Sec. 1. Short title; findings
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This Act may be cited as the . EAC Improvements Act of 2013 Congress finds the following: The elections for Federal office which were held in November 2012 were plagued with a number of serious problems, including— long lines at polling places; poll workers who were trained inadequately; the reduction of hours for early voting; and the imposition of practices which restricted eligible individuals from voting, such as requirements to produce photo identification. At the time these problems were developing, the Election Assistance Commission, an agency of the Federal Government which was established to assist the States in the administration of elections, lacked a quorum in its membership and therefore could not meet, appoint an executive director or general counsel, or otherwise take any actions to prevent these problems from occurring.
The inability of the Commission to carry out its duties meant that it could not convene its Standards Board, a collection of State and local election officials with the authority to review guidelines for the voluntary standards applicable to the voting systems used to administer these elections and to make recommendations for best practices for election administration. The inability of the Commission to carry out its duties meant that no new laboratories could be certified to develop and test the equipment used in these elections.
The Election Assistance Commission should be allowed to investigate fully the problems which plagued the elections held in November 2012 and to develop solutions. The Election Assistance Commission should be given the tools it needs to carry out its mission in a manner immune from illogic and partisan bickering, so that it can provide States and others involved in the administration of elections with the guidance that will enable them to provide each citizen who wishes to participate in the electoral process the ability to do so.
The Election Assistance Commission should be permitted to provide to taxpayers and election officials accurate information on the voting equipment used to administer elections and to hold the vendors of such equipment accountable for any problems that may arise with its use.