BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS
AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Senator Alex Padilla, Chair
BILL NO: AB 1440 HEARING DATE: 6/17/14
AUTHOR: CAMPOS ANALYSIS BY: Darren Chesin
AMENDED: 4/8/14
FISCAL: YES
SUBJECT
Elections: district boundaries: public hearing
DESCRIPTION
Existing law provides for all of the following:
Requires the board of supervisors of a county to hold at least
one public hearing on any proposal to adjust the boundaries of
a supervisorial district prior to a public hearing at which
the board votes to approve or defeat the proposal.
Requires the council of a city to hold at least one public
hearing on any proposal to adjust the boundaries of a city
council district prior to a public hearing at which the
council votes to approve or defeat the proposal.
Requires counties, cities, and specified districts to adjust
the boundaries of the governing boards' districts in the year
following the decennial census. Requires the new boundaries
to result in districts that are as equal in population as
practicable.
Existing law defines "at-large method of election" as any of the
following methods of electing members to the governing body of a
political subdivision:
One in which the voters of the entire jurisdiction elect the
members to the governing body;
One in which the candidates are required to reside within
given areas of the jurisdiction and the voters of the entire
jurisdiction elect the members to the governing body; or,
One which combines at-large elections with district-based
elections.
Existing law defines "district-based election" as a method of
electing members to the governing body of a political
subdivision in which the candidate must reside within an
election district that is a divisible part of the political
subdivision and is elected only by voters residing within that
election district.
Existing law defines "political subdivision" as a geographic
area of representation created for the provision of government
services, including, but not limited to, a city, a school
district, a community college district, or other district
organized pursuant to state law.
This bill requires political subdivisions that change from an
at-large method of election to a district-based election to hold
public hearings, and requires special districts to hold a public
hearing before adjusting the boundaries of a division.
Specifically, this bill provides for all of the following:
Requires a political subdivision that changes from an at-large
method of election to a district-based election to hold at
least two public hearings on a proposal to establish the
district boundaries of the political subdivision prior to the
public hearing at which the governing body of the political
subdivision votes to approve or defeat the proposal. This
requirement applies to, but is not limited to, a proposal that
is required due to a court-imposed change from an at-large
method of election to a district-based election.
Requires the governing body of a district to hold at least one
public hearing on any proposal to adjust the boundaries of a
division prior to a public hearing at which the governing body
votes to approve or defeat the proposal.
BACKGROUND
The California Voting Rights Act : SB 976 (Polanco), Ch. 129,
Statutes of 2002, enacted the California Voting Rights Act
(CVRA) to address racially polarized voting in at-large
elections for local office in California. In areas where
racially polarized voting occurs, an at-large method of election
can dilute the voting rights of minority communities if the
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majority typically votes to support candidates that differ from
the candidates who are preferred by minority communities. In
such situations, breaking a jurisdiction up into districts can
result in districts in which a minority community can elect the
candidate of its choice or otherwise have the ability to
influence the outcome of an election. Accordingly, the CVRA
prohibits an at-large method of election from being imposed or
applied in a political subdivision in a manner that impairs the
ability of a protected class of voters to elect the candidate of
its choice or to influence the outcome of an election, as a
result of the dilution or the abridgement of the rights of
voters who are members of the protected class.
Prior to the enactment of the CVRA, concerns about racially
polarized voting led to the consideration of a number of bills
that sought to prohibit at-large voting in certain political
subdivisions (for instance, AB 2 (Chacon), of the 1989-90
regular session; AB 1002 (Chacon), of the 1991-92 regular
session; AB 2482 (Baca), of the 1993-94 regular session; and AB
172 (Firebaugh), of the 1999-2000 regular session all proposed
to prohibit at-large elections in school districts that met
certain criteria; additionally, AB 8 (Cardenas) and AB 1328
(Cardenas), both of the 1999-2000 regular session, sought to
eliminate the at-large election system within the Los Angeles
Community College District). None of these bills became law --
in many cases the bills were vetoed, while in other cases, the
bills failed to reach the Governor's desk. For those bills that
were vetoed, the veto messages typically stated that the
decision to create single-member districts was best made at the
local level, and not by the state.
The CVRA followed these unsuccessful efforts; rather than
prohibiting at-large elections in certain political
subdivisions, the CVRA instead established a policy that an
at-large method of election could not be imposed in situations
where it could be demonstrated that such a policy had the effect
of impairing the ability of a protected class of voters to elect
a candidate of its choice or its ability to influence the
outcome of an election. The CVRA specifically provided for a
prevailing plaintiff party to have the ability to recover
attorney's fees and litigation expenses to increase the
likelihood that attorneys would be willing to bring challenges
under the law.
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The first case brought under the CVRA was filed in 2004, and the
jurisdiction that was the target of that case -- the City of
Modesto -- challenged the constitutionality of the law.
Ultimately, the City of Modesto appealed that case all the way
to the United States Supreme Court, which rejected the city's
appeal in October 2007. The legal uncertainty surrounding the
CVRA may have limited the impacts of that law in the first five
years after its passage.
Since the case in Modesto was resolved, however, many local
jurisdictions have converted or are in the process of converting
from an at-large method of election to district-based elections
due to the CVRA. Generally, local government bodies must
receive voter approval to move from an at-large method of
election to a district-based method of election for selecting
governing board members, though the State Board of Education
(SBE) and the Board of Governors (BOG) of the California
Community Colleges have the authority to waive the
voter-approval requirement for school districts and community
college districts, respectively. In all, the SBE and the BOG
have combined to grant nearly 120 requests for waivers from the
voter-approval requirement for school districts and community
college districts that have sought to move to district-based
elections for board members due to concerns about potential
liability under the CVRA.
There is no procedure in statute for cities and special
districts to receive a waiver of the voter-approval requirement
to move from at-large to district-based elections if those
governmental bodies have concerns about liability under the
CVRA, though in at least some cases, judges have approved
settlements to CVRA lawsuits that allow the governing body to
transition from at-large to district-based elections without
voter approval. According to information compiled by the
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay
Area, at least a dozen other local jurisdictions statewide have
transitioned to electing governing board members by districts as
a result of settlements to lawsuits brought under the CVRA.
In all, approximately 130 local government bodies have
transitioned from at-large to district-based elections since the
enactment of the CVRA. While some jurisdictions did so in
response to litigation or threats of litigation, other
jurisdictions proactively changed election methods because they
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believed they could be susceptible to a legal challenge under
the CVRA, and they wished to avoid the potential expense of
litigation.
While existing law generally requires cities and counties to
hold at least one public hearing on a proposal to adjust the
boundaries of city council or county supervisorial districts
prior to the hearing at which the council or board votes on the
proposed adjustment, state law does not appear to require
hearings on proposed district boundaries when a local
governmental body transitions from at-large to district-based
elections. Given the large number of jurisdictions that have
been transitioning from at-large to district-based elections due
to the CVRA, many local governmental bodies are in the process
of developing proposed district boundaries without any
requirement that public hearings be conducted to ensure public
access and involvement in those decisions.
Districts and Redistricting after the Decennial Census : As
noted above, counties, cities, and districts that elect
governing board members using a district-based election system
are required under existing law to adjust the boundaries of the
governing boards' districts in the year following the decennial
census. The purpose of adjusting the district lines is to
ensure that all districts within a local government body have
roughly equal populations. AB 186 (Hertzberg), Ch. 429,
Statutes of 1999, required county boards of supervisors and city
councils to hold a public hearing prior to a vote to adjust the
boundaries of supervisorial or council districts. However, no
such public hearing requirement applies to districts when they
are considering proposals to adjust the boundaries of the
governing board's divisions. This bill expands the requirements
of AB 186 such that they apply to districts, in addition to
cities and counties.
COMMENTS
1.According to the Author : AB 1440 protects the voting rights
for people of color when new district lines are drawn for
local elections such as city councils, school boards, and
water districts. Specifically, when a jurisdiction switches
from an at-large to a district system of elections, AB 1440
requires that there be at least two open and public hearings
prior to adoption of the new district lines. It also requires
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special districts to conduct at least one public hearing prior
to adopting new district lines in the aftermath of the
decennial census.
The CVRA has resulted in more than 140 jurisdictions across the
state converting from at-large to district based elections in
the last 12 years. This is a tremendous step for communities
of color that have traditionally suffered the discriminatory
effects of at-large elections.
AB 1440 takes the next step in encouraging community
involvement, representation and ownership of local elections.
It empowers the groups and individuals who have had their
voices silenced with the tools to make sure their interests
and newly obtained advances will be protected. The
requirement for the jurisdiction to hold public hearings prior
to adoption of new district lines will safeguard against
further discrimination and ensure their rights and perspective
will be heard.
2.Related and Previous Legislation . AB 2715 (Hernandez),
requires cities with a population of 100,000 or more to elect
city council members by district, instead of at-large. AB
2715 was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
SB 1365 (Padilla) of 2014 prohibits the use of a district-based
election in a political subdivision if it would impair the
ability of a protected class to elect candidates of its choice
or otherwise influence the outcome of an election as a result
of the dilution or the abridgment of the rights of voters who
are members of a protected class and would require a court to
implement specified remedies. SB 1365 is pending in the
Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee.
AB 1979 (Roger Hern�ndez) of 2012 would have required the City
of West Covina to elect city council members by districts,
instead of at-large. AB 1979 was held in the Assembly
Elections and Redistricting Committee.
AB 450 (Jones-Sawyer) of 2013 would have required the Los
Angeles Community College District to elect governing board
members by trustee area, instead of at-large. AB 450 was held
in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
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PRIOR ACTION
Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee: 7-0
Assembly Local Government Committee: 9-0
Assembly Appropriations Committee: 17-0
Assembly Floor: 77-0
POSITIONS
Sponsor: Author
Support: California Professional Firefighters
California Federation of Teachers
Oppose: None received
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