[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2437 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2437

To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require a voter-verified 
permanent record or hardcopy under title III of such Act, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 18, 2004

  Mr. Ensign introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
         referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require a voter-verified 
permanent record or hardcopy under title III of such Act, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Voting Integrity and Verification 
Act of 2004''.

SEC. 2. PROMOTING ACCURACY, INTEGRITY, AND SECURITY THROUGH 
              PRESERVATION OF A VOTER-VERIFIED PERMANENT PAPER RECORD.

    (a) In General.--Section 301(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 
2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)(A)--
                    (A) by striking clause (i) and inserting the 
                following new clause:
                            ``(i) permit the voter to verify the 
                        accuracy of their ballot (in a private and 
                        independent manner), by allowing the voter to 
                        review an individual paper version of the 
                        voter's ballot before the voter's ballot is 
                        cast and counted;'';
                    (B) in clause (ii)--
                            (i) by inserting ``discovered on the 
                        individual paper version of the voter's 
                        ballot'' after ``to change the ballot or 
                        correct any error''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``and'' after the 
                        semicolon at the end;
                    (C) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); 
                and
                    (D) by inserting after clause (ii) the following 
                new clause:
                            ``(iii)(I) preserve the individual paper 
                        version of the voter's ballot, after the voter 
                        has certified that the same accurately reflects 
                        the voter's intent, as the individual permanent 
                        paper record, and
                            ``(II) preserve such individual permanent 
                        paper record at the polling place in accordance 
                        with the provisions of paragraph (2)(B)(i); 
                        and'';
            (2) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``subparagraph 
        (A)(iii)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (A)(iv)''; and
            (3) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following 
        new paragraph:
            ``(2) Manual audit capacity.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The voting system shall produce 
                an individual permanent paper record for each ballot 
                that is cast which provides for voter verification of 
                such record in accordance with paragraph (1)(A) and 
                which meets the requirements of subparagraph (B).
                    ``(B) Manual audit capacity.--
                            ``(i) The voting system shall produce an 
                        individual permanent paper record for each 
                        ballot cast that is either--
                                    ``(I) preserved within the polling 
                                place in the manner in which all other 
                                paper ballots are preserved within such 
                                polling place; or
                                    ``(II) in the absence of such 
                                manner or method, which is consistent 
                                with the manner employed by the 
                                jurisdiction for preserving paper 
                                ballots in general.
                            ``(ii) Each paper record produced under 
                        clause (i) shall be suitable for a manual audit 
                        equivalent or superior to that of a paper 
                        ballot voting system.
                            ``(iii) All electronic records produced by 
                        any voting system shall be consistent with the 
                        individual permanent paper records produced by 
                        such voting system. In the event of any 
                        inconsistencies or irregularities between any 
                        electronic records and the individual permanent 
                        paper records, the individual permanent paper 
                        records shall be the true and correct record of 
                        the votes cast.
                            ``(iv) The individual permanent paper 
                        records produced under clause (i) shall be used 
                        as the official records for purposes of any 
                        recount or audit conducted with respect to any 
                        election for Federal office in which the voting 
                        system is used.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect as if included in the enactment of the Help America Vote Act of 
2002.
                                 <all>