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The chamber of the state Senate in Sacramento. (Photo: Felix Lipov, via Shutterstock)In simplistic terms, lobbying the state Senate and Assembly floors is similar to lobbying legislative committees, except that the scale is much larger. For example, some committees have as few five members (elected officials), while others have over 20 members. As you would assume, most committees in the 40-member Senate have fewer members sitting on them than do their counterparts in the 80-member Assembly.
The state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: Always Wanderlust, via Shutterstock)When preparing to lobby legislative committees, the focus is on legislative staff and then legislators. There are two types of staff for our purposes: committee and member. Committee staff, referred to as committee consultants, are those who work directly for the legislative policy or fiscal committees. Member staff are those who work directly for an Assembly member or senator.
The state Capitol in Sacramento at night. (Photo: Susanne Pommer)With Gov. Gavin Newsom completing his bill actions on Wednesday, we can look at some of the data from the just-concluded 2019-20 California legislative session. Over the two-year session, a total of 4,848 bills were introduced between the Senate and the Assembly (2,625 in 2019 and 2,223 in 2020). In the Senate, there were a total of 1,474 SBs introduced, including 682 SBs in 2020 and 792 SBs in 2019. In the Assembly, there were a total of 3,374 ABs introduced, including 1,541 ABs in 2020 and 1,833 ABs in 2019.
The state Capitol in Sacramento, home of the Legislature. (Photo: SchnepfDesign, via Shutterstock))In the California Legislature, all types of legislative measures (bills, resolutions and constitutional amendments), as well amendments to those measures, can only be introduced or processed if they are in “Legislative Counsel form.” The purpose is to ensure greater consistency in California’s statutes. The nonpartisan Office of the Legislative Counsel serves as legal counsel and bill drafters to California legislators and the governor.
Chris Micheli. Photo by Tim Foster, Capitol WeeklyLongtime lobbyist Chris Micheli stops by the Capitol Weekly Podcast to talk with Tim Foster and John Howard about his new book: A Practitioner’s Guide to Lobbying and Advocacy in California.
The state Capitol i9n Sacramento. (Photo: Susanne Pommer, via Shutterstock)OPINION: The California Legislature is currently more progressive than ever before, and the business community is adjusting its strategy in Sacramento accordingly. California has long been home to an extraordinarily active Legislature that routinely passes laws with significant and far-reaching impacts on businesses throughout the state, as well as national and international businesses, most of which have an economic interest in the world’s fifth-largest economy.
The state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: Adonis Villanueva, via Shutterstock)Lobbyists at the state Capitol have noticed a trend developing over the use of letters to the Daily Journals in the Assembly and Senate as a substitute for making bill amendments. It’s a development little noticed by the public, but it is being closely watched by those with business before the Legislature.
The state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: Rigucci, via Shutterstock)With the recently concluded 2017-18 legislative session, it is valuable to look at some of the key data, including bill introductions, the fate of those bills, the work of the committees, the lawmakers’ legislation and the actions of the governor. So let’s crunch some numbers: We’ll look at the Senate first.
The state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo SchnepfDesign, via Shutterstock)Clearly, Washington, D.C., and Sacramento share many things in common — including such negatives as a hyper-heated political culture, insularity and a pervasive sense of entitlement. And California’s Legislature is obviously based upon the federal legislative model. Nonetheless, their legislative rules are different, so let’s take a look at some of the major distinctions.