BILL NUMBER: SB 1438	CHAPTERED
	BILL TEXT

	CHAPTER  814
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  SEPTEMBER 27, 2004
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  SEPTEMBER 27, 2004
	PASSED THE SENATE  AUGUST 27, 2004
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 26, 2004
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 25, 2004
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  JULY 1, 2004
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  JUNE 22, 2004
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 24, 2004
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 27, 2004

INTRODUCED BY   Senators Johnson and Perata
   (Principal coauthor:  Senator Murray)
   (Principal coauthor:  Assembly Member Levine)
   (Coauthors:  Senators Aanestad, Ackerman, Alarcon, Alpert,
Ashburn, Brulte, Burton, Cedillo, Chesbro, Denham, Dunn, Escutia,
Figueroa, Karnette, Kuehl, Machado, Margett, McClintock, McPherson,
Ortiz, Poochigian, Romero, Scott, Soto, Speier, and Torlakson)
   (Coauthors:  Assembly Members Aghazarian, Bates, Berg, Bermudez,
Calderon, Canciamilla, Chan, Chavez, Cohn, Corbett, Correa, Cox,
Diaz, Dutra, Dutton, Dymally, Firebaugh, Frommer, Garcia, Goldberg,
Hancock, Haynes, Jerome Horton, Houston, Jackson, Keene, Kehoe,
Koretz, La Malfa, La Suer, Laird, Leno, Leslie, Lieber, Liu,
Longville, Lowenthal, Maddox, Maldonado, Matthews, Maze, Montanez,
Mountjoy, Mullin, Nakanishi, Nakano, Nation, Negrete McLeod, Oropeza,
Pacheco, Parra, Pavley, Plescia, Reyes, Richman, Ridley-Thomas,
Runner, Salinas, Samuelian, Steinberg, Strickland, Vargas, Wesson,
Wolk, Wyland, and Yee)

                        FEBRUARY 19, 2004

   An act to add Article 4 (commencing with Section 19250) to Chapter
3 of Division 19 of the Elections Code, relating to elections.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 1438, Johnson.  Elections:  voting systems.
   Existing federal law, the Help America Vote Act of 2002, requires,
among other things, that each voting system used in an election for
federal office produce a permanent paper record with an audit
capacity for that system, allow the voter to verify his or her votes
before the voter's ballot is cast, and be accessible for individuals
with disabilities.  The act provides funding for these purposes.
   Existing law requires the Secretary of State to establish the
specifications and the regulations governing voting machines, voting
devices, and any software used, including the programs and procedures
for vote tabulating and testing.  The Secretary of State may not
approve any voting system that does not fulfill statutory and
regulatory requirements.  Existing law also requires the Secretary of
State to adopt rules and regulations governing any voting technology
or systems used in the state that provide blind and visually
impaired individuals with access that is equivalent to that provided
to individuals who are not blind or visually impaired.
   This bill would prohibit, on and after January 1, 2005, the
Secretary of State from approving a direct recording electronic
voting system that does not include an accessible voter verified
paper audit trail, and prohibit, on and after January 1, 2006, a city
or county from contracting for or purchasing a direct recording
electronic voting system that does not include an accessible voter
verified paper audit trail.  In addition, the bill would require
that, as of January 1, 2006, all direct recording electronic voting
machines in use on that date, regardless of when contracted for or
purchased, shall have received federal qualification, as defined, and
shall include an accessible voter verified paper audit trail.
   This bill would require that to the extent that they are available
for the purposes of this article, federal funds or the Voting
Modernization Fund, a special fund, shall be used.  The bill would
prohibit the expenditure of General Fund moneys for these purposes.
   By increasing the duties of local elections officials, the bill
would impose a state-mandated local program.
  The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state.  Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
   This bill would provide that the Legislature finds there is no
mandate contained in the bill that will result in costs incurred by a
local agency or school district for a new program or higher level of
service which require reimbursement pursuant to these constitutional
and statutory provisions.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Article 4 (commencing with Section 19250) is added to
Chapter 3 of Division 19 of the Elections Code, to read:

      Article 4.  Direct Recording Electronic Voting Systems

   19250.  (a) On and after January 1, 2005, the Secretary of State
may not approve a direct recording electronic voting system unless
the system has received federal qualification and includes an
accessible voter verified paper audit trail.
   (b) On and after January 1, 2006, a city or county may not
contract for or purchase a direct recording electronic voting system
unless the system has received federal qualification and includes an
accessible voter verified paper audit trail.
   (c) As of January 1, 2006, all direct recording electronic voting
systems in use on that date, regardless of when contracted for or
purchased, shall have received federal qualification and include an
accessible voter verified paper audit trail.  If the direct recording
electronic voting system does not already include an accessible
voter verified paper audit trail, the system shall be replaced or
modified to include an accessible voter verified paper audit trail.
   19251.  For purposes of this article, the following terms shall
have the following meanings:
   (a) "Accessible" means that the information provided on the paper
record copy from the voter verified paper audit trail mechanism is
provided or conveyed to voters via both a visual and a nonvisual
method, such as through an audio component.
   (b) "Direct recording electronic voting system" means a voting
system that records a vote electronically and does not require or
permit the voter to record his or her vote directly onto a tangible
ballot.
   (c) "Voter verified paper audit trail" means a component of a
direct recording electronic voting system that prints a
contemporaneous paper record copy of each electronic ballot and
allows each voter to confirm his or her selections before the voter
casts his or her ballot.
   (d) "Federal qualification" means the system has been certified,
if applicable, by means of qualification testing by a Nationally
Recognized Test Laboratory and has met or exceeded the minimum
requirements set forth in the Performance and Text Standards for
Punch Card, Mark Sense, and Direct Recording Electronic Voting
Systems, or in any successor voluntary standard document, developed
and promulgated by the Federal Election Commission, the Election
Assistance Commission, or the National Institute of Standards and
Technology.
   (e) "Paper record copy" means an auditable document printed by a
voter verified paper audit trail component that corresponds to the
voter's electronic vote and lists the contests on the ballot and the
voter's selections for those contests.  A paper record copy is not a
ballot.
   19252.  To the extent that they are available for expenditure for
the purposes of this article, federal funds or moneys from the Voting
Modernization Fund, created pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section
19234, shall be used.  No moneys from the General Fund shall be
expended for the purposes of this article.
  SEC. 2.  Pursuant to Section 17579 of the Government Code, the
Legislature finds that there is no mandate contained in this act that
will result in costs incurred by a local agency or school district
for a new program or higher level of service which require
reimbursement pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the
California Constitution and Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of
Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.