Nonprofit organizations: use of public resources.

(1) Existing law prohibits a nonprofit organization or an officer, employee, or agent of a nonprofit organization from using, or permitting another to use, public resources received from a local agency for any campaign activity not authorized by law. Existing law authorizes the Attorney General, any district attorney, or any city attorney of a city with a population over 750,000 to bring a civil action to recover a civil penalty against any person who intentionally or negligently violates that prohibition. This bill would clarify that the prohibition applies to making contributions or expenditures not authorized by law, and would specify certain expenditures authorized by law that are not subject to the prohibition. (2) Existing law requires a reporting nonprofit organization that engages in campaign activity to deposit into a separate bank account all specific sources of funds it receives and to pay for all campaign activity from that separate bank account. Existing law defines "reporting nonprofit organization" as a nonprofit organization for which public resources from one or more local agencies account for more than 20% of the nonprofit organization's annual gross revenue, as specified. Existing law requires a reporting nonprofit organization that engages in campaign activity of specified amounts or more to periodically disclose to the Franchise Tax Board, and post on its Internet Web site in a certain manner, the identity and amount of each specific source or sources of funds it receives for campaign activity, a description of the campaign activity, and the identity and amount of payments the organization makes from the required separate bank account. Existing law authorizes, and in some instances requires, the Franchise Tax Board to audit a reporting nonprofit organization, requires the board to issue a written audit report, and requires the board to transmit the audit report to the Attorney General and the district attorney for the county in which the reporting nonprofit organization is domiciled. Existing law authorizes the Attorney General or the district attorney for the county in which the reporting nonprofit organization is domiciled to impose a monetary civil penalty of up to $10,000 against a reporting nonprofit organization for misusing public resources received from a local agency, as described in (1) , for failing to maintain the separate bank account, or for not complying with the disclosure requirements described above. This bill would recast and relocate those provisions within the Political Reform Act of 1974, thereby making the Fair Political Practices Commission responsible for their administration and enforcement, except as specified. The bill would change the term "reporting nonprofit organization" to "publicly funded nonprofit organization," defined as a nonprofit organization for which public resources from one or more local agencies account for more than 20% of the nonprofit organization's annual gross revenue, as specified. The bill would require certain publicly funded nonprofit organizations to register as recipient committees and file the campaign statements that those committees are required to file under the act. This bill would shift the Franchise Tax Board's authority and duties under these provisions to the Commission and would authorize the Commission, in addition to the Attorney General or the district attorney, to impose the monetary civil penalty of up to $10,000 against a publicly funded nonprofit organization. The Political Reform Act of 1974 makes a willful violation of its provisions 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. 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.