SENATE PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT & RETIREMENT BILL NO: AB 1654

Gloria Negrete McLeod, Chair HEARING DATE: June 11, 2012

AB 1654 (author:Cook) as amended amended: 5/07/12 FISCAL: NO

FIVE YEAR BAN ON ANY PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT FOR AT-WILL PUBLIC EMPLOYEES CONVICTED OF JOB RELATED FELONIES

HISTORY:

Sponsor: Author

Other legislation: AB 1044 (Aghazarian),

Chapter 322, Statutes of 2005

SB 1882 (Campbell),

Chapter 991, Statutes of 1994

SB 42 (Nejedly),

Chapter 1139, Statutes of 1976

ASSEMBLY VOTES:

PER & SS 5-0 5/02/12

Assembly Floor 72-0 5/14/12

SUMMARY:

AB 1654 disqualifies certain at-will public employees from any public employment for a period of five years following the later of a specified felony conviction or release from incarceration, and makes findings and declarations regarding the bill’s applicability to charter cities and counties.

BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS:

1) Existing law:

a)  makes punishable by imprisonment for two, three, or four years any person who bribes or offers a bribe to a public official, as specified, and any public official who accepts a bribe. A public official convicted of bribery is forever disfranchised and disqualified from holding any public office or trust.

2) This bill:

a)  prohibits a public employee who is convicted of a felony involving bribery, embezzlement of public money, extortion or theft of public money, perjury, or conspiracy to commit any of those crimes arising out of his or her official duties from being employed by a city, county, district, or any other public agency of the state for a period of five years.

b)  specifies that the five-year disqualification period begins on the later of:

i. The date of final conviction; or,

ii.  The date on which the employee is released from incarceration.

c)  defines "public employee" for purposes of these provisions as an at-will employee hired to provide services to an elected public officer elected or reelected to public office on or after January 1, 2013.

d)  declares that this is an issue of statewide concern and not a municipal affair and, therefore, will apply to all cities and counties, including charter cities and counties.

COMMENTS:

1)  Argument in Support

According to the author, this bill responds to a problem as illustrated by the San Bernardino County developer corruption scandal involving Colonies Partners. Certain elected county supervisors involved in that scandal face a permanent ban from office if convicted. However, certain non-elected, at-will public employees implicated in the investigation are not subject to the same ban and could obtain employment in another public agency subsequent to their conviction. Background information provided by the author’s office notes:

"Following years of investigation, the former Chairman of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors pled guilty to multiple felony charges, including bribery, conspiracy, and embezzlement. Additionally, the developer, another former San Bernardino County Supervisor, and two former chiefs of staff to San Bernardino County Supervisors have been charged in the case.

“If convicted, both former supervisors will be barred from holding public office. Despite being charged with similar crimes as part of the same case, the former chiefs of staff will be eligible to seek and hold public employment. This could allow them to end up on the payroll of another city or county, even after being convicted of grossly violating the public trust in San Bernardino County. Unfortunately, the Colonies case is not an isolated incident, as corruption scandals in Bell, Vernon, and other California cities have shown. The failure to hold high level staff of elected officials to the same standard as their bosses is a major oversight in current law.”

The author further states, "The California Constitution already recognizes that elected officials who abuse their office should be barred from holding public office. This bill will extend that principle to senior political staff. Whether you're a legislator, mayor, or chief of staff, criminals who violate the public trust have no place on public payrolls."

2)  OPPOSITION:

None to date

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Glenn A. Miles

Date: 5/23/12 Page 1