Cal. Gov. Code § 87103.6

Notwithstanding subdivision (c) of Section 87103, any person who makes a payment to a state agency or local government agency to defray the estimated reasonable costs to process any application, approval, or any other action, including but not limited to, holding public hearings and evaluating or preparing any report or document, shall not by reason of the payments be a source of income to a person who is retained or employed by the agency.