BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 288|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 288
Author: Yee (D)
Amended: 4/21/09
Vote: 21
SENATE ELEC., REAP. & CONST. AMEND. COMM. : 5-0, 3/31/09
AYES: Hancock, Walters, DeSaulnier, Liu, Strickland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Elections: names of candidates
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires that a phonetic translation
or transliteration of a candidate's English name be
provided whenever a translation of the candidate's name
into a character-based language (such as Chinese, Japanese
or Korean) is provided on ballot materials. This bill also
requires affected counties to establish a process by which
a candidate may appeal the phonetic translation or
transliteration of his or her English name. If a county
provides separate ballots containing translations of the
candidates' names into different languages, the bill
requires that both the English names and the translations
appear on each ballot.
ANALYSIS : Existing law requires translation of ballots
and ballot materials into languages other than English when
specified. Existing law also provides that if a candidate
CONTINUED
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changes his or her name within one year of any election,
the new name shall not appear upon the ballot unless the
change was made by either of the following:
1.Marriage.
2.Decree of any court of competent jurisdiction.
Background
Currently, candidates for public office are allowed to
submit any name of their choosing as the "translation" of
their name on ballots without proof that the name being
submitted is a true translation of their "legal" name.
In 2002 the San Francisco director of elections implemented
a change to their Chinese name policy for ballot
translations and the ordinance currently provides that:
(1) "Translation" shall mean the selection of Chinese
characters to represent the parts of a Chinese name,
or a name in any other language that traditionally is
written using Chinese characters.
(2) "Transliteration" shall mean the selection of
Chinese characters to represent the phonetic
equivalent of the syllables of an English name, or a
name in any other language that is not traditionally
written using Chinese characters.
The Director of Elections shall cause a translation or
transliteration of the names of all candidates to be
prepared by a qualified Chinese-language interpreter
according to generally-accepted professional
standards. A candidate may submit documentary
evidence demonstrating established use of a particular
translation or transliteration of his or her name to
assist the interpreter, but the Director of Elections'
decision to accept the translation or transliteration
of a candidate's name submitted by the Department's
interpreter shall be final. Translated or
transliterated names accepted by the Director shall be
available for public review for ten days, and the
Director's decision may be challenged pursuant to
California Elections Code Section 13313. (Added by
Ord. 233-99, File No. 991282, App. 8/20/99)
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This bill requires that, if a county provides a translation
of the candidates' English names into a character-based
language, such as Chinese, Japanese, or Korean, phonetic
translations or transliterations of the English names of
candidates be provided. The bill also requires that a
county that provides translations of candidates' names
establish a process by which a candidate may appeal the
phonetic translation of his or her English name. This bill
also provides an exception for a candidate who has a
non-English name by birth or has verifiably been known by a
non-English name for at least two years to permit him or
her to use that name on the ballot instead of a phonetic
translation or transliteration. This bill requires that,
if a county provides separate ballots containing
translations of the candidates' names in different
languages, both the English names and the translations of
the candidates' names appear on each ballot.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 4/27/09)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees
Japanese American Citizens League - Northern California,
Western Nevada, Pacific District
Korean American Bar Association of Northern California
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
"The lack of state law governing this topic has opened the
door to abuse. In one instance, a candidate for Supervisor
in California hired a political consulting firm to pick an
Asian-character name for him. This name was allowed on the
ballot even though it had no relationship to his English
name and he had no history of being identified by it. In
another instance, a candidate submitted the 'translation'
of his name as a common Asian name that the candidate had
just picked for the race, with the intent to win votes from
that community through this false identity and not through
his actual name or accomplishments. Allowing this voter
fraud to continue or worse, to expand, is an affront to
civil rights and democracy in our state. On the flip side,
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this bill will also protect people who legitimately
identify by an Asian name. In a California Assembly race,
a candidate was initially rejected for the use of a name
that he had used and been identified by within the Chinese
community for a number of years. SB 288 will establish
standards to protect people like this candidate who
legitimately have an Asian name that they would like to be
identified by on the ballot. SB 288 will establish
statewide guidelines for counties and the Secretary of
State's Office to follow to ensure the integrity of the
translated names on our ballots in California. It will
prevent the hodgepodge rules and regulations that are
currently in place in different regions that place access
to our democratic system at risk for Asian-language
communities."
DLW:nl 4/28/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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