BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS, REAPPORTIONMENT AND
CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Senator Loni Hancock, Chair
BILL NO: AB 2467 HEARING DATE: 6/29/10
AUTHOR: MONNING ANALYSIS BY: Frances Tibon
Estoista
AMENDED: 6/21/10
FISCAL: NO
SUBJECT
Elections: vote by mail
DESCRIPTION
Existing law provides that a vote by mail (VBM) ballot is
available to any registered voter.
Existing law provides that a specific format be used on any
printed application that is to be distributed to voters for
requesting VBM ballots including, but not limited to the
following:
a) The printed name and residence address of the voter
as it appears on the affidavit of registration.
b) The address to which the ballot is to be mailed.
c) The voter's signature.
d) The name and date of the election for which the
request is to be made.
e) The date the application must be received by the
elections official.
Existing law requires that an elections official receive a
request in writing from a voter requesting a VBM
application between the 29th and the 7th day prior to the
election.
Existing law requires the Secretary of State (SOS) to
prepare and distribute to appropriate elections officials a
uniform application format for a VBM ballot.
This bill requires that a printed application that is to be
distributed to a voter requesting a VBM ballot shall inform
the voter that the application for the VBM ballot must be
received by the elections official not later than seven
days prior to the date of the election.
This bill deletes the requirement that an electronic VBM
application include the date the application must be
received by the elections officials.
This bill requires an electronic application for a VBM
ballot to inform the voter that the application for the VBM
ballot must be received by the elections official not later
than seven days prior to the date of the election.
This bill makes other clarifying changes to statements on
both the printed and the uniform electronic VBM
application.
BACKGROUND
Current law requires the SOS to prepare and distribute to
elections officials a uniform electronic VBM application
that must include specific instructions. For example, the
application must include spaces for the voter to fill in
their name and residence address, the address to which the
ballot is to be mailed, the date of birth of the registered
voter, the name and date of the election, as well as the
date the application must be received by the elections
official. The SOS posts the required format for a
statewide vote-by-mail ballot application online. County
election officials must follow this format when
distributing vote-by-mail ballot applications and by law,
the voter has to fill in the correct date of the election,
as well as the correct date for the last day the
application must be received.
COMMENTS
According to the author : AB 2467 simply clarifies and
makes the process of filling out a vote-by-mail ballot
application more user friendly for voters by eliminating
the requirement that the voter know and fill in specific
dates when submitting the application.
PRIOR ACTION
Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee: 7-0
AB 2467 (MONNING) Page
2
Assembly Floor: 71-0
POSITIONS
Sponsor: Secretary of State
Support: None received
Oppose: None received
AB 2467 (MONNING) Page
3