California 2021-2022 Regular Session Status: Enacted Bipartisan · 1 D · 1 R cosponsors

AB 796 — Voter registration: California New Motor Voter Program.

Last action — Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 314, Statutes of 2021.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed Assembly
  4. ✓
    Passed Senate
  5. ✓
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 16, 2021. Enacted.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 94% · high confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

High

How often bills like it became law.

  • Enacted

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 4 sponsors

    1 primary, 3 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (1 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 14 recorded votes so far.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Summary

Existing federal law, the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, requires a state to, among other things, establish procedures to register a person to vote for federal office by an application made simultaneously with a driver's license application. Existing state law requires, in conformance with federal law, that the Secretary of State and the Department of Motor Vehicles establish and implement the California New Motor Voter Program for the purpose of increasing opportunities for voter registration for qualified voters. Existing state law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to transmit to the Secretary of State specified information related to the person's eligibility to vote, which the person provides when applying for a driver's license or identification card. Existing state law provides that this information transmitted to the Secretary of State constitutes a completed affidavit of registration, and the Secretary of State is required to register the person to vote, unless the person affirmatively declines to register to vote or the person is ineligible to vote, or other specified conditions exist. This bill would require a driver's license or identification card application, renewal, or change of address notification, as specified, to include a voter registration application and would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to transmit the application to the Secretary of State according to specified deadlines. The bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to monitor the timeliness of its transmittals to the Secretary of State, and to provide the Secretary of State information regarding delays and irregularities in its ability to do so. The bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Secretary of State each to designate an employee to undertake specified responsibilities to ensure compliance with the California New Motor Voter Program and the National Voter Registration Act. The bill would require the Secretary of State to convene a task force that would provide advice and perform other duties with respect to implementing the California New Motor Voter Program. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 5100 of the Elections Code proposed by AB 446 to be operative only if this bill and AB 446 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 314, Statutes of 2021.

  2. Approved by the Governor.

  3. Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.

  4. Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 59. Noes 18. Page 2736.).

  5. Assembly Rule 77 suspended. (Ayes 57. Noes 14. Page 2703.)

  6. In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after September 3 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.

  7. Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 30. Noes 9. Page 2300.).

  8. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  9. Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.

  10. From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 5. Noes 2.) (August 26).

  11. In committee: Referred to suspense file.

  12. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 12. Noes 4.) (July 13). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  13. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.

  14. From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on TRANS. (Ayes 4. Noes 1. Page 1692.) (June 28).

  15. Referred to Coms. on E. & C.A. and TRANS.

  16. In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

  17. Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 58. Noes 18. Page 1647.)

  18. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  19. From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 12. Noes 4.) (May 20).

  20. Joint Rule 62(a), file notice suspended. (Page 1460.)

  21. In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.

  22. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 4.) (April 26). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  23. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on TRANS. (Ayes 5. Noes 1.) (April 15). Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.

  24. Re-referred to Com. on ELECTIONS.

  25. From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ELECTIONS. Read second time and amended.

  26. Referred to Coms. on ELECTIONS and TRANS.

  27. From printer. May be heard in committee March 19.

  28. Read first time. To print.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

1 sponsors · 3 co-sponsors · 118 not signed on · 17 voted No

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (3)

Not signed on (118)

118 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 118 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

AB 796 Weber Assembly Third Reading

Passed 71 Yea · 1 Nay · 8 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 44003
Republican 8104
Unaffiliated 19001
Total 71108
% of votes cast 89%1%0%10%
How each member voted (80)
Member Party Vote
Holden — Yea
Mathis — Yea
Maienschein — Yea
Rodriguez — Yea
Villapudua — Yea
Ting — Yea
Jones-Sawyer — Yea
McCarty — Yea
Rendon — Yea
Friedman — Yea
Low — Yea
Wood — Yea
Waldron — Yea
Santiago — Yea
Essayli — Not Voting
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Jim Patterson — Yea
Luz Rivas — Yea
Vince Fong — Yea
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Addis, Dawn Democratic Yea
Aguiar-Curry, Cecilia M. Democratic Yea
Alvarez, David Democratic Yea
Arambula, Joaquin Democratic Yea
Bains, Jasmeet Democratic Yea
Bauer-Kahan, Rebecca Democratic Yea
Bennett, Steve Democratic Yea
Berman, Marc Democratic Yea
Boerner, Tasha Democratic Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Bryan, Isaac G. Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Carrillo, Juan Democratic Yea
Cervantes, Sabrina Democratic Yea
Connolly, Damon Democratic Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Yea
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Haney, Matt Democratic Yea
Hart, Gregg Democratic Yea
Irwin, Jacqui Democratic Not Voting
Jackson, Corey A. Democratic Yea
Kalra, Ash Democratic Yea
Lee, Alex Democratic Yea
Lowenthal, Josh Democratic Yea
McKinnor, Tina Democratic Yea
Muratsuchi, Al Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Yea
Ortega, Liz Democratic Yea
Pacheco, Blanca Democratic Yea
Papan, Diane Democratic Yea
Pellerin, Gail Democratic Yea
Petrie-Norris, Cottie Democratic Yea
Quirk-Silva, Sharon Democratic Yea
Ramos, James C. Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Yea
Rubio, Blanca E. Democratic Yea
Schiavo, Pilar Democratic Not Voting
Soria, Esmeralda Democratic Not Voting
Valencia, Avelino Democratic Yea
Ward, Christopher M. Democratic Yea
Weber Pierson, M.D., Akilah Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Yea
Wilson, Lori D. Democratic Yea
Zbur, Rick Chavez Democratic Yea
Alanis, Juan Republican Yea
Chen, Phillip Republican Not Voting
Dahle, Megan Republican Yea
Davies, Laurie Republican Yea
Dixon, Diane Republican Yea
Flora, Heath Republican Not Voting
Gallagher, James Republican Nay
Hoover, Josh Republican Yea
Lackey, Tom Republican Not Voting
Patterson, Joe Republican Yea
Sanchez, Kate Republican Yea
Ta, Tri Republican Not Voting
Wallis, Greg Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended.

Passed 11 Yea · 0 Nay · 5 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 9001
Unaffiliated 2001
Republican 0003
Total 11005
% of votes cast 69%0%0%31%
How each member voted (16)
Member Party Vote
Holden — Yea
Mathis — Not Voting
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Bryan, Isaac G. Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Yea
Hart, Gregg Democratic Yea
Lowenthal, Josh Democratic Yea
Ortega, Liz Democratic Yea
Papan, Diane Democratic Yea
Pellerin, Gail Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Not Voting
Weber Pierson, M.D., Akilah Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Not Voting
Dixon, Diane Republican Not Voting
Sanchez, Kate Republican Not Voting

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]

Passed 13 Yea · 0 Nay · 5 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 10001
Unaffiliated 1001
Republican 2003
Total 13005
% of votes cast 72%0%0%28%
How each member voted (18)
Member Party Vote
Ting — Yea
McCarty — Not Voting
Alvarez, David Democratic Yea
Berman, Marc Democratic Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Irwin, Jacqui Democratic Not Voting
Jackson, Corey A. Democratic Yea
Lee, Alex Democratic Yea
Lowenthal, Josh Democratic Yea
McKinnor, Tina Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Yea
Alanis, Juan Republican Not Voting
Chen, Phillip Republican Not Voting
Dixon, Diane Republican Yea
Flora, Heath Republican Not Voting
Patterson, Joe Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Business and Professions]

Passed 5 Yea · 0 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 4000
Unaffiliated 1000
Republican 0002
Total 5002
% of votes cast 71%0%0%29%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
Friedman — Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Yea
Hart, Gregg Democratic Yea
Quirk-Silva, Sharon Democratic Yea
Valencia, Avelino Democratic Yea
Lackey, Tom Republican Not Voting
Wallis, Greg Republican Not Voting

Official roll call →

AB 796 Berman Concurrence in Senate Amendments

Passed 59 Yea · 18 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 25001
Unaffiliated 34901
Republican 0900
Total 591802
% of votes cast 75%23%0%3%
How each member voted (79)
Member Party Vote
Bloom — Yea
Friedman — Yea
Cooley — Yea
Chiu — Yea
Mullin — Yea
Holden — Yea
Villapudua — Yea
Salas — Yea
Jones-Sawyer — Yea
Santiago — Yea
Maienschein — Yea
Rodriguez — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Mayes — Yea
Nazarian — Yea
Wood — Yea
Ting — Yea
Low — Yea
Frazier — Yea
O'Donnell — Yea
Levine — Yea
Daly — Yea
McCarty — Yea
Medina — Yea
Gray — Yea
Burke — Yea
Cooper — Yea
Chau — Yea
Smith — Nay
Voepel — Nay
Waldron — Nay
Cunningham — Nay
Kiley — Nay
Mathis — Nay
Bigelow — Nay
Rendon — Not Voting
Cristina Garcia — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Jim Patterson — Nay
Lorena Gonzalez — Yea
Luz Rivas — Yea
Mark Stone — Yea
Vince Fong — Nay
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Aguiar-Curry, Cecilia M. Democratic Yea
Arambula, Joaquin Democratic Yea
Bauer-Kahan, Rebecca Democratic Yea
Bennett, Steve Democratic Yea
Berman, Marc Democratic Yea
Boerner, Tasha Democratic Yea
Bryan, Isaac G. Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Cervantes, Sabrina Democratic Yea
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Irwin, Jacqui Democratic Yea
Kalra, Ash Democratic Yea
Lee, Alex Democratic Yea
Muratsuchi, Al Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Not Voting
Petrie-Norris, Cottie Democratic Yea
Quirk-Silva, Sharon Democratic Yea
Ramos, James C. Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Yea
Rubio, Blanca E. Democratic Yea
Ward, Christopher M. Democratic Yea
Weber Pierson, M.D., Akilah Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Yea
Chen, Phillip Republican Nay
Choi, Steven S. Republican Nay
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay
Davies, Laurie Republican Nay
Flora, Heath Republican Nay
Gallagher, James Republican Nay
Lackey, Tom Republican Nay
Seyarto, Kelly Republican Nay
Valladares, Suzette Martinez Republican Nay

Official roll call →

3rd Reading AB796 Berman et al. By Newman

Passed 30 Yea · 9 Nay · 1 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 18500
Democratic 12001
Republican 0400
Total 30901
% of votes cast 75%23%0%3%
How each member voted (40)
Member Party Vote
Gonzalez — Yea
Hertzberg — Yea
Atkins — Yea
Glazer — Yea
Roth — Yea
Skinner — Yea
Dodd — Yea
Kamlager — Yea
Newman — Yea
Min — Yea
Leyva — Yea
Hueso — Yea
Pan — Yea
Portantino — Yea
Rubio — Yea
Wieckowski — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Bates — Nay
Melendez — Nay
Wilk — Nay
Nielsen — Nay
Borgeas — Nay
Allen, Benjamin Democratic Yea
Archuleta, Bob Democratic Yea
Becker, Josh Democratic Yea
Caballero, Anna M. Democratic Yea
Cortese, Dave Democratic Yea
Durazo, Maria Elena Democratic Yea
Hurtado, Melissa Democratic Yea
Laird, John Democratic Yea
Limón, Monique Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Stern, Henry I. Democratic Not Voting
Umberg, Thomas J. Democratic Yea
Wiener, Scott D. Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay
Grove, Shannon Republican Nay
Jones, Brian W. Republican Nay
Ochoa Bogh, Rosilicie Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended

Passed 5 Yea · 2 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 2000
Unaffiliated 3100
Republican 0100
Total 5200
% of votes cast 71%29%0%0%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
Kamlager — Yea
Portantino — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Bates — Nay
Laird, John Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Jones, Brian W. Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Placed on suspense file

Passed 7 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 5000
Republican 1000
Democratic 1000
Total 7000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
Bradford — Yea
Bates — Yea
Portantino — Yea
Wieckowski — Yea
Kamlager — Yea
Laird, John Democratic Yea
Jones, Brian W. Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]

Passed 12 Yea · 4 Nay · 1 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Republican 0100
Democratic 5001
Unaffiliated 7300
Total 12401
% of votes cast 71%24%0%6%
How each member voted (17)
Member Party Vote
Gonzalez — Yea
Wieckowski — Yea
Dodd — Yea
Newman — Yea
Skinner — Yea
Min — Yea
Rubio — Yea
Bates — Nay
Melendez — Nay
Wilk — Nay
Allen, Benjamin Democratic Yea
Archuleta, Bob Democratic Not Voting
Becker, Josh Democratic Yea
Cortese, Dave Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Umberg, Thomas J. Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay

Official roll call →

AB 796 Berman Assembly Third Reading

Passed 58 Yea · 18 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 25200
Unaffiliated 33602
Republican 01000
Total 581802
% of votes cast 74%23%0%3%
How each member voted (78)
Member Party Vote
Bloom — Yea
Friedman — Yea
Cooley — Yea
Chiu — Yea
Rendon — Yea
Mullin — Yea
Holden — Yea
Villapudua — Yea
Salas — Yea
Jones-Sawyer — Yea
Santiago — Yea
Rodriguez — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Mayes — Yea
Nazarian — Yea
Wood — Yea
Ting — Yea
Low — Yea
Frazier — Yea
O'Donnell — Yea
Levine — Yea
Daly — Yea
McCarty — Yea
Medina — Yea
Gray — Yea
Burke — Yea
Cooper — Yea
Chau — Yea
Smith — Nay
Waldron — Nay
Cunningham — Nay
Kiley — Nay
Mathis — Nay
Bigelow — Nay
Maienschein — Not Voting
Voepel — Not Voting
Cristina Garcia — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Lorena Gonzalez — Yea
Luz Rivas — Yea
Mark Stone — Yea
Aguiar-Curry, Cecilia M. Democratic Yea
Arambula, Joaquin Democratic Yea
Bauer-Kahan, Rebecca Democratic Yea
Bennett, Steve Democratic Yea
Berman, Marc Democratic Yea
Boerner, Tasha Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Carrillo, Juan Democratic Yea
Cervantes, Sabrina Democratic Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Nay
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Irwin, Jacqui Democratic Yea
Kalra, Ash Democratic Yea
Lee, Alex Democratic Yea
Muratsuchi, Al Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Nay
Petrie-Norris, Cottie Democratic Yea
Quirk-Silva, Sharon Democratic Yea
Ramos, James C. Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Yea
Rubio, Blanca E. Democratic Yea
Ward, Christopher M. Democratic Yea
Weber Pierson, M.D., Akilah Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Yea
Chen, Phillip Republican Nay
Choi, Steven S. Republican Nay
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay
Davies, Laurie Republican Nay
Flora, Heath Republican Nay
Gallagher, James Republican Nay
Lackey, Tom Republican Nay
Patterson, Joe Republican Nay
Seyarto, Kelly Republican Nay
Valladares, Suzette Martinez Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Do pass.

Passed 12 Yea · 4 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 7100
Democratic 5100
Republican 0200
Total 12400
% of votes cast 75%25%0%0%
How each member voted (16)
Member Party Vote
Levine — Yea
Holden — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Chau — Yea
Bigelow — Nay
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Lorena Gonzalez — Yea
Luz Rivas — Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Carrillo, Juan Democratic Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Nay
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Rivas, Robert Democratic Yea
Weber Pierson, M.D., Akilah Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay
Davies, Laurie Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]

Passed 10 Yea · 4 Nay · 1 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 5100
Democratic 5201
Republican 0100
Total 10401
% of votes cast 67%27%0%7%
How each member voted (15)
Member Party Vote
Friedman — Yea
Nazarian — Yea
Daly — Yea
Medina — Yea
O'Donnell — Yea
Cunningham — Nay
Berman, Marc Democratic Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Nay
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Kalra, Ash Democratic Yea
Lee, Alex Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Nay
Ward, Christopher M. Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Not Voting
Davies, Laurie Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Subjects

elections
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does AB 796 do?
Existing federal law, the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, requires a state to, among other things, establish procedures to register a person to vote for federal office by an application made simultaneously with a driver's license application. Existing state law requires, in conformance with federal law, that the Secretary of State and the Department of Motor Vehicles establish and implement the California New Motor Voter Program for the purpose of increasing opportunities for voter registration for qualified voters. Existing state law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to transmit to the Secretary of State specified information related to the person's eligibility to vote, which the person provides when applying for a driver's license or identification card. Existing state law provides that this information transmitted to the Secretary of State constitutes a completed affidavit of registration, and the Secretary of State is required to register the person to vote, unless the person affirmatively declines to register to vote or the person is ineligible to vote, or other specified conditions exist. This bill would require a driver's license or identification card application, renewal, or change of address notification, as specified, to include a voter registration application and would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to transmit the application to the Secretary of State according to specified deadlines. The bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to monitor the timeliness of its transmittals to the Secretary of State, and to provide the Secretary of State information regarding delays and irregularities in its ability to do so. The bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Secretary of State each to designate an employee to undertake specified responsibilities to ensure compliance with the California New Motor Voter Program and the National Voter Registration Act. The bill would require the Secretary of State to convene a task force that would provide advice and perform other duties with respect to implementing the California New Motor Voter Program. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 5100 of the Elections Code proposed by AB 446 to be operative only if this bill and AB 446 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
Who sponsors AB 796?
AB 796 is sponsored by Berman, Marc (Democratic), Mullin, Newman, and Gonzalez, Jeff (Republican).
What is the current status of AB 796?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 16, 2021. Enacted.
Where can I track AB 796?
Track AB 796 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on AB 796

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Find my representatives → Run a campaign

Stay ahead of AB 796

Last checked for changes 2 months ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →