On January 13, the California Senate Elections Committee passed SB 46.  Here is the text.  It requires presidential primary candidates to sign under penalty of perjury that they meet the constitutional qualifications to be president.

The bill was originally not an election law bill, but was amended with its current content on January 5.  The analysis of the new language of the bill is still not posted on the California legislature’s website.  The bill might violate the California Constitution, which says, “The candidates on the ballot are those found by the Secretary of State to be recognized candidates throughout the nation or throughout California.”  Article II, sec. 5(c).  Under that state constitutional language, presidential primary candidates are not even required to file any paperwork to be on the ballot.  That part of the state constitution was used by the California Supreme Court to strike down a law that required presidential primary candidates to file a copy of their income tax returns.