President Bush signed The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) with great fanfare in October 2002, but his enthusiasm for the legislation - designed mainly to prevent a replay of the Florida chad-counting melodrama that rewarded him with the presidency - always seemed more than a little contrived. Case in point: Tuesday's Senate confirmation hearings for nominees to a commission that must be created before key provisions of the act can be implemented comes after many months of administration foot-dragging.

The Help America Vote Act authorized a total of $3.9 billion for various election reforms over three fiscal years, including $2.16 billion for 2003. Congress actually appropriated $1.5 billion for 2003 - a level of only about 70% of the original authorization. And just $650 million of that appropriation, earmarked for improving election administration and replacing punch-card and lever-voting machines, has actually been distributed to the states.

The remaining $830 million has been stuck in Washington because the administration dallied in nominating members to serve on the Election Assistance Commission - a panel that the law requires be formed before additional money can be spent. Under the Act, that body was supposed to be set up in February. President Bush didn't get around to formally nominating any commissioners until June, and then only nominated two Republicans without naming the two requisite Democratic selections that the Democratic congressional leadership had already forwarded to him. Finally, on September 12, the president announced his intention to formally nominate the two Democrats to the commission. Six weeks later, Senate confirmation hearings are finally taking place. Once that process is completed, the nominees must be actually vetted, voted on, and confirmed, then an executive director and staff for the commission must be hired in order for it to really function.

As a result of all this delay, the $830 million remains unavailable to the states to carry out the goals of the act: creating a statewide computerized system for voter registration, providing certain information to voters at the polls, enabling voters to check and change their vote, training poll workers, and making voting at the polling place accessible for the disabled and citizens whose first language is not English.

The original sponsors of the Help America Vote Act are trying to squeeze the money through the system. For example, Representative Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) attached an amendment to the House version of the Transportation-Treasury bill that would allow the General Services Administration to distribute the 2003 money before the Election Assistance Commission is set up But for now, the money sits.

With the presidential election a year away, a recurrence of the Florida, 2000 nightmare is on track for defying the oft-repeated vow from Washington of "never again." Perhaps because it wasn't such a nightmare for everyone.