California’s proposed SB1480 would allow ballots to be transmitted by “fax technology,” which the Department of Homeland Security has deemed dangerously insecure. 

SACRAMENTO, CA (June 14, 2022) – Over 35 national and California-based organizations and election integrity experts issued a public statement today expressing strong opposition to SB 1480, a bill passed by the California State Senate on May 25, 2022 that would allow voters with certain disabilities to vote by fax.  The bill is currently scheduled for a hearing in the Assembly on June 29. 

Citing the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI, the statement emphasizes that any electronic ballot transmission creates a high risk of manipulation and disruption.  They urged California legislators to seek alternative accessible voting methods. 

The statement reads:  

We strongly oppose SB 1480 because it will profoundly undermine the integrity of California’s elections. At a time when election security and public confidence in our elections are under attack, increased electronic return of voted ballots, by web portal, or fax, or any other Internet protocol, will only corrode voter confidence. Furthermore, with the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the threat of Russian cyber attacks on our election infrastructure continue to rise, and ballots cast online will be at even higher risk of cyber attacks. Election security is a matter of the highest U.S. national security; we cannot tolerate any increased exposure to malicious election interference.

The statement is endorsed by over 35 organizations and experts including:  Free Speech For People, Coalition for Good Governance, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Dr. David Jefferson, MOVI, Money Out Voters In, LA County Voters Action Coalition, Validate the Vote USA.org, Professor Philip B. Stark, Noel Howard Runyan, Scrutineers.org, Audit USA, PDA-CA, National Voting Rights Task Force, Secure Elections Network, Indivisible Marin, Rooted in Resistance (Indivisible), Indivisible Alta Pasadena, Indivisible Riverside, Indivisible Ross Valley, Indivisible Resistance San Diego, Indivisible Sacramento, Indivisible Stanislaus, Progressive Democrats of the Santa Monica Mountains, Indivisible Stand Strong LA, Janeen Pederson, Leader, Long Beach Alliance for Clean Energy, Clean Coalition, Ben Schwartz, Valley Women’s Club of San Lorenzo Valley, The Resistance Indivisible Northridge, Indivisible Sonoma County, Indivisible Media City Burbank, Indivisible San Jose, Indivisible Mendocino, Cloverdale Indivisible, SoCal 350, Livermore Indivisible, Indivisible South Bay LA, Indivisible CA-33, Duane Bundschadler, Indivisible Santa Cruz County.

Read the full statement here.