On April 19, the California Senate Elections Committee heard one hour and forty minutes of testimony on AB 583, by Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, to establish public funding for state office. The Committee did not act on the bill, which would provide public funding for candidates who raised a certain number of $5 contributions from members of the public. The bill will be re-written and scheduled for a committee vote in the near future. Anyone can watch the testimony at caclean.org. C.T. Weber of the Peace & Freedom Party, and Richard Winger, who were the last two witnesses, were the only witnesses who complained about the fact that independent candidates and most minor party candidates would need twice as many qualifying contributions as other candidates.