BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  AB 829
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          Date of Hearing:   April 17, 2013

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                  Mike Gatto, Chair

                  AB 829 (Fong) - As Introduced:  February 21, 2013 

          Policy Committee:                              ElectionsVote:7-0  
          (Consent)

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:               

           SUMMARY  

          This bill:

          1)Requires vendors of "elections management systems," which  
            track voter registration, to annually deposit a copy of the  
            source code, as specified, for each system component into an  
            approved escrow facility, and stipulates that the Secretary of  
            State (SOS) shall have access to these materials under  
            specified circumstances.

          2)Requires the SOS to adopt regulations implementing the above  
            requirements.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Minor absorbable costs to the SOS, as this bill is modeled after  
          previous legislation requiring the placing of source codes for  
          voting systems into escrow.

           COMMENTS  

           Purpose  . Current law requires voting system vendors to place  
          their source code in an escrow facility.  This requirement is  
          intended to ensure the security of the voting system and protect  
          these systems from unauthorized tampering. This also ensures  
          that the state and local jurisdictions have access to voting  
          system materials if the vendor goes out of business.

          Election management systems are used to track voter registration  
          and voter preferences, such as a voter's vote-by-mail status.  
          Given the critical role these systems play in the conduct of  








                                                                  AB 829
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          elections, AB 829 establishes similar source code security  
          requirements for these systems.

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081