BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION
Senator Isadore Hall, III
Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 410 Hearing Date: 6/29/2015
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|Author: |Obernolte |
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|Version: |4/27/2015 Amended |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|Felipe Lopez |
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SUBJECT: Reports submitted to legislative committees
DIGEST: This bill requires a state agency to post on its
Internet Web site any report it is required by law to submit to
a committee of the Legislature.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires a report required or requested by law to be submitted
by a state or local agency to the Members of either house of
the Legislature, generally, to be submitted in a specific
manner, including, but not limited to, a requirement that a
report submitted by a state agency be posted on the agency's
Internet Web site.
2)Governs, under the California Public Records Act (CPRA), the
disclosure of governmental records to the public upon request.
The CPRA specifies that all public records should be open to
the public for public inspection upon request unless the
record requested is exempt from public disclosure.
This bill:
1)Requires a state agency to post on its Internet Web site any
report it is required by law to submit to a committee of the
Legislature.
AB 410 (Obernolte) Page 2 of ?
2)Specifies that a "report" includes a study or audit, or a
budget change proposal that has been approved by the
Department of Finance, and submitted to the joint Legislative
Budget Committee, the Assembly Committee on Budget, or the
Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review.
Background
Purpose of the bill. According to the author, under existing
law, legally mandated reports submitted to the legislative
committees by a state agency are considered public information
and subject to the CPRA. However, only reports submitted to the
Legislature as a body must be posted online. There is no
requirement that a report submitted to a committee of the
Legislature must be posted online. This costly and
time-consuming process in place to obtain these documents is an
unnecessary barrier to public information.
California Public Records Act. The CPRA, passed by the
Legislature and signed into law in 1968, requires inspection
and/or disclosure of governmental records to the public. When
the Legislature enacted the CPRA, it expressly declared that
"access to information concerning the conduct of the people's
business is a fundamental and necessary right of every person in
this state." By promoting prompt public access to government
records, the CPRA is intended to promote accountability of
government by the public.
Most of the exemptions to the CPRA are specific to certain
records or types of records, but there is a general exemption
where, on the facts of the particular case, "the public interest
served by not making the record public clearly outweighs the
public interest served by disclosure of the record."
Prior/Related Legislation
AB 797 (Steinorth, 2015) requires a copy of each major
regulation submitted to the Secretary of State (SOS) by the
Office of Administrative Law (OAL) to also be submitted to the
appropriate legislative policy committees responsible for the
subject matter of the regulation for review. (Pending in Senate
Governmental Organization Committee)
AB 1365 (John A. Perez, Chapter 192, Statutes of 2013) required
AB 410 (Obernolte) Page 3 of ?
state and local agencies to file mandated reports with the
Legislative Counsel electronically instead of as a printed copy.
AB 1585 (Accountability and Administrative Review, Chapter 7,
Statutes of 2010), eliminated hundreds of obsolete reports and
revised the procedure for mandatory reporting requirements by
state agencies with the goal of reducing paperwork and expanding
electronic reporting.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.: Yes Local: No
SUPPORT:
Building Owners and Managers Association
California Business Properties Association
California Chamber of Commerce
California Hotel and Lodging Association
California League of Food Processors
California Manufacturers and Technology Association
California Professional Association of Specialty Contractors
Camarillo Chamber of Commerce
Chambers of Commerce Alliance of Ventura and Santa Barbara
Counties
Chemical Industry Council of California
Consumer Specialty Products Association
El Centro Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau
Family Business Association
Fullerton Chamber of Commerce
Hesperia Chamber of Commerce
High Desert Republican Women Federated
Industrial Environmental Association
International Council of Shopping Centers
NAIOP - Commercial Real Estate Development Association
National Federation of Independent Business
Orange Chamber of Commerce
Rancho Cordova Chamber of Commerce
Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce and Visitor & Convention
Bureau
Southwest California Legislative Council
Western Electrical Contractors Association
OPPOSITION:
AB 410 (Obernolte) Page 4 of ?
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to supporters of the bill,
the CPRA ensures that the public is granted free and immediate
access to public information. All documents become subject to
the CPRA once they are shared with the Legislature. However,
there is no requirement that documents submitted to legislative
committees be posted online. This bill simply removes any
barrier for public access to reports to the Legislature by state
agencies so that these reports are posted online.