(1) The California Constitution authorizes the Legislature to exempt from taxation, in whole or in part, property that is used exclusively for religious, hospital, or charitable purposes, and is owned or held in trust by a nonprofit entity. Pursuant to that authority, existing law provides for a welfare exemption under which property used exclusively for an exempt purpose and owned and operated by specified entities, including foundations, limited liability companies, or corporations meeting certain statutory requirements, is exempt from taxation. Existing law, until the lien date in 2027, also provides that property used exclusively for the preservation of specified natural resources or open-space lands owned or operated by a specified entity meeting specified criteria is deemed to be included within the welfare exemption. This bill would provide that, for purposes of the exemption for property used exclusively for the preservation of specified natural resources or open-space lands, for the property tax lien dates for the 2026–27 fiscal year to the 2031–32 fiscal year, inclusive, property may be owned and operated by a federally recognized Indian tribe or a wholly owned subsidiary of a federally recognized Indian tribe meeting certain requirements. By expanding the duties of local tax officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law authorizes counties and cities and counties to impose a documentary transfer tax at a specified rate upon deeds, instruments, or other writings by which specified property is transferred. Existing law exempts certain transfers from the imposition of that tax, as specified. This bill would, until January 1, 2031, exempt from that tax the transfer of any deed, instrument, or other writing that makes effective a tribal land return transaction, as defined. (3) Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. (4) 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. (5) This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law establishes the California Farmland Conservancy Program in the Department of Conservation and authorizes the program to offer financial assistance, including grants or contracts, for projects and activities on agricultural lands that support agricultural conservation and sustainable land management. Existing law creates the California Farmland Conservancy Program Fund and requires moneys in the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act, to be used for purposes of the program. Notwithstanding that provision, existing law continuously appropriates moneys in the fund from federal grants and gifts and donations to the department for purposes of the program. This bill would require the Controller to transfer $20,000,000 on July 1 of each fiscal year, commencing with the 2025–26 fiscal year, from the General Fund to the California Farmland Conservancy Program Funding Account, which the bill would create within the California Farmland Conservancy Program Fund. The bill would continuously appropriate moneys in the account to the department for expenditure as provided. The bill would require that the funding only be awarded for agricultural conservation easements on agricultural land, as defined.
Existing law requires the State Water Resources Control Board to develop a plan for the funding and implementation of the Low-Income Water Rate Assistance Program. Existing law requires the plan to include, among other things, a description of the method for collecting moneys to support and implement the program and a description of the method for determining the amount of moneys that may need to be collected from water ratepayers to fund the program. This bill would establish the Water Rate Assistance Program. As part of the program, the bill would establish the Water Rate Assistance Fund in the State Treasury, available upon appropriation by the Legislature, to provide water affordability assistance, for both residential water and wastewater services, to low-income residential ratepayers, as specified. The bill would require the state board to take various actions in administering the fund, including, among other things, tracking and managing revenue in the fund separately from all other revenue. The bill would require the state board, in consultation with relevant agencies and after a public hearing, to adopt guidelines for implementation of the program and to adopt an annual report to be posted on the state board's internet website identifying how the fund has performed, as specified. The bill would require the guidelines to include minimum requirements for eligible systems, including the ability to confirm eligibility for enrollment through a request for self-certification of eligibility under penalty of perjury. By expanding the crime of perjury, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the state board to take various actions in administering the program, including, but not limited to, providing guidance, oversight, and funding for low-income rate assistance for residential ratepayers of eligible systems. The bill would authorize the Attorney General, at the request of the state board, to bring an action in state court to restrain the use of any method, act, or practice in violation of these provisions, except as provided. The bill would make the implementation of all of these provisions contingent upon an appropriation by the Legislature. 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 vests the Department of Transportation with full possession and control of all state highways. Existing law authorizes the department to do any act necessary, convenient, or proper for the construction, improvement, maintenance, or use of all highways that are under its jurisdiction, possession, or control. This bill would establish the Highway Signage Fund in the State Treasury and would make moneys in the fund available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for the department's costs in erecting signage for highway designations previously approved by the Legislature that memorialize individuals who have promoted racial and gender equity.
The Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparedness, and Clean Air Bond Act of 2024, approved by the voters as Proposition 4 at the November 5, 2024, statewide general election, authorized the issuance of bonds in the amount of $10,000,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance projects for safe drinking water, drought, flood, and water resilience, wildfire and forest resilience, coastal resilience, extreme heat mitigation, biodiversity and nature-based climate solutions, climate-smart, sustainable, and resilient farms, ranches, and working lands, park creation and outdoor access, and clean air programs. The act makes $135,000,000 available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the Office of Emergency Services for a wildfire mitigation grant program to provide, among other things, loans, direct assistance, and matching funds for projects that prevent wildfires, increase resilience, maintain existing wildfire risk reduction projects, reduce the risk of wildfires to communities, or increase home or community hardening. The act provides that eligible projects include, but are not limited to, grants to local agencies, state agencies, joint powers authorities, tribes, resource conservation districts, fire safe councils, and nonprofit organizations for structure hardening of critical community infrastructure, wildfire smoke mitigation, evacuation centers, including community clean air centers, structure hardening projects that reduce the risk of wildfire for entire neighborhoods and communities, water delivery system improvements for fire suppression purposes for communities in very high or high fire hazard areas, wildfire buffers, and incentives to remove structures that significantly increase hazard risk. This bill would include in the list of eligible projects grants to the above-mentioned entities for improvements to public evacuation routes in very high and high fire hazard severity zones, mobile rigid dip tanks, as defined, to support firefighting efforts, prepositioned mobile rigid water storage, as defined, and improvements to the response and effectiveness of fire engines and helicopters. The bill would also include grants, in coordination with the Public Utilities Commission, to local agencies, state agencies, special districts, joint powers authorities, tribes, and nonprofit organizations for backup electrical generators for water reservoirs.
(1) Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, 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 establishes, under the Medi-Cal program, the Family Planning, Access, Care, and Treatment (Family PACT) Program. If Family PACT becomes inoperative, existing law requires all persons who have received, or are eligible to receive, comprehensive clinical family planning services pursuant to Family PACT to receive family planning services under other specified provisions of the Medi-Cal program or under the State-Only Family Planning Program, which is also established within the department for purposes of family planning services. This bill would require the department, subject to an appropriation, to develop a new program or to expand any existing state-only-funded health programs, in order to provide to Medi-Cal beneficiaries certain services or benefits that are otherwise covered under the Medi-Cal program but for any lack of, elimination of, reduction in, or limitation on, federal financial participation. For purposes of the expansion above, the bill would require the department to determine the services or benefits, which may include, but are not limited to, abortion and gender-affirming care, based on the levels of federal financial participation, as specified. (2) This bill would, subject to an appropriation, require the California Health and Human Services Agency to develop a new program, or to expand an existing state program, as applicable, to provide certain services or benefits that are otherwise covered under the Medi-Cal program but for any lack of, elimination of, reduction in, or limitation on, federal financial participation. Under the bill, these services or benefits would not be limited to the population of Medi-Cal beneficiaries. The bill would require the agency to determine the services or benefits, which may include, but are not limited to, abortion, family planning, and gender-affirming care, based on the needs of target populations and the levels of federal financial participation, as specified. The bill would create the Health Care Maintenance and Expansion Fund for purposes of distributing funding, if appropriated, for these services or benefits. The bill would authorize the agency to receive private donations, for deposit into the fund, to support implementation. (3) The bill would authorize modification and expansion of the State-Only Family Planning Program, subject to an appropriation, to facilitate implementation of the provisions described in paragraphs (1) and (2) , as specified.
(1) Existing law, the Bergeson-Peace Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank Act, establishes the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank (I-Bank) in the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development. Existing law, among other things, authorizes the I-Bank to issue bonds, make loans, and provide financial assistance for various types of projects that qualify as economic development or public development facilities. This bill would enact the Community Stabilization Act. The bill would require the I-Bank to develop and administer a program to issue a security, and to cease issuing a security on January 1, 2030. The bill would specify that the purpose of the program is to help stabilize property values in disaster-affected areas by allowing qualified investors, as defined, to purchase tradable securities, with the funding allocated to qualifying investment entities that purchase and manage residential land until it can be resold at fair market value. The bill would require profits from the land investments to be shared among investors and the I-Bank according to certain percentages, with qualifying investment entities being reimbursed for their administrative costs. This bill would establish various requirements for the security, including that it be tradeable, comply with specified municipal bonding requirements, and that it be funded by investments made by qualified investors using funds available pursuant to the federal Community Reinvestment Act of 1977. The bill would require the security to repay the investment upon a liquidity event and within 7 years of the purchase of an investment property, and would describe a liquidity event as the refinance or sale of the investment property. This bill would require funds raised from the purchase of the security to be deposited in the Community Stabilization Fund, which would be created by the bill, and would require all moneys in the fund to be continuously appropriated to the I-Bank. The bill would require the I-Bank to allocate moneys in the fund to qualifying investment entities to be invested in the Counties of Los Angeles and Ventura and in those areas that are covered by a state of disaster declared by the Governor. The bill would require a qualifying investment entity to meet prescribed requirements, including that it be a specified entity, including, among others, a nonprofit organization, as provided. The bill would also impose various requirements on the qualifying investment entity relating to the purchase, maintenance, and sale of the investment property, including, among other things, limiting the purchase of property to residential property that has been damaged or destroyed by the wildfires that began on January 7, 2025, in the Counties of Los Angeles and Ventura, as specified. The bill would require the I-Bank to submit a final report on the program to the Legislature, the Governor, and the Department of Finance no later than January 1, 2034, as specified. By establishing a new continuously appropriated fund, the Community Stabilization Fund, this bill would make an appropriation. (2) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Counties of Los Angeles and Ventura. (3) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, establishes the Civil Rights Department within the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency and sets forth its powers and duties relating to enforcement of civil rights laws and assistance to communities in resolving disputes, disagreements, or difficulties relating to discriminatory practices. This bill, upon appropriation by the Legislature and commencing on or before the later of either July 1, 2026, or one year after the date of the appropriation, would require the department to create and implement statewide and regional radio, social media, and television campaigns for the purposes of discouraging discrimination. The bill would require the department to convene a working group to develop a plan to implement the campaigns above. The bill would exempt the working group from the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act. 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.
Existing law, the California Farmland Conservancy Program Act, establishes within the Department of Conservation the California Farmland Conservancy Program. Existing law authorizes the program to offer financial assistance, including grants or contracts, for projects and activities on agricultural lands, as defined, that support agricultural conservation and sustainable land management. This bill would require the department, in collaboration with the California Agricultural Land Equity Task Force, to establish the Farmland Access and Conservation for Thriving Communities Program in the department to provide financial and technical assistance to support agricultural land acquisition and protection. The bill would require the department, subject to specified requirements, to provide financial assistance under the program to qualified entities for the purpose of acquiring agricultural lands to transfer or provide long-term leases to qualified farmer participants, as specified. The bill would establish the Farmland Access Fund in the State Treasury and would make moneys in the fund available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for program expenditures. The bill would authorize the department to contract with one or more nonprofit organizations to administer the program. The bill would make the operation of the program contingent upon the Legislature making an appropriation for purposes of the program.
Existing law establishes the Office of Small Business Advocate (OSBA) within the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, also known as GO-Biz, to advocate for causes of small business and to provide small businesses with the information they need to survive in the marketplace. This bill, upon appropriation by the Legislature, would require OSBA to allocate 90% of the moneys appropriated to the Small Business Recovery Fund, which would be created within the State Treasury, for purposes of a small business recovery grant program to provide competitive grants to small businesses, as defined, that are directly impacted by a state of emergency proclaimed by the Governor or other specified emergencies. The bill would require the funds to be used for, among other things, to support recovery and rebuilding efforts, and would require a grantee to match the amount of the grant awarded. The bill would require OSBA to award grants in amounts that range from $2,500 to $100,000, inclusive. This bill would require OSBA to allocate 5% of the moneys appropriated to the fund to the Small Business Technical Assistance Program administered by GO-Biz, for grants to small business technical assistance centers that provide direct service to disaster-affected areas, and 5% to the Capital Infusion Program administered by GO-Biz, to support increased demand for capital-related technical assistance in disaster areas. This bill would require the Director of the Office of Small Business Advocate to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature on the results of grant funds awarded for each state of emergency proclaimed by the Governor, as provided. This bill would repeal the Small Business Recovery Fund Act on January 1, 2032.
