Amended in Assembly April 19, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 6, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 17, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 2628


Introduced by Assembly Member Levine

(Principal coauthor: Senator Jackson)

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Bonta, Campos, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Eggman, Cristina Garcia, Gomez, McCarty, Nazarian, Thurmond, Weber, Williams, and Wood)

(Coauthor: Senator McGuire)

February 19, 2016


An act to amend Section 87505 of, and to add Sections 87406.5 and 87506 to, the Government Code, relating to the Political Reform Act of 1974.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2628, as amended, Levine. Political Reform Act of 1974: employment restrictions.

The Political Reform Act of 1974 generally prohibits a public official, as defined, from making, participating in making, or using his or her official position to influence a governmental decision in which the official has a financial interest. The act also requires the disclosure of specified financial interests of certain public officials on a statement of economic interests, which is filed annually. The act imposes certain restrictions on postgovernmental employment of specified public officials of state and local agencies.

This bill would require each state agency and each local agency that maintains an Internet Web site to make publicly available on that Internet Web site the statements of economic interests filed by the specified public officials.

This bill would prohibit an elected or appointed officer of a state or local agency, while holding office and for a period of one year after leaving office, from engaging in specified conduct, including maintaining employment with, as specified, or being a compensated consultant of that agency or, for compensation, aiding, advising, consulting with, or assisting an entity with a permit, regulatory action, or enforcement action pending before the agency.

A violation of the act is punishable as a misdemeanor. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would also impose a state-mandated local program by increasing the duties imposed on local officials.

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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

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 87406.5 is added to the Government
2Code
, to read:

3

87406.5.  

An elected or appointed officer of a state or local
4agency, while holding office and for a period of one year after
5leaving office, shall not do any of the following:

P3    1(a)  Maintain employment begin delete with, in a position other than the
2currently held elected or appointed office,end delete
begin insert withend insert or be a compensated
3consultant of the state or local agency.begin insert For purposes of this sectionend insertbegin insert,
4“employment” does not include the currently held appointive office
5or any elective office of the state or local agency.end insert

6(b) Aid, advise, consult with, or assist an entity, for
7compensation, with a permit, regulatory action, or enforcement
8action pending before the state or local agency.

9

SEC. 2.  

Section 87505 of the Government Code is amended
10to read:

11

87505.  

Each city clerk or county clerk who maintains an
12Internet Web site shall post on that Internet Web site a notification
13that includes all of the following:

14(a) A list of the elected officers identified in Section 87200 who
15file statements of economic interests with that city clerk or county
16clerk pursuant to Section 87500.

17(b) A statement that copies of the statements of economic
18interests filed by the elected officers described in subdivision (a)
19may be obtained by visiting the offices of the Commission or that
20city clerk or county clerk, as appropriate, or the Internet Web site
21of the city or county. The statement shall include the physical
22address for the Commission’s office and the city clerk’s office or
23the county clerk’s office, as appropriate.

24(c) A link to the Commission’s Internet Web site and a statement
25that statements of economic interests for some state and local
26government agency elected officers may be available in an
27electronic format on the Commission’s Internet Web site.

28

SEC. 3.  

Section 87506 is added to the Government Code, to
29read:

30

87506.  

Each state agency and each local agency that maintains
31an Internet Web site shall make publicly available on the Internet
32Web site each statement of economic interests filed with the
33agency’s filing officer by an official identified in Section 87200.

34

SEC. 4.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
35Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution for certain
36costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district
37because, in that regard, this act creates a new crime or infraction,
38eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime
39or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
40Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
P4    1meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
2Constitution.

3However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that
4this act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement
5to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
6pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
74 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

8

SEC. 5.  

The Legislature finds and declares that this bill furthers
9the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within the
10meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government
11Code.



O

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