California 2013-2014 Regular Session Status: To Executive

SB 831 — Political Reform Act of 1974.

Last action — Consideration of Governors veto died on file.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed Senate
  4. ✓
    Passed Assembly
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2013-2014 Regular Session. It reached “To Executive” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there are no live odds of enactment. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

(1) The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing and related matters, including the reporting of campaign contributions, as defined. Under existing law, a payment made at the behest of a candidate for elective office is considered a contribution unless the payment is made for purposes unrelated to the candidate's candidacy, and a payment is presumed to be unrelated to a candidate's candidacy if it is made principally for legislative, governmental, or charitable purposes. The bill would prohibit an elected officer from requesting that a payment be made, or a person from making a payment, at the behest of the elected officer to a nonprofit organization that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c) (4) of the Internal Revenue Code and that the elected officer knows or has reason to know is owned or controlled by that officer or specified family members of the officer, except as specified. The bill would provide that an elected officer is deemed to have complied with that requirement if the Commission determines that the elected officer has made a reasonable effort to ascertain whether a nonprofit organization is owned or controlled by any of the specified persons. (2) The act prohibits specified officers from receiving gifts, as defined, in excess of $440 in value from a single source in a calendar year. The act exempts gift payments for the actual costs of specified types of travel that are reasonably related to a legislative or governmental purpose, or to an issue of state, national, or international public policy, from the annual limit on the value of gifts from a single source. This bill would require a nonprofit organization that pays for these types of travel for an elected state officer or local elected officeholder to disclose the names of donors responsible for funding the payments, as specified. The bill would require a person who receives a gift of a travel payment to report the travel destination on his or her statement of economic interests. (3) The act requires that contributions deposited into a campaign account be held in trust for expenses associated with the election of the candidate or for expenses associated with holding office. The act provides that an expenditure to seek office is within the lawful execution of this trust if it is reasonably related to a political purpose and an expenditure associated with holding office is within the lawful execution of this trust if it is reasonably related to a legislative or governmental purpose. Expenditures that confer a substantial personal benefit must be directly related to a political, legislative, or governmental purpose. The act authorizes the use of campaign funds to make donations or loans to bona fide charitable, educational, civic, religious, or similar tax-exempt nonprofit organizations. The act imposes additional limitations on certain expenditures, including those relating to automotive expenses, travel expenses, tickets for entertainment or sporting events, personal gifts, and real property expenses. The bill would prohibit an elected officer or a committee controlled by the elected officer from making an expenditure of campaign funds to a nonprofit organization that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c) (4) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is owned or controlled by the officer or specified family members of the officer, as specified. This bill would also limit the expenditure of campaign funds for other purposes, as specified, including personal vacations, payments for membership dues for a country club, health club, or other recreational facility, specified tuition payments, utility payments, vehicle use that is not directly related to an election campaign, and certain gifts for specified family members of a candidate, elected officer, or other individuals with the authority to approve the expenditure of campaign funds held by a committee. (4) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 89513 of the Government Code, proposed by AB 1666 and AB 1692, that would become operative only if this bill and either or both of those bills are chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2015, and this bill is chaptered last. (5) A violation of the act's provisions is punishable as a misdemeanor. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would impose 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. (6) 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 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Consideration of Governors veto died on file.

  2. In Senate. Consideration of Governor's veto pending.

  3. Vetoed by the Governor.

  4. Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 11 a.m.

  5. Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 35. Noes 1. Page 5018.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.

  6. In Senate.

  7. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 77. Noes 0. Page 6755.) Ordered to the Senate.

  8. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  9. Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

  10. From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 17. Noes 0.) (August 14).

  11. Joint Rule 62(a) file notice suspended. (Page 5998.)

  12. Placed on APPR. suspense file.

  13. Set, second hearing.

  14. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  15. Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.

  16. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  17. From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (June 24).

  18. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on E. & R.

  19. Referred to Com. on E. & R.

  20. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.

  21. Read third time. Urgency clause adopted. Passed. (Ayes 35. Noes 1. Page 3783.) Ordered to the Assembly.

  22. Read second time and amended. Ordered to third reading.

  23. From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 7. Noes 0. Page 3703.) (May 23).

  24. Set for hearing May 23.

  25. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  26. Placed on APPR. suspense file.

  27. Set for hearing May 5.

  28. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 4. Noes 1. Page 3233.) (April 22). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  29. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on E. & C.A.

  30. Set for hearing April 22.

  31. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on E. & C.A.

  32. Referred to Com. on E. & C.A.

  33. From printer. May be acted upon on or after February 6.

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

Sponsors

  • Beall · Cosponsor
  • Garcia · Cosponsor
  • Hill · Primary
  • Levine · Cosponsor

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

1 sponsors · 3 co-sponsors · 118 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

  • Hill

Co-sponsors (3)

  • Beall
  • Garcia
  • Levine

Not signed on (118)

118 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 118 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

W/O REF. TO FILE SB831 Hill Concurrence

Passed 35 Yea · 1 Nay · 4 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 33103
Democratic 2001
Total 35104
% of votes cast 88%3%0%10%
How each member voted (40)
Member Party Vote
Beall — Yea
Block — Yea
Hernandez — Yea
Huff — Yea
Lara — Yea
Steinberg — Yea
Wyland — Yea
Evans — Yea
Wright — Not Voting
Fuller — Yea
Cannella — Yea
Galgiani — Yea
Hancock — Yea
Mitchell — Yea
De León — Yea
Hill — Yea
Hueso — Yea
Corbett — Yea
Anderson — Nay
Correa — Yea
Knight — Yea
Leno — Yea
Lieu — Yea
Liu — Yea
Monning — Yea
Morrell — Yea
Nielsen — Yea
Pavley — Yea
Roth — Yea
Torres — Yea
Vidak — Yea
Walters — Yea
Wolk — Not Voting
DeSaulnier — Yea
Yee — Not Voting
Beth Gaines — Yea
Bill Berryhill — Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Not Voting
Jackson, Corey A. Democratic Yea
Padilla, Stephen C. Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

SB 831 Hill Senate Third Reading By GARCIA

Passed 77 Yea · 0 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 70002
Democratic 4000
Republican 3000
Total 77002
% of votes cast 97%0%0%3%
How each member voted (79)
Member Party Vote
Brown — Yea
Holden — Yea
Linder — Yea
Maienschein — Yea
Melendez — Not Voting
Olsen — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Skinner — Yea
Waldron — Yea
Williams — Yea
Buchanan — Yea
Daly — Yea
Gorell — Yea
Mansoor — Yea
Nazarian — Yea
Rodriguez — Yea
Alejo — Yea
Campos — Yea
Chau — Yea
Chesbro — Yea
Chávez — Yea
Conway — Yea
Cooley — Yea
Dababneh — Yea
Dickinson — Yea
Gatto — Yea
Gomez — Yea
Gordon — Yea
Donnelly — Yea
Allen — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Bonilla — Yea
Hall — Yea
Harkey — Yea
Jones-Sawyer — Yea
Levine — Yea
Logue — Yea
Medina — Yea
Gray — Yea
Mullin — Yea
Bocanegra — Yea
John A. Pérez — Yea
Salas — Yea
Nestande — Yea
Lowenthal — Yea
Pan — Yea
Garcia — Yea
Perea — Yea
Atkins — Yea
Fong — Yea
Rendon — Yea
Ridley-Thomas — Yea
Ting — Yea
Wagner — Yea
Weber — Yea
Wieckowski — Yea
Achadjian — Yea
Ammiano — Yea
Bigelow — Yea
Bloom — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Wilk — Yea
Fox — Yea
Frazier — Yea
Yamada — Yea
Hagman — Yea
Beth Gaines — Yea
Jim Patterson — Not Voting
Lorena Gonzalez — Yea
Mark Stone — Yea
Roger Hernández — Yea
V. Manuel Pérez — Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Muratsuchi, Al Democratic Yea
Quirk-Silva, Sharon Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Yea
Grove, Shannon Republican Yea
Jones, Brian W. Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended.

Passed 17 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 15000
Republican 1000
Democratic 1000
Total 17000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (17)
Member Party Vote
Bradford — Yea
Weber — Yea
Gatto — Yea
Campos — Yea
Gomez — Yea
Bocanegra — Yea
Holden — Yea
Linder — Yea
Bigelow — Yea
Donnelly — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Pan — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Ridley-Thomas — Yea
Wagner — Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Jones, Brian W. Republican Yea

Official roll call →

3rd Reading (Urgency Clause)

Passed 35 Yea · 1 Nay · 4 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 33103
Democratic 2001
Total 35104
% of votes cast 88%3%0%10%
How each member voted (40)
Member Party Vote
Anderson — Nay
Beall — Yea
Huff — Yea
Knight — Yea
Monning — Yea
Roth — Yea
Vidak — Yea
Wolk — Yea
Wright — Not Voting
Evans — Yea
DeSaulnier — Yea
Cannella — Yea
Wyland — Yea
Lieu — Not Voting
Corbett — Yea
Correa — Yea
Mitchell — Yea
De León — Yea
Hernandez — Yea
Hill — Yea
Hueso — Yea
Block — Yea
Lara — Yea
Leno — Yea
Liu — Yea
Morrell — Yea
Nielsen — Yea
Pavley — Yea
Steinberg — Yea
Torres — Yea
Walters — Yea
Fuller — Yea
Galgiani — Yea
Yee — Not Voting
Hancock — Yea
Beth Gaines — Yea
Bill Berryhill — Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Not Voting
Jackson, Corey A. Democratic Yea
Padilla, Stephen C. Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended.

Passed 7 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 6000
Democratic 1000
Total 7000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
De León — Yea
Hill — Yea
Lara — Yea
Steinberg — Yea
Walters — Yea
Beth Gaines — Yea
Padilla, Stephen C. Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

elections
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Frequently asked questions

What does SB 831 do?
(1) The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing and related matters, including the reporting of campaign contributions, as defined. Under existing law, a payment made at the behest of a candidate for elective office is considered a contribution unless the payment is made for purposes unrelated to the candidate's candidacy, and a payment is presumed to be unrelated to a candidate's candidacy if it is made principally for legislative, governmental, or charitable purposes. The bill would prohibit an elected officer from requesting that a payment be made, or a person from making a payment, at the behest of the elected officer to a nonprofit organization that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c) (4) of the Internal Revenue Code and that the elected officer knows or has reason to know is owned or controlled by that officer or specified family members of the officer, except as specified. The bill would provide that an elected officer is deemed to have complied with that requirement if the Commission determines that the elected officer has made a reasonable effort to ascertain whether a nonprofit organization is owned or controlled by any of the specified persons. (2) The act prohibits specified officers from receiving gifts, as defined, in excess of $440 in value from a single source in a calendar year. The act exempts gift payments for the actual costs of specified types of travel that are reasonably related to a legislative or governmental purpose, or to an issue of state, national, or international public policy, from the annual limit on the value of gifts from a single source. This bill would require a nonprofit organization that pays for these types of travel for an elected state officer or local elected officeholder to disclose the names of donors responsible for funding the payments, as specified. The bill would require a person who receives a gift of a travel payment to report the travel destination on his or her statement of economic interests. (3) The act requires that contributions deposited into a campaign account be held in trust for expenses associated with the election of the candidate or for expenses associated with holding office. The act provides that an expenditure to seek office is within the lawful execution of this trust if it is reasonably related to a political purpose and an expenditure associated with holding office is within the lawful execution of this trust if it is reasonably related to a legislative or governmental purpose. Expenditures that confer a substantial personal benefit must be directly related to a political, legislative, or governmental purpose. The act authorizes the use of campaign funds to make donations or loans to bona fide charitable, educational, civic, religious, or similar tax-exempt nonprofit organizations. The act imposes additional limitations on certain expenditures, including those relating to automotive expenses, travel expenses, tickets for entertainment or sporting events, personal gifts, and real property expenses. The bill would prohibit an elected officer or a committee controlled by the elected officer from making an expenditure of campaign funds to a nonprofit organization that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c) (4) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is owned or controlled by the officer or specified family members of the officer, as specified. This bill would also limit the expenditure of campaign funds for other purposes, as specified, including personal vacations, payments for membership dues for a country club, health club, or other recreational facility, specified tuition payments, utility payments, vehicle use that is not directly related to an election campaign, and certain gifts for specified family members of a candidate, elected officer, or other individuals with the authority to approve the expenditure of campaign funds held by a committee. (4) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 89513 of the Government Code, proposed by AB 1666 and AB 1692, that would become operative only if this bill and either or both of those bills are chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2015, and this bill is chaptered last. (5) A violation of the act's provisions is punishable as a misdemeanor. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would impose 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. (6) 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 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.
Who sponsors SB 831?
SB 831 is sponsored by Beall, Garcia, Hill, and Levine.
What is the current status of SB 831?
This bill died with 2013-2014 Regular Session. It reached “To Executive” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track SB 831?
Track SB 831 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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