OC Wins English-Only Petition Case |
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court has upheld the County’s position that citizens’ petitions need not be printed in multiple languages in order to qualify a recall, petition or candidate for the ballot.
The Mexican American Legal Defense Fund had sued the County for placing the Nativo Lopez recall election on the ballot in 2003. MALDEF claimed those petitions, printed only in English, violated the multilingual ballot requirements of the Federal Voting Rights Act. The petitions did qualify and Lopez was recalled.
A lower court had ruled against the County, seemingly casting doubt on the legality of all state and local petitions used to qualify candidates, state and local initiatives and force recall elections.
If such standards were enforced here in Orange County, all such petitions would have to be printed and distributed simultaneously in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean and Chinese, placing an enormous cost on candidates and citizen activist groups.
In this key test case pursued by the OC Board of Supervisors, the County argued that the multilingual ballot requirements do not apply to petitions, and if a voter does not understand the petition, they have the option to not sign it. Also cited was the chilling effect on the First Amendment’s Right to Petition if citizen groups seeking reforms through initiatives or recall had the added burden of multilingual petition translation and printing.
The Court agreed with the County.
The Court further called on Congress to clarify the Voting Rights Act to specifically exclude petitions from multilingual requirements. I had asked for just such a change during my May testimony before the House Judiciary Committee. Most Republicans agreed to the proposed changes, but the Administration refused any such suggestions.
Hopefully the court’s decision has resolved the issue, but lawsuits challenging petitions may continue until the law is clarified. |
Board Backs Retiree Benefit Reform |
Recent reforms of County retiree medical benefits will reduce a $1.413 billion unfunded liability to $835 million, saving $578 million. Before this reform, employees who retired after ten years was entitled to receive a cash grant of up to $400 per month depending on their years of service. The grant could be used by retirees to purchase a County health plan at the same rate paid by all County employees.
The reform decreases the grants and removes retirees from the active employee insurance pool. Splitting the pool increases the premiums of retirees while reducing the premiums for active employee health benefits.
Before voting 5-0 to approve the changes, Supervisors faced a packed audience of concerned retirees who blasted the Board for “breaking a promise.” Many maintained that the benefits are a vested right that the Board cannot alter, but we have been advised by our lawyers that they are not vested.
The changes were made as a part of contract negotiations with the OC Employees Association and Service Employees International Union. Employees voted to accept the retiree medical cuts in exchange for a 4.75% raise. Current employees fear ballooning retiree medical costs would jeopardize future raises. County service levels would also be threatened as skyrocketing health care costs and early retirement would consume an ever-greater share of County funds.
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Supes File Registrar Report,
Hear More Capo Complaints |
The Board of Supervisors received a report on alleged illegal violations by the Registrar’s office in its handling of the recall movement against the Capistrano Valley Unified School District Board. Recall proponents claimed they had been given misleading information from the Registrar on the handling of the petitions, and that the office showed favoritism toward district officials who were trying to discredit the recall effort.
The report admitted that the Registrar’s office had improperly showed district officials the lists of recall signatories. By law, such names are to remain confidential out of fear of possible retaliation. That such names later turned up on an “enemies list” in the Superintendent’s office confirmed such concerns.
Also at issue was who was responsible for the estimated $600,000 cost of a recall election. To discourage recall supporters, CVUSD officials claimed election costs would come at the expense of school operations, when the cost would actually have been born by the County as a whole. The district used information provided by the Registrar. A check of the law later confirmed that the school district would not have to bear any election costs.
The report confirmed that none of the mistakes were intentional, but that better communication is needed to clarify future practices and policies. The County Registrar is responsible to both abide by the law and know what the law is.
Capo Valley parents backing the failed recall were not happy with the report, claiming that ignorance of the law by the Registrar was no excuse for not following it.
My relations with OC Registrar Neal Kelley have been positive, especially his cooperation in my seeking reforms to the federal multilingual ballot requirements. Hopefully, we can learn from these mistakes and improve future operations. Those that make the laws are responsible for abiding by them. |
