The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), in its role as a scientific adviser to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), said that the labs of iBeta Quality Assurance in Aurora, Colo., and SysTest Labs LLC in Denver meet the technical requirements of the latest federal testing guidelines.

A decision on final accreditation will come after the EAC conducts a nontechnical evaluation of the companies, including reviews of their conflict-of-interest policies, organizational structures and record-keeping procedures, said an EAC spokeswoman.

The agency has not set a timetable for finishing its part of the certification process, the spokeswoman said. However, she added, "completing this process in a timely fashion is a top priority."

Carolyn Coggins, quality assurance director for voting at iBeta, said her company expects to learn the next step in the process in a letter the EAC should be sending out during the next couple of weeks.

A moving target