Statute & Standards Primer: §6805, HAVA, and VVSG 2.0
A short primer on Section 6805, the Help America Vote Act, and VVSG 2.0 — the statutory and standards backbone of federal voting-system certification.
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Program Features
- Online
- Interactive LMS Content
- Blockchain-based Certificate
Program Features
- Online
- Interactive LMS Content
- Blockchain-based Certificate
Description
Purpose Give election officials, IT staff, and counsel a precise, non-partisan reading of the federal law and standards that now govern voting system certification — including the December 18, 2025 enactment of NDAA §6805 and the EAC compliance window that ends June 16, 2026.
Who It’s For
- State and county election directors and Secretaries of State
- Compliance counsel and legislative oversight staff
- Procurement officers writing RFPs that must reflect §6805
- Any practitioner who will read or cite the statute in the next twelve months
What You Will Learn
- The enrolled text of NDAA §6805 (P.L. 119-60), 52 U.S.C. § 20971(e), and what it actually requires
- The Help America Vote Act of 2002 baseline and how §6805 amends it
- VVSG 2.0 and the EAC certification, decertification, and recertification lifecycle
- The 180-day EAC operationalization window and the June 16, 2026 deadline
- The standalone H.R. 6315 (SECURE IT Act) and the coordinated vulnerability disclosure pilot it carries
- How federal certification flows down to state procurement and county adoption
Outcome Officials can read the statute, brief their boards, and procure or oversee voting systems with confidence in the federal baseline.
Federal Grant Eligibility
This certificate supports compliance with NDAA FY2025 §6805, which amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) to require penetration testing as part of federal voting-system certification. Tuition is an allowable use of HAVA Election Security Grant funds (Title I §101) when the learner is an election official, election IT staff member, auditor, or contractor supporting the certification or operation of voting systems.
Individual and group enrollment receipts include the line items, learner roster, and completion record most state EAC sub-grant offices require for reimbursement. State Homeland Security Grant Program (SHSGP) election-security set-asides and state-level election security grants are also commonly used to fund ESAVA enrollment.
Maps to HAVA §251 requirements payments where the state plan recognizes election-official training as a compliance activity. This primer is a fast on-ramp to the legal scaffolding the rest of the ESAVA stack builds on.
Need help routing payment through your state's HAVA pipeline? Use Request Grant-Funded Enrollment and we will provide a justification memo, scope-of-training letter, and W-9 sized to your state's reimbursement form.
Program Syllabus
Syllabus / Topics Covered
Module 1 – NDAA §6805 Enrolled Text
- P.L. 119-60 (December 18, 2025) — what was actually signed into law
- 52 U.S.C. § 20971(e) — the new codified subsection
- The 180-day EAC operationalization clock and June 16, 2026 deadline
- What §6805 requires versus what it leaves to the EAC
Module 2 – Help America Vote Act (HAVA) Foundation
- HAVA's certification, decertification, and recertification baseline
- Section 231 of HAVA and the EAC's role
- How §6805 amends the existing framework
Module 3 – VVSG 2.0 Standard
- Voluntary Voting System Guidelines 2.0 — structure and intent
- VVSG 2.0 as the working standard for EAC acceptance
- Where penetration testing fits within VVSG conformance
Module 4 – EAC Certification Lifecycle
- Initial certification, decertification, and recertification triggers
- Accredited Voting System Test Laboratories (VSTLs)
- Acceptance criteria for penetration test results
Module 5 – H.R. 6315 SECURE IT Act
- The standalone bill and what §6805 did not cover
- Coordinated Vulnerability Disclosure pilot program
- NIST recommendation authority for accredited testing entities
Module 6 – Federal-to-State Procurement Flow-Down
- How federal certification flows down to state procurement
- County adoption decisions and timelines
- Briefing boards and the public on §6805 requirements