Elections: county voter information guides.

Existing law generally requires county elections officials to prepare a county voter information guide before each election and to mail the guide to each voter no later than 21 days before the election. For a partisan primary election, existing law requires county elections officials to prepare a county voter information guide for each political party and a nonpartisan county voter information guide and to mail the applicable guide to each voter no later than 10 days before the election. This bill would instead require county elections officials to mail a county voter information guide to each voter no later than 29 days before the election. By increasing the duties of county elections officials, this bill would impose 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.