Amended in Assembly March 12, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 245

Introduced by Assembly Member Lackey

February 9, 2015

An act to amend begin delete Section 14026 end delete begin insert Sections 18544 and 18545 end insert of the Elections Code, relating to elections.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 245, as amended, Lackey. begin delete California Voting Rights Act of 2001. end delete begin insert Elections: penal provisions. end insert

begin insert

Existing law prohibits a person in possession of a firearm, uniformed peace officer, private guard, or security personnel from being stationed or posted at a polling place without written authorization of the appropriate elections official. Violation of this provision is punishable by a fine not exceeding $10,000, imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months or 2 or 3 years, or in a county jail for not more than one year, or by both fine and imprisonment.

end insert begin insert

Existing law prohibits the hiring of or arranging for a person in possession of a firearm, uniformed peace officer, private guard, or security personnel to be stationed or posted at a polling place without written authorization of the appropriate elections official. Violation of this provision is punishable by a fine not exceeding $10,000, imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months or 2 or 3 years, or in a county jail for not more than one year, or by both fine and imprisonment.

end insert begin insert

This bill would increase the maximum fine for those offenses to $16,000 and require that the fine amount be adjusted annually by any annual increase in the California Consumer Price Index, as described.

end insert begin delete

The California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (CVRA) prohibits the use of an at-large election in a political subdivision if it would impair the ability of a protected class, as defined, to elect candidates of its choice or otherwise influence the outcome of an election. The CVRA provides that a violation of the act is established if it is shown that racially polarized voting, as defined, has occurred, and provides that the occurrence of racially polarized voting shall be determined from examining the results of elections in which at least one candidate is a member of a protected class or elections involving ballot measures or other electoral choices that affect the rights and privileges of members of a protected class. The CVRA provides that a voter who is a member of a protected class, as specified, may bring an action in superior court to enforce the provisions of the CVRA, and, if the voter prevails in the case, he or she may be awarded reasonable litigation costs and attorney’s fees.

end delete begin delete

This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to provisions of law defining several terms for purposes of the CVRA.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

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

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 18544 of the end insert begin insert Elections Code end insert begin insert is amended
to read: end insert

18544.  

(a)  begin delete Any end delete begin insert It is unlawful for a end insert person in possession of a
firearm begin delete or any end delete begin insert , a end insert uniformed peace officer, private guard, or
security begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert or any person who is wearing a uniform
of a peace officer, guard, or security begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert , begin delete who is end delete begin insert to
be end insert stationed in the immediate vicinity of, or posted at, a polling
place without written authorization of the appropriate city or county
elections official begin insert . Violation of this section end insert is punishable by a fine
not exceeding begin delete ten end delete begin insert sixteen end insert thousand dollars begin delete ($10,000) end delete begin insert ($16,000) end insert ,
by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 of
the Penal Code for 16 months or two or three years, or in a county
jail not exceeding one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
begin insert The fine amount shall be adjusted annually by any annual increase
in the California Consumer Price Index, as determined pursuant
to Section 2212 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. end insert

(b) This section begin delete shall end delete begin insert does end insert not apply to begin delete any of end delete the following:

(1) An unarmed uniformed guard or security begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert
who is at the polling place to cast his or her vote.

(2) A peace officer who is conducting official business in the
course of his or her public employment or who is at the polling
place to cast his or her vote.

(3) A private guard or security begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert hired or
arranged for by a city or county elections official.

(4) A private guard or security begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert hired or
arranged for by the owner or manager of the facility or property
in which the polling place is located if the guard or security
begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert is not hired or arranged solely for the day on
which an election is held.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 18545 of the end insert begin insert Elections Code end insert begin insert is amended to
read: end insert

18545.  

begin delete Any person who hires or arranges for any other end delete begin insert It is
unlawful for a person to hire or arrange for a end insert begin insert end insert person in possession
of a firearm begin delete or any end delete begin insert , a end insert uniformed peace officer, private guard, or
security begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert or any person who is wearing a uniform
of a peace officer, guard, or security begin delete personnel end delete begin insert person end insert , to be
stationed in the immediate vicinity of, or posted at, a polling place
without written authorization of the appropriate elections official begin insert .
Violation of this section end insert is punishable by a fine not exceeding begin delete ten end delete
begin insert sixteen end insert thousand dollars begin delete ($10,000) end delete begin insert ($16,000) end insert , by imprisonment
pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 of the Penal Code for
16 months or two or three years, or in a county jail not exceeding
one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment. begin insert The fine amount
shall be adjusted annually by any annual increase in the California
Consumer Price Index, as determined pursuant to Section 2212
of the Revenue and Taxation Code. end insert This section begin delete shall end delete begin insert does end insert not
apply to the owner or manager of the facility or property in which
the polling place is located if the private guard or security begin delete personnel end delete
begin insert person end insert is not hired or arranged solely for the day on which the
election is held.

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

Section 14026 of the Elections Code is amended
to read:

14026.  

As used in this chapter:

(a) “At-large method of election” means any of the following
methods of electing members to the governing body of a political
subdivision:

(1) One in which the voters of the entire jurisdiction elect the
members to the governing body.

(2) One in which the candidates are required to reside within
given areas of the jurisdiction and the voters of the entire
jurisdiction elect the members to the governing body.

(3) One which combines at-large elections with district-based
elections.

(b) “District-based elections” means a method of electing
members to the governing body of a political subdivision in which
the candidate must reside within an election district that is a
divisible part of the political subdivision and is elected only by
voters residing within that election district.

(c) “Political subdivision” means a geographic area of
representation created for the provision of government services,
including, but not limited to, a city, a school district, a community
college district, or other district organized pursuant to state law.

(d) “Protected class” means a class of voters who are members
of a race, color, or language minority group, as this class is defined
in the federal Voting Rights Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1973 et seq.).

(e) “Racially polarized voting” means voting in which there is
a difference, as defined in case law regarding enforcement of the
federal Voting Rights Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1973 et seq.), in the
choice of candidates or other electoral choices that are preferred
by voters in a protected class, and in the choice of candidates and
electoral choices that are preferred by voters in the rest of the
electorate. The methodologies for estimating group voting behavior
as approved in applicable federal cases to enforce the federal
Voting Rights Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1973 et seq.) to establish racially
polarized voting may be used for purposes of this section to prove
that elections are characterized by racially polarized voting.

end delete