AB 728: Elections: county voter information guides.

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Existing law generally requires county elections officials to prepare a county voter information guide before each election and to mail the guide to each voter no later than 21 days before the election. For a partisan primary election, existing law requires county elections officials to prepare a county voter information guide for each political party and a nonpartisan county voter information guide and to mail the applicable guide to each voter no later than 10 days before the election.

This bill would instead require county elections officials to mail a county voter information guide to each voter no later than 29 days before the election. By increasing the duties of county elections officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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.

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The people of the State of California do enact as follows:SECTION 1.Section 13300 of the Elections Code is amended to read:13300.

(a)By at least 29 days before the partisan primary, each county elections official shall prepare a separate county voter information guide for each political party and a separate nonpartisan county voter information guide. The county elections official shall place in each guide, as applicable, in the order provided in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 13100), and under the appropriate title of each office, the names of all candidates for whom nomination papers have been duly filed with the county elections official or have been certified to the county elections official by the Secretary of State, to be voted for in the county elections officials county at the partisan primary election.

(b)The county voter information guides shall include a substantial facsimile of the official ballots, except as otherwise provided by law. The county voter information guides shall be printed on paper of a different texture from the paper to be used for the official ballot.

(c)One county voter information guide of the party for which the voter has disclosed a preference, as evidenced by the voters registration, shall be mailed no later than 10 29 days before the election to each voter entitled to vote at the primary who registered at least 29 days before the election. primary. A nonpartisan county voter information guide shall be so mailed to each voter who is not registered as preferring any of the parties participating in the primary election. On election day the voter may, upon request, vote the ballot of a political party if authorized by the partys rules, duly noticed to the Secretary of State.

SEC. 2.Section 13303 of the Elections Code is amended to read:13303.

(a)For each election, each appropriate elections official shall cause to be printed, on plain white paper or tinted paper, without watermark, at least as many copies of the form of ballot provided for use in each voting precinct as there are voters in the precinct. These copies shall be designated county voter information guide upon their face and shall include a substantial facsimile of the official ballots used in the election, except as otherwise provided by law. A county voter information guide shall be mailed, postage prepaid, to each voter no later than 21 days before the election to each voter who is registered at least 29 days before the election.

(b)The elections official shall send notice of the polling place, which includes vote centers, to each voter with the county voter information guide. Only official matter shall be sent out with the county voter information guide as provided by law.

(c)The elections official shall send notice of the polling place, which includes vote centers, to each voter who registered after the 29th day before the election and is eligible to participate in the election. The notice shall also include information as to where the voter can obtain a county voter information guide and a state voter information guide before the election, a statement indicating that those documents will be available at the polling place at the time of the election, and the address of the Secretary of States internet website and, if applicable, of the county internet website where a county voter information guide may be viewed.

SEC. 3.

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

REVISIONS: HeadingLine 2.

Date	Status
Feb 1, 2022	From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
Jan 31, 2022	Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution.
May 20, 2021	Joint Rule 62(a), file notice suspended.
May 19, 2021	In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.
Apr 15, 2021	Coauthors revised.
Feb 25, 2021	Referred to Com. on ELECTIONS.
Feb 17, 2021	From printer. May be heard in committee March 19.
Feb 16, 2021	Read first time. To print.

Authors shown for version:
Introduced (2/16/2021)