SCA 19 — A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by amending Sections 8 and 9 of Article II thereof, by amending Sections 8, 10, and 12 of Article IV thereof, by amending Sections 24 and 25.5 of Article XIII thereof, by amending Section 3 of Article XIIIA thereof, by adding Section 17 to Article XI thereof, by adding Section 21 to Article XVI thereof, and by adding Section 3.5 to Article XVIII thereof, relating to state and local finance.

Summary

(1) Under the existing California Constitution, the initiative is the power of the electors to propose statutes and amendments to the state constitution and to adopt or reject them. This measure would require that an initiative measure that would result in a net increase in state or local government costs, other than costs attributable to the issuance, sale, or repayment of bonds authorized by the measure, as jointly determined by the Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance, may not be submitted to the electors or have any effect unless and until the Legislative Analyst and the Director of Finance jointly determine that the initiative measure provides for additional revenues in an amount that meets or exceeds the net increase in costs. The California Constitution generally vests the legislative power of the state in California State Legislature. This measure would make void a statute that would result either in a net increase in qualified state costs or a net decrease in state revenue in excess of $25,000,000 annually, as defined by statute and as adjusted for inflation, unless the statute also contains provisions that would result in state program reductions or additional state revenue as defined by statute in an amount that is equal to or greater than the net increase in qualified state costs or net decrease in state revenue subject to exceptions for the Budget Act, and statutes required to fund increased costs for education as required by the Constitution. The California Constitution provides that the Legislature may propose to the electors both amendments and revisions to the California Constitution, and may enact statutes by passing bills. This measure would prohibit a constitutional amendment or revision from being submitted to the electors or having any effect if that measure would create a new state program or agency or expand the scope of an existing state program or agency and cause either a net increase in state costs or a net decrease in state revenues in excess of $25,000,000 annually, as adjusted for inflation, unless the measure identifies additional revenue in an amount that is equal to or greater than the increased costs or decrease in revenue. (2) Existing provisions of the California Constitution provide that if, following the enactment of a Budget Bill, the Governor determines that, for the fiscal year addressed by the Budget Bill, General Fund revenues will decline substantially below the estimate of General Fund revenues upon which the Budget Bill was based, or General Fund expenditures will increase substantially above that estimate of General Fund revenues, or both, the Governor may issue a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency and cause the Legislature to assemble in special session. If the Legislature fails to pass and send to the Governor a bill or bills to address the fiscal emergency by the 45th day following the issuance of the proclamation, the Legislature may not act on any other bill or adjourn for joint recess, until a bill or bills addressing the fiscal emergency has been passed and sent to the Governor. This measure additionally would provide that, if the Legislature has not passed and sent to the Governor a bill or bills addressing a fiscal emergency by the 45th day following the proclamation declaring the emergency, the Governor may, by executive order, reduce or eliminate any unexpended appropriation in the Budget Act for the fiscal year that is not required by the California Constitution or federal law, in an amount not exceeding the amount of the budget discrepancy identified by the Governor. The measure would authorize the Legislature to override those actions of the Governor by a 23 vote of the membership of each house. (3) The California Constitution requires the Governor to submit to the Legislature by January 10 of each year a budget for the ensuing fiscal year, accompanied by a Budget Bill itemizing recommended expenditures. The Legislature is required to pass the Budget Bill by June 15. The Constitution requires that specified bills, including bills making a change in state taxes for the purpose of raising revenue, bills containing an urgency clause, and bills, including the Budget Bill, that make certain appropriations from the General Fund, be passed in each house of the Legislature by a 23 vote. This measure would require the Governor to submit to the Legislature by January 10 of each year a budget for the ensuing fiscal year, known as the budget year, and for the succeeding fiscal year. The measure would require the budget to contain specified information, including performance measurement standards for state agencies and programs, and a projection for anticipated state revenues. The Governor would be required to include in the budget an estimate of the amount of state funds available for the proposed expenditures, and to include revenue and expenditure projections for 3 additional fiscal years. The Governor also would be required to provide a 5-year capital infrastructure and strategic growth plan as specified by statute. If the Governor proposes to create a new state program or agency, or to expand the scope of an existing state program or agency, which would increase state costs during the budget year or the succeeding fiscal year, or proposes to reduce a state tax the effect of which would reduce state revenue in the budget year or the succeeding fiscal year, the measure would require the Governor to identify state program reductions or additional revenues that is equal to or greater than the increase in costs or decrease in revenue. Under the measure, the Governor additionally would be required to provide the Legislature with updated projections of state revenue and expenditures for the budget and succeeding fiscal years at specified times during the budget process. This measure would require that each house of the Legislature, on or before May 1 of each year, refer the Budget Bill and bills implementing the Budget Bill to a joint committee of the Legislature, which must report recommendations to each house by June 20. This measure would require the Legislature, by June 25, to pass and present to the Governor the Budget Bill. The measure also would provide that, if a Budget Bill is not passed and presented to the Governor by June 25, Members of the Legislature would forfeit any salary and travel and living expenses from that date until the date the Budget Bill is passed and presented to the Governor. The measure also would limit the use of unanticipated revenues, as defined pursuant to annual determinations made by the Director of Finance, for specified purposes. Appropriations in a Budget Bill, as defined, would be exempted from the 23-vote requirement that applies to appropriations from the General Fund. A Budget Bill, and any budget implementation bills, would go into effect immediately upon their enactment. Under the existing California Constitution, the referendum is the power of the electors to approve or reject statutes except urgency statutes, statutes calling elections, and statutes providing for tax levies or appropriations for usual current expenses of the state. This measure would expressly include statutes enacting the Budget Bill among those exceptions to the power of referendum. (4) The existing California Constitution requires the approval of 23 of the membership of each house of the Legislature to pass a bill that would make a change in state taxes for the purposes of increasing revenues derived from those taxes. This measure would further require that a bill imposing a fee that would fund a program, service, or activity previously funded by a tax, which was either repealed or reduced in the same fiscal year or a prior fiscal year, be passed by a 23 vote of both legislative houses. (5) The California Constitution authorizes the existence of local governments that can make and enforce ordinances and regulations that are not in conflict with general laws. The California Constitution also requires that general ad valorem property revenues be allocated to local jurisdictions in each county in the manner as provided in statute. This measure would authorize local government agencies, in the manner provided for by statute, to adopt and implement a Countywide Strategic Action Plan, and, upon adoption of the plan in a county, would authorize the county board of supervisors to place on the ballot a measure to impose an additional countywide sales and use tax, the revenues of which would be distributed as provided pursuant to statute and the Countywide Strategic Action Plan. This measure would prohibit the state from reallocating the proceeds of a non-ad valorem tax that is imposed by a local government agency, would specify that general ad valorem property tax revenues are required to be allocated to jurisdictions in the county in which those revenues are collected, and would prohibit the direction by statute of the expenditure of those revenues for any specific purpose or purposes. (6) The California Constitution prohibits the Legislature from modifying the manner in which ad valorem property tax revenues are allocated by law so as to reduce, for any fiscal year, the percentage of the total amount of property tax revenues in a county that is allocated among all of the local agencies in that county below the percentage of the total amount of those revenues that would be allocated among those agencies for the same fiscal year under the statutes in effect on November 3, 2004. This prohibition may be suspended for a fiscal year under specified conditions. This measure would limit the suspension authority to the 2009–10 fiscal year. The measure would, except for specified purposes, also prohibit the Legislature from reallocating or directing the expenditure of property tax revenues that are allocated to a community redevelopment agency under constitutional provisions that authorize the expenditure by the agency of incremental property tax revenues in a redevelopment project area. (7) This measure provides that it would become operative on January 1, 2011.

Bill Text

• Amended 04/08/10 - Amended Senate Current pdf April 08, 2010
• Amended 03/18/10 - Amended Senate pdf March 18, 2010
• Introduced 04/13/09 - Introduced pdf April 13, 2009
• SCA19 View text html

Action History

1. November 30, 2010

   From committee without further action.

2. April 22, 2010

   Hearing postponed by committee.

3. April 16, 2010

   Set for hearing April 26.

4. April 12, 2010

   Set, first hearing. Testimony taken. Further hearing to be set.

5. April 08, 2010

   From committee with author's amendments. Read second time. Amended. Re-referred to Com. on B. & F.R.

6. March 26, 2010

   Set for hearing April 12.

7. March 25, 2010

   Re-referred to Coms. on B. & F.R. and RLS.

8. March 18, 2010

   From committee with author's amendments. Read second time. Amended. Re-referred to Com. on RLS.

9. March 10, 2010

   Re-referred to Com. on RLS.

10. September 01, 2009

    Read second time. To third reading.

11. August 31, 2009

    (Received by Desk on August 28 pursuant to Joint Rule 61(a)(11).)

12. August 31, 2009

    From committee: Be adopted. (Ayes 8. Noes 5. Page 2080.)

13. August 25, 2009

    (Suspense - vote only.)

14. August 25, 2009

    Set for hearing August 27.

15. July 23, 2009

    Placed on APPR suspense file.

16. July 23, 2009

    Set for hearing July 23.

17. July 23, 2009

    Joint Rule 62(a) file notice suspended.

18. July 15, 2009

    Set for hearing July 20.

19. July 08, 2009

    From committee: Be adopted, but first be re-referred to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 3. Noes 2. Page 1632.) Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

20. June 19, 2009

    Set for hearing July 7.

21. May 14, 2009

    To Com. on E., R., & C.A.

22. April 14, 2009

    From print. May be acted upon on or after May 14.

23. April 13, 2009

    Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

Sponsors

• DeSaulnier · Primary
• Steinberg · Cosponsor

Votes

Subjects