BILL ANALYSIS
AB 573
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Date of Hearing: June 2, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON RULES
Ted W. Lieu, Chair
AB 573 (Portantino) - As Amended: April 28, 2009
SUBJECT : California Council on Science and Technology:
fellows
SUMMARY: Assists in establishing the California Council on
Science and Technology (CCST) Fellows Program for the California
Legislature. Specifically, this bill :
1)Clarifies that the services of legislative fellows provided by
the CCST and duly authorized by the Senate Rules Committee,
Assembly Rules Committee and Joint Rules Committee are not
compensation, a reward, or a gift to a member of the
Legislature under the Code of Ethics in existing law.
2)Clarifies that a California Science and Technology Policy
Fellow (S&T Fellows) is not an employee of either house of the
Legislature.
3)Requires an S&T Fellow to meet the following requirements in
order to be duly authorized by the Assembly, Senate or Joint
Rules Committee:
a) S&T Fellows are selected according to criteria and
pursuant to a process approved by the Assembly, Senate or
Joint Rules Committee.
b) CCST has executed an agreement with the Legislature
whereby the S&T Fellow is bound to abide by standards of
conduct, economic interest disclosure requisites, and other
such requirements as specified.
EXISTING LAW , commonly known as the Code of Ethics, prohibits a
member of the Legislature or an employee from either house of
the Legislature from receiving or agreeing 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 for specified circumstances.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
AB 573
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COMMENTS :
Background : In 1988, the Legislature passed ACR 162, which
requested higher education institutions to collaborate to
respond and report on science and technology policy issues. In
response to the passage of the resolution, the CCST was
established as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation to provide
expert unbiased science and technology advice. CCST is governed
by a Board of Directors comprised of representatives primarily
from its sponsoring academic institutions.
CCST recently received a $7 million grant from the Gordon and
Betty Moore Foundation, among others, to support the S&T
Fellowships that would fund the placement of 10 Ph.D (or
equivalent) fellows per year in the Legislature for five years,
beginning in December 2009.
Purpose of the Bill : In order to implement the S&T Fellowship,
legislation is needed to provide a narrow exception to existing
law that prohibits a member of the Legislature or an employee
from either house from receiving or agreeing 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 for specified circumstances.
According to the author, "Through the S&T fellowship, California
state legislators will have access to in-house expertise with
strong science and engineering training, who can provide
valuable research and analysis to inform legislation, including
but not limited to bills with science and technology components.
Precedent Setting: The S&T Fellowship will be precedent setting
by placing non-state funded personnel in legislative offices.
The CCST will be expected to execute a Memorandum of
Understanding with the Legislature prior to the program being
implemented by the Legislature if this legislation becomes law.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
AB 573
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California Council on Science and Technology (Sponsor)
BayBio
California Space Authority (CSA)
John I. Brauman, Associate Dean of Research, Stanford University
James M. Rosser, President, California State University, Los
Angeles
University of California
University of Southern California
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Lia Lopez / RLS. / (916) 319-2800