Senate Constitutional AmendmentNo. 10


Introduced by Senators Wolk, Correa, and Huff

(Principal coauthor: Senator DeSaulnier)

(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Olsen)

January 22, 2013


Senate Constitutional Amendment No. 10—A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by amending Section 8 of Article IV thereof, relating to the Legislature.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SCA 10, as introduced, Wolk. Legislative procedure.

The California Constitution prohibits a bill other than the Budget Bill from being heard or acted on by a committee or either house of the Legislature until the 31st day after the bill is introduced, unless the house dispenses with this requirement by rollcall vote entered in the journal, 34 of the membership concurring.

This measure would add an additional exception to this 31-day waiting period by authorizing a committee to hear or act on a bill if the bill, in the form to be considered by the committee, has been in print and published on the Internet for at least 15 days.

Existing provisions of the California Constitution prohibit either house of the Legislature from passing a bill until the bill with amendments has been printed and distributed to the Members.

This measure would also prohibit either house of the Legislature from passing a bill until the bill, in the form to be voted on, has been made available to the public, in print and published on the Internet, for at least 72 hours preceding the vote. This requirement would not apply to specified urgency bills upon the submission by the Governor to the Legislature of a written statement that it is necessary to dispense with the requirement to address a state of emergency declared by the Governor.

Vote: 23. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

P2    1Resolved by the Senate, the Assembly concurring, That the
2Legislature of the State of California at its 2013-14 Regular
3Session commencing on the third day of December, two-thirds of
4the membership of each house concurring, hereby proposes to the
5people of the State of California that the Constitution of the State
6be amended as follows:

7

  

That Section 8 of Article IV thereof is amended to read:

8

SEC. 8.  

(a) At regular sessionsbegin insert,end insert no bill other than the budget
9bill may be heard or acted on by committee or either house until
10the 31st day after the bill is introducedbegin delete unless theend deletebegin insert, except in either end insert
11begin insertof the following circumstances:end insert

12begin insert(1)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertA committee or either house may hear or act on a bill if tend insertbegin inserthe end insert
13house dispenses with this requirement by rollcall vote entered in
14the journal, three fourths of the membership concurring.

15begin insert (2)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertA committee may hear or act on a bill end insertbegin insertif the bill, in the form end insert
16begin insertto be considered by the committee, has been in print and published end insert
17begin inserton the Internet for at least 15 days.end insert

18(b) begin insert(1)end insertbegin insertend insert The Legislature may make no law except by statute and
19may enact no statute except by bill. No bill may be passed unless
20it is read by title onbegin delete 3end deletebegin insert threeend insert days in each house except thatbegin delete theend deletebegin insert aend insert
21 house may dispense with this requirement by rollcall vote entered
22in the journal,begin delete two thirdsend deletebegin insert two-thirdsend insert of the membership concurring.
23No bill may be passed until the bill with amendments has been
24printed and distributed to the members. No bill may be passed
25unless, by rollcall vote entered in the journal, a majority of the
26membership of each house concurs.

begin insert

27(2) (A) No bill may be passed in either house until the bill, in
28the form to be voted on, has been made available to the public, in
29print and published on the Internet, for at least 72 hours before
30the vote.

end insert
begin insert

31(B) This paragraph does not apply to a bill that contains an
32urgency clause if the Governor submits to the Legislature a written
33statement, for that bill, that dispensing with the requirement in
34subparagraph (A) is necessary to address a state of emergency
35declared by the Governor. “Emergency,” for the purposes of this
P3    1paragraph, has the same meaning as in paragraph (2) of
2subdivision (c) of Section 3 of Article XIII B and does not include
3a fiscal emergency declared pursuant to Section 10 of this article.

end insert

4(c) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3)begin delete of this end delete
5begin deletesubdivisionend delete, a statute enacted at a regular session shall go into
6effect on January 1 next following a 90-day period from the date
7of enactment of the statute and a statute enacted at a special session
8shall go into effect on the 91st day after adjournment of the special
9session at which the bill was passed.

10(2) A statute, other than a statute establishing or changing
11boundaries of any legislative, congressional, or other election
12district, enacted by a bill passed by the Legislature on or before
13the date the Legislature adjourns for a joint recess to reconvene in
14the second calendar year of the biennium of the legislative session,
15and in the possession of the Governor after that date, shall go into
16effect on January 1 next following the enactment date of the statute
17unless, before January 1, a copy of a referendum petition affecting
18the statute is submitted to the Attorney General pursuant to
19subdivision (d) of Section 10 of Article II, in which event the
20statute shall go into effect on the 91st day after the enactment date
21unless the petition has been presented to the Secretary of State
22pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 9 of Article II.

23(3) Statutes calling elections, statutes providing for tax levies
24or appropriations for the usual current expenses of the State, and
25urgency statutes shall go into effect immediately upon their
26enactment.

27(d) Urgency statutes are those necessary for immediate
28preservation of the public peace, health, or safety. A statement of
29facts constituting the necessity shall be set forth in one section of
30the bill. In each house the section and the bill shall be passed
31separately, each by rollcall vote entered in the journal,begin delete two thirdsend delete
32begin insert two-thirdsend insert of the membership concurring. An urgency statute may
33not create or abolish any office or change the salary, term, or duties
34of any office, or grant any franchise or special privilege, or create
35any vested right or interest.



O

    99