Bill Text: CA SB1483 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

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-Introduced.html

---

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill

No. 1483

---

Introduced by Senator Glazer

February 18, 2022

---

An act to add Section 83116.7 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 introduced, Glazer. The Political Reform Act of 1974: Fair Political Practices Commission: diversion 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. 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 program as an alternative to an administrative proceeding, as specified. The bill would establish eligibility requirements for the diversion 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 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 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 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: NO  

---

Bill 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 diversion program for persons who violate this title subject to the limitations in this section and other limitations imposed by the commission.

(b) (1) Requirements for eligibility in the diversion 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 program.

(c) (1) If a person meets the requirements to complete the diversion 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 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 program, the commission may charge a fee to a person who participates in the diversion program that shall not exceed the reasonable cost to the commission to administer the diversion program. The fee shall by 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 program. This funding shall not supplant or offset funding appropriated to the commission to discharge its other duties under the Act.

SEC. 2.

 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.

 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 program as soon as possible, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.