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SB-398 • 2026

Election crimes: payment based on voting or voter registration.

Election crimes: payment based on voting or voter registration.

Crime Education Elections
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Umberg
Last action
Official status
Secretary of State
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Election crimes: payment based on voting or voter registration.

SB 398, Umberg.

What This Bill Does

  • SB 398, Umberg.
  • Election crimes: payment based on voting or voter registration.
  • Under existing law, it is a crime for a person to receive money or other valuable consideration to assist another to register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of registration if the person fails to sign the affidavit and include certain other information, including the name and telephone number of the person, company, or organization, if any, that has agreed to pay the money or other valuable consideration.
  • This bill would make it a crime, punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, imprisonment for up to 3 years, or both, for a person to knowingly or willfully pay or offer to pay money or other valuable consideration to another person with the intent to induce the person to vote or to register to vote, or where the payment is contingent upon whether the person voted or the person’s voter registration status.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

No action history is stored for this bill yet.

Official Summary Text

SB 398, Umberg.
Election crimes: payment based on voting or voter registration.
Under existing law, it is a crime for a person to receive money or other valuable consideration to assist another to register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of registration if the person fails to sign the affidavit and include certain other information, including the name and telephone number of the person, company, or organization, if any, that has agreed to pay the money or other valuable consideration.
This bill would make it a crime, punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, imprisonment for up to 3 years, or both, for a person to knowingly or willfully pay or offer to pay money or other valuable consideration to another person with the intent to induce the person to vote or to register to vote, or where the payment is contingent upon whether the person voted or the person’s voter registration status. By creating a new crime, this
bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Current Bill Text

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