Bill Text: CA SCR5 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Joint Rules.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2013-01-07 - In Assembly. Held at Desk. [SCR5 Detail]
Download: California-2013-SCR5-Introduced.html
BILL NUMBER: SCR 5 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Senator Steinberg
JANUARY 3, 2013
Relative to the adoption of the Joint Rules of the Senate and
Assembly for the 2013-14 Regular Session.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SCR 5, as introduced, Steinberg. Joint Rules.
This measure adopts the Joint Rules of the Senate and Assembly for
the 2013-14 Regular Session.
Fiscal committee: no.
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the following rules be adopted as the Joint
Rules of the Senate and Assembly for the 2013-14 Regular Session:
JOINT RULES OF THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY
Standing Committees
1. Each house shall appoint standing committees as the business
of the house may require, the committees, the number of members, and
the manner of selection to be determined by the rules of each house.
Joint Meeting of Committees
3. Whenever any bill has been referred by the Senate to one of
its committees, and the same or a like bill has been referred by the
Assembly to one of its committees, the chairpersons of the respective
committees, when in their judgment the interests of legislation or
the expedition of business will be better served thereby, shall
arrange for a joint meeting of their committees for the consideration
of the bill.
Effect of Adoption of Joint Rules
3.5. The adoption of the Joint Rules for any extraordinary
session may not be construed as modifying or rescinding the Joint
Rules of the Senate and Assembly for any previous session, nor as
affecting in any way the status or powers of the committees created
by those rules.
Definition of Word "Bill"
4. Whenever the word "bill" is used in these rules, it includes
any constitutional amendment, any resolution ratifying a proposed
amendment to the United States Constitution, and any resolution
calling for a constitutional convention.
Concurrent and Joint Resolutions
5. Concurrent resolutions relate to matters to be treated by both
houses of the Legislature.
Joint resolutions relate to matters connected with the federal
government.
Resolutions Treated as Bills
6. Concurrent and joint resolutions, other than resolutions
ratifying proposed amendments to the United States Constitution and
resolutions calling for constitutional conventions, shall be treated
in all respects as bills except as follows:
(a) They shall be given only one formal reading in each house.
(b) They may not be deemed bills within the meaning of subdivision
(a) of Section 8 of Article IV of the California Constitution.
(c) They may not be deemed bills for the purposes of Rules 10.8,
53, 55, 56, and 61, subdivisions (a) and (c) of Rule 54, and
subdivisions (a) and (b) of Rule 62.
(d) They may not, except for those relating to voting procedures
on the floor or in committee, be deemed bills for the purposes of
subdivision (c) of Rule 62.
PREPARATION AND INTRODUCTION OF BILLS
Title of Bill
7. The title of every bill introduced shall convey an accurate
idea of the contents of the bill and shall indicate the scope of the
act and the object to be accomplished. In amending a code section,
the mere reference to the section by number is not deemed sufficient.
Division of Bill Into Sections
8. A bill amending more than one section of an existing law shall
contain a separate section for each section amended.
Bills that are not amendatory of existing laws shall be divided
into short sections, where this can be done without destroying the
sense of any particular section, to the end that future amendments
may be made without the necessity of setting forth and repeating
sections of unnecessary length.
Digest of Bills Introduced
8.5. A bill may not be introduced unless it is contained in a
cover attached by the Legislative Counsel and it is accompanied by a
digest, prepared and attached to the bill by the Legislative Counsel,
showing the changes in the existing law that are proposed by the
bill. A bill may not be printed where the body of the bill or the
Legislative Counsel's Digest has been altered, unless the alteration
has been approved by the Legislative Counsel. If any bill is
presented to the Secretary of the Senate or Chief Clerk of the
Assembly for introduction that does not comply with the foregoing
requirements of this rule, the Secretary or Chief Clerk shall return
it to the Member who presented it. The digest shall be printed on the
bill as introduced, commencing on the first page thereof.
Digest of Bills Amended
8.6. Whenever a bill is amended in either house, the Secretary of
the Senate or the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, as the case may be,
shall request the Legislative Counsel to prepare an amended digest
and cause it to be printed on the first page of the bill as amended.
The digest shall be amended to show changes in the existing law that
are proposed by the bill as amended, with any material changes in the
digest indicated by the use of appropriate type.
Errors in Digest
8.7. If a material error in a printed digest referred to in Rule
8.5 or 8.6 is brought to the attention of the Legislative Counsel, he
or she shall prepare a corrected digest that shows the changes made
in the digest as provided in Rule 10 for amendments to bills. He or
she shall deliver the corrected digest to the Secretary of the Senate
or the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, as the case may be. If the
correction so warrants in the opinion of the President pro Tempore of
the Senate or the Speaker of the Assembly, a corrected print of the
bill as introduced shall be ordered with the corrected digest printed
thereon.
Bills Amending Title 9 of the Government Code
8.8. A Member who is the first-named author of a bill that would
amend, add, or repeal any provision of Title 9 (commencing with
Section 81000) of the Government Code, upon introduction or amendment
of the bill in either house, shall notify the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate, as the case may be, of the
nature of the bill. Thereafter, the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or
the Secretary of the Senate shall deliver a copy of the bill as
introduced or amended to the Fair Political Practices Commission
pursuant to Section 81012 of the Government Code.
Bills Amending the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act
8.9. A Member who is the first-named author of a bill that would
amend, add, or repeal any statutory provision of the California Stem
Cell Research and Cures Act, other than the bond provisions thereof,
upon introduction or amendment of the bill in either house, shall
notify the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or the Secretary of the
Senate, as the case may be, of the nature of the bill. At least 14
days prior to passage in the Assembly or Senate, respectively, the
Chief Clerk of the Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate shall make
copies of the bill as introduced or amended available in the Bill
Room for access by the public and news media.
Restrictions as to Amendments
9. A substitute or amendment must relate to the same subject as
the original bill, constitutional amendment, or resolution under
consideration. An amendment is not in order when all that would be
done to the bill is the addition of a coauthor or coauthors, unless
the Committee on Rules of the house in which the amendment is to be
offered grants prior approval.
Changes in Existing Law to be Marked by Author
10. In a bill amending or repealing a code section or a general
law, any new matter shall be underlined, and any matter to be omitted
shall be in type bearing a horizontal line through the center and
commonly known as "strikeout" type. When printed the new matter shall
be printed in italics, and the matter to be omitted shall be printed
in "strikeout" type.
In an amendment to a bill that sets out for the first time a
section being amended or repealed, any new matter to be added and any
matter to be omitted shall be indicated by the author and shall be
printed in the same manner as though the section as amended or
repealed was a part of the original bill and was being printed for
the first time.
When an entire code is repealed as part of a codification or
recodification, or when an entire title, part, division, chapter, or
article of a code is repealed, the sections comprising the code,
title, part, division, chapter, or article shall not be set forth in
the bill or amendment in strikeout type.
Rereferral to Fiscal and Rules Committees
10.5. A bill shall be rereferred to the fiscal committee of each
house when it would do any of the following:
(1) Appropriate money.
(2) Result in a substantial expenditure of state money.
(3) Result in a substantial loss of revenue to the state.
(4) Result in substantial reduction of expenditures of state money
by reducing, transferring, or eliminating any existing
responsibilities of any state agency, program, or function.
Concurrent and joint resolutions shall be rereferred to the fiscal
committee of each house when they contemplate any action that would
involve any of the following:
(1) Any substantial expenditure of state money.
(2) Any substantial loss of revenue to the state.
The above requirements do not apply to bills or concurrent
resolutions that contemplate the expenditure or allocation of
operating funds.
A bill that assigns, requests, or requires a study, or is amended
to assign, request, or require a study, shall be referred to the
respective Committees on Rules.
This rule may be suspended in either house as to any particular
bill by approval of the Committee on Rules of the house and
two-thirds vote of the membership of the house.
Short Title
10.6. A bill may not add a short title that names a current or
former Member of the Legislature.
Heading of Bills
10.7. A bill or resolution may be authored only by a Member or
committee of the house of origin. Members or committees that are not
of the house of origin may be "principal coauthors" or "coauthors." A
bill may not indicate in its heading or elsewhere that it was
introduced at the request of a state agency or officer or any other
person. A bill may not contain the words "By request" or words of
similar import.
Consideration of Bills
10.8. The limitation contained in subdivision (a) of Section 8 of
Article IV of the Constitution may be dispensed with as follows:
(a) A written request for dispensation entitled "Request to
Consider and Act on Bill Within 30 Calendar Days" shall be filed with
the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate, as
the case may be, and transmitted to the Committee on Rules of the
appropriate house.
(b) The Committee on Rules of the Assembly or Senate, as the case
may be, shall determine whether there exists an urgent need for
dispensing with the 30-calendar-day waiting period following the bill'
s introduction.
(c) If the Committee on Rules recommends that the waiting period
be dispensed with, the Member may offer a resolution, without further
reference thereof to committee, authorizing hearing and action upon
the bill before the 30 calendar days have elapsed. The adoption of
the resolution requires an affirmative recorded vote of three-fourths
of the elected Members of the house in which the resolution is
presented.
Printing of Amendments
11. (a) Any bill amended by either house shall be immediately
reprinted. Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (b), if new
matter is added by the amendment, the new matter shall be printed in
italics in the printed bill; if matter is omitted, the matter to be
omitted shall be printed in strikeout type. When a bill is amended in
either house, the first or previous markings shall be omitted.
(b) If amendments to a bill, including the report of a committee
on conference, are adopted that omit the entire contents of the bill,
the matter omitted need not be reprinted in the amended version of
the bill. Instead, the Secretary of the Senate or the Chief Clerk of
the Assembly, as the case may be, may select the amended bill and
cause to be printed a brief statement to appear after the last line
of the amended bill identifying which previously printed version of
the bill contains the complete text of the omitted matter.
Manner of Printing Bills
12. The State Printer shall observe the directions of the Joint
Rules Committee in printing all bills, constitutional amendments, and
concurrent and joint resolutions.
Distribution of Legislative Publications
13. The Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly shall order a sufficient number of bills and legislative
publications as may be necessary for legislative requirements.
A complete list of bills may not be delivered except upon payment
therefor of the amount fixed by the Joint Rules Committee for any
regular or extraordinary session. No more than one copy of any bill
or other legislative publication, nor more than a total of 100 bills
or other legislative publications during a session, may be
distributed free to any person, office, or organization. The
limitations imposed by this paragraph do not apply to Members of the
Legislature, the Secretary of the Senate, or the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly for the proper functioning of their respective houses; the
Legislative Counsel Bureau; the Attorney General's office; the
Secretary of State's office; the Controller's office; the State
Treasurer's office; the Insurance Commissioner's office; the
Superintendent of Public Instruction; the State Board of
Equalization; the Governor's office; the Lieutenant Governor's
office; the Clerk of the Supreme Court; the clerk of the court of
appeal for each district; the Judicial Council; the California Law
Revision Commission; the State Library; the Library of Congress; the
libraries of the University of California at Berkeley and at Los
Angeles; or accredited members of the press. The State Printer shall
fix the cost of the bills and publications, including postage, and
moneys as may be received by him or her shall, after deducting the
cost of handling and mailing, be remitted on the first day of each
month, one-half each to the Secretary of the Senate and the Chief
Clerk of the Assembly for credit to legislative printing. Legislative
publications heretofore distributed through the Bureau of Documents
shall be distributed through the Bill Room. Unless otherwise provided
for, the total number of each bill to be printed may not exceed
2,500.
Legislative Index
13.1. The Legislative Counsel shall provide for the periodic
publication of a cumulative Legislative Index, which shall include
tables of sections affected by pending legislation. The State Printer
shall print the Legislative Index in the quantities, and at the
times, determined by the Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk
of the Assembly. The costs of that printing shall be paid from the
legislative printing appropriation.
Summary Digest
13.3. The Legislative Counsel shall compile and prepare for
publication a summary digest of legislation passed at each regular
and extraordinary session, which digest shall be prepared in a form
suitable for inclusion in the publication of statutes. The digest
shall be printed as a separate legislative publication on the order
of the Joint Rules Committee, and may be made available to the public
in the quantities, and at the prices, determined by the Joint Rules
Committee.
Statutory Record
13.5. The Legislative Counsel shall prepare for publication from
time to time a cumulative statutory record. The statutory record
shall be printed as a legislative publication on the order of the
Secretary of the Senate or the Chief Clerk of the Assembly.
OTHER LEGISLATIVE PRINTING
Printing of the Daily Journal
14. The State Printer shall print, in the quantities directed by
the Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the Assembly,
copies of the Daily Journal of each day's proceedings of each house.
At the end of the session he or she shall also print, as directed by
the Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, a
sufficient number of copies properly paged after being corrected and
indexed by the Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly, to bind in book form as the Daily Journal of the respective
houses of the Legislature.
What Shall Be Printed in the Daily Journal
15. The following shall be printed in the Daily Journal of each
house:
(a) Messages from the Governor and messages from the other house,
and the titles of all bills, joint and concurrent resolutions, and
constitutional amendments when introduced in, offered to, or acted
upon by, the house.
(b) Every vote taken in the house, and a statement of the contents
of each petition, memorial, or paper presented to the house.
(c) A true and accurate account of the proceedings of the house,
when not acting as a Committee of the Whole.
Printing of the Daily File
16. A Daily File of bills ready for consideration shall be
printed each day for each house when the Legislature is not in joint
recess, except days when a house does not meet.
Printing of History
17. Each house shall cause to be printed, once each week, a
complete Weekly History of all bills, constitutional amendments, and
concurrent, joint, and house resolutions originating in, considered
by, or acted upon by, the respective houses and committees thereof. A
regular form shall be prescribed by the Secretary of the Senate and
the Chief Clerk of the Assembly. The Weekly History shall show the
action taken upon each measure up to and including the legislative
day preceding its issuance. Except for periods when the houses are in
joint recess, for each day intervening there shall be published a
Daily History or summary showing the consideration given to or action
taken upon any measure since the issuance of the complete Weekly
History.
Authority for Printing Orders
18. The State Printer may not print for use of either house, nor
charge to legislative printing, any matter other than provided by law
or by the rules, except upon a written order signed by the Secretary
of the Senate, on behalf of the Senate, or the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly or other person authorized by the Assembly, on behalf of the
Assembly. Persons authorized to order printing under this rule may,
when necessity requires it, order certain matter printed in advance
of the regular order, by the issuance of a rush order.
The Secretary of the Senate, on behalf of the Senate, and the
Chief Clerk of the Assembly or other person authorized by the
Assembly, on behalf of the Assembly, are hereby authorized and
directed to order and distribute for the Members stationery and
legislative publications for which there is a demand, and, subject to
the rules of their respective houses, to approve the bills covering
those orders. All bills for printing must be presented by the State
Printer within 30 days after the completion of the printing.
RECORD OF BILLS
Secretary and Chief Clerk to Keep Records
19. The Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly shall keep a complete and accurate record of every action
taken by the Senate and Assembly on every bill.
Secretary and Chief Clerk Shall Endorse Bills
20. The Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly shall endorse on every original or engrossed bill a
statement of any action taken by the Senate or Assembly concerning
the bill.
ACTION IN ONE HOUSE ON BILL TRANSMITTED FROM THE OTHER
After a Bill Has Been Passed by the Senate or Assembly
21. When a bill has been passed by either house it shall be
transmitted promptly to the other, unless a motion to reconsider or a
notice of motion to reconsider has been made or it is held pursuant
to some rule or order of the house.
The procedure of referring bills to committees shall be determined
by the respective houses.
Messages to Be in Writing Under Proper Signatures
22. Notice of the action of either house to the other shall be in
writing and under the signature of the Secretary of the Senate or
the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, as the case may be. A receipt shall
be taken from the officer to whom the message is delivered.
Consent Calendar: Uncontested Bills
22.1. Each standing committee may report an uncontested bill out
of committee with the recommendation that it be placed on the Consent
Calendar. The Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly shall provide to each committee chairperson appropriate
forms for that report. As used in this rule, "uncontested bill" means
a bill that (a) receives a do-pass or do-pass-as-amended
recommendation from the committee to which it is referred, by
unanimous vote of the members present provided a quorum is present,
(b) has no opposition expressed by any person present at the
committee meeting with respect to the final version of the bill as
approved by the committee, and (c) prior to final action by the
committee, has been requested by the author to be placed on the
Consent Calendar.
Consent Calendar
22.2. Following its second reading and the adoption of any
committee amendments thereto, any bill certified by the committee
chairperson as an uncontested bill shall be placed by the Secretary
of the Senate or the Chief Clerk of the Assembly on the Consent
Calendar, and shall be known as a "Consent Calendar bill." Any
Consent Calendar bill that is amended from the floor shall cease to
be a Consent Calendar bill and shall be returned to the Third Reading
File. Upon objection of any Member to the placement or retention of
any bill on the Consent Calendar, the bill shall cease to be a
Consent Calendar bill and shall be returned to the Third Reading
File. No Consent Calendar bill may be considered for adoption until
the second legislative day following the day of its placement on the
Consent Calendar.
Consideration of Bills on Consent Calendar
22.3. A bill on the Consent Calendar is not debatable, except
that the President of the Senate or the Speaker of the Assembly shall
allow a reasonable time for questions from the floor and shall
permit a proponent of the bill to answer the questions. Immediately
prior to voting on the first bill on the Consent Calendar, the
President of the Senate or the Speaker of the Assembly shall call to
the attention of the Members the fact that the next rollcall will be
the rollcall on the first bill on the Consent Calendar.
The Consent Calendar shall be considered as the last order of
business on the Daily File.
PASSAGE AND ENROLLING OF BILL
Procedure on Defeat of More Than Majority Bill
23.5. Whenever a bill containing a section or sections requiring
for passage an affirmative recorded vote of more than 21 votes in the
Senate and more than 41 votes in the Assembly is being considered
for passage, and the urgency clause, if the bill is an urgency bill,
or the bill, in any case, fails to receive the necessary votes to
make all sections effective, further action may not be taken on the
bill, except that an amendment to remove all sections requiring the
higher vote for passage from the bill shall be in order prior to
consideration of further business. If the amendment is adopted, the
bill shall be reprinted to reflect the amendment. When the bill is
reprinted, it shall be returned to the same place on the file that it
occupied when it failed to receive the necessary votes.
Enrollment of Bill After Passage
24. After a bill has passed both houses it shall be printed in
enrolled form, omitting symbols indicating amendments, and shall be
compared by the Engrossing and Enrolling Clerk and the proper
committee of the house where it originated to determine that it is in
the form approved by the houses. The enrolled bill shall thereupon
be signed by the Secretary of the Senate and Chief Clerk of the
Assembly and, except as otherwise provided by these rules, presented
without delay to the Governor. The committee shall report the time of
presentation of the bill to the Governor to the house and the record
shall be entered in the Daily Journal. After enrollment and
signature by the officers of the Legislature, constitutional
amendments, and concurrent and joint resolutions, shall be filed
without delay in the office of the Secretary of State and the time of
filing shall be reported to the house and the record entered in the
Daily Journal.
AMENDMENTS AND CONFERENCES
Amendments to Amended Bills Must Be Attached
25. Whenever a bill or resolution that has been passed in one
house is amended in the other, it shall immediately be reprinted as
amended by the house making the amendment or amendments. One copy of
the amendment or amendments shall be attached to the bill or
resolution so amended, and endorsed "adopted"; the amendment or
amendments, if concurred in by the house in which the bill or
resolution originated, shall be endorsed "concurred in"; and the
endorsement shall be signed by the Secretary or Assistant Secretary
of the Senate, or the Chief Clerk or Assistant Clerk of the Assembly,
as the case may be. However, an amendment to the title of a bill
adopted after the passage of the bill does not necessitate
reprinting, but the amendment must be concurred in by the house in
which the bill originated.
Amendments to Concurrent and Joint Resolutions
25.5. When a concurrent or joint resolution is amended, and the
only effect of the amendments is to add coauthors, the joint or
concurrent resolution may not be reprinted unless specifically
requested by one of the added coauthors, but a list of the coauthors
shall appear in the Daily Journal and History.
To Concur or Refuse to Concur in Amendments
26. If the Senate amends and passes an Assembly bill, or the
Assembly amends and passes a Senate bill, the Senate (if it is a
Senate bill) or the Assembly (if it is an Assembly bill) must either
"concur" or "refuse to concur" in the amendments. If the Senate
concurs (if it is a Senate bill), or the Assembly concurs (if it is
an Assembly bill), the Secretary of the Senate or Chief Clerk of the
Assembly shall so notify the house making the amendments, and the
bill shall be ordered to enrollment.
Reference to Committee
26.5. Pursuant to Rule 26, whenever a bill is returned to its
house of origin for a vote on concurrence in an amendment made in the
other house, the Legislative Counsel shall promptly prepare and
transmit to the Chief Clerk of the Assembly and the Speaker of the
Assembly in the case of an Assembly bill, or to the Secretary of the
Senate and Chair of the Senate Committee on Rules in the case of a
Senate bill, a brief digest summarizing the effect of the amendment
made in the other house. The Secretary or Chief Clerk shall, upon
receipt from the Legislative Counsel, cause the digest to be printed
in the Daily File immediately following any reference to the bill
covered by the digest. A motion to concur or refuse to concur in the
amendment is not in order until the Legislative Counsel's Digest has
appeared in the Daily File or an analysis of the bill has been
prepared and distributed pursuant to Senate Rule 29.8 or Assembly
Rule 77.
If the digest discloses that the amendment of the other house has
made a substantial substantive change in the bill as first passed by
the house of origin, the bill, if it is a Senate bill, shall, on
motion of the Chair of the Senate Committee on Rules, be referred to
the Senate Committee on Rules for reference to an appropriate
standing committee. If the bill is an Assembly bill it shall be
referred by the Speaker to the appropriate committee.
Upon receipt of the bill, the committee may, by a vote of a
majority of its membership, recommend concurrence or nonconcurrence
in the amendment or hold the bill in committee. The committee shall
be subject to all the requirements for procedure provided under Rule
62 for committees, other than committees of first referral, and shall
be subject to other requirements for normal committee procedure as
the Assembly or Senate may separately provide in the standing rules
of their respective houses.
Any of the provisions of this rule may be dispensed with regard to
a particular bill in its house of origin upon an affirmative vote of
a majority of the Members of that house.
Concurring in Amendments Adding Urgency Section
27. When a bill that has been passed in one house is amended in
the other by the addition of a section providing that the act shall
take effect immediately as an urgency statute, and is returned to the
house in which it originated for concurrence in the amendment or
amendments thereto, the procedure and vote thereon shall be as
follows:
The presiding officer shall first direct that the urgency section
be read and put to a vote. If two-thirds of the membership of the
house vote in the affirmative, the presiding officer shall then
direct that the question of whether the house shall concur in the
amendment or amendments shall be put to a vote. If two-thirds of the
membership of the house vote in the affirmative, concurrence in the
amendments shall be effective.
If the affirmative vote on either of the questions is less than
two-thirds of the membership of the house, the effect is a refusal to
concur in the amendment or amendments, and the procedure thereupon
shall be as provided in Rule 28.
When Senate or Assembly Refuses to Concur
28. If the Senate (if it is a Senate bill) or the Assembly (if it
is an Assembly bill) refuses to concur in amendments to the bill
made by the other house, and the other house has been notified of the
refusal to concur, a conference committee shall be appointed for
each house in the manner prescribed by these rules. The Senate
Committee on Rules, on behalf of the Senate, and the Speaker of the
Assembly, on behalf of the Assembly, shall each appoint a committee
of three on conference, and the Secretary of the Senate or the Chief
Clerk of the Assembly shall immediately notify the other house of the
action taken.
Committee on Conference
28.1. (a) The Senate Committee on Rules and the Speaker of the
Assembly, in appointing a committee on conference, shall each select
two Members from those voting with the majority on the point about
which the difference has arisen, and the other Member from the
minority, in the event there is a minority vote.
Whether a Member has voted with the majority or minority on the
point about which the difference has arisen is determined by his or
her vote on the appropriate rollcall, as follows:
(1) In the Assembly--
(A) The rollcall on the question of final passage of a Senate bill
amended in the Assembly when the Senate has refused to concur with
the Assembly amendments.
(B) The rollcall on the question of concurrence with Senate
amendments to an Assembly bill.
(2) In the Senate--
(A) The rollcall on the question of final passage of an Assembly
bill amended in the Senate when the Assembly has refused to concur
with the Senate amendments.
(B) The rollcall on the question of concurrence with Assembly
amendments to a Senate bill.
(b) Either house may suspend this rule by a two-thirds vote of the
membership of the house.
Meetings and Reports of Committees on Conference
29. The first Senator named on the conference committee shall act
as chairperson of the committee from the Senate, and the first
Member of the Assembly named on the committee shall act as
chairperson of the committee from the Assembly. The chairperson of
the committee on conference for the house of origin of the bill shall
arrange the time and place of meeting of the conference committee,
and shall prepare or direct the preparation of reports. It shall
require an affirmative vote of not less than two of the Assembly
Members and two of the Senate Members constituting the committee on
conference to agree upon a report, and the report shall be submitted
to both the Senate and the Assembly. The committee on conference
shall report to both the Senate and the Assembly. The report is not
subject to amendment. If either house refuses to adopt the report,
the conferees shall be discharged and other conferees appointed,
except that no more than three different conference committees may be
appointed on any one bill. A Member who has served on a committee on
conference may not be appointed a member of another committee on
conference on the same bill. It shall require the same affirmative
recorded vote to adopt any conference report as required by the
California Constitution upon the final passage of the bill affected
by the report. It shall require an affirmative recorded vote of
two-thirds of the entire elected membership of each house to adopt
any conference report affecting any bill that contains an item or
items of appropriation that are subject to subdivision (d) of Section
12 of Article IV of the California Constitution. The report of a
conference committee shall be in writing, and shall have affixed
thereto the signatures of each Senator and each Member of the
Assembly consenting to the report. Space shall also be provided where
a member of a conference committee may indicate his or her dissent
in the committee's findings. Any dissenting member may have attached
to a conference committee report a dissenting report which shall not
exceed, in length, the majority committee report. A copy of any
amendments proposed in the majority report shall be placed on the
desk of each Member of the house before it is acted upon by the
house.
The vote on concurrence or upon the adoption of the conference
report shall be deemed the vote upon final passage of the bill.
Conference Committees
29.5. (a) All meetings of any conference committee on the Budget
Bill shall be open and readily accessible to the public.
A conference committee on any bill may not meet, consider, or act
on the subject matter of the bill except in a meeting that is open
and readily accessible to the public, unless the action is on a
report determined by the Legislative Counsel to be nonsubstantive.
The Legislative Counsel shall examine each proposed report and shall
note upon the face of the report that the amendments proposed are
"substantive" or "nonsubstantive" as the case may be.
The chairperson of the conference committee of each house shall
give notice to the File Clerk of their respective houses of the time
and place of the meeting. Notice of each public meeting shall be
published in the Daily File of each house one calendar day prior to
the meeting, except that the notice is not required for a meeting of
a conference committee on the Budget Bill. When this subdivision is
waived with respect to a meeting of any public conference committee,
or when there is a meeting of a conference committee on the Budget
Bill, every effort shall be made to inform the public that a meeting
has been called. When this subdivision has been waived with respect
to the meeting of any public conference committee, the chairperson of
the conference committee of each house shall immediately notify the
chairperson of the policy committee of their respective houses that
considered the bill in question of the waiver, and of the time and
place of the meeting.
(b) The first committee on conference of the Budget Bill, if a
committee is appointed, shall submit its report to each house no
later than 15 days after the Budget Bill has been passed by both
houses. If the report is not submitted by that date, the conference
committee shall be deemed to have reached no agreement and shall so
inform each house pursuant to Rule 30.7.
(c) A committee on conference of the Budget Bill may consider only
differences between the Assembly version of the Budget Bill as
passed by the Assembly and the Senate version of the Budget Bill as
passed by the Senate, and may not approve any item of expenditure or
control that exceeds that contained in one of the two versions before
the conference committee.
(d) A conference committee on any bill, other than the Budget
Bill, may not approve any substantial financial provision in any bill
if the financial provision has not been heard by the fiscal
committee of each house, nor may any conference committee approve
substantial policy changes that have not been heard by the policy
committee of each house.
(e) A waiver of the one-calendar-day Daily File notice requirement
of subdivision (a) is not effective for longer than three calendar
days.
Conference Committee Reports
30. Upon submission of any report of a committee on conference
recommending that the bill be further amended, the bill shall be
reprinted incorporating the amendments recommended by the conference
committee. The consideration of the report of a committee on
conference is not in order until the bill, in the form recommended by
the report of the committee on conference, has both been in print
and been noticed in the Daily File for not less than one legislative
day.
If the conference committee's report recommends only that the
amendments of the Senate or the Assembly "be concurred in,"
consideration of the report shall be in order at any time, and
reprinting of the bill is not required, but notice shall appear in
the Daily File for not less than one legislative day.
A conference committee report is not in order unless it has been
received by the Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly at least three calendar days preceding the scheduled
commencement of the summer, interim, or final recess of the
Legislature.
This rule may be suspended as to any particular conference
committee report by a two-thirds vote of the membership of either
house.
This rule does not apply to a report of a committee on conference
on the Budget Bill.
Conference Committee Reports on Urgency Statutes
30.5. When the report of a committee on conference recommends the
amendment of a bill by the addition of a section providing that the
act shall take effect immediately as an urgency statute, the
procedure and the vote thereon shall be as follows:
The presiding officer shall first direct that the urgency section
be read and put to a vote. If two-thirds of the Members elected to
the house vote in the affirmative, the presiding officer shall then
direct that the question of whether the house shall adopt the report
of the committee on conference shall be put to a vote. If two-thirds
of the Members elected to the house vote in the affirmative, the
adoption of the report and the amendments proposed thereby shall be
effective.
If the affirmative vote on either of the questions is less than
two-thirds of the Members elected to the house, the effect is a
refusal to adopt the report of the committee on conference.
Failure to Agree on Report
30.7. A conference committee may find and determine that it is
unable to submit a report to the respective houses, upon the
affirmative vote to that effect of not less than two of the Assembly
Members and not less than two of the Senate Members constituting the
committee. That finding may be submitted to the Chief Clerk of the
Assembly and the Secretary of the Senate in the form of a letter from
the chairperson of the committee on conference for the house of
origin of the bill, containing the signatures of the members of the
committee consenting to the finding and determination that the
committee is unable to submit a report. The Chief Clerk of the
Assembly and the Secretary of the Senate, upon being notified that a
conference committee is unable to submit a report, shall so inform
each house, whereupon the conferees shall be discharged and other
conferees appointed, in accordance with Rule 29.
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Authority When Rules Do Not Govern
31. All relations between the houses that are not covered by
these rules shall be governed by Mason's Manual.
Press Rules
32. (a) Any person desiring privileges of an accredited press
representative shall make application to the Joint Rules Committee.
The application shall constitute compliance with any provisions of
the rules of the Assembly or the Senate with respect to registration
of news correspondents. The application shall state in writing the
name of any print or electronic periodic news publication, news
association, or radio or television station that employs the press
representative, and any other occupations or employment he or she may
have. The press representative shall further declare in the
application that he or she is not employed, directly or indirectly,
to assist in the prosecution of the legislative business of any
person, corporation, or association, and will not become so employed
while retaining the privilege of an accredited press representative.
(b) The application required by subdivision (a) of this rule shall
be authenticated in a manner that is satisfactory to the Standing
Committee of the Capitol Correspondents Association, which shall see
that occupation of seats and desks in the Senate and the Assembly
Chambers is confined to bona fide correspondents of reputable
standing in their business, who represent news media identified in
subdivision (a). It is the duty of the standing committee, at its
discretion, to report any violation of accredited press privileges to
the Speaker of the Assembly or the Senate Committee on Rules and,
pending action thereon, the offending correspondent may be suspended
by the standing committee.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, persons
engaged in other occupations whose chief attention is not given to
newspaper correspondence or to news associations requiring
telegraphic, radio, television, or electronic service are not
entitled to the privileges accorded accredited press representatives.
The press list in the Handbook of the California Legislature and the
Senate and Assembly Histories shall be a list of only those persons
authenticated by the Standing Committee of the Capitol Correspondents
Association. Accreditation may be granted to any bona fide
correspondent of reputable standing employed by a periodic
publication of general circulation if the applicant is employed on a
regular basis in the Capitol area preparing articles dealing with
state government and politics and the publication is not an organ or
organization involved in legislative advocacy.
(d) The press seats and desks in the Senate and Assembly Chambers
shall be under the control of the standing committee of
correspondents, subject to the approval and supervision of the
Speaker of the Assembly and the Senate Committee on Rules. Press
cards shall be issued by the President pro Tempore of the Senate and
the Speaker of the Assembly only to correspondents properly
accredited in accordance with this rule.
(e) An accredited member of the Capitol Correspondents Association
may not, for compensation, perform any service for state
constitutional officers or members of their staffs, for state
agencies, for the Legislature, for candidates for state office, for a
state officeholder, or for any person registered or performing as a
legislative advocate.
(f) An accredited member of the association who violates
subdivision (a) or (e) of this rule shall be subject to the following
penalties:
(1) For the first offense, the Standing Committee of the Capitol
Correspondents Association shall send a letter of admonition to the
offending member, his or her employer, and the Joint Rules Committee.
The letter shall state the nature of the member's rule violation and
shall warn of an additional penalty for a second offense.
(2) For a second offense, the Standing Committee of the Capitol
Correspondents Association shall recommend to the Joint Rules
Committee that the member's accreditation be suspended or revoked and
that he or she lose all rights and privileges attached thereto. The
Standing Committee of the Capitol Correspondents Association shall
also dismiss the member from the association.
Any member of the Standing Committee of the Capitol Correspondents
Association may propose that the committee make an inquiry to
determine if an association member has violated subdivision (a) or
(e) of this rule. Upon a majority vote of the Standing Committee of
the Capitol Correspondents Association, an inquiry shall be made.
Upon receipt of a signed, written notice from any association
member of his or her belief that another association member may have
violated subdivision (a) or (e) of this rule, the Standing Committee
of the Capitol Correspondents Association shall commence an inquiry
into the possible violation.
If the Standing Committee of the Capitol Correspondents
Association determines by majority vote that an association member
has violated an association rule, it shall inform the member of its
finding. Within two weeks of notification, the member may request a
meeting of the membership. If the member makes that request, the
Standing Committee of the Capitol Correspondents Association shall
promptly schedule a meeting at the earliest possible time. After
hearing the member and the committee review the circumstances of the
alleged violation, the membership may, by majority vote, nullify the
finding of the Standing Committee of the Capitol Correspondents
Association. If nullification does not occur, the Standing Committee
of the Capitol Correspondents Association immediately shall impose
the appropriate penalty.
Dispensing with Joint Rules
33. A joint rule may not be dispensed with except by a vote of
two-thirds of each house or as otherwise provided in these rules. If
either house violates a joint rule, a question of order may be raised
in the other house and decided in the same manner as in the case of
the violation of the rules of the house. If it is decided that the
joint rules have been violated, the bill involving the violation
shall be returned to the house in which it originated, and the
disputed matter shall be considered in like manner as in conference
committee.
Dispensing with Joint Rules: Unanimous Consent
33.1. Notwithstanding any other rule, a joint rule that may be
dispensed with by one house may be done so by unanimous consent if
the rules committee of that house has approved.
Opinions of Legislative Counsel
34. Whenever the Legislative Counsel issues a written opinion to
any person other than the first-named author analyzing the
constitutionality, operation, or effect of a bill or other
legislative measure that is then pending before the Legislature or of
any amendment made or proposed to be made to the bill or measure, he
or she is authorized and instructed to deliver two copies of the
opinion to the first-named author as promptly as feasible after the
delivery of the original opinion and also to deliver a copy to any
other author of the bill or measure who so requests. A copy of any
letter prepared by the Legislative Counsel for the sole purpose of
advising a Member of a conflict between two or more bills as to the
sections of law being amended, repealed, or added shall be submitted
to the chairperson of the committee to which each bill has been
referred.
Resolutions Prepared by Legislative Counsel
34.1. Whenever the Legislative Counsel has been requested to
draft a resolution commemorating or taking note of any event, or a
resolution congratulating or expressing sympathy toward any person,
and subsequently receives a similar request from another Member of
the Legislature, he or she shall inform that requester and each
subsequent requester that a resolution is being, or has been,
prepared, and shall inform them of the name of the Member for whom
the resolution was, or is being, prepared.
Resolutions
34.2. A concurrent resolution, Senate resolution, or House
resolution may be introduced to memorialize the death of a present or
former state or federal elected official or a member of his or her
immediate family. In all other instances, a resolution other than a
concurrent resolution, as specified by the Committee on Rules of each
house, or as provided by the Joint Rules Committee in those cases
requiring that the resolution should emanate from both houses, shall
be used for the purpose of commendation, congratulation, sympathy, or
regret with respect to any person, group, or organization.
A concurrent resolution requesting the Governor to issue a
proclamation may not be introduced without the prior approval of the
Committee on Rules of the house in which the resolution is to be
introduced.
Identical Drafting Requests
34.5. Whenever it comes to the attention of the Legislative
Counsel that a Member has requested the drafting of a bill that will
be substantially identical to one already introduced, the Legislative
Counsel shall inform the Member of that fact.
Expense of Members
35. As provided in Section 8902 of the Government Code, each
Member of the Legislature is entitled to reimbursement for living
expenses while required to be in Sacramento to attend a session of
the Legislature, while traveling to and from or in attendance at a
committee meeting, or while attending to any legislative function or
responsibility as authorized or directed by legislative rules or the
Committee on Rules of the house of which he or she is a Member, at
the same rate as may be established by the California Victim
Compensation and Government Claims Board for other elected state
officers. Each Member shall be reimbursed for travel expenses
incurred in traveling to and from a session of the Legislature, when
traveling to and from a meeting of a committee of which he or she is
a member, or when traveling pursuant to any other legislative
function or responsibility as authorized or directed by legislative
rules or the Committee on Rules of the house of which he or she is a
Member, at the rate prescribed by Section 8903 of the Government
Code.
Expense allowances for Members of the Senate and Assembly shall be
approved and certified to the Controller by the Secretary of the
Senate, on behalf of the Senate, and the Chief Clerk of the Assembly
or other person authorized by the Assembly Committee on Rules, on
behalf of the Assembly, weekly or as otherwise directed by either
house, and upon certification the Controller shall draw his or her
warrants in payment of the allowances to the respective Members.
Issuance of Subpoenas
35.5. A subpoena requiring the attendance of a witness or the
production of documents may be issued by the Senate Committee on
Rules, the Speaker of the Assembly, or the chairperson of a committee
conducting an investigation only if permission has been secured from
the rules committee of the respective house, or from the Joint Rules
Committee if the subpoena is issued by the chairperson of a joint
committee.
Investigating Committees
36. In order to expedite the work of the Legislature, either
house, or both houses jointly, may by resolution or statute provide
for the appointment of committees to ascertain facts and to make
recommendations as to any subject within the scope of legislative
regulation or control.
The resolution providing for the appointment of a committee
pursuant to this rule shall state the purpose of the committee and
the scope of the subject concerning which it is to act, and may
authorize it to act either during sessions of the Legislature or,
when authorization may lawfully be made, after final adjournment.
In the exercise of the power granted by this rule, each committee
may employ clerical, legal, and technical assistants as may be
authorized by: (a) the Joint Rules Committee in the case of a joint
committee, (b) the Senate Committee on Rules in the case of a Senate
committee, or (c) the Assembly Committee on Rules in the case of an
Assembly committee.
Except as otherwise provided herein for joint committees or by the
rules of the Senate or the Assembly for single house committees,
each committee may adopt and amend rules governing its procedure as
may appear necessary and proper to carry out the powers granted and
duties imposed under this rule. The rules may include provisions
fixing the quorum of the committee and the number of votes necessary
to take action on any matter. With respect to all joint committees, a
majority of the membership from each house constitutes a quorum, and
an affirmative vote of a majority of the membership from each house
is necessary for the committee to take action.
Each committee is authorized and empowered to summon and subpoena
witnesses, to require the production of papers, books, accounts,
reports, documents, records, and papers of every kind and
description, to issue subpoenas, and to take all necessary means to
compel the attendance of
witnesses and to procure testimony, oral and documentary. A committee'
s issuance of a subpoena shall comply with Rule 35.5.
Each member of the committees is authorized and empowered to
administer oaths, and all of the provisions of Chapter 4 (commencing
with Section 9400) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the
Government Code, relating to the attendance and examination of
witnesses before the Legislature and the committees thereof, apply to
the committees. A committee may grant a witness immunity from
criminal prosecution, pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 9410 of
the Government Code, only after securing permission from the rules
committee of the respective house, or from the Joint Rules Committee
in the case of a joint committee.
The Sergeant at Arms of the Senate or Assembly, or other person as
may be designated by the chairperson of the committee, shall serve
any and all subpoenas, orders, and other process that may be issued
by the committee, when directed to do so by the chairperson, or by a
majority of the membership of the committee.
Every department, commission, board, agency, officer, and employee
of the state government, including the Legislative Counsel and the
Attorney General and their subordinates, and of every political
subdivision, county, city, or public district of or in this state,
shall give and furnish to these committees and to their subcommittees
upon request information, records, and documents as the committees
deem necessary or proper for the achievement of the purposes for
which each committee was created.
Each committee or subcommittee of either house, in accordance with
the rules of that respective house, and each joint committee or
subcommittee thereof, may meet at any time during the period in which
it is authorized to act, either at the State Capitol or at any other
place in the State of California, in public or executive session,
and do any and all things necessary or convenient to enable it to
exercise the powers and perform the duties herein granted to it or
accomplish the objects and purposes of the resolution creating it,
subject to the following exceptions:
(a) When the Legislature is in session:
(1) A committee or subcommittee of either house may not meet
outside the State Capitol without the prior approval of the Senate
Committee on Rules with respect to Senate committees and
subcommittees, or the Speaker of the Assembly with respect to
Assembly committees and subcommittees.
(2) A committee or subcommittee of either house, other than a
standing committee or subcommittee thereof, may not meet unless
notice of the meeting has been printed in the Daily File for four
days prior thereto. This requirement may be waived by a majority vote
of either house with respect to a particular bill.
(3) A joint committee or subcommittee thereof, other than the
Joint Committees on Legislative Audit, Legislative Budget, and Rules,
may not meet outside the State Capitol without the prior approval of
the Joint Rules Committee.
(4) A joint committee or subcommittee thereof, other than the
Joint Committees on Legislative Audit, Legislative Budget, and Rules,
may not meet unless notice of the meeting has been printed in the
Daily File for four days prior thereto.
(b) When the Legislature is in joint recess, each joint committee
or subcommittee, other than the Joint Committees on Legislative
Audit, Legislative Budget, and Rules, shall notify the Joint Rules
Committee at least two weeks prior to a meeting.
(c) The requirements placed upon joint committees by subdivisions
(a) and (b) of this rule may be waived as deemed necessary by the
Joint Rules Committee.
Each committee may expend such money as is made available to it
for its purpose, but a committee may not incur any indebtedness
unless money has been first made available therefor.
Living expenses may not be allowed in connection with legislative
business for a day on which the Member receives reimbursement for
expenses while required to be in Sacramento to attend a session of
the Legislature. The chairperson of each committee shall audit and
approve the expense claims of the members of the committee, including
claims for mileage in connection with attendance on committee
business, or in connection with specific assignments by the committee
chairperson, but excluding other types of mileage, and shall certify
the amount approved to the Controller. The Controller shall draw his
or her warrants upon the certification of the chairperson.
Subject to the rules of each house for the respective committees
of each house, or the joint rules for any joint committee, with the
permission of the appointing authority of the respective house, or
the permission of the appointing authorities of the two houses in the
case of a joint committee, the chairperson of any committee may
appoint subcommittees and chairpersons thereof for the purpose of
more expeditiously handling and considering matters referred to it,
and the subcommittees and the chairpersons thereof shall have all the
powers and authority herein conferred upon the committee and its
chairperson. The chairperson of a subcommittee shall audit the
expense claims of the members of the subcommittee, and other claims
and the expenses incurred by it, and shall certify the amount thereof
to the chairperson of the committee, who shall, if he or she
approves the same, certify the amount thereof to the Controller; the
Controller shall draw his or her warrant therefor upon that
certification, and the Treasurer shall pay the same. Any committee or
subcommittee thereof that is authorized to leave the State of
California in the performance of its duties shall, while out of the
state, have the same authority as if it were acting and functioning
within the state, and the members thereof shall be reimbursed for
expenses.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this rule, if the standing
rules of either house require that expense claims of committees for
goods or services, pursuant to contracts, or for expenses of
employees or members of committees be audited or approved, after
approval of the committee chairperson, by another agency of either
house, the Controller shall draw his or her warrants only upon the
certification of the other agency. All expense claims approved by the
chairperson of any joint committee, other than the Joint Legislative
Budget Committee and the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, shall be
approved by the Joint Rules Committee, and the Controller shall draw
his or her warrants only upon the certification of the Joint Rules
Committee.
Except salary claims of employees clearly subject to federal
withholding taxes and the requirement as to loyalty oaths, claims
presented for services or pursuant to contract shall refer to the
agreement, the terms of which shall be made available to the
Controller.
Expenses of Committee Employees
36.1. Unless otherwise provided by respective house or committee
rule or resolution, employees of legislative committees, when
entitled to traveling expenses, are entitled to allowances in lieu of
actual expenses for hotel accommodations, breakfast, lunch, and
dinner, at the rates fixed by the California Victim Compensation and
Government Claims Board from time to time in limitation of
reimbursement of expenses of state employees generally. However, if
an allowance for hotel accommodations, breakfast, lunch, and dinner
is made by a committee at a rate in excess of the rate fixed by the
California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board, the
chairperson of the committee shall notify the Controller of that fact
in writing.
Appointment of Committees
36.5. This rule applies whenever a joint committee is created by
a statute or resolution that either provides that appointments be
made and vacancies be filled in the manner provided for in the Joint
Rules, or makes no provision for the appointment of members or the
filling of vacancies.
The Senate members of the committee shall be appointed by the
Senate Committee on Rules; the Assembly members of the committee
shall be appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly; and vacancies
occurring in the membership of the committee shall be filled by the
respective appointing powers. The members appointed shall hold over
until their successors are regularly selected.
Appointment of Joint Committee Chairpersons
36.7. The chairperson of each joint committee heretofore or
hereafter created, except the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and
the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, shall be appointed by the
Joint Rules Committee from a Member or Members recommended by the
Senate Committee on Rules and the Speaker of the Assembly.
Joint Committee Funds
36.8. Each joint committee heretofore or hereafter created,
except the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and the Joint
Legislative Audit Committee, shall expend the funds heretofore or
hereafter made available to it in compliance with the policies set
forth by the Joint Rules Committee with respect to personnel,
salaries, purchasing, office space assignment, contractual services,
rental or lease agreements, travel, and any and all other matters
relating to the management and administration of committee affairs.
Joint Legislative Budget Committee
37. In addition to any other committee provided for by these
rules, there is a joint committee to be known as the Joint
Legislative Budget Committee, which is hereby declared to be a
continuing body.
It is the duty of the committee to ascertain facts and make
recommendations to the Legislature and to the houses thereof
concerning the State Budget, the revenues and expenditures of the
state, and the organization and functions of the state and its
departments, subdivisions, and agencies, with a view to reducing the
cost of the state government and securing greater efficiency and
economy.
The committee consists of eight Members of the Senate and eight
Members of the Assembly. The Senate members of the committee shall be
appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules. The Assembly members of
the committee shall be appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly. The
committee shall select its own chairperson.
Any vacancy occurring at any time in the Senate membership of the
Joint Legislative Budget Committee shall be filled by the Senate
Committee on Rules, and the Senators appointed shall hold over until
their successors are regularly selected. For the purposes of this
rule, a vacancy shall be deemed to exist as to a Senator whose term
is expiring whenever he or she is not reelected at the general
election.
Any vacancy occurring at any time in the Assembly membership of
the Joint Legislative Budget Committee shall be filled by appointment
by the Speaker of the Assembly, and the Members of the Assembly
appointed shall hold over between regular sessions until their
successors are regularly selected. For the purposes of this rule, a
vacancy shall be deemed to exist as to a Member of the Assembly whose
term is expiring whenever he or she is not reelected at the general
election.
The committee may adopt rules to govern its own proceedings and
its employees. The committee, with the permission of the appointing
authorities of the two houses, may also create subcommittees from its
membership, assigning to its subcommittees any study, inquiry,
investigation, or hearing that the committee itself has authority to
undertake or hold. A subcommittee for the purpose of this assignment
has and may exercise all the powers conferred upon the committee,
limited only by the express terms of any rule or resolution of the
committee defining the powers and duties of the subcommittee. Those
powers may be withdrawn or terminated at any time by the committee.
The Joint Legislative Budget Committee may render services to any
investigating committee of the Legislature pursuant to contract
between the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and the committee for
which the services are to be performed. The contract may provide for
payment to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee of the cost of the
services from the funds appropriated to the contracting investigating
committee. All legislative investigating committees are authorized
to enter into those contracts with the Joint Legislative Budget
Committee. Money received by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee
pursuant to any agreement shall be in augmentation of the current
appropriation for the support of the Joint Legislative Budget
Committee.
The provisions of Rule 36 shall apply to the Joint Legislative
Budget Committee, which has all the authority provided in that rule
or pursuant to Section 11 of Article IV of the California
Constitution.
The committee has authority to appoint a Legislative Analyst, to
fix his or her compensation, to prescribe his or her duties, and to
appoint any other clerical and technical employees as may appear
necessary. The duties of the Legislative Analyst are as follows:
(1) To ascertain the facts and make recommendations to the Joint
Legislative Budget Committee and, under its direction, to the
committees of the Legislature concerning:
(a) The State Budget.
(b) The revenues and expenditures of the state.
(c) The organization and functions of the state and its
departments, subdivisions, and agencies.
(2) To assist the Senate Committee on Appropriations, the Senate
Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, and the Assembly Committees on
Appropriations and Budget in consideration of the Budget, all bills
carrying express or implied appropriations, and all legislation
affecting state departments and their efficiency; to appear before
any other legislative committee; and to assist any other legislative
committee upon instruction by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee.
(3) To provide all legislative committees and Members of the
Legislature with information obtained under the direction of the
Joint Legislative Budget Committee.
(4) To maintain a record of all work performed by the Legislative
Analyst under the direction of the Joint Legislative Budget
Committee, and to keep and make available all documents, data, and
reports submitted to him or her by any Senate, Assembly, or joint
committee. The committee may meet either during sessions of the
Legislature, any recess thereof, or after final adjournment, and may
meet or conduct business at any place within the State of California.
The chairperson of the committee or, in the event of that person's
inability to act, the vice chairperson, shall audit and approve the
expenses of members of the committee or salaries of the employees,
and all other expenses incurred in connection with the performance of
its duties by the committee. The chairperson shall certify to the
Controller the expense amount approved, the Controller shall draw his
or her warrants upon the certification of the chairperson, and the
Treasurer shall pay the same to the chairperson of the committee, to
be disbursed by the chairperson.
On and after the commencement of a succeeding regular session,
those members of the committee who continue to be Members of the
Senate and Assembly, respectively, continue as members of the
committee until their successors are appointed, and the committee
continues with all its powers, duties, authority, records, papers,
personnel, and staff, and all funds theretofore made available for
its use.
Upon the conclusion of its work, any Assembly, Senate, or joint
committee (other than a standing committee) shall deliver to the
Legislative Analyst for use and custody all documents, data, reports,
and other materials that have come into the possession of the
committee and that are not included within the final report of the
committee to the Assembly, Senate, or the Legislature, as the case
may be. The documents, data, reports, and other materials shall be
available, upon request, to Members of the Legislature, the Senate
Office of Research, and the Assembly Office of Research.
The Legislative Analyst, with the consent of the committee, shall
make available to any Member or committee of the Legislature any
other reports, records, documents, or other data under his or her
control, except that reports prepared by the Legislative Analyst in
response to a request from a Member or committee of the Legislature
may be made available only with the written permission of the Member
or committee who made the request.
The Legislative Analyst, upon the receipt of a request from any
committee or Member of the Legislature to conduct a study or provide
information that falls within the scope of his or her
responsibilities and that concerns the administration of the
government of the State of California, shall at once advise the Joint
Legislative Budget Committee of the nature of the request without
disclosing the name of the Member or committee making the request.
The Legislative Analyst shall immediately undertake to provide the
requesting committee or legislator with the service or information
requested, and shall inform the committee or legislator of the
approximate date when this information will be available. Should
there be any material delay, he or she shall subsequently communicate
this fact to the requester.
Neither the Committee on Rules of either house nor the Joint Rules
Committee may assign any matter for study to the Joint Legislative
Budget Committee or the Legislative Analyst without first obtaining
from the Joint Legislative Budget Committee an estimate of the amount
required to be expended by it to make the study.
Any concurrent, joint, Senate, or House resolution assigning a
study to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee or to the Legislative
Analyst shall be referred to the respective rules committees. Before
the committees may act upon or assign the resolution, they shall
obtain an estimate from the Joint Legislative Budget Committee of the
amount required to be expended to make the study.
Citizen Cost Impact Report
37.1. Any Member or committee of the Legislature may recommend
that the Legislative Analyst prepare a citizen cost impact analysis
on proposed legislation. However, the recommendation shall first be
reviewed by the Committee on Rules of the house where the
recommendation originated, and this committee shall make the final
determination as to which bills shall be assigned for preparation of
an impact analysis.
In selecting specific bills for assignment to the Legislative
Analyst for preparation of citizen cost impact analyses, the
Committee on Rules shall request the Legislative Analyst to present
an estimate of his or her time and prospective costs for preparing
the analyses. Only those bills that have a potential significant cost
impact shall be assigned. Where necessary, the Committee on Rules
shall provide funds to offset added costs incurred by the Legislative
Analyst.
The citizen cost impact analyses shall include those economic
effects that the Legislative Analyst deems significant and that he or
she believes will result directly from the proposed legislation.
Insofar as feasible, the economic effects considered by the
Legislative Analyst shall include, but not be limited to, the
following:
(a) The economic effect on the public generally.
(b) Any specific economic effect on persons or businesses in the
case of legislation that is regulatory.
The Legislative Analyst shall submit the citizen cost impact
analyses to the committee or committees when completed, and at the
time or times designated by the Committee on Rules.
The Legislative Analyst shall submit from time to time, but at
least once a year, a report to the Legislature on the trends and
directions of the state's economy, and shall list the alternatives
and make recommendations as to legislative actions that, in his or
her judgment, will ensure a sound and stable state economy.
Joint Legislative Audit Committee
37.3. The Joint Legislative Audit Committee is created pursuant
to the Legislature's rulemaking authority under the California
Constitution, and pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section
10500) of Part 2 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the Government Code. The
committee consists of seven Members of the Senate and seven Members
of the Assembly, who shall be selected in the manner provided for in
these rules. Notwithstanding any other provision of these rules, four
Members from each house constitute a quorum of the Joint Legislative
Audit Committee and the number of votes necessary to take action on
any matter. The Chairman or Chairwoman of the Joint Legislative Audit
Committee, upon receiving a request by any Member of the Legislature
or committee thereof for a copy of a report prepared or being
prepared by the Bureau of State Audits, shall provide the Member or
committee with a copy of the report when it is, or has been,
submitted by the Bureau of State Audits to the Joint Legislative
Audit Committee.
Study or Audits
37.4. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Joint
Legislative Audit Committee shall establish priorities and assign all
work to be done by the Bureau of State Audits.
(b) Any bill requiring action by the Bureau of State Audits shall
contain an appropriation for the cost of any study or audit.
(c) Any bill or concurrent, joint, Senate, or House resolution
assigning a study or audit to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee
or to the Bureau of State Audits shall be referred to the respective
rules committees. Before the committees may act upon or assign the
bill or resolution, they shall obtain an estimate from the Joint
Legislative Audit Committee of the amount required to be expended to
make the study or audit.
Waiver
37.5. Subdivision (b) of Rule 37.4 may be waived by the Joint
Legislative Audit Committee. The chairperson of the committee shall
notify the Secretary of the Senate, the Chief Clerk of the Assembly,
and the Legislative Counsel in writing when subdivision (b) of Rule
37.4 has been waived. If the cost of a study or audit is less than
one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), the chairperson of the
committee may exercise the committee's authority to waive subdivision
(b) of Rule 37.4.
Administrative Regulations
37.7. (a) Any Member of the Senate may request the Senate
Committee on Rules, and any Member of the Assembly may request the
Speaker of the Assembly, to direct a standing committee or the Office
of Research of his or her respective house to study any proposed or
existing regulation or group of related regulations. Upon receipt of
a request, the Senate Committee on Rules or the Speaker of the
Assembly shall, after review, determine whether a study shall be
made. In reviewing the request, the Senate Committee on Rules or the
Speaker of the Assembly shall determine:
(1) The cost of making the study.
(2) The potential public benefit to be derived from the study.
(3) The scope of the study.
(b) The study may consider, among other relevant issues, whether
the proposed or existing regulation:
(1) Exceeds the agency's statutory authority.
(2) Fails to conform to the legislative intent of the enabling
statute.
(3) Contradicts or duplicates other regulations adopted by
federal, state, or local agencies.
(4) Involves an excessive delegation of regulatory authority to a
particular state agency.
(5) Unfairly burdens particular elements of the public.
(6) Imposes social or economic costs that outweigh its intended
benefits to the public.
(7) Imposes unreasonable penalties for violation.
The respective reviewing unit shall, in a timely manner, transmit
its concerns, if any, to the Senate Committee on Rules or the Speaker
of the Assembly, and the promulgating agency.
In the event that a state agency takes a regulatory action that
the reviewing unit finds to be unacceptable, the unit shall file a
report for publication in the Daily Journal of its respective house
indicating the specific reasons why the regulatory action should not
have been taken. The report may include a recommendation that the
Legislature adopt a concurrent resolution requesting the state agency
to reconsider its action or that the Legislature enact a statute to
restrict the regulatory powers of the state agency taking the action.
Joint Rules Committee
40. The Joint Rules Committee is hereby created. The committee
has a continuing existence and may meet, act, and conduct its
business during sessions of the Legislature or any recess thereof.
The committee consists of the members of the Assembly Committee on
Rules, the Assembly Majority Floor Leader, the Assembly Minority
Floor Leader, the Speaker of the Assembly, four members of the Senate
Committee on Rules, and as many Members of the Senate as may be
required to maintain equality in the number of Assembly Members and
Senators on the committee, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on
Rules. Vacancies occurring in the membership shall be filled by the
appointing power.
The committee and its members have and may exercise all of the
rights, duties, and powers conferred upon investigating committees
and their members by the Joint Rules of the Senate and Assembly as
they are adopted and amended from time to time, which provisions are
incorporated herein and made applicable to this committee and its
members.
The committee shall ascertain facts and make recommendations to
the Legislature and to the houses thereof concerning:
(a) The relationship between the two houses and procedures
calculated to expedite the affairs of the Legislature by improving
that relationship.
(b) The legislative branch of the state government and any defects
or deficiencies in the law governing that branch.
(c) Methods whereby legislation is proposed, considered, and acted
upon.
(d) The operation of the Legislature and the committees thereof,
and the means of coordinating the work thereof and avoiding
duplication of effort.
(e) Aids to the Legislature.
(f) Information and statistics for the use of the Legislature, the
respective houses thereof, and the Members.
Any matter of business of either house, the transaction of which
would affect the interests of the other house, may be referred to the
committee for action if the Legislature is not in recess, and shall
be referred to the committee for action if the Legislature is in
recess.
The committee has the following additional powers and duties:
(a) To select a chairperson from its membership. The vice
chairperson of the committee shall be one of the Senate members of
the committee, to be selected by the Senate Committee
on Rules.
(b) To allocate space in the State Capitol Building and all
annexes and additions thereto as provided by law.
(c) To approve, as provided by law, the appearance of the
Legislative Counsel in litigation.
(d) To contract with other agencies, public or private, for the
rendition and affording of services, facilities, studies, and reports
to the committee as the committee deems necessary to assist it to
carry out the purposes for which it is created.
(e) To cooperate with and secure the cooperation of county, city,
city and county, and other local law enforcement agencies in
investigating any matter within the scope of this rule, and to direct
the sheriff of any county to serve subpoenas, orders, and other
process issued by the committee.
(f) To report its findings and recommendations, including
recommendations for the needed revision of any and all laws and
constitutional provisions relating to the Legislature, to the
Legislature and to the people from time to time.
(g) The committee, and any subcommittee when so authorized by the
committee, may meet and act without as well as within the State of
California, and are authorized to leave the state in the performance
of their duties.
(h) To expend funds as may be made available to it to carry out
the functions and activities related to the legislative affairs of
the Senate and Assembly.
(i) To appoint a chief administrative officer of the committee,
who shall have duties relating to the administrative, fiscal, and
business affairs of the committee as the committee shall prescribe.
The committee may terminate the services of the chief administrative
officer at any time.
(j) To employ persons as may be necessary to assist all other
joint committees, except the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and
the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, in the exercise of their
powers and performance of their duties. In accordance with Rule 36.8,
the committee shall govern and administer the expenditure of funds
by other joint committees, requiring that the claims of joint
committees be approved by the Joint Rules Committee or its designee.
All expenses of the committee and of all other joint committees may
be paid from the Operating Funds of the Assembly and Senate.
(k) To appoint the chairpersons of joint committees, as authorized
by Rule 36.7.
(l) To do any and all other things necessary or convenient to
enable it fully and adequately to exercise its powers, perform its
duties, and accomplish the objects and purposes of this rule.
The members of the Joint Rules Committee from the Senate may meet
separately as a unit, and the members of the Joint Rules Committee
from the Assembly may meet separately as a unit, and consider any
action that is required to be taken by the Joint Rules Committee. If
the majority of members of the Joint Rules Committee of each house at
the separate meetings vote in favor of that action, the action shall
be deemed to be action taken by the Joint Rules Committee.
The Joint Rules Committee shall meet not less than biweekly during
a session of the Legislature, other than during a joint recess, at a
regularly scheduled time and place. If the full committee fails to
so meet, the members of the committee from the Senate shall meet
separately as a unit and the members of the committee from the
Assembly shall meet separately as a unit within five days of the
regularly scheduled meeting date.
The committee succeeds to, and is vested with, all of the powers
and duties of the Joint Committee on Legislative Organization, the
State Capitol Committee, the Joint Committee on Interhouse
Cooperation, the Joint Legislative Committee for School Visitations,
and the Joint Standing Committee on the Joint Rules of the Senate and
the Assembly.
Review of Administrative Regulations
40.1. The Joint Rules Committee, with regard to joint committees,
and the respective rules committee of each house, with regard to
standing and select committees of the house, shall approve any
request for a priority review made by a committee pursuant to Section
11349.7 of the Government Code and shall submit approved requests to
the Office of Administrative Law. The Joint Rules Committee or the
respective rules committee, and the committee initiating the request,
shall each receive a copy of the priority review.
Subcommittee on Legislative Space and Facilities
40.3. (a) A subcommittee of the Joint Rules Committee is hereby
created, to be known as the Subcommittee on Legislative Space and
Facilities. The subcommittee consists of three Members of the Senate
and three Members of the Assembly, appointed by the Chairman or
Chairwoman of the Joint Rules Committee, and the chairperson of the
fiscal committee of each house who shall have full voting rights on
the subcommittee. The chairperson of the subcommittee shall be
appointed by the members thereof. For purposes of this subcommittee,
the chairpersons of the fiscal committees are ex officio members of
the Joint Rules Committee, but do not have voting rights on that
committee, nor may they be counted in determining a quorum. The
subcommittee shall consider the housing of the Legislature and
legislative facilities.
(b) The subcommittee and its members have and may exercise all of
the rights, duties, and powers conferred upon investigating
committees and their members by the Joint Rules of the Senate and
Assembly as they are adopted and amended from time to time, which
provisions are incorporated herein and made applicable to this
subcommittee and its members.
(c) The subcommittee has the following additional powers and
duties:
(1) To contract with other agencies, public or private, for the
rendition and affording of services, facilities, studies, and reports
to the subcommittee as the committee deems necessary to assist it to
carry out the purposes for which it is created.
(2) To cooperate with and secure the cooperation of county, city,
city and county, and other local law enforcement agencies in
investigating any matter within the scope of this rule, and to direct
the sheriff of any county to serve subpoenas, orders, and other
process issued by the subcommittee.
(3) To report its findings and recommendations to the Legislature
and to the people from time to time.
(4) To do any and all other things necessary or convenient to
enable it fully and adequately to exercise its powers, perform its
duties, and accomplish the objects and purposes of this rule.
(d) The subcommittee is authorized to leave the State of
California in the performance of its duties.
Claims for Workers' Compensation
41. The Chairman or Chairwoman of the Committee on Rules of each
house, or a designated representative, shall sign any required worker'
s compensation report regarding injuries or death arising out of and
within the course of employment suffered by any Member, officer, or
employee of the house, or any employee of a standing or investigating
committee thereof. In the case of a joint committee, the Chairman or
Chairwoman of the Committee on Rules of either house, or a
designated representative, may sign any report with respect to a
member or employee of a joint committee.
Information Concerning Committees
42. The Committee on Rules of each house shall provide for a
continuous cumulation of information concerning the membership,
organization, meetings, and studies of legislative investigating
committees. Each Committee on Rules shall be responsible for
information concerning the investigating committees of its own house,
and concerning joint investigating committees under a chairperson
who is a Member of that house. To the extent possible, each Committee
on Rules shall seek to ensure that the investigating committees for
which it has responsibility under this rule have organized, including
the organization of any subcommittees, and have had all topics for
study assigned to them within a reasonable period of time.
The information thus cumulated shall be made available to the
public by the Committee on Rules of each house and shall be published
periodically under their joint direction.
Joint Committees
43. Any concurrent resolution creating a joint committee of the
Legislature and any concurrent resolution allocating moneys from the
Operating Funds of the Assembly and Senate to the committee shall be
referred to the Committee on Rules of the respective houses.
Conflict of Interest
44. (a) A Member of the Legislature may not, while serving, have
any interest, financial or otherwise, direct or indirect, engage in
any business or transaction or professional activity, or incur any
obligation of any nature, that is in substantial conflict with the
proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest and of
his or her responsibilities as prescribed by the laws of this state.
(b) A Member of the Legislature may not, during the term for which
he or she was elected:
(1) Accept other employment that he or she has reason to believe
will either impair his or her independence of judgment as to his or
her official duties, or require him or her, or induce him or her, to
disclose confidential information acquired by him or her in the
course of and by reason of his or her official duties.
(2) Willfully and knowingly disclose, for pecuniary gain, to any
other person, confidential information acquired by him or her in the
course of and by reason of his or her official duties, or use the
information for the purpose of pecuniary gain.
(3) Accept or agree to accept, or be in partnership with any
person who accepts or agrees to accept, any employment, fee, or other
thing of value, or portion thereof, in consideration of his or her
appearance, agreeing to appear, or taking of any other action on
behalf of another person regarding a licensing or regulatory matter,
before any state board or agency that is established by law for the
primary purpose of licensing or regulating the professional activity
of persons licensed, pursuant to state law.
This rule does not prohibit a Member who is an attorney at law
from practicing in that capacity before the Workers' Compensation
Appeals Board or the Commissioner of Corporations, and receiving
compensation therefor, or from practicing for compensation before any
state board or agency in connection with, or in any matter related
to, any case, action, or proceeding filed and pending in any state or
federal court. This rule does not prohibit a Member from making
inquiry for information on behalf of a constituent before a state
board or agency, if no fee or reward is given or promised in
consequence thereof. The prohibition contained in this rule does not
apply to a partnership in which a Member of the Legislature is a
member if the Member of the Legislature does not share directly or
indirectly in the fee resulting from the transaction, nor does it
apply in connection with any matter pending before any state board or
agency on the operative date of this rule if the affected Member of
the Legislature is attorney of record or representative in the matter
prior to the operative date.
(4) Receive or agree to receive, directly or indirectly, any
compensation, reward, or gift from any source except the State of
California for any service, advice, assistance, or other matter
related to the legislative process, except fees for speeches or
published works on legislative subjects and except, in connection
therewith, the reimbursement of expenses for actual expenditures for
travel and reasonable subsistence for which no payment or
reimbursement is made by the State of California.
(5) Participate, by voting or any other action, on the floor of
either house, or in committee or elsewhere, in the enactment or
defeat of legislation in which he or she has a personal interest,
except as follows:
(i) If, on the vote for final passage, by the house of which he or
she is a Member, of the legislation in which he or she has a
personal interest, he or she first files a statement (which shall be
entered verbatim in the Daily Journal) stating in substance that he
or she has a personal interest in the legislation to be voted on and
that, notwithstanding that interest, he or she is able to cast a fair
and objective vote on the legislation, he or she may cast his or her
vote without violating any provision of this rule.
(ii) If the Member believes that, because of his or her personal
interest, he or she should abstain from participating in the vote on
the legislation, he or she shall so advise the presiding officer
prior to the commencement of the vote and shall be excused from
voting on the legislation without any entry in the Daily Journal of
the fact of his or her personal interest. In the event that a rule of
the house requiring that each Member who is present vote aye or nay
is invoked, the presiding officer shall order the Member excused from
compliance and shall order entered in the Daily Journal a simple
statement that the Member was excused from voting on the legislation
pursuant to law.
(c) A person subject to this rule has an interest that is in
substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his or her duties
in the public interest and of his or her responsibilities as
prescribed by the laws of this state, or a personal interest, arising
from any situation, within the scope of this rule, if he or she has
reason to believe or expect that he or she will derive a direct
monetary gain or suffer a direct monetary loss, as the case may be,
by reason of his or her official activity. He or she does not have an
interest that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge
of his or her duties in the public interest and of his or her
responsibilities as prescribed by the laws of this state, or a
personal interest, arising from any situation, within the scope of
this rule, if any benefit or detriment accrues to him or her as a
member of a business, profession, occupation, or group to no greater
extent than any other member of the business, profession, occupation,
or group.
(d) A person who is subject to this rule may not be deemed to be
engaged in any activity that is in substantial conflict with the
proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest and of
his or her responsibilities as prescribed by the laws of this state,
or to have a personal interest, arising from any situation, within
the scope of this rule, solely by reason of any of the following:
(1) His or her relationship to any potential beneficiary of any
situation is one that is defined as a remote interest by Section 1091
of the Government Code or is otherwise not deemed to be a prohibited
interest under Section 1091.1 or 1091.5 of the Government Code.
(2) Receipt of a campaign contribution that is regulated,
received, reported, and accounted for pursuant to Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 84100) of Title 9 of the Government Code, so
long as the contribution is not made on the understanding or
agreement, in violation of law, that the person's vote, opinion,
judgment, or action will be influenced thereby.
(e) The enumeration in this rule of specific situations or
conditions that are deemed not to result in substantial conflict with
the proper discharge of the duties and responsibilities of a
legislator or legislative employee, or in a personal interest, may
not be construed as exclusive.
The Legislature, in adopting this rule, recognizes that Members of
the Legislature and legislative employees may need to engage in
employment, professional, or business activities other than
legislative activities in order to maintain a continuity of
professional or business activity, or may need to maintain
investments, which activities or investments do not conflict with
specific provisions of this rule. However, in construing and
administering this rule, weight should be given to any coincidence of
income, employment, investment, or other profit from sources that
may be identified with the interests represented by those sources
that are seeking action of any character on matters then pending
before the Legislature.
(f) An employee of either house of the Legislature may not, during
the time he or she is so employed, commit any act or engage in any
activity prohibited by any part of this rule.
(g) A person may not induce or seek to induce any Member of the
Legislature to violate any part of this rule.
(h) A violation of any part of this rule is punishable as provided
in Section 8926 of the Government Code.
Ethics Committees
45. The Senate Committee on Legislative Ethics and the Assembly
Legislative Ethics Committee, respectively, shall receive complaints
concerning Members of their respective houses, and may investigate
and make findings and recommendations concerning violations by
Members of their respective houses of Article 2 (commencing with
Section 8920) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the
Government Code. Each house shall adopt rules governing the
establishment and procedures of the committee of that house.
Designating Legislative Sessions
50. Regular sessions shall be identified with the odd-numbered
year subsequent to each general election, followed by a hyphen, and
then the last two digits of the following even-numbered year. For
example: 2013-14 Regular Session.
Designating Extraordinary Sessions
50.3. All extraordinary sessions shall be designated in numerical
order by the session in which convened.
Days and Dates
50.5. (a) As used in these rules, "day" means a calendar day,
unless otherwise specified.
(b) When the date of a deadline, recess requirement, or
circumstance falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or Monday that is a
holiday, the date shall be deemed to refer to the preceding Friday.
When the date falls on a holiday on a weekday other than a Monday,
the date shall be deemed to refer to the preceding day.
Legislative Calendar
51. (a) The Legislature shall observe the following calendar
during the first year of the regular session:
(1) Organizational Recess--The Legislature shall meet on the first
Monday in December following the general election to organize.
Thereafter, each house shall be in recess from the time it determines
until the first Monday in January, except when the first Monday is
January 1 or January 1 is a Sunday, in which case, the following
Wednesday.
(2) Spring Recess--The Legislature shall be in recess from the
10th day prior to Easter until the Monday after Easter.
(3) Summer Recess--The Legislature shall be in recess from July 12
until August 12. This recess shall not commence until the Budget
Bill is passed.
(4) Interim Study Recess--The Legislature shall be in recess from
September 13 until the first Monday in January, except when the first
Monday is January 1 or January 1 is a Sunday, in which case, the
following Wednesday.
(b) The Legislature shall observe the following calendar for the
remainder of the legislative session:
(1) Spring Recess--The Legislature shall be in recess from the
10th day prior to Easter until the Monday after Easter.
(2) Summer Recess--The Legislature shall be in recess from July 3
until August 4. This recess may not commence until the Budget Bill is
passed.
(3) Final Recess--The Legislature shall be in recess on September
1 until adjournment sine die on November 30.
(c) Recesses shall be from the hour of adjournment on the day
specified, reconvening at the time designated by the respective
houses.
(d) The recesses specified by this rule shall be designated as
joint recesses.
Recall from Recess
52. Notwithstanding the power of the Governor to call a special
session, the Legislature may be recalled from joint recess and
reconvene in regular session by any of the following means:
(a) It may be recalled by joint proclamation, which shall be
entered in the Daily Journal, of the Senate Committee on Rules and
the Speaker of the Assembly or, in his or her absence from the state,
the Assembly Committee on Rules.
(b) Ten or more Members of the Legislature may present a request
for recall from joint recess to the Chief Clerk of the Assembly and
the Secretary of the Senate. The request immediately shall be printed
in the Daily Journal. Within 10 days thereafter, the Speaker of the
Assembly or, if the Speaker is absent from the state, the Assembly
Committee on Rules, and the Senate Committee on Rules shall act upon
the request. If they concur in desiring to recall the Legislature
from joint recess, they shall issue their joint proclamation to that
effect entered in the Daily Journal no later than 20 days after
publication of the request in the Daily Journal.
(c) If either or both of the parties specified in subdivision (b)
does not concur, 10 or more Members of the Legislature may request
the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to
petition the membership of the respective house. The petition shall
be entered in the Daily Journal and shall contain a specified
reconvening date commencing not later than 20 days after the date of
the petition. If two-thirds of the Members of the house or each of
the two houses concur, the Legislature shall reconvene on the date
specified. The necessary concurrences must be received at least 10
days prior to the date specified for reconvening.
Procedure on Suspending Rules by Single House
53. Whenever these rules authorize suspension of the Joint Rules
as to a particular bill by action of a single house after approval by
the Committee on Rules of that house, the following procedure shall
be followed:
(a) A written request to suspend the joint rule shall be filed
with the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate,
as the case may be, and shall be transmitted to the Committee on
Rules of the appropriate house.
(b) The Assembly Committee on Rules or the Senate Committee on
Rules, as the case may be, shall determine whether there exists an
urgent need for the suspension of the joint rule with regard to the
bill.
(c) If the appropriate rules committee recommends that the
suspension be permitted, the Member may offer a resolution, without
further reference thereof to committee, granting permission to
suspend the joint rule. The adoption of the resolution granting
permission shall require an affirmative recorded vote of the elected
Members of the house in which the request is made.
Introduction of Bills
54. (a) A bill may not be introduced in the first year of the
regular session after February 22 and a bill may not be introduced in
the second year of the regular session after February 21. These
deadlines do not apply to constitutional amendments, committee bills
introduced pursuant to Assembly Rule 47 or Senate Rule 23, bills
introduced in the Assembly with the permission of the Speaker of the
Assembly, or bills introduced in the Senate with the permission of
the Senate Committee on Rules. Subject to these deadlines, a bill may
be introduced at any time except when the houses are in joint
summer, interim, or final recess. Each house may provide for
introduction of bills during a recess other than a joint recess.
Bills shall be numbered consecutively during the regular session.
(b) The Desks of the Senate and Assembly shall remain open during
a joint recess, other than a joint spring, summer, interim, or final
recess, for the introduction of bills during business hours on Monday
through Friday, inclusive, except holidays. Bills received at the
Senate Desk during these periods shall be numbered and printed. After
printing, the bills shall be delivered to the Secretary of the
Senate and referred by the Senate Committee on Rules to a standing
committee. Bills received at the Assembly Desk during these periods
shall be numbered, printed, and referred to a committee by the
Assembly Committee on Rules. After printing, the bills shall be
delivered to the Chief Clerk of the Assembly. On the reconvening of
each house, the bills shall be read the first time, and shall be
delivered to the committee to which they were referred.
(c) A Member may not author a bill during a session that would
have substantially the same effect as a bill he or she previously
introduced during that session. This restriction does not apply in
cases where the previously introduced bill was vetoed by the Governor
or its provisions were "chaptered out" by a later chaptered bill
pursuant to Section 9605 of the Government Code. An objection based
on this restriction may be raised only while the bill is being
considered by the house in which it is introduced. The objection
shall be referred to the Committee on Rules of the house for a
determination. The bill shall remain on the Daily File or with a
committee, as the case may be, until a determination is made. If,
upon consideration of the objection, the Committee on Rules
determines that the bill objected to would have substantially the
same effect as another bill previously introduced during the session
by the author, the bill objected to shall be stricken from the Daily
File or returned to the desk by the committee, as the case may be,
and may not be acted upon during the remainder of the session. If the
Committee on Rules determines that the bill objected to would not
have substantially the same effect as a bill previously introduced
during the session by the author, the bill may thereafter be acted
upon by the committee or the house, as the case may be. The Committee
on Rules may obtain assistance as it may desire from the Legislative
Counsel as to the similarity of a bill or amendments to a prior
bill.
Except as provided in subdivision (e), this joint rule may be
suspended by approval of the Committee on Rules and three-fourths
vote of the membership of the house.
(d) During a joint recess, the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or
Secretary of the Senate shall order the preparation of preprint bills
when so ordered by any of the following:
(1) The Speaker of the Assembly.
(2) The Committee on Rules of the respective house.
(3) A committee, with respect to bills within the subject matter
jurisdiction of the committee.
Preprint bills shall be designated and shall be printed in the
order received and numbered in the order printed. To facilitate
subsequent amendment, a preprint bill shall be so prepared that, when
introduced as a bill, the page and the line numbers will not change.
The Chief Clerk of the Assembly and Secretary of the Senate shall
publish a list periodically of preprint bills showing the preprint
bill number, the title, and
the Legislative Counsel's Digest. The Speaker of the Assembly and
Senate Committee on Rules may refer any preprint bill to committee
for study.
(e) (1) Bills providing for appropriations related to the Budget
Bill, within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 12 of Article
IV of the California Constitution, shall be authored only by the
Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review or the Assembly
Committee on Budget.
(2) This subdivision may be suspended by approval of the Committee
on Rules of the house of origin.
30-Day Waiting Period
55. A bill other than the Budget Bill may not be heard or acted
upon by committee or either house until the bill has been in print
for 30 days. The date a bill is returned from the printer shall be
entered in the Daily History. This rule may be suspended concurrently
with the suspension of the requirement of Section 8 of Article IV of
the Constitution or, if that period has expired, this rule may be
suspended by approval of the Committee on Rules and two-thirds vote
of the house in which the bill is being considered.
Return of Bills
56. Bills introduced in the first year of the regular session and
passed by the house of origin on or before the January 31st
constitutional deadline are "carryover bills." Immediately after
January 31, bills introduced in the first year of the regular session
that do not become "carryover bills" shall be returned to the Chief
Clerk of the Assembly or Secretary of the Senate, respectively.
Notwithstanding Rule 4, as used in this rule "bills" does not include
constitutional amendments.
Appropriation Bills
57. Appropriation bills that, pursuant to paragraph (4) of
subdivision (b) of Section 12 of Article IV of the California
Constitution, may not be sent to the Governor shall be held, after
enrollment, by the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or Secretary of the
Senate, respectively. The bills shall be sent to the Governor
immediately after the Budget Bill has been enacted.
Urgency Clauses
58. An amendment to add a section to a bill to provide that the
act shall take effect immediately as an urgency statute may not be
adopted unless the author of the amendment has first secured the
approval of the Committee on Rules of the house in which the
amendments are offered.
Vetoes
58.5. The Legislature may consider a Governor's veto for only 60
days, not counting days when the Legislature is in joint recess.
Publications
59. During periods of joint recess, weekly, if necessary, the
following documents shall be published: Daily Files, Histories, and
Daily Journals.
Committee Hearings
60. (a) A standing committee or subcommittee thereof may not take
action on a bill at any hearing held outside of the State Capitol.
(b) A committee may hear the subject matter of a bill or convene
for an informational hearing during a period of recess. Four days'
notice in the Daily File is required prior to the hearing.
(c) A bill may not be acted upon by a committee during a joint
recess.
Deadlines
61. The deadlines set forth in this rule shall be observed by the
Senate and Assembly. After each deadline, the Secretary of the
Senate and the Chief Clerk of the Assembly may not accept committee
reports from their respective committees except as otherwise provided
in this rule:
(a) Odd-numbered year:
(1) Feb. 22--Last day for bills to be introduced.
(2) May 3--Last day for policy committees to hear and report to
fiscal committees fiscal bills introduced in their house.
(3) May 10--Last day for policy committees to hear and report to
the floor nonfiscal bills introduced in their house.
(4) May 17--Last day for policy committees to meet prior to June
3.
(5) May 24--Last day for fiscal committees to hear and report to
the floor bills introduced in their house.
(6) May 24--Last day for fiscal committees to meet prior to June
3.
(7) May 28-May 31--Floor session only. No committee may meet for
any purpose.
(8) May 31--Last day for each house to pass bills introduced in
that house.
(9) June 3--Committee meetings may resume.
(10) July 12--Last day for policy committees to meet and report
bills.
(11) Aug. 30--Last day for fiscal committees to meet and report
bills.
(12) Sept. 3-Sept. 13--Floor session only. No committee may meet
for any purpose.
(13) Sept. 6--Last day to amend on the floor.
(14) Sept. 13--Last day for each house to pass bills.
(b) Even-numbered year:
(1) Jan. 17--Last day for policy committees to hear and report to
fiscal committees fiscal bills introduced in their house in the
odd-numbered year.
(2) Jan. 24--Last day for any committee to hear and report to the
floor bills introduced in that house in the odd-numbered year.
(3) Jan. 31--Last day for each house to pass bills introduced in
that house in the odd-numbered year.
(4) Feb. 21--Last day for bills to be introduced.
(5) May 2--Last day for policy committees to hear and report to
fiscal committees fiscal bills introduced in their house.
(6) May 9--Last day for policy committees to hear and report to
the floor nonfiscal bills introduced in their house.
(7) May 16--Last day for policy committees to meet prior to June
2.
(8) May 23--Last day for fiscal committees to hear and report to
the floor bills introduced in their house.
(9) May 23--Last day for fiscal committees to meet prior to June
2.
(10) May 27-May 30--Floor session only. No committee may meet for
any purpose.
(11) May 30--Last day for each house to pass bills introduced in
that house.
(12) June 2--Committee meetings may resume.
(13) June 27--Last day for policy committees to meet and report
bills.
(14) Aug. 15--Last day for fiscal committees to meet and report
bills.
(15) Aug. 18-Aug. 31--Floor session only. No committee may meet
for any purpose.
(16) Aug. 22--Last day to amend on floor.
(17) Aug. 31--Last day for each house to pass bills.
(c) If a bill is acted upon in committee before the relevant
deadline, and the committee votes to report the bill out with
amendments that have not at the time of the vote been prepared by the
Legislative Counsel, the Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk
of the Assembly may subsequently receive a report recommending the
bill for passage or for rereferral together with the amendments at
any time within two legislative days after the deadline or, if the
Legislature has recessed for the Summer Recess, within seven calendar
days after the deadline.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), a policy committee
may report a bill to a fiscal committee on or before the relevant
deadline for reporting nonfiscal bills to the floor if, after the
policy committee deadline for reporting the bill to fiscal committee,
the Legislative Counsel's Digest is changed to indicate reference to
fiscal committee.
(e) Any bill in the house of origin that is not acted upon during
the odd-numbered year as a result of the deadlines imposed in
subdivision (a) may be acted upon when the Legislature reconvenes
after the interim study joint recess, or at any time the Legislature
is recalled from the interim study joint recess.
(f) The deadlines imposed by this rule do not apply to the rules
committees of the respective houses.
(g) The deadlines imposed by this rule do not apply in instances
where a bill is referred to committee under Rule 26.5.
(h) The deadlines imposed by this rule do not apply in instances
where a bill is referred to a committee under Assembly Rule 77.2.
(i) (1) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), a policy
committee or fiscal committee may meet for the purpose of hearing and
reporting a constitutional amendment, or a bill that would go into
immediate effect pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 8, or
subdivision (e) of Section 12, of Article IV of the California
Constitution, at any time other than those periods when no committee
may meet for any purpose.
(2) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), either house may
meet for the purpose of considering and passing a constitutional
amendment, or a bill that would go into immediate effect pursuant to
subdivision (c) of Section 8, or subdivision (e) of Section 12, of
Article IV of the California Constitution, at any time during the
session.
(j) This rule may be suspended as to any particular bill by
approval of the Committee on Rules and two-thirds vote of the
membership of the house.
Committee Procedure
62. (a) Notice of a hearing on a bill by the committee of first
reference in each house, or notice of an informational hearing, shall
be published in the Daily File at least four days prior to the
hearing. Otherwise, notice shall be published in the Daily File two
days prior to the hearing. That notice requirement may be waived by a
majority vote of the house in which the bill is being considered. A
bill may be set for hearing in a committee only three times. A bill
is "set," for purposes of this subdivision, whenever notice of the
hearing has been published in the Daily File for one or more days. If
a bill is set for hearing, and the committee, on its own initiation
and not the author's, postpones the hearing on the bill or adjourns
the hearing while testimony is being taken, that hearing is not
counted as one of the three times a bill may be set. After hearing
the bill, the committee may vote on the bill. If the hearing notice
in the Daily File specifically indicates that "testimony only" will
be taken, that hearing is not counted as one of the three times a
bill may be set. A committee may not vote on a bill so noticed until
it has been heard in accordance with this rule. After a committee has
voted on a bill, reconsideration may be granted only one time.
Reconsideration may be granted within 15 legislative days or prior to
the interim study joint recess, whichever first occurs. A vote on
reconsideration may not be taken without the same notice required to
set a bill unless that vote is taken at the same meeting at which the
vote to be reconsidered was taken, and the author is present. When a
bill fails to get the necessary votes to pass it out of committee,
or upon failure to receive reconsideration, it shall be returned to
the Chief Clerk of the Assembly or Secretary of the Senate of the
house of the committee and may not be considered further during the
session.
This subdivision may be suspended with respect to a particular
bill by approval of the Committee on Rules and two-thirds vote of the
Members of the house.
(b) If the committee adopts amendments other than those offered by
the author and orders the bill reprinted prior to its further
consideration, the hearing shall not be the final time a bill may be
set under subdivision (a) of this rule.
(c) When a standing committee takes action on a bill, the vote
shall be by rollcall vote only. All rollcall votes taken by a
standing committee shall be recorded by the committee secretary on
forms provided by the Chief Clerk of the Assembly and the Secretary
of the Senate. The chairperson of each standing committee shall
promptly transmit a copy of the record of the rollcall votes to the
Chief Clerk of the Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate,
respectively, who shall cause the votes to be published as prescribed
by each house.
This subdivision also applies to action of a committee on a
subcommittee report. The rules of each house shall prescribe the
procedure as to rollcall votes on amendments.
Any committee may, with the unanimous consent of the members
present, substitute a rollcall from a prior bill, provided that the
members whose votes are substituted are present at the time of the
substitution.
A bill may not be passed out by a committee without a quorum being
present.
This subdivision does not apply to:
(1) Procedural motions that do not have the effect of disposing of
a bill.
(2) Withdrawal of a bill from a committee calendar at the request
of an author.
(3) Return of a bill to the house where the bill has not been
voted on by the committee.
(4) The assignment of a bill to committee.
(d) The chairperson of the committee hearing a bill may, at any
time, order a call of the committee. Upon a request by any member of
a committee or the author in person, the chairperson shall order the
call.
In the absence of a quorum, a majority of the members present may
order a quorum call of the committee and compel the attendance of
absentees. The chairperson shall send the Sergeant at Arms for those
members who are absent and not excused by their respective house.
When a call of a committee is ordered by the chairperson with
respect to a particular bill, he or she shall send the Sergeant at
Arms, or any other person to be appointed for that purpose, for those
members who have not voted on that particular bill and are not
excused.
A quorum call or a call of the committee with respect to a
particular bill may be dispensed with by the chairperson without
objection by any member of the committee, or by a majority of the
members present.
If a motion is adopted to adjourn the committee while the
committee is operating under a call, the call shall be dispensed with
and any pending vote announced.
The committee secretary shall record the votes of members
answering a call. The rules of each house may prescribe additional
procedures for a call of a committee.
Uniform Rules
63. A standing committee of either house may not adopt or apply
any rule or procedure governing the voting upon bills that is not
equally applicable to the bills of both houses.
Votes on Bills
64. Every meeting of each house and standing committee or
subcommittee thereof where a vote is to be taken on a bill, or
amendments to a bill, shall be public.
Conflicting Rules
65. The provisions of Rule 50 and following of these rules
prevail over any conflicting joint rule with a lesser number.
