SB 594

Bill Subjects

Abstract

(1) (a) The California Constitution establishes the Citizens Redistricting Commission for the purpose of drawing district lines for the election of Members of the State Senate, Assembly, Congress, and the State Board of Equalization, and requires the commission to do so by August 15 in each year ending in the number one thereafter. For redistricting occurring in 2021, the Supreme Court of California, by peremptory writ of mandate in Legislature of State of California v. Padilla (2020) 9 Cal.5th 867, extended that deadline to December 15, 2021, or to a later date if specified conditions are met, due to a delay in the release of federal census data caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This bill would, for the June 7, 2022, statewide direct primary election, make various changes, described below, to existing law relating to candidate nominations and compilation of registered voter data in order to accommodate the extended state redistricting deadline. The bill would define "state redistricting deadline" for these purposes to mean the extended deadline established by the Supreme Court of California described above, or that deadline as modified in any subsequent related proceeding. If a subsequent proceeding further modifies the deadline, the bill would require the Secretary of State, within 7 days, to prepare a calendar of key election dates and deadlines and requirements for the nomination of candidates. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2023. By increasing the duties of local elections officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (b) Existing law provides that a person is not eligible to be elected to an elective office unless that person is a registered voter and otherwise qualified to vote for that office at the time that nomination papers are issued to the person. This bill would provide that a person is not ineligible to be elected to the office of Member of the State Board of Equalization, State Senator, or Member of the Assembly on the ground that the person was not otherwise qualified to vote for the office if, at the time that nomination papers are issued to the person, the person is registered to vote and would be qualified to vote for the office if the person was a resident of, and registered to vote in, the election district from which the office is elected. (c) Existing law generally requires nomination documents for elective office to be made available to candidates not more than 113 days before the election. This bill would require those nomination documents to be first available on February 14, 2022, or the 46th day after the state redistricting deadline, whichever is later. (d) Existing law authorizes a candidate for elective office to submit a petition containing a specified number of signatures in lieu of all or part of the fee for filing nomination papers. Existing law requires the Secretary of State to make forms for securing signatures available to each candidate commencing 60 days before the first day for circulating nomination papers, except as specified, and requires candidates to file in-lieu-filing-fee petitions at least 30 days before the close of the nomination period. This bill would require the Secretary of State to make those forms available commencing 7 days after the state redistricting deadline, and require in-lieu-filing-fee petitions to be filed not later than February 9, 2022, or 41 days after the state redistricting deadline, whichever is later. The bill would require the elections official to proportionally reduce the required number of signatures for a petition by the same proportion as the reduction in the number of days for a candidate to collect signatures on a petition compared to the number of days specified in existing law for a candidate to collect signatures for a regular election for the same office. (e) Existing law requires each county elections official to provide the Secretary of State with specified information regarding the number of voters and their party preferences in the county and each supervisorial, Congressional, Senate, Assembly, and Board of Equalization district in the county on the 135th day before each direct primary election, with respect to all voters who are registered voters on the 154th day before the primary election. Existing law requires the Secretary of State to compile a statewide list of this information within 30 days after receiving it from each county elections official. This bill would require the Secretary of State to determine, by December 31, 2021, whether it is feasible to include in the statewide list described above the number of voters by party preference in each supervisorial, Congressional, Senate, Assembly, and Board of Equalization district with respect to all voters who are registered voters on the 154th day before the June 7, 2022, statewide direct primary election. If the Secretary of State determines it is not feasible, the bill would not require that information to be included in the information provided by the counties and the compiled statewide list. The bill would require the Secretary of State to prepare a supplemental statewide list showing that information on a date specified by the Secretary of State, but not later than the 88th day before the election. (f) Existing law requires the Secretary of State, at least 158 days before the statewide direct primary election, to prepare and transmit to each county elections official a notice designating all of the offices, except those of county officers and judges, for which candidates are to be nominated. This bill would instead require that notice to be transmitted not later than the 6th day after the state redistricting deadline. (g) Existing law authorizes a candidate for elective office to designate that certain specified words appear below the candidate's name on the ballot, including, among others, the word "incumbent." This bill would prohibit a candidate for the office of Representative in Congress, Member of the State Board of Equalization, State Senator, or Member of the Assembly from choosing the word "incumbent" as a designation to appear on the ballot. The bill would make conforming changes relating to the deadline for a person to file nomination documents for an office if a current holder of the office does not file nomination documents. (2) Existing law requires, after each federal decennial census, the board of directors of certain special districts to adjust, by resolution, their division boundaries so that their divisions are equal in population and in compliance with specified requirements, and prohibits those districts from making a change in division boundaries within 180 days preceding the election of any director. Existing law also requires certain special districts that elect their board members from or by divisions to adjust their boundaries before November 1 of the year following the year in which each decennial census is taken. For district conducting elections in 2022, this bill would, notwithstanding those provisions, require a governing board to adopt adjusted division boundaries no later than April 17, 2022, if the board has a regular election to elect members of its governing board on the same date as the 2022 statewide general election. If the board does not have a regular election on that date, the bill would require the board to adopt adjusted division boundaries prior to 180 days preceding the district's first regular election occurring after January 1, 2022. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2023. The bill would also clarify that the date of adoption of a resolution adjusting division boundaries is the date of passage of the resolution by the board. (3) Existing law requires counties, general law cities, and charter cities that elect members of their legislative bodies using district-based elections to adopt boundaries for those supervisorial or council districts following each federal decennial census, as specified. Existing law expressly authorizes a city council to adopt district boundaries by resolution or ordinance. This bill would clarify that "adopting" district boundaries for these purposes means the passage of an ordinance or resolution specifying those boundaries. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.