Selected paragraphs from the PDF report:
Best Practices Toolkit on Election Administration
One of the most important topics featured in this toolkit is provisional ballots, which were required under HAVA and used by many States for the first time in 2004. To ensure this provision of the law was implemented in a uniform and nondiscriminatory manner, the document includes guidance on maintaining clear, uniform standards and procedures for issuing, processing, researching, and counting provisional ballots. It urges officials to reduce the need for provisional ballots by addressing voter registration problems well ahead of Election Day, and resolving eligibility issues at the polling place so voters can cast regular ballots. The report also encourages election administrators to record and publicize the number of provisional ballots issued, the number counted, and top reasons why they are not counted.
2004 Election Surveys
HAVA Section 241 instructs EAC to conduct public studies on election administration issues. To provide Congress with an accurate report on the November 2004 election, EAC developed a survey to gather quantitative data from the States. At the end of FY 2004, EAC began preparing three surveys in total: an Election Day 2004 Survey, a Military and Overseas Absentee Ballot Survey, and an NVRA Survey. The results of this research will be available in FY 2005.
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The Election Day 2004 Survey will provide national data—some of it for the first time—on a range of issues. Topics include number of registered voters, number of ballots cast, number of absentee ballots cast and counted, number of provisional ballots cast and counted, reasons for rejecting absentee or provisional ballots, voting machine malfunctions that occurred, number of poll workers available on Election Day, and voting equipment used in each jurisdiction.
To complete its research on the 2004 election cycle, EAC will also conduct a survey to collect data on voter registration and other activities under NVRA.
National Poll Worker Initiative
Successful recruitment, training, and retention of poll workers are essential as new election procedures and voting system equipment guidelines are adopted to meet HAVA requirements. EAC launched the National Poll Worker Initiative in June 2004, laying the groundwork for long-term efforts to meet this challenge. This effort included a public appeal to corporations, Federal government agencies, private organizations, and individual citizens to sign up as poll workers.
Help America Vote College Poll Worker ProgramEAC successfully developed the Help America Vote College Poll Worker Program in time for the November elections. This program prompts college students to serve as nonpartisan poll workers and encourages local governments to use the services of students participating in the program.
In October 2004, EAC awarded 15 grants totaling nearly $630,000 to a variety of finalists that included community colleges, four-year colleges and universities, and nonprofit organizations with a national and regional focus. The average award was $41,800.
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Electronic Voting Security
In addition to working with NIST to launch the TGDC, EAC responded to public concerns about the security and reliability of electronic touch-screen voting systems, popularly referred to as DREs. The Commission held a public hearing in May 2004 on the use, security, and reliability of electronic voting systems. Witnesses included computer security experts, academics, election officials, voting rights advocates, and voting system vendors. The Commission made voting system security and auditability a priority of its standards work.
EAC also issued an Advisory Letter on Electronic Voting Security, which identified a number of actions that election officials could take to improve system integrity and promote voter confidence for the 2004 election. One recommendation was to define and implement enhanced security measures and provide process transparency to the public. In addition, the Commission requested that voting system vendors submit copies of their certified software to the NIST Software Reference Library so election officials could validate the software used for the election. The State of Maryland used this capability for the 2004 election. A copy of the EAC Advisory Letter on Electronic Voting Security is available at www.eac.gov.
Accreditation of Voting System Testing LaboratoriesHAVA Section 231 requires EAC and NIST to develop a national program for accrediting voting system testing laboratories. On June 23, 2004, NIST published a notice in the Federal Register announcing the establishment of this program, which operates as part of the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP). The national program will provide initial accreditation of testing laboratories and periodic re-examination and re-certification to ensure they continue to meet the criteria.
NIST will begin accepting applications in April 2005, at which time the test lab certification process will formally transition from the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED), which has performed this work since the early 1992.
NVLAP provides internationally recognized, independent evaluation of laboratory competence. Labs seeking accreditation will submit an application describing their facilities and staff qualifications in relation to the relevant standards. NVLAP will examine the applicant’s ability to test systems using the voluntary voting system standards, based on their written documentation and an inspection of their facilities. Laboratories that achieve accreditation will be recommended by NIST to the EAC for designation as approved voting system testing laboratories. EAC will maintain a register of qualified laboratories to help vendors and election officials identify resources to fulfill system testing requirements.
Voting System Qualification Process Accredited testing laboratories will test vendor systems for conformance with voluntary voting system standards. Once testing is complete, the results must be reviewed to determine whether the system is eligible to be designated a qualified voting system. NASED has been responsible for conducting this review since 1992; however, HAVA directs EAC to assume this responsibility. Preliminary planning for the transition began in FY 2004 and a full transition to EAC will be completed in FY 2005.
Fiscal Year 2004 Annual Report Submitted January 2005
National Software Reference Library In July 2004, EAC and NIST established a part of the NSRL specifically for voting systems. The Commission encouraged voting system vendors to submit copies of their certified system software to NSRL so election officials could validate their match to the certified version. Five vendors provided their software for this purpose. At the July 13, 2004 EAC public meeting, NIST presented a report on the use of the NSRL for voting system software validation. This report is available online at
http://www.nsrl.nist.gov/vote/July132004-EAC.pdf