Image by WallentineVacancies are nothing new in the California Legislature, and as with most things in that body there are a suite of rules and procedure to follow to fill those empty positions.
Image by CassiohabibIn general, state legislative history is elusive and California, like many other states, is no exception to this rule. For those who need to research the legislative history of a bill that was enacted into law in the State of California, there are a number of options to use.
California law, image by Vitalii VodolazskyiThe California Government Code contains a number of provisions related to the Legislature and the lawmaking process. There have been numerous court decisions over the past one hundred years interpreting key provisions of the Government Code. The following cases highlight some of the key decisions interpreting these statutory provisions related to the California Legislature and its legislative process.
California law, image by Vitalii VodolazskyiIn California, as in most states, a statute is presumed to operate prospectively. Quarry v. Doe I (2012) 53 Cal.4th 945, 955. In construing statutes, there is a presumption against retroactive application unless the Legislature plainly has directed otherwise by means of express language of retroactivity or other sources that provide a clear and unavoidable implication that the Legislature intended retroactive application of the statute.
Chris Micheli photo by Scott DuncanIn reviewing gubernatorial signing messages over the past two decades, I compiled the following chart of bills that have signing messages. The chart includes the session year, the Governor, the bill number and author, and the subject of the bill. This chart includes 19 years’ worth of signing messages by three Governors.
Image by Ritu Manoj JethaniMICHELI FILES: Despite no constitutional provision allowing them (or prohibiting them), many California Governors have used “signing messages” to accompany a Governor’s signature on a bill. U.S. Presidents also have long used signing messages.
Image by TungCheungMICHELI FILES: Resorting to legislative history is generally appropriate only where statutory language is ambiguous. As the California Supreme Court has said, “Our role in construing a statute is to ascertain the Legislature’s intent so as to effectuate the purpose of the law.
Image by Salivanchuk SemenMICHELI FILES – Hearings are a regular part of life in the California Legislature. But as with all things under the dome, nothing is a one size fits all. There are, in fact multiple types of hearings in the effort to educate legislators and staff about the subject matter at hand.
Image by Dmitry DemidovichMICHELI FILES: For purposes of statutory construction, the courts and bill drafters use a series of “canons” to guide them. These include textual canons (intrinsic aids), linguistic presumptions and grammatical conventions, substantive canons, and extrinsic aids. It is impossible to list them all, but there are some common canons, and those are most useful for legislative drafting.
Image by MehaniqMICHELI FILES: It is not the role of the legislative or executive branches of government to determine a statute’s constitutionality. Rather, that role is reserved to the third branch of government – the judicial branch.