BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AJR 13
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Date of Hearing: July 1, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
Sebastian Ridley-Thomas, Chair
AJR 13
(Ridley-Thomas) - As Introduced April 7, 2015
SUBJECT: The Voting Rights Act of 1965.
SUMMARY: Recognizes August 6, 2015, as the 50th anniversary of
the signing of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) and
urges the Congress and President of the United States (U.S.) to
continue to secure citizens' rights to vote and remedy any
racial discrimination in voting. Specifically, this resolution:
1)Recognizes August 6, 2015, as the 50th Anniversary of the
signing of the VRA, and recognizes the significant progress
made by the VRA to protect every citizen's right to vote.
2)Honors and remembers those who struggled and died for this
freedom.
3)Urges the Congress and President of the U.S. to continue to
secure citizens' rights to vote and remedy any racial
discrimination in voting.
4)Makes the following findings and declarations:
a) Signed into law on August 6, 1965, by President Lyndon
B. Johnson, the VRA is a landmark piece of federal
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legislation in the U.S.;
b) One hundred and forty-five years ago, in 1870, Congress
ratified the 15th Amendment, which declared that the right
to vote shall not be denied or abridged on the basis of
race, color, or previous condition of servitude;
c) By 1910, violence and intimidation resulted in nearly
all black citizens being disenfranchised and removed from
the voter rolls in the former Confederate States,
undermining the promise of equal protection under the law;
d) Native American, Latino, and Asian American/Pacific
Islander communities experienced similar attempts to
disenfranchise citizens in their communities throughout the
U.S.;
e) Between 1870 and 1965, voters faced "first-generation
barriers," such as poll taxes, literacy tests, vouchers of
"good character," disqualification for "crimes of moral
turpitude," and other tactics intended to keep African
Americans from the polls on election day;
f) During the 1920s, African Americans in Selma, Alabama
formed the Dallas County Voters League (DCVL). During the
1960s in partnership with organizers from the Student
Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, the DCVL held
registration drives and classes to help African Americans
in Dallas County pass the literacy tests required to
register to vote. On March 7, 1965, the first march from
Selma to Montgomery took place. The march, nicknamed
"Bloody Sunday" for the horrific attack on unarmed marchers
by armed police, was broadcast nationwide and led to a
national outcry for the passage of the VRA;
g) Often regarded as one of the most effective civil rights
laws, the VRA was passed with the intent to ban
discriminatory voting policies at all levels of government;
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h) The VRA is credited for the enfranchisement of millions
of minority voters as well as the diversification of the
electorate and legislative bodies throughout all levels of
government;
i) Before Section 203 of the VRA was added in 1975,
language minorities were disenfranchised from the electoral
process. Section 203 required certain jurisdictions to
provide registration or voting notices, forms,
instructions, assistance, or other materials and
information regarding the electoral process in the language
of the applicable minority group;
j) In June of 2013, the Supreme Court struck down key
sections of the VRA that were designed to prevent
discriminatory voting policies that can disenfranchise
minority voters;
aa) Despite 50 years of progress, racial minorities continue
to face voting barriers in jurisdictions with a history of
discrimination;
bb) To build a stronger and more cohesive state and nation,
we must continue to help advance the cause of voter
equality and equal access to the political process for all
people in order to protect the rights of every American;
and,
cc) We must continue to educate the next generation about
the importance of civic engagement in our communities now.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Provides, pursuant to the 15th Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution, that the right of citizens of the U.S. to vote
shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or by any state on
account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
Gives Congress the power to enforce this provision by
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appropriate legislation.
2)Prohibits, pursuant to Section 2 of the VRA, voting practices
or procedures that discriminate on the basis of race, color,
or membership in specified language minority groups.
3)Prohibits, pursuant to Section 5 of the VRA, any change with
respect to voting from being enforced in specified covered
jurisdictions (and political subunits within those covered
jurisdictions) unless and until the jurisdiction first obtains
a determination by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) or the
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that the
proposed voting change does not deny or abridge the right to
vote on account of race, color, or membership in a language
minority group.
FISCAL EFFECT: This resolution is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose of the Resolution: According to the author:
Fifty years ago, civil rights activists from all over
Alabama faced an angry mob of state and local lawmen at the
foot of the Edmund Pettis bridge in Selma, Alabama. Over
600 peaceful marchers led by Reverend Hosea Williams of the
Southern Christian Leadership Conference and John Lewis of
the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, suffered
horrific attacks from the lawmen to demonstrate their
demand for equal protection under the law guaranteeing all
minorities the right to vote. In this resolution, I
recognize the "Bloody Sunday" march for the important role
the demonstration played in sparking a national outcry
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leading to the passage of the Voting Rights Act.
Often regarded as one of the most effective civil rights
laws, the Voting Rights Act was passed with the intent to
ban discriminatory voting policies at all levels of
government. African American, Latino, Native American, and
Asian American and Pacific Islander communities all
experienced similar attempts to disenfranchise citizens in
their communities throughout the United States. During this
time, voters faced, "first-generation barriers," such as
poll taxes, literacy tests, vouchers of "good character,"
disqualification for "crimes of moral turpitude", and other
tactics intended to keep minorities from the polls on
Election Day.
This resolution recognizes the significant progress made by
the legislation to protect every citizen's right to vote
and further honors and remembers those who struggled and
died for this freedom. To build a stronger and more
cohesive state and nation, we must continue to help advance
the cause of voter equality and equal access to the
political process for all people and to educate the next
generation on the importance of civic engagement in our
communities.
2)Voting Rights Act of 1965: The 15th Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution provides, in part, that "[t]he right of citizens
of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged
by the United States or by any state on account of race,
color, or previous condition of servitude." Additionally, the
15th Amendment authorizes Congress to enact legislation to
enforce its provisions. The 15th Amendment was ratified in
February 1870.
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In 1965, Congress determined that state officials were failing
to comply with the provisions of the 15th Amendment.
Congressional hearings found that litigation to eliminate
discriminatory election practices was largely ineffective,
because states and local jurisdictions would institute new
discriminatory practices to replace any such practices that
were struck down in court. As a result, Congress passed and
President Johnson signed the VRA. The VRA, among other
provisions, prohibits any "voting qualification or
prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or procedure"
from being imposed by any "State or political subdivision in a
manner which results in a denial or abridgement of the right
of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race
or color."
Section 5 of the VRA requires certain covered jurisdictions to
receive approval for any changes to law and practices
affecting voting from the U.S. DOJ or the U.S. District Court
for the District of Columbia to ensure that the changes do not
have the purpose or effect of "denying or abridging the right
to vote on account of race or color." The requirement to
obtain approval under Section 5 is commonly referred to as a
"preclearance" requirement.
In addition, in 1975 Congress adopted the language minority
provisions of Sections 4(f)(4) and 203 of the VRA. Sections
4(f)(4) and 203 of the VRA require certain jurisdictions with
significant populations of voting age citizens who belong to a
language minority community to provide voting materials in a
language other than English. These determinations are based
on data from the most recent Census. Specifically, Sections
203 and 4(f)(4) require that when a covered state or political
subdivision "[p]rovides registration or voting notices, forms,
instructions, assistance, or other materials or information
relating to the electoral process, including ballots, it shall
provide them in the language of the applicable minority group
as well as in the English language."
3)Constitutionality of Section 5 and Shelby County v. Holder:
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While much of the VRA is permanent, certain special provisions
of the VRA are temporary, including Section 5. When the VRA
was enacted, Section 5 was scheduled to expire in five years.
Subsequently, Congress extended those provisions for another
five years in 1970, an additional seven years in 1975, and an
additional 25 years in 1982, and again for an additional 25
years in 2006. As a result, Section 5 currently is scheduled
to expire in 2031.
In April 2010, Shelby County in Alabama filed suit in the U.S.
District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the
constitutionality of Section 5 of the VRA, and of the coverage
formulas contained in Section 4(b) of the VRA. Because the
State of Alabama was covered under the preclearance
requirements of Section 5, Shelby County was also covered as a
political subdivision of Alabama. In the lawsuit, Shelby
County contended that Congress exceeded its authority under
the 15th Amendment and thus violated the 10th Amendment and
Article IV of the U.S. Constitution when it voted to
reauthorize Section 5 without changing or updating the
formulas that determined which jurisdictions were covered
under Section 5. The District Court rejected Shelby County's
arguments, and upheld the constitutionality of the Section 5
reauthorization and the coverage formulas contained in Section
4 (b). On appeal, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District
of Columbia Circuit affirmed the ruling of the District Court,
and Shelby County subsequently appealed to the U.S. Supreme
Court.
On June 25, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Shelby County v.
Holder, held that the coverage formula in Section 4(b) of the
VRA is unconstitutional and can no longer be used as a basis
for subjecting jurisdictions to preclearance under Section 5
of the VRA. The Court stated that although the formula was
rational and necessary at the time of its enactment, it is no
longer responsive to current conditions. The Court, however,
did not strike down Section 5, which contains the preclearance
conditions. Without Section 4(b), however, no jurisdiction
will be subject to Section 5 preclearance unless Congress
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enacts a new coverage formula.
The effect of the Shelby County decision is that the
jurisdictions identified by the coverage formula in Section
4(b) no longer need to seek preclearance from the Attorney
General or the U.S. District Court for the District of
Columbia before implementing new voting changes, unless they
are covered by a separate court order entered under Section
3(c) of the VRA.
All or specific portions of the following states were required
to have their voting changes precleared before the U.S.
Supreme Court decision in Shelby County: Alabama, Alaska,
Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi,
New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, South
Dakota, Texas, and Virginia. Also included were the
California counties of Kings, Monterey, and Yuba. Merced
County previously was subject to the preclearance requirement,
but it successfully bailed out from Section 5 coverage in
2012.
According to the U.S. DOJ, the ruling in Shelby County does
not affect Section 3(c) of the VRA. Jurisdictions covered by
a preclearance requirement pursuant to court orders under
Section 3(c) remain subject to the terms of those court
orders. Additionally, the Supreme Court's decision states
that Section 2 of the VRA, which prohibits discrimination in
voting based on race or language minority status, and which
applies on a permanent nationwide basis, is unaffected by the
decision. Likewise, other provisions of the VRA that prohibit
discrimination in voting remain in full force and effect, as
do other federal laws that protect voting rights, including
the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, the
National Voter Registration Act, and the Help America Vote
Act.
4)Related Resolutions: HR 10 (Jones-Sawyer, et al.) of 2015,
commemorates March 7, 2015 in honor of the Foot Soldiers who
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participated in Bloody Sunday, Turnaround Tuesday, or the
final Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March during March of
1965, which served as a catalyst for the VRA. HR 10 was
adopted on the Assembly floor on March 12, 2015.
5)Previous Resolutions: AJR 15 (Alejo), Resolution Chapter 60,
Statutes of 2013, urged the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm the
constitutionality of Section 5 of the VRA.
SJR 14 (Yee), Resolution Chapter 133, Statutes of 2013, urged
the Congress and the President of the U.S. to enact amendments
to the VRA that would restore Section 4 of the VRA with a new
coverage formula and update the entire VRA in order to address
ongoing violations of voting rights in the states.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Los Angeles
Future of California Elections
Opposition
None on file.
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Analysis Prepared by:Nichole Becker / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094