The CAPS Act: Enacting New Barriers Between Elected Officials and Interest Groups

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Abstract
SB 1441, SB 1442, & SB 1443: Are the New Limits on Gifts and Fundraising Enough to Eliminate Conflict of Interest Issues for Elected Officials?

            In early 2014, the Fair Political Practices Commission indicted several Senators on charges of corruption for serious violations of the Political Reform Act. In response to these incidents, Senate President pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg established the Senate Ethics Working Group and introduced the California Accountability in Public Service Act (the CAPS Act) seeking to make political practices more transparent. The CAPS Act proposes to ban fundraising at the homes and offices of registered lobbyists and lobbying firms, increase the frequency of lobbying disclosure reports, and ban gifts from lobbyists to public officials altogether.

SB 1441 amends the meaning of a “contribution” under the Political Reform Act to include payments made by a lobbyist or lobbying firm towards a fundraising event occurring at the lobbyist’s home or the firm’s office. This will prohibit lobbyists or firms from donating the use of their homes or offices for fundraising events unless they receive fair value in return for the use of their premises. This bill helps to establish clearer guidelines for the avoidance of conflict of interests in fundraising events for elected officials hosted by lobbyists.

SB 1442 requires the Secretary of State to develop a statewide internet filing system, replacing an outdated and sometimes ineffective system. Following the implementation of the new system, SB 1442 also requires state candidates and campaign committees to file periodic campaign reports every calendar quarter, instead of semiannually.

SB 1443 prohibits lobbyists from giving any gifts to elected officials and reduces the value of gifts public officials may receive from any single non-lobbyist source from $250 to $200. SB 1443 also prohibits specific gifts, including tickets to concerts and professional sporting events and gift cards. Though gifts of travel and meals remain largely unregulated, SB 1443 helps add clarity to gift laws and targets some of the gifts that most frequently raise conflict of interest questions.

This Greensheets article will explore the efficacy of these bills, their potential policy implications, and the scope of their limitations.

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Elizabeth Kim

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