BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                            SENATE COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS
                            AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
                           Senator Norma J. Torres, Chair


          BILL NO:   SCA 16              HEARING DATE:  4/22/14
          AUTHOR:    STEINBERG           ANALYSIS BY:   Frances Tibon  
          Estoista
          AMENDED:   AS INTRODUCED
          FISCAL:    YES
          
                                        SUBJECT
           
          Members of the Legislature:  vacancy

                                      DESCRIPTION  
          
           Existing law  vests the Governor with specific appointing  
          authority.  Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the  
          Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Lieutenant Governor,  
          Secretary of State, Controller, Treasurer, or Attorney General,  
          or on the State Board of Equalization, the Governor shall  
          nominate a person to fill the vacancy who shall take office upon  
          confirmation by a majority of the membership of the Senate and a  
          majority of the membership of the Assembly.  In the event the  
          nominee is neither confirmed nor refused confirmation by both  
          the Senate and the Assembly within 90 days of the submission of  
          the nomination, the nominee shall take office as if he or she  
          had been confirmed by a majority of the Senate and Assembly;  
          provided, that if such 90-day period ends during a recess of the  
          Legislature, the period shall be extended until the sixth day  
          following the day on which the Legislature reconvenes.

           Existing law  provides that whenever a vacancy occurs in a county  
          board of supervisors, the Governor shall fill the vacancy.  The  
          appointee shall hold office until the election and qualification  
          of his or her successor.

           Existing law  per the California Constitution, allows the  
          Governor to appoint or nominate a person to fill a vacancy on  
          the California Supreme Court, the court of appeal, as well as to  
          the California Superior Court, provided the individual is  
          confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. 

           Existing law  , per the California Constitution, requires the  
          Governor to call an election to fill a vacancy occurring in  
          either house of the Legislature.








           Existing law  provides for all of the following regarding special  
          elections called by the Governor to fill a legislative vacancy:

                 The Governor must issue a proclamation calling a special  
               election within 14 calendar days of the occurrence of a  
               vacancy in a legislative office, unless that vacancy occurs  
               after the close of the nomination period in the final year  
               of the term of office.  When a vacancy occurs in a  
               legislative office after the close of the nomination period  
               in the final year of the term of office, no special  
               election may be held.

                 A special general election to fill a vacancy in a  
               legislative office must be conducted on a Tuesday that is  
               at least 126 days, but not more than 140 days, following  
               the issuance of a proclamation by the Governor calling that  
               special election.  A special general election may be  
               conducted within 180 days following the issuance of a  
               proclamation so that the election or the primary election  
               may be consolidated with the next regularly scheduled  
               statewide election or local election occurring wholly or  
               partially within the same territory in which the vacancy  
               exists, provided that the voters eligible to vote in the  
               local election comprise at least 50 percent of all the  
               voters eligible to vote on the vacancy. 

                 A special primary election must be held in the district  
               in which the vacancy occurred on the ninth Tuesday prior to  
               the special general election.  If the ninth Tuesday prior  
               to the special general election is the day of, or the day  
               after a state holiday, the special primary election shall  
               be held on the tenth Tuesday prior to the special general  
               election. 

                 All candidates are listed on one ballot and if any  
               candidate receives a majority of all votes cast in the  
               special primary election, he or she shall be declared  
               elected, and no special general election is held.

                 If only one candidate qualifies to have his or her name  
               printed on the special general election ballot, that  
               candidate shall be declared elected, and no special general  
               election is held.

           This constitutional amendment  instead proposes that when a  
          vacancy occurs in the Legislature, the Governor shall fill the  
          vacancy by appointment within 21 days of the date of the  
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          vacancy.  

           This constitutional amendment  specifically provides for all of  
          the following:

                 A person appointed shall have, at the time of the  
               appointment and during the 12-month period immediately  
               preceding, the same political party preference as the  
               vacating Member had at the time he or she was last elected  
               to the Legislature.  If the vacating Member declined to  
               disclose a political party preference at the time he or she  
               was last elected to the Legislature, the Governor may make  
               an appointment regardless of political party preference.

                 Within 21 days of an appointment, excluding any period  
               during which the house is in recess, the house to which the  
               appointment is made may reject the appointment by a  
               rollcall vote entered in the journal, a majority of the  
               membership of the house concurring.  If the house rejects  
               the appointment, the Governor shall make another  
               appointment within 21 days of the date of the rejection,  
               subject to rejection by the house.

                 If an appointment is not rejected, the appointee is  
               eligible to take office on the day following the 21-day  
               (rejection) period, and serve until the end of the term of  
               the office to which the appointee is appointed.

                 In the case of a seat in the Senate, the term of which  
               does not end in the same year as the end of the biennium of  
               the regular session of the Legislature during which the  
               vacancy occurred, the appointee shall not serve the  
               remainder of the unexpired term. Instead, a special  
               election is to be held on the date of the statewide  general   
               election immediately preceding the end of the biennium of  
               the regular session to fill the remainder of the unexpired  
               term, provided that the election occurs not sooner after  
               the date of the vacancy than a period specified by law.  If  
               a special election is not held, the appointee shall serve  
               the remainder of the unexpired term.

           This constitutional amendment  makes other clarifying and  
          grammatical changes.

                                      BACKGROUND 
          
          Over the years the California Legislature has had to grapple  
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          with a proliferation of special elections.  Since 2010, there  
          have been a total of 18 separate vacancies in the California  
          Legislature resulting in 24 special elections, not including  
          those that were consolidated into regular scheduled primary or  
          general elections.

          Special elections are generally unexpected; therefore, counties  
          cannot forecast the cost in their budgets.  For example, in 14  
          special elections for state legislative seats dating back to  
          2008, Los Angeles County spent more than $20 million to fill  
          vacancies.  The price tag of special elections is more  
          concerning when factored with low voter turnout. The average  
          turnout for special elections for state legislative vacancies  
          hovers around 15 percent. 

          As seen from practice, a special election tends to lead to  
          another special election.  Seven of the last eleven special  
          elections for state legislative seats have been called when a  
          legislator was elected to another office.

                                       COMMENTS  
          
            1. According to the Author  :  SCA 16 saves local taxpayer  
             dollars, reduces the time constituencies are unrepresented,  
             and improves voter turnout for unscheduled vacancies.

           The Governor currently appoints replacements for vacancies in  
             either United States Senate seat and of constitutional  
             offices until the next statewide election.  SCA 16 expands on  
             that power to include vacancies in either house of the State  
             Legislature. Currently, the governor must call a special  
             election to fill those vacancies. 

           SCA 16 ensures that the democratically elected governor and  
             members of the Legislature agree on the governor's  
             appointment to fill the vacancy until the next statewide  
             election, protecting the right of every Californian to elect  
             their representative.

            2. Staff Comments  .  Under this measure if the applicable house  
             of the Legislature continually rejects the Governor's  
             appointees, the vacancy could last until the next regularly  
             scheduled election for that seat.

           This measure also provides that a Senate vacancy occurring in  
             the first two-years of the vacated term will force a special  
             election to be consolidated with the statewide general  
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             election.  It is unclear if a special primary election and  
             special general election are to be held, or if the vacancy is  
             to be filled in a single election.

            3. Related Legislation  :  SB 963 (Torres) and SB 942 (Vidak)  
             introduced this year, are county reimbursement bills for the  
             conduct of special elections.  Both bills are on the Senate  
             Appropriations Suspense calendar.

             AB 2273 (Ridley-Thomas) is identical to SB 963 above, and is  
             currently on the Assembly Appropriations Suspense file.

             SB 519 (Emmerson) of 2013, SB 106 (Blakeslee) and SB 141  
             (Price) both of 2011 and SB 994 (Price) of 2010 all dealt  
             with county reimbursement for special vacancy elections, and  
             all were held on the Senate Appropriation Suspense file.

             AB 496 (Davis) of 2010, mirrored language in SB 994 (Price),  
             and was held in Senate Appropriations Committee.  AB 1769  
             (Tran) of 2010, also similar to SB 963, was held in Assembly  
             Appropriations Committee.

             First implemented by AB 37 (Johnson), Chapter 39, Statutes of  
             1993, the state reimbursed counties for the costs of special  
             elections held to fill vacancies in the Assembly, Senate, and  
             Congress from 1993 through 2007.  Since 2008, there have been  
             numerous, but unsuccessful, legislative attempts to extend  
             this reimbursement provision.

                                       POSITIONS  
          
          Sponsor: Author

           Support: None received

           Oppose:  California Taxpayers Association 
                    Urban Counties Caucus










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