Amended in Assembly March 28, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2221

Introduced by Assembly Member Campos

February 20, 2014

An act begin delete relating to housing. end delete begin insert to add Article 3.5 (commencing with Section 12217) to Chapter 3 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, relating to state government. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2221, as amended, Campos. begin delete Low-income housing. end delete begin insert Business Filing Coordination Council. end insert

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Existing law requires certain business entities, including, but not limited to, a corporation, a limited partnership, and a limited liability partnership, to make various business filings with the Secretary of State. Existing law authorizes the Secretary of State to promulgate regulations and rules related to business filings and to refuse a filing based on a reasonable belief that the filing is unlawful, false, or has a fraudulent purpose.

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This bill would establish, within the Secretary of State’s office, the Business Filing Coordination Council composed of 7 members, as specified. The bill would require the council to, among other things, provide businesses with additional points of contact for concerns or suggested innovations for improving the state business climate through streamlined business filings and annually report to the Governor and Legislature on the progress of meeting its requirements.

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Existing law states the intent of the Legislature to, among other things, promote the creation of affordable housing, if a demonstrated affordable housing need exists in the community, as described in the approved housing element or regional housing needs assessment.

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This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to require low-income housing to be sold to only low-income households.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

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The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

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(a) Filing business formation documents with the Secretary of
State is often the first official step that most new businesses take
when becoming a part of the California business community.

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(b) More than two million business documents of various kinds
are processed by the Secretary of State’s Business Programs
Division.

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(c) Efficient processing of business document filings is
instrumental to helping businesses efficiently establish within the
state.

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(d) Currently, the Secretary of State’s business document filing
process is manual, paper-based, and labor-intensive and many
paper copies kept on file are not duplicated, do not have a backup
system, and could easily be lost in an accident or disaster.

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(e) While some automated workflow improvements have been
made, the large majority of the 1.7 million business entities that
file annually with the Secretary of State are forced to interface
with antiquated processes.

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(f) To improve efficiency and security in document filing, the
Secretary of State has created the California Business Connect
Project.

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(g) The California Business Connect Project will benefit
businesses by doing all of the following:

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(1) Ensuring a more secure processing of payments.

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(2) Providing online help in completing forms.

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(3) Reducing the cost and time required to establish and
maintain a business.

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(4) Providing services 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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(5) Allowing users to see all filing activities related to a business
over the long term.

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(6) Processing business filings faster.

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(7) Helping businesses create jobs sooner.

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(8) Bringing revenue to the state sooner.

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(9) Reducing the use of paper.

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(10) Providing reliable online research of entities doing business
in California.

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(11) Providing online debtor information.

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(h) Due to the critical role played by businesses of all sizes in
supporting the state by stimulating job creation and expanding
the economy, there are numerous state agencies that assist in
business formation and development.

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(i) To ensure that California businesses receive the benefits
intended from the California Business Connect Project, the state
must facilitate coordination and cooperation between the Secretary
of State’s office and state agencies that serve the millions of
California businesses that file documents with the Secretary of
State.

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begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

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begin insert Article 3.5 (commencing with Section 12217) is added
to Chapter 3 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the end insert begin insert Government
Code end insert begin insert , to read: end insert

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Article begin insert 3.5. end insert   Business Filing Coordination Council

 

begin insert 12217. end insert   

(a) There is established, within the Secretary of State’s
office, the Business Filing Coordination Council.

(b) The Business Filing Coordination Council shall review and
collect data concerning the needs of businesses required to file
documents with the Secretary of State’s office. The council shall
support, maintain, and improve the efficiency of business filings
and provide businesses with additional points of contact for
concerns or suggested innovations for improving the state business
climate through streamlined business filings.

(c) On or before December 31 of each year, the Business Filing
Coordination Council shall report to the Governor and the
Legislature on the progress of meeting the requirements in
subdivision (b) in compliance with Section 9795. The report shall
be made available on the Internet Web site of the Secretary of
State.

begin insert 12217.10. end insert   

The council shall be composed of the following seven
members:

(a) The Commissioner of Business Oversight, or his or her
designee.

(b) The Director of Consumer Affairs, or his or her designee.

(c) The Secretary of State, or his or her designee.

(d) The Director of Technology, or his or her designee.

(e) One member appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules.

(f) One member appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.

(g) One member appointed by the Governor.

begin insert 12217.15. end insert   

Members of the Business Filing Coordination
Council shall serve without compensation, and state funds shall
not be used to compensate a member for his or her expenses.

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SECTION 1.  

It is the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation that would require low-income housing to be sold to
only low-income households.

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