BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE GOVERNANCE & FINANCE COMMITTEE
Senator Lois Wolk, Chair
BILL NO: AB 408 HEARING: 6/12/13
AUTHOR: Bonta FISCAL: Yes
VERSION: 4/15/13 TAX LEVY: No
CONSULTANT: Austin
MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICTS' BOARD ELECTIONS
Allows seven member municipal utility district boards to
appoint board members to uncontested seats.
Background and Existing Law
In 1965, the Legislature approved the Uniform District
Election Law (UDEL), which allows special district boards
to appoint candidates for uncontested board seats (AB 1892,
Porter, 1965). Several special districts incorporated the
UDEL into their enabling acts giving them the same
authority to appoint uncontested candidates who are running
in uncontested races for seats on district boards.
Current law allows cities, regional park and open-space
districts, water storage districts, water replenishment
districts, school districts, and special districts that
have incorporated UDEL into their enabling acts to appoint
uncontested candidates in place of elections.
In 1921, the Legislature enacted the Municipal Utility
District (MUD) Act (SB 755, Spence, 1921). The
Legislature later allowed any district formed prior to
January 1, 1974, with a population of 1,000,000 or more on
that date to increase the size of its board of directors
from five to seven members (SB 379, Nejedley, 1973).
East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) has a publicly
elected seven-member board of directors. EBMUD was
established by vote in 1923, and provides drinking water
for 1.3 million customers in Alameda and Contra Costa
counties. EBMUD supplies water to East Bay customers and
treats wastewater before it is discharged to the bay.
Unlike most other local governments, EBMUD's principal act
does not allow its board to appoint candidates to seats
AB 408 -- 4/15/13 -- Page 2
that are uncontested in an election. EBMUD wants the same
authority to appoint candidates to its board directors that
state law grants to other local governments.
Proposed Law
AB 408 allows seven member municipal utility district
boards, at a regular or special meeting held within a 7 day
period beginning after 5pm on or before the 83rd day of the
election and ending on or before the 76th day prior to
election, to adopt one of the following courses of action:
If one person files for candidacy, appoint that
person or hold an election; or,
If no person files for candidacy, appoint any
qualified person or hold an election.
AB 408 establishes appointment procedures for municipal
utility districts with a seven-member board of directors,
if no candidate or only one candidate files for candidacy
by 5 p.m. on or before the 83rd day prior to the election.
Specifically the bill:
Requires a county elections official to submit a
certificate of facts to the district board if no
candidate or only one candidate files for candidacy by
5 p.m. on or before the 83rd day prior to the
election.
Allows the board to adopt a process to appoint any
qualified person to office on or before the 76th day
prior to the election, and requires the board, upon
adoption of the process, to make the actual
appointment prior to the election.
Requires the board to hold an election for the
office, if an appointment has not been made or an
appointment process has not been adopted by the 76th
day prior to the election.
Requires appointed directors to take office and
serve exactly as if elected at an election for the
office.
Prohibits the elections official from accepting any
statement filing of a write-in candidate submitted
after an appointment is made.
States that this bill's provisions are effective
for any election that takes place after January 1,
2014.
AB 408 -- 4/15/13 -- Page 3
AB 408 provides that no reimbursement will be made because
the local agency is requesting the authority established by
this bill.
State Revenue Impact
No estimate.
Comments
1. Purpose of the bill . East Bay Municipal Utility
District is looking for ways to be more efficient and cut
costs. In the last 6 EBMUD elections, races for 15 of the
available 21 elected seats were uncontested. Although,
the candidates ran unopposed, EBMUD's ratepayers had to pay
for the election costs. It appears that in the two
counties EBMUD serves (Alameda and Contra Costa), EBMUD is
the only special district that cannot use an appointment
process for uncontested elections. For the 2011-2012
election the author's office identified 36 special
districts in Alameda and Contra Costa counties that used an
appointment process for uncontested election candidates.
For that same election, EBMUD's ratepayers paid $475,000 in
election costs for three uncontested seats because the MUD
Act does not contain the appointment provisions. AB 408
adds appointment provisions that will be used to save EBMUD
ratepayers money.
2. Apply to all ? EBMUD and Sacramento Municipal Utility
District (SMUD) have seven member boards. The other three
MUDs have five member boards. AB 408 only applies to MUDs
with seven member boards. If the bill's provisions are
good for districts with seven member boards, should this
tool also be available for others? The Committee may wish
to consider amending AB 408 to apply to all MUDs.
Assembly Actions
AB 408 -- 4/15/13 -- Page 4
Assembly Local Government 9-0
Assembly Elections and Redistricting 70-0
Assembly Appropriations 17-0
Assembly Floor 70-0
Support and Opposition (6/6/13)
Support : East Bay Municipal Utility District; California
Association of Sanitation Agencies; California Special
Districts Association; Sacramento Municipal Utility
District.
Opposition : Unknown.