AB 1416, the Disclose Act, is designed to stop Big Money’s ability to misrepresent what ballot measures will accomplish if passed into law. Voters frequently reject ballot measures supported by organizations they trust and mistakenly vote for measures they might reject if they really knew who opposed them. The bill, authored by Miguel Santiago of the 53rd Assembly District (which includes downtown Los Angeles, Huntington Park, and Vernon), passed the Assembly on January 31 with 57 Ayes, 19 Noes. From there it went to the state Senate.

The bill requires that a brief list of supporters and opponents (maximum of 125 characters each) be added to each measure’s summary on the ballot. The list of names will be drawn from the ballot arguments in the Voter Information Guide, the multipage booklet that many voters don’t have the time to read.

The bill is moving quickly. AB 1416 has had the first reading in the Senate. Read the League of Women Voters California’s letter in support of the legislation at https://ct3.blob.core.windows.net/21blobs/a671c984-2179-4384-9ce4-1f0e08....

—Martha Y. Zavala