Voting rights: language assistance.

(1) Existing state and federal laws, including the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, require elections officials to provide language assistance to voters with limited English proficiency in order to access voting information and cast their votes at the polling place. Existing law also requires elections officials, under specified circumstances, to make reasonable efforts to recruit elections officials who are fluent in a language used by citizens who lack sufficient skill in English to vote without assistance. This bill would revise the recruitment provisions to apply to precincts where the elections official is required to post translated facsimile ballots and would require each county, not later than 60 days before the first statewide election held in every even-numbered year, to submit a specified report to the Secretary of State describing the county's plan for compliance with state and federal laws enacted to assist voters with limited English proficiency. The bill would require that this report be made available to the public upon request and that the Secretary of State issue guidance for a uniform standard report format for this purpose that includes, at a minimum, specified information that sets forth the county's plan for protecting the rights of these voters. By increasing the duties of local elections officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would also require the elections official to evaluate complaints filed against precinct board members and would require the Secretary of State to select the best practices and resources for precinct board member training. The Secretary of State would also be required to consult with an advisory body composed of specified members for this purpose and to report violations of these provisions pursuant to law. (2) 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 these statutory provisions.