Feinstein has also asked the GAO to review the printers used to create a paper receipt of the ballots cast on the DREs. She noted that paper jams and printer malfunctions in a 2004 election in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, caused 10% of the voting paper records to be ruined.

She urged the GAO to complete the study as soon possible and report back to the Rules and Administration Committee. "With the 2008 presidential election fast approaching, time is of the essence," she wrote in the letter.

A spokesman for Feinstein estimated that it would take a number of months for the investigation to be completed. He noted that Feinstein singled out the Sarasota incident as a "clear example of what can go wrong and she wants to find out the reasons and prevent it from happening again."

A GAO spokesman said the request is under review.