San Diego, CA- The scramble to make sure the Full Voter Participation Act (FVPA) makes it onto the November General election ballot continues with new twists.
The measure would do for the county what Measure K did for the city, eliminate the 50%+1 rule and ensure voters make the most important decisions when the most voters participate.
But a snafu with the initiative language, drafted in Sacramento by the legislative counsel, has brought 11th hour drama to the equation.
The counsel originally penned a bill that stated the FVPA needs to be signed by 10% of the qualified electors in the county, or ALL voters. That's 165,984 valid signatures, far more than what state law requires which is 10% of voters or roughly 67,000 valid signatures. Supporters turned in 103,328 signatures.
The snafu meant Assemblyman Todd Gloria and the legislative counsel had to amend the measure, get the legislature to sign off and then have it signed by the Governor in rapid succession.
Mission Accomplished.
County Registrar Under Severe Time Crunch
Now, County Registrar Michael Vu and his staff are feeling the pressure as the FVPA issue is back in their lap. This, coupled with other initiatives looking to be certified in time for the November election, has created a massive time crunch.
David Lagstein has overseen the FVPA campaign. Lagstein told IVN San Diego they have circled August 7 as the deadline to get the bill to the Board of Supervisors in order to get it on the November General election.
Registrar Vu says he'll able to meet that August 7 deadline provided there are no snags in counting the signatures. If the FVPA signature recount falls below a 95% validity rate, the petition is deemed insufficient.
"Since today's (June 27) signing of SB 866 allows the processing of the petition to resume, my office will subtract the 11 full business days afforded from the 30 business days otherwise given. This leaves 19 business days remaining from today. Therefore, the amended deadline my office will be operating under to accurately complete the verification process of this petition is July 24, 2018."
Michael Vu, SD County Registrar
Vu Letter Full Voter Participation Act of 2018 Initiative Measure - Timeline
ACLU Gets Involved
A newcomer to this drama revealed in Vu's letter is the ACLU. According to Vu, several ACLU chapters have sent Vu a Freedom of Information Request to "provide any communication oral or written that attempts to pressure the Registrar of Voters with expediting the process of verifying petitions."
Vu responded to the FOIA request with, "We will complete our work within the statutory timeframe given. Equally important, we will complete each activity with the accuracy that is expected and demanded."