BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS Senator Lou Correa, Chair BILL NO: AB 413 HEARING DATE: 6/21/11 AUTHOR: YAMADA ANALYSIS BY: Frances Tibon Estoista AMENDED: 5/24/11 FISCAL: NO SUBJECT Election: all-mailed ballot elections DESCRIPTION Existing law permits an election to be conducted wholly by mail if the governing body authorizes the use of mailed ballots for the election, the election occurs on an established mailed ballot election date, and the election is one of the following: An election in which no more than 1,000 registered voters are eligible to participate; An election in a city, county, or district with 5,000 or fewer registered voters that is restricted to the imposition of special taxes, expenditure limitation overrides, or both; An election on the issuance of a general obligation water bond; An election in one of four specifically enumerated water districts; or, An election or assessment ballot proceeding required or authorized by the state constitution under Proposition 218. Existing law authorizes a city with a population of 100,000 or less or a school district to conduct any special election held to fill a vacancy as an all-mailed ballot election. Existing law authorizes a district to conduct any election as an all-mailed ballot election on any date other than an established election date. This bill allows elections held on no more than three different dates in Yolo County to be conducted wholly by mail, subject to the following conditions: 1. The governing body of the city, county, or district, by resolution, authorizes the all-mailed ballot election and notifies the Secretary of State (SOS) of its intent to conduct an all-mailed ballot election at least 88 days prior to the date of the election. 2. The election does not occur on the same date as a statewide primary or general election or any other election conducted in an overlapping jurisdiction that is not consolidated and conducted as an all-mailed ballot election. 3. The election is not a special election to fill a vacancy in a state office, the Legislature, or Congress. 4. At least one ballot dropoff location is provided in each city within the jurisdiction and is open during business hours to receive voted ballots beginning 28 days before the date of the election and until 8 p.m. on the day of the election. 5. At least one polling place is provided per city where voters can request a ballot between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on the day of the election if they have not received their ballots in the mail or if they need replacement ballots for any other reason. 6. Upon request of the city, county, or district, the elections official, at his or her discretion, may provide additional ballot dropoff locations and polling places. 7. The elections official delivers to each voter all supplies necessary for the use and return of the mail ballot, including an envelope for the return of the voted mail ballot with postage prepaid. 8. The elections official delivers to each voter, with either the sample ballot or with the voter's ballot, a AB 413 (YAMADA) Page 2 list of the ballot dropoff locations and polling places provided under this bill. The list of dropoff locations and polling places must also be posted on the Internet Web site of the county elections office. 9. The return of voted ballots is subject to the same procedures for the return of vote by mail (VBM) ballots at a regular election. 10. The polling places provided pursuant to this bill are at accessible locations and are equipped with voting units or systems that are accessible to individuals with disabilities and that provide the same opportunity for access and participation, including the ability to vote privately and independently. 11. Requires that a ballot dropoff location consist of a locked ballot box located in a secure public building that meets the accessibility requirements for a polling place. This bill requires, if Yolo County conducts an all-mailed ballot election on or before December 31, 2017, to report to the Legislature and to the SOS regarding the success of the election. Requires the report to include, but not be limited to, any statistics on the cost to conduct the election; the turnout of different populations, including, but not limited to the population categories of race, ethnicity, age, gender, disability, permanent VBM status, and political party affiliation, to the extent possible; the number of ballots that were not counted and the reasons why they were rejected; voter fraud; and any other problems that became known to the county during the election or canvass. Requires the report, whenever possible, to compare the success of the all-mailed ballot election to similar elections not conducted wholly by mail in the same jurisdiction. This bill requires the report to be submitted to the Legislature within 6 months after the date of an all-mailed ballot election or prior to the date of any other all-mailed ballot election conducted under this bill, whichever is sooner. AB 413 (YAMADA) Page 3 This bill contains a January 1, 2018, sunset date. BACKGROUND Several California counties have conducted all-mail ballot elections. Monterey County conducted one of the first vote-by-mail elections ever held in the United States in 1977. Alpine County conducted its first all-mail election in November 1993 for a countywide special election. San Diego used all-mail balloting in May 1981 for a measure proposing to build a convention center and Stanislaus County conducted the 1993 Statewide Special Election as all-mail. Although many of these elections proved successful in reducing election costs, the counties did not scientifically compile information and report data to the state and therefore the state could not properly analyze data to determine how all-mail ballots affect voter turnout. COMMENTS 1. According to the author , the popularity of voting by mail in local and State elections has steadily increased in California since the state began permitting voters to register as permanent mail ballot voters in 2001. Many voters prefer the convenience of voting by mail, which traditionally costs County Registrars less per vote than poll voting. Research indicates that all-mail ballot elections tend to increase turnout, decrease costs and do not result in voter fraud, yet we do not have detailed reports that evaluate these specific claims. AB 413 will allow Yolo County to conduct up to three (3) local all vote-by-mail elections subject to prescribed conditions to determine their effect on voters who traditionally vote at the polls. These conditions include, but are not limited to, requiring pre-paid return postage, one polling place per city, a prescribed number of ballot drop-off sites, and a process to ensure the timely mailing of ballots and sample ballots. In addition, this bill would require the Registrar of Voters to provide the state with a detailed report on the effects of all vote-by-mail AB 413 (YAMADA) Page 4 elections, including a cost comparison to a traditional election; data on the turnout for various types of voters of varying demographics; and the reasons why the Registrar did not count returned mail ballots. 2. Vote By Mail and Permanent Vote By Mail Voting : Under state law, any voter can request a VBM ballot for any election, and any voter can become a permanent VBM voter. Permanent VBM voters automatically receive a ballot in the mail for every election, without the need to re-apply for a VBM ballot. As such, any voter who prefers to vote by mail has the ability to do so under existing law. Among the arguments that supporters of all-mailed ballot elections frequently make in support of such elections is that all-mailed ballot elections are more convenient for voters. However, it is not clear whether this is the case. Any voter who finds it more convenient to vote by mail has the option to do so under existing law, and voters who want to vote by mail at every election can sign up for permanent VBM status. Unlike many of the previous bills that would have authorized all-mailed ballot elections, whether on a permanent or on a pilot project basis, this bill explicitly requires Yolo County to report back to the Legislature on the impact that the all-mailed ballot election had on the turnout of voters by permanent VBM status. As a result, this pilot project may provide the Legislature with more information about whether all-mailed ballot elections may, in some circumstances, be more convenient for voters than traditional elections, in which voters may request to vote by mail, but are not compelled to do so. 3. Monterey Pilot Project : AB 319 (Salinas), Chapter 385, Statutes of 2001, allowed Monterey County to conduct any election within the county wholly by mail, provided that the election did not contain a state or federal office. AB 319 specified that it was to serve as a pilot project for mailed ballot elections, and required Monterey County to report to the Legislature and the SOS regarding the success of the election, AB 413 (YAMADA) Page 5 including, but not limited to, any statistics on the increase of voter fraud. The pilot project ended on December 31, 2005. AB 591 (Salinas) of 2006, sought to extend the pilot project until December 31, 2008, but that bill failed after never being heard in the Senate Elections, Reapportionment and Constitutional Amendments Committee. Unfortunately, the report filed by Monterey County as part of the pilot project lacked much of the information that is necessary to evaluate the impacts of the pilot project. Although the report indicated that mailed ballot elections increased turnout, decreased costs, and did not result in voter fraud, the report lacked the detail necessary to evaluate these claims. 4. Previous Legislation : AB 1681 (Yamada) of 2010, was similar to this bill. AB 1681 was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger, who expressed concern that, "?with limited options to vote in-person citizens-especially poor, elderly, and disabled voters-would not have sufficient opportunity to vote." AB 1228 (Yamada) of 2009, was similar to AB 1681, except that AB 1228 would have allowed both Yolo and Santa Clara Counties to participate in the all-mail ballot pilot project. AB 1228 was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger. PRIOR ACTION Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee: 5-2 Assembly Floor: 50-22 POSITIONS Sponsor: Yolo County Clerk/Recorder Support: City Clerks Association of California Disability Rights California League of California Cities Progressive States Action AB 413 (YAMADA) Page 6 Regional Council of Rural Counties Oppose: None received AB 413 (YAMADA) Page 7