BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                        AB 477|
          |Office of Senate Floor Analyses   |                              |
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                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  AB 477
          Author:   Mullin (D)
          Amended:  8/31/15 in Senate
          Vote:     21  

           SENATE ELECTIONS & C.A. COMMITTEE:  4-0, 7/7/15
           AYES:  Allen, Hancock, Hertzberg, Liu
           NO VOTE RECORDED:  Anderson

           SENATE APPROPRIATION COMMITTEE:  5-2, 8/27/15
           AYES:  Lara, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza
           NOES:  Bates, Nielsen

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  50-29, 5/14/15 - See last page for vote

           SUBJECT:   Elections: ballots and the Green Party


          SOURCE:    Author

          DIGEST:   This bill allows a voter who failed to sign his or her  
          vote by mail (VBM) identification envelope to sign a statement  
          up to 8 days after the election, as specified, in order to have  
          his or her ballot counted; establishes procedures for the Green  
          Party to participate in the presidential primary, a process for  
          establishing county councils; and, contains double jointing  
          language with AB 1020 (Ridley-Thomas).

          ANALYSIS:
          
          Existing law as it relates to comparing of signatures on VBM  
          ballots: 

          1)Requires a county elections official, upon receiving a VBM  
            ballot, to compare the signatures on the identification  








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            envelope with either of the following:

             a)   The signature appearing on any previous affidavit of  
               registration of the voter; or,

             b)   The signature appearing on a form issued by an election  
               official that contains the voter's signature, that is part  
               of the voter's registration record, and that the election  
               official has determined compares with the signature on the  
               voter's affidavit of registration or any previous affidavit  
               of registration of the voter.

          2)Permits an elections official to make the determination of  
            whether a signature on a VBM ballot compares with the  
            signatures on file for that voter by reviewing a series of  
            signatures appearing on official forms in the voter's  
            registration record that have been determined to compare, that  
            demonstrate the progression of the voter's signature, and  
            makes evident that the signature on the identification  
            envelope is that of the voter.

          3)Permits a county election official to use the duplicate file  
            of affidavits of registered voters or facsimiles of voters'  
            signatures when determining from the records of registration  
            if the signature and residence address compare. 

          4)Provides that if the ballot is rejected because the signatures  
            do not compare, the envelope shall not be opened and the  
            ballot shall not be counted.  Requires the cause of the  
            rejection to be written on the face of the identification  
            envelope.

          5)Authorizes an election official, in comparing signatures, to  
            use signature verification technology.  Prohibits an election  
            official, if the signature verification technology determines  
            the signatures does not compare, from rejecting the ballot  
            unless he or she visually examines the signatures and verifies  
            that the signatures do not compare. 

          6)Allows VBM ballots to be counted if they are cast by Election  
            Day and received by the elections official by mail no later  
            than three days after the election, as specified.








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          Existing law generally provides for specific procedures by which  
          the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, the American  
          Independent Party, and the Peace and Freedom Party participate  
          in the presidential primary; authorizes the Democratic Party,  
          the Republican Party, the American Independent Party and the  
          Peace and Freedom Party to each elect county central committees,  
          and also establish state central committees.

          This bill:

          VBM Ballots

          1)Provides that an elections official may validate the signature  
            on the identification envelope with the signature appearing on  
            any form issued by an elections official that contains the  
            voter's signature that is part of the voter's registration  
            record instead of having to compare the signature to a series  
            of signatures that demonstrates the progression of the voter's  
            signature.

          2)Requires if an elections official determines that a voter has  
            failed to sign the identification envelope, the elections  
            official shall not reject the VBM ballot if the voter does any  
            of the following:

             a)   Signs the identification envelope at the office of the  
               elections official during regular business hours before 5  
               p.m. on the eighth day after the election.

             b)   Before 5 p.m. on the eighth day after the election,  
               completes and submits an "unsigned ballot statement" in  
               substantially the following form (and signed under penalty  
               of perjury):

                             "UNSIGNED BALLOT STATEMENT
             I, am a registered voter of __________ County,
             State of California. I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I  
             requested and returned a vote by mail ballot and that I have  
             not and will not vote more than one ballot in this election.  
              I understand that if I commit or attempt any fraud in  
             connection with voting, or if I aid or abet fraud or attempt  








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             to aid or abet fraud in connection with voting, I may be  
             convicted of a felony punishable by imprisonment for 16  
             months or two or three years.  I understand that my failure  
             to sign this statement means that my vote by mail ballot  
             will be invalidated.
             Voter's Signature_________________
             Address"________________________

              c)    Before the close of the polls on election day,  
                completes and submits an unsigned ballot statement, in the  
                form described in clause b), to a polling place within the  
                county or a ballot dropoff box.

          1)If timely submitted, the elections official shall accept any  
            completed unsigned ballot statement.  Upon receipt of the  
            unsigned ballot statement, the elections official shall  
            compare the voter's signature on the statement in the manner  
            provided.

             o    If the elections official determines that the signatures  
               compare, he or she shall attach the unsigned ballot  
               statement to the identification envelope and deposit the  
               ballot, still in the identification envelope, in a ballot  
               container in his or her office.

             o    If the elections official determines that the signatures  
               do not compare, the identification envelope shall not be  
               opened and the ballot shall not be counted.

          1)An elections official may use methods other than those  
            described above to obtain a voter's signature on an unsigned  
            identification envelope.

             a)   Instructions shall accompany the unsigned ballot  
               statement in substantially the following form:

          "READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE COMPLETING THE  
          STATEMENT.  FAILURE TO FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS MAY CAUSE YOUR  
          BALLOT NOT TO COUNT.

               1.     In order to ensure that your vote by mail ballot  
                 will be counted, your statement should be completed and  








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                 returned as soon as possible so that it can reach the  
                 elections official of the county in which your precinct  
                 is located no later than 5 p.m. on the eighth day after  
                 the election.
               2.     You must sign your name on the line above (Voter's  
                 Signature).
               3.     Place the statement into a mailing envelope  
                 addressed to your local elections official. Mail,  
                 deliver, or have delivered the completed statement to the  
                 elections official.  Be sure there is sufficient postage  
                 if mailed and that the address of the elections official  
                 is correct.
               4.     Alternatively, you may submit your completed  
                 statement by facsimile transmission to your local  
                 elections official, or submit your completed statement to  
                 a polling place within the county or a ballot dropoff box  
                 before the close of the polls on election day."

           5) Requires the Secretary of State (SOS) to include the  
             unsigned ballot statement and instructions described above on  
             his or her Internet Web site, and provide a list of mailing  
             addresses and facsimile transmission numbers of all elections  
             officials, or provide conspicuous hyperlinks to that  
             information, on the Internet Web page containing the  
             statement and instructions.

           6) Requires an elections official to include the unsigned  
             ballot statement and instructions described above on his or  
             her Internet Web site, and provide the elections official's  
             mailing address and facsimile transmission number on the  
             Internet Web page containing the statement and instructions.

           7) Provides that a ballot shall not be removed from its  
             identification envelope until the time for processing  
             ballots.  And further provides a ballot shall not be rejected  
             for cause after the identification envelope has been opened.

          Green Party Provisions

           8) Establishes the procedures by which the Green Party would  
             participate in the presidential primary.









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           9) Authorizes the Green Party to establish county councils by  
             election.

           10)Establishes a Green Party state coordinating committee.

          Miscellaneous

           11)Contains double jointing language with AB 1020  
             (Ridley-Thomas), and makes other technical and corresponding  
             changes.

          Background
          
          Vote By Mail Ballot Rejection:  The UC Davis California Civic  
          Engagement Project conducted a statewide survey of California's  
          58 county election offices to gain a better understanding of  
          California's use of VBM ballots, including return methods.   
          According to their September 2014 brief, entitled "California's  
          Uncounted VBM Ballots:  Identifying Variation in County  
          Processing," in 2012, for the first time in a statewide general  
          election, over 50 percent of California's voters chose to cast  
          their ballot via VBM.  This totaled 6.6 million ballots.   
          However, approximately one percent of those VBM ballots received  
          by the elections official were rejected during ballot  
          processing.  That amounts to approximately 69,000 ballots.   
          According to the survey, late receipt was the most common reason  
          why a VBM ballot was uncounted.  Signature issues, such as a  
          missing signature or a mismatching signature, were the other top  
          two reasons for VBM ballot rejection.  

          In an effort to remedy the significant VBM ballot rejection  
          rate, last session the Legislature approved and Governor Brown  
          signed SB 29 (Correa, Chapter 618, Statutes of 2014) which  
          allowed VBM ballots to be counted if they are cast by election  
          day and received by the elections official by mail no later than  
          three days after the election, as specified.  The signing and  
          implementation of SB 29 (Correa), was ground breaking as it  
          represented the first time that California state law explicitly  
          has allowed any ballot which was received after election day to  
          be counted.

          Current Procedures for Processing Unsigned VBM Ballots:   








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          Existing law does not require county elections officials to  
          contact a voter and inform them that his or her ballot was not  
          counted.  However, in practice, when it comes to VBM ballots  
          being rejected due to missing signatures, county elections  
          officials attempt to contact the voter prior to election day in  
          order to provide them the opportunity to correct their ballot.   
          According to the UC Davis California Civic Engagement Project  
          survey referenced above, nearly all counties utilize multiple  
          methods to contact a voter, such as contacting the voter by  
          phone, email, or mailing the VBM ballot back.  However, because  
          current law does not require a voter to provide a phone number  
          or email when an individual registers to vote or requests a VBM  
          ballot, efforts to contact a voter remain a challenge as a  
          voter's phone number and email may not be updated or available.   


          Comments
          
          According to the author, AB 477 will reduce the number of  
          legitimate vote-by-mail ballots that are rejected, ensuring that  
          fewer voters are disenfranchised.  California has one of the  
          highest ballot rejection rates in the country, which is  
          especially disconcerting because vote-by-mail ballot use has  
          increased rapidly in recent years, with 60 percent of voters  
          casting their ballots by mail in last November's general  
          election.  With such high usage rates, it is imperative the  
          state do everything possible to minimize the number of discarded  
          legitimate ballots. 

          In total, about 17 percent of ballots are not counted because  
          the voter failed to sign his or her ballot envelope.  To remedy  
          this, AB 477 allows elections officials to collect a voter's  
          signature on a separate form, signed under penalty of fraud.   
          This policy has been successfully implemented in both Florida  
          and Colorado.  Lastly, the bill also incorporates another  
          successful Colorado law by allowing elections officials to  
          collect signatures on unsigned ballots after Election Day.

          FISCAL EFFECT:   Appropriation:    No          Fiscal  
          Com.:YesLocal:   Yes










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          According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:


                 The bill would likely result in state reimbursable costs  
               to local elections officials, potentially exceeding $50,000  
               (General Fund).

                 Costs to the Secretary of State would be minor and  
               absorbable.


          SUPPORT:   (Verified8/28/15)


           Secretary of State Alex Padilla
           California Association of Clerks and Election Officials
           California Common Cause
           California Forward Action Fund
           California Voter Foundation
           Green Party of California
           Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
           League of Women Voters of California


          OPPOSITION:   (Verified8/28/15)


          None received

          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  50-29, 5/14/15
          AYES:  Alejo, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Calderon,  
            Campos, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooper, Dababneh, Daly, Dodd, Eggman,  
            Frazier, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gipson, Gomez,  
            Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Levine,  
            Lopez, Low, McCarty, Medina, Mullin, Nazarian, O'Donnell,  
            Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas,  
            Santiago, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Weber, Wilk, Williams,  
            Wood, Atkins
          NOES:  Achadjian, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Brough, Chang,  
            Chávez, Cooley, Dahle, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Gatto, Grove,  
            Hadley, Harper, Jones, Kim, Lackey, Linder, Maienschein,  
            Mathis, Mayes, Melendez, Obernolte, Olsen, Patterson,  








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            Steinorth, Wagner, Waldron
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Roger Hernández

          Prepared by:Frances Tibon Estoista / E. & C.A. / (916) 651-4106
          8/30/15 19:17:13


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