AP18:101
For Immediate Release
June 25, 2018
Contact:
Sam Mahood
(916) 653-6575
Proposed Initiative Enters Circulation
Requires Use of State and Local Law-Enforcement Resources for Federal Immigration Purposes. Restricts Voter Registration Process. Initiative Statute.
SACRAMENTO - Secretary of State Alex Padilla announced the proponent of a new initiative was cleared to begin collecting petition signatures this past Friday.
The Attorney General prepares the legal title and summary that is required to appear on initiative petitions. When the official language is complete, the Attorney General forwards it to the proponent and to the Secretary of State, and the initiative may be circulated for signatures. The Secretary of State then provides calendar deadlines to the proponent and to county elections officials. The Attorney General’s official title and summary for the measure is as follows:
REQUIRES USE OF STATE AND LOCAL LAW-ENFORCEMENT RESOURCES FOR FEDERAL IMMIGRATION PURPOSES. RESTRICTS VOTER REGISTRATION PROCESS. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Requires state and local law enforcement to attempt to verify the immigration status of arrestees suspected of being in United States without documentation and notify federal and state agencies when arrestees appear to be undocumented. Prohibits local governments and law-enforcement agencies from preventing or limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Sets criminal penalties and minimum $10,000 fines for noncompliance. Prohibits automatic voter registration; requires an affidavit for voter eligibility. Prohibits issuing driver’s license or identification card without verifying citizenship or immigration status. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: Net increase in state and local law enforcement costs, potentially reaching the low tens of millions of dollars annually, related to cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. One-time and ongoing costs—each potentially reaching several million dollars annually—to state and local governments for the verification and retention of proof of citizenship prior to individuals voting in their first election. (18-0002.)
The Secretary of State’s tracking number for this measure is 1853 and the Attorney General's tracking number is 18-0002.
The proponent of the measure, Donald Rosenberg, must collect signatures of 365,880 registered voters (five percent of the total votes cast for Governor in the November 2014 general election) in order to qualify it for the ballot. The proponent has 180 days to circulate petitions for the measure, meaning the signatures must be submitted to county elections officials no later than December 19, 2018. The proponent can be reached c/o Ravi Mehta at Rmehta@capitol-advocates.com.
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