House Passes Legislation to Eliminate Election Assistance Commission, Save Taxpayer Dollars

Press Release

Today Rep. Todd Rokita voted for legislation to eliminate the Election Assistance Commission and end the obsolete public financing system for Presidential elections.

"I have worked for, and I am glad to have had the opportunity to vote for, this legislation that eliminates an unused government program, closes an obsolete government agency, and saves taxpayers $480 million over the next 5 years. In this time of economic uncertainty, caused in large part by a government that is too big and tries to do too much, we need to save wherever we can and this bill does just that.

While serving as Indiana Secretary of State, I served as President of the National Association of Secretaries of State and co-authored a successful resolution advocating for the elimination of the EAC. We recognized, on a bipartisan basis, that the EAC cannot be justified on the grounds of fairness, justice, opportunity or necessity.

Voting is fundamental to our system and the legitimacy of our government. Ensuring qualified American citizens have an opportunity to vote is essential. The Constitution tasks the states with execution and maintenance of elections, not federal bureaucrats. I believe states do an excellent job of fairly and justly administering elections, and by managing elections closest to the voters, at the state and local level, we stand the best chance of ensuring opportunity for all and correcting injustice in the voting process," Rokita said.

In 2005, as Indiana's Secretary of State and serving as the President of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), Rokita co-authored a successful resolution to dissolve the Election Assistance Commission after the 2006 election. The oldest organization of bipartisan elected officials in the nation, NASS renewed the call to dissolve the Commission in 2010. That vote was 24-2, with 13 Republicans and 11 Democrats calling for its dissolution, demonstrating this is not a partisan issue.

H.R. 3463 passed 235 to 190.

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