BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 417|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 417
Author: Stone (R)
Amended: 4/16/15
Vote: 21
SENATE ELECTIONS & C.A. COMMITTEE: 4-0, 4/7/15
AYES: Allen, Anderson, Hancock, Hertzberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Liu
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 5/28/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
SUBJECT: Elections: election day procedures
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill authorizes the precinct board of a county
with a geographic area of at least 2,500 square miles to remove
the ballot container or containers from the polling place while
the polls remain open only to facilitate the early delivery of
ballots to the receiving centers or central counting places and
also requires the Secretary of State (SOS) to adopt regulations
for the secure delivery and transfer of the ballots to the
receiving center or central counting place.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1) Establishes procedures for processing ballots following the
closing of the polls on Election Day. Specifically, the
SB 417
Page 2
members of the precinct board must conduct a reconciliation
ensuring that all ballots delivered to them are accounted for
whether voted, unused, spoiled, or canceled.
2) Prohibits the removal of a ballot container from a polling
place or the presence of any persons assembled at the polling
place until all the ballots are counted, and prohibits the
ballot container from being opened until after the polls are
closed.
This bill:
1) Allows a precinct board to remove the ballot container or
containers from the polling place while the polls remain open
only to facilitate the early delivery of ballots to the
receiving centers or central counting places.
2) Requires the SOS to adopt regulations for the secure
delivery and transfer of the ballots to the receiving center
or central counting place.
3) Applies only to a county with a geographic area of at least
2,500 square miles.
Background
There are 22 counties in California that span 2,500 square miles
or more. The counties of San Bernardino, Inyo, Kern, Riverside,
Siskiyou, and Fresno are well over 5,000 square miles.
Traditionally, after the polls close on Election Day, ballots
are returned to the Registrar of Voters office for processing
and counting.
These larger counties may encounter late reconciliation issues
partly due to the size of the county that requires elections
staff to be on the road driving to remote polling places to pick
up ballot containers and then delivering them back to a central
processing location.
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Comments
1) According to the author:
Larger and more rural counties face numerous challenges in
making government work more efficiently. One of the
challenges is the timely counting of ballots on Election Day.
SB 417 would allow a county with a geographic area of 2500
square miles or more to remove the ballots already cast at
midday and safely transport them to the central counting
place to begin the reconciliation process. No ballots
counted could be reported until the polls close on Election
Night. The bill would also require the Secretary of State to
develop the process and regulation for transporting the
ballots.
2) Multiple ballot reconciliations. The SOS regulations
required by this bill would have to include, among other
things, a process whereby precinct boards must conduct a
reconciliation of the ballots consistent with the process
currently required after the closing of the polls. As stated
above, existing law requires the members of the precinct
board to conduct a reconciliation ensuring that all ballots
delivered to them are accounted for whether voted, unused,
spoiled, or canceled. Absent proper reconciliation, the
ability to identify and correct any error will be lost.
Related/Prior Legislation
AB 363 (Steinorth, 2015), among other things, authorizes the
county elections official to direct other elections officials to
remove the sealed ballots prior to the closing of the polls and
to deliver them to a receiving center or central counting place.
SB 1346 (Negrete-McLeod of 2012) was very similar to this bill,
but died before being heard in the Senate Elections and
Constitutional Amendments Committee.
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FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Approximately $55,000 administrative costs to the SOS (General
Fund).
Participating counties will incur some non-reimbursable costs
for making multiple trips to pick up ballot containers, but
these costs will be offset by reduced overtime expenses after
the close of polls.
SUPPORT: (Verified5/27/15)
None received
OPPOSITION: (Verified5/27/15)
None received
Prepared by:Frances Tibon Estoista / E. & C.A. / (916) 651-4106
5/30/15 17:10:11
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