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SCA-2 Revised biennial session.(2011-2012)

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SCA2:v95#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  August 06, 2012
Amended  IN  Senate  July 05, 2012
Amended  IN  Senate  February 15, 2011
Amended  IN  Senate  January 10, 2011

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2011–2012 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Constitutional Amendment
No. 2

Introduced  by  Senator Wyland
 (Principal Coauthor(s): Senator Emmerson)

December 06, 2010

A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by amending, repealing, and adding Sections 3 and 12 of Article IV thereof, relating to legislative sessions.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SCA 2, as amended, Wyland. Revised biennial session.
(1) The California Constitution requires the Legislature to convene in regular biennial session at noon on the first Monday in December of each even-numbered year to consider legislation and the Budget Bill.
This measure would require the Legislature to convene in regular biennial session, but would require, commencing on December 1, 2014, that the sessions held in odd-numbered years be budget sessions, and that the sessions held in even-numbered years be general sessions. The measure would require the Legislature in the budget session to adopt Budget Bills for each of the 2 subsequent fiscal years. While the Legislature would be authorized to conduct any other business during a budget session, the measure would require the Legislature, during a budget session, to consider Budget Bills and budget implementation bills, as defined. The measure would further require the Legislature, during a budget session, to conduct oversight and review of state revenues and expenditures and, in that connection, to establish an oversight and program review process for evaluating public programs supported with state funds, as specified.
(2) The California Constitution requires that a budget be submitted by the Governor, and that the Legislature pass a Budget Act on or before June 15. Funds may be expended from the State Treasury for support of the state government only through an appropriation made by law.
This measure would require, in each odd-numbered calendar year, commencing in 2015, that the Governor submit to the Legislature a proposed budget for each of the 2 subsequent fiscal years. The measure would require that the budget submitted by the Governor include a goal statement, description of outcome measures, and a historical report for each public program for which state funds are appropriated by that budget, as specified.
Vote: 2/3   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  
Resolved by the Senate, the Assembly concurring, That the Legislature of the State of California at its 2011–12 Regular Session commencing on the sixth day of December 2010, 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 3 of Article IV thereof is amended to read:

SEC. 3.
 (a) The Legislature shall convene in regular session at noon on the first Monday in December of each even-numbered year and each house shall immediately organize. Each session of the Legislature shall adjourn sine die by operation of the Constitution at midnight on November 30 of the following even-numbered year.
(b) On extraordinary occasions the Governor by proclamation may cause the Legislature to assemble in special session. When so assembled it has power to legislate only on subjects specified in the proclamation but may provide for expenses and other matters incidental to the session.
(c) This section does not apply to any legislative session commencing on or after December 1, 2014. This section shall remain in effect until December 1, 2014, and as of that date is repealed. Section 3 of Article IV, as added by the measure that added this subdivision, shall apply to legislative sessions commencing on or after December 1, 2014.

Second—

 That Section 3 is added to Article IV thereof, to read:

SEC. 3.
 (a) The Legislature shall convene in biennial regular session at noon on the first Monday in December of each even-numbered year and each house shall immediately organize. Each regular session of the Legislature shall adjourn sine die by operation of the Constitution at midnight on November 30 of the following even-numbered year.
(b) (1) Odd-numbered years of the biennial regular session, together with the immediately preceding December upon organization of each house, shall be known as budget sessions. In a budget session, the Legislature shall consider budget bills and budget implementation bills for the succeeding two fiscal years and may conduct any other business.
(2) In a budget session, the Legislature shall conduct oversight and review of the revenues and expenditures of the State. In furtherance of that purpose, the Legislature shall establish an oversight and program review process for evaluating public programs that shall include, but not be limited to, periodic review of each program supported with state funds at least once every four years, unless each house by rollcall vote entered in the journal, two-thirds of the membership concurring, determines there is no public benefit to evaluating or reviewing a specific program. The process shall include the establishment of a schedule to review the operations and outcomes of each public program, performance standards that identify the intended goals to be supported by each program, and an evaluation of the impact of each program on the achievement of those goals.
(c) Even-numbered years of the biennial regular session shall be known as general sessions, during which any legislation may be considered.
(d) On extraordinary occasions the Governor by proclamation may cause the Legislature to assemble in special session. When so assembled, the Legislature shall have power to legislate only on subjects specified in the proclamation, but may provide for expenses and other matters incidental to the session.
(e) For purposes of this section, “budget implementation bill” means a bill that is identified in a statute enacting a budget bill as containing only changes in law necessary to implement the budget bill.

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 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) For the 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, and 2014–15 fiscal years, 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.
(h) 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 appropriation from the current budget or future budget 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.
(i) This section does not apply to the budget or budget bill for any fiscal period commencing on or after July 1, 2015. This section shall remain in effect until July 1, 2015, and as of that date is repealed. Section 12 of Article IV, as added by the measure that added this subdivision, shall apply to the budget and budget bill for fiscal periods commencing on or after July 1, 2015.

Fourth—

 That Section 12 is added to Article IV thereof, to read:

SEC. 12.
 (a) (1) Within the first 10 days of each odd-numbered calendar year, the Governor shall submit to the Legislature, with an explanatory message, a separate budget for each of the two subsequent fiscal years thereafter commencing on July 1, 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.
(2) The budget submitted by the Governor shall include all of the following:
(A) A goal statement for each public program that receives state funds in the budget.
(B) A description of the outcome measures or other information that may be used to determine whether progress is being made in accomplishing goals identified pursuant to subparagraph (A), and the impact of each program supported by state funds in supporting that progress.
(C) A historical report tracking the progress in meeting goals identified pursuant to subparagraph (A) and informing whether the state’s impact on goals is improving over time.
(3) The budget submitted by the Governor, including related information regarding goals, outcomes, and performance required by paragraph (2), shall be made available to the public in text form in an open, electronic format that is machine readable, or in another format that is more readily accessible to the public.
(b) The Governor and the Governor-elect may require a state agency, officer, or employee to furnish any information that is deemed necessary to prepare each budget.
(c) (1) Each budget shall be accompanied by a budget bill itemizing recommended expenditures for the applicable fiscal year.
(2) The budget bills shall be introduced immediately in each house by the persons chairing the committees that consider the budget.
(3) The Legislature shall pass the budget bills by midnight on June 15 of the odd-numbered calendar year.
(4) Until the budget bills are enacted, the Legislature shall not send to the Governor for consideration any bill appropriating funds for expenditure during either of the two subsequent fiscal years for which the budget bills are to be enacted, except emergency bills recommended by the Governor or appropriations for the salaries and expenses of the Legislature.
(d) No bill except a 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.
(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) For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2015, and every July 1 thereafter, the Legislature shall 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 with 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.
(h) 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 appropriation from the current budget or future budget 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.