SECTION 1.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(1) Under existing law, a person is entitled to vote in a local, special, or consolidated election who is registered in any one of the precincts which compose the local, special, or consolidated election precinct.
(2) California ensures the integrity of its elections by requiring a person to provide a driver’s license number, a California identification number, or the last four digits of their social security number to register to vote.
(3) The state has taken further steps to ensure election integrity, including signature verification checks, mandatory partial recounts, and ballot tracking.
(4) Voter identification laws have historically been used to disenfranchise low-income voters, voters of color, voters with disabilities, and senior voters.
(5) Existing law gives the Secretary of State jurisdiction over voter-eligibility functions.
(6) Under existing law, local elections officials are responsible for supervising voting at the polls.
(7) Voter identification laws place the onus on the voter to prove their identity and right to vote, even after voters have taken the necessary steps to prove their identity and right to vote through the voter registration process.
(8) The
implementation of voter identification laws in municipal elections conflicts with California’s established, well-balanced methods of ensuring election integrity across the state.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares that Section 2 of this act adding Section 10005 of the Elections Code addresses a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, Section 2 of this act applies to all cities, including charter cities.