California Coastal Commission: ex parte communications.

The California Coastal Act of 1976, for purposes of the act, defines an "ex parte communication" as any oral or written communication between a member of the California Coastal Commission and an interested person about a matter within the commission's jurisdiction, which does not occur in a public hearing, workshop, or other official proceeding, or on the official record of the proceeding on the matter, but excludes from that definition any communication between a staff member acting in his or her official capacity and any commission member or interested person. The act prohibits a member of the commission and an interested person from conducting an ex parte communication, unless the member fully discloses and makes public the ex parte communication, as specified. This bill would require commission staff members to maintain records and disclose any communication with an interested person pertaining to a matter before the commission by including specified information about the communication in staff reports provided to commission members. Existing law authorizes any person to testify at a hearing or other official proceeding of the commission and to submit written comments for the record on a matter before the commission. This bill would require video or audio recordings of those proceedings to be posted on the commission's Internet Web site within 72 hours after the proceeding and would require written and electronic communications submitted to the commission as part of those proceedings to be posted on the commission's Internet Web site within 7 days of receipt.