AB 2138, as amended, Gatto. Innovation awards.
Existing law authorizes the Department of Human Resources to make awards to current or retired state employees for proposing procedures or ideas that are adopted and put into effect and result in eliminating or reducing state expenditures or improving operations, or for making exceptional contributions to the efficiency, economy, or other improvement in the operations of state government.
This bill would require the Governor to designate 3 state agencies to participate in a pilot program in 2015 to award cash prizes to eligible participants in innovation contests. The bill would require each designated state agency to establish and administer an innovation contest, as prescribed, and, on or before January 1, 2016, award a prize of up to $25,000 to a participant the state agency determines to have submitted the entry that best addresses the subject of the contest, in accordance with standards established by the state agency, and has the highest likelihood of being adopted and placed in effect. The bill would appropriate $75,000 from the General Fund to the Governor for allocation to the designated state agencies for those awards. The bill would require, if the designated state agency deems that no participant has addressed the subject of the contest, or if it awards a prize of less than $25,000, that unawarded prize money revert to the General Fund.
Vote: 2⁄3. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Article 4.5 (commencing with Section 12045) is
2added to Chapter 1 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the 3Government Code, to read:
4
(a) The Governor shall designate three state agencies
8to participate in a pilot program to award cash prizes to participants
9in an innovation contest established by each designated agency
10pursuant to this article.
11(b) A sum in the amount of seventy-five thousand dollars
12($75,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the
13Governor, for allocation to three state agencies designated by the
14Governor in accordance with subdivision (a), for the award by
15each designated state agency of abegin delete twenty-five-thousand-dollar
prizebegin insert of up to twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000)end insert in
16($25,000)end delete
17the contests described in this article.
18(c) The innovation contests shall be open to all residents of
19California who are not employees of the state.
20(d) The innovation contests shall be held in 2015.
21(e) Each state agency designated by the Governor in accordance
22with subdivision (a) shall determine the specific subject of the
23innovation contest to be held by the agency, which may include
24proposals that detail a procedure, plan, design, or idea to contribute
25to the efficiency, economy, or other improvement in the operations
26of the state agency, including,
but not limited to, streamlining an
27existing process or system of the state agency or the design of a
28feedback system for the state agency.
29(f) Each designated state agency shall administer its innovation
30contest, including, but not limited to, publicizing the contest and
P3 1determining the standards for participation and award.begin delete Each
2designated state agency may adopt rules and regulations to carry
3out this article.end delete
4(g) On or before January 1, 2016, each designated state agency
5shall award a prize of up to twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000)
6to the participant the agency determines to have submitted the
7entry that best addresses the subject of the contest, in accordance
8with the standards established
by the agency, and has the highest
9likelihood of being adopted and placed in effect. If the designated
10state agency deems that no participant has addressed the subject
11of the contest in accordance with this subdivision, or if it awards
12a prize of less than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000),
13unawarded prize money shall revert to the General Fund.
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