BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1365
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Date of Hearing: May 1, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ACCOUNTABILITY AND ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
Jim Frazier, Chair
AB 1365 (Pérez) - As Amended: April 24, 2013
SUBJECT : State and local agency reports: Legislative Counsel
SUMMARY : Makes various changes to the law related to reports
filed by state and local agencies with Legislative Counsel and
makes additional changes to the Internet Web site for those
reports maintained by Legislative Counsel. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Authorizes state and local agencies to file these reports with
the Legislative Counsel electronically.
2)Clarifies the information provided by Legislative Counsel
reports filed by state and local agencies will be based on the
"date on which the report was completed and filed with
Legislative Counsel."
3)Allows Legislative Counsel to maintain the Internet Web site
for public access and notification via a hyperlink to Members
of the Legislature annually rather than providing hard copies
of the information compiled by Legislative Counsel on reports
filed by state and local agencies.
4)Directs state and local agencies filing electronic copies of
reports with Legislative Counsel to also include a hyperlink
whereby the report may be accessed if posted online.
5)Directs Legislative Counsel to post the hyperlink to the
report by state and local agencies.
6)Deletes the definition and references to "obsolete report."
EXISTING LAW requires the Legislative Counsel to annually
prepare, publish, and maintain an electronic list of all reports
that state and local agencies are required or requested by law
to prepare and file with the Governor or the Legislature.
Existing law requires state and local agencies to file a printed
copy of these reports with the Legislative Counsel.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : This bill provides greater government transparency
and accountability.
AB 1365
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According to the author's office, Legislative Counsel is
required to maintain a list of reports filed by state and local
agencies. The reflection of a report on this list or not on
this list has no force or effect of law. This list was intended
to be a repository for information and with recent legislation
more effectively allows for tracking the completion of a report.
In 2010, AB 1585 (Huber) required state and local agencies to
file reports with Legislative Counsel. Throughout the years
since, the list converted from a paper copy to an online list.
With advances in technology and movements to "green" government
practices, allowing those state and local agencies and
Legislative Counsel to provide electronic copies and links to
the completed report saves time, money and resources.
In 2010, AB 1585 also directed Legislative Counsel to update the
list by removing obsolete or duplicate reports and defined
"obsolete report" to mean "a report that has not been completed
and filed and for which the date that the report was required to
be completed and filed was four or more years after the initial
report is submitted."
The definition of "obsolete report" has created confusion and
raised several questions that the author raised with Legislative
Counsel.
1)Does this definition apply to annual or one-time reports or
both?
2)Are reports deemed "obsolete" no longer be required by
statute?
3)Would it be possible for an entity that is required to submit
an annual report and submits the first report, but chooses not
to submit subsequent reports and four years has passed that
they are no longer required to submit the originally requested
annual report?
4)There is general concern that an entity required to submit a
report can wait four years and have it deemed obsolete and
never be required to complete the report. Would this section
allow this type of scenario to occur?
AB 1365
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Reports deemed "obsolete" are still required if no sunset date
was included in the originating statute that established the
requirement for the report or unless that statute was repealed.
Additionally, if an entity required to complete annual reports
chose not to submit subsequent reports and four years passed,
the subsequent reports would still be required unless the
originating statute that established the requirement for the
report was repealed. The only result would be that the
Legislative Counsel website would not be up-to-date reflecting
those reports still required in statute.
Since the application of the term "obsolete report" has no force
or effect on the requirement for the report, it makes no sense
to eliminate them from the Legislative Counsel website which
serves as a repository for information and a means to track
completed reports. If anything, one could argue that the
current process for removing "obsolete reports" from the
Legislative Counsel website results in less transparency by
limiting the public's access to the report information and may
impede government accountability as the reports are still
required by statute unless the originating statute is repealed.
To eliminate this confusion, AB 1365 deletes the definition of
"obsolete report."
Additionally, concerns have been expressed by at least two
Administrations that the appearance of no information provided
for the "date on which the report was completed and filed" on
the Legislative Counsel website gives the appearance that the
report has not been completed when in many instances the report
has in fact been completed. Again, up until 2010, reports were
not required to be filed with Legislative Counsel and they did
not track completed reports. AB 1365 clarifies that the
information maintained on those reports by Legislative Counsel
will be based on the "date on which the report was completed and
filed with Legislative Counsel. The Legislative Counsel website
on reports is an important tool to provide greater government
transparency and accountability. AB 1365 makes changes to
enhance this tool.
Sponsor : Speaker John A. Pérez
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
AB 1365
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Support
Association of California Water Agencies
East Bay Municipal Utility District
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : William Herms / A. & A.R. / (916)
319-3600