Bill Text: CA AB46 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Elections: official canvass: manual tally.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2010-06-22 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 28, Statutes of 2010. [AB46 Detail]
Download: California-2009-AB46-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 46 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 28
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE JUNE 22, 2010
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR JUNE 22, 2010
PASSED THE SENATE JUNE 21, 2010
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY JUNE 17, 2010
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 14, 2010
AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 4, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 1, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 15, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 22, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 31, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY FEBRUARY 19, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Monning
DECEMBER 1, 2008
An act to add and repeal Section 15360.5 of the Elections Code,
relating to elections, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take
effect immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 46, Monning. Elections: official canvass: manual tally.
Existing law requires, during the official canvass of an election
in which a voting system is used, the official conducting the
election to conduct a public manual tally of the ballots tabulated by
those devices, including vote by mail voters' ballots, cast in 1% of
the precincts chosen at random by the elections official.
This bill would authorize an official who conducts an election in
San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, Santa Clara County, or
Santa Cruz County that takes place on June 8, 2010, June 22, 2010, or
August 17, 2010, to conduct a public manual tally by alternative
means than those described above. Specifically, the bill would permit
the official conducting the election to conduct a separate manual
tally of the ballots cast in 1% of the precincts chosen at random by
the elections official and a separate manual tally of no less than 1%
of the vote by mail ballots cast in the election.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 15360.5 is added to the Elections Code, to
read:
15360.5. (a) During the official canvass of any election in San
Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, Santa Clara County, or
Santa Cruz County conducted on June 8, 2010, June 22, 2010, or August
17, 2010, the official conducting the election may, in lieu of
subdivision (a) of Section 15360, conduct a public manual tally of
the ballots tabulated by the voting system used in the election by
completing all of the following:
(1) A public manual tally of the ballots, not including vote by
mail ballots, cast in 1 percent of the precincts chosen at random by
the elections official. If 1 percent of the precincts is less than
one whole precinct, the tally shall be conducted in one precinct
chosen at random by the elections official. In addition to the 1
percent manual tally, the elections official shall, for each race not
included in the initial group of precincts, count one additional
precinct. The manual tally shall apply only to the race not
previously counted.
(2) A separate public manual tally of not less than 1 percent of
the vote by mail ballots cast in the election. Batches of vote by
mail ballots shall be chosen at random by the elections official. For
the purposes of this section, "batch" means a set of ballots tallied
by the voting system and for which the voting system can produce a
report of the votes cast. In addition to the 1 percent manual tally
of the vote by mail ballots, the elections official shall, for each
race not included in the initial group of batches of vote by mail
ballots, count one additional batch of vote by mail ballots. The
manual tally shall apply only to the race not previously counted.
(b) Additional precincts for the manual tally described in
subdivision (a) may be selected at the discretion of the elections
official.
(c) If vote by mail ballots are cast on a direct recording
electronic voting system at the office of an elections official or at
a satellite location of the office of an elections official pursuant
to Section 3018, the official conducting the election shall either
include those ballots in the manual tally conducted pursuant to
subdivision (a) or conduct a public manual tally of those ballots
cast on not less than 1 percent of all the direct recording
electronic voting machines used in that election chosen at random by
the elections official.
(d) The elections official shall use either a random number
generator or other method specified in regulations that shall be
adopted by the Secretary of State to randomly choose the initial
precincts, batches of vote by mail ballots, or direct recording
electronic voting machines subject to a public manual tally pursuant
to subdivision (a).
(e) The manual tally conducted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall
be a public process, with the official conducting the election
providing at least a five-day public notice of the time and place of
the manual tally and of the time and place of the selection of the
precincts, batches, or machines from which ballots are to be tallied
prior to conducting the tally and selection.
(f) The official conducting the election shall include a report on
the results of any 1 percent manual tally conducted pursuant to
subdivision (a) in the certification of the official canvass of the
vote. This report shall identify any discrepancies between the
machine count and the manual tally and a description of how each of
these discrepancies was resolved. In resolving any discrepancy
involving a vote recorded by means of a punchcard voting system or by
electronic or electromechanical vote tabulating devices, the voter
verified paper audit trail shall govern if there is a discrepancy
between it and the electronic record.
(g) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2011, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2011, deletes or extends
that date.
SEC. 2. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
A special election is scheduled to take place on June 22, 2010, in
San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, Santa Clara County,
and Santa Cruz County, the cost of which will put a significant
strain on the counties' budgets and negatively impact the ability of
the counties to provide critical services. In order to save county
funds, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.
