Early voting: satellite locations.

Assembly Member Wilson anchors AB 1249 in a framework of added in-person voting options and campus civic engagement, pairing new voting procedures with a campus-focused information program. The bill would allow a voter using a vote-by-mail ballot to cast that ballot in person at the elections official’s office or at a satellite location up to 29 days before the election, with the ballot cast in private and not observed. For statewide elections, counties that do not operate all-mailed-ballot elections must provide at least one early voting location on the Saturday before the election, open for at least six hours, and the satellite location framework would include the voter’s ability to return the mail ballot, register or update registration, vote a provisional ballot, and receive a replacement ballot, among other services. Notice requirements for satellite locations would shift from a general news release to a two-week lead time before voting may occur at the site.

The bill creates a new framework governing early voting at the offices and satellite locations, including a requirement that at least one voting unit be accessible under federal standards to accommodate voters with disabilities, and that voters may vote the mail ballot as described while the county maintains real-time access to the election management system to verify that the voter has not returned a mail ballot and to update the voter’s status accordingly. After the status change, the voter must provide name, address, and signature. Counties would establish procedures to ensure a single vote-by-mail ballot is not submitted without an identification envelope, and satellite-location ballots would be processed and counted in the same manner as nonprovisional ballots cast in person. The bill would repeal a prior requirement to use an identification envelope for mail ballots cast at satellite locations and would repeal a related section, aligning with the new in-person voting framework. In addition, notice of satellite locations would be provided no later than two weeks before voting may occur at the site.

Beyond voting procedures, the bill strengthens enforcement and election-security provisions. It expands or reiterates prohibitions on electioneering and related activities within 100 feet of polling places, elections offices, and satellite locations, and extends protections within the immediate vicinity of voters in line to cast or drop off ballots. Penalties for coercion, intimidation, and dissuasion related to voting are carried forward and broadened to cover the expanded contexts of in-person and mail-ballot voting, with the framework noting that interference with election officials, staff, and voters is punishable under existing penal provisions. The updated provisions also address unauthorized recording near polling places and other disruptions.

The measure also embeds a campus-based civic engagement component. It requires the public college systems, with the University of California participating as a matter of request, to disseminate civic and election information to students each semester in consultation with the Secretary of State. Information includes key election dates, registration deadlines, early voting and conditional registration details, and links to Secretary of State pages, voter information guides, and registration tools. Campuses must incorporate this information into printed and online calendars and post reminders via social media. Each campus would designate a Civic and Voter Empowerment Coordinator responsible for implementing the requirements, ensuring a minimum of three election outreach events per academic year, and developing a campus action plan in consultation with faculty, students, and administration. The action plan would be shared with the Secretary of State for inclusion in a Legislature report and updated as needed, with the coordinator declared nonpartisan. The package also adds an administrative provision addressing potential state-mandated costs and the associated reimbursement framework for local agencies.