Why It Matters
The Election Assistance Commission (EAC) lost its ability to operate when three of four commissioners were removed or permitted to resign on July 9. A new Congressional Research Service (CRS) report details how the agency created by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 now faces its third quorum crisis in history, this time triggered by the Trump administration's reliance on a June Supreme Court decision about the president's authority to remove staff at federal agencies.
The agency now cannot approve binding requirements on states or update voting system guidelines, leaving a backlog of election technology standards and federal voter registration form changes in limbo, while litigation on a March 2025 executive order directing these updates remains pending.
The Big Picture
The EAC was intentionally designed as a support and assistance agency rather than a regulatory one, but its limited binding authority matters. The agency can only set requirements on states in two narrow areas: reporting on the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and developing the federal mail voter registration form. Beyond that, it administers elections grants, provides voluntary voting system guidelines and certification, issues guidance on Help America Vote Act (HAVA) implementation, conducts research, and shares best practices with state and local officials.
The law requires at least three commissioners to approve agency actions. The Trump administration cited the Supreme Court's decision in Trump v. Slaughter, which addressed presidential removal authority at the Federal Trade Commission, to justify the July removals. Litigation on the executive order is now pending.
The EAC lacked a quorum from December 2010 to January 2015, with all four seats vacant from December 2011 through January 2015. It lost its quorum again from March 2018 to February 2019. Those gaps caused notable delays in updating voting system guidelines and accrediting voting system testing laboratories. The agency has since developed voluntary testing programs for other election technologies, including electronic poll books, and provides training for state and local election officials.
In August, the EAC released an overview of operations it says the agency may and may not conduct in the absence of commissioners. Staff may continue performing tasks delegated under existing policies, but cannot engage in policymaking activities, including adopting new or modified voting system guidelines or developing the federal mail voter registration form. That freeze blocks implementation of the March 2025 executive order directing the EAC to update voting system standards and require documentary proof of citizenship on the federal registration form.
The Bottom Line
EAC commissioners are appointed by the President subject to the advice and consent of the Senate. The commissioners were appointed through a bipartisan process mandated by statute. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-11) recommended Thomas Hicks, appointed by former President Barack Obama with unanimous Senate consent. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) recommended Benjamin Hovland, appointed by President Donald Trump with unanimous consent. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) recommended Christy McCormick, appointed by former President Obama with unanimous consent. The remaining commissioner, Donald Palmer, was recommended by former Rep. Paul Ryan and appointed by President Trump with unanimous consent.
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