BILL ANALYSIS THIRD READING AB 1624 Bowen (D) 8/30/93 in Senate 21 78-0, p. 2356, 6/7/93 SUBJECT: Legislative information: access by computer network SOURCE: The author ____________________________________________________________________________ DIGEST: This measure requires the Legislative Counsel, with the šadvice of the Assembly Rules Committee and the Senate Rules Committee, to šmake available specified legislative data in electronic form. (See šanalysis for details.) ANALYSIS: Existing law: 1. Requires the Legislature to provide notice of meetings and to open proceedings to the public. The Legislative Open Records Act (Govt. Code Sec. 9070, et seq.) and the Open Meetings Act of 1989 (Govt. Code Sec. 9027, et seq.) both serve to provide the public with extensive knowledge of the process. 2. Provides that the public has access to all bills and legislative documents through the Capitol bill room. (Bill texts, amendments, analyses and related information are also available for a fee through several computer information services, various law book companies, and newspapers.) The Legislature presently makes hard copies of all documents available to šall libraries and colleges that request these documents (currently, 98 šlibraries and 61 colleges and universities statewide). Additionally, 1,718 š subscribers receive various levels of bill service ranging from $140 for šthe Index to $2,545 for the full service (pick-up). Currently, Legislative Counsel sells its database to private companies like šState Net and Legi-Tech. These Sacramento firms create menus to organize šthe data, then resell it to corporate, government and other subscribers for š$4,000 to $6,000 a year. Legislative Counsel earns $366,000 a year by šselling data this way. State agencies spend $285,000 a year buying the šdata back from these private firms to track bills affecting state agency šbudgets. City and county governments and public-interest groups pay for šaccess as well. This bill proposes to augment these private companies and set up a free šconnection (gateway) linking the legislative data-base to a computer šnetwork called the Internet. The Internet, a non-profit, nonproprietary šcooperative public network made up of many smaller networks, would funnel šthe data to computer users with access to Internet (with or without šmodems). AB 1624 finds that information pending before the Legislature should be šmade available to all Californians in a timely manner and for the least špossible cost. The bill further finds that it is feasible to distribute this information šby way of electronic communication. Specifically, AB 1624 would, with the advice of the Assembly Rules šCommittee and the Senate Rules Committee, make all of the following šinformation available in electronic form: 1) Information contained in the Senate and Assembly Daily File: š legislative calendar, matters pending on the Senate and Assembly floors, a list of legislative committees and their members, and a schedule of legislative committee hearings. 2) Text of each bill, in all forms, introduced in each current legislative šsession. 3) History of each bill introduced and amended in each current legislative šsession. 4) Bill status of each bill introduced and amended in each current legislative session. 5) All bill analyses prepared by legislative committees. 6) All vote information. 7) Veto messages. 8) California Codes. 9) California Constitution 10) All statutes enacted on or after January 1, 1993. This bill: CONTINUED AB 1624 Page 3 (a) Requires all of the above information or any part of the information to be made available to the public by means of access by way of the largest nonproprietary, nonprofit cooperative public computer network (Internet). The information may also be made available by any other means of access that would facilitate public access. Requires Legislative Counsel to make the information available in the š shortest feasible time and to also provide information that is not currently maintained in the legislative information system available (such as the schedule of committee hearings and committee members) in the shortest feasible time. (b) Requires documentation that describes the electronic digital formats of the information that is available to the public to be made available by means of access by way of the computer network, as specified. (c) No fee or other charge may be imposed by the Legislative Counsel as a condition of accessing the information that is accessible by way of the computer network, as specified. (d) The electronic public access provided by way of the computer network, as specified, would be in addition to other electronic or print distribution of the information such as the information that Legislative Counsel makes available to private companies. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Committee: Yes Local: No SUPPORT: (Verified 8/26/93) American Association of Law Libraries American Association of University Women American Foundation for the Blind Antigone Press Apple Computer ASHA Environmental, Inc. Autodesk, Inc. BayTalk Computer Users Group (for disabled computer users - most are švisually impaired) California College Educators of New Californians California Common Cause California Congress of Parents, Teachers, and Students, Inc. California šCouncil of the Blind California Environmental Associates California Newspaper Publishers Association California Public Interest Research Group (CalPIRG) California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation California State University, Long Beach California State University, Los Angeles City of Berkeley City of Los Altos CONTINUED AB 1624 Page 4 Computer Software Industry Association Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility š (Volunteering technical assistance to enact this legislation)- šBerkeley Chapter Council of California County Law Libraries County of Del Norte County of Glenn County of Santa Cruz Electronic Frontier Foundation, Inc. Elizabeth Ghaffari of Technology Place The Fund for Animals Gamma Design Glendale-La Crescenta Advocates Government Technology Magazine HIV/AIDS Information Bulletin Board System Home Office and Business Opportunities Association (Represent 750 members) Housing California Independent-Owner/Operators Bookkeeping Services InterNex Las Virgenes Municipal Water District The League of Women Voters of California Los Angeles County Law Library Los Angeles Women's Legislative Coalition Victor Miceli Law Library Northern California Association of Law Libraries PCC, Inc. (Non- profit šserving libraries and schools re technology) - Berkeley Palo Alto Working Group On Civil Liberties Serenity Guest House Sierra Club Snyder Research Company Solano County Taxpayers' Association South Bay Association of Chambers of Commerce William Streitfeld & Associates Sunnyside Computing Inc. Sweet Pea Communications' Computers, Freedom & Privacy Video Library Project Tiburon Fire Protection District University of California Western Center on Law and Poverty Westside Center šfor Independent Living, Inc. Wired Magazine World Institute on Disabilities Approximately 640 letters from individuals ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: Proponents claim that providing the public with šbasic legislative information would make the Legislature far more šaccessible and help bring the public back into the process of government. šAlso, state agencies, counties and cities all generally subscribe to one of šthe commercial legislative information delivery companies and would be able što save taxpayer dollars not to count the money that would be saved on špostage, faxes, and phone bills trying to access information on state šlegislation in progress. RR:jk 9/2/93 Senate Floor Analyses CONTINUED AB 1624 Page 5 CONTINUED