BILL ANALYSIS
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 579|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 579
Author: Huber (D)
Amended: 9/1/09 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORG. COMMITTEE : 9-0, 7/8/09
AYES: Wright, Harman, Benoit, Calderon, Denham, Florez,
Negrete McLeod, Price, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Oropeza, Padilla, Wiggins, Wyland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 13-0, 8/27/09
AYES: Kehoe, Cox, Corbett, Denham, Hancock, Leno, Oropeza,
Price, Runner, Walters, Wolk, Wyland, Yee
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-1, 6/2/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : State boards and commissions: audits
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires the Bureau of State Audits
(BSA) to annually, upon appropriation by the Legislature,
audit the workload of at least two boards or commissions
comprised of board members or commissioners to whom the
state pays an annual salary for their services. Requires
the BSA to make findings for each board or commission
audited regarding the workload of that board or commission
to work to fulfill his or her duties. Requires the BSA to
complete these audits and make these findings by December
31 of each year and to make them available to the
CONTINUED
AB 579
Page
2
Legislature and the Governor. Requires the BSA to audit
the workload of the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board by
December 31, 2010. Appropriates $125,000 for these
purposes.
ANALYSIS : Existing law provides for the salaries and
raises of various exempt state employees, including board
members and commissioners that receive an annual salary
from the state for their service on a state board or
commission.
This bill:
1. Requires the State Auditor, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, to annually audit the workload of at least
two boards and commissions to whom the state pays an
annual salary for the services of the members.
2. Provides that, for each state board or commission
audited, the State Auditor shall make findings regarding
the workload of that state board or commission and the
number of hours necessary for each board member or
commissioner to work to fulfill his/her duties to that
state board or commission.
3. Requires the State Auditor to complete the audits and
report its findings to the Legislature and the Governor
on or before December 31 of each year.
4. Requires the State Auditor to audit and make findings
regarding the workload of the Unemployment Insurance
Appeals Board (UIAB) by December 31, 2010.
5. Appropriates $125,000 from the Unemployment
Administration fund to the BSA for the purposes of
conducting the review and issuing the report.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
AB 579
Page
3
Major Provisions 2009-10 2010-11
2011-12 Fund
Workload audits $100 to $125
Special*
UIAB
Unknown, likely similar costs
ongoingGeneral/
in future years subject to
appropriation
SUPPORT : (Verified 9/1/09)
Service Employees International Union Local 1000
OPPOSITION : (Verified 9/1/09)
Department of Finance
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
"The state does not have a mechanism in place to examine
the work performed by individuals appointed to boards and
commissions to ensure that these salaried appointees are
paid salaries commensurate with their duties. To ensure
that state boards and commissions are neither performing
superfluous tasks nor providing excessive salaries with
taxpayer funds, the state must develop a process to provide
an independent, non-partisan assessment of their activities
and the salaries paid to appointees."
The Joint Legislative Sunset Review Committee (JLSRC)
reviews the mission and accomplishments of several state
consumer protection boards. The primary goal of the JLSRC
is to systematically examine and evaluate all boards and
commissions within the Department of Consumer Affairs to
ensure that they are effectively, efficiently, and
transparently administered in the public interest.
The scope of the work of the JLSRC is broader than the
requirements placed upon the State Auditor by this bill.
The rationale for the sunset review law is to place a
termination date on a particular program or agency, and in
the meantime, review it to determine if it is still
AB 579
Page
4
operating in an effective and efficient manner, and whether
it should continue to exist. This bill is narrowly focused
to examine the workload of state boards or commissions and
the number of hours of work necessary for each board member
or commissioner to fulfill his/her duties to the state
boards or commissions. The requirements of this bill could
be deemed as complementary to the work of the JLSRC.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : The Department of Finance is
opposed to this bill due to its General Fund costs.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Arambula, Beall, Tom Berryhill,
Blakeslee, Blumenfield, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles
Calderon, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De
La Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer,
Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines,
Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey,
Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries,
Jones, Knight, Krekorian, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal,
Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello,
Nielsen, John A. Perez, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino,
Price, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth,
Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres,
Torrico, Tran, Villines, Yamada, Bass
NOES: Anderson
NO VOTE RECORDED: Bill Berryhill, Block, Brownley, Duvall
TSM:mw 9/1/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****