Bill Text: CA SB1483 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: The Political Reform Act of 1974: Fair Political Practices Commission: political reform education program.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-05-19 - May 19 hearing: Held in committee and under submission. [SB1483 Detail]
Download: California-2021-SB1483-Amended.html
|
Amended
IN
Senate
April 06, 2022 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 1483
| Introduced by Senator Glazer (Coauthor: Senator Ochoa Bogh) |
February 18, 2022 |
An act to amend Section 91013 of, and to add Section 83116.7 to to, the Government Code, relating to the Political Reform Act of 1974, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1483, as amended, Glazer.
The Political Reform Act of 1974: Fair Political Practices Commission: diversion political reform education program.
The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing, including requiring the reporting of campaign contributions and expenditures and imposing other reporting and recordkeeping requirements on campaign committees. Under existing law, the Fair Political Practices Commission has primary responsibility for the impartial, effective administration and implementation of the Political Reform Act of 1974. Existing law makes a knowing or willful violation of the Political Reform Act of 1974 a misdemeanor and subjects offenders to criminal penalties. Under existing law, a person who files an original statement or report after a deadline imposed by the Political Reform Act of 1974 is liable in the amount of $10 per day after the deadline until the statement or report is
filed, as specified. Existing law authorizes a filing officer to not impose this liability if the officer determines that the late filing was not willful and that enforcement of the liability will not further the purposes of the act, except as specified. Existing regulation directs the commission to develop a diversion program to allow for the education of a person who commits a minor violation of the act, as specified.
This bill would authorize the commission to establish and administer a diversion
political reform education program as an alternative to an administrative proceeding, as specified. The bill would establish eligibility requirements for the diversion political reform education program, including that the person has little or no experience with the act and that the violation resulted in minimal or no public harm. The bill would prohibit the commission from pursuing administrative action against a person if they completed the diversion political reform education program, as specified. The bill would authorize the commission to impose additional eligibility requirements for
participation in the program. The bill would authorize the commission to charge a fee to program participants in an amount not to exceed the reasonable cost to administer the diversion political reform education program. The bill would require the fee be paid to the General Fund. The bill would express the intent of the Legislature to appropriate funds annually to the commission to administer the diversion political reform education program. The bill would prohibit a filing officer from imposing the $10 per day liability if the person who filed the
late report or statement completes the political reform education program.
The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act’s purposes upon a 2/3 vote of each house of the Legislature and compliance with specified procedural requirements.
This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Digest Key
Vote: 2/3 Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 83116.7 is added to the Government Code, to read:83116.7.
(a) As an alternative to an administrative proceeding under this chapter, the commission may establish and administer a(b) (1) Requirements for eligibility in the diversion political reform
education program include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(A) The person has little or no experience with the section of this title that the person violated.
(B) The underlying violation resulted in minimal or no public harm.
(C) The person has not been ordered to pay a penalty for the same type of violation in the previous five years.
(D) There is no evidence of an intent to violate this title or to conceal a violation of this title.
(2) The commission may impose additional eligibility requirements for participation in the diversion
political reform education program.
(c) (1) If a person meets the requirements to complete the diversion political reform education program specified by the commission, the commission shall not pursue an administrative action for that same violation and it shall not be deemed a prior violation of this title in any subsequent administrative proceeding against the person.
(2) If a person fails to meet the requirements to complete the diversion
political reform education program specified by the commission, the commission may pursue an administrative action for that violation.
(d) To offset the costs to the state of the diversion political reform education program, the commission may charge a fee to a person who participates in the diversion political reform education program that shall not exceed the reasonable cost to the commission to administer the diversion
political reform education program. The fee shall by be payable to the General Fund.
(e) It is the intent of the Legislature that funds be appropriated annually to the commission to administer the diversion political reform education program. This funding shall not supplant or offset funding appropriated to the commission to discharge its other duties under the Act.
SEC. 2.
Section 91013 of the Government Code is amended to read:91013.
(a) (1)(2) Liability need not be enforced by the filing officer if on an impartial basis the filing officer determines that the late filing was not willful and that enforcement of the liability will not further the purposes of the act, except that no liability shall not be waived
pursuant to this paragraph if a statement or report is not filed within 30 days for a statement of economic interest, other than a candidate’s statement filed pursuant to Section 87201, five 5 days for a campaign statement required to be filed 12 days before an election, and 10 days for all other statements or reports, after the filing officer has sent specific written notice of the filing requirement.
(3) Liability shall not be enforced by the filing officer if the person who filed the late statement or report completes the political reform education program pursuant to Section 83116.7 for that late filing violation.
(b) If any person files a copy of a statement or report after any deadline imposed by this act, the person shall, in addition to any other penalties or remedies established by this chapter, be liable in the amount of ten dollars ($10) per day, starting 10 days, or 5 days in the case of a campaign statement required to be filed 12 days before an election, after the officer has sent specific written notice of the filing requirement and until the statement is filed. Liability shall not be enforced by the filing officer if the person who filed the late copy of the statement or report completes the political reform education program pursuant to Section 83116.7 for that late filing violation.
(c) The officer shall deposit any funds received under this section into the general fund of
the jurisdiction of which the filing officer is an officer. Liability under this section shall not exceed the cumulative amount stated in the late statement or report, or one hundred dollars ($100), whichever is greater.
SEC. 2.SEC. 3.
The Legislature finds and declares that this bill furthers the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within the meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government Code.SEC. 3.SEC. 4.
This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the California Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:In order to allow the Fair Political Practices Commission to commence administration of the full diversion
political reform education program as soon as possible, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.
