Existing law sets forth in the Health and Safety Code various provisions relating to health and safety subjects. Existing law defines certain terms for purposes of the code, including "subdivision," defined to mean a subdivision of the section in which that term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to that definition.
(1) Existing law makes it a crime for a person to engage in a motor vehicle speed contest on a highway or an exhibition of speed on a highway, or to aid or abet therein. Commencing July 1, 2025, a court may suspend a person's driver's license for 90 days to 6 months for an exhibition of speed, or aiding and abetting an exhibition of speed, if the violation occurred as part of a sideshow. Existing law defines "sideshow" as 2 or more persons blocking or impeding traffic on a highway for the purpose of performing motor vehicle stunts, motor vehicle speed contests, motor vehicle exhibitions of speed, or reckless driving for spectators. Existing law imposes 2 violation points against a driver's record for purposes of the suspension or revocation of the privilege to drive if a driver is convicted of reckless driving or engaging in a motor vehicle speed contest or exhibition of speed. This bill would make it a crime for a person to knowingly attend, participate in, or aid and abet the commission of, a vehicle sideshow or street takeover, as defined. The bill would make a violation of this offense punishable as a misdemeanor or felony if the person convicted is a performing driver, as specified. The bill would make a violation of this offense punishable as a misdemeanor if the person convicted is not a performing driver, including a spectator or passenger in a performing vehicle, as specified. The bill would, if the convicted person is a performing driver, authorize the court to have the performing vehicle impounded for up to 30 days and require the court to suspend the driver's license for 90 days to 6 months. The bill would impose 2 violation points against a driver's record for a conviction of this offense. The bill would change the commencement date of the above-mentioned license suspension provisions to January 1, 2024, and include the crimes of reckless driving and attending, participating, or aiding and abetting in a vehicle sideshow or street takeover in these provisions. The bill would additionally make it a crime for a person to operate a motor vehicle at any time when that person's driving privilege is suspended or revoked for a conviction of attending, participating, or aiding and abetting in a vehicle sideshow or street takeover, if the person has knowledge of the suspension or revocation. The bill would make a violation of this offense punishable as a misdemeanor, as specified. By creating new crimes and increasing punishments for existing crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law makes it a crime for a person, while operating a motor vehicle with the intent to evade, to willfully flee or otherwise attempt to evade a pursuing peace officer's motor vehicle or bicycle if specified conditions exist. Existing law makes it a crime to drive a vehicle upon a highway in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property. Existing law authorizes a magistrate to issue a warrant or order authorizing a peace officer to immediately seize and cause the removal of a vehicle if presented with a peace officer's affidavit establishing reasonable cause to believe that the vehicle was an instrumentality used in the peace officer's presence in violation of an offense described above. This bill would include the crimes of engaging in a motor vehicle speed contest or exhibition of speed and attending, participating, or aiding and abetting in a vehicle sideshow or street takeover in the list of offenses for which a peace officer may impound a vehicle pursuant to a warrant or order issued by a magistrate. (3) Existing law defines a nuisance, in part, as anything which is injurious to health, or is indecent or offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property and defines a public nuisance as one that affects an entire community, neighborhood, or a considerable number of persons at the same time. Existing law authorizes various remedies for nuisances, including a criminal action, civil action, or abatement. This bill would provide that a vehicle used in the commission of a vehicle sideshow or street takeover is a public nuisance which may be subject to forfeiture upon the conviction of the operator of the vehicle. The bill would establish the procedures to serve notice of the intended forfeiture to the legal and registered owner of the vehicle, to file a claim opposing forfeiture, and for the forfeiture hearing. The bill would require the Attorney General or district attorney to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the operator of the vehicle was convicted of this offense and the vehicle was used in the commission of the violation that gave rise to the underlying conviction. The bill would require the court to, if the burden of proof has been met and the court finds there is no undue hardship to a person other than the defendant, enter judgment in favor of the Attorney General or district attorney, declare the vehicle a public nuisance, and order the vehicle to be immediately forfeited to the state or local government entity, as specified. The bill would establish the procedures for the impoundment, sale, or disposal of a vehicle subject to forfeiture. 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 states that it is the policy of the state that the workweek of the state employee shall be 40 hours and the workday of state employees 8 hours, except as specified. This bill would require the Government Operations Agency, in consultation with the Department of Human Resources, to evaluate how a 4-day workweek, including, but not limited to, a 32-hour workweek, can be implemented for state employees to improve their quality of work, health, and lifestyle. The bill would require the Government Operations Agency, on or before January 1, 2026, to prepare and submit to the Legislature a report on its evaluation, as prescribed.
Under existing law, it is unlawful to uproot, remove, harvest, or cut dudleya, as defined, from land owned by the state or a local government or from property not their own without written permission from the landowner in their immediate possession, except as provided, and to sell, offer for sale, possess with intent to sell, transport for sale, export for sale, or purchase dudleya uprooted, removed, harvested, or cut in violation of that provision. Existing law establishes specified criminal penalties for a violation of those provisions. This bill would extend those same prohibitions to white sage and would subject a violation of those prohibitions to the same criminal penalties established for dudleya. The bill, with respect to state and local property, would exempt the harvest and use of white sage for traditional tribal, cultural, or spiritual purposes by a member of a Native American tribe, as specified. 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 creates the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law authorizes community college districts throughout the state to provide instruction at the campuses they operate. Existing law, the California Student Opportunity and Access Program, authorizes the Student Aid Commission to apportion funds for the support of projects designed to increase accessibility of postsecondary educational opportunities and financial aid for pupils from underserved communities who meet specified criteria, including projects to hire undergraduate or graduate students to serve as college success coaches to actively mentor pupils, as provided. This bill would require the governing board of a community college district to create a one-to-one mentoring program that matches a student over 18 years of age who passes a criminal background check and receives specific training in mentoring to a youth under 18 years of age. The bill would require student mentors to provide mentoring for no less than 2 hours, at least 2 times per month, for a minimum of 2 semesters or 3 quarters. The bill would require the governing board of a community college district to create an attendance accounting method, as provided, and would authorize a district to partner with a community-based one-to-one mentoring program to identify youth in need of mentoring and to assist in matching student mentors with identified youth. The bill would limit academic credit and apportionment for the mentoring to 2 semester units of credit or 3 quarter units of credit, or 96 noncredit hours. By imposing new requirements on community college districts, 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, 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.
Existing law establishes the Department of Food and Agriculture under the control of the Secretary of Food and Agriculture. Under existing law, unless otherwise specifically provided in the Food and Agricultural Code, any license or registration which is issued pursuant to that code expires whenever the bond which is required of a licensee or registrant under that code lapses or is canceled. Existing law authorizes the secretary to, if the bond is canceled as a result of the retirement from business of the bonding company and the secretary is satisfied that the licensee is solvent, continue the license or registration for a period not to exceed 30 days to enable the licensee or registrant to secure a new bond. This bill would instead authorize the secretary to continue the license or registration for a period not to exceed 60 days to enable the licensee or registrant to secure a new bond. The bill would also make nonsubstantive changes.
The California Constitution declares that all people have inalienable rights, including the right to pursue privacy. Existing law makes it a crime to distribute intimate images of another person, as specified, that were intended to remain private, and that results in the serious emotional distress of the person depicted. This bill would make it a crime for a person to knowingly, and without the consent of the depicted individual, distribute to, exhibit to, or exchange with others, or offer to distribute to, exhibit to, or exchange with others audio or visual media that falsely depicts an individual engaging in sexual conduct that would appear to a reasonable observer to be an authentic record of the conduct. By creating a new 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 establishes fruit, nut, and vegetable standards and requires the Secretary of Food and Agriculture and county agricultural commissioners to enforce those provisions. As part of these standards, existing law authorizes the secretary to adopt various regulations, including, among other things, to prescribe methods of selecting samples of lots or containers of fruits, nuts, and vegetables on a basis of size or other specific classification, which are reasonably calculated to produce by such sampling fair representations of the entire lots or containers which are sampled. Existing law provides that a violation of these provisions is an infraction, and a 2nd or subsequent violation is a misdemeanor. This bill would require the secretary to, no later than January 1, 2025, promulgate regulations to adopt standards of identity for avocado oil, including, but not limited to, the quality and purity of the oil, requirements for labeling and packaging, and a method of measurement and analysis to ensure these standards are met. By expanding the scope of a crime, and to the extent this bill would expand the duties of county agricultural commissioners, 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law, the Nursing Practice Act, establishes the Board of Registered Nursing to license and regulate the practice of nursing. Existing law requires the board to prepare and maintain a list of approved schools of nursing in this state whose graduates are eligible to apply for a license to practice nursing. Existing law specifies that an approved school of nursing, or an approved nursing program, is one that, among other things, gives a course of instruction approved by the board, covering not fewer than 2 academic years. This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to that provision.
Existing law requires electrical corporations, local publicly owned electric utilities, and electrical cooperatives to prepare and update wildfire mitigation plans, as specified. Existing law requires a wildfire mitigation plan to include, among other things, plans for vegetation management. Existing law requires the wildfire mitigation plans and updates prepared by electrical corporations to be submitted to the Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety for review and approval, while those prepared by local publicly owned electric utilities and electrical cooperatives are submitted to the California Wildfire Safety Advisory Board. This bill would require the standards for vegetation inspection in the plans for vegetation management to meet specific requirements related to visually assessing and inspecting trees. The bill would specify that an electrical corporation, local publicly owned electric utility, or electric cooperative, or a person engaging in vegetation management on behalf of those entities, meeting those requirements for vegetation inspection establishes a rebuttable presumption that the relevant standard of care is met. By imposing additional duties on local publicly owned electric utilities, 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 Department of State Hospitals and the State Department of Health Care Services to contract with a single nonprofit entity to provide for protection and advocacy services to persons with mental disabilities, as specified. This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to that provision.
Under existing law, the California FAIR Plan Association is a joint reinsurance association in which all insurers licensed to write basic property insurance participate in administering a program for the equitable apportionment of basic property insurance for persons who are unable to obtain that coverage through normal channels. Existing law authorizes an individual 21 years of age or older to possess not more than 28.5 grams of cannabis, not more than 8 grams of concentrated cannabis, and not more than 6 living cannabis plants plus the cannabis produced by those plants. Existing law provides for the licensure of commercial cannabis activity by the Department of Cannabis Control. This bill would prohibit the California FAIR Plan Association from refusing to issue, canceling, or refusing to renew coverage because the applicant or policyholder possesses or has previously possessed a legal amount of cannabis, concentrated cannabis, or living cannabis plants, or the applicant or policyholder is or has been a commercial cannabis licensee.
