Rep. Alex Lee

Existing law designates the Department of General Services as the agency for the State of California responsible for distribution of federal surplus personal property, excepting food commodities, and requires the department to, among other things, do all things necessary to the execution of its powers and duties as the state agency for the distribution of federal personal surplus property, excepting food commodities, in accordance with specified federal law. Existing law, the Federal Surplus Property Acquisition Law of 1945, authorizes a local agency, as defined, to acquire surplus federal property without regard to any law which requires posting of notices or advertising for bids, inviting or receiving bids, or delivery of purchases before payment, or which prevents the local agency from bidding on federal surplus property. Existing federal law authorizes the Department of Defense to transfer surplus personal property, including arms and ammunition, to federal or state agencies for use in law enforcement activities, subject to specified conditions, at no cost to the acquiring agency. This bill would require a law enforcement agency, defined to include specified entities, to obtain approval of the applicable governing body, by adoption of a military equipment use policy, as specified, by ordinance at a regular meeting held pursuant to specified open meeting laws, prior to taking certain actions relating to the funding, acquisition, or use of military equipment, as defined. The bill would also require similar approval for the continued use of military equipment acquired prior to January 1, 2022. The bill would allow the governing body to approve the funding, acquisition, or use of military equipment within its jurisdiction only if it determines that the military equipment meets specified standards. The bill would require the governing body to annually review the ordinance and to either disapprove a renewal of the authorization for a type, as defined, of military equipment or amend the military equipment use policy if it determines, based on an annual military equipment report prepared by the law enforcement agency, as provided, that the military equipment does not comply with the above-described standards for approval. The bill would specify these provisions do not preclude a county or local municipality from implementing additional requirements and standards related to the purchase, use, and reporting of military equipment by local law enforcement agencies. This bill would also require a state agency, as defined, to create a military equipment use policy before engaging in certain activities, publish the policy on the agency's internet website, and provide a copy of the policy to the Governor or the Governor's designee, as specified. The bill would also require a state agency that seeks to continue use of military equipment acquired prior to January 1, 2022, to create a military equipment use policy. This bill would also include findings that the changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities. By adding to the duties of local officials with respect to the funding, acquisition, and use of military equipment, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires local agencies, for the purpose of ensuring public access to the meetings of public bodies and the writings of public officials and agencies, to comply with a statutory enactment that amends or enacts laws relating to public records or open meetings and contains findings demonstrating that the enactment furthers the constitutional requirements relating to this purpose. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. 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 requires the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) to establish a certification program for specified peace officers, including officers of the Department of the California Highway Patrol. Existing law requires the commission to establish basic, intermediate, advanced, supervisory, management, and executive certificates for the purpose of fostering the education and experience necessary to perform general police service duties. Existing law requires certificates to be awarded on the basis of a combination of training, education, experience, and other prerequisites, as determined by the commission. This bill would require the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges to develop a modern policing degree program, with the commission and other stakeholders to serve as advisors, as specified, and to submit a report on recommendations to the Legislature outlining a plan to implement the program on or before June 1, 2023. The bill would require the report to include, among other things, recommendations to adopt financial assistance for students of historically underserved and disadvantaged communities with barriers to higher education access, as specified. The bill would require the commission to adopt the recommended criteria within 2 years of when the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges submits its report to the Legislature. Existing law requires peace officers in this state to meet specified minimum standards, including age and education requirements. This bill would increase the minimum qualifying age from 18 to 21 years of age for specified peace officers.

Existing law regulates the payment of wages and benefits in the state. Existing law makes violation of specified wage and gratuity provisions a misdemeanor and provides for civil penalties and remedies for the recovery of wages. Existing law defines the crime of grand theft as theft committed when the money, labor, or real or personal property taken is of a value exceeding $950. Under existing law, grand theft is generally punishable either as a misdemeanor by imprisonment in a county jail for up to 1 year or as a felony by imprisonment in county jail for 16 months or 2 or 3 years. This bill would make the intentional theft of wages, including gratuities, in an amount greater than $950 from any one employee, or $2,350 in the aggregate from 2 or more employees, by an employer in any consecutive 12-month period punishable as grand theft. The bill would specifically authorize wages, gratuities, benefits, or other compensation that are the subject of a prosecution under these provisions to be recovered as restitution in accordance with existing provisions of law. This bill would specify that, for the purposes of these provisions, independent contractors are included within the meaning of employee and hiring entities of independent contractors are included within the meaning of employer. By increasing the penalty for a crime and by creating a new 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 provides for various memorials and monuments on the grounds of the State Capitol. Existing law requires the Department of Finance, subject to the approval of the Capitol Building and Planning Commission, to acquire and do all acts necessary to erect and maintain a monument to Father Junípero Serra on the grounds of the State Capitol. Existing law requires the Department of General Services to maintain state buildings and grounds. This bill would delete the requirement relating to the monument to Father Junípero Serra. The bill would authorize tribal nations in the Sacramento, California, region, in consultation with the Department of General Services, to plan, construct, and maintain a monument to the California Native people of the Sacramento, California, region on the grounds of the State Capitol. The bill would require the tribal nations to submit the plan for the monument to the Joint Rules Committee for its review and approval. The bill would prohibit the tribal nations from beginning construction of the monument until the Joint Rules Committee approves and adopts the plan and the Joint Rules Committee and the Department of Finance determine that sufficient private funding is available to construct and maintain the monument. The bill would require the planning, construction, and maintenance of the monument to be funded exclusively through private funding from the tribal nations in the Sacramento, California, region.

Existing law, for purposes of the State Transit Assistance Program, requires local transportation agencies to report to the Controller by June 15 of each year the public transportation operators within its jurisdiction that are eligible to claim specified local transportation funds. This bill would instead require local transportation agencies to report this information within 7 months after the end of each fiscal year. Existing law requires the Controller to submit an annual report to the Legislature on the revenues available and expenditures made with regard to local transportation funds available for public transportation and other purposes in each county within 3 months of receiving specified annual reports regarding the expenditure of those funds for public transit purposes and specified information regarding the expenditure of those funds for streets and highways purposes. This bill would no longer require the Controller to submit this annual report to the Legislature and would instead require the Controller to compile, publish, and make publicly available on the Controller's internet website this data and information on or before November 1 of each year. Existing law creates the Highway Users Tax Account, in which motor vehicle fuel tax and diesel fuel tax revenues are deposited and available for allocation to transportation purposes. Existing law requires the Controller, after certain transfers are made or actions are taken, to apportion or transfer, as applicable, at least 90% of the balance deposited to the credit of the Highway Users Tax Account by the 28th day of each month by the 2nd working day thereafter, except for June, in which case the apportionment or transfer is required to be made the same day, to, among others, cities and counties and the State Highway Account. This bill instead would require the Controller, after certain transfers are made or actions are taken, to apportion or transfer, as applicable, at least 90% of the balance deposited in that account by the 28th day of each month by the 7th working day thereafter.

Existing law, commencing July 1, 2022, requires the Department of Justice, on a monthly basis, to review the records in the statewide criminal justice databases and identify persons who are eligible for specified automatic conviction record relief. Existing law, commencing July 1, 2022, requires the department to inform the superior court having jurisdiction over criminal matters of all cases for which a complaint was filed in that jurisdiction and for which relief was granted pursuant to this section. Existing law permits a prosecuting attorney or probation department to file a petition to prohibit the department from granting automatic relief upon showing that the relief would pose a substantial threat to public safety. Existing law requires a court, upon noticed motion, whenever a person is released on probation or mandatory superior court, to transfer the case to the court in the county where the person permanently resides, except as specified. This bill would require the department, in cases where probation has been transferred, to electronically submit notice of conviction record relief to both the transferring court and any subsequent receiving court. The bill would also require a receiving court that reduces a felony to a misdemeanor or dismisses a conviction under specified provisions to provide a disposition report to the department with the original case number from the transferring court. If probation was transferred multiple times, the bill would require the department to electronically submit notice to all involved courts in a mutually agreed upon format. The bill would further require any court receiving notice of a reduction or dismissal to update its records to reflect the same. The bill requires the receiving court to provide a receipt of records from the transferring court, including the new case number. The bill would require the transferring court to report to the department that probation was transferred and identify the receiving court and new case number, if applicable. The bill would require a prosecuting attorney or probation department, in either the receiving county or transferring county, seeking to file a petition to prohibit the department from granting automatic relief to file the petition in the county of current jurisdiction. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 1203.425 of the Penal Code proposed by SB 731 and AB 1281 to be operative only if this bill, SB 731, and AB 1281 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.

This measure would designate a specified portion of Westside Parkway on State Route 58 in the County of Kern as the Harvey L. Hall Memorial Highway. The measure would request that the Department of Transportation determine the costs of appropriate signs showing this special designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering those costs, erect those signs.

This measure would request that the Congress of the United States and the United States Environmental Protection Agency take all measures necessary to prevent further damage to California's citizens, wildlife, and natural resources by the dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane waste dumped in the waters near Santa Catalina Island.

This measure would declare the month of September 2021 as California Emergency Preparedness Month.

This measure would recognize August 15, 2021, as India's Independence Day, and urge all Californians to join in celebrating India's independence.