BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 321|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 321
Author: Benoit (R)
Amended: 4/23/09
Vote: 21
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE : 5-0, 4/29/09
AYES: Wiggins, Cox, Aanestad, Kehoe, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Local government: assessments: election
requirements
SOURCE : Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
DIGEST : This bill implements additional requirements on
mailed assessment ballots for easier identification and
makes changes to the ballot tabulation process, as
specified.
ANALYSIS : Proposition 218 (1996) limited local
officials' powers to impose taxes, levy benefit
assessments, and charge fees. The Legislature translated
the new constitutional limits on benefit assessments into
statutory procedures for notice, hearing, and protests [SB
919 (Rainey), Chapter 38, Statutes of 1997] and imposed
additional requirements to enhance the confidentiality and
impartiality of benefit assessment ballot proceedings [SB
1477 (Lewis), Chapter 220, Statutes of 2000].
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Mailing Ballots
Existing law requires local officials to mail to each
affected property owner a ballot to vote for or against a
proposed assessment and a notice containing specific
information about the proposed assessment, including the
date, time, and place of the public hearing at which
ballots will be tabulated.
This bill requires the phrase "OFFICIAL BALLOT ENCLOSED" to
be printed, in no smaller than 16-point bold type, on
envelopes mailed to property owners containing the notices
and assessment ballots.
Ballot Tabulation
Existing law requires that an impartial person designated
by the agency who does not have a vested interest in the
outcome of the proposed assessment must tabulate the
ballots.
This bill states that an impartial person does not include
the person or entity that participated in the research,
design, engineering, public education, or promotion of the
assessment. This bill clarifies that an impartial person
may include the clerk of the agency.
This bill requires ballots to be unsealed and tabulated in
public view at the conclusion of the public hearing so as
to permit all interested persons to meaningfully monitor
the accuracy of the tabulation process. This bill allows
the agency's governing body to continue the tabulation at a
different time or location accessible to the public,
provided that the time and location are announced at the
hearing.
Public Records
Existing law requires, during and after the tabulation,
that assessment ballots must be treated as public documents
and be available to both the proponents and opponents. In
tabulating the ballots, the ballots are weighted according
to each property's proportional financial obligation.
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This bill requires the information used to determine the
weight of each ballot to be public and made equally
available to proponents and opponents. This bill requires
ballots to be preserved for at least two years and
references the statutes under which agencies may dispose of
the ballots after that time.
Comment
Recent controversies over benefit assessments demonstrate a
need to further clarify the statutes that implement
Proposition 218. This bill's sponsor cites examples of
property owners who discard assessment ballots they receive
in the mail, thinking that the contents are "junk mail."
Proponents also express concerns about assessment ballots
being tabulated behind closed doors by private firms. By
making mailed assessment ballots easier for property owners
to identify and by requiring a more impartial and
transparent ballot tabulation process, this bill enhances
the integrity of the approval process for benefit
assessments.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/15/09)
Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association (source)
AGB:mw 5/15/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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