[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 149 (Tuesday, September 24, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6379-S6380]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 3297. Mr. SCHUMER (for Mr. McConnell) proposed an amendment to the
bill H.R. 6513, to amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to confirm
the requirement that States allow access to designated congressional
election observers to observe the election administration procedures in
congressional elections; as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Confirmation Of
Congressional Observer Access Act of 2024'' or the ``COCOA
Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. ACCESS FOR CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION OBSERVERS.
(a) Access Required.--Title III of the Help America Vote
Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by redesignating section 304 and 305 as sections 305
and 306; and
(2) by inserting after section 303 the following new
section:
``SEC. 304. ACCESS FOR CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION OBSERVERS.
``(a) Finding of Constitutional Authority.--Congress finds
that, regardless of legislative action, it has the authority
to send congressional election observers to observe polling
locations, any location where processing, scanning,
tabulating, canvassing, recounting, auditing, or certifying
voting results is occurring, or any other part of the process
associated with elections for Federal office under the
authorities granted under article 1, section 5, clause 1 and
article 1, section 4, clause 1 of the Constitution of the
United States. Procedures described herein do not establish
any new authorities or procedures with respect to Congress'
constitutional authority to observe congressional elections
but are provided simply to permit a convenient statutory
reference for existing congressional authority and activity.
``(b) Requiring States To Provide Access for Observers.--
``(1) Requirement.--A State shall provide each individual
who is acting as a designated congressional election observer
for an election for Federal office with full access to
clearly observe all elements of election administration
procedures, including, but not limited to, access to any area
in which a ballot is cast, processed, scanned, tabulated,
canvassed, recounted, audited, or certified, including during
pre- and post-election procedures.
``(2) Restrictions on activities of observers.--No
designated congressional election observer may handle a
ballot or election equipment (whether voting or nonvoting or
whether tabulating or nontabulating), advocate for any
position or candidate, take any action to reduce ballot
secrecy or voter privacy, take any action to interfere with
the ability of a voter to cast a ballot or an election
administrator to carry the administrator's duties, or
otherwise interfere with the election administration process.
``(3) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this section shall
prohibit a designated congressional election observer from
asking questions of an election administrator, election
official, or election worker, or any other State or local
official.
``(c) Conduct of Observers.--
``(1) Removal.--
``(A) Authorization removal by election official.--If a
State or local election official has a reasonable basis to
believe that a designated congressional election observer has
engaged in or imminently will engage in intimidation or
deceptive practices prohibited by Federal law, or in the
disruption of voting, processing, scanning, tabulating,
canvassing, or recounting of ballots, or the certification of
results, a State or local election official may remove that
observer from the area involved.
``(B) Notice to committee.--If a designated congressional
election observer is removed from an area under subparagraph
(A), the election official shall, within 24 hours of the
observer's removal--
``(i) inform the chair and ranking minority member of the
Committee on House Administration of the House of
Representatives or the Committee on Rules and Administration
of the Senate, as applicable; and
``(ii) provide written notice detailing the reason or
reasons the designated congressional election observer was
removed.
``(2) Rule of construction.--For purposes of this
subsection, the mere presence of a designated congressional
election observer during an observation of election
administration procedures, without any additional indicia
supporting a reasonable basis for removal, is not a
sufficient reason for removal under paragraph (1)(A).
``(3) Right to replace observer.--If a designated
congressional election observer is properly removed under
paragraph (1)(A), the chair or ranking minority member of the
Committee on House Administration of the House of
Representatives or the Committee on Rules and Administration
of the Senate, as appropriate, may send another designated
congressional election observer as a replacement for the
remaining duration of the observation of election
administration procedures.
``(d) Designated Congressional Election Observer
Described.--In this section, a
[[Page S6380]]
`designated congressional election observer' is a House or
Senate employee who is designated in writing by the chair or
ranking minority member of the Committee on House
Administration of the House of Representatives or the
Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate, or a
successor committee, to gather information with respect to an
election, including in the event that the election is
contested in the House of Representatives or the Senate and
for other purposes permitted by article 1, section 5, clause
1 and article 1, section 4, clause 1 of the Constitution of
the United States.
``(e) State Defined.--In this section, the term `State'
means each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin
Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment Relating to Enforcement.--Section
401 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking
``and 303'' and inserting ``303, and 304''.
(c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of such Act
is amended--
(1) by redesignating the items relating to sections 304 and
305 as relating to sections 305 and 306; and
(2) by inserting after the item relating to section 303 the
following:
``Sec. 304. Confirming access for congressional election observers.''.
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