BILL NUMBER: AB 1024 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 14, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Harkey
FEBRUARY 27, 2009
An act to amend Section 6254.8 of the Government Code,
relating to public records. An act to amend Sections
9074 and 9075 of, and to add Section 9929 to, the Government Code,
and to amend Section 10295 of the Public Contract Code, relating to
the Legislature.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1024, as amended, Harkey. Public records.
Legislature.
(1) The Legislative Open Records Act requires that a legislative
record, as defined, be open to public inspection unless the record is
exempt from disclosure under the act. The act provides that
specified legislative committees are the custodians of all
legislative records and requires that requests to inspect legislative
records be submitted to the appropriate committee. Under the act,
the custodian committee is required, upon receiving a request, to
either produce the requested legislative record or justify in writing
the withholding of the record by demonstrating that the record is
exempt from disclosure under the act. The act exempts from
disclosure, among other records, preliminary drafts, notes, and
legislative memoranda, and correspondence of and to individual
Members of the Legislature and their staff.
This bill would require the custodian committee that has received
a request for a legislative record to search both the committee files
and the individual Member files related to the request and to attest
to having done so when responding to the request. This bill would
further provide that demonstrating that a legislative record is
exempt from disclosure means articulating the exemption claimed and
describing the general nature of the record withheld from inspection
pursuant to that exemption. In addition, this bill would provide that
the exemption for legislative memoranda applies only to preliminary
legislative memoranda, and the exemption for correspondence applies
only to correspondence between individual Members of the Legislature
and their staff.
(2) Existing law requires that all meetings, as defined, of a
house of the Legislature or a committee thereof be open and public
and that all persons be permitted to attend.
This bill would provide that each Member of the Legislature who
attends a meeting of the Assembly, the Senate, or any committee or
subcommittee thereof in violation of the requirement that the meeting
be open and public, with knowledge of the fact that the requirement
was violated, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(3) Existing law provides that all contracts entered into by any
state agency for specified purposes are void unless and until
approved by the Department of General Services. Specified contracts
are exempt from this requirement, including any contract let by the
Legislature.
This bill would instead provide that a contract let by the
Legislature is exempt from the requirement that it be approved by the
Department of General Services only in the case of an emergency
where the contract is necessary for the immediate preservation of the
public health, welfare, or safety, or protection of state property,
or if the total amount payable under the contract is less than
$50,000.
The California Public Records Act requires state and local
agencies to make their records available for public inspection, and,
upon the request of any person, to provide a copy of any public
record unless the record is exempt from public disclosure. The act
specifies that public employment contracts are public records that
are subject to disclosure.
This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to this
provision.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 9074 of the
Government Code is amended to read:
9074. All requests to inspect any legislative record shall be
made to the appropriate Rules Committee of each house of the
Legislature or the Joint Rules Committee, except that all requests to
inspect any legislative record in the possession of the Auditor
General shall be made to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee.
Such These committees shall be
considered to have custody of all legislative records and shall be
responsible for making all legislative records available for
inspection. Such These committees shall
search both the committee files and the individual Member files
related to the request made and shall attest to having done so when
responding to the request. These committees shall
promptly inform any person whether any legislative record shall be
made available for inspection. Such legislative records shall be made
available for inspection promptly and without unnecessary delay.
Whenever such committee withholds any legislative record from
inspection, within four working days of the request to inspect such
record, the committee shall justify in writing the withholding of
such record by demonstrating that the record in question is exempt
under the express provisions of this article or that on the facts of
the particular case the public interest served by not making the
record public clearly outweighs the public interest served by
disclosure of the record, provided that when the Legislature is not
in session, such committee shall furnish such written justification
within 10 working days of the request to inspect such record. The
Rules Committee of each house, the Joint Rules Committee, and the
Joint Legislative Audit Committee shall adopt written guidelines
stating the procedures to be followed when making legislative records
available for inspection. For purposes of this section,
"demonstrating" means articulating the exe mption claimed
and describing the general nature of the legislative record withheld
from inspection pursuant to that exemption.
The amendment of this section made at the 1981-82 Regular Session
of the Legislature does not constitute a change in, but is
declaratory of, the existing law.
SEC. 2. Section 9075 of the Government
Code is amended to read:
9075. Nothing in this article shall be construed to invalidate or
affect the operation of Sections 10207, 10208, 10525, and 10526 of
this code, or Temporary Joint Rule 37 of the Senate and Assembly in
effect on the effective date of this article, or to require the
disclosure of records that are any of the following:
(a) Preliminary drafts, notes, or preliminary
legislative memoranda, except as provided in Section 9080.
(b) Records pertaining to pending litigation to which the
Legislature is a party, or to claims made pursuant to Division 3.6
(commencing with Section 810) of Title 1, until the litigation or
claim has been finally adjudicated or otherwise settled.
(c) Personnel, medical, or similar files, the disclosure of which
would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy,
provided that the Senate Committee on Rules, the Assembly Committee
on Rules, or the Joint Rules Committee shall determine whether
disclosure of these records constitutes an unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy.
(d) Records pertaining to the names and phone numbers of senders
and recipients of telephone and telegraph communications, provided
that records of the total charges for any such communication shall be
open for inspection.
(e) Records pertaining to the name and location of recipients of
automotive fuel or lubricants expenditures, provided that records of
the total charges for those expenditures shall be open for
inspection.
(f) In the custody of or maintained by the Legislative Counsel,
except those records in the public data base maintained by the
Legislative Counsel that are described in Section 10248. Legislative
records shall not be transferred to the custody of the Legislative
Counsel to evade the disclosure provisions of this chapter.
(g) In the custody of or maintained by the majority and minority
caucuses and majority and minority consultants of each house of the
Legislature, provided that legislative records shall not be
transferred to the custody of the majority and minority caucuses and
majority and minority consultants of each house of the Legislature to
evade the disclosure provisions of this chapter.
(h) Correspondence of and to between
individual Members of the Legislature and their staff, except as
provided in Section 9080.
(i) Records the disclosure of which is exempted or prohibited
pursuant to provisions of federal or state law, including, but not
limited to, provisions of the Evidence Code relating to privilege.
(j) Communications from private citizens to the Legislature,
except as provided in Section 9080.
(k) Records of complaints to or investigations conducted by, or
records of security procedures of, the Legislature.
SEC. 3. Section 9929 is added to the
Government Code , to read:
9929. Each Member of the Legislature who attends a meeting of the
Assembly, the Senate, or any committee or subcommittee thereof,
where action is taken in violation of Section 9027, with knowledge of
the fact that the meeting is in violation thereof, is guilty of a
misdemeanor.
SEC. 4. Section 10295 of the Public
Contract Code is amended to read:
10295. (a) All contracts entered into by any state agency for (1)
the acquisition of goods or elementary school textbooks, (2)
services, whether or not the services involve the furnishing or use
of goods or are performed by an independent contractor, (3) the
construction, alteration, improvement, repair, or maintenance of
property, real or personal, or (4) the performance of work or
services by the state agency for or in cooperation with any person,
or public body, are void unless and until approved by the department.
Every contract shall be transmitted with all papers, estimates, and
recommendations concerning it to the department and, if approved by
the department, shall be effective from the date of the approval.
(b) This section applies to any state agency that by general or
specific statute is expressly or impliedly authorized to enter into
transactions referred to in this section.
(c) This section does not apply to the following:
(1) Any transaction entered into by the Trustees of the California
State University, by the Board of Governors of the California
Community Colleges, or by a department under the State Contract Act
or the California State University Contract Law.
(2) Any contract of a type specifically mentioned and authorized
to be entered into by the Department of Transportation under Section
14035 or 14035.5 of the Government Code, Sections 99316 to 99319,
inclusive, of the Public Utilities Code, or the Streets and Highways
Code.
(3) Any contract entered into by the Department of Transportation
that is not funded by money derived by state tax sources but, rather,
is funded by money derived from federal or local tax sources.
(4) Any contract entered into by the Department of Personnel
Administration for state employee benefits, occupational health and
safety, training services, or combination thereof.
(5) Any contract let by the Legislature .
under either of the following circumstances:
(A) In the case of an emergency where the contract is necessary
for the immediate preservation of the public health, welfare, or
safety, or protection of state property.
(B) The total amount payable under the contract is less than fifty
thousand dollars ($50,000). A single transaction shall not be
divided into multiple contracts for the purpose of evading the
requirement of approval by the department.
(6) Any contract entered into under the authority of Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 11770) of Part 3 of Division 2 of the
Insurance Code.
SECTION 1. Section 6254.8 of the Government
Code is amended to read:
6254.8. Every employment contract between a state or local agency
and any public official or public employee is a public record that
is not subject to the provisions of Sections 6254 and 6255.