Elections: precinct board members.

The legislative counsel's digest had a stray word 'This' removed from the phrase 'This Until January 1, 2033, this bill would authorize' and the word 'written' was added before 'notice' for clarity.

Standard enrolled bill elements were added: passage dates (Assembly August 19, 2026; Senate August 18, 2026), governor's receipt and approval lines, and chapter designation.

The amendment tracking headers (dates of prior amendments) and the vote/appropriation/fiscal committee summary line were removed as part of the transition to enrolled form.

A new subdivision (h) was added stating that Section 12325 shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2033, and as of that date is repealed. This makes the random selection system for precinct board members a temporary measure with a defined end date.

The eligibility provision was changed from 'every citizen registered voter who resides in the jurisdiction and is at least 18 years of age' to 'every registered voter who resides in the jurisdiction.' The explicit age-18 requirement was removed, though registered voters are already required to be at least 18 under existing law.

The excusal standard was simplified. The old language allowed excusal for 'undue hardship upon themselves or the public' in addition to ill health or another good and sufficient reason. The new version removes the undue hardship language, leaving only 'ill health or another good and sufficient reason, as determined by the elections official.'

The bill title was changed from 'An act to add Section 12325' to 'An act to add and repeal Section 12325,' reflecting the new sunset provision.

The bill was reduced from amending 12+ sections of the Elections Code (making random selection mandatory statewide) to adding a single new section (12325) that merely authorizes counties to optionally adopt random selection. All amendments to Sections 12286, 12300-12309, 12316, 12318, 12327, 17502, and 17503 were removed.

Random selection changed from mandatory ('shall randomly select') to optional ('may adopt a system'). Additionally, the county board of supervisors must now approve the elections official's plan before it can be implemented.

The elections official may disqualify a selected person if they deem the person 'unsuitable to serve' in their discretion, though exclusion based on protected characteristics under Government Code Section 11135 remains prohibited.

New notice and reporting requirements: selected persons must receive written notice at least 15 days before a designated reporting date, and must report to the elections official's office (or another location) to complete forms and receive training.

Eligible pool narrowed from 'every citizen who resides in the jurisdiction and is at least 18 years of age' to 'every registered voter who resides in the jurisdiction and is at least 18 years of age.' Candidates for office in the election are now explicitly excluded.

The requirement that the DMV furnish lists of all residents 18+ with driver's licenses or ID cards to elections officials was removed entirely, eliminating a significant data-sharing obligation.

Precinct board members selected under this section are now explicitly entitled to compensation under Section 12310, and Government Code Section 12945.8 (employee protections for jury duty leave) applies to them as it does to jurors.

The Assembly version's provision that a person excused for undue hardship would be automatically selected for the next election was removed. The state-mandated local program designation and associated reimbursement language were also removed, changing the fiscal impact from 'yes' to 'no.'

New Section 12325 added to the Elections Code creating an optional framework. It states that 'an elections official may adopt a system in which individuals are randomly selected to serve as precinct board members' and includes 'notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter' language, making random selection permissive rather than mandatory.

The bill's overall effect shifts from requiring all counties to randomly select precinct board members to allowing each county elections official to choose whether to adopt the system. The legislative digest changes from 'would instead require' to 'would authorize.'

Fiscal committee designation changed from 'yes' to 'no' and state-mandated local program changed from 'yes' to 'no,' reflecting that the bill no longer imposes a mandatory cost on local governments.

Section 12302 removes the requirement that a precinct board member 'may serve only in the precinct for which his or her appointment is received,' consistent with a system where members are randomly assigned rather than appointed to specific precincts.

Section 12303 changes the language assistance mechanism from elections officials making 'reasonable efforts to recruit' bilingual individuals to simply 'assigning individuals who are fluent in a language used by citizens described in subdivision (b) and in English to the precinct board.' The reporting requirements to the Secretary of State about recruitment numbers are removed.

Section 12327 removes the provision allowing the elections official to appoint precinct board members if they 'have not been appointed or cannot serve,' keeping only the polling place designation emergency provision.

Throughout the bill, terminology shifts from 'appointment' to 'selection' (e.g., Section 12307 notice language, Section 12309 instruction language, Sections 17502 and 17503 record-keeping references).

Sections 17502 and 17503 remove references to preserving 'precinct board member applications' and 'nominations by political parties' from record-keeping requirements, since those processes no longer apply under random selection.