ACA 16: Budget bill: balanced budget: Members of the Legislature: salaries.
- Session Year: 2025-2026
- House: Assembly
- Latest Version Date: 2026-01-07
Current Status:
In Progress
(2026-01-08: From printer. May be heard in committee February 7.)
Introduced
In Committee
Awaiting First Chamber Vote
Passed First Chamber
In Committee
Awaiting Second Chamber Vote
Passed Second Chamber
Enacted
What does this bill do?
The measure lets the state Controller (the state's chief accountant) review a passed budget within 30 days and certify that it breaks the balanced-budget rule — meaning it would spend more from the state's main account than projected revenues. If the Controller certifies a budget is not balanced, lawmakers and the Governor would forfeit their pay and travel or living expense reimbursements from the day after certification until a balanced budget is enacted; it also keeps the existing rule that legislators forfeit pay if the budget is not passed by the June 15 deadline.
The summary is provided by generative AI which can make mistakes. For original language, please view the details in the table below.
The California Constitution includes a balanced budget provision that prohibits the Legislature from sending a budget bill to the Governor, and prohibits the Governor from signing a budget bill, if the total amount of General Fund appropriations and reserve deposits for the fiscal year exceed General Fund revenues for the fiscal year estimated as of the date of the budget bills passage. The Constitution requires the Legislature to include that revenue estimate in the budget bill.
The Constitution also requires the Legislature to pass a budget bill by midnight on June 15 of each year. If that deadline is not met, the Members of the Legislature forfeit any salary or reimbursement for travel or living expenses from midnight on June 15 until the day that the budget bill is presented to the Governor.
This measure would authorize the Controller, no later than 30 days after the date of the budget bills passage, to determine that the budget bill violates the balanced budget provision. If the Controller makes that determination, the Members of the Legislature and the Governor would forfeit their salary and reimbursement for travel or living expenses from the day immediately following the date on which the Controller makes the determination until the date on which a budget bill is enacted.
Resolved by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That the Legislature of the State of California at its 202526 Regular Session commencing on the second day of December 2024, two-thirds of the membership of each house concurring, hereby proposes to the people of the State of California, that the Constitution of the State be amended as follows:
(a)Within the first 10 days of each calendar year, the Governor shall submit to the Legislature, with an explanatory message, a budget for the ensuing fiscal year containing itemized statements for recommended state expenditures and estimated state revenues. If recommended expenditures exceed estimated revenues, the Governor shall recommend the sources from which the additional revenues should be provided.
(b)The Governor and the Governor-elect may require a state agency, officer or employee to furnish whatever information is deemed necessary to prepare the budget.
(c)(1)The budget shall be accompanied by a budget bill itemizing recommended expenditures.
(2)The budget bill shall be introduced immediately in each house by the persons chairing the committees that consider the budget.
(3)The Legislature shall pass the budget bill by midnight on June 15 of each year.
(4)Until the budget bill has been enacted, the Legislature shall not send to the Governor for consideration any bill appropriating funds for expenditure during the fiscal year for which the budget bill is to be enacted, except emergency bills recommended by the Governor or appropriations for the salaries and expenses of the Legislature.
(d)No bill except the budget bill may contain more than one item of appropriation, and that for one certain, expressed purpose. Appropriations from the General Fund of the State, except appropriations for the public schools and appropriations in the budget bill and in other bills providing for appropriations related to the budget bill, are void unless passed in each house by rollcall vote entered in the journal, two-thirds of the membership concurring.
(e)(1)Notwithstanding any other provision of law or of this Constitution, the budget bill and other bills providing for appropriations related to the budget bill may be passed in each house by rollcall vote entered in the journal, a majority of the membership concurring, to take effect immediately upon being signed by the Governor or upon a date specified in the legislation. Nothing in this subdivision shall affect the vote requirement for appropriations for the public schools contained in subdivision (d) of this section and in subdivision (b) of Section 8 of this article.
(2)For purposes of this section, other bills providing for appropriations related to the budget bill shall consist only of bills identified as related to the budget in the budget bill passed by the Legislature.
(f)The Legislature may control the submission, approval, and enforcement of budgets and the filing of claims for all state agencies.
(g)(1)(A)For the 200405 fiscal year, or any subsequent fiscal year, the Legislature may not send to the Governor for consideration, nor may the Governor sign into law, a budget bill that would appropriate from the General Fund, for that fiscal year, a total amount that, when combined with all appropriations from the General Fund for that fiscal year made as of the date of the budget bills passage, and the amount of any General Fund moneys transferred to the Budget Stabilization Account for that fiscal year pursuant to Section 20 of Article XVI, exceeds General Fund revenues for that fiscal year estimated as of the date of the budget bills passage. That
(B)The estimate of General Fund revenues described in subparagraph (A) shall be set forth in the budget bill passed by the Legislature.
(2)If the Controller, no later than 30 days after passage of the budget bill, determines that the budget bill appropriates from the General Fund for that fiscal year a total amount that, when combined with all appropriations from the General Fund for that fiscal year made as of the date of the budget bills passage and the amount of any General Fund moneys transferred to the Budget Stabilization Account for that fiscal year pursuant to Section 20 of Article XVI, exceeds General Fund revenues for that fiscal year, as projected by the Controller, the Controller may certify that the budget bill does not comply with paragraph (1).
(h)(1)Notwithstanding any other provision of law or of this Constitution, including subdivision (c) of this section, Section 4 of this article, and Sections 4 and 8 of Article III, in any year in which the budget bill is not passed by the Legislature by midnight on June 15, there shall be no an appropriation from the current budget or future budget shall not be made to pay any salary or reimbursement for travel or living expenses for Members of the Legislature during any regular or special session for the period from midnight on June 15 until the day that the budget bill is presented to the Governor. No salary or reimbursement for travel or living expenses forfeited pursuant to this subdivision shall be paid retroactively. in either of the following circumstances:
(A)The Legislature fails to pass the budget bill by midnight on June 15 before the commencement of the fiscal year for which the budget bill is to be enacted.
(B)The Controller certifies that the budget bill is not balanced, as set forth in paragraph (2) of subdivision (g).
(2)(A)If the Legislature fails to pass the budget bill by June 15, as described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1), salary and reimbursement shall be forfeited from June 16 until the date the budget bill is presented to the Governor.
(B)If the Controller certifies that the budget bill is not balanced, as described in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1), salary and reimbursement shall be forfeited from the day immediately following the date of certification until the date the budget bill is enacted.
(3)Salary and reimbursement for travel and living expenses forfeited pursuant to this subdivision shall not be paid retroactively.
Notwithstanding any other law, if the Controller certifies that the budget bill is not balanced, as set forth in paragraph (2) of subdivision (g) of Section 12 of Article IV, the Governors salary shall be forfeited from the day immediately following the date of certification until the date the budget bill is enacted. Salary forfeited pursuant to this section shall not be paid retroactively.
|
Date
|
Status
|
|---|---|
| Jan 8, 2026 | From printer. May be heard in committee February 7. |
| Jan 7, 2026 | Introduced. To print. |
This list shows positions taken on this bill by organizations on the date displayed, which is linked to the original source.
Positions by individuals are not included.
Bill Author
Bill Co-Author(s):
