AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 16, 2025

AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 18, 2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

95

CHAPTER 301

Statutes of 2025

[ Approved by Governor October 3, 2025. Filed with Secretary of State October 3, 2025. ]

Introduced by Assembly Member Sharp-Collins

February 21, 2025

An act to repeal and add Section 2105 of the Elections Code, relating to elections.

Vote: majority   Appropriation: no   Fiscal committee: yes   Local program: yes

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

Existing law requires the Secretary of State to adopt regulations requiring counties to design and implement programs intended to identify and register qualified voters who are not registered to vote. Existing law further requires the Secretary of State to adopt regulations prescribing minimum requirements for those programs. If the Secretary of State finds that a county has not designed and implemented a program meeting those minimum requirements, the Secretary of State must design the program for the county and report the violation to the Attorney General.

This bill would repeal the above provisions. The bill would instead require counties that do not conduct an election as an all-mailed ballot election, as specified, to design and implement a voter education and outreach plan to identify and register qualified voters who are not registered to vote. The bill would require such plans to provide information to the public about specified topics, such as vote by mail procedures and options for military and overseas voters. The bill would require county elections officials to submit amendments to their plans to the Secretary of State, who must make the current version of each plan available on the Secretary of State’s internet website. The bill would require the Secretary of State to provide county elections officials a template for their plans.

By imposing new duties on local elections officials, the bill would create 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.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 2105 of the Elections Code is repealed.

SEC. 2.

Section 2105 is added to the Elections Code, to read:

2105.

(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to maintain voter registration at the highest possible level.

(b) A county that does not satisfy the conditions to conduct an all-mailed ballot election pursuant to Section 4005 shall design and implement a voter education and outreach plan pursuant to this section. The purpose of the plan shall be to identify and register qualified electors who are not registered to vote and to encourage participation in the electoral process.

(c) Each voter education and outreach plan shall, at a minimum, provide information to the public about online voter registration, preregistration opportunities, vote by mail procedures, ballot tracking services, options for military and overseas voters, options for voters with disabilities, options for in-person voting opportunities, language accessibility, and key election dates and deadlines.

(d) (1) The Secretary of State shall provide county elections officials a template for their voter education and outreach plans.

(2) (A) The Secretary of State shall make the most current version of each voter education and outreach plan available on the Secretary of State’s internet website.

(B) The county elections official shall make the most current version of its voter education and outreach plan available on the county elections internet website.

(3) County elections officials shall submit any amendments to their voter education and outreach plans to the Secretary of State by October 1 of each odd-numbered year.

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.