AB 1276

Bill Subjects

Abstract

(1) Existing law establishes procedures and criteria pursuant to which counties, general law cities, and charter cities adopt supervisorial and council district boundaries for the purpose of electing members of a county's board of supervisors or a city's council. This bill would make technical, clarifying, and conforming changes to make these provisions consistent in their application to those jurisdictions. (2) Under the redistricting procedures described above, existing law requires those jurisdictions to adopt the boundaries of districts no earlier than August 1 in each year ending in the number 1, but not later than 151 days before the jurisdiction's next regular election occurring in March in each year ending in the number 2. Existing law requires the board of supervisors or the council to publish the date, time, and location of a public hearing or workshop on redistricting, or a draft map pending adoption as a final map, on the internet at least 3 days in advance if the hearing or workshop is held, or the draft map will be adopted as a final map, within 179 days of the jurisdiction's next regular election. Existing law requires the Citizens Redistricting Commission and the Legislature to coordinate efforts to make publicly available a computerized database which contains data necessary for redistricting. Existing law authorizes a candidate for elective office in a county or charter city to submit a petition containing signatures of a specified number of registered voters in lieu of a filing fee, and requires an elections official to make forms for securing signatures available commencing 60 days before the first day for circulating nomination papers, except as specified. This bill would, for redistricting occurring in 2031 and thereafter, instead require district boundaries to be adopted no later than 205 days before the jurisdiction's next regular election occurring after January 1 in each year ending in the number 2. For redistricting occurring before 2031, the bill would require boundaries to be adopted not later than 174 days before the next regular election if the election is held after January 1, 2022, and before July 1, 2022, and not later than 205 days before the next regular election if the election is held on or after July 1, 2022. For redistricting in counties and charter cities to which the 174 day deadline applies, the bill would prohibit forms for securing signatures in lieu of a filing fee from being made available until at least 28 days after the adoption of a final map, and would require an elections official in a county or charter city to reduce the number of signatures required, as specified, if that prohibition reduces the amount of time in which a candidate can collect signatures before the first day for circulating nomination papers. The bill would instead require the board of supervisors or council to publish the date, time, and location of a hearing or workshop on the internet at least 3 days in advance if the hearing or workshop is held within 28 days of the deadline for the jurisdiction to adopt district boundaries. The bill would prohibit a board of supervisors or council, or their contractors, from releasing draft maps of districts earlier than 3 weeks after the database described above is made publicly available, unless the database is made available less than 90 days before the deadline to adopt a map, in which case the 3 week period would be shortened or waived, as specified. (4) Existing law establishes the Citizens Redistricting Commission in the County of Los Angeles and the Independent Redistricting Commission in the County of San Diego for the purpose of adjusting the boundaries of supervisorial districts of the boards of supervisors in those counties. Existing law requires each of the supervisorial districts in the jurisdiction of one of those commissions to have a reasonably equal population with other districts in the same jurisdiction, except as specified. Existing law requires each of those commissions to adopt a redistricting plan adjusting the boundaries of supervisorial districts and to file the plan with specified county officials before August 15 of the year following the year in which each federal decennial census is taken. Existing law requires the commissions to conduct public hearings before drawing a map that proposes redistricting. Existing law provides that a redistricting plan is not effective until 30 days after it is filed. This bill would require the measure of population equality for supervisorial districts in those counties to be based on the total population of residents of the respective county as determined by the most recent federal decennial census for which specified redistricting data is available, and would prohibit an incarcerated person from being counted as part of a county's population, unless specified redistricting data shows that the incarcerated person's last known place of residence may be assigned to the county. The bill would instead require each of those commissions to file their redistricting plans pursuant to the deadlines for adopting district boundaries described above that are applicable to counties. The bill would also apply to those commissions the provisions described above that prohibit counties or their contractors from releasing draft maps within certain time periods following the date on which redistricting data becomes publicly available. The bill would authorize the commissions to change the location of a hearing, including the use of virtual hearings that permit remote access and participation, if a public health order that prohibits large gatherings is in place, subject to specified requirements. The bill would repeal the provisions described above delaying the effective date of a redistricting plan. (5) The California Constitution authorizes a city to adopt a charter by a majority vote of its electors, and authorizes a charter city to make and enforce all ordinances and regulations in respect to municipal affairs. The California Constitution provides that it shall be competent in a city charter to provide for the manner in which, the method by which, the times at which, and the terms for which municipal officers and employees shall be elected or appointed. Existing law establishes criteria pursuant to which charter cities adjust or adopt council district area boundaries, as applicable, for the purpose of electing members of the city council. These criteria encourage council districts to be geographically contiguous and compact, to respect the geographic integrity of communities of interest, as defined, and to have easily identifiable and understandable boundaries. This bill would provide that these criteria do not apply to a charter city that has adopted comprehensive or exclusive redistricting criteria, as defined, in its city charter. The bill would clarify that if a council assigns the power to adopt new district boundaries to an advisory, hybrid, or independent redistricting commission, the charter city remains subject to the same redistricting deadlines, requirements, and restrictions that are applicable to the council.