Since 1993, the Legislative Counsel has maintained an electronic platform from which to display legislative measures introduced and considered from that year forward. The materials listed by the Legislative Counsel as available on line are: the legislative calendar; the schedule of Legislative committee hearings; a list of matters pending on the floors of both houses of the Legislature; a list of the committees of the Legislature and their members; the text of each bill introduced, including each amended, enrolled, and chaptered form of each bill; the history of each bill introduced and amended; the status of each bill introduced and amended; all bill analyses prepared by legislative committees in connection with each bill; and any veto message concerning a bill.
Our own experiences with these same on-line materials are that not all of the analyses are included. Furthermore, there are no legislative bill files included for the legislative committees reviewing the bill, the author, the sponsor, nor the Governor at this website. These file materials contain valuable information identifying the sources and background of the legislation and the subsequent amendments to the legislation.
Our Points and Authorities, available at Legislative Intent Service, address over 700 cases in which legislative file materials were offered into court. Recent cases like Kaufman & Broad Communities, Inc. v. Performance Plastering (Aug. 30, 2005), coming out of the Third Appellate District, remind attorneys of the important role that legislative history materials play when one or both sides argue that the statutory language is ambiguous. In 2004, the California Supreme Court stated the following regarding the enrolled bill reports found in the Governor’s legislative bill file:
"Uveges challenge Eisner's reliance on the enrolled bill report, arguing that it is irrelevant because it was prepared after passage. However, we have routinely found enrolled bill reports, prepared by a responsible agency contemporaneous with passage and before signing, instructive on matters of legislative intent. (Citations.) Although we do not give great weight to the report, it is instructive." (Eisner v. Uveges (2004) 34 Cal.4th 915, 934, fn.19)
The Legislative Committees’ and author’s bill files contain analyses, worksheets, press releases, committee and floor statements, as well as letters of support and opposition suggesting language changes that may show up later in amendments to your bill. The California Supreme Court, in a 2004 case, relied upon a committee bill analysis worksheet. (Martin v. Szeto (2004) 32 Cal.4th 445, 450) An appellate decision arising out of the Second District Court of Appeal (Division 5) similarly looked to a bill analysis worksheet. (Walker v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc. (2002, 2nd District, Division 5) 98 Cal.App.4th 1158, 1171-1172)
Also not included at the Legislative Counsel’s website are any interim hearing reports and background reports from other identified sources. These reports are rich with content as to the problems identified and the possible solutions probed by the members of the interim committees and their experts, which ultimately led to the introduction of a specific bill or series of bills.
Of important significance missing from the Legislative Counsel’s list of on-line legislative documents are failed or vetoed predecessor and competitor bills from which your language of interest may have developed. Whenever such legislation is identified in the materials, we make every reasonable effort to collect all surviving materials on that failed legislation. A full understanding of legislative intent is generally dependent upon knowing about the various proposals competing with or preceding the measure ultimately enacted. This can be especially true where the focus is on particular language; by contrasting that enacted with the unsuccessful proposals can afford insight as to the intended meaning.
The above summary of documents unavailable at the Legislative Counsel’s on-line site addresses only the main materials not included on the net. We have, over these 31 years of doing business, learned there are numerous other background documentation of significance to any particular legislation. Having the largest private collection of legislative documents that span three centuries, we can help you find the documents related to the enactment or amendment of any code section of interest to you.
