Asm. Tom Torlakson

This measure would recognize March 2, 2009, as Read Across America Day.

This measure would recognize the Lunar New Year 4707 celebration.

Existing law generally provides for programming and allocation of state and federal transportation capital improvement program funds pursuant to the state transportation improvement program process administered by the California Transportation Commission. Under these provisions, 25% of available funds are available for interregional improvement projects nominated by the Department of Transportation, subject to a requirement that 60% of these funds be available for projects in nonurbanized areas on the interregional road system and for intercity rail projects. The remaining 75% of available funds are available for regional improvement projects nominated by regional agencies. All funds programmed through the state transportation improvement program process are subject to the north-south split, and the regional improvement funds are further subject to the county shares formula. Existing law provides for allocation of certain other transportation capital improvement funds outside the state transportation improvement program process, including federal regional surface transportation improvement program funds, state bond funds, funds set aside for state highway rehabilitation under the state highway operation and protection program, and funds from various other sources. This bill would appropriate to the department, and provide for programming and apportionment of, federal economic stimulus funds made available to the state for highway purposes under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The bill would provide for 37.5% of the funds to be programmed by the department for allocation by the commission, and for 62.5% of the funds to be apportioned to the regional agencies based on the existing formula for allocation of federal regional surface transportation improvement program funds. The bill would require a portion of these funds to be programmed and allocated for transportation enhancement activities and would establish priorities in that regard. The bill would require the department, from the funds to be programmed by the department, to program a minimum of $935,000,000 for projects in the state highway operation and protection program and would authorize not more than $310,000,000 of those funds to be temporarily loaned by the department to advance bond-funded projects pursuant to the Highway Safety, Traffic Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006 that meet certain requirements. The bill would also provide for regional agency sponsors of projects receiving bond funds under the Highway Safety, Traffic Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006, if federal funds, or federal funds and other funds under the control of the regional or local agency, are used instead of the bond funds, to select replacement projects for those bond funds. The bill would enact reporting requirements and other related provisions. The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. The Governor issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on December 19, 2008. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared by the Governor by proclamation issued on December 19, 2008, pursuant to the California Constitution. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

This measure would proclaim January 13, 2009, as Korean-American Day.

This measure would proclaim the month of March 2009 as California Science Education Month, and would extend the Legislature's support to students of all ages who are interested in science.

Existing law requires that, upon a breach of the obligation of a mortgage or transfer of an interest in property, the trustee, mortgagee, or beneficiary record a notice of default in the office of the county recorder where the mortgaged or trust property is situated and mail the notice of default to the mortgagor or trustor. Existing law provides that, after not less than 3 months after the filing of the notice of default, the parties described above may give notice of sale, stating the time and place of the sale, as specified. This bill, until January 1, 2011, and only with respect to specified loans that were recorded between January 1, 2003, to January 1, 2008, would prohibit a mortgagee, trustee, or other person authorized to take sale from giving a notice of sale for an additional 90 days if the loan at issue is the first mortgage or deed of trust that the property secures, the borrower occupied the property as his or her principal residence at the time the loan became delinquent, and the notice of default has been filed. The bill would exempt certain loans from this prohibition, including, upon order of the Commissioner of Corporations, the Commissioner of Financial Institutions, or the Real Estate Commissioner, as applicable, the loans of a mortgage loan servicer, as defined, if the mortgage loan servicer applies to the commissioner for an exemption indicating that it has implemented a loan modification program with specified features and the commissioner concludes that the program meets specified requirements. The bill would permit a mortgage loan servicer to submit a revised application if its application is denied, and would permit the commissioner to revoke an exemption under certain circumstances. The bill would require the commissioners to adopt regulations in this regard, as specified. The bill would require the Secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing to report to the Legislature 3 months after the first exemption is granted regarding the details of the actions on exemption of loans serviced by a mortgage loan servicer under a loan modification program and to submit subsequent reports every 6 months thereafter. The bill would require the secretary to post specified information on the exemption program on the agency's Internet Web site. The bill would provide that a person who violates these provisions is deemed to have violated his or her license law. The bill would provide that the failure to comply with the provisions described above does not invalidate a sale that is otherwise valid under specified provisions. The bill would require that a notice of sale include a declaration from the mortgage loan servicer regarding the issuance of a temporary or final order of exemption from the commissioner pursuant to these provisions and the timeframe applicable to the notice of sale. The bill would make a statement of legislative findings.