mr. masterson. i serve on the intelligence committee and we spend a lot of time with cyber security issues in the intelligence community. one of the most powerful tools we have is the red team and bug bounties. it seems to me -- one of my concerns is that the states are at varying levels of security and i don't want to say they're overconfident, but they have a level of confidence that may not be justified and my old admonition from president reagan was trust, but verify. how about a provision that either nist or homeland security could red team, which means try to penetrate these systems. it would be nothing like a secretary of state's computer send a signal up that says greetings from washington to get their attention in terms of what they need to do. is that something that you have thought about because it's used in the intelligence community to great effect. everybody can feel like they're really protected until somebody shows them they're not. that's what i'm suggesting. >> speaking just from t

mr. masterson. >> good morning. i am pleased to testify before you today to discuss -- that supports state and local election leaders. the commission takes great price and the assistance, as well as the vital role we play as a national clearinghouse. private industry. academia and others in the election industry. as emphasized at the last hearing, we are focused on purely the election. our partner -- rely on the eac for a deep knowledge of how elections work and clear line of communications to those in the field who admarch the vote. most recently our partner agency have counted on the eac to fulfill this role. this topic is not new to the state and local election officials it has long been the focus, something they think about 365 days a year. the job description of the e -- appeared voter registration to management and human resources. with the resources and tools that they need the establishment is part of is the critical infrastructure, one way the federal government sought to improve the mechanisms it uses to a

mr. masterson and will have a round of questioning for anyone that wants to ask questions. mr. hankey. >> good morning. thank you. maternity to testify on behalf of justice concerning our efforts to combat election interference. the department appreciates the committee's interest and want husband has the tools we need and i know the committees have my testimony so will not repeat it but cover a few key points. first, the attorney general himself identified these as a priority when he created a cyber digital task force earlier this year. he specifically directed the task force to address quote, efforts to interfere with our elections and our report is due to him by the end of this month. anticipate the apartment department will issue a report by mid july in the report will provide additional insight into how the department intends to apply long-standing policies in the sensitive context of foreign operations. when i say foreign influence operations i'm referring to covert actions by foreign governments intended to affect us political sentiment and public discourse. it was so div

mr. masterson. >> good morning mr. chairman. i am pleased to testify before you today to discuss u.s. elections assistance commissions work to support election leaders in her efforts to conduct efficient elections. the commission takes pride in the resources and assistance we provide to election officials and voters, as well as the vital role we play as a national clearinghouse of election administration information for partners in congress, federal agencies, state and local governments, private industry, advocacy organizations, academia, and others in the election industry. this is emphasized by witnesses at the last hearing. we focus solely on elections, serving as a central hub for others it's been only part of their time working on this important issue, including those who specialize in technology and cyber security. our partners range from the department of homeland security, federal bureau of investigations, u.s. postal service, rely on this eac to provide deep knowledge on how elections work and a carolina communications to those in the field who administer the vote. our partne

mr. masterson from the department of homeland security. the. we have another panel after you and want to have a chance to ask questions so you can deal with h your time however you would like to, but if you want to summarize anything in your statement, we will have your statement in the record and we are glad to have it as we are glad to have you here today so we will start with the chairman of the advisory commission with you and then go to the commissioner mccormick and doctor romaine and mr. masterson. >> good morning chairman, ranking members of the committee. i am pleased to testify to discuss the assistance commission work to support the local leaders and efforts to conduct efficient accessible and secure elections. the commission takes pride in the resources and assistance to the officials and voters as well as the title role we play for the state and local governments, private industry command because the organizations and others in the industry. as emphasized by witnesses at the last hearing, they are focused solely on the elections se