Under existing law, it is the policy of the state that eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources supply 90% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2035, 95% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2040, 100% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2045, and 100% of electricity procured to serve all state agencies by December 31, 2035, as specified. Existing law requires the Department of Water Resources to procure eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources to satisfy those state agency obligations imposed on the State Water Resources Development System, commonly known as the State Water Project, pursuant to that policy. Existing law authorizes the department to defer, until no later than December 31, 2040, procuring zero-carbon electricity resource quantities equal to the amount of electricity provided under an existing contract to procure fossil generation entered into before January 1, 2010, if the department determines that the full achievement of the state agency obligations imposed on the State Water Project would require the early termination of the existing contract and that early termination of the existing contract would result in significant uneconomic costs. Existing law requires the department, in conducting procurement, to consider specified factors and requires that all resources procured be used first to meet the department's own electricity needs. This bill would require the department, in conducting that procurement, to also consider portfolio diversity, resource type, location, and hours of typical peak operation. The bill would expand the scope of the department's authorization to defer the procurement of those resource quantities to apply to an existing contract to procure fossil generation entered into before January 1, 2011, rather than January 1, 2010. The bill would authorize, on and after January 1, 2036, excess procurement of eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources, as defined, in one year to be applied to any subsequent year's obligation, as provided.
Existing law, the State Bar Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of attorneys by the State Bar of California, a public corporation. The act requires an attorney to strictly maintain client confidences and to preserve client secrets at their own peril. This bill would prohibit an attorney from delegating the practice of law to generative artificial intelligence. The bill would require an attorney who uses generative artificial intelligence to assist in the practice of law to, among other things, not enter confidential, personal identifying, and other nonpublic information into a generative artificial intelligence system, as specified. The bill would also require an attorney to take reasonable steps to verify the accuracy of generative artificial intelligence outputs and to correct any erroneous or hallucinated output in any material used by the attorney. Existing law requires every pleading, petition, written notice of motion, or other similar paper to be signed by the attorney of record, or if a party is unrepresented, by the party, thereby certifying to the best of the person's knowledge, information, and belief that it is not being presented primarily for an improper purpose and that the claims, defenses, and legal and factual contentions are warranted, as specified. This bill would prohibit a brief, pleading, motion, or any other paper filed in any court from containing any citations that an attorney responsible for submitting the pleading has not personally verified, including any citation provided by generative artificial intelligence. Existing law, the California Arbitration Act, provides a statutory framework for the enforcement of contractual arbitration under California law. The act establishes that a written agreement to submit a present or future controversy to arbitration is valid, enforceable, and irrevocable, except as specified. The act defines a neutral arbitrator as one who is selected jointly by the parties or by the parties' arbitrators, or is appointed by the court if the parties or their arbitrators cannot jointly select an arbitrator. The act requires a person selected to serve as a neutral arbitrator to disclose all matters that could cause a person aware of the facts to reasonably entertain a doubt as to the proposed neutral arbitrator's impartiality. This bill would prohibit an arbitrator from delegating any part of their decisionmaking process to any generative artificial intelligence tool, and would prohibit an arbitrator from relying on information generated by generative artificial intelligence outside the record without making appropriate disclosures to the parties beforehand, as specified. The California Constitution establishes the Judicial Council, and requires the Judicial Council to adopt rules for court administration, practice, and procedure, and to undertake certain responsibilities with regard to court facilities. This bill would require the Judicial Council to publicly revisit a specified standard of judicial administration to incorporate any necessary changes reflecting the further development of generative artificial intelligence. Existing law requires the State Bar to create a program to certify alternative resolution firms, providers, or practitioners. Existing law requires the program to include procedures to verify, among other things, that a firm, provider, or practitioner has procedures in place for persons to make complaints regarding the failure of an arbitrator or mediator of the firm, provider, or practitioner to comply with ethical standards, as applicable, and procedures to remedy failures of arbitrators or mediators to comply with those standards. This bill would instead require the State Bar to adopt procedures for the State Bar or a professional organization to receive, investigate, and resolve any complaints that a certified firm, provider, or practitioner failed to comply with the applicable ethical standards of conduct, as specified. The bill would require complaint proceedings to occur in private and be confidential. After a decision on a complaint, the bill would authorize the State Bar to publicly disclose information or records concerning complaint proceedings that do not reveal confidential or privileged communications. The bill would exempt information, records, or communications provided under these provisions from disclosure under the Public Records 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 establishes the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy and prescribes the membership, functions, and duties of the conservancy regarding the acquisition, preservation, and improvement of real property within the Santa Monica Mountains Zone, as defined. Existing law establishes within the conservancy the Upper Los Angeles River and Tributaries Working Group with designated membership of no more than 23 appointed representatives. Existing law requires the working group to develop, through watershed-based planning methods and community engagement, a revitalization plan for the Upper Los Angeles River, the tributaries of the Pacoima Wash, Tujunga Wash, and Verdugo Wash, the Arroyo Seco, and any additional tributary waterway that the working group determines to be necessary. Existing law requires the working group to submit the revitalization plan to the conservancy for adoption, and requires the conservancy to submit a copy of the revitalization plan to the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks, and Wildlife and the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water, as specified. This bill would add an additional member to the working group, for a total of no more than 25 appointed representatives. The bill would require one of the representatives appointed to the working group to represent the city council district within the City of Los Angeles with the greatest number of Upper Los Angeles River miles. The bill would require the working group to meet at least once each year to evaluate and report on implementation of the revitalization plan to the conservancy, and propose amendments to the revitalization plan to the conservancy for adoption. The bill would require the working group to submit proposed amendments to the revitalization plan to the conservancy, and would require that the conservancy take action to adopt the proposed amendments, as specified.
Existing law grants to the City of Martinez all right, title, and interest of the state to 4 specified parcels of land in the County of Contra Costa, to be held in trust by the city, as trustee, for the benefit of all the people of the state for purposes consistent with the public trust doctrine, including the protection of maritime or water-dependent commerce, navigation, and fisheries, and the preservation of the lands in their natural state for scientific study, open space, wildlife habitat, and water-oriented recreation. Existing law authorizes the city to lease the trust lands under specified conditions for purposes consistent with the trust grant for limited periods, not to exceed 49 years. Existing law requires the city to reimburse the commission for all expenses incurred in administering these provisions. This bill would instead authorize the city to lease the trust lands for up to 66 years, or, subject to State Lands Commission approval, for a term longer than 66 years if the commission finds that a longer lease term is in the best interest of the state. The bill would expressly require the city to bear the costs of any study or analysis that the commission undertakes, reviews, or requests in consideration of whether a longer lease term is in the best interest of the state, as provided.
Existing law authorizes cities and counties, subject to certain limitations and approval requirements, to levy a transactions and use tax for general or specific purposes in accordance with the procedures and requirements set forth in the Transactions and Use Tax Law, including a requirement that the combined rate of all taxes that may be imposed in accordance with that law in the jurisdiction not exceed 2%. This bill would authorize, until December 31, 2030, or December 31, 2031, as specified, various jurisdictions to levy taxes pursuant to the Transactions and Use Tax Law at specified rates, as prescribed. The bill would authorize those taxes to exceed the 2% limit described above. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the jurisdictions authorized to impose a tax pursuant to the bill. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Senate Resolution 108 formally recognizes May 5, 2026, as World Asthma Day in California. The measure highlights the disproportionate impact of asthma on vulnerable populations, including communities of color and farmworker families, who face higher risks due to poor air quality and limited healthcare access. While the resolution does not create new laws, it expresses the Senate's support for asthma education, improved air quality standards, and evidence-based management practices in schools and healthcare settings. Additionally, the bill honors the Central California Asthma Collaborative for its work in community health programs.
Existing law establishes the Department of Fish and Wildlife and sets forth the duties of that department, which include administering various programs for the protection and conservation of fish and wildlife. Existing law authorizes the department to take feasible actions to conserve monarch butterflies and the unique habitats they depend upon for successful migration. Existing law, the California Coastal Act of 1976, among other things, establishes the California Coastal Commission and provides for planning and regulation of development in the coastal zone, as defined. This bill would require, on or before July 1, 2028, the department, in coordination with the commission, to identify known monarch butterfly overwintering habitat sites in the coastal zone and current local government monarch butterfly overwintering habitat management plans or policies. The bill would also require, on or before July 1, 2029, the department, in coordination with the commission, to develop and provide guidance on model policies to be used by a local government for the protection of monarch butterfly overwintering habitat, including habitat restoration and enhancement. The bill would require, after the above-described guidance on model policies is finalized, a local government with a monarch butterfly overwintering habitat site located within its jurisdiction and the coastal zone, as described, to, on or before July 1, 2031, develop and implement enforceable monarch butterfly overwintering habitat site protection policies, as provided. By imposing additional duties on a local government, 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 a system of public elementary and secondary education in this state. Under this system, local educational agencies throughout the state provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and existing law establishes courses of study for those pupils. This bill would encourage school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to integrate outdoor learning into standards-aligned instruction across all grades and subject areas, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Department of Education under the administration of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and assigns the department numerous duties relating to the governance and funding of local educational agencies. This bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2028, to curate and maintain on its internet website resources for educators on outdoor learning. The bill would also encourage the department, in carrying out these provisions, to consult with county offices of education, classroom educators, tribal partners, mental and physical health professionals and researchers, environmental literacy experts, and community organizations with experience in outdoor learning. The bill would authorize the department to provide resources to address the particular needs of each local educational agency. The bill would authorize the department to accept voluntary contributions to be deposited into the Outdoor Learning and Environmental Literacy Account, which the bill would create in the State Treasury, to fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, the costs of these provisions.
Existing law establishes the Natural Resources Agency, composed of departments, boards, conservancies, and commissions responsible for the restoration, protection, and management of the state's natural and cultural resources. This bill would authorize the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to appoint an individual or to identify one or more University of California centers to oversee and administer a Secretariat for International Climate Coordination and Cooperation to assist the legislative and executive branches' engagement in international climate policy, as specified.
The Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act prohibits any person or public agency from importing into the state, exporting out of the state, or taking, possessing, purchasing, or selling within the state, a western Joshua tree or any part or product of the tree, except as specified. The act authorizes the Department of Fish and Wildlife to permit the taking of a western Joshua tree if specified conditions are met, including, but not limited to, that the permittee mitigates all impacts to, and taking of, the western Joshua tree through measures that are roughly proportional in extent to the impact of the authorized taking of the western Joshua tree. The act authorizes, in lieu of completing the mitigation measures, a permittee to elect to satisfy the mitigation obligation by paying fees pursuant to a specified fee schedule, as provided. Existing law authorizes the department to include permit conditions that require the permittee to relocate one or more of the western Joshua trees, as specified. Existing law requires the department to adopt guidelines and relocation protocols, based on the best available science, to relocate western Joshua trees successfully. This bill would authorize the department to authorize, by permit, and without payment of fees or other mitigation, the relocation of up to 10 individual western Joshua trees from a parcel, as provided. The bill would require a person seeking a relocation permit to submit a permit application to the department and meet certain conditions including, among other conditions, that the tree identified in the application would be relocated within 2.5 kilometers of its original location and that the relocation be consistent with the guidelines and relocation protocols adopted by the department. The bill would require the department to maintain a list of relocation permits issued pursuant to this authority and sufficient information regarding each relocation to be able to assess the success or failure of the relocation and the factors contributing to that success or failure.
