This law allows any voter or qualified individual to apply to be a precinct board member by submitting an application to the elections official. The application might need to be on specific forms provided by the elections officer.

The people chosen to help run the election in each voting location make up what's called the precinct board for that area.

This law outlines who can serve on a precinct board. Generally, members must be voters from the state and serve only in their assigned precinct. However, exceptions exist: up to five students per precinct, at least 16 years old, U.S. citizens or permanent residents, attending school with good grades, can be appointed with school approval. They can't tally votes. Additionally, up to five nonvoters per precinct, who are permanent residents and eligible to register except for citizenship, can be appointed. These nonvoters can't act as inspectors or tally votes.

(a) Anyone who can't read or write English can't serve on a precinct board.

(b) Non-English-speaking citizens are encouraged to vote, and steps should be taken to reduce voting obstacles for them.

(c) If at least 3% of voting-age residents in a precinct are non-English speakers, the election officials must try to recruit bilingual precinct board members. This involves working with citizens and using media attention, especially media that caters to non-English speakers.

Each county election official must report how many bilingual board members were recruited after general elections, with this data being posted online. Polling places will have board members identify their language skills with tags, so voters know where to receive help in other languages.

(d) 14 days before an election, a list of precincts with appointed officials and the languages in which they offer help must be publicly available, including online.

This law determines the makeup of a precinct board, which is decided by an elections official based on the size of the election precinct. Each board must have at least one inspector and two clerks, with more clerks added depending on the number of registered voters in that precinct. The rule took effect on January 1, 2005.

This law lets political parties nominate their members to serve on precinct boards for primary and general elections. The party member must live in the precinct and be registered to vote there. Nominations must be submitted in writing at least 90 days before the election. The county elections official should prioritize nominees from parties that have at least 10% of registered voters in that precinct.

Once the elections office files the list of people chosen to be on the precinct board, it must promptly notify each appointed voter. This notice includes their appointment, specific role, any penalties if they don't serve, and any other important information the elections office decides to include.

This law specifies that after appointing members of precinct boards for elections, the elections official must instruct the appointed inspectors on their roles, following the standards set by the Secretary of State. Only those who have received this training can serve as inspectors unless an emergency arises, allowing for substitutes who may receive necessary instruction. Additionally, local legislative bodies can hire qualified individuals or organizations to provide this training if requested by the elections official. This law has been in effect since June 30, 2005.

This law mandates that by June 30, 2005, the California Secretary of State must establish uniform training standards for precinct board members. These standards cover topics like the rights of voters, handling election challenges, operating voting systems, and ensuring polling place procedures allow all voters to cast their ballots. They also include cultural competency, understanding the needs of disabled voters, and managing various voting procedures like provisional voting. Additionally, a task force of at least 12 experienced individuals will develop these guidelines, ensuring they reflect the diverse electorate and are publicly reviewed before being finalized.

Each member of a precinct board gets paid by the local government where the election takes place. Payments come from the area's treasury. The inspector, who has extra duties like finding board members, can earn more than other board members.

This law states that a government agency doesn't have to pay an election officer's stipend to anyone except the election officer entitled to receive it. In other words, if an election officer is assigned or transferred, only they can receive their payment for services, not someone else.

This law protects employees from being fired or suspended from their job if they miss work because they are serving as an election officer.

If a precinct board member doesn't show up on election day morning, voters present, including any board members there, can appoint another voter to take their place. If no board members show up, the voters present can appoint the entire board themselves.

However, this rule doesn't apply to elections that use vote centers.

If a member of the precinct board cannot continue their duties during an election, the inspector has the authority to appoint a voter to take their place.

If the person in charge of overseeing an election at a polling place stops being able to do their job, the remaining members of the team can choose someone to take their place.

This law allows election officials to excuse individuals from serving on precinct boards if the officials believe there is a good reason. If someone is excused or can't fulfill their role due to disqualification or incompetence, the officials can appoint someone else until a final list of election officers is completed and sent to the precinct inspector.

This law outlines the process for handling and distributing the list of precinct board members in California. After precinct board members are appointed, the county elections official must provide a copy of the member list to the county central committee of each qualified political party. Additionally, the list must be available to anyone who requests it, provided they sign a roster and show identification. Notably, this section does not apply to elections conducted using vote centers.

The election official must quickly send a notice to each appointed inspector, informing them about the precinct polling place and the voters chosen to work as election officers there.

Before someone can work as an election officer, they must sign a declaration as specified in another section of the law.

This law mandates that election inspectors and precinct board members must sign a declaration promising to perform their duties faithfully, supporting U.S. and California Constitutions. The inspector's declaration must be returned at least 15 days before their service starts. If an inspector doesn’t sign, a substitute will be appointed. The declarations need to be witnessed and are as binding as an oath of office.

Precinct board members also have to sign a similar declaration before starting their duties. Declarations can be seen in the polling place roster. Additionally, any precinct board member can administer and certify oaths during the election with no charge, and county officials may require inspectors to sign their declaration at the start of the election duties.

If there aren't any appointed precinct board members or a polling place set up before an election, the county elections official must step in and immediately assign board members or choose a polling location. The official should notify the board members of their appointment.

If a polling place can't be arranged in the original precinct, the official can choose a location in a neighboring precinct, and any board member at this location is considered to be serving in their correct precinct.