BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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Date of Hearing: April 27, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
Shirley Weber, Chair
AB 2265
(Mark Stone and Dahle) - As Introduced February 18, 2016
SUBJECT: County ballot measures: impartial analysis.
SUMMARY: Authorizes the county counsel to prepare a summary of
the impartial analysis of a county ballot measure in a format
that answers the questions "What does a yes vote mean?" and
"What does a no vote mean?" Specifically, this bill provides
that at the direction of a county elections official, the county
counsel or district attorney may, in the preparation of the
impartial analysis of a county measure that qualifies for the
ballot, prepare additional summaries of the measure to answer
the questions "What does a yes vote mean?" and "What does a no
vote mean?"
1)Provides that the summary for each question may not exceed 75
words in length.
2)Provides that any summary prepared pursuant to this provision
may be included in the voter information portion of the sample
ballot.
EXISTING LAW:
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1)Requires the county elections official, when a county measure
qualifies for the ballot, to transmit a copy of the measure to
the county auditor and to the county counsel or to the
district attorney in a county that does not have a county
counsel.
2)Provides that the county counsel or the district attorney
shall prepare an impartial analysis of the measure showing the
effect of the measure on the existing law and the operation of
the measure.
a) Requires the analysis to include a statement indicating
whether the measure was placed on the ballot by a petition
signed by the requisite number of voters, or by the board
of supervisors.
b) Requires the analysis to be printed preceding the
arguments for and against the measure.
c) Provides that the analysis may not exceed 500 words in
length.
3)Requires the elections official, if the entire text of a
county ballot measure is not printed on the ballot, or in the
voter information portion of the sample ballot, to inform
voters of alternative ways to access the text of the measure.
4)Provides that not later than 88 days prior to an election that
includes a county ballot measure, the board of supervisors may
direct the county auditor to review the measure and determine
whether the substance thereof, if adopted, would affect the
revenues or expenditures of the county. Requires the auditor,
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if so directed, to prepare a fiscal impact statement which
estimates the amount of any increase or decrease in revenues
or costs to the county if the proposed measure is adopted.
Limits the fiscal impact statement to 500 words or less.
FISCAL EFFECT: None. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose of the Bill: According to the author:
California voters are often faced with local ballot
initiatives that are intended to cover a range of local
municipal issues. As voters are seeing these initiatives it
is important that those voters are provided with clear,
unbiased information about what they are voting on. AB 2265
makes it clear that county counsels are authorized to
provide an analysis which answers the questions "What does
a yes vote mean?" and "What does a no vote mean?" for the
measure. This analysis could not be longer than
seventy-five words for each question. Providing this
information will not only ensure that voters have the
correct information, but that they have it in the most
useful and practical form.
2)Additional Summaries: This bill is modeled after existing
state law which requires the ballot pamphlet to contain a
section that provides a concise summary of the general meaning
and effect of "yes" and "no" votes on each statewide ballot
measure. For state measures, summary statements are prepared
by the Legislative Analyst and are not intended to provide
comprehensive information on each measure.
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This bill applies only to county ballot measures and allows
the county elections official to authorize an additional
summary of the impartial analysis to be prepared by the county
counsel, or the district attorney when there is no county
counsel, to answer the question of what a "yes" or "no" vote
means in relation to a measure that has qualified for the
ballot. Additionally, summaries prepared pursuant to this
paragraph may be included in the voter information portion of
the sample ballot and may not exceed 75 words in length.
3)Argument in Support: The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
writes in support, "State or local ballot measures can often
be a confusing and messy conundrum where yes often means no,
and no means yes. This is especially true for any [referenda]
that may be on the ballot. This important summary statement
will provide voters increased clarity on initiatives, helping
them to be more informed as they engage in the democratic
process."
4)Requested Amendment: The Rural County Representatives of
California, who have a support if amended position, have
requested an amendment to give the county counsel or district
attorney the sole discretion to decide whether to prepare the
additional summary. It should be noted, however, that this
bill already provides that the preparation of the summary is
at the county's option. This amendment would permit a county
counsel to refuse to prepare the additional summary even when
directed to do so by the county board of supervisors.
5)Previous Legislation: AB 354 (Dahle), Chapter 265, Statutes of
2013, requires the analysis of a local ballot measure that
appears in the ballot pamphlet to include a statement
indicating whether the measure was placed on the ballot by a
petition signed by the requisite number of voters or by the
local governing body.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Association of Clerks and Elections Officials
Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
Rural County Representatives of California (if amended)
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Lori Barber / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094
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