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Senate Bill 594 (Glazer) , a measure regarding elections and redistricting, was signed into law in late September 2021 and took effect immediately.  The measure requires all special districts with board member elections by-division to pass a board resolution adopting their updated redistricted electoral maps by April 17, 2022 if their regular election is on the same day as the statewide November 2022 general election. If a special district's regular election is on another day, the deadline will be 180 days prior to that election.

Prior to the passage of SB 594, not all special districts had the same map adoption deadline. Certain special districts with by-division elections, faced a November 1, 2021 deadline to adopt their re-districted maps despite the months-long delay of the delivery of the 2020 decennial U.S. Census data. For example, fire protection, recreation and park, and community services districts faced this early deadline.  Meanwhile, most other special districts had a map adoption date of not later than 180 days prior to their next general election.

Those special districts whose boards are appointed or are elected at-large are unaffected by this measure. An at-large election is where board members are elected by voters from throughout the entire jurisdiction of the local government. In contrast, a by-division election is where the territory of the local government is divided into equal parts or divisions with one board member living in each division elected by its voters. Every 10 years, the divisions must be redistricted or reapportioned to ensure they each maintain an equal proportion of voters.

Early in the legislative session, CSDA supported amendments to SB 594 (Glazer) to address the truncated timeline for those districts with a November 1, 2021 redistricted electoral division map adoption deadline in light of the United States Census delay. The measure was successfully amended to push the November 1, 2021 deadline back five and a half months to April 17, 2022. However, in response to the concerns of elections officials requesting a consistent and achievable timeline, this new deadline was amended to apply to all special districts with a regular election that coincides with the November 8, 2022 statewide general election.

As SB 594 is intended to address the unique circumstances of the pandemic-delayed 2020 United States Census, the bill includes a January 1, 2023 sunset date and does not apply to elections and map-making deadlines beyond 2022.

This article was written by CSDA Legislative Representative Anthony Tannehill as part of CSDA’s New Laws Series, where experts explain recently enacted laws and how they will impact special districts moving forward. This article is provided for general information only and is not offered or intended as legal advice. Readers should seek the advice of an attorney when confronted with legal issues, and attorneys should perform an independent evaluation of the issues raised in these materials.

Stay tuned to the New Laws Series in CSDA eNews for more in-depth analyses on new laws affecting special districts.