BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                        SB 493|
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                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  SB 493
          Author:   Cannella (R)
          Amended:  4/20/15  
          Vote:     21  

           SENATE GOVERNANCE & FIN. COMMITTEE:  7-0, 5/6/15
           AYES:  Hertzberg, Nguyen, Beall, Hernandez, Lara, Moorlach,  
            Pavley

           SUBJECT:   Elections in cities: by or from districts.


          SOURCE:    Author


          DIGEST:  This bill authorizes the legislative body of a city to  
          adopt an ordinance that requires members of the legislative body  
          to be elected by district or by district with an elective mayor  
          without being required to submit the ordinance to the voters for  
          approval.


          ANALYSIS:   


          Existing law:


          1)Permits a general law city that elects its councilmembers  
            through at-large elections to change to a by-district  
            electoral system, provided that the city's voters approve the  
            change through a ballot measure or the initiative process. 









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          2)Prohibits cities from imposing at-large city council elections  
            in a manner that impairs the ability of minority groups to  
            elect a candidate of their choice, or minorities' ability to  
            influence the outcome of an election.  


          3)Requires courts, in cases where at-large city council  
            elections impermissibly result in racially polarized voting,  
            to implement appropriate remedies, including the imposition of  
            district-based elections.


          This bill allows the legislative body of a city to adopt an  
          ordinance that requires members of the city's legislative body  
          to be elected by district or by district with an elective mayor,  
          without having to submit the ordinance to the city's voters for  
          approval.


          Background


          Existing law permits a general law city that elects its  
          councilmembers through at-large elections to provide for city  
          council members to be elected by district.  A city may only  
          change its election method after the city's voters approve a  
          measure proposing a switch.  The measure can either be submitted  
          to the voters by the city council or placed on the ballot  
          through the initiative process.

          The California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (CVRA) prohibits cities  
          from imposing at-large city council elections in a manner that  
          impairs the ability of minority groups to elect a candidate of  
          their choice, or minorities' ability to influence the outcome of  
          an election.  The CVRA was enacted to address racial block  
          voting in at-large elections for local office in California, in  
          which an at-large method of election dilutes the voting rights  
          of minority communities if the majority usually votes for  
          majority candidates rather than for minority candidates.  In  
          such situations, breaking up a jurisdiction into districts can  
          result in districts in which a minority community can elect the  
          candidate of its choice or otherwise have the power to influence  
          the outcome of an election.  If a judge finds that a city's  







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          at-large election method violates the CVRA, state law requires  
          the court to implement appropriate remedies, including the  
          imposition of district-based elections.


          Over 130 local governments have switched from at-large to  
          district-based elections since the enactment of the CVRA in  
          2001.  While some jurisdictions did so in response to litigation  
          or threats of litigation, other jurisdictions proactively  
          changed election methods because they believed they could be  
          susceptible to a legal challenge under the CVRA, and they wished  
          to avoid the potential expense of litigation.  However,  
          submitting an ordinance to voters via the ballot initiative  
          process can be cumbersome and costly.  Furthermore, there is no  
          guarantee that a city's voters will approve a proposed change,  
          no matter how proactive the city council.
          Therefore, some officials now seek to remove the requirement in  
          state law that they must obtain voter approval before changing  
          their electoral system.

          FISCAL EFFECT:   Appropriation:    No          Fiscal  
          Com.:NoLocal:    No


          SUPPORT:   (Verified5/8/15)


          City of Ceres
          City of Greenfield
          Latino Community Roundtable
          League of California Cities


          OPPOSITION:   (Verified  5/8/15)


          None received


          ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT:     According to the author, "California  
          cities have commonly used at-large election methods to select  
          their legislative bodies. However, since the passage of the  
          California Voting Rights of 2001 (CVRA), many cities have  
          switched from electing their city councils at-large to  







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          by-district.  Those continuing to use at-large elections have  
          increasingly found themselves faced with lawsuits asserting that  
          racially polarized voting is occurring and demanding that  
          district-based elections be implemented. 


          "SB 493 would allow general law cities to switch from at-large  
          city council elections to district-based without a vote of the  
          people."





          Prepared by:Toren Lewis / GOV. & F. / (916) 651-4119
          5/8/15 15:09:23


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