Discretionary funds: County of Alameda.

Header changed from Senate Bill format to 'STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGAL MATERIAL' with Chapter 155 designation

Page headers changed from 'SB 1193' to 'Ch. 155' and page numbering adjusted throughout

Governor approval date filled in as August 27, 2026, and filing date with Secretary of State recorded as the same day

Header metadata updated to reflect passage by both chambers and addition of Governor's approval block. Amendment dates removed, enrollment language added.

Line numbering prefixes (e.g., 'line 1', 'line 2') removed from the statutory text as part of standard enrollment formatting.

Page numbers shifted from 96 to 95 due to reformatting of the document layout.

The definition of 'discretionary funds' was narrowed. Previously it covered funds that 'the board, or a member of the board, appropriates or less than a majority of the board, requests the board to award.' Now it only covers funds that 'a member of the board, or less than a majority of the board, requests the board to award.' This removes full-board-initiated appropriations from the definition's scope.

The old version required that the contract for each award include: (1) transparency requirements, (2) performance metrics, (3) mechanisms for the board to enforce contract provisions if the awardee does not comply, (4) a description of the public purpose, and (5) an explanation of how funds will serve the requesting district. All five contract-level requirements were removed.

In place of the removed contract requirements, the new version requires that the award itself (not the contract) include: (1) a description of how the award provides resources of communitywide significance for the requesting member's district, and (2) identification of the public purposes the award will serve.

The 90-day pre-election restriction was narrowed in two ways. First, the open-ended phrase 'take any action related to spending discretionary funds, including, but not limited to' was replaced with the closed list 'shall not take any of the following actions.' Second, a new qualifier was added: the press release and ceremonial presentation prohibitions now only apply when the member is acting 'in their official capacity as a member of the board,' meaning personal-capacity announcements are no longer restricted.

A new Section 2 (severability clause) was added, stating that if any provision or its application is held invalid, the remaining provisions continue in effect. The former Section 2 (legislative findings and declarations) was renumbered as Section 3.

The bill no longer amends Section 26227.5 (which governed both Alameda and Orange counties). It now only adds a new Section 26228 applying solely to Alameda County, leaving the existing two-county law untouched.

A new definition of 'public purpose' is added, covering health and human services, education, homelessness services, cultural resources, or other services to district residents. It explicitly excludes awards benefiting entities that do not provide those services, and awards funding travel, marketing, economic development programs, or directing resources to a single private entity without such services.

The definition of 'discretionary funds' is expanded to include funds requested by less than a majority of the board, and now specifies funds are awarded 'in their supervisorial district.' An exclusion is added for funds awarded to the Alameda Health System under Section 101850 of the Health and Safety Code.

A new prohibition requires the board not to appropriate discretionary funds for an award that is not for a public purpose, and not to appropriate funds in a way that allows a single member or less than a majority of the board to control appropriations. All awards must be made by majority vote and identify the specific entity receiving funds.

Contract requirements are updated: instead of a general 'description of public purpose' and 'explanation of how funds will serve the district,' contracts must now describe how the award provides resources of communitywide significance for the requesting supervisor's district and identify the specific public purposes served.

The quarterly transparency log now requires conflict-of-interest statements from a broader group: supervisors, staff of a supervisor, local agency executives (as defined in Section 3511.1(d)), or other similar administrative officers, rather than just 'supervisors or county staff.'

The election-period exception is broadened: during the 90-day pre-election window, supervisors may now also vote on discretionary fund awards that benefit the county as a whole or other districts, in addition to attending events not held in their honor.

Assembly Member Quirk-Silva is added as co-author of the bill.

A new Section 26228 is added to the Government Code creating a standalone set of rules for Alameda County discretionary funds, separate from and in addition to extending Orange County's existing district discretionary fund provisions.

The definition of covered funds is broadened from 'district discretionary funds' (funds appropriated by the board to individual members) to 'discretionary funds' meaning any funds that the board or a member appropriates to community organizations, nonprofit organizations, and private entities. This captures board-level appropriations and adds private entities as a covered recipient type.

All awards of discretionary funds now require approval by a majority vote of the full board of supervisors, rather than being awardable by an individual member.

Contracts for discretionary fund awards must include transparency requirements, performance metrics, enforcement mechanisms for non-compliance, a description of the public purpose of the funds, and an explanation of how the funds serve the district whose supervisor requested them.

Discretionary funds are prohibited from being awarded at a special meeting or on the consent calendar, ensuring such awards receive full public deliberation at a regular meeting.

The quarterly public log is expanded to also include the contract information required by the new provisions, financial disclosure statements from supervisors or county staff who participated in awarding funds, and a link to a whistleblower complaint process.

The 90-day pre-election spending restriction no longer requires that the candidate have an opponent on the ballot. It now applies to any board member who is on the ballot as a supervisor district candidate, regardless of whether they face opposition.