BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SCA 17
Author: Steinberg (D)
Amended: 5/15/14
Vote: 27
SENATE ELECTIONS & CONST. AMEND. COMM. : 4-1, 5/6/14
AYES: Torres, Hancock, Jackson, Padilla
NOES: Anderson
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 5/23/14
AYES: De Le�n, Walters, Gaines, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
SUBJECT : Members of the Legislature: suspension
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill authorizes each house of the Legislature to
suspend a Member and deem the salary and benefits of that Member
to be forfeited for all or part of the period of the suspension.
ANALYSIS : Existing law provides, pursuant to the California
Constitution, that each house of the Legislature shall judge the
qualifications and elections of its Members and may expel a
Member by a vote of two-thirds of the membership of the house.
The Constitution further charges the California Citizens
Compensation Commission (Commission) with the responsibility to
establish the annual salary and benefits of all state officers,
and provides that the salary of an elected state officer may not
be reduced during his/her term of office.
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This bill:
1.Provides, upon voter approval, that each house may, by a vote
of two-thirds of its membership, suspend a Member and deem the
salary and benefits of the Member to be forfeited for all or
part of the period of the suspension. The motion or
resolution must contain findings and declarations setting
forth the basis for the suspension.
2.Prohibits a suspended Member from exercising any of the
rights, privileges, duties, or powers of his/her office, or
from utilizing any resources of the Legislature while the
suspension is in effect. If the motion or resolution imposing
the suspension does not specify the date upon which the
suspension ends, this bill requires a vote of two-thirds of
the membership of the house to remove the suspension.
Background
Censure, Expulsion and Other Disciplinary Actions in State
Legislatures . According to the National Association of State
Legislatures, the power to discipline and expel Members is
inherent to a legislative body. It originated with the English
Parliament in the sixteenth century, and it was exercised by
colonial legislatures prior to American independence.
The punishments that are usually within a legislature's
authority include withdrawal of privileges, fine, imprisonment,
reprimand, censure, suspension and expulsion. Formal
disciplinary procedures generally are regarded as a drastic step
reserved for serious situations. Most often, every effort is
made to obtain a satisfactory, but informal, solution to the
matter.
Although the power to judge Members is available to all
legislative bodies, many chambers do not specify the procedures
to investigate charges of misconduct. In addition, the actual
reasons for which a lawmaker may be disciplined often are vague
or not specified at all. Disorderly behavior or conduct, listed
by 37 states, is the most common basis for disciplinary action.
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State constitutions provide that each house, with the requisite
vote, may expel a Member; however, it is a very rare occurrence.
Only 17 chambers reported that they had ever taken this very
serious action.
Suspension of Senators Calderon, Wright and Yee . On March 28,
2014, the Senate approved, Senate Resolution 38 (Steinberg)
which read as follows:
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, a
majority of the membership concurring, That the Senate
hereby suspends Senator Ronald S. Calderon from exercising
any of the powers of his office as a Member of the Senate
until all criminal proceedings currently pending against
him have been dismissed; and be it further
Resolved, That the Senate hereby suspends Senator Roderick
D. Wright from exercising any of the powers of his office
as a Member of the Senate until all criminal proceedings
currently pending against him have been dismissed; and be
it further
Resolved, That the Senate hereby suspends Senator Leland
Y. Yee until all criminal proceedings currently pending
against him have been dismissed.
Legislative Counsel Opinion . The vote to suspend the three
Senators followed a February 25, 2014 opinion by the Legislative
Counsel confirming the Senate may suspend the authority of a
Senator to exercise the privileges of the office so long as the
suspension is for a fixed, limited period of time and the Senate
reasonably determines the suspension to be necessary to preserve
the honor, dignity, and efficiency of the Senate. However, the
opinion further stated that the Senate may not suspend the
salary or benefits of the Senator for the duration of the
suspension" given the Constitution authorizes the Commission
with the responsibility to establish the annual salary and
benefits of Members of the Legislature.
Comments
According to the author, "Under current law, the Senate and
Assembly may suspend the authority of its respective Members to
exercise the privileges of the office for a fixed, limited
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period of time that is reasonably necessary to preserve the
honor, dignity, and efficiency of the house. However, that
power is limited in that the body does not have the power to
suspend its Members without pay.
"As clearly laid out in an opinion of the Legislative Counsel, a
house of the Legislature may not suspend the salary or benefits
of the Senator for the duration of the suspension. The
Constitution vests the [?] Commission with the power to adjust
the salary and benefits of Members of the Legislature. In
addition, the Constitution provides that travel and living
expenses for Members must be prescribed by a statute passed by
two-thirds of the membership of each house. Finally, the
Constitution also provides that the salaries of elected state
officers may not be reduced during their term of office.
"When exercising its inherent and expressed authority to impose
a range of sanctions, each house of the Legislature should be
empowered to suspend its Members without pay should the
circumstances warrant such an action."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
One-time ballot printing/mailing costs of approximately
$275,000 - $550,000 (General Fund)
Potential salary savings of tens of thousands of dollars
depending on suspensions (General Fund)
The actual ballot costs may be higher or lower depending on the
length of the title, summary, text, Legislative Analysts Office
analysis, proponents and opponents arguments, as well as the
overall size of the ballot pamphlet. The cost per page in the
ballot pamphlet varies from $55,000 to $66,000. Larger ballots
generally result in less printing and mailing costs per page.
The average number of pages per measure since 2008 is ten and
the minimum per measure has been five pages.
This resolution may result in significant savings if a Member is
subsequently suspended and his/her salary and benefits are
forfeited. The current salary for a Member of the Legislature
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who is in a non-leadership position is $95,291. Per diem
payments average approximately $28,000 per year, while
forfeiting other benefits will generate additional savings of
several thousand dollars.
RM:d 5/23/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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