BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS
AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Senator Lou Correa, Chair
BILL NO: SB 1426 HEARING DATE:
4/19/12
AUTHOR: BLAKESLEE ANALYSIS BY:
Darren Chesin
AMENDED: 4/9/12
FISCAL: YES
SUBJECT
Political Reform Act: gifts
DESCRIPTION
Existing law prohibits a lobbyist or lobbying firm from
making gifts aggregating more than $10 in a calendar month
to elected state officers, candidates for state office,
specified legislative officials, and specified officials of
other agencies.
Existing law also prohibits these same elected officers,
candidates, and officials from accepting gifts from any
single source in a calendar year with a total value of more
than $420, with certain limited exceptions. The Fair
Political Practices Commission (FPPC) is required to adjust
this gift limit on January 1 of each odd-numbered year to
reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index.
Existing law , for the purposes of the Political Reform Act
(PRA), defines "immediate family" as the spouse and
dependent children.
This bill would further prohibit a lobbyist, lobbying firm,
or lobbyist employer from giving to a person holding
elective state office or to a member of that officeholder's
immediate family, any of the following gifts:
Theme park or amusement park tickets.
Professional sporting event tickets.
A collegiate or other amateur sporting event ticket
with a face value exceeding $25.
Theater, concert, or other entertainment tickets with a
face value exceeding $25.
Racetrack tickets.
Spa treatments or other beauty or cosmetic services.
Golf, skiing, hunting or fishing trips, and other
recreational outings or vacations.
Gift cards.
This bill would also prohibit a person holding elective
state office or a member of that officeholder's immediate
family from accepting any of the aforementioned gifts from
lobbyists, lobbying firms, or lobbyist employers.
This bill would provide that these prohibitions would not
apply to a fundraising event for a bona fide charitable
organization.
BACKGROUND
What is a Gift ? Generally, a "gift" is defined as any
payment or other benefit provided to someone that confers a
personal benefit for which the recipient does not provide
goods or services of equal or greater value. A gift
includes a rebate or discount in the price of anything of
value unless the rebate or discount is made in the regular
course of business to members of the public.
COMMENTS
1. According to the author , despite rigid laws defining
what gifts can and cannot be given to an elected
official as well as well-defined gift limits, lobbyists,
lobbyist firms, and lobbyist employers continue to
lavish extraordinary gifts of influence on elected
officials with the intent to finance access to
legislators that is not available to other members of
the public. SB 1426 expressly prohibits the giving and
receiving of unnecessary entertainment gifts (as
defined) in order to reinstate the public's trust in
their elected representatives.
Legislators do not require gifts in order to do their
jobs. The public has provided legislators with per diem
payments to cover meals, office budgets that cover
legislative travel and annual salaries that provide
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ample resources to cover any legitimate expenses.
Legislators should not receive special treatment from
those with business before the Legislature.
2. A TV is OK but not a Ticket to a Game ? Under this
bill, it would still be legal for a lobbyist employer to
give a legislator a gift valued at $420 or less as long
as it is not delineated as specifically prohibited.
Hence, it would be permissible under this bill for a
lobbyist employer to give a legislator a $420
television, $420 worth of food or wine, or even $420 in
cash, but a $7 ticket to a Sacramento Rivercats baseball
game would be illegal. Is this equitable? What is more
important, the type of gift or the monetary value of the
gift?
3. FPPC to Define Terms . This bill uses several terms
that are not currently defined for purposes of the PRA
such as "theme park," "spa treatments," and "gift
cards." In light of this, it would fall on the FPPC to
define these terms through the regulatory process.
4. Related Legislation . SB 18 (Blakeslee) of 2011 which
was approved by this committee but died on the Senate
Appropriations Committee suspense file was almost
identical to this bill. AB 2368 (Blakeslee) of 2009,
which died in the Assembly Appropriations Committee, and
AB 1412 (Torrico) of 2009, which died on the Assembly
inactive file, both would have prohibited a lobbyist
employer from making gifts of $10 or more in a calendar
month to a member of the Legislature.
AB 2795 (Blakeslee) of 2008, which died in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee, would have extended gift
prohibitions to lobbyist employers, except that a
lobbyist employer would be permitted to provide food or
refreshments of a nominal value other than as part of a
meal. It would also have authorized a lobbyist employer
to give, and a state candidate, elected state officer,
legislative official, or agency official to receive, a
complimentary ticket to an event sponsored by the
lobbyist employer if the event met specified conditions.
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POSITIONS
Sponsor: Author
Support: California Common Cause
Oppose: None received
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