Asm. Ash Kalra

This measure would, on June 23, 2021, commemorate the 49th anniversary of the enactment of Title IX, and would urge Californians to continue to work together to achieve the goals set by Title IX, as specified.

This measure would designate the month of June 2021 as Healthy Homes Awareness Month.

Existing law prohibits manufacturers and contract testing facilities from using traditional animal test methods within the state for which an appropriate alternative test method has been scientifically validated and recommended by the Inter-Agency Coordinating Committee for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ICCVAM) and adopted, as specified. Existing law exempts certain animal tests from these provisions, including animal tests performed for the purpose of medical research. Existing law provides that the exclusive remedy for a violation of these provisions is a civil action for injunctive relief brought by, among others, the Attorney General and makes a violation of these provisions punishable by a specified civil penalty. This bill would prohibit a testing facility, as defined, from conducting a canine or feline toxicological experiment, as defined, unless the experiment is conducted for specified purposes, including medical research, as described, to comply with federal requirements pertaining to the approval or maintenance of a medical device, or to develop, manufacture, or market certain types of products. The bill would authorize the Attorney General, the district attorney of the county in which the violation is alleged to have occurred, or the city attorney in certain instances to bring a civil action for a violation of these provisions, punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each day that each dog or cat is used in a canine or feline toxicological experiment. The bill would define various terms for purposes of carrying out these provisions.

Existing law designates 8 agencies in state government and requires the secretary of an agency to be generally responsible for the sound fiscal management of each department, office, or other unit within the agency. Existing law further requires the secretary of an agency to, among other duties, continually seek to improve the organization structure, the operating policies, and the management information systems of each department, office, or other unit. This bill would, until January 1, 2029, establish the Immigrant and Refugee Affairs Agency as an agency within state government, to be headed by a secretary who is appointed by the Governor and subject to Senate confirmation. The bill would specify that the purpose of the agency is to reduce obstacles and enhance immigrant integration, as defined, into the social, cultural, economic, and civic life of the state. The bill would establish the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs within the agency. The bill would transfer functions relating to immigrants and refugees to the office and would declare the intent to incorporate existing and future programs created to assist immigrants and refugees into the office. The bill would transfer the property of any office, agency, or department that relates to functions transferred to the office by these provisions and would transfer the unencumbered balance of any appropriation and any other funds that are available for use in connection with any function transferred to the office. The bill would also provide that every officer and employee who is serving in the state civil service, as provided, and who is transferred to the office, shall retain the status position, and rights. The bill would create the Immigrant and Refugee Integration Fund within the State Treasury, and would make the moneys available in the fund available to the secretary of the office to administer the duties of the office. This bill would establish the duties and responsibilities of the agency and the office which includes, among other duties, establishing a permanent structure within the state to serve immigrants, assisting other state agencies in evaluating their programs for accessibility and effectiveness in providing services to immigrants and refugees, and recommending policy and budget mechanisms for meeting immigrant and refugee integration goals. The bill would prohibit interagency sharing of personal information and would prohibit use of agency resources to directly or indirectly participate or assist in immigration enforcement activity. Existing law establishes the Statewide Director of Immigrant Integration and requires the director serve as the statewide lead for the planning and coordination of immigrant services and policies in California. Existing law requires, among other things, that the director develop a comprehensive statewide report on programs and services that serve immigrants, develop an online clearinghouse of immigrant services, resources, and programs, and monitor the implementation of statewide laws and regulations that serve immigrants. This bill would recast those provisions to rename the director as the Statewide Director of Immigrant and Refugee Integration. The bill would place the director in charge of the office, and would require the director to report to the Governor and the Legislature on programs and services that serve immigrants and refugees by January 1, 2023, and require the director to provide a statewide plan for better implementation and coordination of immigrant and refugee assistance policies and programs. The bill would require the director to incorporate refugee services, resources, and programs into the online clearinghouse by January 1, 2023, and would require the director to monitor statewide laws and regulations that serve refugees, in addition to immigrants. The changes made by this bill would be in effect until January 1, 2029, and as of that date would be repealed. The provisions of this bill would only become operative if funds have been appropriated for the purposes described in the bill in the annual Budget Act or another statute. 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.

Existing law requires the Instructional Quality Commission to develop and submit to the State Board of Education, on or before December 31, 2022, and the state board to adopt, modify, or revise or reject, as prescribed, on or before March 31, 2023, a model curriculum relative to (1) the Vietnamese American refugee experience, (2) the Cambodian genocide, and (3) Hmong history and cultural studies, as specified, for use in elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools. Existing law requires implementation of these provisions to be subject to the receipt of grants, donations, or other financial support from private or public sources for its purposes, including, but not limited to, an appropriation in the annual Budget Act or another statute. This bill instead would extend the timelines for the development and submission by the commission of, and the adoption, modification, or revision by the state board of, the above-described model curricula by 4 years.

(1) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency to prepare, or cause to be prepared by contract, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project, as defined, that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment, or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA prohibits an environmental impact report or negative declaration from being approved for any project involving the purchase of a schoolsite or the construction of a new elementary or secondary school by a school district unless specified conditions are met, relating to, among other things, whether the property is located on a current or former hazardous waste disposal site or solid waste disposal site, a hazardous substance release site, or a site that contains a pipeline that carries specified substances, and the property's proximity to facilities that might reasonably be anticipated to emit hazardous emissions or handle hazardous or extremely hazardous substances or waste, as provided. This bill would prohibit a lead agency from certifying an environmental impact report or approving a negative declaration for a project involving the purchase of a schoolsite or the construction of a new elementary or secondary school by a charter school or a private school, unless those specified conditions are met. By imposing new requirements on school districts, charter schools, lead agencies, cities, and counties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law prohibits the governing board of a school district from approving a project for the acquisition of a schoolsite unless specified conditions are met, including, among others, that the school district, as the lead agency, determines that the property to be purchased or built upon is not the site of a current or former hazardous waste disposal site or solid waste disposal site, a hazardous substance release site, or a site that contains a pipeline that carries specified substances, and that the school district, as the lead agency, has not identified specified facilities within 14 of one mile of the proposed schoolsite that might reasonably be anticipated to emit hazardous air emissions or handle hazardous or extremely hazardous materials, substances, or waste, as provided. This bill would impose that prohibition, and related requirements, on the governing body of a charter school and the governing board of a private school, and would require the determination and identification described above to be made by the city or county. By imposing new requirements on charter schools, cities, and counties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law requires the State Department of Education, upon the request of the governing board of a school district, to advise the governing board on the acquisition of new schoolsites, as specified. This bill would require the department to additionally advise the governing body of a charter school, upon the request of the governing body, on the acquisition of new schoolsites, as specified. (4) 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.