(a) An agency may permit the electronic filing of a statement of economic interests required by Article 2 (commencing with Section 87200) or Article 3 (commencing with Section 87300), including amendments, in accordance with regulations adopted by the Commission.

(b) In consultation with interested agencies, the Commission shall use common database integration features in developing database design requirements for all electronic filings that may be used.

(c) (1) An agency that intends to permit electronic filing of a statement of economic interests shall submit a proposal, which shall include a description of the electronic filing system that the agency proposes to use, to the Commission for approval and certification. An agency that submits a proposal shall include a fee of one thousand dollars ($1,000) that is payable to the Commission for the costs of approving and certifying the proposal.

(2) An agency shall not charge a person to electronically file a statement of economic interests.

(3) The Commission shall review an agency’s proposal for compliance with the system requirement regulations adopted pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (b) and the requirements of subdivision (d). If the proposed system complies with these requirements, the Commission shall approve and certify the agency’s electronic filing system as soon as practicable after receiving the agency’s submitted proposal.

(d) An agency’s proposed electronic filing system shall meet the following requirements:

(1) A statement of economic interests filed electronically shall include an electronic transmission that is submitted under penalty of perjury and that conforms to subdivision (b) of Section 1633.11 of the Civil Code.

(2) (A) The agency’s filing officer shall issue to a person who electronically files their statement of economic interests or amendment an electronic confirmation that notifies the filer that their statement of economic interests or amendment was received. The confirmation shall include the date and the time that the statement of economic interests or amendment was received by the filing officer and the method by which the filer may view and print the data received by the filing officer.

(B) A copy retained by the filer of a statement of economic interests or amendment that was electronically filed and the confirmation issued pursuant to subparagraph (A) that shows that the filer timely filed their statement of economic interests or amendment shall create a rebuttable presumption that the filer timely filed their statement of economic interests or amendment.

(3) The agency shall utilize an electronic filing system that includes layered security to ensure data integrity. The system shall have the capability to uniquely identify a filer electronically when the filer accesses the electronic filing system. The operational process for the system shall include industry best practices to ensure that the security and integrity of the data and information contained in the statement of economic interests are not jeopardized or compromised.

(4) The agency shall provide the public with a copy of an official’s statement of economic interests upon request, in accordance with Section 81008. The copy of the electronically filed statement of economic interests shall be identical to the statement of economic interests published by the Commission and shall include the date that the statement was filed.

(e) The Commission may adopt regulations to require that an agency redact information on a statement of economic interests prior to posting the statement of economic interests on the internet.

(f) The Commission may conduct discretionary audits of an agency’s approved and certified electronic filing system to evaluate its performance and compliance with the requirements of this section.

(g) The Commission shall accept an electronic copy of a statement of economic interests that is forwarded to it by an agency that has received an electronically filed statement from a filer pursuant to this section.

(h) A city or county shall not continue to use an electronic filing system if the Commission does not approve and certify that electronic filing system as complying with the requirements of the Commission’s regulations and the other requirements of this section.

(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 315, Sec. 10. (AB 946) Effective January 1, 2020.)