court surcharges;
transportation; traffic safety
HCR 2015 asks the voters to approve a change in funding for the Clean Elections Act and to direct monies toward transportation and traffic safety improvements.
The Clean Elections Act is a campaign finance reform measure that was initiated by citizens and passed by the voters in 1998 as Proposition 200. The Clean Elections Act created a new campaign financing system that provides public funding to qualified candidates who agree to abide by Citizens Clean Elections Commission (CCEC) guidelines. 2000 was the first year in which statewide and legislative office candidates could run an election under the Clean Elections Act. Becoming a clean elections candidate is strictly voluntary.
The Clean Elections Act provided funding for candidates through four mechanisms:
Ø $100 fees paid by lobbyists registered on behalf of a trade associations and for-profit organizations. (Lobbyists registered for non-profit are exempt from the fee.)
Ø 10% surcharge added to all civil and criminal penalties.
Ø A $5 check-off on individual state income tax returns.
Ø An individual state income tax credit of up to 20% of the amount of state income tax due or $500, whichever is greater.
Total funds available to the CCEC from all funding sources for the 2000 election cycle was $6,246,100. Of this amount, $3,924,500 was collected from civil and criminal penalties.
HCR 2015 would transfer the 10% surcharge monies collected from the CCEC to a new Transportation and Traffic Safety Improvements Fund.