NIST and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA)

The 2002 Help America Vote Act has given NIST a key role in helping to realize nationwide improvements in voting systems. To assist the Election Assistance Commission with the development of voluntary voting system guidelines, HAVA established the Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC) and directs NIST to chair the TGDC. NIST research activities include:

• security of computers, computer networks, and computer data storage used in voting systems;
• methods to detect and prevent fraud;
• protection of voter privacy; and
• the role of human factors in the design and application of voting systems, including assistive technologies for individuals with disabilities (including blindness) and varying levels of literacy
• the recommendation for accreditation of testing labs to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC). The EAC, not NIST, certifies voting systems for use in elections.

 

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Highlights

• NIST Activities on UOCAVA Voting
  
  
• IEEE Standards Working Group P1622 on Voting Systems Electronic Data Interchange -- Current Project Status
  
  
• Technical Guidelines Development Committee Meeting, December 15 & 16, 2011 (Most Recent TGDC Meeting)
  
  

• Proposed Revisions to 2005 Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (Draft VVSG Version 1.1)
  

• • EAC 130 Day Public Comment Period for VVSG 1.1 begins September 6, 2012
    
  • Test Suites for Revised Section of VVSG 2005

Related LinksNIST and HAVA FAQHAVA (Legislative Text)Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC)NIST VVSG Test DevelopmentPublicationsEventsPublic Comments and Position StatementsNational Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation ProgramNational Software Reference Library (NSRL) and Voting System SoftwareContact Us