2007 California Elections Code Article 4. Forms

CA Codes (elec:2150-2168)

2150.  (a) The affidavit of registration shall show:
   (1) The facts necessary to establish the affiant as an elector.
   (2) The affiant's name at length, including his or her given name,
and a middle name or initial, or if the initial of the given name is
customarily used, then the initial and middle name. The affiant's
given name may be preceded, at affiant's option, by the designation
of Miss, Ms., Mrs., or Mr. A person shall not be denied the right to
register because of his or her failure to mark a prefix to the given
name and shall be so advised on the voter registration card. This
subdivision shall not be construed as requiring the printing of
prefixes on an affidavit of registration.
   (3) The affiant's place of residence, residence telephone number,
if furnished, and e-mail address, if furnished. No person shall be
denied the right to register because of his or her failure to furnish
a telephone number or e-mail address, and shall be so advised on the
voter registration card.
   (4) The affiant's mailing address, if different from the place of
residence.
   (5) The affiant's date of birth to establish that he or she will
be at least 18 years of age on or before the date of the next
election.
   (6) The state or country of the affiant's birth.
   (7) (A) In the case of an applicant who has been issued a current
and valid driver's license, the applicant's driver's license number.

   (B) In the case of any other applicant, other than an applicant to
whom subparagraph (C) applies, the last four digits of the applicant'
s social security number.
   (C) If an applicant for voter registration has not been issued a
current and valid driver's license or a social security number, the
state shall assign the applicant a number that will serve to identify
the applicant for voter registration purposes. To the extent that
the state has a computerized list in effect under this subdivision
and the list assigns unique identifying numbers to registrants, the
number assigned under this subparagraph shall be the unique
identifying number assigned under the list.
   (8) The affiant's political party affiliation.
   (9) That the affiant is currently not imprisoned or on parole for
the conviction of a felony.
   (10) A prior registration portion indicating whether the affiant
has been registered at another address, under another name, or as
intending to affiliate with another party. If the affiant has been so
registered, he or she shall give an additional statement giving that
address, name, or party.
   (b) The affiant shall certify the content of the affidavit as to
its truth and correctness, under penalty of perjury, with the
signature of his or her name and the date of signing. If the affiant
is unable to write he or she shall sign with a mark or cross.
   (c) The affidavit of registration shall also contain a space that
would enable the affiant to state his or her ethnicity or race, or
both.  An affiant may not be denied the ability to register because
he or she declines to state his or her ethnicity or race.
   (d) If any person, including a deputy registrar, assists the
affiant in completing the affidavit, that person shall sign and date
the affidavit below the signature of the affiant.
   (e) The affidavit of registration shall also contain a space to
permit the affiant to apply for permanent vote by mail status.
   (f) The Secretary of State may continue to supply existing
affidavits of registration to county elections officials prior to
printing new or revised forms that reflect the changes made to this
section by the act that added this subdivision.



2151.  At the time of registering and of transferring registration,
each elector may declare the name of the political party with which
he or she intends to affiliate at the ensuing primary election.  The
name of that political party shall be stated in the affidavit of
registration and the index.
   The voter registration card shall inform the affiant that any
elector may decline to state a political affiliation, but no person
shall be entitled to vote the ballot of any political party at any
primary election unless he or she has stated the name of the party
with which he or she intends to affiliate or unless he or she has
declined to state a party affiliation and the political party, by
party rule duly noticed to the Secretary of State, authorizes a
person who has declined to state a party affiliation to vote the
ballot of that political party.  The voter registration card shall
include a listing of all qualified political parties.
   No person shall be permitted to vote the ballot of any party or
for any delegates to the convention of any party other than the party
designated in his or her registration, except as provided by Section
2152 or unless he or she has declined to state a party affiliation
and the party, by party rule duly noticed to the Secretary of State,
authorizes a person who has declined to state a party affiliation to
vote the party ballot or for delegates to the party convention.



2152.  Whenever any voter has declined to designate or has changed
his or her political affiliation prior to the close of registration
for an election, he or she may either so designate or have a change
recorded by executing a new affidavit of registration and completing
the prior registration portion of the affidavit.




2153.  (a) Except as provided in Section 2154, the affidavit of
registration shall show all the facts required to be stated.
   (b) If the affidavit does not contain all of the information
required, but the telephone number of the affiant is legible, the
county elections official shall telephone the affiant and attempt to
collect the missing information.
   (c) If the affidavit does not contain all of the information
required, and the county elections official is not able to collect
the missing information by telephone, but the mailing address of the
affiant is legible, the county elections official shall inform the
affiant of the reason for rejection and shall send to the affiant a
new voter registration card.



2154.  In the event that the county elections official receives an
affidavit of registration that does not include portions of the
information for which space is provided, the county elections
official voters shall apply the following rebuttable presumptions:
   (a) If no middle name or initial is shown, it shall be presumed
that none exists.
   (b) If no party affiliation is shown, it shall be presumed that
the affiant has no party affiliation.
   (c) If no execution date is shown, it shall be presumed that the
affidavit was executed on or before the 15th day prior to the
election, provided that (1) the affidavit is received by the county
elections official on or before the 15th day prior to the election,
or (2) the affidavit is postmarked on or before the 15th day prior to
the election and received by mail by the county elections official.

   (d) If the affiant fails to identify his or her state of birth
within the United States, it shall be presumed that the affiant was
born in a state or territory of the United States if the birthplace
of the affiant is shown as "United States," "U.S.A.," or other
recognizable term designating the United States.



2155.  Upon receipt of a properly executed affidavit of registration
or address correction notice or letter pursuant to Section 2119,
Article 2 (commencing with Section 2220), or the National Voter
Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1973gg), the county
elections official shall send the voter a voter notification by
nonforwardable, first-class mail, address correction requested. The
voter notification shall state the party affiliation for which the
voter has registered in the following format:
   Party: (Name of political party)
   The voter notification shall be substantially in the following
form:
      VOTER NOTIFICATION

   You are registered to vote. The party affiliation for which you
have registered is shown on the reverse of this card. This card is
being sent as a notification of:
   1. Your recently completed affidavit of registration,
      OR,

   2. A correction to your registration because of an official notice
that you have moved. If your residence address has not changed or if
your move is temporary, please call or write the county elections
official immediately.
      OR,

   3. Your recent registration with a change in party affiliation. If
this change is not correct, please call or write the county
elections official immediately.


_________________________________________________

   You may vote in any election held 15 or more days after the date
shown on the reverse side of this card.
   Your name will appear on the index kept at the polls.
   Please contact your county elections office if the information
shown on the reverse side of this card is incorrect.


_________________________________________________
                (Signature of Voter)



2155.5.  (a) The Secretary of State may, in coordination with county
elections officials who choose to participate, develop specific
procedures to address complaints related to voter registration,
including procedures to promptly reregister voters who believe their
registration was changed improperly.
   (b) The procedures adopted pursuant to this section shall not
provide any exemption to laws related to voter registration within
the 15 days prior to an election.


2156.  The Secretary of State shall print, or cause to be printed,
the blank forms of the voter notification prescribed by Section 2155.
The Secretary of State shall supply the forms to the county
elections official in quantities and at times requested by the county
elections official. The Secretary of State may continue to supply,
and the county elections officials may continue to use, existing
voter notification forms prior to printing new or revised forms as
required by any changes to Section 2155.



2157.  (a) Subject to this chapter, the affidavit of registration
shall be in a form prescribed by regulations adopted by the Secretary
of State. The affidavit shall:
   (1) Contain the information prescribed in Section 2150.
   (2) Be sufficiently uniform among the separate counties to allow
for the processing and use by one county of an affidavit completed in
another county.
   (3) Allow for the inclusion of informational language to meet the
specific needs of that county, including, but not limited to, the
return address of the elections official in that county, and a
telephone number at which a voter can obtain elections information in
that county.
   (4) Be included on one portion of a multipart card, to be known as
a voter registration card, the other portions of which shall include
information sufficient to facilitate completion and mailing of the
affidavit. The affidavit portion of the multipart card shall be
numbered according to regulations adopted by the Secretary of State.
For purposes of facilitating the distribution of voter registration
cards as provided in Section 2158, there shall be attached to the
affidavit portion a receipt. The receipt shall be separated from the
body of the affidavit by a perforated line.
   (5) Contain, in a type size and color of ink that is clearly
distinguishable from surrounding text, a statement identical or
substantially similar to the following:
   "Certain voters facing life-threatening situations may qualify for
confidential voter status. For more information, please contact the
Secretary of State's Safe At Home program or visit the Secretary of
State's Web site at www.ss.ca.gov."
   (6) Contain, in a type size and color of ink that is clearly
distinguishable from surrounding text, a statement that the use of
voter registration information for commercial purposes is a
misdemeanor pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 2194, and any
suspected misuse shall be reported to the Secretary of State.
   (7) Contain a toll-free fraud hotline telephone number maintained
by the Secretary of State that the public may use to report suspected
fraudulent activity concerning misuse of voter registration
information.
   (8) Be returnable to the county elections official as a
self-enclosed mailer with postage prepaid by the Secretary of State.

   (b) Nothing contained in this division shall prevent the use of
voter registration cards and affidavits of registration in existence
on the effective date of this section and produced pursuant to
regulations of the Secretary of State, and all references to voter
registration cards and affidavits in this division shall be applied
to the existing voter registration cards and affidavits of
registration.
   (c) The Secretary of State may continue to supply existing
affidavits of registration prior to printing new or revised forms
that reflect the changes required pursuant to this section, Section
2150, or Section 2160.



2157.1.  It is the intent of the Legislature that a voter be fully
informed of the permissible uses of personal information supplied by
him or her for the purpose of completing a voter registration
affidavit.


2157.2.  In order that a voter be fully informed of the permissible
uses of personal information supplied by him or her for the purpose
of completing a voter registration affidavit, local elections
officials shall post on any local elections official Web site
relating to voter information, and the Secretary of State shall print
in the state ballot pamphlet and post on his or her Web site, a
statement identical or substantially similar to the following:
   "Information on your voter registration affidavit will be used by
elections officials to send you official information on the voting
process, such as the location of your polling place and the issues
and candidates that will appear on the ballot. Commercial use of
voter registration information is prohibited by law and is a
misdemeanor. Voter information may be provided to a candidate for
office, a ballot measure committee, or other person for election,
scholarly, journalistic, political, or governmental purposes, as
determined by the Secretary of State. Driver's license and social
security numbers, or your signature as shown on your voter
registration card, cannot be released for these purposes. If you have
any questions about the use of voter information or wish to report
suspected misuse of such information, please call the Secretary of
State's Voter Protection and Assistance Hotline.
   "Certain voters facing life-threatening situations may qualify for
confidential voter status. For more information, please contact the
Secretary of State's Safe At Home program or visit the Secretary of
State's Web site at www.ss.ca.gov."



2158.  In addition to registration conducted by deputy registrars of
voters, the county elections official shall, do all of the
following:
   (a) Provide voter registration cards for the registration of
voters at his or her office and in sufficient number of locations
throughout the county for the convenience of persons desiring to
register, to the end that registration may be maintained at a high
level.
   (b) Provide voter registration cards in sufficient quantities to
any citizens or organizations who wish to distribute the cards other
than to persons who have been convicted of violating this section
within the last five years.  Citizens and organizations shall be
permitted to distribute voter registration cards anywhere within the
county.
   (1) If, after completing his or her voter registration affidavit,
an elector entrusts it to another person, the latter shall sign and
date the attached, numbered receipt indicating his or her address and
telephone number, if any, and give the receipt to the elector.
Failure to comply with this paragraph shall not cause the
invalidation of the registration of a voter.
   (2) Any citizen or organization that distributes voter
registration cards shall give a voter registration card to any
elector requesting it, provided that the citizen or organization has
a sufficient number of cards.
   (3) If distribution of voter registration cards pursuant to this
subdivision is undertaken by mailing cards to persons who have not
requested the cards, the person mailing the cards shall enclose a
cover letter or other notice with each card instructing the
recipients to disregard the cards if they are currently registered
voters.
   (c) Mail a voter registration card immediately to any person who
wishes to register to vote and requests a voter registration card.



2159.  (a) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of
Section 2158, any person who, in exchange for money or other valuable
consideration, assists another to register to vote by receiving the
completed affidavit of registration from the elector, shall sign in
his or her handwriting and affix directly on the affidavit of
registration his or her full name, telephone number, and address, and
the name and telephone number of the person, company, or
organization, if any, that agrees to pay money or other valuable
consideration for the completed affidavit of registration. Failure to
comply with this section shall not cause the invalidation of the
registration of the voter.
   (b) Any person who in exchange for money or other valuable
consideration assists another to register to vote by receiving the
completed affidavit of registration from the elector, and knowingly
misrepresents himself or herself as having helped register another to
vote on a registration form is guilty of a misdemeanor, pursuant to
Section 18108.1.


2159.5.  Any person, company, or other organization that agrees to
pay money or other valuable consideration, whether on a per-affidavit
basis or otherwise, to any person who assists another person to
register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of
registration, shall do all of the following:
   (a) Maintain a list of the names, addresses, and telephone numbers
of all individuals that the person, company, or other organization
has agreed to compensate for assisting others to register to vote,
and shall provide to each person receiving that consideration a
written statement of that person's personal responsibilities and
liabilities under Sections 2138, 2139, 2150, 2158, 2159, 18100,
18101, 18103, 18106, 18108, 18108.1, and 18108.5. Receipt of the
written statement shall be acknowledged, in writing, by the person
receiving the consideration, and the acknowledgment shall be kept by
the person, company, or organization that agrees to compensate that
person. All records required by this subdivision shall be maintained
for a minimum of three years, and shall be made available to the
elections official, the Secretary of State, or an appropriate
prosecuting agency, upon demand. As an alternate to maintaining the
records required by this subdivision, the records may be filed with
the county elections official, who shall retain those records for a
minimum of three years. The county elections official may charge a
fee, not to exceed actual costs, for storing records pursuant to this
subdivision.
   (b) Not render any payment or promised consideration unless the
information specified in Section 2159 has been affixed personally on
the affidavit in the handwriting of the person with whom the
agreement for payment was made.
   (c) At the time of submission of affidavits to elections
officials, identify and separate those affidavits into groups that do
and that do not comply with the requirements of Sections 2150 and
2159. A signed acknowledgment shall be attached to each group of
affidavits identifying a group as in compliance with Sections 2150
and 2159, and a group as not in compliance with either Section 2150
or 2159, or both.
   (d) Failure to comply with this section shall not cause the
invalidation of the registration of the voter.



2160.  (a) Each affidavit of registration issued to a deputy
registrar of voters shall meet the requirements prescribed by Section
2157, except that the voter registration card shall be modified,
pursuant to regulations adopted by the Secretary of State, to reflect
the use of a deputy registrar of voters in lieu of mail delivery. A
stub, separated from the body of the voter registration card by a
perforated line, shall be attached to each affidavit. Upon the stub
shall be printed the following:
   (1) The number of the affidavit.
   (2) Blank lines for the following information:
   (A) The name of the voter.
   (B) The residence of the voter.
   (C) The political affiliation of the voter.
   (D) The signature of the voter.
   (E) The signature of the deputy taking the registration.
   (F) The date.
   At the time of registering the voter, the deputy shall fill in the
blanks in the stub, and require the voter to sign the stub in the
place provided. The deputy shall then detach the stub and the
informational portion of the voter registration form from the
affidavit and hand the stub and information to the voter.
   (b) The Secretary of State may continue to supply existing
affidavits of registration prior to printing new or revised forms
that reflect the changes required pursuant to this section, Section
2150, or Section 2157.



2161.  The Secretary of State shall print, or cause to be printed,
the blank forms of the affidavits of registration and voter
registration cards prescribed by this code.  The Secretary of State
shall bind and number, or cause to be bound and numbered, affidavits
of registration and voter registration cards as required by this
code.  The Secretary of State shall supply the forms to the county
elections official in quantities and at times as requested by the
county elections official.



2162.  (a) No affidavits of registration other than those provided
by the Secretary of State to the county elections officials or the
national voter registration forms authorized pursuant to the National
Voter Registration Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1973gg) shall be used for the
registration of voters.
   (b) No voter registration card shall be altered, defaced, or
changed in any way, other than by the insertion of a mailing address
and the affixing of postage, if mailed, or as otherwise specifically
authorized by the Secretary of State, prior to distribution of the
cards.
   (c) The affidavit portion of a voter registration card shall not
be marked, stamped, or partially or fully completed by any person
other than an elector attempting to register to vote or by a person
assisting the elector in completing the affidavit at the request of
the elector.


2163.  The Secretary of State shall prepare and print or cause to be
printed an appropriate logo that may be displayed on the windows of
offices, stores, and other establishments indicating the availability
of voter registration cards for the public.  The Secretary of State,
upon request, shall provide these logos free of charge to any person
or organization that distributes voter registration cards.




2164.  (a) The Secretary of State shall pay all postage for all of
the following:
   (1) Mailing of the voter notification and the address correction
service pursuant to Section 2153.
   (2) Return to the county elections official of the affidavits of
registration pursuant to Section 2157.
   (3) Mailing of blank voter registration cards pursuant to
subdivision (c) of Section 2158.
   (4) Any mailing of blank voter registration cards pursuant to
programs adopted under Section 2105.
   (b) All payments made pursuant to this section shall be made
directly from funds appropriated to the Secretary of State for this
purpose.


2165.  Affidavits of registration for the whole of each county shall
be filed, as fast as the registration progresses, in any orderly
arrangement as prescribed by the county elections official.  If the
affidavits are not filed alphabetically without regard to precinct,
the county elections official shall, by electronic,
electromechanical, or other suitable means, provide, for general use
in his or her office, a comprehensive, printed alphabetical index to
the surnames of voters on all uncanceled affidavits for the whole of
the county, whereby the affidavit of registration of any voter may be
ascertained and produced.  In the case of voters having the same
surname, the classification of names appearing on the index shall
extend to the given and, where necessary, the middle name or initial.




2166.  (a) Any person filing with the county elections official a
new affidavit of registration or reregistration may have the
information relating to his or her residence address, telephone
number, and e-mail address appearing on the affidavit, or any list or
roster or index prepared therefrom, declared confidential upon order
of a superior court issued upon a showing of good cause that a
life-threatening circumstance exists to the voter or a member of the
voter's household, and naming the county elections official as a
party.
   (b) Any person granted confidentiality under subdivision (a)
shall:
   (1) Be considered a vote by mail voter for all subsequent
elections or until the county elections official is notified
otherwise by the court or in writing by the voter. A voter requesting
termination of vote by mail status thereby consents to placement of
his or her residence address, telephone number, and e-mail address in
the roster of voters.
   (2) In addition to the required residence address, provide a valid
mailing address to be used in place of the residence address for
election, scholarly, or political research, and government purposes.
The elections official, in producing any list, roster, or index may,
at his or her choice, use the valid mailing address or the word
"confidential" or some similar designation in place of the residence
address.
   (c) No action in negligence may be maintained against any
government entity or officer or employee thereof as a result of the
disclosure of the information which is the subject of this section
unless by a showing of gross negligence or willfulness.



2166.5.  (a) Any person filing with the county elections official a
new affidavit of registration or reregistration may have the
information relating to his or her residence address, telephone
number, and e-mail address appearing on the affidavit, or any list or
roster or index prepared therefrom, declared confidential upon
presentation of certification that the person is a participant in the
Address Confidentiality for Victims of Domestic Violence, Sexual
Assault, and Stalking program pursuant to Chapter 3.1 (commencing
with Section 6205) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code or
a participant in the Address Confidentiality for Reproductive Health
Care Service Providers, Employees, Volunteers, and Patients program
pursuant to Chapter 3.2 (commencing with Section 6215) of that
division.
   (b) Any person granted confidentiality under subdivision (a)
shall:
   (1) Be considered a vote by mail voter for all subsequent
elections or until the county elections official is notified
otherwise by the Secretary of State or in writing by the voter. A
voter requesting termination of vote by mail status thereby consents
to placement of his or her residence address, telephone number, and
e-mail address in the roster of voters.
   (2) In addition to the required residence address, provide a valid
mailing address to be used in place of the residence address for
election, scholarly, or political research, and government purposes.
The elections official, in producing any list, roster, or index may,
at his or her choice, use the valid mailing address or the word
"confidential" or some similar designation in place of the residence
address.
   (c) No action in negligence may be maintained against any
government entity or officer or employee thereof as a result of the
disclosure of the information that is the subject of this section
unless by a showing of gross negligence or willfulness.
   (d) Subdivisions (a) and (b) shall not apply to any person granted
confidentiality upon receipt by the county elections official of a
written notice by the address confidentiality program manager of the
withdrawal, invalidation, expiration, or termination of the program
participant's certification.
   (e) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2013, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2013, deletes or extends
that date.



2166.7.  (a) If authorized by his or her county board of
supervisors, a county elections official shall, upon application of a
public safety officer, make confidential that officer's residence
address, telephone number, and e-mail address appearing on the
affidavit of registration, in accordance with the terms and
conditions of this section.
   (b) The application by the public safety officer shall contain a
statement, signed under penalty of perjury, that the person is a
public safety officer as defined in subdivision (f) and that a
life-threatening circumstance exists to the officer or a member of
the officer's family.  The application shall be a public record.
   (c) The confidentiality granted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall
terminate no more than two years after commencement, as determined by
the county elections official. The officer may submit a new
application for confidentiality pursuant to subdivision (a), and the
new request may be granted for an additional period of not more than
two years.
   (d) Any person granted confidentiality under subdivision (a)
shall:
   (1) Be considered a vote by mail voter for all subsequent
elections or until the county elections official is notified
otherwise by the Secretary of State or in writing by the voter. A
voter requesting termination of vote by mail status thereby consents
to placement of his or her residence address, telephone number, and
e-mail address in the roster of voters.
   (2) In addition to the required residence address, provide a valid
mailing address to be used in place of the residence address for
election, scholarly, or political research, and government purposes.
The elections official, in producing any list, roster, or index may,
at his or her choice, use the valid mailing address or the word
"confidential" or some similar designation in place of the residence
address.
   (e) No action in negligence may be maintained against any
government entity or officer or employee thereof as a result of the
disclosure of the information that is the subject of this section
unless by a showing of gross negligence or willfulness.
   (f) "A public safety officer" has the same meaning as defined in
subdivision (a), (d), (e), (f), or (j) of Section 6254.24 of the
Government Code.



2167.  Upon the personal or written application of any person, the
county elections official shall, at a fee not to exceed one dollar
and fifty cents (.50), provide the applicant with a certified copy
of the entries upon the register relating to the applicant.
   A certified copy of an uncanceled affidavit of registration is
prima facie evidence that the person named in the entry is a voter of
the county.



2168.  (a) The Secretary of State shall establish a statewide system
to facilitate removal of duplicate or prior registrations, to
facilitate the reporting of election results and voter and candidate
information, and to otherwise administer and enhance election
administration.
   (b) The statewide system established pursuant to this section
shall not replace county voter registration systems or processes.




2168.  (a) The Secretary of State shall establish a statewide system
to facilitate removal of duplicate or prior registrations, to
facilitate the reporting of election results and voter and candidate
information, and to otherwise administer and enhance election
administration.
   (b) The statewide system established pursuant to this section
shall not replace county voter registration systems or processes.