Existing statutory law establishes various public agency retirement systems, including the Public Employees' Retirement System, the State Teachers' Retirement System, the Judges' Retirement System II, and various county retirement systems pursuant to the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937, among others, and these systems provide defined pension benefits to public employees based on age, service credit, and amount of final compensation. The California Constitution permits a city or county to adopt a charter for purposes of its governance that supersedes general laws of the state in regard to specified subjects, including compensation of city or county employees. The California Constitution establishes the University of California as a public trust with full powers of organization and government, subject only to specified limitations. Under their respective independent constitutional authority, charter cities and counties and the University of California may establish retirement systems. The California Public Employees Pension Reform Act of 2013 (PEPRA) generally requires the retirement systems to which it applies to modify their provisions to conform with its requirements. PEPRA excepts from its provisions retirement systems established by charter cities and counties and the University of California. PEPRA requires that any enhancement to a public employee's retirement formula or retirement benefit adopted on or after January 1, 2013, apply only to service performed on or after the operative date of the enhancement and prohibits its application to service performed prior to that date. This measure would require, with respect to any public retirement systems, that any enhancement to a public employee's retirement formula or retirement benefit, adopted on or after the measure's effective date, apply only to service performed on and after the operative date of the enhancement and shall not be applied to any service performed prior to the operative date of the change. The measure would specify how changes in membership classification or changes in employment are to be applied in this context. The measure would provide that specified cost-of-living adjustments are not enhancements of retirement benefits.
Sponsored bills
This measure would declare the week of May 3, 2015, to May 9, 2015, inclusive, as Wildfire Awareness Week to raise public awareness and encourage all residents of California to be prepared for wildfires.
This measure would memorialize the President and the Congress of the United States to recognize the unique military value of California's defense installations and the disproportionate sacrifices California has endured in previous base realignment and closure (BRAC) rounds.
This measure would proclaim June 12, 2015, as Women Veterans' Day and urge all citizens to join in celebrating the many contributions of women to our military forces.
This measure would resolve that the Legislature and the people of California should uphold and protect the dignity and independence of older Californians by continuing the state's commitment to provide these individuals with certain supporative programs and services.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report (EIR) 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. Existing law establishes regulations related to numerous environmental issues. This bill would enact the Sustainable Environmental Protection Act and would specify the environmental review required pursuant to CEQA for projects related to specified environmental topical areas. In a judicial action or proceeding filed challenging an action taken by a lead agency on the ground of noncompliance with CEQA, the bill would prohibit a cause of action that (1) alleges noncompliance with CEQA based on any topical area or criteria for which compliance obligations are identified or (2) challenges the environmental document based on noncompliance with CEQA if: (A) the environmental document discloses compliance with applicable environmental law, (B) the project conforms with the use designation, density, or building intensity in an applicable plan, as defined, and (C) the project approval incorporates applicable mitigation requirements into the environmental document. The bill would provide that the Sustainable Environmental Protection Act only applies if the lead agency or project applicant has agreed to provide to the public in a readily accessible electronic format an annual compliance report prepared pursuant to the mitigation monitoring and reporting program. Because this bill would impose additional duties on local agencies, it 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 establishes conditional voter registration, using an affidavit of registration, whereby a person is permitted to register to vote after the 15th day before an election or on election day, and cast a provisional ballot to be counted if the conditional voter registration is deemed effective. Existing law establishes the procedures and requirements for determining whether a conditional voter registration is deemed effective, requires the county elections official to offer conditional voter registration and provisional voting at its permanent offices, and authorizes the official to offer this registration and voting at satellite offices on election day. This bill would require that a registrant provide proof of residence, as specified, in order for a conditional voter registration to be deemed effective. If a conditional voter registration is not deemed effective, the bill would require the elections official to process the affidavit of registration, as specified, and if all other eligibility requirements are met, would require the registration to be effective in forthcoming elections. By imposing additional duties on county election officials, the 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 these statutory provisions.
This measure would recognize the 50th anniversary of the Older Americans Act of 1965, affirm the Legislature's continuing support for the goals of the act, and memorialize the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate to reauthorize the act.
This measure would proclaim the month of May 2015 as Arthritis Awareness Month.
This measure would designate May 29, 2015, as 529 College Savings Day, to raise awareness about the importance of saving for college with the help of 529 college savings plans.