About ERIC

ERIC is a public charity non-profit membership organization comprised of 31 states and the District of Columbia. ERIC’s mission is to assist states in improving the accuracy of America’s voter rolls and increasing access to voter registration for all eligible citizens. Washington state was a founding member of ERIC in 2012 under Secretary of State Sam Reed.

What does ERIC do?

Each member state submits their voter registration data and motor vehicle licensing data to ERIC. ERIC’s technical staff compares these data against data from all the other member states and Social Security death data. 

ERIC uses sophisticated data matching software to create reports that identify voters who have moved within the state, voters who have moved from one ERIC state to another, voters who have died, and voters with duplicate registrations in the same state. States may also request National Change of Address (NCOA) reports using official data from the US Postal Service. 

After each federal general election, states can request reports identifying voters who may have cast ballots in more than one state or more than one ballot in the same state. Matching voter data against motor vehicle licensing data, ERIC also identifies individuals who appear to be eligible but who are not yet registered.

What steps does ERIC take to keep data secure?

Data privacy and security is the top priority for ERIC and its member states. ERIC also follows an extensive set of security policies and procedures approved by the Board of Directors in its Information Security Management Plan. In 2017 and 2020, ERIC successfully completed a third-party review of how it handles protected data in the Social Security Limited Access Death Master File. In 2020, another independent cybersecurity assessment confirmed that ERIC complies with security standards. For more details about the organization’s approach to data security and these assessments, read ERIC’s Technology and Security Overview: https://ericstates.org/security/

How is ERIC Funded?

New members pay a one-time membership fee of $25,000, which is earmarked to help cover expenses for technology upgrades and expansions necessary to support a growing membership. States also pay annual dues. Annual dues cover operating costs and are based, in part, on the citizen voting age population in each state. Members approve the dues and the annual budget. 

Is ERIC connected to state voter registration systems?

No. ERIC is not connected to any state system. Data is provided to ERIC securely separate from the voter registration system.

Does the ERIC organization or member states share data with outside parties?

No. Motor Vehicle Licensing Data is protected against release by a federal statute known as the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act. The Social Security Limited Access Death Master File is protected against release under Section 203 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 and associated regulations administered by the National Technical Information Service. ERIC exists to serve election officials as they perform their legal duties to maintain accurate voter lists and to assist with registering eligible citizens to vote - not to serve partisan or corporate interests.

Washington state data

Since joining ERIC, Washington state has received more than 1.5 million records containing potential in-state duplicate registrations, in-state registration updates, deceased voters, and voters that have moved to another state

More information about voter registration and voting data can be found in the 2021 Report on Elections in Washington State: https://www.sos.wa.gov/_assets/elections/research/2021%20annual%20elections%20report.pdf