Asm. Devon Mathis

Existing sales and use tax laws impose a tax on retailers measured by the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail in this state, or on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a retailer for storage, use, or other consumption in this state. Those laws provide various exemptions from those taxes, including, until July 1, 2023, an exemption for the sale of, or the storage, use, or other consumption of, menstrual hygiene products, defined as tampons, specified sanitary napkins, menstrual sponges, and menstrual cups. Existing law requires the Department of Finance, beginning on May 15, 2020, to estimate the total dollar amount of revenue that would have been credited to the Local Revenue Fund 2011 if not otherwise exempted under the sales and use tax exemption for menstrual hygiene products and requires the Controller to transfer that amount from the General Fund to the Local Revenue Fund 2011, a continuously appropriated fund, no later than June 30 of each fiscal year. This bill would establish a similar exemption for the sale of, or the storage, use, or other consumption of, menstrual hygiene products beginning July 1, 2023, and would define menstrual hygiene products to additionally include menstrual underwear. The bill would provide that the Department of Finance is required to calculate, and the Controller is required to transfer, the total dollar amount of revenue prior to January 1, 2024, that would have been credited to the Local Revenue Fund 2011 if not otherwise exempted under the sales and use tax with respect to menstrual hygiene products, as specified. The Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and Use Tax Law authorizes counties and cities to impose local sales and use taxes in conformity with the Sales and Use Tax Law, and existing laws authorize districts, as specified, to impose transactions and use taxes in accordance with the Transactions and Use Tax Law, which generally conforms to the Sales and Use Tax Law. Amendments to the Sales and Use Tax Law are automatically incorporated into the local tax laws. Existing law requires the state to reimburse counties and cities for revenue losses caused by the enactment of sales and use tax exemptions. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding Section 2230 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse any local agencies for sales and use tax revenues lost by them pursuant to this bill. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

The Nursing Practice Act provides for the licensure and regulation of nurses by the Board of Registered Nursing within the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law also requires the board to issue temporary or expedited licenses to specified applicants who hold a current, active, and unrestricted license in another state, district, or territory of the United States, in the profession or vocation for which the applicant seeks a license from the board. This bill would require the board to consult with the department no later than July 1, 2021, and develop recommendations for the implementation of the Nursys online license verification system for verifying the licenses of California nurses seeking to practice outside the state. The bill would require the board to implement those recommendations within a reasonable period.

The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. The act defines specified terms, including, among others, district to mean an air pollution control or an air quality management district until January 1, 2031. This bill would indefinitely define district to mean an air pollution control or an air quality management district. Existing law requires the state board, to the extent feasible and necessary, to inventory sources of air pollution within the air basins of the state and to determine the kinds and quantity of air pollutants, including, among others, the contribution of natural sources. This bill would specify that the contribution of natural sources includes contribution from catastrophic wildfires, as defined. The bill would require the state board, beginning January 1, 2022, to quantify and publish annually data on emissions of greenhouse gases, criteria air pollutants, and toxic air contaminants from catastrophic wildfires on its internet website.

Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, and the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, as the 3 segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Under existing law, the board of governors appoints the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges to serve as the chief executive officer of that segment, the trustees appoint the Chancellor of the California State University to serve as the chief executive officer of that segment, and the regents appoint the President of the University of California to serve as the chief executive officer of that segment. Existing law requires, by September 1, 2019, the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, in collaboration with the Academic Senate for the California Community Colleges, to develop a consistent policy to award military personnel and veterans who have an official Joint Services Transcript course credit for California Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum, California State University General Education Breadth, or local community college general education requirements, as specified. Existing law also requires the office of the chancellor and the academic senate to review and adjust this uniform policy to align it with policies of other public postsecondary educational institutions. Existing law further requires, by December 31, 2020, each community college district to have a policy consistent with the policy developed by the chancellor, and requires each community college campus to post on its internet website the most recent policy adopted pursuant to this bill. This bill would require the Office of the Chancellor of the California State University, in collaboration with the Academic Senate of the California State University, and request the University of California, to develop, by September 1, 2021, a consistent policy to award military personnel and veterans who have an official Joint Services Transcript course credit similar to the policy developed by the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges under existing law. The bill would also require that each campus of the California State University, and request that the University of California, have, by December 31, 2022, a policy consistent with the respective policies developed by the Office of the Chancellor of the California State University and the University of California and post on its internet website the most recent policy adopted pursuant to the bill.

Existing law establishes the Department of Veterans Affairs. The department, among other services, provides veterans and their dependents and survivors with assistance in processing service-related disability claims, assistance in obtaining affordable housing, and information about health ailments associated with military service. This bill would require the department to establish a program to fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, an academic study of mental health among women veterans in California, as specified. The bill would require the department to submit a report summarizing the findings and recommendations of the study to the Legislature no later than July 31, 2022. This bill would make these provisions inoperative on July 31, 2023, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2024.

This measure would proclaim the week of March 1, 2020, to March 7, 2020, inclusive, as Women in Construction Week.

This measure would proclaim March 2, 2020, to March 6, 2020, inclusive, as School Breakfast Week.

Existing law establishes the Strategic Growth Council in state government consisting of various state agency heads and 3 public members. Existing law assigns to the council certain duties relative to the identification and review of activities and funding programs of state agencies that may be coordinated to improve air and water quality, improve natural resource protection, increase the availability of affordable housing, improve transportation, meet greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals, encourage sustainable land use planning, and revitalize urban and community centers in a sustainable manner. This bill, on or before December 31, 2021, would require the council, in consultation with stakeholders and relevant permitting agencies, to prepare and submit to the Legislature a report that provides a scoping plan for the state to meet its organic waste, climate change, and air quality mandates, goals, and targets and would require the scoping plan to include, among other things, recommendations on policy and funding support for the beneficial reuse of organic waste.

This measure would commend AMVETS Department of California on its 75th year of providing benefits and services to Veterans.