Asm. Jim Wood

This measure would urge President Trump, United States Attorney General Sessions, the United States Department of Justice, the United States Department of Homeland Security, and all other relevant federal departments to immediately cease the implementation of the "zero tolerance" federal immigration policy and to not propose any additional inhumane immigration policies in the future. The measure would further call for compassion and decency for all individuals, families, and children who arrive at our borders seeking a better life.

This measure would urge pet owners in the state to take specified actions to prevent harm to pets caused by fire, prepare for fire emergencies at home, and take precautions to ensure the safe location, rescue, care, and medical treatment of all pets in the event of a wildfire in or around a pet owner's home.

Existing law provides for the regulation and licensure of clinics, as defined, by the State Department of Public Health. Under existing law, specified types of clinics are exempted from these licensing provisions, including a clinic that is operated by a primary care community or free clinic and that is operated on separate premises from the licensed clinic and is only open for limited services of no more than 30 hours a week. This bill would instead exempt a clinic that is operated by a primary care community or free clinic and that is operated on separate premises from the licensed clinic and is only open for limited services of no more than 40 hours a week.

This measure would designate the month of November 2018 to be California's Sikh American Awareness and Appreciation Month. This measure would recognize and acknowledge the significant contributions made by Californians of Sikh heritage to our state and seeks to afford all Californians the opportunity to better understand, recognize, and appreciate the rich history and shared principles of Sikh Americans. This measure would condemn all hate crimes and bias incidents against Sikh Americans and encourage all Sikhs to practice their faith freely and fearlessly.

This measure would urge the United States Congress to speedily take up and pass the Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2017, and send it to the President for his signature.

This measure would request the Congress of the United States to enact, and the President to sign, legislation that would repeal the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision from the Social Security Act.

This measure would designate the month of September 2018 as California Computer Science Education Month. The measure would encourage schools, teachers, researchers, universities, business leaders, and policymakers to identify mechanisms for teachers to receive cutting-edge professional development to provide sustainable learning experiences in computer science education, and would encourage the exposure of pupils to computer science concepts. The measure would also encourage opportunities to be provided for females and underrepresented minorities in computer science.

This measure would proclaim the month of October 2018, and each following October, as Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

This measure would recognize September 2018 as PACE Month in California.

Existing law, the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996, establishes a program of cooperative federalism for the regulation of telecommunications to attain the goal of local competition, while implementing specific, predictable, and sufficient federal and state mechanisms to preserve and advance universal service, consistent with certain universal service principles. The universal service principles include the principle that consumers in all regions of the nation, including low-income consumers and those in rural, insular, and high-cost areas, should have access to telecommunications and information services, including interexchange services and advanced telecommunications and information services, that are reasonably comparable to those services provided in urban areas and that are available at rates that are reasonably comparable to rates charged for similar services in urban areas. Existing law authorizes the Public Utilities Commission to supervise and regulate every public utility in the state, including telephone corporations, and to fix just and reasonable rates and charges for public utilities. Existing law establishes the state's 6 universal service funds in the State Treasury, including the California High-Cost Fund-A Administrative Committee Fund and the California High-Cost Fund-B Administrative Committee Fund, and provides that moneys in each of the state's universal service funds are the proceeds of rates and are held in trust for the benefit of ratepayers and to compensate telephone corporations for their costs of providing universal service. Moneys in the funds may only be expended to accomplish specified telecommunications universal service programs, upon appropriation in the annual Budget Act or upon supplemental appropriation. Existing law, until January 1, 2019, requires the commission to develop, implement, and maintain a suitable program to establish a fair and equitable local rate structure aided by universal service rate support to small independent telephone corporations that serve rural areas and are subject to rate-of-return regulation by the commission (the CHCF-A program) . Existing law, until January 1, 2019, requires the commission to develop, implement, and maintain a suitable, competitively neutral, and broad-based program to establish a fair and equitable local rate support structure aided by universal service rate support to telephone corporations serving areas where the cost of providing services exceeds rates charged by providers, as determined by the commission (the CHCF-B program) . This bill would extend the CHCF-A program and CHCF-B program requirements to January 1, 2023. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or an order or direction of the commission is a crime. Because the CHCF-A program and CHCF-B program, that are extended under the provisions of this bill, are within the act and a decision or order of the commission implements the programs' requirements, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by expanding the definition of a crime. 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. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.