BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 535 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 6, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Jimmy Gomez, Chair AB 535 (Grove) - As Introduced February 23, 2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Elections and Redistricting |Vote:|4 - 1 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This bill establishes the following additional requirements for title and summaries prepared by the Attorney General (AG) for all statewide measures submitted to the voters, as well as for initiative petitions: AB 535 Page 2 1)Be written in clear and concise terms, understandable to the average voter, and in an objective and nonpartisan manner, avoiding the use of technical terms whenever possible. 2)If the measure imposes or increases a tax or fee, the type and amount of the tax or fee must be described. 3)If the measure repeals existing law in an substantial manner, that fact shall be included. 4)If the measure is contingent on the passage or defeat of another measure or statute, that fact shall be included. The bill also requires the Legislature to provide the AG with sufficient funding to fulfill the AG's responsibility for preparing ballot titles and summaries, including the use of plain-language specialists. FISCAL EFFECT: The AG could incur an ongoing General Fund cost of up to $336,000 for two full-time positions-one deputy AG and one legal secretary-associated with an expected increase in litigation due to the additional requirements for ballot title and summaries. Given the cyclical nature of initiatives and ballot propositions, this level of cost might not by incurred every year. The AG's Office notes that, though the bill only amends the provisions of Elections Code Section 9051, which describes the AB 535 Page 3 requirements for ballot title and summaries, the AG is required to apply the same requirements for the circulating title and summaries it prepares for initiative petitions. Typically there are far fewer of the former compared to the latter. The AG also notes that, even though it currently has a well-developed body of case law with respect to the requirements in Section 9051, it still typically receives 10 lawsuits during the ballot litigation public display period. The AG argues that the bill adds several new "statutory hooks" for proponents to challenge its title and summaries, which will lead to more litigation overall and more complex litigation. Finally, the AG believes that, initially there will need to be appellate decisions to establish precedent. COMMENTS: 1)Purpose. When the AG is drafting the title and summary for a proposed initiative measure, current law requires the AG to give a true and impartial statement of the purpose of the measure in such language that the ballot title and summary shall neither be an argument nor be likely to create prejudice, for or against that proposed measure. This bill adds substantial new requirements on how a ballot title and summary must be drafted. The author indicates that the bill is intended to result in ballot titles and summaries that are neutral and not likely to create prejudice for or against a measure as well provide relevant information and be understandable to the average voter. 2)Opposition. The California Federation of Teachers and the State Building and Construction Trades Council argue the bill will complicate and impinge on the AG's responsibility to prepare the most legally accurate title and summary. AB 535 Page 4 3)Prior Legislation. SB 1253 (Steinberg)/Chapter 697, Statutes of 2014, which made significant changes to the initiative process, contained the provisions of AB 535. These provisions were removed prior to the bill passing off Suspense from this committee. Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081