Earlier this week, the California Supreme Court issued an opinion in Greene v. Marin County Flood Control and Water Conservation District allowing local districts in property owner fee elections to require voters to provide identifying information on their ballots.[1] This ruling will have important implications on local districts’ and local governments’ abilities to adopt procedures for elections.
At issue in the case was a vote taken by property owners in the Marin County Flood Control and Water Conservation District (“the District”) regarding a proposed storm drainage fee. The election was composed solely of mail-in ballots. The District’s ballot procedures required the ballot to contain, in addition to other information, the name of the property owner, their address, and the amount of the fee to be imposed on the property owner based on the size of their parcel. The ballots were only allowed to be opened after 5:01 p.m. on the day they were due and there was to be no public access to the ballots unless a court order required the District to do so. The voters approved the storm drainage fee and a property owner sued to invalidate the election.
The High Court was asked to decide whether the California Constitution[2] precludes ballots in local elections that require voters to disclose identifying information. The Court, in a 7-0 ruling, held that it is constitutional for localities to conduct fee elections and adopt certain procedures for those elections, including the disclosure of the voter’s identity and parcel. The Court also noted that the elections of statutorily-created districts are not governed by the California Constitution, but rather are a function of the legislative branch. As such, local governments and districts have discretion to require voters on property-related fees to place identifying information on a ballot that might become public after tabulation.
Alvarez-Glasman & Colvin serves as legal counsel to municipal agencies throughout California and is at the forefront of a wide variety of legal issues confronting local agencies. Please contact Associate David King at dking@agclawfirm.com or (562) 699-5500 for more information regarding this case or other municipal law issues.
[1] Greene v. Marin County Flood Control & Water Conservation Dist., No. S172199 (Cal. June 7, 2010)
[2] Cal. Const. art. XIII D, §§ 4, 6 (2010).
