AB 84: Political Reform Act of 1974: political party committee disclosures.

(1)The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing, including requiring the reporting of campaign contributions and expenditures and imposing other reporting and recordkeeping requirements on campaign committees. financing. The act requires elected officers, candidates, and committees committees, including political party committees, to file various reports, 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 receive received or contribute contributed $50,000 or more in the year before a regularly scheduled statewide primary or general election current or previous two-year election cycle to file monthly statements in the subsequent year. The bill would waive this requirement for months in which specified reports under existing law are also filed. reports, as specified.

(2)The act defines 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, as specified. 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 add to this definition committees created by a legislative expand the definition of political party committee to include a legislative caucus committee. The bill would authorize the caucus of a each political party of each house of the Legislature. Legislature to create a legislative caucus committee directed by the caucus leader, as specified. The bill would provide for the leadership of a legislative caucus committee, as specified. 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 for purposes of the act, and would regulate the use of bank accounts and funds received by a legislative caucus committee, as specified. and that a bank account established for a legislative caucus committee is not a campaign contribution account of any candidate.

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 acts purposes upon a ²/₃ 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.