BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 813
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 9, 2013

                  ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
                                  Paul Fong, Chair
                   AB 813 (Melendez) - As Amended:  March 14, 2013
           
          SUBJECT  :   Election results.

           SUMMARY  :   Requires elections officials to post election results  
          on the Internet in a downloadable spreadsheet format, as  
          specified.  Specifically,  this bill  :  

          1)Requires each local elections official to post the certified  
            statement of the results of an election on his or her Internet  
            Web site in a downloadable spreadsheet format that may  
            include, but is not limited to, a comma-separated values file  
            or a tab-separated values file and that is compatible with a  
            spreadsheet software application that is widely used at the  
            time of posting.

          2)Requires the Secretary of State (SOS), after preparing a  
            certified statement of the vote for elections for specified  
            offices, to post that statement on his or her Internet Web  
            site in a downloadable spreadsheet format that may include,  
            but is not limited to, a comma-separated values file or a  
            tab-separated values file and that is compatible with a  
            spreadsheet software application that is widely used at the  
            time of posting.

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Requires the elections official who conducts an election to  
            prepare a certified statement of the results of the election  
            and submit it to the governing body within 28 days of the  
            election or, in the case of school district, community college  
            district, county board of education, or special district  
            elections conducted on the first Tuesday after the first  
            Monday in November of odd-numbered years, no later than the  
            last Monday before the last Friday of that month.

          2)Requires the SOS to compile results and prepare, certify, and  
            file a statement of the vote from the compiled results for all  
            of the following:

             a)   All candidates for statewide office;







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             b)   All candidates for Assembly, State Senate, Congress,  
               Board of Equalization, Supreme Court, and Court of Appeal;  
               and,

             c)   All statewide measures.

          3)Requires an elections official to send the SOS, in an  
            electronic format, the results of all of the following:

             a)   All candidates voted for the following offices:

               i)     Statewide office;

               ii)    Member of the Assembly;

               iii)   Member of the Senate;

               iv)    Member of the United States House of  
                 Representatives;

               v)     Member of the State Board of Equalization;

               vi)    Justice of the Court of Appeal; and,

               vii)   Judge of the superior court;

             b)   The persons voted for at the presidential primary;

             c)   The vote given for persons for electors of President and  
               Vice President of the United States;

             d)   All statewide measures; and,

             e)   The total number of ballots cast.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  Unknown.  State-mandated local program; contains  
          reimbursement direction.

           COMMENTS  :   

           1)Purpose of the Bill  :  According to the author:

               Current California election law requires only one  
               paper copy of the results of an election to be posted  







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               where the votes were counted for public inspection.  
               However, modern technology makes this law seem  
               prehistoric and in need of updating. It also does not  
               provide an adequate way for an individual to analyze  
               election data to maintain that the election was done  
               honestly.
                
               Voting is a fundamental right. It is imperative we  
               ensure our elections are carried out with the utmost  
               integrity. Technology has provided greater avenues for  
               ways of transparency like never before. It is  
               important that we utilize them.

           2)Electronic Results  :  Existing law already requires elections  
            officials to provide results in an electronic format for  
            certain elections.  Specifically, county elections officials  
            are required to provide the SOS with results in an electronic  
            format for elections for state and federal office, and for  
            statewide ballot measures.  State law provides for these  
            results to be transmitted electronically to the SOS in the  
            manner requested by the SOS, but does not explicitly state a  
            specific format in which those results must appear.

          Most county elections officials already make election results  
            available on their Internet Web sites-57 of 58 county  
            elections officials have results posted on the Internet for  
            the most recent election held in the county, and 52 of 58  
            county elections officials have results for at least some  
            elections prior to the most recent election.  In most cases,  
            however, elections results are available in HTML or PDF  
            format, and not in a format that can easily be imported into a  
            spreadsheet application.  At least seven counties, however,  
            currently provide election results on their Internet Web sites  
            in a format that appears to comply with the requirements of  
            this bill.  
           
           3)All Elections, All Jurisdictions  :  The provisions of this bill  
            apply to all public elections held in California, including  
            standalone city, school district, and special district  
            elections.  While county elections officials conduct elections  
            on behalf of most school districts and special districts, and  
            on behalf of some cities, there are a number of cities that  
            conduct their own elections.  In every instance, this bill  
            would require the elections official to maintain a public  
            website and to post election results in a specified format on  







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            that website, regardless of the size of the jurisdiction, of  
            whether the elections official currently maintains a public  
            Web site, and of whether the elections official uses a system  
            that allows for the statement of the results to be easily  
            prepared in a format that is in compliance with the  
            requirements of this bill.  

          To minimize the burden of this bill, the committee may wish to  
            consider amending this bill to make it applicable only to  
            local jurisdictions that use a system that has the capability  
            to generate results in a format that complies with this bill.   
            Additionally, the committee may wish to consider an amendment  
            to provide that if a jurisdiction has that capability, but  
            does not have a Web site, the official shall not be required  
            to create one for the purposes of posting the information  
            required by this bill, but instead shall provide the election  
            results electronically upon request by any person.

           4)Duration of Posting :  Because this bill does not specify a  
            duration of time for which the election results are required  
            to be posted, it appears that this bill would require election  
            results to be posted on the elections official's Web site  
            permanently.  The committee may wish to consider whether it  
            would be appropriate to set a limit on the length of time that  
            an elections official is required to keep election results  
            posted on his or her Web site.  
           
           5)Concerns Expressed  :  While not taking a formal position on  
            this bill, the California Association of Clerks and Election  
            Officials (CACEO) expressed a number of concerns with this  
            bill.  Specifically, CACEO expressed concerns that some  
            counties may need to have changes made to their voting systems  
            to comply with this bill, requiring a recertification of those  
            systems; that the cost of this bill may be significant and the  
            state may not reimburse local jurisdictions for these costs;  
            that the specified format for the posting of election results  
            is vague; and that the election results may be manipulated by  
            the public and presented in an alternate fashion, thereby  
            putting the integrity of the results in question.  
           
           6)State Mandates  :  The 2011-12 and 2012-13 state budgets  
            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  







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            for suspension again by the Governor in his budget for the  
            2013-14 fiscal year.  

          This bill would establish a new state-mandated local program by  
            requiring each local elections official to post election  
            results on his or her Internet Web site in a specified format.  
             To the extent that a local elections official does not  
            already have the election results in a format that is  
            compliant with the requirements of this bill, this bill could  
            also create new state-mandated costs for the elections  
            official to create such a document.  The Committee may wish to  
            consider whether it is desirable to establish this new  
            mandates when the Legislature has voted to suspend the  
            existing election mandates.  
           
           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
           
          Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club
          Six individuals

           Opposition 
           
          None on file.
           
          Analysis Prepared by  :    Ethan Jones / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094