BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON
ELECTIONS AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Senator Ben Allen, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 809 Hearing Date: 7/7/15
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|Author: |Obernolte |
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|Version: |3/26/15 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|Frances Tibon Estoista |
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Subject: Local initiative measures: ballot printing
specifications
DIGEST
Requires the ballot , if a proposed local initiative imposes a
tax or raises the rate of a tax, to include in the statement of
the ordinance to be voted on the amount of money to be raised
annually and the rate of the tax to be levied.
ANALYSIS
Existing law requires ballots used when voting upon a proposed
county, city, or district ordinance submitted to voters of the
respective local government as an initiative measure to have
printed on them specified text relating to the proposed
ordinance and dictates the placement of that text.
This bill requires the ballot, if a proposed local initiative
imposes a tax or raises the rate of a tax, to include in the
statement of the ordinance to be voted on the amount of money to
be raised annually and the rate and duration of the tax to be
levied.
BACKGROUND
Ballot Form : Existing law requires a ballot to comply with a
variety of laws that dictate its form and content. For example,
existing law requires a ballot to contain the title of each
office, the names of all qualified candidates, as specified,
AB 809 (Obernolte) Page 2
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ballot designations, as specified, titles and summaries of
measures submitted to voters, and instructions to voters, among
other things. Moreover, existing law requires a ballot to be
printed in a certain form, as specified. Once all of these
requirements are met, there is limited space left on the ballot
to accommodate further requirements. Consequently, it is common
practice to include other important election information in the
sample ballot or ballot pamphlet that is sent to all registered
voters.
COMMENTS
1) According to the author , California continues to rank at the
bottom when it comes to transparency and access to government
information. The citizens of California have a right to know
how taxes will affect them and how those dollars are being
spent. AB 809 takes a small step toward achieving this goal
by requiring the ballot statement for local tax measures to
include information on the amount of money to be raised
annually and the rate and duration of the tax to be levied.
This will help voters be better informed when making
decisions that could impact their personal budgets.
2) One-stop shop . The author contends that Californians have a
right to know what they are voting on, especially when it
involves tax increases that could have a significant impact
on their financial position. While having this information
may be helpful in determining how a local measure will raise
taxes as well as providing the rate and duration of the tax
levied, it may prove extremely challenging for elections
officials to include more information on the ballot.
Moreover, if the law allows for it, many local elections are
consolidated with other elections as a cost saving measure.
It is therefore even more likely the issue of ballot capacity
becomes problematic with more data being added.
RELATED/PRIOR LEGISLATION
AB 2551 (Wilk, Chapter 908, Statutes of 2014), requires each
bond issue proposed by a county, city and county, district, or
other political subdivision, or any agency, department, or board
thereof, to include the best estimate from official sources of
the total debt service, including the principal and interest
that would be required to be repaid if all the bonds are issued
AB 809 (Obernolte) Page 3
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and sold, and permits the estimate to include information about
the assumptions used to determine the estimate.
PRIOR ACTION
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|Assembly Floor: |57 - 8 |
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|Assembly Appropriations Committee: |17 - 0 |
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|Assembly Elections and Redistricting | 4 - 3 |
|Committee: | |
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POSITIONS
Sponsor: Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
Support: California Taxpayers Association
Oppose: None received
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