BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS
AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Senator Alex Padilla, Chair
BILL NO: AB 1873 HEARING DATE: 8/27/14
AUTHOR: GONZALEZ ANALYSIS BY: Darren Chesin
AMENDED: 8/22/14
FISCAL: NO
SUBJECT
Mail ballot elections: legislative and congressional vacancies:
pilot project
DESCRIPTION
Existing law permits an election to be conducted wholly by mail
if the governing body authorizes the use of mailed ballots for
the election, the election occurs on an established mailed
ballot election date, and the election is one of the following:
a.An election in which no more than 1,000 registered voters are
eligible to participate;
b.An election in a city, county, or district with 5,000 or fewer
registered voters that is restricted to the imposition of
special taxes, expenditure limitation overrides, or both;
c.An election on the issuance of a general obligation water
bond;
d.An election in one of four specifically enumerated water
districts; or,
e.An election or assessment ballot proceeding required or
authorized by the state constitution under Proposition 218.
Existing law authorizes a school district or city with a
population of 100,000 or less to conduct an all-mail ballot
election to fill a vacancy in a special election.
Existing law authorizes a district to conduct any election as an
all-mailed ballot election on any date other than an established
election date.
Existing law provides that whenever there are 250 or fewer
people registered to vote in any precinct, the elections
official may deem the precinct as an all-mail ballot precinct,
and provides that no precinct may be divided solely in order to
create an all-mail precinct.
Existing law provides that once a legislative or congressional
vacancy occurs, the Governor has 14 days to issue a proclamation
declaring the date of the special election. Requires the
special run-off election to occur between 126 and 140 days after
the date of the proclamation with the special primary election
occurring the ninth Tuesday preceding the special run-off,
except as specified. Permits the special runoff election to be
held up to 180 days after the date of the Governor's
proclamation if it will allow either the special runoff or
special primary to coincide with an existing state or local
election involving at least half the voters in the affected
jurisdiction.
Existing law permits Yolo County and San Mateo County, as part
of a pilot program lasting through January 1, 2018, to conduct
elections on up to three dates as all-mailed ballot elections,
subject to certain conditions and reporting requirements.
This bill enacts a pilot project to permit San Diego County to
conduct special elections to fill legislative and congressional
vacancies located wholly within San Diego County as all mail
ballot elections under specified conditions and makes specified
finding and declarations related thereto.
This bill provides that the all mail ballot special election is
subject to all of the following conditions:
a.The board of supervisors of San Diego County authorizes the
use of mailed ballots.
b.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.
c.If the boundaries of the congressional or legislative district
overlap with the boundaries of a city, at least one ballot
dropoff location is provided per city and is open during
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business hours to receive voted ballots beginning not less
than seven days before the date of the election. 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. A ballot dropoff location
provided for under this section shall consist of a locked
ballot box located in a secure public building that meets the
accessibility requirements for a polling place.
d.The elections official provides for at least six hours of
voting at a satellite location within the congressional or
legislative district on at least one Saturday and Sunday after
the ballots are delivered to voters.
e.At least one polling place is provided per city or the polling
places are fixed in a manner so that there is one polling
place for every 10,000 registered voters within the district,
as specified, whichever results in more polling places.
Polling places shall allow voters to request a ballot between
7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on the day of the election if they need
replacement ballots.
f.Polling places are established in accordance with existing
state and federal accessibility requirements, and are evenly
distributed throughout the congressional or legislative
district.
g.The polling places shall be established at accessible
locations and shall be equipped with voting units or systems
that are accessible to individuals with disabilities and that
provide the same opportunity for access and participation as
is provided to voters who are not disabled, including the
ability to vote privately and independently in accordance with
applicable existing law.
h.If a polling place consolidates one or more precincts for
which the county elections official is required to recruit
precinct board members who are fluent in a language in
addition to English pursuant to the federal Voting Rights Act,
the elections official shall make reasonable efforts to ensure
that the polling place is staffed by precinct board members
who speak those languages.
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i.Each voter receives all supplies necessary for the use and
return of the mail ballot, including a return envelope for the
voted ballot with postage prepaid and a notice, translated in
all languages required under the federal Voting Rights Act
that informs voters that an all-mailed ballot election is
being conducted and each eligible voter will receive a ballot
by mail. Each voter must also receive a postage-paid postcard
that the voter may return to the county elections official for
the purpose of requesting a vote by mail ballot in a language
other than English. The notice must also disclose the
following:
That the voter may cast a ballot in person at a
satellite location or at a polling place on Election Day.
That the voter may request the county elections official
to send a vote by mail ballot in a language other than
English or a facsimile copy of the ballot printed in other
languages.
A list of the ballot dropoff locations, satellite
locations, and polling places (the list shall also be
posted on the Internet Web site of the county elections
official).
a.The county elections official submits to the Secretary of
State (SOS) a voter education and outreach plan to be
implemented by the county for any election conducted pursuant
to this bill. The voter education and outreach plan shall be
posted on the Internet Web site of the SOS and on the Internet
Web site of the county elections official. The voter
education and outreach plan shall include, but shall not be
limited to, all of the following:
One education and outreach meeting that shall include
representatives, advocates, and other stakeholders
representing each community for which the county is
required to provide voting materials and assistance in
other languages under the federal Voting Rights Act.
At least one bilingual voter education program for each
language in which the county is required to provide voting
materials and assistance under state law and the federal
Voting Rights Act.
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One education and outreach meeting that shall include
representatives from community organizations and
individuals that advocate on behalf of, or provide services
to, individuals with disabilities.
At least one voter education program to increase
accessibility for participation of eligible voters with
disabilities.
A toll-free voter assistance hotline maintained by the
county elections official that shall be operational no
later than the date that vote by mail ballots are mailed to
voters until 5 p.m. on the day after the special election.
The toll-free voter assistance hotline shall provide
assistance to voters in all languages in which the county
is required to provide voting materials and assistance
under state law and the federal Voting Rights Act.
At least one public service announcement in the media,
including newspapers, radio, and television, that serve
English-speaking citizens for purposes of informing voters
of the upcoming election and promoting the toll-free voter
assistance hotline.
At least one public service announcement in the media,
including newspapers, radio, and television, that serve
non-English-speaking citizens for each language in which
the county is required to provide voting materials and
assistance state law and the federal Voting Rights Act for
purposes of informing voters of the upcoming election and
promoting the toll-free voter assistance hotline.
A voter education social media strategy that is
developed in partnership with community organizations and
individuals that advocate on behalf of, or provide services
to, non-English-speaking individuals and individuals with
disabilities.
a.For the purpose of reporting the results of an election
conducted pursuant to this bill, the county elections official
shall prepare a statement of the results of the election shown
by precinct.
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b.If an election is conducted pursuant to this bill, San Diego
County shall report to the Legislature and to the SOS
regarding the success of the election, including, but not
limited to, any statistics on the cost to conduct the
election; the turnout of different populations, including, but
not limited to and to the extent possible, the population
categories of race, ethnicity, language preference, age,
gender, disability, permanent vote by mail status, and
political party affiliation as it relates to the languages
required under the federal Voting Rights Act; the number of
ballots that were not counted and the reasons they were
rejected; voter fraud; and any other problems that became
known to the county during the election or canvass.
Whenever possible the report shall compare the election
conducted pursuant to this bill to similar elections not
conducted pursuant to this section in the same jurisdiction or
comparable jurisdictions.
This bill permits San Diego County to begin processing vote by
mail (VBM) ballots on the 10th business day prior to the mail
ballot election permitted under this bill, instead of the
seventh business day prior to the election.
This bill contains a January 1, 2020 sunset date.
BACKGROUND
A Little All-Mail History . Several California counties have
conducted all-mail ballot elections. Monterey conducted one of
the first VBM elections ever held in the United States in 1977
on a flood control measure. Alpine County conducted its first
all-mail election in November, 1993 for a countywide special
election. San Diego used all-mail balloting in May, 1981 for a
measure proposing to build a $224 million convention center.
Stanislaus County conducted its first all-mail ballot election
in 1987 for the Modesto City Charter.
In 1992, the Legislature approved a pilot project in Stanislaus
and Placer counties. The counties were allowed to conduct
all-mail ballot elections. Placer County did not utilize this
pilot project but Stanislaus County conducted the 1993 Statewide
Special Election as an all-mail ballot election.
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All-mail ballot elections conducted in California as well as
other states have generally shown increases in voter turnout and
significant decreases in the cost of conducting elections.
During Stanislaus County's all-mail ballot pilot project, the
County saved almost half of its usual election expenditures.
Stanislaus County generally reported turnout levels at six to
eight percentage points below the state's average. During the
1993 Statewide Special Election, the County's turnout was 6.8
percent higher than the statewide average during that election.
It should be noted however, that with few exceptions, prior
all-mail elections have been limited to local elections only.
Oregon has been conducting all-mail ballot elections for
non-partisan and ballot measure elections for 20 years. In 1998
the voters passed an initiative expanding VBM to primary and
general elections. The state of Washington has also recently
adopted statewide all-mail ballot elections.
Yolo/San Mateo County Pilot Project : In 2011, the Legislature
approved and the Governor signed AB 413 (Yamada), Ch. 187,
Statutes of 2011, which created a pilot program allowing Yolo
County to conduct local elections on not more than three dates
as all-mailed ballot elections. AB 413 was intended to serve as
a pilot project to evaluate the desirability of further
expanding the circumstances under which elections are permitted
to be conducted as all-mailed ballot elections. Yolo County
conducted all-mailed ballot elections last March in the City of
Davis and the Washington Unified School District as permitted by
AB 413, and submitted its report on those elections last
December. The pilot project in Yolo County was authorized
following a prior pilot project in Monterey County that failed
to provide useful information about the impacts of all-mailed
ballot elections because the report filed by Monterey County as
part of the pilot project lacked much of the information that
was necessary to evaluate the impacts of the pilot project.
The report prepared in connection with the first two elections
conducted in Yolo County under the pilot project found that
turnout at the all-mailed ballot elections conducted as part of
the pilot project was not significantly different than similar
polling place elections held in the two jurisdictions in prior
years. The study also found that turnout rates broken down by
age, ethnic background, party preference, and permanent VBM
status was consistent and similar between the polling place and
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the all-mailed ballot elections. The study found that data
provided on the cost to conduct all-mailed ballot elections was
inconclusive in determining whether there are significant
savings to moving to all-mailed ballot elections. However, the
study also cautioned that Davis-one of the jurisdictions in
which the pilot was conducted-"is a relatively affluent,
homogenous community with a higher level of educational
achievement than most other areas of the state" and so the
results "are not necessarily applicable to other, dissimilar
communities." The report also noted that the effects of
all-mailed ballot elections on turnout would not necessarily be
similar in general elections.
Yolo County is permitted to conduct local elections as
all-mailed ballot elections on two additional dates before the
conclusion of the pilot project. Pursuant to AB 2028 (Mullin)
Ch. 209, Statutes of 2014, San Mateo County is also permitted to
participate in the ongoing all-mailed ballot pilot project that
is being conducted in Yolo County.
Vote by Mail and Permanent Vote by Mail Voting : Under state
law, any voter can request a VBM ballot for any election, and
any voter can become a permanent VBM voter. Permanent VBM
voters automatically receive a ballot in the mail for every
election, without the need to re-apply for a VBM ballot. As
such, any voter who prefers to vote by mail has the ability to
do so under existing law.
Among the arguments that supporters of all-mailed ballot
elections frequently make in support of such elections is that
all-mailed ballot elections are more convenient for voters.
However, it is not clear whether this is the case. Any voter
who finds it more convenient to vote by mail has the option to
do so under existing law, and voters who want to vote by mail at
every election can sign up for permanent VBM status. Some
voters, due to physical disability or language issues, may
prefer to vote at the polls in order to take advantage of access
or help provided by electronic voting machines or bilingual poll
workers.
COMMENTS
1.According to the Author : Assembly Bill 1873, known as the
Voting Ought To be Easy (VOTE) Act for San Diego County
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Special Elections, seeks to improve two major shortcomings
with special elections in San Diego County - the widespread
non-participation by voters in these low-profile electoral
contests and the costliness of operating a special election on
taxpayers.
AB 1873 allows San Diego County the opportunity to avoid the low
participation and high costs involved in special elections by
conducting these special elections predominantly by mail
ballot, a process which has been shown in practice and
academic studies to majorly reduce costs and increase access
to democracy. In exchange, San Diego County would agree to
several measures that further expand voter access. These
conditions include providing postage-paid envelopes for return
ballots, making available a limited number of in-person voting
locations for early weekend voting as well as voting on
Election Day, ensuring access for those with disabilities or
limited English proficiency, and developing and conducting
plans for voter outreach and education about electoral
participation in these elections.
Our democracy flourishes when more eligible voters participate
and AB 1873 helps move our state in that direction for special
elections. Special elections in California notoriously have
abysmal voter turnout levels, sometimes dropping below 10% of
registered voters. For instance, in recent special elections
to fill Assembly seats, AD 52 saw a turnout of only 8.61%, and
AD 54 saw a turnout of only 8.47%. This can be attributed to
special elections often covering fewer issues than regularly
scheduled elections, and generally being less competitive than
statewide general elections, thus generating less media
coverage and voter attention. Special elections are also
typically held on days which voters may be unable to take off
of work or are less publicized. Severely low turnout in
special elections undercuts our principles of democracy and
participation, as elections are decided by a small amount of
voters.
Furthermore, these special elections are extremely costly for
jurisdictions to hold. A state assembly special election can
cost over a million dollars to conduct, with only a small
handful of people showing up at each polling place to vote.
For several special legislative elections in years past, the
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State has failed to reimburse counties for the costs of
conduction these special elections.
For instance, in the 2013 special election for the open San
Diego-based Senate seat, 85% of those who voted chose to cast
their ballots by mail. Furthermore, a majority of registered
voters in San Diego County are registered as permanent vote by
mail voters.
With AB 1873, all registered voters in San Diego County for a
special election would receive a ballot in the mail. Voters
would be able to cast their ballot by mail in those 29 days
preceding the special election date, at an early voting
location on a weekend day before the election, or on Election
Day at a polling place.
2.Jumping the Gun ? The committee may wish to consider whether
it is desirable to expand the circumstances under which
elections can be conducted entirely by mail prior to the
completion of the Yolo County/San Mateo County pilot project
(see discussion in the Background section above) that the
Legislature authorized in an effort to get better information
about the impacts of such elections.
3.Special Vacancy Election Timing Challenges : In order to
promptly fill vacancies in the Legislature and in Congress,
special elections to fill such vacancies typically are
conducted in a shortened time period, and elections officials
have less time to prepare than they do for regularly scheduled
elections. Under existing law, a special primary election to
fill a legislative or congressional vacancy can occur as
little as 63 days following the vacancy. Furthermore, because
vacancies in the Legislature or in Congress can occur due to
the death of an officeholder or an unexpected resignation,
special vacancy elections often cannot be anticipated in
advance, so elections officials may not be able to prepare in
advance for these elections.
While certain elections may be conducted as all-mailed ballot
elections under existing law, most elections -- particularly
for the Legislature and Congress -- are still conducted as
traditional elections, where voters have the ability to vote
at a polling place on Election Day. As a result, many voters
who are accustomed to voting at a polling place may expect
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that there will be a neighborhood polling place at which they
will be able to vote in a special election for the Legislature
or Congress. While this bill provides for specified voter
education and outreach efforts, given the unpredictable need
and expedited time frame for special elections, the ability of
elections officials to effectively conduct voter education and
outreach may be limited.
4.Related Legislation : AB 2028 (Mullin) Ch. 209, Statutes of
2014, authorizes San Mateo County to participate in the
ongoing all-mailed ballot pilot project that is being
conducted in Yolo County, as described above.
SCA 16 (Steinberg), which is pending in the Senate Rules
Committee, would permit the Governor to fill a legislative
vacancy by appointment, as specified.
AB 2273 (Ridley-Thomas), which was held on the Assembly
Appropriations Committee's suspense file, would require the
state to reimburse counties for the costs of special elections
held to fill vacancies in Congress and the Legislature, for
all elections held on or after January 1, 2013.
SB 942 (Vidak) would require the state to reimburse counties for
the costs of special elections held to fill vacancies in
Congress and the Legislature, for all elections held between
January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2014. SB 963 (Torres) is
identical to AB 2273. Both bills were held on the Senate
Appropriations Committee's suspense file.
5.Previous Legislation : SB 109 (Gaines) of 2011 would have
authorized a county with a population of 400,000 or less to
conduct a special election called by the Governor to be
conducted wholly as an all-mail ballot election, as specified.
SB 109 failed passage in this committee.
SB 304 (Kehoe) of 2011 would have authorized elections in San
Diego County to be conducted wholly by mail until January 1,
2016, if specified conditions were satisfied. SB 304 was
never heard in committee.
SB 1102 (Liu) of 2010 would have permitted a special primary or
run-off election to fill a legislative or congressional
vacancy to be conducted wholly by mail provided that the board
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of supervisors of each county within the affected jurisdiction
authorized the all-mail ballot election. SB 1102 was never
brought up for vote on the Senate Floor.
AB 1681 (Yamada) of 2010 was similar to AB 413. AB 1681 was
vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger, who expressed concern that
"with limited options to vote in-person citizens-especially
poor, elderly, and disabled voters-would not have sufficient
opportunity to vote."
AB 1228 (Yamada) of 2009 was similar to AB 1681, except that
AB 1228 would have allowed both Yolo and Santa Clara Counties
to participate in the all-mail ballot pilot project. AB 1228
was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger for the same reasons
stated in his veto message of AB 1681 above.
PRIOR ACTION
Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee: 4-2
Assembly Floor: 44-32
Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments: 5-0
POSITIONS
Sponsor: County of San Diego
Support: California State Association of Counties
California State Association of Letter Carriers
County of San Bernardino
Rural County Representatives of California
San Mateo County Board of Supervisors
Sonoma County Board of Supervisors
Urban Counties Caucus
Oppose: None received (previous opposition was removed per
the recent
amendments)
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