BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS
AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Senator Norma J. Torres, Chair
BILL NO: SB 1061 HEARING DATE:4/22/14
AUTHOR: BLOCK ANALYSIS BY:Frances Tibon Estoista
AMENDED: 4/10/14
FISCAL: YES
SUBJECT
Voter registration: driver's license applications
DESCRIPTION
Existing law , pursuant to the federal National Voter
Registration Act (NVRA), also known as the "Motor Voter Act,"
became effective January 1, 1995. The intent of the NVRA was to
enhance and increase voting opportunities for eligible voters to
register to vote and to maintain their registration. In
addition to other voter registration methods, NVRA required
states to provide the opportunity to register to vote through
various methods, including at motor vehicle agencies, by mail-in
application, and by designating "other offices" within the state
as voter registration agencies. In addition to expanding
opportunities to register to vote, NVRA imposed requirements on
states to protect the integrity of the electoral process and
ensure that states maintain accurate and current voter
registration rolls.
This bill requires an application for a new or renewed
California driver's license, instruction permit, junior permit,
or identification card (hereafter referred to as driver's
license) to:
Request information to establish whether the applicant
satisfies statutory voter registration requirements;
Include a method by which the applicant shall indicate whether
he or she is currently registered to vote;
Include a statement that, if the applicant satisfies statutory
voter registration requirements, and provides written consent
by signing the statement, he or she shall be registered to
vote;
Include a method by which the applicant may decline to be
registered to vote;
Contain a method for the applicant to indicate a party
preference; and
Request other information required by state or federal law in
order to be registered to vote.
This bill requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to
transmit an electronic copy of the completed new or renewed
driver's license application to the county elections official
for the county in which the applicant resides, if all of the
following are satisfied:
The applicant has fully completed the application;
The applicant has not indicated on the application that he
or she is currently registered to vote; and
The applicant has provided written consent to be registered
to vote by signing the statement on the application.
This bill requires the DMV to redact any information that is not
required for voter registration from the electronic copy of the
application it transmits to the county elections official.
This bill requires the DMV to comply with applicable federal and
state laws relating to privacy and confidentiality of the
information collected and to collect only the information
necessary to implement this bill; prohibits DMV from sharing the
information with another agency or individual other than for a
purpose directly related to voter registration.
This bill requires the DMV, by July 1, 2015, to confer with the
Secretary of State (SOS) to develop a new driver's license
application pursuant to this bill.
This bill requires the DMV and the SOS to develop a process and
infrastructure to transmit electronically the driver's license
application, with any information not required for voter
registration redacted, to county elections officials.
This bill requires the DMV to require a digitized signature on
each California driver's license application and to provide the
digitized signature to SOS for any applicant who does not opt
out of voter registration or does not indicate he or she is
currently registered to vote.
This bill makes other technical changes and grammatical
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corrections.
BACKGROUND
On August 12, 1994, Governor Pete Wilson issued Executive Order
W-98-94 directing state and local agencies to implement NVRA
only to the extent that federal funding is available.
When NVRA took effect in 1995, several states failed to take the
steps necessary to comply with the law, and several challenged
the constitutionality of the federal mandate. Nine states,
including California, were involved in the first round of cases.
The federal district court in San Jose ruled that California
was obligated to implement NVRA and ordered the state to submit
an implementation plan to the court for review to ensure
conformity with NVRA requirements.
The plan the state submitted would have brought California into
compliance with NVRA, with one exception: the method by which
an individual may register to vote at the DMV. NVRA explicitly
requires DMV to use a driver's license or identification
application as a voter registration application and prohibits
DMV from duplicating any information already required on the
driver's license form, except for other information necessary to
determine an individual's eligibility to register to vote.
Similarly, federal law requires a DMV change of address form to
serve as a notification of a change in address for voter
registration, unless the individual indicates otherwise.
California's court-approved implementation plan called for a
two-page application: one page for the driver's license
application and one page for the voter registration form, and so
was not in compliance with federal law.
Thus, pursuant to the court-approved settlement, every
individual who applies for or renews a California driver's
license or identification card, or changes his or her address,
receives a voter registration card. The applicant can use the
card to register to vote or to re-register after a change in
name, address, or party preference. When a voter updates his or
her address with a DMV office, the DMV electronically transmits
the new address to the SOS statewide voter registration
database. SOS then shares this information with county
elections officials, who update voter registration records.
When a voter moves to a new county, DMV instructs him or her to
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complete a new voter registration card; DMV accepts the
completed card and forwards it to SOS or the county in which the
voter resides.
COMMENTS
1. According to the Author : SB 1061 allows an applicant for a
California driver's license, identification (ID) card, or
permit to register to vote using only one form. It also
requires that voter registration information be sent
electronically to the registrar of voters instead of through
the mail, which is the current protocol. This measure
removes unnecessary barriers to voting and streamlines the
registration process at the DMV.
California has a voter turn-out problem that ranks it 48th
among the states in voting participation. Currently, nearly
one quarter of California's eligible voters are not
registered.
Many who are eligible to vote are in possession of a driver's
license. As of January 1, 2013, California had 24.2 million
licensed drivers, whereas 23.8 million citizens were eligible
to vote in the 2012 general election. Yet only 13.2 million
citizens cast a ballot, or 55.47% of eligible voters.
Providing applicants for a driver's license, permit, or ID card
the opportunity to register to vote using a single form makes
the voter registration process more accessible, especially
for hard-to-reach populations, including youth.
2. Bears Repeating : The Senate Transportation analysis
touches on privacy concerns. While the driver's license
application and the voter registration form require some of
the same information, the driver's license application
includes additional information, such as a question relating
to whether the individual has experienced any medical
conditions in the past five years that could affect his or
her ability to safely operate a motor vehicle. Although the
author recently amended this bill to address this concern by
requiring the DMV to redact any information that is not
required to register to vote, before transmitting the
application to elections officials. This requirement will,
however, create additional workload for DMV staff.
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3. What about AB 60 ? AB 60 (Alejo), Chapter 524, Statutes of
2013, requires DMV, beginning next year, to issue a driver's
license to an individual who is ineligible for a social
security number if the individual can provide additional
documentation, as specified. Pursuant to the federal REAL
ID Act, "driving privilege only" (DP) licenses, such as AB
60 authorizes, cannot be used for identification purposes.
An individual must be able to establish proof of identity
and of legal presence in the U.S. in order to obtain a DP
license, but does not have to be a U.S. citizen. DMV is
currently in the process of implementing AB 60 and expects
to begin issuing DP licenses in January 2015. Because an
individual does not have to be a U.S. citizen in order to
obtain a DP license, many individuals who apply for a DP
license will not be eligible to vote. To register to vote
in California, an individual must be a U.S. citizen, a
California resident, 18 years or older on Election Day, not
in prison or on parole, and not found by a court to be
mentally incompetent.
4. Similar Legislation : SB 361 (Padilla) requires the DMV,
the California Community Colleges, the California State
University, and NVRA-designated voter registration agencies
to allow customers, students, and clients, respectively, to
submit voter registration forms electronically to the SOS
one year after SOS certifies that the state has a statewide
voter registration database in compliance with the federal
Help America Vote Act of 2002. SB 361 is on the Assembly
Appropriations suspense file.
SB 113 (Jackson), which the Senate passed in January is now
pending hearing in the Assembly, and expands the voter
pre-registration program to authorize 16-year-olds to
pre-register to vote.
AB 1122 (Levine) of this year would have required DMV, in
coordination with the SOS, to take additional steps to fully
implement and further comply with NVRA. The bill died in
the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
PRIOR ACTION
Senate Transportation and Housing Committee: 8-3
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POSITIONS
Sponsor: Author
Support: American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees, AFL-CIO
Courage Campaign
Empower San Diego
Fair Elections Legal Network
Oppose: Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
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