Help America Vote Act (HAVA)
The Help America Vote Act was signed into law in 2002. The law mandated federal election requirements such as the replacement of outdated voting equipment, the creation of centralized statewide databases of registered voters, and improvements to the administration of elections. Currently, the HAVA unit administers several federal grants that provide funds to County Supervisors of Elections offices.
From 2010 through 2019, these funds have been made available for one or more of the following categories: voter education, poll worker training, standardizing election results reporting, security, and other federal election administration activities as approved by the Department of State.
Since 2018, Congress has awarded additional funds to Florida pursuant to:
- the Omnibus Appropriation Act of 2018 to improve election administration for federal offices, enhance technology and make security improvements. ($19,187,003)
- the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020 to "prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, domestically or internationally, for the 2020 Federal election cycle." ($20,253,853)
- the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 to "improve the administration of elections for Federal office, including to enhance election technology and make election security improvements, as authorized under sections 101, 103, and 104 of [HAVA]." ($21,613,107)
Federal Grant Information
| Grant Year | Grant Funds | Grant Funds Disbursed Locally | Issuance Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2010-11 | $2,000,000.00 | $1,924,887.32 | 7/1/10 | 6/30/11 |
| FY 2011-12 | $2,000,000,00 | $1,812,575.61 | 7/1/11 | 6/30/12 |
| FY 2012-13 | $3,000,000.00 | $2,781,388.95 | 7/1/12 | 6/30/13 |
| FY 2013-14 | $2,000,000.00 | $1,923,969.32 | 7/1/13 | 6/30/14 |
| FY 2014-15 | $3,000,000.00 | $2,899.332.32 | 7/1/14 | 6/30/15 |
| FY 2015-16 | $2,000,000.00 | $1,859,055.19 | 7/1/15 | 6/30/16 |
| FY 2016-17 | $3,000,000.00 | $2,893,046.45 | 7/1/16 | 6/30/17 |
| FY 2017-18 | $2,000,000.00 | $1,923,007.01 | 7/1/17 | 6/30/18 |
| FY 2018-19 | $2,000,000.00 | $1,757,725.05 | 7/1/18 | 6/30/19 |
HAVA Resources
- Federal HAVA (Public Law 107-252, 52 U.S. C. Chapter 209)
- HAVA Complaint Form (DS – DE 59)
- The HAVA complaint form is for persons who believe that a violation of Title III of HAVA has occurred, is occurring or is about to occur relating to voting system standards, provisional ballot voting, registration under the statewide voter registration system, or registration by mail.
- English PDF
- Español PDF
- HAVA State Plan
- Under the Help America Vote Act, the State must submit a plan for how the State will or expects to spend federal funds to satisfy the requirements of the Act. Once submitted to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, the Plan must be updated and resubmitted every time a material change occurs. The Secretary of State is the chief election official for Florida responsible for developing and amending the Plan. The HAVA State Plan as updated was submitted to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission on May 12, 2009. These 2009 Updates replace the version of the elements that exist in the 2006 HAVA State Plan.
- 2009 Updates to 2006 HAVA State Plan
- 2006 HAVA State Plan - PDF
