BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 1986 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 2, 2012 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Felipe Fuentes, Chair AB 1986 (Davis) - As Amended: March 29, 2012 Policy Committee: ElectionsVote:5-2 Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: No Reimbursable: SUMMARY This bill modifies provisions of recently enacted legislation requiring the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to provide information to the Citizens Redistricting Commission (CRC) regarding the last known address of inmates incarcerated in adult correctional facilities within the state. Specifically, this bill: 1)Requires CDCR to: a) Provide the information regarding last known place of residence by census block rather than ZIP Code. b) Exclude all inmates in federal custody in a California facility and all inmates in state custody for whom a last known address cannot be determined. 2)Requests the CRC to: a) Refrain from publishing any information regarding any inmates' last known place of residence. b) Exclude any inmates per (1) (b) and any inmates' whose last known residence is outside California from the population count for any district, ward, or precinct. c) Adjust race and ethnicity data in districts, wards, and precincts containing state prisons to reflect reductions for inmates included in the population count of other districts, wards, and precincts. FISCAL EFFECT AB 1986 Page 2 The bill's modifications to current law should, at most, have a minor net fiscal impact to CDCR and the CRC. COMMENTS 1)Background and Purpose . AB 420 (Davis)/Chapter 548 of 2011, requested the CRC to count inmates, for purposes of redistricting, in their last known address rather than their place of incarceration. Because the state uses population data from the U.S. Census Bureau for redistricting purposes, individuals who are incarcerated in California traditionally have been counted at the place of incarceration when district lines are drawn for the state Legislature, Congress, and the Board of Equalization (BOE). Critics of that practice argue that it artificially inflates the political influence of districts where prisons are located, at the expense of other voters. This bill makes a number of changes to the provisions of AB 420 in an attempt to allow for that bill to be more effectively implemented. Specifically, this bill requires CDCR to provide residence information for inmates by census blocks, instead of by ZIP Codes, since census blocks are the unit of geography typically used to draw district lines. Additionally, this bill seeks to provide greater guidance to the CRC about how to deal with inmates for whom reliable residence information is not available. 2)CRC . The CRC was established through Proposition 11 in 2008 to establish district lines for the Assembly, Senate and BOE. Proposition 20 of 2010 expanded the CRC's responsibility to include establishing lines for the state's congressional districts. Because Propositions 11 and 20 established the CRC in the California Constitution, and gave it the independent authority, it is unclear whether the Legislature can require the CRC to adjust census figures for redistricting purposes. AB 420, therefore, did not require the CRC to adjust census figures, but rather requested that it do so. AB 1986 similarly requested the CRC to comply with its modifications to AB 420. Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081 AB 1986 Page 3