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<ns0:ActionText>INTRODUCED</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2026-02-20</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_ASSEMBLY</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2026-03-19</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:SessionYear>2025</ns0:SessionYear>
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<ns0:AuthorText authorType="LEAD_AUTHOR">Introduced by Assembly Member Pacheco</ns0:AuthorText>
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<ns0:Name>Pacheco</ns0:Name>
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<ns0:Title> An act to amend, repeal, and add Section 8956 of, and to add Section 86102.5 to, the Government Code, relating to the Political Reform Act of 1974. </ns0:Title>
<ns0:RelatingClause>the Political Reform Act of 1974</ns0:RelatingClause>
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<ns0:Subject>Lobbyist training.</ns0:Subject>
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<html:p>Existing law requires the legislative ethics committee of each house of the Legislature to conduct at least semiannually an orientation course on the relevant ethical issues and laws related to lobbying, in consultation with the Fair Political Practices Commission. Existing law requires the committees to impose fees on lobbyists for attending these courses, as specified.</html:p>
<html:p>This bill would, commencing on January 1, 2029, require the Fair Political Practices Commission to develop, maintain, and offer an orientation course for registered lobbyists on the relevant ethical issues and laws relating to lobbying, and on each house of the legislature’s policies against harassment, including sexual harassment, in connection with lobbying activities. The bill would require
the course be developed with the legislative ethics committees. The bill would require the course be available on-demand through an online platform, internet webpage, or application. The bill would authorize the commission to impose a fee on a lobbyist for the course, as specified.</html:p>
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The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act’s purposes upon a
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vote of each house of the Legislature and compliance with specified procedural requirements.
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<html:p>This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.</html:p>
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<ns0:VoteRequired>TWO_THIRDS</ns0:VoteRequired>
<ns0:Appropriation>NO</ns0:Appropriation>
<ns0:FiscalCommittee>YES</ns0:FiscalCommittee>
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<ns0:Preamble>The people of the State of California do enact as follows:</ns0:Preamble>
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<ns0:Num>SECTION 1.</ns0:Num>
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Section 8956 of the
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is amended to read:
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<ns0:Num>8956.</ns0:Num>
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(a)
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The appropriate legislative ethics committees shall conduct at least semiannually an orientation course of the relevant statutes and regulations governing official conduct. The curriculum and presentation of the course shall be established by house rules.
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(b)
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The committees shall conduct at least semiannually an orientation course on the relevant ethical issues and laws relating to lobbying, in consultation with the Fair Political Practices Commission. The course shall also include information on each house of the Legislature’s policies against harassment, including sexual harassment, in connection with lobbying activities. One of the semiannual courses shall be held prior to June 30 of each year. This course may be combined with the course described in
subdivision (a).
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(c)
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At least once in each biennial session, each Member of the Legislature and each designated employee of the Legislature shall attend one of these courses.
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(d)
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The committees shall impose fees on lobbyists for attending the course described in subdivision (b). The fees shall be set at an amount that will enable the lobbyists’ participation in the course to be funded from those fees to the fullest extent possible.
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(e)
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This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.
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<ns0:Num>SEC. 2.</ns0:Num>
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Section 8956 is added to the
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, to read:
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<ns0:Num>8956.</ns0:Num>
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(a)
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The appropriate legislative ethics committees shall conduct at least semiannually an orientation course of the relevant statutes and regulations governing official conduct. The curriculum and presentation of the course shall be established by house rules.
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<html:p>
(b)
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At least once in each biennial session, each Member of the Legislature and each designated employee of the Legislature shall attend one of these courses.
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(c)
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This section shall become operative on January 1, 2029.
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<ns0:Num>SEC. 3.</ns0:Num>
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Section 86102.5 is added to the
<ns0:DocName>Government Code</ns0:DocName>
, to read:
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<ns0:Num>86102.5.</ns0:Num>
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<html:p>
(a)
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Commencing January 1, 2029, the commission shall develop, maintain, and offer an orientation course for registered lobbyists on the relevant ethical issues and laws relating to lobbying, and on each house of the legislature’s policies against harassment, including sexual harassment, in connection with lobbying activities. The curriculum of the course shall be developed in consultation with the appropriate legislative ethics committees. The course shall be available on-demand through an online platform, internet webpage, or application.
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<html:p>
(b)
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The commission may impose a fee of fifty dollars ($50) on a lobbyist for the course described in subdivision (a). The commission shall adjust the fee each odd-numbered year to reflect changes in the
Consumer Price Index, rounded to the nearest ten dollars ($10).
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(c)
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Unused funds collected by the joint legislative ethics committees from lobbyists for this course pursuant to Section 8956 before January 1, 2029, shall be transferred to the commission for the purpose of developing the course.
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<ns0:Num>SEC. 4.</ns0:Num>
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<html:p>The Legislature finds and declares that this bill furthers the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within the meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government Code.</html:p>
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