[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5131 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5131

  To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to make improvements to 
 voting system technology, election official training, and protecting 
                       voting system source code.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 29, 2016

 Mr. Johnson of Georgia (for himself, Ms. Plaskett, Mr. Hastings, Mr. 
Richmond, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Doggett, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Cohen, 
 Ms. Pingree, and Mr. Veasey) introduced the following bill; which was 
 referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to 
  the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to make improvements to 
 voting system technology, election official training, and protecting 
                       voting system source code.

    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 ``Verifying Optimal Tools for 
Elections Act of 2016'' or the ``VOTE Act of 2016''.

SEC. 2. PAYMENTS TO STATES TO REPLACE OUTDATED VOTING MACHINES.

    (a) In General.--Subtitle D of title II of the Help America Vote 
Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21001 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following:

                   ``PART 7--OUTDATED VOTING MACHINES

``SEC. 297. REPLACEMENT OF OUTDATED VOTING MACHINES.

    ``(a) In General.--Not later than 45 days after the date of the 
enactment of the Verifying Optimal Tools for Elections Act of 2016, the 
Election Assistance Commission (referred to in this section as the 
`Commission') shall make a payment to each State eligible under 
subsection (b) in which a precinct within that State used at least one 
outdated voting machine to administer the regularly scheduled general 
election for Federal office held in November 2012 (in this section 
referred to as a `qualifying precinct').
    ``(b) Eligibility.--A State is eligible to receive a payment under 
the program under this section if the State, not later than 6 months 
after the date of the enactment of the Verifying Optimal Tools for 
Elections Act of 2016, submits to the Commission a notice that contains 
such information as the Commission may require which are necessary for 
the administration of the program.
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--A State shall use the funds provided under a 
payment under this section (either directly or as reimbursement, 
including as reimbursement for costs incurred on or after July 30, 
2016, under multiyear contracts) to replace outdated voting machines in 
qualifying precincts within that State with voting machines (by 
purchase, lease, or such other arrangement as may be appropriate) 
that--
            ``(1)(A) have never been used in any general election for 
        Federal office and are not outdated voting machines; or
            ``(B) have been used only with respect to general elections 
        for Federal office held after November 2012; and
            ``(2) are auditable (as defined in the report submitted by 
        the Auditable Working Group of the National Institute of 
        Standards and Technology submitted to the Commission on January 
        4, 2011) and meet the requirements for such auditability 
        specified in such report.
    ``(d) Condition.--As a condition on receiving a payment under this 
section, a State shall provide funds, in-kind contributions, or a 
combination of both, from sources other than funds provided through 
such payment in an amount that is at least equal to one-third of the 
amount of such payment.
    ``(e) Amount of Payment.--The Commission shall determine the amount 
of payment made to a State under the program under this section based 
on--
            ``(1) the number of outdated voting machines used by a 
        qualifying precinct; and
            ``(2) the number of the qualifying precincts within the 
        State.
    ``(f) Enforcement.--A State receiving a payment under the program 
under this section shall ensure that all of the outdated voting 
machines in the qualifying precincts within that State have been 
replaced in time for the regularly scheduled general election for 
Federal office to be held in November 2018.
    ``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $125,000,000 for the period of 
fiscal years 2017 and 2018.
    ``(h) Outdated Voting Machine Defined.--The term `outdated voting 
machine' means an electronic voting machine that, as of November 6, 
2012, has been in use to administer an election on or before November 
4, 2008;''.
    (b) Conforming Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents 
of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 note) is amended 
by inserting after the item related to section 296 (relating to the 
authorization of appropriations for the National Student and Parent 
Mock Election) the following:

   ``Part 7. Grants for Education and Training of Election Officials

``Sec. 297. Replacement of outdated voting machines.''.

SEC. 3. ELECTION OFFICIAL TRAINING.

    (a) In General.--Subtitle D of title II of the Help America Vote 
Act (52 U.S.C. 21001 et seq.), as amended by section 2, is further 
amended by adding at the end the following:

   ``PART 8--GRANTS FOR EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF ELECTION OFFICIALS

``SEC. 298. GRANTS FOR EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF ELECTION OFFICIALS.

    ``(a) In General.--The Commission shall make grants to States to 
provide for the education and training, through the use of webinars or 
other appropriate means, of election officials and poll workers on 
voting machine maintenance, pre- and post-election voting machine 
testing, the development of contingency plans, and such other topics as 
may be necessary for purposes of streamlining the voting process.
    ``(b) Grant.--
            ``(1) Certification.--A State seeking a grant under this 
        section shall submit to the Commission a certification in such 
        form and manner as the Commission may specify with respect to 
        the State's expenditures in providing for the education and 
        training described in subsection (a).
            ``(2) Amount.--The amount of a grant made to a State shall 
        be determined by the Commission based on the Commission's 
        determination of the State's reasonable costs incurred in 
        providing the education and training described in subsection 
        (a).
            ``(3) Transmission of grant/payment.--Not later than 30 
        days after the date on which the Commission receives the 
        certification specified in paragraph (1), the Commission shall 
        make a payment to the State in an amount equal to the amount of 
        the grant determined for such State under paragraph (2).
    ``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $50,000,000 for the period of 
fiscal years 2017 through 2018.
    ``(d) State Defined.--In this section, the term `State' means each 
State of the United States, the District of Columbia, and each 
commonwealth and territory or possession of the United States.''.
    (b) Conforming Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents 
of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 note), as amended 
by section 2, is further amended by inserting after the item related to 
section 297 (relating to the replacement of outdated voting machines) 
the following:

   ``Part 8. Grants for Education and Training of Election Officials

``Sec. 298. Grants for education and training of election officials.''.

SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR RESEARCH ON VOTING TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Part 4 of subtitle D of title II of the Help 
America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21051 et seq.) is amended by adding 
at the end the following new sections:

``SEC. 284. GRANTS FOR TESTING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE.

    ``(a) In General.--The Commission shall make grants to States or 
any political subdivision thereof to conduct pilot testing with respect 
to, and carry out the implementation of, voting systems that use--
            ``(1) non-proprietary open source software; and
            ``(2) commercial or custom firmware and hardware.
    ``(b) Condition.--As a condition on receiving a grant under this 
section, a State (or a political subdivision thereof) shall submit to 
the Commission an exact copy of the source code for--
            ``(1) each component of the voting system that is the 
        subject of the grant, including complete build and 
        configuration instructions and related documents for compiling 
        the source code into object code; and
            ``(2) any interactive enhancements made to such system 
        within 30 days of such enhancements being made.
    ``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000 for the period of 
fiscal years 2017 through 2018.
    ``(d) Open Source Software Defined.--The term `open source 
software' means software the license of which is made available under 
an open source license.

``SEC. 285. GRANTS FOR A COMMON DATA FORMAT ALLOWING FOR VOTING-
              EQUIPMENT DEVICE INTEROPERABILITY.

    ``(a) In General.--The National Institute of Standards and 
Technology shall develop, or make grants to one or more eligible 
entities to develop, a common data format allowing for voting-equipment 
device interoperability.
    ``(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for the period of 
fiscal years 2017 through 2018.''.
    (b) Conforming Table of Contents Amendment.--The table of contents 
of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 note), as amended 
by section 2, is further amended by inserting after the item related to 
section 283 (relating to the authorization of appropriations for the 
pilot program for testing of equipment and technology) the following:

``284. Grants for testing open source software.
``285. Grants for a common data format allowing for voting-equipment 
                            device interoperability.''.

SEC. 5. DEPOSIT OF ELECTION-DEDICATED VOTING SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY IN 
              NATIONAL SOFTWARE REFERENCE LIBRARY.

    (a) Deposit Required; Conditions for Disclosure.--Section 301(a) of 
the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15481(a)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(7) Prohibiting use of election-dedicated voting system 
        technologies not deposited with national software reference 
        library; disclosure requirements.--
                    ``(A) Prohibition.--
                            ``(i) In general.--A voting system used in 
                        an election for Federal office in a State may 
                        not at any time during the election contain or 
                        use any election-dedicated voting system 
                        technology which is not deposited by the State 
                        (or, at the option of the State, by the vendor 
                        of the technology) with the National Software 
                        Reference Library of the National Institute of 
                        Standards and Technology prior to the date of 
                        the election, to be held in escrow and subject 
                        to disclosure in accordance with subparagraph 
                        (B).
                            ``(ii) Extension of deadline for deposit.--
                        If the chief State election official certifies 
                        to the Director of the National Institute of 
                        Standards and Technology prior to the date of 
                        the election that, because of a revision to the 
                        election-dedicated voting system technology 
                        which is made less than 30 days prior to the 
                        date of the election, the State or vendor is 
                        unable to deposit the technology in accordance 
                        with clause (i) prior to the date of the 
                        election, the voting system used in the 
                        election may contain or use the technology if--
                                    ``(I) the chief State election 
                                official approves the use of the 
                                technology for the election; and
                                    ``(II) the State or vendor deposits 
                                the technology in accordance with 
                                clause (i) not later than 1 week after 
                                the date of the election.
                            ``(iii) Enforcement of vendor 
                        responsibilities.--If a State opts to require 
                        the vendor of election-dedicated voting system 
                        technology to deposit the technology in 
                        accordance with this subparagraph and the 
                        vendor fails to do so, the Attorney General may 
                        bring a civil action against the vendor in an 
                        appropriate district court for such relief as 
                        may be appropriate, including injunctive relief 
                        or an order for a civil penalty in an amount 
                        not to exceed $500,000.
                    ``(B) Requirement for disclosure and limitation on 
                restricting disclosure.--With respect to any election-
                dedicated voting system technology which is deposited 
                under subparagraph (A), the Director of the National 
                Institute of Standards and Technology shall--
                            ``(i) hold the technology in escrow; and
                            ``(ii) disclose technology and information 
                        regarding the technology to another person if--
                                    ``(I) the person is a qualified 
                                person described in subparagraph (C) 
                                who has entered into a nondisclosure 
                                agreement with respect to the 
                                technology which meets the requirements 
                                of subparagraph (D); or
                                    ``(II) the Director is permitted or 
                                required to disclose the technology to 
                                the person under the law of the 
                                applicable State, in accordance with 
                                the terms and conditions applicable 
                                under such law.
                    ``(C) Qualified persons described.--With respect to 
                the disclosure of election-dedicated voting system 
                technology under subparagraph (B)(ii)(I), a `qualified 
                person' is any of the following:
                            ``(i) A governmental entity with 
                        responsibility for the administration of voting 
                        and election-related matters in elections for 
                        Federal office, for purposes of reviewing, 
                        analyzing, or reporting on the technology.
                            ``(ii) If permitted under a court order, a 
                        party to post-election litigation challenging 
                        the result of an election or the administration 
                        or use of the technology used in an election, 
                        but only to the extent permitted under the 
                        terms and conditions of such court order.
                            ``(iii) A person who reviews, analyzes, or 
                        reports on the technology solely for an 
                        investigation or inquiry concerning the 
                        accuracy or integrity of the technology 
                        pursuant to clause (i) or (ii).
                    ``(D) Requirements for nondisclosure agreements.--A 
                nondisclosure agreement entered into with respect to an 
                election-dedicated voting system technology meets the 
                requirements of this subparagraph if the agreement--
                            ``(i) is limited in scope to coverage of 
                        the technology disclosed under subparagraph (B) 
                        and any trade secrets and intellectual property 
                        rights related thereto;
                            ``(ii) does not prohibit a signatory from 
                        entering into other nondisclosure agreements to 
                        review other technologies under this paragraph;
                            ``(iii) exempts from coverage both 
                        information the signatory lawfully obtained 
                        from another source and information in the 
                        public domain;
                            ``(iv) remains in effect for not longer 
                        than the life of any trade secret or other 
                        intellectual property right related thereto;
                            ``(v) prohibits the request or use of 
                        injunctions that bar a signatory from carrying 
                        out any activity authorized under subparagraph 
                        (C), including injunctions limited to the 
                        period prior to a judicial proceeding involving 
                        the technology;
                            ``(vi) is silent as to damages awarded for 
                        breach of the agreement, other than a reference 
                        to damages available under applicable law;
                            ``(vii) allows disclosure of evidence 
                        relating to possible criminal conduct or other 
                        violations of law, including in response to a 
                        subpoena or warrant;
                            ``(viii) allows disclosures and testimony 
                        to legislative branch authorities, judicial 
                        proceedings, and executive branch 
                        investigations in response to a subpoena or 
                        warrant or as otherwise provided by law; and
                            ``(ix) provides that the agreement shall be 
                        governed by the trade secret laws of the 
                        applicable State.
                    ``(E) Election-dedicated voting system technology 
                defined.--For purposes of this paragraph:
                            ``(i) In general.--The term `election-
                        dedicated voting system technology' means the 
                        following:
                                    ``(I) The source code used for the 
                                trusted build and the file signatures 
                                for the trusted build.
                                    ``(II) A complete disk image of the 
                                pre-build, build environment, and any 
                                file signatures to validate that it is 
                                unmodified.
                                    ``(III) A complete disk image of 
                                the post-build, build environment, and 
                                any file signatures to validate that it 
                                is unmodified.
                                    ``(IV) All executable code produced 
                                by the trusted build and any file 
                                signatures to validate that it is 
                                unmodified.
                                    ``(V) Installation devices and 
                                software file signatures.
                            ``(ii) Exclusion.--Such term does not 
                        include `commercial-off-the-shelf' software and 
                        hardware defined under the voluntary voting 
                        system guidelines adopted by the Commission 
                        under section 222 which are in effect as of the 
                        date of the election involved.
                    ``(F) Trusted build defined.--For purposes of this 
                paragraph, the term `trusted build' means a witnessed 
                software build in which source code is converted to 
                machine-readable binary instructions (executable code) 
                in a manner providing security measures that help 
                ensure that the executable code is a verifiable and 
                faithful representation of the source code.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply 
with respect to elections occurring during 2016 or any succeeding year.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations for National Institute of 
Standards and Technology.--There are authorized to be appropriated to 
the National Institute of Standards and Technology for each fiscal year 
such sums as may be necessary to enable the Institute, including the 
National Software Reference Library of the Institute, to carry out 
paragraph (7) of section 301(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002, 
as added by section 2(a).
                                 <all>