[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5609 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5609
To promote international exchanges on best election practices, to
cultivate more secure democratic institutions around the world, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 19 (legislative day, December 16), 2024
Ms. Klobuchar introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To promote international exchanges on best election practices, to
cultivate more secure democratic institutions around the world, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Global Electoral Exchange Act of
2024''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) recent elections globally have illustrated the urgent
need for the promotion and exchange of international best
election practices, particularly in the areas of cybersecurity,
results transmission, transparency of electoral data, election
dispute resolution, and the elimination of discriminatory
registration practices and other electoral irregularities;
(2) the advancement of democracy worldwide promotes United
States interests, as stable democracies provide new market
opportunities, improve global health outcomes, and promote
economic freedom and regional security;
(3) credible elections are the cornerstone of a healthy
democracy and enable all persons to exercise their basic human
right to have a say in how they are governed;
(4) inclusive elections strengthen the credibility and
stability of democracies more broadly;
(5) at the heart of a strong election cycle is the
professionalism of the election management body and an
empowered civil society;
(6) the development of local expertise via peer-to-peer
learning and exchanges promotes the independence of such bodies
from internal and external influence; and
(7) supporting the efforts of peoples in democratizing
societies to build more representative governments in their
respective countries is in the national interest of the United
States.
SEC. 3. GLOBAL ELECTORAL EXCHANGE.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of State is authorized to establish
and administer a Global Electoral Exchange Program (referred to in this
section as the ``Program'') to promote the utilization of sound
election administration practices around the world.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the Program shall include the
promotion and exchange of international best election practices,
including in the areas of--
(1) cybersecurity;
(2) the protection of election systems against influence
campaigns;
(3) results transmission;
(4) transparency of electoral data;
(5) election dispute resolution;
(6) the elimination of discriminatory registration
practices and electoral irregularities;
(7) inclusive and equitable promotion of candidate
participation;
(8) equitable access to polling places, voter education
information, and voting mechanisms (including by persons with
disabilities); and
(9) other sound election administration practices.
(c) Exchange of Electoral Authorities.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State, in consultation
with the United States Agency for International Development, as
appropriate, may award grants to any United States-based
organization that--
(A) is described in section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and is exempt from tax
under section 501(a) of such Code;
(B) has experience in, and a primary focus on,
foreign comparative election systems or subject matter
expertise in the administration or integrity of such
systems; and
(C) submits an application in such form, and
satisfying such requirements, as the Secretary may
require.
(2) Types of grants.--An organization described in
paragraph (1) may receive a grant under this subsection to
design and implement programs that--
(A) bring to the United States election
administrators and officials, including government
officials, poll workers, civil society representatives,
members of the judiciary, and others who participate in
the organization and administration of public elections
in a foreign country that faces challenges to its
electoral process to study election procedures in the
United States for educational purposes; or
(B) take election administrators and officials of
the United States, or of another country, including
government officials, poll workers, civil society
representatives, members of the judiciary, and others
who participate in the organization and administration
of public elections, to another country to study and
discuss election procedures in such country for
educational purposes.
(3) Limits on activities.--Activities administered under
the Program may not--
(A) include observation of an election for the
purposes of assessing the validity or legitimacy of
such election;
(B) facilitate any advocacy for a certain electoral
result by a grantee when participating in the Program;
or
(C) be carried out without proper consultation with
State and local authorities in the United States that
administer elections.
(4) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the Secretary of State should establish and maintain a network
of Global Electoral Exchange Program alumni to promote
communication and further exchange of information regarding
sound election administration practices among current and
former Program participants.
(5) Limitation.--A recipient of a grant under the Program
may only use such grant for the purpose for which such grant
was awarded, unless otherwise authorized by the Secretary of
State.
(6) Nonduplicative.--Grants made under this subsection may
not be duplicative of any other grants made under any other
provision of law for similar or related purposes.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2025 through 2029
to carry out this section.
SEC. 4. CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT.
Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act
and annually thereafter for the following 2 years, the Secretary of
State shall provide a briefing to the Committee on Foreign Relations of
the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives regarding the status of any activities carried out
under section 3 during the preceding year, which shall include--
(1) a summary of all exchanges conducted under the Global
Electoral Exchange Program, including information regarding
grantees, participants, and the locations where program
activities were held;
(2) a description of the criteria used to select grantees
under the Global Electoral Exchange Program; and
(3) recommendations for the improvement of the Global
Electoral Exchange Program in furtherance of the purpose
specified in section 3(b).
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