Bill Text: CA SB39 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Chaptered

California Senate Bill 39 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Local agencies: public officers: claims and liability.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Passed) 2013-10-12 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 775, Statutes of 2013. [SB39 Detail]

Download: California-2013-SB39-Chaptered.html

BILL NUMBER: SB 39	CHAPTERED
	BILL TEXT

	CHAPTER  775
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  OCTOBER 12, 2013
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  OCTOBER 12, 2013
	PASSED THE SENATE  SEPTEMBER 12, 2013
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  SEPTEMBER 12, 2013
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  SEPTEMBER 10, 2013
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  SEPTEMBER 6, 2013
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 5, 2013
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 28, 2013
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 7, 2013
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 24, 2013
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MARCH 21, 2013

INTRODUCED BY   Senator De Le�n
   (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member John A. P�rez)

                        DECEMBER 5, 2012

   An act to add Section 53244 to the Government Code, relating to
local government, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect
immediately.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 39, De Le�n. Local agencies: public officers: claims and
liability.
   (1) Existing law provides for the governance of local agencies and
specifically prescribes the rights and duties of their officers and
employees. Existing law authorizes local agencies to establish
retirement systems for the provision of pension benefits to officers
and employees of the agencies and commits the administration of those
systems to retirement boards. Existing law establishes a process for
making claims on local agencies and excepts from that process
applications for money or benefits from a public pension or
retirement system. Existing law, the California Public Employees'
Pension Reform Act of 2013, requires the forfeiture of specified
retirement benefits by an elected public officer or a public
employee, as defined, if that officer or employee is convicted of a
felony for conduct arising out of, or in the performance of, his or
her official duties.
   This bill would require the forfeiture of a contractual, common
law, constitutional, or statutory claim against a local public agency
employer to retirement or pension rights or benefits, as specified,
by a local public officer who exercised discretionary authority and
who was convicted of a felony for conduct arising out of, or in the
performance of, his or her official duties. The bill would also make
a statement of findings.
   (2) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately
as an urgency statute.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  The Legislature finds and declares that local public
agencies need protection from disgraced and avaricious public
officials who, following conviction for crimes arising out of the
performance of their official duties, continue to seek unfair
benefits at public expense by asserting a claim that their former
employers owe them the value of pension benefits, including benefits
that the public retirement systems charged with administration of
those benefits have rightfully disallowed.
  SEC. 2.  Section 53244 is added to the Government Code, to read:
   53244.  (a) A local public officer, as defined in subdivision (b),
who is convicted by a state or federal trial court of any felony
under state or federal law for conduct arising out of, or in the
performance of, his or her official duties shall forfeit any contract
right or other common law, constitutional, or statutory claim
against a local public agency employer to retirement or pension
rights or benefits, however those benefits may be characterized,
including lost compensation, other than the accrued rights and
benefits to which he or she may be entitled under any public
retirement system in which he or she is a member. The forfeiture
provided by this section shall be in addition to, and independent of,
any forfeiture of public retirement system rights and benefits
pursuant to Section 7522.70, 7522.72, or 7522.74.
   (b) For the purposes of this section, "local public officer" means
a person, either elected or appointed, who exercised discretionary,
executive authority in his or her employment.
   (c) This section shall apply to any claim filed prior to the
effective date of the act enacting this section, and still pending on
that date, and any claim commenced after that date.
   (d) Upon conviction, a local public officer as described in
subdivision (a), and the prosecuting agency shall each notify the
public employer who employed the local public officer at the time of
the commission of the felony within 60 days of the felony conviction.
The operation of this section is not dependent upon the performance
of the notification required by this subdivision.
  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 Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
   In order to protect the public from local public officers who are
convicted of felonies due to violations of the public trust and who
continue to seek unfair benefits at public expense, it is necessary
that this act take effect immediately.