Sunday, October 11, 2015

California passes automatic voter registration. You're eighteen years old, you have a driver's license, and are not a Kardashian, congratulations you are a registered voter. (Okay I made up that Kardashian part, but I think we can all agree it's a good idea.)


California Governor Jerry Brown.
Courtesy of Yahoo News:

Gov. Jerry Brown has approved legislation to make California the second state in the nation to begin automatically registering eligible voters when they obtain or renew their driver's licenses. 

AB1461 by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, aims to boost California's voter rolls by registering visitors to the Department of Motor Vehicles and was among dozens of bills that Brown announced Saturday he had signed. 

It follows Oregon's move earlier this year to adopt the nation's first automatic voter registration law. 

The legislation backed by Democratic Secretary of State Alex Padilla calls for data collected by the DMV to be provided to the secretary of state's office, which would verify a resident's legal eligibility to vote before registering them. Drivers would have the option to opt out or cancel their voter registration at any time. 

Padilla praised the signing of the automatic registration bill. 

"Citizens should not be required to opt-in to their fundamental right to vote," he said in a statement. "We do not have to opt-in to other rights, such as free speech or due process. The right to vote should be no different." 

You know that makes so much sense that it pisses me off that this is not the law in EVERY state.

In fact I would like to see it expanded so that you get per-registered on the day you are born, and on the day you turn eighteen you receive your voter ID in the mail.

And if THAT makes you respect California just a little more get a load of this courtesy of The Sacramento Bee: 

Gov. Jerry Brown on Saturday signed legislation to ban the concealed carry of handguns at colleges and schools, further tightening California firearms restrictions that are already among the strictest in the nation. 

Current California law makes it illegal to possess a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school or on a college campus without permission from administrators, but it exempts those with concealed carry permits. 

Senate Bill 707, by Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis, expands the prohibition on school and college grounds to include concealed weapons, while keeping the same rules in place for the 1,000-foot zone surrounding schools. Active and retire law enforcement officers are not covered by the law. 

I swear sometimes California does something that really sets it apart from the rest of the country in a good way.

If they were not always on the brink of bankruptcy, constantly on fire, and home to some of the most vacuous people on the planet, it might even be nice place to live.

22 comments:

  1. Bravo.

    Conservaturd butthurt in 3, 2, 1...

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  2. Anonymous2:49 PM

    I'm pretty sure that the only time we were in grave financial danger was when Bush/Cheney gang fucked the world over. The reason it affected us then is because it tanked the real estate/mortgage market and property tax is the major portion of income for California. Quit bad-mouthing us! LOL

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  3. Anonymous2:56 PM

    Not to mention earthquakes. But CA is making the most of the time it's got left!

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    Replies
    1. California thinks it's the future and most of the time that is scary, but they're lately getting enough basic things right to earn the right to be the go-to place for good ideas.

      The faster the future comes to the rest of the states, the better -- hopefully this voter registration law -- in time for the next election.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous2:59 PM

    If sufficient signatures are gathered, an initiative will be on the August 2016 ballot to make voter registration automatic (if a person is eligible to vote) with a PFD application. This would not only eliminate a lot of paperwork but it would also clean up the addresses for currently registered voters. It does NOT require that you vote in order to receive a PFD. For more info, go to: http://www.pfdvoter.com/

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  5. Anonymous3:14 PM

    But, but but... Then only the BAD GUYS will have a gun on campuses, and then you will have even more mayhems on campus than before!
    /snark

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  6. Balzafiar3:22 PM

    "...it might even be a nice place to live. "

    If it just didn't cost four to five times as much as most of the rest of the country.

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  7. Anonymous4:05 PM

    CA is no longer on the brink of bankruptcy. Score one for progressive values.

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous5:23 AM

      Where California leads, we can follow.

      Delete
  8. Anonymous4:41 PM

    And there's more good news today. This from Daryl..... (with great cast photo)

    https://twitter.com/ImmortalDixon/status/653368789296263168

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous8:21 PM

      Sorry, but this has got to be the dumbest show ever.

      Delete
  9. CorningNY4:42 PM

    You forgot to mention that California is hellishly hot. I'm in the Long Beach area, and for the past few days (and at least a few more) it's been in the upper 90's, even breaking 100 some days. In mid-October. I'm from Upstate NY. Everyone keeps telling me, "Welcome to the new normal." : (

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  10. Anonymous5:13 PM

    You should automatically be registered to vote the day you are born. Many civilized countries do it this way.

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  11. Since most states require everything short of dna testing, and body cavity search to get a driver's license, automatic voter registration should be the norm.

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  12. I'm forever grateful to both sets of grandparents for moving to California. God knows we have our problems (cost of living, pollution, wildfires and DROUGHT) but I'd much rather live in a state that continues to lean more progressive each year. Now if only the forty-eight other states would get on board. I wish we'd go even further and make the first Tuesday in November a national holiday.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Susie Lochary 7:19 PM wrote: make the first Tuesday in November a national holiday.

      Better yet, make the Tuesday after the first Monday in November a national holiday. Election day in 2016 is November 8, not November 1.
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Election_Day_%28United_States%29

      Delete
    2. Anonymous8:56 AM

      California would be great... if it weren't for all the Californians living there.

      Delete
  13. If you can be opted in to every mailing list from every business you have contact with then why not voter registration?

    On the flip side, this will just drive down voter turnout. With more registered voters I think the added voters will more than be offset by the added registered voters that don't bother to vote.

    And of course, you'll have all of the right with Republicans screaming voter fraud claiming illegals are voting now that they can have driver's licenses.

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  14. Anonymous9:03 PM

    I'm a Californian and SO proud of my state and our Governor Jerry Brown.

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  15. Sounds terribly efficient and cost effective. Not right for states who thrive on muddled bureaucracies.

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  16. Randall12:55 PM

    Automatically registered... as Democrat, I hope.

    heh heh

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  17. Randall12:57 PM

    All kidding aside...
    how about being automatically registered to voting the day you are issued your (valid, citizen*) Social Security Number?

    * both Homeland Security and the IRS have a comprehensive database concerning this information

    ReplyDelete

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