Asm. Linda Halderman

Existing law, the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Reorganization Act of 2000, sets forth the procedures for incorporations and changes of organizations of cities, including procedures for disincorporation. This bill would provide that every city with a population of less than 150 people as of January 1, 2010, would be disincorporated into that city's respective county as of 91 days after the effective date of the bill, unless a county board of supervisors determines, by majority vote within the 90-day period following enactment of these provisions, that continuing such a city within that county's boundaries would serve a public purpose if the board of supervisors determines that the city is in an isolated rural location that makes it impractical for the residents of the community to organize in another form of local governance. The bill would also require the local agency formation commission within the county to oversee the terms and conditions of the disincorporation of the city, as specified. The bill would become operative only if AB 781 of the 2011–12 Regular Session is enacted.

Existing law authorizes specified air pollution control and air quality management districts to adopt a fee applicable to motor vehicles registered in counties within that district, and requires the fee to be collected by the Department of Motor Vehicles. Existing law, until January 1, 2015, authorizes the amount of the fee to be up to $6. Existing law requires the revenues from the first $4 of the fee to be used for specified purposes. Existing law requires that the revenues from the last $2 of the fee to be used for specified programs that the district determines remediate air pollution harms created by motor vehicles, including purchases of new schoolbuses pursuant to the State Air Resources Board's Lower-Emission School Bus Program. This bill would additionally authorize a district based on that determination to use the last $2 of the fee to retrofit emissions control equipment for existing schoolbuses pursuant to the State Air Resources Board's Lower-Emission School Bus Program. This bill would incorporate additional changes in Sections 41081 and 44229 of the Health and Safety Code, proposed by AB 462, to be operative only if AB 462 and this bill are both chaptered and become effective January 1, 2012, and this bill is chaptered last.

(1) Existing law, until January 1, 2015, provides for the voluntary certification of massage practitioners and massage therapists by a nonprofit Massage Therapy Organization, as defined. Existing law requires the initial board of directors to, among other things, establish the organization. This bill would specify that the Massage Therapy Organization is to be known as the California Massage Therapy Council, as defined. (2) Existing law requires applicants for initial certification as massage practitioners and massage therapists to pay a specified fee and meet certain educational requirements. This bill would require a certificate holder to include certain identifying information in any advertising, and to display his or her certificate at his or her place of business. (3) Existing law prohibits the holder of a certificate or a certificate applicant from being disciplined or denied a certificate unless certain procedural requirements are met. Existing law requires actions challenging a denial or discipline to be commenced within a year after the date of the denial or discipline. Under existing law, applicants and certificate holders are liable for charges incurred before the certificate denial or certificate holder discipline, or other specified charges. This bill would delete that liability requirement and would require the council to be sued only in the county of its principal office. (4) Existing law prohibits a city, county, or city and county from enacting an ordinance, or enforcing an existing ordinance, that requires a license, permit, or other authorization to practice massage by an individual who is certified pursuant to existing law, as specified. This bill would instead prohibit those local governments from enacting an ordinance or enforcing an existing ordinance that requires a license, permit, or other authorization to provide massage for compensation against an individual certified under existing state law or against a massage business or massage establishment that employs or uses only persons who are so certified. Existing law authorizes a city, county, or city and county to charge a massage business or massage establishment a business licensing fee sufficient to cover the costs of the licensing activities, as specified. This bill would require that the fee be no different than the fee that is uniformly applied to all other individuals and businesses providing professional services, as defined and specified. Existing law authorizes a city, county, or city and county to require a background check of any person certified to practice massage. This bill would authorize such a background check of an owner of 5% or more of a massage business or massage establishment, as specified. The bill would make various conforming changes, including with regard to the failure of an owner or operator of a massage business or establishment to comply with the provisions that apply to the practice of massage therapy.

Existing law, the Medical Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of physicians and surgeons by the Medical Board of California. Existing law requires that a physician and surgeon's certificate be suspended automatically when the holder of the certificate is incarcerated after a felony conviction. This bill would require that a physician and surgeon's certificate be automatically placed on inactive status during any period of incarceration after a misdemeanor conviction. The bill would require the reason for this type of inactive status to be disclosed, as specified. The bill would require a certificate placed on inactive status to be returned by the board to its prior or appropriate status after receiving notice that the physician and surgeon is no longer incarcerated, as specified, and would require the board to adopt regulations in this regard.

This measure would proclaim the month of June to be June Dairy Month in California, in honor of the work of dairy producers in California, and would encourage all Californians to continue to support the American dairy industry by including dairy products as part of a healthy diet.

Existing law, the Williamson Act, authorizes a city or county to enter into 10-year contracts with owners of land devoted to agricultural use, whereby the owners agree to continue using the property for that purpose, and the city or county agrees to value the land accordingly for purposes of property taxation. Existing law sets forth procedures for reimbursing cities and counties for property tax revenues not received as a result of these contracts. This bill would, beginning January 1, 2011, and until January 1, 2016, authorize a county, in any fiscal year in which payments authorized for reimbursement to a county for lost revenue are less than12 of the participating county's actual foregone general fund property tax revenue, to revise the term for newly renewed and new contracts and require the assessor to value the property, as specified, based on the revised contract term. The bill would provide that a landowner may choose to nonrenew and begin the cancellation process. The bill would also provide that any increased revenues generated by properties under a new contract shall be paid to the county. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Under existing law, any person who is convicted of pimping or procuring a minor under the age of 16 for prostitution may be ordered by a court to pay an additional fine not to exceed $5,000 to be deposited in the Victim-Witness Assistance Fund to be available for appropriation to fund child sexual exploitation and child sexual abuse victim counseling centers and prevention programs, as provided. This bill would enact the Abolition of Child Commerce, Exploitation, and Sexual Slavery Act of 2011, and would require that a person who is convicted of seeking to procure or procuring the sexual services of a prostitute, if the prostitute is under 18 years of age, be ordered to pay an additional fine not to exceed $25,000 to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature to fund programs and services for commercially sexually exploited minors in the counties where the underlying offenses are committed.

This measure would recognize May 2011 as Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month.