Political Reform Act of 1974: political party committee disclosures.

(1) The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing. The act requires elected officers, candidates, and committees, including political party committees, to file various reports at specified periods, including semiannual reports, preelection statements, and supplemental preelection statements. The act defines a "political party committee" as the state central committee or county central committee of an organization that meets the requirements for recognition as a political party under law. This bill would additionally require political party committees that received or contributed $50,000 or more in the current or previous two-year election cycle to file monthly reports, as specified. (2) The act generally limits contributions made or received by elected officers, candidates, and committees. The act does not limit the contributions of a political party committee to a candidate for elective state office. The act also authorizes a political party committee to receive higher levels of contributions than other committees. In addition, political party committees are not controlled committees for purposes of the act. This bill would expand the definition of "political party committee" to include a legislative caucus committee. The bill would authorize the caucus of each political party of each house of the Legislature to create a legislative caucus committee directed by the caucus leader, as specified. The bill would provide that funds received by a legislative caucus committee shall be held in trust to advance the interests of the caucus and may be used to make expenditures associated with the election of members to the Legislature and for caucus expenses. The bill would also provide that a legislative caucus committee is not a controlled committee and that a bank account established for a legislative caucus committee is not a campaign contribution account of any candidate. (3) The act prohibits a lobbyist from making a contribution to an elected state officer or candidate for elected state office if the lobbyist is registered to lobby the governmental agency of the officer or for which the candidate is seeking election. This bill would similarly prohibit a lobbyist from making a contribution to a legislative caucus committee if the lobbyist is registered to lobby the Legislature. (4) Because a violation of the act is punishable as a misdemeanor, 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. (5) 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 of the Legislature and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act. (6) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute, but would become operative 14 days after its effective date.