(1) The Personal Income Tax Law allows, by way of conformity with deductions allowed under federal income tax law, various deductions in computing the income that is subject to the taxes imposed by the Personal Income Tax Law, including a deduction against gross income for interest paid on qualified education loans not to exceed a specified limit. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2023, and before January 1, 2028, would remove the limit on the deduction described above, as specified. (2) Existing law requires that any bill introduced on or after January 1, 2020, that would authorize certain tax expenditures, as defined, or tax exemptions contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax expenditure or exemption will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would express findings and declarations of the Legislature concerning the additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to review on an annual basis, beginning on January 1, 2024, the effectiveness of the deduction and to provide an annual written report of its findings to specified legislative committees. (3) This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law creates the Prohibited Armed Persons File, sometimes called the Armed Prohibited Persons System, for the purpose of cross-referencing persons who have ownership or possession of a firearm, as indicated by a record in the Consolidated Firearms Information System, with a list of persons who are prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm. Existing law requires the Department of Justice, upon the entry of specified information into the Automated Criminal History System, including, among other things, any conviction for a felony, determine if the person has an entry in the Consolidated Firearms Information System indicating possession or ownership of a firearm, as specified. Existing law requires the department, if the person has an entry in the Consolidated Firearms Information System, to then add specified information about the person to the Prohibited Armed Persons File. This bill would rename the Prohibited Armed Persons File as the Armed Prohibited Persons System. The bill would additionally require the department to add a person's information to the Armed Prohibited Persons System if they are the subject of specified gun violence restraining orders and possess a firearm. Existing law requires the Attorney General to provide investigative assistance to local law enforcement agencies to better ensure the investigation of individuals who are armed and prohibited from possessing a firearm. This bill would require the Department of Justice to provide all investigative notes, reports, and related materials on individuals listed in the Armed Prohibited Persons System to local law enforcement agencies, and to develop and implement, by January 1, 2023, an electronic database system that enables local law enforcement real-time access to that information. Existing law requires any purchase or transfer of ammunition through a vendor and, commencing July 1, 2022, any purchase or transfer of a precursor part through a vendor, to be approved by the Department of Justice, and requires the department to deny approval if the purchaser or transferee is prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm. This bill would require the department to immediately notify the sheriff of the county in which the purchase or transfer was attempted, when a purchase or transfer is denied for that reason. Existing law requires the Department of Justice, no later than April 1 each year, to send a report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and the fiscal committees of each house of the Legislature containing specified information including, among other things, the total number of individuals in the Armed Prohibited Persons System, the number of cases which are active and pending, and information regarding task forces or collaboration with local law enforcement on reducing the file. This bill would, instead of requiring information regarding task forces or collaboration with local law enforcement, require that report to include a summary of efforts of local law enforcement on reducing the file or backlog, with a comparison of statistics between department, local law enforcement, and joint task force efforts. The bill would require, no later than February 1 each year, specified local law enforcement agencies to report specified information to the department, including, among other things, the total number of individuals within their jurisdiction in the Armed Prohibited Persons System and the number of cases which are active and pending. This bill would additionally make conforming changes and delete obsolete provisions.
Existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, establishes the Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) within the office of the Governor, and requires Cal OES to update the State Emergency Plan on or before January 1, 2019, and requires Cal OES to update it every 5 years thereafter. This bill, instead, would require Cal OES to update the State Emergency Plan every three years commencing January 1, 2024.
The Natural Community Conservation Planning Act authorizes the Department of Fish and Wildlife to enter into agreements with any person or public entity for the purpose of preparing a natural community conservation plan, in cooperation with a local agency that has land use permit authority over the activities proposed to be addressed in the plan, to provide comprehensive management and conservation of multiple wildlife species. Existing law requires the public to have 21 calendar days to review and comment on a proposed planning agreement before department approval of the planning agreement. This bill would expand the time for public review and comment on a proposed planning agreement from 21 calendar days to 21 business days.
Existing law requires the transfer of a specified portion of the sales tax on diesel fuel to the Public Transportation Account, a trust fund in the State Transportation Fund. Existing law requires funds in the account to be allocated to various public transportation and transportation planning purposes, with specified revenues in the account to be allocated by the Controller to specified local transportation agencies for public transportation purposes, pursuant to the State Transit Assistance (STA) Program. Existing law provides for each STA-eligible operator within the jurisdiction of the allocating local transportation agency to receive a proportional share of the revenue-based program funds based on the qualifying revenues of that operator, as defined. The Budget Act of 2013 and the Budget Act of 2014 require the Controller, upon the order of the Director of Finance, to transfer specified amounts totaling up to $55,515,000 as loans from the Public Transportation Account to the High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Fund. This bill would require $54,000,000 from these loans to be repaid to the Public Transportation Account and would provide that these repaid funds are available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to help offset the loss of revenues incurred by transit operators during the COVID-19 pandemic. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law regulates the appropriation of state funds and imposes various requirements on the Controller with respect to the transfer of state funds. Existing law also sets various maximum allowable administrative costs for particular grant programs. This bill would require any state grants to a local government to include a maximum allocation of funds that may be expended for administrative costs, as defined, and would prohibit a local government, as defined, from expending more than 5% of grant funds for administrative costs, except as provided. The bill would specify that it is not intended to affect federal funding.
Existing law establishes the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program, administered by the Office of Planning and Research, to coordinate regional and local efforts with state climate adaptation strategies to adapt to the impacts of climate change, as specified. This bill would require the Strategic Growth Council, by July 1, 2022, to establish guidelines for the formation of regional climate adaptation planning groups. The bill would require the council, by July 1, 2023, and in consultation with certain state entities, to develop criteria for the development of regional climate adaptation plans.
Existing law establishes the Office of Information Security within the Department of Technology for the purpose of ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of state systems and applications and to promote and protect privacy as part of the development and operations of state systems and applications to ensure the trust of the residents of this state. The law requires an entity within the executive branch that is under the direct authority of the Governor to implement the policies and procedures issued by the office. The law additionally authorizes the office to conduct, or require to be conducted, an independent security assessment of every state agency, department, or office, as specified. The law authorizes the Military Department to perform an independent security assessment of any state agency, department, or office. This bill would require state agencies not covered by the provisions described above to adopt and implement information security and privacy policies, standards, and procedures based upon standards issued by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Federal Information Processing Standards, as specified. This bill would require these state agencies to perform a comprehensive, independent security assessment every 2 years and would authorize them to contract with the Military Department for that purpose. This bill would require these state agencies to certify, by February 1 annually, to the Assembly Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection that the agency is in compliance with all adopted policies, standards, and procedures and to include a corrective action plan to address any outstanding deficiencies, the estimated dates of compliance, and any additional resources it requires in order to cure each deficiency. The bill would require that the certification be kept confidential and not be disclosed, except that the information and records would be allowed to be shared with the members of the Legislature and legislative employees, at the discretion of the chairperson of the committee. Because the required certification would be made under penalty of perjury, the bill would expand the crime of perjury and would thereby impose a state-mandated local program. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Existing law governing unemployment insurance defines "employment" for those purposes, and exempts from this definition the services performed by certain persons, including various types of brokers or salespersons meeting specified conditions, including that the sale or demonstration of the product takes place in the buyer's home. Existing law limits the exemption to sales that take place in other than a retail or wholesale establishment. This bill, among other things, would also exempt from the definition of employment, a seller that sells or demonstrates products in the buyer's business. The bill would also specify that certain types of vehicles used to sell specified tools do not qualify as a retail or wholesale establishment for purposes of these provisions.
Existing law requires the Department of Toxic Substances Control to provide the State Board of Equalization with a schedule of codes identifying the types of organizations that use, generate, store, or conduct activities in the state related to hazardous materials. Existing law requires each organization type identified in the schedule to pay an annual tax, known as the "environmental fee," at a specified amount based on the number of employees at the organization, which is deposited in the Toxic Substances Control Account. Existing law requires the State Board of Equalization to annually adjust those amounts to reflect the increase or decrease in the cost of living, as provided. This bill would exempt organizations with fewer than 100 employees from the annual tax until January 1, 2025.
Existing law establishes various programs to provide assistance to homeless persons. Existing law requires a state agency or department that funds, implements, or administers a state program that provides housing or housing-related services to people experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness, except as specified, to adopt guidelines and regulations to include enumerated Housing First policies. This bill would require that all state programs created on or after January 1, 2022, providing interim housing, as defined, follow specified low barrier practices. The bill would also establish requirements for the adoption and implementation of these practices for programs existing prior to January 1, 2022, as specified.
Existing law gives control of the state park system to the Department of Parks and Recreation, and requires the Director of Parks and Recreation to promote and regulate the use of the state park system in a manner that conserves the scenery, natural and historic resources, and wildlife for the enjoyment of future generations. Existing law authorizes the department to collect fees, rents, and other returns for use of any state park system area, as provided. Existing law prohibits the department from collecting from any group of pupils in kindergarten or grades 1 to 12, inclusive, or their escorts, any fee, rental, or other return for use of any unit in the state park system when the group is visiting the area pursuant to a school outing or field trip under the direction of a school personnel, as provided. This bill would require the department to waive the day use entrance fees to a unit of the state park system for any child in the 4th grade, or the 4th grade equivalent, who holds a valid federally issued "Every Kid Outdoors" pass, as provided. The bill would require the department to post on its internet website information on how to obtain the federal "Every Kid Outdoors" pass, including a hyperlink to the federal program establishing the pass.
