BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  AB 998
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   May 5, 2011

                            ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUDGET
                               Bob Blumenfield, Chair
                  AB 998 (Morrell) - As Amended:  February 18, 2011
           
          SUBJECT  :   State Budget

           SUMMARY  :   Requires that the budget and budget implementation 
          bills be in print for more than 72 hours before they can be 
          passed by the Legislature.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :   None.

           COMMENTS  :   This bill requires that the budget bill and all 
          budget implementations bills, as defined by Proposition 25, be 
          in print for 72 hours.  According to the author, this will 
          increase transparency and improved outcomes because the 
          Legislature will have sufficient time to review all budget 
          bills. 

          This bill could reduce the ability of the Legislature to meet 
          Constitutional deadlines for passing the budget on time.  
          Article IV, Section 12 of the California Constitution requires 
          the passage of the budget by midnight of June 15th.  Therefore, 
          the budget process allows only 32 days between the issuance of 
          the May Revision and the final passage of the budget to allow 
          for public hearings and the conference process to reconcile the 
          two legislative houses' versions of the budget.  This bill would 
          further shrink the 32 day window by setting aside three days for 
          the bills to be in print.    

          In the last five years, the budget bill itself has been in print 
          more than 72 hours prior to adoption on the floor four of the 
          five times.  The one exception was in 2010-11, when the budget 
          was adopted on October 7, 2010, which was the latest budget ever 
          adopted, and was passed 100 days after the budget deadline.    

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
           
          None on file.

           Opposition 








                                                                 AB 998
                                                                  Page  2

           
          None on file.
           

          Analysis Prepared by  :    Christian Griffith / BUDGET / (916) 
          319-2099