Help Lobby For AB 1039 Assemblywoman Loni Hancock (D-14; Berkeley) has introduced AB 1039 on Municipal Election Voting Methods. This is a "home rule" bill that will allow general law cities the same freedom that charter law cities have to choose their own method for electing their local government. We need all CfER members to help lobby in favor of AB 1039. Here are the things we need you to do: 1. Contact your local Assemblymember and ask her or him to become a co-author of AB 1039. You can locate your Assemblymember by going to http://www.assembly.ca.gov/defaulttext.asp and clicking on "Find my District". (If it gives you more than one, you can call their district offices to find out which one is yours.) The best approach is to write a letter; fax it or mail it to the Assemblymember's Sacramento office. Next best is to make a phone call. Third best is to send email. Your letter can be short. It can be as simple as: The Hon. ___________ State Capitol Sacramento, CA 95814 Dear ____________ I am writing to ask you to become a co-author of AB 1039 on Municipal Election Voting Methods. It is a "home rule" bill that will allow general law cities the same freedom that charter law cities have to choose their own method for electing their local government. Please let me know if you will co-author this bill. Sincerely, If you don't get a response within a week, follow up with a phone call. (You can call their district office if you don't want to call their Sacramento office.) 2. If you live in a general law city yourself, ask your city council to pass a resolution expressing support for AB 1039. If you're not sure if you live in a general law city, you can find a list of chartered cities at http://www.fairvoteca.org/campaign/chartercountycity.htm If your city isn't listed, then it's a general law city. Such a resolution can be as simple as: Whereas, the City of is a general law city, and is restricted in its choice of voting methods by the laws of the State of California; and Whereas, chartered cities have the freedom to choose their own voting method; and Whereas, AB 1039 (Hancock) is a "home rule" bill that would would give to general law cities the same freedom of choice in voting method as do chartered cities; Therefore, Be It Resolved That the City of supports and endorses AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That the City of asks its state representatives to co-sponsor AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That the City of asks the League of California Cities to endorse AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That the City of respectfully requests that the County Registrar ensure that any new voting equipment used in the county be compatible with all of the voting options included in AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That the City of will send a copy of this resolution to its state representatives; the author of AB 1039 (Assemblymember Loni Hancock); the Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments; the League of California Cities; and the Registrar of Voters. 3. Whether or not your City Council passes the above resolution, find out if any of the Councilmembers are interested in the bill. If so, ask them to send an individual letter asking their Assemblymember to become a co-author, and to send an individual letter of support to Assemblywoman Loni Hancock in Sacramento. They should also send a copy to the Chair of the ERCA committee, and to each of the committee's members, and to the League of California Cities. (Addresses appear below.) 4. If you belong to an organization, get your organization to endorse AB 1039, and have them send a letter of support to Loni Hancock and to the members of the ERCA committee. A resolution from an organization could look like this: Whereas, general law cities are restricted in their choice of voting methods by the laws of the State of California; and Whereas, chartered cities have the freedom to choose their own voting method; and Whereas, AB 1039 (Hancock) is a "home rule" bill that would would give to general law cities the same freedom of choice in voting method as do chartered cities; Therefore, Be It Resolved That supports and endorses AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That asks its state representatives to co-sponsor AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That asks the League of California Cities to endorse AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That requests that the County Registrar ensure that any new voting equipment used in the county be compatible with all of the voting options included in AB 1039; and Be It Further Resolved That will send a copy of this resolution to its state representatives; the author of AB 1039 (Assemblymember Loni Hancock); the Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments; the League of California Cities; and the Registrar of Voters. Here are the relevant addresses: Hon. Loni Hancock State Capitol, Room 4139 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 319-2014 Fax: (916) 319-2114 Hon. John Longville, Chair, Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments State Capitol P.O. Box 942849 Sacramento, CA 94249-0001 Phone: (916) 319-2062 Fax: (916) 319-2162 Hon. Steven N. Samuelian, Vice Chair, Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments State Capitol, Room 4153 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 319-2029 Fax: (916) 319-2129 Hon. Jerome Horton, Member, Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments State Capitol, Room 2163 Sacramento, CA 94249-0001 Phone: (916) 319-2051 Fax: (916) 319-2151 Hon. Lloyd E. Levin, Member, Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments State Capitol, Room 6011 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 319-2040 Fax: (916) 319-2140 Hon. Fabian Nunez, Member, Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments State Capitol, Room 2117 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 319-2046 Fax: (916) 319-2146 Tony Strickland, Member, Assembly Committee on Elections, Reapportionment, and Constitutional Amendments State Capitol, Room 4098 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: 916-319-2037 Fax: 916-319-2137 League of California Cities 1400 K Street, Suite 400 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 658-8200 Fax: (916) 658-8240 As of early May 2003, the following organizations have endorsed AB 1039: California League of Cities (4/4/03) Lawyers^Ò Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (4/17/03) Center for Voting and Democracy (4/03) Californians for Electoral Reform California Clean Money Campaign Common Cause Green Party of Sonoma County Green Party of California