EAC-ESTEP-001D ESTEP Anomaly Root Cause Analysis Form v0.1 Fillable

OMB Control # 3265-XXXX.
Expires: XX/XX/XXXX

Election-Supporting Technology Anomaly Root
Cause Analysis Template v.1 2024
Instructions
This form provides for the reporting of a root cause analysis of an election-supporting technology anomaly by
election officials or manufacturers. This form is part of the EAC’s Election Supporting Technology Evaluation
Program’s Quality Monitoring Program. The use of this form is voluntary for Election Officials, and mandatory for
Election-Supporting Technology Developers/Manufacturers. Information regarding its use can be found in the
Election Supporting Technology Evaluation Program Manual. If you need additional space, attach letter-size sheets
(8.5" X 11"). Include the manufacturer name, date and section heading on each sheet.
If there are any questions regarding this form, please contact ESTEP via [email protected].
The root cause analysis (RCA) is applicable when an anomaly is identified that has potential impact on fielded
election-supporting technologies, regardless of where and when the anomaly was initially identified.
The RCA provides a record of the approach taken to identify and document the root cause of a particular problem
and the follow-up actions necessary to thoroughly address the root cause.
The purpose of an RCA in the EAC Election Supporting Technology Evaluation Program (ESTEP) is to find effective
solutions to election technology anomalies and to determine what factors need to be corrected to prevent such
problems from reoccurring in the future.
RCAs shall be provided to the EAC for:
• All previously EAC certified election-supporting technologies when an anomaly is identified whether it
affects fielded systems or not.
• Election Supporting Technologies under test that have been shown to have a general fault that might
affect fielded systems and
• State Certified version of election-supporting technologies that may have a common flaw with an EAC
version but is not specifically an EAC certified election-supporting technology.
RCAs shall be provided to the EAC at the earliest opportunity, but no later than fifteen business days after the
analysis is completed and corrected actions and solutions have been documented. While the RCA is underway, the
EAC should be kept informed of progress.
To provide assurance that the goals of the RCA will be met, the election-supporting technology RCA should meet
the following criteria:
1. Clearly define the anomaly and its effect on the election jurisdiction(s) and on the election-supporting
technology manufacturer.
2. Clearly delineate the known causal relationships that combined to cause the anomaly.
3. Clearly establish causal relationships between the root cause(s) and the defined anomaly.
4. Clearly present the evidence used to support the existence of identified causes of the anomaly.
5. Clearly explain how the corrective actions will prevent recurrence of the defined anomaly.
6. Clearly explain how the solution(s) will be managed in the future.
7. Clearly document the above criteria in this analysis report so election officials and the voting public can
easily follow the logic of the analysis.
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OMB Control # 3265-XXXX.
Expires: XX/XX/XXXX

Election-Supporting Technology
Anomaly Root Cause Analysis Template v.1 2024
Root Cause Analysis for:
Anomaly Analyzed:
System
Classification:

□

□

Electronic Poll
Book

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Electronic Ballot
Delivery System

Other (Describe):

□

Election Night
Reporting

□

Voter Registration
Portal/Database

EAC Certification #:
EAC Certified System
Name & Version:
Reporter Classification: Manufacturer

System Manufacturer:
Manufacturer Address:
City:
Date:

State:

/
/
□□
~I

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Zip Code:

EAC (Election Assistance Commission) Root Cause Analysis

Anomaly Description
Complete all sections. Descriptions must be as detailed as possible, while being clear and concise since
the anomaly is the source of the entire RCA. This detail should include a complete list and/or description
of the “symptoms” of the anomaly and the conditions present which the symptoms occurred.
Date of
Anomaly:

/

/

Time of Anomaly:

Place of Anomaly:
Person identifying
Anomaly:
Expected results of actions leading up to anomaly:

Detailed description of event/anomaly:

If the anomaly is repeatable, provide step by step instructions to recreate it:

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AM

EAC (Election Assistance Commission) Root Cause Analysis

Chronology of Events / Timeline
Provide a detailed chronology of the events leading up to, and following, the anomaly. Add additional
events if necessary.

ID

Date/Time

Description

Entity
Org/person

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

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Result / Notes

EAC (Election Assistance Commission) Root Cause Analysis

Investigative Team and Method
This section shall describe how the investigative team is assembled by the election-supporting
technology manufacturer, who it consists of, and how it gathers the data to be used in the analysis.
Include the RCA method employed by the manufacturer in conducting the analysis and why this method
was used. Please use additional pages if necessary.
Names and Positions of members of the investigative team:

Describe the data gathering process:

Describe which methodology(s) is used to conduct the root cause analysis:
These methods include but are not limited to:
• Events and Causal Factors charting
• Fault Tree Analysis
• RPR Problem Diagnosis
• Ishikawa Diagrams
• Pareto Analysis
• 5 Whys

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EAC (Election Assistance Commission) Root Cause Analysis

Findings and Root Cause
Describe the findings of the investigation and explain the root cause(s) based on these findings. If the
RCA results in findings that are not directly related to the root cause of the anomaly, these should also
be captured as manufacturer product/process improvement steps in an effort to improve the electionsupporting technology.

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EAC (Election Assistance Commission) Root Cause Analysis

Corrective Action(s)
As the purpose of the RCA is to determine the root cause of a voting system anomaly, the RCA should
result in corrective actions that are taken to ensure the same anomaly does not recur. The most
preferable corrective actions are those that eliminate failure root causes through some hardware or
software redesign. Corrective actions may include:
•
•
•
•

Design upgrades to eliminate or mitigate the problem.
Training. In many instances, anomalies can be eliminated by providing training to election officials,
assemblers, or other personnel.
Additional testing or inspection.
Special operational or process actions. The least preferable from a long-term perspective is to rely
on special operational or process steps (work-around) as a problem solution.

Once corrective actions have been identified, evaluated, and selected, the final steps of the RCA consist
of implementing the corrective action and evaluating the effectiveness of the corrective action.

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EAC (Election Assistance Commission) Root Cause Analysis

Solution Management
The purpose of this section is to manage the corrective action(s) moving forward. This should detail all
process changes to manage those corrective actions, and steps taken to ensure the actions eliminate the
anomaly over time.

I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, all of the information on and attached to this
Election-Supporting Technology Root Cause Analysis Template, including any attached application
materials, is true, correct, complete, and made in good faith.
Reporter
Signature:

Date:

/

/

This information will be used solely to administer the EAC Election Supporting Technology Evaluation Program. This program is
voluntary, however, individuals who wish to participate must meet the requirements of the Program. This information will be
made public consistent with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act, the Trade Secrets Act, and any other
applicable Federal law or regulation. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average about 16
hours for completion of this form. This estimate includes the time for reviewing the instructions, gathering information and
completing the form. Send comments regarding this burden estimate to the Election Supporting Technology Evaluation Program
Director, U.S. Election Assistance Commission, 633 3rd Street N.W., Suite 200, Washington, DC 20001. Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty for failure to respond
to, or comply with, a collection of information subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act, unless that
collection of information displays a currently valid OMB Control Number.

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