Senate Constitutional AmendmentNo. 3


Introduced by Senator Morrell

February 4, 2015


Senate Constitutional Amendment No. 3—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 3, as introduced, Morrell. Legislative procedure.

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 declaring that dispensing with the requirement is necessary to address a state of emergency.

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

P1    1Resolved by the Senate, the Assembly concurring, That the
2Legislature of the State of California at its 2015-16 Regular
3Session commencing on the first day of December 2014, two-thirds
4of the membership of each house concurring, hereby proposes to
5the people of the State of California that the Constitution of the
6State be amended as follows:

7

  

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

P2    1

SEC. 8.  

(a) At regular sessions no bill other than the budget
2bill may be heard or acted on by committee or either house until
3the 31st day after the bill is introduced unless the house dispenses
4with this requirement by rollcall vote entered in the journal, three
5fourths of the membership concurring.

6(b) begin insert(1)end insertbegin insertend insert The Legislature may make no law except by statute and
7may enact no statute except by bill. No bill may be passed unless
8it is read by title onbegin delete 3end deletebegin insert threeend insert days in each house except thatbegin delete theend deletebegin insert aend insert
9 house may dispense with this requirement by rollcall vote entered
10in the journal,begin delete two thirdsend deletebegin insert two-thirdsend insert of the membership concurring.
11No bill may be passed until the bill with amendments has been
12printed and distributed to the members. No bill may be passed
13unless, by rollcall vote entered in the journal, a majority of the
14membership of each house concurs.

begin insert

15(2) (A) No bill may be passed in either house until the bill, in
16the form to be voted on, has been made available to the public, in
17print and published on the Internet, for at least 72 hours before
18the vote.

end insert
begin insert

19(B) This paragraph does not apply to a bill that contains an
20urgency clause if the Governor submits to the Legislature a written
21statement declaring that, for that bill, dispensing with the
22requirement in subparagraph (A) is necessary to address a state
23of emergency declared by the Governor. “Emergency,” for the
24purposes of this paragraph, has the same meaning as in paragraph
25(2) of subdivision (c) of Section 3 of Article XIII B and does not
26include a fiscal emergency declared pursuant to Section 10 of this
27article.

end insert

28(c) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3)begin delete of this
29subdivisionend delete
, a statute enacted at a regular session shall go into
30effect on January 1 next following a 90-day period from the date
31of enactment of the statute and a statute enacted at a special session
32shall go into effect on the 91st day after adjournment of the special
33 session at which the bill was passed.

34(2) A statute, other than a statute establishing or changing
35boundaries of any legislative, congressional, or other election
36district, enacted by a bill passed by the Legislature on or before
37the date the Legislature adjourns for a joint recess to reconvene in
38the second calendar year of the biennium of the legislative session,
39and in the possession of the Governor after that date, shall go into
40effect on January 1 next following the enactment date of the statute
P3    1unless, before January 1, a copy of a referendum petition affecting
2the statute is submitted to the Attorney General pursuant to
3subdivision (d) of Section 10 of Article II, in which event the
4statute shall go into effect on the 91st day after the enactment date
5unless the petition has been presented to the Secretary of State
6pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 9 of Article II.

7(3) Statutes calling elections, statutes providing for tax levies
8or appropriations for the usual current expenses of the State, and
9urgency statutes shall go into effect immediately upon their
10enactment.

11(d) Urgency statutes are those necessary for immediate
12preservation of the public peace, health, or safety. A statement of
13facts constituting the necessity shall be set forth in one section of
14the bill. In each house the section and the bill shall be passed
15separately, each by rollcall vote entered in the journal,begin delete two thirdsend delete
16begin insert two-thirdsend insert of the membership concurring. An urgency statute may
17not create or abolish any office or change the salary, term, or duties
18of any office, or grant any franchise or special privilege, or create
19any vested right or interest.


CORRECTIONS:

Text--Page 1.




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Corrected 2-9-15—See last page.     99