A proposal to expand disclosure of the sources

A proposal to expand disclosure of the sources of campaign cash failed to garner Republican support in the Senate. The measure had passed the Assembly but on
Monday fell one vote short of the two-thirds approval it needed to clear the Legislature.
"I'm concerned that unless we regain a supermajority, the Republicans will continue their agenda of hiding the identities of multimillionaires who are
donors," said Sen. Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles).
The bill was a response to a controversy over $15 million funneled to California campaigns in 2012 by a network of secretive nonprofits with ties to
conservative billionaires Charles and David Koch.
Sen. Bob Huff of Diamond Bar, leader of the Republicans in the upper house, said Monday that the measure was unnecessary but that he could support additional
disclosure requirements if they kicked in next year rather than in this election year.
But "the majority party refused so they could turn this into another cheap political stunt," Huff said.
A 2014 effective date would mean that donors "do not have time to understand that the rules of engagement have changed," he said.
The bill's author, Sen. Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana), wanted more disclosure in time for this year's elections and could bring the proposal, SB 27, back for
another vote before the session ends Aug. 31.
The lack of a supermajority also loomed in the decision to shelve a proposed constitutional amendment to overturn the state's ban on affirmative action at
colleges and universities.
The measure, by state Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina), passed the Senate in January, when it had a Democratic supermajority.
But the effort to change the Constitution, which bans consideration of race, sex or ethnicity in hiring and admissions decisions, has attracted an
increasingly vocal backlash in recent weeks. Some Chinese Americans, for example, have worried that their children may lose admission spots to other students
from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups.
If the measure is amended in the Assembly to address their concerns, it would go back to the Senate and again need a two-thirds vote to pass. But Republicans
in the upper house now have the ability to block such legislation.
Legislative leaders announced Monday that they would delay consideration of the measure and convene a task force of academics and lawmakers to study minority
representation.