Washington DC – The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) announced Brianna Schletz has been named as the new executive director of the agency. The agency followed the formal search process as designated by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 and Ms. Schletz was unanimously appointed by the EAC Commissioners. She began her term as the EAC’s inspector general in November 2021, and her term as executive director begins March 25, 2024.
“During her two and a half years as inspector general, Brianna had a unique perspective on the work and accomplishments of the EAC as well as the challenges we face. We are excited for her to step into this new role, help continue the agency’s growth, and help us better serve election officials and voters,” EAC Chairman Ben Hovland, Vice Chair Donald Palmer, Commissioner Thomas Hicks, and Commissioner Christy McCormick said in a joint statement. “Elections and the EAC are under a microscope this year and Brianna’s leadership and experience will be an asset through the presidential election and beyond.”
After being appointed as Inspector General of the EAC, Ms. Schletz promptly issued an updated strategic plan for the Office of the Inspector General (OIG), addressed outstanding peer review recommendations, updated OIG policies, and issued mandatory and discretionary oversight products. Ms. Schletz grew the office from one to five and pivoted from conducting audits only through contracts to also conducting work with internal staff.
Ms. Schletz is involved in the Inspector General and auditing community. She is a participating member on several Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency committees and has served on the Comptroller General’s Advisory Council on Government Auditing Standards (or Yellow Book Advisory Council) since April 2022
Ms. Schletz joined the EAC after eight years at the Office of Inspector General at the U.S. Agency for International Development Office of the Inspector General (USAID OIG) where she served as a director and established a new strategic division within the Immediate Office. During her time at USAID OIG, she led a team of program analysts responsible for congressionally mandated quarterly reporting and oversight planning on overseas contingency operations as well as conducting audits, evaluations and reporting on significant issues affecting agency operations. Prior to her time at USAID, Ms. Schletz was a performance auditor at the Department of Health and Human Services OIG in New York and Washington DC.
Ms. Schletz holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and a Master of Business Administration and has over 17 years of oversight experience. Her work has resulted in impactful changes to agency operations and programs covering a variety of sectors and has been recognized by the Inspector General community.
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The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) was established by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). It is an independent, bipartisan commission charged with ensuring secure, accurate, and accessible elections by developing guidance to meet HAVA requirements, adopting voluntary voting system guidelines, and serving as a national clearinghouse of information on election administration. The EAC also accredits testing laboratories and certifies voting systems, as well as administers the use of HAVA funds. For more information, visit www.eac.gov.
EAC Contact: Kristen Muthig
Phone: 202-897-9285
Email: [email protected]