BILL ANALYSIS
SB 516
Page 1
Date of Hearing: July 6, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON REVENUE AND TAXATION
Charles M. Calderon, Chair
SB 516 (DeSaulnier) - As Amended: June 24, 2009
Majority vote. Fiscal committee.
SENATE VOTE : 24-14
SUBJECT : California Youth Legislature
SUMMARY : Authorizes the addition of the California Fund for
Youth (Fund) checkoff to the personal income tax (PIT) form upon
the removal of another voluntary contribution fund (VCF) from
the form. Specifically, this bill :
1)Establishes the Fund in the State Treasury.
2)Provides that all moneys transferred to the Fund, upon
appropriation by the Legislature, shall be allocated as
follows:
a) To the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) and the State
Controller for reimbursement of all costs incurred in
administering the checkoff; and,
b) The balance to the California Youth Legislature (CYL),
which this bill establishes, for its ongoing activities on
behalf of youth.
3)Provides for the automatic repeal of the Fund provisions on
either January 1 of the fifth taxable year following the first
appearance of the Fund on the tax return or on January 1 of an
earlier year, if FTB estimates that the annual contribution
amount will be less than $250,000, or an adjusted amount for
subsequent years.
4)Establishes the CYL, which shall be composed of two houses,
the California Youth Senate, composed of 40 members, and the
California Youth Assembly, composed of 80 members.
5)Specifies that CYL members shall:
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a) Serve two-year terms;
b) Be ages 14 to 18;
c) Be currently enrolled in a California junior high,
middle, or high school, or participating in a nonpublic,
home-based educational program or a general equivalency
degree program; and,
d) Be appointed by the Legislature, with one member
appointed by each Member of the Senate and each Member of
the Assembly.
6)Provides that the CYL shall have the authority to define its
program and utilize its funds in any way necessary to carry
out its duties, as long as the program or activity does not
violate state law.
7)Requires the CYL to:
a) Examine and discuss policy and fiscal issues affecting
the interests, needs, and conditions of the youth of
California; and,
b) Formally advise the Legislature and the Governor on
specific issues affecting youth.
8)Requires the CYL to enter into a mutually agreed-upon
interagency agreement with the Joint Committee on Rules (JCR)
to carry out administrative duties related to its program.
The agreement shall provide for reimbursement to the JCR for
its administrative costs from funds available to the CYL.
9)Requires the JCR to determine when there are sufficient funds
to support the program. If the JCR determines there are
insufficient funds to cover all costs, the activities of the
CYL shall cease.
10)Allows the CYL to accept gifts and grants from any source,
public or private, to help perform its functions.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Allows taxpayers to designate on their PIT returns a
contribution to any of 15 VCFs.
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2)Provides a specific sunset date for each VCF, except the
California Seniors Special Fund.
3)Provides that each VCF must meet a minimum annual contribution
amount to remain in effect, except for the California Seniors
Special Fund, the California Firefighters' Memorial Fund, and
the California Peace Officer Memorial Foundation Fund.
FISCAL EFFECT : FTB estimates annual revenue losses, beginning
in fiscal year 2010-11, of $15,000 resulting from itemized
deductions.
COMMENTS :
1)The author states:
SB 516 will create, in the State Treasury until January 1,
2015, the California Fund for Youth to receive
contributions from tax return designations to support the
sessions of the Youth Legislature and to support its
ongoing activities on behalf of youth.
SB 516 will establish the California Youth Legislature to
provide model legislation and advocate for the needs of
youth. This will model healthy civic engagement for youth
while utilizing their unique insights to best inform the
very policies and practices intended to serve them.
Many states and local governments have made a commitment to
help youth mature into successful adults. The California
Youth Legislature will be a guiding framework to improve
coordination and effectiveness of youth programs, and to
include youth in policy and decision making. Nationally
youth commissions are being developed and implemented in at
least 20 states.
SB 516 asks that there be a particular emphasis placed on
reaching out to at-risk or disadvantaged youth to serve as
members of the California Youth Legislature, as their
participation will provide keen insight [into] many of the
issues that youth face in their day-to-day lives.
2)Proponents state, "The purpose of the California Youth
Legislature will be to advise the Governor and Legislature on
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key issues affecting the interests, needs and conditions of
California's youth. This bill models after the California
Senior Legislature and promotes healthy civic engagement for
youth while utilizing their unique insights to best inform the
very policies and practices intended to serve them. This
measure would be funded through tax payers' contributions on
their tax returns, and should not impact . . . the General
Fund. The bill also calls for a minimum contribution amount,
consistent with other voluntary contribution funds, to ensure
that there is a minimum amount of funding to support the
program."
3)The California State Alliance of YMCAs (YMCA) currently
opposes this bill, unless amended. YMCA states, "The primary
reason for the opposition is that we see this bill as
duplicative of the very long standing YMCA Youth and
Government Model Legislature program that is operating today.
Established in 1949, under then Governor Earl Warren, the YMCA
Model Legislature has trained over 43,000 high school students
during the past 61 years." YMCA goes on to state, "Given the
history and success of this year round program, it is our
recommendation that rather than duplicate the operation of our
program, and spend significant amounts of money for a state
agency to operate it, that SB 516 be amended to support the
existing program with amendments allowing for an appointment
of a student to the program by each Senate and Assembly member
from their respective districts, who would receive
scholarships to attend the Model Legislature."
4)Committee Staff Comments
a) The California Senior Legislature : This bill is modeled
after the successful California Senior Legislature, which
is supported by the California Fund for Senior Citizens
checkoff on the PIT return. The California Senior
Legislature notes that, since 1981, it has labored to
identify, develop, and support legislative proposals that
protect and enhance the quality of life of California's
seniors. This bill would establish a similar Legislature
comprised of young Californians to advocate for the
interests of youth.
b) The YMCA Youth and Government Model Legislature :
i) As noted above, YMCA currently opposes this bill.
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Specifically, YMCA argues that this bill would establish
a duplicative Youth Legislature. To this end, YMCA
argues that Fund moneys should be dedicated to the
existing YMCA Youth and Government Model Legislature
program. In response, the author says that the CYL is
not duplicating the YMCA program. Specifically, the
author states, "These are distinct programs, both
covering different aspects of civic engagement and
education. The YMCAs Youth in Government program is a
mock legislature dealing with all issues while the
California Youth Legislature focuses on youth issues and
provides counsel to the California Legislature."
Furthermore, the author points out that there are at
least nine other states that have both a YMCA program and
a legislative youth advisory council.
ii) While mindful of the desire to reduce redundant
programs, Committee staff questions the policy of
establishing a VCF to specifically fund the operations of
a single private organization. Moreover, if such an
amendment were taken, it would be necessary to ensure
adequate government oversight of the expenditure of Fund
moneys.
c) Current VCF bills : The following related bills were
introduced in the current Legislative Session:
i) AB 292 (Yamada) would extend, from January 1, 2010,
to January 1, 2015, the sunset date for the article that
authorizes the California Alzheimer's Disease and Related
Disorders Research Fund checkoff. AB 292 is on the
Senate Floor.
ii) AB 1049 (Torrico) authorizes the addition of the
Safely Surrendered Baby Fund checkoff to the PIT form
upon the removal of another VCF from the form. AB 1049
is set to be heard in the Senate Revenue and Taxation
Committee on July 8, 2009.
iii) SB 91 (Correa) extends, from January 1, 2010, to
January 1, 2015, the sunset date for the statutory
provisions authorizing the California Fund for Senior
Citizens checkoff. SB 91 is on the Assembly Floor.
d) Double referral : This bill was double-referred with the
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Assembly Committee on Human Services, and passed out of
that committee on a 4-2 vote on June 30, 2009. For further
discussion of this bill, please refer to that committee's
analysis.
e) Technical amendments : Committee staff recommends the
following technical amendments to this bill:
i) Replace the word "to" with "into" on page 7, line
11;
ii) Insert "California" before "Youth" on page 8, line
2; and,
iii) Insert "California" before "Youth" on page 8, line
7.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Association of Student Councils
California Coalition for Youth
California Youth Empowerment Network
Los Angeles Unified School District
Youth Leadership Institute
Opposition
California State Alliance of YMCAs
Analysis Prepared by : M. David Ruff / REV. & TAX. / (916)
319-2098