This bill would recognize the month of June 2016 as Portuguese National Heritage Month.
This measure would proclaim March 2016 to be Arts Education Month and would encourage all elected officials to participate with their educational communities in celebrating the arts.
Existing law establishes various state water policies, including that the protection of the public interest in the development of the water resources of the state is of vital concern to the people of the state and that the state shall determine in what way the water of the state, both surface and underground, should be developed for the greatest public benefit. This bill would require the Department of Water Resources to develop a state water policy that gives priority to the formation of joint powers authorities that are formed to address critical surface water storage needs and to funding of the joint powers authorities' surface water projects. The bill would make findings and declarations of the Legislature, including, but not limited to, that, of the water storage projects available, the Temperance Flat Dam and Sites Reservoir will meet statewide goals and provide specified public benefits to the greatest extent.
Existing law finds and declares that foster parents are one of the most important sources of information about the children in their care and that courts should know, at the earliest possible date, the interest of a caretaker in providing legal permanency for a child. Existing law authorizes the juvenile court to adjudge a minor who has been abused or neglected, or who meets other specified criteria, to be a dependent child of the court. Existing law requires the court to conduct various hearings regarding children who are, or who may become, dependent children. Existing law requires the probation officer or the social worker to provide notice of those hearings to certain persons, including parents, guardians, the child if he or she is 10 years of age or older, adult relatives under certain conditions, and attorneys for the parents or guardians, as specified. This bill would authorize a caregiver, if a foster child is removed from his or her care in order to reunify with his or her parent or guardian, to indicate, in writing, to the child's social worker that he or she is interested in providing and willing to provide care for the child in the future if the child is in need of foster care placement and would require the caregiver to provide contact information, as specified. The bill would also require the probation officer or social worker to provide notice of a hearing, if the probation officer or social worker determines that the child will be retained in custody, to a caregiver who indicated that he or she was interested in providing and willing to provide care for the child in the future. By imposing new duties on probation officers and social workers, the bill would create 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 imposes an excise tax on motor vehicle fuel (gasoline) . Existing law, as a result of the elimination of the sales tax on gasoline effective July 1, 2010, provides for a commensurate increase in the excise tax on gasoline. These taxes are deposited to the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account in the Transportation Tax Fund. Existing law requires certain moneys attributable to taxes imposed upon distribution of gasoline related to specified off-highway motor vehicles and off-highway vehicle activities to be transferred monthly from the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account to the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund. Existing law, however, transfers, with respect to the increase in gasoline excise taxes as a result of the elimination of the sales tax on gasoline, to the General Fund the revenues attributable to off-highway vehicles that would otherwise be deposited in the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund. Existing law also requires the Controller to withhold $833,000 from the monthly transfer, and transfer that amount to the General Fund. The moneys in the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund are required to be used, upon appropriation, for specified purposes related to off-highway motor vehicle recreation. This bill would, on June 30, 2017, eliminate the requirement that the Controller withhold $833,000 from the monthly transfer and transfer it to the General Fund and would thereby transfer this amount monthly to the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund.
This act would declare June 10, 2016, as Portugal Day to celebrate Portuguese national heritage.
This measure would recognize May 24, 2016, as Slavic Heritage Day.
