California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 2284


Introduced by Assembly Member Patterson

February 18, 2016


An act to add Section 10708 to the Elections Code, and to amend Sections 89510 and 89519 of the Government Code, relating to elections.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2284, as introduced, Patterson. Special elections to fill vacancies.

The California Constitution requires the Governor to immediately call an election to fill a vacancy in the Legislature. Existing law provides specific procedures for the nomination and election of candidates at any special election to fill a vacancy in the office of State Senator or Member of the Assembly.

Exiting law, the Political Reform Act of 1974, provides that contributions deposited into a campaign account are deemed to be held in trust for expenses associated with the election of a candidate or for expenses associated with holding office. The act provides that campaign funds under the control of a former candidate or elected officer are considered surplus campaign funds at a prescribed time, and it prohibits the use of surplus campaign funds except for specified purposes.

This bill would prohibit a State Senator or Member of the Assembly who decides to resign from office before the expiration of his or her term from subsequently using campaign funds held in trust for any purpose other than paying outstanding campaign debts or reasonable expenses. The bill would amend the list of specified purposes allowable for the use of surplus campaign funds to include the payment of expenses to hold a special election to fill the vacancy created by the Member’s resignation and would require the former Member to pay from his or her surplus campaign funds such election-related expenses, to the extent he or she has funds available to do so. Once election-related expenses are paid, this bill would limit the use of excess surplus funds to charitable purposes.

This bill would further provide that a member who, after deciding to resign, uses campaign funds for purposes other than those authorized in that circumstance shall be personally liable for expenses to hold the special election.

A violation of the provisions of the Political Reform Act of 1974 is punishable as a misdemeanor. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements.

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

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

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

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 10708 is added to the Elections Code, to
2read:

3

10708.  

(a) A State Senator or Member of the Assembly who
4resigns from office before the expiration of his or her term shall
5reimburse from his or her surplus campaign funds the county or
6counties that hold a special election pursuant to this chapter to fill
7the vacancy for any expenses authorized and necessarily incurred
8in the preparation for, and conduct of, the special election.

9(b) Expenses for which reimbursement is required pursuant to
10subdivision (a) shall be paid from the former officeholder’s surplus
11campaign funds, as defined by Section 89519 of the Government
12Code, to the extent he or she has funds available to do so; however,
13if a former officeholder violates subdivision (c) of Section 89510
14of the Government Code, he or she shall be personally liable for
P3    1those expenses to the extent he or she lacks sufficient surplus
2campaign funds to pay them.

3(c) If the legislative district encompasses more than one county,
4the surplus campaign funds shall be prorated among the counties
5conducting the special election in proportion to the percentage of
6the district each county composes.

7

SEC. 2.  

Section 89510 of the Government Code is amended
8to read:

9

89510.  

(a) A candidate for elective state office may only accept
10contributions within the limits provided in Chapter 5 (commencing
11with Section 85100).

12(b) All contributions deposited into the campaign account shall
13be deemed to be held in trust for expenses associated with the
14election of the candidate or for expenses associated with holding
15office.

begin insert

16(c) If a State Senator or Member of the Assembly decides to
17resign from office before the expiration of his or her term, he or
18she shall subsequently only use funds held pursuant to this section
19to pay outstanding campaign debts or reasonable expenses. Funds
20held pursuant to this section shall be governed by Section 89519
21to the extent they become surplus funds.

end insert
begin insert

22(d) There shall be a rebuttable presumption that a State Senator
23or Member of the Assembly decided to resign six months before
24he or she vacated office. The presumption may be rebutted by,
25among other things, evidence indicating that the former
26officeholder initiated or responded to an offer of employment more
27than six months before vacating office.

end insert
28

SEC. 3.  

Section 89519 of the Government Code is amended
29to read:

30

89519.  

(a) Upon the 90th day after leaving an elective office,
31or the 90th day following the end of the postelection reporting
32period following the defeat of a candidate for elective office,
33whichever occurs last, campaign funds under the control of the
34former candidate or elected officer shall be considered surplus
35campaign funds and shall be disclosed pursuant to Chapter 4
36(commencing with Section 84100).

37(b) Surplus campaign funds shall be used only for the following
38purposes:

39(1) The payment of outstanding campaign debts or elected
40officer’s expenses.

P4    1(2) The repayment of contributions.

2(3) Donations to a bona fide charitable, educational, civic,
3religious, or similar tax-exempt, nonprofit organization, where no
4substantial part of the proceeds will have a material financial effect
5on the former candidate or elected officer, any member of his or
6her immediate family, or his or her campaign treasurer.

7(4) Contributions to a political party committee, provided the
8campaign funds are not used to support or oppose candidates for
9elective office. However, the campaign funds may be used by a
10political party committee to conduct partisan voter registration,
11partisan get-out-the-vote activities, and slate mailers as that term
12is defined in Section 82048.3.

13(5) Contributions to support or oppose a candidate for federal
14office, a candidate for elective office in a state other than
15California, or a ballot measure.

16(6) The payment for professional services reasonably required
17by the committee to assist in the performance of its administrative
18functions, including payment for attorney’s fees and other costs
19for litigation that arises directly out of a candidate’s or elected
20officer’s activities, duties, or status as a candidate or elected officer,
21including, but not limited to, an action to enjoin defamation,
22defense of an action brought for a violation of state or local
23campaign, disclosure, or election laws, and an action from an
24election contest or recount.

begin insert

25(7) The payment of expenses authorized and necessarily incurred
26in the preparation for, and conduct of, a special election, as
27required by Section 10708 of the Elections Code. Surplus campaign
28funds shall be applied to these costs before being used for any
29 other purpose, and any funds remaining after payment of these
30costs shall be used only for the purposes described in paragraph
31(3) of this subdivision.

end insert

32(c) For purposes of this section, the payment for, or the
33reimbursement to the state of, the costs of installing and monitoring
34an electronic security system in the home or office, or both, of a
35candidate or elected officer who has received threats to his or her
36physical safety shall be deemed an outstanding campaign debt or
37elected officer’s expense, provided that the threats arise from his
38or her activities, duties, or status as a candidate or elected officer
39and that the threats have been reported to and verified by an
40appropriate law enforcement agency. Verification shall be
P5    1determined solely by the law enforcement agency to which the
2threat was reported. The candidate or elected officer shall report
3an expenditure of campaign funds made pursuant to this section
4to the Commission. The report to the Commission shall include
5the date that the candidate or elected officer informed the law
6enforcement agency of the threat, the name and the telephone
7number of the law enforcement agency, and a brief description of
8the threat. No more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) in surplus
9campaign funds may be used, cumulatively, by a candidate or
10elected officer pursuant to this subdivision. Payments made
11pursuant to this subdivision shall be made during the two years
12immediately following the date upon which the campaign funds
13become surplus campaign funds. The candidate or elected officer
14shall reimburse the surplus fund account for the fair market value
15of the security system no later than two years immediately
16following the date upon which the campaign funds became surplus
17campaign funds. The campaign funds become surplus campaign
18funds upon sale of the property on which the system is installed,
19or prior to the closing of the surplus campaign fund account,
20whichever comes first. The electronic security system shall be the
21property of the campaign committee of the candidate or elected
22officer.

23

SEC. 4.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
24Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
25the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
26district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
27infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
28for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
29the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
30the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
31Constitution.

32

SEC. 5.  

The Legislature finds and declares that this bill furthers
33the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within the
34meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government
35Code.



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