[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 149 (Tuesday, September 24, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6382-S6383]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       CONFIRMATION OF CONGRESSIONAL OBSERVER ACCESS ACT OF 2023

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
Committee on Rules and Administration be discharged from further 
consideration of H.R. 6513 and the Senate proceed to its immediate 
consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A 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.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. SCHUMER. I further ask that the McConnell substitute amendment at 
the desk be considered and agreed to; that the bill, as amended, be 
considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to 
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no 
intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 3297) in the nature of a substitute was agreed to 
as follows:

                (Purpose: In the nature of a substitute)

        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.

[[Page S6383]]

       ``(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 `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.''.
  The amendment was ordered to be engrossed and the bill to be read a 
third time.
  The bill was read the third time.
  The bill (H.R. 6513), as amended, was passed.

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