CDP Rules Committee Special Meeting Agenda and Packet

CDP SPECIAL RULES PACKET JULY 17, 2021

1 California Democratic Party Rules Committee Special Meeting Agenda Saturday, July 17, 2021 at 10:00am

FULL PACKET CAN BE FOUND HERE: https://cadem.org/standing-committee/rules- committee/

I. Call to Order / Roll Call / Introductions

II. Agenda p.2

III. Chair’s Charge to the Committee p.3-5

IV. Report of the Subcommittee on Caucuses p.8-36

V. Standing Committee Reorganization and Bylaws Amendments p.37-48

VI. Subcommittee Assignments p.49-50

VII. Legislation Committee Procedures p.51-65

VIII. Chicano Latino Caucus Complaint p.66-68

IX. New Business

X. Adjournment

RULES COMMITTEE CHARGE

MEMORANDUM

TO: RULES COMMITTEE FROM: RUSTY HICKS, CHAIR DATE: JULY 12, 2021 RE: COMMITTEE CHARGES

Thank you for accepting your appointment to serve on the California Democratic Party’s Rules Committee. The work you and your committee members do is vital to the smooth operation of our Party. In addition to meetings of your committee at Conventions and Executive Board meetings, the Rules Committee frequently meets between Executive Board meetings and it is expected that you attend and participate to the fullest extent possible. Pursuant to the bylaws of the CDP: “It shall be the duty of the Rules Committee to keep the By-Laws and Rules of This Committee consistent with the aims and policies of This Committee, to propose changes in the rules and By-Laws and special rules when necessary, to promulgate forms for quarterly financial disclosure statements for the Statewide Officers, promulgate rules for the filling of vacancies in Regional Directorships, adopt guidelines for the Legislation Committee, promulgate rules for the conduct of Assembly District Election Meetings, to adopt guidelines upon recommendation of the Organizational Development Committee for the Chartering of Organizations under Article X of these bylaws, to advise the Secretary of This Committee as to what information is needed on the Application for Charter, approve or reject proposed Caucus Statements of Purpose and Intended Activity, promulgate Guidelines for Certification, Re- Certification, and Decertification of Caucuses, to advise the Secretary of This Committee as to what information is needed on the Application for Certification of Caucuses, certify and decertify caucuses, promulgate procedural rules for the operation of the Compliance Review Commission, recommend changes in the Code of Conduct as may be necessary from time to time, promulgate procedural rules for the operation of the Conduct Commission and to effectuate the flow chart entitled “Process for Reporting Misconduct and Harassment.”

For this 2021 term, I also specifically charge the Rules Committee with the following responsibilities:

1. Conduct a thorough review of the 2021 ADEM elections, including public testimony hearings, and adopt guidelines for the 2023 ADEM elections that will increase turnout and improve operational efficiency.

2. Review and adopt guidelines for the 2022 endorsement process.

3. Propose rules for the 2022 Convention.

4. Conduct a thorough review of the By-laws and look for ways to reorganize the language to make it easier for everyone to digest the rules of our Party.

RULES COMMITTEE ROSTER

6 Rules Committee Roster Committee Type First Name Last Name County Rules Member Suzanna Aguilera-Marrero Tulare Rules Member Steven Alari Los Angeles Rules Co-Chair Jose Alcala Riverside Rules Member Kenneth Armstrong Los Angeles Rules Co-Chair Kathy Bowler Sacramento Rules Member Andrea Cardenas San Diego Rules Member Martha Escutia Los Angeles Rules Co-Chair Nicole Fernandez San Mateo Rules Member Peter Gallotta San Francisco Rules Co-Chair Izeah Garcia Orange Rules Member Glenn Glazer Santa Cruz Rules Lead Co-Chair Valeria Hernandez Sacramento Rules Member Katie Jaycox Stanislaus Rules Lead Co-Chair Coby King Los Angeles Rules Member Abigail Kingsley Los Angeles Rules Co-Chair Olivia Lee Los Angeles Rules Member Harris Mojadedi Alameda Rules Member Anita Narayana Orange Rules Member G. Anthony Phillips Napa Rules Member Nick Schultz Los Angeles Rules Chair Emeritus Garry Shay Los Angeles Rules Member Sepi Shyne Los Angeles Rules Member Sarah Souza San Francisco Rules Member Robin Torello Alameda Rules Member James Williams Santa Clara Rules Member William Wong Sacramento Rules Member Mcclina Woods Sacramento Rules Member Jimmie Woods-Gray Los Angeles Rules Member Laurence Zakson Los Angeles

MEMO FOR PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS REPORT

8 M E M O R A N D U M

TO: Rules Committee, California Democratic Party

FROM: Subcommittee on Caucuses, Rules Committee, California Democratic Party

RE: Report of the Subcommittee on Caucuses Concerning Charges Against the Progressive Caucus Adopted on 6/29/21

DATE: July 5, 2021

The California Democratic Party (CDP) received two complaints that the Progressive Caucus was in violation of the CDP Bylaws and Guidelines for the Certification/Recertifica- tion/Decertification of Caucuses, Adopted by the CDP Rules Committee – February 2018: (1) the first complaint was from Jody Pratt and was received on March 14, 2021; and (2) the second complaint was from a person who chooses to remain anonymous and was received on March 23, 2021.

At its meeting on April 30, 2021, the CDP Rules Committee referred these two complaints to its Subcommittee on Caucuses (Subcommittee) for disposition in accordance with Article XI, Section 6 of the CPD Bylaws, which provides:

“Section 6. DECERTIFICATION

After notice and an opportunity to be heard, and upon a finding by the Rules Committee that a certified caucus has failed to:

a. maintain compliance with the above,

b. adopt or maintain the Code of Conduct as part of its own bylaws with a provision that each member is bound by its terms, and/or

c. has willfully, intentionally, or repeatedly failed to address violations of the Code of Conduct within the caucus,

the Executive Board of This Committee may decertify a Caucus by majority vote. In the event the Rules Committee should make a finding of non-compliance with the Guidelines, it shall report a recommendation to de-certify the Caucus specifically noting the grounds and basis for its decision. Such recommendation may only be overturned by the Executive Board of This Committee, by majority vote, but only if the Executive Board makes specific findings that the Rules Committee was incorrect in each of its findings that formed the basis of the Rules Committee’s recommendation to decertify, or that all such defects have been remedied.”

In accordance with Article XI, Section 6 of the CDP Bylaws, two days of hearings were conducted by the Subcommittee. The exhibits admitted in those two days of hearing are a part of

1 9 the agenda packet.

At the close of the second day of hearing, the Subcommittee unanimously adopted the attached report (Report). The Report concludes that:

“the Progressive Caucus violated Article VIII, Sections 1(d), (e) and (f), Article XI, Section 2(a) and (6) of the CDP Bylaws and Section 4.D.6(d)(1) of the Guidelines, and the Subcommittee recommends that the Rules Committee so conclude.

Based on a finding of one or more violations of the Bylaws and/or Guidelines, decertification is warranted. Accordingly, the Subcommittee recommends that the Rules Committee find that decertification is warranted unless remediation, as discussed below, is undertaken and completed.

Under Article XI, Section 6, a determination that decertification is warranted can be overcome by a showing that “all such defects have been remedied.”

Accordingly, the Subcommittee recommends that the Rules Committee find that the steps outlined hereinbelow would constitute a full remedying of the violations recommended to be found here.”

The proposed remedies are:

“A. The Progressive Caucus shall cause the termination of the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC.

1. Any remaining funds in the California Democratic Party PAC at the time of termination shall be returned to the donors in accordance with applicable state law.

2. Each returned contribution shall be accompanied by a cover letter, approved as to form and content by the Lead Co-Chairs of the Rules Committee, indicating that, despite the name, the funds raised or expended were not authorized by the California Democratic Party. The letter shall also indicate that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC expended funds in connection with the candidacy of candidates not endorsed by the California Democratic Party, which is conduct the CDP considers to be inconsistent with the use of the California Democratic Party’s name.

3. A letter, approved as to form and content by the Lead Co-Chairs of the Rules Committee, shall be sent to any donor to the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC who did not receive a refund indicating that, despite the name, the funds raised or expended were not authorized by the California Democratic. The letter shall also indicate that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC expended funds in connection with the candidacy of candidates not endorsed by the California Democratic Party, which is conduct the CDP considers to be inconsistent with the use of the California Democratic Party’s name.

2 10 4. A letter, approved as to form and content by the Lead Co-Chairs of the Rules Committee, shall be sent to any candidate supported or opposed by the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC indicating that, despite the name, the funds raised or expended were not authorized by the California Democratic Party. The letter shall also indicate that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC expended funds in connection with the candidacy of candidates not endorsed by the California Democratic Party, which is conduct the CDP considers to be inconsistent with the use of the California Democratic Party’s name.

5. A copy of all letters sent, along with the names and addresses to which they were sent, shall be filed with the Secretary of This Committee.

6. A copy of all letters sent, with the addresses redacted, shall be posted on the webpage of the Progressive Caucus; provided that nothing herein shall require the posting of the name of any contributor to the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC of an amount that did not trigger public reporting of the contributor’s name.

B. The Progressive Caucus will amend its bylaws to provide that the Progressive Caucus will not form, maintain, contribute to, materially support or otherwise materially participate in the governance, fundraising or expenditures of any political committee other than the California Democratic Party.

C. The Progressive Caucus shall pass a standing rule reiterating that any motion, resolution or other effort to endorse or provide other material support of any kind to a person other than the officially endorsed candidate of the California Democratic Party or the nominee of the Democratic National Committee for President or Vice-President is out of order and shall not be considered. Nothing in the rule shall prohibit the Progressive Caucus from calling on the California Democratic Party to take an action otherwise authorized by Article XI, Section 1.a of the CDP Bylaws.

D. The Progressive Caucus shall provide the Lead Co-Chairs of the Rules Committee and the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Rules Committee’s Subcommittee on Caucuses a report 30 days after the August 2021 Executive Board Meeting of the steps taken to fulfill these obligations and shall file a status report each 30 days thereafter (until the termination of the current Caucus certification cycle) certifying that the Caucus is in compliance with all these remedial conditions, including that no changes have been made to the required standing rule and Bylaws amendment.

E. For the balance of the current Caucus certification cycle, the Progressive Caucus’ certification shall be converted back to provisional and any failure to implement or abide by these remedial requirements shall be grounds for revocation of provisional status and the resumption of decertification proceedings.”

3 11 Prior to the second day of hearing, the Progressive Caucus signed a stipulation in which it did not oppose the adoption of the Report and stipulated to the foregoing remedies. The stipulation was received into the record as Exhibit S and was expressly accepted by the Subcommittee.

At this juncture, the Report is before the full Rules Committee for review and adoption.

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PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS REPORT

REPORT OF THE SUBCOMMITEE ON CAUCUSES OF THE RULES COMMITTEE OF THE CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY ADOPTED: 6/29/21

I. INTRODUCTION

The California Democratic Party (CDP) received two complaints that the Progressive Caucus was in violation of the CDP Bylaws and Guidelines for the Certification/Recertification/Decertification of Caucuses, Adopted by the CDP Rules Committee – February 2018: (1) the first complaint was from Jody Pratt and was received on March 14, 2021; and (2) the second complaint was from a person who chooses to remain anonymous and was received on March 23, 2021.

At its meeting on April 30, 2021, the CDP Rules Committee referred these two complaints to its Subcommittee on Caucuses (Subcommittee).

After consultation among the Lead Co-Chairs of the CDP Rules Committee and the Co-Chairs of this Subcommittee, a hearing on the complaints was scheduled for June 16, 2021. The purpose of the hearing was to elicit evidence in connection with the complaints and to prepare a draft report for Subcommittee consideration. This draft report, once adopted by the Subcommittee, is to be transmitted to the CDP Rules Committee to be considered at a special meeting to be held on July 17, 2021, at 10:00 a.m.

In a conversation with the Chair of the Progressive Caucus and other representatives selected by the Chair of the Progressive Caucus, the Subcommittee leadership advised, and confirmed to, the Progressive Caucus that any arguments concerning remedies for any violations found would be deferred until after the facts were elicited on June 16, 2021.

A hearing was held on June 16, 2021, starting at 7 p.m. A quorum of the Subcommittee was present, consisting of the following members:

A. Laurence Zakson, Subcommittee Chair; B. Jimmie Woods Grey, Subcommittee Vice Chair; C. Jose Alcala; D. Kathy Bowler; E. Coby King; F. Ralph Miller; and G. Michael Soto

Ex-Officio: A. Garry S. Shay B. CYD Ambassadors: 1. Brooke Pritchard - absent 2. Luis Zamora

The Chair of the Subcommittee, Laurence Zakson, and Vice-Chair Jimmie Woods Gray were delegated to prepare a preliminary draft of the draft report.

This draft report [as amended] was adopted by the Subcommittee at a meeting on June 29, 2021, starting at 7 p.m. A quorum of the Subcommittee was present, consisting of the following members:

A. Laurence Zakson, Subcommittee Chair; B. Jimmie Woods Grey, Subcommittee Vice Chair; C. Jose Alcala; D. Kathy Bowler; E. Coby King; G. Ralph Miller; and H. Michael Soto

Ex-Officio: A. Garry S. Shay

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B. CYD Ambassadors: 1. Brooke Pritchard (absent) 2. Luis Zamora

II. NOTICE AND HEARINGS

Article XI of the CDP Bylaws provides that determinations on questions of decertification shall take place after a hearing and any determination shall be based on factual findings by the Rules Committee. Specifically, Article XI, Section 6 of the CPD Bylaws, provides:

“Section 6. DECERTIFICATION

After notice and an opportunity to be heard, and upon a finding by the Rules Committee that a certified caucus has failed to:

a. maintain compliance with the above,

b. adopt or maintain the Code of Conduct as part of its own bylaws with a provision that each member is bound by its terms, and/or

c. has willfully, intentionally, or repeatedly failed to address violations of the Code of Conduct within the caucus,

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remedied.”

For the reasons that follow, we find that:

1. The Notice and an opportunity be heard required by Article XI, Section 6 was satisfied by the foregoing notices and hearings; and,

2. These hearings yielded a sufficient predicate for this Subcommittee to recommend, and the Rules Committee to make, factual findings.

As to Notice, we confirm that:

1. The first complaint was included at page 80 of the Rules Committee Agenda Packet of the April 30, 2021, Rules Committee meeting. The email is from Jody Pratt to Rusty Hicks dated Sunday, March 14, 2021, and the subject line is “How is this ok?” It is marked as Exhibit A.

2. The second complaint is anonymous and was included at t page 81 of the Rules Committee Agenda Packet from April 30, 2021. It is an email to Emma Harper dated March 23, 2021, and the subject line is, “Re: California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC + CADEM Progressive Caucus.” It is marked as Exhibit B.

3. Item VII.A. of the duly noticed meeting of the Rules Committee on April 30, 2021, was the receipt of the complaints and their referral to this subcommittee. This agenda is marked as Exhibit C.

4. In addition to the two complaints, at pages 78 to 81 of the Rules Committee Agenda packet for the April 30, 2021, Rules Committee meeting are cover pages for these two complaints and the complaints themselves. These are marked as Exhibit D.

5. At the April 30, 2021, Rules Committee meeting, a summary of legal issues from the CDP’s law firm, Olson Remcho, dated April 6, 2021, was distributed. That memorandum, which is four pages in

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length, is marked as Exhibit E.

6. At the general session of the CDP Convention on May 2, 2021, the Rules Committee presented its report on its April 30, 2021, meeting. Under item VI.A, that report, marked as Exhibit F, it states that the two complaints marked as Exhibits A & B are referred to the Subcommittee.

7. On June 5, 2021, Notice of the Subcommittee’s June 16, 2021 Hearing was served on Amar Shergill, Chair of the CDP Progressive Caucus, with a copy to, among others, the officers of the CDP Progressive Caucus on file with the CDP. A copy of that Notice is Exhibit G.

a. In addition to noting the referral of the complaints to this subcommittee, the Notice was accompanied by an agenda packet for the June 16, 2021, Hearing.

b. The significance of the Hearing was expressly noted at paragraph 5 of Exhibit G, which states:

“Please be advised that violation of the California Democratic Party Bylaws or operative sections of the Caucus Certification/Recertification/Decertification Guidelines can result in the decertification of the Caucus. As a result, these proceedings can have a significant impact on the Caucus.”

8. Also on June 5, 2021, there was an email from Emma Harper to the Subcommittee members with a Notice of the June 16, 2021, Hearing and the agenda packet. The Notice to the Subcommittee is marked as Exhibit H. It includes both the agenda for the Hearing and a listing of nine items that were to be attached.

a. The following items in the Agenda packet included in Exhibits G and H have not been already referenced:

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(i) Article VIII of the CDP Bylaws, entitled Endorsement of Candidates for Partisan and Nonpartisan Office, and Endorsement and Opposition to State Propositions, Initiatives, Referendum and Recall is found at pages 39 to 56 of the CDP Bylaws. It is marked as Exhibit I.

(ii) Article XI of the CDP Bylaws, entitled, “Special Group Caucuses,” can be found at pages 60 through 63 of the CDP Bylaws. Article XI is marked as Exhibit J.

Note: Page 63 was not included in the original packet sent to Mr. Shergill or the Subcommittee, but it was included in an Errata sent the next day.

(iii) The California Democratic Party Guidelines for Certification, Re-Certification and Decertification of Caucuses, Adopted by the CDP Rules Committee – February 2018 is item 6 referenced in the Notice and is marked as Exhibit K.

(iv) A California Fair Political Practices Commission informal advice letter to Amar Shergill dated August 16, 2019 was also included in the agenda packet and is marked as Exhibit L.

(v) A screenshot entitled, “Donate” in a box followed by “Donate now to help elect progressives in California!” It has a large “contact” area on the right and shows the contact email address as [email protected]. In the third paragraph of text it says, “For more information about the caucus that formed this Pac, visit progressivecaucuscdp.org or the caucus Facebook page. You may also contact Caucus Chair and PAC Treasurer, Amar Shergill at [email protected].” The paid for by at the bottom of the Page states, in relevant part, “Paid for by the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus Political Action Committee.” This is part of the agenda packet and is marked as Exhibit M.

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(vi) The agenda packet for the June 16, 2021, hearing includes an IRS Form 881 and is marked as Exhibit N. The Form is filed on behalf of the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC. This is a three-page document. It shows Shawnda Deane as the custodian of records. It includes this statement under item 14a, Name of related entity, “California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus” on one line and “PAC” on the next line and, under 14b, the relationship as “connected” and Ms. Deane’s business address as the address under 14c.

9. Finally, the Errata sent by Ms. Harper on June 6, 2021, is marked as Exhibit O.

Each of these Exhibits was marked and reviewed at the June 16, 2021, Subcommittee Hearing, which was attended by Complainant Jody Pratt and the Chair of the Progressive Caucus, Amar Shergill, who declined to submit any exhibits at that time, and the Parliamentarian of the Progressive Caucus Emma Jensen who testified that she believed that an amicable, consensual resolution of this matter was desirable.

Mr. Shergill answered several questions and was requested to provide copies of the California Democratic Party Progressive PAC’s campaign statements, which he agreed to do by June 21, 2021.

At the Hearing on June 16, 2021, the Subcommittee agreed to continue the Hearing on June 29, 2021. Notice of the June 21, 2021, continued Hearing was included in a notice of Hearing issued on June 21, 2021.

On June 20, 2021, Mr. Shergill filed copies of:

A. campaign finance statements and summaries of other campaign finance activities; and, also provided,

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B. dates and locations for the two conversations with Chairman Hicks that Mr. Shergill described in Mr. Shergill’s testimony.

At the June 29, 2021, hearing the June 20, 2021, submission by Mr. Shergill was marked as Exhibit P.

A video recording of the June 16, 2021, hearing was marked as Exhibit Q.

A video recording of the June 29, 2021, hearing was prospectively entered into evidence and marked as Exhibit R.

Based on the foregoing, the Subcommittee finds that the Hearings were duly noticed, that the notices provided sufficient information to inform the interested persons of the consequences of the Hearing, and that the interested persons were afforded a meaningful opportunity to participate in the hearings.

III. UNDISPUTED FACTS

On the record compiled before, during and after the hearings, the Subcommittee finds that while the Progressive Caucus may dispute the import thereof, the following facts are undisputed:

A. On March 14, 2021, Jody Pratt, a CDP delegate, complained in writing to CDP Chair Rusty Hicks that the Progressive Caucus was using the name of the Caucus and the CDP in its California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC despite the fact that “Caucuses are not independent and should not use the name of either the Caucus or CADEM in an official PAC. Caucuses are an arm of CADEM, and thus not allowed to independently raise funds and endorse candidates or ballot initiatives.”

B. On March 23, 2021, an anonymous person complained to the CDP Party Services Director, Emma Harper, and the CDP’s staff member

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principally responsible in the first instance for campaign finance compliance, ChaCha Brown, in relevant part:

CADEM Caucuses, according to their own bylaws and McCain- Feingold, cannot participate in fundraising activities.

It's come to my attention that a series of Facebook Ads are flying around purported to be a California Progressive PAC paid for by the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC.

Please see the series of Facebook Ads from the group: https://www.facebook.com/ads/library/?active_status=all&ad_typ e=political_and_issue_a ds&country=US&q=california%20democratic%20party%20progr essive%20caucus&sort_data[direction]=desc&sort_data[mode]= relevancy_monthly_grouped

The trail of ads covers 9 current digital campaigns regarding the CADEM Chair's Race and a series of Ads relating to candidates for local office across the state from during the election cycle.

Within the Secretary of State's database, there exists both a California Progressive PAC (ID# 1407923) and a California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC (ID#1422239)[.]

To place ads on Facebook for California Political Entities, you need to submit your FPPC number. If a Caucus wanted to participate in Facebook Advertising, they would need to use the CADEM FPPC number unless they somehow made a committee and received a unique FPPC number.

Looking at both of the entities' expenditure reports, the California Progressive PAC did not report any Facebook spending. The

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California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC did not file any expenditures with the state at all.

I'm sending these details to both of you because I understand that there may be implications for the Party's accounting and membership teams.”

C. At some point, an advertisement reflected in the screenshot identified as Exhibit M and entitled, “Donate” in a box followed by “Donate now to help elect progressives in California!” was posted on californiaprogressivepac.org. The advertisement has a large “contact” area on the right and shows the contact email address as [email protected]. In the third paragraph of text it says, “For more information about the caucus that formed this Pac, visit progressivecaucuscdp.org or the caucus Facebook page. You may also contact Caucus Chair and PAC Treasurer, Amar Shergill at [email protected].” The paid for by at the bottom of the Page states, in relevant part, “Paid for by the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus Political Action Committee.

D. According to Mr. Shergill, approximately nine internet-based advertisements were made/generated saying that the CDP Progressive Caucus of the CDP formed the aforementioned PAC and directed the person to one of the CDP Progressive Caucus email addresses.

E. Mr. Shergill obtained an informal advice letter from the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC). The letter, which is a public record, is dated August 16, 2019. According to the letter, the FPPC does not act as “a finder of fact when rendering advice (In re Oglesby (1975) 1 FPPC Ops. 71); any advice . . . [it] provide[s] assumes . . . [the requester’s] facts are complete and accurate.”

The recitation of facts in the FPPC informal advice letter is neither complete nor accurate in, at a minimum, the following respects:

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1. The informal advice letter states that, “The CDP does not generally fundraise or contribute to local non-partisan races.” The Subcommittee is aware of (and hereby takes notice of) the fact that the CDP does, in fact, become involved in many local races and that it regularly authorizes the inclusion of local races on door hangers and other expenditures it makes. A review of the CDP’s campaign finance statements confirms this fact. In addition, the CDP adopts, as a matter of course, the local endorsements of those County Democratic Central Committees which submit their County Democratic Central Committee bylaws to the CDP and which satisfy various substantive and procedural requirements for the adoption of their endorsements as the CDP’s own in the absence of a timely formal objection. CDP Bylaws Article VIII, Section 4.

2. The informal advice letter states, that the Caucus board is “independent” of the CDP and that “[t]he CDP will have no involvement in the PAC or its operations.” However, the CDP Bylaws provide at Article VIII, Section 1(f) that Caucuses are constituent parts of the CDP. Article VIII, Section 1(e) binds “official units” of the CDP to the CDP’s endorsements. The election of Caucus officers is extensively regulated by CDP Bylaws and Guidelines and the Chair of each Caucus must be a member of the CDP’s State Central Committee and is, by virtue of that office, a member of the Executive Board of the CDP.

F. On November 7, 2019, Shawnda Deane, the Treasurer of the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC, submitted an IRS Form 8871 executed under penalty of perjury. The Form 8871 includes this statement under item 14a, Name of related entity, “California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus” on one line and “PAC” on the next line and, under 14b, the relationship as “connected” and Ms. Deane’s business address as the address under 14c. It lists as the PAC’s “Officers, Directors and Highly Compensated Employees,” Progressive Caucus Chair Amar Shergill as the PAC’s “Principal Officer/Assistant

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Treasurer.”

G. Mr. Shergill testified that neither the CDP nor any of its officers authorized him to create, form, maintain or fund the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC.

F. Mr. Shergill testified that he did not seek, or obtain, any advice from the CDP’s legal counsel, Rules Committee or any Rules Committee Co-Chair.

G. Mr. Shergill testified that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC made expenditures supporting candidates for local office in the state of California who were not endorsed by the California Democratic Party and that he was unaware if any of the local candidates supported by the California Democratic Party Caucus PAC were endorsed by the California Democratic Party.

1. The campaign statements and summary provided by Mr. Shergill show that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC raised over $9000. These statements and summary do not fully identify every candidate assisted by the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC, but they do show online advertising described as independent expenditures in October 2020 in support of two candidates for Elk Grove City Council, Kevin Spease and Darren Suen. (In this regard, the Subcommittee notes that even if the reports were in error and the independent expenditures were opposed to candidates Spease and Suen, the most salient point is that the expenditures were made.)

2. Neither Mr. Spease nor Mr. Suen were the officially endorsed candidates of the CDP for Elk Grove City Council in 2020 as the CDP had no official endorsement in the Elk Grove City Council races.

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IV. OTHER FACTUAL ISSUES

Other facts were elicited during the hearing. They are as follows:

A. Mr. Shergill testified that in July 2019, shortly after the 2019 election for CDP Chair, Mr. Shergill spoke to CDP Chair Rusty Hicks about the and that Chairman Hicks advised him that Chairman Hicks was opposed to the Progressive Caucus raising money outside the California Democratic Party. Mr. Shergill characterized the opposition as “strategic,” but did not explain what Mr. Shergill meant by the phrase “strategic” nor did Mr. Shergill attribute that characterization to Chairman Hicks. Mr. Shergill later stated in a written submission that the date of the meeting was July 16, 2019, and that it took place at a coffee shop at 12:30 p.m.

The Subcommittee concludes that the preponderance of the evidence establishes that Chairman Hicks expressed Chairman Hicks’ opposition and the opposition of the California Democratic Party to the Progressive Caucus forming a separate, assertedly independent PAC. The Subcommittee further notes that even had Chairman Hicks indicated that he supported the notion of a separate, assertedly independent PAC, the CDP Bylaws that make the Caucus a constituent part of the California Democratic Party and the actions of the Caucus the actions of the CDP and, thus, Chairman Hicks would have had no authority to authorize such a PAC without an amendment of the CDP Bylaws.

Moreover, the California Democratic Party Guidelines for Certification, Re-Certification and Decertification of Caucuses, Adopted by the CDP Rules Committee – February 2018 prohibit in Section 2.A Caucuses from “tak[ing] independent positions” on a variety of matters which would impede a Caucus-sponsored PAC from taking independent positions and also expressly prohibit in Section 4.D.6(d) CDP Caucuses from raising or expending funds other than nominal dues for certain purposes and require the accounting for such funds to the CDP Treasurer

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in accordance with rules promulgated by the Finance Committee. Chairman Hicks would have been without authority to waive those requirements without a change in the Guidelines.

B. Mr. Shergill also testified that Chairman Hicks expressed concerns that any purportedly independent PAC would be considered a part of the California Democratic Party for purposes of contribution and expenditure aggregation rules. Mr. Shergill testified that he understood Chairman Hicks to be referring to aggregation for purposes of state law and never thought about whether this concern related to federal--and not just state--law; and the record contains no evidence that Mr. Shergill made any effort to ascertain whether the concern also arose under federal law.

The Subcommittee concludes that the preponderance of the evidence is that Mr. Shergill, on behalf of himself and the Progressive Caucus, undertook the founding of a PAC without affording any consideration to the consequences of this decision on the PAC and the CDP under federal law.

E. Mr. Shergill testified that he concluded that the informal advice letter referenced above fully addressed the concerns any purportedly independent PAC would be considered a part of the California Democratic Party for purposes of contribution and expenditure aggregation rules. Mr. Shergill also stated that he advised Chairman Hicks of the existence of the opinion letter in a meeting in November 2019. In a later written submission, Mr. Shergill stated that this meeting took place on November 25, 2019, at a coffee shop at about 1 p.m.

Inasmuch as Mr. Shergill stated that he did not believe that the CDP or Chair Hicks had agreed that the creation by the Progressive Caucus of a PAC was permissible or authorized, it is unclear what exact information was imparted to Chair Hicks. In these circumstances, the Subcommittee finds that no factual findings are appropriate based on this testimony.

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E. Mr. Shergill also repeatedly and pointedly noted that despite the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC’s involvement in elections before the 2021 Chair’s election, there were “no complaints” about this activity until after the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC became involved in holding the CDP Chair “accountable” in connection with that 2021 internal CDP race.

To the extent that the Progressive Caucus relies upon this testimony to suggest that the timing of the complaints establishes a causal connection between this Hearing and/or the CDP’s investigation of the actions of the Progressive Caucus and the Progressive Caucus’ statements in connection with the officer elections, the Subcommittee finds that there is no factual predicate for finding such a such causal connection, and the mere fact that the complaints were filed in March 2021 is not, in itself, evidence of any particular motive for the filing of complaints. Moreover, the holding of a Hearing is the process contemplated by the Bylaws for complaints of this type and the fact that the complaints were referred to the Rules Committee and subjected to a Hearing as a result of that referral is something that the Bylaws contemplate will occur in the circumstances presented here. Accordingly, the Subcommittee concludes that no finding of any causal connection is warranted.

F. In response to a question from a member of the Subcommittee, Mr. Shergill testified that he made no investigation of the activities of other Caucuses to determine whether the actions and activities undertaken by the Progressive Caucus were consistent with those of other Caucuses.

Ms. Pratt testified that, in her experience as a former officer of the Veterans Caucus, the activities undertaken by the Progressive Caucus were unprecedented and inconsistent with the understanding of other Caucuses of the relevant Bylaws and Guidelines.

The Subcommittee finds that the preponderance of the evidence establishes that no Caucus other than the Progressive Caucus has founded a PAC or raised money into a PAC connected to the Caucus,

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albeit ostensibly independent.

V. FINDINGS

Article XI, Section 6 contemplates that any decision by the Rules Committee in a decertification proceeding be based on findings by stating, that the Rules Committee report on decertification “specifically not[e] the grounds and basis for its decision,” which shall be conclusive unless “overturned by the Executive Board of This Committee, by majority vote, but only if the Executive Board makes specific findings that the Rules Committee was incorrect in each of its findings that formed the basis of the Rules Committee’s recommendation to decertify, or that all such defects have been remedied.”

In light of the record compiled at the Hearing and its evidentiary findings, the Subcommittee recommends that the Rules Committee make the following findings as a basis for its recommendations:

A. This matter is properly before the Rules Committee on complaints that allege a violation of the CDP Bylaws and/or Guidelines. Specifically:

1. On March 14, 2021, Jody Pratt, a CDP delegate, complained in writing to CDP Chair Rusty Hicks that the Progressive Caucus was using the name of the Caucus and the CDP in its California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC despite the fact that “Caucuses are not independent and should not use the name of either the Caucus or CADEM in an official PAC. Caucuses are an arm of CADEM, and thus not allowed to independently raise funds and endorse candidates or ballot initiatives.”

2. On March 23, 2021, an anonymous person complained to the CDP Party Services Director, Emma Harper, and the CDP’s staff member principally responsible in the first instance for campaign finance compliance, ChaCha Brown, in relevant part that “CADEM Caucuses,

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according to their own bylaws and McCain-Feingold, cannot participate in fundraising activities,” but that the Progressive Caucus did so.

B. The Rules Committee has jurisdiction of these complaints under Article XI, Section 6. And the initial hearing on June 16, 2021, and continued hearing on June 29, 2021, satisfy the requirements in Article XI, Section 6 that the Caucus be given notice of the allegations against it and an opportunity to be heard on those allegations.

C. The CDP Progressive Caucus raised funds using the name of the CDP and the CDP Progressive Caucus (which is a constituent part of the CDP) into a PAC known as the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC other than nominal dues and expended those funds for, among other purposes, approximately nine internet-based advertisements that used the name California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC and stated, in relevant part, “For more information about the caucus that formed this PAC, visit progressivecaucuscdp.org or the caucus Facebook page. You may also contact Caucus Chair and PAC Treasurer, Amar Shergill at [email protected].” The paid for by at the bottom of the Page states, in relevant part, “Paid for by the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus Political Action Committee.” At least one of these advertisements had a large “contact” area on the right and shows the contact email address as [email protected]. By this conduct, the CDP Progressive Caucus violated Section 4.D.6.d(1) of the California Democratic Party Guidelines for Certification, Re- Certification and Decertification of Caucuses Adopted, CDP Rules Committee –February 2018.

D. The informal advice letter Mr. Shergill obtained from the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) has no bearing on whether the actions of the Progressive Caucus violated the CDP Bylaws and was also materially flawed in its description of the operative facts and relationship between the CDP and its Progressive Caucus.

1. According to the letter, the FPPC does not act as “a finder of

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fact when rendering advice (In re Oglesby (1975) 1 FPPC Ops. 71); any advice . . . [it] provide[s] assumes . . . [the requester’s] facts are complete and accurate.”

2. The recitation of facts in the FPPC informal advice letter is neither complete nor accurate in, at a minimum, the following respects:

a. The informal advice letter states that, “The CDP does not generally fundraise or contribute to local non-partisan races.” However, the CDP does, in fact, become involved in many local races and it regularly authorizes the inclusion of local races on door hangers and other expenditures it makes. In addition, the CDP adopts, as a matter of course, the local endorsements of those County Democratic Central Committees which submit their County Democratic Central Committee bylaws to the CDP and which satisfy various substantive and procedural requirements for the adoption of their endorsements as the CDP’s own in the absence of a timely formal objection. See CDP Bylaws Article VIII, Section 4.

b. The informal advice letter states, that the Caucus board is “independent” of the CDP and that “[t]he CDP will have no involvement in the PAC or its operations.” However, the CDP Bylaws provide at Article VIII, Section 1(f) that Caucuses are constituent parts of the CDP. Article VIII, Section 1(e) binds “official units” of the CDP to the CDP’s endorsements. The election of Caucus officers is extensively regulated by CDP Bylaws and Guidelines and the Chair of each Caucus must be a member of the CDP’s State Central Committee and is, by virtue of that office, a member of the Executive Board of the CDP.

E. The IRS Form 8871 filed by Shawnda Deane, the Treasurer of the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC on November 7, 2019, and executed under penalty of perjury establishes that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC was “connected”

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to the Progressive Caucus, by stating under item 14a, Name of related entity, “California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus” on one line and “PAC” on the next line and, under 14b, the relationship as “connected.” It lists as the PAC’s “Officers, Directors and Highly Compensated Employees,” Progressive Caucus Chair Amar Shergill as the PAC’s “Principal Officer/Assistant Treasurer.”

F. Neither the CDP nor any of its officers authorized the Progressive Caucus to create, form, maintain or fund the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC. In fact, just the opposite occurred. On about July 16, 2019, CDP Chairman Hicks expressed opposition to the Progressive Caucus forming a separate, assertedly independent PAC rather than following the CDP Bylaws that make the PAC a constituent part of the California Democratic Party. In that conversation, Chairman Hicks expressed concerns that any purportedly independent PAC would be considered a part of the California Democratic Party for purposes of contribution and expenditure aggregation rules. Moreover, even had any such officer supported the notion of a separate, assertedly independent PAC, no officer would have had authority to authorize such a PAC without an amendment of the CDP Bylaws and the California Democratic Party Guidelines for Certification, Re-Certification and Decertification of Caucuses, Adopted by the CDP Rules Committee – February 2018, which in Section 4.D.6(d)(1) prohibit Caucuses from raising or expending funds other than nominal dues for certain purposes and require the accounting for such funds to the CDP Treasurer in accordance with rules promulgated by the Finance Committee.

G. In forming, maintaining, fundraising for the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC, the Progressive Caucus did not seek, or obtain, any advice from the CDP’s legal counsel, Rules Committee or any Rules Committee Co-Chair.

H. The California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC financially supported at least two candidates for local office in the state of California (Elk Grove City Council) that were not endorsed by the

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California Democratic Party. This is evidenced by reports filed with the California Secretary of State showing online advertising described as independent expenditures in October 2020 in support of two candidates for Elk Grove City Council, Kevin Spease and Darren Suen. Neither Mr. Spease nor Mr. Suen were the officially endorsed candidates of the CDP for Elk Grove City Council in 2020. Notably, the result would not be materially different even if the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC had financially opposed these candidates as the CDP had no endorsed candidates in that race and any support or opposition would violate Article VIII, section 1(d) of the CDP Bylaws, which requires the Party to speak with one voice.

I. No Caucus other than the Progressive Caucus has founded a PAC or raised money into a PAC connected to the Caucus, albeit ostensibly independent.

VI. CONCLUSION

The foregoing findings warrant a conclusion that the Progressive Caucus violated Article VIII, Sections 1(d), (e) and (f), Article XI, Section 2(a) and (6) of the CDP Bylaws and Section 4.D.6(d)(1) of the Guidelines, and the Subcommittee recommends that the Rules Committee so conclude.

Under Article XI, Section 6, a determination that decertification is warranted can be overcome by a showing that “all such defects have been remedied.”

Accordingly, the Subcommittee recommends that the Rules Committee

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find that the steps outlined hereinbelow would constitute a full remedying of the violations recommended to be found here.

VII. REMEDIES

The Subcommittee recommends that the Rules Committee conclude that full remedying of the violations found here would consist of the following steps:

A. The Progressive Caucus shall cause the termination of the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC.

1. Any remaining funds in the California Democratic Party PAC at the time of termination shall be returned to the donors in accordance with applicable state law.

3. A letter, approved as to form and content by the Lead Co- Chairs of the Rules Committee, shall be sent to any donor to the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC who did not receive a refund indicating that, despite the name, the funds raised or expended were not authorized by the California Democratic. The letter shall also indicate that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC expended funds in connection with the candidacy of candidates not endorsed by the California Democratic Party, which is conduct the CDP considers to be inconsistent with the use of the

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California Democratic Party’s name.

4. A letter, approved as to form and content by the Lead Co- Chairs of the Rules Committee, shall be sent to any candidate supported or opposed by the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC indicating that, despite the name, the funds raised or expended were not authorized by the California Democratic Party. The letter shall also indicate that the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus PAC expended funds in connection with the candidacy of candidates not endorsed by the California Democratic Party, which is conduct the CDP considers to be inconsistent with the use of the California Democratic Party’s name.

5. A copy of all letters sent, along with the names and addresses to which they were sent, shall be filed with the Secretary of This Committee.

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prohibit the Progressive Caucus from calling on the California Democratic Party to take an action otherwise authorized by Article XI, Section 1.a of the CDP Bylaws.

Respectfully submitted,

CDP Rules Committee Subcommittee on Caucuses Laurence Zakson, Subcommittee Chair; Jimmie Woods Grey, Subcommittee Vice Chair; Jose Alcala; Kathy Bowler; Coby King; Ralph Miller; and Michael Soto

Ex-Officio: Garry S. Shay CYD Ambassadors: Luis Zamora (Brooke Pritchard did not participate)

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ARTICLE V REORGANIZATION

37 TO: Lead Co-Chairs CDP Rules Committee: Valeria Hernandez and Coby King

FR: Chair Emeritus, Garry S. Shay

DA: 14 July 21

RE: Proposed Amendment to CDP Bylaws, Article V

______

The intent of the following bylaws change is to:

1. facilitate the changes envisioned by the Statewide Officers of This Committee in their recent “Joint Announcement by CADEM Statewide Officers on 2021 – 2023 Committee Appointments” issued July 1, 2021; 2. Create two newly formed Standing Committees, “Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion”, and “Organizing”; 3. Consolidate the duties of the former Affirmative Action Committee and Organizational Development Committee, along with the duties expressed in the aforementioned “Joint Announcement” into the new duties of the “Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion” Committee. 4. take into account the prior work of the no longer extant Voter Services Committee, regarding their request for a change in duties by incorporating it into the new duties of the “Organizing” Committee; 5. effectuate the now two (2) decade long tradition of having “Lead Chairs” of Standing Committees; 6. implement a “Chair Emeritus” designation; 7. provide for standardized Bylaws templates for Caucuses, allowing for certain variations in content; 8. provide for cross-committee communication, development, and standardization of adoption of Committee procedures; 9. Task the Rules Committee with Chartering of Statewide Organizations. 10. provide for a more transparent and accessible publication of Committee Procedures; and, 11. better set forth the responsibilities of the Committees, and their Chairs, in a significantly more reader friendly format.

STRIKE: EXISTING ARTICLE V.

[NOTE: For the convenience of the reader, existing Article V is appended at the end of this memo.]

ADOPT THE FOLLOWING:

ARTICLE V: STANDING COMMITTEES AND SPECIAL COMMITTEES

Section 1. STANDING COMMITTEES:

This Committee shall have the following Standing Committees with the duties as set forth herein below:

a. Credentials, b. Finance, c. Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion d. Legislation, e. Organizing,

38 f. Platform, g. Resolutions, and, h. Rules.

Section 2. CONSOLIDATION OF COMMITTEES:

The Chair of This Committee, during the period of their tenure, may consolidate, or if once done, deconsolidate, standing committees as deemed appropriate, subject to ratification by the Executive Board of This Committee.

Section 3. APPOINTMENT and NUMBER OF MEMBERS OF COMMITTEES:

a. Except as set forth herein below, the Chair of This Committee, in consultation with the other Statewide Officers, shall appoint from fifteen (15) to thirty (30) members of This Committee to each of the Standing Committees mentioned herein; provided, however, that due to the work and nature of: 1) The Standing Committee on Credentials, it shall be comprised of 25 – 45 members, and, 2) The Standing Committee on Organizing, it shall be comprised of 60 – 80 members.

b. For all Committees without exception, the Chair of This Committee, in making these appointments, shall take into consideration the Party’s commitment to non-discrimination, affirmative action, inclusiveness, and diversity including, but not limited to such things as: race, color, creed, national origin, sex, gender identity, age, religion, ethnic identity, sexual orientation, persons with disabilities as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, economic status, and the geographical location of the appointees, including their residence in urban, suburban, or rural communities.

Section 4. APPOINTMENT and RESPONSIBILITIES OF CO-CHAIRS:

a. The Chair of This Committee, in consultation with the other Statewide Officers, shall appoint Lead co-chair(s), and may appoint other co-chairs, of each Standing Committee from among its members.

b. The Chair of This Committee may designate the most senior tenured Co-Chair of a Standing Committee, as “Chair Emeritus”, in recognition of their terms of service.

c. Responsibilities: 1) The Lead Co-Chair(s) of Standing Committees shall be responsible for: a) Setting the agenda of the Standing Committee prior to each meeting, b) Appointing such sub-committees, and their Chair(s) as may be necessary, and, c) In consultation with the other Co-Chairs, providing for the overall direction and administration of the Standing Committee.

2) The other Co-Chairs shall provide guidance, support, and assistance in the administration and functioning of the Standing Committee, as may be requested by the Lead Co-Chairs.

d. It shall be the further responsibility of the Lead Co-Chairs of the Committees on Finance; Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion; and, Organizing to:

39 1) prepare an Action Plan within three months of their appointment, and annually thereafter, for consideration and adoption by those committees at their next meeting with individual assignments for the members of the committee, 2) transmit the Action Plan to the Chair and Statewide Officers for review, and 3) make regular reports to the Executive Board on their Committee’s activities and progress on the Action Plans. 4) make annual reports to the State Delegates on their Committee’s activities and progress on the Action Plans, which shall be made public to the state delegates by listing on the This Committee’s website.

Section 5. STANDING COMMITTEE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

a. Credentials: It shall be the duty of the Credentials Committee to: 1) approve the credentials of all persons appointed or elected to This Committee, 2) review and approve all proxies in accordance with Section 6 of Article IV of these By-Laws, 3) present a list of qualified members to the Chair of This Committee as soon as practicable, 4) hear certain appeals from decisions of the Compliance Review Commission, as specified in Article XII, and, 5) recommend the resolution of all challenges of, by, and to, members or proxies, which are referred to it pursuant to these Bylaws.

b. Finance: It shall be the duty of the Finance Committee to: 1) organize, in cooperation with the officers of This Committee, activities and policies designed to protect and enhance the financial position of the Party; 2) prepare in cooperation with This Committee, This Committee’s operating budget for presentation to the Executive Board; and, 3) to review and report to the Executive Board on the budgeting policies of the State Party.

c. Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion: It shall be the duty of the Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee to: 1) focus on long-term cultural change in our Party necessary to accomplish its other duties; 2) recommend to the Executive Board of This Committee, monitor, and report on the progress of, a program to accomplish Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, and, expand it to inform and educate Party Leaders and Delegates; 3) recommend to the Rules Committee improvements to This Committee’s Code of Conduct, attached hereto as Appendix “A”, and its procedures; 4) implement those programs adopted and designed to accomplish anti-racism and racial justice to ensure full, fair, and equitable access to our Party; 5) advise all persons with power of appointment and all electing bodies of the demographics of California Democrats so they may make informed choices in the selection and election of delegates, committee members and staff who are representative of the diversity of the Democratic Party with respect to gender, ethnicity, creed, age, sexual orientation, economic status, persons with disabilities as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and area of residence; 6) implement and monitor the goal of affirmative action for selection of: a) The delegates to all State Conventions and Conferences;

40 b) The members of all Standing Committees of This Committee; c) California delegates to all National Conventions and Conferences; and, d) The staff of the State Party; 7) recommend to the Chair of This Committee, and its Executive Committee, local, state and national political strategies, activities, and policies designed to improve the organizational effectiveness of the Party; and 8) propose a plan for redistricting of the Regions after each State Reapportionment is adopted.

d. Legislation, It shall be the duty of the Legislation Committee to: 1) propose legislation when needed, in response to the duties and policies of the Party; 2) maintain a listing of all pending legislation that is of "must" and/or major concern to the Party; 3) keep a record of the vote by the Democratic Party legislators on such legislative items; 4) in consultation with the Chair of This Committee, organize and coordinate activities to advance Party positions on legislative priorities, including, but not limited to, lobby days with legislators, grassroots mobilization, delegate outreach; and, 5) advise the Chair of This Committee and make recommendations as to how to most effectively utilize Party resources for this purpose, consistent with guidelines adopted by the Rules committee.

e. Organizing: It shall be the duty of the Organizing Committee, working with the CDP Organizing Department, to: 1) organize activists, volunteers, and Democrats year round; 2) conduct Relational Organizing, harnessing personal relationships year-round to get better voter engagement and higher conversion rates; 3) provide recommendations on digital tools, methods and programming that the party can implement to effectively reach all voters in California; 4) build the strategic organizing capacity of local leaders and county parties by providing in-depth organizing trainings to activists around issues and the latest voter contact tactics; 5) coordinate and lead voter registration programs aimed at increasing Democratic party registration; 6) provide recommendations to the state Party on how to effectively engage with communities of color and how to be intersectional organizers in our diverse state; 7) help support candidate recruitment efforts across the state and up and down the ballot, focusing on building the bench of the next generation of leaders; 8) support the Democratic voter expansion & engagement efforts of the party and empower the voter organizing work of party caucuses; 9) strengthen Voter Engagement by: a) developing a system of grassroots organizing to facilitate active participation of voters across demographics in party activities, with a specific focus on low-income voters; b) working with Democratic organizations, state legislative caucuses and county committees to ensure a registered Democrat runs in every election to partisan, and non-partisan, public office who wishes the Party's endorsement, and who is worthy of consideration for that endorsement as allowed for in Article VIII, Endorsement of Candidates, prioritizing age, race, gender identity and disability representation when evaluating future candidates; c) reviewing those non-partisan races in which there was no Democratic candidate in the preceding election to that office and work with the aforementioned organizations to ensure there shall be at least one Democratic candidate for the next election to that office.

41 d) supporting and implementing the This Committee’s training and education program through volunteerism and participant recruitment; e) recommending goals and guidelines for the State Party voter contact program, such as an operational plan for an effective vote-by-mail campaign in each special and general election for state and local campaigns; f) develop a plan to increase the percentage of Democratic voters who register for permanent vote-by-mail status; 10) expand Party Voter Education by: a) Supporting This Committee’s voter education efforts by amplifying voter education messaging to diverse communities; b) Partnering with community-based organizations to ensure our message is communicated to both a geographically and ethnically diverse base of voters; c) coordinating training seminars which include instruction on campaign management, issues, and financial reporting requirements; 11) increase Democratic Voter Registration by: a) developing and implementing registration programs specifically designed to reach Californians equitably regardless of age, race, gender identity or disability that are newly eligible to vote or wish to change party, including No Party Preference voters; b) Partnering with party caucuses, labor groups, community-based organizations and key stakeholders to organize voter registration programs; c) supporting county committee registration efforts at local naturalization ceremonies, college and high school campuses, and other sources of potential new Democratic registrants; 12) provide Voter Protection Services by: a) designing voter protection programs to combat voter suppression and recommend best practices for accomplishing such to county committees in a manner that takes into account and ensures intergenerational institutional knowledge of voter suppression tactics inform program design; and, b) supporting voter protection efforts in priority county’s and highly contested federal and state races as needed. f. Platform, It shall be the duty of the Platform Committee to: 1) hold at least three (3) meetings throughout the state to solicit input and testimony on the development of the proposed planks of the Platform of This Committee, 2) have a platform draft available for interested persons at least seven (7) days prior to the first day of the meeting of This Committee at which the platform is to be considered, 3) hold a final hearing on or before first day of the meeting(s) of This Committee at which the platform is to be considered; and, 4) present to This Committee for approval a final draft of the platform during the second day of the meeting(s) of This Committee at which the platform is to be considered. g. Resolutions: It shall be the duty of the Resolutions Committee to: 1) review all resolutions proposed to This Committee or the Executive Board in accordance with these By-Laws, and the procedures for the proposition of resolutions, 2) recommend, reject, or amend all such resolutions prior to referral to This Committee or the Executive Board. h. Rules. It shall be the duty of the Rules Committee to:

42 1) keep the By-Laws and Rules of This Committee consistent with the aims and policies of This Committee; 2) propose special rules, and changes to the Rules and By-Laws, when necessary; 3) promulgate forms for quarterly financial disclosure statements for the Statewide Officers; 4) propose a plan for redistricting of the Regions after each State Reapportionment is adopted; 5) promulgate rules for the filling of vacancies in Regional Directorships; 6) in consultation with the Lead Chairs of the other Standing Committees and Commissions, adopt and promulgate procedures for the functioning of those Standing Committees and Commissions, which procedures shall be published as appendixes of these Rules and Bylaws, and shall be subordinate thereto; 7) biennially, promulgate rules for the conduct of Assembly District Election Meetings, which shall be published in a manner anticipated to be accessible to all interested persons; 8) promulgate Procedures for Chartering, Re-Chartering, and De-Chartering of Statewide Chartered Organizations, and advise the Secretary of This Committee as to what information is needed on the Application for Charter; 9) promulgate Procedures for Certification, Re-Certification, and Decertification of Caucuses, to advise the Secretary of This Committee as to what information is needed on the Application for Certification of Caucuses, certify and decertify caucuses, 10) promulgate standardized Bylaws templates for Caucuses, allowing for certain variations in content; 11) recommend changes in the Code of Conduct as may be necessary from time to time; 12) effectuate the flow chart entitled “Process for Reporting Misconduct and Harassment” attached hereto as Appendix “B,”; 13) to hear certain appeals from decisions of the Compliance Review Commission as specified in Article XII; and, 14) to interpret the rules and By-Laws when called upon by the Chair of This Committee or the Executive Board.

Section 6: SPECIAL COMMITTEES:

The Chair of This Committee may appoint such special committees as they deem appropriate.

Section 7: PROCEDURES FOR COMMITTEE PROCEEDINGS:

a. Committee proceedings shall be governed by these bylaws, and when not in conflict therewith, such rules and procedures as may be adopted pursuant to the provisions of these bylaws. Any matter not covered by either these bylaws, or said rules and procedures, shall be governed by the latest edition of Robert's Rules of Order.

b. Standing Committees, sub-committees thereof, and/or any of its members, may meet in person, by telephone, or by other means of electronic communication.

c. Except as may be otherwise allowed herein, in order for a Standing Committee, a subcommittee thereof, or any of its members to meet other than in person, the Chair of This Committee must: 1) After considering the nature of the meeting, make a determination that: a) allowing it to be conducted other than in person does not impose any undue burden; b) does not fundamentally alter the nature of the proceeding; c) that the need for physical presence is not a paramount component of the meeting, and, d) each member can speak and be heard by the other members; 2) Provide at least seven (7) day’s notice to all interested persons that proceedings may be conducted other than in person, and, 3) Provide a means for all other interested persons to likewise attend, at least via "listen/view-only" mode.

43 d. Except as may be otherwise allowed herein, rules allowing for meetings of standing committees and subcommittees other than in person, shall only apply to such meetings that are not concurrent with a Convention or Executive Board meetings of This Committee.

The following shall be a footnote to Article V:

In the event that a cross-reference to Article V is rendered inappropriate as a result of any of the above changes, the Secretary of This Committee, in consultation with the Lead Chairs of the Rules Committee, shall be empowered to make such change without need for further action. Any such change shall be reported to the Executive Board of This Committee at its next meeting for ratification.

ARTICLE V: STANDING COMMITTEES AND SPECIAL COMMITTEES

Section 1. STANDING COMMITTEES

This Committee shall have the following Standing Committees with the duties as set forth herein below: Credentials; Rules; Resolutions; Platform; Affirmative Action; Legislation; Finance; Voter Services; and Organizational Development.

Section 2. CONSOLIDATION OF COMMITTEES

The Chair of This Committee, during their tenure, may also consolidate, or if once done, deconsolidate, standing committees as deemed appropriate, subject to ratification by the Executive Board of This Committee.

Section 3. APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS OF COMMITTEES

Except as set forth herein below, The Chair of This Committee shall appoint from fifteen to thirty members of This Committee to each of the Standing Committees mentioned herein. For all Committees without exception, the Chair of This Committee, in making these appointments, shall take into consideration the Party’s commitment to non-discrimination, affirmative action, inclusiveness, and diversity including, but not limited to such things as: race, color, creed, national origin, sex, gender identity, age, religion, ethnic identity, sexual orientation, persons with disabilities as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, economic status. The geographical location of the appointees, including their residence in urban, suburban, or rural communities, shall also guide the Chair of This Committee in making appointments to each Standing Committee.

Section 4. APPOINTMENT OF CO-CHAIRS

The Chair of This Committee shall appoint co-chairs of each Standing Committee from among its members.

Section 5. STANDING COMMITTEE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

a. Credentials Committee: The Credentials Committee shall be comprised of 25-45 members. It shall be the duty of the Credentials Committee to approve the credentials of all persons appointed or elected to This Committee, to present a list of qualified members to the Chair of This Committee as soon as

44 practicable, and to hear certain appeals from decisions of the Compliance Review Commission, as specified in Article XII. The Credentials Committee shall review and approve all proxies in accordance with Section 6 of Article IV of these By-Laws. All challenges of members or proxies shall be referred to the Credentials Committee for resolution b. Rules Committee: It shall be the duty of the Rules Committee to keep the By-Laws and Rules of This Committee consistent with the aims and policies of This Committee, to propose changes in the rules and By-Laws and special rules when necessary, to promulgate forms for quarterly financial disclosure statements for the Statewide Officers, promulgate rules for the filling of vacancies in Regional Directorships, adopt guidelines for the Legislation Committee, promulgate rules for the conduct of Assembly District Election Meetings, to adopt guidelines upon recommendation of the Organizational Development Committee for the Chartering of Organizations under Article X of these bylaws, to advise the Secretary of This Committee as to what information is needed on the Application for Charter, approve or reject proposed Caucus Statements of Purpose and Intended Activity, promulgate Guidelines for Certification, Re- Certification, and Decertification of Caucuses, to advise the Secretary of This Committee as to what information is needed on the Application for Certification of Caucuses, certify and decertify caucuses, promulgate procedural rules for the operation of the Compliance Review Commission, recommend changes in the Code of Conduct as may be necessary from time to time, promulgate procedural rules for the operation of the Conduct Commission and to effectuate the flow chart entitled “Process for Reporting Misconduct and Harassment” attached hereto as Appendix “B,” to hear certain appeals from decisions of the Compliance Review Commission as specified in Article XII, and to interpret the rules and By-Laws when called upon by the Chair of This Committee or the Executive Board. c. Resolutions Committee: It shall be the duty of the Resolutions Committee to review all resolutions proposed to This Committee or the Executive Board in accordance with these By-Laws. The Resolution Committee shall have authority to recommend, reject, or amend all such resolutions prior to referral to This Committee or the Executive Board. The Resolutions Committee shall establish and publish the procedures for the proposition of resolutions that are consistent with these By-Laws. d. Platform Committee: It shall be the duty of the Platform Committee to hold at least three meetings throughout the state, to have a platform draft available for interested persons on the first day of the meeting of This Committee at which the platform is to be considered, to hold a final hearing during the first day of that meeting, and to present to This Committee for approval a final draft of the platform during the second day of that meeting. e. Finance Committee: The Finance Committee shall be comprised of 25-35 members. It shall be the duty of the Finance Committee to organize, in cooperation with the officers of This Committee, activities and policies designed to protect and enhance the financial position of the Party; to prepare in cooperation with This Committee, This Committee’s operating budget for presentation to the Executive Board; and to review and report to the Executive Board on the budgeting policies of the State Party. f. Affirmative Action Committee: The Democratic Party has a commitment to diversity and openness in participation. To ensure that

45 commitment, the Affirmative Action Committee shall advise all persons with power of appointment and all electing bodies of the demographics of California Democrats so they may make informed choices in the selection and election of delegates, committee members and staff who are representative of the diversity of the Democratic Party with respect to gender, ethnicity, creed, age, sexual orientation, economic status, persons with disabilities as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and area of residence. It shall be the duty of the Affirmative Action Committee to implement and monitor the goal of affirmative action for selection of:

(1) The delegates to all State Conventions and Conferences;

(2) The members of all standing committees of the State Central Committee of the California Democratic Party;

(3) California delegates to all National Conventions and Conferences;

(4) The staff of the State Party. g. Legislation Committee: It shall be the function of the Legislation Committee to propose legislation when needed, in response to the duties and policies of the Party; to maintain a listing of all pending legislation that is of "must" and/or major concern to the Party; and to keep a record of the vote by the Democratic Party legislators on such legislative items. The Legislation Committee shall in consultation with the Chair of This Committee, organize and coordinate activities to advance Party positions on legislative priorities, including, but not limited to, lobby days with legislators, grassroots mobilization, delegate outreach, and as needed, shall advice the Chair of This Committee and make recommendations as to how to most effectively utilize Party resources for this purpose, consistent with guidelines adopted by the Rules committee. h. Voter Services Committee: The Voter Services Committee shall be comprised of 50-80 members. It shall be the duty of the Voter Services Committee:

(1) To develop a system of grass roots organizing at the precinct level to facilitate active participation of voters in Democratic Party activities;

(2) To coordinate programs to increase Democratic Party voter registration;

(3) To organize new citizen swearing in events;

(4) To organize outreach at college campuses and other sources of potential new Democratic registrants;

(5) To recommend goals and guidelines for the State Party voter contact program, such as an operational plan for an effective vote-by-mail campaign in each special and general election for state and local campaigns;

(6) To develop a plan to increase the percentage of Democratic voters who register for permanent vote-by-mail status.

(7) To coordinate training seminars which include instruction on campaign management, issues, and financial reporting requirements;

(8) To make every reasonable effort to assure that with respect to each and every partisan office that there shall be at least one Democratic candidate who has filed, who wishes the Party's endorsement, and who is worthy of consideration for that endorsement as allowed for in Article VIII, Endorsement of Candidates;

(9) To review those non-partisan races in which there was no Democratic candidate in the preceding election to that office and to ensure there shall be at least one Democratic candidate for the next election to that office.

i. Organizational Development Committee: It shall be the duty of the Organizational Development Committee:

(1) To recommend to the State Chair local, state and national political strategies, activities, and policies designed to improve the organizational effectiveness of the Party;

(2) To propose a plan for redistricting of the Regions after each State Reapportionment is adopted;

(3) To propose guidelines to the Rules Committee, for their consideration and approval, concerning the Chartering of Organizations under Article X of these bylaws; and,

(4) To recommend to the Executive Board the granting or rejection, of applications for Charter of organizations under Article X of these bylaws pursuant to guidelines adopted by the Rules Committee.

Section 6: ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

It shall be the responsibility of the Co-Chairs of those Committees described in section 5 (f), (g), (h), and (i) to:

a. prepare an Action Plan within three months of their appointment, and annually thereafter, for consideration and adoption by those committees at their next meeting with individual assignments for the members of the committee,

b. transmit the Action Plan to the Executive Board of This Committee for consideration and adoption, and

c. make regular reports to the Executive Board on their Committee’s activities and progress on the Action Plans.

d. make annual reports to the State Delegates on their Committee’s activities and progress on the Action Plans. This would be made public to the state delegates by listing it on the Party’s website.

Section 7: SPECIAL COMMITTEES

47 The Chair of This Committee may appoint such special committees as they deem appropriate.

Section 8: PROCEDURES FOR COMMITTEE PROCEEDINGS

Committee proceedings shall be governed by these bylaws, and when not in conflict therewith, such rules and procedures as may be adopted pursuant to the provisions of these bylaws. Any matter not covered by either these bylaws or said procedures shall be governed by the latest edition of Robert's Rules of Order.

a. Standing Committees, sub-committees thereof, and/or any of its members, may meet in person, by telephone, or by other means of electronic communication.

b. Except as may be otherwise allowed herein, in order for a Standing Committee, a subcommittee thereof, or any of its members to meet other than in person, the Chair of This Committee must:

(1) After considering the nature of the meeting, make a determination that allowing it to be conducted other than in person does not impose any undue burden, does not fundamentally alter the nature of the proceeding, and that the need for physical presence is not a paramount component of the meeting, so long as each member can speak and be heard by the other members,

(2) Provide at least seven (7) days notice to all interested persons that proceedings may be conducted other than in person, and

(3) Provide a means for all other interested persons to likewise attend, at least via "listen/view-only" mode.

c. Except as may be otherwise allowed herein, rules allowing for meetings of standing committees and subcommittees other than in person, shall only apply to such meetings that are not concurrent with a Convention or Executive Board meetings of This Committee.

RULES COMMITTEE SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

49 SubCommittees Lead Chair Co-Chair Member 1 Member 2 Member 3 Member 4 Member 5 ADEMS Coby King Nicole Fernandez Kathy Bowler Mcclina Woods Robin Torello Sarah Souza Katie Jaycox Caucuses Laurence Zakson Jimmie Woods-Gray Jose Alcala Olivia Lee Andrea Cardenas Nick Schultz Izeah Garcia Endorsements Kathy Bowler Coby King Glenn Glazer Bill Wong Martha Escutia Valeria Hernandez Kenneth Armstrong Miscellaneous Valeria Hernandez Mcclina Woods G. Anthony Phillips Laurence Zakson Suzanna Aguilera-Marrero Garry Shay Peter Gallotta County Bylaws Steven Alari Robin Torello Mcclina Woods Izeah Garcia Olivia Lee Abigail Kingsley Glenn Glazer Standing Committees Garry Shay Olivia Lee Jimmie Woods-Gray Bill Wong Anita Narayana Sepi Shyne Nicole Fernandez Officers, Elections, Duties, ETC. G. Anthony Philips Izeah Garcia Kathy Bowler Bill Wong Laurence Zakson Harris Mojadedi James Williams

PROPOSED LEGISLATION COMMITTEE PROCEDURES

CURRENT GUIDE

CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY LEGISLATION COMMITTEE LEGISLATION POLICY AND PROCEDURES

Revised Tuesday, June 14, 2011, four waters (staff)

I. POLICY:

A. SCOPE:

1. All legislation to be considered by the Legislation Committee of the California Democratic Party originate generally from the U.S. Congress or California State Legislature. In exceptional cases, the Legislation Committee may consider local legislation of a statewide concern.

2. Except as otherwise provided in Section I, A, 3 below, the Legislation Committee of the California Democratic Party shall only take positions on legislation that is the jurisdiction of the legislative committees responsible for Elections and Redistricting, such as that which deals directly with redistricting, reapportionment, campaign finance and such other matters relating to California Democratic Party operations. The Legislation Committee may also propose legislation when needed.

3. The Legislation Committee of the California Democratic Party may also take up 25 other bills over a 2 year Legislative session, unless the committee by 2/3 vote, finds a compelling need for legislation that requires an exception. To be considered, the proposed legislation must be in furtherance of an existing resolution or platform plank; have at least fifteen (15) days notice must have been given to the proposed legislation’s author or their chief of staff if the Legislation Committee intends to consider a position in opposition the proposed legislation for consideration; and have written approval (which may be by email) of the legislation’s author or chief of staff if the Legislation Committee intends to consider a position in support of proposed legislation sponsored by a Democrat.

4. Legislative position requests shall be submitted to the Legislation Committee on the “Legislative Position Request” form provided by the Legislation Committee 30 days prior to the Committee meeting at which the matter is to be considered, unless such request comes from the Chair of the California Democratic Party.

5. Consideration of a position in opposition to legislation sponsored by a Democrat must have the approval of 2/3rds of the Legislation Committee’s co-chairs before going to a vote of the Legislation Committee.

6. A 60% vote of the Legislation Committee members present and voting is needed to make a legislative recommendation to the DSCC or DSCC E- Board.

7. Reconsideration on legislative positions adopted by the Legislation Committee require a 2/3 vote of the Legislation Committee members present and voting. A vote for reconsideration must occur within one year of the committee taking its first position on the legislation up for reconsideration or at any time if amended.

8. The Chair of This Committee may, in their discretion, after consultation with the other State-wide elected officers, revoke any position taken by This Committee, on any pending Legislation which has been substantially amended, if he/she reasonably believes the amendment would have led to a different position having been taken by This Committee or it is in the best interests of the Party to do so due to changed circumstances.

B. LEGISLATIVE SUBCOMMITTEES:

1. There shall be a State Legislation subcommittee and a Federal Legislation subcommittee within the Legislation Committee.

2. The Lead Chair(s) of the Legislation Committee shall direct requests on legislation pending in the California State Legislature to the State Legislation Subcommittee and requests on legislation pending before the U.S. Congress to the Federal Legislation subcommittee.

3. Members of the Legislation Committee may self-select to serve on a sub-committee

4. The Lead Chair(s) shall appoint the chair of each of the subcommittees.

5. For a meeting of a subcommittee which has been duly noticed, quorum shall be 40% or 10 members, whichever is less.

6. Subcommittees shall meet and vote via either telephonic or electronic communication as designated by the subcommittee chair, subject to the guidelines of the CDP regarding email, telephonic, and electronic communication. In-person meetings may only take place at scheduled DSCC meetings.

7. Legislative positions receiving a simple majority vote of the designated legislative subcommittee shall be presented to the Legislation Committee in the form of recommendations.

8. Order of Consideration: The order of legislative recommendation consideration shall be as follows:

1. Subcommittee shall prepare recommendations no fewer than four days prior to the full Committee meeting, and send to the Legislation Committee Chair(s) and staff. Staff will forward the recommendation reports to the alternate subcommittee.

2. At the eBoard Committee Meeting, the full Committee shall take testimony and consider each sub-committee recommendation report, one item at a time.

3. The full Committee shall vote and prepare a report to the California Democratic Party Executive Board for a vote.

9. Subcommittees shall be tasked with verifying information on completed Legislative Request forms, including, but not limited to former positions taken by the DNC, DNC committees, the DSCC, DSCC Executive Board, positions taken by the resolutions and platform committees of the California Democratic Party on issues related to the legislative request, and status of legislation.

10. Subcommittees shall be tasked with following Legislation Committee endorsed legislation and reporting to the Legislation Committee Lead Chair(s) any substantive changes made to the legislation.

11. Subcommittee chairs shall update the Lead Chair(s) on any change to legislation on which the Legislation Committee has taken a position, including any amendments, addendums or riders that would change the intent of the legislation, add to its scope, or diminish its impact.

12. The Lead Chair(s) shall be responsible for informing the Chair of the CDP on any change to legislation on which the Legislation Committee has taken a position, including any amendments, addendums or riders that would change the intent of the legislation, add to its scope, or diminish its impact.

13. Legislation Committee shall be guided by, but not limited to, the following when making recommendations on legislation:

55 a. Timeliness of the legislation. b. Positions taken by the DNC, DNC Committees, DSCC, CDP resolutions and/or platform committees, and/or positions taken by CDP Caucuses that may conflict with or adhere to issues related to the legislative request. c. Status of legislation in the CA State Legislature, U.S. Congress or other appropriate legislative body. d. Impact DSCC may have on outcome of legislation. e. Historical principles of the DNC and DSCC and communities it represents. f. Factors that may affect potential substantive changes to legislation, such as whether legislation requires 2/3 majority to pass legislative body. g. Constitutionality. h. Importance of the legislation. i. Number of bills on which a recommendation has been made. j. Impact on Party resources. k. Degree of consensus in the Party.

14. Subcommittee chairs shall designate one or more subcommittee members to review the entire text of the legislation prior to a subcommittee vote.

15. Subcommittee chairs shall supply copies of the completed “Legislative Position Request” form for timely submissions discharged out of the subcommittee and the consent calendar to California Democratic Party staff at least 4 days prior to the first day of a DSCC or DSCC E-Board meeting.

16. Subcommittee Legislative Position Request forms for timely legislative position requests and consent calendars shall be distributed to Legislation Committee members no later than 72 hours before the first day of a DSCC or DSCC E-Board meeting.

17. Subcommittee chairs shall have access to at least one full copy (digital or hard copy) of the entire text of the legislation at the Legislation Committee meeting at which the legislative request will be presented to the Legislation Committee.

18. Original legislation shall be brought to the Legislation Committee by an ad hoc drafting subcommittee. The Legislation Committee may discharge to the DSCC or DSCC E-Board original legislation affirmatively with a 60% vote of the Legislation Committee members present and voting.

II. PROCEDURES:

A. FORM

1. Legislative position requests may be submitted by any registered Democrat on Legislative Position request forms provided by the Legislation Committee.

B, PRIORITY

1. Legislative position requests referred from the Legislative committee shall be taken up at the first Legislation Committee meeting following the request.

C. TIMELY LEGISLATIVE POSTION REQUESTS

1. There shall be a State Legislation subcommittee and a Federal Legislation subcommittee within the Legislation Committee.

2. In order to be considered timely, Legislative Position Requests must be received by the State Chair of the Party, thirty (30) calendar days prior to a meeting of the DSCC.

3. Copies of Legislative Position Request forms submitted according to the above procedure shall be distributed to all members of the Legislation Committee within 72 hours of the next meeting of the DSCC or DSCC E- Board, whichever comes first, with each sub-committee’srecommendation report.

4. The Legislation Committee will present legislative position requests in the committee report to the next meeting of either DSCC convention body or DSCC Executive Board, whichever comes first.

D. LATE/FLOOR LEGISLATIVE POSITION REQUESTS

1. Late resolutions will be heard by the Committee only with unanimous consent of the members in attendance at a meeting of the Committee. Once a late resolution has received unanimous consent to be heard, it will be treated in the same way as if it had been submitted as a timely resolution. The submitter may also be asked to provide 40 copies of the legislation request form and related materials depending on the timeframe.

III. GENERAL PROVISIONS

A. The Legislation Committee shall be guided by Roberts Rules of Order except where specified in this document.

B. Due notice of Legislation Committee meetings must be made to all Legislation Committee members.

C. The Legislation Committee shall recommend adoption, rejection or neutral position of legislation. The Legislation Committee may alternatively discharge a request without a legislative recommendation.

D. The Legislation Committee must provide a copy of an official legislative summary of any legislation proposed for adoption by the Executive Board to all Executive Board members for their review. In addition, 4 copies of the proposed Legislation must be available for review by any Executive Board member.

E. Members of the Legislation Committee must disclose any conflict of interest to the best of their ability.

IV. CDP WEBSITE:

The Legislation Committee will create a flow chart representing the process by which the Legislation Committee and the CDP follows in order to take positions on legislation.

REVISED GUIDE

59 CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY LEGISLATION COMMITTEE LEGISLATION POLICY AND PROCEDURES (05-01-2021)

I. Name:

a) This body shall consist of the Standing Committee of the California Democratic Party State Central Committee, known as the “Legislation Committee.”

II. Preamble:

a) It shall be the function of the Legislation Committee to propose legislation when needed, in response to the duties and policies of the Party; to maintain a listing of all pending legislation that is of "must" and/or major concern to the Party; and to keep a record of the vote by the Democratic Party legislators on such legislative items. The Legislation Committee shall in consultation with the Chair of the State Central Committee, organize and coordinate activities to advance Party positions on legislative priorities, including, but not limited to, lobby days with legislators, grassroots mobilization, delegate outreach, and as needed, shall advice the Chair of the State Central Committee and make recommendations as to how to most effectively utilize Party resources for this purpose, consistent with guidelines adopted by the Rules committee.

III. Scope:

a) The Legislation Committee shall consider bills originating from the California State Legislature or the United States Congress. In exceptional cases, the Legislation Committee may consider local legislation of a statewide concern. Bills under consideration should be in furtherance of an existing party resolution or platform plank.

b) The Legislation Committee shall only consider legislation duly submitted by any registered Democrat (or a person of voting registration age who is ineligible to register as Democrats, but has expressed an intent to register as a member of the California Democratic Party upon becoming eligible to do so), through an online “Legislative Position Request Form” on the party’s website, unless a request originates from the Chair of the State Central Committee, another standing committee, or a caucus of the California Democratic Party.

c) Consideration of bills may result in a Legislative Committee recommendation including but not limited to: support, support if amended, oppose, oppose unless amended and neutral. A bill may also be laid on the table without taking any position.

60 Page 1 of 6 CDP Legislation Committee: Legislation Policies And Procedures - FINAL (05-01-2021)

i. In order to consider a position to oppose legislation sponsored by a Democrat, a 2/3rds vote threshold of the Legislation Committee must be met, and at least fifteen (15) days notice must have been given to the proposed legislation’s author or their chief of staff.

d) Legislation Committee shall be guided by, but not limited to, the following when making recommendations on legislation: i. Timeliness of the legislation. ii. Positions taken by the DNC, DNC Committees, DSCC, CDP resolutions and/or platform committees, and/or positions taken by CDP Caucuses that may conflict with or adhere to issues related to the legislative request. iii. Status of legislation in the CA State Legislature, U.S. Congress or other appropriate legislative body. iv. Impact DSCC may have on outcome of legislation. v. Historical principles of the DNC and DSCC and communities it represents. vi. Factors that may affect potential substantive changes to legislation, such as whether legislation requires 2/3 majority to pass legislative body. vii. Constitutionality. viii. Importance of the legislation. ix. Number of bills on which a recommendation has been made. x. Impact on Party resources. xi. Degree of consensus in the Party.

e) The Legislation Committee may also facilitate the sponsorship of legislation, taking into consideration the resources required to sponsor legislation, other potential stakeholders, capacity of committee members and party staff, and legal requirements of advocating for the passage of legislation.

IV. Sub-Committees::

a) There shall be a State Legislation subcommittee and a Federal Legislation subcommittee within the Legislation Committee.

b) Members of the Legislation Committee may self-select to serve on a sub-committee.

c) The Lead Chair(s) shall appoint the chair of each of the subcommittees.

d) For a meeting of a subcommittee which has been duly noticed, quorum shall be 40% or 10 subcommittee members, whichever is less.

e) Subcommittees shall meet and vote via either telephonic or electronic communication as designated by the subcommittee chair, subject to the guidelines of the CDP regarding email, telephonic, and electronic communication. In-person meetings may only take place at scheduled DSCC meetings.

61 Page 2 of 6 CDP Legislation Committee: Legislation Policies And Procedures - FINAL (05-01-2021)

f) Subcommittees shall be tasked with verifying information on completed Legislative Request forms, including, but not limited to former positions taken by the DNC, DNC committees, the State Central Committee, Executive Board, positions taken by the resolutions and platform committees of the California Democratic Party on issues related to the legislative request, and status of legislation.

g) Subcommittees shall be tasked with following Legislation Committee endorsed legislation and reporting to the Legislation Committee Lead Chair(s) any substantive changes made to the legislation.

h) Subcommittee chairs shall update the Lead Chair(s) on any change to legislation on which the Legislation Committee has taken a position, including any amendments, addendums or riders that would change the intent of the legislation, add to its scope, or diminish its impact.

i) The Lead Chair(s) shall be responsible for informing the Chair of the CDP on any change to legislation on which the Legislation Committee has taken a position, including any amendments, addendums or riders that would change the intent of the legislation, add to its scope, or diminish its impact.

V. Procedures:

a) Requests:

i. Legislative position requests may be submitted by any registered Democrat (or a person of voting registration age who is ineligible to register as Democrats, but has expressed an intent to register as a member of the California Democratic Party upon becoming eligible to do so) through the Legislative Position Request Form provided by the Legislation Committee on the party website. Legislative position requests shall be taken up at the first Legislation Committee meeting following the request.

ii. In order to be considered timely, Legislative Position Requests must be received no later than thirty (30) calendar days prior to a meeting of the State Central Committee or Executive Board, unless the requested legislation was introduced, substantially amended, or given urgency status within the 30 calendar day period, in which case the committee may waive this requirement upon a simple majority vote of members present and voting.

1. Substantial amendment is defined as language that changes one or more core functions of the legislation.

62 Page 3 of 6 CDP Legislation Committee: Legislation Policies And Procedures - FINAL (05-01-2021)

iii. Late legislative requests will be heard by the Committee unless five (5) members of the Committee present and voting dissent, or unless approved as a new, substantially amended, or urgency bill by the Committee. Once a late legislative request has received consent to be heard, it will be treated in the same way as if it had been submitted as a timely legislative request. The submitter may also be asked to provide 40 copies of the legislation request form and related materials depending on the time frame.

b) Sub-Committees:

i. The Lead Chair(s) of the Legislation Committee shall direct requests on legislation pending in the California State Legislature to the State Legislation Subcommittee and requests on legislation pending before the U.S. Congress to the Federal Legislation subcommittee.

ii. Subcommittee chairs shall designate one or more subcommittee members to review the entire text of the legislation prior to a subcommittee vote.

iii. Legislation may receive a recommendation as defined in Section III, Subsection C, of these Legislation Policies And Procedures by a majority vote. The outcome of each subcommittee shall be presented to the Legislation Committee of the whole as items on consent.

iv. Subcommittee chairs shall supply copies of the completed “Legislative Position Request Form” for timely submissions discharged out of the subcommittee and the consent calendar to California Democratic Party Staff at least 10 days prior to the first day of a State Central Committee or Executive Board meeting.

v. Subcommittee Legislative Position Request Forms for timely legislative position requests and consent calendars shall be distributed to Legislation Committee members no later than 72 hours before the first day of State Central Committee or Executive Board, whichever comes first.

vi. Subcommittee chairs shall have access to at least one full copy (digital or hard copy) of the entire text of the legislation at the Legislation Committee meeting at which the legislative request will be presented to the Legislation Committee.

c) Committee of the Whole:

i. Recommendations may be severed from the consent calendar upon objection of any member of the Legislation Committee.

ii. The order of legislative recommendation consideration shall be as follows:

63 Page 4 of 6 CDP Legislation Committee: Legislation Policies And Procedures - FINAL (05-01-2021)

1. The consent calendar, excluding any severed items

2. Positions severed from a consent calendar recommendation with the first vote being on the subcommittee's recommendation. No other motion, of any type, shall be in order until the recommendation of the subcommittee is disposed of by either being adopted or rejected.

3. Floor Motions

iii. Except when presented as a consent calendar, the members of the Legislation Committee shall be given the opportunity to debate the recommendation. Speakers shall be limited to no more than three (3) speakers in favor and three (3) three speakers opposed, with a time limit of no more than 1 minute per speaker. The number of speakers or time allotted may be extended by a majority vote of those present and voting.

iv. A 60% vote of the Legislation Committee members present and voting is needed to make a legislative recommendation to the DSCC or DSCC E-Board.

v. The Legislation Committee will present legislative position recommendations in the committee report to the next meeting of either State Central Committee convention body or Executive Board, whichever comes first.

d) Sponsoring Legislation:

i. Legislation sponsorship requests shall be brought to the Legislation Committee by any delegate or caucus of the State Central Committee.

ii. These requests shall be referred to an ad hoc drafting subcommittee by majority vote of the Legislation Committee, with an effort to fill the drafting subcommittee with members of the Legislation Committee that have relevant experience in the subject matter of the proposed legislation.

iii. The drafting subcommittee shall report at the next meeting, a report detailing draft language, potential authors, co-sponsors, supporters, opponents, feasibility, and findings to either recommend the Legislation Committee approve or deny the sponsorship request.

iv. The Legislation Committee may recommend to the State Central Committee or Executive Board committee sponsored legislation with a 60% vote of the Legislation Committee members present and voting.

64 Page 5 of 6 CDP Legislation Committee: Legislation Policies And Procedures - FINAL (05-01-2021)

v. Any legislation sponsorship proposal may be made available to all State Central Committee members on the Legislation Committee’s website and be included in any Committee Report to the convention or executive board floor.

e) Post Meeting Powers:

i. Reconsideration on legislative positions adopted by the Legislation Committee require a 2/3 vote of the Legislation Committee members present and voting. A vote for reconsideration must occur within one year of the committee taking its first position on the legislation up for reconsideration or at any time if amended.

ii. In the event that legislation that the California Democratic Party has taken a position on is substantially amended in such a way as to fundamentally change its nature so as to warrant a change in position, the Lead Chair(s) of the Legislation Committee may call upon a panel consisting of the Lead Chair(s) of the Legislation Committee and all Co-Chair’s of the Legislation Committee to review the changes made to said legislation. A simple majority of panel members present and voting shall be sufficient to rescind a prior legislative position taken by the body. In the event that a legislative position is rescinded, it shall be taken up by the Legislation Committee at the next regular meeting as if it was a new piece of legislation.

VI. General Provisions:

a) The Legislation Committee shall be guided by Roberts Rules of Order except where specified in this document.

b) Due notice of Legislation Committee meetings must be made to all Legislation Committee members.

c) Members of the Legislation Committee must disclose any conflict of interest to the best of their ability.

d) The Legislation Committee will create a flow chart representing the process by which the Legislation Committee and the CDP follows in order to take positions on legislation.

e) The Legislation Committee shall ensure publication of committee reports and these bylaws on the party website.

65 Page 6 of 6

CHICANO LATINO CAUCUS COMPLAINT

66 7/13/2021 CA Democratic Party Mail - Caucus endorsement

Ben Seinfeld

Caucus endorsement 1 message

Tue, Jul 13, 2021 at 6:51 PM To: Ben Seinfeld

Hello

Ruth Luevanos posted this saying she was endorsed by the Chicano Latino caucus. It is my understanding that caucuses cannot issue independent endorsements.

I would like to file a formal complaint and request an investigation.

I would like to stay anonymous because Ruth has a history of attacking people who do not agree with her. I’m fearful of her actions.

https://www.facebook.com/114231414098853/posts/170757705112890/

Thank you,

Image.png 2266K

67 https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ik=8b8c8b341a&view=pt&search=all&permthid=thread-f%3A1705223122014542411&simpl=msg-f%3A1705223122014542411 1/1 7/14/2021 CA Democratic Party Mail - CDP Bylaws - One Voice

Ben Seinfeld

CDP Bylaws - One Voice

Ben Seinfeld Wed, Jul 14, 2021 at 9:49 AM To: Ruth Luevanos

Ruth,

Thank you for speaking with me a moment ago. As we discussed, here is a copy of our bylaws and the specific sections.

Article VIII, Section 1 (Pages 39-40)

d. One Voice: To assure the effectiveness of the Democratic Party's endorsing process, This Committee is committed to the principle that the Democratic Party as an organization shall speak with one voice with respect to the endorsement of candidates for nomination to partisan public office and non-partisan candidates whose endorsements become the endorsement of This Committee. It is also committed to the principle that This Committee’s endorsement process shall be broadly and fairly representative of the various components of the Party.

e. Penalty for Independent, Unauthorized Endorsement: Any official unit of the California Democratic Party or any County Central Committee which renders an independent, unauthorized endorsement or opposition of a candidate for partisan public office or non-partisan candidates whose endorsements become the endorsement of This Committee, shall forfeit its right to representation on This Committee and the privileges and benefits which may be attached thereto for a period of 12 months from the time it renders such an endorsement, or the remainder of the term of the current State Central Committee, whichever is longer.

f. Caucuses Not Independent: This Committee’s Regions and Caucuses are constituent parts of This Committee under campaign finance law and have no independent powers of endorsement of candidates for Public Office, nor positions on State Ballot Propositions, Initiatives, Referendum, or Recall.

Please confirm for me that the posting has been removed.

Also, confirming that we discussed that these by-laws do not refer to personal endorsements of individuals.

Thank you

Ben

-- Ben Seinfeld he/him/his Political Director & Special Assistant to the Chair [email protected] | Cell: 818-441-4430

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68 https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ik=8b8c8b341a&view=pt&search=all&permmsgid=msg-a%3Ar3349836893110183539&simpl=msg-a%3Ar3349836893110183539 1/1