S. 3049: Protecting American Votes and Elections Act of 2018

115th Congress · introduced 2018-06-12 · Government Operations and Politics · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2018-06-12 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Protecting American Votes and Elections Act of 2018

Plain summary

Protecting American Votes and Elections Act of 2018 This bill requires voting systems for federal elections to produce paper ballots that the voter may inspect for errors before the vote is cast. The bill also (1) requires the paper ballot to be suitable for manual audits, (2) prescribes approved methods for such audits, (3) revises accessibility requirements related to the bill's paper ballot requirements, and (4) directs the National Science Foundation to make grants to eligible entities to study and develop mechanisms to address various voting issues.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Protecting American Votes and Elections Act of 2018

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR] · 14 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Cory A. Booker (D-NJ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Bernard Sanders (I-VT), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Gary C. Peters (D-MI)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR] reported raising $1.9 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-115s3049.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/115/s>

Record fed-us-cong115-s3049 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115