U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) on April 26 introduced legislation that would establish new Election Security Enhancement Units in the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to help ensure secure federal elections in the states.
“My legislation would provide the security procedures and transparency needed to ensure election results are clear,” Rep. McCaul said. “In addition, my bill commends states like Texas, who conduct their elections thoroughly and efficiently.”
The Election Protection Act of 2021, H.R. 2844, would call for the examination of current federal election practices and would authorize a one-time grant to states that certify secure election practices, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. McCaul’s office.
H.R. 2844 would create an independent commission to examine the election procedures in the 2020 presidential election and prior elections and would be tasked with offering policy recommendations to Congress related to strengthening election security, according to the summary.
For instance, the proposed Election Security Enhancement Units would provide “state and local election officials in various geographic regions of the United States access to risk-management, resiliency, and technical support services provided by election administration and cybersecurity experts who shall be based in such regions and who may provide such services in person, by telephone, or online,” according to the text of the bill.
Rep. McCaul worked with Texas state elected officials and the Texas Public Policy Foundation to help craft H.R. 2844, which is supported by Republican members of the Texas House and Senate that overlap with Rep. McCaul’s 10th District of Texas, including Texas State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst and Texas State Reps. Ben Leman, John Cyrier, Tom Oliverson, Sam Harless, and Jacey Jetton.