Amended in Assembly April 22, 2015

Amended in Assembly April 7, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1494

Introduced by Assembly Member Levine

(Coauthors: Senators Allen and McGuire)

February 27, 2015

An act to amend Section 85500 of, and to add Section 12179.2 to the Government Code, relating to the Political Reform Act of 1974.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1494, as amended, Levine. Political Reform Act of 1974: independent expenditure begin delete tax. end delete begin insert report annual fee. end insert

Existing law designates the Secretary of State as the chief elections officer of the state and requires him or her to see that elections are efficiently conducted and that state election laws are enforced. Existing law also authorizes the Secretary of State in certain circumstances to assist the county elections officer in discharging his or her duties.

The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing, including requiring the filing of reports of contributions and expenditures. Among its provisions, the act requires a committee that makes an independent expenditure, as defined, of $1,000 or more during an election cycle in connection with a candidate for elective state office or a state ballot measure to disclose that expenditure by filing a report online or electronically with the Secretary of State.

This bill would require a committee subject to the independent expenditure disclosure requirement to begin delete pay a tax at the rate of 10% of the amount of each independent expenditure reported to the Secretary of State within 5 days of filing the report. end delete begin insert pay to the Secretary of State, within 5 days of filing an independent expenditure report, an annual reporting fee in an amount based on the amount that the committee declares that it will spend in each 2-year election cycle, as defined. end insert The bill would require begin delete the Secretary of State to establish a fund with the tax revenues and allocate those funds end delete begin insert those fees to be deposited into a Civic Engagement Fund created by the bill. The bill would, upon appropriation by the Legislature, require the Secretary of State to allocate the funds in the Civic Engagement Fund for the costs of oversight of committees filing the independent expenditure reports, end insert to the Fair Political Practices Commission begin delete and end delete begin insert for the purpose of increasing transparency in political campaigns, and to end insert local elections begin delete offices for the purpose of increasing transparency in political campaigns, civic engagement, and end delete begin insert offices, through a competitive grant program, to increase end insert voter registration and turnout.

Existing law makes a willful violation of the Political Reform Act of 1974 a misdemeanor and subject offenders to criminal penalties.

begin delete The end delete begin insert This end insert bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating additional crimes.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act’s purposes upon a 2⁄3 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements.

This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.

Vote: ²⁄₃. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 12179.2 is added to the Government
Code, to read:

12179.2.  

(a)  begin delete The Secretary of State shall establish a fund for
the purpose of increasing transparency in political campaigns, civic
engagement, and voter registration and turnout and deposit
revenues received pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 85500
into the fund. end delete begin insert There is hereby created in the State Treasury the
Civic Engagement Fund. The purpose of the Civic Engagement
Fund is to provide oversight of committees filing reports under
Section 85500 and to increase transparency in political campaigns,
civic engagement, and voter registration and turnout. The Secretary
of State shall deposit revenues received pursuant to subdivision
(c) of Section 85500 into the Civic Engagement Fund. end insert Upon
appropriation by the Legislature, the Secretary of State shall
allocate these funds begin insert for the costs of oversight of committees filing
reports under Section 85500, end insert to the Fair Political Practices
Commission for the purpose of increasing transparency in political
campaigns begin insert , end insert and to local elections offices, through a competitive
grant program, to increase voter registration and turnout.

(b) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5, the Secretary of State
shall report to the Legislature and to the Department of Finance
by March 31 of each year on the allocation and use of fund moneys
specified in subdivision (a). The Secretary of State shall also post
this information on his or her Internet Web site.

SEC. 2.  

Section 85500 of the Government Code is amended
to read:

85500.  

(a) In addition to any other report required by this title,
a committee, including a political party committee, that is required
to file reports pursuant to Section 84605 and that makes
independent expenditures of one thousand dollars ($1,000) or more
during an election cycle in connection with a candidate for elective
state office or state ballot measure, shall file online or electronically
a report with the Secretary of State disclosing the making of the
independent expenditure. This report shall disclose the same
information required by subdivision (b) of Section 84204 and shall
be filed within 24 hours of the time the independent expenditure
is made.

(b) An expenditure shall not be considered independent, and
shall be treated as a contribution from the person making the
expenditure to the candidate on whose behalf, or for whose benefit,
the expenditure is made, if the expenditure is made under any of
the following circumstances:

(1) The expenditure is made with the cooperation of, or in
consultation with, the candidate on whose behalf, or for whose
benefit, the expenditure is made, or any controlled committee or
any agent of the candidate.

(2) The expenditure is made in concert with, or at the request
or suggestion of, the candidate on whose behalf, or for whose
benefit, the expenditure is made, or any controlled committee or
any agent of the candidate.

(3) The expenditure is made under any arrangement,
coordination, or direction with respect to the candidate or the
candidate’s agent and the person making the expenditure.

(c)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert A committee subject to this section shall pay begin delete a tax at
the rate of 10 percent of the amount of each independent
expenditure reported pursuant to subdivision (a) to the Secretary
of State within 5 days of the filing of the report pursuant to
subdivision (a). end delete begin insert an annual reporting fee to the Secretary of State.
The fee shall be charged end insert begin insert as follows: end insert

begin insert

(A) One hundred dollars ($100) for a committee filing a report
and declaring that it will spend less than one hundred thousand
dollars ($100,000) per two-year election cycle.

end insert begin insert

(B) One thousand dollars ($1,000) for a committee filing a
report and declaring that it will spend less than two hundred fifty
thousand dollars ($250,000) per two-year election cycle.

end insert begin insert

(C) Two thousand dollars ($2,000) for a committee filing a
report and declaring that it will spend less than five hundred
thousand dollars ($500,000) per two-year election cycle.

end insert begin insert

(D) Ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for a committee filing a
report and declaring that it will spend less than one million dollars
($1,000,000) per two-year election cycle.

end insert begin insert

(E) Fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) for a committee filing a
report and declaring that it will spend less than ten million dollars
($10,000,000) per two-year election cycle.

end insert begin insert

(2) The annual reporting fee shall be paid within 5 days of the
filing of the report pursuant to subdivision (a).

end insert begin insert

(3) If a committee expends more than the declared amount, in
the report filed in which the committee discloses that fact, it shall
make a new declaration and pay the increased fee less the amount
of the fee or fees already paid.

end insert begin insert

(4) For purposes of this subdivision, “two-year election cycle”
means the period of time between the immediately preceding
statewide general election and the next statewide general election.

end insert

SEC. 3.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.

SEC. 4.  

The Legislature finds and declares that this bill furthers
the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within the
meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government
Code.