California · Elections Code

ELEC §18108.5: (a) A person, company, or other organization that agrees to pay money or other valuable consideration, whether on a per-affidavit basis or otherwise, to a person who assists another person to register

Misdemeanor

What this law says, in plain English

A person or organization that pays someone to assist voter registration and fails to comply with Section 2159.5 is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by up to $1,000 fine and/or up to six months jail time (one year if willful). A third or subsequent conviction carries up to $10,000 fine and/or one year jail time.

Read the full statutory text
(a) A person, company, or other organization that agrees to pay money or other valuable consideration, whether on a per-affidavit basis or otherwise, to a person who assists another person to register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of registration, or by assisting with the submission of an affidavit of registration electronically on the Internet Web site of the Secretary of State, who fails to comply with Section 2159.5, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months or when the failure to comply is found to be willful, not exceeding one year, or both. (b) A person, company, or other organization that agrees to pay money or other valuable consideration, whether on a per-affidavit basis or otherwise, to a person who assists another person to register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of registration, or by assisting with the submission of an affidavit of registration electronically on the Internet Web site of the Secretary of State, upon a third or subsequent conviction, on charges brought and separately tried, for failure to comply with Section 2159.5 shall be punished by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed one year, or both. (c) An elections official shall notify a person, company, or other organization that agrees to pay money or other valuable consideration, whether on a per-affidavit basis or otherwise, to a person who assists another person to register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of registration or by assisting with the submission of an affidavit of registration electronically on the Internet Web site of the Secretary of State, that three or more affidavits of registration submitted by a person who assisted another to register to vote do not comply with Sections 18100, 18101, 18103, or 18106. The elections official may forward a copy of each of the noncomplying affidavits of registration to the district attorney, who may make a determination whether probable cause exists to believe that a violation of law has occurred. (d) This section shall not apply to a public agency or its employees that is designated as a voter registration agency pursuant to the federal National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. Sec. 20501 et seq.), when an elector asks for assistance to register to vote during the course and scope of the agency’s normal business.

Verify at the official source: California legislative text

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This page is legal information, not legal advice. Code text is sourced from official publications and may lag amendments — always confirm at the official source linked above. Plain-English summaries and relationship data are AI-derived and reviewed on an ongoing basis; verify with a licensed attorney before acting.