BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2054
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Date of Hearing: April 17, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
Paul Fong, Chair
AB 2054 (Fong) - As Amended: March 28, 2012
SUBJECT : Elections: vote by mail ballots.
SUMMARY : Allows a vote by mail (VBM) voter to return his or
her ballot to any polling place within the state, instead of
being limited to polling places within the jurisdiction of the
elections official who issued the ballot. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Permits a properly cast VBM ballot to be returned in person to
any member of a precinct board at any polling place within the
state, instead of being limited to polling places within the
jurisdiction of the elections official who issued the ballot.
2)Provides that if a VBM ballot is returned to a precinct board
of a polling place located in a county other than the county
from which the ballot was issued, the elections official
responsible for that polling place shall forward the ballot to
the elections official who issued it.
3)Provides that VBM ballots that are forwarded pursuant to this
bill to the jurisdiction of issuance that are not included in
the semifinal official canvass phase of the election shall be
processed and counted during the official canvass.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires all VBM ballots to be cast on or before the day of
the election. Provides that after marking the ballot, the VBM
voter must do either of the following:
a) Return the ballot by mail or in person to the elections
official from whom it came; or,
b) Return the ballot in person to any member of a precinct
board at any polling place within
the jurisdiction of the elections official who issued the
ballot.
2)Provides that every VBM ballot must be received by either the
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elections official from whom it came or a precinct board
within the jurisdiction before the close of the polls on
election day.
3)Requires an elections official to establish procedures to
ensure the secrecy of any ballot returned to a precinct
polling place and the security, confidentiality, and integrity
of any personal information collected, stored, or otherwise
used.
4)Requires VBM ballots that are returned to the elections office
and to the polls on election day and that are not included in
the semifinal official canvass to be processed and counted
during the official canvass.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown. State-mandated local program; contains
reimbursement direction.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of the Bill : According to the author:
Earlier this year, the Assembly Elections and Redistricting
Committee and the Senate Elections and Constitutional
Amendments Committee held a joint oversight hearing to
discuss the United States Postal Service closures and the
impact on voters and the upcoming presidential elections.
During the hearing, five county elections officials
testified to the impact that recent post office and
processing facility closures were having on their
jurisdictions as well as the anticipated challenges they
saw ahead with more closures expected.
One of the major impacts affecting the counties is mail
delivery time delays. Some counties experienced mail
delivery time delays of up to 5-7 days as opposed to the
usual 1-3 day mail delivery time.
The Postal Service has 15 more processing facilities
proposed for closure in California. And while the Postal
Service has agreed to a moratorium on closing or
consolidating additional post offices or processing
facilities until May 15th, there is no timeline in place
for facility closures after the moratorium expires.
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Existing law requires a voted vote by mail ballot to be
received by either the elections official who issued the
ballot or the precinct board within their county before the
closing of the polls on election day.
The new circumstances surrounding the elections will
present new challenges for voters, especially those who
vote by mail, particularly in light of the increase in
voting by mail.
Voters who mail their ballots within a reasonable timeframe
could, through no fault of their own, find themselves
disenfranchised due to the mail delivery time delays.
AB 2054 helps protect vote by mail voters by providing them
with the option to drop off their voted ballot to any
county elections official or polling place within the state
by the close of the polls on election day.
2)Arguments in Support : Service Employees International Union of
California (SEIU) writes in support:
This bill is a proactive step towards the continued
enfranchisement of voters in light of postal office
closures by granting flexibility to ensure that their votes
are counted in any given election. Moreover, as California
is ranked 41st in State voter turnout, SEIU believes that
this bill will serve as a catalyst towards an increasingly
effective system for voter participation in the future.
3)State Mandates : The 2011-2012 state budget included the
suspension of various state mandates as a mechanism for cost
savings. Included on the list of suspensions were all six
existing elections-related mandates. All the existing
elections-related mandates have been proposed for suspension
again by the Governor in his budget for the 2012-2013 fiscal
year. The Committee may wish to consider whether it is
desirable to create new election mandates when current
elections-related mandates are suspended.
4)Previous Legislation : SB 199 (Correa) of 2011, which was
substantially similar to this bill, was vetoed by Governor
Brown. In his veto message, the Governor argued that
"Ýa]llowing voters to return their vote-by-mail ballot at any
polling location in the state will add complexity to the
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voting and election process without commensurate benefit.
California has liberal registration and vote-by-mail law that
are sufficient to allow the timely return of a vote-by-mail
ballot." However, the Governor vetoed this bill before there
was widespread attention and knowledge about the impacts of
the USPS closures.
AB 773 (Blakeslee) of 2007 was identical to this bill. AB 773
was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger. In his veto message,
the Governor argued that "Ýw]hile it may be convenient for a
small number of voters to return their ballots in counties
other than their county of residence, the extra costs to
counties and inherent delays associated with this measure do
not justify the provisions of this bill."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Secretary of State Debra Bowen
Service Employees International Union of California
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Nichole Becker / E. & R. / (916)
319-2094