Asm. Phil Ting

The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2015, and before January 1, 2020, allow a credit in the amount of 20% of the monetary contributions made to a qualified tuition program, as defined, by a qualified taxpayer, as defined, not to exceed $500. This bill would provide for the payment of a credit amount in excess of tax liability upon an appropriation by the Legislature for that purpose. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

The California Coastal Act of 1976 requires any person undertaking development in the coastal zone to obtain a coastal development permit issued by the California Coastal Commission in accordance with prescribed procedures. The act authorizes the commission to take specified actions to enforce the permit requirements, including the issuance of restoration and cease and desist orders. This bill would authorize the commission, no later than January 1 of each year, until January 1, 2019, to submit to each house of the Legislature an annual report describing the restoration orders and cease and desist orders issued by the commission during the previous calendar year.

Existing law requires a driver involved in an accident resulting only in damage to property to, among other things, immediately stop the vehicle at the nearest location that will not impede traffic or otherwise jeopardize the safety of other motorists. A violation of these provisions is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding 6 months, or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or both. This bill would provide that a driver of a vehicle involved in an accident where a person is struck shall immediately stop the vehicle at the scene of the accident and provide specified information including, but not limited to, his or her name and current residence address. A violation of these provisions would be either an infraction, punishable by a fine not exceeding $250, or a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in the county jail for 6 months, or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both, and the Department of Motor Vehicles would be required to immediately suspend the driver's license of a convicted driver for 6 months. Because these changes would have the effect of expanding the scope of an existing 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 California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities and various types of food. Among other things, the code requires temporary food facilities that handle nonprepackaged food to protect the food from contamination by taking 3 specified actions, including enclosure of the food facility with 16 mesh per square inch screens and limiting the display and handling of nonprepackaged food. The code also establishes specified food safety and sanitation requirements for certified farmers' markets governing food preparation, storage, and sampling, among other things. Existing law provides that local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing the code, but requires the State Department of Public Health to provide technical assistance, training, standardization, program evaluation, and other services to the local health agencies as necessary to ensure the uniform interpretation and application of the code, and to adopt regulations to implement and administer the code. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided. This bill would revise certain requirements imposed on temporary food facilities and certified farmers' markets. Among other things, the bill would require temporary food facilities that handle nonprepackaged food to protect the food from contamination by taking any, rather than all, of the 3 actions specified pursuant to existing law and make another change. The bill would also revise the food safety and sanitation requirements imposed upon certified farmers' markets. The bill would provide that trimming whole produce for sale is not food preparation for purposes of a provision generally prohibiting food preparation at certified farmers' markets. Among other things the bill would require that each food sample be distributed in a manner in which each sample is distributed without the possibility of a consumer touching the remaining samples. The bill would require that all harvested, cut, wrapped, or otherwise processed meat, poultry, and fish products offered for sale be transported, stored, displayed, and maintained at a temperature of 41°F or colder, and would require that all meat, poultry, and fish products be stored in a manner that reduces the risk of cross-contamination. The bill would also prohibit smoking within 25 feet of the common commerce area, as described, of a certified farmers' market. By imposing new enforcement requirements on local health agencies, and by creating a new crime, 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law establishes the "Sexual Assault Victims' DNA Bill of Rights," which, among other things, encourages a law enforcement agency assigned to investigate specified sexual assault offenses to perform DNA testing of rape kit evidence or other crime scene evidence in a timely manner to assure the longest possible statute of limitations. Existing law also requires a law enforcement agency to inform victims of certain sexual assault offenses, if the identity of the perpetrator is in issue, if the law enforcement agency elects not to analyze DNA evidence within certain time limits. This bill instead would, with respect to specific sex offenses, encourage a law enforcement agency in whose jurisdiction the sexual assault offense occurred to submit sexual assault forensic evidence received by the agency on or after January 1, 2016, to the crime lab within 20 days after it is booked into evidence, and ensure that a rapid turnaround DNA program, as defined, is in place to submit forensic evidence collected from the victim of a sexual assault to the crime lab within 5 days after the evidence is obtained from the victim. The bill would also encourage the crime lab, with respect to sexual assault forensic evidence received by the lab on or after January 1, 2016, to process that evidence, create DNA profiles when able, and upload qualifying DNA profiles into the Combined DNA Index System as soon as practically possible, but no later than 120 days after initially receiving the evidence, or to transmit the sexual assault forensic evidence to another crime lab as soon as practically possible, but no later than 30 days after initially receiving the evidence, as specified. The bill would also revise the provisions requiring a law enforcement agency to inform victims of certain sexual assault offenses, to make the requirement applicable without regard to whether the identity of the perpetrator is in issue, if the law enforcement agency does not analyze DNA evidence, and to require those entities to notify the victims within 6 months of the time limits established under existing law. By imposing a higher level of service on local law enforcement agencies, 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, 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 these statutory provisions.

(1) Existing law regulates the sale, transfer, possession, and ownership of firearms, including prohibiting specified persons from owning or possessing firearms. Existing law, among other things, generally prohibits a person subject to a domestic violence protective order from owning or possessing a firearm while that order is in effect. This bill would authorize a court to issue a temporary emergency gun violence restraining order if a law enforcement officer asserts and a judicial officer finds that there is reasonable cause to believe that the subject of the petition poses an immediate and present danger of causing personal injury to himself, herself, or another by having in his or her custody or control, owning, purchasing, possessing, or receiving a firearm and that the order is necessary to prevent personal injury to himself, herself, or another, as specified. The bill would require a law enforcement officer to serve the order on the restrained person, if the restrained person can reasonably be located, file a copy of the order with the court, and have the order entered into the computer database system for protective and restraining orders maintained by the Department of Justice. The bill would require the presiding judge of the superior court of each county to designate at least one judge, commissioner, or referee who is required to be reasonably available to issue temporary emergency gun violence restraining orders when the court is not in session. This bill would additionally authorize a court to issue an ex parte gun violence restraining order prohibiting the subject of the petition from having in his or her custody or control, owning, purchasing, possessing, or receiving, or attempting to purchase or receive, a firearm or ammunition when it is shown that there is a substantial likelihood that the subject of the petition poses a significant danger of harm to himself, herself, or another in the near future by having in his or her custody or control, owning, purchasing, possessing, or receiving a firearm and that the order is necessary to prevent personal injury to himself, herself, or another, as specified. The bill would require the ex parte order to expire no later than 21 days after the date on the order and would require the court to hold a hearing within 21 days of issuing the ex parte gun violence restraining order to determine if a gun violence restraining order that is in effect for one year should be issued. The bill would require a law enforcement officer or a person at least 18 years of age who is not a party to the action to personally serve the restrained person the ex parte order, if the restrained person can reasonably be located. The bill would authorize a court to issue a gun violence restraining order prohibiting the subject of the petition from having in his or her custody or control, owning, purchasing, possessing, or receiving, or attempting to purchase or receive, a firearm or ammunition for a period of one year when there is clear and convincing evidence that the subject of the petition, or a person subject to an ex parte gun violence restraining order, as applicable, poses a significant danger of personal injury to himself, herself, or another by having in his or her custody or control, owning, purchasing, possessing, or receiving a firearm and that the order is necessary to prevent personal injury to himself, herself, or another, as specified. The bill would authorize the renewal of the order for additional one-year periods and would permit the restrained person to request one hearing to terminate the order during the effective period of the initial order or each renewal period. The bill would require a court, upon issuance of a gun violence restraining order, to order the restrained person to surrender to the local law enforcement agency all firearms and ammunition in his or her custody or control, or which he or she possesses or owns. The bill would require the local law enforcement agency to retain custody of the firearm or firearms and ammunition for the duration of a gun violence restraining order. The bill would require the court to notify the Department of Justice when any gun violence restraining order has been issued, renewed, dissolved, or terminated. The bill would also require the court, when sending that notice, to specify whether the person subject to the gun violence restraining order was present in court to be informed of the contents of the order or if the person failed to appear. The bill would require proof of service of the order to be entered into the California Restraining and Protective Order System, as specified. The bill would make it a misdemeanor to file a petition for an ex parte gun violence restraining order or a gun violence restraining order issued after notice and a hearing, knowing the information in the petition to be false or with the intent to harass. The bill would also provide that a person who owns or possesses a firearm or ammunition with the knowledge that he or she is prohibited from doing so by a gun violence restraining order is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be prohibited from having in his or her custody or control, owning, purchasing, possessing, or receiving, or attempting to purchase or receive, a firearm or ammunition for a 5-year period, commencing upon the expiration of the existing gun violence restraining order. By creating new crimes and by requiring new duties of local law enforcement, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law states the grounds upon which a search warrant may be issued, including when the property or things to be seized include a firearm or any other deadly weapon that is owned by, or in the possession of, or in the custody or control of, specified persons. This bill would allow a search warrant to be issued when the property or things to be seized are firearms or ammunition or both that are owned by, in the possession of, or in the custody or control of, a person who is the subject of a gun violence restraining order if a prohibited firearm or ammunition or both is possessed, owned, in the custody of, or controlled by a person against whom a gun violence restraining order has been issued, the person has been lawfully served with that order, and the person has failed to relinquish the firearm as required by law. The bill would also require the law enforcement officer executing a search warrant issued upon that ground to take custody of any firearm or ammunition that is in the restrained person's custody or control or possession or that is owned by the restrained person, which is discovered pursuant to a consensual or other lawful search and would provide rules for executing the search warrant when the location to be searched is jointly occupied by the restrained person and one or more other persons. (3) Existing law requires specified law enforcement officers to take temporary custody of any firearm or deadly weapon in plain sight or discovered pursuant to a lawful search when present at the scene of a domestic violence incident involving a threat to human life or physical assault. This bill would apply the requirements described above to law enforcement officers serving a gun violence restraining order. The bill would also apply those requirements when the law enforcement officer is a sworn member of the Department of Justice who is a peace officer. (4) Existing law requires the Department of Justice to request public and private mental hospitals, sanitariums, and institutions to submit to the department information necessary to identify persons who are prohibited from having a firearm because the person has been admitted to a facility, is receiving inpatient treatment, and is a danger to himself, herself, or others. Existing law requires the department to only use the information for certain specified purposes. This bill would additionally authorize the department to use the above-described information to determine the eligibility of a person who is the subject of a petition for the issuance of a gun violence restraining order to acquire, carry, or possess firearms, destructive devices, or explosives. (5) 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. (6) This bill would incorporate additional changes in Section 18250 of the Penal Code, proposed by SB 1154, to be operative only if SB 1154 and this bill are chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2015, and this bill is chaptered last. (7) 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above. (8) The provisions of this bill would be effective January 1, 2016.

The California Constitution prohibits a person from being deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, or from being denied equal protection of the laws. The United States Constitution prohibits a state from denying to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. Existing case law interprets that provision as guaranteeing racial minorities the right to full participation in the political life of the community, and prohibiting racial or ethnic groups from being denied, or precluded from entering into the political process in a reliable and meaningful manner. Existing law permits individuals whose personal rights have been violated, in certain circumstances, to bring a civil action for damages or other appropriate relief. This bill would prohibit a statute, ordinance, or other specified enactment from denying a minority group, as defined, political structure equal protection of the law by altering, restructuring, or reordering the policy decisionmaking process in a manner that burdens the ability of members of the minority group to effect the enactment of future legislation, solely with respect to a matter that inures primarily to the benefit of, or is primarily of interest to, one or more minority groups. The bill would authorize a member of a minority group, as defined, to bring a civil action challenging the validity of a statute or ordinance, or other enactment on that basis. The provision in question would be determined valid only upon a showing by the government that the burden it imposes is necessary to serve a compelling public interest, and is no greater than necessary to serve that interest. The bill would include supporting legislative findings and declarations.

Existing law requires every assessor to assess all property subject to general property taxation at its full value and to prepare an assessment roll in which all property within the county that it is the assessor's duty to assess is required to be listed. Existing law requires a county board of equalization or an assessment appeals board to equalize the assessment of property on the local roll for the purpose of taxation. Existing law authorizes a taxpayer, with respect to each assessment year, to file an application for a reduction in an assessment, as provided, with the county board, which is the county board of supervisors meeting as a county board of equalization or an assessment appeals board. This bill would, commencing April 1, 2016, prohibit a Property Tax Agent, defined as any individual who is employed, under contract, or otherwise receives compensation, from communicating directly or indirectly with any county official for the purpose of influencing official action relating to the establishment of a taxable value for any property subject to taxation, including representing a taxpayer before a county official, without first being registered and issued a registration number by the Secretary of State. The bill would provide that a violation of these provisions is a misdemeanor. The bill would require a Property Tax Agent to file, under penalty of perjury, with the Secretary of State an application for registration that includes specified information and a registration fee, as specified. Because this bill would create new crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would make the registration subject to biennial renewal. This bill would require the Secretary of State to issue a cease and desist order to a Property Tax Agent if that person has been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony, as specified, or certain other criminal offenses or has had his or her professional license, as specified, revoked, and to provide a copy of the notice to the Attorney General. This bill would require the Secretary of State to develop a list of registered Property Tax Agents, and a list of Property Tax Agents who, after exhausting their administrative remedies, have been issued a cease and desist order, fined or convicted for committing specified violations, or whose license, as specified, has been revoked, and to make those lists publicly available on its Internet Web site, as specified. The bill would provide that a Property Tax Agent is subject to suspension or termination of his or her registration for engaging in specified activities and would authorize the imposition of civil penalties not to exceed $1,500 for each violation of these provisions. This bill would require the Attorney General, District Attorney, or City Attorney, as applicable, to notify the Secretary of State of any conviction of, or of any penalty or change in eligibility imposed against, a Property Tax Agent pursuant to these provisions. By imposing new duties on city attorneys' offices, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would preempt and supersede all local ordinances regarding the registration of any individual who communicates directly or indirectly with any county official for the purpose of influencing official action regarding a property tax assessment. 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

(1) Existing law establishes the State Department of Public Health and sets forth its powers and duties, including, but not limited to, the duties as State Registrar relating to the uniform administration of provisions relating to vital records and health statistics. Existing law requires the State Registrar, local registrar, or county recorder to, upon request and payment of the required fee, supply to an applicant a certified copy of the record of a birth, fetal death, death, marriage, or marriage dissolution registered with the official. Existing law authorizes the issuance of certain records without payment of the fee. This bill would, on or after July 1, 2015, require each local registrar or county recorder to issue, without a fee, a certified record of live birth to any person who can verify his or her status as a homeless person or a homeless child or youth, as defined. The bill would require a homeless services provider, as described, that has knowledge of a person's housing status to verify the person's status as a homeless person or homeless child or youth for purposes of this provision. The bill would require the State Department of Public Health to develop an affidavit attesting to an applicant's status as a homeless person or homeless child or youth, and would provide that the affidavit is sufficient verification for purposes of obtaining the certified record of live birth, as specified. By imposing additional duties on county employees, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law authorizes the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue an identification card to any person attesting to the true full name, correct age, and other identifying data as certified by the applicant for the identification card, and authorizes the assessment of related fees. This bill would, on and after January 1, 2016, require the department to issue, without a fee, an original or replacement identification card to a person who can verify his or her status as a homeless person or homeless child or youth, as defined. The bill would authorize a homeless services provider, as described, that has knowledge of a person's housing status to verify the person's status as a homeless person or homeless child or youth for purposes of this provision. 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 these statutory provisions.

The Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act authorizes the State Department of Developmental Services to contract with regional centers to provide services and support to individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. The services and supports to be provided to a regional center consumer are contained in an individual program plan or individualized family service plan developed in accordance with prescribed requirements. Existing law also provides that if a consumer is or has been determined to be eligible for services by a regional center, he or she shall also be considered eligible by any other regional center if he or she has moved to another location within the state. In addition, existing law provides that whenever a consumer transfers from one regional center catchment area to another, the level and types of services and supports specified in the consumer's individual program plan shall be authorized and secured, as specified. This bill would specify the transfer procedures that would apply when a consumer of regional center services who has an order for foster care, is awaiting foster care placement, or is placed in out-of-home care transfers between regional centers. Among other things, the bill would require the county social worker or county probation officer to immediately send a notice of relocation, as defined, to the sending regional center of the consumer who meets the criteria set forth above, and would require the sending regional center to immediately send a notice of transfer, as defined, and records needed for the planning process to the receiving regional center, as specified. The bill would establish specific timelines and procedures for making these transfers. By imposing new duties and a higher level of service on county employees, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would include a statement of legislative findings and declarations. 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 these statutory provisions.