Existing law requires the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to issue a clear multiple subject, single subject, or education specialist teaching credential to an applicant who satisfies, among other requirements, the state requirements for teaching English learners. Existing law requires the commission to issue authorizations for a teacher to provide specific services to limited-English-proficient pupils, if certain minimum requirements are met, including, among other requirements, completion of at least 6 semester units, or 9 quarter units, of coursework in a 2nd language at a regionally accredited institution of higher education. Existing law authorizes the commission to approve any regionally accredited institution of higher education to recommend to the commission the issuance of credentials to a person who has successfully completed a teacher education program with the institution, if the program meets the standards approved by the commission. This bill would, notwithstanding any other law, authorize the commission to approve a teacher education program offered by a school district or county office of education administered for purposes of earning a cross-cultural language and academic development certificate or a bilingual authorization certificate, including a California Teacher of English Learners program. The bill would require the commission to apply the standards for approval of a program of professional preparation offered by a regionally accredited institution of higher education to a program of professional preparation offered by a school district or county office of education under these provisions.
Existing law, the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, authorizes the involuntary commitment and treatment of persons with specified mental disorders. Under the act, when a person, as a result of a mental health disorder, is a danger to self or others, or gravely disabled, the person may, upon probable cause, be taken into custody by specified individuals, including, among others, by a peace officer, a designated member of a mobile crisis team, or a professional person designated by the county, and placed in a facility designated by the county and approved by the State Department of Health Care Services for up to 72 hours for evaluation and treatment. Existing law authorizes county behavioral health director to develop procedures for the county's designation and training of professionals who will be designated to perform the above-described provisions. Existing law authorizes the procedures to include, among others, the license types, practice disciplines, and clinical experience of the professionals eligible to be designated by the county. Existing law exempts specified individuals, including a peace officer responsible for the detainment of a person under these provisions from criminal and civil liability for an action by a person who is released at or before the end of the period for which they were detained. This bill would require a county behavioral health director to include an emergency physician, as defined, as one of the practice disciplines eligible to be designated by the county when developing and implementing procedures for the designation and training of those professionals. The bill would also exempt an emergency physician who is responsible for the detainment of a person under those provisions from criminal and civil liability, as specified.
Existing law, the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, contains various provisions that govern collective bargaining of local represented employees and delegates jurisdiction to the Public Employment Relations Board to resolve disputes and enforce the statutory duties and rights of local public agency employers and employees. Existing law requires the governing body of a public agency to meet and confer in good faith regarding wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment with representatives of recognized employee organizations. Existing law requires the governing body of a public agency, and boards and commissions designated by law or by the governing body, to give reasonable written notice, except in cases of emergency, as specified, to each recognized employee organization affected of any ordinance, rule, resolution, or regulation directly relating to matters within the scope of representation proposed to be adopted by the governing body or the designated boards and commissions. This bill would require the governing body of a public agency, and boards and commissions designated by law or by the governing body of a public agency, to give the recognized employee organization no less than 45 days' written notice before issuing a request for proposals, request for quotes, or renewing or extending an existing contract to perform services that are within the scope of work of the job classifications represented by the recognized employee organization, subject to certain exceptions. The bill would require the notice to include specified information, including the anticipated duration of the contract. The bill would also require the public agency, if an emergency or other exigent circumstance prevents the public agency from providing the written notice described above, to provide as much advance notice as is practicable under the circumstances. By imposing new duties on local public agencies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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 shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions for costs mandated by the state pursuant to this act, but would recognize that a local agency or school district may pursue any available remedies to seek reimbursement for these costs.
The Local Transportation Authority and Improvement Act authorizes a county board of supervisors to create or otherwise designate a local transportation authority in the county that may impose a transactions and use tax for transportation purposes subject to voter approval and other specified requirements. Pursuant to that authority, the county board of supervisors of the County of Sacramento created the Sacramento Transportation Authority (STA) . This bill would provide that the allowable expenditure categories for revenues from a tax imposed by STA include the construction, modernization, and improvement of infrastructure, as defined, that supports infill or transit-oriented development in areas nominated by local governments, and included in regionally adopted plans that advance state greenhouse gas emissions reduction objectives, as specified. The bill would also authorize STA to impose a transactions and use tax under the act in a geographic area that comprises less than the total area of the County of Sacramento, subject to the approval of voters within that area and other specified requirements. Existing law authorizes regional transportation agencies and the Department of Transportation to apply to the California Transportation Commission to develop and operate high-occupancy toll lanes or other toll facilities. Under existing law, revenue generated from the operation of a toll facility under these provisions is available to the sponsoring agency for the expenses related to the toll facility and for other uses within the corridor from which the revenue is generated pursuant to an expenditure plan developed by the sponsoring agency. Existing law authorizes a regional transportation agency to issue bonds to finance construction-related expenditures for a toll facility, and construction-related expenditures that are included in the expenditure plan, payable from the revenues generated from the toll facility. Existing law defines regional transportation agency for these purposes to mean, among other things, a joint exercise of powers authority subject to the consent of a transportation planning agency for the jurisdiction in which the transportation project will be developed. For purposes of these provisions, the Sacramento Area Council of Governments, the Yolo Transportation District, and the department formed a joint powers authority, known as the Capital Area Regional Tolling Authority (CARTA) , to apply to the commission to develop and operate toll facilities in the Sacramento region. This bill would authorize STA to issue bonds to finance costs of high-occupancy toll lanes or other toll facilities within the County of Sacramento approved by the commission pursuant to the above-described provisions. The bill would authorize those bonds to be payable from toll revenue or any other funds lawfully available to STA for those purposes, including sales tax revenue. Before STA issues bonds payable from toll revenue for a toll facility operated by CARTA, the bill would require STA to enter into an agreement with CARTA regarding the application of toll revenue to pay for bonds issued by STA and would require the governing board of CARTA to review and approve a toll facility expenditure plan.
(1) The Water Recycling Law generally provides for the use of recycled water. Existing law requires any person who, without regard to intent or negligence, causes or permits an unauthorized discharge of 50,000 gallons or more of recycled water in or on any waters of the state to immediately notify the appropriate regional water board. This bill would, for the purposes of the above provision, redefine "recycled water" and provide that water discharged from a decorative body of water during storm events is not to be considered an unauthorized discharge if recycled water was used to restore levels due to evaporation. (2) Existing law regulating the use of recycled water prohibits the use of prescribed potable water by state and local agencies for any nonpotable uses, including cemeteries, golf courses, parks, and highway landscaped areas if prescribed recycled water is available, and deems use of the recycled water in lieu of the potable water to constitute a reasonable beneficial use of that water. The bill would provide that incidental amounts of spray, mist, or runoff are to be permitted to enter outdoor eating areas of parks and open spaces when irrigated with disinfected tertiary treated recycled water that complies with a specified regulation regarding irrigation. (3) Existing law authorizes any public agency, including a state agency, city, county, city and county, district, or any other political subdivision of the state, to require the use of recycled water for irrigation of residential landscaping, as specified. The bill would provide that outdoor landscape irrigation of common areas that does not enter the boundaries of a residence is not to be considered a part of the same premises as an individual residence and is not to be considered a dual-plumbed system. The bill would require recycled water used for this purpose to comply with specified water quality and cost conditions. (4) Existing law authorizes any public agency, including a state agency, city, county, city and county, district, or any other political subdivision of the state, to require the use of recycled water for toilet and urinal flushing in structures, as specified. Existing law defines "structures" for the purposes of these provisions. This bill would include food handling and processing facilities as part of the definition of "structures." The bill would authorize the use of recycled water for toilet or urinal flushing or outdoor irrigation in and around food handling or processing facilities, commercial, institutional, and industrial buildings, and cafeterias, provided the recycled water does not enter the room where food handling or processing occurs, as specified.
Existing federal law establishes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Existing state law authorizes the State Department of Social Services to identify data-sharing opportunities with other state and local public entities for the purposes of improving the administration of CalFresh, increasing CalFresh participation, and measuring the impact of CalFresh, among other purposes. Existing law authorizes public entities, to the extent permitted by federal law, to share data with the department for these purposes. This bill would remove the authorization for public entities to share data with the department for the above-described purposes.
Existing law, the Pharmacy Law, provides for the licensure and regulation of pharmacists and pharmacies by the California State Board of Pharmacy. Existing law, until January 1, 2026, authorizes a physician or pharmacist to, without a prescription or permit, furnish hypodermic needles and syringes for human use to a person 18 years of age or older, and authorizes a person 18 years of age or older to, without a prescription or license, obtain hypodermic needles and syringes solely for personal use from a physician or pharmacist, as a public health measure, as specified. Existing law, until January 1, 2026, requires a pharmacy that furnishes nonprescription syringes to provide written information or verbal counseling to consumers, as specified, at the time of furnishing or sale of nonprescription hypodermic needles or syringes. Existing law, when no other penalty is provided, makes a knowing violation of the Pharmacy Law a misdemeanor and, in all other instances, makes a violation punishable as an infraction. This bill would delete the January 1, 2026, repeal date, thereby extending those provisions indefinitely, and would make other conforming changes. By indefinitely extending an existing requirement under the Pharmacy Law, the violation of which is a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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 requires the State Air Resources Board to implement a comprehensive short-lived climate pollutant strategy to achieve a reduction in statewide emissions of methane by 40% below 2013 levels by 2030. Existing law requires the methane emissions reduction goals to include a 75% reduction in the level of the statewide disposal of organic waste from the 2014 level by 2025. Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the state board, to adopt regulations to achieve these organic waste reduction goals that include, among other things, requirements intended to meet the goal that not less than 20% of edible food that is currently disposed of be recovered for human consumption by 2025 and that may include penalties to be imposed by the department for noncompliance, as provided. The regulations, among other things, require a commercial edible food generator, as defined, to have a contract or written agreement with a food recovery organization, as defined, to recover the maximum amount of edible food that would otherwise be disposed, as provided. The regulations also require a commercial edible food generator to keep certain records regarding the recovery of edible food. This bill would exempt from these requirements an agricultural crop preparation service, as defined, that demonstrates to the department that it has not disposed of organic waste in a landfill on or after January 1, 2016.
Existing law requires the governing board of each school district to fix the length of the schoolday for grades and classes of the schools maintained by the school district, subject to certain conditions and requirements. Under existing law, in continuation high schools and continuation education classes, a day of attendance is 180 minutes of attendance and a pupil is prohibited from being credited with more than 15 hours of attendance per school week, proportionately reduced for those school weeks having weekday holidays on which classes are not held. This bill would authorize the governing board of a school district that maintains a continuation high school or continuation education classes to offer youth workforce development programs, as defined, to pupils on one or 2 weekdays per school week if it ensures that those pupils are otherwise enrolled in at least 15 hours of class attendance per school week. The bill would require a school district that implements a youth workforce development program for these purposes to establish procedures to track pupil attendance and pupil participation while engaging in a youth workforce development program.
Existing law creates the Department of Insurance, headed by the Insurance Commissioner, and prescribes the department's powers and duties. Existing law generally regulates classes of insurance. This bill would require the department, upon appropriation and in consultation with specified entities and affordable housing entities, to conduct a study of the property, liability, and builders' risk insurance coverages available to affordable housing entities, as defined, that receive a grant, loan, or tax credit awarded by the Department of Housing and Community Development or the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee. The bill would require an insurer to provide necessary information requested by the commissioner for the study. The bill would require the department, in conducting the study, to, among other things, (1) collect information from relevant entities, (2) identify barriers to keeping the affordable housing entities appropriately insured, and (3) analyze and request any other relevant information that may help the department analyze the availability of property, liability, and builders' risk insurance coverage for specified affordable housing entities. The bill would also require the department to analyze how, if at all, insurers consider specified determinations of offers or rate setting, including the level or source of income of an individual or group of individuals residing or intending to reside upon the property to be insured. The bill would require the department to submit a report on the study to the Senate Committee on Insurance and the Assembly Committee on Insurance within one year of the above-described appropriation. The bill would require that report to make recommendations on potential policy and budget options to address insurance coverage cost and access challenges for specified affordable housing entities as identified in the study. The bill would repeal these provisions as of January 1, 2031. The bill would also make related findings and declarations.
Existing law establishes the California DREAM Loan Program, which authorizes a student attending a participating campus of the University of California or California State University to receive a loan, referred to as a DREAM loan, if the student satisfies certain requirements. Existing law prohibits a student from borrowing more than $4,000 within a single academic year and more than $40,000 in the aggregate under the program. Existing law prohibits a student enrolled in an undergraduate program from borrowing more than $20,000 as an undergraduate student and prohibits a student enrolled in a graduate program from borrowing more than $20,000 as a graduate student. This bill would instead prohibit a student enrolled in an undergraduate program from borrowing more than $4,000 within a single academic year, and a student enrolled in a graduate program from borrowing more than $20,500 within a single academic year. The bill would increase the aggregate limit under the program for a student enrolled in a graduate program to $118,500 as a graduate student, while maintaining the $20,000 aggregate limit under the program for a student enrolled in an undergraduate program, thereby increasing the overall aggregate limit under the program for a student who receives a DREAM loan for both undergraduate and graduate enrollment to $138,500.
Existing law requires the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, in accordance with policies established by the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, to assist local governments in preventing future high-intensity wildland fires and instituting appropriate fuels management by making its wildland fire prevention and vegetation management expertise available to local governments, as provided. This bill would define an environmentally sensitive vegetation management project to mean vegetation management that reduces catastrophic wildfire risk over the long term while supporting native wildlife and biodiversity. The bill would require a state public entity to consider incorporating specified criteria into its funding guidelines for a grant program that funds environmentally sensitive vegetation management projects.