Chris Micheli

A Second Type of Consent Calendar  By Chris Micheli             In the Senate Appropriations Committee, under Senate Rule 28.8, the Chair of the fiscal committee must send to the Senate Floor any non-appropriation measure for which “(a) any additional state costs are not significant and do not and will not require the appropriation of additional state funds, and (b) the bill will cause no significant reduction in revenues.”             In the Assembly Appropriations Committee, there is not a similar rule. However, there are two separate consent calendars that are usually voted on each week. The first is the traditional one based upon consent calendar bills under the Joint Rules (called an “uncontested bill”). Under Joint Rule 22.1, an “uncontested bill” means a bill that “(a) receives a do-pass or do-pass-as-amended recommendation from the committee to which it is ref...

An Introduction to the California Constitution  By Chris Micheli             One of the most studied areas of any legal system is the constitution of that country or state. California, as the fifth largest economy in the world by gross domestic product in 2026, is no different. California’s Constitution was first adopted in 1849 and then, again, in 1879. It is this second edition that remains in effect today. Since that time, it has been amended hundreds of times and thousands of cases have resulted in numerous appellate court decisions that give guidance to interpreting the several hundred sections of the state Constitution.             That first California Constitution was published in English and Spanish. The 1879 revised version can be found in the Statutes of 1880. It was not until the 1960s that the California Legislature created a Constitutional Revision Commi...

What Type of Lobbyist Do You Want to Be?  By Chris Micheli Yes, there are different types of lobbyists, even though there is only one type of lobbyist that registers with the Secretary of State. If you meet the qualifications, then you have to register as a lobbyist. But are there different types? Yes. So, what are these types of lobbyists? While there are not any formal titles or legal definitions, I have always said there are four main categories of lobbyists in my view. They are the following: ·        Association - they work for an association. ·        In-house - they work for a specific company, such as a tech or pharmaceutical corporation.  ·        Contract - they contract with lobbyist employers. ·        Government - although they do not register, they lobby for State agencies and departments.  There are also others, such as ...

Specialized Areas of Lobbying  By Chris Micheli There are specialized areas of lobbying, particularly as it relates to certain executive branch agencies, departments, boards, and commissions. Because the vast majority of lobbyists operate in the legislative branch of government, some lobbyists view regulatory advocacy as specialized, particularly because it often requires specific knowledge about how that executive branch entity operates and the unique subject matter of its regulatory work. In fact, there are some regulatory agencies where you may find primarily attorneys working on those regulatory projects. This is especially true when it comes to an agency or department acting in its quasi-judicial function. However, it can also apply then an executive branch entity engages in quasi-legislative activities. What are some of these specialized areas of lobbying? The main ones that come to my mind are the PUC, CEC, CARB, BOE, and CTC. Are there others? Of course, DTSC, DO...

Committee Versus Floor Lobbying  By Chris Micheli Should you tackle committee lobbying differently than you do floor lobbying? Lobbying is lobbying, after all. While there are certainly some similarities between the two venues, there are also some important differences between lobbying legislation in a policy or fiscal committee, or on the Senate or Assembly Floors. In lobbying committees, the focus is on a smaller number of legislators and their staff (although the Senate and Assembly Budget Committees are quite large in size!). The target, of course, is to get a majority of the committee members to agree with your position, just as you need a majority or sometimes a higher threshold on either Floor for certain types of bills. When your bill is in committee, you spend time working with the committee staff (both majority and minority party consultants) on the bill language, and perhaps whether any amendments are necessary or appropriate.  And you work with the consultant...

Designating “Spot” Bills in the California Legislature  By Chris Micheli             It is easy to identify a “spot” bill that is introduced in the California Legislature. The first place to look is in the Legislative Counsel’s Digest. The second place, naturally, is to look at the text of the bill. As described by the Legislative Counsel, a “spot bill” is one that does not make any substantive change to existing law, “and would not otherwise affect the ongoing operations of state or local government.” On the other hand, an “intent bill” is one that merely makes a statement of legislative intent. In the Digest, the reader will find one of the following three statements after the explanation of existing law in the Digest (following the paragraph that begins with “Existing law…): “This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to ….” “This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to ….” “This bill would make no...