BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1223
Page 1
PROPOSED CONFERENCE REPORT NO. 1 - June 29, 2000
SB 1223 (Burton)
As Amended July 13, 1999
Majority vote
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|SENATE: | |(August 31, |ASSEMBLY: | |(August 26, |
| | |1999) | | |1999) |
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(vote not relevant) (vote not relevant)
SENATE CONFERENCE VOTE : 3-0 ASSEMBLY CONFERENCE VOTE :2-1
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|Ayes:|Burton, Murray, Johnson |Ayes:|Hertzberg, Shelley |
| | | | |
|-----+-------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | |Nays:|Ackerman |
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Original Committee Reference: E.R. & C.A.
SUMMARY : Enacts campaign finance reform by amending the
Political Reform Act of 1974 (PRA). Limits campaign
contributions to candidates for state office, provides for
voluntary spending limits, requires additional campaign
disclosure, modifies enforcement provisions, changes disposition
of surplus funds, repeals conflicting provisions of prior
propositions, and calls a special election to be consolidated
with the 2000 statewide general election. Specifically, the
conference committee amendments :
1)Define, for purposes of campaign contribution limitations:
a) "Small contributor committee" as a committee that has
been in existence at least six months, receives
contributions from 100 or more persons to a maximum of $200
per person per calendar year, and contributes to five or
more candidates;
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b) "Political party committee" as the state central
committee or county central committee of a political party
recognized under the Elections Code, and remove a political
party committee from the definition of a controlled
committee;
c) "Statewide elective office" as including the office of
Member of the State Board of Equalization, as well as the
office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General,
Insurance Commissioner, Controller, Secretary of State,
Treasurer, and Superintendent of Public Instruction; and,
d) Apply the existing definition of a "person" under the
PRA, which includes an individual, firm, partnership,
company, corporation, and other organization or group
acting in concert.
2)Impose campaign contribution limits, per election, including
special elections, except as specified:
a) To a candidate, other than Governor, by a person:
statewide, $5,000; legislative, $3,000;
b) To a candidate, other than Governor, by a small
contributor committee: statewide, $10,000; legislative,
$6,000;
c) To a candidate for Governor, by a person or small
contributor committee: $20,000;
d) To a committee by a person, for the purpose of making
contributions to candidates for state office: $5,000 per
calendar year;
e) To a political party committee, for the purpose of
making contributions for the support or defeat of
candidates for state office: $25,000 per calendar year;
f) To a political party committee by a person for purposes
other than making contributions to candidates for state
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office: no limits on contributions;
g) Personal loans by a candidate for state office to his or
her campaign: up to $100,000. The candidate may not
charge interest on any personal loan to his or her
campaign;
h) Personal funds contributed by a candidate to his or her
own campaign: no limits on contributions;
i) To a committee established by a state officer to oppose
a recall measure and recall election: no limits on
contributions;
j) To a candidate's or officeholder's legal compliance
account for the purpose of defraying legal costs in an
administrative, civil, or criminal proceeding arising from
an election campaign, the electoral process, or the
performance of governmental duties: no limits on
contributions;
aa) To a state officer or candidate for state office from a
lobbyist registered to lobby the governmental agency: no
contribution allowed;
bb) A candidate may accept a contribution for a state
election after the date of the election only to the extent
it does not exceed net debts outstanding from the election
and does not otherwise exceed the applicable contribution
limit for that election; and,
cc) Applicable contribution limits shall be adjusted in
January of every odd-numbered year to reflect changes in
the consumer price index.
3)Specify the following regulations on transfers of funds:
a) To a legislative candidate from another legislative
candidate: up to $3,000;
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b) To a candidate's own controlled committee from another
controlled committee of the same candidate, using a "last
in, first out" or "first in, first out" accounting method:
aggregate and attribute to a specific contributor up to the
applicable contribution limits;
c) To a political party committee by a state candidate for
purposes other than making contributions to candidates for
state office, such as voter registration, get-out-the-vote
activities, and slate mailers: no limits on transfers of
excess funds;
d) To a state officer or candidate for state office from an
entity whose contributions are directed and controlled by
any individual: all contributions made by that individual
and any other entity whose contributions are controlled by
that individual are aggregated;
e) Communications to members, employees, shareholders, or
their families to support or oppose a candidate or ballot
measure: payments are not treated as contributions or
independent expenditures if the payments are not for
general public advertisements; and,
f) Independent expenditures by a candidate's controlled
committee or transfers to another committee for the purpose
of making independent expenditures: none allowed.
4)Provide voluntary expenditure limits at a primary or special
primary election (P), or at a general or special runoff
election (G). A state candidate must file a statement of
acceptance or rejection at the time he or she files a
statement of intention to run for office:
a) Assembly: $400,000 (P); $700,000 (G);
b) Senate: $600,000 (P); $900,000 (G);
c) Board of Equalization: $1 million (P); $1.5 million
(G);
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d) Statewide: $4 million (P); $6 millioin (G); and,
e) Governor: $6 million (P); $10 million (G).
5)Provide incentives for acceptance of voluntary expenditure
ceilings and penalties for violations, as follows:
a) A candidate who accepts voluntary expenditure limits
will be so designated in the state ballot pamphlet, and may
pay for a 250-word statement to be included therein;
b) A candidate may file an acceptance for the general
election even though he or she declined the voluntary
spending limits for the primary election if his or her
primary election expenditures did not exceed the voluntary
limits;
c) A candidate is not bound by the voluntary spending
limits if an opponent contributes personal funds to his or
her own campaign in excess of the voluntary spending
limits;
d) Political party campaign expenditures on behalf of a
candidate do not count toward the candidate's voluntary
spending limits;
e) Restriction on the future elective office for which
campaign funds held on the effective date of this measure
may be used: no restriction;
f) Applicable voluntary spending limits shall be adjusted
in January of every odd-numbered year to reflect changes in
the consumer price index; and,
g) A candidate who exceeds the voluntary spending limits
after accepting them is subject to administrative fines and
other penalties under the PRA.
6)Make the following changes, among others, to enforcement
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provisions of the PRA:
a) Provides that the Fair Political Practices Commission
may impose administrative fines up to $5,000 per violation
of the PRA;
b) Requires a candidate or committee that receives a
"laundered" contribution to pay it over to the state
General Fund;
c) Reauthorizes administrative penalties on persons who aid
and abet a violation of the PRA if they have filing
obligations or are compensated for planning, organizing, or
directing any activity regulated under the PRA; and,
d) Clarifies the authority of the public prosecutor to
prosecute misdemeanor violations of the PRA.
7)Require additional campaign disclosures, as follows:
a) A candidate or ballot measure committee shall file
within 24 hours an online or electronic report disclosing
receipt of a contribution of $1,000 or more within 90 days
of an election;
b) A person shall file within 48 hours an online or
electronic report disclosing payment or promise of payment
totaling $50,000 or more for an ad that clearly identifies
a candidate for state office, but does not expressly
advocate election or defeat of the candidate, disseminated,
broadcast, or otherwise published within 45 days of an
election;
c) A committee shall file within 24 hours a report online
or electronically disclosing an independent expenditure of
$1,000 or more within 90 days of an election in connection
with a candidate for state office. Also, a committee's
independent expenditure report must disclose the reportable
contributions received and expenditures made by that
committee since it filed its last statement;
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d) An advertisement must disclose a payment of $5,000 or
more to a spokesperson who appears in the ad supporting or
opposing qualification, passage, or defeat of a ballot
measure; and,
e) A slate mailer that recommends a support or oppose
position that is different than the official position of
the political party the slate mailer appears to represent
must contain a specified disclaimer statement.
8)Require a candidate, upon leaving office or at the end of the
reporting period following the defeat of the candidate, to
manage surplus funds as follows:
a) Report surplus funds on campaign finance reports; and,
b) Use the surplus funds only to pay outstanding campaign
debts; repay contributions; make donations to bona fide
tax-exempt nonprofit organizations; contribute to a
political party committee for purposes other than support
or opposition of candiates, such as voter registration,
get-out-the-vote activities, and slate mailers; contribute
to federal candidates or any ballot measure; and pay for
professional services required by the committee to assist
in the performance of its administrative functions.
9)Repeal provisions of prior ballot measures (including
provisions of Proposition 73 of 1988 and Proposition 208 of
1996 invalidated by the courts) that conflict with this
measure's provisions, and makes other conforming changes to
the PRA.
10)Require that this measure be submitted to the voters at a
special statewide election held on the same date as, and
consolidated with, the November 7, 2000, statewide general
election.
11)Provide this bill takes effect immediately as an act calling
an election pursuant to the California Constitution.
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AS PASSED BY THE SENATE , this bill made nonsubstantive
grammatical changes to a provision of the PRA that prohibits the
use of public moneys for campaign purposes.
The Assembly amendments deleted the Senate version of this bill
and instead declared legislative intent to require a specified
notice to be printed on any slate mailer that recommends a
support or oppose position that is different from that of the
political party the slate mailer appears to represent.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : Proposition 208, the campaign finance reform
initiative adopted at the November 1996 statewide general
election, is currently enjoined from operation by order of the
Sacramento federal district court issued January 6, 1998. The
federal district court ruled that Proposition 208's contribution
limits were too restrictive to permit effective communication
with the voters, and thereby violated a candidate's First
Amendment political speech rights. Individual contributions to
legislative candidates were limited to $250 per election, or
$500 per election if a candidate accepted the voluntary
expenditure limits in Proposition 208.
The federal district court issued an injunction to permit appeal
of the ruling. However, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
remanded the case to the federal district court with directions
to make final determinations on the validity of the myriad
provisions of Proposition 208. The trial is scheduled to
reconvene in Sacramento on July 11, 2000.
This bill, if approved by the voters at the November 6, 2000,
statewide general election, will impose contribution limits and
voluntary expenditure ceilings. Individual contributions to
legislative candidates will be capped at $3,000 per election.
It will apply to legislative candidates on January 1, 2001, and
will apply to candidates for statewide office, including
Governor, on and after November 6, 2002.
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Analysis Prepared by : Romulo I. Lopez / E., R. & C. A. / (916)
319-2094
FN: 0005568