; and (6) by inserting after subsection (a) the following: (b) Election equipment The requirement in subsection (a) to preserve election equipment shall not be construed to prevent the reuse of such equipment in any election that takes place within twenty-two months of a Federal election described in subsection (a), provided that all electronic records, files, and data from such equipment related to such Federal election are retained and preserved. (c) Guidance Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Election Assistance Commission and the Attorney General, shall issue guidance regarding compliance with subsections (a) and (b), including minimum standards and best practices for retaining and preserving records and papers in compliance with subsection (a). Such guidance shall also include protocols for enabling the observation of the preservation, security, and transfer of records and papers described in subsection (a) by the Attorney General and by a representative of each party, as defined by the Attorney General. . (c) Protecting the integrity of paper ballots in Federal elections (1) Protocols and conditions for inspection of ballots Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, in consultation with the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security and the Election Assistance Commission, shall promulgate regulations establishing the election security protocols and conditions, including appropriate chain of custody and proper preservation practices, which will apply to the inspection of the paper ballots which are required to be retained and preserved under section 301 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 ( 52 U.S.C. 20701 ). (2) Cause of action for injunctive and declaratory relief The Attorney General may bring an action in an appropriate district court