Amended in Assembly June 17, 2014

Amended in Senate January 6, 2014

Senate BillNo. 113


Introduced by Senator Jackson

(Principal coauthor: Senator Calderon)

(Coauthors: Senators Leno and Padilla)

begin insert

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Alejo)

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January 15, 2013


An act to amend Sections 2102, 2106, 2150,begin delete 2155, and 2205end deletebegin insert 2156, 2205, and 2220end insert ofbegin insert, and to add Section 2155.3 to,end insert the Elections Code, relating to elections.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 113, as amended, Jackson. Elections: voter registration.

Existing law authorizes a person who is at least 17 years of age and otherwise meets all voter eligibility requirements to submit his or her affidavit of registration. The affidavit of registration is deemed effective as of the date the affiant will be 18 years of age. These provisions become operative when the Secretary of State certifies that the state has a statewide voter registration database that complies with the requirements of the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002.

This bill would lower the minimum age for purposes of submitting an affidavit of registration pursuant to these provisions to 16 years of age. The bill also would make conforming changes to existing law.

Existing law requires that, upon receipt of a properly executed affidavit of registration or address correction notice or letter, the county elections official send the voter a voter notification containing specified information.

This bill would require that, if an affidavit of registration is submitted by a person who is at least 16 years of age and otherwise meets all voter eligibility requirements, the county elections official sendbegin delete the voter notificationend deletebegin insert a pre-registration noticeend insert to that voterbegin delete not more than 60 days prior to the effective date of that affidavit of registrationend deletebegin insert upon a determination that the affidavit of registration is properly executed and that the person otherwise satisfies all eligibility requirements to voteend insert. The bill wouldbegin delete also make conforming changes to the voter notification formatend deletebegin insert prescribe the format of the voter pre-registration notice and make conforming changesend insert.

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Existing law requires a county elections official to conduct a preelection residency confirmation procedure by the 90th day immediately prior to the primary election, and requires the official to mail a nonforwardable postcard to each registered voter of the county preceding the direct primary election. Existing law provides that the official, at his or her discretion, is not required to mail the residency confirmation postcard to any voter who has voted at an election held within the last 6 months preceding the start of the procedure.

end insert
begin insert

This bill would provide that a county elections official is not required to mail a residency confirmation postcard to any person under 18 years of age who has submitted a properly executed affidavit of registration and who will not be 18 years of age on or before the primary election.

end insert

By imposing new requirements on local elections officials in processing voter registrations and sending voter notifications, the bill would create a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 2102 of the Elections Code, as amended
2by Section 2 of Chapter 364 of the Statutes of 2009, is amended
3to read:

P3    1

2102.  

(a) A person shall not be registered as a voter except by
2affidavit of registration. The affidavit shall be mailed or delivered
3to the county elections official and shall set forth all of the facts
4required to be shown by this chapter. A properly executed
5registration shall be deemed effective upon receipt of the affidavit
6by the county elections official if received on or before the 15th
7day prior to an election to be held in the registrant’s precinct. A
8properly executed registration shall also be deemed effective upon
9receipt of the affidavit by the county elections official if any of
10the following apply:

11(1) The affidavit is postmarked on or before the 15th day prior
12to the election and received by mail by the county elections official.

13(2) The affidavit is submitted to the Department of Motor
14Vehicles or accepted by any other public agency designated as a
15voter registration agency pursuant to the federal National Voter
16Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1973gg) on or before the
1715th day prior to the election.

18(3) The affidavit is delivered to the county elections official by
19means other than those described in paragraph (1) or (2) on or
20before the 15th day prior to the election.

21(b) For purposes of verifying signatures on a recall, initiative,
22or referendum petition or signatures on a nomination paper or any
23other election petition or election paper, a properly executed
24affidavit of registration shall be deemed effective for verification
25purposes if both of the following conditions are satisfied:

26(1) The affidavit is signed on the same date or a date prior to
27the signing of the petition or paper.

28(2) The affidavit is received by the county elections official on
29or before the date on which the petition or paper is filed.

30(c) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the affidavit
31of registration required under this chapter may not be taken under
32sworn oath, but the content of the affidavit shall be certified as to
33its truthfulness and correctness, under penalty of perjury, by the
34signature of the affiant.

35(d) A person who is at least 16 years of age and otherwise meets
36all eligibility requirements to vote may submit his or her affidavit
37of registration as prescribed by this section. A properly executed
38registration made pursuant to this subdivision shall be deemed
39effective as of the date the affiant will be 18 years of age, if the
40information in the affidavit of registration is still current at that
P4    1time. If the information provided by the affiant in the affidavit of
2registration is not current at the time that the registration would
3otherwise become effective, for his or her registration to become
4effective, the affiant shall provide the current information to the
5proper county elections official as prescribed by this chapter.

6

SEC. 2.  

Section 2106 of the Elections Code, as amended by
7Section 3 of Chapter 364 of the Statutes of 2009, is amended to
8read:

9

2106.  

A program adopted by a county pursuant to Section 2103
10or 2105, that is designed to encourage the registration of electors,
11shall, with respect to a printed literature or media announcement
12made in connection with these programs, contain this statement:
13“A person entitled to register to vote must be a United States
14citizen, a resident of California, not in prison or on parole for the
15conviction of a felony, and at least 18 years of age at the time of
16the election. A person may preregister to vote if he or she is a
17United States citizen, a resident of California, not in prison or on
18parole for the conviction of a felony, and at least 16 years of age.”
19A county elections official may continue to use existing materials
20before printing new or revised materials required by any changes
21to this section.

22

SEC. 3.  

Section 2150 of the Elections Code, as amended by
23Chapter 364 of the Statutes of 2009, is amended to read:

24

2150.  

(a) The affidavit of registration shall show:

25(1) The facts necessary to establish the affiant as an elector.

26(2) The affiant’s name at length, including his or her given
27name, and a middle name or initial, or if the initial of the given
28name is customarily used, then the initial and middle name. The
29affiant’s given name may be preceded, at affiant’s option, by the
30designation of Miss, Ms., Mrs., or Mr. A person shall not be denied
31the right to register because of his or her failure to mark a prefix
32to the given name and shall be so advised on the voter registration
33card. This subdivision shall not be construed as requiring the
34printing of prefixes on an affidavit of registration.

35(3) The affiant’s place of residence, residence telephone number,
36if furnished, and e-mail address, if furnished. A person shall not
37be denied the right to register because of his or her failure to furnish
38a telephone number or e-mail address, and shall be so advised on
39the voter registration card.

P5    1(4) The affiant’s mailing address, if different from the place of
2residence.

3(5) The affiant’s date of birth to establish that he or she will be
4at least 18 years of age on or before the date of the next election.
5In the case of an affidavit of registration submitted pursuant to
6subdivision (d) of Section 2102, the affiant’s date of birth to
7establish that he or she is at least 16 years of age.

8(6) The state or country of the affiant’s birth.

9(7) (A) In the case of an applicant who has been issued a current
10and valid driver’s license, the applicant’s driver’s license number.

11(B) In the case of any other applicant, other than an applicant
12to whom subparagraph (C) applies, the last four digits of the
13applicant’s social security number.

14(C) If an applicant for voter registration has not been issued a
15current and valid driver’s license or a social security number, the
16state shall assign the applicant a number that will serve to identify
17the applicant for voter registration purposes. To the extent that the
18state has a computerized list in effect under this subdivision and
19the list assigns unique identifying numbers to registrants, the
20number assigned under this subparagraph shall be the unique
21identifying number assigned under the list.

22(8) The affiant’s political party preference.

23(9) That the affiant is currently not imprisoned or on parole for
24the conviction of a felony.

25(10) A prior registration portion indicating whether the affiant
26has been registered at another address, under another name, or as
27preferring another party. If the affiant has been so registered, he
28or she shall give an additional statement giving that address, name,
29or party.

30(b) The affiant shall certify the content of the affidavit as to its
31truth and correctness, under penalty of perjury, with the signature
32of his or her name and the date of signing. If the affiant is unable
33to write he or she shall sign with a mark or cross.

34(c) The affidavit of registration shall also contain a space that
35would enable the affiant to state his or her ethnicity or race, or
36both. An affiant shall not be denied the ability to register because
37he or she declines to state his or her ethnicity or race.

38(d) If a person, including a deputy registrar, assists the affiant
39in completing the affidavit, that person shall sign and date the
40affidavit below the signature of the affiant.

P6    1(e) The affidavit of registration shall also contain a space to
2permit the affiant to apply for permanent vote by mail status.

3(f) The Secretary of State may continue to supply existing
4affidavits of registration to county elections officials prior to
5printing new or revised forms that reflect the changes made to this
6section by the act that added this subdivision.

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7

SEC. 4.  

Section 2155 of the Elections Code is amended to read:

8

2155.  

(a) (1) Upon receipt of a properly executed affidavit of
9registration or address correction notice or letter pursuant to Section
102119, Article 2 (commencing with Section 2220), or the National
11Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1973gg), the county
12elections official shall send the voter a voter notification.

13(2) For a properly executed affidavit of registration made
14 pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 2102, as amended by the
15act adding this paragraph, the county elections official shall send
16the voter notification not more than 60 days prior to the effective
17date of that affidavit of registration.

18(b) The county elections official shall send the voter notification
19by nonforwardable, first-class mail, address correction requested.
20The voter notification shall state the party preference for which
21the voter has registered in the following format:

22Party: (Name of political party)

23The voter notification shall be substantially in the following
24form:
25

26VOTER NOTIFICATION
27

28You are registered to vote. The party preference you chose, if
29any, is on this card. This card is being sent as a notification of:

301. Your recently completed affidavit of registration.

3132OR,
33

342. A change to your registration because of an official notice
35that you have moved. If your residence address has not changed
36or if your move is temporary, please call or write to our office
37immediately.

P7    1OR,
2

33. Your recent registration with a change in party preference.
4If this change is not correct, please call or write to our office
5immediately.

67OR,
8

94. A change to your registration from pending to active, because
10you will be 18 and eligible to vote.


11

 

   

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14You may vote in any election held 15 or more days after the date
15on this card.

16Your name will appear on the index kept at the polls.

17If the information shown on the reverse side of this card is
18incorrect, please complete a new affidavit of registration at the
19online voter registration page of the Internet Web site of the
20Secretary of State or contact our office.

 

   

(Signature of Voter)

P7   24

 

end delete
25begin insert

begin insertSEC. 4.end insert  

end insert

begin insertSection 2155.3 is added to the end insertbegin insertElections Codeend insertbegin insert, to read:end insert

begin insert
26

begin insert2155.3.end insert  

(a) In lieu of the voter notification required by Section
272155, a person under 18 years of age who submits an affidavit of
28registration pursuant to Section 2101 or subdivision (d) of Section
292102, as amended by the act adding this section shall be sent a
30voter pre-registration notice upon a determination that the affidavit
31of registration is properly executed and that the person otherwise
32satisfies all eligibility requirements to vote. The county elections
33official shall send the voter pre-registration notice by
34nonforwardable, first-class mail, address correction requested.

35(b) The voter pre-registration notice required by subdivision
36(a) shall be substantially in the following form:

P8    1VOTER PRE-REGISTRATION NOTICE
2

3Thank you for registering to vote. You may vote in any election
4held on or after your 18th birthday.

5Your party preference is: (Name of political party)

6Before any election in which you are eligible to vote, you will
7receive a sample ballot and voter pamphlet by mail.

8If the information on this card is incorrect, please contact our
9office or update your registration at the Internet Web site of the
10Secretary of State.

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11begin insert

begin insertSEC. 5.end insert  

end insert

begin insertSection 2156 of the end insertbegin insertElections Codeend insertbegin insert is amended to read:end insert

12

2156.  

The Secretary of State shall print, or cause to be printed,
13the blank forms of the voter notification prescribed by Section
142155begin insert and the voter pre-registration notice prescribed by Section
152155.3end insert
. The Secretary of State shall supply the forms to the county
16elections official in quantities and at times requested by the county
17elections official. The Secretary of State may continue to supply,
18and the county elections officials may continue to use, existing
19begin delete voter notificationend delete forms prior to printing new or revised forms as
20required by any changes to Section 2155begin insert or 2155.3end insert.

21

begin deleteSEC. 5.end delete
22begin insertSEC. 6.end insert  

Section 2205 of the Elections Code, as amended by
23Section 5 of Chapter 364 of the Statutes of 2009, is amended to
24read:

25

2205.  

The local registrar of births and deaths shall notify the
26county elections official not later than the 15th day of each month
27of all deceased persons 16 years of age and over, whose deaths
28were registered with him or her or of whose deaths he or she was
29notified by the State Registrar of Vital Statistics during the
30preceding month. This notification shall include at least the name,
31sex, age, birthplace, birth date, place of residence, and date and
32place of death of each decedent.

33The county elections official shall cancel the affidavit of
34registration of the deceased voter.

35begin insert

begin insertSEC. 7.end insert  

end insert

begin insertSection 2220 of the end insertbegin insertElections Codeend insertbegin insert is amended to read:end insert

36

2220.  

(a) The county elections official shall conduct a
37preelection residency confirmation procedure as provided in this
38article. This procedure shall be completed by the 90th day
39immediately prior to the primary election. The procedure shall be
40initiated by mailing a nonforwardable postcard to each registered
P9    1voter of the county preceding the direct primary election. Postcards
2mailed pursuant to this article shall be sent “Address Correction
3Requested, Return Postage Guaranteed,” and shall be in
4substantially the following form:

5“We are requesting your assistance in correcting the addresses
6of voters who have moved and have not reregistered.

7“1. If you still live at the address noted on this postcard, your
8voter registration will remain in effect and you may disregard this
9notice.

10“2. If the person named on this postcard is not at this address,
11please return this postcard to your mail carrier.”

12(b) The county elections official, at his or her discretion, shall
13not be required to mail a residency confirmation postcard pursuant
14to subdivision (a)begin delete,end delete to any voter who has voted at an election held
15within the last six months preceding the start of the confirmation
16procedurebegin insert or to any person under 18 years of age who has
17submitted a properly executed affidavit of registration pursuant
18to subdivision (d) of Section 2102 and who will not be 18 years of
19age on or before the primary electionend insert
.

20

begin deleteSEC. 6.end delete
21begin insertSEC. 8.end insert  

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
22this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
23local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
24pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
254 of Title 2 of the Government Code.



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