Today is the deadline for lawmakers to qualify a measure for the November ballot. But deadlines in the Capitol are rarely as firm as they seem.
A potential November ballot measure could be the cornerstone of a budget deal, as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed both a spending cap and a rainy-day fund, as well as a plan to borrow against future earnings of the California Lottery.
According to state election law, June 26 is the final day for a legislative measure to be place on the Nov. 4 ballot. But that deadline has proved malleable in past years, as lawmakers can push back the deadline for weeks, so long as local officials still have time to cobble together a ballot design.
John Myers at Capital Notes describes the process:
Lawmakers have stretched their time limits on ballot proposals several times in recent years. And the reality is that once they blow past today's official deadline, it becomes a question of how long do local elections officials need to design and print their ballots ... and how much are lawmakers in Sacramento willing to spend to send out an extra ballot pamphlet to millions of voters?
In the past, local elections officials have needed (very roughly) about two months.
@Nyx.CommentBody@