AB 1728, as introduced, Garcia. Political Reform Act of 1974.
(1) The Political Reform Act of 1974 prohibits an officer of an agency from accepting, soliciting, or directing a contribution of more than $250 from any party, or his or her agent, or from any participant, or his or her agent, while a proceeding involving a license, permit, or other entitlement for use is pending before the agency and for 3 months following the date a final decision is rendered in the proceeding, if the officer knows or has reason to know that the participant has a financial interest, as defined. The act also requires an officer to disclose on the record a contribution of more than $250 from a party or participant received within the 12 months preceding a decision in a proceeding and would prohibit the official from making, participating in making, or otherwise using his or her official position to influence a decision in a proceeding in which the official knows or has reason to know that the party or participant has a financial interest in the decision.
The act defines an “agency,” for these purposes, to mean any state or local government agency, except certain entities, including local governmental agencies whose members are directly elected by the voters. The act defines a “participant,” for these purposes, as a person who is not a party but who actively supports or opposes a particular decision in a proceeding involving a license, permit, or other entitlement for use and who has a financial interest in the decision. The act defines a “license, permit, or other entitlement for use,” for these purposes, to include, among other things, all contracts except competitively bid, labor, or personal employment contracts.
This bill would revise the definition of “agency” to include a local government agency formed pursuant to provisions of the Water Code. The bill would revise the definition of “license, permit, or other entitlement for use” with respect to proceedings before a local government agency formed pursuant to the Water Code to apply to all contracts that are not competitively bid. The bill would deem the financial interests of a person who compensates a participant to actively support or oppose a particular decision in a proceeding on his or her behalf to also be a financial interest of the participant.
(2) Violations of the act are punishable as a misdemeanor. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill imposes a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
(3) The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act’s purposes upon a 2⁄3 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements.
This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.
Vote: 2⁄3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 84308 of the Government Code is
2amended to read:
(a) The definitions set forth in this subdivision shall
4govern the interpretation of this section.
5(1) “Party” means any person who files an application for, or
6is the subject of, a proceeding involving a license, permit, or other
7entitlement for use.
8(2) “Participant” means any person who is not a party but who
9actively supports or opposes a particular decision in a proceeding
P3 1involving a license, permit, or other entitlement for use and who
2has a financial interest in the decision, as described in Article 1
3(commencing with Section 87100) of Chapter 7. A person actively
4supports or opposes a particular decision in a proceeding if he or
5she lobbies in person
the officers or employees of the agency,
6testifies in person before the agency, or otherwise acts to influence
7officers of the agency.
8(3) “Agency” means an agency as defined in Section 82003
9except that it does not include the courts or any agency in the
10judicial branch of government, local governmental agencies whose
11members are directly elected by the votersbegin insert except local government
12agencies formed pursuant to provisions of the Water Codeend insert, the
13Legislature, the Board of Equalization, or constitutional officers.
14However, this section applies to any person who is a member of
15an exempted agency but is acting as a voting member of another
16agency.
17(4) “Officer” means any elected or appointed officer of an
18agency, any alternate to an elected or appointed officer of an
19agency, and
any candidate for elective office in an agency.
20(5) “License, permit, or other entitlement for use” means all
21business, professional, trade and land use licenses and permits and
22all other entitlements for use, including all entitlements for land
23use, all contracts (other than competitively bid, labor, or personal
24employment contracts), and all franchises.begin insert For purposes of
25proceedings before an agency formed pursuant to provisions of
26the Water Code, “license, permit, or other entitlement for use”
27applies to all contracts except contracts that are competitively bid.end insert
28(6) “Contribution” includes contributions to candidates and
29committees in federal, state, or local elections.
30(b) No officer of an agency shall
accept, solicit, or direct a
31contribution of more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250) from
32any party, or his or her agent, or from any participant, or his or her
33agent, while a proceeding involving a license, permit, or other
34entitlement for use is pending before the agency and for three
35months following the date a final decision is rendered in the
36proceeding if the officer knows or has reason to know that the
37participant has a financial interest, as that term is used in Article
381 (commencing with Section 87100) of Chapter 7. This prohibition
39shall apply regardless of whether the officer accepts, solicits, or
40directs the contribution for himself or herself, or on behalf of any
P4 1other officer, or on behalf of any candidate for office or on behalf
2of any committee.
3(c) Prior to rendering any decision in a proceeding involving a
4license, permit or other entitlement for use pending before an
5agency, each officer of the agency who received a
contribution
6within the preceding 12 months in an amount of more than two
7hundred fifty dollars ($250) from a party or from any participant
8shall disclose that fact on the record of the proceeding. No officer
9of an agency shall make, participate in making, or in any way
10attempt to use his or her official position to influence the decision
11in a proceeding involving a license, permit, or other entitlement
12for use pending before the agency if the officer has willfully or
13knowingly received a contribution in an amount of more than two
14hundred fifty dollars ($250) within the preceding 12 months from
15a party or his or her agent, or from any participant, or his or her
16agent if the officer knows or has reason to know that the participant
17has a financial interest in the decision, as that term is described
18with respect to public officials in Article 1 (commencing with
19Section 87100) of Chapter 7.
20If an officer receives a contribution which would otherwise
21require
disqualification under this section, returns the contribution
22within 30 days from the time he or she knows, or should have
23known, about the contribution and the proceeding involving a
24license, permit, or other entitlement for use, he or she shall be
25permitted to participate in the proceeding.
26(d) A party to a proceeding before an agency involving a license,
27permit, or other entitlement for use shall disclose on the record of
28the proceeding any contribution in an amount of more than two
29hundred fifty dollars ($250) made within the preceding 12 months
30by the party, or his or her agent, to any officer of the agency. No
31party, or his or her agent, to a proceeding involving a license,
32permit, or other entitlement for use pending before any agency
33and no participant, or his or her agent, in the proceeding shall make
34a contribution of more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250) to
35any officer of that agency during the proceeding and for three
36months
following the date a final decision is rendered by the
37agency in the proceeding. When a closed corporation is a party to,
38or a participant in, a proceeding involving a license, permit, or
39other entitlement for use pending before an agency, the majority
P5 1shareholder is subject to the disclosure and prohibition
2requirements specified in subdivisions (b), (c), and this subdivision.
3 (e) For purposes of this section, a financial interest as
4described, with respect to public officials, in Article 1(commencing
5with Section 87100) of Chapter 7 of a person on whose behalf a
6participant receives compensation to actively support or oppose
7a particular decision in a proceeding is deemed to be a financial
8interest of the participant.
9(e)
end delete
10begin insert(f)end insert Nothing in this section shall be construed to imply that any
11contribution subject to being reported under this title shall not be
12so reported.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
14Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
15the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
16district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
17infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
18for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
19the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
20the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
21Constitution.
The Legislature finds and declares that this bill furthers
23the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within the
24meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government
25Code.
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