Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health to license and regulate chronic dialysis clinics, defined as a clinic that provides less than 24-hour care for the treatment of patients with end-stage renal disease, including renal dialysis services. Existing law also requires the department to periodically inspect every clinic for which a license or special permit has been issued, with the frequency to be determined based on the type and complexity of the clinic or special service to be inspected. Existing law makes this provision inapplicable to an end-stage renal disease facility. Existing law makes a person who violates a law or willfully or repeatedly violates a rule or regulation promulgated pursuant to these clinics guilty of a crime. This bill would require the department to inspect each licensed chronic dialysis clinic that receives a one- or 2-star quality rating as determined by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under the Five-Star Quality Rating System at least once per calendar year, until the clinic attains at least a 3-star rating. The bill would also require the department to conduct any additional inspection that the department deems necessary to ensure the continuation of high quality medical care for dialysis patients. The bill would require the department, commencing January 1, 2020, to assess a supplemental license fee on licensed chronic dialysis clinics in an amount not to exceed the reasonable cost to the department to conduct the inspections. The bill would name the act the Dialysis Patient Quality of Care Assurance Act of 2019.
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The Personal Income Tax Law imposes a tax on individual taxpayers measured by the taxpayer's taxable income for the taxable year, but excludes certain items of income from the computation of tax, including an exclusion for combat-related special compensation. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2020, and before January 1, 2030, would exclude from gross income specified amounts of retirement pay received by a taxpayer from the federal government for service performed in the uniformed services, as defined, during the taxable year. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Under the California Constitution, whenever the Legislature or a state agency mandates a new program or higher level of service on any local agency the state is required to provide a subvention of funds to reimburse the local agency, with specified exceptions, including if, among other things, a statute or executive order imposes duties that are necessary to implement, or are expressly included in, a ballot measure approved by the voters in a statewide or local election. Existing law establishes a procedure for local agencies to file a test claim for reimbursement of these costs with the Commission on State Mandates. This bill would provide that reimbursement to an underprivileged or disadvantaged local agency for preventable lost revenue sustained as a result of the delayed implementation of a state action shall be provided pursuant to the same procedures described above. The bill would exempt this provision from the exceptions to the requirement that the state provide a subvention of funds to local agencies.
Existing unemployment compensation disability law requires workers to pay contribution rates based on, among other things, wages received in employment and benefit disbursement, for payment into the Unemployment Compensation Disability Fund, a special fund in the State Treasury. That fund is continuously appropriated for the purpose of providing disability benefits and making payment of expenses in administering those provisions. Existing law establishes, within the state disability insurance program, the family temporary disability insurance program, also known as the paid family leave program, for the provision of up to 6 weeks of wage replacement benefits to workers who take time off work to care for a seriously ill family member or to bond with a minor child within one year of the birth or placement of the child in connection with foster care or adoption. Existing law limits the temporary disability benefits paid under these provisions to not more than 6 weeks within any 12-month period. This bill would authorize up to 12 weeks of temporary disability benefits in a 12-month period, but would limit each disability benefit period to 6 weeks of temporary disability benefits. By providing for the deposit of additional contributions in, and by authorizing an increase in disbursements from, the Unemployment Compensation Disability Fund, this bill would make an appropriation.
Existing law establishes the Office of Planning and Research in the Governor's office, under the control of the Director of State Planning and Research appointed by the Governor. Existing law requires the office to serve the Governor and the Governor's cabinet as staff for long-range planning and research and as the comprehensive state planning agency, as provided. Among other things, existing law requires the office to develop a housing cost manual which may be used by local agencies in assessing the impact on housing costs of alternative land use proposals and land use regulatory programs of local agencies, and as an aid in evaluating private land use proposals. This bill, no later than November 30, 2020, would require the office to develop standards for the formation of Reinvestment in Infrastructure for a Sustainable and Equitable California (RISE) districts. The bill would require that these standards encourage equitable development in location-efficient areas adjacent to public transit investments in passenger rail in order to refocus growth toward city centers while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reinforcing community resilience.
The State Bar Act provides for the licensure and regulation of attorneys by the State Bar of California, a public corporation governed by a board of trustees. Existing law, until January 1, 2020, requires the board to charge an annual license fee for active licensees of up to $315 for 2019. Existing law requires the board to charge an annual license fee for inactive licensees of up to $65. Existing law requires the board to increase each of the annual license fees by an additional $40, to be allocated only to support nonprofit organizations that provide free legal services to persons of limited means, except to the extent that a licensee elects not to support those activities. Existing law requires that the invoice provided to licensees for payment of the annual license fee provide each licensee the option of deducting $40 from the annual license fee if the licensee elects not to have this amount allocated for these purposes. This bill would make the $40 fee increase mandatory and would remove the requirement that the fee invoice provide the option of deducting $40. This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIII A of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 23 of the membership of each house of the Legislature.
Existing law imposes various penalties and assessments upon fines, penalties, and forfeitures imposed and collected by the courts for criminal offenses. Those charges include a state surcharge of 20% levied on the base fine, as specified. Existing law requires the full amount of that surcharge to be transmitted from the clerk of the court to the State Treasury and deposited in the General Fund. This bill would repeal the 20% state surcharge.
Existing law establishes the California Fire Service Training and Education Program in the office of the State Fire Marshal and requires the State Fire Marshal to make fire service training and education programs, including training and education in the use of heavy rescue equipment, available on a voluntary basis to fire departments that rely extensively on volunteers. This bill would require the State Fire Marshal to employ at least 5 traveling training officers and any necessary equipment to provide weekend and evening training classes year-round, as specified, to volunteer fire departments and those fire departments consisting of a combination of volunteer, partly paid, or fully paid members. The bill would also authorize firefighters to receive 100% reimbursement of actual costs from the State Fire Marshal for attending training classes at a local community college if the State Fire Marshal is unable to provide training classes. The bill would authorize the State Fire Marshal to adopt regulations implementing these provisions. The bill would require the State Fire Marshal to report annually to the Legislature on the effectiveness of the program. The bill would make the implementation of these provisions contingent upon an appropriation in the annual Budget Act for these purposes. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2025.
Existing law requires that an election for congressional and state elective offices be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each even-numbered year. Existing law requires a presidential general election to be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in any year that is evenly divisible by the number 4. Existing law designates specific days as holidays in this state. Existing law designates holidays on which community colleges and public schools are required to close. Existing law entitles state employees, with specified exceptions, to be given time off with pay for specified holidays. Existing law designates optional bank holidays. This bill would add the day on which a statewide general election is held, which is the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of any even-numbered year, to these lists of holidays. The bill would require community colleges and public schools to close on any day on which a statewide general election is held. The bill would require that state employees, with specified exceptions, be given time off with pay for days on which a statewide general election is held. By increasing the duties of local officials, 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.
The California Healthcare, Research and Prevention Tobacco Tax Act of 2016, an initiative measure approved as Proposition 56 at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, increases taxes imposed on distributors of cigarettes and tobacco products and requires all revenues to be deposited into the California Healthcare, Research and Prevention Tobacco Tax Act of 2016 Fund, a continuously appropriated fund. That act allocates a specified amount of those revenues to provide funding to, among other entities and purposes, the University of California in the amount of $40,000,000 annually for the purpose and goal of increasing the number of primary care and emergency physicians trained in California, as specified. The act authorizes the Legislature to amend the provision relating to the allocation of these revenues to further the purposes of the act with a 23 vote of the membership of each house of the Legislature. This bill would instead provide that funding to the University of California to be administered by a California nonprofit public benefit corporation for that purpose and goal.