EAC Adopts 2005 Voluntary Voting System Guidelines

[Wilms]

EAC Adopts 2005 Voluntary Voting System Guidelines

By EAC Media Release

December 13, 2005

Increase security requirements, expand access for all voters

WASHINGTON –

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The U.S Election Assistance Commission (EAC) unanimously adopted the voting system guidelines, which significantly increase security requirements for voting systems and expand access, including opportunities to vote privately and independently, for individuals with disabilities.

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The guidelines will take effect in December 2007 (24 months), at which time voting systems will no longer be tested against the 2002 Voting System Standards (VSS) developed by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). However, states may decide to adopt these guidelines before the effective date.

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These guidelines are voluntary. States may adopt them entirely, in part or not at all. States may also choose to enact stricter performance requirements for voting systems. Currently, at least 39 states require voting systems to be certified at the national level.

An initial set of guidelines were developed by the HAVA-designated Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC), and then delivered to the EAC for consideration. EAC made initial changes and posted the proposed guidelines for a 90-day comment period, which resulted in more than 5,600 comments. During the public comment period, EAC held public meetings in New York City, Pasadena and Denver to solicit additional input from representatives of the disability community, advocacy groups, the general public and technology and voting system experts.

All comments will be available at www.eac.gov.

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http://www.eac.gov/news_121305.asp