Sponsors (9)
Official title: To amend title 52 and title 18, United States Code, to ensure the integrity of voting systems.
Introduced June 18, 2026 by Daniel Goldman · Last progress June 18, 2026
The bill substantially strengthens state and local protections, transparency, and remedies around federal seizures of election materials and increases accountability for federal misconduct, but does so at the cost of added costs, legal uncertainty, data-exposure risks, and potential delays to urgent federal investigations and public-safety actions.
State and local election officials (and thereby voters) gain strong procedural protections: advance notice (normally 48 hours), the ability to observe and document federal handling of seized voting machines/records, retention of physical custody during the restricted period, and expedited court remedies to recover unlawfully seized materials.
Federal actors face increased accountability: criminal penalties (including up to 10 years imprisonment for knowing tampering), civil penalties ($50K–$500K for knowing improper seizures), a 9-year statute of limitations for prosecutions, and a private right for States to sue for damages and fees, creating deterrence against misuse of authority.
Clearer definitions, standardized forms/procedures, mandated training for federal officers, and a regulatory timeline (180 days) should improve consistency and predictability in how seizures and notifications are handled across agencies.
Federal law enforcement and public safety responses may be delayed or constrained: the 48-hour notice, broad 240-day 'restricted period', and tightened notification/authorization rules can impede time-sensitive investigations or evidence preservation needed to address imminent threats or fraud.
Taxpayers and agencies face higher costs and administrative burdens from accommodating state observers (including travel reimbursements), meeting certified-notice and paperwork requirements, developing regulations/forms, and defending additional lawsuits by States.
Broad definitions and imaging/seizure authorities plus permission to photograph/record seized materials increase the risk that sensitive voter data or election-system software and servers could be exposed or mishandled, threatening voter privacy and election security.
Based on analysis of 9 sections of legislative text.
Restricts federal seizure of voting machines, ballots, rolls, and election records during a 240-day election window except when a court finds imminent harm; requires state oversight, advance notice, penalties, and federal training.
Protects state control and oversight of election materials by restricting when and how federal authorities may seize, take custody of, or access voting machines, ballots, registration rolls, and other election equipment or records. It requires advance written notice to state election officials and congressional committee leaders, creates a 240-day restricted period around federal elections with a narrow court-authorized exception for imminent harm, establishes criminal and civil penalties for improper interference or failures to notify, and mandates federal rules and training to implement the law.