BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1007
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 22, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
Paul Fong, Chair
SB 1007 (Hancock) - As Amended: June 3, 2010
AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED
SENATE VOTE : 33-0
SUBJECT : Political Reform Act of 1974: retirement system
boards.
SUMMARY : Requires elected members of and candidates for the
Board of Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement
System (CalPERS) and the Teachers' Retirement Board of the State
Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) to file campaign reports
in generally the same manner and frequency as other candidates.
Makes existing contribution limits for other state offices
applicable to candidates for the CalSTRS board. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Defines the terms "elective office" and "elective state
office," for the purposes of the Political Reform Act (PRA),
to include members elected to the CalSTRS board.
2)Requires all candidates for CalPERS and CalSTRS boards, their
controlled committees, and committees primarily formed to
support or oppose those candidates to file campaign reports
generally in the same manner and frequency as other candidates
for state office.
3)Makes campaign contribution limits that currently apply to
candidates for the Legislature and candidates for the CalPERS
board applicable to candidates for the CalSTRS board.
4)Requires pre-election campaign statements that are filed in
connection with an election for CalPERS or CalSTRS board to be
filed pursuant to the following schedule:
a) For the period ending five days before the beginning of
the ballot period, as determined by the relevant board, a
statement shall be filed no later than two days before the
beginning of the ballot period.
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b) For the period ending five days before the deadline to
return ballots, as determined by the relevant board, a
statement shall be filed no later than two days before the
deadline to return ballots.
c) In the case of a runoff election, for the period ending
five days before the deadline to return runoff ballots, as
determined by the relevant board, a statement shall be
filed no later than two days before the deadline to return
runoff ballots.
5)Requires pre-election campaign statements from entities other
than general purpose committees that are required to be filed
two days before the deadline to return ballots or runoff
ballots to be filed by guaranteed overnight delivery service
or by personal delivery.
6)Requires the original and one copy of each campaign statement
filed in connection with an election for the CalPERS or
CalSTRS board to be filed with the Secretary of State (SOS),
and requires a copy of each such campaign statement to be
filed with the relevant board's office in Sacramento.
7)Permits the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) to
adopt regulations to tailor the reporting and disclosure
requirements for candidates for and committees involved in
campaigns for the CalPERS and CalSTRS boards consistent with
the purposes and provisions of the PRA.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires candidates for the CalPERS board to file campaign
statements with the SOS no later than two days before the
beginning of the ballot period, as determined by the board,
for the period ending five days before the beginning of the
ballot period, and no later than January 10, for the period
ending December 31.
2)Requires campaign statements for candidates for the CalPERS
board to contain an itemized report that is prepared on a form
prescribed by the FPPC, with the assistance of the CalPERS
board, that provides the information contained in other
campaign statements, to the extent that information is
relevant to a CalPERS board election.
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3)Requires the original of any campaign statement filed by a
candidate for CalPERS board to be filed with the SOS, with a
copy retained at the CalPERS board's office in Sacramento.
4)Prohibits any person from contributing more than $3,900 to any
candidate for CalPERS board. Prohibits a small contributor
committee from contributing more than $7,800 to any candidate
for CalPERS board. Requires these limits to be adjusted every
two years to reflect any increase or decrease in the Consumer
Price Index.
5)Creates the FPPC, and makes it responsible for the impartial,
effective administration and implementation of the PRA.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of the Bill : According to the author:
SB 1007 is a common sense bill that . . . would simply
require candidates for elected positions to the [CalPERS]
and [CalSTRS] boards to file periodic campaign reports in
generally the same manner as candidates for other state
offices.
If these candidates raise little or no money they will have
little, if any, filing obligations. However, some
candidates do raise significant contributions and other
independent committees have been formed to support them.
Even if the recent controversies surrounding these boards
had not come to light this bill would still be a good idea.
These boards manage public investment portfolios worth
billions of dollars.
The need for disclosure is obvious.
2)Technical Amendments : This bill proposes to amend provisions
of the PRA that were recently amended when the Governor signed
AB 1181 (Huber), Chapter 18, Statutes of 2010. To avoid
chaptering out the changes that were made by AB 1181,
committee staff recommends and the author has agreed to accept
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the following amendments:
Section 8 of the bill, amending Section 84215 of the Government
Code, is amended as follows:
84215. All candidates and elected officers and their controlled
committees, except as provided in subdivisions (d) and (e) and
(f) , shall file one copy of the campaign statements required
by Section 84200 with the elections official of the county in
which the candidate or elected official is domiciled, as
defined in subdivision (b) of Section 349 of the Elections
Code. In addition, campaign statements shall be filed at the
following places:
(a) Statewide elected officers and candidates for these
offices other than the Board of Equalization, Supreme Court
justices, their controlled committees, officers, including
members of the State Board of Equalization; Members of the
Legislature; Supreme Court justices, court of appeal justices,
and superior court judges; candidates for those offices and
their controlled committees; committees formed or existing
primarily to support or oppose these candidates, elected
officers, Supreme Court justices and judges , or statewide
measures, measures; or the qualification of state ballot
measures, measures; and all state general purpose committees
and filers not specified in subdivisions (b) to (f),
inclusive: (e), inclusive, shall file a campaign statement by
online or electronic means, as specified in Section 84605, and
shall file the original and one copy of the campaign statement
in paper format with the Secretary of State.
(1) The original and one copy with the Secretary of State.
(2) One copy with the Registrar-Recorder of Los Angeles
County.
(3) One copy with the Registrar of Voters of the City and
County of San Francisco.
(b) Members of the Legislature or Board of Equalization,
court of appeal justices, superior court judges, candidates
for those offices, their controlled committees, and committees
formed or existing primarily to support or oppose these
candidates or officeholders:
(1) The original and one copy with the Secretary of State.
(2) One copy with the elections official of the county with
the largest number of registered voters in the districts
affected.
(c) (b) Elected officers in jurisdictions other than
legislative districts, State Board of Equalization districts,
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or appellate court districts that contain parts of two or more
counties, candidates for these offices, their controlled
committees, and committees formed or existing primarily to
support or oppose candidates or local measures to be voted
upon in one of these jurisdictions shall file the original and
one copy with the elections official of the county with the
largest number of registered voters in the jurisdiction.
(d) (c) County elected officers, candidates for these
offices, their controlled committees, committees formed or
existing primarily to support or oppose candidates or local
measures to be voted upon in any number of jurisdictions
within one county, other than those specified in subdivision
(e) (d) , and county general purpose committees shall file the
original and one copy with the elections official of the
county.
(e) (d) City elected officers, candidates for city office,
their controlled committees, committees formed or existing
primarily to support or oppose candidates or local measures to
be voted upon in one city, and city general purpose committees
shall file the original and one copy with the clerk of the
city. These elected officers, candidates, and committees need
not city and are not required to file with the local elections
official of the county in which they are domiciled.
(f) (e) Elected members of the Board of Administration of the
Public Employees' Retirement System, elected members of the
Teachers' Retirement Board, candidates for these offices,
their controlled committees, and committees formed or existing
primarily to support or oppose these candidates or elected
members shall file the original and one copy with the
Secretary of State, and a copy shall be filed at the relevant
board's office in Sacramento. These elected officers,
candidates, and committees need not file with the elections
official of the county in which they are domiciled.
(g) (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section,
a committee, candidate, or elected officer is not required to
file more than the original and one copy, or one copy, of a
campaign statement with any one county elections official or
city clerk or with the Secretary of State.
(h) (g) If a committee is required to file campaign
statements required by Section 84200 or 84200.5 in places
designated in subdivisions (a) to (e) (d) , inclusive, it shall
continue to file these statements in those places, in addition
to any other places required by this title, until the end of
the calendar year.
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3)Current CalPERS Campaign Disclosure Requirements : Among other
provisions, SB 1753 (Schiff), Chapter 923, Statutes of 1998
required candidates for seats on the CalPERS governing board
who are elected by CalPERS members to file campaign
statements. Under the provisions of SB 1753, candidates for
the CalPERS board are required to file one pre-election
statement and one post-election statement disclosing
contributions received and expenditures made. SB 1753 also
included elective positions on the CalPERS board within the
PRA's definition of "elective office" and "elective state
office." As a result, when the voters approved Proposition 34
at the November 2000 election, which, among other provisions,
imposed contribution limits on candidates for elective state
office, those contribution limits were made applicable to
candidates for CalPERS board.
At the time the Legislature was considering SB 1753, the CalSTRS
board did not have member-elected representatives like the
CalPERS board did. As a result, the provisions of SB 1753
that required candidates for an elective seat on the CalPERS
board to file campaign statements were not made applicable to
the CalSTRS board, nor were CalSTRS board members included in
the PRA's definitions of "elective office" and "elective state
office."
In 2002, the Legislature approved and Governor Davis signed SB
1580 (Burton), Chapter 1049, Statutes of 2002, which provided
for three of the members of the CalSTRS board to be elected by
the members of CalSTRS. Although there have been two
elections for the CalSTRS board since that time, CalSTRS
indicates that it is not aware of any contributions being made
to or expenditures being made by or on behalf of any of the
candidates.
4)Arguments in Support : The sponsor of this bill, State
Controller John Chiang, writes:
Presently, candidates for the [CalSTRS] board have no
campaign filing requirement, and although state law does
require [CalPERS] board candidates to file campaign reports
preceding an election, they are only required to file one
final statement shortly afterwards. The [CalPERS]
candidate only has to re-file if he or she reactivates the
account for another campaign. If a candidate does not run
again, the final disposition of funds remaining will not be
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publicly disclosed and there is no final public accounting
of those funds. This measure would require elected
[CalPERS] and [CalSTRS] board members to file and maintain
campaign reports before and regularly after the election
has concluded, consistent with the practice of all other
state elected officials.
5)Political Reform Act of 1974 : California voters passed an
initiative, Proposition 9, in 1974 that created the FPPC and
codified significant restrictions and prohibitions on
candidates, officeholders and lobbyists. That initiative is
commonly known as the PRA. Amendments to the PRA that are not
submitted to the voters, such as those contained in this bill,
must further the purposes of the initiative and require a
two-thirds vote of both houses of the Legislature.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
State Controller John Chiang (sponsor)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees,
AFL-CIO
Association of California Water Agencies
California State Employees Association
California Taxpayers' Association
California Teachers Association
CalPERS
CALPIRG
CalSTRS
Fair Political Practices Commission
Secretary of State Debra Bowen
SEIU California
State Treasurer Bill Lockyer
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Ethan Jones / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094