Frequently Asked Questions about Placeholder Bills

What is a “placeholder bill” in the California Legislature? It is an introduced bill that does not contain substantive law changes. It is intended to save a place for future amendments.

What are the types of placeholder bills? Spot bills, intent bills, or findings and declarations bills.

What is a “spot bill”? These bills make a technical or nonsubstantive change to an existing statute in one of the 29 Codes.

What is an “intent bill”? These bills contain, in most instances, a single statement of legislative intent to do something generally (e.g., the Legislature intends to enact a bill related to transportation) or specifically (e.g., the Legislature intends to enact a bill to create a youth hiring tax credit).

What is a “legislative findings and declarations bill”? These bills contain only one or more of these statements (and not any statutory language).

What happens to placeholder bills after introduction in the Assembly or Senate? While they are awaiting substantive language to be added, they are held in the respective Rules Committees, who will only refer those bills to a policy committee once substantive amendments are provided for the placeholder bill.