This measure would recognize May 2018 as National Mental Health Awareness Month in California to enhance public awareness of mental illness.
Existing law establishes the University of California, established under the California Constitution as a public trust under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, independent institutions of higher education, and private postsecondary educational institutions as the segments of postsecondary education in this state. This bill would require a campus of the California Community Colleges or the California State University, and would request a campus of the University of California, to make and disseminate a free speech statement that affirms the importance of, and the campus's commitment to promoting, freedom of expression. The bill would require those campuses to supplement that statement with educational programming, including, but not limited to, online resources. Because the bill would impose new duties on a campus of the California Community Colleges, 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, 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.
Under the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, the State Water Resources Control Board and the California regional water quality control boards are the principal state agencies with regulatory authority over water quality. This bill would require the state board to establish a Freshwater and Estuarine Harmful Algal Bloom Program to protect water quality and public health from algal blooms. The bill would require the state board, in consultation with specified entities, among other things, to coordinate immediate and long-term algal bloom event incident response, as provided, and conduct and support algal bloom field assessment and ambient monitoring at the state, regional, watershed, and site-specific waterbody scales.
Existing law imposes various limitations on emissions of air contaminants for the control of air pollution from vehicular and nonvehicular sources. Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to promulgate guidelines for the regulation and control of agricultural burning for each of the air basins established by the state board. Existing law requires the guidelines to be based in part on the probable effect of burning on the ambient air quality within the air basins affected. This bill would require the state board to annually report on the air pollutant emissions following an unplanned wildfire that has burned 10,000 acres or more, as specified. The bill would require the state board to post the annual report on its Internet Web site in a publicly accessible format.
The California Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973 provides the Division of Occupational Safety and Health within the Department of Industrial Relations with the power, jurisdiction, and supervision over all employment and places of employment necessary to enforce and administer all occupational health and safety laws,and standards and to protect employees. The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board, an independent entity within the department, has the exclusive authority to adopt occupational safety and health standards within the state. Existing law requires every employer to comply with those standards. A violation of these standards and regulations under specific circumstances is a crime. This bill would require the board to adopt occupational safety and health standards for state public works projects to prevent and control coccidioidomycosis, more commonly known as Valley Fever. By expanding the definition 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 property tax law requires the county auditor, in each fiscal year, to allocate property tax revenue to local jurisdictions in accordance with specified formulas and procedures, and generally provides that each jurisdiction be allocated an amount equal to the total of the amount of revenue allocated to that jurisdiction in the prior fiscal year, subject to certain modifications, and that jurisdiction's portion of the annual tax increment, as defined. Existing property tax law also requires that, for purposes of determining property tax revenue allocations in each county for the 1992–93 and 1993–94 fiscal years, the amounts of property tax revenue deemed allocated in the prior fiscal year to the county, cities, and special districts be reduced in accordance with certain formulas. It requires that the revenues not allocated to the county, cities, and special districts as a result of these reductions be transferred to the Educational Revenue Augmentation Fund in that county for allocation to school districts, community college districts, and the county office of education. Beginning with the 2004–05 fiscal year and for each fiscal year thereafter, existing property tax law requires that each city, county, and city and county receive additional property tax revenues in the form of a vehicle license fee adjustment amount, as defined, from a Vehicle License Fee Property Tax Compensation Fund that exists in each county treasury. Existing law requires that these additional allocations be funded from ad valorem property tax revenues otherwise required to be allocated to educational entities. Existing property tax law, for the 2006–07 fiscal year, and for each fiscal year thereafter, requires the vehicle license fee adjustment amount to be the sum of the vehicle license fee adjustment amount for the prior fiscal year, if specified provisions did not apply, and the product of the amount as so described and the percentage change from the prior fiscal year in the gross taxable valuation within the jurisdiction of the entity. Existing law establishes a separate vehicle license fee adjustment amount for a city that was incorporated after January 1, 2004, and on or before January 1, 2012. This bill would establish a separate vehicle license fee adjustment amount for a city incorporating after January 1, 2012, including an additional separate vehicle license fee adjustment amount for the first fiscal year of incorporation and for the next 4 fiscal years thereafter. By imposing additional duties upon local tax officials with respect to the allocation of ad valorem property tax revenues, 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 the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, protects and safeguards the right and opportunity of all persons to seek, obtain, and hold employment without discrimination, abridgment, or harassment on account of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or military and veteran status. The act prohibits various forms of employment discrimination, including discharging or refusing to hire or to select for training programs on a prohibited basis. Existing law, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, provides that a patient or a patient's primary caregiver who possesses or cultivates marijuana for personal medical purposes of the patient upon the written or oral recommendation or approval of a physician is not subject to conviction for offenses relating to possession and cultivation of marijuana. Existing law also requires the State Department of Public Health to establish a voluntary program for the issuance of identification cards to qualified patients who are entitled to the protections of the act. This bill would provide that, when used to treat a known physical or mental disability or known medical condition, the medical use of cannabis by a qualified patient or person with an identification card is subject to reasonable accommodation. The bill would provide that it does not prohibit an employer from refusing to hire an individual or discharging an employee who is a qualified or person with an identification card, if hiring or failing to discharge an employee would cause the employer to lose a monetary or licensing-related benefit under federal law. The bill would also provide that it does not prohibit an employer from terminating the employment of, or taking corrective action against, an employee who is impaired on the property or premises of the place of employment or during the hours of employment because of the use of cannabis.
Existing law establishes the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma for the purpose of recognizing pupils who have mastered the high school curriculum. Existing law also establishes the State Seal of Biliteracy to recognize high school graduates who have attained a high level of proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing in one or more languages in addition to English. This bill would establish a State Seal of STEM to recognize high school graduates who have attained a high level of proficiency in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields. The bill would establish criteria for the receipt of the State Seal of STEM, would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to prepare and deliver to participating school districts an appropriate insignia to be affixed to pupil diplomas or transcripts, and would require participating school districts to maintain appropriate records and affix the appropriate insignia to diplomas or transcripts of recipient pupils. The bill would not become operative until both (1) data from the statewide administration of specified state science assessments are available and (2) the State Board of Education, in a public meeting, makes specified declarations. The bill's provisions would be inoperative on July 31, 2026, and repealed on January 1, 2027.
Existing law, the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, requires the state policy for water quality control to consist of water quality principles and guidelines for long-range resource planning, water quality objectives, and other principles and guidelines deemed essential by the State Water Resources Control Board for water quality control. The act requires the state board to annually determine state needs for water quality research and to recommend projects to be conducted. This bill would require the state board, to the extent that the state board determines funds are available, to establish and maintain a dedicated program to research the potential effects of constituents of emerging concern in water sources on human and ecosystem health, as prescribed.
The Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies Act authorizes a consumer to place a security freeze on his or her credit report by making a request in writing by mail to a consumer credit reporting agency. That act requires a consumer credit reporting agency to place the security freeze on the consumer's credit report no later than 3 business days after receiving the consumer's request and to send a written confirmation of the security freeze to the consumer within 10 business days. The act also generally requires a consumer credit reporting agency, upon consumer request, to temporarily lift or remove a freeze, subject to receiving proper identification, and satisfying other conditions. This bill would permit a consumer to request a security freeze, a temporary lift of a security freeze, and removal of a security freeze electronically. The bill would require a consumer credit reporting agency, not later than 15 minutes after authenticating a request that was received electronically, and in no event later than 24 hours after receiving a request electronically from a consumer, to place a security freeze on the consumer's credit report and offer to submit a security freeze request on the consumer's behalf to all consumer credit reporting agencies, as specified. The bill would also require a consumer credit reporting agency that receives a request for temporary lift of a freeze or a request for removal of a freeze, within 3 business days after receipt of the request by mail, or within 15 minutes after receipt of the request electronically, to comply with the request and offer to submit that request on the consumer's behalf to all consumer credit reporting agencies that compile and maintain files on consumers on a nationwide basis. The bill would require the consumer credit reporting agency, if the consumer accepts the offer, to submit the request to the consumer credit reporting agencies within specified periods of time, subject to receipt of proper identification, as specified. The bill would require a consumer reporting agency that receives a request on the consumer's behalf from another agency to comply with the request within 15 minutes.
