Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) has introduced a bill that would compel the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to designate the nation's voting system as critical infrastructure and also places specific requirements on any new voting equipment purchased.
The Elections Integrity Act of 2016 (H.R. 6072) would require all voting machines to generate a paper trail and “establishes protocols when there is a voting system failure, prohibits voting systems responsible for tabulating votes from being insecurely connected to the internet, and calls for security standards for voting systems used in federal elections.”
In addition, Johnson wants the voting system placed under the umbrella of the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act. This act was designed to protect critical infrastructure items from an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) type attack. If so designated, the DHS would have to protect the voting system as it would the power grid and water supply.
