BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1535|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1535
Author: Committee on Elections and Redistricting
AmendedAmended:7/13/15 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE ELECTIONS & C.A. COMMITTEE: 4-0, 7/7/15
AYES: Allen, Hancock, Hertzberg, Liu
NO VOTE RECORDED: Anderson
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-0, 5/22/15 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Elections
SOURCE: California Association of Clerks and Election Officials
California Special Districts Association
DIGEST: This bill is the committee omnibus bill that does the
following: (1) updates the written request to remove a voter's
name from a petition by requiring it to include the voter's
name, residence address, and signature; (2) clarifies, for
military or overseas voters, the residence address required on
the oath of voter; (3) permits a district conducting an all-mail
ballot election to consolidate under specific circumstances; and
(4) permits any special district general election conducted to
elect members of the governing board in an odd-numbered year to
be moved to even-numbered years as specified.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
AB 1535
Page 2
1)Allows a military or overseas voter who is living outside of
the territorial limits of the United States (U.S.) or the
District of Columbia, or is called for military service within
the U.S. on or after the final date to make application for a
vote by mail ballot and to return his or her ballot by
facsimile (fax) transmission. To be counted, the ballot
returned by fax shall be received by the voter's elections
official no later than the closing of the polls on election
day and shall be accompanied by an identification envelope
containing all of the information required as specified, and
an oath of voter declaration, as specified.
2)Authorizes a voter who has signed an initiative, referendum,
or recall petition to remove his or her name from the petition
by filing a written request with the appropriate county
elections official prior to the day the petition is filed.
3)Allows, regardless of the number of eligible voters within its
boundaries a district to, by resolution of its governing
board, conduct any election by all-mailed ballots and requires
these elections to be held on the following dates:
a) The first Tuesday after the first Monday in May of each
year.
b) The first Tuesday after the first Monday in March of
each even-numbered year.
c) The last Tuesday in August of each year.
4)Defines "special district" as an agency of the state formed
pursuant to general law or special act, for the local
performance of governmental or proprietary functions within
limited boundaries, except a city, county, city and county,
school or community college district, or special assessment
district.
5)Permits the governing body of a special district to
consolidate its elections of governing body members in
November of odd-numbered years with the statewide general
election.
AB 1535
Page 3
This bill:
1)Requires a voter who has signed an initiative, referendum, or
recall petition, and who subsequently wishes to withdraw his
or her name from the petition, to file a written request with
the appropriate county elections official that includes the
voter's name, residence address, and signature, as specified.
2)Clarifies that the residence address required on the oath of
voter is the last U.S. residence for voting qualification
purposes.
3)Provides a district conducting an election by all-mailed
ballots may consolidate its election with the election of one
or more other legislative or congressional districts, public
districts, cities, counties, or other political subdivisions
if all of the elections to be consolidated will be:
a) Held on the same day.
b) Held in the same territory or in a territory that is in
part the same.
c) Conducted wholly by mail.
d) A district consolidating its election shall order the
consolidation pursuant to existing law.
4)Permits the governing body of a special district to
consolidate its elections of governing body members in any
month (not just November) of odd-numbered years with the
statewide general election.
5)Requires a district election that is consolidated with an
all-mailed ballot election for a legislative or congressional
district also comply with any additional statutory
requirements that apply to the all-mailed ballot election for
that legislative or congressional district.
6)Makes other technical and conforming changes.
Background
AB 1535
Page 4
Special districts. Existing law authorizes a special district,
by resolution of its governing board to conduct any election as
an all-mail ballot election, and also provides that whenever two
or more elections, including bond elections, or any legislative
or congressional district, public district, city, county or
other political subdivision are called to be held on the same
day, in the same territory, or in territory that is in part the
same, may be consolidated upon the order of the governing body
or bodies calling the elections.
Existing law requires general elections held to elect members of
the governing board of a special district to be held on the
first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each
odd-numbered year, unless the principal act of the district
provides for the general district election to be held on a
different established election date, or on an established mailed
ballot election date, as specified. A special district is
allowed to adopt a resolution requiring its general district
election to be held on the same day as the statewide general
election, upon approval of the county board of supervisors.
While in general, many special districts hold their governing
board elections in November, others conduct their elections in
March, April, May, and even in August.
Comments
1)According to the author, this is one of the Assembly Elections
and Redistricting Committee's omnibus bills, containing
various minor and technical changes to provisions of the
Elections Code. All of the provisions of this bill are either
changes requested by the California Association of Clerks and
Election Officials or the California Special Districts
Association.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified7/13/15)
AB 1535
Page 5
California Association of Clerks and Election Officials
(co-source)
California Special Districts Association (co-source)
OPPOSITION: (Verified7/13/15)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-0, 5/22/15
AYES: Achadjian, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla,
Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau,
Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly,
Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina
Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,
Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden,
Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon,
Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark
Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Alejo, Jones, O'Donnell, Olsen, Waldron,
Weber
Prepared by:Frances Tibon Estoista / E. & C.A. / (916) 651-4106
7/14/15 12:22:19
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