In California, the Kern County Board of Supervisors approved a contract with NetFile Inc. to create a new electronic filing system for campaign finance reporting.

The new system is supposed to be more user friendly, which will increase transparency and allow the public to more easily access campaign finance data.

Electronic filing is not mandatory and the county will still accept paper filings.

The California Assembly passed AB 2523 on Thursday.

The bill would limit campaign contributions to $4,200 in local governments that do not already have established campaign contribution limits. The bill includes a provision for local governments to reject the limit if local voters agree.

The bill passed 43-15 and is being sent to the Senate.

Mountain View City Council approved the introduction of new campaign finance rules aimed at increasing transparency.

The ordinance establishes an electronic filing system for campaign finance documents and creates new rules for independent expenditures and disclosures on political advertisements.

The ordinance is set for a second reading on June 14, 2016. If passed, the measure will become effective 30 days after adoption.

The San Diego Ethics Commission released a draft of proposed amendments to San Diego’s Election Campaign Control Ordinance.

The proposed changes would extend the one-year pre-election fundraising time period to January 1 of odd-numbered years and eliminate the third pre-election filing for primarily formed recipient committees.

Comments and suggestions regarding the draft amendments can be made at the next commission meeting on June 9, 2016 at 5:00 p.m. Written comments can also be sent via email to ethicscommission@sandiego.gov.

California Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed Assembly Bill 1200.

The bill would have revised the definition of lobbyist to include third-party consultants who work to influence governmental procurement.

The governor’s veto message said the bill is not necessary and cited the existence of numerous laws already regulating state procurement.

The California Senate voted to reverse the ban on members raising money from lobbyist employers during budget negotiations.

The ban would have gone into effect upon the governor’s release of the revised budget, which is set for May 13. The reversal of this rule comes amid an election year where many members of the Senate are running for re-election.

The California Senate voted to reverse the ban on members raising money from lobbyist employers during budget negotiations.

The ban would have gone into effect upon the Governor’s release of the revised budget, which is set for May 13.

The reversal of this rule comes amid an election year where many members of the Senate are running for reelection.

California Gov. Jerry Brown will release his revised 2016-17 budget proposal on Friday, May 13, 2016.

The release of the revised budget triggers a ban on contributions to members of the Senate from the date the proposed revised budget is released until the date of enactment of a budget bill for the 2016-17 fiscal year.

The constitutional deadline for the Legislature to pass a budget bill is June 15th.

The San Francisco Ethics Commission has announced two interested persons meetings on May 11 and May 16 to discuss a proposed November 2016 ballot measure that would ask San Francisco voters to place new restrictions on lobbyist contributions, bundling of contributions by lobbyists, and gifts from lobbyists.

The feedback from these meetings will be used in the analysis and recommendations on the proposed ballot measure presented at the May 23, 2016 commission meeting.

Written comments and RSVPs can be sent via email to ethics.commission@sfgov.org.

Assembly Bill 1200 has been sent to California Gov. Jerry Brown. The bill revises the definition of lobbyist to include individuals attempting to influence state governmental procurement of $250,000 or more.

Legislators passed the bill despite criticism of the measure from the California Fair Political Practices Commission.

If Brown signs the bill, the new rules will go into effect January 1, 2017.

Redondo Beach City Council will consider adopting an ordinance to reform local campaign finance rules. The proposed ordinance will include new campaign contribution limits and a prohibition on nonelection cycle contributions.

The details of the ordinance, including contribution limit amounts, have yet to be narrowed down and will be a topic of consideration at the July 19, 2016 city council meeting. The city currently does not have any campaign contribution limits.

San Luis Obispo City Council voted yesterday not to proceed with a proposed ordinance to create a system of democracy voucher funding for municipal elections. The voucher system would have provided each registered voter with a $20 voucher that could be donated to the municipal candidate of choice.

Additionally, this ordinance would have created an ethics commission and required reporting on independent expenditures over $500.

A bill prohibiting communications between members of California’s Coastal Commission and lobbyists during the 24 hour period before commission hearings has passed in committee. The Committee on Elections and Redistricting approved Assembly Bill 2002, getting lawmakers one step closer to making state commissions more transparent.

AB 2002 is one of six bills currently in the legislature aimed at shedding light on state boards and commissions. All of the proposed bills must still pass floor votes in both houses.

At its March 28, 2016, meeting, the San Francisco Ethics Commission will discuss and possibly select campaign committees and lobbyists for the commission’s 2015 random audits.

The commission recommends randomly selecting 20% of campaign committees that reported activity greater than $10,000 in 2015.

It is also proposed that four lobbying entities should be randomly selected for audit. The commission estimates the audits will take 18 months to complete.