BILL ANALYSIS Ó ACA 2 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 13, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Jimmy Gomez, Chair ACA 2 (Mullin) - As Introduced February 24, 2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Elections and Redistricting |Vote:|4 - 2 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This measure proposes to amend the State Constitution to allow a citizen who is 17-years-old, but will be 18 at the time of the next general election, to register and vote in that election and any intervening primary or special election. ACA 2 Page 2 FISCAL EFFECT: 1)One-time General Fund costs of about $220,000 to include an analysis of the measure, and arguments for and against the measure, in the statewide voter pamphlet. 2)County election officials would incur minor one-time costs to reprogram computer systems. Statewide costs would probably be in the range of $100,000. COMMENTS: 1)Purpose. According to the author, "Young voters have the lowest turnout rate of any age demographic in California. For most young adults, their first contact with the political process is in high school through the mandated government class during their senior year or through volunteering on campaigns for community service credit. This is the time to give them ownership in the process by getting them to vote in primaries while they still have a connection to their school and community." 2)Other States. According to information provided by the author's office, the following states have enacted legislation or passed initiatives to allow 17-year-olds to vote in primary elections: Alaska, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia and Washington. 3)Prior Legislation. AB 30 (Price), Chapter 364, Statutes of 2009, allows a person who is 17 years of age to pre-register ACA 2 Page 3 to vote, provided he or she would otherwise meet all eligibility requirements. SB 113 (Jackson), Chapter 619, Statutes of 2014, expands pre-registration by authorizing a 16-year-old to pre-register to vote once pre-registration is in effect, provided he or she meets all other eligibility requirements. ACA 7 (Mullin) of 2013, which was substantially similar to this measure, was held on this committee's Suspense file. ACA 2 (Furutani) of 2009, was substantially similar to this measure. No vote was taken on the Assembly Floor and the measure died on the Inactive File. ACA 17 (Mullin) of 2005 and ACA 25 (Mullin) of 2004, were both substantially similar to this measure. For ACA 17 no vote was taken on the Assembly Floor and ACA 25 failed passage on the Assembly Floor. Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081 ACA 2 Page 4