SWIFT VOTE Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4881 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4881

 To direct the Election Assistance Commission to make grants to States
for procuring and maintaining electronic pollbooks with the capability
 of collecting and disseminating wait time information, and for other
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 5, 2025

 Ms. Crockett (for herself, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Mr. Deluzio, Mr.
Evans of Pennsylvania, Mr. Fields, Mr. Goldman of New York, Mr. Johnson
of Georgia, Ms. Norton, and Mr. Thompson of Mississippi) introduced the
     following bill; which was referred to the Committee on House
                             Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 To direct the Election Assistance Commission to make grants to States
for procuring and maintaining electronic pollbooks with the capability
 of collecting and disseminating wait time information, and for other
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Supplying Wait-time Information to
Facilitate Timely Voting with Operational and Technology Enhancements
Act'' or the ``SWIFT VOTE Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR PROCURING AND MAINTAINING ELECTRONIC POLLBOOKS.

    (a) Grants.--
            (1) Authority to make grants.--Not later than 1 year after
        the date of the enactment of this Act, the Election Assistance
        Commission shall make a grant to each eligible jurisdiction in
        a State for the purpose of--
                    (A) procuring or maintaining electronic pollbooks
                (hereafter referred to as ``e-pollbooks''); or
                    (B) developing the capability of collecting and
                disseminating wait time information for use in
                elections for Federal office, whether through the use
                of e-pollbooks with such capability or through other
                means.
            (2) Prioritization of grants to procure e-pollbooks.--In
        making grants to eligible jurisdictions under this section, the
        Commission shall give priority to eligible jurisdictions
        showing demonstrated need for new or additional e-pollbooks
        which the jurisdiction will use to reduce wait times at polling
        places on the dates of elections for Federal office, and give
        priority to eligible jurisdictions that propose the development
        of capability to report wait time information in accordance
        with subsection (c)(2)(A).
    (b) Eligibility.--An eligible jurisdiction is eligible to receive a
grant under this section if the eligible jurisdiction submits to the
Commission, at such time and in such form as the Commission may
require, an application containing the information and assurances
described in subsection (c).
    (c) Information Described.--The information and assurances
described in this subsection are, with respect to an eligible
jurisdiction, the following:
            (1) For an eligible jurisdiction seeking funding for e-
        pollbooks, a description of the need of the eligible
        jurisdiction for procuring or maintaining e-pollbooks.
            (2) For an eligible jurisdiction seeking funding for the
        collection and dissemination of wait time information--
                    (A) a certification that the chief election
                official of the eligible jurisdiction shall publish on
                the official public website of the chief election
                official the most recent wait time information for each
                polling place which is open for voters to vote in an
                election for Federal office--
                            (i) in the case of a polling place which is
                        open for 4 hours or fewer on such a day, on an
                        hourly basis on such a day; or
                            (ii) in the case of a polling place which
                        is open for more than 4 hours on such a day, on
                        at least 4 regular intervals on such a day.
                    (B) Following each election cycle, publish on the
                official public website of the chief election official
                of the eligible jurisdiction a report detailing wait
                time information through that election cycle, including
                on the date of the election as well as any dates on
                which individuals were permitted to vote in person
                prior to the date of the election, including wait times
                throughout each such day of voting, to the extent such
                information is available.
            (3) An assurance that--
                    (A) the funds provided under this section will be
                used to supplement and not supplant other funds used to
                carry out the activities for which the funds are
                provided; and
                    (B) the chief election official of the eligible
                jurisdiction shall provide regular reports to the
                Commission containing information on the procurement
                and maintenance of e-pollbooks with the funds provided
                under this section.
            (4) An assurance that the eligible jurisdiction shall
        develop procedures for certifying that the procurement and
        maintenance of e-pollbooks with the funds provided under this
        section is in compliance with the Commission's Voluntary
        Electronic Poll Book Certification Program, or any similar or
        successor program established by the Commission for e-pollbook
        certification. Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to
        prohibit a eligible jurisdiction in a State from receiving a
        grant under this section on the grounds that the State has in
        effect standards and procedures for the use of e-pollbooks
        which are in addition to the standards and procedures required
        by the Commission.
            (5) An assurance that the eligible jurisdiction will work
        with experts in voting system technology and infrastructure to
        develop and carry out training programs in the use of e-
        pollbooks by election officials, and that such programs will
        train election officials in methods that will enable the
        officials to meet the needs of individual voters, including
        voters with limited English language proficiency and voters
        with disabilities, without regard to age, gender, or sexual
        orientation.
            (6) Such other information and assurances as the Commission
        may require.
    (d) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions apply:
            (1) The term ``Commission'' means the Election Assistance
        Commission.
            (2) The term ``election cycle'' means the period beginning
        on the day after the date of the most recent regularly
        scheduled general election for Federal office and ending on the
        date of the next such election.
            (3) The term ``eligible jurisdiction'' means a State or a
        political subdivision of a State which is responsible for
        carrying out an election for Federal office in the State.
            (4) The term ``e-pollbook'' means a device or technology
        that may be used at a polling place in an election for Federal
        office in place of a traditional paper poll book and that
        partially automates the process of checking in voters,
        assigning voters the correct ballot style, and tracking voters
        who have been issued a ballot. An e-pollbook may be used at the
        polling place together with a separate copy of the list of
        registered voters or may be networked into a central voter
        registration system which enables the election official at the
        polling place to check and update voter records in real time.
            (5) The term ``State'' means each of the several States,
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico,
        American Samoa, Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, and the
        Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
            (6) The term ``wait time information'' means, with respect
        to a polling place in an election for Federal office, the
        length of time between when an individual arrives at the
        polling place and completes the polling place's check-in
        process, as well as the length of time between the completion
        of that individual's check-in process and when that individual
        receives a ballot or, if a physical ballot is not provided,
        until the individual is directed to an electronic voting
        machine.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $120,000,000, to remain
available until expended.
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