California Assembly Bill ACA4 Introduced / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: ACA 4INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Assembly Members Bass and Hill and Senator Steinberg DECEMBER 3, 2008 A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by amending Section 9 of Article II thereof, and by amending Sections 8 and 12 of Article IV thereof, relating to the state budget. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST ACA 4, as introduced, Bass. State budget. (1) Existing provisions of the California Constitution specify the times when statutes take effect. In particular, statutes calling elections, providing for tax levies or appropriations for the usual current expenses of the state, and urgency statutes take immediate effect under these constitutional provisions. In addition, the Constitution exempts these statutes from the power of referendum, which is the power of the electors to approve or reject statutes or parts of statutes. This measure would add, as statutes that take effect immediately and are exempt from referendum, statutes enacting the Budget Bill and statutes enacting bills identified in the Budget Bill as containing only changes in law necessary to implement the Budget Bill. (2) Existing constitutional provisions require each house of the Legislature to pass a bill appropriating money from the General Fund, except appropriations for the public schools, by a 2/3 vote. This measure would add, as an exception to this 2/3 vote requirement, appropriations made in a Budget Bill for the ensuing fiscal year that is passed on or before June 15. Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no. Resolved by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That the Legislature of the State of California at its 2009-10 Regular Session commencing on the first day of December 2008, 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: First-- That Section 9 of Article II thereof is amended to read: SEC. 9. (a) The referendum is the power of the electors to approve or reject statutes or parts of statutes except urgency statutes, statutes calling elections,  statutes enacting the budget bill, statutes enacting budget implementation bills,  and statutes providing for tax levies or appropriations for usual current expenses of the State. (b) A referendum measure may be proposed by presenting to the Secretary of State, within 90 days after the enactment date of the statute, a petition certified to have been signed by electors equal in number to 5 percent of the votes for all candidates for Governor at the last gubernatorial election, asking that the statute or part of it be submitted to the electors. In the case of a statute enacted by a bill passed by the Legislature on or before the date the Legislature adjourns for a joint recess to reconvene in the second calendar year of the biennium of the legislative session, and in the possession of the Governor after that date, the petition may not be presented on or after January 1 next following the enactment date unless a copy of the petition is submitted to the Attorney General pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 10  of Article II  before January 1. (c) The Secretary of State shall then submit the measure at the next general election held at least 31 days after it qualifies or at a special statewide election held prior to that general election. The Governor may call a special statewide election for the measure. Second-- That Section 8 of Article IV thereof is amended to read: SEC. 8. (a) At regular sessions no bill other than the budget bill may be heard or acted on by committee or either house until the 31st day after the bill is introduced unless the house dispenses with this requirement by rollcall vote entered in the journal,  three fourths   three-   fourths  of the membership concurring. (b) The Legislature may make no law except by statute and may enact no statute except by bill. No bill may be passed unless it is read by title on  3   three  days in each house except that the house may dispense with this requirement by rollcall vote entered in the journal,  two thirds   two-   thirds  of the membership concurring. No bill may be passed until the bill with amendments has been printed and distributed to the  members   Members . No bill may be passed unless, by rollcall vote entered in the journal, a majority of the membership of each house concurs. (c) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3)  of this subdivision  , a statute enacted at a regular session shall go into effect on January 1 next following a 90-day period from the date of enactment of the statute and a statute enacted at a special session shall go into effect on the 91st day after adjournment of the special session at which the bill was passed. (2) A statute, other than a statute establishing or changing boundaries of any legislative, congressional, or other election district, enacted by a bill passed by the Legislature on or before the date the Legislature adjourns for a joint recess to reconvene in the second calendar year of the biennium of the legislative session, and in the possession of the Governor after that date, shall go into effect on January 1 next following the enactment date of the statute unless, before January 1, a copy of a referendum petition affecting the statute is submitted to the Attorney General pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 10 of Article II, in which event the statute shall go into effect on the 91st day after the enactment date unless the petition has been presented to the Secretary of State pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 9 of Article II. (3) Statutes calling elections, statutes providing for tax levies or appropriations for the usual current expenses of the State,  statutes enacting the budget bill, statutes enacting budget implementation bills,  and urgency statutes shall go into effect immediately upon their enactment.  For purposes of this section and Section 9 of Article II, a "budget implementation bill" is a bill that is identified in the budget bill as containing only changes in law necessary to implement the budget bill.  (d) Urgency statutes are those necessary for immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety. A statement of facts constituting the necessity shall be set forth in one section of the bill. In each house the section and the bill shall be passed separately, each by rollcall vote entered in the journal,  two thirds   two-   thirds  of the membership concurring. An urgency statute  ,   a statute enacting the budget bill, or a statute enacting a budget implementation bill  may not create or abolish any office or change the salary, term, or duties of any office, or grant any franchise or special privilege, or create any vested right or interest. Third-- That Section 12 of Article IV thereof is amended to read: SEC. 12. (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 except appropriations made in a budget bill for the ensuing fiscal year that is passed on or before June 15,  are void unless passed in each house by rollcall vote entered in the journal, two-thirds of the membership concurring. (e) The Legislature may control the submission, approval, and enforcement of budgets and the filing of claims for all state agencies. (f) For the 2004-05 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 bill's 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 bill's passage. That estimate of General Fund revenues shall be set forth in the budget bill passed by the Legislature.