A Democrat-controlled Sacramento Legislature has scheduled a hearing on four bills of great concern to EIPCa, Election Integrity Project California, a non-partisan, non-profit 501(c)3 organization. If passed three of the bills would amend California’s constitution.
The Assembly Committee on Elections and Redistricting will hear the bills on Wednesday morning, June 19. The time to act is now if our citizen voices are to also be heard in those chambers.
EIPCa asks your help to communicate to the members of the committee and/or the authors and co-authors of the bills sometime in the next week. If you are a constituent of any of these officials, your communication to your representative is particularly valuable.
Your communication may be by phone, but if you can respond within the next couple of days, letters or cards would be very effective as well. (Numbers and addresses below)
- Communicate politely and respectfully
- Select at least one of the talking points below to support your point of view.
- Make your communication personal when possible—tell how you will personally be affected or what personal experience leads you to your point of view.
ACA 4 and 8: ACA 4 seeks to allow 17-year-olds to cast a vote in a Primary Election if they will be 18 by the date of the following General Election. ACA 8 would allow 17-year-olds to vote, period.
EIPCa RECOMMENDS A NO VOTE ON BOTH.
Talking Points:
- 17-year-olds are children, legal minors
- 17-year-olds are living at home and vulnerable to parental pressure, especially with a mail-in ballot
- 17-year-olds are still in high school and vulnerable to political pressure from teachers
- 17-year-olds have not entered the real world’
- 18-year-olds have graduated from high school, some have moved out of “home”, and most are either working full-time or training/educating themselves for career. This changes perspective, makes them feel more ownership for their own lives and political decisions
- 8 months between March and November provide a lot of maturing at that age
ACA 6: ACA 6 seeks to restore voting rights to past criminals while they are still on parole.
EIPCa recommends a NO vote.
Talking Points:
- Former criminals on parole have not finished paying their debt to society. They do not have the freedom to live where they wish, go where they wish, see whom they wish. They are closely monitored and supervised. They are in a period of EARNING the privilege to fully re-enter society. The right to vote is the most precious of rights associated with that privilege. It should be the last to be regained.
- Former criminals on parole have not finished paying their debt to society. They do not have the freedom to live where they wish, go where they wish, see whom they wish. They are closely monitored and supervised. They are in a period of EARNING the privilege to fully re-enter society. The right to vote is the most precious of rights associated with that privilege. It should be the last to be regained.
- Giving parolees the vote will NOT act as an incentive for reintegration into society; rather it will cheapen that right for them and all other citizens. That which is cheaply won is cheaply prized.
SB 72: SB 72 would allow conditional voter registration (“same day voting”) at ALL polling places in the state. It would also allow polling places with the proper technology to provide voters with the proper ballot for their precinct.
EIPCa RECOMMENDS A NO VOTE.
Talking Points:
- Poll workers are already over-stressed and under-trained. Adding such an important task to their already overloaded plate is a recipe for disaster.
- Properly registering someone to vote so that their registration is valid is a heavy responsibility, and should not be done in the environment of long lines of impatient voters and multiple tasks.
- Errors made will allow illegitimate votes to be cast, and legitimate votes to be diluted.
- New voters registering outside their appropriate precinct will, in under-served counties that cannot afford proper technology, be denied access to their proper ballot and thus be disenfranchised with respect to some contests not reflected on the ballot where they choose to register. This creates an inequality for voters, giving voters in wealthy counties privilege over those in poorer counties.
- Current law allows same day registration at county elections office. This provides sufficient access along with proper safeguards.
PLEASE contact the committee members listed below as well as the author and/or coauthors of the bills that most concern you. Contact must be made by Monday, June 17.
- If you are a constituent of one of the committee members, authors or coauthors, identify yourself as a concerned constituent.
- Mr. Mayes and Mr. Gallagher have occasionally not taken a stand on similarly clear issues. Politely suggest in your communication to them that an abstention (“present” vote) does not appropriately represent California constituents.
Thank you for your help! Please spread the word to others who may be willing to help as well.
Authors:
ACA 4: Assembly Member Mullin Capitol Office, Room 3160 P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0022; (916) 319-2022
Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Gonzalez, District 80
Coauthors: Senator Hertzberg District 18; Assembly member Berman, District 24
ACA 6: Assembly Members McCarty, Bonta, Gonzalez, Kalra, Kamlager-Dove, Weber
Find contact info here.
ACA 8: Assembly Members Low and Voepel
Coauthors: Assembly Members Burke, Chen, Gloria
Find additional contact info here.
SB 72: Senator Thomas J. Umberg
Sacramento Office: 916 651-4034 Fax: 916 651-4934
Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Gonzalez
Coauthors: Senator Hertzberg; Assembly member Berman
Find additional contact info at here.
Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee Members:
Marc Berman, Chair (D) Capitol Office, Room 6011
P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0024
916 319-2024
James Gallagher, Vice Chair (R) Capitol Office, Room 3147
P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0024
916 319-2003
Ian C. Calderon (D) Capitol Office, Room 319
P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0024
916 319-2057
Evan Low (D) Capitol Office, Room 4126
P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0024
916 319-2028
Chad Mayes (R) Capitol Office, Room 4098
P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0024
916 319-2042
Kevin Mullin (D) Capitol Office, Room 3160
P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0024
916 319-2022
Shirley Weber (D) Capitol Office, Room 3123
P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0024
916 319-2079
The Election Integrity Project California (EIPCa) is a non-partisan group of U.S. citizen volunteers seeking to fulfill our duty to actively participate in the governing of our state/country by helping to defend the integrity of the voting process that protects our freedoms and way of life. EIPCa volunteers seek to protect our Republic, a government of, by, and for the people by maintaining an active role in that part of government which empowers citizens with our most fundamental right ~ the right to choose our representatives by fair and honest elections.
