I am once again joined by my colleagues Laura Curtis and Robert Moutrie on today’s video podcast about lobbying bills that have made it to one of the floors in the California Legislature. We discuss the similarities and major differences between lobbying bills in committee and lobbying bills on the floor.
The topics covered in
Today’s podcast is a little bit different. Not only does today’s post feature video, rather than audio, it also features two of my colleagues – Robert Moutrie (Policy Advocate at the California Chamber of Commerce) and Laura Curtis (Legislative Advocate). I discuss with them their advice for lobbying committee staff and committee members in the
All measures in the California Legislature are required to prominently display the Legislative Counsel’s Digest on the front page of the bill. So, what is this required section of every measure?
According to the Legislative Counsel’s glossary of terms, the Digest is prepared by the Legislative Counsel and it summarizes the effect of a proposed
What is California’s reenactment rule? The state’s constitution, in Article IV, Section 9, states, “ A section of a statute may not be amended unless the section is reenacted as amended.” But what exactly does that mean?
The courts have determined that the purpose of the reenactment rule is to avoid enacting statutes in
On occasion, California statutes can be challenged in either state or federal court with the argument that the statute violates the California or United States Constitutions. So, on what bases can a statute be declared unconstitutional?
One basis is vagueness. Essentially, the standard here is whether or not the statute is written with a
The so-called revolving door in politics – elected officials leaving public service to work in the private sector lobbying their former colleagues – is no secret. In California, we have a number of rules and laws to slow the so-called revolving door. The rules can be found in Article IV, Section 5(e) of California’s
Every election year, McGeorge Associate Dean Mary-Beth Moylan teaches the California Initiative Seminar. In it, students analyze every Proposition on the California ballot. That work culminates in the publishing of the California Initiative Review, the California Initiative Review – Initiatives At-A-Glance, and the California Initiative Forum. All of these resources are made available
Sometimes, when reviewing California bills, you come across legislative findings and declarations. What are these, and are they necessary? There are essentially two schools of thought for the second question, but let’s first address what these are.
Sometimes bills will contain the equivalent of what we call a preamble, or a declaration of purpose.
Today I’ll consider the question of whether legislative intent language can overcome statutory language. I’ve seen instances in the California Legislature where a bill contains both statutory changes – language that adds, amends, or repeals Code Sections – as well as legislative intent statements – usually in the form of findings and declarations.
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As capitol observers watch the floor sessions, and sometimes even committee hearings, of the California State Assembly and State Senate they come across some commonly used phrases. Let’s take a look at what those phrases mean.
This is used by a member of the Senate or the Assembly during a legislative proceeding