BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 41
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 41 (Hill)
As Amended August 22, 2011
2/3 vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |60-0 |(April 14, |SENATE: |37-0 |(September 7, |
| | |2011) | | |2011) |
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Original Committee Reference: E. & R.
SUMMARY : Requires a member of the High-Speed Rail Authority
(HSRA) who has a financial interest in a decision before the
HSRA to publicly identify the financial interest that gives rise
to the conflict of interest, to recuse himself or herself from
discussing or voting on the matter, and to leave the room until
after the disposition of the matter is concluded. Expands the
information that a member of the HSRA must disclose on a
statement of economic interests (SEI). Requires HSRA board
members to report ex parte communications in certain
circumstances.
The Senate amendments :
1)Prohibit a HSRA board member and any interested person, as
defined, from having an ex parte communication unless the
board member reports the communication.
2)Define "ex parte communication" as a communication between a
HSRA board member and an interested person about a matter
within the HSRA's jurisdiction that does not occur in a public
hearing or on the official record of a proceeding. Provide
that a communication is not an ex parte communication if the
communication:
a) Is between a HSRA staff member and a HSRA board member
or interested person;
b) Is limited entirely to procedural issues;
c) Takes place on the record during an official proceeding
of a public agency that involves a HSRA board member who
also serves as an official of that agency; or,
AB 41
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d) Is between a HSRA board member, with regard to any
action of another state agency or of a regional or local
agency of which the member is an official, and any other
official or employee of that agency.
3)Define "interested person" as any of the following:
a) A potential bidder, vendor, or contractor interested in
obtaining a contract with the HSRA or under contract to the
HSRA, or an agent or employee acting on that person's
behalf;
b) A firm or person with a financial interest in a matter
before the HSRA, or an agent or employee of the firm or
person with a financial interest; or,
c) A representative acting on behalf of any regional or
local agency, or any environmental, neighborhood, business,
labor, trade, or similar organization who intends to
influence the decision of an authority member on a matter
before the HSRA. Provides that a regional or local agency
includes, but is not limited to, a city, county, city and
county, special district, joint powers authority, council
of governments, and transportation authority.
4)Prohibit a member or alternate of the HSRA board from using
his or her official position to influence a HSRA decision
about which the member or alternate has knowingly had an ex
parte communication that has not been publicly reported.
5)Require the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency to
enforce the provisions of this bill limiting ex parte
communications if legislation is enacted placing the HSRA
within the agency.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill added members of the HSRA
to a statutorily-designated list of high-ranking public
officials who are subject to the most expansive disclosure
requirements under the Political Reform Act (PRA).
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS : This bill was substantially amended in the Senate to
add new provisions requiring HSRA board members to report ex
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parte communications in certain circumstances. These new
provisions have not been considered by a policy committee in the
Assembly during this legislative session.
Existing law designates certain high-ranking public officials
who are subject to the most expansive disclosure requirements
under the PRA. This bill proposes to add members of the HSRA to
that statutorily-established list. This change would have two
primary effects on the members of the HSRA.
First, members of the HSRA board would be subject to somewhat
broader disclosure when they file their SEIs; currently board
members must disclose only those interests that fall within one
of the disclosure categories listed in the HSRA's Conflict of
Interest Code, but under this bill, board members would be
required to disclose all investments, interests in real
property, and income, with certain limited exceptions.
Second, adding members of the HSRA board to the
statutorily-established list of high-ranking public officials
would mean that if a member of the board had a conflict of
interest in a matter before the board, that member would have to
publicly identify the financial interest and leave the room
until after the discussion of that matter had finished.
California voters passed an initiative, Proposition 9, in 1974
that created the Fair Political Practices Commission and
codified significant restrictions and prohibitions on
candidates, officeholders and lobbyists. That initiative is
commonly known as the PRA. Amendments to the PRA that are not
submitted to the voters, such as those contained in this bill,
must further the purposes of the initiative and require a
two-thirds vote of both houses of the Legislature.
Analysis Prepared by : Ethan Jones / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094
FN: 0002061