BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1475
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Date of Hearing: June 20, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BANKING AND FINANCE
Matthew Dababneh, Chair
SB
1475 (Committee on Governmental Organization) - As Amended April
21, 2016
SENATE VOTE: 36-0
SUBJECT: State warrants: records
SUMMARY: Provides that only the State Controller's Office (SCO)
shall keep a record of all canceled warrants instead of the SCO
and the State Treasurer's Office (STO).
EXISTING LAW:
1)Requires the SCO and the STO to keep a register of all
canceled warrants. The register shall show the number, date,
and amount of each warrant, the fund out of which it was
payable and the date of cancellation. [Government Code,
Section 17071]
2)Provides that when a warrant issued by the SCO is unpaid for
one year after it becomes payable, sufficient unapplied moneys
having been available for the payment of the warrant and for
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the payment of all senior obligations, the SCO shall cancel
it. [Government Code, Section 17070]
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown.
COMMENTS:
SB 1475 modifies the existing procedure by which the SCO and STO
must each maintain a register of all canceled warrants to
instead require the SCO to keep a record of all canceled
warrants.
Need for the bill:
According to the sponsor, the STO:
Today, as a result of technological advancements, the
STO Centralized Treasury and Securities Management
Division Item Processing Section (IPS) receives from
the SCO on a daily basis electronic files that list
all outstanding warrants, and, accordingly, any
warrant presented by any bank that is not listed on
that file will not be paid, will be rejected and
returned to the presenting bank. Thus, there is no
need to keep a register of canceled warrants as
defined in Government Code Section 17070. The only
warrants that the IPS processes and approves for
payment are those presented for payment by banks that
match the warrants appearing on the outstanding file
provided by the SCO.
Existing law requires the establishment of separate registers of
all canceled warrants by the STO and the SCO. According to the
STO, this requirement was necessary following the establishment
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of the Centralized Treasury in 1949 to ensure that the STO did
not pay banks for warrants that had been canceled by the SCO.
STO staff point out that fulfilling the requirements of
Government Code Section 17071 as currently written would require
the development of a new information technology system and the
expenditure of funds and resources on a functionality that would
eventually become obsolete as it will be built into the
Financial Information System for California (FI$Cal).
Furthermore, its purpose is currently being met through the
issued and outstanding files produced by the SCO and provided to
the STO on a daily basis.
What is FI$Cal? FI$Cal is a business transformation project for
state government processes in the areas of budgeting,
accounting, procurement and cash management. The objective of
the project is to develop a comprehensive statewide budget
system to prepare, enact, and administer the state's annual
financial plan and to provide critical information required to
make budget decisions and manage state resources. FI$Cal is a
partnership between the agencies responsible for the state's
financial management: the Department of Finance, the SCO, the
STO, and the Department of General Services, collectively known
as the "partner agencies."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California State Treasurer
SB 1475
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Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Kathleen O'Malley / B. & F. / (916)
319-3081