BILL NUMBER: ACA 28 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Members Canciamilla and Richman
JANUARY 25, 2006
A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California
an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by adding and
repealing Article VIII thereof, relating to election reform.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
ACA 28, as introduced, Canciamilla Citizens Assembly on Electoral
Systems Act of 2006.
The California Constitution requires the Legislature to convene to
consider, among other things, statutes, constitutional amendments,
and bills, on subjects that may include electoral reform. The
California Constitution also authorizes the exercise of legislative
power by the electorate, through the initiative and referendum
processes.
Existing law, including the California Constitution, specifies the
requirements for electing Members of the Legislature and state
executive officers, including the Governor, and the campaign finance
provisions applicable to elected public officials.
This measure would enact the Citizens Assembly on Electoral Reform
Act of 2006, which would establish the Citizens Assembly to evaluate
potential reforms of the laws governing the electoral and campaign
process, including campaign finance reform, for the Legislature and
statewide elected executive officers.
The measure would also require, among other things, that the
Citizens Assembly provide the public with the opportunity to make
recommendations. The measure would authorize the Citizens Assembly to
make interim reports to a legislative committee, as specified, and
would require the Citizens Assembly to make a final report of its
recommendations to the Legislature no later than January 1, 2008. The
measure would require that any proposals adopted by the Citizens
Assembly to amend or revise the California Constitution, and to make
related statutory changes, be placed on the ballot at the November 4,
2008, statewide general election. The measure would provide that a
proposal would take effect if approved by a majority of the voters
voting on it.
The measure would also provide for a specified selection task
force that would select the members of the Citizens Assembly,
consisting of 2 members from within each Assembly district and up to
an additional 10 members as needed to be representative of California'
s adult population. The measure would provide a selection procedure
for the chair of the Citizens Assembly, who would be authorized to
conduct the meetings of the Citizens Assembly, employ staff and
contract for consultants, enter into contracts for the conduct of the
business of the Citizens Assembly, and select up to 4 deputy chairs
to assist the chair in carrying out his or her duties.
The measure would also transfer $20,000,000 from the General Fund
to the Citizens Assembly Fund to be established in the State
Treasury, and would appropriate this money to the Controller without
regard to fiscal year for the payment of expenses incurred by the
Citizens Assembly, the Secretary of State, and the selection task
force. The measure would require the Citizens Assembly to adopt and
provide a budget to the Controller, and would provide that each
member of the Citizens Assembly receive a stipend of $1,000 for each
month of service and reimbursement for other specified expenses.
The measure would repeal the above provisions on January 1, 2009.
Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
WHEREAS, This measure shall be known and may be cited as the
Citizens Assembly on Electoral Reform Act of 2006; and
WHEREAS, There is growing interest in improving the process for
the election of state legislative and executive officers in
California. In recent years, proposals to improve both the quality of
political campaigns and the level of citizen participation have been
defeated by those with a vested interest in maintaining the status
quo and the divisive partisanship that ill serve the people of
California; and
WHEREAS, There is a wide variety of electoral processes in use
throughout the world that are based upon different values and that
produce different results. Among other things, electoral processes
help to determine which officials are elected to run our governments,
the variety of parties that voters have to choose from, how many
citizens will turn out to vote, which citizens will or will not be
represented, whether the majority will rule, the drawing of district
lines, term limits, and campaign finance reform. Ultimately, the
choice of electoral processes has a profound effect not only on the
process of elections, but also on the degree to which a political
system is fair, representative, and democratic; and
WHEREAS, The people of California should be involved in any effort
to improve the electoral process, including direct involvement in
determining the foundational values of our voting systems and the
needed improvements to those systems. The citizens of California must
take the lead in resolving these key questions because politicians
have a fundamental conflict of interest in determining the results;
and
WHEREAS, In consideration of these findings, the purpose of this
measure is to provide for the establishment of a Citizens Assembly to
study how California should elect the Members of the Legislature and
its elected executive officers. The Citizens Assembly will be an
independent and nonpartisan deliberative body comprised of ordinary
Californians convened to study how the state should best translate
votes into legislative seats and offices, and to place directly on
the ballot any constitutional amendments or revisions, and any
directly related statutory provisions, within its mandate, that serve
the purposes of this act and are needed to best serve California;
now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That the
Legislature of the State of California at its 2005-06 Regular Session
commencing on the sixth day of December 2004, 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:
That Article VIII is added thereto, to read:
ARTICLE VIII
CITIZENS ASSEMBLY ON ELECTORAL SYSTEMS ACT OF 2006
SECTION 1. (a) The Citizens Assembly established pursuant to
Section 2 shall evaluate potential reforms of the laws that govern
elections and political campaigns in this state. This mandate of the
Citizens Assembly is limited to the electoral and campaign process,
including campaign finance reform, for the Legislature and statewide
elected executive officers. Only changes to this Constitution and
related changes in statutory provisions that are consistent with this
mandate may be considered by the Citizens Assembly.
(b) In carrying out the evaluation described in subdivision (a),
the Citizens Assembly shall do all of the following:
(1) Provide the public with the opportunity to make
recommendations to the Citizens Assembly, whether in writing, orally
at public meetings, or by other means.
(2) In adopting any proposal to change the method for electing
Members of the Legislature and statewide executive officers that
differs from the current system, the Citizens Assembly shall consider
the potential impact of changes on the scheduling and conducting of
campaigns and elections for all candidates for political office in
this state, and the proposal shall be described fully, clearly, and
in detail in the Citizens Assembly's final report.
(c) The Citizens Assembly shall make its final report to the
Legislature, setting forth any proposals adopted by the Citizens
Assembly for the purposes of this section, no later than January 1,
2008. On presentation of the final report, the chair shall arrange
for its publication, and the Legislature shall conduct a public
hearing within 30 days to consider that report. Any recommendations
from the Legislature as to the contents of the report are advisory
only.
(d) The Citizens Assembly may make interim reports to a joint
legislative committee that is appointed by the Speaker of the
Assembly and the President pro Tempore of the Senate for the purpose
of receiving and considering interim reports from the Citizens
Assembly. The Citizens Assembly may, in its sole discretion,
incorporate any amendments offered by the Legislature into one or
more proposals prior to the submission of those proposals to the
Secretary of State pursuant to subdivision (e).
(e) Notwithstanding Article XVIII or any other provision of this
Constitution, the Citizens Assembly may submit one or more proposals
for amendment or revision of the Constitution, together with any
related statutory changes it deems appropriate, to the voters for
approval. Each such proposal shall be placed on the ballot at the
November 4, 2008, statewide general election. If a proposal is
approved by a majority of the voters voting on it, the provisions of
the proposal shall take effect the day after the election. Each
proposal submitted to the voters for the amendment or revision of the
Constitution, including any related statutory changes, shall embrace
no more than one subject. Each proposal that is adopted by the
Citizens Assembly to be submitted to the voters pursuant to this
subdivision shall be provided to the Secretary of State no later than
March 31, 2008.
(f) Any constitutional or statutory change proposed by the
Citizens Assembly and approved by the voters pursuant to subdivision
(e) may be subsequently amended, revised, or repealed as follows:
(1) A constitutional provision is subject to an amendment or
revision, as the case may be, including repeal, that may be proposed
by the Legislature pursuant to Section 1 or 2 of Article XVIII. In
the case of a statutory provision, the Legislature may amend or
repeal the provision by another statute that becomes effective only
when approved by the voters.
(2) A constitutional or statutory provision is subject to
amendment or repeal by initiative pursuant to Section 3 of Article
XVIII, or Section 8 of Article II, as applicable.
SEC. 2. (a) For purposes of performing the duties set forth in
Section 1, there shall be established the Citizens Assembly, which
shall be broadly representative of the adult population of California
with respect to age, gender, socioeconomic status, and geographical
distribution based on voter registration. A selection task force
composed of six academic experts, two of which are appointed by the
President of the University of California, two by the Chancellor of
the California State University, and two by a president or chancellor
of a private university in California, shall select the members of
the Citizens Assembly. Upon request, the Secretary of State shall
assist the task force in the performance of its duties under this
section. The President of the University of California and the
Chancellor of the California State University shall jointly designate
the private university.
(b) The members of the selection task force shall serve without
compensation, but shall be entitled to the reimbursement of expenses
pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 4. The selection task force
shall select the members of the Citizens Assembly under the following
procedure:
(1) The selection task force shall cause a stratified random
sample of 100 men and 100 women to be drawn from the registered voter
rolls in each Assembly district.
(2) Each eligible person whose name is drawn shall be given the
opportunity to indicate his or her interest in becoming a member of
the Citizens Assembly. The selection task force shall cause a
stratified random sample of 10 men and 10 women to be drawn from the
list of interested persons from each Assembly district. The selection
task force may draw additional stratified random samples of 100 men
and 100 women from the registered voter rolls in an Assembly district
until a stratified random sample of 10 men and 10 women who are
interested in serving as members of the Citizens Assembly is selected
from that district.
(3) Local selection meetings in each Assembly district, conducted
by the selection task force, shall then be held in order to provide
further information to prospective members and to randomly select two
members, one man and one woman, from each district to serve on the
Citizens Assembly. Each member shall serve a term that concludes upon
the repeal of this article. All local selection meetings shall be
open to the public.
(4) The selection task force may select up to 10 additional
members, from the lists of interested persons established pursuant to
paragraph (2), as may be needed to cause the membership of the
Citizens Assembly to approximate a representative sample of
California's adult population with respect to age, gender,
socioeconomic status, and geographical distribution based on voter
registration.
(c) The following persons are not eligible to be members of the
Citizens Assembly:
(1) A person who is not a registered voter in California.
(2) An elected state executive officer or his or her appointee.
(3) A Member or employee of the United States Congress.
(4) A Member or employee of the California Legislature.
(5) An elected official of a local governmental agency in this
State, including, but not limited to, a city, county, city and
county, board, commission, district, or special district.
(6) A state or federal judge.
(7) A current officer, elected member, or delegate, at the state
or county level, of a registered political party.
(8) Any person who, on or after January 1, 1987, has provided, for
compensation, campaign-related advice or services to a candidate,
ballot initiative committee, or independent expenditure committee.
(9) A registered lobbyist.
(10) An immediate family member of any person excluded under
paragraphs (2) to (9), inclusive.
(d) Based on the purposes of this article and the responsibilities
of the Citizens Assembly, and pursuant to a nationwide search and
consideration, the selection task force shall provide the Citizens
Assembly with three candidates for the position of compensated,
nonvoting chair, who shall be selected as the first order of business
by a majority vote of the membership of the Citizens Assembly. In
the event of a vacancy in the position of chair, the Citizens
Assembly shall fill the vacancy, from either within or without its
membership, by approval of a two-thirds vote of its membership.
(e) The chair of the Citizens Assembly shall not be included for
purposes of the calculation of any vote of the membership under this
article.
SEC. 3. (a) The chair shall organize the affairs of the
Citizens Assembly and conduct its meetings, may employ staff and
contract for consultants, including legal counsel, and may otherwise
enter into contracts for the conduct of business of the Citizens
Assembly. Persons employed to work for the Citizens Assembly are
exempt from civil service. The chair has administrative
responsibility for the Citizens Assembly which includes, within its
budget and other resources provided for this purpose, ensuring that
the members of the Citizens Assembly are provided with the resources
required to carry out their duties.
(b) In the event of a vacancy in the membership of the Citizens
Assembly, the chair shall select a replacement of the same gender
from the list of previously selected candidates that was drawn
pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 2 from the
same Assembly district, in a manner designed to maintain the
representative composition of the Citizens Assembly.
(c) The chair may select up to four deputy chairs to assist the
chair in carrying out his or her duties, and shall prepare rules of
procedure for the conduct of the business and operation of the
Citizens Assembly and present these rules to the Citizens Assembly at
its first scheduled meeting. The Citizens Assembly shall adopt
rules, and may subsequently amend those rules, by majority vote of
the membership. These rules shall be consistent with the
constitutional duties of the chair and Robert's Rules of Order. In
the absence of any rule to the contrary, Robert's Rules of Order
shall govern the proceedings of the Citizens Assembly.
(d) Any action of the Citizens Assembly, as described by this
article, shall require approval by a majority vote of the membership.
(e) The Citizens Assembly may expel any of its members, including
the chair, for cause, by a two-thirds vote of the membership. As used
in this subdivision, "for cause" means dishonesty, neglect of duty,
willful violation of Citizens Assembly rules, or conviction of an
offense involving moral turpitude.
(f) Decisions on questions of procedure of the Citizens Assembly
shall be made by the chair, or by a deputy chair in the chair's
absence, in accordance with the rules adopted by the Citizens
Assembly or Robert's Rules of Order, as applicable. Decisions of the
chair on questions of procedure may not be appealed to the Citizens
Assembly, but the chair, or a deputy chair in the absence of the
chair, may request comment from members of the Citizens Assembly
before making a decision.
SEC. 4. (a) The sum of twenty million dollars ($20,000,000) is
hereby transferred from the General Fund to the Citizens Assembly
Fund, which is hereby created in the State Treasury and is
appropriated to the Controller without regard to fiscal year for the
payment of expenses incurred by the Citizens Assembly, including
expenses incurred by the Secretary of State and the selection task
force under Section 2.
(b) The Citizens Assembly shall adopt, and revise as needed, a
budget to fund its own operations and communications with the
residents of California regarding its activities, and shall provide a
copy of that budget to the Controller. Expenditures from the fund
shall be made in compliance with the procedures contained in the
State Administrative Manual and the statutes, rules, and regulations
that are generally applicable to state agencies in this regard.
(c) Each member of the Citizens Assembly shall receive a stipend
of one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each month of service at a
prorated rate for each day of service, and reimbursement of expenses
of travel, meals, lodging, and other actual and necessary expenses
incurred in the performance of official duties, at the rates
established by the Department of General Services for state
employees.
SEC. 5. This article shall remain in effect only until January
1, 2009, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
measure that is approved by a majority vote of the voters before
January 1, 2009, deletes or extends that date.