California Legislature – Page 58

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Why Do Tax Statutes Use Different Repeal Language?

October 16, 2023 2:49 pmOctober 16, 2023 5:20 pm

As readers know, the California Legislature occasionally places “sunset dates,” or “repealers,” in a bill so that the enacted statute will be repealed as of a specified date. This is usually accomplished by the following provision: This section shall remain...

Does California Use Headings in Statutes?

October 16, 2023 2:12 pmOctober 16, 2023 2:12 pm

Yes, many California statutes have headings, which are valuable to those researching the law or trying to find a relevant statutory provision. Normally, code sections are not captioned in the drafting stage, such as when a bill is going through...

When a New Law Conflicts with an Existing Law

October 15, 2023 4:05 pmOctober 15, 2023 4:05 pm

As you might imagine, sometimes a bill in the California Legislature with a new statute might conflict with another state law, or even federal law. How is that handled in the legislation? Obviously under the federal Supremacy Clause, a federal...

Drafting a Study Bill

October 15, 2023 9:00 amOctober 15, 2023 9:00 am

Several times per Session, there are bills in the California Legislature to require a study be conducted. Some of these bills are very short, such as this example from a 2023 Session bill: The State Department of Public Health shall...

Disposition of 2023 Bills in the California Legislature

October 14, 2023 6:46 amOctober 14, 2023 6:46 am

I researched and compiled the following information regarding the disposition or outcome of legislation from the last 15 years of the California Legislature. The two charts below list the bills by session year, the number of Assembly Bills or Senate...

Knowing When an Initiative Is Being Amended by the Legislature

October 13, 2023 6:32 amOctober 13, 2023 6:32 am

Article II, Section 10 of the California Constitution provides in Subdivision (c): The Legislature may amend or repeal a referendum statute. The Legislature may amend or repeal an initiative statute by another statute that becomes effective only when approved by...

An Updated Analysis of the Cal Chamber’s ‘Job Killer’ Bill Program

October 12, 2023 6:56 pmOctober 12, 2023 6:56 pm

The California Chamber of Commerce is well-known for its annual “Job Killer” designation that has been in existence for just over a quarter century. How have bills fared with the Job Killer designation during the past five gubernatorial administrations? Let’s take a...