Federal Voluntary Voting System Guidelines: Summary and Analysis of Issues

Publication Date: November 2005

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Politics

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Abstract:

The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA, P.L. 107-252) gave the federal Election Assistance Commission (EAC) the responsibility to develop a set of Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) to replace the current voluntary Voting Systems Standards (VSS). The VVSG are to provide a set of specifications and requirements to be used in the certification of computer-assisted voting systems, both paper-based and fully electronic. That was also the purpose of the VSS, which were developed in response to concerns raised about voting systems in the 1970s and 1980s. Most states have adopted the VSS in whole or in part, and most are expected to adopt the VVSG, which are scheduled to go into effect two years after approval.

The draft VVSG, a partial revision of the VSS, was released in June 2005 for a 90-day comment period. Volume I provides performance guidelines for voting systems and is intended for a broad audience. It includes descriptions of functional requirements and performance standards, and requirements for vendors. The most extensive revisions are to the section on usability and accessibility and the section on security of voting systems. Standards are also included for the use of voter-verified paper audit trails (VVPAT), a recent security measure developed in response to concerns that electronic voting machines are vulnerable to tampering that might otherwise be difficult to detect. Volume II provides details of the testing process for certification of voting systems and has few revisions.

Some issues associated with the VVSG have been controversial. Among them is the question of timing. Some vendors claim that there needs to be more time for technology development before the new guidelines become effective; some activists argue that problems with voting systems, and HAVA provisions, demand more rapid implementation of the VVSG. In any event, it is generally considered unlikely that the guidelines will have much direct impact on voting systems used in 2006, when HAVA requirements for voting systems go into effect. One exception may be the VVPAT provisions, since the VSS, under which most current voting systems are certified, have no provisions relating to this innovation. The VVSG will be voluntary, but some observers believe that a regulatory approach would be more appropriate given the importance of elections to the democratic process. However, since many states require that voting systems be certified, vendors are expected to treat the VVSG in the same way they have treated the VSS -- as effectively mandatory.

Among the other issues being debated about the guidelines are whether they should be expanded to include voter registration systems, whether they impede innovation by focusing on integrated systems rather than components, how to treat commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) products that are incorporated in voting systems, and whether a graded certification would be more effective than the current pass/fail approach. Several bills introduced in the 109th Congress could affect the scope or other aspects of the VVSG by requiring VVPAT or other security provisions, addressing concerns about conflict of interest, and other measures. None have received committee or floor action in either chamber during the first session. This report will be updated in response to major developments.