DPCCC membership approved the following resolution at the March 18, 2021 regular meeting.
WHEREAS, one of the things voters most want to know about ballot measures is who supports and opposes them, but many voters don’t know that information for all the state ballot measures they vote on; and
WHEREAS, ballot measure campaigns supported by organizations people trust often don’t have the financial resources to effectively communicate that information to voters, giving an unfair advantage to campaigns backed by wealthy interests; and
WHEREAS, voters can find key supporters and opponents of ballot measures in the voter information guide by looking at who signed the official arguments in favor and against them, but many voters haven’t read or may not remember or have handy all that information when they go to vote because the voter guide is usually very long and dense;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County supports SB 90 (Stern) and AB 1416 (Santiago), two identical and parallel bills which will add 15 words listing the supporters and 15 words listing the opponents who signed the official arguments for and against each state ballot measure in the voter information guide to the current title, summary, and fiscal analysis shown on the actual ballot for state ballot measures, giving voters information they need when they vote while adding minimal amounts to the current 75 word summaries on the ballot.
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution be provided to the Governor, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, Senate President pro Tem Toni Atkins, Assembly Elections Committee Chair Marc Berman, Assembly Appropriations Committee Chair Lorena Gonzalez, Senate Elections Committee Chair Steve Glazer, Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Anthony Portantino, Senator Henry Stern, Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, and to our area’s members of the California Legislature.
Respectfully submitted by Brodie Hilp, Elected Member, District 2