—If, upon consideration of an appeal 4
12627	12627	under this title, the Court of Appeals deter-5
12628	12628	mines that a plan does not comply with the re-6
12629	12629	quirements of this title, it shall direct that the 7
12630	12630	District Court promptly develop a new remedial 8
12631	12631	plan with assistance of a special master for con-9
12632	12632	sideration by the Court of Appeals. 10
12633	12633	(B) F
12634	12634	AILURE OF DISTRICT COURT TO 11
12635	12635	TAKE TIMELY ACTION.—If, at any point during 12
12636	12636	the pendency of an action under this section, 13
12637	12637	the District Court fails to take action necessary 14
12638	12638	to permit resolution of the case prior to the 15
12639	12639	next regularly scheduled election for the House 16
12640	12640	of Representatives in the State or fails to grant 17
12641	12641	the relief described in paragraph (1)(C), any 18
12642	12642	party may seek a writ of mandamus from the 19
12643	12643	Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia 20
12644	12644	Circuit. The Court of Appeals shall have juris-21
12645	12645	diction over the motion for a writ of mandamus 22
12646	12646	and shall establish an expedited briefing and 23
12647	12647	hearing schedule for resolution of the motion. If 24
12648	12648	the Court of Appeals determines that a writ 25
12649	12649	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00415 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12650	12650	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 416
12651	12651	•HR 11 IH
12652	12652	should be granted, the Court of Appeals shall 1
12653	12653	take any action necessary, including developing 2
12654	12654	a congressional redistricting plan with assist-3
12655	12655	ance of a special master to ensure that a reme-4
12656	12656	dial plan is adopted in time for use in the next 5
12657	12657	regularly scheduled election for the House of 6
12658	12658	Representatives in the State. 7
12659	12659	(4) E
12660	12660	FFECT OF ENACTMENT OF REPLACEMENT 8
12661	12661	PLAN.—A State’s enactment of a redistricting plan 9
12662	12662	which replaces a plan which is the subject of an ac-10
12663	12663	tion under this section shall not be construed to 11
12664	12664	limit or otherwise affect the authority of the court 12
12665	12665	to adjudicate or grant relief with respect to any 13
12666	12666	claims or issues not addressed by the replacement 14
12667	12667	plan, including claims that the plan which is the 15
12668	12668	subject of the action was enacted, in whole or in 16
12669	12669	part, with discriminatory intent, or claims to con-17
12670	12670	sider whether relief should be granted under section 18
12671	12671	3(c) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 19
12672	12672	10302(c)) based on the plan which is the subject of 20
12673	12673	the action. 21
12674	12674	(d) A
12675	12675	TTORNEY’SFEES.—In a civil action under this 22
12676	12676	section, the court may allow the prevailing party (other 23
12677	12677	than the United States) reasonable attorney fees, includ-24
12678	12678	ing litigation expenses, and costs. 25
12679	12679	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00416 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12680	12680	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 417
12681	12681	•HR 11 IH
12682	12682	(e) RELATION TOOTHERLAWS.— 1
12683	12683	(1) R
12684	12684	IGHTS AND REMEDIES ADDITIONAL TO 2
12685	12685	OTHER RIGHTS AND REMEDIES .—The rights and 3
12686	12686	remedies established by this section are in addition 4
12687	12687	to all other rights and remedies provided by law, and 5
12688	12688	neither the rights and remedies established by this 6
12689	12689	section nor any other provision of this title shall su-7
12690	12690	persede, restrict, or limit the application of the Vot-8
12691	12691	ing Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.). 9
12692	12692	(2) V
12693	12693	OTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965 .—Nothing in 10
12694	12694	this title authorizes or requires conduct that is pro-11
12695	12695	hibited by the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 12
12696	12696	10301 et seq.). 13
12697	12697	(f) L
12698	12698	EGISLATIVEPRIVILEGE.—No person, legisla-14
12699	12699	ture, or State may claim legislative privilege under either 15
12700	12700	State or Federal law in a civil action brought under this 16
12701	12701	section or in any other legal challenge, under either State 17
12702	12702	or Federal law, to a redistricting plan enacted under this 18
12703	12703	title. 19
12704	12704	(g) R
12705	12705	EMOVAL.— 20
12706	12706	(1) I
12707	12707	N GENERAL.—At any time, a civil action 21
12708	12708	brought in a State court which asserts a claim for 22
12709	12709	which the district courts of the United States have 23
12710	12710	exclusive jurisdiction under this title may be re-24
12711	12711	moved by any party in the case, including an inter-25
12712	12712	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00417 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12713	12713	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 418
12714	12714	•HR 11 IH
12715	12715	venor, by filing, in the district court for an applica-1
12716	12716	ble venue under this section, a notice of removal 2
12717	12717	signed pursuant to Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of 3
12718	12718	Civil Procedure containing a short and plain state-4
12719	12719	ment of the grounds for removal. Consent of parties 5
12720	12720	shall not be required for removal. 6
12721	12721	(2) C
12722	12722	LAIMS NOT WITHIN THE ORIGINAL OR 7
12723	12723	SUPPLEMENTAL JURISDICTION .—If a civil action re-8
12724	12724	moved in accordance with paragraph (1) contains 9
12725	12725	claims not within the original or supplemental juris-10
12726	12726	diction of the district court, the district court shall 11
12727	12727	sever all such claims and remand them to the State 12
12728	12728	court from which the action was removed. 13
12729	12729	SEC. 5007. NO EFFECT ON ELECTIONS FOR STATE AND 14
12730	12730	LOCAL OFFICE. 15
12731	12731	Nothing in this title or in any amendment made by 16
12732	12732	this title may be construed to affect the manner in which 17
12733	12733	a State carries out elections for State or local office, in-18
12734	12734	cluding the process by which a State establishes the dis-19
12735	12735	tricts used in such elections. 20
12736	12736	SEC. 5008. EFFECTIVE DATE. 21
12737	12737	(a) I
12738	12738	NGENERAL.—This title and the amendments 22
12739	12739	made by this title shall apply on the date of enactment 23
12740	12740	of this title. 24
12741	12741	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00418 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12742	12742	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 419
12743	12743	•HR 11 IH
12744	12744	(b) APPLICATION TO CONGRESSIONAL REDIS-1
12745	12745	TRICTINGPLANSRESULTINGFROM2020 DECENNIAL 2
12746	12746	C
12747	12747	ENSUS.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), this title and 3
12748	12748	the amendments made by this title, other than section 4
12749	12749	5004, shall apply with respect to each congressional redis-5
12750	12750	tricting plan enacted pursuant to the notice of apportion-6
12751	12751	ment transmitted to the President on April 26, 2021, 7
12752	12752	without regard to whether or not a State enacted such 8
12753	12753	a plan prior to the date of the enactment of this Act. 9
12754	12754	TITLE VI—CAMPAIGN FINANCE 10
12755	12755	TRANSPARENCY 11
12756	12756	Subtitle A—DISCLOSE Act 12
12757	12757	SEC. 6001. SHORT TITLE. 13
12758	12758	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Democracy Is 14
12759	12759	Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections 15
12760	12760	Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘DISCLOSE Act of 2023’’. 16
12761	12761	SEC. 6002. FINDINGS. 17
12762	12762	Congress finds the following: 18
12763	12763	(1) Campaign finance disclosure is a narrowly 19
12764	12764	tailored and minimally restrictive means to advance 20
12765	12765	substantial government interests, including fostering 21
12766	12766	an informed electorate capable of engaging in self- 22
12767	12767	government and holding their elected officials ac-23
12768	12768	countable, detecting and deterring quid pro quo cor-24
12769	12769	ruption, and identifying information necessary to en-25
12770	12770	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00419 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12771	12771	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 420
12772	12772	•HR 11 IH
12773	12773	force other campaign finance laws, including cam-1
12774	12774	paign contribution limits and the prohibition on for-2
12775	12775	eign money in U.S. campaigns. To further these 3
12776	12776	substantial interests, campaign finance disclosure 4
12777	12777	must be timely and complete, and must disclose the 5
12778	12778	true and original source of money given, transferred, 6
12779	12779	and spent to influence Federal elections. Current law 7
12780	12780	does not meet this objective because corporations 8
12781	12781	and other entities that the Supreme Court has per-9
12782	12782	mitted to spend money to influence Federal elections 10
12783	12783	are subject to few if any transparency requirements. 11
12784	12784	(2) As the Supreme Court recognized in its per 12
12785	12785	curiam opinion in Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 13
12786	12786	(1976), ‘‘disclosure requirements certainly in most 14
12787	12787	applications appear to be the least restrictive means 15
12788	12788	of curbing the evils of campaign ignorance and cor-16
12789	12789	ruption that Congress found to exist’’. Buckley, 424 17
12790	12790	U.S. at 68. In Citizens United v. FEC, the Court re-18
12791	12791	iterated that ‘‘disclosure is a less restrictive alter-19
12792	12792	native to more comprehensive regulations of speech’’. 20
12793	12793	558 U.S. 310, 369 (2010). 21
12794	12794	(3) No subsequent decision has called these 22
12795	12795	holdings into question, including the Court’s decision 23
12796	12796	in Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta, 24
12797	12797	141 S. Ct. 2373 (2021). That case did not involve 25
12798	12798	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00420 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12799	12799	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 421
12800	12800	•HR 11 IH
12801	12801	campaign finance disclosure, and the Court did not 1
12802	12802	overturn its longstanding recognition of the substan-2
12803	12803	tial interests furthered by such disclosure. 3
12804	12804	(4) Campaign finance disclosure is also essen-4
12805	12805	tial to enforce the Federal Election Campaign Act’s 5
12806	12806	prohibition on contributions by and solicitations of 6
12807	12807	foreign nationals. See section 319 of the Federal 7
12808	12808	Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121). 8
12809	12809	(5) Congress should close loopholes allowing 9
12810	12810	spending by foreign nationals in domestic elections. 10
12811	12811	For example, in 2021, the Federal Election Commis-11
12812	12812	sion, the independent Federal agency charged with 12
12813	12813	protecting the integrity of the Federal campaign fi-13
12814	12814	nance process, found reason to believe and concil-14
12815	12815	iated a matter where an experienced political con-15
12816	12816	sultant knowingly and willfully violated Federal law 16
12817	12817	by soliciting a contribution from a foreign national 17
12818	12818	by offering to transmit a $2,000,000 contribution to 18
12819	12819	a super PAC through his company and two 19
12820	12820	501(c)(4) organizations, to conceal the origin of the 20
12821	12821	funds. This scheme was only unveiled after appear-21
12822	12822	ing in a The Telegraph UK article and video cap-22
12823	12823	turing the solicitation. See Conciliation Agreement, 23
12824	12824	MURs 7165 & 7196 (Great America PAC, et al.), 24
12825	12825	date June 28, 2021; Factual and Legal Analysis, 25
12826	12826	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00421 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12827	12827	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 422
12828	12828	•HR 11 IH
12829	12829	MURs 7165 & 7196 (Jesse Benton), dated Mar. 2, 1
12830	12830	2021. 2
12831	12831	PART 1—CLOSING LOOPHOLES ALLOWING 3
12832	12832	SPENDING BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN ELEC-4
12833	12833	TIONS 5
12834	12834	SEC. 6003. CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN 6
12835	12835	MONEY BAN TO CERTAIN DISBURSEMENTS 7
12836	12836	AND ACTIVITIES. 8
12837	12837	Section 319(b) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 9
12838	12838	of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(b)) is amended— 10
12839	12839	(1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 11
12840	12840	subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and by 12
12841	12841	moving such subparagraphs 2 ems to the right; 13
12842	12842	(2) by striking ‘‘As used in this section, the 14
12843	12843	term’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘D
12844	12844	EFINITIONS.— 15
12845	12845	For purposes of this section— 16
12846	12846	‘‘(1) F
12847	12847	OREIGN NATIONAL.—The term’’; 17
12848	12848	(3) by moving paragraphs (1) and (2) two ems 18
12849	12849	to the right and redesignating them as subpara-19
12850	12850	graphs (A) and (B), respectively; and 20
12851	12851	(4) by adding at the end the following new 21
12852	12852	paragraph: 22
12853	12853	‘‘(2) C
12854	12854	ONTRIBUTION AND DONATION .—For pur-23
12855	12855	poses of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a), 24
12856	12856	the term ‘contribution or donation’ includes any dis-25
12857	12857	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00422 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12858	12858	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 423
12859	12859	•HR 11 IH
12860	12860	bursement to a political committee which accepts do-1
12861	12861	nations or contributions that do not comply with any 2
12862	12862	of the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting re-3
12863	12863	quirements of this Act (or any disbursement to or on 4
12864	12864	behalf of any account of a political committee which 5
12865	12865	is established for the purpose of accepting such do-6
12866	12866	nations or contributions), or to any other person for 7
12867	12867	the purpose of funding an expenditure, independent 8
12868	12868	expenditure, or electioneering communication (as de-9
12869	12869	fined in section 304(f)(3)).’’. 10
12870	12870	SEC. 6004. STUDY AND REPORT ON ILLICIT FOREIGN 11
12871	12871	MONEY IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS. 12
12872	12872	(a) S
12873	12873	TUDY.—For each 4-year election cycle (begin-13
12874	12874	ning with the 4-year election cycle ending in 2020), the 14
12875	12875	Comptroller General shall conduct a study on the inci-15
12876	12876	dence of illicit foreign money in all elections for Federal 16
12877	12877	office held during the preceding 4-year election cycle, in-17
12878	12878	cluding what information is known about the presence of 18
12879	12879	such money in elections for Federal office. 19
12880	12880	(b) R
12881	12881	EPORT.— 20
12882	12882	(1) I
12883	12883	N GENERAL.—Not later than the applicable 21
12884	12884	date with respect to any 4-year election cycle, the 22
12885	12885	Comptroller General shall submit to the appropriate 23
12886	12886	congressional committees a report on the study con-24
12887	12887	ducted under subsection (a). 25
12888	12888	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00423 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12889	12889	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 424
12890	12890	•HR 11 IH
12891	12891	(2) MATTERS INCLUDED .—The report sub-1
12892	12892	mitted under paragraph (1) shall include a descrip-2
12893	12893	tion of the extent to which illicit foreign money was 3
12894	12894	used to target particular groups, including rural 4
12895	12895	communities, African-American and other minority 5
12896	12896	communities, and military and veteran communities, 6
12897	12897	based on such targeting information as is available 7
12898	12898	and accessible to the Comptroller General. 8
12899	12899	(3) A
12900	12900	PPLICABLE DATE.—For purposes of para-9
12901	12901	graph (1), the term ‘‘applicable date’’ means— 10
12902	12902	(A) in the case of the 4-year election cycle 11
12903	12903	ending in 2020, the date that is 1 year after 12
12904	12904	the date of the enactment of this Act; and 13
12905	12905	(B) in the case of any other 4-year election 14
12906	12906	cycle, the date that is 1 year after the date on 15
12907	12907	which such 4-year election cycle ends. 16
12908	12908	(c) D
12909	12909	EFINITIONS.—As used in this section: 17
12910	12910	(1) 4-
12911	12911	YEAR ELECTION CYCLE .—The term ‘‘4- 18
12912	12912	year election cycle’’ means the 4-year period ending 19
12913	12913	on the date of the general election for the offices of 20
12914	12914	President and Vice President. 21
12915	12915	(2) I
12916	12916	LLICIT FOREIGN MONEY.—The term ‘‘illicit 22
12917	12917	foreign money’’ means any contribution, donation, 23
12918	12918	expenditure, or disbursement by a foreign national 24
12919	12919	(as defined in section 319(b) of the Federal Election 25
12920	12920	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00424 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12921	12921	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 425
12922	12922	•HR 11 IH
12923	12923	Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(b))) pro-1
12924	12924	hibited under such section. 2
12925	12925	(3) E
12926	12926	LECTION; FEDERAL OFFICE.—The terms 3
12927	12927	‘‘election’’ and ‘‘Federal office’’ have the meanings 4
12928	12928	given such terms under section 301 of the Federal 5
12929	12929	Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101). 6
12930	12930	(4) A
12931	12931	PPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT -7
12932	12932	TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-8
12933	12933	mittees’’ means— 9
12934	12934	(A) the Committee on House Administra-10
12935	12935	tion of the House of Representatives; 11
12936	12936	(B) the Committee on Rules and Adminis-12
12937	12937	tration of the Senate; 13
12938	12938	(C) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 14
12939	12939	House of Representatives; and 15
12940	12940	(D) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 16
12941	12941	Senate. 17
12942	12942	(d) S
12943	12943	UNSET.—This section shall not apply to any 4- 18
12944	12944	year election cycle beginning after the election for the of-19
12945	12945	fices of President and Vice President in 2032. 20
12946	12946	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00425 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12947	12947	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 426
12948	12948	•HR 11 IH
12949	12949	SEC. 6005. PROHIBITION ON CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONA-1
12950	12950	TIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN CONNEC-2
12951	12951	TION WITH BALLOT INITIATIVES AND 3
12952	12952	REFERENDA. 4
12953	12953	(a) I
12954	12954	NGENERAL.—Section 319(b) of the Federal 5
12955	12955	Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(b)), as 6
12956	12956	amended by section 6003, is amended by adding at the 7
12957	12957	end the following new paragraph: 8
12958	12958	‘‘(3) F
12959	12959	EDERAL, STATE, OR LOCAL ELECTION.— 9
12960	12960	The term ‘Federal, State, or local election’ includes 10
12961	12961	a State or local ballot initiative or referendum, but 11
12962	12962	only in the case of— 12
12963	12963	‘‘(A) a covered foreign national described 13
12964	12964	in section 304(j)(3)(C); or 14
12965	12965	‘‘(B) a foreign principal described in sec-15
12966	12966	tion 1(b)(2) or 1(b)(3) of the Foreign Agent 16
12967	12967	Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 17
12968	12968	U.S.C. 611(b)(2) or (b)(3)) or an agent of such 18
12969	12969	a foreign principal under such Act.’’. 19
12970	12970	(b) E
12971	12971	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 20
12972	12972	this section shall apply with respect to elections held in 21
12973	12973	2024 or any succeeding year. 22
12974	12974	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00426 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
12975	12975	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 427
12976	12976	•HR 11 IH
12977	12977	SEC. 6006. DISBURSEMENTS AND ACTIVITIES SUBJECT TO 1
12978	12978	FOREIGN MONEY BAN. 2
12979	12979	(a) D
12980	12980	ISBURSEMENTS DESCRIBED.—Section 3
12981	12981	319(a)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 4
12982	12982	(52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(1)) is amended— 5
12983	12983	(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph 6
12984	12984	(B); and 7
12985	12985	(2) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting 8
12986	12986	the following: 9
12987	12987	‘‘(C) an expenditure; 10
12988	12988	‘‘(D) an independent expenditure; 11
12989	12989	‘‘(E) a disbursement for an electioneering 12
12990	12990	communication (within the meaning of section 13
12991	12991	304(f)(3)); 14
12992	12992	‘‘(F) a disbursement for a communication 15
12993	12993	which is placed or promoted for a fee on a 16
12994	12994	website, web application, or digital application 17
12995	12995	that refers to a clearly identified candidate for 18
12996	12996	election for Federal office and is disseminated 19
12997	12997	within 60 days before a general, special or run-20
12998	12998	off election for the office sought by the can-21
12999	12999	didate or 30 days before a primary or pref-22
13000	13000	erence election, or a convention or caucus of a 23
13001	13001	political party that has authority to nominate a 24
13002	13002	candidate for the office sought by the can-25
13003	13003	didate; 26
13004	13004	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00427 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13005	13005	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 428
13006	13006	•HR 11 IH
13007	13007	‘‘(G) a disbursement by a covered foreign 1
13008	13008	national described in section 304(j)(3)(C) for a 2
13009	13009	broadcast, cable or satellite communication, or 3
13010	13010	for a communication which is placed or pro-4
13011	13011	moted for a fee on a website, web application, 5
13012	13012	or digital application, that promotes, supports, 6
13013	13013	attacks or opposes the election of a clearly iden-7
13014	13014	tified candidate for Federal, State, or local of-8
13015	13015	fice (regardless of whether the communication 9
13016	13016	contains express advocacy or the functional 10
13017	13017	equivalent of express advocacy); 11
13018	13018	‘‘(H) a disbursement for a broadcast, 12
13019	13019	cable, or satellite communication, or for any 13
13020	13020	communication which is placed or promoted for 14
13021	13021	a fee on an online platform (as defined in sec-15
13022	13022	tion 304(k)(3)), that discusses a national legis-16
13023	13023	lative issue of public importance in a year in 17
13024	13024	which a regularly scheduled general election for 18
13025	13025	Federal office is held, but only if the disburse-19
13026	13026	ment is made by a covered foreign national de-20
13027	13027	scribed in section 304(j)(3)(C); 21
13028	13028	‘‘(I) a disbursement by a covered foreign 22
13029	13029	national described in section 304(j)(3)(C) to 23
13030	13030	compensate any person for internet activity that 24
13031	13031	promotes, supports, attacks or opposes the elec-25
13032	13032	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00428 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13033	13033	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 429
13034	13034	•HR 11 IH
13035	13035	tion of a clearly identified candidate for Fed-1
13036	13036	eral, State, or local office (regardless of whether 2
13037	13037	the activity contains express advocacy or the 3
13038	13038	functional equivalent of express advocacy); or 4
13039	13039	‘‘(J) a disbursement by a covered foreign 5
13040	13040	national described in section 304(j)(3)(C) for a 6
13041	13041	Federal judicial nomination communication (as 7
13042	13042	defined in section 324(g)(2));’’. 8
13043	13043	(b) E
13044	13044	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 9
13045	13045	this section shall apply with respect to disbursements 10
13046	13046	made on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 11
13047	13047	SEC. 6007. PROHIBITING ESTABLISHMENT OF CORPORA-12
13048	13048	TION TO CONCEAL ELECTION CONTRIBU-13
13049	13049	TIONS AND DONATIONS BY FOREIGN NATION-14
13050	13050	ALS. 15
13051	13051	(a) P
13052	13052	ROHIBITION.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 16
13053	13053	States Code, as amended by section 2001(a), is amended 17
13054	13054	by adding at the end the following: 18
13055	13055	‘‘§ 613. Establishment of corporation to conceal elec-19
13056	13056	tion contributions and donations by for-20
13057	13057	eign nationals 21
13058	13058	‘‘(a) O
13059	13059	FFENSE.—It shall be unlawful for an owner, 22
13060	13060	officer, attorney, or incorporation agent of a corporation, 23
13061	13061	company, or other entity to establish or use the corpora-24
13062	13062	tion, company, or other entity with the intent to conceal 25
13063	13063	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00429 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13064	13064	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 430
13065	13065	•HR 11 IH
13066	13066	an activity of a foreign national (as defined in section 319 1
13067	13067	of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 2
13068	13068	30121)) prohibited under such section 319. 3
13069	13069	‘‘(b) P
13070	13070	ENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 4
13071	13071	(a) shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years, fined 5
13072	13072	under this title, or both.’’. 6
13073	13073	(b) T
13074	13074	ABLE OFSECTIONS.—The table of sections for 7
13075	13075	chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, as amended 8
13076	13076	by section 2001(b), is amended by inserting after the item 9
13077	13077	relating to section 612 the following: 10
13078	13078	‘‘613. Establishment of corporation to conceal election contributions and dona-
13079	13079	tions by foreign nationals.’’.
13080	13080	PART 2—REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED 11
13081	13081	DISBURSEMENTS 12
13082	13082	SEC. 6011. REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE-13
13083	13083	MENTS. 14
13084	13084	(a) I
13085	13085	NGENERAL.—Section 324 of the Federal Elec-15
13086	13086	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30126) is amended 16
13087	13087	to read as follows: 17
13088	13088	‘‘SEC. 324. DISCLOSURE OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE-18
13089	13089	MENTS BY COVERED ORGANIZATIONS. 19
13090	13090	‘‘(a) D
13091	13091	ISCLOSURESTATEMENT.— 20
13092	13092	‘‘(1) I
13093	13093	N GENERAL.—Any covered organization 21
13094	13094	that makes campaign-related disbursements aggre-22
13095	13095	gating more than $10,000 in an election reporting 23
13096	13096	cycle shall, not later than 24 hours after each disclo-24
13097	13097	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00430 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13098	13098	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 431
13099	13099	•HR 11 IH
13100	13100	sure date, file a statement with the Commission 1
13101	13101	made under penalty of perjury that contains the in-2
13102	13102	formation described in paragraph (2)— 3
13103	13103	‘‘(A) in the case of the first statement filed 4
13104	13104	under this subsection, for the period beginning 5
13105	13105	on the first day of the election reporting cycle 6
13106	13106	(or, if earlier, the period beginning one year be-7
13107	13107	fore the first such disclosure date) and ending 8
13108	13108	on the first such disclosure date; and 9
13109	13109	‘‘(B) in the case of any subsequent state-10
13110	13110	ment filed under this subsection, for the period 11
13111	13111	beginning on the previous disclosure date and 12
13112	13112	ending on such disclosure date. 13
13113	13113	‘‘(2) I
13114	13114	NFORMATION DESCRIBED .—The informa-14
13115	13115	tion described in this paragraph is as follows: 15
13116	13116	‘‘(A) The name of the covered organization 16
13117	13117	and the principal place of business of such or-17
13118	13118	ganization and, in the case of a covered organi-18
13119	13119	zation that is a corporation (other than a busi-19
13120	13120	ness concern that is an issuer of a class of secu-20
13121	13121	rities registered under section 12 of the Securi-21
13122	13122	ties Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78l) or 22
13123	13123	that is required to file reports under section 23
13124	13124	15(d) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 78o(d))) or an en-24
13125	13125	tity described in subsection (e)(2), a list of the 25
13126	13126	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00431 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13127	13127	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 432
13128	13128	•HR 11 IH
13129	13129	beneficial owners (as defined in paragraph 1
13130	13130	(4)(A)) of the entity that— 2
13131	13131	‘‘(i) identifies each beneficial owner by 3
13132	13132	name and current residential or business 4
13133	13133	street address; and 5
13134	13134	‘‘(ii) if any beneficial owner exercises 6
13135	13135	control over the entity through another 7
13136	13136	legal entity, such as a corporation, partner-8
13137	13137	ship, limited liability company, or trust, 9
13138	13138	identifies each such other legal entity and 10
13139	13139	each such beneficial owner who will use 11
13140	13140	that other entity to exercise control over 12
13141	13141	the entity. 13
13142	13142	‘‘(B) The amount of each campaign-related 14
13143	13143	disbursement made by such organization during 15
13144	13144	the period covered by the statement of more 16
13145	13145	than $1,000, and the name and address of the 17
13146	13146	person to whom the disbursement was made. 18
13147	13147	‘‘(C) In the case of a campaign-related dis-19
13148	13148	bursement that is not a covered transfer, the 20
13149	13149	election to which the campaign-related disburse-21
13150	13150	ment pertains and if the disbursement is made 22
13151	13151	for a public communication, the name of any 23
13152	13152	candidate identified in such communication and 24
13153	13153	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00432 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13154	13154	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 433
13155	13155	•HR 11 IH
13156	13156	if such communication is in support of or in op-1
13157	13157	position to the identified candidate. 2
13158	13158	‘‘(D) A certification by the chief executive 3
13159	13159	officer or person who is the head of the covered 4
13160	13160	organization that the campaign-related dis-5
13161	13161	bursement is not made in cooperation, consulta-6
13162	13162	tion, or concert with or at the request or sug-7
13163	13163	gestion of a candidate, authorized committee, or 8
13164	13164	agent of a candidate, political party, or agent of 9
13165	13165	a political party. 10
13166	13166	‘‘(E)(i) If the covered organization makes 11
13167	13167	campaign-related disbursements using exclu-12
13168	13168	sively funds in a campaign-related disbursement 13
13169	13169	segregated fund, for each payment made to the 14
13170	13170	account by a person other than the covered or-15
13171	13171	ganization— 16
13172	13172	‘‘(I) the name and address of each 17
13173	13173	person who made such payment to the ac-18
13174	13174	count during the period covered by the 19
13175	13175	statement; 20
13176	13176	‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 21
13177	13177	payment; and 22
13178	13178	‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 23
13179	13179	such payments made by the person during 24
13180	13180	the period beginning on the first day of the 25
13181	13181	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00433 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13182	13182	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 434
13183	13183	•HR 11 IH
13184	13184	election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 1
13185	13185	period beginning one year before the dis-2
13186	13186	closure date) and ending on the disclosure 3
13187	13187	date, 4
13188	13188	but only if such payment was made by a person 5
13189	13189	who made payments to the account in an aggre-6
13190	13190	gate amount of $10,000 or more during the pe-7
13191	13191	riod beginning on the first day of the election 8
13192	13192	reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the period begin-9
13193	13193	ning one year before the disclosure date) and 10
13194	13194	ending on the disclosure date. 11
13195	13195	‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2024, sec-12
13196	13196	tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de-13
13197	13197	scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 14
13198	13198	such section applies to the limitations estab-15
13199	13199	lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 16
13200	13200	(a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for 17
13201	13201	purposes of applying such section to the 18
13202	13202	amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 19
13203	13203	period’ shall be calendar year 2024. 20
13204	13204	‘‘(F)(i) If the covered organization makes 21
13205	13205	campaign-related disbursements using funds 22
13206	13206	other than funds in a campaign-related dis-23
13207	13207	bursement segregated fund, for each payment 24
13208	13208	to the covered organization— 25
13209	13209	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00434 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13210	13210	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 435
13211	13211	•HR 11 IH
13212	13212	‘‘(I) the name and address of each 1
13213	13213	person who made such payment during the 2
13214	13214	period covered by the statement; 3
13215	13215	‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 4
13216	13216	payment; and 5
13217	13217	‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 6
13218	13218	such payments made by the person during 7
13219	13219	the period beginning on the first day of the 8
13220	13220	election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 9
13221	13221	period beginning one year before the dis-10
13222	13222	closure date) and ending on the disclosure 11
13223	13223	date, 12
13224	13224	but only if such payment was made by a person 13
13225	13225	who made payments to the covered organization 14
13226	13226	in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more 15
13227	13227	during the period beginning on the first day of 16
13228	13228	the election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 17
13229	13229	period beginning one year before the disclosure 18
13230	13230	date) and ending on the disclosure date. 19
13231	13231	‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2024, sec-20
13232	13232	tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de-21
13233	13233	scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 22
13234	13234	such section applies to the limitations estab-23
13235	13235	lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 24
13236	13236	(a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for 25
13237	13237	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00435 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13238	13238	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 436
13239	13239	•HR 11 IH
13240	13240	purposes of applying such section to the 1
13241	13241	amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 2
13242	13242	period’ shall be calendar year 2024. 3
13243	13243	‘‘(G) Such other information as required in 4
13244	13244	rules established by the Commission to promote 5
13245	13245	the purposes of this section. 6
13246	13246	‘‘(3) E
13247	13247	XCEPTIONS.— 7
13248	13248	‘‘(A) A
13249	13249	MOUNTS RECEIVED IN ORDINARY 8
13250	13250	COURSE OF BUSINESS.—The requirement to in-9
13251	13251	clude in a statement filed under paragraph (1) 10
13252	13252	the information described in paragraph (2) 11
13253	13253	shall not apply to amounts received by the cov-12
13254	13254	ered organization in commercial transactions in 13
13255	13255	the ordinary course of any trade or business 14
13256	13256	conducted by the covered organization or in the 15
13257	13257	form of investments (other than investments by 16
13258	13258	the principal shareholder in a limited liability 17
13259	13259	corporation) in the covered organization. For 18
13260	13260	purposes of this subparagraph, amounts re-19
13261	13261	ceived by a covered organization as remittances 20
13262	13262	from an employee to the employee’s collective 21
13263	13263	bargaining representative shall be treated as 22
13264	13264	amounts received in commercial transactions in 23
13265	13265	the ordinary course of the business conducted 24
13266	13266	by the covered organization. 25
13267	13267	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00436 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13268	13268	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 437
13269	13269	•HR 11 IH
13270	13270	‘‘(B) DONOR RESTRICTION ON USE OF 1
13271	13271	FUNDS.—The requirement to include in a state-2
13272	13272	ment submitted under paragraph (1) the infor-3
13273	13273	mation described in subparagraph (F) of para-4
13274	13274	graph (2) shall not apply if— 5
13275	13275	‘‘(i) the person described in such sub-6
13276	13276	paragraph prohibited, in writing, the use of 7
13277	13277	the payment made by such person for cam-8
13278	13278	paign-related disbursements; and 9
13279	13279	‘‘(ii) the covered organization agreed 10
13280	13280	to follow the prohibition and deposited the 11
13281	13281	payment in an account which is segregated 12
13282	13282	from a campaign-related disbursement seg-13
13283	13283	regated fund and any other account used 14
13284	13284	to make campaign-related disbursements. 15
13285	13285	‘‘(C) T
13286	13286	HREAT OF HARASSMENT OR RE -16
13287	13287	PRISAL.—The requirement to include any infor-17
13288	13288	mation relating to the name or address of any 18
13289	13289	person (other than a candidate) in a statement 19
13290	13290	submitted under paragraph (1) shall not apply 20
13291	13291	if the inclusion of the information would subject 21
13292	13292	the person to serious threats, harassment, or 22
13293	13293	reprisals. 23
13294	13294	‘‘(4) O
13295	13295	THER DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 24
13296	13296	this section: 25
13297	13297	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00437 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13298	13298	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 438
13299	13299	•HR 11 IH
13300	13300	‘‘(A) BENEFICIAL OWNER DEFINED .— 1
13301	13301	‘‘(i) I
13302	13302	N GENERAL.—Except as pro-2
13303	13303	vided in clause (ii), the term ‘beneficial 3
13304	13304	owner’ means, with respect to any entity, 4
13305	13305	a natural person who, directly or indi-5
13306	13306	rectly— 6
13307	13307	‘‘(I) exercises substantial control 7
13308	13308	over an entity through ownership, vot-8
13309	13309	ing rights, agreement, or otherwise; or 9
13310	13310	‘‘(II) has a substantial interest in 10
13311	13311	or receives substantial economic bene-11
13312	13312	fits from the assets of an entity. 12
13313	13313	‘‘(ii) E
13314	13314	XCEPTIONS.—The term ‘bene-13
13315	13315	ficial owner’ shall not include— 14
13316	13316	‘‘(I) a minor child; 15
13317	13317	‘‘(II) a person acting as a nomi-16
13318	13318	nee, intermediary, custodian, or agent 17
13319	13319	on behalf of another person; 18
13320	13320	‘‘(III) a person acting solely as 19
13321	13321	an employee of an entity and whose 20
13322	13322	control over or economic benefits from 21
13323	13323	the entity derives solely from the em-22
13324	13324	ployment status of the person; 23
13325	13325	‘‘(IV) a person whose only inter-24
13326	13326	est in an entity is through a right of 25
13327	13327	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00438 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13328	13328	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 439
13329	13329	•HR 11 IH
13330	13330	inheritance, unless the person also 1
13331	13331	meets the requirements of clause (i); 2
13332	13332	or 3
13333	13333	‘‘(V) a creditor of an entity, un-4
13334	13334	less the creditor also meets the re-5
13335	13335	quirements of clause (i). 6
13336	13336	‘‘(iii) A
13337	13337	NTI-ABUSE RULE.—The excep-7
13338	13338	tions under clause (ii) shall not apply if 8
13339	13339	used for the purpose of evading, circum-9
13340	13340	venting, or abusing the provisions of clause 10
13341	13341	(i) or paragraph (2)(A). 11
13342	13342	‘‘(B) C
13343	13343	AMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSEMENT 12
13344	13344	SEGREGATED FUND .—The term ‘campaign-re-13
13345	13345	lated disbursement segregated fund’ means a 14
13346	13346	segregated bank account consisting of funds 15
13347	13347	that were paid directly to such account by per-16
13348	13348	sons other than the covered organization that 17
13349	13349	controls the account. 18
13350	13350	‘‘(C) D
13351	13351	ISCLOSURE DATE.—The term ‘dis-19
13352	13352	closure date’ means— 20
13353	13353	‘‘(i) the first date during any election 21
13354	13354	reporting cycle by which a person has 22
13355	13355	made campaign-related disbursements ag-23
13356	13356	gregating more than $10,000; and 24
13357	13357	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00439 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13358	13358	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 440
13359	13359	•HR 11 IH
13360	13360	‘‘(ii) any other date during such elec-1
13361	13361	tion reporting cycle by which a person has 2
13362	13362	made campaign-related disbursements ag-3
13363	13363	gregating more than $10,000 since the 4
13364	13364	most recent disclosure date for such elec-5
13365	13365	tion reporting cycle. 6
13366	13366	‘‘(D) E
13367	13367	LECTION REPORTING CYCLE .—The 7
13368	13368	term ‘election reporting cycle’ means the 2-year 8
13369	13369	period beginning on the date of the most recent 9
13370	13370	general election for Federal office. 10
13371	13371	‘‘(E) P
13372	13372	AYMENT.—The term ‘payment’ in-11
13373	13373	cludes any contribution, donation, transfer, pay-12
13374	13374	ment of dues, or other payment. 13
13375	13375	‘‘(b) C
13376	13376	OORDINATIONWITHOTHERPROVISIONS.—In-14
13377	13377	formation included in a statement filed under this section 15
13378	13378	may be excluded from statements and reports filed under 16
13379	13379	section 304. 17
13380	13380	‘‘(c) F
13381	13381	ILING.—Statements required to be filed under 18
13382	13382	subsection (a) shall be subject to the requirements of sec-19
13383	13383	tion 304(d) to the same extent and in the same manner 20
13384	13384	as if such reports had been required under subsection (c) 21
13385	13385	or (g) of section 304. 22
13386	13386	‘‘(d) C
13387	13387	AMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSEMENT DE-23
13388	13388	FINED.— 24
13389	13389	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00440 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13390	13390	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 441
13391	13391	•HR 11 IH
13392	13392	‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 1
13393	13393	‘campaign-related disbursement’ means a disburse-2
13394	13394	ment by a covered organization for any of the fol-3
13395	13395	lowing: 4
13396	13396	‘‘(A) An independent expenditure which ex-5
13397	13397	pressly advocates the election or defeat of a 6
13398	13398	clearly identified candidate for election for Fed-7
13399	13399	eral office, or is the functional equivalent of ex-8
13400	13400	press advocacy because, when taken as a whole, 9
13401	13401	it can be interpreted by a reasonable person 10
13402	13402	only as advocating the election or defeat of a 11
13403	13403	candidate for election for Federal office. 12
13404	13404	‘‘(B) An applicable public communication. 13
13405	13405	‘‘(C) An electioneering communication, as 14
13406	13406	defined in section 304(f)(3). 15
13407	13407	‘‘(D) A covered transfer. 16
13408	13408	‘‘(2) A
13409	13409	PPLICABLE PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS .— 17
13410	13410	‘‘(A) I
13411	13411	N GENERAL.—The term ‘applicable 18
13412	13412	public communication’ means any public com-19
13413	13413	munication that refers to a clearly identified 20
13414	13414	candidate for election for Federal office and 21
13415	13415	which promotes or supports the election of a 22
13416	13416	candidate for that office, or attacks or opposes 23
13417	13417	the election of a candidate for that office, with-24
13418	13418	out regard to whether the communication ex-25
13419	13419	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00441 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13420	13420	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 442
13421	13421	•HR 11 IH
13422	13422	pressly advocates a vote for or against a can-1
13423	13423	didate for that office. 2
13424	13424	‘‘(B) E
13425	13425	XCEPTION.—Such term shall not in-3
13426	13426	clude any news story, commentary, or editorial 4
13427	13427	distributed through the facilities of any broad-5
13428	13428	casting station or any print, online, or digital 6
13429	13429	newspaper, magazine, publication, or periodical, 7
13430	13430	unless such facilities are owned or controlled by 8
13431	13431	any political party, political committee, or can-9
13432	13432	didate. 10
13433	13433	‘‘(e) C
13434	13434	OVEREDORGANIZATIONDEFINED.—In this 11
13435	13435	section, the term ‘covered organization’ means any of the 12
13436	13436	following: 13
13437	13437	‘‘(1) A corporation (other than an organization 14
13438	13438	described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Rev-15
13439	13439	enue Code of 1986). 16
13440	13440	‘‘(2) A limited liability corporation that is not 17
13441	13441	otherwise treated as a corporation for purposes of 18
13442	13442	this Act (other than an organization described in 19
13443	13443	section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 20
13444	13444	1986). 21
13445	13445	‘‘(3) An organization described in section 22
13446	13446	501(c) of such Code and exempt from taxation 23
13447	13447	under section 501(a) of such Code (other than an 24
13448	13448	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00442 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13449	13449	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 443
13450	13450	•HR 11 IH
13451	13451	organization described in section 501(c)(3) of such 1
13452	13452	Code). 2
13453	13453	‘‘(4) A labor organization (as defined in section 3
13454	13454	316(b)). 4
13455	13455	‘‘(5) Any political organization under section 5
13456	13456	527 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, other 6
13457	13457	than a political committee under this Act (except as 7
13458	13458	provided in paragraph (6)). 8
13459	13459	‘‘(6) A political committee with an account that 9
13460	13460	accepts donations or contributions that do not com-10
13461	13461	ply with the contribution limits or source prohibi-11
13462	13462	tions under this Act, but only with respect to such 12
13463	13463	accounts. 13
13464	13464	‘‘(f) C
13465	13465	OVEREDTRANSFERDEFINED.— 14
13466	13466	‘‘(1) I
13467	13467	N GENERAL.—In this section, the term 15
13468	13468	‘covered transfer’ means any transfer or payment of 16
13469	13469	funds by a covered organization to another person if 17
13470	13470	the covered organization— 18
13471	13471	‘‘(A) designates, requests, or suggests that 19
13472	13472	the amounts be used for— 20
13473	13473	‘‘(i) campaign-related disbursements 21
13474	13474	(other than covered transfers); or 22
13475	13475	‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 23
13476	13476	person for the purpose of making or pay-24
13477	13477	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00443 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13478	13478	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 444
13479	13479	•HR 11 IH
13480	13480	ing for such campaign-related disburse-1
13481	13481	ments; 2
13482	13482	‘‘(B) made such transfer or payment in re-3
13483	13483	sponse to a solicitation or other request for a 4
13484	13484	donation or payment for— 5
13485	13485	‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam-6
13486	13486	paign-related disbursements (other than 7
13487	13487	covered transfers); or 8
13488	13488	‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 9
13489	13489	person for the purpose of making or pay-10
13490	13490	ing for such campaign-related disburse-11
13491	13491	ments; 12
13492	13492	‘‘(C) engaged in discussions with the re-13
13493	13493	cipient of the transfer or payment regarding— 14
13494	13494	‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam-15
13495	13495	paign-related disbursements (other than 16
13496	13496	covered transfers); or 17
13497	13497	‘‘(ii) donating or transferring any 18
13498	13498	amount of such transfer or payment to an-19
13499	13499	other person for the purpose of making or 20
13500	13500	paying for such campaign-related disburse-21
13501	13501	ments; or 22
13502	13502	‘‘(D) knew or had reason to know that the 23
13503	13503	person receiving the transfer or payment would 24
13504	13504	make campaign-related disbursements in an ag-25
13505	13505	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00444 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13506	13506	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 445
13507	13507	•HR 11 IH
13508	13508	gregate amount of $50,000 or more during the 1
13509	13509	2-year period beginning on the date of the 2
13510	13510	transfer or payment. 3
13511	13511	‘‘(2) E
13512	13512	XCLUSIONS.—The term ‘covered transfer’ 4
13513	13513	does not include any of the following: 5
13514	13514	‘‘(A) A disbursement made by a covered 6
13515	13515	organization in a commercial transaction in the 7
13516	13516	ordinary course of any trade or business con-8
13517	13517	ducted by the covered organization or in the 9
13518	13518	form of investments made by the covered orga-10
13519	13519	nization. 11
13520	13520	‘‘(B) A disbursement made by a covered 12
13521	13521	organization if— 13
13522	13522	‘‘(i) the covered organization prohib-14
13523	13523	ited, in writing, the use of such disburse-15
13524	13524	ment for campaign-related disbursements; 16
13525	13525	and 17
13526	13526	‘‘(ii) the recipient of the disbursement 18
13527	13527	agreed to follow the prohibition and depos-19
13528	13528	ited the disbursement in an account which 20
13529	13529	is segregated from a campaign-related dis-21
13530	13530	bursement segregated fund and any other 22
13531	13531	account used to make campaign-related 23
13532	13532	disbursements. 24
13533	13533	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00445 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13534	13534	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 446
13535	13535	•HR 11 IH
13536	13536	‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE REGARDING TRANSFERS 1
13537	13537	AMONG AFFILIATES.— 2
13538	13538	‘‘(A) S
13539	13539	PECIAL RULE.—A transfer of an 3
13540	13540	amount by one covered organization to another 4
13541	13541	covered organization which is treated as a 5
13542	13542	transfer between affiliates under subparagraph 6
13543	13543	(C) shall be considered a covered transfer by 7
13544	13544	the covered organization which transfers the 8
13545	13545	amount only if the aggregate amount trans-9
13546	13546	ferred during the year by such covered organi-10
13547	13547	zation to that same covered organization is 11
13548	13548	equal to or greater than $50,000. 12
13549	13549	‘‘(B) D
13550	13550	ETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF 13
13551	13551	CERTAIN PAYMENTS AMONG AFFILIATES .—In 14
13552	13552	determining the amount of a transfer between 15
13553	13553	affiliates for purposes of subparagraph (A), to 16
13554	13554	the extent that the transfer consists of funds 17
13555	13555	attributable to dues, fees, or assessments which 18
13556	13556	are paid by individuals on a regular, periodic 19
13557	13557	basis in accordance with a per-individual cal-20
13558	13558	culation which is made on a regular basis, the 21
13559	13559	transfer shall be attributed to the individuals 22
13560	13560	paying the dues, fees, or assessments and shall 23
13561	13561	not be attributed to the covered organization. 24
13562	13562	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00446 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13563	13563	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 447
13564	13564	•HR 11 IH
13565	13565	‘‘(C) DESCRIPTION OF TRANSFERS BE -1
13566	13566	TWEEN AFFILIATES .—A transfer of amounts 2
13567	13567	from one covered organization to another cov-3
13568	13568	ered organization shall be treated as a transfer 4
13569	13569	between affiliates if— 5
13570	13570	‘‘(i) one of the organizations is an af-6
13571	13571	filiate of the other organization; or 7
13572	13572	‘‘(ii) each of the organizations is an 8
13573	13573	affiliate of the same organization, 9
13574	13574	except that the transfer shall not be treated as 10
13575	13575	a transfer between affiliates if one of the orga-11
13576	13576	nizations is established for the purpose of mak-12
13577	13577	ing campaign-related disbursements. 13
13578	13578	‘‘(D) D
13579	13579	ETERMINATION OF AFFILIATE STA -14
13580	13580	TUS.—For purposes of subparagraph (C), a 15
13581	13581	covered organization is an affiliate of another 16
13582	13582	covered organization if— 17
13583	13583	‘‘(i) the governing instrument of the 18
13584	13584	organization requires it to be bound by de-19
13585	13585	cisions of the other organization; 20
13586	13586	‘‘(ii) the governing board of the orga-21
13587	13587	nization includes persons who are specifi-22
13588	13588	cally designated representatives of the 23
13589	13589	other organization or are members of the 24
13590	13590	governing board, officers, or paid executive 25
13591	13591	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00447 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13592	13592	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 448
13593	13593	•HR 11 IH
13594	13594	staff members of the other organization, or 1
13595	13595	whose service on the governing board is 2
13596	13596	contingent upon the approval of the other 3
13597	13597	organization; or 4
13598	13598	‘‘(iii) the organization is chartered by 5
13599	13599	the other organization. 6
13600	13600	‘‘(E) C
13601	13601	OVERAGE OF TRANSFERS TO AF -7
13602	13602	FILIATED SECTION 501(c)(3) ORGANIZATIONS.— 8
13603	13603	This paragraph shall apply with respect to an 9
13604	13604	amount transferred by a covered organization 10
13605	13605	to an organization described in paragraph (3) 11
13606	13606	of section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code 12
13607	13607	of 1986 and exempt from tax under section 13
13608	13608	501(a) of such Code in the same manner as 14
13609	13609	this paragraph applies to an amount trans-15
13610	13610	ferred by a covered organization to another cov-16
13611	13611	ered organization. 17
13612	13612	‘‘(g) N
13613	13613	OEFFECT ONOTHERREPORTINGREQUIRE-18
13614	13614	MENTS.—Except as provided in subsection (b)(1), nothing 19
13615	13615	in this section shall be construed to waive or otherwise 20
13616	13616	affect any other requirement of this Act which relates to 21
13617	13617	the reporting of campaign-related disbursements.’’. 22
13618	13618	(b) C
13619	13619	ONFORMINGAMENDMENT.—Section 304(f)(6) 23
13620	13620	of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104) is amended by striking 24
13621	13621	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00448 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13622	13622	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 449
13623	13623	•HR 11 IH
13624	13624	‘‘Any requirement’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in 1
13625	13625	section 324(b), any requirement’’. 2
13626	13626	(c) R
13627	13627	EGULATIONS.—Not later than 6 months after 3
13628	13628	the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 4
13629	13629	Commission shall promulgate regulations relating the ap-5
13630	13630	plication of the exemption under section 324(a)(3)(C) of 6
13631	13631	the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by 7
13632	13632	subsection (a)). Such regulations— 8
13633	13633	(1) shall require that the legal burden of estab-9
13634	13634	lishing eligibility for such exemption is upon the or-10
13635	13635	ganization required to make the report required 11
13636	13636	under section 324(a)(1) of such Act (as added by 12
13637	13637	subsection (a)), and 13
13638	13638	(2) shall be consistent with the principles ap-14
13639	13639	plied in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commis-15
13640	13640	sion, 558 U.S. 310 (2010). 16
13641	13641	SEC. 6012. REPORTING OF FEDERAL JUDICIAL NOMINA-17
13642	13642	TION DISBURSEMENTS. 18
13643	13643	(a) F
13644	13644	INDINGS.—Congress makes the following find-19
13645	13645	ings: 20
13646	13646	(1) A fair and impartial judiciary is critical for 21
13647	13647	our democracy and crucial to maintain the faith of 22
13648	13648	the people of the United States in the justice sys-23
13649	13649	tem. As the Supreme Court held in Caperton v. 24
13650	13650	Massey, ‘‘there is a serious risk of actual bias— 25
13651	13651	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00449 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13652	13652	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 450
13653	13653	•HR 11 IH
13654	13654	based on objective and reasonable perceptions— 1
13655	13655	when a person with a personal stake in a particular 2
13656	13656	case had a significant and disproportionate influence 3
13657	13657	in placing the judge on the case’’. (Caperton v. A. 4
13658	13658	T. Massey Coal Co., 556 U.S. 868, 884 (2009)). 5
13659	13659	(2) Public trust in government is at a historic 6
13660	13660	low. According to polling, most Americans believe 7
13661	13661	that corporations have too much power and influence 8
13662	13662	in politics and the courts. 9
13663	13663	(3) The prevalence and pervasiveness of dark 10
13664	13664	money drives public concern about corruption in pol-11
13665	13665	itics and the courts. Dark money is funding for or-12
13666	13666	ganizations and political activities that cannot be 13
13667	13667	traced to actual donors. It is made possible by loop-14
13668	13668	holes in our tax laws and regulations, weak oversight 15
13669	13669	by the Internal Revenue Service, and donor-friendly 16
13670	13670	court decisions. 17
13671	13671	(4) Under current law, ‘‘social welfare’’ organi-18
13672	13672	zations and business leagues can use funds to influ-19
13673	13673	ence elections so long as political activity is not their 20
13674	13674	‘‘primary’’ activity. Super PACs can accept and 21
13675	13675	spend unlimited contributions from any non-foreign 22
13676	13676	source. These groups can spend tens of millions of 23
13677	13677	dollars on political activities. Such dark money 24
13678	13678	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00450 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13679	13679	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 451
13680	13680	•HR 11 IH
13681	13681	groups spent an estimated $1,050,000,000 in the 1
13682	13682	2020 election cycle. 2
13683	13683	(5) Dark money is used to shape judicial deci-3
13684	13684	sion making. This can take many forms, akin to 4
13685	13685	agency capture: influencing judicial selection by con-5
13686	13686	trolling who gets nominated and funding candidate 6
13687	13687	advertisements; creating public relations campaigns 7
13688	13688	aimed at mobilizing the judiciary around particular 8
13689	13689	issues; and drafting law review articles, amicus 9
13690	13690	briefs, and other products which tell judges how to 10
13691	13691	decide a given case and provide ready-made argu-11
13692	13692	ments for willing judges to adopt. 12
13693	13693	(6) Over the past decade, nonprofit organiza-13
13694	13694	tions that do not disclose their donors have spent 14
13695	13695	hundreds of millions of dollars to influence the nomi-15
13696	13696	nation and confirmation process for Federal judges. 16
13697	13697	One organization alone has spent nearly 17
13698	13698	$40,000,000 on advertisements supporting or oppos-18
13699	13699	ing Supreme Court nominees since 2016. 19
13700	13700	(7) Anonymous money spent on judicial nomi-20
13701	13701	nations is not subject to any disclosure require-21
13702	13702	ments. Federal election laws only regulate contribu-22
13703	13703	tions and expenditures relating to electoral politics; 23
13704	13704	thus, expenditures, contributions, and advocacy ef-24
13705	13705	forts for Federal judgeships are not covered under 25
13706	13706	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00451 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13707	13707	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 452
13708	13708	•HR 11 IH
13709	13709	the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. With-1
13710	13710	out more disclosure, the public has no way of know-2
13711	13711	ing whether the people spending money supporting 3
13712	13712	or opposing judicial nominations have business be-4
13713	13713	fore the courts. 5
13714	13714	(8) Congress and the American people have a 6
13715	13715	compelling interest in knowing who is funding these 7
13716	13716	campaigns to select and confirm judges to lifetime 8
13717	13717	appointments on the Federal bench. 9
13718	13718	(b) R
13719	13719	EPORTING.—Section 324 of the Federal Elec-10
13720	13720	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30126), as amend-11
13721	13721	ed by section 6011, is amended by redesignating sub-12
13722	13722	section (g) as subsection (h) and by inserting after sub-13
13723	13723	section (f) the following new subsection: 14
13724	13724	‘‘(g) A
13725	13725	PPLICATION TOFEDERALJUDICIALNOMINA-15
13726	13726	TIONS.— 16
13727	13727	‘‘(1) I
13728	13728	N GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec-17
13729	13729	tion— 18
13730	13730	‘‘(A) a disbursement by a covered organi-19
13731	13731	zation for a Federal judicial nomination com-20
13732	13732	munication shall be treated as a campaign-re-21
13733	13733	lated disbursement; and 22
13734	13734	‘‘(B) in the case of campaign-related dis-23
13735	13735	bursements which are for Federal judicial nomi-24
13736	13736	nation communications— 25
13737	13737	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00452 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13738	13738	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 453
13739	13739	•HR 11 IH
13740	13740	‘‘(i) the dollar amounts in paragraphs 1
13741	13741	(1) and (2) of subsection (a) shall be ap-2
13742	13742	plied separately with respect to such dis-3
13743	13743	bursements and other campaign-related 4
13744	13744	disbursements; 5
13745	13745	‘‘(ii) the election reporting cycle shall 6
13746	13746	be the calendar year in which the disburse-7
13747	13747	ment for the Federal judicial nomination 8
13748	13748	communication is made; 9
13749	13749	‘‘(iii) references to a candidate in sub-10
13750	13750	sections (a)(2)(C), (a)(2)(D), and 11
13751	13751	(a)(3)(C) shall be treated as references to 12
13752	13752	a nominee for a Federal judge or justice; 13
13753	13753	and 14
13754	13754	‘‘(iv) the reference to an election in 15
13755	13755	subsection (a)(2)(C) shall be treated as a 16
13756	13756	reference to the nomination of such nomi-17
13757	13757	nee. 18
13758	13758	‘‘(2) F
13759	13759	EDERAL JUDICIAL NOMINATION COMMU -19
13760	13760	NICATION.— 20
13761	13761	‘‘(A) I
13762	13762	N GENERAL.—The term ‘Federal ju-21
13763	13763	dicial nomination communication’ means any 22
13764	13764	communication— 23
13765	13765	‘‘(i) that is by means of any broad-24
13766	13766	cast, cable, or satellite, paid internet, or 25
13767	13767	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00453 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13768	13768	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 454
13769	13769	•HR 11 IH
13770	13770	paid digital communication, paid pro-1
13771	13771	motion, newspaper, magazine, outdoor ad-2
13772	13772	vertising facility, mass mailing, telephone 3
13773	13773	bank, telephone messaging effort of more 4
13774	13774	than 500 substantially similar calls or elec-5
13775	13775	tronic messages within a 30-day period, or 6
13776	13776	any other form of general public political 7
13777	13777	advertising; and 8
13778	13778	‘‘(ii) which promotes, supports, at-9
13779	13779	tacks, or opposes the nomination or Senate 10
13780	13780	confirmation of an individual as a Federal 11
13781	13781	judge or justice. 12
13782	13782	‘‘(B) E
13783	13783	XCEPTION.—Such term shall not in-13
13784	13784	clude any news story, commentary, or editorial 14
13785	13785	distributed through the facilities of any broad-15
13786	13786	casting station or any print, online, or digital 16
13787	13787	newspaper, magazine, publication, or periodical, 17
13788	13788	unless such facilities are owned or controlled by 18
13789	13789	any political party, political committee, or can-19
13790	13790	didate. 20
13791	13791	‘‘(C) I
13792	13792	NTENT NOT REQUIRED .—A disburse-21
13793	13793	ment for an item described in subparagraph (A) 22
13794	13794	shall be treated as a disbursement for a Federal 23
13795	13795	judicial nomination communication regardless 24
13796	13796	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00454 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13797	13797	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 455
13798	13798	•HR 11 IH
13799	13799	of the intent of the person making the disburse-1
13800	13800	ment.’’. 2
13801	13801	SEC. 6013. COORDINATION WITH FINCEN. 3
13802	13802	(a) I
13803	13803	NGENERAL.—The Director of the Financial 4
13804	13804	Crimes Enforcement Network of the Department of the 5
13805	13805	Treasury shall provide the Federal Election Commission 6
13806	13806	with such information as necessary to assist in admin-7
13807	13807	istering and enforcing section 324 of the Federal Election 8
13808	13808	Campaign Act of 1971, as amended by this part. 9
13809	13809	(b) R
13810	13810	EPORT.—Not later than 6 months after the date 10
13811	13811	of the enactment of this Act, the Chairman of the Federal 11
13812	13812	Election Commission, in consultation with the Director of 12
13813	13813	the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the De-13
13814	13814	partment of the Treasury, shall submit to Congress a re-14
13815	13815	port with recommendations for providing further legisla-15
13816	13816	tive authority to assist in the administration and enforce-16
13817	13817	ment of such section 324. 17
13818	13818	SEC. 6014. APPLICATION OF FOREIGN MONEY BAN TO DIS-18
13819	13819	BURSEMENTS FOR CAMPAIGN-RELATED DIS-19
13820	13820	BURSEMENTS CONSISTING OF COVERED 20
13821	13821	TRANSFERS. 21
13822	13822	Section 319(b)(2) of the Federal Election Campaign 22
13823	13823	Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(1)(A)), as amended by 23
13824	13824	section 6003, is amended— 24
13825	13825	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00455 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13826	13826	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 456
13827	13827	•HR 11 IH
13828	13828	(1) by striking ‘‘includes any disbursement’’ 1
13829	13829	and inserting ‘‘includes— 2
13830	13830	‘‘(A) any disbursement’’; 3
13831	13831	(2) by striking the period at the end and insert-4
13832	13832	ing ‘‘; and’’, and 5
13833	13833	(3) by adding at the end the following new sub-6
13834	13834	paragraph: 7
13835	13835	‘‘(B) any disbursement, other than a dis-8
13836	13836	bursement described in section 324(a)(3)(A), to 9
13837	13837	another person who made a campaign-related 10
13838	13838	disbursement consisting of a covered transfer 11
13839	13839	(as described in section 324) during the 2-year 12
13840	13840	period ending on the date of the disburse-13
13841	13841	ment.’’. 14
13842	13842	SEC. 6015. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING IMPLEMENTA-15
13843	13843	TION. 16
13844	13844	It is the sense of Congress that the Federal Election 17
13845	13845	Commission should simplify the process for filing any dis-18
13846	13846	closure required under the provisions of, and amendments 19
13847	13847	made by, this part in order to ensure that such process 20
13848	13848	is as easy and accessible as possible. 21
13849	13849	SEC. 6016. EFFECTIVE DATE. 22
13850	13850	The amendments made by this part shall apply with 23
13851	13851	respect to disbursements made on or after January 1, 24
13852	13852	2024, and shall take effect without regard to whether or 25
13853	13853	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00456 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13854	13854	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 457
13855	13855	•HR 11 IH
13856	13856	not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 1
13857	13857	regulations to carry out such amendments. 2
13858	13858	PART 3—OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 3
13859	13859	SEC. 6021. PETITION FOR CERTIORARI. 4
13860	13860	Section 307(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 5
13861	13861	Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30107(a)(6)) is amended by in-6
13862	13862	serting ‘‘(including a proceeding before the Supreme 7
13863	13863	Court on certiorari)’’ after ‘‘appeal’’. 8
13864	13864	SEC. 6022. JUDICIAL REVIEW OF ACTIONS RELATED TO 9
13865	13865	CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS. 10
13866	13866	(a) I
13867	13867	NGENERAL.—Title IV of the Federal Election 11
13868	13868	Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30141 et seq.) is 12
13869	13869	amended by inserting after section 406 the following new 13
13870	13870	section: 14
13871	13871	‘‘SEC. 407. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 15
13872	13872	‘‘(a) I
13873	13873	NGENERAL.—If any action is brought for de-16
13874	13874	claratory or injunctive relief to challenge, whether facially 17
13875	13875	or as-applied, the constitutionality or lawfulness of any 18
13876	13876	provision of this Act, including title V, or of chapter 95 19
13877	13877	or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or is brought 20
13878	13878	to with respect to any action of the Commission under 21
13879	13879	chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 22
13880	13880	the following rules shall apply: 23
13881	13881	‘‘(1) The action shall be filed in the United 24
13882	13882	States District Court for the District of Columbia 25
13883	13883	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00457 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13884	13884	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 458
13885	13885	•HR 11 IH
13886	13886	and an appeal from the decision of the district court 1
13887	13887	may be taken to the Court of Appeals for the Dis-2
13888	13888	trict of Columbia Circuit. 3
13889	13889	‘‘(2) In the case of an action relating to declar-4
13890	13890	atory or injunctive relief to challenge the constitu-5
13891	13891	tionality of a provision, the party filing the action 6
13892	13892	shall concurrently deliver a copy of the complaint to 7
13893	13893	the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the 8
13894	13894	Secretary of the Senate. 9
13895	13895	‘‘(3) It shall be the duty of the United States 10
13896	13896	District Court for the District of Columbia and the 11
13897	13897	Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir-12
13898	13898	cuit to advance on the docket and to expedite to the 13
13899	13899	greatest possible extent the disposition of the action 14
13900	13900	and appeal. 15
13901	13901	‘‘(b) C
13902	13902	LARIFYINGSCOPE OFJURISDICTION.—If an 16
13903	13903	action at the time of its commencement is not subject to 17
13904	13904	subsection (a), but an amendment, counterclaim, cross- 18
13905	13905	claim, affirmative defense, or any other pleading or motion 19
13906	13906	is filed challenging, whether facially or as-applied, the con-20
13907	13907	stitutionality or lawfulness of this Act or of chapter 95 21
13908	13908	or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or is brought 22
13909	13909	to with respect to any action of the Commission under 23
13910	13910	chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 24
13911	13911	the district court shall transfer the action to the District 25
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13913	13913	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 459
13914	13914	•HR 11 IH
13915	13915	Court for the District of Columbia, and the action shall 1
13916	13916	thereafter be conducted pursuant to subsection (a). 2
13917	13917	‘‘(c) I
13918	13918	NTERVENTION BY MEMBERS OFCONGRESS.— 3
13919	13919	In any action described in subsection (a) relating to de-4
13920	13920	claratory or injunctive relief to challenge the constitu-5
13921	13921	tionality of a provision, any Member of the House of Rep-6
13922	13922	resentatives (including a Delegate or Resident Commis-7
13923	13923	sioner to the Congress) or Senate shall have the right to 8
13924	13924	intervene either in support of or opposition to the position 9
13925	13925	of a party to the case regarding the constitutionality of 10
13926	13926	the provision. To avoid duplication of efforts and reduce 11
13927	13927	the burdens placed on the parties to the action, the court 12
13928	13928	in any such action may make such orders as it considers 13
13929	13929	necessary, including orders to require interveners taking 14
13930	13930	similar positions to file joint papers or to be represented 15
13931	13931	by a single attorney at oral argument. 16
13932	13932	‘‘(d) C
13933	13933	HALLENGE BYMEMBERS OFCONGRESS.—Any 17
13934	13934	Member of Congress may bring an action, subject to the 18
13935	13935	special rules described in subsection (a), for declaratory 19
13936	13936	or injunctive relief to challenge, whether facially or as-ap-20
13937	13937	plied, the constitutionality of any provision of this Act or 21
13938	13938	chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 22
13939	13939	(b) C
13940	13940	ONFORMINGAMENDMENTS.— 23
13941	13941	(1) Section 9011 of the Internal Revenue Code 24
13942	13942	of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 25
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13944	13944	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 460
13945	13945	•HR 11 IH
13946	13946	‘‘SEC. 9011. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 1
13947	13947	‘‘For provisions relating to judicial review of certifi-2
13948	13948	cations, determinations, and actions by the Commission 3
13949	13949	under this chapter, see section 407 of the Federal Election 4
13950	13950	Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 5
13951	13951	(2) Section 9041 of the Internal Revenue Code 6
13952	13952	of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 7
13953	13953	‘‘SEC. 9041. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 8
13954	13954	‘‘For provisions relating to judicial review of actions 9
13955	13955	by the Commission under this chapter, see section 407 of 10
13956	13956	the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 11
13957	13957	(3) Section 310 of the Federal Election Cam-12
13958	13958	paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30110) is repealed. 13
13959	13959	(4) Section 403 of the Bipartisan Campaign 14
13960	13960	Reform Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 30110 note) is re-15
13961	13961	pealed. 16
13962	13962	SEC. 6023. EFFECTIVE DATE. 17
13963	13963	The amendments made by this subtitle shall take ef-18
13964	13964	fect and apply on the date of the enactment of this Act, 19
13965	13965	without regard to whether or not the Federal Election 20
13966	13966	Commission has promulgated regulations to carry out this 21
13967	13967	subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle. 22
13968	13968	Subtitle B—Honest Ads 23
13969	13969	SEC. 6101. SHORT TITLE. 24
13970	13970	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Honest Ads Act’’. 25
13971	13971	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00460 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
13972	13972	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 461
13973	13973	•HR 11 IH
13974	13974	SEC. 6102. PURPOSE. 1
13975	13975	The purpose of this subtitle is to enhance the integ-2
13976	13976	rity of American democracy and national security by im-3
13977	13977	proving disclosure requirements for online political adver-4
13978	13978	tisements in order to uphold the Supreme Court’s well- 5
13979	13979	established standard that the electorate bears the right to 6
13980	13980	be fully informed. 7
13981	13981	SEC. 6103. FINDINGS. 8
13982	13982	Congress makes the following findings: 9
13983	13983	(1) In 2002, the Bipartisan Campaign Reform 10
13984	13984	Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–155) became law, es-11
13985	13985	tablishing disclosure requirements for political adver-12
13986	13986	tisements distributed from a television or radio 13
13987	13987	broadcast station or provider of cable or satellite tel-14
13988	13988	evision. In 2003, the Supreme Court upheld regula-15
13989	13989	tions on electioneering communications established 16
13990	13990	under the Act, noting that such requirements ‘‘pro-17
13991	13991	vide the electorate with information and insure that 18
13992	13992	the voters are fully informed about the person or 19
13993	13993	group who is speaking’’. The Court reaffirmed this 20
13994	13994	conclusion in 2010 by an 8–1 vote. 21
13995	13995	(2) In its 2006 rulemaking, the Federal Elec-22
13996	13996	tion Commission, the independent Federal agency 23
13997	13997	charged with protecting the integrity of the Federal 24
13998	13998	campaign finance process, noted that 18 percent of 25
13999	13999	all Americans cited the internet as their leading 26
14000	14000	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00461 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14001	14001	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 462
14002	14002	•HR 11 IH
14003	14003	source of news about the 2004 Presidential election. 1
14004	14004	By contrast, Gallup and the Knight Foundation 2
14005	14005	found in 2020 that the majority of Americans, 58 3
14006	14006	percent, got most of their news about elections on-4
14007	14007	line. 5
14008	14008	(3) According to studies from AdImpact and 6
14009	14009	Borrell Associates, in 2020, an estimated 7
14010	14010	$1,700,000,000 was spent on online political adver-8
14011	14011	tising, more than 10 times the amount spent in 9
14012	14012	2012. 10
14013	14013	(4) In order to enhance transparency of all po-11
14014	14014	litical advertisement funding, it is prudent to extend 12
14015	14015	to online internet platforms the same types of polit-13
14016	14016	ical advertisement disclosure requirements applicable 14
14017	14017	to broadcast television and radio stations, and pro-15
14018	14018	viders of cable and satellite television. 16
14019	14019	(5) Effective and complete transparency for vot-17
14020	14020	ers must include information about the true and 18
14021	14021	original source of money given, transferred, and 19
14022	14022	spent on political advertisements made online. 20
14023	14023	(6) Requiring the disclosure of this information 21
14024	14024	is a necessary and narrowly tailored means to in-22
14025	14025	form the voting public of who is behind digital ad-23
14026	14026	vertising disseminated to influence their votes and to 24
14027	14027	enable the Federal Election Commission and the De-25
14028	14028	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00462 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14029	14029	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 463
14030	14030	•HR 11 IH
14031	14031	partment of Justice to detect and prosecute illegal 1
14032	14032	foreign spending on local, State, and Federal elec-2
14033	14033	tions and other campaign finance violations. 3
14034	14034	(7) Paid advertising on large online platforms is 4
14035	14035	different from advertising placed on other common 5
14036	14036	media in terms of the comparatively low cost of 6
14037	14037	reaching large numbers of people, the availability of 7
14038	14038	sophisticated microtargeting, and the ease with 8
14039	14039	which online advertisers, particularly those located 9
14040	14040	outside the United States, can evade disclosure re-10
14041	14041	quirements. Requiring large online platforms to 11
14042	14042	maintain public files of information about the online 12
14043	14043	political ads they disseminate is the best and least 13
14044	14044	restrictive means to ensure the voting public has 14
14045	14045	complete information about who is trying to influ-15
14046	14046	ence their votes and to aid enforcement of other 16
14047	14047	laws, including the prohibition on foreign money in 17
14048	14048	domestic campaigns. 18
14049	14049	(8) The reach of a few large internet plat-19
14050	14050	forms—larger than any broadcast, satellite, or cable 20
14051	14051	provider—has greatly facilitated the scope and effec-21
14052	14052	tiveness of disinformation campaigns. For instance, 22
14053	14053	the largest platform has over 247,000,000 American 23
14054	14054	users—over 153,000,000 of them on a daily basis. 24
14055	14055	By contrast, the largest cable television provider has 25
14056	14056	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00463 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14057	14057	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 464
14058	14058	•HR 11 IH
14059	14059	16,142,000 subscribers, while the largest satellite 1
14060	14060	television provider has 13,300,000 subscribers. And 2
14061	14061	the most-watched television broadcast in United 3
14062	14062	States history had 118,000,000 viewers. 4
14063	14063	(9) The public nature of broadcast television, 5
14064	14064	radio, and satellite ensures a level of publicity for 6
14065	14065	any political advertisement. These communications 7
14066	14066	are accessible to the press, fact-checkers, and polit-8
14067	14067	ical opponents. This creates strong disincentives for 9
14068	14068	a candidate to disseminate materially false, inflam-10
14069	14069	matory, or contradictory messages to the public. So-11
14070	14070	cial media platforms, in contrast, can target portions 12
14071	14071	of the electorate with direct, ephemeral advertise-13
14072	14072	ments often on the basis of private information the 14
14073	14073	platform has on individuals, enabling political adver-15
14074	14074	tisements that are contradictory, racially or socially 16
14075	14075	inflammatory, or materially false. 17
14076	14076	(10) Large social media platforms are the only 18
14077	14077	entities in possession of certain key data related to 19
14078	14078	paid online ads, including the exact audience tar-20
14079	14079	geted by those ads and their number of impressions. 21
14080	14080	Such information, which cannot be reliably disclosed 22
14081	14081	by the purchasers of ads, is extremely useful for in-23
14082	14082	forming the electorate, guarding against corruption, 24
14083	14083	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00464 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14084	14084	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 465
14085	14085	•HR 11 IH
14086	14086	and aiding in the enforcement of existing campaign 1
14087	14087	finance regulations. 2
14088	14088	(11) Paid advertisements on social media plat-3
14089	14089	forms have served as critical tools for foreign online 4
14090	14090	influence campaigns—even those that rely on large 5
14091	14091	amounts of unpaid content—because such ads allow 6
14092	14092	foreign actors to test the effectiveness of different 7
14093	14093	messages, expose their messages to audiences who 8
14094	14094	have not sought out such content, and recruit audi-9
14095	14095	ences for future campaigns and posts. 10
14096	14096	(12) In a 2019 Senate Select Committee on In-11
14097	14097	telligence report on Russian Active Measures Cam-12
14098	14098	paigns and Interference in the 2016 U.S. Election, 13
14099	14099	Volume II: Russia’s Use of Social Media with Addi-14
14100	14100	tional Views, the Committee recommended ‘‘that 15
14101	14101	Congress examine legislative approaches to ensuring 16
14102	14102	Americans know the sources of online political ad-17
14103	14103	vertisements. The Federal Election Campaign Act of 18
14104	14104	1971 requires political advertisements on television, 19
14105	14105	radio and satellite to disclose the sponsor of the ad-20
14106	14106	vertisement. The same requirements should apply 21
14107	14107	online. This will also help to ensure that the IRA or 22
14108	14108	any similarly situated actors cannot use paid adver-23
14109	14109	tisements for purposes of foreign interference.’’. 24
14110	14110	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00465 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14111	14111	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 466
14112	14112	•HR 11 IH
14113	14113	(13) On March 16, 2021, the Office of the Di-1
14114	14114	rector of National Intelligence released the declas-2
14115	14115	sified Intelligence Community assessment of foreign 3
14116	14116	threats to the 2020 U.S. Federal elections. The de-4
14117	14117	classified report found: ‘‘Throughout the election 5
14118	14118	cycle, Russia’s online influence actors sought to af-6
14119	14119	fect US public perceptions of the candidates, as well 7
14120	14120	as advance Moscow’s longstanding goals of under-8
14121	14121	mining confidence in US election processes and in-9
14122	14122	creasing sociopolitical divisions among the American 10
14123	14123	people.’’. The report also determined that Iran 11
14124	14124	sought to influence the election by ‘‘creating and 12
14125	14125	amplifying social media content that criticized [can-13
14126	14126	didates]’’. 14
14127	14127	(14) According to a Wall Street Journal report 15
14128	14128	in April 2021, voluntary ad libraries operated by 16
14129	14129	major platforms rely on foreign governments to self- 17
14130	14130	report political ad purchases. These ad buys, includ-18
14131	14131	ing those diminishing major human rights violations 19
14132	14132	like the Uighur genocide, are under-reported by for-20
14133	14133	eign government purchasers, with no substantial 21
14134	14134	oversight or repercussions from the platforms. 22
14135	14135	(15) Multiple reports have indicated that online 23
14136	14136	ads have become a key vector for strategic influence 24
14137	14137	by the People’s Republic of China. An April 2021 25
14138	14138	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00466 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14139	14139	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 467
14140	14140	•HR 11 IH
14141	14141	Wall Street Journal report noted that the Chinese 1
14142	14142	government and Chinese State-owned enterprises are 2
14143	14143	major purchasers of ads on the U.S.’s largest social 3
14144	14144	media platform, including to advance Chinese propa-4
14145	14145	ganda. 5
14146	14146	(16) Large online platforms have made changes 6
14147	14147	to their policies intended to make it harder for for-7
14148	14148	eign actors to purchase political ads. However, these 8
14149	14149	private actions have not been taken by all platforms, 9
14150	14150	have not been reliably enforced, and are subject to 10
14151	14151	immediate change at the discretion of the platforms. 11
14152	14152	(17) The Federal Election Commission’s cur-12
14153	14153	rent regulations on political advertisements do not 13
14154	14154	provide sufficient transparency to uphold the 14
14155	14155	public’s right to be fully informed about political ad-15
14156	14156	vertisements made online. 16
14157	14157	SEC. 6104. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 17
14158	14158	It is the sense of Congress that— 18
14159	14159	(1) the dramatic increase in digital political ad-19
14160	14160	vertisements, and the growing centrality of online 20
14161	14161	platforms in the lives of Americans, requires the 21
14162	14162	Congress and the Federal Election Commission to 22
14163	14163	take meaningful action to ensure that laws and reg-23
14164	14164	ulations provide the accountability and transparency 24
14165	14165	that is fundamental to our democracy; 25
14166	14166	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00467 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14167	14167	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 468
14168	14168	•HR 11 IH
14169	14169	(2) free and fair elections require both trans-1
14170	14170	parency and accountability which give the public a 2
14171	14171	right to know the true sources of funding for polit-3
14172	14172	ical advertisements, be they foreign or domestic, in 4
14173	14173	order to make informed political choices and hold 5
14174	14174	elected officials accountable; and 6
14175	14175	(3) transparency of funding for political adver-7
14176	14176	tisements is essential to enforce other campaign fi-8
14177	14177	nance laws, including the prohibition on campaign 9
14178	14178	spending by foreign nationals. 10
14179	14179	SEC. 6105. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF PUBLIC COMMU-11
14180	14180	NICATION. 12
14181	14181	(a) I
14182	14182	NGENERAL.—Paragraph (22) of section 301 of 13
14183	14183	the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 14
14184	14184	30101(22)) is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite commu-15
14185	14185	nication’’ and inserting ‘‘satellite, paid internet, or paid 16
14186	14186	digital communication’’. 17
14187	14187	(b) T
14188	14188	REATMENT OFCONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDI-18
14189	14189	TURES.—Section 301 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30101) is 19
14190	14190	amended— 20
14191	14191	(1) in paragraph (8)(B)(v), by striking ‘‘on 21
14192	14192	broadcasting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 22
14193	14193	or similar types of general public political adver-23
14194	14194	tising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public communica-24
14195	14195	tion’’; and 25
14196	14196	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00468 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14197	14197	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 469
14198	14198	•HR 11 IH
14199	14199	(2) in paragraph (9)(B)— 1
14200	14200	(A) by amending clause (i) to read as fol-2
14201	14201	lows: 3
14202	14202	‘‘(i) any news story, commentary, or 4
14203	14203	editorial distributed through the facilities 5
14204	14204	of any broadcasting station or any print, 6
14205	14205	online, or digital newspaper, magazine, 7
14206	14206	publication, periodical, blog, or platform, 8
14207	14207	unless such broadcasting, print, online, or 9
14208	14208	digital facilities are owned or controlled by 10
14209	14209	any political party, political committee, or 11
14210	14210	candidate;’’; and 12
14211	14211	(B) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘on broad-13
14212	14212	casting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 14
14213	14213	or similar types of general public political ad-15
14214	14214	vertising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public commu-16
14215	14215	nication’’. 17
14216	14216	(c) D
14217	14217	ISCLOSURE AND DISCLAIMERSTATEMENTS.— 18
14218	14218	Subsection (a) of section 318 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 19
14219	14219	30120) is amended— 20
14220	14220	(1) by striking ‘‘financing any communication 21
14221	14221	through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga-22
14222	14222	zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 23
14223	14223	other type of general public political advertising’’ 24
14224	14224	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00469 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14225	14225	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 470
14226	14226	•HR 11 IH
14227	14227	and inserting ‘‘financing any public communication’’; 1
14228	14228	and 2
14229	14229	(2) by striking ‘‘solicits any contribution 3
14230	14230	through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga-4
14231	14231	zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 5
14232	14232	other type of general public political advertising’’ 6
14233	14233	and inserting ‘‘solicits any contribution through any 7
14234	14234	public communication’’. 8
14235	14235	(d) E
14236	14236	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 9
14237	14237	this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 10
14238	14238	of this Act and shall take effect without regard to whether 11
14239	14239	or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 12
14240	14240	the final regulations necessary to carry out this part and 13
14241	14241	the amendments made by this part by the deadline set 14
14242	14242	forth in subsection (e). 15
14243	14243	(e) R
14244	14244	EGULATION.—Not later than 1 year after the 16
14245	14245	date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 17
14246	14246	Commission shall promulgate regulations on what con-18
14247	14247	stitutes a paid internet or paid digital communication for 19
14248	14248	purposes of paragraph (22) of section 301 of the Federal 20
14249	14249	Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(22)), 21
14250	14250	as amended by subsection (a), except that such regulation 22
14251	14251	shall not define a paid internet or paid digital communica-23
14252	14252	tion to include communications for which the only pay-24
14253	14253	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00470 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14254	14254	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 471
14255	14255	•HR 11 IH
14256	14256	ment consists of internal resources, such as employee com-1
14257	14257	pensation, of the entity paying for the communication. 2
14258	14258	SEC. 6106. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF ELECTION-3
14259	14259	EERING COMMUNICATION. 4
14260	14260	(a) E
14261	14261	XPANSION TOONLINECOMMUNICATIONS.— 5
14262	14262	(1) A
14263	14263	PPLICATION TO QUALIFIED INTERNET AND 6
14264	14264	DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS .— 7
14265	14265	(A) I
14266	14266	N GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) of 8
14267	14267	section 304(f)(3) of the Federal Election Cam-9
14268	14268	paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)(A)) 10
14269	14269	is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite communica-11
14270	14270	tion’’ each place it appears in clauses (i) and 12
14271	14271	(ii) and inserting ‘‘satellite, or qualified internet 13
14272	14272	or digital communication’’. 14
14273	14273	(B) Q
14274	14274	UALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL 15
14275	14275	COMMUNICATION.—Paragraph (3) of section 16
14276	14276	304(f) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)) is 17
14277	14277	amended by adding at the end the following 18
14278	14278	new subparagraph: 19
14279	14279	‘‘(D) Q
14280	14280	UALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL 20
14281	14281	COMMUNICATION.—The term ‘qualified internet 21
14282	14282	or digital communication’ means any commu-22
14283	14283	nication which is placed or promoted for a fee 23
14284	14284	on an online platform (as defined in subsection 24
14285	14285	(k)(3)).’’. 25
14286	14286	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00471 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14287	14287	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 472
14288	14288	•HR 11 IH
14289	14289	(2) NONAPPLICATION OF RELEVANT ELEC -1
14290	14290	TORATE TO ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS .—Section 2
14291	14291	304(f)(3)(A)(i)(III) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 3
14292	14292	30104(f)(3)(A)(i)(III)) is amended by inserting ‘‘any 4
14293	14293	broadcast, cable, or satellite’’ before ‘‘communica-5
14294	14294	tion’’. 6
14295	14295	(3) N
14296	14296	EWS EXEMPTION .—Section 7
14297	14297	304(f)(3)(B)(i) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 8
14298	14298	30104(f)(3)(B)(i)) is amended to read as follows: 9
14299	14299	‘‘(i) a communication appearing in a 10
14300	14300	news story, commentary, or editorial dis-11
14301	14301	tributed through the facilities of any 12
14302	14302	broadcasting station or any online or dig-13
14303	14303	ital newspaper, magazine, publication, peri-14
14304	14304	odical, blog, or platform, unless such 15
14305	14305	broadcasting, online, or digital facilities are 16
14306	14306	owned or controlled by any political party, 17
14307	14307	political committee, or candidate;’’. 18
14308	14308	(b) E
14309	14309	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 19
14310	14310	this section shall apply with respect to communications 20
14311	14311	made on or after January 1, 2024, and shall take effect 21
14312	14312	without regard to whether or not the Federal Election 22
14313	14313	Commission has promulgated regulations to carry out 23
14314	14314	such amendments. 24
14315	14315	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00472 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14316	14316	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 473
14317	14317	•HR 11 IH
14318	14318	SEC. 6107. APPLICATION OF DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS TO 1
14319	14319	ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS. 2
14320	14320	(a) C
14321	14321	LEAR ANDCONSPICUOUSMANNERREQUIRE-3
14322	14322	MENT.—Subsection (a) of section 318 of the Federal Elec-4
14323	14323	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30120(a)) is 5
14324	14324	amended— 6
14325	14325	(1) by striking ‘‘shall clearly state’’ each place 7
14326	14326	it appears in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and in-8
14327	14327	serting ‘‘shall state in a clear and conspicuous man-9
14328	14328	ner’’; and 10
14329	14329	(2) by adding at the end the following flush 11
14330	14330	sentence: ‘‘For purposes of this section, a commu-12
14331	14331	nication does not make a statement in a clear and 13
14332	14332	conspicuous manner if it is difficult to read or hear 14
14333	14333	or if the placement is easily overlooked.’’. 15
14334	14334	(b) S
14335	14335	PECIALRULES FORQUALIFIEDINTERNET OR 16
14336	14336	D
14337	14337	IGITALCOMMUNICATIONS.— 17
14338	14338	(1) I
14339	14339	N GENERAL.—Section 318 of such Act (52 18
14340	14340	U.S.C. 30120) is amended by adding at the end the 19
14341	14341	following new subsection: 20
14342	14342	‘‘(e) S
14343	14343	PECIALRULES FORQUALIFIEDINTERNET OR 21
14344	14344	D
14345	14345	IGITALCOMMUNICATIONS.— 22
14346	14346	‘‘(1) S
14347	14347	PECIAL RULES WITH RESPECT TO STATE -23
14348	14348	MENTS.—In the case of any qualified internet or 24
14349	14349	digital communication (as defined in section 25
14350	14350	304(f)(3)(D)) which is disseminated through a me-26
14351	14351	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00473 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14352	14352	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 474
14353	14353	•HR 11 IH
14354	14354	dium in which the provision of all of the information 1
14355	14355	specified in this section is not possible, the commu-2
14356	14356	nication shall, in a clear and conspicuous manner— 3
14357	14357	‘‘(A) state the name of the person who 4
14358	14358	paid for the communication; and 5
14359	14359	‘‘(B) provide a means for the recipient of 6
14360	14360	the communication to obtain the remainder of 7
14361	14361	the information required under this section with 8
14362	14362	minimal effort and without receiving or viewing 9
14363	14363	any additional material other than such re-10
14364	14364	quired information. 11
14365	14365	‘‘(2) S
14366	14366	AFE HARBOR FOR DETERMINING CLEAR 12
14367	14367	AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER .—A statement in quali-13
14368	14368	fied internet or digital communication (as defined in 14
14369	14369	section 304(f)(3)(D)) shall be considered to be made 15
14370	14370	in a clear and conspicuous manner as provided in 16
14371	14371	subsection (a) if the communication meets the fol-17
14372	14372	lowing requirements: 18
14373	14373	‘‘(A) T
14374	14374	EXT OR GRAPHIC COMMUNICA -19
14375	14375	TIONS.—In the case of a text or graphic com-20
14376	14376	munication, the statement— 21
14377	14377	‘‘(i) appears in letters at least as large 22
14378	14378	as the majority of the text in the commu-23
14379	14379	nication; and 24
14380	14380	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00474 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14381	14381	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 475
14382	14382	•HR 11 IH
14383	14383	‘‘(ii) meets the requirements of para-1
14384	14384	graphs (2) and (3) of subsection (c). 2
14385	14385	‘‘(B) A
14386	14386	UDIO COMMUNICATIONS .—In the 3
14387	14387	case of an audio communication, the statement 4
14388	14388	is spoken in a clearly audible and intelligible 5
14389	14389	manner at the beginning or end of the commu-6
14390	14390	nication and lasts at least 3 seconds. 7
14391	14391	‘‘(C) V
14392	14392	IDEO COMMUNICATIONS .—In the 8
14393	14393	case of a video communication which also in-9
14394	14394	cludes audio, the statement— 10
14395	14395	‘‘(i) is included at either the beginning 11
14396	14396	or the end of the communication; and 12
14397	14397	‘‘(ii) is made both in— 13
14398	14398	‘‘(I) a written format that meets 14
14399	14399	the requirements of subparagraph (A) 15
14400	14400	and appears for at least 4 seconds; 16
14401	14401	and 17
14402	14402	‘‘(II) an audible format that 18
14403	14403	meets the requirements of subpara-19
14404	14404	graph (B). 20
14405	14405	‘‘(D) O
14406	14406	THER COMMUNICATIONS .—In the 21
14407	14407	case of any other type of communication, the 22
14408	14408	statement is at least as clear and conspicuous 23
14409	14409	as the statement specified in subparagraph (A), 24
14410	14410	(B), or (C).’’. 25
14411	14411	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00475 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14412	14412	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 476
14413	14413	•HR 11 IH
14414	14414	(2) NONAPPLICATION OF CERTAIN EXCEP -1
14415	14415	TIONS.—The exceptions provided in section 2
14416	14416	110.11(f)(1)(i) and (ii) of title 11, Code of Federal 3
14417	14417	Regulations, or any successor to such rules, shall 4
14418	14418	have no application to qualified internet or digital 5
14419	14419	communications (as defined in section 304(f)(3)(D) 6
14420	14420	of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971). 7
14421	14421	(c) M
14422	14422	ODIFICATION OFADDITIONALREQUIREMENTS 8
14423	14423	FORCERTAINCOMMUNICATIONS.—Section 318(d) of such 9
14424	14424	Act (52 U.S.C. 30120(d)) is amended— 10
14425	14425	(1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 11
14426	14426	(A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 12
14427	14427	through radio’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in an 13
14428	14428	audio format’’; and 14
14429	14429	(B) by striking ‘‘B
14430	14430	Y RADIO’’ in the heading 15
14431	14431	and inserting ‘‘A
14432	14432	UDIO FORMAT’’; 16
14433	14433	(2) in paragraph (1)(B)— 17
14434	14434	(A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 18
14435	14435	through television’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in 19
14436	14436	video format’’; and 20
14437	14437	(B) by striking ‘‘B
14438	14438	Y TELEVISION’’ in the 21
14439	14439	heading and inserting ‘‘V
14440	14440	IDEO FORMAT’’; and 22
14441	14441	(3) in paragraph (2)— 23
14442	14442	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00476 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14443	14443	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 477
14444	14444	•HR 11 IH
14445	14445	(A) by striking ‘‘transmitted through radio 1
14446	14446	or television’’ and inserting ‘‘made in audio or 2
14447	14447	video format’’; and 3
14448	14448	(B) by striking ‘‘through television’’ in the 4
14449	14449	second sentence and inserting ‘‘in video for-5
14450	14450	mat’’. 6
14451	14451	(d) E
14452	14452	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 7
14453	14453	subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of the enact-8
14454	14454	ment of this Act and shall take effect without regard to 9
14455	14455	whether or not the Federal Election Commission has pro-10
14456	14456	mulgated regulations to carry out such amendments. 11
14457	14457	SEC. 6108. POLITICAL RECORD REQUIREMENTS FOR ON-12
14458	14458	LINE PLATFORMS. 13
14459	14459	(a) I
14460	14460	NGENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec-14
14461	14461	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend-15
14462	14462	ed by section 3802, is amended by adding at the end the 16
14463	14463	following new subsection: 17
14464	14464	‘‘(k) D
14465	14465	ISCLOSURE OFCERTAINONLINEADVERTISE-18
14466	14466	MENTS.— 19
14467	14467	‘‘(1) I
14468	14468	N GENERAL.— 20
14469	14469	‘‘(A) R
14470	14470	EQUIREMENTS FOR ONLINE PLAT -21
14471	14471	FORMS.— 22
14472	14472	‘‘(i) I
14473	14473	N GENERAL.—An online plat-23
14474	14474	form shall maintain, and make available 24
14475	14475	for online public inspection in machine- 25
14476	14476	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00477 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14477	14477	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 478
14478	14478	•HR 11 IH
14479	14479	readable format, a complete record of any 1
14480	14480	qualified political advertisement which is 2
14481	14481	purchased by a person whose aggregate 3
14482	14482	purchases of qualified political advertise-4
14483	14483	ments on such online platform during the 5
14484	14484	calendar year exceeds $500. 6
14485	14485	‘‘(ii) R
14486	14486	EQUIREMENT RELATING TO PO -7
14487	14487	LITICAL ADS SOLD BY THIRD -PARTY AD-8
14488	14488	VERTISING VENDORS.—An online platform 9
14489	14489	that displays a qualified political advertise-10
14490	14490	ment sold by a third-party advertising ven-11
14491	14491	dor shall include on its own platform— 12
14492	14492	‘‘(I) an easily accessible and 13
14493	14493	identifiable link to the records main-14
14494	14494	tained by the third-party advertising 15
14495	14495	vendor under clause (i) regarding 16
14496	14496	such qualified political advertisement; 17
14497	14497	or 18
14498	14498	‘‘(II) in any case in which the 19
14499	14499	third-party advertising vendor does 20
14500	14500	not make such records available, a 21
14501	14501	statement that no records from the 22
14502	14502	third-party advertising vendor’s 23
14503	14503	records are available. 24
14504	14504	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00478 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14505	14505	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 479
14506	14506	•HR 11 IH
14507	14507	‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS FOR ADVER -1
14508	14508	TISERS.—Any person who requests to purchase 2
14509	14509	a qualified political advertisement on an online 3
14510	14510	platform shall provide the online platform with 4
14511	14511	such information as is necessary for the online 5
14512	14512	platform to comply with the requirements of 6
14513	14513	subparagraph (A). 7
14514	14514	‘‘(2) C
14515	14515	ONTENTS OF RECORD .—A record main-8
14516	14516	tained under paragraph (1)(A) shall contain— 9
14517	14517	‘‘(A) a digital copy of the qualified political 10
14518	14518	advertisement; 11
14519	14519	‘‘(B) a description of the audience that re-12
14520	14520	ceived the advertisement, the number of views 13
14521	14521	generated from the advertisement, and the date 14
14522	14522	and time that the advertisement is first dis-15
14523	14523	played and last displayed; and 16
14524	14524	‘‘(C) information regarding— 17
14525	14525	‘‘(i) the total cost of the advertise-18
14526	14526	ment (which may be rounded to the near-19
14527	14527	est $100); 20
14528	14528	‘‘(ii) the name of the candidate to 21
14529	14529	which the advertisement refers and the of-22
14530	14530	fice to which the candidate is seeking elec-23
14531	14531	tion, the election to which the advertise-24
14532	14532	ment refers, or the national legislative 25
14533	14533	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00479 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14534	14534	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 480
14535	14535	•HR 11 IH
14536	14536	issue to which the advertisement refers (as 1
14537	14537	applicable); 2
14538	14538	‘‘(iii) in the case of a request made 3
14539	14539	by, or on behalf of, a candidate, the name 4
14540	14540	of the candidate, the authorized committee 5
14541	14541	of the candidate, and the treasurer of such 6
14542	14542	committee; and 7
14543	14543	‘‘(iv) in the case of any request not 8
14544	14544	described in clause (iii), the name of the 9
14545	14545	person purchasing the advertisement, the 10
14546	14546	name and address of a contact person for 11
14547	14547	such person, and a list of the chief execu-12
14548	14548	tive officers or members of the executive 13
14549	14549	committee or of the board of directors of 14
14550	14550	such person. 15
14551	14551	‘‘(3) O
14552	14552	NLINE PLATFORM.— 16
14553	14553	‘‘(A) I
14554	14554	N GENERAL.—For purposes of this 17
14555	14555	subsection, subject to subparagraph (B), the 18
14556	14556	term ‘online platform’ means any public-facing 19
14557	14557	website, web application, or digital application 20
14558	14558	(including a social network, ad network, or 21
14559	14559	search engine) which— 22
14560	14560	‘‘(i)(I) sells qualified political adver-23
14561	14561	tisements; and 24
14562	14562	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00480 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14563	14563	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 481
14564	14564	•HR 11 IH
14565	14565	‘‘(II) has 50,000,000 or more unique 1
14566	14566	monthly United States visitors or users for 2
14567	14567	a majority of months during the preceding 3
14568	14568	12 months; or 4
14569	14569	‘‘(ii) is a third-party advertising ven-5
14570	14570	dor that has 50,000,000 or more unique 6
14571	14571	monthly United States visitors in the ag-7
14572	14572	gregate on any advertisement space that it 8
14573	14573	has sold or bought for a majority of 9
14574	14574	months during the preceding 12 months, 10
14575	14575	as measured by an independent digital rat-11
14576	14576	ings service accredited by the Media Rat-12
14577	14577	ings Council (or its successor). 13
14578	14578	‘‘(B) E
14579	14579	XEMPTION.—Such term shall not 14
14580	14580	include any online platform that is a distribu-15
14581	14581	tion facility of any broadcasting station or 16
14582	14582	newspaper, magazine, blog, publication, or peri-17
14583	14583	odical. 18
14584	14584	‘‘(C) T
14585	14585	HIRD-PARTY ADVERTISING VENDOR 19
14586	14586	DEFINED.—For purposes of this subsection, the 20
14587	14587	term ‘third-party advertising vendor’ includes 21
14588	14588	any third-party advertising vendor network, ad-22
14589	14589	vertising agency, advertiser, or third-party ad-23
14590	14590	vertisement serving company that buys and 24
14591	14591	sells advertisement space on behalf of unaffili-25
14592	14592	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00481 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14593	14593	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 482
14594	14594	•HR 11 IH
14595	14595	ated third-party websites, search engines, dig-1
14596	14596	ital applications, or social media sites. 2
14597	14597	‘‘(4) Q
14598	14598	UALIFIED POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT .— 3
14599	14599	For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualified 4
14600	14600	political advertisement’ means any advertisement 5
14601	14601	(including search engine marketing, display adver-6
14602	14602	tisements, video advertisements, native advertise-7
14603	14603	ments, and sponsorships) that— 8
14604	14604	‘‘(A) is made by or on behalf of a can-9
14605	14605	didate; or 10
14606	14606	‘‘(B) communicates a message relating to 11
14607	14607	any political matter of national importance, in-12
14608	14608	cluding— 13
14609	14609	‘‘(i) a candidate; 14
14610	14610	‘‘(ii) any election to Federal office; or 15
14611	14611	‘‘(iii) a national legislative issue of 16
14612	14612	public importance. 17
14613	14613	‘‘(5) T
14614	14614	IME TO MAINTAIN FILE .—The informa-18
14615	14615	tion required under this subsection shall be made 19
14616	14616	available as soon as possible and shall be retained by 20
14617	14617	the online platform for a period of not less than 4 21
14618	14618	years. 22
14619	14619	‘‘(6) S
14620	14620	PECIAL RULE.—For purposes of this sub-23
14621	14621	section, multiple versions of an advertisement that 24
14622	14622	contain no material differences (such as versions 25
14623	14623	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00482 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14624	14624	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 483
14625	14625	•HR 11 IH
14626	14626	that differ only because they contain a recipient’s 1
14627	14627	name, or differ only in size, color, font, or layout) 2
14628	14628	may be treated as a single qualified political adver-3
14629	14629	tisement. 4
14630	14630	‘‘(7) P
14631	14631	ENALTIES.—For penalties for failure by 5
14632	14632	online platforms, and persons requesting to purchase 6
14633	14633	a qualified political advertisement on online plat-7
14634	14634	forms, to comply with the requirements of this sub-8
14635	14635	section, see section 309.’’. 9
14636	14636	(b) E
14637	14637	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 10
14638	14638	this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 11
14639	14639	of this Act and shall take effect without regard to whether 12
14640	14640	or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 13
14641	14641	the final regulations necessary to carry out this part and 14
14642	14642	the amendments made by this part by the deadline set 15
14643	14643	forth in subsection (c). 16
14644	14644	(c) R
14645	14645	ULEMAKING.—Not later than 120 days after the 17
14646	14646	date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 18
14647	14647	Commission shall establish rules— 19
14648	14648	(1) for determining whether an advertisement 20
14649	14649	communicates a national legislative issue for pur-21
14650	14650	poses of section 304(k) of the Federal Election Cam-22
14651	14651	paign Act of 1971 (as added by subsection (a)); 23
14652	14652	(2) requiring common data formats for the 24
14653	14653	record required to be maintained under such section 25
14654	14654	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00483 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14655	14655	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 484
14656	14656	•HR 11 IH
14657	14657	304(k) so that all online platforms submit and main-1
14658	14658	tain data online in a common, machine-readable and 2
14659	14659	publicly accessible format; and 3
14660	14660	(3) establishing search interface requirements 4
14661	14661	relating to such record, including searches by can-5
14662	14662	didate name, issue, purchaser, and date. 6
14663	14663	(d) R
14664	14664	EPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after the 7
14665	14665	date of the enactment of this Act, and biannually there-8
14666	14666	after, the Chairman of the Federal Election Commission 9
14667	14667	shall submit a report to Congress on— 10
14668	14668	(1) matters relating to compliance with and the 11
14669	14669	enforcement of the requirements of section 304(k) of 12
14670	14670	the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 13
14671	14671	added by subsection (a); 14
14672	14672	(2) recommendations for any modifications to 15
14673	14673	such section to assist in carrying out its purposes; 16
14674	14674	and 17
14675	14675	(3) identifying ways to bring transparency and 18
14676	14676	accountability to political advertisements distributed 19
14677	14677	online for free. 20
14678	14678	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00484 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14679	14679	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 485
14680	14680	•HR 11 IH
14681	14681	SEC. 6109. PREVENTING CONTRIBUTIONS, EXPENDITURES, 1
14682	14682	INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES, AND DIS-2
14683	14683	BURSEMENTS FOR ELECTIONEERING COM-3
14684	14684	MUNICATIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN 4
14685	14685	THE FORM OF ONLINE ADVERTISING. 5
14686	14686	Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 6
14687	14687	of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121) is amended by adding at the 7
14688	14688	end the following new subsection: 8
14689	14689	‘‘(c) R
14690	14690	ESPONSIBILITIES OF BROADCASTSTATIONS, 9
14691	14691	P
14692	14692	ROVIDERS OFCABLE ANDSATELLITETELEVISION, AND 10
14693	14693	O
14694	14694	NLINEPLATFORMS.— 11
14695	14695	‘‘(1) I
14696	14696	N GENERAL.—Each television or radio 12
14697	14697	broadcast station, provider of cable or satellite tele-13
14698	14698	vision, or online platform (as defined in section 14
14699	14699	304(k)(3)) shall make reasonable efforts to ensure 15
14700	14700	that communications described in section 318(a) and 16
14701	14701	made available by such station, provider, or platform 17
14702	14702	are not purchased by a foreign national, directly or 18
14703	14703	indirectly. 19
14704	14704	‘‘(2) R
14705	14705	EGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year 20
14706	14706	after the date of the enactment of this subsection, 21
14707	14707	the Commission shall promulgate regulations on 22
14708	14708	what constitutes reasonable efforts under paragraph 23
14709	14709	(1).’’. 24
14710	14710	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00485 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14711	14711	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 486
14712	14712	•HR 11 IH
14713	14713	SEC. 6110. REQUIRING ONLINE PLATFORMS TO DISPLAY 1
14714	14714	NOTICES IDENTIFYING SPONSORS OF POLIT-2
14715	14715	ICAL ADVERTISEMENTS AND TO ENSURE NO-3
14716	14716	TICES CONTINUE TO BE PRESENT WHEN AD-4
14717	14717	VERTISEMENTS ARE SHARED. 5
14718	14718	(a) I
14719	14719	NGENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec-6
14720	14720	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend-7
14721	14721	ed by section 3802 and section 6108(a), is amended by 8
14722	14722	adding at the end the following new subsection: 9
14723	14723	‘‘(l) E
14724	14724	NSURINGDISPLAY ANDSHARING OFSPONSOR 10
14725	14725	I
14726	14726	DENTIFICATION IN ONLINEPOLITICALADVERTISE-11
14727	14727	MENTS.— 12
14728	14728	‘‘(1) R
14729	14729	EQUIREMENT.—Any online platform that 13
14730	14730	displays a qualified political advertisement (regard-14
14731	14731	less of whether such qualified political advertisement 15
14732	14732	was purchased directly from the online platform) 16
14733	14733	shall— 17
14734	14734	‘‘(A) display with the advertisement a visi-18
14735	14735	ble notice identifying the sponsor of the adver-19
14736	14736	tisement (or, if it is not practical for the plat-20
14737	14737	form to display such a notice, a notice that the 21
14738	14738	advertisement is sponsored by a person other 22
14739	14739	than the platform); and 23
14740	14740	‘‘(B) ensure that the notice will continue to 24
14741	14741	be displayed if a viewer of the advertisement 25
14742	14742	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00486 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14743	14743	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 487
14744	14744	•HR 11 IH
14745	14745	shares the advertisement with others on that 1
14746	14746	platform. 2
14747	14747	‘‘(2) S
14748	14748	AFE HARBOR.—An online platform shall 3
14749	14749	not be treated as having failed to comply with the 4
14750	14750	requirements of paragraph (1)(A) for the 5
14751	14751	misidentification of a person as the sponsor of an 6
14752	14752	advertisement if— 7
14753	14753	‘‘(A) the person placing the online adver-8
14754	14754	tisement designated the person displayed in the 9
14755	14755	advertisement as the sponsor; and 10
14756	14756	‘‘(B) the online platform relied on such 11
14757	14757	designation in good faith. 12
14758	14758	‘‘(3) D
14759	14759	EFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 13
14760	14760	‘‘(A) the term ‘online platform’ has the 14
14761	14761	meaning given such term in subsection (k)(3); 15
14762	14762	‘‘(B) the term ‘‘qualified political adver-16
14763	14763	tisement’ has the meaning given such term in 17
14764	14764	subsection (k)(4); and 18
14765	14765	‘‘(C) the term ‘sponsor’ means the person 19
14766	14766	purchasing the advertisement.’’. 20
14767	14767	(b) E
14768	14768	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 21
14769	14769	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to advertisements 22
14770	14770	displayed on or after the 120-day period which begins on 23
14771	14771	the date of the enactment of this Act and shall take effect 24
14772	14772	without regard to whether or not the Federal Election 25
14773	14773	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00487 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14774	14774	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 488
14775	14775	•HR 11 IH
14776	14776	Commission has promulgated regulations to carry out 1
14777	14777	such amendments. 2
14778	14778	Subtitle C—Spotlight Act 3
14779	14779	SEC. 6201. SHORT TITLE. 4
14780	14780	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Spotlight Act’’. 5
14781	14781	SEC. 6202. INCLUSION OF CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION ON 6
14782	14782	ANNUAL RETURNS OF CERTAIN ORGANIZA-7
14783	14783	TIONS. 8
14784	14784	(a) R
14785	14785	EPEAL OFREGULATIONS.—The final regula-9
14786	14786	tions of the Department of the Treasury relating to guid-10
14787	14787	ance under section 6033 regarding the reporting require-11
14788	14788	ments of exempt organizations (published at 85 Fed. Reg. 12
14789	14789	31959 (May 28, 2020)) shall have no force and effect. 13
14790	14790	(b) I
14791	14791	NCLUSION OFCONTRIBUTORINFORMATION.— 14
14792	14792	(1) S
14793	14793	OCIAL WELFARE ORGANIZATIONS .—Sec-15
14794	14794	tion 6033(f)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 16
14795	14795	1986 is amended by inserting ‘‘(5),’’ after ‘‘para-17
14796	14796	graphs’’. 18
14797	14797	(2) L
14798	14798	ABOR ORGANIZATIONS AND BUSINESS 19
14799	14799	LEAGUES.—Section 6033 of such Code is amended 20
14800	14800	by redesignating subsection (o) as subsection (p) 21
14801	14801	and by inserting after subsection (n) the following 22
14802	14802	new subsection: 23
14803	14803	‘‘(o) A
14804	14804	DDITIONALREQUIREMENTS FOR ORGANIZA-24
14805	14805	TIONSDESCRIBED INSUBSECTIONS(c)(5) AND(c)(6) OF 25
14806	14806	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00488 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14807	14807	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 489
14808	14808	•HR 11 IH
14809	14809	SECTION501.—Every organization which is described in 1
14810	14810	paragraph (5) or (6) of section 501(c) and which is subject 2
14811	14811	to the requirements of subsection (a) shall include on the 3
14812	14812	return required under subsection (a) the information re-4
14813	14813	ferred to in subsection (b)(5).’’. 5
14814	14814	(3) E
14815	14815	FFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 6
14816	14816	by this subsection shall apply to returns required to 7
14817	14817	be filed for taxable years ending after the date of the 8
14818	14818	enactment of this Act. 9
14819	14819	(c) M
14820	14820	ODIFICATION TO DISCRETIONARY EXCEP-10
14821	14821	TIONS.—Section 6033(a)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue 11
14822	14822	Code of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 12
14823	14823	‘‘(B) D
14824	14824	ISCRETIONARY EXCEPTIONS .— 13
14825	14825	‘‘(i) I
14826	14826	N GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) 14
14827	14827	shall not apply to any organization if the 15
14828	14828	Secretary made a determination under this 16
14829	14829	subparagraph before July 16, 2018, that 17
14830	14830	such filing is not necessary to the efficient 18
14831	14831	administration of the internal revenue 19
14832	14832	laws. 20
14833	14833	‘‘(ii) R
14834	14834	ECOMMENDATIONS FOR OTHER 21
14835	14835	EXCEPTIONS.—The Secretary may rec-22
14836	14836	ommend to Congress that Congress relieve 23
14837	14837	any organization required under paragraph 24
14838	14838	(1) to file an information return from fil-25
14839	14839	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00489 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14840	14840	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 490
14841	14841	•HR 11 IH
14842	14842	ing such a return if the Secretary deter-1
14843	14843	mines that such filing does not advance a 2
14844	14844	national security, law enforcement, or tax 3
14845	14845	administration purpose.’’. 4
14846	14846	TITLE VII—CAMPAIGN FINANCE 5
14847	14847	OVERSIGHT 6
14848	14848	Subtitle A—Stopping Super PAC– 7
14849	14849	Candidate Coordination 8
14850	14850	SEC. 7001. SHORT TITLE. 9
14851	14851	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Super PAC– 10
14852	14852	Candidate Coordination Act’’. 11
14853	14853	SEC. 7002. CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF COORDI-12
14854	14854	NATED EXPENDITURES AS CONTRIBUTIONS 13
14855	14855	TO CANDIDATES. 14
14856	14856	(a) T
14857	14857	REATMENT AS CONTRIBUTION TO CAN-15
14858	14858	DIDATE.—Section 301(8)(A) of the Federal Election Cam-16
14859	14859	paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(8)(A)) is amended— 17
14860	14860	(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of clause (i); 18
14861	14861	(2) by striking the period at the end of clause 19
14862	14862	(ii) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 20
14863	14863	(3) by adding at the end the following new 21
14864	14864	clause: 22
14865	14865	‘‘(iii) any payment made by any person 23
14866	14866	(other than a candidate, an authorized com-24
14867	14867	mittee of a candidate, or a political committee 25
14868	14868	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00490 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14869	14869	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 491
14870	14870	•HR 11 IH
14871	14871	of a political party) for a coordinated expendi-1
14872	14872	ture (as such term is defined in section 325) 2
14873	14873	which is not otherwise treated as a contribution 3
14874	14874	under clause (i) or clause (ii).’’. 4
14875	14875	(b) D
14876	14876	EFINITIONS.—Title III of such Act (52 U.S.C. 5
14877	14877	30101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol-6
14878	14878	lowing new section: 7
14879	14879	‘‘SEC. 325. PAYMENTS FOR COORDINATED EXPENDITURES. 8
14880	14880	‘‘(a) C
14881	14881	OORDINATEDEXPENDITURES.— 9
14882	14882	‘‘(1) I
14883	14883	N GENERAL.—For purposes of section 10
14884	14884	301(8)(A)(iii), the term ‘coordinated expenditure’ 11
14885	14885	means— 12
14886	14886	‘‘(A) any expenditure, or any payment for 13
14887	14887	a covered communication described in sub-14
14888	14888	section (e), which is made in cooperation, con-15
14889	14889	sultation, or concert with, or at the request or 16
14890	14890	suggestion of, a candidate, an authorized com-17
14891	14891	mittee of a candidate, a political committee of 18
14892	14892	a political party, or agents of the candidate or 19
14893	14893	committee, as defined in subsection (b); or 20
14894	14894	‘‘(B) any payment for any communication 21
14895	14895	which republishes, disseminates, or distributes, 22
14896	14896	in whole or in part, any video or broadcast or 23
14897	14897	any written, graphic, or other form of campaign 24
14898	14898	material prepared by the candidate or com-25
14899	14899	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00491 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14900	14900	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 492
14901	14901	•HR 11 IH
14902	14902	mittee or by agents of the candidate or com-1
14903	14903	mittee (including any excerpt or use of any 2
14904	14904	video from any such broadcast or written, 3
14905	14905	graphic, or other form of campaign material). 4
14906	14906	‘‘(2) E
14907	14907	XCEPTION FOR PAYMENTS FOR CERTAIN 5
14908	14908	COMMUNICATIONS.—A payment for a communication 6
14909	14909	(including a covered communication described in 7
14910	14910	subsection (e)) shall not be treated as a coordinated 8
14911	14911	expenditure under this subsection if— 9
14912	14912	‘‘(A) the communication appears in a news 10
14913	14913	story, commentary, or editorial distributed 11
14914	14914	through the facilities of any broadcasting sta-12
14915	14915	tion, newspaper, magazine, or other periodical 13
14916	14916	publication, unless such facilities are owned or 14
14917	14917	controlled by any political party, political com-15
14918	14918	mittee, or candidate; or 16
14919	14919	‘‘(B) the communication constitutes a can-17
14920	14920	didate debate or forum conducted pursuant to 18
14921	14921	regulations adopted by the Commission pursu-19
14922	14922	ant to section 304(f)(3)(B)(iii), or which solely 20
14923	14923	promotes such a debate or forum and is made 21
14924	14924	by or on behalf of the person sponsoring the de-22
14925	14925	bate or forum. 23
14926	14926	‘‘(b) C
14927	14927	OORDINATIONDESCRIBED.— 24
14928	14928	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00492 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14929	14929	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 493
14930	14930	•HR 11 IH
14931	14931	‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec-1
14932	14932	tion, a payment is made ‘in cooperation, consulta-2
14933	14933	tion, or concert with, or at the request or suggestion 3
14934	14934	of,’ a candidate, an authorized committee of a can-4
14935	14935	didate, a political committee of a political party, or 5
14936	14936	agents of the candidate or committee, if the pay-6
14937	14937	ment, or any communication for which the payment 7
14938	14938	is made, is not made entirely independently of the 8
14939	14939	candidate, committee, or agents. For purposes of the 9
14940	14940	previous sentence, a payment or communication not 10
14941	14941	made entirely independently of the candidate or 11
14942	14942	committee includes any payment or communication 12
14943	14943	made pursuant to any general or particular under-13
14944	14944	standing with, or pursuant to any communication 14
14945	14945	with, the candidate, committee, or agents about the 15
14946	14946	payment or communication. 16
14947	14947	‘‘(2) N
14948	14948	O FINDING OF COORDINATION BASED 17
14949	14949	SOLELY ON SHARING OF INFORMATION REGARDING 18
14950	14950	LEGISLATIVE OR POLICY POSITION .—For purposes 19
14951	14951	of this section, a payment shall not be considered to 20
14952	14952	be made by a person in cooperation, consultation, or 21
14953	14953	concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a 22
14954	14954	candidate or committee, solely on the grounds that 23
14955	14955	the person or the person’s agent engaged in discus-24
14956	14956	sions with the candidate or committee, or with any 25
14957	14957	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00493 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14958	14958	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 494
14959	14959	•HR 11 IH
14960	14960	agent of the candidate or committee, regarding that 1
14961	14961	person’s position on a legislative or policy matter 2
14962	14962	(including urging the candidate or committee to 3
14963	14963	adopt that person’s position), so long as there is no 4
14964	14964	communication between the person and the can-5
14965	14965	didate or committee, or any agent of the candidate 6
14966	14966	or committee, regarding the candidate’s or commit-7
14967	14967	tee’s campaign advertising, message, strategy, pol-8
14968	14968	icy, polling, allocation of resources, fundraising, or 9
14969	14969	other campaign activities. 10
14970	14970	‘‘(3) N
14971	14971	O EFFECT ON PARTY COORDINATION 11
14972	14972	STANDARD.—Nothing in this section shall be con-12
14973	14973	strued to affect the determination of coordination 13
14974	14974	between a candidate and a political committee of a 14
14975	14975	political party for purposes of section 315(d). 15
14976	14976	‘‘(c) P
14977	14977	AYMENTS BY COORDINATEDSPENDERS FOR 16
14978	14978	C
14979	14979	OVEREDCOMMUNICATIONS.— 17
14980	14980	‘‘(1) P
14981	14981	AYMENTS MADE IN COOPERATION , CON-18
14982	14982	SULTATION, OR CONCERT WITH CANDIDATES .—For 19
14983	14983	purposes of subsection (a)(1)(A), if the person who 20
14984	14984	makes a payment for a covered communication, as 21
14985	14985	defined in subsection (e), is a coordinated spender 22
14986	14986	under paragraph (2) with respect to the candidate 23
14987	14987	as described in paragraph (2), the payment for the 24
14988	14988	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00494 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
14989	14989	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 495
14990	14990	•HR 11 IH
14991	14991	covered communication is made in cooperation, con-1
14992	14992	sultation, or concert with the candidate. 2
14993	14993	‘‘(2) C
14994	14994	OORDINATED SPENDER DEFINED .—For 3
14995	14995	purposes of this subsection, the term ‘coordinated 4
14996	14996	spender’ means, with respect to a candidate or an 5
14997	14997	authorized committee of a candidate, a person (other 6
14998	14998	than a political committee of a political party) for 7
14999	14999	which any of the following applies: 8
15000	15000	‘‘(A) During the 4-year period ending on 9
15001	15001	the date on which the person makes the pay-10
15002	15002	ment, the person was directly or indirectly 11
15003	15003	formed or established by or at the request or 12
15004	15004	suggestion of, or with the encouragement of, 13
15005	15005	the candidate (including an individual who later 14
15006	15006	becomes a candidate) or committee or agents of 15
15007	15007	the candidate or committee, including with the 16
15008	15008	approval of the candidate or committee or 17
15009	15009	agents of the candidate or committee. 18
15010	15010	‘‘(B) The candidate or committee or any 19
15011	15011	agent of the candidate or committee solicits 20
15012	15012	funds, appears at a fundraising event, or en-21
15013	15013	gages in other fundraising activity on the per-22
15014	15014	son’s behalf during the election cycle involved, 23
15015	15015	including by providing the person with names of 24
15016	15016	potential donors or other lists to be used by the 25
15017	15017	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00495 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15018	15018	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 496
15019	15019	•HR 11 IH
15020	15020	person in engaging in fundraising activity, re-1
15021	15021	gardless of whether the person pays fair market 2
15022	15022	value for the names or lists provided. For pur-3
15023	15023	poses of this subparagraph, the term ‘election 4
15024	15024	cycle’ means, with respect to an election for 5
15025	15025	Federal office, the period beginning on the day 6
15026	15026	after the date of the most recent general elec-7
15027	15027	tion for that office (or, if the general election 8
15028	15028	resulted in a runoff election, the date of the 9
15029	15029	runoff election) and ending on the date of the 10
15030	15030	next general election for that office (or, if the 11
15031	15031	general election resulted in a runoff election, 12
15032	15032	the date of the runoff election). 13
15033	15033	‘‘(C) The person is established, directed, or 14
15034	15034	managed by the candidate or committee or by 15
15035	15035	any person who, during the 4-year period end-16
15036	15036	ing on the date on which the person makes the 17
15037	15037	payment, has been employed or retained as a 18
15038	15038	political, campaign media, or fundraising ad-19
15039	15039	viser or consultant for the candidate or com-20
15040	15040	mittee or for any other entity directly or indi-21
15041	15041	rectly controlled by the candidate or committee, 22
15042	15042	or has held a formal position with the candidate 23
15043	15043	or committee (including a position as an em-24
15044	15044	ployee of the office of the candidate at any time 25
15045	15045	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00496 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15046	15046	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 497
15047	15047	•HR 11 IH
15048	15048	the candidate held any Federal, State, or local 1
15049	15049	public office during the 4-year period). 2
15050	15050	‘‘(D) The person has retained the profes-3
15051	15051	sional services of any person who, during the 2- 4
15052	15052	year period ending on the date on which the 5
15053	15053	person makes the payment, has provided or is 6
15054	15054	providing professional services relating to the 7
15055	15055	campaign to the candidate or committee, unless 8
15056	15056	the person providing the professional services 9
15057	15057	used a firewall or similar procedure in accord-10
15058	15058	ance with subsection (d). For purposes of this 11
15059	15059	subparagraph, the term ‘professional services’ 12
15060	15060	includes any services in support of the can-13
15061	15061	didate’s or committee’s campaign activities, in-14
15062	15062	cluding advertising, message, strategy, policy, 15
15063	15063	polling, allocation of resources, fundraising, and 16
15064	15064	campaign operations, but does not include ac-17
15065	15065	counting or legal services. 18
15066	15066	‘‘(E) The person is established, directed, or 19
15067	15067	managed by a member of the immediate family 20
15068	15068	of the candidate, or the person or any officer or 21
15069	15069	agent of the person has had more than inci-22
15070	15070	dental discussions about the candidate’s cam-23
15071	15071	paign with a member of the immediate family 24
15072	15072	of the candidate. For purposes of this subpara-25
15073	15073	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00497 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15074	15074	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 498
15075	15075	•HR 11 IH
15076	15076	graph, the term ‘immediate family’ has the 1
15077	15077	meaning given such term in section 9004(e) of 2
15078	15078	the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 3
15079	15079	‘‘(d) U
15080	15080	SE OFFIREWALL ASSAFEHARBOR.— 4
15081	15081	‘‘(1) N
15082	15082	O COORDINATION IF FIREWALL AP -5
15083	15083	PLIES.—A person shall not be determined to have 6
15084	15084	made a payment in cooperation, consultation, or 7
15085	15085	concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a 8
15086	15086	candidate or committee in accordance with this sec-9
15087	15087	tion if the person established and used a firewall or 10
15088	15088	similar procedure to restrict the sharing of informa-11
15089	15089	tion between individuals who are employed by or who 12
15090	15090	are serving as agents for the person making the pay-13
15091	15091	ment, but only if the firewall or similar procedures 14
15092	15092	meet the requirements of paragraph (2). 15
15093	15093	‘‘(2) R
15094	15094	EQUIREMENTS DESCRIBED .—The re-16
15095	15095	quirements described in this paragraph with respect 17
15096	15096	to a firewall or similar procedure are as follows: 18
15097	15097	‘‘(A) The firewall or procedure is designed 19
15098	15098	and implemented to prohibit the flow of infor-20
15099	15099	mation between employees and consultants pro-21
15100	15100	viding services for the person paying for the 22
15101	15101	communication and those employees or consult-23
15102	15102	ants providing, or who previously provided, 24
15103	15103	services to a candidate who is clearly identified 25
15104	15104	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00498 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15105	15105	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 499
15106	15106	•HR 11 IH
15107	15107	in the communication or an authorized com-1
15108	15108	mittee of the candidate, the candidate’s oppo-2
15109	15109	nent or an authorized committee of the can-3
15110	15110	didate’s opponent, or a committee of a political 4
15111	15111	party. 5
15112	15112	‘‘(B) The firewall or procedure must be de-6
15113	15113	scribed in a written policy that is distributed, 7
15114	15114	signed, and dated by all relevant employees, 8
15115	15115	consultants, and clients subject to the policy. 9
15116	15116	‘‘(C) The policy must be preserved and re-10
15117	15117	tained by the person for at least 5 years fol-11
15118	15118	lowing any termination or cessation of represen-12
15119	15119	tation by employees, consultants, and clients 13
15120	15120	who are subject to the policy. 14
15121	15121	‘‘(D) The policy must prohibit any employ-15
15122	15122	ees, consultants, and clients who are subject to 16
15123	15123	the policy from attending meetings, trainings, 17
15124	15124	or other discussions where nonpublic plans, 18
15125	15125	projects, activities, or needs of candidates for 19
15126	15126	election for Federal office or political commit-20
15127	15127	tees are discussed. 21
15128	15128	‘‘(E) The policy must prohibit each owner 22
15129	15129	of an organization, and each executive, man-23
15130	15130	ager, and supervisor within an organization, 24
15131	15131	from simultaneously overseeing the work of em-25
15132	15132	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00499 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15133	15133	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 500
15134	15134	•HR 11 IH
15135	15135	ployees and consultants who are subject to the 1
15136	15136	firewall or procedure. 2
15137	15137	‘‘(F) The policy must place restrictions on 3
15138	15138	internal and external communications, including 4
15139	15139	by establishing separate emailing lists, for em-5
15140	15140	ployees, consultants, and clients who are subject 6
15141	15141	to the firewall or procedure and those who are 7
15142	15142	not subject to the firewall or procedure. 8
15143	15143	‘‘(G) The policy must require the person to 9
15144	15144	establish separate files, including electronic file 10
15145	15145	folders— 11
15146	15146	‘‘(i) for employees, consultants, and 12
15147	15147	clients who are subject to the firewall or 13
15148	15148	procedure and to prohibit access to such 14
15149	15149	files by employees, consultants, and clients 15
15150	15150	who are not subject to the firewall or pro-16
15151	15151	cedure; and 17
15152	15152	‘‘(ii) for employees, consultants, and 18
15153	15153	clients who are not subject to the firewall 19
15154	15154	or procedure and to prohibit access to such 20
15155	15155	files by employees, consultants, and clients 21
15156	15156	who are subject to the firewall or proce-22
15157	15157	dure. 23
15158	15158	‘‘(H) The person must conduct a training 24
15159	15159	on the applicable requirements and obligations 25
15160	15160	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00500 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15161	15161	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 501
15162	15162	•HR 11 IH
15163	15163	of this Act and the policy for all employees, 1
15164	15164	consultants, and clients. 2
15165	15165	‘‘(3) E
15166	15166	XCEPTION IF INFORMATION IS SHARED 3
15167	15167	REGARDLESS OF FIREWALL .—A person who estab-4
15168	15168	lished and used a firewall or similar procedure which 5
15169	15169	meets the requirements of paragraph (2) shall be de-6
15170	15170	termined to have made a payment in cooperation, 7
15171	15171	consultation, or concert with, or at the request or 8
15172	15172	suggestion of, a candidate or committee in accord-9
15173	15173	ance with this section if specific information indi-10
15174	15174	cates that, notwithstanding the establishment and 11
15175	15175	use of the firewall or similar procedure, information 12
15176	15176	about the candidate’s or committee’s campaign 13
15177	15177	plans, projects, activities, or needs that is material 14
15178	15178	to the creation, production, or distribution of the 15
15179	15179	covered communication was used or conveyed to the 16
15180	15180	person paying for the communication. 17
15181	15181	‘‘(4) U
15182	15182	SE AS DEFENSE TO ENFORCEMENT AC -18
15183	15183	TION.—If, in a procedure or action brought by the 19
15184	15184	Commission under section 309, a person who is al-20
15185	15185	leged to have committed a violation of this Act which 21
15186	15186	involves the making of a contribution which consists 22
15187	15187	of a payment for a coordinated expenditure raises 23
15188	15188	the use of a firewall or similar procedure as a de-24
15189	15189	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00501 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15190	15190	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 502
15191	15191	•HR 11 IH
15192	15192	fense, the person shall provide the Commission 1
15193	15193	with— 2
15194	15194	‘‘(A) a copy of the signed and dated fire-3
15195	15195	wall or procedure policy which applied to the 4
15196	15196	person’s employees, consultants, or clients 5
15197	15197	whose conduct is at issue in the procedure or 6
15198	15198	action; and 7
15199	15199	‘‘(B) a sworn, written affidavit of the em-8
15200	15200	ployees, consultants, or clients who were subject 9
15201	15201	to the policy that the terms, conditions, and re-10
15202	15202	quirements of the policy were met. 11
15203	15203	‘‘(e) C
15204	15204	OVEREDCOMMUNICATIONDEFINED.— 12
15205	15205	‘‘(1) I
15206	15206	N GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec-13
15207	15207	tion, the term ‘covered communication’ means, with 14
15208	15208	respect to a candidate or an authorized committee of 15
15209	15209	a candidate, a public communication (as defined in 16
15210	15210	section 301(22)) which— 17
15211	15211	‘‘(A) expressly advocates the election of the 18
15212	15212	candidate or the defeat of an opponent of the 19
15213	15213	candidate (or contains the functional equivalent 20
15214	15214	of express advocacy); 21
15215	15215	‘‘(B) promotes or supports the election of 22
15216	15216	the candidate, or attacks or opposes the election 23
15217	15217	of an opponent of the candidate (regardless of 24
15218	15218	whether the communication expressly advocates 25
15219	15219	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00502 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15220	15220	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 503
15221	15221	•HR 11 IH
15222	15222	the election or defeat of a candidate or contains 1
15223	15223	the functional equivalent of express advocacy); 2
15224	15224	or 3
15225	15225	‘‘(C) refers to the candidate or an oppo-4
15226	15226	nent of the candidate but is not described in 5
15227	15227	subparagraph (A) or subparagraph (B), but 6
15228	15228	only if the communication is disseminated dur-7
15229	15229	ing the applicable election period. 8
15230	15230	‘‘(2) A
15231	15231	PPLICABLE ELECTION PERIOD .—In para-9
15232	15232	graph (1)(C), the ‘applicable election period’ with re-10
15233	15233	spect to a communication means— 11
15234	15234	‘‘(A) in the case of a communication which 12
15235	15235	refers to a candidate in a general, special, or 13
15236	15236	runoff election, the 120-day period which ends 14
15237	15237	on the date of the election; or 15
15238	15238	‘‘(B) in the case of a communication which 16
15239	15239	refers to a candidate in a primary or preference 17
15240	15240	election, or convention or caucus of a political 18
15241	15241	party that has authority to nominate a can-19
15242	15242	didate, the 60-day period which ends on the 20
15243	15243	date of the election or convention or caucus. 21
15244	15244	‘‘(3) S
15245	15245	PECIAL RULES FOR COMMUNICATIONS IN -22
15246	15246	VOLVING CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES .—For pur-23
15247	15247	poses of this subsection, a public communication 24
15248	15248	shall not be considered to be a covered communica-25
15249	15249	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00503 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15250	15250	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 504
15251	15251	•HR 11 IH
15252	15252	tion with respect to a candidate for election for an 1
15253	15253	office other than the office of President or Vice 2
15254	15254	President unless it is publicly disseminated or dis-3
15255	15255	tributed in the jurisdiction of the office the can-4
15256	15256	didate is seeking. 5
15257	15257	‘‘(f) P
15258	15258	ENALTY.— 6
15259	15259	‘‘(1) D
15260	15260	ETERMINATION OF AMOUNT .—Any per-7
15261	15261	son who knowingly and willfully commits a violation 8
15262	15262	of this Act which involves the making of a contribu-9
15263	15263	tion which consists of a payment for a coordinated 10
15264	15264	expenditure shall be fined an amount equal to the 11
15265	15265	greater of— 12
15266	15266	‘‘(A) in the case of a person who makes a 13
15267	15267	contribution which consists of a payment for a 14
15268	15268	coordinated expenditure in an amount exceeding 15
15269	15269	the applicable contribution limit under this Act, 16
15270	15270	300 percent of the amount by which the 17
15271	15271	amount of the payment made by the person ex-18
15272	15272	ceeds such applicable contribution limit; or 19
15273	15273	‘‘(B) in the case of a person who is prohib-20
15274	15274	ited under this Act from making a contribution 21
15275	15275	in any amount, 300 percent of the amount of 22
15276	15276	the payment made by the person for the coordi-23
15277	15277	nated expenditure. 24
15278	15278	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00504 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15279	15279	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 505
15280	15280	•HR 11 IH
15281	15281	‘‘(2) JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY .—Any di-1
15282	15282	rector, manager, or officer of a person who is subject 2
15283	15283	to a penalty under paragraph (1) shall be jointly and 3
15284	15284	severally liable for any amount of such penalty that 4
15285	15285	is not paid by the person prior to the expiration of 5
15286	15286	the 1-year period which begins on the date the Com-6
15287	15287	mission imposes the penalty or the 1-year period 7
15288	15288	which begins on the date of the final judgment fol-8
15289	15289	lowing any judicial review of the Commission’s ac-9
15290	15290	tion, whichever is later.’’. 10
15291	15291	(c) E
15292	15292	FFECTIVEDATE.— 11
15293	15293	(1) R
15294	15294	EPEAL OF EXISTING REGULATIONS ON CO -12
15295	15295	ORDINATION.—Effective upon the expiration of the 13
15296	15296	90-day period which begins on the date of the enact-14
15297	15297	ment of this Act— 15
15298	15298	(A) the regulations on coordinated commu-16
15299	15299	nications adopted by the Federal Election Com-17
15300	15300	mission which are in effect on the date of the 18
15301	15301	enactment of this Act (as set forth under the 19
15302	15302	heading ‘‘Coordination’’ in subpart C of part 20
15303	15303	109 of title 11, Code of Federal Regulations) 21
15304	15304	are repealed; and 22
15305	15305	(B) the Federal Election Commission shall 23
15306	15306	promulgate new regulations on coordinated 24
15307	15307	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00505 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15308	15308	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 506
15309	15309	•HR 11 IH
15310	15310	communications which reflect the amendments 1
15311	15311	made by this Act. 2
15312	15312	(2) E
15313	15313	FFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 3
15314	15314	by this section shall apply with respect to payments 4
15315	15315	made on or after the expiration of the 120-day pe-5
15316	15316	riod which begins on the date of the enactment of 6
15317	15317	this Act, without regard to whether or not the Fed-7
15318	15318	eral Election Commission has promulgated regula-8
15319	15319	tions in accordance with paragraph (1)(B) as of the 9
15320	15320	expiration of such period. 10
15321	15321	Subtitle B—Restoring Integrity to 11
15322	15322	America’s Elections 12
15323	15323	SEC. 7101. SHORT TITLE. 13
15324	15324	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Restoring Integrity 14
15325	15325	to America’s Elections Act’’. 15
15326	15326	SEC. 7102. REVISION TO ENFORCEMENT PROCESS. 16
15327	15327	(a) S
15328	15328	TANDARD FORINITIATINGINVESTIGATIONS AND 17
15329	15329	D
15330	15330	ETERMINING WHETHER VIOLATIONSHAVEOC-18
15331	15331	CURRED.— 19
15332	15332	(1) R
15333	15333	EVISION OF STANDARDS .—Section 309(a) 20
15334	15334	of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 21
15335	15335	U.S.C. 30109(a)) is amended by striking paragraphs 22
15336	15336	(2) and (3) and inserting the following: 23
15337	15337	‘‘(2)(A) The general counsel, upon receiving a com-24
15338	15338	plaint filed with the Commission under paragraph (1) or 25
15339	15339	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00506 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15340	15340	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 507
15341	15341	•HR 11 IH
15342	15342	upon the basis of information ascertained by the Commis-1
15343	15343	sion in the normal course of carrying out its supervisory 2
15344	15344	responsibilities, shall make a determination as to whether 3
15345	15345	or not there is reason to believe that a person has com-4
15346	15346	mitted, or is about to commit, a violation of this Act or 5
15347	15347	chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code 6
15348	15348	of 1986, and as to whether or not the Commission should 7
15349	15349	either initiate an investigation of the matter or that the 8
15350	15350	complaint should be dismissed. The general counsel shall 9
15351	15351	promptly provide notification to the Commission of such 10
15352	15352	determination and the reasons therefore, together with 11
15353	15353	any written response submitted under paragraph (1) by 12
15354	15354	the person alleged to have committed the violation. Upon 13
15355	15355	the expiration of the 30-day period which begins on the 14
15356	15356	date the general counsel provides such notification, the 15
15357	15357	general counsel’s determination shall take effect, unless 16
15358	15358	during such 30-day period the Commission, by vote of a 17
15359	15359	majority of the members of the Commission who are serv-18
15360	15360	ing at the time, overrules the general counsel’s determina-19
15361	15361	tion. If the determination by the general counsel that the 20
15362	15362	Commission should investigate the matter takes effect, or 21
15363	15363	if the determination by the general counsel that the com-22
15364	15364	plaint should be dismissed is overruled as provided under 23
15365	15365	the previous sentence, the general counsel shall initiate an 24
15366	15366	investigation of the matter on behalf of the Commission. 25
15367	15367	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00507 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15368	15368	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 508
15369	15369	•HR 11 IH
15370	15370	‘‘(B) If the Commission initiates an investigation 1
15371	15371	pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Commission, through 2
15372	15372	the Chair, shall notify the subject of the investigation of 3
15373	15373	the alleged violation. Such notification shall set forth the 4
15374	15374	factual basis for such alleged violation. The Commission 5
15375	15375	shall make an investigation of such alleged violation, which 6
15376	15376	may include a field investigation or audit, in accordance 7
15377	15377	with the provisions of this section. The general counsel 8
15378	15378	shall provide notification to the Commission of any intent 9
15379	15379	to issue a subpoena or conduct any other form of discovery 10
15380	15380	pursuant to the investigation. Upon the expiration of the 11
15381	15381	15-day period which begins on the date the general counsel 12
15382	15382	provides such notification, the general counsel may issue 13
15383	15383	the subpoena or conduct the discovery, unless during such 14
15384	15384	15-day period the Commission, by vote of a majority of 15
15385	15385	the members of the Commission who are serving at the 16
15386	15386	time, prohibits the general counsel from issuing the sub-17
15387	15387	poena or conducting the discovery. 18
15388	15388	‘‘(3)(A) Upon completion of an investigation under 19
15389	15389	paragraph (2), the general counsel shall make a deter-20
15390	15390	mination as to whether or not there is probable cause to 21
15391	15391	believe that a person has committed, or is about to com-22
15392	15392	mit, a violation of this Act or chapter 95 or chapter 96 23
15393	15393	of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and shall promptly 24
15394	15394	submit such determination to the Commission, and shall 25
15395	15395	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00508 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15396	15396	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 509
15397	15397	•HR 11 IH
15398	15398	include with the determination a brief stating the position 1
15399	15399	of the general counsel on the legal and factual issues of 2
15400	15400	the case. 3
15401	15401	‘‘(B) At the time the general counsel submits to the 4
15402	15402	Commission the determination under subparagraph (A), 5
15403	15403	the general counsel shall simultaneously notify the re-6
15404	15404	spondent of such determination and the reasons therefore, 7
15405	15405	shall provide the respondent with an opportunity to submit 8
15406	15406	a brief within 30 days stating the position of the respond-9
15407	15407	ent on the legal and factual issues of the case and replying 10
15408	15408	to the brief of the general counsel. The general counsel 11
15409	15409	shall promptly submit such brief to the Commission upon 12
15410	15410	receipt. 13
15411	15411	‘‘(C) Upon the expiration of the 30-day period which 14
15412	15412	begins on the date the general counsel submits the deter-15
15413	15413	mination to the Commission under subparagraph (A) (or, 16
15414	15414	if the respondent submits a brief under subparagraph (B), 17
15415	15415	upon the expiration of the 30-day period which begins on 18
15416	15416	the date the general counsel submits the respondent’s brief 19
15417	15417	to the Commission under such subparagraph), the general 20
15418	15418	counsel’s determination shall take effect, unless during 21
15419	15419	such 30-day period the Commission, by vote of a majority 22
15420	15420	of the members of the Commission who are serving at the 23
15421	15421	time, overrules the general counsel’s determination. If the 24
15422	15422	determination by the general counsel that there is prob-25
15423	15423	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00509 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15424	15424	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 510
15425	15425	•HR 11 IH
15426	15426	able cause to believe that a person has committed, or is 1
15427	15427	about to commit, a violation of this Act or chapter 95 or 2
15428	15428	chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or if 3
15429	15429	the determination by the general counsel that there is not 4
15430	15430	probable cause that a person has committed or is about 5
15431	15431	to commit such a violation is overruled as provided under 6
15432	15432	the previous sentence, for purposes of this subsection, the 7
15433	15433	Commission shall be deemed to have determined that there 8
15434	15434	is probable cause that the person has committed or is 9
15435	15435	about to commit such a violation.’’. 10
15436	15436	(2) C
15437	15437	ONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO 11
15438	15438	INITIAL RESPONSE TO FILING OF COMPLAINT .—Sec-12
15439	15439	tion 309(a)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(1)) 13
15440	15440	is amended— 14
15441	15441	(A) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘the 15
15442	15442	Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘the general coun-16
15443	15443	sel’’; and 17
15444	15444	(B) by amending the fourth sentence to 18
15445	15445	read as follows: ‘‘Not later than 15 days after 19
15446	15446	receiving notice from the general counsel under 20
15447	15447	the previous sentence, the person may provide 21
15448	15448	the general counsel with a written response that 22
15449	15449	no action should be taken against such person 23
15450	15450	on the basis of the complaint.’’. 24
15451	15451	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00510 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15452	15452	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 511
15453	15453	•HR 11 IH
15454	15454	(b) REVISION OFSTANDARD FOR REVIEW OFDIS-1
15455	15455	MISSAL OFCOMPLAINTS.— 2
15456	15456	(1) I
15457	15457	N GENERAL.—Section 309(a)(8) of such 3
15458	15458	Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(8)) is amended to read as 4
15459	15459	follows: 5
15460	15460	‘‘(8)(A)(i) Any party aggrieved by an order of the 6
15461	15461	Commission dismissing a complaint filed by such party 7
15462	15462	may file a petition with the United States District Court 8
15463	15463	for the District of Columbia. Any petition under this sub-9
15464	15464	paragraph shall be filed within 60 days after the date on 10
15465	15465	which the party received notice of the dismissal of the 11
15466	15466	complaint. 12
15467	15467	‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 13
15468	15468	court shall determine by de novo review whether the agen-14
15469	15469	cy’s dismissal of the complaint is contrary to law. In any 15
15470	15470	matter in which the penalty for the alleged violation is 16
15471	15471	greater than $50,000, the court should disregard any 17
15472	15472	claim or defense by the Commission of prosecutorial dis-18
15473	15473	cretion as a basis for dismissing the complaint. 19
15474	15474	‘‘(B)(i) Any party who has filed a complaint with the 20
15475	15475	Commission and who is aggrieved by a failure of the Com-21
15476	15476	mission, within one year after the filing of the complaint, 22
15477	15477	to act on such complaint, may file a petition with the 23
15478	15478	United States District Court for the District of Columbia. 24
15479	15479	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00511 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15480	15480	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 512
15481	15481	•HR 11 IH
15482	15482	‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 1
15483	15483	court shall determine by de novo review whether the agen-2
15484	15484	cy’s failure to act on the complaint is contrary to law. 3
15485	15485	‘‘(C) In any proceeding under this paragraph the 4
15486	15486	court may declare that the dismissal of the complaint or 5
15487	15487	the failure to act is contrary to law, and may direct the 6
15488	15488	Commission to conform with such declaration within 30 7
15489	15489	days, failing which the complainant may bring, in the 8
15490	15490	name of such complainant, a civil action to remedy the 9
15491	15491	violation involved in the original complaint.’’. 10
15492	15492	(2) E
15493	15493	FFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 11
15494	15494	by paragraph (1) shall apply— 12
15495	15495	(A) in the case of complaints which are 13
15496	15496	dismissed by the Federal Election Commission, 14
15497	15497	with respect to complaints which are dismissed 15
15498	15498	on or after the date of the enactment of this 16
15499	15499	Act; and 17
15500	15500	(B) in the case of complaints upon which 18
15501	15501	the Federal Election Commission failed to act, 19
15502	15502	with respect to complaints which were filed on 20
15503	15503	or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 21
15504	15504	(c) R
15505	15505	EGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 22
15506	15506	the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 23
15507	15507	Commission shall promulgate new regulations on the en-24
15508	15508	forcement process under section 309 of the Federal Elec-25
15509	15509	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00512 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15510	15510	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 513
15511	15511	•HR 11 IH
15512	15512	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109) to take 1
15513	15513	into account the amendments made by this section. 2
15514	15514	SEC. 7103. OFFICIAL EXERCISING THE RESPONSIBILITIES 3
15515	15515	OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL. 4
15516	15516	Section 306(f)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign 5
15517	15517	Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30106(f)(1)) is amended by add-6
15518	15518	ing at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘In the event 7
15519	15519	of a vacancy in the position of the General Counsel, the 8
15520	15520	most senior attorney employed within the Office of the 9
15521	15521	General Counsel at the time the vacancy arises shall exer-10
15522	15522	cise all the responsibilities of the General Counsel until 11
15523	15523	the vacancy is filled.’’. 12
15524	15524	SEC. 7104. PERMITTING APPEARANCE AT HEARINGS ON RE-13
15525	15525	QUESTS FOR ADVISORY OPINIONS BY PER-14
15526	15526	SONS OPPOSING THE REQUESTS. 15
15527	15527	(a) I
15528	15528	NGENERAL.—Section 308 of such Act (52 16
15529	15529	U.S.C. 30108) is amended by adding at the end the fol-17
15530	15530	lowing new subsection: 18
15531	15531	‘‘(e) To the extent that the Commission provides an 19
15532	15532	opportunity for a person requesting an advisory opinion 20
15533	15533	under this section (or counsel for such person) to appear 21
15534	15534	before the Commission to present testimony in support of 22
15535	15535	the request, and the person (or counsel) accepts such op-23
15536	15536	portunity, the Commission shall provide a reasonable op-24
15537	15537	portunity for an interested party who submitted written 25
15538	15538	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00513 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15539	15539	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 514
15540	15540	•HR 11 IH
15541	15541	comments under subsection (d) in response to the request 1
15542	15542	(or counsel for such interested party) to appear before the 2
15543	15543	Commission to present testimony in response to the re-3
15544	15544	quest.’’. 4
15545	15545	(b) E
15546	15546	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 5
15547	15547	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to requests for advi-6
15548	15548	sory opinions under section 308 of the Federal Election 7
15549	15549	Campaign Act of 1971 which are made on or after the 8
15550	15550	date of the enactment of this Act. 9
15551	15551	SEC. 7105. PERMANENT EXTENSION OF ADMINISTRATIVE 10
15552	15552	PENALTY AUTHORITY. 11
15553	15553	Section 309(a)(4)(C)(v) of the Federal Election Cam-12
15554	15554	paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(4)(C)(v)) is 13
15555	15555	amended by striking ‘‘, and that end on or before Decem-14
15556	15556	ber 31, 2023’’. 15
15557	15557	SEC. 7106. RESTRICTIONS ON EX PARTE COMMUNICATIONS. 16
15558	15558	Section 306(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 17
15559	15559	of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30106(e)) is amended— 18
15560	15560	(1) by striking ‘‘(e) The Commission’’ and in-19
15561	15561	serting ‘‘(e)(1) The Commission’’; and 20
15562	15562	(2) by adding at the end the following new 21
15563	15563	paragraph: 22
15564	15564	‘‘(2) Members and employees of the Commission shall 23
15565	15565	be subject to limitations on ex parte communications, as 24
15566	15566	provided in the regulations promulgated by the Commis-25
15567	15567	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00514 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15568	15568	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 515
15569	15569	•HR 11 IH
15570	15570	sion regarding such communications which are in effect 1
15571	15571	on the date of the enactment of this paragraph.’’. 2
15572	15572	SEC. 7107. CLARIFYING AUTHORITY OF FEC ATTORNEYS TO 3
15573	15573	REPRESENT FEC IN SUPREME COURT. 4
15574	15574	(a) C
15575	15575	LARIFYINGAUTHORITY.—Section 306(f)(4) of 5
15576	15576	the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 6
15577	15577	30106(f)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘any action instituted 7
15578	15578	under this Act, either (A) by attorneys’’ and inserting 8
15579	15579	‘‘any action instituted under this Act, including an action 9
15580	15580	before the Supreme Court of the United States, either (A) 10
15581	15581	by the General Counsel of the Commission and other at-11
15582	15582	torneys’’. 12
15583	15583	(b) E
15584	15584	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 13
15585	15585	subsection (a) shall apply with respect to actions instituted 14
15586	15586	before, on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 15
15587	15587	SEC. 7108. REQUIRING FORMS TO PERMIT USE OF ACCENT 16
15588	15588	MARKS. 17
15589	15589	(a) R
15590	15590	EQUIREMENT.—Section 311(a)(1) of the Fed-18
15591	15591	eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 19
15592	15592	30111(a)(1)) is amended by striking the semicolon at the 20
15593	15593	end and inserting the following: ‘‘, and shall ensure that 21
15594	15594	all such forms (including forms in an electronic format) 22
15595	15595	permit the person using the form to include an accent 23
15596	15596	mark as part of the person’s identification;’’. 24
15597	15597	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00515 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15598	15598	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 516
15599	15599	•HR 11 IH
15600	15600	(b) EFFECTIVEDATE.—The amendment made by 1
15601	15601	subsection (a) shall take effect upon the expiration of the 2
15602	15602	90-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 3
15603	15603	of this Act. 4
15604	15604	SEC. 7109. EXTENSION OF THE STATUTES OF LIMITATIONS 5
15605	15605	FOR OFFENSES UNDER THE FEDERAL ELEC-6
15606	15606	TION CAMPAIGN ACT OF 1971. 7
15607	15607	(a) C
15608	15608	IVILOFFENSES.—Section 309(a) of the Federal 8
15609	15609	Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)) is 9
15610	15610	amended by inserting after paragraph (9) the following 10
15611	15611	new paragraph: 11
15612	15612	‘‘(10) No person shall be subject to a civil penalty 12
15613	15613	under this subsection with respect to a violation of this 13
15614	15614	Act unless a complaint is filed with the Commission with 14
15615	15615	respect to the violation under paragraph (1), or the Com-15
15616	15616	mission responds to information with respect to the viola-16
15617	15617	tion which is ascertained in the normal course of carrying 17
15618	15618	out its supervisory responsibilities under paragraph (2), 18
15619	15619	not later than 10 years after the date on which the viola-19
15620	15620	tion occurred.’’. 20
15621	15621	(b) C
15622	15622	RIMINALOFFENSES.—Section 406(a) of such 21
15623	15623	Act (52 U.S.C. 30145(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘5 22
15624	15624	years’’ and inserting ‘‘10 years’’. 23
15625	15625	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00516 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15626	15626	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 517
15627	15627	•HR 11 IH
15628	15628	(c) EFFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 1
15629	15629	this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 2
15630	15630	on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 3
15631	15631	SEC. 7110. EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION. 4
15632	15632	(a) I
15633	15633	NGENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, this 5
15634	15634	subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle shall 6
15635	15635	take effect and apply on the date of the enactment of this 7
15636	15636	Act, without regard to whether or not the Federal Election 8
15637	15637	Commission has promulgated regulations to carry out this 9
15638	15638	subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle. 10
15639	15639	(b) T
15640	15640	RANSITION.— 11
15641	15641	(1) N
15642	15642	O EFFECT ON EXISTING CASES OR PRO -12
15643	15643	CEEDINGS.—Nothing in this subtitle or in any 13
15644	15644	amendment made by this subtitle shall affect any of 14
15645	15645	the powers exercised by the Federal Election Com-15
15646	15646	mission prior to the date of the enactment of this 16
15647	15647	Act, including any investigation initiated by the 17
15648	15648	Commission prior to such date or any proceeding 18
15649	15649	(including any enforcement action) pending as of 19
15650	15650	such date. 20
15651	15651	(2) T
15652	15652	REATMENT OF CERTAIN COMPLAINTS .—If, 21
15653	15653	as of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Gen-22
15654	15654	eral Counsel of the Federal Election Commission has 23
15655	15655	not made any recommendation to the Commission 24
15656	15656	under section 309(a) of the Federal Election Cam-25
15657	15657	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00517 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15658	15658	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 518
15659	15659	•HR 11 IH
15660	15660	paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109) with respect 1
15661	15661	to a complaint filed prior to the date of the enact-2
15662	15662	ment of this Act, this subtitle and the amendments 3
15663	15663	made by this subtitle shall apply with respect to the 4
15664	15664	complaint in the same manner as this subtitle and 5
15665	15665	the amendments made by this subtitle apply with re-6
15666	15666	spect to a complaint filed on or after the date of the 7
15667	15667	enactment of this Act. 8
15668	15668	Subtitle C—Imposition of Fee for 9
15669	15669	Reports Filed by Paper 10
15670	15670	SEC. 7201. IMPOSITION OF FEE FOR REPORTS FILED BY 11
15671	15671	PAPER. 12
15672	15672	Section 304(a)(11)(A) of the Federal Election Cam-13
15673	15673	paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(a)(11)(A)) is amend-14
15674	15674	ed— 15
15675	15675	(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (i); 16
15676	15676	(2) by striking the period at the end of clause 17
15677	15677	(ii) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 18
15678	15678	(3) by adding at the end the following new 19
15679	15679	clause: 20
15680	15680	‘‘(iii) shall be assessed a $20.00 filing fee for 21
15681	15681	any designation, statement, or report under this Act 22
15682	15682	filed by paper, with the fees received by the Commis-23
15683	15683	sion under this clause deposited into the general 24
15684	15684	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00518 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15685	15685	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 519
15686	15686	•HR 11 IH
15687	15687	fund of the Treasury for the purposes of deficit re-1
15688	15688	duction.’’. 2
15689	15689	TITLE VIII—CITIZEN 3
15690	15690	EMPOWERMENT 4
15691	15691	Subtitle A—Funding To Promote 5
15692	15692	Democracy 6
15693	15693	PART 1—PAYMENTS AND ALLOCATIONS TO 7
15694	15694	STATES 8
15695	15695	SEC. 8001. DEMOCRACY ADVANCEMENT AND INNOVATION 9
15696	15696	PROGRAM. 10
15697	15697	(a) E
15698	15698	STABLISHMENT.—There is established a pro-11
15699	15699	gram to be known as the ‘‘Democracy Advancement and 12
15700	15700	Innovation Program’’ under which the Director of the Of-13
15701	15701	fice of Democracy Advancement and Innovation shall 14
15702	15702	make allocations to each State for each fiscal year to carry 15
15703	15703	out democracy promotion activities described in subsection 16
15704	15704	(b). 17
15705	15705	(b) D
15706	15706	EMOCRACY PROMOTION ACTIVITIESDE-18
15707	15707	SCRIBED.—The democracy promotion activities described 19
15708	15708	in this subsection are as follows: 20
15709	15709	(1) Activities to promote innovation to improve 21
15710	15710	efficiency and smooth functioning in the administra-22
15711	15711	tion of elections for Federal office and to secure the 23
15712	15712	infrastructure used in the administration of such 24
15713	15713	elections, including making upgrades to voting 25
15714	15714	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00519 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15715	15715	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 520
15716	15716	•HR 11 IH
15717	15717	equipment and voter registration systems, securing 1
15718	15718	voting locations, expanding polling places and the 2
15719	15719	availability of early and mail voting, recruiting and 3
15720	15720	training nonpartisan election officials, and pro-4
15721	15721	moting cybersecurity. 5
15722	15722	(2) Activities to ensure equitable access to de-6
15723	15723	mocracy, including the following: 7
15724	15724	(A) Enabling candidates who seek office in 8
15725	15725	the State to receive payments as participating 9
15726	15726	candidates under title V of the Federal Election 10
15727	15727	Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by subtitle 11
15728	15728	B), but only if the State will enable candidates 12
15729	15729	to receive such payments during an entire elec-13
15730	15730	tion cycle. 14
15731	15731	(B) Operating a Democracy Credit Pro-15
15732	15732	gram under part 1 of subtitle B, but only if the 16
15733	15733	State will operate the program during an entire 17
15734	15734	election cycle. 18
15735	15735	(C) Other activities to ensure equitable ac-19
15736	15736	cess to democracy, including administering a 20
15737	15737	ranked-choice voting system and carrying out 21
15738	15738	Congressional redistricting through independent 22
15739	15739	commissions. 23
15740	15740	(3) Activities to increase access to voting in 24
15741	15741	elections for Federal office by underserved commu-25
15742	15742	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00520 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15743	15743	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 521
15744	15744	•HR 11 IH
15745	15745	nities, individuals with disabilities, racial and lan-1
15746	15746	guage minority groups, individuals entitled to vote 2
15747	15747	by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Over-3
15748	15748	seas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and voters resid-4
15749	15749	ing in Indian lands. 5
15750	15750	(c) P
15751	15751	ERMITTINGSTATESTORETAIN ANDRESERVE 6
15752	15752	A
15753	15753	LLOCATIONS FOR FUTUREUSE.—A State may retain 7
15754	15754	and reserve an allocation received for a fiscal year to carry 8
15755	15755	out democracy promotion activities in any subsequent fis-9
15756	15756	cal year. 10
15757	15757	(d) R
15758	15758	EQUIRINGSUBMISSION AND APPROVAL OF 11
15759	15759	S
15760	15760	TATEPLAN.— 12
15761	15761	(1) I
15762	15762	N GENERAL.—A State shall receive an allo-13
15763	15763	cation under the Program for a fiscal year if— 14
15764	15764	(A) not later than 90 days before the first 15
15765	15765	day of the fiscal year, the chief State election 16
15766	15766	official of the State submits to the Director the 17
15767	15767	State plan described in section 8002; and 18
15768	15768	(B) not later than 45 days before the first 19
15769	15769	day of the fiscal year, the Director, in consulta-20
15770	15770	tion with the Election Assistance Commission 21
15771	15771	and the Federal Election Commission as de-22
15772	15772	scribed in paragraph (3), determines that the 23
15773	15773	State plan will enable the State to carry out de-24
15774	15774	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00521 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15775	15775	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 522
15776	15776	•HR 11 IH
15777	15777	mocracy promotion activities and approves the 1
15778	15778	plan. 2
15779	15779	(2) S
15780	15780	UBMISSION AND APPROVAL OF REVISED 3
15781	15781	PLAN.—If the Director does not approve the State 4
15782	15782	plan as submitted by the State under paragraph (1) 5
15783	15783	with respect to a fiscal year, the State shall receive 6
15784	15784	a payment under the Program for the fiscal year if, 7
15785	15785	at any time prior to the end of the fiscal year— 8
15786	15786	(A) the chief State election official of the 9
15787	15787	State submits a revised version of the State 10
15788	15788	plan; and 11
15789	15789	(B) the Director, in consultation with the 12
15790	15790	Election Assistance Commission and the Fed-13
15791	15791	eral Election Commission as described in para-14
15792	15792	graph (3), determines that the revised version 15
15793	15793	of the State plan will enable the State to carry 16
15794	15794	out democracy promotion activities and ap-17
15795	15795	proves the plan. 18
15796	15796	(3) E
15797	15797	LECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION AND 19
15798	15798	FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION CONSULTATION .— 20
15799	15799	With respect to a State plan submitted under para-21
15800	15800	graph (1) or a revised plan submitted under para-22
15801	15801	graph (2)— 23
15802	15802	(A) the Director shall, prior to making a 24
15803	15803	determination on approval of the plan, consult 25
15804	15804	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00522 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15805	15805	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 523
15806	15806	•HR 11 IH
15807	15807	with the Election Assistance Commission with 1
15808	15808	respect to the proposed State activities de-2
15809	15809	scribed in subsection (b)(1) and with the Fed-3
15810	15810	eral Election Commission with respect to the 4
15811	15811	proposed State activities described in subsection 5
15812	15812	(b)(2)(A) and (b)(2)(B); and 6
15813	15813	(B) the Election Assistance Commission 7
15814	15814	and the Federal Election Commission shall sub-8
15815	15815	mit to the Director a written assessment with 9
15816	15816	respect to whether the proposed activities of the 10
15817	15817	plan satisfy the requirements of this Act. 11
15818	15818	(4) C
15819	15819	ONSULTATION WITH LEGISLATURE .—The 12
15820	15820	chief State election official of the State shall develop 13
15821	15821	the State plan submitted under paragraph (1) and 14
15822	15822	the revised plan submitted under paragraph (2) in 15
15823	15823	consultation with the majority party and minority 16
15824	15824	party leaders of each house of the State legislature. 17
15825	15825	(e) S
15826	15826	TATEREPORT ONUSE OFALLOCATIONS.—Not 18
15827	15827	later than 90 days after the last day of a fiscal year for 19
15828	15828	which an allocation was made to the State under the Pro-20
15829	15829	gram, the chief State election official of the State shall 21
15830	15830	submit a report to the Director describing how the State 22
15831	15831	used the allocation, including a description of the democ-23
15832	15832	racy promotion activities the State carried out with the 24
15833	15833	allocation. 25
15834	15834	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00523 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15835	15835	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 524
15836	15836	•HR 11 IH
15837	15837	(f) PUBLICAVAILABILITY OFINFORMATION.— 1
15838	15838	(1) P
15839	15839	UBLICLY AVAILABLE WEBSITE .—The Di-2
15840	15840	rector shall make available on a publicly accessible 3
15841	15841	website the following: 4
15842	15842	(A) State plans submitted under para-5
15843	15843	graph (1) of subsection (d) and revised plans 6
15844	15844	submitted under paragraph (2) of subsection 7
15845	15845	(d). 8
15846	15846	(B) The Director’s notifications of deter-9
15847	15847	minations with respect to such plans under sub-10
15848	15848	section (d). 11
15849	15849	(C) Reports submitted by States under 12
15850	15850	subsection (e). 13
15851	15851	(2) R
15852	15852	EDACTION.—The Director may redact in-14
15853	15853	formation required to be made available under para-15
15854	15854	graph (1) if the information would be properly with-16
15855	15855	held from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, 17
15856	15856	United States Code, or if the public disclosure of the 18
15857	15857	information is otherwise prohibited by law. 19
15858	15858	(g) E
15859	15859	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall apply with 20
15860	15860	respect to fiscal year 2025 and each succeeding fiscal year. 21
15861	15861	SEC. 8002. STATE PLAN. 22
15862	15862	(a) C
15863	15863	ONTENTS.—A State plan under this section with 23
15864	15864	respect to a State is a plan containing each of the fol-24
15865	15865	lowing: 25
15866	15866	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00524 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15867	15867	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 525
15868	15868	•HR 11 IH
15869	15869	(1) A description of the democracy promotion 1
15870	15870	activities the State will carry out with the payment 2
15871	15871	made under the Program. 3
15872	15872	(2) A statement of whether or not the State in-4
15873	15873	tends to retain and reserve the payment for future 5
15874	15874	democracy promotion activities. 6
15875	15875	(3) A description of how the State intends to 7
15876	15876	allocate funds to carry out the proposed activities, 8
15877	15877	which shall include the amount the State intends to 9
15878	15878	allocate to each such activity, including (if applica-10
15879	15879	ble) a specific allocation for— 11
15880	15880	(A) activities described in subsection 12
15881	15881	8001(b)(1) (relating to election administration); 13
15882	15882	(B) activities described in section 14
15883	15883	8001(b)(2)(A) (relating to payments to partici-15
15884	15884	pating candidates in the State under title V of 16
15885	15885	the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971), 17
15886	15886	together with the information required under 18
15887	15887	subsection (c); 19
15888	15888	(C) activities described in section 20
15889	15889	8001(b)(2)(B) (relating to the operation of a 21
15890	15890	Democracy Credit Program under part 1 of 22
15891	15891	subtitle B); 23
15892	15892	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00525 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15893	15893	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 526
15894	15894	•HR 11 IH
15895	15895	(D) activities described in section 1
15896	15896	8001(b)(2)(C) (relating to other activities to en-2
15897	15897	sure equitable access to democracy); and 3
15898	15898	(E) activities described in section 4
15899	15899	8001(b)(3) (relating to activities to increase ac-5
15900	15900	cess to voting in elections for Federal office by 6
15901	15901	certain communities). 7
15902	15902	(4) A description of how the State will establish 8
15903	15903	the fund described in subsection (b) for purposes of 9
15904	15904	administering the democracy promotion activities 10
15905	15905	which the State will carry out with the payment, in-11
15906	15906	cluding information on fund management. 12
15907	15907	(5) A description of the State-based administra-13
15908	15908	tive complaint procedures established for purposes of 14
15909	15909	section 8003(b). 15
15910	15910	(6) A statement regarding whether the pro-16
15911	15911	posed activities to be funded are permitted under 17
15912	15912	State law, or whether the official intends to seek 18
15913	15913	legal authorization for such activities. 19
15914	15914	(b) R
15915	15915	EQUIREMENTS FOR FUND.— 20
15916	15916	(1) F
15917	15917	UND DESCRIBED.—For purposes of sub-21
15918	15918	section (a)(4), a fund described in this subsection 22
15919	15919	with respect to a State is a fund which is established 23
15920	15920	in the treasury of the State government, which is 24
15921	15921	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00526 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15922	15922	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 527
15923	15923	•HR 11 IH
15924	15924	used in accordance with paragraph (2), and which 1
15925	15925	consists of the following amounts: 2
15926	15926	(A) Amounts appropriated or otherwise 3
15927	15927	made available by the State for carrying out the 4
15928	15928	democracy promotion activities for which the 5
15929	15929	payment is made to the State under the Pro-6
15930	15930	gram. 7
15931	15931	(B) The payment made to the State under 8
15932	15932	the Program. 9
15933	15933	(C) Such other amounts as may be appro-10
15934	15934	priated under law. 11
15935	15935	(D) Interest earned on deposits of the 12
15936	15936	fund. 13
15937	15937	(2) U
15938	15938	SE OF FUND.—Amounts in the fund shall 14
15939	15939	be used by the State exclusively to carry out democ-15
15940	15940	racy promotion activities for which the payment is 16
15941	15941	made to the State under the Program. 17
15942	15942	(3) T
15943	15943	REATMENT OF STATES THAT REQUIRE 18
15944	15944	CHANGES TO STATE LAW .—In the case of a State 19
15945	15945	that requires State legislation to establish the fund 20
15946	15946	described in this subsection, the Director shall defer 21
15947	15947	disbursement of the payment to such State under 22
15948	15948	the Program until such time as legislation estab-23
15949	15949	lishing the fund is enacted. 24
15950	15950	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00527 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15951	15951	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 528
15952	15952	•HR 11 IH
15953	15953	(c) SPECIFICINFORMATION ON USE OFFUNDSTO 1
15954	15954	E
15955	15955	NABLECANDIDATESTOPARTICIPATE INMATCHING 2
15956	15956	F
15957	15957	UNDSPROGRAM.—If the State plan under this section 3
15958	15958	includes an allocation for activities described in section 4
15959	15959	8001(b)(2)(A) (relating to payments to participating can-5
15960	15960	didates in the State under title V of the Federal Election 6
15961	15961	Campaign Act of 1971), the State shall include in the plan 7
15962	15962	specific information on how the amount of the allocation 8
15963	15963	will enable the State to provide for the viable participation 9
15964	15964	of candidates in the State under such title, including the 10
15965	15965	assumptions made by the State in determining the amount 11
15966	15966	of the allocation. 12
15967	15967	SEC. 8003. PROHIBITING REDUCTION IN ACCESS TO PAR-13
15968	15968	TICIPATION IN ELECTIONS. 14
15969	15969	(a) P
15970	15970	ROHIBITINGUSE OFPAYMENTS.—A State may 15
15971	15971	not use a payment made under the Program to carry out 16
15972	15972	any activity which has the purpose or effect of diminishing 17
15973	15973	the ability of any citizen of the United States to partici-18
15974	15974	pate in the electoral process. 19
15975	15975	(b) S
15976	15976	TATE-BASEDADMINISTRATIVE COMPLAINT 20
15977	15977	P
15978	15978	ROCEDURES.— 21
15979	15979	(1) E
15980	15980	STABLISHMENT.—A State receiving a pay-22
15981	15981	ment under the Program shall establish uniform and 23
15982	15982	nondiscriminatory State-based administrative com-24
15983	15983	plaint procedures under which any person who be-25
15984	15984	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00528 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
15985	15985	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 529
15986	15986	•HR 11 IH
15987	15987	lieves that a violation of subsection (a) has occurred, 1
15988	15988	is occurring, or is about to occur may file a com-2
15989	15989	plaint. 3
15990	15990	(2) N
15991	15991	OTIFICATION TO DIRECTOR .—The State 4
15992	15992	shall transmit to the Director a description of each 5
15993	15993	complaint filed under the procedures, together 6
15994	15994	with— 7
15995	15995	(A) if the State provides a remedy with re-8
15996	15996	spect to the complaint, a description of the rem-9
15997	15997	edy; or 10
15998	15998	(B) if the State dismisses the complaint, a 11
15999	15999	statement of the reasons for the dismissal. 12
16000	16000	(3) R
16001	16001	EVIEW BY DIRECTOR.— 13
16002	16002	(A) R
16003	16003	EQUEST FOR REVIEW .—Any person 14
16004	16004	who is dissatisfied with the final decision under 15
16005	16005	a State-based administrative complaint proce-16
16006	16006	dure under this subsection may, not later than 17
16007	16007	60 days after the decision is made, file a re-18
16008	16008	quest with the Director to review the decision. 19
16009	16009	(B) A
16010	16010	CTION BY DIRECTOR.—Upon receiv-20
16011	16011	ing a request under subparagraph (A), the Di-21
16012	16012	rector shall review the decision and, in accord-22
16013	16013	ance with such procedures as the Director may 23
16014	16014	establish, including procedures to provide notice 24
16015	16015	and an opportunity for a hearing, may uphold 25
16016	16016	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00529 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16017	16017	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 530
16018	16018	•HR 11 IH
16019	16019	the decision or reverse the decision and provide 1
16020	16020	an appropriate remedy. 2
16021	16021	(C) P
16022	16022	UBLIC AVAILABILITY OF MATE -3
16023	16023	RIAL.—The Director shall make available on a 4
16024	16024	publicly accessible website all material relating 5
16025	16025	to a request for review and determination by 6
16026	16026	the Director under this paragraph, except that 7
16027	16027	the Director may redact material required to be 8
16028	16028	made available under this subparagraph if the 9
16029	16029	material would be properly withheld from dis-10
16030	16030	closure under section 552 of title 5, United 11
16031	16031	States Code, or if the public disclosure of the 12
16032	16032	material is otherwise prohibited by law. 13
16033	16033	(4) R
16034	16034	IGHT TO PETITION FOR REVIEW .— 14
16035	16035	(A) I
16036	16036	N GENERAL.—Any person aggrieved 15
16037	16037	by an action of the Director under subpara-16
16038	16038	graph (B) of paragraph (3) may file a petition 17
16039	16039	with the United States District Court for the 18
16040	16040	District of Columbia. 19
16041	16041	(B) D
16042	16042	EADLINE TO FILE PETITION .—Any 20
16043	16043	petition under this subparagraph shall be filed 21
16044	16044	not later than 60 days after the date of the ac-22
16045	16045	tion taken by the Director under subparagraph 23
16046	16046	(B) of paragraph (3). 24
16047	16047	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00530 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16048	16048	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 531
16049	16049	•HR 11 IH
16050	16050	(C) STANDARD OF REVIEW .—In any pro-1
16051	16051	ceeding under this paragraph, the court shall 2
16052	16052	determine whether the action of the Director 3
16053	16053	was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discre-4
16054	16054	tion, or otherwise not in accordance with law 5
16055	16055	under section 706 of title 5, United States 6
16056	16056	Code, and may direct the Office to conform 7
16057	16057	with any such determination within 30 days. 8
16058	16058	(c) A
16059	16059	CTION BYATTORNEYGENERAL FORDECLARA-9
16060	16060	TORY ANDINJUNCTIVERELIEF.—The Attorney General 10
16061	16061	may bring a civil action against any State in an appro-11
16062	16062	priate United States District Court for such declaratory 12
16063	16063	and injunctive relief (including a temporary restraining 13
16064	16064	order, a permanent or temporary injunction, or other 14
16065	16065	order) as may be necessary to enforce subsection (a). 15
16066	16066	SEC. 8004. AMOUNT OF STATE ALLOCATION. 16
16067	16067	(a) S
16068	16068	TATE-SPECIFICAMOUNT.—The amount of the 17
16069	16069	allocation made to a State under the Program for a fiscal 18
16070	16070	year shall be equal to the product of— 19
16071	16071	(1) the Congressional district allocation amount 20
16072	16072	(determined under subsection (b)); and 21
16073	16073	(2) the number of Congressional districts in the 22
16074	16074	State for the next regularly scheduled general elec-23
16075	16075	tion for Federal office held in the State. 24
16076	16076	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00531 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16077	16077	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 532
16078	16078	•HR 11 IH
16079	16079	(b) CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTALLOCATION 1
16080	16080	A
16081	16081	MOUNT.—For purposes of subsection (a), the ‘‘Congres-2
16082	16082	sional district allocation amount’’ with respect to a fiscal 3
16083	16083	year is equal to the quotient of— 4
16084	16084	(1) the aggregate amount available for alloca-5
16085	16085	tions to States under the Program for the fiscal 6
16086	16086	year, as determined by the Director under sub-7
16087	16087	section (c); divided by 8
16088	16088	(2) the total number of Congressional districts 9
16089	16089	in all States. 10
16090	16090	(c) D
16091	16091	ETERMINATION OF AGGREGATE AMOUNT 11
16092	16092	A
16093	16093	VAILABLE FOR ALLOCATIONS; NOTIFICATION TO 12
16094	16094	S
16095	16095	TATES.—Not later than 120 days before the first day 13
16096	16096	of each fiscal year, the Director— 14
16097	16097	(1) shall, in accordance with section 8012, de-15
16098	16098	termine and establish the aggregate amount avail-16
16099	16099	able for allocations to States under the Program for 17
16100	16100	the fiscal year; and 18
16101	16101	(2) shall notify each State of the amount of the 19
16102	16102	State’s allocation under the Program for the fiscal 20
16103	16103	year. 21
16104	16104	(d) S
16105	16105	OURCE OFPAYMENTS.—The amounts used to 22
16106	16106	make allocations and payments under the Program shall 23
16107	16107	be derived solely from the Trust Fund. 24
16108	16108	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00532 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16109	16109	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 533
16110	16110	•HR 11 IH
16111	16111	SEC. 8005. PROCEDURES FOR DISBURSEMENTS OF PAY-1
16112	16112	MENTS AND ALLOCATIONS. 2
16113	16113	(a) D
16114	16114	IRECTPAYMENTS TOSTATES FORCERTAINAC-3
16115	16115	TIVITIESUNDERSTATEPLAN.— 4
16116	16116	(1) D
16117	16117	IRECT PAYMENT.—If the approved State 5
16118	16118	plan of a State includes activities for which alloca-6
16119	16119	tions are not made under subsections (b), (c), or (d), 7
16120	16120	upon approving the State plan under section 8002, 8
16121	16121	the Director shall direct the Secretary of the Treas-9
16122	16122	ury to disburse amounts from the Trust Fund for 10
16123	16123	payment to the State in the aggregate amount pro-11
16124	16124	vided under the plan for such activities. 12
16125	16125	(2) T
16126	16126	IMING.—As soon as practicable after the 13
16127	16127	Director directs the Secretary of the Treasury to 14
16128	16128	disburse amounts for payment to a State under 15
16129	16129	paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Treasury shall 16
16130	16130	make the payment to the State under such para-17
16131	16131	graph. 18
16132	16132	(3) C
16133	16133	ONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS 19
16134	16134	AFTER APPROPRIATION .—A payment made to a 20
16135	16135	State under this subsection shall be available with-21
16136	16136	out fiscal year limitation. 22
16137	16137	(b) A
16138	16138	LLOCATION TOELECTIONASSISTANCECOMMIS-23
16139	16139	SION FORPAYMENTS TOSTATES FORCERTAINELECTION 24
16140	16140	A
16141	16141	DMINISTRATIONACTIVITIES.— 25
16142	16142	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00533 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16143	16143	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 534
16144	16144	•HR 11 IH
16145	16145	(1) ALLOCATION.—If the approved State plan 1
16146	16146	of a State includes activities described in section 2
16147	16147	8001(b)(1), upon approving the State plan under 3
16148	16148	section 8002, the Director shall direct the Secretary 4
16149	16149	of the Treasury to allocate to the Election Assist-5
16150	16150	ance Commission the amount provided for such ac-6
16151	16151	tivities under the plan. 7
16152	16152	(2) P
16153	16153	AYMENT TO STATE .—As soon as prac-8
16154	16154	ticable after receiving an allocation under paragraph 9
16155	16155	(1) with respect to a State, the Election Assistance 10
16156	16156	Commission shall make a payment to the State in 11
16157	16157	the amount of the State’s allocation. 12
16158	16158	(3) C
16159	16159	ONTINUING AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS 13
16160	16160	AFTER APPROPRIATION .—A payment made to a 14
16161	16161	State by the Election Assistance Commission under 15
16162	16162	this subsection shall be available without fiscal year 16
16163	16163	limitation. 17
16164	16164	(c) A
16165	16165	LLOCATION TOFEDERALELECTIONCOMMIS-18
16166	16166	SION FORPAYMENTS TO PARTICIPATINGCANDIDATES 19
16167	16167	F
16168	16168	ROMSTATE.—If the approved State plan of a State in-20
16169	16169	cludes activities described in section 8001(b)(2)(A), relat-21
16170	16170	ing to payments to participating candidates in the State 22
16171	16171	under title V of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 23
16172	16172	1971, upon approving the State plan under section 8002, 24
16173	16173	the Director shall direct the Secretary of the Treasury to 25
16174	16174	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00534 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16175	16175	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 535
16176	16176	•HR 11 IH
16177	16177	allocate to the Federal Election Commission the amount 1
16178	16178	provided for such activities under the plan. 2
16179	16179	(d) A
16180	16180	LLOCATION TOFEDERALELECTIONCOMMIS-3
16181	16181	SION FORPAYMENTS FOR DEMOCRACYCREDITPRO-4
16182	16182	GRAM.—If the approved State plan of a State includes ac-5
16183	16183	tivities described in section 8001(b)(2)(B), relating to pay-6
16184	16184	ments to the State for the operation of a Democracy Cred-7
16185	16185	it Program under part 1 of subtitle B, upon approving 8
16186	16186	the State plan under section 8002, the Director shall di-9
16187	16187	rect the Secretary of the Treasury to allocate to the Fed-10
16188	16188	eral Election Commission the amount provided for such 11
16189	16189	activities under the plan. 12
16190	16190	(e) C
16191	16191	ERTAINPAYMENTSMADEDIRECTLY TOLOCAL 13
16192	16192	E
16193	16193	LECTIONADMINISTRATORS.—Under rules established by 14
16194	16194	the Director not later than 270 days after the date of the 15
16195	16195	enactment of this Act, portions of amounts disbursed to 16
16196	16196	States by the Secretary of the Treasury under subsection 17
16197	16197	(a) and payments made to States by the Election Assist-18
16198	16198	ance Commission under subsection (b) may be provided 19
16199	16199	directly to local election administrators carrying out activi-20
16200	16200	ties in the State plan which may be carried out with such 21
16201	16201	amounts and payments. 22
16202	16202	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00535 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16203	16203	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 536
16204	16204	•HR 11 IH
16205	16205	SEC. 8006. OFFICE OF DEMOCRACY ADVANCEMENT AND IN-1
16206	16206	NOVATION. 2
16207	16207	(a) E
16208	16208	STABLISHMENT.—There is established as an 3
16209	16209	independent establishment in the executive branch the Of-4
16210	16210	fice of Democracy Advancement and Innovation. 5
16211	16211	(b) D
16212	16212	IRECTOR.— 6
16213	16213	(1) I
16214	16214	N GENERAL.—The Office shall be headed 7
16215	16215	by a Director, who shall be appointed by the Presi-8
16216	16216	dent with the advice and consent of the Senate. 9
16217	16217	(2) T
16218	16218	ERM OF SERVICE .—The Director shall 10
16219	16219	serve for a term of 6 years and may be reappointed 11
16220	16220	to an additional term, and may continue serving as 12
16221	16221	Director until a replacement is appointed. A vacancy 13
16222	16222	in the position of Director shall be filled in the same 14
16223	16223	manner as the original appointment. 15
16224	16224	(3) C
16225	16225	OMPENSATION.—The Director shall be 16
16226	16226	paid at an annual rate of pay equal to the annual 17
16227	16227	rate in effect for level II of the Executive Schedule. 18
16228	16228	(4) R
16229	16229	EMOVAL.—The Director may be removed 19
16230	16230	from office by the President. If the President re-20
16231	16231	moves the Director, the President shall communicate 21
16232	16232	in writing the reasons for the removal to both 22
16233	16233	Houses of Congress not later than 30 days before-23
16234	16234	hand. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed 24
16235	16235	to prohibit a personnel action otherwise authorized 25
16236	16236	by law. 26
16237	16237	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00536 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16238	16238	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 537
16239	16239	•HR 11 IH
16240	16240	(c) GENERALCOUNSEL ANDOTHERSTAFF.— 1
16241	16241	(1) G
16242	16242	ENERAL COUNSEL .—The Director shall 2
16243	16243	appoint a general counsel who shall be paid at an 3
16244	16244	annual rate of pay equal to the annual rate in effect 4
16245	16245	for level III of the Executive Schedule. In the event 5
16246	16246	of a vacancy in the position of the Director, the 6
16247	16247	General Counsel shall exercise all the responsibilities 7
16248	16248	of the Director until such vacancy is filled. 8
16249	16249	(2) S
16250	16250	ENIOR STAFF.—The Director may appoint 9
16251	16251	and fix the pay of staff designated as Senior staff, 10
16252	16252	such as a Deputy Director, who may be paid at an 11
16253	16253	annual rate of pay equal to the annual rate in effect 12
16254	16254	for level IV of the Executive Schedule. 13
16255	16255	(3) O
16256	16256	THER STAFF.—In addition to the General 14
16257	16257	Counsel and Senior staff, the Director may appoint 15
16258	16258	and fix the pay of such other staff as the Director 16
16259	16259	considers necessary to carry out the duties of the 17
16260	16260	Office, except that no such staff may be com-18
16261	16261	pensated at an annual rate exceeding the daily 19
16262	16262	equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay in effect 20
16263	16263	for grade GS–15 of the General Schedule. 21
16264	16264	(d) D
16265	16265	UTIES.—The duties of the Office are as follows: 22
16266	16266	(1) A
16267	16267	DMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM .—The Di-23
16268	16268	rector shall administer the Program, in consultation 24
16269	16269	with the Election Assistance Commission and the 25
16270	16270	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00537 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16271	16271	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 538
16272	16272	•HR 11 IH
16273	16273	Federal Election Commission, including by holding 1
16274	16274	quarterly meetings of representatives from such 2
16275	16275	Commissions. 3
16276	16276	(2) O
16277	16277	VERSIGHT OF TRUST FUND .—The Direc-4
16278	16278	tor shall oversee the operation of the Trust Fund 5
16279	16279	and monitor its balances, in consultation with the 6
16280	16280	Secretary of the Treasury. The Director may hold 7
16281	16281	funds in reserve to cover the expenses of the Office 8
16282	16282	and to preserve the solvency of the Trust Fund. 9
16283	16283	(3) R
16284	16284	EPORTS.—Not later than 180 days after 10
16285	16285	the date of the regularly scheduled general election 11
16286	16286	for Federal office held in 2026 and each succeeding 12
16287	16287	regularly scheduled general election for Federal of-13
16288	16288	fice thereafter, the Director shall submit to the 14
16289	16289	Committee on House Administration of the House of 15
16290	16290	Representatives and the Committee on Rules and 16
16291	16291	Administration of the Senate a report on the activi-17
16292	16292	ties carried out under the Program and the amounts 18
16293	16293	deposited into and paid from the Trust Fund during 19
16294	16294	the two most recent fiscal years. 20
16295	16295	(e) C
16296	16296	OVERAGEUNDERINSPECTORGENERALACT OF 21
16297	16297	1978
16298	16298	FORCONDUCTINGAUDITS ANDINVESTIGATIONS.— 22
16299	16299	(1) I
16300	16300	N GENERAL.—Section 415(a)(1)(A) of title 23
16301	16301	5, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘the 24
16302	16302	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00538 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16303	16303	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 539
16304	16304	•HR 11 IH
16305	16305	Office of Democracy Advancement and Innovation,’’ 1
16306	16306	after ‘‘Election Assistance Commission,’’. 2
16307	16307	(2) E
16308	16308	FFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 3
16309	16309	by paragraph (1) shall take effect 180 days after the 4
16310	16310	appointment of the Director. 5
16311	16311	(f) C
16312	16312	OVERAGEUNDERHATCHACT.—Clause (i) of 6
16313	16313	section 7323(b)(2)(B) of title 5, United States Code, is 7
16314	16314	amended— 8
16315	16315	(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subclause 9
16316	16316	(XIII); and 10
16317	16317	(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-11
16318	16318	clause: 12
16319	16319	‘‘(XV) the Office of Democracy Advance-13
16320	16320	ment and Innovation; or’’. 14
16321	16321	(g) R
16322	16322	EGULATIONS.— 15
16323	16323	(1) I
16324	16324	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-16
16325	16325	graph (2), not later than 270 days after the date of 17
16326	16326	enactment of this Act, the Director shall promulgate 18
16327	16327	such rules and regulations as the Director considers 19
16328	16328	necessary and appropriate to carry out the duties of 20
16329	16329	the Office under this Act and the amendments made 21
16330	16330	by this Act. 22
16331	16331	(2) S
16332	16332	TATE PLAN SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL 23
16333	16333	AND DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS .—Not later than 90 24
16334	16334	days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 25
16335	16335	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00539 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16336	16336	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 540
16337	16337	•HR 11 IH
16338	16338	Director shall promulgate such rules and regulations 1
16339	16339	as the Director considers necessary and appropriate 2
16340	16340	to carry out the requirements of this part and the 3
16341	16341	amendments made by this part. 4
16342	16342	(3) C
16343	16343	OMMENTS BY THE ELECTION ASSISTANCE 5
16344	16344	COMMISSION AND THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMIS -6
16345	16345	SION.—The Election Assistance Commission and the 7
16346	16346	Federal Election Assistance shall timely submit com-8
16347	16347	ments with respect to any proposed regulations pro-9
16348	16348	mulgated by the Director under this subsection. 10
16349	16349	(h) I
16350	16350	NTERIMAUTHORITYPENDINGAPPOINTMENT 11
16351	16351	ANDCONFIRMATION OFDIRECTOR.— 12
16352	16352	(1) A
16353	16353	UTHORITY OF DIRECTOR OF OFFICE OF 13
16354	16354	MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET .—Notwithstanding sub-14
16355	16355	section (b), during the transition period, the Direc-15
16356	16356	tor of the Office of Management and Budget is au-16
16357	16357	thorized to perform the functions of the Office under 17
16358	16358	this title, and shall act for all purposes as, and with 18
16359	16359	the full powers of, the Director. 19
16360	16360	(2) I
16361	16361	NTERIM ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES .— 20
16362	16362	(A) A
16363	16363	UTHORITY OF OFFICE OF MANAGE -21
16364	16364	MENT AND BUDGET .—During the transition pe-22
16365	16365	riod, the Director of the Office of Management 23
16366	16366	and Budget may provide administrative services 24
16367	16367	necessary to support the Office. 25
16368	16368	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00540 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16369	16369	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 541
16370	16370	•HR 11 IH
16371	16371	(B) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY ; PER-1
16372	16372	MITTING EXTENSION.—The Director of the Of-2
16373	16373	fice of Management and Budget shall cease pro-3
16374	16374	viding interim administrative services under this 4
16375	16375	paragraph upon the expiration of the transition 5
16376	16376	period, except that the Director of the Office of 6
16377	16377	Management and Budget may continue to pro-7
16378	16378	vide such services after the expiration of the 8
16379	16379	transition period if the Director and the Direc-9
16380	16380	tor of the Office of Management and Budget 10
16381	16381	jointly transmit to the Committee on House Ad-11
16382	16382	ministration of the House of Representatives 12
16383	16383	and the Committee on Rules and Administra-13
16384	16384	tion of the Senate— 14
16385	16385	(i) a written determination that an or-15
16386	16386	derly implementation of this title is not 16
16387	16387	feasible by the expiration of the transition 17
16388	16388	period; 18
16389	16389	(ii) an explanation of why an exten-19
16390	16390	sion is necessary for the orderly implemen-20
16391	16391	tation of this title; 21
16392	16392	(iii) a description of the period during 22
16393	16393	which the Director of the Office of Man-23
16394	16394	agement and Budget shall continue pro-24
16395	16395	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00541 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16396	16396	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 542
16397	16397	•HR 11 IH
16398	16398	viding services under the authority of this 1
16399	16399	subparagraph; and 2
16400	16400	(iv) a description of the steps that will 3
16401	16401	be taken to ensure an orderly and timely 4
16402	16402	implementation of this title during the pe-5
16403	16403	riod described in clause (iii). 6
16404	16404	(3) T
16405	16405	RANSITION PERIOD DEFINED .—In this 7
16406	16406	subsection, the ‘‘transition period’’ is the period 8
16407	16407	which begins on the date of the enactment of this 9
16408	16408	Act and ends on the date on which the Director is 10
16409	16409	appointed and confirmed. 11
16410	16410	(4) L
16411	16411	IMIT ON LENGTH OF PERIOD OF INTERIM 12
16412	16412	AUTHORITIES.—Notwithstanding any other provision 13
16413	16413	of this subsection, the Director of the Office of Man-14
16414	16414	agement and Budget may not exercise any authority 15
16415	16415	under this subsection after the expiration of the 24- 16
16416	16416	month period which begins on the date of the enact-17
16417	16417	ment of this Act. 18
16418	16418	(i) A
16419	16419	UTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 19
16420	16420	are authorized to be appropriated from the Trust Fund 20
16421	16421	such sums as may be necessary to carry out the activities 21
16422	16422	of the Office for fiscal year 2025 and each succeeding fis-22
16423	16423	cal year. 23
16424	16424	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00542 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16425	16425	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 543
16426	16426	•HR 11 IH
16427	16427	PART 2—STATE ELECTION ASSISTANCE AND 1
16428	16428	INNOVATION TRUST FUND 2
16429	16429	SEC. 8011. STATE ELECTION ASSISTANCE AND INNOVATION 3
16430	16430	TRUST FUND. 4
16431	16431	(a) E
16432	16432	STABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 5
16433	16433	Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘‘State Election As-6
16434	16434	sistance and Innovation Trust Fund’’. 7
16435	16435	(b) C
16436	16436	ONTENTS.—The Trust Fund shall consist solely 8
16437	16437	of— 9
16438	16438	(1) amounts transferred under section 3015 of 10
16439	16439	title 18, United States Code, section 9706 of title 11
16440	16440	31, United States Code, and section 6761 of the In-12
16441	16441	ternal Revenue Code of 1986 (as added by section 13
16442	16442	8013); and 14
16443	16443	(2) gifts or bequests deposited pursuant to sub-15
16444	16444	section (d). 16
16445	16445	(c) U
16446	16446	SE OFFUNDS.—Amounts in the Trust Fund 17
16447	16447	shall be used to make payments and allocations under the 18
16448	16448	Program (as described in section 8012(a)) and to carry 19
16449	16449	out the activities of the Office. 20
16450	16450	(d) A
16451	16451	CCEPTANCE OFGIFTS.—The Office may accept 21
16452	16452	gifts or bequests for deposit into the Trust Fund. 22
16453	16453	(e) N
16454	16454	OTAXPAYERFUNDSPERMITTED.—No tax-23
16455	16455	payer funds may be deposited into the Trust Fund. For 24
16456	16456	purposes of this subsection, the term ‘‘taxpayer funds’’ 25
16457	16457	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00543 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16458	16458	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 544
16459	16459	•HR 11 IH
16460	16460	means revenues received by the Internal Revenue Service 1
16461	16461	from tax liabilities. 2
16462	16462	(f) E
16463	16463	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall take effect 3
16464	16464	on the date of the enactment of this subtitle. 4
16465	16465	SEC. 8012. USES OF FUND. 5
16466	16466	(a) P
16467	16467	AYMENTS ANDALLOCATIONSDESCRIBED.—For 6
16468	16468	each fiscal year, amounts in the Fund shall be used as 7
16469	16469	follows: 8
16470	16470	(1) Payments to States under the Program, as 9
16471	16471	described in section 8005(a). 10
16472	16472	(2) Allocations to the Election Assistance Com-11
16473	16473	mission, to be used for payments for certain election 12
16474	16474	administration activities, as described in section 13
16475	16475	8005(b). 14
16476	16476	(3) Allocations to the Federal Election Commis-15
16477	16477	sion, to be used for payments to participating can-16
16478	16478	didates under title V of the Federal Election Cam-17
16479	16479	paign Act of 1971, as described in section 8005(c). 18
16480	16480	(4) Allocations to the Federal Election Commis-19
16481	16481	sion, to be used for payments to States operating a 20
16482	16482	Democracy Credit Program under part 1 of subtitle 21
16483	16483	B, as described in section 8005(d). 22
16484	16484	(b) D
16485	16485	ETERMINATION OF AGGREGATEAMOUNT OF 23
16486	16486	S
16487	16487	TATEALLOCATIONS.—The Director shall determine and 24
16488	16488	establish the aggregate amount of State allocations for 25
16489	16489	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00544 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16490	16490	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 545
16491	16491	•HR 11 IH
16492	16492	each fiscal year, taking into account the anticipated bal-1
16493	16493	ances of the Trust Fund. In carrying out this subsection, 2
16494	16494	the Director shall consult with the Federal Election Com-3
16495	16495	mission and the Election Assistance Commission, but shall 4
16496	16496	be solely responsible for making the final determinations 5
16497	16497	under this subsection. 6
16498	16498	SEC. 8013. ASSESSMENTS AGAINST FINES AND PENALTIES. 7
16499	16499	(a) A
16500	16500	SSESSMENTS RELATING TO CRIMINALOF-8
16501	16501	FENSES.— 9
16502	16502	(1) I
16503	16503	N GENERAL.—Chapter 201 of title 18, 10
16504	16504	United States Code, is amended by adding at the 11
16505	16505	end the following new section: 12
16506	16506	‘‘§ 3015. Special assessments for State Election Assist-13
16507	16507	ance and Innovation Trust Fund 14
16508	16508	‘‘(a) A
16509	16509	SSESSMENTS.— 15
16510	16510	‘‘(1) C
16511	16511	ONVICTIONS OF CRIMES.—In addition to 16
16512	16512	any assessment imposed under this chapter, the 17
16513	16513	court shall assess on any organizational defendant or 18
16514	16514	any defendant who is a corporate officer or person 19
16515	16515	with equivalent authority in any other organization 20
16516	16516	who is convicted of a criminal offense under Federal 21
16517	16517	law an amount equal to 4.75 percent of any fine im-22
16518	16518	posed on that defendant in the sentence imposed for 23
16519	16519	that conviction. 24
16520	16520	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00545 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16521	16521	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 546
16522	16522	•HR 11 IH
16523	16523	‘‘(2) SETTLEMENTS.—The court shall assess on 1
16524	16524	any organizational defendant or defendant who is a 2
16525	16525	corporate officer or person with equivalent authority 3
16526	16526	in any other organization who has entered into a 4
16527	16527	settlement agreement or consent decree with the 5
16528	16528	United States in satisfaction of any allegation that 6
16529	16529	the defendant committed a criminal offense under 7
16530	16530	Federal law an amount equal to 4.75 percent of the 8
16531	16531	amount of the settlement. 9
16532	16532	‘‘(b) M
16533	16533	ANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as-10
16534	16534	sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected in the man-11
16535	16535	ner in which fines are collected in criminal cases. 12
16536	16536	‘‘(c) T
16537	16537	RANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec-13
16538	16538	tion 3302(b) of title 31, there shall be transferred from 14
16539	16539	the General Fund of the Treasury to the State Election 15
16540	16540	Assistance and Innovation Trust Fund under section 8011 16
16541	16541	of the Freedom to Vote Act an amount equal to the 17
16542	16542	amount of the assessments collected under this section.’’. 18
16543	16543	(2) C
16544	16544	LERICAL AMENDMENT .—The table of sec-19
16545	16545	tions of chapter 201 of title 18, United States Code, 20
16546	16546	is amended by adding at the end the following: 21
16547	16547	‘‘3015. Special assessments for State Election Assistance and Innovation Trust
16548	16548	Fund.’’.
16549	16549	(b) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CIVILPEN-22
16550	16550	ALTIES.— 23
16551	16551	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00546 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16552	16552	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 547
16553	16553	•HR 11 IH
16554	16554	(1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 97 of title 31, 1
16555	16555	United States Code, is amended by adding at the 2
16556	16556	end the following new section: 3
16557	16557	‘‘§ 9706. Special assessments for State Election Assist-4
16558	16558	ance and Innovation Trust Fund 5
16559	16559	‘‘(a) A
16560	16560	SSESSMENTS.— 6
16561	16561	‘‘(1) C
16562	16562	IVIL PENALTIES.—Any entity of the Fed-7
16563	16563	eral Government which is authorized under any law, 8
16564	16564	rule, or regulation to impose a civil penalty shall as-9
16565	16565	sess on each person, other than a natural person 10
16566	16566	who is not a corporate officer or person with equiva-11
16567	16567	lent authority in any other organization, on whom 12
16568	16568	such a penalty is imposed an amount equal to 4.75 13
16569	16569	percent of the amount of the penalty. 14
16570	16570	‘‘(2) A
16571	16571	DMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES .—Any entity 15
16572	16572	of the Federal Government which is authorized 16
16573	16573	under any law, rule, or regulation to impose an ad-17
16574	16574	ministrative penalty shall assess on each person, 18
16575	16575	other than a natural person who is not a corporate 19
16576	16576	officer or person with equivalent authority in any 20
16577	16577	other organization, on whom such a penalty is im-21
16578	16578	posed an amount equal to 4.75 percent of the 22
16579	16579	amount of the penalty. 23
16580	16580	‘‘(3) S
16581	16581	ETTLEMENTS.—Any entity of the Federal 24
16582	16582	Government which is authorized under any law, rule, 25
16583	16583	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00547 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16584	16584	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 548
16585	16585	•HR 11 IH
16586	16586	or regulation to enter into a settlement agreement or 1
16587	16587	consent decree with any person, other than a natural 2
16588	16588	person who is not a corporate officer or person with 3
16589	16589	equivalent authority in any other organization, in 4
16590	16590	satisfaction of any allegation of an action or omis-5
16591	16591	sion by the person which would be subject to a civil 6
16592	16592	penalty or administrative penalty shall assess on 7
16593	16593	such person an amount equal to 4.75 percent of the 8
16594	16594	amount of the settlement. 9
16595	16595	‘‘(b) M
16596	16596	ANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as-10
16597	16597	sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected— 11
16598	16598	‘‘(1) in the case of an amount assessed under 12
16599	16599	paragraph (1) of such subsection, in the manner in 13
16600	16600	which civil penalties are collected by the entity of the 14
16601	16601	Federal Government involved; 15
16602	16602	‘‘(2) in the case of an amount assessed under 16
16603	16603	paragraph (2) of such subsection, in the manner in 17
16604	16604	which administrative penalties are collected by the 18
16605	16605	entity of the Federal Government involved; and 19
16606	16606	‘‘(3) in the case of an amount assessed under 20
16607	16607	paragraph (3) of such subsection, in the manner in 21
16608	16608	which amounts are collected pursuant to settlement 22
16609	16609	agreements or consent decrees entered into by the 23
16610	16610	entity of the Federal Government involved. 24
16611	16611	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00548 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16612	16612	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 549
16613	16613	•HR 11 IH
16614	16614	‘‘(c) TRANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec-1
16615	16615	tion 3302(b) of this title, there shall be transferred from 2
16616	16616	the General Fund of the Treasury to the State Election 3
16617	16617	Assistance and Innovation Trust Fund under section 8011 4
16618	16618	of the Freedom to Vote Act an amount equal to the 5
16619	16619	amount of the assessments collected under this section. 6
16620	16620	‘‘(d) E
16621	16621	XCEPTION FOR PENALTIES AND SETTLE-7
16622	16622	MENTSUNDERAUTHORITY OF THE INTERNALREVENUE 8
16623	16623	C
16624	16624	ODE OF1986.— 9
16625	16625	‘‘(1) I
16626	16626	N GENERAL.—No assessment shall be 10
16627	16627	made under subsection (a) with respect to any civil 11
16628	16628	or administrative penalty imposed, or any settlement 12
16629	16629	agreement or consent decree entered into, under the 13
16630	16630	authority of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 14
16631	16631	‘‘(2) C
16632	16632	ROSS REFERENCE .—For application of 15
16633	16633	special assessments for the State Election Assistance 16
16634	16634	and Innovation Trust Fund with respect to certain 17
16635	16635	penalties under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 18
16636	16636	see section 6761 of the Internal Revenue Code of 19
16637	16637	1986.’’. 20
16638	16638	(2) C
16639	16639	LERICAL AMENDMENT .—The table of sec-21
16640	16640	tions of chapter 97 of title 31, United States Code, 22
16641	16641	is amended by adding at the end the following: 23
16642	16642	‘‘9706. Special assessments for State Election Assistance and Innovation Trust
16643	16643	Fund.’’.
16644	16644	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00549 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16645	16645	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 550
16646	16646	•HR 11 IH
16647	16647	(c) ASSESSMENTSRELATING TO CERTAINPEN-1
16648	16648	ALTIESUNDER THE INTERNALREVENUECODE OF 2
16649	16649	1986.— 3
16650	16650	(1) I
16651	16651	N GENERAL.—Chapter 68 of the Internal 4
16652	16652	Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 5
16653	16653	end the following new subchapter: 6
16654	16654	‘‘Subchapter D—Special Assessments for 7
16655	16655	State Election Assistance and Innovation 8
16656	16656	Trust Fund 9
16657	16657	‘‘SEC. 6761. SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR STATE ELECTION 10
16658	16658	ASSISTANCE AND INNOVATION TRUST FUND. 11
16659	16659	‘‘(a) I
16660	16660	NGENERAL.—Each person required to pay a 12
16661	16661	covered penalty shall pay an additional amount equal to 13
16662	16662	4.75 percent of the amount of such penalty. 14
16663	16663	‘‘(b) C
16664	16664	OVEREDPENALTY.—For purposes of this sec-15
16665	16665	tion, the term ‘covered penalty’ means any addition to tax, 16
16666	16666	additional amount, penalty, or other liability provided 17
16667	16667	under subchapter A or B. 18
16668	16668	‘‘(c) E
16669	16669	XCEPTION FORCERTAININDIVIDUALS.— 19
16670	16670	‘‘(1) I
16671	16671	N GENERAL.—In the case of a taxpayer 20
16672	16672	who is an individual, subsection (a) shall not apply 21
16673	16673	to any covered penalty if such taxpayer is an exempt 22
16674	16674	taxpayer for the taxable year for which such covered 23
16675	16675	penalty is assessed. 24
16676	16676	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00550 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16677	16677	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 551
16678	16678	•HR 11 IH
16679	16679	‘‘(2) EXEMPT TAXPAYER.—For purposes of this 1
16680	16680	subsection, a taxpayer is an exempt taxpayer for any 2
16681	16681	taxable year if the taxable income of such taxpayer 3
16682	16682	for such taxable year does not exceed the dollar 4
16683	16683	amount at which begins the highest rate bracket in 5
16684	16684	effect under section 1 with respect to such taxpayer 6
16685	16685	for such taxable year. 7
16686	16686	‘‘(d) A
16687	16687	PPLICATION OFCERTAINRULES.—Except as 8
16688	16688	provided in subsection (e), the additional amount deter-9
16689	16689	mined under subsection (a) shall be treated for purposes 10
16690	16690	of this title in the same manner as the covered penalty 11
16691	16691	to which such additional amount relates. 12
16692	16692	‘‘(e) T
16693	16693	RANSFER TOSTATEELECTIONADMINISTRA-13
16694	16694	TION ANDINNOVATIONTRUSTFUND.—The Secretary 14
16695	16695	shall deposit any additional amount under subsection (a) 15
16696	16696	in the General Fund of the Treasury and shall transfer 16
16697	16697	from such General Fund to the State Election Assistance 17
16698	16698	and Innovation Trust Fund under section 8011 of the 18
16699	16699	Freedom to Vote Act an amount equal to the amounts 19
16700	16700	so deposited (and, notwithstanding subsection (d), such 20
16701	16701	additional amount shall not be the basis for any deposit, 21
16702	16702	transfer, credit, appropriation, or any other payment, to 22
16703	16703	any other trust fund or account). Rules similar to the rules 23
16704	16704	of section 9601 shall apply for purposes of this sub-24
16705	16705	section.’’. 25
16706	16706	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00551 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16707	16707	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 552
16708	16708	•HR 11 IH
16709	16709	(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT .—The table of sub-1
16710	16710	chapters for chapter 68 of such Code is amended by 2
16711	16711	adding at the end the following new item: 3
16712	16712	‘‘SUBCHAPTER D—SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR STATE ELECTION ASSISTANCE
16713	16713	AND INNOVATION TRUST FUND ’’.
16714	16714	(d) EFFECTIVEDATES.— 4
16715	16715	(1) I
16716	16716	N GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-5
16717	16717	graph (2), the amendments made by this section 6
16718	16718	shall apply with respect to convictions, agreements, 7
16719	16719	and penalties which occur on or after the date of the 8
16720	16720	enactment of this Act. 9
16721	16721	(2) A
16722	16722	SSESSMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN PEN -10
16723	16723	ALTIES UNDER THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 11
16724	16724	1986.—The amendments made by subsection (c) 12
16725	16725	shall apply to covered penalties assessed after the 13
16726	16726	date of the enactment of this Act. 14
16727	16727	PART 3—GENERAL PROVISIONS 15
16728	16728	SEC. 8021. DEFINITIONS. 16
16729	16729	In this subtitle, the following definitions apply: 17
16730	16730	(1) The term ‘‘chief State election official’’ has 18
16731	16731	the meaning given such term in section 253(e) of the 19
16732	16732	Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20
16733	16733	21003(e)). 21
16734	16734	(2) The term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 22
16735	16735	the Office. 23
16736	16736	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00552 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16737	16737	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 553
16738	16738	•HR 11 IH
16739	16739	(3) The term ‘‘election cycle’’ means the period 1
16740	16740	beginning on the day after the date of the most re-2
16741	16741	cent regularly scheduled general election for Federal 3
16742	16742	office and ending on the date of the next regularly 4
16743	16743	scheduled general election for Federal office. 5
16744	16744	(4) The term ‘‘Indian lands’’ includes— 6
16745	16745	(A) Indian country, as defined under sec-7
16746	16746	tion 1151 of title 18, United States Code; 8
16747	16747	(B) any land in Alaska owned, pursuant to 9
16748	16748	the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 10
16749	16749	U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), by an Indian Tribe that 11
16750	16750	is a Native village (as defined in section 3 of 12
16751	16751	that Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)) or by a Village Cor-13
16752	16752	poration that is associated with an Indian Tribe 14
16753	16753	(as defined in section 3 of that Act (43 U.S.C. 15
16754	16754	1602)); 16
16755	16755	(C) any land on which the seat of the Trib-17
16756	16756	al government is located; and 18
16757	16757	(D) any land that is part or all of a Tribal 19
16758	16758	designated statistical area associated with an 20
16759	16759	Indian Tribe, or is part or all of an Alaska Na-21
16760	16760	tive village statistical area associated with an 22
16761	16761	Indian Tribe, as defined by the Census Bureau 23
16762	16762	for the purposes of the most recent decennial 24
16763	16763	census. 25
16764	16764	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00553 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16765	16765	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 554
16766	16766	•HR 11 IH
16767	16767	(5) The term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of De-1
16768	16768	mocracy Advancement and Innovation established 2
16769	16769	under section 8005. 3
16770	16770	(6) The term ‘‘Program’’ means the Democracy 4
16771	16771	Advancement and Innovation Program established 5
16772	16772	under section 8001. 6
16773	16773	(7) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 7
16774	16774	States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 8
16775	16775	of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United 9
16776	16776	States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the 10
16777	16777	Northern Mariana Islands. 11
16778	16778	(8) The term ‘‘Trust Fund’’ means the State 12
16779	16779	Election Assistance and Innovation Trust Fund es-13
16780	16780	tablished under section 8011. 14
16781	16781	SEC. 8022. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION REGARDING CALCULA-15
16782	16782	TION OF DEADLINES. 16
16783	16783	(a) I
16784	16784	NGENERAL.—With respect to the calculation of 17
16785	16785	any period of time for the purposes of a deadline in this 18
16786	16786	subtitle, the last day of the period shall be included in 19
16787	16787	such calculation, unless such day is a Saturday, a Sunday, 20
16788	16788	or a legal public holiday, in which case the period of such 21
16789	16789	deadline shall be extended until the end of the next day 22
16790	16790	which is not a Saturday, a Sunday, or a legal public holi-23
16791	16791	day. 24
16792	16792	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00554 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16793	16793	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 555
16794	16794	•HR 11 IH
16795	16795	(b) LEGALPUBLICHOLIDAYDEFINED.—For the 1
16796	16796	purposes of this section, the term ‘‘legal public holiday’’ 2
16797	16797	means a day described in section 6103(a) of title 5, United 3
16798	16798	States Code. 4
16799	16799	Subtitle B—Elections for House of 5
16800	16800	Representatives 6
16801	16801	SEC. 8101. SHORT TITLE. 7
16802	16802	This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Government By 8
16803	16803	the People Act of 2023’’. 9
16804	16804	PART 1—OPTIONAL DEMOCRACY CREDIT 10
16805	16805	PROGRAM 11
16806	16806	SEC. 8102. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM. 12
16807	16807	(a) E
16808	16808	STABLISHMENT.—The Federal Election Com-13
16809	16809	mission (hereafter in this part referred to as the ‘‘Commis-14
16810	16810	sion’’) shall establish a program under which the Commis-15
16811	16811	sion shall make payments to States to operate a credit 16
16812	16812	program which is described in section 8103 during an elec-17
16813	16813	tion cycle. 18
16814	16814	(b) R
16815	16815	EQUIREMENTS FOR PROGRAM.—A State is eligi-19
16816	16816	ble to operate a credit program under this part with re-20
16817	16817	spect to an election cycle if, not later than 120 days before 21
16818	16818	the cycle begins, the State submits to the Commission a 22
16819	16819	statement containing— 23
16820	16820	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00555 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16821	16821	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 556
16822	16822	•HR 11 IH
16823	16823	(1) information and assurances that the State 1
16824	16824	will operate a credit program which contains the ele-2
16825	16825	ments described in section 8103(a); 3
16826	16826	(2) information and assurances that the State 4
16827	16827	will establish fraud prevention mechanisms described 5
16828	16828	in section 8103(b); 6
16829	16829	(3) information and assurances that the State 7
16830	16830	will establish a commission to oversee and implement 8
16831	16831	the program as described in section 8103(c); 9
16832	16832	(4) information and assurances that the State 10
16833	16833	will carry out a public information campaign as de-11
16834	16834	scribed in section 8103(d); 12
16835	16835	(5) information and assurances that the State 13
16836	16836	will submit reports as required under section 8104; 14
16837	16837	(6) information and assurances that, not later 15
16838	16838	than 60 days before the beginning of the cycle, the 16
16839	16839	State will complete any actions necessary to operate 17
16840	16840	the program during the cycle; and 18
16841	16841	(7) such other information and assurances as 19
16842	16842	the Commission may require. 20
16843	16843	(c) R
16844	16844	EIMBURSEMENT OF COSTS.— 21
16845	16845	(1) R
16846	16846	EIMBURSEMENT.—Upon receiving the re-22
16847	16847	port submitted by a State under section 8104(a) 23
16848	16848	with respect to an election cycle, the Commission 24
16849	16849	shall transmit a payment to the State in an amount 25
16850	16850	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00556 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16851	16851	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 557
16852	16852	•HR 11 IH
16853	16853	equal to the reasonable costs incurred by the State 1
16854	16854	in operating the credit program under this part dur-2
16855	16855	ing the cycle. 3
16856	16856	(2) S
16857	16857	OURCE OF FUNDS.—Payments to a State 4
16858	16858	under the program shall be made using amounts al-5
16859	16859	located to the Commission for purposes of making 6
16860	16860	payments under this part with respect to the State 7
16861	16861	from the State Election Assistance and Innovation 8
16862	16862	Trust Fund (hereafter referred to as the ‘‘Fund’’) 9
16863	16863	under section 8012, in the amount allocated with re-10
16864	16864	spect to the State under section 8005(d). 11
16865	16865	(3) C
16866	16866	AP ON AMOUNT OF PAYMENT .—The aggre-12
16867	16867	gate amount of payments made to any State with re-13
16868	16868	spect to two consecutive election cycles may not ex-14
16869	16869	ceed $10,000,000. If the State determines that the 15
16870	16870	maximum payment amount under this paragraph 16
16871	16871	with respect to such cycles is not, or may not be, 17
16872	16872	sufficient to cover the reasonable costs incurred by 18
16873	16873	the State in operating the program under this part 19
16874	16874	for such cycles, the State shall reduce the amount of 20
16875	16875	the credit provided to each qualified individual by 21
16876	16876	such pro rata amount as may be necessary to ensure 22
16877	16877	that the reasonable costs incurred by the State in 23
16878	16878	operating the program will not exceed the amount 24
16879	16879	paid to the State with respect to such cycles. 25
16880	16880	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00557 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16881	16881	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 558
16882	16882	•HR 11 IH
16883	16883	(d) CONTINUINGAVAILABILITY OFFUNDSAFTER 1
16884	16884	A
16885	16885	PPROPRIATION.—A payment made to a State under this 2
16886	16886	part shall be available without fiscal year limitation. 3
16887	16887	SEC. 8103. CREDIT PROGRAM DESCRIBED. 4
16888	16888	(a) G
16889	16889	ENERALELEMENTS OFPROGRAM.— 5
16890	16890	(1) E
16891	16891	LEMENTS DESCRIBED .—The elements of a 6
16892	16892	credit program operated by a State under this part 7
16893	16893	are as follows: 8
16894	16894	(A) The State shall provide each qualified 9
16895	16895	individual upon the individual’s request with a 10
16896	16896	credit worth $25 to be known as a ‘‘Democracy 11
16897	16897	Credit’’ during the election cycle which will be 12
16898	16898	assigned a routing number and which at the op-13
16899	16899	tion of the individual will be provided in either 14
16900	16900	paper or electronic form. 15
16901	16901	(B) Using the routing number assigned to 16
16902	16902	the Democracy Credit, the individual may sub-17
16903	16903	mit the Democracy Credit in either electronic or 18
16904	16904	paper form to qualified candidates for election 19
16905	16905	for the office of Representative in, or Delegate 20
16906	16906	or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress and 21
16907	16907	allocate such portion of the value of the Democ-22
16908	16908	racy Credit in increments of $5 as the indi-23
16909	16909	vidual may select to any such candidate. 24
16910	16910	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00558 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16911	16911	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 559
16912	16912	•HR 11 IH
16913	16913	(C) If the candidate transmits the Democ-1
16914	16914	racy Credit to the Commission, the Commission 2
16915	16915	shall pay the candidate the portion of the value 3
16916	16916	of the Democracy Credit that the individual al-4
16917	16917	located to the candidate, which shall be consid-5
16918	16918	ered a contribution by the individual to the can-6
16919	16919	didate for purposes of the Federal Election 7
16920	16920	Campaign Act of 1971. 8
16921	16921	(2) D
16922	16922	ESIGNATION OF QUALIFIED INDIVID -9
16923	16923	UALS.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(A), a ‘‘quali-10
16924	16924	fied individual’’ with respect to a State means an in-11
16925	16925	dividual— 12
16926	16926	(A) who is a resident of the State; 13
16927	16927	(B) who will be of voting age as of the 14
16928	16928	date of the election for the candidate to whom 15
16929	16929	the individual submits a Democracy Credit; and 16
16930	16930	(C) who is not prohibited under Federal 17
16931	16931	law from making contributions to candidates 18
16932	16932	for election for Federal office. 19
16933	16933	(3) T
16934	16934	REATMENT AS CONTRIBUTION TO CAN -20
16935	16935	DIDATE.—For purposes of the Federal Election 21
16936	16936	Campaign Act of 1971, the submission of a Democ-22
16937	16937	racy Credit to a candidate by an individual shall be 23
16938	16938	treated as a contribution to the candidate by the in-24
16939	16939	dividual in the amount of the portion of the value 25
16940	16940	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00559 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16941	16941	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 560
16942	16942	•HR 11 IH
16943	16943	of the Credit that the individual allocated to the can-1
16944	16944	didate. 2
16945	16945	(b) F
16946	16946	RAUDPREVENTIONMECHANISM.—In addition 3
16947	16947	to the elements described in subsection (a), a State oper-4
16948	16948	ating a credit program under this part shall permit an 5
16949	16949	individual to revoke a Democracy Credit not later than 6
16950	16950	2 days after submitting the Democracy Credit to a can-7
16951	16951	didate. 8
16952	16952	(c) O
16953	16953	VERSIGHTCOMMISSION.—In addition to the ele-9
16954	16954	ments described in subsection (a), a State operating a 10
16955	16955	credit program under this part shall establish a commis-11
16956	16956	sion or designate an existing entity to oversee and imple-12
16957	16957	ment the program in the State, except that no such com-13
16958	16958	mission or entity may be comprised of elected officials. 14
16959	16959	(d) P
16960	16960	UBLICINFORMATIONCAMPAIGN.—In addition 15
16961	16961	to the elements described in subsection (a), a State oper-16
16962	16962	ating a credit program under this part shall carry out a 17
16963	16963	public information campaign to disseminate awareness of 18
16964	16964	the program among qualified individuals. 19
16965	16965	(e) N
16966	16966	OTAXPAYERFUNDSPERMITTEDTOCARRY 20
16967	16967	O
16968	16968	UTPROGRAM.—No taxpayer funds shall be used to carry 21
16969	16969	out the credit program under this part. For purposes of 22
16970	16970	this subsection, the term ‘‘taxpayer funds’’ means reve-23
16971	16971	nues received by the Internal Revenue Service from tax 24
16972	16972	liabilities. 25
16973	16973	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00560 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
16974	16974	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 561
16975	16975	•HR 11 IH
16976	16976	SEC. 8104. REPORTS. 1
16977	16977	(a) S
16978	16978	TATEREPORTS.—Not later than 6 months after 2
16979	16979	each first election cycle during which the State operates 3
16980	16980	a program under this part, the State shall submit to the 4
16981	16981	Commission and the Office of Democracy Advancement 5
16982	16982	and Innovation a report analyzing the operation and effec-6
16983	16983	tiveness of the program during the cycle and including 7
16984	16984	such other information as the Commission may require. 8
16985	16985	(b) S
16986	16986	TUDY ANDREPORT ONIMPACT ANDEFFEC-9
16987	16987	TIVENESS OFCREDITPROGRAMS.— 10
16988	16988	(1) S
16989	16989	TUDY.—The Commission shall conduct a 11
16990	16990	study on the efficacy of political credit programs, in-12
16991	16991	cluding the program under this part and other simi-13
16992	16992	lar programs, in expanding and diversifying the pool 14
16993	16993	of individuals who participate in the electoral proc-15
16994	16994	ess, including those who participate as donors and 16
16995	16995	those who participate as candidates. 17
16996	16996	(2) R
16997	16997	EPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 18
16998	16998	first election cycle for which States operate the pro-19
16999	16999	gram under this part, the Commission shall publish 20
17000	17000	and submit to Congress a report on the study con-21
17001	17001	ducted under paragraph (1). 22
17002	17002	SEC. 8105. ELECTION CYCLE DEFINED. 23
17003	17003	In this part, the term ‘‘election cycle’’ means the pe-24
17004	17004	riod beginning on the day after the date of the most recent 25
17005	17005	regularly scheduled general election for Federal office and 26
17006	17006	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00561 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17007	17007	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 562
17008	17008	•HR 11 IH
17009	17009	ending on the date of the next regularly scheduled general 1
17010	17010	election for Federal office. 2
17011	17011	PART 2—OPTIONAL SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING 3
17012	17012	OF ELECTIONS FOR HOUSE OF REPRESENTA-4
17013	17013	TIVES 5
17014	17014	SEC. 8111. BENEFITS AND ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS 6
17015	17015	FOR CANDIDATES. 7
17016	17016	The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 8
17017	17017	U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 9
17018	17018	the following: 10
17019	17019	‘‘TITLE V—SMALL DOLLAR FI-11
17020	17020	NANCING OF ELECTIONS FOR 12
17021	17021	HOUSE OF REPRESENTA-13
17022	17022	TIVES 14
17023	17023	‘‘Subtitle A—Benefits 15
17024	17024	‘‘SEC. 501. BENEFITS FOR PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES. 16
17025	17025	‘‘(a) I
17026	17026	NGENERAL.—If a candidate for election to the 17
17027	17027	office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com-18
17028	17028	missioner to, the Congress is certified as a participating 19
17029	17029	candidate under this title with respect to an election for 20
17030	17030	such office, the candidate shall be entitled to payments 21
17031	17031	as provided under this title. 22
17032	17032	‘‘(b) A
17033	17033	MOUNT OFPAYMENT.—The amount of a pay-23
17034	17034	ment made under this title shall be equal to 600 percent 24
17035	17035	of the amount of qualified small dollar contributions re-25
17036	17036	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00562 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17037	17037	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 563
17038	17038	•HR 11 IH
17039	17039	ceived by the candidate since the most recent payment 1
17040	17040	made to the candidate under this title during the election 2
17041	17041	cycle, without regard to whether or not the candidate re-3
17042	17042	ceived any of the contributions before, during, or after the 4
17043	17043	Small Dollar Democracy qualifying period applicable to 5
17044	17044	the candidate under section 511(c). 6
17045	17045	‘‘(c) L
17046	17046	IMIT ONAGGREGATE AMOUNT OF PAY-7
17047	17047	MENTS.—The aggregate amount of payments made to a 8
17048	17048	participating candidate with respect to an election cycle 9
17049	17049	under this title may not exceed 50 percent of the average 10
17050	17050	of the 20 greatest amounts of disbursements made by the 11
17051	17051	authorized committees of any winning candidate for the 12
17052	17052	office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com-13
17053	17053	missioner to, the Congress during the most recent election 14
17054	17054	cycle, rounded to the nearest $100,000. 15
17055	17055	‘‘(d) N
17056	17056	OTAXPAYERFUNDSPERMITTED.—No tax-16
17057	17057	payer funds shall be used to make payments under this 17
17058	17058	title. For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘taxpayer 18
17059	17059	funds’ means revenues received by the Internal Revenue 19
17060	17060	Service from tax liabilities. 20
17061	17061	‘‘SEC. 502. PROCEDURES FOR MAKING PAYMENTS. 21
17062	17062	‘‘(a) I
17063	17063	NGENERAL.—The Division Director shall 22
17064	17064	make a payment under section 501 to a candidate who 23
17065	17065	is certified as a participating candidate upon receipt from 24
17066	17066	the candidate of a request for a payment which includes— 25
17067	17067	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00563 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17068	17068	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 564
17069	17069	•HR 11 IH
17070	17070	‘‘(1) a statement of the number and amount of 1
17071	17071	qualified small dollar contributions received by the 2
17072	17072	candidate since the most recent payment made to 3
17073	17073	the candidate under this title during the election 4
17074	17074	cycle; 5
17075	17075	‘‘(2) a statement of the amount of the payment 6
17076	17076	the candidate anticipates receiving with respect to 7
17077	17077	the request; 8
17078	17078	‘‘(3) a statement of the total amount of pay-9
17079	17079	ments the candidate has received under this title as 10
17080	17080	of the date of the statement; and 11
17081	17081	‘‘(4) such other information and assurances as 12
17082	17082	the Division Director may require. 13
17083	17083	‘‘(b) R
17084	17084	ESTRICTIONS ON SUBMISSION OF RE-14
17085	17085	QUESTS.—A candidate may not submit a request under 15
17086	17086	subsection (a) unless each of the following applies: 16
17087	17087	‘‘(1) The amount of the qualified small dollar 17
17088	17088	contributions in the statement referred to in sub-18
17089	17089	section (a)(1) is equal to or greater than $5,000, un-19
17090	17090	less the request is submitted during the 30-day pe-20
17091	17091	riod which ends on the date of a general election. 21
17092	17092	‘‘(2) The candidate did not receive a payment 22
17093	17093	under this title during the 7-day period which ends 23
17094	17094	on the date the candidate submits the request. 24
17095	17095	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00564 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17096	17096	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 565
17097	17097	•HR 11 IH
17098	17098	‘‘(c) TIME OFPAYMENT.—The Division Director 1
17099	17099	shall, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, 2
17100	17100	take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that the 3
17101	17101	Secretary is able to make payments under this section 4
17102	17102	from the Treasury not later than 2 business days after 5
17103	17103	the receipt of a request submitted under subsection (a). 6
17104	17104	‘‘SEC. 503. USE OF FUNDS. 7
17105	17105	‘‘(a) U
17106	17106	SE OFFUNDS FORAUTHORIZEDCAMPAIGN 8
17107	17107	E
17108	17108	XPENDITURES.—A candidate shall use payments made 9
17109	17109	under this title, including payments provided with respect 10
17110	17110	to a previous election cycle which are withheld from remit-11
17111	17111	tance to the Commission in accordance with section 12
17112	17112	524(a)(2), only for making direct payments for the receipt 13
17113	17113	of goods and services which constitute authorized expendi-14
17114	17114	tures (as determined in accordance with title III) in con-15
17115	17115	nection with the election cycle involved. 16
17116	17116	‘‘(b) P
17117	17117	ROHIBITINGUSE OFFUNDS FORLEGALEX-17
17118	17118	PENSES, FINES, ORPENALTIES.—Notwithstanding title 18
17119	17119	III, a candidate may not use payments made under this 19
17120	17120	title for the payment of expenses incurred in connection 20
17121	17121	with any action, claim, or other matter before the Commis-21
17122	17122	sion or before any court, hearing officer, arbitrator, or 22
17123	17123	other dispute resolution entity, or for the payment of any 23
17124	17124	fine or civil monetary penalty. 24
17125	17125	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00565 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17126	17126	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 566
17127	17127	•HR 11 IH
17128	17128	‘‘SEC. 504. QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CONTRIBUTIONS DE-1
17129	17129	SCRIBED. 2
17130	17130	‘‘(a) I
17131	17131	NGENERAL.—In this title, the term ‘qualified 3
17132	17132	small dollar contribution’ means, with respect to a can-4
17133	17133	didate and the authorized committees of a candidate, a 5
17134	17134	contribution that meets the following requirements: 6
17135	17135	‘‘(1) The contribution is in an amount that is— 7
17136	17136	‘‘(A) not less than $1; and 8
17137	17137	‘‘(B) not more than $200. 9
17138	17138	‘‘(2)(A) The contribution is made directly by an 10
17139	17139	individual to the candidate or an authorized com-11
17140	17140	mittee of the candidate and is not— 12
17141	17141	‘‘(i) forwarded from the individual making 13
17142	17142	the contribution to the candidate or committee 14
17143	17143	by another person; or 15
17144	17144	‘‘(ii) received by the candidate or com-16
17145	17145	mittee with the knowledge that the contribution 17
17146	17146	was made at the request, suggestion, or rec-18
17147	17147	ommendation of another person. 19
17148	17148	‘‘(B) In this paragraph— 20
17149	17149	‘‘(i) the term ‘person’ does not include an 21
17150	17150	individual (other than an individual described in 22
17151	17151	section 304(i)(7) of the Federal Election Cam-23
17152	17152	paign Act of 1971), a political committee of a 24
17153	17153	political party, or any political committee which 25
17154	17154	is not a separate segregated fund described in 26
17155	17155	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00566 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17156	17156	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 567
17157	17157	•HR 11 IH
17158	17158	section 316(b) of the Federal Election Cam-1
17159	17159	paign Act of 1971 and which does not make 2
17160	17160	contributions or independent expenditures, does 3
17161	17161	not engage in lobbying activity under the Lob-4
17162	17162	bying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et 5
17163	17163	seq.), and is not established by, controlled by, 6
17164	17164	or affiliated with a registered lobbyist under 7
17165	17165	such Act, an agent of a registered lobbyist 8
17166	17166	under such Act, or an organization which re-9
17167	17167	tains or employs a registered lobbyist under 10
17168	17168	such Act; and 11
17169	17169	‘‘(ii) a contribution is not ‘made at the re-12
17170	17170	quest, suggestion, or recommendation of an-13
17171	17171	other person’ solely on the grounds that the 14
17172	17172	contribution is made in response to information 15
17173	17173	provided to the individual making the contribu-16
17174	17174	tion by any person, so long as the candidate or 17
17175	17175	authorized committee does not know the iden-18
17176	17176	tity of the person who provided the information 19
17177	17177	to such individual. 20
17178	17178	‘‘(3) The individual who makes the contribution 21
17179	17179	does not make contributions to the candidate or the 22
17180	17180	authorized committees of the candidate with respect 23
17181	17181	to the election involved in an aggregate amount that 24
17182	17182	exceeds the amount described in paragraph (1)(B), 25
17183	17183	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00567 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17184	17184	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 568
17185	17185	•HR 11 IH
17186	17186	or any contribution to the candidate or the author-1
17187	17187	ized committees of the candidate with respect to the 2
17188	17188	election involved that otherwise is not a qualified 3
17189	17189	small dollar contribution. 4
17190	17190	‘‘(b) T
17191	17191	REATMENT OF DEMOCRACYCREDITS.—Any 5
17192	17192	payment received by a candidate and the authorized com-6
17193	17193	mittees of a candidate which consists of a Democracy 7
17194	17194	Credit under the Freedom to Vote Act shall be considered 8
17195	17195	a qualified small dollar contribution for purposes of this 9
17196	17196	title, so long as the individual making the payment meets 10
17197	17197	the requirements of paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection 11
17198	17198	(a). 12
17199	17199	‘‘(c) R
17200	17200	ESTRICTION ON SUBSEQUENT CONTRIBU-13
17201	17201	TIONS.— 14
17202	17202	‘‘(1) P
17203	17203	ROHIBITING DONOR FROM MAKING SUB -15
17204	17204	SEQUENT NONQUALIFIED CONTRIBUTIONS DURING 16
17205	17205	ELECTION CYCLE.— 17
17206	17206	‘‘(A) I
17207	17207	N GENERAL.—An individual who 18
17208	17208	makes a qualified small dollar contribution to a 19
17209	17209	candidate or the authorized committees of a 20
17210	17210	candidate with respect to an election may not 21
17211	17211	make any subsequent contribution to such can-22
17212	17212	didate or the authorized committees of such 23
17213	17213	candidate with respect to the election cycle 24
17214	17214	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00568 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17215	17215	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 569
17216	17216	•HR 11 IH
17217	17217	which is not a qualified small dollar contribu-1
17218	17218	tion. 2
17219	17219	‘‘(B) E
17220	17220	XCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO 3
17221	17221	CANDIDATES WHO VOLUNTARILY WITHDRAW 4
17222	17222	FROM PARTICIPATION DURING QUALIFYING PE -5
17223	17223	RIOD.—Subparagraph (A) does not apply with 6
17224	17224	respect to a contribution made to a candidate 7
17225	17225	who, during the Small Dollar Democracy quali-8
17226	17226	fying period described in section 511(c), sub-9
17227	17227	mits a statement to the Commission under sec-10
17228	17228	tion 513(c) to voluntarily withdraw from par-11
17229	17229	ticipating in the program under this title. 12
17230	17230	‘‘(2) T
17231	17231	REATMENT OF SUBSEQUENT NON -13
17232	17232	QUALIFIED CONTRIBUTIONS .—If, notwithstanding 14
17233	17233	the prohibition described in paragraph (1), an indi-15
17234	17234	vidual who makes a qualified small dollar contribu-16
17235	17235	tion to a candidate or the authorized committees of 17
17236	17236	a candidate with respect to an election makes a sub-18
17237	17237	sequent contribution to such candidate or the au-19
17238	17238	thorized committees of such candidate with respect 20
17239	17239	to the election which is prohibited under paragraph 21
17240	17240	(1) because it is not a qualified small dollar con-22
17241	17241	tribution, the candidate may take one of the fol-23
17242	17242	lowing actions: 24
17243	17243	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00569 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17244	17244	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 570
17245	17245	•HR 11 IH
17246	17246	‘‘(A) Not later than 2 weeks after receiving 1
17247	17247	the contribution, the candidate may return the 2
17248	17248	subsequent contribution to the individual. In 3
17249	17249	the case of a subsequent contribution which is 4
17250	17250	not a qualified small dollar contribution because 5
17251	17251	the contribution fails to meet the requirements 6
17252	17252	of paragraph (3) of subsection (a) (relating to 7
17253	17253	the aggregate amount of contributions made to 8
17254	17254	the candidate or the authorized committees of 9
17255	17255	the candidate by the individual making the con-10
17256	17256	tribution), the candidate may return an amount 11
17257	17257	equal to the difference between the amount of 12
17258	17258	the subsequent contribution and the amount de-13
17259	17259	scribed in paragraph (1)(B) of subsection (a). 14
17260	17260	‘‘(B) The candidate may retain the subse-15
17261	17261	quent contribution, so long as not later than 2 16
17262	17262	weeks after receiving the subsequent contribu-17
17263	17263	tion, the candidate remits to the Commission an 18
17264	17264	amount equal to any payments received by the 19
17265	17265	candidate under this title which are attributable 20
17266	17266	to the qualified small dollar contribution made 21
17267	17267	by the individual involved. Such amount shall 22
17268	17268	be used to supplement the allocation made to 23
17269	17269	the Commission with respect to candidates from 24
17270	17270	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00570 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17271	17271	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 571
17272	17272	•HR 11 IH
17273	17273	the State in which the candidate seeks office, as 1
17274	17274	described in section 541(a). 2
17275	17275	‘‘(3) N
17276	17276	O EFFECT ON ABILITY TO MAKE MUL -3
17277	17277	TIPLE CONTRIBUTIONS .—Nothing in this section 4
17278	17278	may be construed to prohibit an individual from 5
17279	17279	making multiple qualified small dollar contributions 6
17280	17280	to any candidate or any number of candidates, so 7
17281	17281	long as each contribution meets each of the require-8
17282	17282	ments of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection 9
17283	17283	(a). 10
17284	17284	‘‘(d) N
17285	17285	OTIFICATIONREQUIREMENTS FOR CAN-11
17286	17286	DIDATES.— 12
17287	17287	‘‘(1) N
17288	17288	OTIFICATION.—Each authorized com-13
17289	17289	mittee of a candidate who seeks to be a participating 14
17290	17290	candidate under this title shall provide the following 15
17291	17291	information in any materials for the solicitation of 16
17292	17292	contributions, including any internet site through 17
17293	17293	which individuals may make contributions to the 18
17294	17294	committee: 19
17295	17295	‘‘(A) A statement that if the candidate is 20
17296	17296	certified as a participating candidate under this 21
17297	17297	title, the candidate will receive matching pay-22
17298	17298	ments in an amount which is based on the total 23
17299	17299	amount of qualified small dollar contributions 24
17300	17300	received. 25
17301	17301	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00571 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17302	17302	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 572
17303	17303	•HR 11 IH
17304	17304	‘‘(B) A statement that a contribution 1
17305	17305	which meets the requirements set forth in sub-2
17306	17306	section (a) shall be treated as a qualified small 3
17307	17307	dollar contribution under this title. 4
17308	17308	‘‘(C) A statement that if a contribution is 5
17309	17309	treated as a qualified small dollar contribution 6
17310	17310	under this title, the individual who makes the 7
17311	17311	contribution may not make any contribution to 8
17312	17312	the candidate or the authorized committees of 9
17313	17313	the candidate during the election cycle which is 10
17314	17314	not a qualified small dollar contribution. 11
17315	17315	‘‘(2) A
17316	17316	LTERNATIVE METHODS OF MEETING RE -12
17317	17317	QUIREMENTS.—An authorized committee may meet 13
17318	17318	the requirements of paragraph (1)— 14
17319	17319	‘‘(A) by including the information de-15
17320	17320	scribed in paragraph (1) in the receipt provided 16
17321	17321	under section 512(b)(3) to a person making a 17
17322	17322	qualified small dollar contribution; or 18
17323	17323	‘‘(B) by modifying the information it pro-19
17324	17324	vides to persons making contributions which is 20
17325	17325	otherwise required under title III (including in-21
17326	17326	formation it provides through the internet). 22
17327	17327	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00572 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17328	17328	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 573
17329	17329	•HR 11 IH
17330	17330	‘‘Subtitle B—Eligibility and 1
17331	17331	Certification 2
17332	17332	‘‘SEC. 511. ELIGIBILITY. 3
17333	17333	‘‘(a) I
17334	17334	NGENERAL.—A candidate for the office of 4
17335	17335	Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner 5
17336	17336	to, the Congress is eligible to be certified as a participating 6
17337	17337	candidate under this title with respect to an election if 7
17338	17338	the candidate meets the following requirements: 8
17339	17339	‘‘(1) The candidate files with the Commission a 9
17340	17340	statement of intent to seek certification as a partici-10
17341	17341	pating candidate. 11
17342	17342	‘‘(2) The candidate meets the qualifying re-12
17343	17343	quirements of section 512. 13
17344	17344	‘‘(3) The candidate files with the Commission a 14
17345	17345	statement certifying that the authorized committees 15
17346	17346	of the candidate meet the requirements of section 16
17347	17347	504(d). 17
17348	17348	‘‘(4) Not later than the last day of the Small 18
17349	17349	Dollar Democracy qualifying period, the candidate 19
17350	17350	files with the Commission an affidavit signed by the 20
17351	17351	candidate and the treasurer of the candidate’s prin-21
17352	17352	cipal campaign committee declaring that the can-22
17353	17353	didate— 23
17354	17354	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00573 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17355	17355	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 574
17356	17356	•HR 11 IH
17357	17357	‘‘(A) has complied and, if certified, will 1
17358	17358	comply with the contribution and expenditure 2
17359	17359	requirements of section 521; 3
17360	17360	‘‘(B) if certified, will run only as a partici-4
17361	17361	pating candidate for all elections for the office 5
17362	17362	that such candidate is seeking during that elec-6
17363	17363	tion cycle; and 7
17364	17364	‘‘(C) has either qualified or will take steps 8
17365	17365	to qualify under State law to be on the ballot. 9
17366	17366	‘‘(5) The candidate files with the Commission a 10
17367	17367	certification that the candidate will not use any allo-11
17368	17368	cation from the Fund to directly or indirectly pay 12
17369	17369	salaries, fees, consulting expenses, or any other com-13
17370	17370	pensation for services rendered to themselves, family 14
17371	17371	members (including spouses as well as children, par-15
17372	17372	ents, siblings, or any of their spouses), or any entity 16
17373	17373	or organization in which they have an ownership in-17
17374	17374	terest. 18
17375	17375	‘‘(b) G
17376	17376	ENERALELECTION.—Notwithstanding sub-19
17377	17377	section (a), a candidate shall not be eligible to be certified 20
17378	17378	as a participating candidate under this title for a general 21
17379	17379	election or a general runoff election unless the candidate’s 22
17380	17380	party nominated the candidate to be placed on the ballot 23
17381	17381	for the general election or the candidate is otherwise quali-24
17382	17382	fied to be on the ballot under State law. 25
17383	17383	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00574 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17384	17384	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 575
17385	17385	•HR 11 IH
17386	17386	‘‘(c) SMALLDOLLARDEMOCRACYQUALIFYINGPE-1
17387	17387	RIODDEFINED.—The term ‘Small Dollar Democracy 2
17388	17388	qualifying period’ means, with respect to any candidate 3
17389	17389	for an office, the 180-day period (during the election cycle 4
17390	17390	for such office) which begins on the date on which the 5
17391	17391	candidate files a statement of intent under section 6
17392	17392	511(a)(1), except that such period may not continue after 7
17393	17393	the date that is 30 days before the date of the general 8
17394	17394	election for the office. 9
17395	17395	‘‘SEC. 512. QUALIFYING REQUIREMENTS. 10
17396	17396	‘‘(a) R
17397	17397	ECEIPT OFQUALIFIEDSMALLDOLLARCON-11
17398	17398	TRIBUTIONS.—A candidate for the office of Representative 12
17399	17399	in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress 13
17400	17400	meets the requirement of this section if, during the Small 14
17401	17401	Dollar Democracy qualifying period described in section 15
17402	17402	511(c), each of the following occurs: 16
17403	17403	‘‘(1) Not fewer than 1,000 individuals make a 17
17404	17404	qualified small dollar contribution to the candidate. 18
17405	17405	‘‘(2) The candidate obtains a total dollar 19
17406	17406	amount of qualified small dollar contributions which 20
17407	17407	is equal to or greater than $50,000. 21
17408	17408	‘‘(b) R
17409	17409	EQUIREMENTS RELATING TO RECEIPT OF 22
17410	17410	Q
17411	17411	UALIFIEDSMALLDOLLARCONTRIBUTION.—Each 23
17412	17412	qualified small dollar contribution— 24
17413	17413	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00575 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17414	17414	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 576
17415	17415	•HR 11 IH
17416	17416	‘‘(1) may be made by means of a personal 1
17417	17417	check, money order, debit card, credit card, elec-2
17418	17418	tronic payment account, or any other method 3
17419	17419	deemed appropriate by the Division Director; 4
17420	17420	‘‘(2) shall be accompanied by a signed state-5
17421	17421	ment (or, in the case of a contribution made online 6
17422	17422	or through other electronic means, an electronic 7
17423	17423	equivalent) containing the contributor’s name and 8
17424	17424	address; and 9
17425	17425	‘‘(3) shall be acknowledged by a receipt that is 10
17426	17426	sent to the contributor with a copy (in paper or elec-11
17427	17427	tronic form) kept by the candidate for the Commis-12
17428	17428	sion. 13
17429	17429	‘‘(c) V
17430	17430	ERIFICATION OFCONTRIBUTIONS.— 14
17431	17431	‘‘(1) P
17432	17432	ROCEDURES.—The Division Director 15
17433	17433	shall establish procedures for the auditing and 16
17434	17434	verification of the contributions received and expend-17
17435	17435	itures made by participating candidates under this 18
17436	17436	title, including procedures for random audits, to en-19
17437	17437	sure that such contributions and expenditures meet 20
17438	17438	the requirements of this title. 21
17439	17439	‘‘(2) A
17440	17440	UTHORITY OF COMMISSION TO REVISE 22
17441	17441	PROCEDURES.—The Commission, by a vote of not 23
17442	17442	fewer than four of its members, may revise the pro-24
17443	17443	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00576 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17444	17444	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 577
17445	17445	•HR 11 IH
17446	17446	cedures established by the Division Director under 1
17447	17447	this subsection. 2
17448	17448	‘‘SEC. 513. CERTIFICATION. 3
17449	17449	‘‘(a) D
17450	17450	EADLINE ANDNOTIFICATION.— 4
17451	17451	‘‘(1) I
17452	17452	N GENERAL.—Not later than 5 business 5
17453	17453	days after a candidate files an affidavit under sec-6
17454	17454	tion 511(a)(4), the Division Director shall— 7
17455	17455	‘‘(A) determine whether or not the can-8
17456	17456	didate meets the requirements for certification 9
17457	17457	as a participating candidate; 10
17458	17458	‘‘(B) if the Division Director determines 11
17459	17459	that the candidate meets such requirements, 12
17460	17460	certify the candidate as a participating can-13
17461	17461	didate; and 14
17462	17462	‘‘(C) notify the candidate of the Division 15
17463	17463	Director’s determination. 16
17464	17464	‘‘(2) D
17465	17465	EEMED CERTIFICATION FOR ALL ELEC -17
17466	17466	TIONS IN ELECTION CYCLE .—If the Division Direc-18
17467	17467	tor certifies a candidate as a participating candidate 19
17468	17468	with respect to the first election of the election cycle 20
17469	17469	involved, the Division Director shall be deemed to 21
17470	17470	have certified the candidate as a participating can-22
17471	17471	didate with respect to all subsequent elections of the 23
17472	17472	election cycle. 24
17473	17473	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00577 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17474	17474	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 578
17475	17475	•HR 11 IH
17476	17476	‘‘(3) AUTHORITY OF COMMISSION TO REVERSE 1
17477	17477	DETERMINATION BY DIVISION DIRECTOR .—During 2
17478	17478	the 10-day period which begins on the date the Divi-3
17479	17479	sion Director makes a determination under this sub-4
17480	17480	section, the Commission, by a vote of not fewer than 5
17481	17481	four of its members, may review and reverse the de-6
17482	17482	termination. If the Commission reverses the deter-7
17483	17483	mination, the Commission shall promptly notify the 8
17484	17484	candidate involved. 9
17485	17485	‘‘(b) R
17486	17486	EVOCATION OFCERTIFICATION.— 10
17487	17487	‘‘(1) I
17488	17488	N GENERAL.—The Division Director shall 11
17489	17489	revoke a certification under subsection (a) if— 12
17490	17490	‘‘(A) a candidate fails to qualify to appear 13
17491	17491	on the ballot at any time after the date of cer-14
17492	17492	tification (other than a candidate certified as a 15
17493	17493	participating candidate with respect to a pri-16
17494	17494	mary election who fails to qualify to appear on 17
17495	17495	the ballot for a subsequent election in that elec-18
17496	17496	tion cycle); 19
17497	17497	‘‘(B) a candidate ceases to be a candidate 20
17498	17498	for the office involved, as determined on the 21
17499	17499	basis of an official announcement by an author-22
17500	17500	ized committee of the candidate or on the basis 23
17501	17501	of a reasonable determination by the Commis-24
17502	17502	sion; or 25
17503	17503	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00578 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17504	17504	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 579
17505	17505	•HR 11 IH
17506	17506	‘‘(C) a candidate otherwise fails to comply 1
17507	17507	with the requirements of this title, including 2
17508	17508	any regulatory requirements prescribed by the 3
17509	17509	Commission. 4
17510	17510	‘‘(2) E
17511	17511	XISTENCE OF CRIMINAL SANCTION .—The 5
17512	17512	Division Director shall revoke a certification under 6
17513	17513	subsection (a) if a penalty is assessed against the 7
17514	17514	candidate under section 309(d) with respect to the 8
17515	17515	election. 9
17516	17516	‘‘(3) E
17517	17517	FFECT OF REVOCATION .—If a can-10
17518	17518	didate’s certification is revoked under this sub-11
17519	17519	section— 12
17520	17520	‘‘(A) the candidate may not receive pay-13
17521	17521	ments under this title during the remainder of 14
17522	17522	the election cycle involved; and 15
17523	17523	‘‘(B) in the case of a candidate whose cer-16
17524	17524	tification is revoked pursuant to subparagraph 17
17525	17525	(A) or subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1)— 18
17526	17526	‘‘(i) the candidate shall repay to the 19
17527	17527	Commission an amount equal to the pay-20
17528	17528	ments received under this title with respect 21
17529	17529	to the election cycle involved plus interest 22
17530	17530	(at a rate determined by the Commission 23
17531	17531	on the basis of an appropriate annual per-24
17532	17532	centage rate for the month involved) on 25
17533	17533	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00579 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17534	17534	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 580
17535	17535	•HR 11 IH
17536	17536	any such amount received, which shall be 1
17537	17537	used by the Commission to supplement the 2
17538	17538	allocation made to the Commission with re-3
17539	17539	spect to the State in which the candidate 4
17540	17540	seeks office, as described in section 541(a); 5
17541	17541	and 6
17542	17542	‘‘(ii) the candidate may not be cer-7
17543	17543	tified as a participating candidate under 8
17544	17544	this title with respect to the next election 9
17545	17545	cycle. 10
17546	17546	‘‘(4) P
17547	17547	ROHIBITING PARTICIPATION IN FUTURE 11
17548	17548	ELECTIONS FOR CANDIDATES WITH MULTIPLE REV -12
17549	17549	OCATIONS.—If the Division Director revokes the cer-13
17550	17550	tification of an individual as a participating can-14
17551	17551	didate under this title pursuant to subparagraph (A) 15
17552	17552	or subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1) a total of 3 16
17553	17553	times, the individual may not be certified as a par-17
17554	17554	ticipating candidate under this title with respect to 18
17555	17555	any subsequent election. 19
17556	17556	‘‘(5) A
17557	17557	UTHORITY OF COMMISSION TO REVERSE 20
17558	17558	REVOCATION BY DIVISION DIRECTOR .—During the 21
17559	17559	10-day period which begins on the date the Division 22
17560	17560	Director makes a determination under this sub-23
17561	17561	section, the Commission, by a vote of not fewer than 24
17562	17562	four of its members, may review and reverse the de-25
17563	17563	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00580 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17564	17564	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 581
17565	17565	•HR 11 IH
17566	17566	termination. If the Commission reverses the deter-1
17567	17567	mination, the Commission shall promptly notify the 2
17568	17568	candidate involved. 3
17569	17569	‘‘(c) V
17570	17570	OLUNTARY WITHDRAWAL FROMPARTICI-4
17571	17571	PATINGDURINGQUALIFYINGPERIOD.—At any time dur-5
17572	17572	ing the Small Dollar Democracy qualifying period de-6
17573	17573	scribed in section 511(c), a candidate may withdraw from 7
17574	17574	participation in the program under this title by submitting 8
17575	17575	to the Commission a statement of withdrawal (without re-9
17576	17576	gard to whether or not the Commission has certified the 10
17577	17577	candidate as a participating candidate under this title as 11
17578	17578	of the time the candidate submits such statement), so long 12
17579	17579	as the candidate has not submitted a request for payment 13
17580	17580	under section 502. 14
17581	17581	‘‘(d) P
17582	17582	ARTICIPATINGCANDIDATEDEFINED.—In this 15
17583	17583	title, a ‘participating candidate’ means a candidate for the 16
17584	17584	office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com-17
17585	17585	missioner to, the Congress who is certified under this sec-18
17586	17586	tion as eligible to receive benefits under this title. 19
17587	17587	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00581 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17588	17588	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 582
17589	17589	•HR 11 IH
17590	17590	‘‘Subtitle C—Requirements for Can-1
17591	17591	didates Certified as Partici-2
17592	17592	pating Candidates 3
17593	17593	‘‘SEC. 521. CONTRIBUTION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIRE-4
17594	17594	MENTS. 5
17595	17595	‘‘(a) P
17596	17596	ERMITTEDSOURCES OFCONTRIBUTIONS AND 6
17597	17597	E
17598	17598	XPENDITURES.—Except as provided in subsection (c), a 7
17599	17599	participating candidate with respect to an election shall, 8
17600	17600	with respect to all elections occurring during the election 9
17601	17601	cycle for the office involved, accept no contributions from 10
17602	17602	any source and make no expenditures from any amounts, 11
17603	17603	other than the following: 12
17604	17604	‘‘(1) Qualified small dollar contributions. 13
17605	17605	‘‘(2) Payments under this title. 14
17606	17606	‘‘(3) Contributions from political committees es-15
17607	17607	tablished and maintained by a national or State po-16
17608	17608	litical party, subject to the applicable limitations of 17
17609	17609	section 315. 18
17610	17610	‘‘(4) Subject to subsection (b), personal funds 19
17611	17611	of the candidate or of any immediate family member 20
17612	17612	of the candidate (other than funds received through 21
17613	17613	qualified small dollar contributions). 22
17614	17614	‘‘(5) Contributions from individuals who are 23
17615	17615	otherwise permitted to make contributions under 24
17616	17616	this Act, subject to the applicable limitations of sec-25
17617	17617	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00582 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17618	17618	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 583
17619	17619	•HR 11 IH
17620	17620	tion 315, except that the aggregate amount of con-1
17621	17621	tributions a participating candidate may accept from 2
17622	17622	any individual with respect to any election during 3
17623	17623	the election cycle may not exceed $1,000. 4
17624	17624	‘‘(6) Contributions from multicandidate political 5
17625	17625	committees, subject to the applicable limitations of 6
17626	17626	section 315. 7
17627	17627	‘‘(b) S
17628	17628	PECIALRULES FORPERSONALFUNDS.— 8
17629	17629	‘‘(1) L
17630	17630	IMIT ON AMOUNT.—A candidate who is 9
17631	17631	certified as a participating candidate may use per-10
17632	17632	sonal funds (including personal funds of any imme-11
17633	17633	diate family member of the candidate) so long as— 12
17634	17634	‘‘(A) the aggregate amount used with re-13
17635	17635	spect to the election cycle (including any period 14
17636	17636	of the cycle occurring prior to the candidate’s 15
17637	17637	certification as a participating candidate) does 16
17638	17638	not exceed $50,000; and 17
17639	17639	‘‘(B) the funds are used only for making 18
17640	17640	direct payments for the receipt of goods and 19
17641	17641	services which constitute authorized expendi-20
17642	17642	tures in connection with the election cycle in-21
17643	17643	volved. 22
17644	17644	‘‘(2) I
17645	17645	MMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER DEFINED .— 23
17646	17646	In this subsection, the term ‘immediate family mem-24
17647	17647	ber’ means, with respect to a candidate— 25
17648	17648	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00583 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17649	17649	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 584
17650	17650	•HR 11 IH
17651	17651	‘‘(A) the candidate’s spouse; 1
17652	17652	‘‘(B) a child, stepchild, parent, grand-2
17653	17653	parent, brother, half-brother, sister, or half-sis-3
17654	17654	ter of the candidate or the candidate’s spouse; 4
17655	17655	and 5
17656	17656	‘‘(C) the spouse of any person described in 6
17657	17657	subparagraph (B). 7
17658	17658	‘‘(c) E
17659	17659	XCEPTIONS.— 8
17660	17660	‘‘(1) E
17661	17661	XCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS RE -9
17662	17662	CEIVED PRIOR TO FILING OF STATEMENT OF IN -10
17663	17663	TENT.—A candidate who has accepted contributions 11
17664	17664	that are not described in subsection (a) is not in vio-12
17665	17665	lation of subsection (a), but only if all such contribu-13
17666	17666	tions are— 14
17667	17667	‘‘(A) returned to the contributor; 15
17668	17668	‘‘(B) submitted to the Commission, to be 16
17669	17669	used to supplement the allocation made to the 17
17670	17670	Commission with respect to the State in which 18
17671	17671	the candidate seeks office, as described in sec-19
17672	17672	tion 541(a); or 20
17673	17673	‘‘(C) spent in accordance with paragraph 21
17674	17674	(2). 22
17675	17675	‘‘(2) E
17676	17676	XCEPTION FOR EXPENDITURES MADE 23
17677	17677	PRIOR TO FILING OF STATEMENT OF INTENT .—If a 24
17678	17678	candidate has made expenditures prior to the date 25
17679	17679	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00584 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17680	17680	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 585
17681	17681	•HR 11 IH
17682	17682	the candidate files a statement of intent under sec-1
17683	17683	tion 511(a)(1) that the candidate is prohibited from 2
17684	17684	making under subsection (a) or subsection (b), the 3
17685	17685	candidate is not in violation of such subsection if the 4
17686	17686	aggregate amount of the prohibited expenditures is 5
17687	17687	less than the amount referred to in section 6
17688	17688	512(a)(2) (relating to the total dollar amount of 7
17689	17689	qualified small dollar contributions which the can-8
17690	17690	didate is required to obtain) which is applicable to 9
17691	17691	the candidate. 10
17692	17692	‘‘(3) E
17693	17693	XCEPTION FOR CAMPAIGN SURPLUSES 11
17694	17694	FROM A PREVIOUS ELECTION .—Notwithstanding 12
17695	17695	paragraph (1), unexpended contributions received by 13
17696	17696	the candidate or an authorized committee of the 14
17697	17697	candidate with respect to a previous election may be 15
17698	17698	retained, but only if the candidate places the funds 16
17699	17699	in escrow and refrains from raising additional funds 17
17700	17700	for or spending funds from that account during the 18
17701	17701	election cycle in which a candidate is a participating 19
17702	17702	candidate. 20
17703	17703	‘‘(4) E
17704	17704	XCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS RE -21
17705	17705	CEIVED BEFORE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS 22
17706	17706	TITLE.—Contributions received and expenditures 23
17707	17707	made by the candidate or an authorized committee 24
17708	17708	of the candidate prior to the effective date of this 25
17709	17709	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00585 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17710	17710	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 586
17711	17711	•HR 11 IH
17712	17712	title shall not constitute a violation of subsection (a) 1
17713	17713	or (b). Unexpended contributions shall be treated 2
17714	17714	the same as campaign surpluses under paragraph 3
17715	17715	(3), and expenditures made shall count against the 4
17716	17716	limit in paragraph (2). 5
17717	17717	‘‘(d) S
17718	17718	PECIALRULE FORCOORDINATEDPARTYEX-6
17719	17719	PENDITURES.—For purposes of this section, a payment 7
17720	17720	made by a political party in coordination with a partici-8
17721	17721	pating candidate shall not be treated as a contribution to 9
17722	17722	or as an expenditure made by the participating candidate. 10
17723	17723	‘‘(e) P
17724	17724	ROHIBITION ONJOINTFUNDRAISINGCOMMIT-11
17725	17725	TEES.— 12
17726	17726	‘‘(1) P
17727	17727	ROHIBITION.—An authorized committee 13
17728	17728	of a candidate who is certified as a participating 14
17729	17729	candidate under this title with respect to an election 15
17730	17730	may not establish a joint fundraising committee with 16
17731	17731	a political committee other than another authorized 17
17732	17732	committee of the candidate. 18
17733	17733	‘‘(2) S
17734	17734	TATUS OF EXISTING COMMITTEES FOR 19
17735	17735	PRIOR ELECTIONS.—If a candidate established a 20
17736	17736	joint fundraising committee described in paragraph 21
17737	17737	(1) with respect to a prior election for which the 22
17738	17738	candidate was not certified as a participating can-23
17739	17739	didate under this title and the candidate does not 24
17740	17740	terminate the committee, the candidate shall not be 25
17741	17741	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00586 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17742	17742	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 587
17743	17743	•HR 11 IH
17744	17744	considered to be in violation of paragraph (1) so 1
17745	17745	long as that joint fundraising committee does not re-2
17746	17746	ceive any contributions or make any disbursements 3
17747	17747	during the election cycle for which the candidate is 4
17748	17748	certified as a participating candidate under this title. 5
17749	17749	‘‘(f) P
17750	17750	ROHIBITION ONLEADERSHIPPACS.— 6
17751	17751	‘‘(1) P
17752	17752	ROHIBITION.—A candidate who is cer-7
17753	17753	tified as a participating candidate under this title 8
17754	17754	with respect to an election may not associate with, 9
17755	17755	establish, finance, maintain, or control a leadership 10
17756	17756	PAC. 11
17757	17757	‘‘(2) S
17758	17758	TATUS OF EXISTING LEADERSHIP 12
17759	17759	PACS.—If a candidate established, financed, main-13
17760	17760	tained, or controlled a leadership PAC prior to being 14
17761	17761	certified as a participating candidate under this title 15
17762	17762	and the candidate does not terminate the leadership 16
17763	17763	PAC, the candidate shall not be considered to be in 17
17764	17764	violation of paragraph (1) so long as the leadership 18
17765	17765	PAC does not receive any contributions or make any 19
17766	17766	disbursements during the election cycle for which the 20
17767	17767	candidate is certified as a participating candidate 21
17768	17768	under this title. 22
17769	17769	‘‘(3) L
17770	17770	EADERSHIP PAC DEFINED .—In this sub-23
17771	17771	section, the term ‘leadership PAC’ has the meaning 24
17772	17772	given such term in section 304(i)(8)(B). 25
17773	17773	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00587 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17774	17774	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 588
17775	17775	•HR 11 IH
17776	17776	‘‘SEC. 522. ADMINISTRATION OF CAMPAIGN. 1
17777	17777	‘‘(a) S
17778	17778	EPARATEACCOUNTING FOR VARIOUSPER-2
17779	17779	MITTEDCONTRIBUTIONS.—Each authorized committee of 3
17780	17780	a candidate certified as a participating candidate under 4
17781	17781	this title— 5
17782	17782	‘‘(1) shall provide for separate accounting of 6
17783	17783	each type of contribution described in section 521(a) 7
17784	17784	which is received by the committee; and 8
17785	17785	‘‘(2) shall provide for separate accounting for 9
17786	17786	the payments received under this title. 10
17787	17787	‘‘(b) E
17788	17788	NHANCEDDISCLOSURE OFINFORMATION ON 11
17789	17789	D
17790	17790	ONORS.— 12
17791	17791	‘‘(1) M
17792	17792	ANDATORY IDENTIFICATION OF INDIVID -13
17793	17793	UALS MAKING QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CON -14
17794	17794	TRIBUTIONS.—Each authorized committee of a par-15
17795	17795	ticipating candidate under this title shall, in accord-16
17796	17796	ance with section 304(b)(3)(A), include in the re-17
17797	17797	ports the committee submits under section 304 the 18
17798	17798	identification of each person who makes a qualified 19
17799	17799	small dollar contribution to the committee. 20
17800	17800	‘‘(2) M
17801	17801	ANDATORY DISCLOSURE THROUGH 21
17802	17802	INTERNET.—Each authorized committee of a partici-22
17803	17803	pating candidate under this title shall ensure that all 23
17804	17804	information reported to the Commission under this 24
17805	17805	Act with respect to contributions and expenditures 25
17806	17806	of the committee is available to the public on the 26
17807	17807	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00588 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17808	17808	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 589
17809	17809	•HR 11 IH
17810	17810	internet (whether through a site established for pur-1
17811	17811	poses of this subsection, a hyperlink on another pub-2
17812	17812	lic site of the committee, or a hyperlink on a report 3
17813	17813	filed electronically with the Commission) in a search-4
17814	17814	able, sortable, and downloadable manner. 5
17815	17815	‘‘SEC. 523. PREVENTING UNNECESSARY SPENDING OF 6
17816	17816	MATCHING FUNDS. 7
17817	17817	‘‘(a) M
17818	17818	ANDATORYSPENDING OF AVAILABLEPRI-8
17819	17819	VATEFUNDS.—An authorized committee of a candidate 9
17820	17820	certified as a participating candidate under this title may 10
17821	17821	not make any expenditure of any payments received under 11
17822	17822	this title in any amount unless the committee has made 12
17823	17823	an expenditure in an equivalent amount of funds received 13
17824	17824	by the committee which are described in paragraphs (1), 14
17825	17825	(3), (4), (5), and (6) of section 521(a). 15
17826	17826	‘‘(b) L
17827	17827	IMITATION.—Subsection (a) applies to an au-16
17828	17828	thorized committee only to the extent that the funds re-17
17829	17829	ferred to in such subsection are available to the committee 18
17830	17830	at the time the committee makes an expenditure of a pay-19
17831	17831	ment received under this title. 20
17832	17832	‘‘SEC. 524. REMITTING UNSPENT FUNDS AFTER ELECTION. 21
17833	17833	‘‘(a) R
17834	17834	EMITTANCEREQUIRED.—Not later than the 22
17835	17835	date that is 180 days after the last election for which a 23
17836	17836	candidate certified as a participating candidate qualifies 24
17837	17837	to be on the ballot during the election cycle involved, such 25
17838	17838	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00589 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17839	17839	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 590
17840	17840	•HR 11 IH
17841	17841	participating candidate shall remit to the Commission an 1
17842	17842	amount equal to the balance of the payments received 2
17843	17843	under this title by the authorized committees of the can-3
17844	17844	didate which remain unexpended as of such date, which 4
17845	17845	shall be used to supplement the allocation made to the 5
17846	17846	Commission with respect to the State in which the can-6
17847	17847	didate seeks office, as described in section 541(a). 7
17848	17848	‘‘(b) P
17849	17849	ERMITTINGCANDIDATESPARTICIPATING IN 8
17850	17850	N
17851	17851	EXTELECTIONCYCLETORETAINPORTION OF 9
17852	17852	U
17853	17853	NSPENTFUNDS.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), a 10
17854	17854	participating candidate may withhold not more than 11
17855	17855	$100,000 from the amount required to be remitted under 12
17856	17856	subsection (a) if the candidate files a signed affidavit with 13
17857	17857	the Commission that the candidate will seek certification 14
17858	17858	as a participating candidate with respect to the next elec-15
17859	17859	tion cycle, except that the candidate may not use any por-16
17860	17860	tion of the amount withheld until the candidate is certified 17
17861	17861	as a participating candidate with respect to that next elec-18
17862	17862	tion cycle. If the candidate fails to seek certification as 19
17863	17863	a participating candidate prior to the last day of the Small 20
17864	17864	Dollar Democracy qualifying period for the next election 21
17865	17865	cycle (as described in section 511), or if the Commission 22
17866	17866	notifies the candidate of the Commission’s determination 23
17867	17867	does not meet the requirements for certification as a par-24
17868	17868	ticipating candidate with respect to such cycle, the can-25
17869	17869	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00590 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17870	17870	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 591
17871	17871	•HR 11 IH
17872	17872	didate shall immediately remit to the Commission the 1
17873	17873	amount withheld. 2
17874	17874	‘‘Subtitle D—Enhanced Match 3
17875	17875	Support 4
17876	17876	‘‘SEC. 531. ENHANCED SUPPORT FOR GENERAL ELECTION. 5
17877	17877	‘‘(a) A
17878	17878	VAILABILITY OFENHANCEDSUPPORT.—In 6
17879	17879	addition to the payments made under subtitle A, the Divi-7
17880	17880	sion Director shall make an additional payment to an eligi-8
17881	17881	ble candidate under this subtitle. 9
17882	17882	‘‘(b) U
17883	17883	SE OFFUNDS.—A candidate shall use the ad-10
17884	17884	ditional payment under this subtitle only for authorized 11
17885	17885	expenditures in connection with the election involved. 12
17886	17886	‘‘SEC. 532. ELIGIBILITY. 13
17887	17887	‘‘(a) I
17888	17888	NGENERAL.—A candidate is eligible to receive 14
17889	17889	an additional payment under this subtitle if the candidate 15
17890	17890	meets each of the following requirements: 16
17891	17891	‘‘(1) The candidate is on the ballot for the gen-17
17892	17892	eral election for the office the candidate seeks. 18
17893	17893	‘‘(2) The candidate is certified as a partici-19
17894	17894	pating candidate under this title with respect to the 20
17895	17895	election. 21
17896	17896	‘‘(3) During the enhanced support qualifying 22
17897	17897	period, the candidate receives qualified small dollar 23
17898	17898	contributions in a total amount of not less than 24
17899	17899	$50,000. 25
17900	17900	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00591 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17901	17901	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 592
17902	17902	•HR 11 IH
17903	17903	‘‘(4) During the enhanced support qualifying 1
17904	17904	period, the candidate submits to the Division Direc-2
17905	17905	tor a request for the payment which includes— 3
17906	17906	‘‘(A) a statement of the number and 4
17907	17907	amount of qualified small dollar contributions 5
17908	17908	received by the candidate during the enhanced 6
17909	17909	support qualifying period; 7
17910	17910	‘‘(B) a statement of the amount of the 8
17911	17911	payment the candidate anticipates receiving 9
17912	17912	with respect to the request; and 10
17913	17913	‘‘(C) such other information and assur-11
17914	17914	ances as the Division Director may require. 12
17915	17915	‘‘(5) After submitting a request for the addi-13
17916	17916	tional payment under paragraph (4), the candidate 14
17917	17917	does not submit any other application for an addi-15
17918	17918	tional payment under this subtitle. 16
17919	17919	‘‘(b) E
17920	17920	NHANCEDSUPPORTQUALIFYINGPERIODDE-17
17921	17921	SCRIBED.—In this subtitle, the term ‘enhanced support 18
17922	17922	qualifying period’ means, with respect to a general elec-19
17923	17923	tion, the period which begins 60 days before the date of 20
17924	17924	the election and ends 14 days before the date of the elec-21
17925	17925	tion. 22
17926	17926	‘‘SEC. 533. AMOUNT. 23
17927	17927	‘‘(a) I
17928	17928	NGENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), the 24
17929	17929	amount of the additional payment made to an eligible can-25
17930	17930	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00592 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17931	17931	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 593
17932	17932	•HR 11 IH
17933	17933	didate under this subtitle shall be an amount equal to 50 1
17934	17934	percent of— 2
17935	17935	‘‘(1) the amount of the payment made to the 3
17936	17936	candidate under section 501(b) with respect to the 4
17937	17937	qualified small dollar contributions which are re-5
17938	17938	ceived by the candidate during the enhanced support 6
17939	17939	qualifying period (as included in the request sub-7
17940	17940	mitted by the candidate under section 532(a)(4)); or 8
17941	17941	‘‘(2) in the case of a candidate who is not eligi-9
17942	17942	ble to receive a payment under section 501(b) with 10
17943	17943	respect to such qualified small dollar contributions 11
17944	17944	because the candidate has reached the limit on the 12
17945	17945	aggregate amount of payments under subtitle A for 13
17946	17946	the election cycle under section 501(c), the amount 14
17947	17947	of the payment which would have been made to the 15
17948	17948	candidate under section 501(b) with respect to such 16
17949	17949	qualified small dollar contributions if the candidate 17
17950	17950	had not reached such limit. 18
17951	17951	‘‘(b) L
17952	17952	IMIT.—The amount of the additional payment 19
17953	17953	determined under subsection (a) with respect to a can-20
17954	17954	didate may not exceed $500,000. 21
17955	17955	‘‘(c) N
17956	17956	OEFFECT ON AGGREGATE LIMIT.—The 22
17957	17957	amount of the additional payment made to a candidate 23
17958	17958	under this subtitle shall not be included in determining 24
17959	17959	the aggregate amount of payments made to a participating 25
17960	17960	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00593 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17961	17961	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 594
17962	17962	•HR 11 IH
17963	17963	candidate with respect to an election cycle under section 1
17964	17964	501(c). 2
17965	17965	‘‘SEC. 534. WAIVER OF AUTHORITY TO RETAIN PORTION OF 3
17966	17966	UNSPENT FUNDS AFTER ELECTION. 4
17967	17967	‘‘Notwithstanding section 524(a)(2), a candidate who 5
17968	17968	receives an additional payment under this subtitle with re-6
17969	17969	spect to an election is not permitted to withhold any por-7
17970	17970	tion from the amount of unspent funds the candidate is 8
17971	17971	required to remit to the Commission under section 9
17972	17972	524(a)(1). 10
17973	17973	‘‘Subtitle E—Administrative 11
17974	17974	Provisions 12
17975	17975	‘‘SEC. 541. SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 13
17976	17976	‘‘(a) A
17977	17977	LLOCATIONSFROMSTATEELECTIONASSIST-14
17978	17978	ANCE AND INNOVATIONTRUSTFUND.—The amounts 15
17979	17979	used to make payments to participating candidates under 16
17980	17980	this title who seek office in a State shall be derived from 17
17981	17981	the allocations made to the Commission with respect to 18
17982	17982	the State from the State Election Assistance and Innova-19
17983	17983	tion Trust Fund (hereafter referred to as the ‘Fund’) 20
17984	17984	under section 8012 of the Freedom to Vote Act, as pro-21
17985	17985	vided under section 8005(c) of such Act. 22
17986	17986	‘‘(b) U
17987	17987	SE OFALLOCATIONSTOMAKEPAYMENTS TO 23
17988	17988	P
17989	17989	ARTICIPATINGCANDIDATES.— 24
17990	17990	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00594 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
17991	17991	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 595
17992	17992	•HR 11 IH
17993	17993	‘‘(1) PAYMENTS TO PARTICIPATING CAN -1
17994	17994	DIDATES.—The allocations made to the Commission 2
17995	17995	as described in subsection (a) shall be available with-3
17996	17996	out further appropriation or fiscal year limitation to 4
17997	17997	make payments to participating candidates as pro-5
17998	17998	vided in this title. 6
17999	17999	‘‘(2) O
18000	18000	NGOING REVIEW TO DETERMINE SUFFI -7
18001	18001	CIENCY OF STATE ALLOCATIONS .— 8
18002	18002	‘‘(A) O
18003	18003	NGOING REVIEW.—Not later than 9
18004	18004	90 days before the first day of each election 10
18005	18005	cycle (beginning with the first election cycle 11
18006	18006	that begins after the date of the enactment of 12
18007	18007	this title), and on an ongoing basis until the 13
18008	18008	end of the election cycle, the Division Director, 14
18009	18009	in consultation with the Director of the Office 15
18010	18010	of Democracy Advancement and Innovation, 16
18011	18011	shall determine whether the amount of the allo-17
18012	18012	cation made to the Commission with respect to 18
18013	18013	candidates who seek office in a State as de-19
18014	18014	scribed in subsection (a) will be sufficient to 20
18015	18015	make payments to participating candidates in 21
18016	18016	the State in the amounts provided in this title 22
18017	18017	during such election cycle. 23
18018	18018	‘‘(B) O
18019	18019	PPORTUNITY FOR STATE TO IN -24
18020	18020	CREASE ALLOCATION.—If, at any time the Divi-25
18021	18021	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00595 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18022	18022	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 596
18023	18023	•HR 11 IH
18024	18024	sion Director determines under subparagraph 1
18025	18025	(A) that the amount anticipated to be available 2
18026	18026	in the Fund for payments to participating can-3
18027	18027	didates in a State with respect to the election 4
18028	18028	cycle involved is not, or may not be, sufficient 5
18029	18029	to satisfy the full entitlements of participating 6
18030	18030	candidates in the State to payments under this 7
18031	18031	title for such election cycle— 8
18032	18032	‘‘(i) the Division Director shall notify 9
18033	18033	the State and Congress; and 10
18034	18034	‘‘(ii) the State may direct the Director 11
18035	18035	of the Office of Democracy Advancement 12
18036	18036	and Innovation to direct the Secretary of 13
18037	18037	the Treasury to use the funds described in 14
18038	18038	subparagraph (C), in such amounts as the 15
18039	18039	State may direct, as an additional alloca-16
18040	18040	tion to the Commission with respect to the 17
18041	18041	State for purposes of subsection (a), in ac-18
18042	18042	cordance with section 8012 of the Freedom 19
18043	18043	to Vote Act. 20
18044	18044	‘‘(C) F
18045	18045	UNDS DESCRIBED.—The funds de-21
18046	18046	scribed in this subparagraph are funds which 22
18047	18047	were allocated to the State under the Democ-23
18048	18048	racy Advancement and Innovation Program 24
18049	18049	under subtitle A of title VIII of the Freedom to 25
18050	18050	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00596 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18051	18051	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 597
18052	18052	•HR 11 IH
18053	18053	Vote Act which, under the State plan under 1
18054	18054	section 8002 of such Act, were to be used for 2
18055	18055	democracy promotion activities described in 3
18056	18056	paragraph (1), (2)(B), (2)(C), or (3) of section 4
18057	18057	8001(b) of such Act but which remain unobli-5
18058	18058	gated. 6
18059	18059	‘‘(3) E
18060	18060	LIMINATION OF LIMIT OF AMOUNT OF 7
18061	18061	QUALIFIED SMALL DONOR CONTRIBUTIONS .— 8
18062	18062	‘‘(A) E
18063	18063	LIMINATION OF LIMIT .—If, after 9
18064	18064	notifying the State under paragraph (2)(B)(i) 10
18065	18065	and (if the State so elects) the State directs 11
18066	18066	under paragraph (2)(B)(ii) an additional alloca-12
18067	18067	tion to the Commission as provided under such 13
18068	18068	subparagraph, the Division Director determines 14
18069	18069	under paragraph (2)(A) that the amount antici-15
18070	18070	pated to be available in the Fund (after such 16
18071	18071	additional allocation) for payments to partici-17
18072	18072	pating candidates in the State with respect to 18
18073	18073	the election cycle involved is still not, or may 19
18074	18074	still not be, sufficient to satisfy the full entitle-20
18075	18075	ments of participating candidates in the State 21
18076	18076	to payments under this title for such election 22
18077	18077	cycle, the limit on the amount of a qualified 23
18078	18078	small donor contribution under section 24
18079	18079	504(a)(1)(B) shall not apply with respect to a 25
18080	18080	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00597 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18081	18081	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 598
18082	18082	•HR 11 IH
18083	18083	participating candidate in the State under this 1
18084	18084	title. Nothing in this subparagraph may be con-2
18085	18085	strued to waive the limit on the aggregate 3
18086	18086	amount of contributions a participating can-4
18087	18087	didate may accept from any individual under 5
18088	18088	section 521(a)(5). 6
18089	18089	‘‘(B) D
18090	18090	ETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF 7
18091	18091	PAYMENT TO CANDIDATE .—In determining 8
18092	18092	under section 501(b) the amount of the pay-9
18093	18093	ment made to a participating candidate for 10
18094	18094	whom the limit on the amount of a qualified 11
18095	18095	small donor contribution does not apply pursu-12
18096	18096	ant to subparagraph (A), there shall be ex-13
18097	18097	cluded any qualified small donor contribution to 14
18098	18098	the extent that the amount contributed by the 15
18099	18099	individual involved exceeds the limit on the 16
18100	18100	amount of such a contribution under section 17
18101	18101	504(a)(1)(B). 18
18102	18102	‘‘(C) N
18103	18103	O USE OF AMOUNTS FROM OTHER 19
18104	18104	SOURCES.—In any case in which the Division 20
18105	18105	Director determines that the allocation made to 21
18106	18106	the Commission with respect to candidates in a 22
18107	18107	State as described in subsection (a) is insuffi-23
18108	18108	cient to make payments to participating can-24
18109	18109	didates in the State under this title (taking into 25
18110	18110	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00598 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18111	18111	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 599
18112	18112	•HR 11 IH
18113	18113	account any increase in the allocation under 1
18114	18114	paragraph (2)), moneys shall not be made avail-2
18115	18115	able from any other source for the purpose of 3
18116	18116	making such payments. 4
18117	18117	‘‘(c) E
18118	18118	FFECTIVEDATE.—This section shall take ef-5
18119	18119	fect on the date of the enactment of this title, without 6
18120	18120	regard to whether or not regulations have been promul-7
18121	18121	gated to carry out this section. 8
18122	18122	‘‘SEC. 542. ADMINISTRATION THROUGH DEDICATED DIVI-9
18123	18123	SION WITHIN COMMISSION. 10
18124	18124	‘‘(a) A
18125	18125	DMINISTRATIONTHROUGHDEDICATEDDIVI-11
18126	18126	SION.— 12
18127	18127	‘‘(1) E
18128	18128	STABLISHMENT.—The Commission shall 13
18129	18129	establish a separate division within the Commission 14
18130	18130	which is dedicated to issuing regulations to carry out 15
18131	18131	this title and to otherwise carrying out the operation 16
18132	18132	of this title. 17
18133	18133	‘‘(2) A
18134	18134	PPOINTMENT OF DIRECTOR AND 18
18135	18135	STAFF.— 19
18136	18136	‘‘(A) A
18137	18137	PPOINTMENT.—Not later than June 20
18138	18138	1, 2024, the Commission shall appoint a direc-21
18139	18139	tor to head the division established under this 22
18140	18140	section (to be known as the ‘Division Director’) 23
18141	18141	and such other staff as the Commission con-24
18142	18142	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00599 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18143	18143	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 600
18144	18144	•HR 11 IH
18145	18145	siders appropriate to enable the division to 1
18146	18146	carry out its duties. 2
18147	18147	‘‘(B) R
18148	18148	OLE OF GENERAL COUNSEL .—If, at 3
18149	18149	any time after the date referred to in subpara-4
18150	18150	graph (A), there is a vacancy in the position of 5
18151	18151	the Division Director, the General Counsel of 6
18152	18152	the Commission shall serve as the acting Divi-7
18153	18153	sion Director until the Commission appoints a 8
18154	18154	Division Director under this paragraph. 9
18155	18155	‘‘(3) P
18156	18156	RIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION .—Any person 10
18157	18157	aggrieved by the failure of the Commission to meet 11
18158	18158	the requirements of this subsection may file an ac-12
18159	18159	tion in an appropriate district court of the United 13
18160	18160	States for such relief, including declaratory and in-14
18161	18161	junctive relief, as may be appropriate. 15
18162	18162	‘‘(b) R
18163	18163	EGULATIONS.—Not later than the deadline set 16
18164	18164	forth in section 8114 of the Freedom to Vote Act, the 17
18165	18165	Commission, acting through the dedicated division estab-18
18166	18166	lished under this section, shall prescribe regulations to 19
18167	18167	carry out the purposes of this title, including regula-20
18168	18168	tions— 21
18169	18169	‘‘(1) to establish procedures for verifying the 22
18170	18170	amount of qualified small dollar contributions with 23
18171	18171	respect to a candidate; 24
18172	18172	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00600 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18173	18173	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 601
18174	18174	•HR 11 IH
18175	18175	‘‘(2) to establish procedures for effectively and 1
18176	18176	efficiently monitoring and enforcing the limits on the 2
18177	18177	raising of qualified small dollar contributions; 3
18178	18178	‘‘(3) to establish procedures for effectively and 4
18179	18179	efficiently monitoring and enforcing the limits on the 5
18180	18180	use of personal funds by participating candidates; 6
18181	18181	‘‘(4) to establish procedures for monitoring the 7
18182	18182	use of payments made from the allocation made to 8
18183	18183	the Commission as described in section 541(a) and 9
18184	18184	matching contributions under this title through au-10
18185	18185	dits of not fewer than
18186	18186	1
18187	18187	∕10(or, in the case of the 11
18188	18188	first 3 election cycles during which the program 12
18189	18189	under this title is in effect, not fewer than
18190	18190	1
18191	18191	∕3) of all 13
18192	18192	participating candidates or other mechanisms; 14
18193	18193	‘‘(5) to establish procedures for carrying out 15
18194	18194	audits under section 541(b) and permitting States to 16
18195	18195	make additional allocations as provided under sec-17
18196	18196	tion 541(b)(2)(B); and 18
18197	18197	‘‘(6) to establish rules for preventing fraud in 19
18198	18198	the operation of this title which supplement similar 20
18199	18199	rules which apply under this Act. 21
18200	18200	‘‘SEC. 543. VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES. 22
18201	18201	‘‘(a) C
18202	18202	IVILPENALTY FORVIOLATION OFCONTRIBU-23
18203	18203	TION ANDEXPENDITURE REQUIREMENTS.—If a can-24
18204	18204	didate who has been certified as a participating candidate 25
18205	18205	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00601 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18206	18206	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 602
18207	18207	•HR 11 IH
18208	18208	accepts a contribution or makes an expenditure that is 1
18209	18209	prohibited under section 521, the Commission may assess 2
18210	18210	a civil penalty against the candidate in an amount that 3
18211	18211	is not more than 3 times the amount of the contribution 4
18212	18212	or expenditure. Any amounts collected under this sub-5
18213	18213	section shall be used to supplement the allocation made 6
18214	18214	to the Commission with respect to the State in which the 7
18215	18215	candidate seeks office, as described in section 541(a). 8
18216	18216	‘‘(b) R
18217	18217	EPAYMENT FOR IMPROPERUSE OFPAY-9
18218	18218	MENTS.— 10
18219	18219	‘‘(1) I
18220	18220	N GENERAL.—If the Commission deter-11
18221	18221	mines that any payment made to a participating 12
18222	18222	candidate was not used as provided for in this title 13
18223	18223	or that a participating candidate has violated any of 14
18224	18224	the dates for remission of funds contained in this 15
18225	18225	title, the Commission shall so notify the candidate 16
18226	18226	and the candidate shall pay to the Commission an 17
18227	18227	amount which shall be used to supplement the allo-18
18228	18228	cation made to the Commission with respect to the 19
18229	18229	State in which the candidate seeks office, as de-20
18230	18230	scribed in section 541(a) and which shall be equal 21
18231	18231	to— 22
18232	18232	‘‘(A) the amount of payments so used or 23
18233	18233	not remitted, as appropriate; and 24
18234	18234	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00602 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18235	18235	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 603
18236	18236	•HR 11 IH
18237	18237	‘‘(B) interest on any such amounts (at a 1
18238	18238	rate determined by the Commission). 2
18239	18239	‘‘(2) O
18240	18240	THER ACTION NOT PRECLUDED .—Any 3
18241	18241	action by the Commission in accordance with this 4
18242	18242	subsection shall not preclude enforcement pro-5
18243	18243	ceedings by the Commission in accordance with sec-6
18244	18244	tion 309(a), including a referral by the Commission 7
18245	18245	to the Attorney General in the case of an apparent 8
18246	18246	knowing and willful violation of this title. 9
18247	18247	‘‘(c) P
18248	18248	ROHIBITINGCERTAINCANDIDATESFROM 10
18249	18249	Q
18250	18250	UALIFYING ASPARTICIPATINGCANDIDATES.— 11
18251	18251	‘‘(1) C
18252	18252	ANDIDATES WITH MULTIPLE CIVIL PEN -12
18253	18253	ALTIES.—If the Commission assesses 3 or more civil 13
18254	18254	penalties under subsection (a) against a candidate 14
18255	18255	(with respect to either a single election or multiple 15
18256	18256	elections), the Commission may refuse to certify the 16
18257	18257	candidate as a participating candidate under this 17
18258	18258	title with respect to any subsequent election, except 18
18259	18259	that if each of the penalties were assessed as the re-19
18260	18260	sult of a knowing and willful violation of any provi-20
18261	18261	sion of this Act, the candidate is not eligible to be 21
18262	18262	certified as a participating candidate under this title 22
18263	18263	with respect to any subsequent election. 23
18264	18264	‘‘(2) C
18265	18265	ANDIDATES SUBJECT TO CRIMINAL PEN -24
18266	18266	ALTY.—A candidate is not eligible to be certified as 25
18267	18267	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00603 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18268	18268	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 604
18269	18269	•HR 11 IH
18270	18270	a participating candidate under this title with re-1
18271	18271	spect to an election if a penalty has been assessed 2
18272	18272	against the candidate under section 309(d) with re-3
18273	18273	spect to any previous election. 4
18274	18274	‘‘(d) I
18275	18275	MPOSITION OF CRIMINALPENALTIES.—For 5
18276	18276	criminal penalties for the failure of a participating can-6
18277	18277	didate to comply with the requirements of this title, see 7
18278	18278	section 309(d). 8
18279	18279	‘‘SEC. 544. INDEXING OF AMOUNTS. 9
18280	18280	‘‘(a) I
18281	18281	NDEXING.—In any calendar year after 2028, 10
18282	18282	section 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to each amount described 11
18283	18283	in subsection (b) in the same manner as such section ap-12
18284	18284	plies to the limitations established under subsections 13
18285	18285	(a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), (a)(3), and (h) of such section, ex-14
18286	18286	cept that for purposes of applying such section to the 15
18287	18287	amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base period’ 16
18288	18288	shall be 2028. 17
18289	18289	‘‘(b) A
18290	18290	MOUNTSDESCRIBED.—The amounts described 18
18291	18291	in this subsection are as follows: 19
18292	18292	‘‘(1) The amount referred to in section 20
18293	18293	502(b)(1) (relating to the minimum amount of quali-21
18294	18294	fied small dollar contributions included in a request 22
18295	18295	for payment). 23
18296	18296	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00604 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18297	18297	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 605
18298	18298	•HR 11 IH
18299	18299	‘‘(2) The amounts referred to in section 1
18300	18300	504(a)(1) (relating to the amount of a qualified 2
18301	18301	small dollar contribution). 3
18302	18302	‘‘(3) The amount referred to in section 4
18303	18303	512(a)(2) (relating to the total dollar amount of 5
18304	18304	qualified small dollar contributions). 6
18305	18305	‘‘(4) The amount referred to in section 7
18306	18306	521(a)(5) (relating to the aggregate amount of con-8
18307	18307	tributions a participating candidate may accept from 9
18308	18308	any individual with respect to an election). 10
18309	18309	‘‘(5) The amount referred to in section 11
18310	18310	521(b)(1)(A) (relating to the amount of personal 12
18311	18311	funds that may be used by a candidate who is cer-13
18312	18312	tified as a participating candidate). 14
18313	18313	‘‘(6) The amounts referred to in section 15
18314	18314	524(a)(2) (relating to the amount of unspent funds 16
18315	18315	a candidate may retain for use in the next election 17
18316	18316	cycle). 18
18317	18317	‘‘(7) The amount referred to in section 19
18318	18318	532(a)(3) (relating to the total dollar amount of 20
18319	18319	qualified small dollar contributions for a candidate 21
18320	18320	seeking an additional payment under subtitle D). 22
18321	18321	‘‘(8) The amount referred to in section 533(b) 23
18322	18322	(relating to the limit on the amount of an additional 24
18323	18323	payment made to a candidate under subtitle D). 25
18324	18324	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00605 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18325	18325	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 606
18326	18326	•HR 11 IH
18327	18327	‘‘SEC. 545. ELECTION CYCLE DEFINED. 1
18328	18328	‘‘In this title, the term ‘election cycle’ means, with 2
18329	18329	respect to an election for an office, the period beginning 3
18330	18330	on the day after the date of the most recent general elec-4
18331	18331	tion for that office (or, if the general election resulted in 5
18332	18332	a runoff election, the date of the runoff election) and end-6
18333	18333	ing on the date of the next general election for that office 7
18334	18334	(or, if the general election resulted in a runoff election, 8
18335	18335	the date of the runoff election). 9
18336	18336	‘‘SEC. 546. DIVISION DIRECTOR DEFINED. 10
18337	18337	‘‘In this title, the term ‘Division Director’ means the 11
18338	18338	individual serving as the director of the division estab-12
18339	18339	lished under section 542.’’. 13
18340	18340	SEC. 8112. CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES BY MULTI-14
18341	18341	CANDIDATE AND POLITICAL PARTY COMMIT-15
18342	18342	TEES ON BEHALF OF PARTICIPATING CAN-16
18343	18343	DIDATES. 17
18344	18344	(a) A
18345	18345	UTHORIZINGCONTRIBUTIONSONLYFROMSEP-18
18346	18346	ARATEACCOUNTSCONSISTING OF QUALIFIEDSMALL 19
18347	18347	D
18348	18348	OLLARCONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 315(a) of the Federal 20
18349	18349	Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)) is 21
18350	18350	amended by adding at the end the following new para-22
18351	18351	graph: 23
18352	18352	‘‘(10) In the case of a multicandidate political com-24
18353	18353	mittee or any political committee of a political party, the 25
18354	18354	committee may make a contribution to a candidate who 26
18355	18355	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00606 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18356	18356	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 607
18357	18357	•HR 11 IH
18358	18358	is a participating candidate under title V with respect to 1
18359	18359	an election only if the contribution is paid from a separate, 2
18360	18360	segregated account of the committee which consists solely 3
18361	18361	of contributions which meet the following requirements: 4
18362	18362	‘‘(A) Each such contribution is in an amount 5
18363	18363	which meets the requirements for the amount of a 6
18364	18364	qualified small dollar contribution under section 7
18365	18365	504(a)(1) with respect to the election involved. 8
18366	18366	‘‘(B) Each such contribution is made by an in-9
18367	18367	dividual who is not otherwise prohibited from mak-10
18368	18368	ing a contribution under this Act. 11
18369	18369	‘‘(C) The individual who makes the contribution 12
18370	18370	does not make contributions to the committee during 13
18371	18371	the year in an aggregate amount that exceeds the 14
18372	18372	limit described in section 504(a)(1).’’. 15
18373	18373	(b) P
18374	18374	ERMITTINGUNLIMITEDCOORDINATED EX-16
18375	18375	PENDITURESFROMSMALLDOLLARSOURCES BYPOLIT-17
18376	18376	ICALPARTIES.—Section 315(d) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 18
18377	18377	30116(d)) is amended— 19
18378	18378	(1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘The national 20
18379	18379	committee’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in 21
18380	18380	paragraph (6), the national committee’’; and 22
18381	18381	(2) by adding at the end the following new 23
18382	18382	paragraph: 24
18383	18383	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00607 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18384	18384	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 608
18385	18385	•HR 11 IH
18386	18386	‘‘(6) The limits described in paragraph (3) do not 1
18387	18387	apply in the case of expenditures in connection with the 2
18388	18388	general election campaign of a candidate for the office of 3
18389	18389	Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner 4
18390	18390	to, the Congress who is a participating candidate under 5
18391	18391	title V with respect to the election, but only if— 6
18392	18392	‘‘(A) the expenditures are paid from a separate, 7
18393	18393	segregated account of the committee which is de-8
18394	18394	scribed in subsection (a)(10); and 9
18395	18395	‘‘(B) the expenditures are the sole source of 10
18396	18396	funding provided by the committee to the can-11
18397	18397	didate.’’. 12
18398	18398	SEC. 8113. PROHIBITING USE OF CONTRIBUTIONS BY PAR-13
18399	18399	TICIPATING CANDIDATES FOR PURPOSES 14
18400	18400	OTHER THAN CAMPAIGN FOR ELECTION. 15
18401	18401	Section 313 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 16
18402	18402	of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114) is amended by adding at the 17
18403	18403	end the following new subsection: 18
18404	18404	‘‘(d) R
18405	18405	ESTRICTIONS ONPERMITTEDUSES OFFUNDS 19
18406	18406	BYCANDIDATESRECEIVINGSMALLDOLLARFINANC-20
18407	18407	ING.—Notwithstanding paragraph (2), (3), or (4) of sub-21
18408	18408	section (a), if a candidate for election for the office of Rep-22
18409	18409	resentative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, 23
18410	18410	the Congress is certified as a participating candidate 24
18411	18411	under title V with respect to the election, any contribution 25
18412	18412	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00608 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18413	18413	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 609
18414	18414	•HR 11 IH
18415	18415	which the candidate is permitted to accept under such title 1
18416	18416	may be used only for authorized expenditures in connec-2
18417	18417	tion with the candidate’s campaign for such office, subject 3
18418	18418	to section 503(b).’’. 4
18419	18419	SEC. 8114. DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS; EFFECTIVE 5
18420	18420	DATE. 6
18421	18421	(a) I
18422	18422	NGENERAL.—Not later than October 1, 2024, 7
18423	18423	the Federal Election Commission shall promulgate such 8
18424	18424	regulations as may be necessary to carry out this part and 9
18425	18425	the amendments made by this part. 10
18426	18426	(b) E
18427	18427	FFECTIVEDATE.—This part and the amend-11
18428	18428	ments made by this part shall take effect on October 1, 12
18429	18429	2024, without regard to whether the Commission has pro-13
18430	18430	mulgated the regulations required under subsection (a) by 14
18431	18431	such date. 15
18432	18432	Subtitle C—Personal Use Services 16
18433	18433	as Authorized Campaign Ex-17
18434	18434	penditures 18
18435	18435	SEC. 8201. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 19
18436	18436	(a) S
18437	18437	HORTTITLE.—This subtitle may be cited as the 20
18438	18438	‘‘Help America Run Act’’. 21
18439	18439	(b) F
18440	18440	INDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 22
18441	18441	(1) Everyday Americans experience barriers to 23
18442	18442	entry before they can consider running for office to 24
18443	18443	serve their communities. 25
18444	18444	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00609 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18445	18445	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 610
18446	18446	•HR 11 IH
18447	18447	(2) Current law states that campaign funds 1
18448	18448	cannot be spent on everyday expenses that would 2
18449	18449	exist whether or not a candidate were running for 3
18450	18450	office, like childcare and food. While the law seems 4
18451	18451	neutral, its actual effect is to privilege the independ-5
18452	18452	ently wealthy who want to run, because given the de-6
18453	18453	mands of running for office, candidates who must 7
18454	18454	work to pay for childcare or to afford health insur-8
18455	18455	ance are effectively being left out of the process, 9
18456	18456	even if they have sufficient support to mount a via-10
18457	18457	ble campaign. 11
18458	18458	(3) Thus current practice favors those prospec-12
18459	18459	tive candidates who do not need to rely on a regular 13
18460	18460	paycheck to make ends meet. The consequence is 14
18461	18461	that everyday Americans who have firsthand knowl-15
18462	18462	edge of the importance of stable childcare, a safety 16
18463	18463	net, or great public schools are less likely to get a 17
18464	18464	seat at the table. This governance by the few is anti-18
18465	18465	thetical to the democratic experiment, but most im-19
18466	18466	portantly, when lawmakers do not share the con-20
18467	18467	cerns of everyday Americans, their policies reflect 21
18468	18468	that. 22
18469	18469	(4) These circumstances have contributed to a 23
18470	18470	Congress that does not always reflect everyday 24
18471	18471	Americans. The New York Times reported in 2019 25
18472	18472	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00610 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18473	18473	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 611
18474	18474	•HR 11 IH
18475	18475	that fewer than 5 percent of representatives cite 1
18476	18476	blue-collar or service jobs in their biographies. A 2
18477	18477	2020 analysis by OpenSecrets of lawmakers’ per-3
18478	18478	sonal financial disclosure statements showed that the 4
18479	18479	median net worth of lawmakers was just over 5
18480	18480	$1,000,000, or nearly 9 times the median net worth 6
18481	18481	of American families. 7
18482	18482	(5) These circumstances have also contributed 8
18483	18483	to a governing body that does not reflect the nation 9
18484	18484	it serves. For instance, women are 51 percent of the 10
18485	18485	American population. Yet even with a record number 11
18486	18486	of women serving in the One Hundred Eighteenth 12
18487	18487	Congress, the Pew Research Center notes that near-13
18488	18488	ly three out of four Members of this Congress are 14
18489	18489	male. The Center for American Women and Politics 15
18490	18490	found that one third of women legislators surveyed 16
18491	18491	had been actively discouraged from running for of-17
18492	18492	fice, often by political professionals. This type of dis-18
18493	18493	couragement, combined with the prohibitions on 19
18494	18494	using campaign funds for domestic needs like 20
18495	18495	childcare, burdens that still fall disproportionately 21
18496	18496	on American women, particularly disadvantages 22
18497	18497	working mothers. These barriers may explain why 23
18498	18498	only 10 women in history have given birth while 24
18499	18499	serving in Congress, in spite of the prevalence of 25
18500	18500	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00611 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18501	18501	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 612
18502	18502	•HR 11 IH
18503	18503	working parents in other professions. Yet working 1
18504	18504	mothers and fathers are best positioned to create 2
18505	18505	policy that reflects the lived experience of most 3
18506	18506	Americans. 4
18507	18507	(6) Working mothers, those caring for their el-5
18508	18508	derly parents, and young professionals who rely on 6
18509	18509	their jobs for health insurance should have the free-7
18510	18510	dom to run to serve the people of the United States. 8
18511	18511	Their networks and net worth are simply not the 9
18512	18512	best indicators of their strength as prospective pub-10
18513	18513	lic servants. In fact, helping ordinary Americans to 11
18514	18514	run may create better policy for all Americans. 12
18515	18515	(c) P
18516	18516	URPOSE.—It is the purpose of this subtitle to 13
18517	18517	ensure that all Americans who are otherwise qualified to 14
18518	18518	serve this Nation are able to run for office, regardless of 15
18519	18519	their economic status. By expanding permissible uses of 16
18520	18520	campaign funds and providing modest assurance that test-17
18521	18521	ing a run for office will not cost one’s livelihood, the Help 18
18522	18522	America Run Act will facilitate the candidacy of represent-19
18523	18523	atives who more accurately reflect the experiences, chal-20
18524	18524	lenges, and ideals of everyday Americans. 21
18525	18525	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00612 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18526	18526	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 613
18527	18527	•HR 11 IH
18528	18528	SEC. 8202. TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS FOR CHILDCARE 1
18529	18529	AND OTHER PERSONAL USE SERVICES AS AU-2
18530	18530	THORIZED CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE. 3
18531	18531	(a) P
18532	18532	ERSONALUSESERVICES ASAUTHORIZEDCAM-4
18533	18533	PAIGNEXPENDITURE.—Section 313 of the Federal Elec-5
18534	18534	tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114), as amend-6
18535	18535	ed by section 8113, is amended by adding at the end the 7
18536	18536	following new subsection: 8
18537	18537	‘‘(e) T
18538	18538	REATMENT OF PAYMENTS FOR CHILDCARE 9
18539	18539	ANDOTHERPERSONALUSESERVICES ASAUTHORIZED 10
18540	18540	C
18541	18541	AMPAIGNEXPENDITURE.— 11
18542	18542	‘‘(1) A
18543	18543	UTHORIZED EXPENDITURES .—For pur-12
18544	18544	poses of subsection (a), the payment by an author-13
18545	18545	ized committee of a candidate for any of the per-14
18546	18546	sonal use services described in paragraph (3) shall 15
18547	18547	be treated as an authorized expenditure if the serv-16
18548	18548	ices are necessary to enable the participation of the 17
18549	18549	candidate in campaign-connected activities. 18
18550	18550	‘‘(2) L
18551	18551	IMITATIONS.— 19
18552	18552	‘‘(A) L
18553	18553	IMIT ON TOTAL AMOUNT OF PAY -20
18554	18554	MENTS.—The total amount of payments made 21
18555	18555	by an authorized committee of a candidate for 22
18556	18556	personal use services described in paragraph (3) 23
18557	18557	may not exceed the limit which is applicable 24
18558	18558	under any law, rule, or regulation on the 25
18559	18559	amount of payments which may be made by the 26
18560	18560	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00613 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18561	18561	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 614
18562	18562	•HR 11 IH
18563	18563	committee for the salary of the candidate (with-1
18564	18564	out regard to whether or not the committee 2
18565	18565	makes payments to the candidate for that pur-3
18566	18566	pose). 4
18567	18567	‘‘(B) C
18568	18568	ORRESPONDING REDUCTION IN 5
18569	18569	AMOUNT OF SALARY PAID TO CANDIDATE .—To 6
18570	18570	the extent that an authorized committee of a 7
18571	18571	candidate makes payments for the salary of the 8
18572	18572	candidate, any limit on the amount of such pay-9
18573	18573	ments which is applicable under any law, rule, 10
18574	18574	or regulation shall be reduced by the amount of 11
18575	18575	any payments made to or on behalf of the can-12
18576	18576	didate for personal use services described in 13
18577	18577	paragraph (3), other than personal use services 14
18578	18578	described in subparagraph (D) of such para-15
18579	18579	graph. 16
18580	18580	‘‘(C) E
18581	18581	XCLUSION OF CANDIDATES WHO 17
18582	18582	ARE OFFICEHOLDERS .—Paragraph (1) does not 18
18583	18583	apply with respect to an authorized committee 19
18584	18584	of a candidate who is a holder of Federal office. 20
18585	18585	‘‘(3) P
18586	18586	ERSONAL USE SERVICES DESCRIBED .— 21
18587	18587	The personal use services described in this para-22
18588	18588	graph are as follows: 23
18589	18589	‘‘(A) Childcare services. 24
18590	18590	‘‘(B) Elder care services. 25
18591	18591	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00614 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18592	18592	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 615
18593	18593	•HR 11 IH
18594	18594	‘‘(C) Services similar to the services de-1
18595	18595	scribed in subparagraph (A) or subparagraph 2
18596	18596	(B) which are provided on behalf of any de-3
18597	18597	pendent who is a qualifying relative under sec-4
18598	18598	tion 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 5
18599	18599	‘‘(D) Health insurance premiums.’’. 6
18600	18600	(b) E
18601	18601	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 7
18602	18602	this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 8
18603	18603	of this Act and shall take effect without regard to whether 9
18604	18604	or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 10
18605	18605	regulations to carry out such amendments. 11
18606	18606	Subtitle D—Empowering Small 12
18607	18607	Dollar Donations 13
18608	18608	SEC. 8301. PERMITTING POLITICAL PARTY COMMITTEES TO 14
18609	18609	PROVIDE ENHANCED SUPPORT FOR HOUSE 15
18610	18610	CANDIDATES THROUGH USE OF SEPARATE 16
18611	18611	SMALL DOLLAR ACCOUNTS. 17
18612	18612	(a) I
18613	18613	NCREASE INLIMIT ONCONTRIBUTIONS TOCAN-18
18614	18614	DIDATES.—Section 315(a)(2)(A) of the Federal Election 19
18615	18615	Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(2)(A)) is 20
18616	18616	amended by striking ‘‘exceed $5,000’’ and inserting ‘‘ex-21
18617	18617	ceed $5,000 or, in the case of a contribution made by a 22
18618	18618	national committee of a political party from an account 23
18619	18619	described in paragraph (11), exceed $10,000’’. 24
18620	18620	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00615 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18621	18621	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 616
18622	18622	•HR 11 IH
18623	18623	(b) ELIMINATION OFLIMIT ONCOORDINATEDEX-1
18624	18624	PENDITURES.—Section 315(d)(5) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 2
18625	18625	30116(d)(5)) is amended by striking ‘‘subsection (a)(9)’’ 3
18626	18626	and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)(9) or subsection (a)(11)’’. 4
18627	18627	(c) A
18628	18628	CCOUNTSDESCRIBED.—Section 315(a) of such 5
18629	18629	Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)), as amended by section 8112(a), 6
18630	18630	is amended by adding at the end the following new para-7
18631	18631	graph: 8
18632	18632	‘‘(11) An account described in this paragraph is a 9
18633	18633	separate, segregated account of a national congressional 10
18634	18634	campaign committee of a political party which— 11
18635	18635	‘‘(A) supports only candidates for election for 12
18636	18636	the office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resi-13
18637	18637	dent Commissioner to, the Congress; and 14
18638	18638	‘‘(B) consists exclusively of contributions made 15
18639	18639	during a calendar year by individuals whose aggre-16
18640	18640	gate contributions to the committee during the year 17
18641	18641	do not exceed $200.’’. 18
18642	18642	(d) E
18643	18643	FFECTIVEDATE.—The amendments made by 19
18644	18644	this section shall apply with respect to elections held on 20
18645	18645	or after the date of the enactment of this Act and shall 21
18646	18646	take effect without regard to whether or not the Federal 22
18647	18647	Election Commission has promulgated regulations to carry 23
18648	18648	out such amendments. 24
18649	18649	VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 Aug 23, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00616 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H11.IH H11
18650	18650	pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 617
18651	18651	•HR 11 IH
18652	18652	Subtitle E—Severability 1
18653	18653	SEC. 8401. SEVERABILITY. 2
18654	18654	If any provision of this title or amendment made by 3
18655	18655	this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 4
18656	18656	to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu-5
18657	18657	tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 6
18658	18658	by this title, and the application of the provisions and 7
18659	18659	amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 8
18660	18660	affected by the holding. 9
18661	18661	Æ
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