CA AB773

Establishes a "lead county" system for district and school district elections spanning multiple counties, where the lead county is either the county with the most voters (district elections) or the county whose superintendent covers the district (school district elections).

Requires candidates to submit arguments for and against measures only to the lead county, which selects arguments for publication and transmits copies to other counties within the district bounds for inclusion in their voter information guides.

Mandates all elections officials post and accept electronic submission of candidate statement forms on their websites, with candidates in multicounty districts required to submit hardcopies and fees to each county by overnight mail within 72 hours of electronic filing.

Provides that if the Commission on State Mandates determines the bill imposes state-mandated costs on local agencies or school districts, reimbursement shall be made pursuant to existing statutory procedures.

Takes effect immediately as an urgency statute to apply to 2023 candidate filing deadlines.