Political Reform Act of 1974: statements and reports.

(1) The Political Reform Act of 1974 requires a candidate or committee that makes or receives a late contribution, or a committee that makes a late independent expenditure, to report the contribution or expenditure by specified means. The act requires the late contribution or the late independent expenditure to be reported by facsimile transmission, guaranteed overnight delivery, or personal delivery within 24 hours of the time the contribution or independent expenditure is made. The act also requires certain of these types of contributions and expenditures to be reported online. This bill would provide that if a late contribution or late independent expenditure is required to be reported to the Secretary of State, the report to the Secretary of State shall be by online or electronic transmission only. (2) The act requires that candidates, including appellate court and Supreme Court candidates, as well as other specified persons or entities periodically file reports online or electronically with the Secretary of State, including any general purpose committee or candidate that cumulatively has received contributions or made expenditures totaling $50,000 or more, any slate mailer organization with cumulative reportable payments received or made for purposes of producing slate mailers of $50,000 or more, or lobbyists, lobbying firms, or lobbyist employers who have reportable payments, expenses, contributions, gifts, or other items of $5,000 or more in a calendar quarter. The bill would require those candidates, as well as candidates for superior court, and other specified persons or entities to periodically file reports online or electronically with the Secretary of State, including a general purpose committee or candidate that cumulatively has received contributions or made expenditures totaling $25,000 or more, any slate mailer organization with cumulative reportable payments received or made for purposes of producing slate mailers of $25,000 or more, or lobbyists, lobbying firms, or lobbyist employers who have reportable payments, expenses, contributions, gifts, or other items of $2,500 or more in a calendar quarter. The bill would provide that copies of those statements or reports not be filed with the local filing officer unless they relate to a local elective office or local ballot measure filed by a candidate for both local and state elective office. By imposing criminal penalties on filers who fail to comply with these requirements, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) The act generally requires all candidates and elected officers and specified committees to file campaign statements semiannually. The act requires that a copy of a campaign statement of a candidate, elected officer, or a controlled committee of a candidate or elected officer be filed with the elections official of the county in which the candidate or elected official is domiciled. Statewide elected officers other than the members of the State Board of Equalization, Supreme Court justices, candidates for these offices, and specified committees are additionally required to file a copy of their campaign statement with the Secretary of State, the Registrar-Recorder of Los Angeles County, and the Registrar of Voters of the City and County of San Francisco. Likewise, Members of the Legislature, members of the State Board of Equalization, court of appeal justices, superior court judges, candidates for these offices, and other specified committees are additionally required to file a copy of their campaign statement with the Secretary of State and the elections official of the county with the largest number of registered voters in the districts affected. The bill would delete these additional filing requirements for statewide elected offices, Members of the Legislature, Supreme Court justices, court of appeal justices, superior court judges, candidates for those offices, and the specified committees and would instead require that these persons and entities file with their campaign statements with the Secretary of State in the manner described in (2) above. (4) This bill would incorporate additional changes in Section 84218 of the Government Code proposed by AB 1514, that would become operative only if AB 1514 and this bill are both chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2010, and this bill is chaptered last. (5) 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.