ARTICLE 2. Code of Ethics [8920. - 8926.]

Cal. Government Code - GOV 2.

in effect

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8920. Section 8920.

(a) A Member of the Legislature, state elective or appointive officer, or judge or justice shall not, while serving as such, have any interest, financial or otherwise, direct or indirect, or engage in any business or transaction or professional activity, or incur any obligation of any nature, that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest and of his responsibilities as prescribed in the laws of this state. (b) A Member of the Legislature shall not do any of the following: (1) Accept other employment that he or she has reason to believe will either impair his or her independence of judgment as to his or her official duties or require him or her, or induce him or her, to disclose confidential information acquired by him or her in the course of and by reason of his or her official duties. (2) Willfully and knowingly disclose, for pecuniary gain, to any other person, confidential information acquired by him or her in the course of and by reason of his or her official duties or use any such information for the purpose of pecuniary gain. (3) Accept or agree to accept, or be in partnership with any person who accepts or agrees to accept, any employment, fee, or other thing of monetary value, or portion thereof, in consideration of his or her appearing, agreeing to appear, or taking any other action on behalf of another person before any state board or agency. This subdivision shall not be construed to prohibit a member who is an attorney at law from practicing in that capacity before any court or before the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board and receiving compensation therefor. This subdivision does not prohibit a member from acting as an advocate without compensation or making inquiry for information on behalf of a constituent before a state board or agency, or from engaging in activities on behalf of another which require purely ministerial acts by the board or agency and which in no way require the board or agency to exercise any discretion, or from engaging in activities involving a board or agency which are strictly on his or her own behalf. The prohibition contained in this subdivision does not apply to a partnership or firm of which the Member of the Legislature is a member if the Member of the Legislature does not share directly or indirectly in the fee, less any expenses attributable to that fee, resulting from the transaction. The prohibition contained in this subdivision as it read immediately prior to January 1, 1983, does not apply in connection with any matter pending before any state board or agency on or before January 2, 1967, if the affected Member of the Legislature was an attorney of record or representative in the matter prior to January 2, 1967. The prohibition contained in this subdivision, as amended and operative on January 1, 1983, does not apply to any activity of any Member in connection with a matter pending before any state board or agency on January 1, 1983, which was not prohibited by this section prior to that date, if the affected Member of the Legislature was an attorney of record or representative in the matter prior to January 1, 1983. (4) Receive or agree to receive, directly or indirectly, any compensation, reward, or gift from any source except the State of California for any service, advice, assistance or other matter related to the legislative process, except fees for speeches or published works on legislative subjects and except, in connection therewith, reimbursement of expenses for actual expenditures for travel and reasonable subsistence for which payment or reimbursement is not made by the State of California. (5) Participate, by voting or any other action, on the floor of either house, in committee, or elsewhere, in the passage or defeat of legislation in which he or she has a personal interest, except as follows: (A) If, on the vote for final passage by the house of which he or she is a member, of the legislation in which he or she has a personal interest, he or she first files a statement, which shall be entered verbatim on the journal, stating in substance that he or she has a personal interest in the legislation to be voted on and, notwithstanding that interest, he or she is able to cast a fair and objective vote on that legislation, he or she may cast his or her vote without violating any provision of this article. (B) If the member believes that, because of his or her personal interest, he or she should abstain from participating in the vote on the legislation, he or she shall so advise the presiding officer before the commencement of the vote and shall be excused from voting on the legislation without any entry on the journal of the fact of his or her personal interest. If a rule of the house requiring that each member who is present vote aye or nay is invoked, the presiding officer shall order the member excused from compliance and shall order entered on the journal a simple statement that the member was excused from voting on the legislation pursuant to law. (C) This section does not apply to persons who are members of the state civil service as described in Article VII of the California Constitution.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8921. Section 8921.

A person subject to this article has an interest that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest and of his or her responsibilities as prescribed in the laws of this state or a personal interest, arising from any situation, within the scope of this article, if he or she has reason to believe or expect that he or she will derive a direct monetary gain or suffer a direct monetary loss, as the case may be, by reason of his or her official activity. He or she does not have an interest that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest and of his or her responsibilities as prescribed in the laws of this state or a personal interest, arising from any situation, within the scope of this article, if any benefit or detriment accrues to him or her as a member of a business, profession, occupation, or group to no greater extent than any other member of that business, profession, occupation, or group.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8922. Section 8922.

A person subject to this article is not engaged in any activity that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his or her duties in the public interest and of his or her responsibilities as prescribed in the laws of this state, or does not have a personal interest, arising from any situation, within the scope of this article, solely by reason of either of the following: (a) His or her relationship to any potential beneficiary of any situation is one that is defined as a remote interest by Section 1091 or is otherwise not deemed to be a prohibited interest by Section 1091.1 or 1091.5. (b) Receipt of a campaign contribution regulated, received, reported, and accounted for pursuant to Title 9 (commencing with Section 81000), so long as the contribution is not made on the understanding or agreement, in violation of law, that the person’s vote, opinion, judgment, or action will be influenced by the contribution.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8923. Section 8923.

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c), a Member of the Legislature acting in their official capacity shall not enter into, or request that another individual enter into, a nondisclosure agreement relating to the drafting, negotiation, or discussion of proposed legislation. (b) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of subdivision (c), any nondisclosure agreement relating to the drafting, negotiation, or discussion of proposed legislation entered into or requested by a Member of the Legislature after the effective date of this section shall be void and unenforceable. (c) (1) This section does not prohibit a Member of the Legislature from entering into or requesting a nondisclosure agreement that prevents only the disclosure of trade secrets, financial information, or proprietary information. (2) This section does not make void and unenforceable a nondisclosure agreement, or portion of a nondisclosure agreement, that prevents only the disclosure of trade secrets, financial information, or proprietary information. (3) Notwithstanding Section 8924, this section applies only to a Member of the Legislature acting in their official capacity. (d) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) “Discussion” means direct or indirect communications engaged in by individuals for the purpose of reaching a decision regarding proposed legislation. (2) “Drafting” means developing language for proposed legislation to be considered by the Legislature. (3) “Negotiation” means any form of direct or indirect communication whereby individuals who have opposing interests discuss the form of any proposed legislation that may resolve a dispute involving those interests.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8924. Section 8924.

(a) An employee of either house of the Legislature shall not, during the time he or she is so employed, commit any act or engage in any activity prohibited by this article. The provisions of this article and Article 3 (commencing with Section 8940) that are applicable to a Member of the Legislature are also applicable to any employee of either house of the Legislature. (b) This part shall not be construed to prohibit an employee of either house of the Legislature from serving in an elective or appointive office of a regional or local public agency.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8924.5. Section 8924.5.

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that the California Council on Science and Technology was organized as a nonprofit corporation pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code in response to Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 162 (Resolution Chapter 148 of the Statutes of 1988). The council was uniquely established at the request of the Legislature for the specific purpose of offering expert advice to state government on public policy issues significantly related to science and technology. The establishment of the California Science and Technology Policy Fellowships as a professional development program is consistent with the Legislature’s intent in requesting the creation of the council and is expressly designed to fulfill the council’s mission of assisting state policymakers as they face increasingly complex decisions related to science and technology challenges confronting the state in the 21st century. (b) The services of a California Science and Technology Policy Fellow provided by the California Council on Science and Technology and duly authorized by the Senate Committee on Rules, the Assembly Committee on Rules, or the Joint Committee on Rules are not compensation, a reward, or a gift to a Member of the Legislature for purposes of paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) of Section 8920 and are not an interest, business, transaction, professional activity, or obligation of a Member of the Legislature that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of their duties in the public interest or of their responsibilities for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 8920. (c) (1) The services of a California Science and Technology Policy Fellow provided by the California Council on Science and Technology and duly authorized by an executed memorandum of understanding between the council and an executive branch agency or department are not an interest, business, transaction, professional activity, or obligation of a state elective or appointive officer that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of their duties in the public interest or of their responsibilities for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 8920. (2) The services of a California Science and Technology Policy Fellow provided by the California Council on Science and Technology and duly authorized by an executed memorandum of understanding between the council and a judicial branch agency or department are not an interest, business, transaction, professional activity, or obligation of a judge or justice that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of their duties in the public interest or of their responsibilities for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 8920. (d) A California Science and Technology Policy Fellow provided by the California Council on Science and Technology and duly authorized by the Senate Committee on Rules, the Assembly Committee on Rules, or the Joint Committee on Rules is not an employee of either house of the Legislature for purposes of this article. (e) For purposes of this section, a California Science and Technology Policy Fellow is “duly authorized by the Senate Committee on Rules, the Assembly Committee on Rules, or the Joint Committee on Rules” only if both of the following requirements are satisfied: (1) The California Science and Technology Policy Fellow has been selected according to criteria, and pursuant to a process, approved by the Senate Committee on Rules, the Assembly Committee on Rules, or the Joint Committee on Rules. (2) The California Council on Science and Technology has executed an agreement with the Senate Committee on Rules, the Assembly Committee on Rules, or the Joint Committee on Rules whereby the California Science and Technology Policy Fellow is bound to abide by standards of conduct, economic interest disclosure requisites, and other requirements specified by the Senate Committee on Rules, the Assembly Committee on Rules, or the Joint Committee on Rules.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8924.8. Section 8924.8.

(a) The services of a policy fellow provided by an association are not compensation, a reward, or a gift to a Member of the Legislature for purposes of paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) of Section 8920 and are not an interest, business, transaction, professional activity, or obligation of a Member of the Legislature that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of their duties in the public interest or of their responsibilities for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 8920. (b) (1) The services of a policy fellow provided by an association are not an interest, business, transaction, professional activity, or obligation of a state elective or appointive officer that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of their duties in the public interest or of their responsibilities for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 8920. (2) The services of a policy fellow provided by an association are not an interest, business, transaction, professional activity, or obligation of a judge or justice that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of their duties in the public interest or of their responsibilities for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 8920. (c) A policy fellow provided by an association is not an employee of either house of the Legislature for purposes of this article. (d) For purposes of this section, “association” means any of the following organizations that are exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code: (1) The Asian Pacific Islander Capitol Association. (2) The California Legislative Black Staff Association. (3) The Capitol LGBTQ Association. (4) The California Latino Capitol Association Foundation. (e) This section does not constitute a change in, but is declaratory of, existing law.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8925. Section 8925.

No person shall induce or seek to induce any Member of the Legislature to violate any provision of this article.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8926. Section 8926.

Every person who knowingly and willfully violates any provision of this article is guilty of a misdemeanor. Every person who conspires to violate any provision of this article is guilty of a felony.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026