observation of the entire process. 324. Selection of precincts (a) In general Except as provided in subsection (c), the selection of the precincts or alternative audit units in the State in which the Election Auditor of the State shall administer the hand counts under this subtitle shall be made by the Election Auditor on a random basis, in accordance with procedures adopted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, except that at least one precinct shall be selected at random in each county, with additional precincts selected by the Election Auditor at the Auditor’s discretion. (b) Public selection The random selection of precincts under subsection (a) shall be conducted in public, at a time and place announced in advance. (c) Mandatory selection of precincts established specifically for absentee ballots If a State does not sort absentee ballots by precinct and include those ballots in the hand count with respect to that precinct, the State shall create absentee ballot precincts or audit units which are of similar size to the average precinct or audit unit in the jurisdiction being audited, and shall include those absentee precincts or audit units among the precincts in the State in which the Election Auditor shall administer the hand counts under this subtitle. (d) Deadline for adoption of procedures by NIST The National Institute of Standards and Technology shall adopt the procedures described in subsection (a) not later than March 31, 2023, and shall publish them in the Federal Register upon adoption. 325. Publication of results (a) Submission to Commission As soon as practicable after the completion of an audit under this subtitle, the Election Auditor of a State shall submit to the Commission the results of the audit, and shall include in the submission a comparison of the results of the election in the precinct as determined by the Election Auditor under the audit and the final unofficial vote count in the precinct as announced by the State and all undervotes, overvotes, blank ballots, and