(1) Existing federal law, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, regulates, among other things, the quality and packaging of foods introduced or delivered for introduction into interstate commerce and generally prohibits the misbranding of food. Existing federal law, the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990, governs state and local labeling requirements, including those that characterize the relationship of any nutrient specified in the labeling of food to a disease or health-related condition. Existing state law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, generally regulates misbranded food and provides that any food is misbranded if its labeling does not conform with the requirements for nutrient content or health claims as set forth in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the regulations adopted pursuant to that federal act. Existing law requires that a food facility, as defined, make prescribed disclosures and warnings to consumers, as specified. A violation of these provisions is a crime. Existing state law, the Pupil Nutrition, Health, and Achievement Act of 2001, also requires the sale of only certain beverages to pupils at schools. The beverages that may be sold include fruit-based and vegetable-based drinks, drinking water with no added sweetener, milk, and in middle and high schools, an electrolyte replacement beverage if those beverages meet certain nutritional requirements. This bill would establish the Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Health Warning Act, which would prohibit a person from distributing, selling, or offering for sale a sugar-sweetened beverage in a sealed beverage container, or a multipack of sugar-sweetened beverages, in this state unless the beverage container or multipack bears a health warning, as prescribed. The bill also would require every person who owns, leases, or otherwise legally controls the premises where a vending machine or beverage dispensing machine is located, or where a sugar-sweetened beverage is sold in an unsealed container, to place a specified safety warning in certain locations, including on the exterior of any vending machine that includes a sugar-sweetened beverage for sale. (2) Under existing law, the State Department of Public Health, upon the request of a health officer, as defined, may authorize the local health department of a city, county, city and county, or local health district to enforce the provisions of the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law. Existing law authorizes the State Department of Public Health to assess a civil penalty against any person in an amount not to exceed $1,000 per day, except as specified. Existing law authorizes the Attorney General or any district attorney, on behalf of the State Department of Public Health, to bring an action in a superior court to grant a temporary or permanent injunction restraining a person from violating any provision of the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law. This bill, commencing July 1, 2018, would provide that any violation of the provisions described in (1) above, or regulations adopted pursuant to those provisions, is punishable by a civil penalty of not less than $50, but no greater than $500. This bill would also create the Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Safety Warning Fund for the receipt of all moneys collected for violations of those provisions. The bill would allocate moneys in this fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for the purpose of enforcing those provisions. The bill would make legislative findings and declarations relating to the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, obesity, and dental disease.
Sponsored bills
(1) Existing law establishes the segments of the public postsecondary education system in the state, including the University of California administered by the Regents of the University of California, the California State University administered by the Trustees of the California State University, and the California Community Colleges administered by the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges. Existing law provides that a student, other than a nonimmigrant alien, as defined, who has attended high school in California for 3 or more years, who has graduated from a California high school or attained the equivalent thereof, who has registered at or attends an accredited institution of higher education in California not earlier than the fall semester or quarter of the 2001–02 academic year, and who, if he or she is an alien without lawful immigration status, has filed an affidavit, as specified, is exempt from paying nonresident tuition at the California Community Colleges and the California State University. This bill would, commencing with the 2018–19 academic year, require the California Community Colleges and the California State University, and request the University of California, to designate a Dream Resource Liaison on each of their respective campuses, as specified, to assist students meeting specified requirements, including undocumented students, by streamlining access to all available financial aid and academic opportunities for those students. By requiring community colleges to designate a Dream Resource Liaison, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would encourage those institutions to establish Dream Resource Centers, and would authorize those centers to provide specified support services. This bill would authorize the trustees, the board of governors, and the regents to seek and accept on behalf of the state any gift, bequest, devise, or donation whenever the gift and the terms and conditions thereof will aid in the creation and operation of Dream Resource Centers for their respective systems. (2) Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary schools in this state, and authorizes local educational agencies throughout the state to operate schools and provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. This bill would require the governing board of a school district or county office of education that maintains any of grades 9 to 12, inclusive, to designate a Dream Resource Liaison at each of their respective campuses that includes any of those grades. By requiring certain school districts and county offices of education to designate a Dream Resource Liaison, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) 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, the Donahoe Higher Education Act, sets forth the missions and functions of the 4 segments comprising the state's postsecondary education system. These segments are the University of California, administered by the Regents of the University of California, the California State University, administered by the Trustees of the California State University, the California Community Colleges, administered by the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, and independent institutions of higher education. This bill would establish the 9-member Blue Ribbon Commission on Public Postsecondary Education, and specify its membership and duties. The bill would require the commission to publish a report on designated subjects and submit this report to designated governmental entities by January 1, 2020. The bill would require the Office of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Public Postsecondary Education to close on June 30, 2020, and would repeal the provisions of the bill on January 1, 2021. The bill would require, upon that repeal, all of the documents and working papers of the commission to become the property of the State Archives.
Existing law establishes the state transportation improvement program process, pursuant to which the California Transportation Commission generally programs and allocates available state and federal funds for transportation capital improvement projects, other than state highway rehabilitation and repair projects, over a multiyear period based on estimates of funds expected to be available. Existing law provides funding for these interregional and regional transportation capital improvement projects through the state transportation improvement program process, with 25% of funds available for interregional projects selected by the Department of Transportation through preparation of an interregional transportation improvement program and 75% for regional projects selected by transportation planning agencies through preparation of a regional transportation improvement program. Existing law requires each transportation planning agency, on a biennial basis, to prepare and submit to the commission a regional transportation improvement program containing transportation capital projects identified for funding through the next cycle of the 5-year state transportation improvement program. This bill would require, beginning January 1, 2020, each regional transportation improvement program to allocate a minimum of 25% of available funds to projects or programs that provide direct, meaningful, and assured benefits to low-income individuals who live in certain identified communities or to riders of transit service that connects low-income residents to critical amenities and services. The bill would require the department, in consultation with residents of low-income communities and specified state agencies, to adopt guidelines for this allocation no later than January 1, 2018, to define and map low-income communities that are disadvantaged with respect to transportation, to identify communities that would benefit from the allocation requirements, and to specify criteria for determining whether certain investments benefit low-income residents of the identified communities. The bill would require the department to provide financial support, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to low-income residents of low-income communities for specified purposes generally relating to enabling their participation in the development of these guidelines and the selection of transportation projects and programs.
(1) Existing law, the Political Reform Act of 1974, provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing and activities. The act requires a committee that supports or opposes ballot measures to name and identify itself using a name or phrase that clearly identifies the economic or other special interests of its major donors of $50,000 or more. The act also requires that the identity of a common employer shared by major donors be disclosed. This bill would repeal these provisions. (2) The act defines "expenditure" as a payment, a forgiveness of a loan, a payment of a loan by a third party, or an enforceable promise to make a payment, unless it is clear from the surrounding circumstances that it is not made for political purposes. This bill would describe circumstances in which a payment would be made for political purposes within the meaning of the definition of "expenditure." (3) The act prohibits a candidate, committee, or slate mailer organization from expending campaign funds to pay for specified telephone calls that advocate support of, or opposition to, a candidate, ballot measure, or both, unless the name of the organization that authorized or paid for the call is disclosed to the recipient of the call during the course of each call. This bill would instead apply these requirements to a candidate, a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office for the controlling candidate, a political party committee, and a slate mailer organization that expends campaign funds to pay for such telephone calls. (4) The act also requires advertisements, as defined, to include prescribed disclosure statements, including, among others, a requirement that the disclosure statements include the names of the persons who made the 2 highest cumulative contributions, as defined, to the committee paying for the advertisement. This bill would repeal and recast provisions of the act relating to advertisement disclosure statements. The bill would revise the definition of "advertisement" to exclude a number of communications, including communications that involve wearing apparel, sky writing, and certain electronic media communications, as specified. The bill would prohibit specified entities from sending a mass electronic mailing, as defined, unless the name of the candidate or committee are shown in the electronic mailing preceded by the words "Paid for by" in at least the same size font as a majority of the text in the mass electronic mailing. The bill would also replace existing advertisement disclosure statements with newly prescribed disclosure statements that identify the name of the committee paying for the advertisement and the top contributors to that committee. The bill would define "top contributors" for purposes of these provisions as the persons from whom the committee paying for the advertisement received its 3 highest cumulative contributions, as specified. The bill would exempt certain committees, including committees that make independent expenditures totaling $1,000 or more in a calendar year, from the requirement to disclose the top contributors in advertisement disclosure statements. The bill would also prescribe location and format criteria for the disclosure statements that are specific to radio and telephone, television and video, print, and electronic media advertisements. (5) The act prohibits a person from making a contribution as an intermediary on behalf of another person without disclosing to the recipient of the contribution specified information about both the intermediary and the source of the contribution. The act also prohibits a person from making a contribution to a committee on the condition or with the agreement that it will be contributed to a particular candidate unless the contribution is disclosed in compliance with those requirements for contributions made by an intermediary. This bill would prohibit a person from making a contribution to a committee or candidate that is earmarked unless the contribution is disclosed in compliance with the requirements for contributions made by an intermediary. The bill would also describe circumstances in which a contribution is deemed to be earmarked. (6) Because a violation of the act is punishable as a misdemeanor, 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. (7) The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act's purposes upon a 23 vote of each house of the Legislature and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law defines "hate crime" as a criminal act committed, in whole or in part, because of actual or perceived characteristics of the victim, including, among other things, race, religion, disability, and sexual orientation. This bill would require the Attorney General to establish, maintain, and publicize a toll-free public hotline telephone number for the reporting of hate crimes, and for the dissemination of information about the characteristics of hate crimes, protected classes, civil remedies, and reporting options, as specified. The bill would require the Attorney General to post, maintain, and publicize a reporting form for hate crimes and hate incidents on his or her Internet Web site that can be completed and submitted online. The bill would require the Attorney General's Internet Web site to provide the public with the same information available through the hotline as described above.
Existing law makes it an infraction to throw an object on or across the court or field of play with the intent to interfere with play or distract a player or to enter upon the court or field of play without permission from an authorized person any time after the authorized participants of play have entered the court or field to begin the sporting event and until the participants of play have completed the playing time of the sporting event. This bill would make the above crime an infraction, punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000, or a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed 10 days, by a fine not exceeding $2,500, or by both that fine and imprisonment. The bill would make a 2nd or subsequent violation within 5 years of a prior violation of that prohibition a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than 60 days, by a fine not exceeding $5,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment. By increasing the punishment for a 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, the Corporate Securities Law of 1968, requires securities offered or sold in this state in an issuer or nonissuer transaction to be qualified through an application filed with the Commissioner of Business Oversight, unless exempt from the qualification requirements. That law makes it unlawful, for a person in connection with the offer, sale, or purchase of a security, to engage in fraudulent or misleading acts or omissions. This bill would authorize an applicant to file an application for qualification of the offer or sale of a security by crowdfunding permit if certain conditions are met, including that the total offering of securities by the applicant to be sold in a 12-month period, within or outside this state, is limited to $2,000,000, less a specified amount; the aggregate amount of securities sold to any investor, including any amount sold during the 12-month period preceding the date of the transaction, does not exceed the lesser of $5,000 or 10% of the net worth of that natural person; the transaction is conducted through an intermediary, the issuer will not, directly or indirectly, conduct any unsolicited telephone solicitation of the securities offered; and the issuer will not require specified dispute procedures. This bill would impose a filing fee of $200 plus 15 of 2% of the aggregate value of the securities sought to be sold in this state. Existing law provides that any person who violates a condition of qualification of the offer or sale of a security is liable to any person acquiring the security sold in violation, who may sue to recover the consideration paid for such security with interest thereon at the legal rate or for damages, as specified. This bill would provide for the recovery of reasonable attorney's fees, as specified. The bill would extend that provision to a violation of a condition of qualification by permit authorized by this bill. The bill would authorize the award of treble and punitive damages against any person who violates those conditions of qualification by permit authorized by this bill if the court determines that the violation was willful. Existing law imposes liability on any person who engages in specified unlawful activity to the person who purchases a security from him or her or sells a security to him or her, and authorizes the purchaser or seller to sue either for rescission or for damages. This bill would provide that the plaintiff is not required to plead or prove that the defendant acted with scienter. The bill would require the court to award reasonable attorney's fees, as specified. The bill also would authorize the court to award treble and punitive damages against a person who violates the above provision in an offer or sale of a security as authorized by this bill if the court determines the violation was willful.
(1) Existing law establishes a low-income housing tax credit program pursuant to which the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee provides procedures and requirements for the allocation, in modified conformity with federal law, of state insurance, personal income, and corporation tax credit amounts to qualified low-income housing projects that have been allocated, or qualify for, a federal low-income housing tax credit, and farmworker housing. Existing law limits the total annual amount of the state low-income housing credit for which a federal low-income housing credit is required to the sum of $70,000,000, as increased by any percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for the preceding calendar year, any unused credit for the preceding calendar years, and the amount of housing credit ceiling returned in the calendar year. Existing law additionally allows a state credit, which is not dependent on receiving a federal low-income housing credit, of $500,000 per calendar year for projects to provide farmworker housing. For purposes of determining the credit amount, existing law defines the term "applicable percentage" depending on, among other things, whether the qualified low-income building is a new building that is not federally subsidized, a new building that is federally subsidized, or is an existing building that is "at risk of conversion." Except for specified special needs applications for projects within a difficult development area (DDA) or qualified census tract (QCT) , existing law authorizes all credit ceiling applications to request state credits provided that the applicant is not requesting a 130% basis adjustment for purposes of calculating the federal credit award amount. This bill, under the law governing the taxation of insurers, the Personal Income Tax Law, and the Corporation Tax Law, for calendar years beginning in 2018, would increase the aggregate housing credit dollar amount that may be allocated among low-income housing projects by an additional $300,000,000, as specified, and would allocate to farmworker housing projects $25,000,000 per year of that amount. The bill, under those laws, would modify the definition of applicable percentage relating to qualified low-income buildings to depend on whether the building is a new or existing building and federally subsidized, or a building that is, among other things, at least 15 years old, serving households of very low income or extremely low income, and will complete substantial rehabilitation, as specified. (2) The Personal Income Tax Law allows various deductions in computing the income that is subject to the taxes imposed by that law, including allowing a deduction for a limited amount of interest paid or accrued on mortgages for a taxpayer's 2nd residence, in modified conformity with federal income tax laws. This bill would disallow that deduction. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
The Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act prescribes statewide limits on the application of local rent control with regard to certain properties. This bill would repeal that act.