OASIS EML USA Case Study. Experiences with California Secretary of State Election Night Reporting

Transcription

1 An OASIS White Paper OASIS EML USA Case Study Experiences with Califrnia Secretary f State Electin Night Reprting Submitted fr NIST Wrkshp n a Cmmn Data Frmat fr Electrnic Vting Systems

2 Abstract The OASIS Electin and Vter Services Technical Cmmittee was apprached t assist the Califrnia Secretary f State ffice (CA SS) in the use f XML fr reprting electin results. Initially the gal was t shw that the previus electin fr 2006 fr state gvernr (the Schwarzenegger Electin) results culd be exprted int XML successfully frm the existing SQL database cntent. The prject went frm prf-f-cncept t actual live field use fr the 2007 and 2008 electins. We discuss here the gals, resurces, challenges, utcmes and lessns learned. Als cmpare and relate these tpics t the NIST wrkshp initial assertins fr requirements, scpe and testing. The Challenge and Resurces Califrnia needed t ensure real time results reprting service t media surces during Electin Day cverage. That frmat had t allw rendering int a variety f human readable frmats such as web, bradcast and print media. Their existing sftware was using a SQL database and written in Perl cde with ne fixed layut fr internal reprting purpses. It accepts and created feeds in limited CSV text file frmats. The initial challenge was verifying that the OASIS EML structure and layut fr infrmatin culd handle the existing data cntained in the SQL database. Cmbined with this was staff knwledge and familiarity as the internal CA SS staff had nt used XML r XML tls befre. Management was als skeptical f the apprach and did nt see the need fr a technlgy refresh (using Micrsft Visual Develper and.net). The OASIS EML cmmittee members were able t prvide an initial straw man XML example and rendering stylesheet (XSLT) that all wrked in Micrsft IE web brwser fr the CA SS staff t review. Then materials t talk t the technlgy pr s and cn s fr management decisin makers, and als find a lcal XML class fr staff training in Sacrament. The training prved vital in allwing CA SS staff t assimilate and wrk with XML and prvide the necessary implementatin frm the SQL database. Outcmes and Lessns Learned Over the ensuing mnths CA SS was able t implement first a pilt that cnverted the 2006 electin results frm the SQL database int EML 510. This tk abut 3 mnths frm inceptin t cmpletin and management apprval t cntinue further. At this pint management decided t pll 10 majr news media prviders as t the applicability f prviding direct XML feeds f electin results. T their surprise the news media technical staff verwhelming respnded with psitive Yes please, when can we have that, nw? This cnvinced management f the need and the apprach. Over the next three mnths wrk prceeded n adapting the EML 510 layut t a new EML 530 statistics reprting layut that was c-develped between CA SS and the OASIS Electin TC members and added t the verall specificatins frm OASIS. The EML 530 includes special supprt fr USA district electins style reprting and an extensible statistics mechanism s that any kind f statistical values can be inserted int the reprting structure. An example stylesheet (XSLT) was als develped t render the infrmatin as a web page.

3 Once this wrk was cmplete CA SS then implemented the remaining piece which was t prvide a secure interface via ftp remte access t allw media surces t retrieve results files directly frm the CA SS server. Infrmatin is prvided belw in the resurces sectin n all these details. The lessns learned here include that when public electin authrities wrk with the OASIS EML TC t develp standards the utcmes are extremely psitive, are develped rapidly and withut impsing prhibitive demands n internal staff resurces r skills. Average develpers with typical sftware develpment skills are fully capable f successfully implementing slutins. Als the OASIS EML apprach f prviding Schema structures that define the infrmatin cntent needed is able t smthly adapt t USA vting scenaris. Furthermre in the new OASIS V6.0 specificatins the cre structure definitins have been enhanced in line with the CA SS experience t ensure that the cmplete suite f EML infrmatin structures fr electin and vter services nw supprt thse capabilities t handle USA district and precinct style electins. This further demnstrates the pwer f the mdular apprach engineered int the OASIS EML standard. Cmpare and Relate t NIST Tpics In the call fr papers the fllwing tpics are given; ur ntes relating these t the CA SS use f EML are given in blue italic text inline: Requirements Human-readable versus machine readable-human-readability matters fr transparency and auditing, whereas integratin f equipment indicates use f an existing data exchange syntax that is ptimized fr machine-reading rather than human-reading. In this case CA SS was able t shw hw the OASIS machine readable frmats enhanced the ability t deliver human readable cntent t new media surces that culd then be directly rendered frm that cntent using stylesheets. Als XML is intrinsically mre human accessible as the CA SS technical resurce guide illustrates (see Resurce link belw). Flexible and extensible versus unifrm and cmplete-interperability is helped by a standard data frmat nly if the frmat is used in the same way by everyne; ther gals may accmmdate a mre flexible and extensible frmat. OASIS EML is nt prvided cnstrained by this dgma and thinking. It prvides extensible mechanisms that adapt and leverage a cnsistent dictinary f cmmn cmpnents. The whle pint is t prvide a standard framewrk that implementers can then tailr t their exact needs and then ensure alignment thrugh use f the OASIS EML dictinary f cmpnents. The same apprach is true f the US NIEM.gv apprach expliting the pwer and flexibility f XML driven mechanisms (see the paper prvided n OASIS EML and infrmatin integratin tls including NIEM apprach). Secure versus cnvenient-securing the recrds t make them valid fr auditing culd als hamper intermediate prcessing that might be needed t integrate disparate pieces f equipment.

4 OASIS EML is able t fully supprt the CA SS needs in this area and prvide media surces with trusted infrmatin feeds. OASIS EML prvides additinal use f digital certificates and mre security mechanisms that were nt defined as needed fr CA SS purpses. Integratin acrss equipment is nt an issue since the digital signature cmpnent des nt prevent prcessing by systems that are nt XML digital signature aware. Frmat versus cntent-t "get the data ut" it is mre imprtant t specify the data t be prvided, the pints in the prcess at which it is t be prvided, and the mechanism fr exprt than the frmat f the data. Using XML based standards prvides flexibility. It is nt true t make the generalizatin made here in regard t electin systems and getting any ld data ut. In certain exchanges strict adherence is vital t ensure verifiable infrmatin and that all security and ther prcedures are met. If smene is sending yu infrmatin abut cncert tickets r the types f flwer arrangements they can prvide yu, then yu may be laissez faire abut it. But if smene is reprting actual legal electin results fr the mst imprtant free demcracy n the planet, then they had better d that in a precise and exact manner that is verifiable. OASIS EML specificatin prvides detailed discussins abut the pints in the prcess and the electin wrkflws. Scpe Publishing results invlves nly the reprting phase f the electin and shuld nt include such infrmatin as individual ballt images. That is self-evident and OASIS EML fully supprts vter privacy and vter rights. In fact a tw year study was cmmissined acrss 13 Eurpean Unin member states int all these aspects and OASIS EML fully enshrined thse rights fr use in the Eurpean Unin electins. These als cincidently fully supprt and exceed US needs (the OASIS EML specificatin prvides links t these EU Cmmissin reprts). Interperability might nly be needed at certain pints in the system architecture. Again self-evidently, internal infrmatin exchanges can use lcal frmats; hwever any external intra-system r intra-device infrmatin exchanges must use cmpatible standards t ensure crrect peratin. Registratin may r may nt be within scpe. OASIS EML supprts vter services, nt just Electin Day vting. Fr example the new EML 150 ge-districting, c-develped with Pew Fundatin and Ggle staff and OASIS Electin TC nw supprts nline web mapping f plling places and district bundaries. This prject is described in a separate paper. Lw-level event lg data may nly be useful fr auditing. OASIS EML prvides three types f applicable audit lgging and event tracking mechanisms and assciated XML structures. These were nt applicable t the CA SS use hwever.

5 Testing If the data frmat is t be used fr auditing, usability testing with auditrs is indicated. If the gal is interperability, interperability testing is different frm cnfrmity assessment OASIS EML prvides template frmats in additin t schemas t verify precise infrmatin cntent and structure use in data exchanges. These mechanisms are used in industry standard best practices t test and verify XML infrmatin exchanges. In the CA SS instance the schema verificatin methd was used alng with visual inspectin f rendered electin reprt infrmatin. In additin a test site was established t allw media systems t test prir t electin night (see Infrmatin Transparency, Access and Standards The CA SS initiative represents a first step tward better transparency and full availability f electin infrmatin in frmats that prvide easy access fr citizens and electin interest grups and rganizatins. Standards fulfil a key rle in transparency and ease f access. When infrmatin is in predictable and prescribed frmats then sftware tls can be created t access the data and prvide a variety f tls. Fr example the EML 530 statistics may be rendered as Micrsft Excel spreadsheet XML s that anyne can then review thse details n a PC equipped with sftware capable f reading in that frmat. That sftware cnversin tl can then be made available and shared. When that infrmatin is predictable ver time then this permits lng term analysis and the intrinsic value increases. The CA SS nw has data available fr 2006, 2007, and 2008 electins all in the same EML frmat. Similarly fr news media rganizatins whm were the riginal target fr CA SS infrmatin sharing, their investment in sftware t prcess CA SS data becmes mre leveraged as mre States prvide their infrmatin in the same frmats and data quality. A gauge f the demand fr the infrmatin is shwn by the fact that the CA SS public site running n a T3 line was initially verwhelmed by demand at 8pm n the Nvember, 2008 electin night by peple wanting t view nline the results. This demnstrates the need t distribute results widely t multiple reputable news surces and aviding a single pint f failure. Cnclusins The CA SS has nw successfully used their interface fr results reprting and statistics fr the 2007 and 2008 electins t news media surces with live infrmatin. The OASIS EML 510 and EML 530 frmats used are capable f meeting the needs f ne f the largest and mst ppulus States in America. The CA SS Nvember 2009 electin dwnlad site is already pen fr develpers t access in test mde. Open standards are the base n which t build electins that will be trustwrthy, pen and creditable. Using cnsistent data and exchanging that at recgnised interface pints is essential fr trusted electins. EML meets all knwn electin requirements and is the nly available public pen standard that can meet the needs f electins fficials, slutin prviders, and deliver the services that vters demand.

6 Resurces CA SS site t prtal interface and example: Test site and retrieval with data examples: Instructins n EML 510 and EML 530 night f electin data feeds: CA SS electin results public site: OASIS EML V6.0 specificatin dcuments: OASIS EML Tp Ten Reasns fr Use brchure: OASIS Electin & Vter Services Technical Cmmittee 22 August 2009