BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2177
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Date of Hearing: April 9, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
AB 2177 (Brown) - As Amended: March 25, 2014
Policy Committee: ElectionsVote:5-1
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill:
1)Requires county elections officials to offer early
voting-allowing vote by mail (VBM) voters to cast their vote
in person-in at least one location for at least six hours on a
Saturday and a Sunday before each statewide election.
2)Requires the Secretary of State (SOS) to provide guidance to
local elections officials regarding (a) establishing one or
more locations for early voting, (b) notifying voters of the
early voting location or locations; and, (c) ensuring that the
early voting location or locations and the procedures used
therein comply with disability access requirements under
federal and state law.
FISCAL EFFECT
1)Annual state reimbursable General Fund costs in the range of
$150,000 to $250,000 annually, assuming costs of $3,000 to
$5,000 per county to provide weekend voting at one location
for one statewide election each fiscal year.
2)Minor absorbable costs to the SOS.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . According to the author, "In order to a have a
thriving democracy all citizens must exercise their right to
vote. As a result, it is imperative that government makes the
act of voting as accessible as possible. Early voting is
voting that is takes place (usually on the weekend) before
AB 2177
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election day. Voting on the weekend will give another
alternative to people who work and have difficulty finding the
time to vote on Tuesdays." This bill is sponsored by the
Service Employees International Union, Local 1000.
2)Background . Beginning 29 days prior to election day, elections
officials are permitted, but not required, to offer early
voting at "satellite locations" of the office of the elections
official, and may offer voting at their offices or such
"satellite locations" on weekends or at times beyond regular
office hours.
According to information from a survey of county elections
officials conducted by the Los Angeles County Registrar of
Voters and other information gathered by staff of the Assembly
Elections Committee, it appears that at least 28 counties,
representing 89% of registered voters in California, offered
early voting for at least one weekend day prior to the
November 2012 presidential general election.
3)Creates a State-Funded Mandate . By requiring all counties to
provide early voting, the state will henceforth have to pay
the counties' cost to meet this requirement, even though, as
discussed above, most voters all already providing weekend
voting opportunities to some extent.
It should be noted that the last three state budgets have
suspended various state mandates as a cost savings mechanism.
Among the mandates that were suspended, and proposed for
suspension in 2014-15, were all existing elections-related
mandates.
4)Opposition . The Rural County Representatives of California
argue that the bill's mandate will create an administrative
burden on their limited elections staff.
Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081