Elections.

All housing-related provisions were deleted. The bill no longer amends Government Code sections 65584.04 or 65584.06, which dealt with regional housing need allocation methodology and distribution of units lost in states of emergency.

The bill now amends many additional Elections Code sections (6041, 6340, 6520, 6722, 6852, 8020, 8020.5, 8022, 8024, 8027, 8028, 8903, 10220, 10224, 10225, 10229, 10407, 10510, 10516, 10603, 10604, 10704, 13107.3, and 13307) covering presidential primary candidate selection, nomination document filing, withdrawal procedures, incumbent replacement, and tax return disclosure.

Multiple election deadlines were moved 4 days earlier: the Secretary of State's public announcement of presidential primary candidates changed from 88 to 92 days before the election; nomination document availability changed from 113 to 118 days before; the filing deadline for nomination documents changed from 88 to 92 days before; withdrawal deadlines changed from 88 to 92 days (and 83 to 88 days for extended periods); and the incumbent replacement filing window shifted accordingly.

A new Section 8903 requires candidates to submit two copies of their federal tax returns (one unredacted, one redacted) to the Secretary of State by 5 p.m. on the 92nd day before the election. The Secretary of State reviews redactions for compliance; if deficiencies are found, candidates must correct them by the 78th day or they will not be qualified for the ballot. Redacted copies are made public when the certified candidate list is issued.

Candidates must now certify under penalty of perjury the truth and accuracy of the content of their ballot designation worksheet, expanding the crime of perjury to cover false statements in that document.

The state-mandated local program designation changed from 'yes' to 'no,' and the bill now states that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason, reflecting the removal of the housing provisions that had imposed costs on local agencies.

The bill text was reformatted from a formal legislative document (with page headers, line numbers, and amendment history at the top) into a web page layout with navigation menus, quick search fields, version history listing, and standard website UI elements.

The bill now amends Sections 8121 and 8147.5 of the Elections Code, expanding its scope beyond housing to include election candidate notification requirements.

Entirely removed the Senate version's amendments to Section 65584.05, which had included fire risk area allocation reductions, population-based reductions for unincorporated areas outside urban areas, an expanded appeal process, and public hearing requirements for appeals.

Section 8121: The Secretary of State must now notify candidates of other candidates for the same office at least 10 days before transmitting the certified list (up from 5 days).

Section 8147.5: The deadline for notifying candidates of other candidates for the same office before a general election moved from at least 73 days to at least 78 days before the election.

Section 8121(b): New requirement that the Secretary of State post each candidate's party preference history for the preceding 10 years on the Secretary of State's website, continuously until the official canvass is completed.

Removed the Senate version's requirement that emergency-lost housing units be allocated to jurisdictions OTHER than where they were lost, considering risk of recurrence. Replaced with a simpler rule requiring proportional distribution according to the region's methodology and prohibiting sole distribution to the affected jurisdictions.

Removed the Senate version's requirement that allocation plans be consistent with the sustainable communities strategy in the regional transportation plan (former subdivision n of Section 65584.04).

Removed the Senate version's department review process for housing allocation methodologies (subdivisions i through m of Section 65584.04), which had required the department to review draft methodologies within 60 days and report findings, with options for the council of governments to revise or adopt despite disagreement.

State-mandated local program designation changed from 'yes' to 'no', indicating the Assembly version no longer imposes state-mandated costs on local agencies.

The bill went from containing only a non-operative legislative intent statement to amending Sections 65584.04, 65584.05, and 65584.06 of the Government Code with detailed operative provisions governing how regional housing need is distributed among local jurisdictions.

Senator Stern was added as a co-author alongside Senator Allen, and the bill title was expanded to specify it amends Sections 65584.04, 65584.05, and 65584.06 of the Government Code.

Requires that housing need resulting from units lost during a Governor-declared state of emergency (that have not been rebuilt or replaced) be allocated to jurisdictions OTHER than where the lost units were located, considering the risk of recurrence of the emergency conditions. This replaces the prior approach of merely 'considering' unit loss as a factor.

Requires each jurisdiction's housing allocation to be reduced by a percentage equal to the percentage of land suitable for urban development or conversion to residential use that is located within a very high fire risk area (defined as very high fire hazard severity zones per Section 51179 or Cal Fire maps).

After the fire risk reduction, county allocations are further reduced by a percentage equal to the share of the unincorporated area's total population that resides outside of an urban area (as designated by the U.S. Census Bureau). County allocations are capped so they do not exceed the percentage of total regional population residing in urban areas within the unincorporated area.

Prohibits councils of governments from using a jurisdiction's local permit limits, prior housing underproduction, or stable population numbers as justification for reducing that jurisdiction's share of regional housing need.

Adds a 7 percent threshold: if appeal-based adjustments total 7 percent or less of regional housing need, they must be distributed proportionally to all local governments; if greater than 7 percent, the council of governments must develop a methodology for distributing the excess, subject to the same county cap.

Expands appealable circumstances to include when a council of governments fails to make the required fire risk and urban area allocation adjustments, giving local governments a new basis to challenge their allocation.

Defines 'urban area' as areas designated by the U.S. Census Bureau (Federal Register Vol. 87, No. 249, December 29, 2022) and 'very high fire risk area' as lands within very high fire hazard severity zones per Section 51179 or as indicated on Cal Fire maps adopted under Public Resources Code Section 4202.

Adds a state mandate reimbursement provision requiring the Commission on State Mandates to determine if the bill contains state-mandated costs and, if so, that reimbursement be made to local agencies. The fiscal committee designation changed from 'no' to 'yes' and state-mandated local program changed from 'no' to 'yes'.

Emergency unit distribution rule changed: previously required allocating lost units 'to jurisdictions other than' where they were lost; now prohibits 'solely' distributing to original jurisdictions and requires proportional distribution per the region's adopted methodology. This gives councils of governments more flexibility in how they spread out disaster-related housing need while still preventing all burden from falling on affected areas.

Fiscal committee review changed from 'no' to 'yes,' meaning the bill now requires fiscal committee approval before passage, indicating increased fiscal impact recognition.

State-mandated local program designation changed from 'no' to 'yes,' formally acknowledging that the additional duties imposed on councils of governments constitute a state mandate requiring potential reimbursement under the California Constitution.

Added co-sponsor Senator Stern, broadening legislative support for the bill.

Digest now references delegation authority for cities and counties without a council of governments to allocate emergency-lost units based on the allocation methodology, extending the emergency distribution requirement to non-COG areas.