Election Assistance Commission

Infobox Government agency
agency_name = Election Assistance Commission
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seal_width = 180 px
seal_caption = Official seal
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headquarters = Washington, D.C.
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chief1_name = Rosemary E. Rodriguez
chief1_position = Chair
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website = [http://www.eac.gov/ www.eac.gov]
footnotes = [http://www.bestplacestowork.org/BPTW/rankings/agency.php?code=FT00&q=scores_small] [http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/history/ftchistory.shtm] The Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is an independent agency of the United States Government created by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). The Commission is charged with serving as a national resource for administering Federal elections and establishing standards for State and local governments.

Responsibilities

The EAC is tasked with performing a number of election-related duties including: [ [http://eac.gov/programs.asp EAC Programs information] , see HAVA Sections 202, 205 through 209, 221 through 222, 231, 241-247, 801 through 804, and 902 and at NVRA Section 9]
*Creating and maintaining the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines
*Creating a national program for the testing, certification, and decertification of voting systems
*Maintaining the National Mail Voter Registration Form required by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA)
*Reporting to Congress every two years on the effects of the NVRA on elections
*Administering federal funds to States for HAVA requirements
*Administering federal funds for the development of innovative election technology, including pilot programs to test election technology
*Studying and reporting best practices of effective administration
*Communicating information on laws, technologies, procedures, studies, and data related to the administration of federal elections to those responsible for formulating or implementing election law and procedures, to the media, and to other interested persons

History

The HAVA dictates the EAC will create voluntary guidelines for voting systems, maintaining a clearinghouse of information regarding election administration procedures including testing and certification of election equipment, and administering the Election Assistance and Help America Vote Programs.

In 2003, Congress appropriated $1.5 billion for HAVA. The General Services Administration distributed most of the $650 million permitted under Title I of HAVA, but the remainder was earmarked for the EAC to disburse. The funds languished because the commissioners were not confirmed until 9 Dec. 2003; the law had required that they be in place by 26 Feb. 2003.

In its 2004 budget, Congress again allocated $1.5 billion to fund HAVA. By January, 2004, the EAC had no permanent offices or budget, even though it was required to publish state election reform plans in the Federal Register before money for new voting equipment could be disbursed to the states.

EAC Chair and Commissioners

The 2007 chair of the EAC is Donetta Davidson, formerly Colorado Secretary of State. Chairwoman Davidson was sworn in January 3, 2007. [ [http://eac.gov/news_010407.asp Davidson Assumes Chair Position at U.S. Election Assistance Commission] , January 3, 2007] (The EAC is currently without a vice chair)

Current commissioners include Gracia Hillman, former executive director of the League of Women Voters of the United States; Caroline Hunter [http://www.electionline.org/Portals/1/docs/EAC.confirmations.2.15.2007.pdf Senate Congressional Record] , February 15, 2007] , served as Deputy Director of Public Liaison for the White House and as Deputy Counsel of the Republican National Committee; and Rosemary E. Rodriguez, previously serving on the Denver City Council of the City and County of Denver, District 3, Colorado.

Previous Chairmen

Paul DeGregorio is the immediate past chairman of the EAC. He was nominated by President Bush and confirmed by unanimous consent of the U.S. Senate on December 9, 2003. DeGregorio replaced the EAC's original Chairman, former New Jersey Secretary of State, Rev. DeForest Soaries. He had previously served as Vice Chairman.

Prior to his service with the EAC Chairman DeGregorio served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES), and was Director of Elections for St. Louis County, Missouri from 1985 to 1993.

Officers and staff

Executive Director

The current Executive Director is Thomas R. Wilkey, previously executive director of the New York State Board of Elections in 2003, serving a four-year term. He has worked 34 years in the field of election administration. [ [http://eac.gov/docs/Wilkey%20bio.pdf EAC official biography of Thomas Wilkey] ] The executive director position was created by HAVA §204 (a).

General Counsel

The current General Counsel, serving under the Executive Director, is Juliet E. Thompson. [ [http://eac.gov/news_082604.asp EAC taps Juliet Thompson for General Counsel Position] , August 26, 2004] She has previously held the position of Associate General Counsel at the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America, and General Counsel of the Louisiana Department of Elections and Registration.

Inspector General

The current Inspector General is Curtis Crider. The Office of the Inspector general is tasked with detecting and preventing fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement of EAC programs, regularly performing audits and evaluations.

tandards Board

The EAC Standards Board was established under title II section 211 of HAVA. Its duties include reviewing the voluntary voting systems guidelines and review of the best practices recommendations. The Board consists of 110 members, 55 State election officials and 55 local election officials. The Board adopts resolutions and makes recommendations by simple majority vote. [ [http://eac.gov/docs/Standards%20Board%20Charter%206-1-04.pdf Charter of the EAC Standards Board] ] (see a full list of [http://eac.gov/eac_standardboard.htm Standards Board members] )

The Executive Board includes 9 members: Peggy Nighswonger, State Elections Director, Cheyenne, WY (Chair); Bill Campbell, City Clerk, City of Woburn, Woburn, MA (Vice Chair); Sarah Ball Johnson, Executive Director, State Board of Elections, Frankfort, KY (Secretary); Tonni Bartholomew, Troy City Clerk, Troy, MI; Louis Bernard, Clerk of Court, Natchitoches Parish, Natchitoches, LA; John Lindback, Director, State of Oregon, Elections Division, Salem, OR; Larry Lomax, Clark County Registrar of Voters, North Las Vegas, NV; Deb Markowitz, Secretary of State, Montpelier, VT; and Todd Rokita, Secretary of State, Indianapolis, IN. [ [http://eac.gov/eac_standboard_exec.htm EAC Standards Board Executive Board] ]

Advisory Board

The EAC Advisory Board was established under title II section 211 of HAVA. Like the Standards Board the Advisory Board's duties include reviewing the voluntary voting systems guidelines and review of the best practices recommendations. The Board consists of appointed members. Two members being appointed by each of, the National Governors Association, the National Conference of State Legislatures, the National Association of Secretaries of State, the National Association of State Election Directors, the National Association of Counties, the [http://www.nacrc.org/ National Association of County Recorders, Election Officials, and Clerks] (NACRC), the United States Conference of Mayors, the Election Center, the [http://www.iacreot.com/ International Association of County Recorders, Election Officials, and Treasurers] (IACREOT), the United States Commission on Civil Rights, and the Architectural and Transportation Barrier Compliance Board. The Board also includes the chief of the Office of Public Integrity of the Department of Justice, the Chief of the Voting Section of the Civil Rights (DOJ), and the director of the Federal Voting Assistance Program of the Department of Defense. Further, the Board also includes four members representing professionals in the field of science and technology, one appointed by the Speaker and one by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, one appointed by the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader of the Senate. The eight final members of the Board, four members are appointed by the United States House Committee on House Administration and four members are appointed by the United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. [ [http://eac.gov/docs/Board%20of%20Advisors%20Charter%206-1-04.pdf Charter of the EAC Board of Advisors] ] (see a full list of [http://eac.gov/eac_boardadv.htm Advisory Board members] )

Technical Guidelines Development Committee

The Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC) is tasked with assisting the EAC in drafting the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines. [http://eac.gov/docs/TDGC%20FACA%20Charter%20version%202.0.pdf Charter of the EAC Technical Guidelines and Development Committee] ] The Committee membership consists of the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); 14 members appointed jointly by the EAC and the Director of NIST from the Standards Board, the Board of Advisors, the Architectural and Transportation Barrier, and the Access Board, a representative of American National Standards Institute (ANSI), a representative of the IEEE, two representatives of the NASED, and other individuals with technical and scientific expertise relating to voting systems and voting equipment. (see a full list of [http://www.eac.gov/about/committees/tgdc/tgdc-members TGDC members] )

Criticisms

Critics have contended that the EAC has responded to political pressure from the Republican Party and the Department of Justice. For example, the EAC is said to have overstated the problem of voter fraud, which is often cited by Republicans as a justification for restrictive measures that Democrats charge are intended to prevent qualified Democrats from voting. The EAC Chair denied that there was any political pressure. [cite web|last=Fessler|first=Pam|title=Federal Panel on Voter Fraud Scrutinized|publisher=National Public Radio|date=2007-07-31|url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12385655|accessdate=2007-08-30] Tova Wang, a consultant to the Commission, wrote a detailed account in "The Washington Post" about how her research and that of her Republican co-author had been disregarded or altered, to produce a published report "that completely stood our own work on its head." The changes included playing up the voter fraud issue and omitting references to charges of voter intimidation lodged by Democrats, as well as removing all criticisms of the Department of Justice. [citation|last=Wang|first=Tova Andrea|title=A Rigged Report on U.S. Voting?| newspaper =The Washington Post|pages=A21|year=2007|date=August 30, 2007|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/29/AR2007082901928.html?hpid=opinionsbox1]

ee also

*certification of voting machines
*voting machine

References

External links

* [http://www.eac.gov/ Election Assistance Commission] (Official Commission website)
* [http://www.fec.gov/hava/eac.htm (Election Assistance Commission: Duties and Responsibilities)] , as detailed in HAVA
* [http://eac.gov/oig.asp?format=none EAC Office of the Inspector General]