Public Meeting: U.S. Election Assistance Commission Technical Guidelines Development Committee

Virtual via Zoom

The meeting was open to the public and livestreamed on the U.S. Election Assistance Commission YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpN6i0g2rlF4ITWhwvBwwZw

For Further Information Contact:
Jerome Lovato, Telephone: (301) 960-1216, Email: [email protected].

Supplementary Information:

Purpose:
In accordance with the Government in the Sunshine Act (Sunshine Act), Public Law 94-409, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552b), the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) conducted a virtual meeting of the EAC Technical Guidelines Development Committee to discuss the comments and updates on the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) 2.0 Requirements as submitted by the Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC).

Agenda:
EAC Commissioners and TGDC members held a virtual meeting to discuss the comments and updates for the proposed Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) 2.0 Requirements. The agenda also included a presentation on NIST staff transition, the RABET-V pilot program, and an open discussion on non-voting election technology approaches.

Background:
The VVSG 2.0 Requirements were published for a 90-day public comment period that concluded on June 22, 2020. The first VVSG public hearing on March 27, 2020 covered an introduction to the VVSG process as well a high-level overview of the proposed VVSG 2.0 requirements. A recording of the hearing is available on the EAC’s website. The second public hearing on May 6, 2020 addressed the importance of VVSG 2.0 at the state and local level, and the consideration of accessibility and security in VVSG 2.0. A recording of the second hearing is available on the EAC’s website. The third public hearing on May 20, 2020 included discussions with voting system manufacturers and voting system testing labs. A recording of the third hearing is available on the EAC’s website. The EAC Board of Advisors held their annual meeting to discuss the VVSG 2.0 Requirements on June 16, 2020. A recording of the hearing is available on the EAC’s website. The EAC Standards Board held their annual meeting to discuss the VVSG 2.0 Requirements on July 31, 2020. During this meeting, the Standards Board passed a resolution recommending the EAC adopt the VVSG 2.0 Requirements. A recording of the hearing is available on the EAC’s website.

The TGDC unanimously approved to recommend VVSG 2.0 Requirements on February 7, 2020, and sent the Requirements to the then EAC Acting Executive Director via the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), in the capacity of the Chair of the TGDC on March 9, 2020. Upon adoption, the VVSG 2.0 would become the fifth iteration of national level voting system standards. The Federal Election Commission published the first two sets of federal standards in 1990 and 2002. The EAC then adopted Version 1.0 of the VVSG on December 13, 2005. In an effort to update and improve version 1.0 of the VVSG, on March 31, 2015, the EAC commissioners unanimously approved VVSG 1.1.