BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2010
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
2010 (Ridley-Thomas)
As Amended May 25, 2016
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: | 79-0 |(May 5, 2016) |SENATE: |37-0 |(June 30, 2016) |
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Original Committee Reference: E. & R.
SUMMARY: Permits local agencies to allow candidates for local,
nonpartisan elective office to submit candidate statements that
are electronically distributed, but are not included in the
voter's pamphlets that accompany the sample ballots.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Permits the governing body of a local agency to allow each
candidate for nonpartisan elective office in the agency to
prepare a candidate's statement for the purpose of electronic
distribution. Provides that a statement prepared for
electronic distribution shall be posted on the Internet Web
site of the elections official, and may be included in a
voter's pamphlet that is electronically distributed by the
elections official, as specified. Provides that a candidate's
statement prepared for electronic distribution shall not be
mailed to voters, as specified.
AB 2010
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2)Requires candidate statements that are mailed to voters to be
electronically distributed in the same manner as any statement
that is submitted for electronic distribution. Requires
statements that are electronically distributed pursuant to
this bill to be displayed in a type of uniform size and
darkness, and with uniform spacing.
3)Requires the elections official to provide translations of
electronic candidate statements, upon request, in the same
manner as translations are provided for other candidate
statements.
4)Permits a local agency to require candidates who submit
electronic candidate statements to pay the estimated share of
having the statement electronically distributed in advance.
Provides that the local agency is not bound by the estimate
and may bill candidates for the additional actual expense or
refund any excess paid depending on the final actual cost.
5)Requires each voter's pamphlet that contains candidate
statements from candidates for nonpartisan elective office of
a local agency, if the agency has authorized candidates to
prepare statements for electronic distribution, to include a
statement that additional statements are available on the
Internet Web site of the elections official, and requires the
statement to include the address of the Web site at which the
statements may be viewed.
The Senate amendments:
1)Permit the elections official who is conducting the election
to decide whether to allow candidates to submit candidate
statements for electronic distribution.
2)Delete a requirement that a specified notice about candidate
statements that appears in the voter's pamphlet must be
AB 2010
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printed in heavy-faced gothic type.
3)Make corresponding and technical changes.
FISCAL EFFECT: None. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS: According to the author, "The cost of candidate
statements has a direct impact on the amount of information that
voters have about candidates who are running for local office.
In the November 2014 election, San Francisco did not charge
candidates for local nonpartisan office for placing a candidate
statement in the voter's pamphlet. Of the 43 candidates running
for local, nonpartisan office, 42 submitted a candidate
statement to be included in the voter's pamphlet. By contrast,
in jurisdictions where candidates must pay to have their
statements included in the voter's pamphlet, it is not uncommon
for less than 10% of candidates to have a statement appear in
the voter's pamphlet. As people increasingly choose to access
information about elections electronically, and as elections
officials move to improve efficiency by providing more
information to voters in an electronic format, it makes sense to
provide a lower cost option for candidates to communicate with
voters about their qualifications."
Every candidate for nonpartisan, local elective office has the
ability to prepare a candidate's statement to be included in a
voter's pamphlet that is sent to voters with the sample ballot.
Because sample ballots are sent to all voters except those who
register to vote shortly before the election, these statements
allow candidates to provide a large segment of the electorate
with information about their qualifications.
In order to defray the costs of producing the voter's pamphlet,
existing law allows local agencies to charge candidates for the
costs of printing, handling, translating, and mailing candidate
statements to voters. The cost of placing a candidate statement
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in the voter's pamphlet generally is related to the number of
voters who are eligible to vote for the office that a candidate
is seeking. While the cost of a candidate's statement might be
less than $100 for a school board candidate in a small school
district, the estimated cost for a candidate for Superior Court
Judge in Orange County to provide a 400 word statement is nearly
$29,000. In Los Angeles County, the cost for a candidate for
countywide office to place a candidate statement in the voter's
pamphlet exceeds $70,000, and could cost four times that amount
if the candidate chose to have the statement printed in Spanish
as well as English, and if the statement was long enough that it
extended onto a second page in the voter's pamphlet.
The Senate amendments to this bill give the elections official
who is conducting the election the ability to decide whether to
allow candidates to submit candidate statements for electronic
distribution and make other minor and technical changes. This
bill, as amended in the Senate, is consistent with Assembly
actions.
Analysis Prepared by:
Ethan Jones / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094 FN:
0003466