California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1873

Introduced by Assembly Member Gonzalez

February 19, 2014

An act to amend Sections 4004 and 10703 of, and to add Section 4000.5 to, the Elections Code, relating to elections.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1873, as introduced, Gonzalez. Mail ballot elections.

(1) Existing law provides for the calling of a special election to fill a congressional or legislative vacancy. Under existing law, the governing body of a local agency is authorized to conduct a local, special, or consolidated election wholly by mail under specified conditions.

This bill would authorize a board of supervisors of a county to conduct a special election or special consolidated election to fill a congressional or legislative vacancy wholly by mail under specified conditions.

(2) Existing law authorizes an election in a small city, defined as a city with a population of 100,000 or less, or in a school district or special district, to be conducted wholly as an all-mail ballot election, subject to certain conditions, including that the election is a special election to fill a vacancy in the legislative body or governing body and that the election not be consolidated with any other election.

This bill would remove the requirement that an all-mail ballot election be conducted only in a city with a population of 100,000 or less. The bill would also delete the provision prohibiting a consolidated election from being conducted wholly by mail, and would instead provide that in order to conduct an all-mail ballot election in a consolidated election in which boundaries overlap, all jurisdictions of the overlapping boundaries would be required to agree to conduct the election as an all-mail ballot election. The bill would additionally authorize a municipal election, as specified, to be conducted as an all-mail ballot election.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 4000.5 is added to the Elections Code,
to read:

4000.5.  

(a) Notwithstanding Section 4000, a special election
or special consolidated election may be conducted wholly by mail
to fill a vacancy in a congressional or legislative office if all of the
following apply:

(1) The board of supervisors, by resolution, authorizes the use
of mailed ballots for the election.

(2) The election does not occur on the same date as a statewide
primary or general election or any other election conducted in an
overlapping jurisdiction that is not consolidated and conducted
wholly by mail pursuant to this section.

(3) (A) At least one ballot dropoff location is provided per city
and is open during business hours to receive voted ballots
beginning 21 days before the date of the election.

(B) The number of dropoff locations in unincorporated areas
shall be based on the number of unincorporated registered voters
divided by 100,000 (rounded to the next whole number) with no
less than one location to be selected.

(C) At least one polling place is provided pursuant to
subparagraphs (A) and (B) where voters can request a ballot
between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on the day of the election if they have
not received their ballots in the mail or if they need replacement
ballots for any other reason.

(4) The elections official delivers to each voter all supplies
necessary for the use and return of the mail ballot, including an
envelope for the return of the voted mail ballot with postage
prepaid.

(5) The elections official delivers to each voter, with either the
sample ballot sent pursuant to Section 13303 or with the voter’s
ballot, a list of the ballot dropoff locations pursuant to paragraph
(3), and also posts that list on the Internet Web site of the county
elections office.

(b) If a congressional or legislative district overlaps multiple
counties, the county having the majority of the voters in the vacant
jurisdiction shall determine whether the special election will be
conducted wholly by mail pursuant to this section.

(c) The return of voted mail ballots is subject to Section 3017.

SEC. 2.  

Section 4004 of the Elections Code is amended to read:

begin delete

4004.  

(a) “Small city” means a city with a population of
100,000 or less, as determined by the annual city total population
rankings by the Demographic Research Unit of the Department of
Finance.

(b) “Eligible entity” means a school district or a special district.

(c) 

end delete

begin insert

begin insert 4004. end insert   

end insert

Notwithstanding Sections 1500 and 4000, an election in
a begin delete small end delete city begin delete or an eligible entity end delete begin insert , school district, or special district end insert
may be conducted wholly as an all-mail ballot election, subject to
the following conditions:

begin delete

(1)

end delete

begin insert (a) end insert  The legislative body of the begin delete small end delete city or the governing body
of the begin delete eligible entity end delete begin insert school district or special district end insert , by
resolution, authorizes the use of mailed ballots for the election.

begin delete

(2)

end delete

begin insert (b) end insert  The election is a special election to fill a vacancy in the
legislative body or governing body begin insert , or is a special election
conducted pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 9200)
of Division 9 end insert .

begin delete

(3)

end delete

begin insert (c) end insert  The election is not held on the same date as a statewide
primary or general election.

begin delete

(4) The election is not consolidated with any other election.

end delete begin insert

(d) In a consolidated election in which boundaries overlap, all
of the jurisdictions within the overlapping boundaries agree to
conduct the election as an all-mail ballot election.

end insert begin delete

(5)

end delete

begin insert (e) end insert  The return of voted mail ballots is subject to Section 3017.

SEC. 3.  

Section 10703 of the Elections Code is amended to
read:

10703.  

begin delete (a) end delete begin delete   end delete A special election to fill a vacancy in the office of
Representative in Congress, State Senator, or Member of the
Assembly shall be conducted on a Tuesday at least 126 days, but
not more than 140 days, following the issuance of an election
proclamation by the Governor pursuant to Section 1773 of the
Government Code, except that the special election may be
conducted within 180 days following the proclamation in order
that the election or the primary election may be consolidated with
the next regularly scheduled statewide election or local election
occurring wholly or partially within the same territory in which
the vacancy exists, provided that the voters eligible to vote in the
local election comprise at least 50 percent of all the voters eligible
to vote on the vacancy.

begin delete

(b)

end delete

begin insert (a) end insert  Except as provided in Chapter 3 (commencing with Section
10730), a special election or a primary election may not be
conducted on the day after a state holiday.

begin insert

(b) A special election described in this section may be conducted
wholly by mail pursuant to Section 4000.5.

end insert