TO: CVF-NEWS
FROM: Kim Alexander, California Voter Foundation
DATE: August 28, 1997
RE: SB
49 Update - Floor Vote, Lobbying $ Online
Hi Folks,
This edition of CVF-NEWS will provide.....
• An update on SB 49
• Mandatory electronic filing becomes law in New York
• Secretary of State publishes lobbying expenditure data on Web
• • SB 49 Update • •
The Assembly Appropriations Committee met yesterday and voted to put SB 49/Karnette,
a bill that would mandate electronic filing of, and online access to political disclosure
records, on its suspense file. This is a routine procedure that all fiscal bills
go through. The Assembly Appropriations Committee will meet on September 3 take up
its suspense file; given the relatively low appropriation of $1.1 million in SB 49,
it is anticipated that the bill will make it off suspense and head to the Assembly
floor.
• • Assembly Floor Vote on SB 49 Likely on September 8 or 9! • •
Yes, it's true....we are heading into the final stretch of this
year's legislative session, and we are likely to see a full Assembly floor vote on
SB 49 on either Monday, September 8th or Tuesday, September 9th. Because SB 49 amends
the Political Reform Act, it requires a two-thirds vote in order to pass, which means
it needs 54 votes on the Assembly floor. Proponents have been making the rounds at
the Capitol to find out who will be voting for or against mandatory electronic filing
and online disclosure.
Because the bill is authored by a Democrat, it is assumed that most Assembly Democrats
will be voting in favor of SB 49. The bill also has strong support from several prominent
Republicans, including Secretary of State Bill Jones, and SB 49 Republican co-authors
Jim Cunneen, Peter Frusetta, Tom McClintock and Bruce McPherson. It appears that
at least ten Assembly Republicans will be voting in favor of SB 49, despite initial
opposition from some members and staff of the Assembly Republican Caucus. Some of
the Assembly Republicans who have recently indicated their support for SB 49 include
Jan Goldsmith (Poway), Bernie Richter (Chico), Brett Granlund (Yucaipa), Scott Baugh
(Huntington Beach), Steve Kuykendall (Long Beach), Fred Aguiar (Chino) and Steve
Baldwin (El Cajon).
Only one Assembly member -- Republican Brooks Firestone -- has so far indicated that
he may not vote for SB 49. This is surprising news, in light of the fact that Firestone
announced his candidacy for California Lieutenant Governor on the World Wide Web,
and that his campaign web site (www.brooksfirestone.org) features many comments
extolling the benefits of election information on the Internet. (Apparently, Firestone
fears that too much exposure of contributions will drive both contributors and would-be
candidates away from politics.)
Other key Assembly members who have not yet indicated how they will vote on SB 49
include Assembly Republican leader Bill Leonard (R-Upland), and freshmen members
Lynne Leach (R-Walnut Creek), George Runner (R-Lancaster), Rod Pacheco (R-Riverside),
and Roy Ashburn (R-Bakersfield).
If you'd like to know how to get in touch with these and other Assembly members,
please visit CVF's new Internet Guide to California's Legislature,
which features rosters of both houses of the Legislature, including hyperlinked email
addresses, and phone and Capitol room numbers. You can find our new web site at:
• • Mandatory Electronic Filing Becomes Law in New York • •
Many doubted it would ever actually happen, but last Sunday Governor George Pataki
signed New York's mandatory electronic filing program into law. Pataki joins a growing
number of Republican governors who are supporting electronic filing and online disclosure
-- Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge and Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson also have
led efforts in their states to improve public access to disclosure data.
While our own governor, Pete Wilson, has not yet publicly stated whether he will
sign SB 49 should it reach his desk, he has demonstrated leadership on other technology
initiatives. My last edition of CVF-NEWS discussed Wilson's $1 billion Digital High
School Initiative. Another Wilson Administration technology initiative that has been
in the news lately is the DMV electronic filing bill. This measure would require
auto insurers to electronically file proof of their policyholders' coverage with
the DMV. The program, contained in AB 651/Lempert, is estimated to cost the DMV $18
- $20 million annually.
One might assume that if the Governor is willing to back a much more expensive technology
initiative sponsored by an agency with a history of failure with such efforts, we
might expect that he would also support a much more modest initiative, particularly
one that would provide funding to the Secretary of State, which has a tremendous
success record with technology projects. Speaking of which......
• • Secretary of State Publishes Lobbying Expenditures on the Internet
• •
One example of Bill Jones' administration's success with technology efforts is the
latest edition to the Secretary of State's Web site, at www.ss.ca.gov. His staff recently added -- for
the first time ever -- summary data of lobbying expenditures made in the 1995-96
legislative session. When I first came across this goldmine of data on the web, I
was nearly brought to tears! It's all there, folks - the report itemizes payments
made by lobbyist employers to the top 100 lobbying firms for 1995 and each quarter
of 1996.
I was able to make use of the data immediately, after a reporter called and asked
whether a certain company was lobbying or not. First I went to the Secretary of State's
Lobbyists Directory, and searched by company
name to find out which lobbying firm represented them. Then I clicked over to the
new lobbying expenditure report, found that firm in the Top 100 Lobbying Firms list,
then scrolled down and saw the company right there on the list, with their lobbying
payments for 1995 and 1996.
Simply put, this new resource is awesome and I encourage all of you to check it out
right away! You might want to look at the Secretary of State's new campaign finance
summary report as well, which summarizes campaign contributions and expenditures
in the 1996 election, including a special supplement detailing the large contributions
that lawmakers raised after the election and before Prop. 208's strict contribution
limits went into effect at the beginning of this year. All of these reports were
produced by the Secretary of State's Political Reform Division, and CVF offers the
entire staff our heartiest congrats for an excellent job well done!
• • Revisions to the Digital Sunlight Web Site • •
We have added several new articles and links to our Digital Sunlight Web site, which
you can find on the Web at www.digitalsunlight.org. Past electronic filing
updates are also archived at the site.
Until next time....
Kim Alexander, Executive Director, California Voter Foundation
kimalex@netcom.com
916/325-2120
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