Existing law establishes procedures for the formation of regional park, park and open-space, and open-space districts and prescribes the powers, functions, and duties of those districts. Existing law requires the board of directors of these districts to appoint a general manager as chief administrative officer of the district and a controller and authorizes appointment of other subordinate officers, as provided. This bill would consolidate and modify roles and compensation of board-appointed officers, as specified. Existing law prohibits a district from validly conveying land actually dedicated and used for park or open-space purposes without the consent of a majority of the district's voters voting at a special election when the lease of the land exceeds 25 years. This bill would require, for the conveyance described above to occur, the consent of the district's voters voting at a special election when the lease of the land exceeds 50 years. Existing law authorizes a district to exchange park and open-space land by a unanimous vote of the board if the new park and open-space land is equal or greater in value and needed for park or open-space purposes. Existing law authorizes the East Bay Regional Park District, the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, and the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District to exchange up to 40 acres of district-owned park or open-space land in a calendar year. This bill would instead authorize the exchange of park or open-space land by a 23 vote of the board, and would authorize the East Bay Regional Park District when a compatible and comparable exchange is not feasible, to accept compensation in an exchange with a public agency, provided that compensation is used to purchase park and open-space land. The bill would authorize the above-listed districts to exchange up to 80 acres of district-owned land in a calendar year. This bill would make other changes related to park and open-space districts, including, among others, repealing specified authorizations and requirements regarding the East Bay Regional Park District. Existing law generally authorizes the general manager of a regional park, park and open space, and open-space district, with district board approval, to bind the district, in accordance with board policy, and without advertising, for the payment for supplies, materials, labor, or other valuable consideration for any purpose in amounts not exceeding $50,000. Existing law authorizes the district, by action of the board in an open meeting, to increase the amount by which the general manager of the district may bind the district above that limit. This bill would authorize a general manager of a district with a population of 200,000 or more, with the approval of the board, to bind the district, in accordance with board policy that has been adopted in an open meeting, for the payment for equipment, supplies, and materials for any purpose, including new construction of a building, structure, or improvement, excluding labor and services, when the annual aggregate cost does not exceed $150,000, as provided. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the East Bay Regional Park District.
Existing law establishes a pilot program authorizing the Los Angeles Unified School District to use, before December 31, 2025, a best value procurement method for bid evaluation and selection for public projects that exceed $1,000,000. The pilot program establishes various requirements applicable to the use of the best value procurement method under the authorization. Existing law requires the school district to submit a report to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature on the use of the best value procurement method as provided and in accordance with a specified schedule. These provisions are repealed on January 1, 2026. This bill would delete the reporting requirement and repeal date, thereby extending these provisions concerning the Los Angeles Unified School District indefinitely, and make related conforming changes. This bill would additionally authorize the governing board of any school district, except for the Los Angeles Unified School District, to use, before December 31, 2030, a best value procurement method for bid evaluation and selection for public projects that exceed $1,000,000. The bill would establish various requirements applicable to the use of the best value procurement method under this authorization. The bill would require a school district to submit a report on the use of the best value procurement method, as specified, to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature, on or before January 1, 2030. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2031.
Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation by the State Department of Public Health of health facilities, including general acute care hospitals, as defined. Existing law requires a health facility to allow a patient's domestic partner, the children of the patient's domestic partner, and the domestic partner of the patient's parent or child to visit unless no visitors are allowed, the facility reasonably determines that the presence of a particular visitor would endanger the health or safety of a patient, a member of the health facility staff, or other visitor to the health facility, or would significantly disrupt the operations of a facility, or the patient has indicated to the health facility staff that the patient does not want this person to visit. A violation of this provision is a misdemeanor. This bill would require a general acute care hospital to allow a patient with physical, intellectual, or developmental disabilities, a patient with cognitive impairment, including dementia, and a patient with another disability, as specified, to have a family or friend caregiver with them as needed, including outside standard visiting hours, unless specified conditions are met, including, but not limited to, that the hospital reasonably determines that the presence of a particular visitor would endanger the health or safety of the visitor, a patient, a member of the staff, or other visitor to the hospital, or would significantly disrupt the operations of the hospital. The bill would not prohibit a hospital from otherwise establishing reasonable restrictions upon visitation. The bill would authorize the hospital to impose legitimate health and safety requirements on visitors, as specified. The bill would specify that its provisions do not prohibit restrictions to patient visitation policies implemented during a state of emergency declared by the Governor, a health emergency declared by the State Public Health Officer, or a local health emergency declared by a local health officer, as specified. The bill would specify that its provisions do not create any new civil or criminal liability, including, but not limited to, liability for any illness, infection, or injury experienced by a patient or visitor on the part of a hospital that complies with its requirements. By expanding the scope of a crime, this 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, the California Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act, governs mass layoffs, relocations, and terminations. Existing law prohibits an employer, with certain exceptions, from ordering a mass layoff, relocation, or termination at a covered establishment without giving prescribed written notice to the employees, the Employment Development Department, and other local agencies. This bill would require employers to include in the notice whether the employer plans to coordinate services through the local workforce development board or another entity, as specified, and information regarding the statewide food assistance program known as CalFresh, as specified.
Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act, requires the State Department of Social Services to license and regulate transitional housing placement providers, which is defined as organizations licensed by the department to provide transitional housing to foster children at least 16 years of age and not more than 18 years of age and to nonminor dependents to promote their transition to adulthood. Existing law requires the department to adopt regulations governing transitional housing placement living arrangement requirements for minors and nonminor dependents, including allowing a participant to share a bedroom or unit with certain other individuals and requiring all counties and program contracts to allow participants and those certain other individuals to share bedrooms, bathrooms, and units together, regardless of gender identity. Under existing law, a violation of the act is a misdemeanor. This bill would require all counties and program contracts to also ensure that decisions about sharing bedrooms, bathrooms, and units together are led by the program participant and agreed upon in collaboration with the provider. By increasing county duties, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law requires an applicant to obtain certification from a county specifying the population that will be served by the facility in order to be licensed as a transitional housing placement provider. Existing law requires the certification to confirm that the program includes specified components, depending on the population served. This bill would specify contract requirements if a county contracts with a transitional housing placement provider, including prohibiting the contract from containing terms that create unreasonable barriers for a qualified foster youth's admission into or participation in the 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 prohibits operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, as specified. Under existing law, if a person is convicted of driving under the influence and is granted probation, the period of probation shall be for not less than 3 years and not more than 5 years, unless the maximum prison sentence for the offense is greater than 5 years, in which case the period of probation may be longer. Existing law prohibits the unlawful killing of a human being, without malice aforethought, while driving under the influence. A violation of this prohibition is punishable either as a misdemeanor or as a felony. Under existing law, if a person is convicted of the unlawful killing of a human being, without malice aforethought, while driving under the influence, and is granted probation, the period of probation shall be not more than one year if the person is convicted of a misdemeanor and 2 years if the person in convicted of a felony. This bill would increase the period of probation for a person who is convicted of the unlawful killing of a human being, without malice aforethought, while driving under the influence to be not less than 3 years and not more than 5 years. By increasing the period of probation, this 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, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, establishes the Civil Rights Department within the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency, under the direction of the Director of Civil Rights, to enforce civil rights laws with respect to housing and employment and to protect and safeguard the right of all persons to obtain and hold employment without discrimination based on specified characteristics or status. Existing law prescribes various functions, duties, and powers of the department, including, among others, to bring prescribed civil actions for violations of specified federal civil rights and antidiscrimination laws. Prior law, until January 1, 2025, authorized an employee who was discriminated or retaliated against for exercising certain rights to file a complaint with the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement in accordance with specified Labor Code provisions. These employee rights include, among other things, the right to take time off work to serve on a trial or to obtain specified crime-related relief. Existing law, as of January 1, 2025, transferred the authority to enforce these discrimination provisions from the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement to the Civil Rights Department. Existing law also repealed the above-described Labor Code provisions, and added new enforcement provisions to the California Fair Employment and Housing Act within the Government Code. Among other changes, these provisions refer to a "qualifying act of violence," as defined, instead of crime, or crime or abuse, for purposes of obtaining relief. Existing law further prohibits an employer with 25 or more employees from discharging or in any manner discriminating or retaliating against an employee who is a victim or who has a family member who is a victim for taking time off work for any of a number of additional prescribed purposes relating to a qualifying act of violence, as defined. Existing law requires an employee, as a condition of taking time off, to provide the employer with reasonable advance notice, unless not feasible, in accordance with certain procedural requirements. This bill would reinstate the above-described former Labor Code provisions, to apply only to alleged actions or inactions occurring on or before December 31, 2024. This bill would also transfer enforcement authority for two additional discrimination provisions relating to attending judicial proceedings from the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement to the Civil Rights Department. The bill would make other conforming changes. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
(1) The Clare Berryhill Grape Crush Report Act of 1976 requires every processor who crushes grapes in this state, on or before January 10 of each year, to furnish to the Secretary of Food and Agriculture a report that includes specified information, including the total number of tons of grapes purchased by the processor in California during the preceding crush within each grape-pricing district and the total number of tons of each variety of grape crushed within each grape-pricing district. The act requires the secretary, on or before February 10 of each year, to publish a preliminary summary report on the preceding crush, and, on or before March 10 of each year, to publish a final summary report that contains the data furnished to it by the processors, as specified. This bill would require those processors to furnish those reports on or before January 31, rather than January 10, of each year. The bill would require the secretary to publish the preliminary summary report on or before March 15, rather than February 10, of each year and, on or before April 30, rather than March 10, of each year to publish the final summary report. Existing law requires certain assessments to be paid to the department annually by January 10. This bill would require those assessments to instead be paid to the department annually by January 31, rather than January 10. Under existing law, a violation of the Food and Agricultural Code is a misdemeanor, except as otherwise specified. Because the above provisions of this bill would be part of that code, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law specifies the duties of the secretary and county agricultural commissioners with respect to the sale and control of nursery stock, as defined. Existing law requires a person to hold a valid license in order to sell nursery stock. Existing law establishes the California Grape Rootstock Improvement Commission to maintain and regulate grape rootstock in the state. This bill would authorize the secretary, after investigation and hearing, to refuse to issue or renew a license, or to suspend or revoke a license, if the secretary determines that the licensee or the applicant has violated specified provisions relating to the California Grape Rootstock Improvement Commission. (3) Existing law establishes the California Avocado Commission to efficiently develop and manage the marketing of avocados and provides requirements for membership to the commission, including for alternate members, as specified. The bill would, among other things, expand specified provisions regarding membership to the commission to alternate members, require the assessment established by the commission to be as a fixed rate or percentage of value rather than as solely a fixed rate, and require any remaining assessment funds to be distributed for the benefit of the avocado industry into any state or federal programs in the event of termination or suspension of the commission. (4) Existing law establishes the California Apple Commission to efficiently develop and manage the marketing of apples, as specified. Existing law authorizes the commission to recommend to the secretary the adoption of maturity standards authorized pursuant to the California Marketing Act of 1937, as specified. This bill would authorize the California Apple Commission to recommend to the secretary quality standards and product labeling standards, and to engage in any other activity, authorized by California Marketing Act of 1937. (5) Existing law establishes the Olive Oil Commission of California to efficiently develop and manage the marketing of olive oil, as specified. Existing law defines the terms "handler" and "producer" for purposes of these provisions. This bill would specify that "handler" and "producer" include persons that toll process olives for olive oil. The bill would define "toll processor" for purposes of these provisions, as specified. (6) 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 sets forth the maximum ratios of administrative employees to each 100 teachers in the various types of school districts. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to determine, for each current fiscal year, for each school district in the state, the total number of administrative employees and the total number of teachers, except as provided, the total maximum number of administrative employees that should be employed by the school district based upon the application of the appropriate ratio prescribed by law, and the number of administrative employees in excess of the number allowable without penalty, as provided. Existing law requires the Superintendent to determine a reduction in state support resulting from excess administrative employees, as specified, and requires the school district's 2nd principal apportionment for the current fiscal year to be reduced by that amount. Existing law exempts the Paradise Unified School District from that reduction in state support for the 2021–22 fiscal year to the 2023–24 fiscal year, inclusive. This bill would further exempt the Paradise Unified School District from that reduction in state support for the 2024–25 fiscal year to the 2026–27 fiscal year, inclusive. The bill would require the Paradise Unified School District to, by September 1, 2026, submit a report related to the administrative employee-to-teacher ratio to the Superintendent, the Department of Finance, and the appropriate budget and policy committees of both houses of the Legislature, as specified. By imposing additional reporting requirements on the Paradise Unified School District, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Paradise Unified School District. 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
(1) Existing law, the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) , an initiative measure enacted by the voters as Proposition 63 at the November 2, 2004, statewide general election, established the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission to oversee the implementation of the MHSA. Existing law specifies the composition of the 16-member commission, including the Attorney General or their designee, the Superintendent of Public Instruction or their designee, specified members of the Legislature, and 12 members appointed by the Governor, as prescribed. Existing law, the Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) , an initiative measure enacted by the voters as Proposition 1 at the March 5, 2024, statewide primary election, recast the MHSA by, among other things, renaming the commission to the Behavioral Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission and changing its composition and duties. This bill would make technical changes to reflect the correct name of the commission. (2) Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of health facilities by the State Department of Public Health. Existing law requires a health facility to develop, implement, and comply with a patient safety plan to improve the health and safety of patients and to reduce preventable patient safety events. Existing law requires a patient safety plan to contain specified elements, including, but not limited to, a reporting system for patient safety events that allows anyone involved to make a report of a patient safety event to the health facility and a process for a team of facility staff to conduct analyses related to root causes of patient safety events. Existing law, commencing January 1, 2026, and biannually thereafter, requires a health facility to submit a patient safety plan to the department. A violation of these provisions is a crime. This bill would instead require a health facility to submit a patient safety plan to the department biennially. The bill would also make technical corrections to those provisions. (3) Existing law establishes the State Department of Public Health and sets forth its powers and duties to license and administer health facilities, as defined, including skilled nursing facilities and intermediate care facilities. Existing law requires the department to prepare and maintain a list of approved training programs for nurse assistant certification, which are required to include a precertification training program consisting of at least 60 classroom hours of training on basic nursing skills, patient safety and rights, the social and psychological problems of patients, and elder abuse recognition and reporting and at least 100 hours of supervised and on-the-job training clinical practice. Existing law requires at least 2 hours of the 60 hours of classroom training and at least 4 hours of the 100 hours of the supervised clinical training to address the special needs of persons with developmental and mental disorders, including intellectual disability, Alzheimer's disease, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, dementia, Parkinson's disease, and mental illness. A violation of these provisions is a crime. This bill would require that at least 2 of the 60 hours of classroom training address the special needs of persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. By changing the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4) Existing law requires a hospital, as defined, to maintain an understandable written policy regarding discount payments for financially qualified patients as well as a written charity care policy, and requires a hospital to negotiate the terms of a discount payment plan with an eligible patient, as specified. Existing law requires each hospital to provide patients with written notice, provided at the time of service, about the availability of the hospital's discount payment and charity care policies, and other additional information. This bill would authorize, with the exception of emergency room visits, a hospital to provide the written notice in either hard copy or, if the patient has previously consented to receive electronic communications, using the patient's preferred electronic notification method. The bill would require the written notice related to an emergency room visit to be provided in hard copy. The bill would require, if the notice is provided electronically, the notice to be sent separately from any other electronic communications and to prominently indicate in the subject line that the notice is related to the hospital's discount and charity care policies. (5) Existing law authorizes the State Department of Public Health to develop and administer a syndromic surveillance program and, subject to an appropriation, to either designate an existing system or to create a new system that would be required, at a minimum, to provide public health practitioners access to an electronic health system to rapidly collect, evaluate, share, and store syndromic surveillance data, as specified. This bill would make technical corrections to related provisions. (6) Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law requires a large group disability insurance policy and a small group disability insurance policy, except as specified, issued, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2026, to provide coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of infertility and fertility services, as specified. This bill would instead require a large group health insurance policy and a small group health insurance policy, except as specified, to offer the above-described services. (7) Existing law requires an insurer to provide an insured with an annual written or electronic notice regarding the benefits of a behavioral health and wellness screening, as defined, for children and adolescents 8 to 18 years of age. This bill would make technical changes to those provisions. (8) Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Existing law requires, commencing January 1, 2022, that Community-Based Adult Services (CBAS) continue to be available as a capitated benefit for a qualified Medi-Cal beneficiary under a comprehensive risk contract with an applicable Medi-Cal managed care plan. This bill would make a technical correction to this provision. (9) Existing law, subject to any necessary federal approvals, sets forth various Medi-Cal provisions relating to complex rehabilitation technology (CRT) , which is a form of durable medical equipment, including, but not limited to, complex rehabilitation manual and power wheelchairs. Existing law requires a CRT provider to comply with certain standards, including requiring a qualified rehabilitation technology professional to be physically present for the evaluation. This bill would make a technical correction to this provision. (10) Existing law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, provides for the regulation of various subjects relating to the manufacturing, processing, labeling, advertising, and sale of food, drugs, and cosmetics under the administration and enforcement of the State Department of Public Health. Existing law requires a manufacturer of baby food, as defined, for sale or distribution in this state to test a representative sample of each production aggregate of the manufacturer's final baby food product, at a proficient laboratory meeting certain criteria, for toxic elements, as specified. Existing law defines baby food as food packaged in jars, pouches, tubs, and boxes represented or purported to be specifically for babies and young children less than 2 years of age and excludes infant formula. This bill would clarify that baby food does not include dietary supplements, as defined. (11) 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, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care and makes a willful violation of the act's requirements a crime. Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law imposes specified coverage and disclosure requirements on health care service plans and health insurers, including specialized plans and insurers, that cover dental services. This bill would require a health care service plan or health insurer that provides payment directly or through a contracted vendor to a dental provider to have a non-fee-based default method of payment, as specified. The bill would require a health care service plan, health insurer, or contracted vendor to obtain affirmative consent from a dental provider who opts in to a fee-based payment method before the plan or vendor provides a fee-based payment method to the provider. The bill would authorize a dental provider to opt out of a fee-based payment method at any time by providing affirmative consent to the health care service plan, health insurer, or contracted vendor. The bill would require a health care service plan, health insurer, or contracted vendor that obtains affirmative consent to opt in or opt out of fee-based payment to apply the decision to include both the dental provider's entire practice and all products or services covered pursuant to a contract with the dental provider, as specified. The bill would specify that its provisions do not apply if a health care service plan or health insurer has a direct contract with a provider that allows the provider to choose payment methods, including a non-fee-based payment method for services rendered. The bill would make its provisions operative on April 1, 2026, and apply to health care service plan contracts and health insurance policies issued, amended, or renewed on or after that date. Because a violation of the bill's requirements by a health care service plan would be 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.
Under existing law, the Legislature finds and declares that the purpose of sentencing is public safety achieved through punishment, rehabilitation, and restorative justice, and that programs should be available for incarcerated persons, including educational, rehabilitative, and restorative justice programs that are designed to promote behavioral change and to prepare all incarcerated persons for successful reentry into the community. Existing law directs the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to maintain a mission statement consistent with these principles. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations relating to corrections and rehabilitation, including, among others, that the Legislature recognizes that life in prison can never be the same as life in a free society, and that active steps should be taken to make conditions in prison as close to normal life as possible, aside from loss of liberty, to ensure that this normalization does not lead to inhumane prison conditions. The bill would direct the department to maintain a mission statement consistent with the principles of normalization and dynamic security, and would require the department to facilitate access for community-based programs. Existing law provides that the primary objective of adult incarceration is to facilitate the successful reintegration of the individuals in the department's care back to their communities equipped with the tools to be drug-free, healthy, and employable members of society by providing education, treatment, and rehabilitative and restorative justice programs in a safe and humane environment. This bill would include that the primary objective of adult incarceration is to promote personal growth for all residents in the department's care. The bill would also provide that the department should develop training for all correctional staff on the principles of normalization and dynamic security in order to meaningfully effectuate these principles.
