Existing law provides that school districts offering kindergarten may maintain kindergarten classes at different schoolsites for different lengths of time. This bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to provide the Legislature no later than July 1, 2017, with an evaluation of kindergarten program implementation in the state, including part-day and full-day kindergarten programs, as specified. The bill would make these provisions operative only upon an appropriation by the Legislature for these purposes. The bill would require a local educational agency, commencing with the 2015–16 school year, to provide an annual report to the State Department of Education that contains information on the type of kindergarten program offered by the local educational agency, as provided, in a manner determined by the department. By expanding the duties of a local educational agency, the bill would create 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 these statutory provisions.
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The Ralph M. Brown Act requires, with specified exceptions, that all meetings of a legislative body of a local agency, as those terms are defined, be open and public and that all persons be permitted to attend and participate. The act requires an agenda for a regular meeting to provide an opportunity for members of the public to directly address the legislative body on any item of interest to the public, before or during the legislative body's consideration of the item, that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body. The act excepts from this requirement an agenda item that has already been considered by a committee, composed exclusively of members of the legislative body, at a public meeting wherein all interested members of the public were afforded the opportunity to address the committee on the item, before or during the committee's consideration of the item, unless the item has been substantially changed, as specified. The act requires a notice for a special meeting to provide an opportunity for members of the public to directly address the legislative body concerning any item that has been described in the notice before or during consideration of that item. The act authorizes the legislative body to adopt reasonable regulations to ensure that the intent of these provisions is carried out. Existing law forbids the legislative body from prohibiting public criticism of the policies, procedures, programs, or services of the agency, or of the acts or omissions of the legislative body. This bill would instead require the agenda for a regular and special meeting to provide an opportunity for the public to directly address the legislative body on any item of interest to the public before and during the legislative body's consideration of the item, except as specified. This bill would expand the existing prohibition against a legislative body limiting public criticism to include criticism of the officers and employees of the legislative body, and specify other designated prohibited activities related to limiting public comment. This bill would, if a legislative body limits the time allocated for public testimony on a particular issue or for each individual speaker, prohibit a reduction in that allocated time by reason of the questioning or interruption of the speaker by the legislative body or its officers or employees, and the speaker's response to questioning. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 54954.3 of the Government Code proposed by AB 1330 that would become operative if this bill and AB 1330 are both chaptered and this bill is chaptered last.
The Cal Grant Program establishes the Cal Grant A and B Entitlement Awards, the California Community College Transfer Cal Grant Entitlement Awards, the Competitive Cal Grant A and B Awards, the Cal Grant C Awards, and the Cal Grant T Awards under the administration of the Student Aid Commission, and establishes eligibility requirements for awards under these programs for participating students attending qualifying institutions. A provision of the program specifies that the commission shall require that a grade point average be submitted, as specified, to the commission for Cal Grant A and B applicants, except for those applicants permitted to provide test scores in lieu of a grade point average. This bill would require that each pupil enrolled in grade 12, except for pupils who opt out, as specified, be deemed a Cal Grant applicant. The bill would require that a grade point average be submitted for all Cal Grant A and B applicants, and submitted electronically for all grade 12 pupils at public schools, including charter schools, each academic year, except for pupils who have opted out, as specified, and would provide that grade point averages submitted shall be subject to review by the commission or its designee. The bill would require the school district or charter school, no later than October 15 of a pupil's grade 12 academic year, to notify, in writing, each grade 12 pupil and his or her parent or guardian that the pupil will be deemed a Cal Grant applicant unless the pupil is opted out, and would specify a procedure for opting out. To the extent that these provisions would impose new duties on local educational agencies and community college districts, they would constitute 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 these statutory provisions.
Existing law authorizes a court with jurisdiction over a criminal matter to issue certain orders upon a good cause belief that harm to, or intimidation or dissuasion of, a victim or witness has occurred or is reasonably likely to occur, including a protective order enjoining a party from, among other things, molesting, attacking, threatening, sexually assaulting, harassing, contacting, or coming within a specified distance of the other party, as specified. Existing law requires a court to consider issuing a protective order on its own motion in all cases where the defendant is charged with a crime of domestic violence, as defined, and requires the court's records of all criminal cases involving domestic violence be clearly marked to alert the court of the issue. Existing law provides that a restraining order or protective order issued in a domestic violence case has precedence in enforcement over a civil court order, except as provided. Existing law authorizes the court, in any case in which a complaint, information, or indictment charging domestic violence has been filed, to consider the underlying nature of the offense charged and other specified information in determining whether good cause exists to issue a protective order. This bill would apply these provisions to all cases where the defendant is charged with specified sex crimes, including rape, spousal rape, and crimes for which a person is required to register as a sex offender. The bill would further authorize the court, in any case in which a complaint, information, or indictment charging any of the above-described sex crimes has been filed, to consider the defendant's relationship to the victim, the likelihood of continuing harm to the victim, the defendant's criminal history, as specified, and any current protective or restraining order issued by any civil or criminal court involving the defendant. Existing law provides that a willful and knowing violation of a protective order issued pursuant to the above-described provisions constitutes contempt of court, a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both the imprisonment and the fine, except as specified. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 136.2 of the Penal Code, proposed by AB 1850 and SB 910, that would become operative only if this bill and either or both of those bills are chaptered and become effective January 1, 2015, and this bill is chaptered last. 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 establishes the Board of State and Community Corrections to collect and maintain available information and data about state and community correctional policies, practices, capacities, and needs, as specified. Existing law also requires the board to develop incentives for units of local government to develop comprehensive regional partnerships whereby adjacent jurisdictions pool grant funds in order to deliver services to a broader target population and maximize the impact of state funds at the local level. This bill would specifically require that those services include job training and employment opportunities, and that the target population include at-risk youth.
Existing law generally regulates false advertising and specifically prohibits certain unfair acts or practices undertaken by, or omissions of, a person in the operation of a contest, including misrepresenting the odds of winning a prize or failing to award and distribute all prizes. A violation of this provision is a misdemeanor. This bill would apply the prohibition described above to unfair acts or practices undertaken by, or omissions of, a person in the operation of a sweepstakes, as defined. The bill would prohibit using or offering to use any method intended to be used by a person interacting with an electronic video monitor to simulate gambling or play gambling-themed games in a business establishment, as defined, that directly or indirectly implements the predetermination of sweepstakes cash, cash-equivalent prizes, or other prizes of value, or otherwise connects a sweepstakes player or participant with sweepstakes cash, cash-equivalent prizes, or other prizes of value. By creating new crimes, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would also except from this prohibition game promotions and sweepstakes conducted on a limited basis as an advertising and marketing tool incidental to substantial bona fide sales of consumer products or services, as specified. 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 recognizes various state holidays. Existing law requires the Governor to proclaim annually the 4th Friday in September to be Native American Day. This bill would recognize the 4th Friday in September as a state holiday to be known as Native American Day.
Existing law, the California Environmental Quality Act, referred to as CEQA, requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project 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 also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA requires a lead agency to provide and post specified notices. CEQA requires the Office of Planning and Research to prepare and develop guidelines for the implementation of CEQA and the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to certify and adopt those guidelines. This bill would require the office, on or before July 1, 2016, to prepare and develop recommended amendments to the guidelines and the secretary, on or before January 1, 2017, to certify and adopt those amendments to the guidelines to establish criteria for a lead agency to assess the need for translating those notices into non-English languages, as specified. By requiring a lead agency to consider the criteria for translating those notices, 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.
The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws, including a credit against those taxes for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2011, in an amount equal to an applicable percentage of either 20% or 25%, respectively, of the qualified expenditures, as defined, attributable to the production of a qualified motion picture in California, or, where the qualified motion picture is a television series that relocated to California or is an independent film, as provided. Existing law imposes specified duties on the California Film Commission related to the administration of the credits, including a requirement to allocate the tax credits until July 1, 2017, and limits the aggregate amount of credits that may be allocated to qualified motion pictures in any fiscal year to $100,000,000 through the 2016–17 fiscal year. Existing law, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2011, in lieu of the credits authorized under the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law for qualified motion pictures described above, also allows a credit against qualified state sales and use taxes, as provided. Existing law provides for a tentative minimum tax and further provides that, except for specified credits, no other credit shall reduce the tax imposed below the tentative minimum tax. This bill would establish similar credits under the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2016, to be allocated by the California Film Commission on or after July 1, 2015, and before July 1, 2020. This bill would, as compared to the existing tax credits, extend the scope of the credits for a qualified motion picture to the applicable percentage of qualified expenditures up to $100,000,000, would extend the credit to qualified expenditures for television pilot episodes, and would determine an applicable percentage of 25% or 20% for qualified expenditures, with an additional credit amount available, as specified. This bill would limit the aggregate amount of these new credits to be allocated in each fiscal year to up to $330 million, and would, subject to a computation and ranking of applicants based on the jobs ratio, as defined, require the California Film Commission to allocate credit amounts subject to specified categories of qualified motion pictures. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2016, in lieu of the credits authorized under the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law for qualified motion pictures described above, allow a credit against qualified state sales and use taxes, as provided. This bill would also require the Legislative Analyst's Office to prepare reports related to the effectiveness and administration of the qualified motion picture credit under the Sales and Use Tax Law, the Personal Income Tax Law, and the Corporation Tax Law. This bill would, for taxable years, beginning on or after January 1, 2016, additionally allow the credit under the Corporation Tax Law for qualified expenditures for the production of qualified motion pictures to reduce the tentative minimum tax. This bill would also make findings and declarations related to the entertainment industry, and would urge the United States Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission to investigate and impose sanctions on specified motion picture productions and elements of production to combat unfair and illegal competition. 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. The bill would state that its provisions are severable. This bill would incorporate additional changes in Section 23036 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, proposed by AB 2754, to be operative only if AB 2754 and this bill are both chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2015, and this bill is chaptered last. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law allows a credit against the taxes imposed under the Corporation Tax Law and the Personal Income Tax Law for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2014, and before January 1, 2025, in an amount as provided in a written agreement between the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development and the taxpayer, agreed upon by the California Competes Tax Credit Committee, and based on specified factors, including the number of jobs the taxpayer will create or retain in the state and the amount of investment in the state by the taxpayer. Existing law limits the aggregate amount of credits allocated to taxpayers to a specified sum per fiscal year. This bill would authorize the Director of Finance to increase the aggregate amount of the economic development credits that may be allocated to taxpayers each fiscal year by $25 million per fiscal year through the 2017–18 fiscal year. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.