H.R. 7418 — STEADFAST Act

This section converts the Presidential Election Campaign Fund (established in Subtitle H of the Internal Revenue Code) into an Election Security Program and Fund by adding a new chapter 97, under which the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) makes payments to eligible states proportional to each state's share of total registered voters nationwide for activities including acquiring voting equipment, cybersecurity for voting systems, physical security for equipment storage, modernizing voting systems, purchasing paper ballots with security features, and securing electronic poll books. Eligibility requires a state application with a use plan, certification prohibiting noncitizen voting in public office elections, usage reports, and other EAC-specified assurances; funds are prohibited for election administrator training (except on equipment use) or litigation costs; payments must use EAC-certified vendors (excluding those that funded prior federal election administration); and priority is given to states using auditable paper ballots, verifying noncitizens via programs such as Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVES) or Social Security Number Verification Service, and requiring specific forms of photo ID (e.g., state driver's license, passport, military ID) at polls. Each recipient state must report expenditures and plan compliance to the EAC and on its public website.

This section terminates taxpayer financing for presidential general election campaigns and national nominating conventions under chapter 95 of subtitle H of the Internal Revenue Code (i.e., the Presidential Election Campaign Fund). (1) It terminates matching payments for presidential primary candidates under chapter 96 (i.e., the Presidential Primary Matching Payment Account) for any presidential election after the date of enactment; and (2) directs the transfer of any remaining amounts in the Presidential Election Campaign Fund to the Election Security Fund under IRC §9052 for election security grants to states.