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Program Description
The 20th anniversary of the Help American Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) has been marked not only by the benefits brought to elections since it’s passing into law but has also been marked by new outreach initiatives at the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), including the Field Services Program (FSP).
As outlined in HAVA, the FSP is derived from the EAC Testing and Certification division’s Quality Monitoring Program (QMP), where the agency is positioned to assist states and local jurisdictions in the verification of EAC certified fielded systems on an ongoing basis. To best accomplish this, the FSP team has a deployable, full-time staff of subject matter experts to proactively provide a combination of virtual and onsite services and training to help officials:
- Fielded Systems Review: Confirm where applicable that fielded systems continue to meet VVSG requirements as the systems are deployed and used in elections.
- Anomaly Reporting: Collect voting system anomaly reports.
- Product Advisory: Update and inform officials, where applicable, of manufacturer product advisory notices.
- Manufacturer Audit: Complete vendor and manufacturer site audits.
- Training: Assist through pre-election, select preparatory training to encourage and support regular system verification.
- Federal Liaison: Connect administrators and officials to colleagues in the field to benefit from their experience and resources. Connect administrators and officials to partnering agencies’ services and support where applicable.
- Confidence & Credibility: Bolster the confidence of officials and the public in the electoral process.
For more information see Chapter 8 of the Voting System Testing and Certification Program Manual.