California Assembly Bill AB884 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 884AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 22, 2015 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 6, 2015 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Rendon FEBRUARY 26, 2015 An act to amend  Section   Sections 9001 and  9004  of, to add Section 9008.5 to, and to repeal Section 18650 of,   of  the Elections Code, and to amend Section 6253.5 of the Government Code,  relating to initiatives. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 884, as amended, Rendon. Initiative petitions:  public records.   title and summary.   (1) Under the California Public Records Act, statewide, county, city, and district initiative, referendum, and recall petitions, certain other petitions, and related memoranda are not public records and are not open to inspection, except as specified.   (1) Existing law requires the proponents of a proposed ballot initiative or referendum to pay a fee of $200 to the Attorney General for preparation of a circulating title and summary.  This bill would  create an exception to that exemption for petitions for statewide initiatives that the Attorney General has determined would likely result in a violation of an individual's constitutional rights, thereby making those petitions subject to inspection by the public. By requiring local agencies to produce additional records for inspection, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.   increase the fee from $200 to $1,000, and would authorize the Attorney General, on an annual basis, to determine the actual costs of preparing the title and summary and increase the fee to a maximum of $5,000 to recover the full cost of preparing the title and summary.  (2) Existing law requires the Attorney General to provide a ballot label and a ballot title for each measure to be submitted to the voters at a statewide election, and requires the Attorney General to prepare a summary of the chief purposes and points of each statewide ballot measure as part of the ballot title.  Existing law provides for the format of an initiative measure petition and requires, prior to circulation, the placement of specified information across the top of the petition of a proposed initiative measure in 12-point or larger roman boldface type.  This bill would require the Attorney General, if he or she determines during preparation of the circulating title and summary for a statewide initiative measure that the measure would likely result in a violation of an individual's constitutional rights, to include a specified statement in the title and summary.  The bill would require, for those measures that the Attorney General determines would likely result in a violation of an individual's constitutional rights, specified information on the petition to be in 16-point or larger roman boldface type, and would require a statement notifying the public that the petition, including information provided by signatories to the petition, is subject to the California Public Records Act.   (3) Existing law prohibits a person from knowingly or willfully permitting the list of signatures on an initiative, referendum, or recall petition to be used for any purpose other than qualification of the initiative or referendum measure or recall question for the ballot, and provides that violation of that provision is a misdemeanor.   This bill would repeal those provisions.   The California Constitution requires local agencies, for the purpose of ensuring public access to the meetings of public bodies and the writings of public officials and agencies, to comply with a statutory enactment that amends or enacts laws relating to public records or open meetings and contains findings demonstrating that the enactment furthers the constitutional requirements relating to this purpose.   This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.   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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program:  yes   no  . THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   Section 6253.5 of the Government Code is amended to read: 6253.5. (a) Notwithstanding Sections 6252 and 6253, and except as provided by subdivision (d), statewide, county, city, and district initiative, referendum, and recall petitions, petitions circulated pursuant to Section 5091 of the Education Code, petitions for the reorganization of school districts submitted pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 35700) of Chapter 4 of Part 21 of the Education Code, petitions for the reorganization of community college districts submitted pursuant to Part 46 (commencing with Section 74000) of the Education Code and all memoranda prepared by the county elections officials in the examination of the petitions indicating which registered voters have signed particular petitions shall not be deemed public records and shall not be open to inspection except by the public officer or public employees who have the duty of receiving, examining, or preserving the petitions or who are responsible for the preparation of that memoranda and, if the petition is found to be insufficient, by the proponents of the petition and the representatives of the proponents as may be designated by the proponents in writing in order to determine which signatures were disqualified and the reasons for disqualification. However, the Attorney General, the Secretary of State, the Fair Political Practices Commission, a district attorney, a school district or a community college district attorney, and a city attorney shall be permitted to examine the material upon approval of the appropriate superior court. (b) If the proponents of a petition are permitted to examine the petition and memoranda, the examination shall commence not later than 21 days after the date of certification of insufficiency. (c) As used in this section: (1) "Petition" means any petition to which a registered voter has affixed his or her signature. (2) "Proponents of the petition" means the following: (A) For statewide initiative and referendum measures, the person or persons who submit a draft of a petition proposing the measure to the Attorney General with a request that he or she prepare a title and summary of the chief purpose and points of the proposed measure. (B) For other initiative and referenda on measures, the person or persons who publish a notice of intention to circulate petitions, or, where publication is not required, who file petitions with the elections official. (C) For recall measures, the person or persons defined in Section 343 of the Elections Code. (D) For petitions circulated pursuant to Section 5091 of the Education Code, the person or persons having charge of the petition who submit the petition to the county superintendent of schools. (E) For petitions circulated pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 35700) of Chapter 4 of Part 21 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Education Code, the person or persons designated as chief petitioners under Section 35701 of the Education Code. (F) For petitions circulated pursuant to Part 46 (commencing with Section 74000) of Division 7 of Title 3 of the Education Code, the person or persons designated as chief petitioners under Sections 74102, 74133, and 74152 of the Education Code. (d) This section does not apply to petitions for statewide initiative measures that the Attorney General has determined, in accordance with subdivision (b) of Section 9004 of the Elections Code, would likely result in a violation of an individual's constitutional rights.   SECTION 1.   Section 9001 of the   Elections Code   is amended to read:  9001. (a)  Prior to   Before  the circulation of  any   an  initiative or referendum petition for signatures, the text of the proposed measure shall be submitted to the Attorney General with a written request that a circulating title and summary of the chief purpose and points of the proposed measure be prepared. The electors presenting the request shall be known as the "proponents." The Attorney General shall preserve the written request until after the next general election. (b) Each and every proponent of  any   a  proposed initiative measure shall, at the time of submitting the text of the proposed measure, provide both of the following: (1) An original signed certification stating that "I, (insert name), declare under penalty of perjury that I am a citizen of the United States, 18 years of age or older, and a resident of (insert county), California." (2) Public contact information. (c) The proponents of  any   an  initiative measure, at the time of submitting the text of the proposed measure to the Attorney General, shall pay a fee  of two hundred dollars ($200), which   of one thousand dollars ($1,000) to the Attorney General that  shall be placed in a trust fund in the office of the  Treasurer and refunded to the proponents if the measure qualifies for the ballot within two years from the date the summary is furnished to the proponents. If   Treasurer.   (1)     On an annual basis, the Attorney General may determine the actual costs of preparing the title and summary and increase the fee to a maximum of five thousand dollars ($5,000) to recover the full cost of preparing the title and summary.   (2)     If the measure qualifies for the ballot within two years from the date the summary is furnished to the proponents, the fee described in this subdivision shall be refunded to the proponents. If  the measure does not qualify within that period, the fee shall be immediately paid into the General Fund of the state. (d) All referenda and proposed initiative measures must be submitted to the Attorney General's Initiative Coordinator located in the Sacramento Attorney General's Office via U.S. Postal Service, alternative mail service, or personal delivery. Only printed documents will be accepted, facsimile or e-mail delivery will not be accepted. (e) The Attorney General's office shall not deem a request for a circulating title and summary submitted until all of the requirements of this section are met. SEC. 2. Section 9004 of the Elections Code is amended to read: 9004. (a) Upon receipt of the text of a proposed initiative measure, and after the public review period provided for in Section 9002, the Attorney General shall prepare a circulating title and summary of the chief purposes and points of the proposed measure. The circulating title and summary shall not exceed 100 words. The Attorney General shall also provide a unique numeric identifier for each proposed initiative measure. The circulating title and summary shall be prepared in the manner provided for the preparation of ballot titles and summaries in Article 5 (commencing with Section 9050), the provisions of which, in regard to the preparation, filing, and settlement of ballot titles and summaries, are applicable to the circulating title and summary. (b) If, during his or her preparation of the circulating title and summary for a proposed initiative measure, the Attorney General determines that the measure would likely result in a violation of an individual's constitutional rights, he or she shall include the following statement in the circulating title and summary: "The Attorney General has determined that this initiative measure, if approved by the voters, would likely result in a violation of an individual's rights under the United States Constitution or the California Constitution." (c) The Attorney General shall provide a copy of the circulating title and summary and its unique numeric identifier to the proponents and to the Secretary of State within 15 days after receipt of the fiscal estimate or opinion prepared by the Department of Finance and the Legislative Analyst pursuant to Section 9005. The date the copy is delivered or mailed to the proponents is the "official summary date." (d) Upon receipt of the circulating title and summary from the Attorney General, the Secretary of State shall, within one business day, notify the proponents and county elections official of each county of the official summary date and provide a copy of the circulating title and summary to each county elections official. This notification shall also include a complete schedule showing the maximum filing deadline, and the certification deadline by the counties to the Secretary of State.  SEC. 3.   Section 9008.5 is added to the Elections Code, to read: 9008.5. A proposed initiative measure that the Attorney General has determined, in accordance with subdivision (b) of Section 9004, would likely result in a violation of an individual's constitutional rights shall, prior to circulation, have placed across the top of the petition in 16-point or larger roman boldface type, all of the following: (a) The Attorney General's unique numeric identifier placed before the circulating title and summary upon each page where the circulating title and summary is to appear. (b) The circulating title and summary prepared by the Attorney General upon each page of the petition on which signatures are to appear. (c) The circulating title and summary prepared by the Attorney General upon each section of the petition preceding the text of the measure. (d) The circulating title and summary prepared by the Attorney General as required by subdivision (c) shall be preceded by the following statement: "Initiative measure to be submitted directly to the voters. This petition, including information provided by signatories to the petition, is subject to the California Public Records Act."   SEC. 4.   Section 18650 of the Elections Code is repealed.   SEC. 5.   The Legislature finds and declares that Section 1 of this act, which amends Section 6253.5 of the Government Code, furthers, within the meaning of paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution, the purposes of that constitutional section as it relates to the right of public access to the meetings of local public bodies or the writings of local public officials and local agencies. Pursuant to paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution, the Legislature makes the following findings: Access to information concerning proposed measures to be submitted directly to the voters related to the people's business is a fundamental and necessary right of every person in this state, and serves to preserve the integrity of the electoral process by combating fraud and fostering government transparency and accountability.   SEC. 6.   No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district under this act would result from a legislative mandate that is within the scope of paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution.