California 2015-2016 Regular Session Status: Enacted

AB 277 — California Voting Rights Act of 2001.

Last action — Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 724, Statutes of 2015.

  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 11, 2015. Enacted.

Odds of enactment

High chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a high chance of becoming law.

Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.

A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 70% · moderate confidence

  • Enacted

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 1 sponsor

    1 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 4 recorded votes so far.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

Existing law, the California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (CVRA) , prohibits the use of an at-large election in a political subdivision if it would impair the ability of a protected class, as defined, to elect candidates of its choice or otherwise influence the outcome of an election. The CVRA provides that a voter who is a member of a protected class and who resides in a political subdivision where a violation of the act occurs may bring an action in superior court to enforce its provisions. The CVRA requires a court to implement appropriate remedies, including the imposition of district-based elections, that are tailored to remedy a violation of the act. The CVRA defines "political subdivision" to mean a geographic area of representation created for the provision of government services, including, but not limited to, a city, a school district, a community college district, or other district organized pursuant to state law. The state courts have determined that the provisions of the CVRA apply to a charter city. This bill would amend the CVRA's definition of "political subdivision" to expressly include a charter city, charter county, or charter city and county. The bill would also state that it is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this bill to codify the holding of the state courts regarding the applicability of the CVRA to charter cities.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 724, Statutes of 2015.

  2. Approved by the Governor.

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

  4. In Assembly. Ordered to Engrossing and Enrolling.

  5. Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 28. Noes 12. Page 2454.).

  6. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  7. From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 4. Noes 1.) (June 16).

  8. Referred to Com. on E. & C.A.

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

  10. Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 55. Noes 22. Page 1255.)

  11. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

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

  13. From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 5. Noes 2.) (March 25).

  14. Referred to Com. on E. & R.

  15. From printer. May be heard in committee March 14.

  16. Read first time. To print.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 121 not signed on · 9 voted No

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (121)

121 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 121 →

"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

3rd Reading AB277 Roger Hernández By Hertzberg

Passed 28 Yea · 12 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 251200
Democratic 3000
Total 281200
% of votes cast 70%30%0%0%
How each member voted (40)
Member Party Vote
Anderson — Nay
Hernandez — Yea
Hueso — Yea
Lara — Yea
Leyva — Yea
Mendoza — Yea
Moorlach — Nay
Nielsen — Nay
Roth — Yea
Wieckowski — Yea
Cannella — Yea
Glazer — Yea
Hall — Yea
Hertzberg — Yea
Hill — Yea
Allen — Yea
Mitchell — Yea
De León — Yea
Block — Yea
Leno — Yea
Liu — Yea
Monning — Yea
Pan — Yea
Pavley — Yea
Wolk — Yea
Runner — Nay
Bates — Nay
Beall — Yea
Huff — Nay
Morrell — Nay
Vidak — Nay
Fuller — Nay
Galgiani — Yea
Hancock — Yea
Beth Gaines — Nay
Bill Berryhill — Nay
Mark Stone — Nay
Jackson, Corey A. Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass

Passed 4 Yea · 1 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 4100
Total 4100
% of votes cast 80%20%0%0%
How each member voted (5)
Member Party Vote
Allen — Yea
Hancock — Yea
Hertzberg — Yea
Anderson — Nay
Liu — Yea

Official roll call →

AB 277 HERNÁNDEZ Assembly Third Reading

Passed 55 Yea · 22 Nay · 3 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 511702
Democratic 4000
Republican 0501
Total 552203
% of votes cast 69%28%0%4%
How each member voted (80)
Member Party Vote
Achadjian — Nay
Baker — Yea
Bloom — Yea
Brough — Nay
Brown — Yea
Holden — Yea
Linder — Yea
Maienschein — Nay
Mathis — Nay
McCarty — Yea
Melendez — Nay
Nazarian — Yea
Obernolte — Nay
Olsen — Not Voting
Perea — Yea
Ridley-Thomas — Yea
Steinorth — Yea
Wagner — Nay
Wilk — Nay
Williams — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Cooley — Yea
Cooper — Yea
Frazier — Yea
Burke — Yea
Chau — Yea
Salas — Yea
Bonilla — Yea
Gatto — Yea
Gordon — Yea
Gray — Yea
Hadley — Yea
Lopez — Yea
Harper — Nay
Jones-Sawyer — Yea
Chiu — Yea
Atkins — Yea
Levine — Yea
Low — Yea
Mayes — Nay
Chu — Yea
Alejo — Yea
Chávez — Nay
Dababneh — Yea
Daly — Yea
Dodd — Yea
Medina — Yea
Mullin — Yea
O'Donnell — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Rendon — Yea
Rodriguez — Yea
Santiago — Yea
Thurmond — Yea
Ting — Yea
Weber — Yea
Wood — Yea
Kim — Nay
Campos — Not Voting
Bigelow — Nay
Chang — Nay
Waldron — Nay
Gomez — Yea
Gonzalez — Yea
Beth Gaines — Nay
Cristina Garcia — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Mark Stone — Yea
Roger Hernández — Yea
Travis Allen — Nay
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Irwin, Jacqui Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Not Voting
Gallagher, James Republican Nay
Grove, Shannon Republican Nay
Jones, Brian W. Republican Nay
Lackey, Tom Republican Nay
Patterson, Joe Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended.

Passed 5 Yea · 2 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 5100
Republican 0100
Total 5200
% of votes cast 71%29%0%0%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
Ridley-Thomas — Yea
Gatto — Yea
Mullin — Yea
Perea — Yea
Gordon — Yea
Travis Allen — Nay
Grove, Shannon Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Subjects

civil-rights 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 277 do?
Existing law, the California Voting Rights Act of 2001 (CVRA) , prohibits the use of an at-large election in a political subdivision if it would impair the ability of a protected class, as defined, to elect candidates of its choice or otherwise influence the outcome of an election. The CVRA provides that a voter who is a member of a protected class and who resides in a political subdivision where a violation of the act occurs may bring an action in superior court to enforce its provisions. The CVRA requires a court to implement appropriate remedies, including the imposition of district-based elections, that are tailored to remedy a violation of the act. The CVRA defines "political subdivision" to mean a geographic area of representation created for the provision of government services, including, but not limited to, a city, a school district, a community college district, or other district organized pursuant to state law. The state courts have determined that the provisions of the CVRA apply to a charter city. This bill would amend the CVRA's definition of "political subdivision" to expressly include a charter city, charter county, or charter city and county. The bill would also state that it is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this bill to codify the holding of the state courts regarding the applicability of the CVRA to charter cities.
Who sponsors AB 277?
AB 277 is sponsored by Roger Hernández.
What is the current status of AB 277?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 11, 2015. Enacted.
Where can I track AB 277?
Track AB 277 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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