One of two bills aimed at making California politicians' campaign finance records digitally accessible passed a big legislative hurdle Wednesday.
Written by state Senator Betty Karnette (D-Long Beach), SB49 edged out a similar initiative by Senator Quentin Kopp (I-San Francisco). After a joint hearing, Karnette's bill passed out of the Senate Elections and Reapportionment Committee, while Kopp's died.
Karnette's bill advanced just two days after California Secretary of State Bill Jones announced a public/private partnership to implement a voluntary electronic-filing program that will give the public access to California campaign finance information in time for the state's 1998 June primary. Her bill mirrors one by Assemblyman Jim Cunneen (R-Cupertino), that would require candidates for state office to file electronic records of campaign contributions upon exceeding a threshold of US$50,000. Cunneen's bill won committee approval on Monday.
