[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4911 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4911
To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to ensure that voters in
elections for Federal office do not wait in long lines in order to
vote, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 5, 2025
Ms. Williams of Georgia (for herself, Ms. Crockett, Ms. Ansari, Ms.
Brown, Mr. Carson, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Ms. Clarke of New York,
Ms. DelBene, Mr. Deluzio, Mr. Doggett, Mr. Evans of Pennsylvania, Mr.
Fields, Mr. Figures, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr. Green of Texas, Mr.
Jackson of Illinois, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Kamlager-Dove, Mr.
Krishnamoorthi, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Mr. Lynch, Ms. McClellan, Mrs.
McIver, Mr. Meeks, Mr. Mfume, Mr. Mullin, Ms. Norton, Mrs. Ramirez, Ms.
Salinas, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Ms. Sewell, Ms. Simon,
Ms. Strickland, Mrs. Sykes, Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi,
Ms. Tlaib, and Mr. Tonko) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on House Administration
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to ensure that voters in
elections for Federal office do not wait in long lines in order to
vote, 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 ``People Over Long Lines Act'' or the
``POLL Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The right to vote for all Americans is fundamental and
rules for voting and election administration should protect the
right to vote and promote voter participation.
(2) It is the responsibility of the State and Federal
Governments to ensure that every eligible citizen is able to
register to vote and to cast a ballot.
(3) There continues to be an alarming movement to erect
barriers to make it more difficult for Americans to participate
in our Nation's democratic process. The Nation has witnessed
unprecedented efforts to turn back the clock and erect barriers
to voting for communities of color, which have faced historic
and continuing discrimination, as well as disabled, young,
elderly, and low-income Americans.
(4) One way voting in communities of color has been
suppressed is through long waits at polling locations. Studies
have shown a number of contributing factors, including the
drastic reduction of early voting days, poor allocation of
resources to certain communities, cuts to election funding, and
a reduction of polling locations.
(5) A 2019 study led by economist Keith Chen of the
University of California, Los Angeles, matched anonymous
location data from 10,000,000 smart phones to 93,000 polling
places to create the most extensive map to date of voter wait
times across the United States. The results showed one very
clear disparity: voters in predominantly Black neighborhoods
waited 29 percent longer, on average, than those in White
neighborhoods. They were also about 74 percent more likely to
wait for more than half an hour.
(6) Waiting in long lines discourages people from voting,
undermines confidence in the electoral system, and imposes
economic costs on voters.
(7) Long lines are estimated to have deterred between
500,000 and 700,000 people from casting their ballot in 2012.
(8) These problems led to the creation of the bipartisan
Presidential Commission on Election Administration, which
issued a 2014 report that set forth a standard: ``No citizen
should have to wait more than 30 minutes to vote.''.
(9) Despite the work of the Presidential Commission on
Election Administration, long lines continue, particularly in
communities of color where racial discrimination in voting is a
clear and persistent problem.
(10) In the Arizona 2016 Presidential primary, in one
Maricopa County polling place for mostly Latino voters, some
waited for 4 hours or more in the 80-degree heat to cast their
ballots. For the 2016 general election, 3 people collapsed
while waiting to vote in an hours-long line in Georgia, and a
line to vote in Ohio was a half-mile long.
(11) According to a nationwide study, in 2016, roughly 3
percent of people standing in line at voting locations left
before they could vote as a result of long lines.
(12) The disenfranchisement that long lines create for
voters is not limited to that one election. Research suggests
that for each hour would-be voters wait, their probability of
voting in the next election drops by 1 percentage point.
(13) Congress has the authority under article I, section 4
of the Constitution of the United States to enact laws
governing the time, place, and manner of Federal elections.
(14) Congress also has authority under section 2 of the
15th Amendment to enforce the right of citizens of the United
States to vote, which shall not be denied or abridged by the
United States, by legislation.
SEC. 3. PREVENTING UNREASONABLE VOTER WAITING TIMES.
(a) State Plans Required.--Title III of the Help America Vote Act
of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.), as amended by section 2(a) of the
COCOA Act of 2024, is amended--
(1) by redesignating sections 305 and 306 as sections 306
and 307; and
(2) by inserting after section 304 the following new
section:
``SEC. 305. UNREASONABLE VOTER WAITING TIMES.
``(a) State Plans.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days before each
election for Federal office, each State shall make public
(including through the website of the State on which election
information is normally published) and submit to the Commission
a written plan which meets the public notice and comment
requirements of paragraph (2) and describes the measures it is
implementing to ensure, to the greatest extent possible, an
equitable waiting time for all voters in the State, including
for voters with disabilities, and a waiting time of less than
30 minutes at any polling place in the election.
``(2) Public notice comment requirement.--The public notice
and comment requirements of this paragraph are met if--
``(A) not later than 30 days prior to the
submission of the plan to the Commission, the State
made a preliminary version of the plan available for
public inspection and comment;
``(B) the State publishes notice that the
preliminary version of the plan is so available; and
``(C) the State took the public comments made
regarding the preliminary version of the plan into
account in preparing the plan which was submitted to
the Commission under paragraph (1).
``(b) Prohibition on Unreasonable Voter Waiting Times.--Each State
shall ensure that no person voting in an election for Federal office
shall wait for more than 30 minutes at any polling place for purposes
of casting a vote in such election.
``(c) Remedial Plans for States With Excessive Voter Wait Times.--
``(1) Review of voter wait times.--After each election for
Federal office, the Commission shall review voter waiting times
for each jurisdiction for which voting in such election took
place and make publicly available a report on its findings.
``(2) State remedial plans.--
``(A) Remedial plans.--Notwithstanding section 209,
each jurisdiction for which the Commission, after the
review conducted under paragraph (1), determines that a
substantial number of voters, including voters with
disabilities, waited more than 60 minutes to cast a
vote, or in which there were substantial violations of
the standards established under section 299, shall
comply with a State remedial plan established by the
Attorney General to provide for the effective
allocation of resources to administer elections for
Federal office held in the State and to reduce the
waiting time of voters.
``(B) Coordination.--Each remedial plan established
by the Attorney General shall provide for coordination
between the Commission, the Attorney General, and the
State involved to monitor the compliance of the State
with the remedial plan during the period leading up to
the election and on the date of the election and to
respond to serious delays in the ability of voters,
including voters with disabilities, to cast their
ballots at polling places.
``(C) Termination.--A jurisdiction shall not be
required to comply with a State remedial plan required
under subparagraph (A) if the Commission determines
that the voter waiting times were less than 60 minutes
for 2 consecutive regularly scheduled general elections
for Federal office.
``(3) Jurisdiction defined.--For purposes of this
subsection, the term `jurisdiction' has the meaning given the
term `registrar's jurisdiction' in section 8(j) of the National
Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-6(j)).
``(4) Standards.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this section, the Attorney General shall
establish standards for conducting the review under paragraph
(1) and for establishing remedial plans under paragraph (2)(A).
``(5) Role of office of civil rights and commission.--The
Attorney General shall carry out this section acting through
the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of
the Department of Justice and in consultation with the
Commission.
``(6) Appropriations.--In addition to other amounts
authorized to be appropriated to the Commission, there are
authorized to be appropriated for each of the fiscal years 2025
through 2034, $5,000,000 for each such year for the Commission
to carry out this subsection.
``(d) Emergency Ballots.--
``(1) In general.--In the event of a failure of voting
equipment or other circumstance at a polling place that causes
an unreasonable delay, any individual who is waiting at the
polling place to cast a ballot in an election for Federal
office at the time of the failure shall be advised immediately
of the individual's right to use an emergency paper ballot, and
upon request shall be provided with such an emergency paper
ballot for the election and the supplies necessary to mark the
ballot.
``(2) Ballot requirements.--Any emergency paper ballot
provided under paragraph (1) shall--
``(A) include the names of each candidate for each
Federal office for which voting occurs at such polling
place; and
``(B) be available in each language for which other
ballots provided at the polling place are available.
``(3) Disposition of ballot.--Any emergency paper ballot
which is cast by an individual under this subsection shall be
counted in the same manner as a regular ballot, unless the
individual casting the ballot would have otherwise been
required to cast a provisional ballot in the absence of the
delay, in which case that ballot shall be treated in the same
manner as a provisional ballot.''.
(b) Private Right of Action.--Title IV of the Help America Vote Act
of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21111 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following new section:
``SEC. 403. PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION FOR UNREASONABLE VOTER WAITING
TIME.
``(a) In General.--In the case of a violation of section 305(b),
section 402 shall not apply and any person who is aggrieved by such
violation may commence a civil action in any appropriate district court
of the United States for relief.
``(b) Relief.--In any civil action commenced under subsection (a):
``(1) In general.--If the court finds a violation of
section 305(b), the court shall assess a civil penalty equal to
the sum of--
``(A) $50; plus
``(B) an additional $50 for each additional hour
the person waited at the polling place to cast a vote;
plus
``(C) reasonable attorney fees, including
litigation expenses, and costs.
``(2) Special rule.--If the court determines that the
violation was due to an intentional action to suppress votes or
was made with reckless disregard of the requirements of section
305--
``(A) paragraph (1)(A) shall be applied by
substituting `$650' for `$50'; and
``(B) paragraph (1)(B) shall be applied by
substituting `$150' for `$50'.''.
(c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 202 of such Act (52 U.S.C.
20922) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and (6) as paragraphs
(6) and (7), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following new
paragraph:
``(5) carrying out the duties described in section
305(c);''.
(d) Clerical Amendments.--The table of contents of the Help America
Vote Act of 2002 is amended--
(1) by redesignating the items relating to sections 305 and
306 as relating to sections 306 and 307, and by inserting after
the item relating to section 304 the following new item:
``Sec. 305. Unreasonable voter waiting times.'';
and
(2) by inserting after the item relating to section 402 the
following new item:
``Sec. 403. Private right of action for unreasonable voter waiting
time.''.
(e) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall
apply with respect to elections held on or after the expiration of the
180-day period which begins on the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 4. MINIMUM REQUIRED VOTING SYSTEMS, POLL WORKERS, AND ELECTION
RESOURCES.
(a) Minimum Requirements.--
(1) In general.--Title III of the Help America Vote Act of
2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
the following new subtitle:
``Subtitle C--Additional Requirements
``SEC. 321. MINIMUM REQUIRED VOTING SYSTEMS AND POLL WORKERS.
``(a) In General.--Each State shall provide for the minimum
required number of voting systems, poll workers, and other election
resources (including all other physical resources) for each voting site
on the day of any Federal election and on any days during which such
State allows early voting for a Federal election in accordance with the
standards determined under section 299.
``(b) Definitions.--For purposes of this section and section 299--
``(1) the term `voting site' means a polling location; and
``(2) the term `voting system' means the total combination
of mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic equipment
(including the software, firmware, and documentation required
to program, control, and support the equipment) that is used at
a voting site--
``(A) to check the official list of eligible voters
for purposes of confirming that an individual is
eligible to cast a vote at the site;
``(B) to cast and count votes; and
``(C) to maintain and produce any audit trail
information.
``(c) Effective Date.--Each State shall be required to comply with
the requirements of this section on and after January 1, 2027.''.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 401 of the Help America
Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking ``and
303'' and inserting ``303, and subtitle C''.
(3) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents of such Act
is amended by adding at the end of the items relating to title
III the following:
``Subtitle C--Additional Requirements
``Sec. 321. Minimum required voting systems and poll workers.''.
(b) Standards.--
(1) In general.--Title II of the Help America Vote Act of
2002 (52 U.S.C. 20921 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
the following new subtitle:
``Subtitle E--Guidance and Standards
``SEC. 299. STANDARDS FOR ESTABLISHING THE MINIMUM REQUIRED VOTING
SYSTEMS AND POLL WORKERS.
``(a) In General.--Not later than 6 months after the date of the
enactment of the POLL Act, the Attorney General, acting through the
Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the
Department of Justice and in consultation with the Commission, shall
issue standards regarding the minimum number of voting systems, poll
workers, and other election resources (including all other physical
resources) required under section 321 on the day of any Federal
election and on any days during which early voting is allowed for a
Federal election.
``(b) Distribution.--
``(1) In general.--The standards described in subsection
(a) shall provide for a uniform and nondiscriminatory
distribution of such systems, workers, and other resources, and
shall take into account, among other factors, the following
with respect to any voting site (as defined in section 321(b)):
``(A) The voting-age population.
``(B) Voter turnout in past elections.
``(C) The number of voters registered.
``(D) The number of voters who have registered
since the most recent Federal election.
``(E) Census data for the population served by such
voting site.
``(F) The educational levels and socio-economic
factors of the population served by such voting site.
``(G) The needs and numbers of disabled voters and
voters with limited English proficiency.
``(H) The type of voting systems used.
``(2) No factor dispositive.--The standards shall provide
that any distribution of such systems shall take into account
the totality of all relevant factors, including the effects of
State laws on the availability of such systems and resources
for use by local election officials, and no single factor shall
be dispositive under the standards.
``(3) Purpose.--To the extent possible, the standards shall
provide for a distribution of voting systems, poll workers, and
other election resources, with the goals of--
``(A) ensuring an equal waiting time for all voters
in the State; and
``(B) preventing a waiting time of over 30 minutes
at any polling place.
``(4) Special rule regarding electronic poll books.--
Notwithstanding paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), in the case of
any voting site that uses an electronic poll book, the
standards described in subsection (a) shall require at least 1
paper poll book (containing all of the information necessary to
confirm that an individual is eligible to cast a vote at the
site) for each such electronic poll book used at such voting
site.
``(c) Deviation.--The standards described in subsection (a) shall
permit States, upon giving reasonable public notice, to deviate from
any allocation requirements in the case of unforeseen circumstances
such as a natural disaster or terrorist attack.''.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 202 of such Act (52
U.S.C. 20922), as amended by section 3(c), is amended--
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5), and (6)
as paragraphs (5), (6), and (7), respectively; and
(B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following
new paragraph:
``(5) carrying out the duties described in subtitle E;''.
(3) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents of such Act
is amended by adding at the end of the items relating to title
II the following:
``Subtitle E--Guidance and Standards
``Sec. 299. Standards for establishing the minimum required voting
systems and poll workers.''.
SEC. 5. PROHIBITION ON CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES BY CHIEF STATE ELECTION
ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS.
(a) In General.--Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of
1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section
319 the following new section:
``campaign activities by chief state election administration officials
``Sec. 319A. (a) Prohibition.--It shall be unlawful for a chief
State election administration official to take an active part in
political management or in a political campaign with respect to any
election for Federal office over which such official has supervisory
authority.
``(b) Chief State Election Administration Official.--The term
`chief State election administration official' means the highest State
official with responsibility for the administration of Federal
elections under State law.
``(c) Active Part in Political Management or in a Political
Campaign.--The term `active part in political management or in a
political campaign' means--
``(1) serving as a member of an authorized committee of a
candidate for Federal office;
``(2) the use of official authority or influence for the
purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an
election for Federal office;
``(3) the solicitation, acceptance, or receipt of a
contribution from any person on behalf of a candidate for
Federal office; and
``(4) any other act which would be prohibited under
paragraph (2) or (3) of section 7323(b) of title 5, United
States Code, if taken by an individual to whom such paragraph
applies (other than any prohibition on running for public
office).
``(d) Exception in Case of Recusal From Administration of Elections
Involving Election Official or Immediate Family Member.--
``(1) In general.--This section does not apply to a chief
State election administration official with respect to an
election for Federal office in which such official or an
immediate family member of the official is a candidate, but
only if--
``(A) such official recuses himself or herself from
all of the official's responsibilities for the
administration of such election; and
``(B) the official who assumes responsibility for
supervising the administration of the election does not
report directly to such official.
``(2) Immediate family member defined.--In paragraph (1),
the term `immediate family member' means, with respect to a
candidate, a father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister,
husband, wife, father-in-law, or mother-in-law.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall
apply with respect to elections for Federal office held after January
1, 2027.
SEC. 6. PAYMENTS TO STATES TO PREVENT UNREASONABLE WAIT TIMES AND
PROMOTE WELL-RUN ELECTIONS.
(a) In General.--Subtitle D of title II of the Help America Vote
Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21001 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``PART VII--PAYMENTS FOR PREVENTING UNREASONABLE VOTER WAIT TIMES
``SEC. 297. PAYMENTS TO STATES.
``(a) In General.--The Commission shall make a payment to each
eligible State. Such payments shall be made not later than 30 days
after the date of enactment of this part.
``(b) Eligible State.--For purposes of this section, a State is an
eligible State if such State has filed with the Commission a State plan
covering the fiscal year in which the State describes how it intends to
use the funds provided under this section.
``(c) Use of Funds.--An eligible State shall use the payment
received under this part to meet the requirements of sections 305 and
321.
``(d) Amount of Payment.--
``(1) In general.--The amount of payment made to a State
under this section shall be the minimum payment amount
described in paragraph (2) plus the voting age population
proportion amount described in paragraph (3).
``(2) Minimum payment amount.--The minimum payment amount
described in this paragraph is--
``(A) in the case of any of the several States or
the District of Columbia, one-half of 1 percent of the
aggregate amount made available for payments under this
section; and
``(B) in the case of the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, Guam, American Samoa, or the United States Virgin
Islands, one-tenth of 1 percent of such aggregate
amount.
``(3) Voting age population proportion amount.--The voting
age population proportion amount described in this paragraph is
the product of--
``(A) the aggregate amount made available for
payments under this section minus the total of all of
the minimum payment amounts determined under paragraph
(2); and
``(B) the voting age population proportion for the
State (as defined in paragraph (4)).
``(4) Voting age population proportion defined.--The term
`voting age population proportion' means, with respect to a
State, the amount equal to the quotient of--
``(A) the voting age population of the State (as
reported in the most recent decennial census); and
``(B) the total voting age population of all States
(as reported in the most recent decennial census).
``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated
for payments under this section $500,000,000 for each fiscal
year.
``(2) Availability.--Any amounts appropriated pursuant to
the authority of paragraph (1) shall remain available without
fiscal year limitation until expended.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of such Act is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 296 the
following:
``Part VII--Payments for Preventing Unreasonable Voter Wait Times
``Sec. 297. Payments to States.''.
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