COMMITTEE REPORTS AMENDMENT TO "HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT" TO FULL HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

(Washington, DC) The Committee on House Administration today, took the next step towards assuring free and fair Federal elections for the American voter, by filing its report on legislation designed to ensure that every precinct produces voter-verified paper trails. The bill, H.R.811, sponsored by Rep. Rush D. Holt (D-NJ), would amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require a voter-verified record of each vote cast.

The Subcommittee on Elections, chaired by Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), held a series of well-attended hearings on the legislation prior to the markup. In addition to requiring a paper trail, the measure also requires election officials to audit a certain percentage of votes in every election, and to use the voter-verified ballots in any recount or audit of election results. The legislation also addresses ballot accessibility and verification by people with disabilities, requiring that each polling place offer at least one voting system that accommodates people with disabilities, and allows them to verify their votes. Finally, the legislation also authorizes appropriations that would allow states funding assistance in order to comply with the law. 

The Committee report will be available as soon as it is published by the Government Printing Office (GPO).