Existing law establishes the system of public education in this state. Under this system, school districts throughout the state maintain and operate public elementary and secondary schools, which offer instruction to pupils in kindergarten and in grades 1 to 12, inclusive. This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation relating to science and mathematics instruction in public elementary and secondary schools.
Existing law for national defense provides for the Sabotage Prevention Act of 1950 and includes definitions for terms therein, including a definition for "defense preparation." This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to this provision.
The Public Utilities Act imposes various duties and responsibilities on the Public Utilities Commission with respect to the purchase of electricity. Existing law requires every electric distribution utility or cooperative to develop a standard contract or tariff providing for net energy metering, and to make this contract available to eligible customer-generators, as defined, upon request. Existing law requires every electric service provider, upon request, to make available to eligible customer-generators, contracts for net energy metering subject to specified limitations on the number of contracts. Existing law limits eligible customer-generators to residential, small commercial, commercial, industrial, or agricultural customers of an electric service provider that use a solar or a wind turbine electrical generating facility, or a hybrid solar and wind turbine generating facility. The commission is responsible for enforcing these provisions. This bill would change the definition of eligible customer-generators to include residential, small commercial, commercial, industrial, or agricultural customers of an electric service provider that use biomass electricity generating facilities.
Existing law provides that the Department of Transportation has full possession and control of all state highways and requires the department to prepare a State Highway Operation and Protection Program for the expenditure of transportation funds for major capital improvements necessary to preserve and protect the state highway system. This bill would enact the State Highway Operation and Protection Program Emergency Funding Act and state the intent of the Legislature to provide adequate funding to meet the needs of the State Highway Operation and Protection Program in the 2009–10 fiscal year.
Under existing law, the Governor appoints the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and 2 undersecretaries, 3 deputy secretaries, and an assistant secretary of the department, all of whom are subject to Senate confirmation. Under existing law, the Governor, upon recommendation of the secretary, appoints the wardens of the state prisons. This bill would make the warden appointments subject to Senate confirmation.
Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to adopt rules and regulations to allow, in rural areas, the placement on interstate and primary highways near public exits, of guide signs indicating the existence, within 12 mile of that exit, of a fire station that is open 24 hours each day of the year. This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to these provisions.
The Corporation Tax Law specifies that its provisions are applicable to specified taxes. This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those specification provisions.
Existing law gives the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) the exclusive power to certify thermal powerplants and electric transmission lines. A person proposing to construct a thermal powerplant or an electric transmission line is required to obtain a certificate from the Energy Commission. Existing law defines "electric transmission line" to be an electric powerline that carries electricity from a thermal powerplant located within the state to a point of junction with an interconnected transmission system. The findings of the Energy Commission in its certification process are binding on the Public Utilities Commission in the process for the issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity of the thermal powerplant and electric transmission lines. Existing law requires a person to obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity from the Public Utilities Commission prior to the construction of an electric powerline rated at 50 kilovolts or above. This bill would expand "electric transmission line" to include an electric powerline that carries electricity from any powerplant located in the state to a point of junction with an interconnected transmission system, an electric powerline that is rated at 200 kilovolts or above, and an electric powerline that is rated between 50 kilovolts and 200 kilovolts that is needed to support the stability and reliability of the interconnected transmission line, thereby giving the Energy Commission the exclusive power to certify these electric powerlines. The bill would exempt from the certification requirement an electric transmission line for which an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity has been submitted to the Public Utilities Commission before January 1, 2010. The bill would require the Energy Commission, in consultation with the Public Utilities Commission and other relevant agencies, to represent the state in all federal proceedings as the representative of the state's energy policy.
(1) Under existing law, various measures have been approved by the voters to provide funds for water supply and protection facilities and programs. This bill would enact the Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2010, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $9,785,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a water supply reliability and water source protection program. The bill would authorize the Department of Water Resources to establish and impose fees on water users in the state, including residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural water users. The bill would require the State Board of Equalization to collect the fee pursuant to the Fee Collection Procedure Law. The bill would require the funds generated from the imposition of the fee to be deposited in the California Water Resources Fund, which the bill would establish in the State Treasury. The bill would continuously appropriate the moneys in the California Water Resources Fund to the department to pay for certain administrative costs and refunds, and to reimburse the General Fund for payments made to finance the debt service on the bonds issued pursuant to the bond act. The bill would provide for submission of the bond act to the voters at the November 2, 2010, statewide general election. (2) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
The California Endangered Species Act prohibits the taking of an endangered or threatened species, except as specified. The Department of Fish and Game may authorize the take of listed species if the take is incidental to an otherwise lawful activity and the impacts are minimized and fully mitigated. This bill would require the department to require, for any incidental take permit for a renewable energy project in the Mojave or Colorado desert region that is permitted after January 1, 2008, and prior to adoption of the final Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP) mandated by Executive Order S-14-08, species impact avoidance, minimization, and mitigation in accordance with a specified federal Bureau of Land Management plan. The bill would repeal that requirement on the date that the director certifies to the Secretary of State that the final DRECP has been adopted. The bill would find and declare that because of unique circumstances applicable to the lands affected by the DRECP, a general statute cannot be made applicable, and that, therefore, enactment of a special statute is necessary.
(1) Existing provisions of the California Constitution require meetings of each house and committee of the Legislature to be open to the public, except that closed meetings may be held to consider specified matters, including employment and personnel, security, advice from counsel, and caucus meetings. The Ralph M. Brown Act requires that any meeting of a legislative body of a local agency be open and public and that all persons be permitted to attend. The act also requires the legislative body comply with certain open meeting requirements. This bill would require that all meetings of the Legislature be open to the public and comply with the open meeting requirements of the Ralph M. Brown Act, except as specified. The bill would define "meeting," for its purposes, as a gathering of two or more members of the Legislature in one place for the purposes of discussing matters, including budget-related matters, within the subject matter jurisdiction of the Legislature. The bill would make conforming changes to existing law. (2) The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on December 19, 2008. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared by the Governor by proclamation issued on December 19, 2008, pursuant to the California Constitution.
Existing law authorizes a court, upon motion, to award attorney's fees to a successful party against one or more opposing parties in any action that has resulted in the enforcement of an important right affecting the public interest, if certain conditions are met. This bill would provide for the award of attorney's fees pursuant to that provision only if judgment has been entered in favor of the successful party against one or more opposing parties in the action.
