Political Reform Act of 1974: corporations.

The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the regulation of political campaign financing, including the reporting and disclosure of campaign contributions and expenditures. Under the act, elected officers, candidates for elective office, and campaign committees are required to file periodic campaign statements that disclose specified information for specified reporting periods, including the amount of contributions received, the amount of expenditures made, and the identities of donors and recipients of expenditures. This bill would require a corporation that makes a contribution or expenditure for a political activity in the State of California, as defined, to prepare a report within 30 days after the close of the corporation's fiscal year containing specified information regarding all contributions or expenditures made by the corporation for political activities in the State of California during that fiscal year. The bill would further require the corporation to maintain records of those contributions or expenditures, including the report described above, for a period of not less than 5 years, and to file a copy of the report with the Fair Political Practices Commission upon request of the Commission. In addition, the bill would give shareholders of a corporation the right to file a notice of objection to the corporation's use of the shareholder's invested funds for political activities in the State of California and would require the corporation, if a shareholder so objects, to return to the shareholder as a dividend his or her pro rata share of the funds expended for political activities. The bill would also create a civil cause of action that may be brought by any shareholder against a corporation that violates the above provisions or that makes a political contribution or expenditure that adversely affects the value of the corporation's stock. Existing law makes a knowing or willful violation of the Political Reform Act of 1974 a misdemeanor and subject offenders to criminal penalties. This bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating additional crimes. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. 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 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.