Regular Meeting
03/21/22 07:00 PM
City Clerk / Records
Christina Rudsell
Ordinance
Doc ID: 4969
AGENDA ITEM
AGENDA MATTER:
FIRST READING AND INTRODUCTION OF AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BARSTOW
REQUIRING E-FILING OF STATEMENT OF ECONOMIC INTERESTS AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE FORMS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
California Government Code Section 84615 provides that a legislative body of a local government agency may adopt an ordinance that requires an elected officer, candidate, committee, or other person required to file statements, reports, or other documents required by Chapter 4 of the Political Reform Act to file such statements, reports, or other documents online or electronically with the City Clerk. The City of Barstow has entered into an agreement with Netfile, a vendor approved by the California Secretary of State that meets the requirements set by Government Code Section 84615, to provide an online electronic filing system (System) for California Fair Political Practices Commission campaign statements and Statements of Economic Interests. The Fair Political Practices Commission is in the process of approving the City as an e-filing agency based on the contract with Netfile. The System will operate securely and effectively and will not unduly burden filers. Specifically: (1) the System will ensure the integrity of the data and includes safeguards against efforts to tamper with, manipulate, alter, or subvert the data; (2) the System will only accept a filing in the standardized record format developed by the Secretary of State and compatible with the Secretary of State's system for receiving an online or electronic filing; and (3) the System will be available free of charge to filers and to the public for viewing filings.
DISCUSSION:
The City of Barstow is currently a paper-filing agency for statutory Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) campaign disclosure forms and statements of economic interest, commonly referred to as Form 460s and Form 700s, respectively. The City Clerk’s Office proposes moving to an electronic filing system (e-filing) using NetFile, a web-based, vendor-hosted application that utilizes “industry best practices” for securing data, using the same data encryption for online filings used by banks for online banking.
Implementation of the NetFile system will promote transparency and provide convenience for committees, individuals, and the public. It provides 24-hour filing and viewing accessibility of campaign finance information from any computer, anywhere. In certain instances, the NetFile program will also increase the accuracy of filed campaign statements by prohibiting any filings that may have inadvertently omitted required information under the Act (e.g. missing addresses or the stated occupation of individual donors).
Campaign Finance Disclosure Statements (Form 460, Form 496, Form 497) Adoption of the proposed ordinance is required to implement electronic filings of the campaign finance component of the NetFile system, and will only apply to those filers that exceed a threshold of $2,000 for expending or receiving campaign funds. This threshold is consistent with the Political Reform Act (the “Act”), which recognizes campaigns that spend or raise more than $2,000 as “Controlled Committees.” Under the Act, these types of committees are obligated to file detailed campaign finance disclosure statements, also known as Form 460s. For those smaller campaigns that do not exceed the $2,000 threshold, they may continue to file paper versions of the Form 470 disclosure forms. It should be noted that the NetFile system is able to accommodate the online filing of several types of required forms by the FPPC, including Forms 460, 470, 496, and 497, which are the most commonly used forms in the City of Regular Meeting
03/21/22 07:00 PM
City Clerk / Records
Christina Rudsell
Ordinance
Doc ID: 4969
AGENDA ITEM
Barstow’s local election campaigns.
Statement of Economic Interest (Form 700)
The FPPC is currently in the process of certifying the City as an e-filing agency for its “Statement of Economic Interest” Form 700, clearing the way for filers within the City to use the online system. The Form 700 component of NetFile does not require an ordinance; however, staff recommends that all designated Form 700 filers identified in the City’s and Barstow Fire Protection District Conflict of Interest Codes also be required to file electronically, to fully transition the City to electronic, paperless filing pursuant to Government Code 84615.
There are about 55 employees, board members and contractors currently required to file an annual SEI.
Some filers, such as the City Manager, City Attorney, Councilmembers and Planning Commissioners (GC 87200 filers) already have the option of using the FPPC's e-filing system. A distinction between NetFile and the FPPC e-filing system is that the FPPC system requires users to create separate forms for each outside agency that requires a Form 700 from the official. In NetFile they can add any number of outside boards, commissions, or JPAs, so all of the reports are created in one filing. The filer can print and sign and forward the report to those agencies for which they must file a Form 700, but who do not have FPPC approval for e-filing. Adopting the ordinance would make e-filing consistent among all filers in the City of Barstow. An added benefit of the system is that the Form 700 electronic filing incorporates an initial review process and alerts the filer of errors at the time they are entering information, thereby minimizing the need for the City Clerk to request amendments. In addition to increased efficiency, electronic filing will eliminate the need for wet signatures, will redact statements posted online, and will automatically link to the FPPC’s system. If approved, all filers will be required to submit their statutory filings through the automated system, and paper filings will no longer be accepted. However, to support the City’s efforts towards diversity, equity and inclusion, the City Clerk, as the City’s filing officer, will have the right to accept a paper filing in lieu of an electronic filing at the City Clerk’s discretion, under certain circumstances, and to accommodate an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) request. Examples of exceptions may include limited access to an electronic device or internet connection. To ensure a smooth transition, and as part of the agreement and acquisition of the system, NetFile and the City Clerk’s Office will offer extensive training to filers and campaign committees. Staff can schedule one-on-one training with NetFile staff and individual filers and treasurers that will cover the entire electronic filing process including the set-up of filer accounts, explanation of the online filing process, demonstration of the data input and saving reports, preparation of statements for e-signature, and finalizing statements for electronic filing. A local government agency may require an elected officer, candidate, committee, or other person required to file statements, reports, or other documents required by Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 84100) to file online or electronically, unless the officer, candidate, or committee receive less than $2,000 in contributions and have less than $2,000 in expenditures in a calendar year.
The following is a summary of requirements that local government agencies must meet:
1. Local legislative bodies must adopt an ordinance approving such online filing and include a legislative finding that the online or electronic filing system will operate securely and effectively and would not unduly burden filers;
2. Electronic systems used must accept filings that are compatible with the format developed by the Secretary of State, must ensure security and integrity of data, and must provide a way for electronic filers to sign under penalty of perjury;
3. No charge to file;
Regular Meeting
03/21/22 07:00 PM
City Clerk / Records
Christina Rudsell
Ordinance
Doc ID: 4969
AGENDA ITEM
4. File date will be the date received by the local filing officer;
5. Specifies that a timely electronic confirmation along with a copy of the filing kept by the filer constitute a rebuttable presumption that the filing was timely;
6. Filings must be made available on the Internet, with certain information removed, and requires local filing officers to make complete and unredacted copies of electronic filings available to any person upon request;
7. Data shall be maintained for at least 10 years for audit purposes and then may then be archived in a secure format;
8. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any statement, report, or other document filed online or electronically pursuant to this section shall not be required to be filed with the local filing officer in paper format.
In order to comply with state law, the requirements from Government Code Section 84615 have been incorporated in the proposed ordinance for the City to transition to an electronic filing system (Attachment A). The ordinance is also flexible in that it allows, if Netfile and the City ever discontinue their contract, the City can move to another vendor who meets the Secretary of State’s requirements.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The contract amount for the NetFile system is $3,700 per year for up to five years, for a total of $18,500 through FY 2026-27. NetFile is providing free use of service on both systems through June 30, 2022.
Funds will be included in the City Clerk's Recommended Budget for FY 2022-23. The FPPC requires a fee of $1,000 to register as an electronic filing agency, however, NetFile has agreed to pay this cost on behalf of the City.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Waive first reading and introduce Ordinance ___- 2022 to mandate electronic and paperless filing of Fair Political Practices Commission campaign disclosure statements and statements of economic interest (Form 700). The adoption of the proposed ordinance is exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act, per CEQA Guidelines Sections 15305 and 15378.